Later, Jing Yanguang expanded the struggle and asked Shi Chonggui to order the arrest and execution of all Liao merchants in the Later Jin Dynasty, and confiscate all their properties.
This is a very barbaric act and a popular movement that can easily get out of control. Its original driving force is greed and illegal plunder, but it is cloaked in nationalism and patriotism. At all times and in all countries, anyone who opens this Pandora's box will without exception evolve into genocide. For example, the three pairs of Jews in Germany before World War II .
Another example is that in recent years, Mi Daozong incited rioters to attack the Zhongshu Province (Capitol Building). The thugs held high the banner of fairness and justice, but they did miscellaneous work and theft in the Zhongshu Province. Some black brothers even held high the banner of opposing racial discrimination and turned against the same people. It was Asian people of color who smashed, looted and burned stores.
Under the cover of noble slogans, people lost their benevolence and morality and turned into bipedal beasts with huge teeth and fangs. This is a beautiful landscape that the American people have dedicated to the world at the beginning of the new year.
During the "national movement" in the early days of Shi Chonggui in the Later Jin Dynasty, a large number of innocent Khitan people in the Later Jin Dynasty were massacred indiscriminately, and their property was "legally" confiscated by the Central Plains people.
The news spread and the whole world was in an uproar. Emperor Taizong Yelu Deguang of Liao Dynasty was almost crazy with anger.
However, the matter did not end there. This was just the beginning of the "Qiao Rong Incident". Next, Jing Yanguang's actions were both stupid and rampant.
In the actual political field, no one person or faction can obtain 100% of the right to speak. Regardless of whether it is powerful or covering the sky with one hand, it only occupies relatively more rights to speak. Opposition always exists.
Ensuring species diversity is the basic principle for maintaining ecological balance. In the same way, ensuring the diversity of factions is also a necessary means to maintain political balance. For example, the ruler of the team (such as the emperor) will always intentionally protect the opposition and make it weak, but never allow it to be exterminated in order to contain the powerful officials.
For example, political masters such as Tang Zhaozong and Yang Xingmi will not only save endangered political forces, but also deliberately cultivate a few nerds who love to take advantage of others. Once the time is right, they will be the vanguard, pawns, and cannon fodder of political struggles, using them to defeat powerful officials. Take the power back from your hands.
No emperor will really kill all the treacherous ministers and corrupt officials in the court, nor will he kill all the loyal ministers and honest officials who speak out and advise. There must be several factions with clear-cut banners formed in the court, instigating them to fight with each other, report on each other, and hand over all the evidence against each other to the emperor. The emperor had the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty at his fingertips.
Unless the ruler is mentally retarded or really has no power, such as Tang Xizong.
Shi Chonggui was obviously not Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty. Although Jing Yanguang had the merits of supporting him, Shi Chonggui still wisely left behind him, such as Sang Weihan.
Sang Weihan was the soul of the "pro-Liao faction". He was incompatible with Jing Yanguang's line and had inconsistent political views. In addition, he had been squeezed out of the central government in the previous dynasty (the late Shi Jingtang period) and relegated to the local government. However, less than a year after Shi Chonggui came to power, he recalled Sang Weihan to the central government, reappointed him as prime minister, and asked him to lead the civil service group.
Many scholars either intentionally or unintentionally ignored this personnel transfer, artificially ignoring an important detail, and thus drew irresponsible and inaccurate conclusions.
The mainstream view generally believes that Shi Chonggui was stupid and obeyed Jing Yanguang's words. Under Jing Yanguang's deception, he became a staunch "anti-Liao faction", resorted to militarism, and took the initiative to provoke a war with the Liao Kingdom regardless of the gap in strength.
This is wrong.
First of all, Shi Chonggui is not stupid, and he has not been ignored by Jing Yanguang.
Secondly, although Shi Chonggui showed an "anti-Liao" attitude, he did not really want to go to war with the Liao Kingdom, or in other words, his willingness to fight was not very strong, and his will to fight was not so firm.
For example, he brought Sang Weihan, who had been excluded from the core power circle, back to the core decision-making level. For another example, before the war broke out, that is, in the early stages of the war, he showed his goodwill to the Liao Kingdom more than once and expressed his willingness to reconcile.
He was the one who called for beating, and he was the one who called for stop. Is he schizophrenic?
No, this is the perfect interpretation of his political skills. We can summarize it as: strategic deterrence.
He said "I will fight with you" on his lips, but his body was very honest.
Shi Chonggui did this for two main purposes:
The first is to ease domestic conflicts, or transfer conflicts.
The Later Jin Dynasty was short of money and food, suffered from natural disasters and wars, and the people had deep resentments. Some people with ulterior motives, such as An Chongrong, would use nationalism and patriotism as a guise to tear the Later Jin Dynasty apart.
Therefore, Shi Chonggui created the persona of a patriotic young man for himself, which could not only avoid the emergence of the second An Chongrong, but also direct the people's dissatisfaction to the plunder and oppression of the Khitan people, and then feel pity for and support the later Jin regime. Shi Chonggui seeks happiness for the people.
The second is to put pressure on Khitan and bargain.
Like a vampire, the Khitan greedily grabbed the wealth of the Central Plains, making the people of the Central Plains even worse and miserable. Therefore, Shi Chonggui wanted to create a posture of "officials forcing the people to rebel" and send a signal to the Khitan: If you don't restrain yourself, we will be forced to revolt!
Shi Chonggui was not ignorant of Khitan's internal affairs. He also knew that there was a line struggle in Khitan. That is, the "Fu Jin Faction" headed by Queen Mother Shulu, and the "Destroy Jin Faction" headed by Yelu Deguang.
To put it simply, Yelu Deguang was constrained by the Queen Mother Shulu in the Khitan territory. Not only that, he also faced the same danger as his brother, because the real intention of the Queen Mother Shulu was to let Yelu Lihu take the throne, and Yelu Deguang was originally chosen. , because the opposition was so loud that Yelu Deguang was chosen as a last resort.
In order to get rid of the control of Queen Mother Shulu, Yelu Deguang must go south to invade the Central Plains, occupy the Sixteen Youyun Provinces, and then occupy the entire north of the Yellow River, and finally unify the Central Plains. In this way, he can be the supreme emperor in the Central Plains region.
Yelu Deguang's political intentions are easy to understand.
The pattern of Queen Mother Shulu is slightly higher. Objectively speaking, she is not opposed to going south to invade the Central Plains, but it is better to do it slowly rather than hastily. War is just a means, and maximizing interests is the goal. You cannot put the cart before the horse.
First of all, Queen Mother Shulu is more rational. She knows that the Khitan does not have the strength to eat the Central Plains in one bite. Don't waste your time growing up.
Secondly, the later Jin regime, at least during Shi Jingtang's period, was a very ideal agent. He continuously transferred a large amount of resources to the Khitan, which was more cost-effective than through war, with no loss and huge profits, and guaranteed profits without loss.
What is the war for? Is it for pure killing? Isn't it just to occupy land and plunder resources? Now that the Later Jin Dynasty has taken the initiative to send it over, why should we risk starting a war?
