Zhao Song: My father was Emperor Taizu of Song

Chapter 107 Zhao Guangyi, the Ancient Sinner

Chapter 107 Zhao Guangyi, a Sinner for All Time

The method proposed by Zhao Guangyi to restrict military power was extremely similar to that used in the late Northern Song Dynasty.

Many people believe that the fundamental reason why the Song Dynasty was poor and weak, emphasized civil affairs and suppressed military affairs, and repeatedly failed in foreign wars was the system left by Zhao Kuangyin.

Is this statement wrong?

That's not wrong, but it's not entirely accurate.

Zhao Kuangyin used a banquet to relieve military power, and then planned to establish the Three Military Offices, forming a triangular system in which the Privy Council controlled the power to mobilize troops, the Three Military Offices controlled the power to command troops, and troops were temporarily appointed on the battlefield, thus completely eliminating the monopoly of power by military generals.

Furthermore, the implementation of the rotation system ensured that "generals did not know their soldiers, and soldiers did not know their generals," thus completely eliminating the possibility of military commanders holding power and becoming arrogant.

These measures did indeed limit the power of military commanders to some extent, but—

Few people know that Zhao Kuangyin's attitude towards the border troops was completely different.

During Zhao Kuangyin's reign, the border military governors could freely allocate all local fiscal revenue, independently engage in commerce for profit, and even trade with foreign tribes, all of which were exempt from taxes.

Even if these military governors used the money they received to recruit warriors, bribe spies, reward soldiers, and so on, Zhao Kuangyin did not interfere with any of it.

In addition, he even built luxurious mansions in the capital for these generals stationed on the border. The scale of these mansions was so high that even the officials in charge of the construction couldn't stand it and reported it to the authorities. This exceeded the standards for imperial relatives.

Zhao Kuangyin flew into a rage: "The border generals are also imperial relatives; bring them here immediately and do not let them speak of this again!"

Border guards are far more important than any royal family. Get them built right now, don't make me say it twice!

However, the situation was completely different during the reign of Zhao Guangyi.

Knowing he couldn't control these military generals, Zhao Er simply issued a death order to all the military governors in the country: "The sons of all military governors are to come to the capital as hostages!"

Later, after the donkey cart drifted away, the military governor was completely dismissed, making it a nominal position.

What followed was a series of baffling actions, such as having generals controlled from the center, and establishing positions like military commissioners, pacification commissioners, and regional commanders in various places, all held by civil officials, so that military generals had to obey the orders of civil officials.

This further lowered the status and treatment of military officers, making them even more inferior to the scholar-officials.

Even more outrageous, Cao Bin, the Privy Councilor and the foremost general of the Song Dynasty, known as the "First Good General of the Song Dynasty," actually led the way in making way for the carriage of the prime minister!

In conclusion, Zhao Er dealt a comprehensive blow to the status of military generals.

If Zhao Kuangyin's series of measures were aimed at solving the problems of "military generals monopolizing power and regional warlordism" during the Five Dynasties period, then...

Zhao Guangyi, on the other hand, was purely in order to consolidate his own throne. He was full of suspicion towards military generals, so he used more rigid and repressive measures to completely cut off their military discourse power.

From then on, the situation of valuing civil affairs and suppressing military affairs was fully formed.

And that is why the backbone of the Song Dynasty weakened.

The problems of poverty and weakness were thus left behind.

Therefore, the real culprit for the poverty and weakness of the Northern Song Dynasty was not Zhao Kuangyin, but Zhao Guangyi!

Thinking of that humiliating history, how could Zhao Dezhao possibly give his uncle a kind look?

"Using civil officials to control the military? It's amazing that Uncle could even come up with this idea." Zhao Dezhao scoffed. "Has Uncle forgotten the old story of how, during the Huang Chao Rebellion at the end of the Tang Dynasty, civil officials gave incompetent commands that drove the soldiers to revolt?"

"Do you still think those weak, bookish scholars who can only quote classics understand military strategy better than battle-hardened generals?"

"Oh, right—" Zhao Dezhao deliberately dragged out the words, pretending to suddenly realize something: "I almost forgot, Uncle has the invincible Pingrong Wanquan Formation." My apologies, my apologies.

"

After saying that, he even cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Zhao Guangyi.

Zhao Guangyi was immediately shocked and looked at Zhao Dezhao with suspicion and uncertainty.

This "Complete Pacification Formation" was a prototype he had just come up with and had never shown to anyone before. How did Zhao Dezhao find out about it?

Zhao Kuangyin glanced at Zhao Guangyi with surprise.

But Zhao Dezhao still hadn't had enough of cursing. He had finally gotten a chance, so how could he let it go so easily?

"As the saying goes, there are no fixed formations in warfare, just as water has no fixed shape. When generals fight, they rely on their battlefield intuition and practical experience."

"Civil officials, ignorant of military strategy, insist on giving orders and frequently use the emperor's will to intimidate others. If they win, it's attributed to the civil officials' skillful command; if they lose, it's attributed to the generals' poor performance?"

"With such a distortion of the truth, who would still be willing to risk their lives for the Song Dynasty? Over time, the soldiers will lose heart, the army will become lax, and if foreign tribes attack, the Song Dynasty will likely be left with nothing but kneeling and bowing to be led away like sheep."

The ritual of leading a sheep is the ultimate insult to the ruler of a country!

Upon hearing this, Zhao Guangyi could no longer maintain his usual gentle demeanor. He clenched his fists and growled, "Stop talking nonsense! Civil officials command the army to restrain the arrogance of military men and stabilize the court!"

"Stabilize the court? That's the biggest joke I've heard all year!"

Zhao Dezhao couldn't help but sneer, looking at Zhao Guangyi with sarcasm: "The battlefield situation changes in an instant. Enemy troop strength, wind direction, terrain, and food supplies—aren't all of these constantly changing? How can the Emperor, far away in the capital, possibly predict the situation on the front lines?"

"When Emperor Shizong of Zhou conquered the Southern Tang, if he hadn't changed his tactics on the spot, he would have been defeated by Lin Renzhao long ago, relying on the pre-determined death formation!"

"My uncle wants all the generals to obey the Emperor's decree to the death and not to change it without permission. Is this sending the soldiers to war? This is sending them to their deaths!"

"Oh, right—" Zhao Dezhao drew out a long, sarcastic tone, "I almost forgot, my uncle's driving skills are superb, in no way inferior to Li Congjia's, so naturally he wouldn't care whether the soldiers are sent to their deaths or not."

"Nephew, I admire you, I admire you."

"Zhao Dezhao, you—!"

"What do you mean, 'I'? Uncle, we were just discussing state affairs. Uncle is known for his tolerance and kindness towards his nephew. I'm sure you will forgive my rudeness."

Zhao Guangyi then realized that his elder brother, the Emperor, was still nearby. He needed to maintain the image of a good uncle, so he could only grit his teeth and say, word by word, "—That! Is! Natural!"

"Uncle is so kind to Zhao'er, then Zhao'er will not be polite."

Zhao Dezhao leisurely picked up his cool tea, took a sip, and continued, "Therefore, in my opinion, Uncle's three plans are nothing short of self-destruction."

"If the military governors are dismissed, the border defenses will be weak; if civilians control the military, the soldiers will become useless; if generals are controlled from the center, the war will be lost!"

"If we follow Uncle's lead, within a few decades, our Song army will be utterly incapable of fighting, suffering defeat after defeat in foreign wars, and ultimately becoming fish on the chopping block of foreign tribes!"

At this point, a flash of resentment crossed Zhao Dezhao's eyes. He put down his teacup, sneered, and said, "In that case, what's the point of unifying the world? Perhaps my Great Song will follow in the footsteps of the Jin Dynasty and be destroyed by foreign tribes, becoming nothing more than a laughingstock for future generations!"

"I fear the Zhao family's foundation will be destroyed by my uncle's three schemes!"

"At that time, my uncle will be the eternal sinner of our Great Song Dynasty!"

"He is also a sinner for all of China throughout history!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Kuangyin was stunned.

This was the first time he had ever seen his son so indignant and sharp-tongued, showing no mercy to Zhao Guangyi in his words.

Considering the need for harmony between uncle and nephew, he couldn't help but frown slightly.

Zhao Guangyi was trembling with rage. He suddenly stood up and shouted, "You—you—"

He stretched out his hand, pointing tremblingly at Zhao Dezhao, his chest heaving, but he couldn't utter a single complete sentence.

He couldn't understand what was wrong with Zhao Dezhao today, that his words were so sharp, showing no regard for Zhao Kuangyin who was standing nearby.

They even threw out such hurtful words as "a sinner for all time," "the country was destroyed by foreign tribes," and "the sheep-leading ceremony."

He certainly couldn't understand how frustrated Zhao Dezhao felt every time he read about the history of the Song Dynasty, as a person from later generations.

The Song Dynasty should not have been like this!

Di Qing, Yue Fei, Qu Duan, and even the millions of people of the Song Dynasty should not have acted this way!

And the culprit behind all of this is you!

Zhao Guangyi!!