Chapter 412 Heavenly King, Heavenly Khan and Dharma King
Zhang Zhao discovered something recently, that is, his subordinates walked with wind in their eyes and looked beaming with joy.
Fan Quan, who was stationed in Shanzhou, also came to report that the Tubo people on the Qingtang Plateau, often with hundreds of people in a tribe, began to go down the mountain to seek refuge with the Liang Kingdom.
Even the Lunzhang Bomi family, a large Tubo family in the upper reaches of Huangshui River and on the west coast, has sent envoys to Shanzhou to express their surrender and will come to Liangzhou soon.
Although there were Tubo tribes who sought refuge in the past, it was basically the tribal leaders who took their tribesmen down the mountain to seek refuge.
But the Zhang Bomi family was different. They were old Tibetan aristocrats who took refuge with their territory.
After gaining the support of his family, Zhang Zhao not only obtained a large area of land on the west coast, but also received a large amount of cattle and sheep as tribute every year. Of course, he was also given other items.
It can also radiate to the entire eastern Qinghai and northern Sichuan through the Zhang Bomi family.
In history, Li Lizun, the monk who kidnapped Zong Siluo, had the support of this family.
They, the Zongmi family of the Shandong Tribe of Shanzhou, and the Wenbu Family of the Shanxi Tribe of Shanzhou, are the three major local snakes along the prosperous river valley of Huangshui River.
The first two families in the middle have submitted to Zhang Zhao long ago, and now the Zhangbomi family has also submitted to Zhang Zhao. In addition to controlling half of Qinghai, Zhang Zhao can also extend his tentacles through them to Songzhou and Weizhou in northern Sichuan, that is, Songpan and Huanglong areas in later generations.
Investigating the reason, Zhang Zhao still thought about it for a long time before he figured it out.
When Zhang Yichao and other first-generation rebels returned to China, it had been nearly sixty years since the fall of Hexi.
At that time, in Hexi, except for a few wealthy families in Shazhou, less than half of the Han people could speak Chinese, and the rest were almost indistinguishable from the Tubo slave tribes.
But these people still followed Zhang Yichao to resist.
In fact, when Zhang Yichao raised his arms, in addition to the Han people in the Hexi Corridor, Tuyuhun, Dangxiang, Shatuo, Qiang, Qianmo, and even the Tubo people themselves also rose up to follow Zhang Yichao.
The reason is that the glory of being a Tang person actually only accounts for a very small part.
In other words, it only exists in the hearts of Zhang Yichao and other wealthy Dunhuang people who have enjoyed the glory and scenery of the Tang Dynasty.
There is only one reason why most people rise up to resist, and that is because the Tibetan powerful have oppressed them so deeply that they would rather die in battle than to rise up and resist.
I have to say that the governance ability of the Tubo nobles is really poor!
Zhang Zhao is estimated to be similar to the Xia and Shang dynasties in the Central Plains. The harsh slavery was cruel to himself, let alone to foreigners. It also blocked the Silk Road and made everyone slowly die of poverty in the trapped city.
Therefore, the various ethnic groups in Hexi rose up with Zhang Yichao because they could not bear the oppression of the Tubo nobles and hoped to restore the Silk Road, change the days of poverty and suffering, and no longer have their children and grandchildren as slaves.
So to get rid of the oppression of such a powerful power as Tubo (no one expected that Tubo would collapse), there is only one choice - the Tang Dynasty!
Although the Tang Dynasty was full of contradictions at the time and was about to enter a stage of collapse, compared with the cruel oppression of Tubo, the Tang court still seemed to be kind and tolerant, so returning to the country became the unanimous wish of the Guiyi army.
After they returned to the Tang Dynasty, apart from the disharmony caused by the imperial struggle for Liangzhou, they did also benefit from it.
The Silk Road was reopened and the economy of the Hexi Corridor was revitalized. Horses from Hexi could also be sold at a good price in the Central Plains.
The tribesmen of the Guiyi Army can make a lot of money even if they just do resale business.
They really benefited from it, and it also satisfied their inner pride as Tang children.
Just by looking at the attitudes of the Gaochang and Ganzhou Uighurs towards the Central Plains regime, we can understand the importance of the smooth flow of the Central Plains and the Silk Road to Hexi.
And when it was Zhang Zhao's turn to advocate returning to the country, the land in Hexi would actually be reduced to the situation before Zhang Yichao raised his troops.
The Guiyi army blocked the Gaochang Uighur merchants and prevented them from sharing the benefits of the Silk Road.
The Ganzhou Uighurs blocked the rebel army.
When Ai Mo occupied Liangzhou, he did not stop him, but directly robbed him. Whoever goes to trade in the Central Plains will make money or lose money, all depends on your force.
After passing through Liangzhou, Lanzhou Aimo, Hezhou Qiang, etc., the same operation was performed.
This situation of scattered ethnic groups, with thousands of large families and hundreds of small families, no longer unified, killing each other at every turn, and almost cutting off trade routes, has made many people begin to yearn to form a unified whole and reshape the Silk Road.
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Zhang Zhaozheng returned eastward at this time. The time, place and people were favorable, and everything came together in an instant.
It can be said that Zhang Zhao was able to unify Hexi in a short period of time. In addition to his golden finger that opened his eyes and the Guiyi Army's own good fighting skills, this loss of ambition and unification also played a great role in unifying the wishes of the people in Hexi.
Without this turbulent public sentiment, I don’t know how many people would have gathered to rebel when Zhang Zhao went on an expedition, and I don’t know how many people would have surrendered and rebelled again!
Zhang Zhaobie said that if he led his army to conquer Longyou in Hexi Province, it would take five or eight years.
But the people of Longyou in Hexi Province benefited from the Zhang Zhao Silk Road and the peace and stability he brought.
People of various tribes who had received a lot of benefits rarely had any rebellions, and began to truly follow him as the monarch.
Take Shanzhou, which is guarded by Panquan, for example. Although it is a corner area of the Silk Road, thanks to the improvement of the overall economic situation, Zhang Zhao's road repairs, wasteland reclamation, and agricultural production technology promotion, the overall living standard is
There has been a huge improvement.
This is the biggest reason why Zhang Zhao only deployed one battalion of troops in Shanzhou, and there were nearly 100,000 tribesmen in Shanzhou and Huangshui area.
Because Zhang Zhao unified Hexi and Longyou, except for a small number of noble lords, most people were the beneficiaries.
But then the problem came. After the Eighteen States returned to the country, the Tang Dynasty disappeared, and the emperor of the Central Plains court turned out to be Shi Jingtang, whose father was the Khitan.
What is this like? It's like you have been separated from your family since you were a child, but you always remember that your father is awesome, rich, capable of fighting, and powerful.
So with the idea that after returning home, I would no longer be bullied, protected by someone, and have a card, I went through all the hard work to find it, and finally came home to see it.
Cao!
(fuck, fuck)
In your impression, the father who is so awesome is kneeling on the ground and kowtows to a guy with a big gold chain, a big watch, a crew cut, tattoos and a big belly, and while he is kowtowing, he is still calling him daddy.
You went through all kinds of hardships, and when you got home, you had to give a big gold chain to call me grandpa.
This is the biggest feeling that most people in Hexi and Longyou have after returning to China.
Zhang Zhao knew the outcome of the matter in advance and had been mentally prepared for thousands of years, so he did not feel so humiliated.
But in the eyes of people of this era, this shame makes them embarrassed to say that they are from the Tang Dynasty.
After all, Tang'er is a minority in Longyou, Hexi Province. It is estimated that there are only 300,000 to 400,000 people who really think they are Tang'er.
Including those who are deeply Chinese and whose identity was forcibly stripped away by Zhang Zhao, the total number is about 800,000.
The remaining two million or so are all Tuyuhun, Dangxiang, Qiang, Uighur, Tubo, Shatuo and Dadan people.
They did not really want to return to China with Zhang Zhao, and their feelings for Chinese culture had not yet been established.
Moreover, after returning to the country, the emperor of the Central Plains was so arrogant. If there were not common interests, I am afraid that the Hexi Longyou regime that had just come together would have disbanded.
Zhang Zhao also felt this undercurrent, but didn't think clearly about it.
But since he took the risk to go to Hunhe and became brothers with Yelu De through various operations, these troubles quickly disappeared.
Everyone was proud that Zhang Zhao was Yelu Deguang's brother. After the cohesion was greatly enhanced, Zhang Zhao also understood the reason.
This is the biggest reason why Zhang Zhao calls himself Heavenly King instead of king. Shi Jingtang's moral deficiencies and shamelessness have actually greatly damaged the reputation of the Central Plains Celestial Dynasty.
As for why he did not directly proclaim himself emperor, Zhang Zhao agreed with Fu Jian's point of view. In the past, Fu Jian once said that the world has not yet been unified, so it is better to call him the king of heaven rather than the emperor.
This man from the Di ethnic group is an avid fan of Chinese orthodoxy and feels that he has not reached the standard of being a part of the world and benefiting the common people.
Therefore, instead of calling him emperor, he found the title of heavenly king used by the emperor of Zhou from the pile of old papers, which showed that he was higher than the king, but lower than the emperor.
However, this title seems a bit unlucky. Fu Jianjian, Queen of Heaven, was defeated by the Eastern Jin Dynasty in the Battle of Feishui, and could not even save the country.
Finally, he was caught by Yao Chang and asked about the location of the imperial seal. Fu Jian insisted that he had sent the jade seal to the Eastern Jin Dynasty and refused to hand it over to the Qiang Yao Chang. He was strangled to death in Xingping Temple.
By the time Zhang Zhao lived, the King of Heaven and the language environment had changed. The biggest change was that he could communicate with several words.
Among the Han people, he could be the king of heaven, and among the nomads, he could be called the Khan of Heaven, Gaochang Uighur Jieli. Pijia called himself the king of heaven, that is, the Khan of Heaven.
In the Dangxiang language, he can also be translated as Wuzu. Among the Qiang and Tubo, the titles of King of Heaven and King of Dharma of Zhang Zhao are equivalent.
At this time in Hexi, various ethnic groups were coexisting, and the Hu and Han people lived together. The number of the Hu people was even greater than the Han people. To bring them in, unite and assimilate them, we needed a title they could understand.
The title of King Liang could have been used, but unfortunately, the current Emperor of the Central Plains is Shi Jingtang, so King of Heaven is the most suitable.
After Zhang Zhao prepared for a period of time, he began to stay low and contact the Central Plains, expressing his willingness to accept Shi Chonggui's canonization again.
In this way, Shi Chonggui's attention can be successfully drawn to the Khitan.
As for Zhang Zhao who did not want to accept the canonization of the Later Jin Dynasty, he had to delay it to see if Shi Chonggui was firm.
If he can't wait until the canonization is implemented, he will be killed by the Khitan, then he can't blame me, King Zhang Tian.
If Shi Chonggui stands firm, then Zhang Zhao will accept the canonization of the Later Jin Dynasty.
Among the people of the Tang Dynasty, he called himself the King of Liang, among the Dangxiang people he was called the Wuzu, among the Uighurs and Dadan people he was called the Khan of Heaven, and among the Tubo, Qiang, and Tuyuhun people he was called the Supreme Merciful Dharma King Bodhisattva.
When he entered the Central Plains, he would be called the emperor again. This would immediately place the Hantian Khan, the Wuzu, and the Dharma King equivalent to Zanpu under the Chinese emperor.
So beautiful!
And this has another advantage, that is, after defeating the Gaochang Uighurs, the name Juer Khan can be cancelled.
Because when the tribes of Suiye honored Zhang Zhao as Ju'er Khan, they made a rule with Li Shengtian that the emperor should be at the top and the Khan should be at the bottom.
In other words, in the four places of Yutian, Suiye, Shule, and Ningyuan in the Khotan Kingdom today, Juer Khan's position was under the emperor of the Khotan Kingdom.
Zhang Zhao respected Li Shengtian who had given him great help. It can be said that without Li Shengtian, Zhang Zhao would not be what he is today, and Zhang Zhao had no intention of changing the current situation in Khotan.
Because Khotan is more than three thousand miles away from Dunhuang and separated by the Taklimakan Desert, why are you taking it back?
Send officials to manage it?
That is completely useless. The officials sent there will either not be able to continue their work or they will soon become kings themselves. The reason is that they are too far away.
Now the Khotan Li family and Zhang Zhao are so entangled that they are uncles and nephews, the second generation is in-laws, and the third generation must be married to at least several couples.
The Queen Mother Fengtian of the Liang Kingdom is the eldest princess Fengtian of Khotan. With such a strong relationship, how could there be a better relationship than the Yuchi Li family continuing to rule Khotan?
However, the remaining problem is that Li Shengtian has a higher status than Zhang Zhao in Anxi and Hexi.
Therefore, by defeating the Gaochang Uighurs, Zhang Zhao could change the title of Ju'er Khan to Tian Khan, and then give Li Shengtian the title of uncle Tian Khan or uncle Dharma King.
After Li Shengtian's death, the status of the Khotan king's line was naturally lower than that of Zhang Zhao.
