You have truly caused me great suffering!

King Taejo of Goryeo established the capital at Gaegyeong, but regarded Pyongyang as the "Western Capital," considering it the place where he rose to power, and proposed moving the capital several times.

However, the trip did not ultimately take place.

The Huangfu family of Huangzhou, the Liu family of Zhongzhou, the Pu family of Pingzhou, and the Yu family, among others, were all powerful families in Xijing who had contributed to the rise of the new emperor. In effect, they were all stood up.

As Goryeo maintained its capital in Gaegyeong for an extended period, Seogyeong gradually became a political peripheral region.

However, this place controls the Taedong River basin, has fertile land, and is the front line for defense against the Jurchens and Khitans, so it has always been garrisoned with elite troops.

Now that Goryeo has quelled the rebellion, it only needs to station troops in Daegeung, and this advantage has vanished.

The troops stationed in Xijing were not valued by the imperial court, received no rations or pay for years, and were not promoted at all.

The ordinary people in this area were greatly affected by the previous Xijing turmoil.

They had no connections, no powerful backers, and many of their relatives were innocently beheaded.

Or they were subjected to extreme humiliation by the officials who came to quell the rebellion.

The powerful clans, disillusioned military officers, Buddhist monks and soldiers, and ordinary people of Xijing had long been dissatisfied with Kaijing.

Last time, due to the overwhelming force of the Jing army, they did not put up a fierce resistance, but they were still subjected to a severe purge.

They also imposed many heavy taxes and corvée labor, supposedly to mitigate the losses caused by the Xijing Rebellion.

Xijing's anger had long been building up to a certain point.

When Cui Shunting came to promote Mandarin, he was met with strong resistance.

At his command, Cui Shunting's men sneaked into several pre-marked houses.

He's very strong now, and quite bold. With powerful backers, he doesn't need to worry about anything he does.

If all else fails, we'll run to the Jing army's encampment. I don't believe these people would dare to break in.

After Cui Shunting gave the order, his heart pounded. He was not an impulsive person, but his age no longer allowed him to proceed cautiously and calmly.

I'm nearly sixty years old. How much energy do I have left to cause trouble? If I don't pull some stunts, I won't live to see the day when Goryeo is incorporated into China.

When the time comes, someone will inevitably take his place. Will Da Jing still remember him?
If you cannot be loyal to the Goryeo court, then destroy it completely.

Cui Shunting's face was flushed, her breathing was rapid, her eyes were fixed on one spot, and her mind was filled with a thousand thoughts.

But this was, after all, just an assassination attempt.

The scene was far less dramatic than he had imagined.

In fact, since the last rebellion in Xijing was quelled, although some people were sent out to take the blame, each of the powerful families suffered heavy losses.

They were also wary of the imperial court eliminating them completely, so their residence was heavily guarded.

When Cui Shunting's men appeared, the city was thrown into chaos.

About half an hour later, a group of assassins, covered in blood, rushed in and shouted, "Master, run!"

Cui Shunting's expression immediately fell into despair. Without needing to say more, he understood that tonight's assassination attempt had completely failed.

The assassins kicked the table aside, revealing a secret passage underneath.

He was like a puppet on strings, being dragged into the secret passage by his subordinates.

Cui Shunting knew he was finished; he paid the price for his recklessness.

In the pitch-black secret passage, his men carried him to safety.

They had long ago set up a secret passage leading directly to Qingyang Temple outside the city.

At this time, at the Yu family residence in Xijing.

Yu Yingbi, the clan chief, was hurriedly woken up, and his concubine quickly helped him put on his clothes.

Yu Yingbi sat calmly in his chair, showing no sign of panic, and said in a deep voice, "What's the matter that you're flustered?"

"Someone is plotting to assassinate several important figures in the city. There are bandits in both the Park and Liu residences."

Yu Yingbi lowered his head, pondering his subordinate's words, and then asked, "Is someone dead?"

"The bandits were all driven back, and no one died except for a few guards and concubines."

That makes sense. In their eyes, guards and concubines are not considered human beings. As long as the nobleman is alive, he is considered an innocent person.

Yu Yingbi was not angry but pleased. He slammed his hand on the table and said, "Good! Quickly go and invite all the distinguished guests to the mansion for a meeting!"

Their discontent has been building up and has not dissipated.

The current Xijing Pingzhou Prefecture is a powder keg, which can be ignited by the slightest spark.

It doesn't matter who sent the assassin tonight; what matters is that this incident happened, and that it's become common knowledge.

Because they needed them to be sent by the imperial court, by Kim Boo-seok, and by Jeong Ji-chang!
The imperial court wants to completely eradicate Xijing. If people like us don't die, some people in the court won't be able to sleep at night.
-
Cui Shunting didn't know how long he had been walking in the tunnel; the cold air underground made his feet icy.

As they emerged from a tunnel, they suddenly heard a series of hurried footsteps.

Immediately afterwards, bald heads surged in from all directions; they were all monks from Xijing.

Cui Shunting gave a bitter smile to herself. It seemed they already knew her whereabouts. She had thought she was being very discreet.

"What are you doing!" Cui Shunting's men, holding knives, stood in front of him and shouted.

“Benefactor Cui, this is Xijing. What do you think you can do by hiding it from everyone?” The monks parted from the middle and surrounded a monk who came out. He smiled and said, “I knew about this tunnel from the day it was dug.”

This middle-aged monk had a fair complexion and his Dharma name was Myo-won. He was a high-ranking monk from Goryeo.

He wasn't a monk at Qingyang Temple, but he had informants within that small temple.

Miao Yuan's eyes were fixed on Cui Shunting, her smile somewhat strange, as if she was suppressing laughter.

That look made Cui Shunting very uncomfortable, and she wanted to punch him.
-
The air in Xijing City was thick with the pungent smell of blood.

The angry people attacked and killed the officials sent by the Goryeo court and reoccupied the city and government offices.

Zheng Yinghao, the prefect of Pingzhou, had his throat slit and was left dead in the street. His residence was also massacred, with blood flowing like a river.

When the people heard that someone was going to rebel again, they all grabbed whatever they could find and were ready to join in.

This Xijing is similar to the Six Garrisons during the Northern Wei Dynasty. When the country was founded, they made great promises and provided sufficient benefits.

But as time went on, they increasingly disregarded others, leaving the local people and military disheartened.

During the last Myo-chung Rebellion, Goryeo used the power of the Gyeongjun army to quell the rebellion. When the Gyeongjun army arrived, they immediately surrendered.

The advantage of this was that it avoided warfare, but Goryeo did not quell the rebellion on its own, nor did it want to escalate the local unrest, so it adopted a policy of appeasement.

Although Xijing was defeated, it also made clear that the court was now weak and had no power to quell the rebellion.

This incomplete appeasement-style suppression of the rebellion, while convenient at the time, sowed the seeds of today's hidden dangers.

They only killed Miao Qing and the military general Zhao Kuang, who were clearly the leaders put on the surface, not the true core of the rebels.

The real driving force behind this rebellion in Xijing was the powerful clans of Xijing and the Buddhist community.

After Kim Bu-sik and others came to power, they promoted Confucianism and suppressed Buddhism, which aroused dissatisfaction within the Buddhist community.

It should be noted that Goryeo was founded on Buddhism.

King Taejo of Goryeo, Wang Geon, left behind the "Ten Instructions" (also known as "Taejo's Last Instructions") before his death, the first of which emphasized Buddhism:

“Our nation has revered Buddhism since our ancestors’ time. … We should increase our respect and faith to pray for blessings from the unseen world.”

This teaching was regarded as a guiding principle for governing the country by later monarchs, who established Buddhism as the foundation of the nation and considered themselves the Buddhist Kingdom of the East.

In return, Buddhism proclaimed Wang Geon as the "Chakravartin King," promising to protect the unification of the Three Han states with Buddhist teachings. From then on, Goryeo referred to itself as the "Buddhist Kingdom" to the Song, Liao, and Jin dynasties, and presented Buddhist scriptures and statues as state gifts.

The title "Fragrant Kingdom" for Dali was bestowed by Buddhists on the Indian subcontinent, while the title "Buddhist Kingdom of the East Sea" for Goryeo was self-proclaimed.

Kim Boo-seok, who is now in power, is a traditional Confucian scholar.

They have always been "opposing Buddhism and advocating Confucianism." The fact that the Miaoqing Rebellion was instigated by monks shows the anger of the Buddhist community.

Cui Shunting was taken to Pingzhou Prefecture in Xijing.

He recognized everyone sitting inside the government office.

Yu Yingbi said, "Guards, untie them!"

Cui Shunting regained some courage. He glanced around and saw that the government office was now packed with people.

Many people were holding knives, with faint traces of blood on them.

Yu Yingbi didn't waste any words and said directly, "We need the support of Da Jing. As long as Da Jing agrees to our establishment of a country, we are willing to divide and rule with Goryeo."

Cui Shunting was stunned. He thought that he was doomed this time and might even be tortured to death.

But what I didn't expect was that this group of people didn't care about the assassination at all.

They weren't defeated by Goryeo last time; they were too intimidated by Daegeung to resist.

So this time, they actually need to seek the support of Dajing.

"After this is accomplished, we are willing to let all the people of Dawei speak Chinese, allow the Jing army to be stationed here, and open all ports to trade with Dawei!"

This time, they didn't even change their banners during their rebellion.

Claiming to be the "Loyal Army of Heaven's Retribution," Miaoqing was originally a monk skilled in feng shui, yin and yang, and Buddhist esoteric practices. He was a disciple of Daoshin (a high-ranking monk from the late Silla Dynasty) and believed in the "Taiyi Jade Tent Step Method."

The reason he chose the name of his country, 'Dawei', was because it had profound religious prophetic and political symbolic significance.

Kim Bu-seok reported after the pacification: "These are not thieves, but evil monks who falsely claim to have the Mandate of Heaven and want to use Buddhist methods to govern the world."

After pondering for a moment, Cui Shunting said, "I can pass on your message."

"That's enough!"

The rebels' biggest fear was being unable to contact the Jing army; as long as they could make contact, they could talk.

It's just selling out some of Dawei's interests; they haven't even taken over the territory yet, so they don't care.

Let's sell first, and then we'll talk about it once we've established a firm foothold.

Cui Shunting led his men and slowly walked out of the government office.

He didn't dare look back and walked quickly forward.

Inside the yamen, Park Moon-do clicked his tongue a few times and said, "Is this guy reliable? If I let him go, I have a feeling he'll run as far away as possible."

Yu Yingbi was also somewhat afraid. He sighed and said, "As long as we can get in touch with Jing Jun, that's fine."

Xijing did have an army in the past, and its combat strength was not low.

Otherwise, even though they were right on the edge of Liaodong, the Jin army had never been able to conquer this place. This was because the soldiers of Xijing Pingzhou Prefecture fought for their wives, children, and elderly parents, and repeatedly repelled the Jin army.

That's why Wanyan Wugumai was so happy after Goryeo became a vassal state.

They have been neighbors with the Goryeo people for a long time. Back then, Goryeo occupied a large area of ​​Jurchen territory on the border.

These local soldiers, who never received military pay from the imperial court, would absolutely not fight for Goryeo.

Because they are supported by powerful families, they only listen to these families.

The wind outside was blowing hard, and Yu Yingbi was very anxious.

The fact that the court let them off the hook last time shows how lax and lazy the court is now.
-
The fifth year of Jianwu, the twelfth month.

In Jinling City, the Goryeo king and his ministers, who were celebrating, received that news again.

Xijing rebelled
Same as last time.

Jin Fushi, filled with anxiety, arrived at the summer palace in Tangshan and waited outside the hall, hoping to be summoned to meet the emperor.

He had a premonition that Xijing would rebel again, but there was nothing they could do about it.

With the aid of Daejeong, Goryeo's national strength is slowly recovering.

The king and ministers of Goryeo did not want the country to be thrown into chaos and rebellion.

On the one hand, there was a fear that such a rebellion would cripple Goryeo's economy, and that if war broke out, a large number of civilians would be forced into the war.

Secondly, they feared that Jing Jun's momentum during the suppression of the rebellion would make him even more difficult to deal with later.

It's easy to befriend a god, but difficult to send him away!

Finally, a palace attendant came out and led him to meet the emperor.

Inside the hall, Chen Shao appeared to have just taken a bath, looking refreshed and clean.

"Dr. Jin, what brings you to my mind today?"

In fact, Chen Shao had already received the news.

He has ordered Jingjun to remain inactive until he receives his next order.

The division of Goryeo was, of course, a bad thing for him.

Kim Bu-seok stepped forward, bowed, and said, "The people of Seogyeong in our Goryeo Kingdom have rebelled again. We request the court to send troops to our aid."

Rescue is impossible.

Moreover, the news reached Jinling ten days later, by which time the rebels should have already completed their defensive fortifications in Xijing.

Even if they agree here, by the time the news gets back, it's too late.

"I will send an imperial envoy to Goryeo's territory to see for himself. Why?"

Kim Bu-sik looked very unwell as he left the summer palace.

This renewed internal strife in Xijing will likely not be easy to quell.

Only Jingjun could quickly quell the rebellion, but he was unable to command it.
-
After Kim Boo-seok left, Chen Shao sat on the dragon throne for a long time.

At this moment, he was calm and composed, neither happy nor sad. Cui Shunting's letter said that as long as Jingjun did not show up, they were willing to meet with the current King of Goryeo and his ministers.

The various foreshadowings he laid in Goryeo were now beginning to take effect.

He didn't expect to succeed immediately in promoting Chinese in Korea this time.

Even in some remote areas of the Central Plains, people speak with a strong accent.

However, Chen Shao still tirelessly sent people to Goryeo to change customs and speak Chinese.

Chen Shao had not anticipated this rebellion in Xijing.

After their last rebellion failed, they simply erected the banners they hadn't had time to destroy, and that was considered a comeback.

Should I support them to quell the rebellion again, thus increasing Wang Kai's and his people's dependence on Jing's army?

Or should we encourage the rebels to establish a new small country?

After all, when trying to annex a region, it's essential to first incite conflict among the local inhabitants, splitting them in two. In the ensuing infighting, Goryeo and Daewi would inevitably sacrifice their own national interests to gain the support of the Jing army. (End of Chapter)