History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 607 Who rules the Central Plains 4
After entering Bianzhou, Yelu Deguang sent consolation edicts to all the towns in the country. Almost all the Jiedushi and Guanchashi submitted their loyalty to the Liao Dynasty, expressing their firm support for the Liao Dynasty and their firm support for the leadership of the court with Yelu Deguang as the core. All those summoned by Yelu Deguang to the capital rode their horses as fast as they could to report and pay their respects.

There were only two vassal states in the world who rejected Yelu Deguang's edict: Shi Kuangwei, the governor of Zhangyi Army in Jingzhou, and He Jiancheng, the governor of Xiongwu Army in Qinzhou. Their deeds will be described in detail later.

In short, Yelu Deguang got what he wanted, entered Bianzhou, and all the four directions paid tribute to him. In theory, all the territory of the Later Jin Dynasty, except for the two remote towns of Jingzhou and Qinzhou in the northwest, had become the territory of the Khitans.

Bribes from all sides were sent to Bianzhou continuously, and all kinds of flattery filled Yelu Deguang's ears, making the already arrogant Yelu Deguang even more arrogant.

As mentioned before, the destruction of the Later Jin Dynasty made him lose the mask of respecting the wise and humble. He no longer listened to the advice of Han advisers, but became more and more stubborn and self-willed. He even ignored Zhang Li's bitter advice and "refused to obey".

Yelu Deguang lost patience in governing the Central Plains. He disdained to study the cultural traditions and customs of the Central Plains, but instead issued orders roughly and presumptuously. So where did his time go? Answer: He continued to play music and dance.

Yelu Deguang indulged in drinking and merrymaking, and often publicly expressed his disdain and contempt for the cultural system of the Central Plains. According to records, he often said to civil and military officials: "You know nothing about my country's affairs."

【Destruction of the nation and genocide】

After completing the political layout, Yelu Deguang ascended the throne in Bianzhou and proclaimed himself emperor, announcing to the world the Khitan's rule over the Central Plains in a way that the people of the Central Plains could understand.

At the end of the first month, Yelu Deguang summoned all the civil and military officials of the Later Jin Dynasty to the royal courtyard for a meeting. At the meeting, Yelu Deguang said directly: "We Khitan have a vast territory, covering tens of thousands of miles, and there are 27 chieftains alone. The cultural system of your Central Plains is completely different from that of Khitan. So I plan to choose one of you Han people to be your emperor. What do you think?"

He said this to the people of the Central Plains. The people of the Central Plains were already used to this kind of show, you know. So, all the civil and military officials said in unison: "There is no two suns in the sky, and there is no two masters in a country. Whether it is Khitan or Han, all support your majesty to be the emperor!"

Yelu Deguang expressed his usual humility and said, "Oh, this is not good. I really want to return power to the Han people. The Han people should rule the Han people. Please recommend a talented person to me."

All the civil and military officials spoke in unison and insisted on their previous opinion that you are the only one who can rule the Central Plains.

Therefore, Yelu Deguang had no choice but to follow the crowd's opinion, "You said so! I will bear the grievance and bear the burden."

In 947 AD (the reign title of this year is a bit confusing, so we will use the Western calendar directly, which will be explained later), on February 2, Yelu Deguang wore the ceremonial robes of the Han emperor and ascended the throne. A royal orchestra and a royal guard of honor were set up in the atrium, playing the exclusive BGM for the new emperor's enthronement, and all civil and military officials came to the court to congratulate him.

On this day, Yelu Deguang announced that the country's name would be changed to "Da Liao", the reign title to "Datong Year One", and a general amnesty would be granted. At the same time, it was announced that from now on, Jiedushi and governors would not be allowed to recruit guards or buy horses.

In other words, if we have to be pretentious, the Central Plains was officially ruled by the Khitans in 947 AD.

Later Liang and Later Tang had a half-year overlapping coexistence period; Later Tang and Later Jin also had a short period of overlap; however, there was a gap between Later Jin and Later Han. In December 946, Later Jin was destroyed, but Yelu Deguang did not immediately support a puppet. Instead, it was not until more than a month later, on February 12, that he announced the change of the country's name to "Great Liao". From a legal point of view, the Central Plains officially became an inseparable part of the Great Liao Empire.

Half a month later, on February 2, Liu Zhiyuan established the country in Taiyuan and proclaimed himself emperor, establishing the Later Han Dynasty. After another four months of fighting, he finally entered Bianzhou in June. In other words, the Later Han Dynasty and the Later Jin Dynasty were not seamlessly connected.

So some people took advantage of the topic and brought out a "little-known fact", saying that "Five Dynasties" should be "Six Dynasties" or "Five and a Half Dynasties" because the Khitan Liao Dynasty was caught in the middle. Some even went so far as to directly shout that the Han people in the Central Plains "had lost their country and their race."

This is alarmist, incomplete and inaccurate.

Although Yelu Deguang entered Bianzhou, ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor, changed the country's name, changed the era name and issued a general amnesty, the Khitans' control over the Central Plains remained in the "nominal" category. Except for Bianzhou and Hebei, which were actually controlled by the Khitans, the vast territory of the Central Plains was "determined by edicts", and the local vassal states were only a temporary measure to pay tribute to the Khitans. The Khitans had no military presence in the local areas, and the county level had already lost control, and there was no one-size-fits-all approach. This led to the fact that when the people of the Central Plains later broke away from the Khitans, they could not even kill the "military supervisors".

In other words, this "Great Liao" in the Central Plains was not a centralized system at all, but a feudal freak in the guise of a centralized system. It was neither centralized nor feudal, and it was only entangled for dozens of days.

And in just these few dozen short days, the resistance of the people in the Central Plains rose and fell one after another, and they were very happy.

【Ambush from all sides】

1. Northwest Power

After Yelu Deguang entered Bian, he sent envoys with consolation edicts to all the prefectures and towns in the country. Almost all the governors of the towns and the governors of the prefectures accepted the edicts and submitted their allegiance. When the vast majority of the Han people in the Central Plains knelt down and surrendered, a tough voice came from the northwest of the empire.

Shi Kuangwei, the governor of Zhangyi Army in Jingzhou, prepared his army for war and refused to submit to the Khitan.

Shi Kuangwei, the "third generation of the Red Army", his father is Shi Jiantang, nicknamed "Shi Xianfeng", a fierce general from Hedong who is as famous as Zhou Dewei. After Ding Huixian surrendered Luzhou, Zhu Wen led a large army to counterattack Luzhou. Shi Jiantang attacked Liangying at night, scaring the two armies so much that they dared not leave the camp and warned each other that they must avoid Shi Xianfeng.

During the Battle of Baixiang, Shi Jiantang and Zhou Dewei defeated Wang Maozhang, the "Wang Tieqiang". According to the novel, Shi Jiantang and Wang Maozhang fought against each other and made Wang Maozhang spit blood. Among the Five Dynasties heroes, he ranked second, only after Li Cunxiao. He was killed in the campaign against Zhang Wenli in Zhenzhou.

Speaking of Shi Kuangwei's grandfather, he is even more famous. He is Shi Jingsi, a famous general under Li Keyong. When Li Keyong encountered the "Shangyuanyi Incident", Shi Jingsi was like Xu Chu possessed, and he was alone at Bianqiao to cover the rear, and died in battle, which bought time for Li Keyong.

(End of this chapter)