Huang Zuo originally had a lot of words to refute, but looking at the solemn face of the lobbyist in front of him, he finally chose to remain silent.
Of course he could say something righteously.
"This is my big Chu affair, what does it have to do with you Song Ting!"
With his identity and status, it was natural for him to say this, but he still couldn't say it. Perhaps this was the biggest difference between doing it for the people and doing it for himself.
Before, both the Song and Jin Dynasties started to think of ways around Yang Yao, because this was always the rule.
The Jin conquered Liu Yu and conquered Duchong, so they gained all the forces under his command.
The Song Dynasty previously said that it had surrendered numerous bandit leaders, and the most representative one was naturally the Liangshan Bo giant bandit Song Jiang.
Not only did they surrender thirty-six of their leaders in one breath, but they also finally got him out of Liangshanbo, and killed them all when he rebelled again.
Of course, this is not a good thing, but it creates a misunderstanding for both parties.
If you want to solve the Dongting Lake forces, you must target the leader Yang Yao.
But now Zhao Huan and Yue Fei chose to do the opposite, completely abandoning Yang Yao and turning to deal with his generals.
As for why it is like this, the reason is what Yue Fei is talking to Huang Zuo now.
"When Prime Minister Zhong rebelled, we could have dug up his ancestral grave and exposed his body in the wild, or we could have denounced him as a rebellious official and traitor. He had already conspired to rebel, no matter what he said.
But the officials and generals prevented this from happening.
Officials once said that although Prime Minister Zhong was very evil, his heart was pure and kind. He was a hero for a time and a hero for a lifetime.
"Equalizing the rich and the poor, equaling the rich and the poor" is contrary to human ethics, and its failure is naturally inevitable.
But his thoughts are for the people, not for himself.
This is something that all officials admire very much. "
When Huang Zuo heard a Song general say that Zhong Xiang was a hero, Huang Zuo even felt absurd in his heart.
"Since your officials don't recognize the saying of "equaling the rich and the poor, equaling the rich and the poor", why do you still say that Duke Zhong is a hero?"
"Of course Zhong Xiang is a hero." Yue Fei laughed loudly and gave an affirmative answer, "Zhong Xiang, it's okay to call him fair.
The official once said that he did not agree with any of the previous bandits. He seemed to be doing it for himself, but in fact he had no selfish motives. He might have some strategic problems.
But there is nothing wrong with his person, his character, and his abilities.
In this land south of the Yangtze River, probably the most powerful rebellion was the Fang La rebellion.
But Fang La cannot be compared with Zhong Xiang at all. They are both Manichaeans, and they both succeeded because the people in Jiangnan could not bear the harsh taxes and exploitation.
But the difference between them is very obvious.
At that time, Fang La was because officials from the Production Bureau often came to seize the wood from his lacquer garden. Although Fang La was resentful, he did not dare to show his anger.
Later, Zhu Meng, the favorite minister of the late emperor, searched for flowers and stones, and the people complained. In addition, Chen Shuozhen, a woman from Muzhou, rebelled and claimed to be Emperor Wenjia. Therefore, it was said that there was an emperor Jihe Wannian Tower in Muzhou, and he gained confidence.
At the beginning, Fangla rebelled and claimed to be the Holy Duke. During the reign of Emperor Yongle, officials and generals were appointed. Their ranks were distinguished by turbans, and they were divided into six grades from red turbans upwards.
Because the army lacked provisions, armor, and crossbows, he even used secret and unpredictable things of ghosts and gods to incite each other for his own power, burning houses, plundering children of gold and silk, and forcing good people to join the army.
Fang La had already embarked on the wrong path from the beginning. If Wang Fu hadn't whitewashed the peace, he wouldn't have been able to succeed.
But Zhong Xiang was different. Even after Manichaeism was completely destroyed, he still relied on the simplest methods to win over the people step by step.
It's not the ghosts and gods of Manichaeism, but it really makes you see hope and that your life is getting better and better.
To put it bluntly, Prime Minister Zhong has accomplished something that even the imperial court was unable to do. He persuaded you to join him not through coercion, nor through inducements.
It's because although you have given something, what you have received is countless times more than what you have given. This is the power of Zhong Xiang.
You sincerely support Prime Minister Zhong, even the officials say that Prime Minister Zhong can really be the prime minister of one party, and it is unknown whether he may become the prime minister or assistant of another party in the future.
Therefore, Zhong Xiang is a hero! "
"In that case, why do you say Mr. Zhong is wrong?"
"Because what you want is not to wait for the rich and the poor, to be rich and poor together. What you want is not to be poor together. What you want is to be richer and more stable even if I am poor.
You just wonder why corrupt officials are rampant, why the rich are unkind, and the temples occupy the land, grain, and wealth, but you have no food to live on.
This little fortune may be given to you for a while, but it cannot be given to you forever. "
"Then the court can give it to me!"
Huang Zuo laughed suddenly, feeling that it was a joke, but Yue Fei didn't laugh. He told Huang Zuo very seriously.
"I can give it!"
"ridiculous!"
"The officials have agreed that after this battle, all able-bodied men will be recruited into the army; while those who are old, weak, weak and unable to serve will be given rice and grain orders to return to the fields and be able to support themselves.
In this way, the people of Dongting Lake will naturally not worry about their own survival.
And not only that, we have begun to reorganize the officialdom, drastically weaken redundant officials, drastically reduce court expenditures, and thus reduce taxes in Bashu and other places in the south of the Yangtze River.
In addition, we know that Jiangnan has been dilapidated due to Yang Yao's efforts during this period, so we will choose to give the people of Jiangnan three years.
Within these three years, all people in Jiangnan will be exempted from the tax on people, mulberry, and silk, and the tax on land will be reduced. In the future, Jiangnan will be dominated by commercial taxes and land taxes, so that you will not be exhausted.
Because of years of war, there are many old and weak people in this land south of the Yangtze River. The imperial court will put the money and silk belonging to the imperial officials above the people's livelihood.
At the same time, schools are being built aggressively in Jiangnan, which will give the school-age children in Jiangnan five years to study in schools.
After that, they will be divided again according to their grades. Those with good talents and poor family backgrounds will enter schools in various states for further study.
If their talents are not good, they will be sent to the schools in various counties to do farming and business and be trained as petty officials.
You can also have a livelihood nearby in the future.
So feasible? "
"It's well said and touching." Huang Zuo was not a fool, and the evaluation he gave was also pertinent, but this time Yue Fei did not use this kind of thing to deceive anyone.
He was serious.
"This is the decree that the officials have already prepared. General Huang should also understand that our officials in the Song Dynasty are trying to seize the throne, and he is most jealous of his own reputation.
With such a decree, is the general still afraid? "
Huang Zuo took the decree and opened it to look at it. Sure enough, everything he just said was here. He also knew that this was not a lie to him.
As the saying goes, even if you have never eaten pork, you have seen pigs running away. They have also searched out the imperial court's orders in attacking many state capitals and counties.
The seal on it is exactly the same as this one. This thing is in his hands. If the court goes against his promise, he can take it out and make it public.
Once this happens, the majesty of the Emperor of the Song Dynasty will be completely gone.
By that time, the emperor would be in real trouble. Although Huang Zuo may not know what national credibility is, he knew that it was fatal to a court.
When the people no longer believe in the imperial court, then the imperial court is destined to perish, just like now.
After getting this decree written by Zhao Huan personally for the people of Jiangnan, Huang Zuo finally chose to surrender. He could not watch the people of Dongting Lake and even Jiangnan being completely destroyed by Yang Yao.
Although Huang Zuo's surrender cannot be said to have hurt Yang Yao's forces, it was a fatal signal to the Dongting Lake forces.
The imperial court once again became a choice, even a higher choice than Yang Yao.
Yue Fei no longer concealed his identity at this time, and personally brought Huang Zuo back to the camp and asked Zhao Huan to appoint him. When Huang Zuo saw with his own eyes the emperor of the Song Dynasty personally conquered Jiangnan.
And after discussing with him the possibility of reform in this Jiangnan land bit by bit, he knew that this was a man who was doing practical things.
You are not someone who can just do whatever you want with a snap of your head.
"The reason why Manichaeism is rampant in this Jiangnan land is not only because of ghosts and gods. In recent years, because of the increasing tax and exploitation in Jiangnan, the people have no love in life and can only place their hearts on temples and ghosts.
That is their place of support. It is abominable for temples to collect money, but if they are beaten to death with a stick, once the fanatical believers in the temple become crazy, they will not be afraid even if they are attacked with swords and axes.
We once witnessed thousands of fanatic believers dousing their bodies with kerosene and setting themselves on fire to fight during an attack on a temple.
Its craziness makes me afraid to think about it until now.
Your Majesty's desire to reform Jiangnan is a good thing, but you must not rush for success, otherwise Yang Yao's incident will be an example. "
Huang Zuo also had some skills in Jiangnan government affairs. Now that a large number of officials in Jiangnan have been killed, many positions are also missing.
Zhao Huan immediately appointed Huang Zuo as the magistrate of Dingzhou, replacing the former magistrate Cheng Changyu who eventually died in the battle.
Huang Zuo did not disappoint Zhao Huan. After accepting the order, he quickly returned to the water stronghold. He said that he had surrendered many generals and recruited Yang Mo's tribe, and more than 2,300 people had surrendered.
After that, Yue Fei continued to recruit surrender, while taking the opportunity to attack the outlying camps, and let the people who persuaded surrender and the attacking generals cooperate with each other to put enough pressure on Yang Yao's subordinates.
First, Huang Zuo was ordered to attack the water village under the command of Yang Yao's confidant general Zhou Lun. Huang Zuo was a veteran of Dongting Lake. Not only was he familiar with the terrain, he was also good at water warfare and quite strategic.
Zhou Lun was no match for him, and Huang Zuo captured the camp. Many of his soldiers were killed and fell into the lake, and all the grain boats in the camp were burned.
Afterwards, he found Cheng Changyu's general Ren Shi'an. This man had been defeated repeatedly and was about to be beaten into the third grandson by Yang Yao. In this situation, he was directly asked to attack Dongting Lake as bait.
Yang Yao felt that this was a good opportunity to restore his prestige, so he immediately led his troops to intercept and kill.
Yue Fei, however, set up an ambush in advance, waiting for the time when Shi'an was exhausted, and the soldiers under Yang Yao also felt quite tired. At this time, the ambush teamed up to attack from all sides, and won a complete victory.
After this battle, Yang Yao's prestige was even lower.
And Yue Fei's counterattack finally started completely.
"Destroy Yang Yao within ten days!"
This roar represented Yue Fei's confidence.
