Chapter 11 Chapter Three

In the development of the Khitan nation, Han Yanhui made great contributions.He not only created the laws and regulations of the Liao Kingdom, but also was one of the most trusted right-hand men of Liao Taizu Abaoji.The reason why A Baoji trusted a Han man so much was because Han Yanhui once helped him solve one of his most troublesome problems. What was A Baoji's most troublesome thing at that time?It is the problem of the migration of the Han people to the north.During the war in the Central Plains, many Han people came to the settlements where the Khitans lived, but after coming to this place, most of them fled because they could not bear the humiliation of the Khitans treating them as slaves, and because they were not used to living in the grasslands.A Baoji was very troubled by this matter.

Once, A Baoji talked about this matter with Queen Shu, expressing that he was helpless.I have no problem managing the Khitan people. We have no experience in managing the Han people. How can we keep them?The empress said that this matter is simple, you shouldn't ask me, ask Mr. Han to ask, isn't it over?He is a Han Chinese!Abaoji suddenly realized, and sent someone to invite Han Yanhui. After Han Yanhui arrived, he told A Baoji that herding cattle and horses was not his specialty, but men farming and women weaving, iron smelting and wine making were his strengths, and they were also needed by our side.It is better to set aside land and build cities to house the Han people, and make them each have a spouse, reclaim wasteland and plow fields, grow five grains, spin yarn and weave cloth, and smelt iron to make wine.Wouldn't it be good for the king to sit back and enjoy the achievements of the Southern Expedition without lifting a finger?Besides, if the king wants to secure the world, he must secure the people and work in peace, and the security of the people is the security of the country.

After hearing these words, A Baoji sighed in admiration: Why didn't I think of this?Employers should use their strengths. If you ask the Han people to herd sheep and horses, they really won't do this.A flock of sheep ran out, and you knew which one belonged to you, how did you bring it back?If Han Yanhui was really asked to do this, he was not good at it.However, the Han people know how to weave, smelt iron, brew wine, cook salt, and build cities. They should give full play to their strengths. If these industries develop, it will be of great benefit to the development of the Khitan nation and the future development of the Khitan regime.Therefore, A Baoji accepted Han Yanhui's proposition, and set up prefectures and counties where the Khitan's ancestral home was, and built castles.A Baoji also had a special idea. In order to prevent the Han people who moved here from homesick, he built cities according to regions.For those who immigrated from one place, build a city for them, and this city will be named after their hometown. If you are from Sanhe County, I built a county here, and it is also called Sanhe County.This is a bit like the counties and counties where overseas Chinese live, which means that this city is the Sanhe Township Association. Although you live on the grassland now, once you report your home address, Sanhe County ×× Street, you will not feel homesick. Because you still live in Sanhe County now, all you see are your fellow villagers, and all you hear are local accents.In this way, you can live and work in this place in peace and contentment, as a saying in the book means "denying another country as your hometown".In the future, all the people of the Central Plains who were captured by the Khitan nobles in foreign wars will also be resettled in this way, and such states and counties will be established.Not only the state can set up prefectures and counties, but also clans, kings, etc., which means decentralization of power, to establish prefectures and counties by themselves, so that new cities will rise on the grasslands, resettle those immigrants from the Central Plains, and let the Khitan people also live in farming and settlement. Life.

Han Yanhui's idea is very good, so that the Han people can settle down in Khitan and help Khitan develop.Therefore, there is such a comment on Han Yanhui in the historical records: "Yanhui began to teach Khitan to build teeth, open houses, build city walls, and set up cities to deal with Han people, so that each has a spouse, and cultivates barren fields. Because the Han people live in peace, the fugitives The benefit is less. Khitan conquers all countries, and Yanhui will help." (Volume 269) Khitan was able to strengthen its national power and conquer all countries. Han Yanhui can be said to have made great achievements. He stabilized the chaotic situation in Khitan down.

When Khitan was about to hold the Khan re-election ceremony, Han Yanhui told Abaoji not to hold it.Because you are Khan, as long as you are called Khan, there is always a hidden danger of re-election at some point.For example, if the president is not hereditary, he will be elected every few years.What do you want hereditary to do?Changing the name to the emperor will settle the matter as soon as he proclaims himself the emperor. There is no election for the emperor. Since the unification of Qin Shihuang, it has not been heard that the emperor has a term of office. There is no such thing as electing a new emperor every four years.A Baoji understood immediately, and decided not to call himself Khan, but to be emperor instead.In 916 A.D., Abaoji officially founded the country and proclaimed himself emperor. Their general name), Abaoji called himself the Emperor of Heaven, Shulu was the Empress of the Earth, and the eldest son Yelubei was named the Crown Prince, known as the King of the Emperor.Yelubei's "bei" is already in Chinese, and his Khitan name is Yelutuyu.After the founding of the People's Republic of China, A Baoji also took the Chinese name Yeluyi, which shows that he accepted the etiquette and law of the Central Plains Dynasty.A Baoji named himself, the queen, and his son after heaven, earth, and people, and formally established the country and proclaimed himself emperor.

Looking back at the history of China before the Khitan, this was the first time that the rulers of ethnic minorities established a country on the grasslands and proclaimed themselves emperors before they entered the Central Plains.Shanyu, the ruler of the Xiongnu, and Khan, the ruler of the Xianbei, Turks, and Uighurs, etc., after they entered the Central Plains, they would imitate the system of the Central Plains, establish a country name, and proclaim themselves emperors.At this time, they had already entered the Central Plains, and only then were they influenced by the Central Plains culture, while the Khitan was established on the grasslands and proclaimed themselves emperor, and built their capital.The capital of Khitan is Shangjing, and its official name is Linhuang Mansion, which is adjacent to Huangshui (now Xilamulun River in Inner Mongolia), which is today's Bahrain Left Banner in Inner Mongolia.

Some people say that Linhuang Mansion in Shangjing is the first city established by the northern people on the grassland, which did not exist before.We used to say that the Han fought against the Xiongnu, and the Huns had no royal court in Monan, so the royal court moved to Mobei.That is obviously a tent, how can the city be moved to Mobei?In the Tang Dynasty, Li Jing and Li Da broke through the Turks and attacked the tooth tent where the Turkic Khan was. Seeing the wolf-headed flag erected in front of the tooth tent, it means that they also lived in tents.But the Khitan built a city on the grassland—of course, there are different opinions now. Some people say that the Huihe people first built a city on the grassland.The ruins of the Linhuang Mansion in Shangjing are still well preserved, and the foundations of the city walls, streets, and houses can be seen.The establishment of the Khitan capital city, the founding of the country and proclaiming the emperor marked the beginning of this nation's imitation of the Central Plains. This is a very remarkable point in the history of the development of the Khitan nation.

Why is it amazing?China has a vast territory of 9.6 million square kilometers, and there are countries larger than us. However, we look at the characteristics of the formation of China's territory. It is by no means expanding by force like some countries, but relying on advanced production methods and advanced culture to move to the edge. Regional expansion and the development and construction of the frontiers make those areas automatically belong to the Central Plains and belong to the Chinese territory. Our territory is formed naturally.The Khitans adopted the method of the Central Plains to establish the country and proclaim themselves emperor, which shows that the Khitans also regard this culture as orthodox and also regard themselves as the Central Plains Dynasty.Later, the Khitan Emperor once said something like this: "I cultivate cultural relics, and I am not different from China." ("Khitan Kingdom Chronicles" Volume 9) Our laws and regulations are the same as those of China, so which country are we from?Of course we are Chinese, and the land we are staying in is part of China.Therefore, the Khitan nation established a great empire with today's Chifeng City in Inner Mongolia as the core. These places were deeply influenced by the civilization of the Central Plains and Chinese culture, and Inner Mongolia and Northeast China remained within the territory of China.So we say that the significance of Yelu Abaoji's founding of the country and proclaiming himself emperor is not as simple as just changing his name, but its impact is very far-reaching.