With the army on the side, the attempted extermination of Buddhism in the river went extremely smoothly. Facts have proved that in these troubled times, Buddhism has a great influence on the people, especially those ignorant people who have sustenance. Only the Qiyan and Pujiu temples that the government and troops surrounded and controlled aroused a wave of criticism among the people. In this regard, Liu Chengyou became more determined to take action.
Regarding the disposal of the two temples, Liu Chengyou wanted to kill all the monks in the two temples in the name of pursuing "rebels" and based on the idea of "better to kill the wrong ones than let them go" to eliminate the remaining evildoers. Fortunately, Feng Dao, Fan Zhi and other officials tried their best to dissuade him. After careful consideration, Liu Chengyou decided to accept the advice.
However, the death penalty can be avoided, but the living crime cannot be escaped. The two temple officials were severely punished to warn those who have different intentions.
Most of the thousands of monks in the two monasteries were dismissed and ordered to return to secular life and become naturalized citizens, leaving only less than thirty monks who were proficient in Buddhism. All money and food from the temple were taken away from them. All kinds of bronze statues and all gold and silver magical instruments were basically confiscated and escorted back to the military camp to be transported back to Tokyo for melting and making money.
The deeds of all the land owned by the Buddhist temple were invalidated, and all the land was distributed to the households who worked for it and the monks who returned to secular life. People's morale improved a lot. Based only on the number of monks left in the temple, a certain amount of land was left for the two temples. From now on, the monks will not only chant sutras and recite Buddha's name, but also plow the land and grow vegetables.
Originally, according to Liu Chengyou's idea, he would also impose heavy taxes on Buddhist temples, but considering that after such a wave of woolen wool, there would be no more oil and water for a long time to come, so he gave up for now. Moreover, the government also conducts regular inspections on Buddhist temples...
The above is only for Qiyan and Pujiu, two large temples with relatively deep foundations. However, under Hezhong Fu, all the other temples or small temples on the hills were deposed, and all the Buddhist temples were driven out in response to the monks. In the future, most people in Hezhong will have to travel long distances if they want to worship Buddha and offer incense. Whether they are devout believers depends on whether they can endure the long distance. Otherwise, they should just work at home and farm mulberry trees.
This series of measures is really extremely harsh for Buddhism. The incident in Yihe has almost set the tone for the subsequent extermination of the Buddha. There are rules to follow in every response. A severe winter is coming for Buddhism, and judging from the rise and fall of Buddhism, it is necessary to prepare for the catastrophe when it comes.
In the camp, large and small bronze statues, utensils, alms bowls, gold and silver, coins and other things were piled up in the cleared space. The harvest of destroying the Buddha was most intuitively displayed in front of Liu Chengyou.
"Only two Buddhist temples have accumulated so much wealth." The indifferent sigh was chilling.
Touching the smiling face of Maitreya, Liu Chengyou said, "I wonder how much new money can be minted from this bronze statue?"
"Ship it back to Tokyo, Wang Xianggong will definitely be overjoyed." Fan Zhi, who was standing by, looked at the emperor who couldn't move his eyes away and agreed.
"Instruct Yan Jinqing to transport these gold, silver and bronze wares back to Kaifeng as the first batch of supplies back to Beijing!" Liu Chengyou said directly, raising his hand.
While "rectifying" the Buddhist temple in Hezhong, the withdrawal of troops has gradually begun. More than 100,000 people gathered together and ate horse chews. The daily consumption was not a small amount. Moreover, seeing that the autumn harvest has arrived, farming is busy and there is a shortage of labor. The drafted laborers and state soldiers are already thinking about their family fields.
First of all, Liu Chengyou returned more than 30,000 people who had been recruited nearby from Hezhong, Shanxi, and Shaanhua to the villages and towns, and gave each of them money and food. At the same time, due to war accidents, the states are ordered to reduce taxes this autumn, and all deaths, injuries, and hard work will be exempted...
In fact, these several states could not provide much finance and tax to the imperial court at all, and even if they did, most of them were intercepted by the enemy. This generosity to "others" and small favors gained a good reputation, "Holy Lord and Mingjun" His virtues are more and more praised, at least on the surface.
Hezhong Prefecture is ripe this year, a good year, but it has been the most severely traumatized by the war, and its young people have suffered the most serious casualties. And from the abundant treasury in the river under Li Shouzhen's rule, it can be seen that even if it is prosperous, the lives of Li people are still very difficult. Liu Chengyou's edict to benefit the people can be described as a sweet rain. At least with some hard work, this winter may not be so difficult.
After the labor service, the conscripted local state and town troops were also released in batches. Liu Chengyou took some time to meet with some local generals. Although the loyalty of Fang Zhen's army was open to question, in the early stages of this counter-insurgency campaign, they basically relied on these troops to withstand it.
...
In the palace, the atmosphere was relatively relaxed. More than a dozen officers gathered together in twos and threes, chatting quietly. They were all of different colors and had different military positions, but they all had one thing in common: youth.
These people are all officers with meritorious service in this counter-insurgency war. In fact, for most of the imperial officers and soldiers who enlisted, they only had one round of qualifications. The victory of the army is more about the collective effort and individual performance. Among tens of thousands of troops, it is really not that easy to stand out unless you enter the protagonist mode. And these officers are all outstanding individuals.
Among them, Zhao Kuangyin was the lowest in terms of qualifications, status, and military position. In fact, until now, he still had some doubts in his heart as to why the emperor summoned him by name. Until now, he is still an unknown person. If you think about it carefully, killing Li Chongxun can be regarded as a merit, but Zhao Kuangyin himself feels that it is not a great achievement...
While thinking, he glanced around the gorgeous government hall, paying attention to the generals and observing silently. He glanced at a handsome officer who was alone, with a heart-warming smile on his face. He walked forward and greeted him with his hands raised: "I, Zhao Kuangyin, have met this dear friend."
Zhang Yongde was in a bad mood in front of a quiet handsome man. The conflict between him and Li Chongjin became more and more serious. They were both relatives, so they were a little helpless. Perhaps Guo Wei's constant warnings had the opposite effect, and Li Chongjin's jealousy towards Zhang Yongde became more and more serious. This time with the army, the two didn't have much communication. They just met and exchanged a few words.
Zhao Kuangyin came up to him. Although he didn't have much interest in his heart, he saw his kind smile. Out of his good demeanor and self-cultivation, he saluted back: "Zhang Yongde!"
Hearing this, Zhao Kuangyin suddenly showed a look of surprise and said in a tone of admiration: "At this step is Commander Zhang, who rushed into the city through fire, followed Liu Du's commander to break through the government office, rescued the warehouse, and was personally commended by His Majesty Yongde. Brother?"
Zhang Yongde was a little surprised by Zhao Kuangyin's flattering reaction, and he said with a little bit of embarrassment, "A meager contribution is not worthy of the Dao."
As he said that, he glanced up and down at Zhao Kuangyin and said thoughtfully: "Zhao Kuangyin? The one who captured and killed Li Chongxun must be Brother Zhao."
Zhao Kuangyin's face didn't change much, let alone the look of arrogance. It was like saying something trivial: "Brother Zhang actually heard that he had a bad name? But it's my honor..."
"..."
"Brother Zhang, do you know why the emperor summoned me?"
"..."
When Zhao Kuangyin and Zhang Yongde were talking about things and quickly calling each other brothers, the chamberlain Zhang Dejun sang loudly: "Your Majesty is here!"
The two people who were chatting happily were immediately interrupted. Everyone immediately lined up neatly, and the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became solemn.
With wind in his footsteps, Liu Chengyou stepped in from outside the hall, sat in front of the seat, raised his robe and sat down.
"I will see you, Your Majesty!" A group of generals bowed neatly.
"I'm free of charge!" Liu Chengyou's voice was short and powerful.
Scanning the dozen or so famous generals in the hall, Liu Chengyou's eyes showed some fondness. Ma Quanyi, Yang Ye, Fu Zhaoxin, Gao Huaide, Li Chongju, Zhao Yanjin, Wang Hanlun, Li Chongjin, Zhang Yongde, Zhao Kuangyin...
He was either a second-generation official or a second-generation soldier. Even Yang Ye's family was powerful in Linzhou. The only grassroots member is Ma Quanyi, but he is the earliest confidant general who followed Liu Chengyou, and he is also the one with the highest military rank in the field.
After thinking for a while, Liu Chengyou spoke: "You are all young heroes in the Forbidden Army, rising stars, and the cornerstone of the Han army in the future..."
