Pulling down the curtain and covering the carriage window, feeling the bumps, Liu Chengyou looked at Li Shaoyou and asked, "I'm afraid it's very lively in Gyeonggi these days."
"It's not just lively, it's just a bunch of demons dancing and chaos!" Li Shaoyou said with emotion, with a serious expression.
"What kind of chaos?" Liu Chengyou asked calmly. There was no surprise between his brows. He had already heard about some situations.
"Civil chaos, military chaos, and political chaos." Li Shaoyou summarized the three chaos in a solemn tone.
At this time, there were hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the capital. Originally, after the Khitan people's destructive plunder, many people fled and took refuge, but there were not so many people. However, as the situation in the Central Plains gradually stabilized, many people returned after hearing the news. At the same time, the economy of the entire Central Plains region completely collapsed, states and counties lacked survival resources, and many hungry people also migrated to the Tokyo area.
On Liu Zhiyuan's side, taking Tokyo was justifiable and the country was settled, but in fact he had taken on a huge burden. After entering the city, there were thousands of things to do, and they were busy trying to win over the people (the founding officials and officials and soldiers of the previous dynasty), discussing their merits, giving rewards, and giving them titles and titles.
The reaction was slow and he didn't pay attention to the refugees who were gathering for a while. When he realized that more and more people were gathering, he belatedly ordered the generals of various states to restrain the people from all over the country and make them flow to the prefectures and counties. At the same time, , and also sent officers and soldiers out to guard the passes and set up passes to block the refugees and keep them out of the capital. There were even cases where people were driven and killed.
Under the Han court's tough measures, the trend of "eating in Tokyo" finally receded, but how many people would die and how many people would lose in the process were not considered for the time being.
Even so, tens of thousands of people, dragging their families and families with them, fled to Kaifeng and were blocked under the city. The imperial court could not ignore these people completely. It simply opened some relief points and distributed some "food" to be raised as livestock. Even so, these people were an additional burden for the new imperial court. Some people suggested that these refugees should be dispersed and left to fend for themselves. Fortunately, Liu Zhiyuan deliberately kept this fig leaf under the emperor's feet and did not listen.
There are tens of thousands of rioters in Gyeonggi, but the problem is actually not that big and has always been within control. Civil unrest really broke out after the families of the Forbidden Army moved in from Hedong.
Including the Longqi Army under the command of Liu Chengyou, there were about 50,000 infantry and horsemen who followed Liu Zhiyuan out of Hedong to conquer the country. These troops were the imperial army guarding the capital, and his family members who stayed in Taiyuan also migrated in batches.
Over and over, more than 100,000 people have come south. These common people are the family members of the Forbidden Army and cannot be treated as roughly as ordinary refugees. They must be paid special attention to and must be properly resettled. It is not difficult to find a resettlement place. There are a lot of unowned land and houses around Kaifeng. Even if they are not available, they can be temporarily built.
Not only the family members of the former Hedong Forbidden Army, but also the newly defected officers and soldiers of the former Imperial Forbidden Army. Fortunately, most of these people's relatives were originally in the Gyeonggi area, saving a lot of resettlement efforts.
However, hundreds of thousands of people gathered together, newcomers and newcomers, outsiders and locals, plus refugees, all kinds of chaos. Conflicts are basically inevitable, and land, housing, food, water sources... even a quarrel can become the trigger of a conflict.
The original people of Gyeonggi had suffered enough. Liu Zhiyuan's visit to the capital actually did not bring them any benefits. Not to mention nonsense like freedom and dignity, and they did not want the looted property. They had to be satisfied with food and clothing. Unfortunately, this most basic thing cannot be done. Instead, hundreds of thousands of people migrated, crowding out or even seizing their living space and resources.
You must know that the families of the Hedong Army who moved south are basically "property owners". They moved their families south to Tokyo to enjoy the blessings and become masters. Since the middle of last month, bad situations of bullying and robbery have occurred from time to time, until a major riot broke out, targeting the newly arrived people from Hedong. The refugees who were waiting for food were also involved.
However, those who were the family members of the Hedong Army immediately triggered a crackdown, arresting and punishing the troublemakers. Now that the surrendered old army has given up, they have also been accepted as the imperial army. They are all imperial army, so his family members are easy to bully? The army of this era dared to use knives, and almost did not directly cause a firefight.
Fortunately, Liu Zhiyuan was very sensitive to the changes in the army, and he had relatively strong control over the army. Seeing that something was wrong, he directly sent people to kill the several generals and dozens of middle- and lower-level officers who were leading the trouble, and the police were intimidated. The whole army. Killing can sometimes be exciting and make people lose their minds, but more often than not, it has a greater shock effect.
At the same time, Liu Zhiyuan sent people to mediate and divide the army and the people. In the end, the blame for causing the riots was placed on the refugees. Some people who were causing trouble and breaking the law were caught and killed, and the army was sent to implement military control on the refugees. They were defined in a certain area and beaten, punished and killed at will. It smelled a bit like a concentration camp...
When he heard this, Liu Chengyou couldn't help but said: "How could it be such a mess! What is the court doing? Why not evacuate the refugees and disperse them?"
Li Shaoyou shrugged his shoulders and sighed: "Is it so easy to support hundreds of thousands of people?"
"The summer harvest has passed, so we should have already put the summer grain into the warehouse. Also, what about the camels, sheep, and grain I captured from Hebei? Can't we still have some relief?" Liu Chengyou asked.
"We can't make ends meet! We have to support soldiers and officials, and we have to reward heroes and generals. How can we have any spare time to support the people? If we can give them something to eat and prevent them from starving to death, it is already a mercy of the court." Li Shaoyuan.
"That's not what it is!" Liu Chengyou said coldly. He remembered the previous situation in Zhenzhou, where there were hundreds of thousands of refugees. They also had to support the army and defend the Khitan. He couldn't handle it. In Liu Chengyou's view, the situation in the Central Plains may be difficult, but no matter how difficult it is, it will not reach this point.
"The imperial court must have failed to deal with it!" Staring at Li Shaoyou, Liu Chengyou clenched his fist: "If this continues, I'm afraid the people will lose heart!"
Liu Chengyou's cold eyes startled Li Shaoyou, and there was a hint of paleness in his bitter smile: "People's hearts? I have made secret inquiries. In the eyes of those refugees, our Han Dynasty is worse than the Khitan people."
Li Shaoyou's words made Liu Chengyou's heart feel cold, and the hot blood that almost rushed to the top of his head immediately cooled down.
"How could it be?" Liu Chengyou asked, "Didn't the imperial court issue several edicts to benefit the people?"
"Let me sort it out for you." Li Shaoyou stretched out his left hand and clapped his fingers.
"Edict 1: All criminals who have been banned in the world will be pardoned except for the ten evil and five rebellious crimes. Those who are in prison may have unjust cases, but there are many who committed crimes and violated the law. Pardoning their crimes to win the hearts of the people is what they did in the prosperous times. In this world, what benefit will it bring to the country if these criminals are released, and what benefit will it bring to the ordinary people? Moreover, they are suffering from detention and have a lot of hatred towards the imperial government. If they are released, they are not asking for trouble and harming the people. ? I can guarantee that many bandits and thieves operating in various states these days have been pardoned."
Curling another finger, Li Shaoyou continued: "Edict 2, all states will pay the last year's residual taxes at the same time. Within a hundred miles of the east and west capital, all summer taxes will be paid. A hundred miles away and the capital, this year's house taxes will be paid in half. . Taxes have been reduced a lot, but given the current situation in the Central Plains, very little can be collected, so how much benefit can it bring to the people?"
"As for the rest, they are all similar to this." Li Shaoyou shook his head.
If you think about it carefully, what Li Shaoyou said is really not without purpose. It is estimated that Liu Zhiyuan himself was wondering. What he did was not much different from the establishment of new dynasties in the past. He thought that when the emperor Shi Jingtang entered Luoyang, he basically did the same thing, so why was the effect so different?
The reasons may be complicated, but one thing is clear. During that period, the people of the Central Plains were not plowed by the Khitan people, and the mess that Shi Jingtang needed to clean up was not so bad. However, there are always pros and cons in everything. The Central Plains and even the entire country were smashed and crushed, but it was conducive to reshaping. However, the new Han Dynasty obviously couldn't do it well. It couldn't even sort out itself. What's more, Rebuilding the country.
"Why is the army in chaos?" Liu Chengyou asked, suppressing the uncontrollable impatience in his heart.
"It's not like you don't know the habits of the arrogant and powerful generals in Hedong. It was okay that they were suppressed before. Before entering Bian, they were still able to make no mistakes in the face of military law. After entering the Central Plains, they easily broke into Tokyo. But they despise everything, the generals are arrogant and lazy, the soldiers also follow the same example, and the officials' control over them is not as strict as in the past..."
Li Shaoyuan said: "Since entering Bian, the strength of the former Imperial Forbidden Army, the gathered soldiers and horses of Jiezhen, and the recruits recruited have tripled. The contradiction between the old and new Imperial Army is not small at all. The officials need Yuan Cong's imperial army from Hedong to suppress everything, so they have been letting it go."
"During this period, the military discipline of the forbidden soldiers has become worse and worse. I have seen many people walking around arrogantly and domineeringly. I am afraid that their combat effectiveness has dropped sharply."
Liu Chengyou's brows furrowed even more tightly and he couldn't help but interrupt him: "Shi Hongzhao, as the commander of the Imperial Guards, hasn't he always been harsh and strict in running the army? What responsibility does he, the commander of the imperial army, bear?"
"It's true that Shi Hongzhao was harsh in running the army." Li Shaoyuan, the word "sarcasm" was almost written directly on his face: "That's for outsiders, but for those who are close to him, he always protects him. It can be said that , the most rampant imperial guardsmen in Tokyo right now must be Shi Hongzhao’s people!”
"Because of Shi Hongzhao's unfair treatment and partial punishment, the soldiers at home and abroad were indignant, and a fight almost broke out some time ago."
Liu Chengyou took a breath: "Father, are you just indifferent and doing nothing?"
"How could it be? It was precisely because the officials were furious that they punished a group of officers who committed crimes, and then they restrained themselves. However, as long as the generals commanding the troops are still those people, the frivolous atmosphere in the army will be difficult to eliminate. I heard, The officials are all sick with anger. Recently, plans are being made to rectify the imperial army and reorganize the armies..."
The fingers tapping on his knees moved very fast, and it took a long time to stop. He faced backward and leaned on the carriage. Liu Chengyou said quietly: "If the military is in chaos, what kind of chaos is this political chaos?"
"It's said to be political chaos, but actually it's still chaos among ministers!" Li Shaoyao said.
After Liu Zhiyuan entered Kaifeng, although he retained a large number of ministers from the previous dynasty, such as Zhao Shangjiao (originally named Zhao Yuan, who changed his name to avoid taboos), Bian Wei, Wang Jingchong and others, all political facts were handed over to the "Second Su".
Although Su Fengji and Su Yugui have their own strengths, their character flaws are extremely obvious, and they are basically talkative. They may not be able to govern a state or county well, let alone the governance of a country. For nearly a month, the government and the public in Tokyo were in a state of chaos, which was not even as peaceful as during Li Congyi's short-lived "Longde Dynasty". And these two Sus are still fighting for favor and power.
Until Yang Bin and Wang Zhang brought Liu Zhiyuan's original domineering team from Taiyuan and quickly filled it into the center, regaining control over the Privy Council and financial planning. And Liu Zhiyuan obviously supported Yang and Wang. After all, they had been responsible for their political affairs for so many years.
Wang Zhang continued to work miserably, grasping the shriveled money bag of the new dynasty, his hair turned gray due to worry, and he wanted to increase his wealth. It is not an exaggeration to say that he was a man of action. Seeing that the capital was wasting a lot of money, he made dozens of suggestions in order to avoid urgent tasks and save useless expenses. In fact, Wang Zhang was grateful to Liu Chengyou. At least the goods he had taken back from the Khitans were of great use, otherwise he would have lost more hair.
However, the poor are poor and the rich are rich. No matter how much they are supplemented from the outside, it is still not enough. The treasury of the Han Dynasty is still empty. The word "use the amount to overcome support" only exists in the idea of the memorial. middle. As the prime minister of the imperial court, he still had to work hard to increase his wealth. However, although Wang Zhang has been in charge of the money bag all year round, he is not particularly good at "financial management". What he is better at is collecting...
As for Yang Bin, this person has a strong personality, a bit arrogant, and a tough style. He is not afraid of offending others and can't get any sand in his eyes. After becoming the prime minister of the empire and assuming power, he vigorously rectified the government affairs, clarified government affairs, and appointed and dismissed officials.
Reported to Liu Zhiyuan, dozens of incompetent officials were dismissed, and several were punished for dereliction of duty. This time, Er Su was completely offended, especially Su Fengji.
During his time in power, he did a lot of bad things, one of which was "selling his official position to get a title." Before entering Kaifeng, he had already been granted dozens of official positions, large and small, and when he arrived in Tokyo, he fulfilled them one by one. Most of the officials Yang Bin dismissed were officials who obtained their positions through bribery, and were extremely targeted.
Su Fengji, who was originally dissatisfied because of the usurpation of power, now angered Su Fengji even more. Then they began to criticize Yang Bin's people. The officials of this period were very clean, including Yang Bin himself, who also did a lot of things that used power for personal gain.
"This Su Yugui, in my impression, is a mellow elder!" Liu Chengyou's mouth twitched.
"This mellow elder now owns many properties in and outside Tokyo. But he is also smart. If he can't compete, he won't fight at all. In the past two days, he even sent his servants to rescue refugees." Li Shaoyao.
He glanced at Liu Chengyou and continued: "As for Su Fengji, Xianggong Su, he has many houses and fields. Not to mention Tokyo, I heard that he occupies four or five manors with hundreds of hectares of land in Xijing. Now if you want to bribe him, Erlang, You pay 100,000 yuan to come to your door, I'm afraid you can only meet in person..."
After listening to Li Shaoyou's report, Liu Chengyou's expression became extremely autistic.
"This is not the prosperity of the early days of the empire. It is clearly a sign of the country's downfall!" After a long silence, Liu Chengyou suddenly shouted angrily in a suppressed voice, with murderous intent clearly in his eyes.
"Erlang, don't say this nonsense!" Although it was rare to see Liu Chengyou so excited, Li Shaoyou was startled and quickly advised.
"When I was in Hedong, the civil and military officials still laughed at the Khitans for not adapting to our national conditions, and they would not be able to have China for a long time. Look at what these heroes from Hedong have done. How can they be better than the Khitans?" Liu Chengyou said in his tone. Revealing anger, could he ever be so emotional? He just felt that his fight in Hebei seemed a little unworthy...
"That's not always the case." At this time, Li Shaoyou didn't dare to look directly into Liu Chengyou's eyes, and said sarcastically: "For example, Vice Privy Secretary Guo has always restrained his subordinates and worked diligently on the king's affairs. Official rewards are also distributed more to subordinates. , to reassure people’s hearts.”
Hearing him mention Guo Wei, Liu Chengyou's eyes narrowed subconsciously.
Li Shaoyou continued: "The recent situation is much better than before. It is chaotic. It should not be chaotic. It has already entered autumn. If we endure it a little longer, everything will be fine when the autumn harvest is over."
"I hope so!" Liu Chengyou opened the car curtain and looked outside. Looking outside, the sky was high and the clouds were vast.
During the conversation, Kaifeng City came into view.
