One day in the second year of the Jianlong reign of the Northern Song Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin, the founder of the Song Dynasty, left behind high-ranking imperial generals such as Shi Shouxin and Gao Huaide to drink together. After drinking until they were half drunk, Emperor Taizu of the Song Dynasty hinted that the generals should let go of their military power and return home with their salaries to retire. The generals were panicked and resigned due to illness. This was the bloodless incident of Emperor Taizu’s release of military power through the cup of wine. The strength of imperial power has always been related to the military. Why did the founding emperor of the Song Dynasty choose such a governance strategy that emphasizes literature and suppresses military power? From the Great Rebellion to the Great Rule, it has always been a classic drama repeated in Chinese history. The just ended Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms was one of the great chaotic times in Chinese history where the chaotic subjects and thieves swarmed together. In the late Tang Dynasty, those military governors who supported and valued themselves established numerous feudal regimes in the south and north of China, fighting against each other, and the dynasties changed like faces, causing the people to suffer greatly. As Zhao Kuangyin himself came to power through the intervention of military personnel, his intervention of military personnel brought benefits to the country and the people. The disaster he experienced was particularly profound. In order to ensure the long-term stability of the world, he believed that it was necessary to completely curb the interference of military officials in politics and let civil officials govern the country. It is said that Emperor Taizu of Song once erected an oath tablet in the temple, The descendants who inherited the throne were not allowed to indiscriminately kill literati and officials in charge of affairs. The subsequent emperors also followed the concept of governing the country through culture. As a result, literati ushered in a golden age of self-cultivation, family harmony, governance, and world peace.
Qingming Shangheyuan Park, Kaifeng City, Henan Province
For literati and officials who advocate Confucianism, the Song Dynasty was undoubtedly a beautiful era. Compared with the Tang Dynasty, most officials in the Song Dynasty had the characteristics of scholars, poets, painters, and politicians. Even ordinary people loved cultural activities such as opera and lingered in this Qingming Shanghe Garden, which restored the scenic spots of Bianliang in the past. It is not difficult for people to imagine the scene of the capital city of the Song Dynasty, where there were numerous restaurants, prosperous markets, and rich cultural life.
Henan Kaifeng Baogong Research Association – Li Liangxue: Taking the capital city of the Northern Song Dynasty, Kaifeng, as an example, with a population of 1.5 million, it was already a leading metropolis in the world at that time. The largest city at that time was Kyoto in Japan with 200000 people, and the largest Arab country was Baghdad in Iraq with 300000 people. No other European or American capital had a population exceeding 100000. Therefore, the prosperity and development of Kaifeng depended on the policy of the Northern Song court and literati jointly governing the country.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: The cultural and cultural level of the Song Dynasty was not only unparalleled in the world at that time, but also at the pinnacle of the cultural and cultural development of the Chinese nation. For example, literary history of Song poetry can be compared to Tang poetry. Song poetry and Tang poetry are two sides in a standoff, and there is also popular literature and maritime technology in the Song Dynasty. You can look back at all aspects, as well as economic development. Due to political tolerance, cultural development, and significant technological progress, mainly in agricultural technology, the entire Song society, at least for a certain period of time, once presented a very desirable and beautiful state. If Chinese people want to look back, I think it is a golden age.
Since Emperor Taizu of Song, the Song Dynasty has implemented a basic national policy of 300 years, which is the Right Writing Policy. It values the imperial examination system, provides high political treatment and generous salaries to literati, attaches great importance to cultural development, establishes schools, develops book collection, compilation, and printing. This is a basic national policy established by the Song Dynasty during the separatist period of the late Tang and Five Dynasties, in order to conform to the hearts of the people. With the protection of the Right Writing Policy and the innocent admonishments, the subject consciousness of literati is unprecedentedly awakened. At that time, there were many talented individuals, and many literati were able to truly take the world as their own responsibility. This was a situation where Emperor Taizu and his successors actively suppressed imperial power. It is truly rare in the rule of feudal emperors throughout history. Emperor Taizu of Song released military power by drinking wine to prevent military officials from meddling in politics, and began to adopt an open and tolerant attitude towards literati. Emperor Taizong of Song truly promoted culture from a systemic and policy perspective, making literati highly valued. Later, Emperor Zhenzong of Song continued this policy. As a result, it was not until Emperor Renzong of Song that the grand scene of co governing the world with literati was ushered in.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: In fact, if you want to see the culture of the Song Dynasty, from the late Tang and Five Dynasties to the early Song Dynasty, his level, which is the level of those cultural figures, is actually very limited. However, when it was promoted like this in the Taizong Dynasty, and then in the Zhenzong Dynasty, this policy continued. When it was in the Renzong Dynasty, it was suddenly different. Culture is very important to accumulate, you cannot destroy it, you cannot be anxious, you need to let it grow slowly, that is a cultural change. When we see this thing, we really need to look at a long journey, which is to see Taizu, Taizong, and Zhenzong all the way. Renzong, at this time in the great environment, where have there been policies of freedom, encouragement, tolerance, and encouragement since the Jin Dynasty, However, the right-wing policy also brought about a sensitive issue that troubled the imperial class, which is the phenomenon of cliques. At first, a group of people colluded with each other for personal gain. Later, it was extended to mean that scholars and officials belonged to different factions and engaged in conflicts with each other. Eventually, it evolved into fellow party members who resorted to any means to falsely accuse non party members, resulting in false accusations and false accusations. The phenomenon of a clique is by no means auspicious for rulers.
Professor You Biao from the School of History of Beijing Normal University: There are some people with similar interests, and when these officials are combined, they are a kind of clique. In Chinese history, these cliques have had a great political impact on ancient Chinese society.
Professor Bao Weimin from the Department of History at Renmin University of China: The term “fandang” is a derogatory term. Without a doubt, why is the issue of “fandang” so sensitive in our ancient times, as well as in the Song Dynasty? Why is it so sensitive? It harms imperial power. Under the emperor’s vision, all officials cannot form small groups because forming small groups is to serve the interests of your small group. You will no longer serve the emperor, right? All fandang were particularly sensitive at that time.
In the hundred years from Emperor Taizong of Song to Emperor Renzong of Song, the issue of cliques became an increasingly prominent dream in national politics. It gradually formed during the political interaction between several emperors with different personalities and talents and different groups of literati in the early Song Dynasty. During this process, the phenomenon of cliques also showed different forms. Emperor Taizong of Song, who succeeded to the throne of Emperor Taizu, was naturally suspicious, always personally involved in everything, monopolized power, and the bureaucratic team obeyed and obeyed. Only the emperor was obedient. Although Emperor Taizong strongly advocated cultural governance and recruited officials from the imperial examinations, the form was more effective than the actual effect. Although the political status of the officials was high, their willpower did not correspondingly improve. The problem of cliques was accompanied by the promotion of their subjective consciousness and the drive of their respective interests and demands. At the beginning, it was revealed that in the third year of the Taiping Xingguo reign, Hu Dan and others, who were successful candidates in the Wu Yin imperial examination, formed a clique for personal gain and repelled dissidents. As a result, they were fiercely attacked by senior officials. Later, Hu Dan and others were all exiled from the capital by Emperor Taizong of Song on charges of being friends with the Zhou dynasty, with one emperor and one courtier. Emperor Zhenzong was the third son of Emperor Taizong. During the reign of Emperor Zhenzong, after signing an alliance with Liao, the internal and external situation became relatively stable. However, many people believed that the treaty signed between Emperor Zhenzong and Liao was very humiliating, and the morale of the people was extremely low. In order to sort out public opinion, some court officials led by Prime Minister Wang Qinruo pondered the thoughts of Emperor Zhenzong and staged a farce of the Heavenly Book and the Sealing of Zen.
Mount Taishan, the eastern mountain, has been regarded as the best mountain in the world since ancient times. The emperors of the world should go to Mount Taishan to worship the heaven and the earth before they are appointed by the heaven. Fengchan is a large-scale ceremony for the ancient emperors to worship the heaven and the earth in the peaceful and prosperous times or when the heaven falls auspicious. The Dai Temple at the foot of Mount Taishan was built in the Western Han Dynasty. It is the place where the ancient emperors lived and held the grand ceremony when they came to Mount Taishan to worship the god of Mount Taishan, the eastern mountain.
In order to stabilize his throne, Emperor Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty ordered his prime minister, Wang Qinruo, to be at the summit of Mount Taishan Mountain, and he sent down a piece of heavenly script. What does it say? It was said that the Mount Taishan God invited Emperor Zhenzong of Song Dynasty to Mount Taishan to offer sacrifices, so he came to Mount Taishan with this farce and built the Tianni Hall and Bixia Temple on the top of the mountain.
Wang Qinruo, who was accused of being one of the Five Ghosts in the court, Ding claimed that he was all from the south. Due to his active participation in creating the farce of the Heavenly Book and the Sealing of Zen, he gained special trust from Emperor Zhenzong of Song. They colluded with each other in pursuit of power, repelled the righteous officials in the court, and made the court politics chaotic. These southern scholars’ evil of courting the monarch encouraged Song Zhenzong’s Mount Taishan Zen, which led to the waste of money and labor, the emptiness of the national treasury, and widespread complaints. In the eyes of the upright men in the north, the southern scholars almost became synonymous with villains.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: You must think about where Song came from. Song was a northern political power, which came from the Liang, Tang, Jin, Han, and Zhou dynasties, followed by the Later Zhou dynasty. Its previous ruling elites, most of the ruling group, whether emperors or generals, came from the north, including those literati. But gradually, this country grew larger and included the south, especially the Southern Tang dynasty. What is the characteristic of the Southern Tang dynasty? It has a developed culture, and as a country’s public security has lasted for a long time, it must think about cultural construction. Most of the resources for cultural construction may come from the south, so there must be an earliest core. Then slowly southerners come in, and when they have disputes, sometimes the region will be highlighted as a factor.
Yongzhaoling, Gongyi City, Henan Province
Renzong was the fourth inner emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty, reigning for 42 years. He was the longest reigning emperor of the two Song dynasties and was regarded as a typical successor to the Wen dynasty. During his reign, the court was filled with talented people, and the civil and military groups enjoyed a high political status. It was during the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song that the situation of emperors and literati co governing the world, which was widely discussed by later generations, emerged in Chinese history. As the saying goes, literati tend to neglect each other, while scholars and officials participate in politics, which inevitably triggers more political struggles. The political struggles during the reign of Emperor Renzong were mainly manifested in two forms: one was the confrontation between the elders and the newcomers, and the other was the conflict within the reformists due to different personal styles of behavior. The so-called senior officials refer to the former courtiers of the previous dynasty, who are mostly cautious and cautious, and usually have an almost instinctive barrier and hostility towards new people and events. Xinjin refers to the young talents who entered the imperial examination system after Emperor Renzong of Song, especially the three successful candidates during the Tian Sheng era. Among them, Han Qi, Wen Yanbo, Bao Zheng, Ouyang Xiu, Zeng Gongliang, Song Qi, Yu Jing, Cai Xiang, and others became a generation of famous officials in the history of the Song Dynasty. Fan Zhongyan was the representative figure of these newly promoted scholars.
Fan Zhongyan Memorial Hall, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province
Although Fan Zhongyan was a jinshi during the reign of Emperor Zhenzong, he was a pioneering figure in the political arena of the Song Dynasty. History books say that whenever he was inspired to discuss the affairs of the world, he disregarded his own interests and could be regarded as an eternal model of literati. However, such a gentleman who harbors the world and is full of righteousness still finds it difficult to avoid being caught up in the vortex of so-called factional disputes.
Yueyang Tower, Yueyang City, Hunan Province
On the banks of the misty and vast Dongting Lake, the famous Yueyang Tower is located on the west gate wall of Yueyang City, Hunan Province today. It was written in the sixth year of the Qingli reign in the Yueyang Tower Chronicle, which was written by Fan Zhongyan. However, he himself did not climb the Yueyang Tower. After his friend Teng Zijing rebuilt the Yueyang Tower, he hoped that Fan Zhongyan could write a memorial article and only sent a picture of the autumn evening of Dongting as a reference. Fan Zhongyan used the scenery to describe emotions and wrote an ancient saying: first worry about the world, then enjoy the joy of the world. This is not only a declaration of his involvement in politics, but also a condensed spiritual pursuit of the literati.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: Fan Zhongyan is one of the outstanding figures among the new type of literati. He is a very representative figure, and he attaches great importance to the responsibility of bureaucrats. The line Fan Zhongyan shouted, “First worry about the world, then enjoy the world,” represents the sense of responsibility of literati in the mid Northern Song Dynasty. They believe that they are the main body of this country, and it is this sense of subjectivity that makes the sense of ownership very strong.
In the winter solstice of the seventh year of the Tian Sheng reign, the imperial court held a grand ceremony for suburban worship. Emperor Renzong of Song planned to lead a hundred officials to congratulate Empress Dowager Liu on her birthday first, and then go to the Tian’an Hall to receive the court. However, Fan Zhongyan, who was then the head of the secret court, strongly opposed it, believing that Emperor Renzong only needed to perform family rituals to serve Empress Dowager Liu. Now, he must be among the officials and perform the ritual of worshipping the north, which is detrimental to the monarch’s physique and the authority of the lord, and cannot be used as a law for future generations. Moreover, he openly demanded that the Empress Dowager return to politics. As a result, Fan Zhongyan offended Empress Dowager Liu and was demoted from the court. In the second year of the Mingdao reign, Empress Liu passed away, and Emperor Renzong personally ruled. Fan Zhongyan was summoned back to the capital to serve as an advisor. Many people were taking the opportunity to speak ill of the Empress Dowager, and Fan Zhongyan was very worried about this. He advised Emperor Renzong that the Empress Dowager had been blessed by the late emperor for more than ten years, and should thank her for her great virtue and not entangle her. For those minor mistakes, Emperor Renzong took his advice and ordered the world not to criticize the actions of the Empress Dowager during her reign. He said three things and four things, thus avoiding a political dispute. Compared with the older generation of bureaucratic politicians, this group of newcomers represented by Fan Zhongyan were in their prime, full of vigor, and full of vigor When faced with difficulties, they dare to speak up and act recklessly. They not only point their fingers at conservative elderly politicians, but also dare to express their opinions in front of the emperor to defend Confucian political morality and ethical norms.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: Fan Zhongyan actually boasted of his loyalty. His loyalty was not towards the person on the throne, but towards whom. He was towards the country and the long-term interests of the imperial court represented by the emperor. This is called loyalty. The position where Da Zhong stands is higher than the emperor. Why can he criticize the emperor? He can criticize the prime minister. He always does what he thinks is right, not what the prime minister wants him to do. This is actually not a very individual quality. This is a common quality among the literati of that generation or even two generations of the Song Dynasty. Of course, I am not talking about all of them, but about the part with the best, but as long as there are still those who are excellent, still there, and can still rise up, and even go to the upper echelons of society, this country is very hopeful.
Professor Bao Weimin from the Department of History at Renmin University of China: In terms of political ideals, I believe that a doctor should be like this. He worries about his people when he is high in the temple, and about his ruler when he is far away in the martial arts world. He always regards national politics as his own and ultimate concern.
In December of the second year of the Ming Dynasty, with the support and instigation of Prime Minister Lv Yijian, Emperor Renzong deposed the Empress Guo family. The news spread and public opinion erupted. Since the establishment of the Northern Song Dynasty, there had never been an event of deposing the Empress. Fan Zhongyan and the Imperial Censor Kong Daofu believed that deposing the Empress had always been the work of a foolish ruler. Renzong’s actions were tantamount to self destruction of the Holy Ming Dynasty, so he led the Taiwan Censorate to persuade the emperor. The cunning Lv Yijian instructed them to speak directly to the emperor in the palace the next day, and immediately reported that the Imperial Censor, the Censorate, and the Fu Ge should be correct. This was not the case. In a peaceful and prosperous era, they should be exiled. In the early morning of this day, before Fan Zhongyan and Kong Daofu could go to court, the imperial attendants sent a decree. Fan Zhongyan and others were all demoted to external officials and could be escorted out of Beijing to take office. At the same time, the court also ordered that Taiwan’s advisory officials be prohibited from gathering to petition.
Kaifeng City Appearance, Kaifeng City, Henan Province
Longting Park, Kaifeng City, Henan Province
The Longting Park, located in Kaifeng City, Henan Province today, is the site of the imperial city of the Northern Song Dynasty. The fierce old and new duel between Fan Zhongyan and Lv Yijian took place here. In March of the second year of Jingyou, Fan Zhongyan was appointed as a member of the Ministry of Rites and returned to the capital to work. At this time, Lv Yijian had been the prime minister for many years. In Fan Zhongyan’s view, although Lv Yijian was in the position of participating in politics, she blindly obeyed the Empress Dowager who was in power at that time and never raised any objections to her excessive authoritarianism. After Emperor Renzong took over the throne, he was appointed as a member of the Ministry of Rites and other positions, and returned to the capital to serve. At this time, Lv Yijian had been the prime minister for many years. In Fan As an accomplice, in a hundred official portrait presented to Emperor Renzong, Fan Zhongyan specified in detail which officials were transferred normally and which included the private intentions of Lv Yijian. He then suggested to Emperor Renzong that the power to appoint ministers and officials should be in the hands of the emperor, Unable to hand it all over to the prime minister, Lv Yijian was very displeased and mocked the Fan family in front of Emperor Renzong, who was corrupt and had a false reputation. Fan Zhongyan immediately retaliated by writing a memorial to Emperor Renzong, accusing the powerful officials who had corrupted the court during the reign of Emperor Cheng of Han. Zhang Yu mapped out Lv Yijian, and the Lv family was furious, accusing Fan Zhongyan of three major crimes: estrangement between the monarch and officials, speaking from the Yue position, and citing friends. As a result, Fan Zhongyan was demoted again and went out to know Raozhou. Later, some people catered to Lv Yijian’s wishes and requested to establish allies in the court. List, as a warning to all officials who exceed their duties and make decisions.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: The most core of these three charges is still a clique. The clique belongs to the most deadly one, which is under the emperor’s politics. This is the dead end. If you are falsely accused of being a clique, it is basically difficult to change, and for the emperor, it is something they would rather believe.
Fan Zhongyan was demoted again, which aroused the righteous indignation of many scholars. Some officials who also served in the imperial court as Fan Zhongyan wrote a memorial to apologize for Fan’s wrongdoing, and were all punished. At that time, many officials even dared not bid farewell to Fan Zhongyan. Only Li Hong, the attendant of the Tianzhang Pavilion, and Wang Zhi, who was responsible for gathering talents and proofreading, did not avoid suspicion. When he went to the suburbs to practice for the Fan family, Wang even publicly announced that he was fortunate enough to be a good friend. Cai Xiang, the remaining governor of the Western Capital, wrote a poem called “Four Sages and One Immortal” to praise Fan Zhongyan, Yu Jing, and Yin Zhu. Ouyang Xiu, these clear streams, the warblers and cranes of the Chinese and Korean dynasties, are all generous and capable. These people started their careers in Confucianism and galloped through the ages, leaving nothing behind. This poem spread throughout the capital for a while, and even the Khitan envoys bought the paper containing this poem and posted it at the Youzhou post office, demonstrating its great influence. In this political turmoil, as newcomers to the political arena, the strength and popularity of Fan Zhongyan and others were far from being able to compete with the senior officials represented by Lv Yijian.
Afterwards, Emperor Renzong of Song never forgot to guard against cliques and repeatedly declared that it was strictly prohibited for officials to overstep their positions and speak out. This was undoubtedly a setback compared to the enlightened attitude he showed at the beginning of his pro politics. Although the new forces were temporarily suppressed, the performance of the elderly politicians did not satisfy Emperor Renzong of Song. With the increasingly serious internal and external troubles, Emperor Renzong felt that the old officials were no longer useful, and those officials who were demoted on charges of cliques, especially Fan Zhongyan, not only did not lose face, but also gained a good reputation among the literati. Emperor Renzong began to have some doubts about the view that cliques are petty people. So in 1040 AD, Emperor Renzong announced the renaming of Kangding and reinstated Fan Zhongyan to be responsible for defense in the northwest region. At the same time, he abolished the ban on exceeding his official duties and allowed internal and external officials to discuss the political gains and losses of the court through memorial. Afterwards, a large number of newly appointed scholars and officials were highly valued, and in this context, the Qingli New Policy began.
In the third year of the Qingli reign, the government was reorganized, and some political newcomers who advocated reform, such as Fan Zhongyan, Han Qi, and Fu Bi, entered the ruling ranks. They respectively presented reform suggestions to Emperor Renzong in a memorial, with the core content being to rectify the governance of officials, promote talents, and dismiss unqualified officials. Fan Zhongyan also proposed ways and methods to reform the governance of officials from longer-term aspects such as strengthening legal construction and reforming the electoral system. This is the Qingli New Policy.
Henan Kaifeng Baogong Research Association – Li Liangxue: The reform of the official system is actually an anti-corruption campaign against vested interests.
Professor You Biao from the School of History at Beijing Normal University: Its core is to limit the privileges of officials, and to impose various benefits on them. However, it is necessary to limit their excessive and excessive privileges.
The new policy aimed directly at the various drawbacks of the bureaucratic system, which would inevitably harm the vested interests of some people. Han Qi had a premonition that once the reform was implemented, rumors would also follow. Therefore, he particularly hoped that Emperor Renzong of Song would not doubt the use of personnel, believing that only in this way can we revitalize discipline and achieve peace. Fan Zhongyan had long been conservative, and the bureaucrats mocked him for being narrow-minded. This time, he presided over the New Deal and became a target of these people’s attacks. They repeated their old tricks and still attacked the reformists in the name of allies, slandering the New Deal. At this time, several unexpected events occurred, exposing the weaknesses of the new scholars and giving them authority, leading to internal conflicts and contradictions within the reformists. All of these were timely utilized by conservative officials, causing discussions among allies to be rampant. Song Renzong was deeply frightened, and from those who suspected the New Deal to those who suspected the New Deal itself, the first of these events was the split of the Taiwan Censorate.
Zuiwengting, Chuzhou City, Anhui Province
The meaning of a drunken man is not in wine, but in the midst of mountains and rivers; The Drunken Weng Pavilion in Anhui is famous all over the world. It is located at the foot of Langya Mountain in the southwest of Chuzhou City, Anhui Province. In the sixth year of the Qingli reign, Ouyang Xiu was demoted and appointed as the Prefect of Chuzhou. Here is the record of the Drunken Weng Pavilion. Ouyang Xiu has always been Fan Zhongyan’s most steadfast supporter. In the third year of the Qingli reign, Emperor Renzong of Song adjusted the selection of officials to advise the world. Ouyang Xiu was the first choice and appointed as the Imperial Censorate. At the beginning of his tenure, he was very active, always reporting and impeaching officials without any hesitation. However, at the beginning of his new policy, the most frequently attacked was actually the Imperial Censorate, whose main responsibility was to impeach officials. At that time, the officials of the Imperial Censorate, Wang Gongchen and Ouyang Xiu, not only passed the imperial examination in the same year, but also became brother-in-law. According to common sense, this kind of relationship with relatives in the same year was the best way to form a natural friendship. Perhaps because both of them were extremely arrogant and neither of them was convinced, they became sworn enemies during the New Deal period. As a result, the Imperial Censorate became an open enemy of the New Deal figures, and thus formed an important force that hindered the implementation of the New Deal.
Another unexpected incident was the Tengzijing incident. Tengzijing and Fan Zhongyan passed the imperial examination in the same year. Tengzijing and Fan had similar interests and shared difficulties. Later, Fan Zhongyan was transferred from the northwest and strongly recommended Tengzijing to take over. However, shortly after, the censor Liang Jian accused him of abusing envoy money, amounting to a huge amount of 160000 guan. In some cases, the censor even accused Tengzijing. After hearing that the court was going to send people to investigate secretly, he burned the account books without authorization. Emperor Renzong was furious and ordered the censor to hold the matter accountable. This incident quickly evolved into Fan Zhongyan and the prime minister in the censor. Wang Gongchen’s direct conflict led to Fan Zhongyan’s impassioned and lengthy remarks, insisting that the Teng family was innocent and even willing to resign from his political position to protect his old friend. Wang Gongchen insisted that Teng Zijing was corrupt and lawless, with clear evidence, and should be punished severely. He also threatened to resign, and other officials from the Imperial Censorate stood by his superiors, competing to report. In the end, Emperor Renzong of Song sided with Wang Gongchen. In February of the fourth year of the Qingli reign, Teng Zijing was demoted to the position of governor of Yuezhou. In the view of Emperor Renzong, even though the situation reported by the imperial censors was somewhat exaggerated, officials suspected of corruption were always intolerable.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: Fan Zhongyan is somewhat straightforward and not very mature in strategy. He is less mature than we imagine, and he is very stubborn in defending Teng Zijing. He is very stubborn in defending anyone he thinks should be protected, but the more stubborn you are in defending, the more likely the emperor will worry about the problems of his allies. Emperor Renzong must be worried. If he takes him away, it can also be said that he is shaking the mountain and shaking the tiger.
Songcheng, Zhuanglang City, Gansu Province
Just as the Teng Zijing case was raging, the construction of the Shuiluo City sparked a conflict between the two new political leaders, Fan Zhongyan and Han Qi. In terms of governing the northwest policy, there was already a conflict between Fan and Han. Fan Zhongyan was in charge, while Han Qi was in charge of attacking. After Fan Zhongyan left Shaanxi, Zheng Ji took charge of the northwest defense and continued to implement Fan Zhongyan’s strategy of strengthening the castle and maintaining a stable defense. He supported the border general Liu Hu in building the Shuiluo City, so that the armies of Qinzhou and Weizhou could support each other. Han Qi, who was then the Governor of Shaanxi, and Yin Zhu, who was in charge of the Weizhou region, both opposed the construction of the city and ordered Liu Hu to stop it. Liu Hu refused to listen and the construction was carried out without delay. Yin Zhu was furious and arrested Liu Hu and others, causing a fierce conflict between Fan and Han. Han Qi supported Yin Zhu and repeatedly spoke about the drawbacks of repairing the city, while Fan Zhongyan vigorously defended Zheng Ji, Liu Hu, and others, and demanded that Yin Zhu be transferred back to the capital. Fan Zhongyan and Han Qi were both leaders of the newly appointed literati, and Yin Zhu was also one of the Four Sages praised by Cai Xiang. He was once regarded by conservative bureaucrats as Fan Zhongyan’s accomplice. However, this time, they clashed in the city repair incident, not only weakening the power of the reformist camp, but also further exacerbating Song Renzong’s concerns about the issue of allies. In the past, the Four Sages did not give way to each other’s views, which shows that they are insisting on their own views. In terms of truth and justice in their respective minds, the literati did not leave any room for their opponents. From then on, this subjective consciousness of the literati was manifested in an even more extreme way in a controversial article by Ouyang Xiu at that time, titled “On the Party”, He attempted to correct the name of his clique, but the result was counterproductive. Ouyang Xiu identified himself as a clique and even regarded it as the patent of a gentleman. His articles easily led people to conclude that those who advocated reform and supported the New Deal were all cliques. However, Confucius had long said that gentlemen were not cliques. Faced with such a strong traditional concept, Ouyang Xiu’s solitary essay on overturning the case of a clique clearly lacked persuasiveness. Ouyang Xiu openly divided officials into gentlemen and villains, with those who supported his views being gentlemen and those who opposed being villains. He even demanded that Emperor Renzong of Song follow this standard to promote the virtuous and retreat, which was undoubtedly creating public division. The tense atmosphere not only deepened the hostility towards the conservative party and the new policy figures, but also made many middle people feel uneasy and waver, thus bringing greater resistance to the new policy.
Professor of History at Renmin University of China – Bao Weimin: Although Ouyang Xiu’s article is very famous, he is such an amazing writer. The position of “The Theory of Friends” in literary history is very high. In politics, I think he is childish. You can only say that I am not a friend, and you cannot say that my friend is good. Although the emperor does not want to listen to this, friends were a big taboo in the political environment at that time. Why? You have damaged imperial power, you cannot have small groups, you can only unite by my emperor’s side, as long as it is a friend, all will be eliminated.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: Renzong has always admired and trusted Ouyang Xiu, but for the matter of forming a party, the emperor hates it the most. So what good effect do you think he can have? Of course, it cannot have a good effect.
In less than a year, the Qingli New Policy was aborted. In addition to many unexpected incidents, there was also retaliation from the former courtier Xia De. Because Fan Zhongyan’s admirer Shi Jie offended Xia De by writing a poem, he instigated his female slaves to secretly forge a draft of an edict to abolish the emperor, and spread rumors that it was Fu Bi, Fan Zhongyan, and others who drafted an edict in an attempt to depose the current emperor and establish a new ruler in order to promote the New Policy. This move caught Fan Zhongyan, Fu Bi, and others off guard, and the opposition to the New Policy became increasingly fierce. Emperor Renzong of Song immediately issued an edict to dismiss Fan Zhongyan, Fubi, Du Yan, and Han Qi from their supervisory positions, and to demote them to the capital. The head of the New Policy was completely removed in the blink of an eye. At the same time, various measures of the New Policy were also cancelled, and the Qingli New Policy quickly failed.
Professor You Biao from the School of History at Beijing Normal University: Because he touched upon the interests of this privileged class, they also organized and went to the emperor to complain. However, there were indeed many imperfections and incomplete parts in Fan Zhongyan’s measures, which were caught by this group of people. After being caught, they launched a counterattack, but the Qingli New Deal quickly failed.
Professor Bao Weimin from the History Department of Renmin University of China: The main reason, I think, is very simple. Any reform by a bureaucratic group must first face damage to their own interests, because if the reform is only for their own interests, it will increase. Of course, everyone will support it, right? So, Fan Zhongyan’s reform is actually very simple, which is to restrict the privileges of some bureaucratic classes. Of course, many people are unwilling to do so, and he wants to take his own actions.
A new political reform carried out by the newly elected literati, who were worried about the world first and happy about the world later, was not carried out during the peak period of joint governance between the Northern Song Dynasty emperors and literati. However, the Emperor’s tolerant and enlightened policies towards literati ultimately enabled these literati who were dedicated to serving the country to exert their strengths. For example, Fu Bi, Han Qi, and others had the opportunity to continue implementing policies that were beneficial to the society and the people after Emperor Yingzong ascended the throne. Historians once said that the good view of Confucianism should be seen in the Song Dynasty, and it was only in the Northern Song Dynasty that even some scholars who adhered to the principle of great loyalty could see it. Officials, temporarily subjected to some unfair treatment and being demoted and exiled, but the entire society, including the emperor, will still realize its value one day, allowing these demoted officials to shine again.
Professor Zhao Dongmei from Peking University: In terms of politics, the reign of Emperor Renzong was a relatively clear and clear era. If you say that the imperial system remains unchanged and Confucianism is the same, then the best political achievement that can be achieved is the reign of Emperor Renzong. No matter how good or not, there must be some breakthroughs. Emperor Renzong and most of his ministers are what I think are pure Confucians. Confucianism, I still think it has many good things.
Zhang Zai Temple, Baoji City, Shanxi Province
In the second year of Emperor Renzong Jiayou’s imperial examination, Ouyang Xiu was the chief examiner. A 38 year old middle-aged man, along with Su Shi and Su Zhe brothers, passed the imperial examination. This scholar from Shaanxi, named Zhang Zai, wrote a letter to Fan Zhongyan, who was in charge of defense in the northwest and north, at the age of 21, discussing nine points and expressing his own opinions. He was very talented. In the second year of the Qingli reign, Fan Zhongyan completed the construction of Dashun City in the northwest of Anyang Prefecture to defend against the invasion of Western Xia. He specially invited Zhang Zai, who was 23 years old, to Qingyang to write the Qingzhou Dashun City Chronicle as a commemoration. Zhang Zai was honest, lived a simple life, and had a bumpy career. His career was slightly weaker than that of the brilliant scholars of his time. However, he opened up another world in the field of thought and academia, becoming the founder of Guan Xue and a famous Neo Confucianism scholar, known as Mr. Hengqu. He highly summarized the mission and responsibility of literati in four sentences, which can be seen as a brilliant echo of Renzong Wenzhi. His sentence said: to establish the heart for heaven and earth, to establish the destiny for the people, to inherit the ultimate knowledge from the sages, and to open up peace for all ages.
90 Seconds of History: Wang Anshi’s Reform
This Qingming Riverside Scene vividly records the prosperity of the capital city of the Northern Song Dynasty, Tokyo, and the living conditions of people from all walks of life. Although the territory of the Great Song Dynasty was not as vast as that of the Han and Tang Dynasties, and the military was not as strong as that of the Han and Tang Dynasties, the developed urban civilization of the Song Dynasty ranked first in all dynasties of China. However, during this period, the sixth emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty, Emperor Shenzong of Song, and Wang Anshi of 49, launched a magnificent reform. Why did the prosperous Song Empire carry out reforms? Is there any secret hidden behind it? Why did this young and weak monarch disregard the obstruction of important officials and support Wang Anshi’s reform proposals? In the process of implementing the new law, why did Wang Anshi and his close friend Sima Guang end up like water and fire, causing a rupture? Throughout history, people’s evaluations of Wang Anshi and his reform are completely opposite. Is he the culprit that led to the downfall of the Northern Song Dynasty?
