Chapter 19 Chapter 19 The Core of the Song Dynasty

On the way home, Zhao Kuangyin's heart became more and more relaxed.He was getting closer to Fengfeng, and farther away from Taiyuan. After four months of swords and winds, he gradually felt that there was nothing he was dissatisfied with. Looking at the public opinion at that time, as well as the history books of later generations, most of the mentions of Song Taizu's personal conquest of the Northern Han Dynasty were "returning without success" or "returning in defeat", so that the soldiers and courtiers who walked with him at this time were all very angry. Be extra careful, for fear of causing his evil fire to rise and cause their front teeth to fall.

But Zhao Kuangyin's mood is so beautiful - he took advantage of it.Even the current result is far better than winning Taiyuan and occupying the entire Northern Han Dynasty, it is simply wonderful. Think about it, if you win Taiyuan, you will directly border Khitan.Even if the Khitans don't counterattack with all their strength, he will have to deploy a large number of troops on the border to defend, and the pressure will only increase.In that case, how many fingers can he spare to kill the Southern Tang, Southern Han, and so many small separatist groups in the South one by one? How ideal the situation is now, the Northern Han Dynasty is finished, like a completely rotten house, if they go over and kick it at any time, it will collapse immediately.But this "broken house" is still playing an important function of isolating Khitan for him, allowing him to attack the south again with confidence.Could there be a better result than this?

So, when Zhao Kuangyin returned to Kaifeng, no matter what others saw or thought, his mood was floating in the clouds.All he has to do is to take a break first, and then reorganize his various functional departments to prepare for the next expansion.At this time, we have to talk about the other half of Zhao Kuangyin's private enterprise - Wen Chen. Everyone on earth knows that the Song Dynasty was a paradise for literati, and everything started with Zhao Kuangyin's founding spirit.However, there are countless signs and examples that can prove that Zhao Kuangyin looked down on those bookworms from the bottom of his heart. The reason why he used literati, and even condoned literati to bully generals, was completely "the lesser of two evils".

Just like the famous saying he said - even if the literati I send to the local government are bastards, they are not as harmful as a general who rebelled in the local area! He despised literati, and even laughed at his most trusted and close Zhao Pu. It is said that one day, two big men surnamed Zhao were walking together, and the bigger one suddenly pointed upwards—hey, why is the word "Zhi" added after the word "Zhuque" in "Zhuquemen"? Although Zhao Pu said that he hadn't read many books, he still understood this, so he said it casually - auxiliary words.

Unexpectedly, all he got in return was a cold snort——huh, it's just like that, how can it help! In order to prove that it is natural for them to enjoy life from the root, the very proud civil servants in the Song Dynasty deliberately found Zhao Kuangyin's words of admiration for literati in the past, to prove that everything is inferior, only reading is high.The thing is like this, in the third year of Qiande, that is, in 965 AD, the Song Dynasty pacified Houshu, and when transporting treasures to the sealed pile warehouse behind the Jiangwu Hall, they found a side engraved with "Casted in the Four Years of Qiande". bronze mirror.Now Zhao Kuangyin is a little hairy, I have only been in Qiande for three years, how come there are four years?what happened?Is it a bad omen?or what more...

The more I think about it, the more evil I become, but no one can tell the reason.At this time, Dou Yi, a well-known Hanlin scholar, came out slowly and said something - Wang Yan of the former Shu also used the "Qiande" year name, which was something at that time. So Zhao Kuangyin relaxed instantly, and after the climax, he felt lucky—oh, the prime minister still wants to use scholars. With this sentence, it has been on the line since then, and it has become an unshakable dead rule for Zhao Kuangyin and his successors in the past to use literati as prime ministers to manage the country.It can be seen how shameless the literati in the Song Dynasty were, and the incompetence of the historians who have been emphasizing this sentence for so many years in later generations.

Because Zhao Kuangyin's words at that time can be accurately understood as—fuck, it seems that Mr. Chao Feng who chooses the pawnshop still needs to use scholars! What is the relationship between identifying antiques and governing the country?Just like the head of a child was harder back then, what did it have to do with being an emperor if he didn't crash to death on the city gate? Of course, those civil servants later were completely different from the civil servants at this time. Their most important weapon and credit was nothing more than writing memorials with pens or standing on the temple to make speeches. Each of them dared to play freely , Give full play, because everyone knows well that the biggest consequence is to go to the local government to travel at public expense, and you will never be decapitated, even the board and the whip.

But the current civil servants are different. Each of them has blood on their hands and hearts, and they are always thinking about how to kill people and beware of being killed by others.They are no different from military generals except that they don't have much strength and can't kill people in person. Therefore, in addition to reforming the army and withdrawing from Jiezhen, Zhao Kuangyin also had to redefine how civil servants should live and work. Three Disciplines, One Attention The number of officials and functional departments in the Song Dynasty is as follows: the first is the central department, and there are three provinces and twenty-four divisions.

Three Provinces: Zhongshu Province, Privy Council, and Three Divisions; Six Departments: Officials, Households, Rites, Soldiers, Penalties, and Workers; Twenty-Four Divisions: Ministry of Officials - Ministry of Officials, Ministry of Officials, Ministry of Honor, and Kaogong; Ministry of Households - Ministry of Households, Ministry of Duzhi, Ministry of Gold, and Ministry of Warehouses; Ministry of Rites - Ministry of Rites, Ministry of Sacrifice, Ministry of Host and Guest, Ministry of Food; Ministry of War ——Military Department, Staff Party, Driving Department, Treasury Department; Punishment Department—Punishment Department, Capital Officer, Bi Department, Simen; Industry Department—Working Department, Tuntian, Yu Department, and Water Department.

Then there is the local government, which is divided into levels. In the Song Dynasty, there were three levels: roads, states (fu, army, supervisor), and counties.In Zhao Kuangyin's period, "Road" was not called Road, but "Tao".The whole country is divided into thirteen departments, and there are "Caosi, Xiansi, Cangsi, and Shuaisi" in the road-level units.Other states, prefectures, military, prisons, and counties also have their own titles of principal and deputy, with clear levels. Is the above a little messy?What I want to explain first is that most of them are the same as those in the Tang Dynasty, and they have even been used by later generations, such as six departments and twenty-four divisions.But others are full of Zhao Kuangyin's personal wisdom and his special needs and hobbies.

First of all, why are there "three provinces"?Before the Tang Dynasty, there were only prime ministers but no three provinces.Among the three provinces, the Zhongshu Province is the highest administrative body, the Privy Council is the highest military body, and the Third Division is the highest financial body.To put it bluntly, it means power, soldiers, and wealth. In the past, the prime minister had the final say. But it can't work here for Zhao Kuangyin. Zhao Pu once told him before that the best way to deal with the feudal towns in the world and prevent them from rebelling is nothing more than "taking away their power, controlling their money, and recruiting their elite soldiers." It was self-inflicted, Zhao Kuangyin suddenly paid back this set, and put it all on him.First of all, the power, soldiers, and wealth in the power of the prime minister are divided, and then divided layer by layer. The establishment of all departments and the deployment of officials are carried out in accordance with the "three major disciplines". For example, after the distribution of the prime minister's power, first assign a secretary to the boss of Zhongshu Province "Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi"-Shen Zhizhengshi (a few years later, he will be on an equal footing with the head); There are even more deputies, and even the names can be linked to the qualifications of each; the boss of the third division, "the third division envoy", is better. (financial revenue and expenditure, grain transportation, etc.), household department (hukou, taxation, liquor, etc.).They were all trivial matters, and they were destined to be just a small and troublesome role. Continue to carry out the spirit and go down to the level of "Tao".The director of the Tao is called "transshipment envoy", who is in charge of the transfer of wealth within a road. At first, he used it to seize the money and grain of the feudal town, but later even he was suspected, because after a long time, the transfer envoy no matter what his name was , it itself has the power of the Tang Dynasty vassal town.That's why the establishment of "Caosi, Xiansi, Cangsi, and Shuaisi" was established to compare transfer, punishment, and promotion to Changping (that is, new laws, water conservancy, tea and salt, etc. within one supervision department) and Shuaisi. In particular, its chief is called a comfort envoy, who is in charge of military affairs.These have divided the power of the transfer envoy. Not to mention the officials of the prefectures, prefectures, and counties below. The "Tong San" sent by Jiapai is their nemesis. I'll watch over you! Seeing this, you should understand that Zhao Kuangyin's job is not so good, right?But this is not over, there is the more important "one note" - defense. The systems of the functional departments are all set up, but how to control the specific officials who handle the affairs?Don't worry, the talent shown by Zhao Kuangyin here has stunned all the emperors in the past. He came to a separation of official, post, and job. When you become an official, no matter how big the official name is, it does not mean that you are someone.That just means what level you have reached and how much money you can take home every month.So it is very aptly called "Jiluguan"; and the position is of no practical use, it is just an honorary title, and only you are sent.Well, in this way, you really have an official, a job, and power... But, don't be happy, everything is temporary, at any time, a dear friend will come over suddenly and tell you that you can go home for a rest Here comes my errand. So you have to step aside, start all over again, and wait again. In addition, the Song Dynasty also had the Shenguan Yuan (to assess the officials of the Beijing Dynasty) and the Kekeyuan (to assess the officials and local officials), responsible for the assessment of officials, which was called Mokan at that time.One exam a year, three exams for one term.But be careful, it is not about your political achievements, but about your faults.As long as you don't make mistakes, you can get promoted.How about it?Do you understand why the officials of the Song Dynasty are so mature and prudent? There is also Yushitai.This is really tiring work. Please note that the officials in the Song Dynasty are not like the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty spoke directly to the emperor and found fault with the emperor.But in the Song Dynasty, you had to turn your back on the emperor, face your colleagues, and identify the direction of the main attack.And there are all sorts of hard and fast rules.For example, it is stipulated that there must be at least one performance every month, which is called "monthly class".If there is no rectification within 100 days, he will be dismissed and demoted, or fined for "disgraceful money", and as long as he dares to play, no matter whether it is true or not, he will be rewarded! Understand why the officials of the Song Dynasty dared to speak so much, and kept talking so much. As mentioned above, there are still many things that have not been mentioned, so let’s take our time in the future.In a word, go admire Zhao Kuangyin, his novelty and creativity are endless, but as long as you stick to the "three disciplines, one attention", you can probably understand how he crossed the river by feeling the stones and DIYed his own country up. But the problem still exists, the official position has been fixed, the duties have been clearly defined, who will be in charge?At this time, we must bear in mind that before China entered the middle of the 19th century, regardless of whether it was always shouting about "the prince broke the law and the same crime as the common people" or "the national law is ruthless and everyone is equal", it was actually "rule of man" rather than "rule of law". Therefore, how to choose this "person" has become the biggest headache of being an emperor. How to do it?We all know that there is such a thing as "scientific examination". If you pass the examination, you will be appointed as an official. The emperor will wait for you in the capital every three years. All you have to do is ten years or decades. , review and review the exam content (it’s just a few books anyway), then official uniforms and money (and beauties) will fall from the sky and hit you accurately. But the question is, is that really the case? Yes, but also no.It all depends on when you were born.If it is unfortunate that you were born before the Sui Dynasty, to be precise, before the Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty who lost his family property at an unprecedented speed, then you will be miserable.In that case, if you want to be an official and serve the country, there is only one way to go, that is, you must have a good relationship with Lord Yama and discuss it in advance, so that you will be reborn into the belly of some very few noble ladies from noble families .This is the only way, there is no other way. Before the Sui Dynasty, all dynasties were in despair. It was not until the Wei and Jin Dynasties that they became a little more enlightened. At that time, there was a system called "Nine Ranks Zhongzheng System".The so-called nine ranks are up-up, up-middle, down-down, middle-upper, middle-middle, middle-low, down-up, down-middle, and down-down.Annoying, isn't it?Hey, if you are there, it is definitely not a word "annoying", you have to always be careful of the "Zhongzheng" behind it. Zhongzheng refers to the person sent by the country to evaluate what kind of product you are, but the most important thing is, what does he use to measure you?Use "shape", that is, the general evaluation of your morality, talent, family background, etc.To give an example, in the Western Jin Dynasty, when Zhongzheng Wang Ji "appeared" to Sun Chushi, that's what he said - Tiancai Yingbo, brilliant and outstanding. With these eight words, this person has been on the rise in his life, and he can be honored to worry about and work hard for the country. Therefore, in that era, everyone dreamed of being "liked" by others. At the time of Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty, the dark cloud that hung over the heads of all ordinary people for life and could only be the oppressed for generations finally cracked a little bit of crack.The emperor, who dared and was willing to be the first to do anything in the world, ordered that it is fair to get ahead, and whoever has the ability will come out, and everyone can take the test fairly. But this is probably just a small episode in his many whim-like new wave movements, and he didn't implement it very seriously, not to mention that his country fell so fast... But it was all remembered by Tian Khan Li Shimin. The Tang Dynasty really started the imperial examination, but it is very regrettable, no matter how loud the great people of the Tang Dynasty chanted slogans, such as - open up talents, and equality between nobles and commoners.But the real implementation is completely out of shape.According to a statistic, there were 251 champions in the Tang Dynasty, 139 of whom could be identified, and 74 of whom could be identified. Of these 74, they came from bureaucratic families. Sixty-nine people accounted for 92%, and among them, fifty-nine people had relatively prominent family backgrounds, accounting for 79.73%.There are only five people from relatively "poor" backgrounds, accounting for 8%. What kind of family background are those people with prominent family background?Among them, there are 4 people in the "royal clan"; five people after Confucius; Understand?This is the scientific research of the Tang Dynasty. In fact, it is the redistribution of power within the upper class. This made Zhao Kuangyin, a real commoner with roots in Hongmiaozheng, very angry. There is a view that since the Five Dynasties Rebellion, China's splendid civilization has declined from the pinnacle of the world.But there is one thing, from the perspective of the evolution of the scientific examination system, this is a good thing. From the perspective of historical progress, the rebellion of the Five Dynasties and the disintegration of the two previous Jin Dynasties have completely changed the social structure of China. They have been firmly pressed on the heads of the people before, and they have the right to eat, drink and play, and bring disaster to the country and the people. Overthrow them one by one.Those who replaced them were the strongmen of the feudal town who only regarded their strength as their own.Since then, people no longer pay attention to their origins. Only true heroes who stand up in the vast world with their own hands and feet, from low to high, and climb all the way, kicking away all competitors, can be truly respected. Such as Liu Zhiyuan, Guo Wei, Chai Rong and Zhao Kuangyin.And they, seeing the world in front of them more clearly, set the goal of selecting talents for the country to the broad masses of ordinary people. In the Song Dynasty, starting from Zhao Kuangyin, the children of any clan and officials were not allowed to go to the examination room, and the public recommendation system was abolished, which fundamentally eliminated the possibility of officials protecting each other and cheating in scientific examinations.According to records, only in the last years of the Northern Song Dynasty did Huizong's son Zhao Kai take part in the imperial examination. The No. 1 pick was replaced after unpacking.In addition, there is no direct family member of the current prime minister to enter the examination, and there are very few candidates who have direct family members who hold the fourth rank and above. The environment has improved, so as a fresh candidate, how should I take the exam? It is very simple, far less complicated and cumbersome than the later Ming and Qing scientific examinations. At first, there were only two levels of examinations.At the first level, you have to pass the examinations held in various states, and then you can go to Beijing to report to the Ministry of Rites. This is the provincial examination, which is the second level.Generally speaking, if you pass the provincial exam, everything will be fine for you.However, Zhao Kuangyin noticed something went wrong in the sixth year of Kaibao, that is, in 973 AD, so he decided to be an examiner himself to choose people he really liked. This is the imperial examination. Since then, in all dynasties, the palace examination has become the highest level of the imperial examination system, which is the last pass.As long as the palace test is also successful, the officials can be kicked aside and directly become an official.And since then, your value has doubled, and you have become a student of the emperor (again, it is the emperor who tested you), so there is no need (not to mention) to recognize the examiner as a teacher, and you are not allowed to be an accomplice of the same year, lest you will be linked with each other for the rest of your life , to dismantle the emperor's platform. This kind of exam is held every three years, and the content of the exam is not trivial, not just the few thousand-year-old books in people's conventional consciousness.Since the Tang Dynasty, there have been more than 50 kinds of examination categories such as scholar, Mingjing, Jinshi, Junshi, Mingfa, Mingzi, and Mingshu. Among them, Mingfa, Mingshu, Mingzi and other subjects are not valued by people.Classes such as Junshi were held infrequently, and the subject of Xiucai was very demanding in the early Tang Dynasty, but it was gradually abolished later.Therefore, the two subjects of Ming Jing and Jinshi became the main subjects of the scientific examinations in Tang and Song Dynasties.Among them, Jinshi is the most important. Most of the prime ministers in Tang and Song Dynasties were the winners of Jinshi. why?Because the "Mingjing" is really a ridiculous and disgusting thing, to put it bluntly, it is a fill-in-the-blank question.Cover both sides of the ancient scriptures and leave the middle blank. If you can fill it out, you will pass the test. The slightly higher one is "Moyi", which is a standard interpretation of the scriptures. In fact, as long as you memorize the annotations of the scriptures That's it.Everything is purely rote. As for a Jinshi, you not only need to test your poems and songs, but also write about current literature and politics, which are all real talents and real learning, and you have to show them on the spot.So it's worth it.But that's it, and over time, it still becomes impractical.When the strong man in the Song Dynasty who ignored all monsters, ghosts, snakes and gods and ancestral family laws, even the gods of heaven and earth was born, Jinshi became a pediatric department. Because the problem is obvious and extremely sharp-who stipulated that a country can be managed well by writing a few lines of poetry?As Zhao Kuangyin said back then, "What is it that helps?" But that's all for later, everyone should work hard at this time, reading is the last word.You can "be Tian Shelang in the morning and go to the Tianzitang in the evening".And people all over China, I emphasize again, all people born in China, know that "the book has its own Yan Ruyu, the book has its own golden house, and the book has its own thousand bell millet", right? Please read the original text as follows--rich families don’t need to buy fertile land, the book has thousands of millet; there is no need to raise a high hall to live in, the book has its own golden house; there is no need to hate going out without a car, there are many horses in the book; there is no need to marry a wife without a matchmaker Hate, there is a woman Yan Ruyu in the book; the man wants to fulfill his life ambition, and reads the Six Classics frequently in front of the window. Very nagging, very nursery rhymes, right?But be careful, never listen to the song and laugh, otherwise you will be judged guilty of being rude, the whole family, the whole clan... Hehehehe.Because the person who wrote it was... Song Zhenzong Zhao Heng who "inspired the ancient magic skills of Fuji to make the emperor of virtue, civilization, Wu Dingzhang, sage and filial piety", and even God and the Supreme Lord kept meeting and talking with him.