False accusations arose, and Wang Jihong, the governor of Xiangzhou, killed his aide Zhang Yi. The reason was that Zhang Yi had spread rumors, but the court would not pursue him.
"Whenever the vassal and commander-in-chief report a death penalty, they will comply with the request regardless of the facts." This is the law of the Later Han Dynasty. It can be said that "it is not illegal to kill someone." Especially for officials at all levels, after killing a person, they only need to say that the person made a rumor or Just intend to rebel.
The Later Han Dynasty was the shortest dynasty among the Five Dynasties, with more than three years and less than four years. But these three years were the darkest moments of the Five Dynasties period and even the entire five thousand years. "Han law is harsh", Su Fengji contributed a lot.
The conflict between the civil servant group of the Later Han Dynasty, represented by Su Fengji, and the military general group, represented by Yang Bin, Shi Hongzhao, and Guo Wei, was open and fierce. Head-on conflicts broke out between the two sides many times. Below, we will briefly summarize the incompatible grievances and grievances between the two parties:
1. Shi Hongzhao
1.1 Shi Hongzhao the person
Shi Hongzhao's background was quite ordinary, a typical template for troubled times: his family had been farming for generations, and he had never learned anything since he was a child. He loved fighting. He was a famous village bully and gangster from all over the country. He was not only good at fighting and fighting, but also good at track and field. "Two Hundred Miles", "Walking and Galloping", covering sprints and long-distance races.
During the Later Liang Dynasty, he was drafted into the army. Because of his bravery and good fighting skills, he was quickly promoted to a junior officer and was later incorporated into the Forbidden Army.
In the Later Tang Dynasty, when Shi Jingtang commanded the Forbidden Army, he incorporated him into his personal guard. Later, Liu Zhiyuan went to Zhenhedong and asked him to be his own soldier.
Shi Hongzhao didn't speak much of harsh words, and he had very strict requirements for his soldiers. For example, when going south from Henan, he stipulated that anyone who dared to trample on wheat fields or tie horses to trees would immediately be punished in front of the army. And compared to beheading, Shi Hongzhao prefers headshots with a big hammer. Therefore, the troops brought out by Shi Hongzhao had strict military discipline, did no harm to the common people, and had extremely high combat effectiveness.
Among Liu Zhiyuan's "crash courses", Shi Hongzhao was the one who made the most meritorious deeds. When Liu Zhiyuan proclaimed himself emperor in Taiyuan, Wang Hui of Daizhou rebelled and returned to Khitan. Shi Hongzhao led the army to attack Daizhou and conquered Daizhou in one go, creating a new power in the Later Han Dynasty and making a good start for the Later Han Dynasty;
Later, he acted as the vanguard to open the way south, taking over Luzhou and Kezezhou, allowing Liu Zhiyuan to travel from Taiyuan to Luoyang as if he were returning to his own home. It was all the credit of Shi Hongzhao (going to Luoyang is as good as returning home, Hongzhao's pioneer contribution) also).
He also did not miss any shortcomings that should be included in the "crash course".
For example, his mother also passed away in time after Liu Zhiyuan entered Bian. Shi Hongzhao only wore mourning for a few days before returning to work and continuing to serve the people. If I had to be pretentious, he was slightly better than Su Fengji. After all, Su Fengji didn't even worry about his mother for a day. Fifty steps and a hundred steps for filial piety.
When the three towns rebelled, rumors spread all over the capital and people were in panic. At that time, Shi Hongzhao was responsible for maintaining order in the capital. His method was very simple. Anyone who dared to spread rumors would be killed.
Even the prime minister Su Fengji was so ruthless, let alone the general Shi Hongzhao, so he created countless unjust, false and wrong cases in the capital. Because Shi Hongzhao does not need evidence, as long as there is suspicion, such as someone making a report, he will be sentenced immediately, and the death penalty is the starting price.
Shi Hongzhao and Su Fengji were the same. In their code, there were no words such as detention, fixed-term imprisonment, or suspended sentences. No matter what the crime was, the death penalty was imposed. Even regardless of the facts, being a defendant is a death sentence.
"Regardless of the seriousness of the crime and the reason for it, if you are guilty, you will be punished with the death penalty. No one dares to appeal if the crime is in vain."
"History of the Song Dynasty: Biography of Bian Guitan" also records this. Bian Guitan was Shi Jingtang's staff. In the Later Han Dynasty, he was worshiped by the imperial censor Zhongcheng. Bian Guitan had dissuaded Shi Hongzhao at that time, saying that we should verify those whistle-blowing letters, especially anonymous letters, in detail, and make decisions after finding out the truth of the matter. We should not kill people immediately after hearing about the matter. Now it is framed. False accusations became common, and corrupt officials and shameless people engaged in extortion and personal revenge.
Under such an environment, officials engaged in extortion and extortion. If the people disobeyed, they were falsely accused, framed, and sentenced to death.
Historical records record two typical cases:
"The Unjust Case of a Drunkard"
A citizen was drunk and contradicted a soldier. The soldier immediately accused him of spreading rumors and causing trouble, and then sentenced him to death in accordance with the law.
"Curious case of beheading"
On April 9, the second year of Qianyou (949), a rare astronomical spectacle occurred in the sky - Taibai Rijian. Venus appears in the sky on a clear day. Driven by curiosity, a resident of Bianzhou City looked up. After just one glance, he was arrested by the patrol. Shi Hongzhao ordered: cut in half!
Because strange natural phenomena and astronomical phenomena are always used to create political rumors. Just one look up and I'll cut you off on the spot, let's see who of you dares to post randomly on Moments!
In addition to Shi Hongzhao's favorite headshot with a sledgehammer, punishments such as cutting off the waist, cutting off the tongue, and amputating the feet were also common methods.
His subordinates, Xie Hui, were ruthless, treacherous and cruel. They strictly implemented Shi Hongzhao's work instructions, "Wherever there is impeachment, exercise them at will." Anyone caught by him, regardless of whether he was wrongly accused or not, after his torture and extortion of confessions, Criminal suspects will rush to admit the facts of their crimes and just want to die. When the people in Bianzhou City met Xie Hui on the road, no one dared to make eye contact with him. They all lowered their eyebrows and leaned down to avoid the road.
A wealthy Youzhou businessman named He Fuyin once bought a jade pillow for a sky-high price of 140,000 yuan, sent his slaves to sell it to Huainan, and then bought a batch of Huainan tea from Huainan and sold it to the north.
This domestic slave was like Li Yu's domestic slave Ge Yanyu. He plucked his feathers and embezzled a sum of money from his master He Fuyin. He had embezzled too much and was discovered because he embezzled hundreds of thousands...not from a single The wool on the sheep's body looks like Ge You. Who can't tell it?
He Fu became anxious and beat the slave severely, and ordered him to return the stolen money and make up for the loss.
The slave had a grudge, so he learned from Comrade Ge Yanyu and went directly to Shi Hongzhao to "report and expose" the "treason" of his master He Fuyin. He said that his jade pillow was sent to Huainan by Zhao Yanshou when the Khitans entered Bian. It was given to Li Jing of the Southern Tang Dynasty and colluded with the Southern Tang Dynasty to harm the Central Plains.
Shi Hongzhao handed the case to Xie Hui.
Xie Hui immediately understood the leader's intention, so he arrested He Fuyin and tortured him severely. Soon, He Fuyin confessed his "criminal facts" of betraying the Khitan and colluding with the Huaiyi.
Subsequently, He Fuyin and his family (male members) were executed, his wife and daughter were rewarded by Shi Hongzhao to his subordinates, and all his family property was embezzled by Shi Hongzhao.
After Li Song was falsely accused and killed, his youngest daughter, whom he had entrusted to Su Fengji, was snatched as a slave by Shi Hongzhao.
