History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 398 Xu Zhixun's Mystery

[Xu Zhixun Mystery]

The murder of Xu Zhixun is shrouded in mystery, especially as historical records say Xu Wen was completely unaware of Xu Zhixun's rebellious behavior. Instead, it was after his murder that Xu Zhigao, Yan Keqiu and others told the story.

What kind of person is Xu Wen! He is the top political master in the Huainan Group, and he has countless spies in and outside Yangzhou. He knows the heart of Huainan very well. And he was totally unaware of Xu Zhixun's bullying of Yang Wei and humiliating the veterans. Do you believe it?

Looking at the murderer of Xu Zhixun - Zhu Jin, many people throughout history have raised doubts that this old general, who had spent his entire life in military service and enjoyed a very high social status, behaved like a reckless idiot when he killed Xu Zhixun.

First of all, Zhu Jin did not gather his troops. Apart from a few warriors who were ambushed in the inner room, Zhu Jin was almost a lone hero without any help. When he heard that the public security organs were trying their best to arrest him, he actually escaped alone by climbing over the wall. Killing Xu Zhixun was more like an accidental injury rather than a coup or mutiny.

Secondly, Zhu Jin carried the head and entered and exited the palace as if he was in an empty place, without encountering any obstruction.

There is another key figure - Yan Keqiu, who is also full of mystery.

According to records, Yan Keqiu had long seen that Xu Zhigao was a threat to the Xu family, and repeatedly advised Xu Wen to take the initiative and get rid of Xu Zhigao. Xu Wen couldn't bear it, and said that Xu Zhigao's "rebellion was not clear" and he should not be killed without reason.

When Xu Wen finally had the opportunity to implicate Xu Zhigao in the murder of Xu Zhixun, Yan Keqiu tried his best to exonerate Xu Zhigao, and together with Xu Zhigao, he exposed and reported Xu Zhixun's various despicable deeds and tried his best to protect Xu Zhigao.

Another record in the history books may provide us with a clue: Yan Keqiu and Luo Zhixiang were collectively called "Yan Luo", and they were the left and right arms of Xu Wen's think tank. Among them, Luo Zhixiang had long been bribed by Xu Zhigao. The two worked together to exclude Yan Keqiu, demoted him from the "central government", and sent him out as the governor of Chuzhou. Yan Keqiu then ran to Shengzhou and persuaded Xu Wen to become emperor, so he was kept in Shengzhou by Xu Wen, thus avoiding the conspiracy of Xu Zhigao and Luo Zhixiang. Xu Zhigao then changed his mind and married his daughter to Yan Keqiu's son Yan Xu, turning enemies into friends and successfully turning Yan Keqiu into a teammate.

The truth behind Xu Zhixun's murder is far from as simple as recorded in history books.

History is always written by the victors. Xu Zhigao eventually usurped Huainan, established the "Southern Tang", and restored his original surname - Li. His grandson was the famous poet of the fallen country - Li Yu, the last ruler of the Southern Tang.

Simply put, the history of Xu Zhixun's murder was written by Xu Zhigao.

In fact, when Xu Wen heard the news that his eldest son Xu Zhixun was killed, his first reaction was: It must have been Xu Zhigao who did it! It was precisely the excuses made by Yan Keqiu and others that brought the investigation of the case to an abrupt halt.

What made Xu Wen stop the investigation was not the gossip of Yan Keqiu and others, but the actual situation. When Xu Wen came to Yangzhou in a rage, he found that Xu Zhigao had already seized the military and political power of Yangzhou and gained actual control of Yangzhou. Frankly speaking, Xu Wen was not confident enough to turn against Xu Zhigao. Xu Wen was in Yangzhou to investigate the murder of Xu Zhixun, but in fact he was testing Xu Zhigao's control over Yangzhou.

Just imagine, even Luo Zhixiang was instigated by Xu Zhigao, Diao Yanneng who stayed with Xu Zhixun had already secretly defected to Xu Zhigao, let alone other civil and military officials, even his other son Xu Zhijian firmly supported Xu Zhigao...Xu Wen was surprised and horrified to find that Yangzhou inside and outside had been firmly controlled by Xu Zhigao, so he just backed down and followed everyone's words, admitting that Xu Zhixun's death was entirely his own fault and he deserved it.

Stopping the investigation and liquidation of the homicide case declared Xu Wen's complete compromise with Xu Zhigao.

Therefore, Xu Wen reluctantly appointed Xu Zhigao as the deputy envoy of Huainan Jiedushi and the deputy envoy of the internal and external cavalry and infantry, basically taking over Xu Zhixun's power. He also appointed Xu Zhijian to take over Runzhou. Then he returned to Shengzhou and left Yangzhou, the sad place.

After Xu Zhigao took charge of Yangzhou, his style of doing things was completely different from Xu Zhixun's. He was respectful to the puppet Yang Wei, humble to the civil and military officials, and made policies that were very lenient and merciful. For example, he announced the cancellation of all previous arrears of taxes, and allowed the tax of this year to be deferred and paid after the crops matured.

In addition, Xu Zhigao also adopted the advice of counselor Song Qiqiu and abolished the excessive taxes. Previously, there were two major tax items in the Huainan area: head tax and land tax, and the people were required to pay in cash instead of in kind. In this way, the people had to sell the goods they produced and exchange them for copper coins, and the prices of goods were subject to the government's macro-control... It was similar to Kong Qian's "shearing wool" and "cutting leeks" in the Later Tang Dynasty. The government intervened in the market with administrative orders, fleeced the people, and plundered the people's fat in various ways.

Song Qiuqiu suggested that Xu Zhigao directly abolish the "head tax" and all unreasonable levies and levies, allow the people to hand over goods in kind to offset the taxes, and encourage them with generous conditions. For example, silk worth one thousand coins could actually be offset by three thousand coins.

Xu Zhigao accepted it all.

The government massively reduced the tax burden on the people, maximizing the incentives for productive labor. Overnight, there were no more wastelands in the Jianghuai region. The previously barren fields were all turned into fertile fields. Mulberry trees grew in front of and behind the houses. The people farmed and spun silk, making the country rich and the people strong.

Some officials also expressed their incomprehension and took their abacus to Song Qiqiu and Xu Zhigao to argue, saying that tax cuts are good for a while, but the national treasury will be burned to a crematorium! According to estimates, the government will lose hundreds of millions of tax revenue every year!
Song Qiqiu said that wealth has not decreased at all, let alone shrunk, but has simply been hidden among the people. How can the people be rich while the country is poor? Take a long-term view, young comrade.

Song Qiqiu was studious and ambitious, and was particularly good at the art of diplomacy and conspiracy (especially the theory of the length of the two sides). His original name was Chaohui, but later it was changed to Zisong. The reason was that Song Qiqiu once rejected Wang Taifu out of jealousy, so Wang Taifu wrote him a letter, cursing him elegantly, saying: "I heard that you are called the Great Saint and the Second Saint."

The Great Sage refers to the sage Confucius (Kong Qiu), and the Second Sage now generally refers to Mencius, but before the Song Dynasty, the Second Sage generally referred to Yan Hui. Wang Taifu meant that your name is "Qi Qiu", which is comparable to the sage Confucius; you call yourself "Chao Hui", which is beyond the Second Sage Yan Hui, you are too shameless!
Song Qiuqiu quickly changed his courtesy name to "Zisong".

(End of this chapter)