Chapter 192 The Swordsman From the Noble Family

【In the early Tang Dynasty, the important measure related to the clans was the promulgation of the "Clan Records".

From the end of the Wei and Jin Dynasties to the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, the clans of the aristocratic families were shattered by the strong and powerful. On this basis, the aristocratic families gradually transformed into the aristocratic families, and on this basis, four interest groups were formed.

After the Yongjia Rebellion, the aristocratic families who migrated south still boasted of the famous families in the Central Plains, and were called Qiao surnames. Among them, the more famous ones were Langya Wang, Chenjun Xie, Lanling Xiao, etc.

And we are more familiar with the local surnames in the south. The four surnames of Wu, Zhu, Zhang, Gu, and Lu, who loved and killed Shiwan Ge, also flourished at this time.

The Jiangdong surnames looked down on the Qiao surnames who migrated south, calling them barbaric and rude, and ridiculed them as savages who should be laughed at by the world.

But in the end, the two sides still had a common language in terms of interests, and both sides were collectively called Jiangzuo Aristocrats.

The two sides probably spent 240 years of honeymoon. During the Southern Liang Dynasty, Hou Jing asked for marriage from the King of Langya and Xie of Chenjun, but Hou Jing was humiliated because of his Jie identity, and they became enemies.

Later, Hou Jing went south to conquer Jinling and killed the wealthy and powerful families like dogs. After the Western Wei Kingdom conquered Jiangling at the end of the Southern Liang Dynasty, it took the remaining aristocratic families like pigs to Guanzhong.

The Jiangzuo aristocracy was in name only.

In the north, after the ambitious Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty implemented the policy of sinicization, he took the Henan County of Luoyang, the capital, as the county, and the Xianbei nobles also changed into Han surname aristocrats, called Daibei aristocrats.

Among them, the prominent surnames are Changsun, Yuwen, Yuan, Dou, and Yuan.

In addition, the ancestors of the Chinese Genji were Qiang people. During the Northern Wei Dynasty, they defected to Emperor Taiwu of the Northern Wei Dynasty, Tuoba Tao. Tuoba Tao accepted this branch of Qiang people and ordered that "You and I have the same origin, but we have different surnames because of things", so he gave them the name Yuan He.

Four hundred years later, the treasury of the Japanese Kingdom was empty. Faced with the fifty children that he could not afford to support, Emperor Saga demoted 32 princes and princesses from the royal family to the ministerial family. The surname was drafted according to Tuoba Tao, and the surname was given to the Genji. Therefore, the Japanese Genji has nothing to do with the Chinese Genji, and it is four hundred years later in history.

Forty years after the Taihe reform of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the powerful minister Erzhu Rongxiao referred to history and launched the Heyin Change, slaughtering the Northern Wei royal family and the Daibei gentry.

The Daibei gentry never recovered from this.

The other two are the Guanzhong gentry and the Shandong gentry, which are relatively simple.

During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the six surnames of Yang and Du in Guanzhong merged with the Hedong clans to form the Guanzhong gentry. During the Northern Wei Dynasty, it further changed into the Guanlong military noble group. Yang Sui and Li Tang were both born here.

It is the nature of imperial power to suppress local power. Therefore, the contradiction between the two sides became apparent during the Sui Dynasty. By the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, the Guanlong group had already become Guanlong nobles by relying on imperial power.

The Shandong gentry maintained the tradition of lecturing on Confucianism from the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty. The five surnames and seven families, as representatives, survived the chaos and became more prosperous because of the stable environment of the Tang Dynasty.

Erfeng's suppression of the Shandong gentry can be seen in the "Clan Records". When this thing was completed in the 12th year of Zhenguan, Erfeng criticized it by name:

The Shandong gentry relied on selling daughters to make money. You are so flattered. Can you have some ambition?

Some people are puzzled by this, saying that Erfeng is just a name, what's the point of doing this? He was jealous that Bo Ling Cui was ranked first, but was downgraded to third by secret operations.

Is it because he can't marry someone's daughter and holds a grudge? And can this ranking also affect the official?

But this is right, "Clan Records" can really affect the official. 】

The light curtain said it clearly, and Zhang Fei could distinguish this kind of thing very clearly.

He counted on his fingers and said:

"Sima Yi used dirty tricks to kill the old Cao family, and a group of noble families mixed together to form the Jin Dynasty, right?"

"As a result, the noble families were divided into four groups in the chaotic times."

"The southern ones were killed by Hou Jing, and the northern ones were killed by Erzhu Rong."

"As a result, the eastern and western ones fought together for the entire Tang Dynasty, and were finally dealt with by Huang Chao and Zhu Wen?"

Kong Ming was shocked:

"Yide, although what you said is a bit vulgar, but..."

"But it's quite right, right?" Zhang Fei was complacent.

Kong Ming nodded in admiration, looking stupid, but actually very wise, it should be people like Yide.

Then he looked at the Jiangzuo nobles again and again, and finally shook his head:

"It seems that the four surnames of Jiangdong may have sold the Sun family for a good price in the end."

From what the light curtain said before, we only know that Jiangdong eventually died because of chaos, but no one knows where the chaos started.

But a hundred years have passed and the four surnames have disappeared without the Sun family. It seems that Jiangdong’s return to Jin must have been full of dirty things.

Pang Tong has no nostalgia for Jiangdong, but is a little sad:

"Jiang Biao’s plan to swallow up the world, in the end, it only became a private plan of the four surnames."

"Cao’s army was destroyed in the midst of laughter and conversation at Chibi, and Hou Jing’s chaos swept Jiangdong."

Kong Ming patted Pang Tong gently to comfort him, and Pang Tong smiled and didn’t care.

Liu Bei, who was at the top, frowned at the origin of the Japanese Genji:

"This Japanese country across the sea can know the stories of our Han land four hundred years ago."

"Why do you admire the Central Plains so much, but you don't know what etiquette and righteousness are, and you are just a bunch of ox-headed and horse-faced people?"

Zhang Song said sharply:

"My lord, this country learns etiquette but does not know righteousness, it is just a monkey in a crown with only appearance!"

"It must be because they admire the greatness of China, so they are ashamed of themselves."

"Yes! You can see his ambition from the title he gave himself! In the past, he admired the strength of China and knelt on the ground, so he will rebel when China is in chaos in the future!"

"Isn't this behavior just like that of Sima Yi?!"

Ah... Liu Bei was silent for a moment. He shouldn't be comparing him to Sima Yi, right?

After all, Sima Yi is only in his thirties and Cao Cao is still alive, so he should not have any disobedience.

If he knew what the Japanese slaves were doing, they would definitely curse him.

But from the bottom of his heart, Liu Bei felt that Zhang Song was probably right.

Pang Tong sneered: "It's like feeding a falcon with meat. It's used when it's hungry, but it's eaten when it's full."

Zhang Fei scratched his head and wondered:

"They behave like animals, and they don't have Buddhism like India."

"There shouldn't be those kind of Japanese people in the future, right?"

…

"What's good at the top must be good at the bottom."

Li Shimin slowly repeated this sentence, thoughtfully.

Wei Zheng gave Li Shimin thoughtful advice:

"Things below should be done according to what is done above. Therefore, one should not be careless about the likes and dislikes of those above. This is the example of the people."

Li Shimin squinted with disgust: It's not like I haven't read the Book of Rites!

How is it possible to admonish someone at every opportunity?

His thoughts just drifted a little too far for a moment. From the emperor's point of view, Buddhism and Taoism are just means. Who believes in that stuff?

Xiao Yan believed in Buddhism, and he didn't know the next life if he prayed or not. It was true that he became a joke for future generations.

However, if the superiors control their strategies and the inferiors seek their results, if they do what they want, their words and deeds will be effective.

It seems that whether it is Buddha or Taoism, this imperial power must stay away from it, so as not to be used to bluff and deceive without knowing it.

As the Book of Rites says, those who are superior are the examples for the people.

However... Li Shimin's eyes froze again when he saw the text at the end:

The battle between Guanzhong and Guandong? Is it that exaggerated?

Regarding the idea that the light curtain divided the noble clans from Wei, Jin to early Tang Dynasty into four families, Zhenguan ministers were also very surprised. They lowered their heads and thought for a moment before looking at each other, secretly judging in their hearts which group the other party belonged to?

Fang Xuanling didn't care that much, he just had one thought:

Isn't this ready-made material for writing "Book of Jin"?

Li Shimin couldn't sit still:

"I was said to be petty before, but here you are slandering me for having a false reputation!"

However, there was not much anger in his words.

Although these two words were not good words, he could hear the tone of light curtain when he said them.

This future generation does not treat him as a superior emperor, but talks about his great achievements, his life, and his merits and demerits with a level-headed attitude.

It is like chatting with someone about an elder of one's own, describing his merits without covering up his faults, and declaring his virtues while talking about his shortcomings.

This attitude actually made him feel a little more comfortable, so he smiled and said to his left and right:

"Sometimes I really want to catch this junior from the light curtain and beat him up a few times."

Changsun Wuji also smiled and said:

"Isn't it just everyone who thinks this way?"

"If there hadn't been a thousand years apart, I would still like to sit with him, talk, drink, and hear about the prosperity of future generations."

"I feel so happy just thinking about it."

[First of all, we must correct the first misunderstanding: the five surnames Qiwang of the Shandong gentry in the early Tang Dynasty were not the later "forbidden marriage families".

The five surnames and Qiwang are Longxi Li, Zhaojun Li, Boling Cui, Qinghe Cui, Fan Yanglu, Xingyang Zheng, and Taiyuan Wang.

Among them, the Li family and the Cui family each have two surnames, and they have five surnames in total, so they are called Five Surnames and Seven Wangs. This shows how strong the Cui family is.

In the early days, the five surnames Qiwang were also very willing to marry the royal family, and they even had a flattering attitude. After all, Erfeng's sword was too fast at this time.

Before the year of Zhenguan, Cui You of Qinghe sent a daughter to the palace. Erfeng made her a talent in a hasty manner, but did not pay much attention to it. This Cui talent did not leave any more records.

About the eighth year of Zhenguan, there was a folk rumor at that time that Zheng Younu of Xingyang had a "beautiful appearance". Empress Changsun sent people to look for her and asked Erfeng to confer her as Chongyuan. Erfeng quickly issued an edict.

Chongyuan was the last of the nine concubines. There were four wives and a queen above her, and the harem was the thirteenth. It can only be said that the starting point was not bad, but it was not taken very seriously.

But at this time, Wei Zheng stood up and said that he had heard that the Zheng family had received a betrothal gift from the Lu family, Lu Shuang, and that the marriage contract had been concluded, but they had not yet married, and he asked Erfeng to cancel the edict.

In the end, Lu Shuang came to Chang'an to plead guilty, saying that the wealth given to the Zheng family by the Lu family was just a red envelope, and the betrothal gifts and engagements were all false.

But the princes and nobles at the time ignored him, because the incident spread into a debate about the emperor's "rituals and music". In the end, Li Shimin canceled the edict and ordered Zheng to marry Lu Shuang.

From these two incidents, it can be seen that the so-called Five Surnames and Qiwang at that time were almost "standing like minions" in front of Erfeng.

The main reason why the impression left to us in later generations is that "gentry members of high-ranking families looked down upon Li and Tang and were unwilling to marry." The main reason was that Erfeng was too powerful.

Before the Song Dynasty, the logic of the power struggle of the aristocratic class was the struggle between imperial power and the common surname. In the early Tang Dynasty, if the gentry and the common surname were weak, then the imperial power would be strong.

The result of the strong imperial power was that most of the princesses in the Tang Dynasty had a reputation for being unscrupulous. For aristocratic families, marrying a princess was equivalent to bringing the imperial power into the family to fight, so they were naturally unwilling to do so.

Princess Pingyang, who acted toughly, led troops and horses to guard Weize Pass in Shanxi when she conquered the world. Therefore, this pass was later nicknamed Niangzi Pass.

She acted absurdly like Princess Yongjia, who married Dou Fengjie, but soon had an affair with her nephew Yang Yuzhi. Yes, Yang Yuzhi's mother, Princess Changguang, was Princess Yongjia's biological sister.

Later, Princess Changguang died young, and the two remained inseparable during the mourning period.

However, Dou Fengjie was a military commander in the early Tang Dynasty and had great martial virtue. Later, after catching the bag, he killed Yang Yuzhi with five punishments and reconciled with the princess.

Even more powerful ones, such as Princess Taiping, openly kept male lovers in her house, and later controlled the government and seized the throne through a coup, but failed and was executed.

Later, such as Li Guoer, Princess Yuzhen, Princess Shengping, Princess Xianmu, etc., will be mentioned later.

Let's get back to the topic of Zheng of Xingyang. We all guess that Empress Changsun acted in this way because she should have arranged her funeral in advance.

After all, she died only two years after this incident, which should be a guess about her health.

After Empress Changsun died, Concubine Wei wanted to follow Empress Changsun's example and select beauties to fill Li Shimin's harem.

Then Wu Cairen entered the palace for this reason, but this is another matter. 】

There is more in the evening. I will try to write more today. Thank you for your love.