During this period, Shi Jingtang obtained a large amount of intelligence through various channels, and all the intelligence pointed to the same conclusion: Fan Yanguang rebelled.
Fan Yanguang killed Mi Qiong, not only because he was greedy for his wealth, but also more importantly, because he wanted to silence Mi Qiong.
After killing Mi Qiong, Fan Yanguang summoned the governors of various states in the territory to hold a meeting at the Weizhou headquarters, conveying the spirit of the meeting to break away from the central government, and stepped up recruitment and repairs to the city.
Shi Jingtang was worried about this and came to Sang Weihan to discuss countermeasures.
Sang Weihan pointed out: Li Keyong of Hedong and Zhu Wen of Bianzhou have been fighting for decades, which further confirms the saying that "whoever wins the Wei master will win the world". Both Zhuangzong and Mingzong first "entered Wei" and then "entered Bianzhou" ", and finally "entered Luo". If Wei Bo has any different aspirations, he must be suppressed decisively and severely. No matter how tight the finances are and how difficult the situation is, he must not hesitate.
Shi Jingtang thought so, so how should he deal with it?
In the second year of Tianfu (937), it was a spring, and an old man drew a circle in the very center of China.
"Bianzhou!"
Sang Weihan pointed out: Bianzhou controls Yanzhao in the north and Jianghuai in the south. It is the intersection of water and land. It is a national material transfer station with convenient connections and abundant materials, and it is only three hundred miles away from Weizhou. If Weizhou causes trouble, the army starting from Bianzhou will arrive at the city in an instant, catching Weizhou off guard.
Moved the capital to Bianzhou. This was Sang Weihan's idea for Shi Jingtang.
Therefore, Shi Jingtang issued an edict in March, to the effect that the boats and vehicles used for transportation were seriously damaged in the war, which put greater pressure on the already tight transportation capacity. Transporting grain and grass supplies to the capital Luoyang was really a waste of people and money. I am considerate of the people's sentiments, and "to raise scholars and care for the people, I must do whatever is convenient." So where is the "expensive"? Bianzhou, this is the distribution center for supplies. Originally, supplies were concentrated here and then transferred to Luoyang. So, I might as well move the capital to Bianzhou.
"As there is a problem in Luoyang's water transportation, we will patrol eastward to Bianzhou." The emperor took his family and came to Bianzhou again to have a meal.
In order to act realistically and avoid irritating Fan Yanguang, Shi Jingtang followed up with a second edict in a decent manner: all the prefectures and capitals along the way will listen. If there are famous mountains and rivers, imperial mausoleums, and famous ministers' ancestral tombs in the territory, the local government will The top leaders must bring all the members of the leadership team to kneel to welcome me ten miles away. When I arrive, they will use a grand sacrificial ceremony to pray for me.
Perhaps this will be interpreted by some people as Shi Jingtang's emphasis on ostentation and pursuit of luxury.
Under normal circumstances, in the Chronicles of the Emperor, even if there is such a large-scale outing of the emperor, it will often be recorded that a certain emperor gave thousands of instructions and warned local officials not to be extravagant, not to disturb the people, not to disturb the ground... But this is the only one This time, Shi Jingtang made it clear in the form of an edict that he wanted to walk through the market in a swagger, to support people in front and behind them, to greet people from afar, and to stop and go.
The real reason is to show Fan Yanguang the acting, and try his best to make Fan Yanguang believe that this is just a casual meal and a trip, and it has absolutely no political purpose and is never aimed at a third party.
The foreshadowing is also laid in the previous article. Some sources and other sources accuse Shi Jingtang of moving the capital to Bianzhou because he disliked the dilapidation of the Luoyang palace and pursued extravagant enjoyment and wasted money. Shi Jingtang's real purpose of moving the capital to Bianzhou was actually to target Fan Yanguang and prepare for the subsequent pacification of Wei Bo.
In order to further appease Fan Yanguang, Shi Jingtang granted Fan Yanguang the title of Prince of Linqing County and granted him three thousand households.
The envoy who was responsible for going to Weizhou to read out the imperial edict came back and truthfully reported what he had seen in Weizhou: Fan Yanguang was about to rebel!
At the same time, Fu Yanrao Feishu, the governor of Huazhou Yicheng Army, said: According to reliable information, Fan Yanguang has sent a large army to Liyang and is about to take action. Please ask the central government to send troops for support!
The source of the news is Dr. Wei who defected from Wei Bo.
Shi Jingtang first sent a special envoy to Weizhou to investigate the situation and question the guilt; he took Fan Yanguang's son Fan Shoitu, the hostage left in the central government, under control; he sent an envoy to send a pair of letter arrows to Fu Yanrao in Huazhou; he sent generals Yang Guangyuan and Zhang Congbin to lead an army of 10,000 people. , stationed in Huazhou to assist in defense.
The advantages of moving the capital to Bianzhou are highlighted. The central court responded quickly and well. After all, sufficient emergency plans have been prepared.
On the other hand, Fan Yanguang was a little passive and hasty. It is paradoxical to say that Fan Yanguang has been disobedient for a long time, but it is not "premeditated for a long time."
Fan Yanguang wanted to be a rebel and wear a dragon robe. This was his ultimate goal. In order to achieve this grand goal, he crudely formulated a vague plan, which was to first unite his surroundings - especially his neighbors in the Heshuo area. , seek as many helpers as possible, and then, there will be no more.
Obviously, he won't find any allies. Not only Mi Qiong, but also any feudal town with normal IQ would not be able to support him. We are also in a vassal town, why should we risk the destruction of nine tribes and support Fan Yanguang and oppose Shi Jingtang? Anyway, they are all ministers, it’s different who you serve as a minister to.
Whether it was Zhao Yanshou or other generals who rebelled, they knew one thing very well, that is, they had to rely on the power of the Khitan. Even if they could not get strong support from the Khitan, they could at least not receive firm opposition from the Khitan.
Fan Yanguang sent people to Khitan to seek support, but was rejected.
First of all, this is due to the planning of Sang Weihan and other "pro-Liao faction" ministers. Shi Jingtang first came to the throne and asked Sang Weihan for advice on current affairs. Sang Weihan pointed out to him two core ideas in domestic and foreign affairs: internally, we must be generous and kind, forget past hatred, repay hatred with kindness, and appease the local area; externally, we must respectfully "serve the Khitan as a father" and have a humble attitude. , the gift should be heavy. At the same time, we encourage people to teach farming and mulberry cultivation, cherish the people's strength, and enable the people to resume production and operations. In a few years, the Central Plains will surely be strong.
Shi Jingtang indeed took this as his guiding principle. As mentioned above, he was generous and kind internally and pretended to be a grandson externally. Great results have been achieved.
It is precisely because Shi Jingtang respectfully respected his Khitan father that the Khitan was very satisfied with this agent and had no intention of changing the agent, so it would not support any opposition including Fan Yanguang.
Secondly, Khitan also needs to digest the fruits of victory, such as the "Sixteen States of Youyun".
The "Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun" were not under the control of Shi Jingtang at that time, but under the actual control of the Later Tang Dynasty (including Zhao Dejun and his son). The garrison generals of the prefectures, cities, counties and counties had considerable control over the change of their nationality. great resistance. "All my ministers are willing to fight to the death, so why does Your Majesty surrender first?"
These soldiers who were unwilling to surrender to the Khitan refused to hand over the city to the Khitan and boarded the city to defend themselves.
It's like the Khitan people purchased the "Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun" real estate project through judicial auction, but the original owner refused to fulfill his obligation to vacate the house and chose to violently resist the law.
Therefore, the Khitans could only apply to the court for enforcement.
