Just feeling something was wrong, he immediately abandoned the army and fled thousands of miles away.
It sounds unbelievable, but for some scholar-bureaucrats, it is a routine operation, not to mention that the people who caused this chaos were selfish people.
As soon as Zhang Yanran escaped with his core personnel, the more than 40,000 bandits originally surrounding Quanzhou in the west and the more than 20,000 bandits in the north immediately collapsed.
After learning about the situation, Uncle Xie Fang issued an order for Zhao Shijian's troops and more than 200 monk soldiers to go out of the city again to persuade these headless flies to surrender and recruit them.
The monk soldiers suffered heavy casualties in the battle for the bridge. More than 60 people were killed and nearly 200 were slightly or seriously injured. Elder Yuan Miao was also seriously injured and endangered.
Fortunately, there were military doctors on the Shenzhou ship, and it was also the headquarters of the military hospital led by Dr. Chong Tai. This gave an "incurable injury" like Yuan Miao a glimmer of hope.
Although Shenzhou's artillery attack on Nanguan Pier was not a serious naval battle, it should be regarded as creating history. This combat mode that appeared two or three hundred years in advance will be invincible on the seas of this era.
To some extent, the pirates who were bombarded were honored, as they would go down in history as a result.
Of course, they probably won't like such an honor, they will only feel fear, doomsday fear.
After only one round of shelling, the surviving pirates lost all fighting spirit and courage, and were then surrounded, annihilated and captured by the official army.
There were also nearly 20,000 thieves in the east of the city outside Renfeng Gate. Although Zhang Yanran did not send them a message, they were not blind and deaf, and they noticed the change in the situation a little later.
The core of more than 3,000 people abandoned the camp and fled to Xianyou County in panic. Most of the remaining people were surrendered.
At this point, Quanzhou City, which had been besieged for seven days, was completely out of danger, the gloom was gone, and the whole city was cheering.
After Zhao Mengqi defeated Pu's family, he urgently arrested his accomplices based on Pu Shougeng's confession, and asked Pu Shiwen to appease other Tibetan merchants.
It was not until evening that Zhao Mengqi took the Banzhi Imperial Guard to Nanguan Port by boat.
On the pier, more than 6,000 people kidnapped by pirates were rescued, and the ground still looked shocking after being cleaned.
Uncle Xie Fang and Zhao Jujing led thousands of Quancheng officials, gentry, clan relatives, and talented people to greet them here.
Although Zhao Mengqi didn't like this kind of formalism, he also knew that it was a necessary ritual in the era of etiquette and law.
Before his ship even docked, a group of the most prominent people in Quanzhou came to pay homage from a distance, with a level of respect comparable to that of welcoming Zhao Guan's family.
He defeated and annihilated more than 20,000 intercepting rebels with a weak force, and dared to personally come to the rescue with only 3,000 troops. Moreover, he defeated nearly 100,000 rebels in one fell swoop like a divine soldier descending from the sky. This made the current Everyone in Quanzhou regarded King Yan as a god.
When Zhao Mengqi stepped onto the pier, thousands of people bowed deeply again and said, "Your Highness is welcome!"
After patiently completing the long etiquette ceremony, Zhao Mengqi breathed a sigh of relief, but Uncle Xie Fang suddenly knelt down.
"The old minister is guilty. Your Highness has entrusted me with a heavy responsibility and placed high hopes on me. However, my incompetence has caused the place to be destabilized and the lives of the people to be devastated. It has also led to His Highness being exposed to danger. The old minister deserves to die for his crime. Please punish him severely!"
"Xie Xiang, why are you doing this?" Zhao Mengqi stepped forward to help Uncle Xie Fang, and said sincerely, "Why did the chaos in Fujian start? I know it well, but if I insist on saying it, I should put you in danger. Prime Minister Xie has worked hard for the country, and he has made meritorious deeds, so there is no reason to punish him."
Uncle Xie Fang was frightened and burst into tears, "His Highness is so generous and kind, I feel ashamed, but I have to devote myself to death..."
The old man and the young man performed the drama of a wise king and a wise minister, and it took a while before they gave up.
Then Zhao Jujing paid a deep bow to Zhao Mengqi and said, "Your Highness did not hesitate to put himself in danger to save Quanzhou from fire and water, and rescued the clan from hanging upside down. This kindness is so great that I will always remember it in my heart and be grateful."
"The Duke's words are serious. You and I are both descendants of the Zhao family. There is no need for one family to speak two different languages. No matter from which point of view, Gu Ye just did what he should do..."
Zhao Mengqi then spoke to the important figures in Quanzhou one by one. His words were appropriate and amiable, which made people feel like spring breeze.
When he was approaching an old man of eighty or ninety years old, Zhao Jujing softly introduced to Zhao Mengqi, "This old man is also a clan relative, and he is a Han Chinese. He is ninety-eight years old. He once knew Fuqing County. He was a man of integrity and good management. When he took office, , even if he breaks the law, even if he is a son of the minister, he will not lend it to him. It is quite popular. In the county, everyone is standing sideways. The name of the time... Zhao Yanluo has a strange temper and may be offensive in his words. Please give me more, Your Highness. Just be patient..."
It can be seen from the generation that Zhao Xihan is Zhao Mengqi's grandfather, but this is not unusual. After all, Zhao Jujing is also Zhao Mengqi's grandfather, but from a different tribe.
But as he approaches a hundred years old, he is about to become a popular person. I am afraid that he can do whatever he wants when he comes to the Chongzheng Palace, but the Zhao Guan family must treat him with caution.
"Xiao Jingzi, you are whispering in my ear, but what bad things are you saying about us?"
Zhao Xihan's voice was quite loud, and he stared at his slightly cloudy eyes, but the corners of his eyes were mostly covered by droopy eyelids.
Zhao Jujing was in his sixties or seventies. He had the title of a serious county duke and was promoted to the official affairs of the Nanwai Sect. However, he was called "Little Jingzi". He couldn't refute and had to laugh at him.
"How can I do that? Brother is too worried..."
If possible, Zhao Jujing naturally didn't want this old man to appear here, and would take a detour even if he saw him.
Filial piety and respect for the elderly are an important cornerstone of Chinese moral tradition. In the laws of the Tang and Song Dynasties, persons over ninety years old were not allowed to have additional penalties even if they committed a capital crime.
Zhao Mengqi did not dare to neglect, and bowed his head respectfully, saying, "My grandnephew pays homage to the old man."
Zhao Xihan leaned on his dove stick and looked at Zhao Mengqi, who was wearing a helmet and shaking armor. He looked at him slowly for a long time, with a slight look of satisfaction on his face.
"You are a brave boy. Since Emperor Taizong's death, almost no one in our Zhao family has been so armed anymore. I only hope that you can fight off the remaining heroes of our ancestors, restore the world, and reopen the prosperous age."
These words are very self-indulgent, but they are mostly compliments.
Just as Zhao Mengqi was about to say a few words of humility, the old man's expression changed and his tone became firm.
"Originally, although you don't have the name of a prince, you have the reality of being a prince. Sooner or later, you will be responsible for the country and the country. We are stupid and old and have no qualifications to point fingers at you, but there are some things in our hearts that we don't say out loud!"
Yo, are you planning to teach me a lesson?
Zhao Mengqi was surprised, but looked as usual and said with a smile, "It is a great nephew's blessing to have the old man's advice. Please give it to me."
The old man made a serious face and said, "Then let's be bold. You are both civil and military, and you are extremely intelligent. There is nothing to say about that. However, you always seem to be intolerant and out of touch in your dealings. You often resort to ingenuity to take risks, and you may be better than the moment, but sometimes If you make a mistake, you will never recover. Meng Sheng said, 'stay in the center and keep the righteousness, and the journey will go far.' You are the foundation of the country and have a huge responsibility. You should take this into consideration, think carefully, act carefully, and strictly follow the right path for a long time."
Zhao Mengqi's face was full of sarcasm, "What the old man taught me is that my grandnephew should remember it."
Regardless of whether the old man was right or not, Zhao Mengqi didn't want to make any more excuses. After all, people's thoughts are the hardest to change, and there was no need to let everyone understand their thoughts and just deal with it.
But the old man didn't stop there, and continued, "I heard that you are quite good at business affairs, and you have the ability to turn stone into gold. You are even known as the 'King of Wealth' among the people. You are good at pursuing profits, but if there is justice in the world, Governance without righteousness leads to chaos. The winner of righteousness is the rule of the world, and the one who defeats righteousness is the root of chaos." Justice is the foundation of profit. Isn't it putting the cart before the horse if you blindly attach importance to profit!? The beginning of chaos is also the beginning of profit. The so-called "righteousness is what the laws of heaven are suitable for." What is beneficial is what human nature desires.' If we want to achieve great governance in the world, we must eradicate human desires and restore heaven's principles. This is the right way!"
What the old man said is actually what Zhu Xi advocated, "preserving heaven's principles and destroying human desires". Most people in later generations will sneer at this, thinking it is ignorance and decadence.
However, this statement was not originated by Zhu Xi, but runs through the entire Confucian thought. All the so-called Confucian saints, including later Wang Yangming, have expounded similar views.
The true connotation has been tampered with or misunderstood by later generations, and most people are too lazy to understand it in depth and just follow what others say. After all, later generations pursue money first.
"In today's world, materialism and profit-seeking are rampant, which has caused the Song Dynasty to decline and become more and more decadent. In the final analysis, isn't the cause of the chaos in Fujian just some people who forget their own interests and forget about righteousness? In Quanzhou right now, maritime trade is extremely prosperous. There are many merchants and rich families everywhere, but except for the industry and commerce related to sea trade, everything else is in decline. The villages are desolate, the fields are harvested, the government's wealth is exhausted, and there is nothing to do, and the people are salty. You Canghuang, even in the clan, there are most poverty-stricken people, except for a few stinking people!"
Having said this, the old man deliberately set his sights on Zhao Jujing.
Zhao Jujing smiled awkwardly, "Brother... I'm doing this for everyone, right now. The imperial court is running out of money. If it weren't for the support of the Shipping Department, it would be difficult to meet the expenses of the clan. Our income from managing merchants is also a supplement." In the clan?"
Nearly one hundred and thirty years since the Nanwai Sect moved to Quanzhou, the clan's population has reached more than 3,500 people.
The main supplies for the clan were salary, money and rice for orphans, and dowry for clan daughters, and their standards basically did not change from the Northern Song Dynasty to the Southern Song Dynasty.
For the clan living in the ancestral courtyard, the big one is paid thirteen guan per month, the medium one is paid nine guan per month, one stone per meter, the small one is paid four guan and seven per month, and four dou per meter; the smallest one is paid per month. As always, four buckets of rice.
For those who live outside the courtyard, the big ones are paid two guan per month and one stone of rice. The small ones are given one guan and five dou of rice per month.
This does not include clan officials, because they receive salaries based on their official rank and position.
The eldest daughter who is over 20 years old can also get a dowry money, one hundred qian for those living in the courtyard, and only one third for those living outside the courtyard.
The source of supply is local finance. At the beginning, the population was small, and the annual demand was about 50,000 to 60,000 guan. At this time, it was almost 160,000 guan. In addition, the administrative expenses of Zongzhengsi and religious funds were more than 10,000 guan.
Among them, Quanzhou Prefecture paid about 90,000 guan, Xinghua Army shared less than 10,000 guan, and the rest was supplemented by the Municipal Shipping Department.
To be honest, comparing this expenditure with the Ming Dynasty clan expenditure, the difference between a firefly and the moon is simply that.
But in the eyes of the scholar-officials of the Song Dynasty, it was still a heavy burden, and they often complained endlessly. They said they were worried about the country and the people, but how much of it was sincere is unknown. After all, they did not care whether it was legitimate or not. The legitimate income is much more than that of the clan.
From time to time, there are states and counties that fail to increase the amount of money and rice paid to orphans as required, and there are also state officials who default on clan salaries, ranging from a few months to a year or two.
Song Hui Yao recorded that officials profited from the reduction of allowances, and the payment of allowances to a clan member was delayed, which would make the whole family's life unstable, but the prefectures and counties did not think there was anything wrong with this.
The emperor had to issue edicts many times, ordering the Zongzhengsi of Da Zongzheng and the Zongzhengsi of Xiwai and Nanwai to inspect the delay in the payment of clan salaries in prefectures and counties.
But not many can get real solutions. It has to be said that compared with other dynasties, the clan of the Song Dynasty was a bit humble.
Some people died, but not completely...
