Northern Song Dynasty: Starting from the son of Song Renzong

Chapter 130: Baozhou Mutiny
August, the fourth year of the Qingli period.

It was just shortly after the Mid-Autumn Festival that news came from the court that the Yunyi Army in Baozhou had killed officials and rebelled in the city.

Although this is not the first time I have heard of such a rebellion.

only……

Isn’t the frequency of rebellion in our Song Dynasty a bit too high?

This seems to be the third time in the past two years?

Zhao Xin then asked what was going on this time.

of course!

We have to send someone to investigate this.

After a few days, we learned that the soldiers were dissatisfied with the local transporters who reduced the number of their border patrols.

What does it mean.

That is, soldiers who patrol the border can get some income in addition to their salary.

Nowadays, the imperial court is short of money, so the local transport envoy is thinking that if he reduces the number of tours in the future, wouldn't he be able to save the money?
As a result, the local soldiers felt dissatisfied, believing that the civil servants did this for their own political achievements.

Well……

to be frank!
Zhao Xingguang just listened to the report from his subordinates and couldn't really understand what kind of logic was behind it.

Until next time, someone continued to send letters back.

Zhao Xin then realized that one reason might be that the number of patrols was reduced, resulting in less income for the soldiers, and another reason was that these civil officials, especially the transport envoys, provincial inspectors, judges, and judicial officials, were too harsh in their assessments of the soldiers when they were doing their work.

The rebellion caused by the reduction in the number of patrols was just a result of the previous overly harsh behavior towards the soldiers.

even……

These civil servants might even shamelessly boast in front of others about how much merit they have gained by doing this.

By then, maybe the government will find out and give them a promotion.

Just like Ouyang Xiu, they are all big mouths. When drinking, they brag about how great they are, but this bragging comes at the expense of the interests of the soldiers.

He usually scolds soldiers like dogs and finds fault with the mistakes of his subordinate officers.

Even deliberately picking on other people's mistakes.

As a result, some local officials were at a loss as to what to do.

The interests of the local officials, mainly the officers, were damaged, and the interests of the soldiers were also damaged.

Then the rebellion will naturally happen.

to be honest!
His father set up officials such as the Transport Commissioner, the Censor, the Judge, and the Inspector of Criminal Justice in order to gain political achievements at the local level. However, he ended up being too harsh on the officers and soldiers below. The officers and soldiers below were dissatisfied and so they rebelled.

This is a conflict between supervisory officials sent by the central government and local officials.

The only way to solve this problem is to carefully select the people who hold these official positions and let them be realistic and impartial in enforcing the law. They should not act recklessly just because they want to get promoted.

This caused widespread public outrage in the local area, and even the army was forced to rebel.

Then...

His father then handed the matter over to him and asked him what to do next?
At this moment, Zhao Xin seemed to be able to feel the pressure of being a crown prince in ancient times.

You have to give a bad answer!

right!

It will leave a very bad impression in your father's mind, for example, this child may not be suitable to rule the world in the future.

Don't be fooled by Zhao Xin's chattering when discussing national affairs.

But he might not be good at dealing with things like this.

Moreover!
This time when his father asked him, the scene was different!
In the past, I asked this question in Madam Miao’s courtyard, so of course I could speak freely.

But what about now?
This question was asked in front of Zhang Dexiang, Yan Shu, Fu Bi and others.

That’s a bit difficult!
In Madam Miao's courtyard, even if he said something wrong, his father would not take it seriously.

But what if he was wrong here? What would Zhang Dexiang, Yan Shu, and Fu Bi think?
Zhao Xin could only say that the pressure was really as huge as a mountain.

but……

On second thought, if I could handle it well, I would naturally win praise from the court.

In fact, if you think about it carefully, this question is not difficult.

This soldier was forced to rebel by the transport envoy, so the transport envoy must at least be demoted.

In fact, if it was in Madam Miao's courtyard, Zhao Xin might have directly told his father that he was exiled to Lingnan.

It's obvious that this kind of official is not a good one.

But now, in front of so many people, he can't do that. The only option is to demote him.

This is the move that takes the overall situation into consideration.

after all……

The punishment you gave me this time was too harsh. No one will be willing to work for you in the future.

The people in that place are not good people either. They deceive their superiors and subordinates. Do you think they are good people?
Therefore, demotion can only be said to be the most appropriate way to deal with it.

As for these rebellious soldiers, if you dare to continue using them, you should recruit them to surrender and then pretend nothing happened.

If you don't dare to use it, then you have to kill them all.

I saw my father looking at me, and everyone else was looking at me too.

Zhao Xin felt as if there was a heavy weight on his shoulders.

He replied, "Dad, I still know too little about this matter. It would be best if I could go there in person and talk to the rebellious soldiers face to face. This way, I will definitely be able to handle things more thoroughly. Also, Dad, isn't it a bit too radical for you to suddenly say that you want to hand over the matter to me?"

"You said...what if I don't handle it properly, right!"

Zhao Zhen also smiled and said, "Why, are you scared?"

The tone was quite calm.

But Zhao Zhen thought about it and felt that this was indeed a bit too fast.

Then he asked, "Didn't you ask Yu Jing, Ouyang Xiu and others to preside over the disarmament before?"

Zhao Xin thought to himself, I have never made enemies with anyone in my life. I am cutting down the army only because others are willing to let me do so. It is based on the principle of voluntariness.

But you are facing the rebels, right?
Can you ensure that this rebel won't betray again for the same reason next time?
Or, are you cruel enough to chop them all down?

For Zhao Xin, all of these things are full of risks and can easily make people grudge against them.

How can it be the same!

The difficulty of handling these two matters cannot be compared at all.

Moreover!
Zhao Xin is hundreds of miles away and doesn't know the other party's background or background. How should he deal with it?

Are you sure that the reports you hear now are the true side of the matter?
This reminded Zhao Xin of Emperor Taizong Wen, who persuaded Li Jing and Yuchi Jingde to surrender. However, Emperor Taizong Wen had at least met these two people in person.

But what about yourself?

He had never been to any place more than two hundred miles away from Kaifeng City.

Zhao Xin said, "If you can let me go to the Baozhou Yunyi Army's base, I believe I can handle this matter better."

"And if you, Dad, don't let me go to Baozhou, then I can only let my people go there."

"However, how well my subordinates perform cannot represent my true strength."

"So... I suggest that you can choose to let me go in person!"

Zhao Zhen looked at him and couldn't help but think, you just said that your father was radical, so what you said is not radical?

Yan Shu also hurriedly said anxiously: "Your Highness Prince Yu, this is absolutely not allowed!"

Zhang Dexiang also advised: "This soldier's rebellion is no joke, Your Highness Prince Yu, please be careful with your words."

Fu Bi naturally advised, "Sir, please let me go!"

(End of this chapter)