Ji Chang is in the main position, with his mother Tai Ren and Yuan Fei Tai Ji sitting above him.
Together with Ji Chang's grandmother Taijiang, these two were known as the three mothers of the Zhou family in history. They were synonymous with women's kindness and virtue. Later generations called their wives "Mrs.", which is why they placed their hopes on their wives.
Like the three mothers of the Zhou family, she can support her husband and teach her children, and be a virtuous wife.
In addition to Tai Ren and Tai Ji, more than ninety of Ji Chang's sons also gathered in the main hall. At a glance, the scale was very spectacular, like a vanguard army.
The first few people were the elegant Boyikao, the heroic Ji Fa, Ji Xian, Ji Dan and other brothers ranked in the top ten.
In addition to Xiqi's ministers, nominally, they all came to pay homage to Nangong Shi.
This old general dedicated his whole life to Xiqi and died. If it weren't for him, the 30,000-strong army would definitely be defeated and return. When the news of his death was brought back to Xiqi, Ji Chang cried sadly and almost fainted.
It is also appropriate to send him off.
However, the atmosphere in the palace was not only sad, but also filled with fear and panic.
Because Jizhou Hou Suhu led an army of 150,000 troops and was approaching Xiqi.
In the past, when the Great Shang annihilated Dongyi, they only used a hundred thousand troops, but now their military strength is far greater than before. No one expected that revenge would come so quickly.
What made them even more shocked and angry was that the culprit who caused the disaster in Jizhou City was Bei Bohou Chonghou Hu, but Su Hu was the first to target Xiqi!
In any case, the army has already attacked, and it is useless to worry. After paying homage to Nangong Shi, most of Ji Chang's sons withdrew, leaving only a dozen people in the palace, who were the absolute top officials of Xiqi.
Xiongzi reported: "Master Hou, it has been found out that although Su Hu claims to have an army of 150,000, the real king's army is only 50,000, and the remaining 100,000 are supported by slave owners and small princes.
The good and the bad are mixed, so there is nothing to be afraid of."
He was originally a merchant, but later defected to Xiqi. Historically, he was the great-grandfather of the founding monarch of the Chu State and the ancestor of the Chu State.
This time, Wu Xiongzi was ordered to investigate the intelligence and report the true situation of Su Hu's army as soon as possible.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this.
This is good news, not only because the enemy's strength is not as strong as imagined, but more importantly, it can be seen from this that Su Hu does not have the full support of King Zhou.
The superior doctor San Yisheng suggested: "Master Marquis, your Majesty has no intention of standing up for Su Hu. As long as you follow the ancestral system, reestablish the slave system, and then invite the dog soldiers to attack, our danger in Xiqi can be solved!"
Historically, when Ji Chang was imprisoned in Youli by Zhou, it was this person who came to admonish Ji Fa, begged for beauties and rare treasures from all over the world, offered them to King Zhou, redeemed Ji Chang, and later assisted King Wu to destroy him.
Shang was one of the four friends of King Wen along with Nangong Shi.
When the proposal for restructuring was brought to Boyikao, Sanyisheng was the one who opposed the most fiercely.
You must know that the Sanyi clan is a large family. As early as the time of Tang Yao, who was also the "Yao" among the Five Emperors, the Sanyi clan was already powerful. In order to gain the support of this tribe, Tang Yao married the daughter of the Sanyi clan and made her his wife.
She was called the Queen and gave birth to two very famous daughters, namely Ehuang and Nvying.
Now that a thousand years have passed, the Sanyi family is no longer as glorious as it was in the past, but it is still the number one family in Xiqi. Naturally, their family will suffer the most from the liberation of slaves.
If Ji Chang hadn't been so powerful, he would have turned against him long ago if he were another king.
After hearing San Yisheng's words, Ji Chang brushed his white beard and remained silent.
Ji Chang did not agree with the liberation of slaves at first.
It was impossible for him to agree. Perhaps many people have forgotten that when Ji Chang first became the Marquis of Xibo, because Ji Li was imprisoned and killed by Emperor Yi, his status was not stable. In order to rectify the officialdom, he took measures to deal with the phenomenon of slaves fleeing, and on a large scale
Track down escaped slaves and ensure that slaves are returned to their original owners after being hunted down.
This policy is called "you die desolate reading", you die (fleeing slaves) desolate (big) reading (search), that is, if there are escaped slaves, there will be a big search, whose slaves belong to whom, and no fugitive slaves are allowed to be hidden.
This operation, which was considered routine in later generations, was not easy to implement in this era. Ji Chang carried it out with all his strength and won the unanimous support of slave owners and nobles, which played a positive role in consolidating his rule.
When Ji Chang secured his position as Xibohou, he began to "be careful about virtue and punishment" and won the reputation of loving the people like a son.
All kinds of policies are just right, and every class is united around him. The nobles trust him, the people love him, and every measure can be supported to the greatest extent. Only then can Xiqi take off.
In terms of administrative ability, the gap between Emperor Yi and Ji Chang was about ten times the size of the original King Zhou.
Then why did Ji Chang free the slaves and reform the civil and military system?
There is no other way. Donglu changed the law first, but Xiqi cannot change the law.
The relationship between the four major princes is both alliance and competition, and one move affects the whole body.
Dongyi was destroyed, the merchants had no worries, and Donglu was forced to restructure. After careful consideration, Ji Chang knew that Xiqi would not change now, but in the future the northern plains and southern frontiers would move together, and they would still change. Instead of falling behind and being more passive with others, it is better to make a decisive decision.
Seize the opportunity.
Not only that, compared to Donglu's toughness, which was suppressed by the prestige of Jiang Huanchu, Jiang Wenhuan and his son and the strength of the army, Ji Chang's methods were much softer.
He first spread cultural knowledge to slave owners, small nobles and common people. You must know that in this era, knowledge is only in the hands of the smallest group of people. Even slave owners and small nobles are basically illiterate, let alone common people. Ji Chang asked Bo
Yikao opened a school and taught culture. This move won unprecedented support and he freed the slaves.
This is actually a diversion of attention. In fact, the contradiction still exists. However, after the slaves have formed an army, drilled day and night, and the military strength has increased, those slave-owning nobles who reacted and want to regret it will be too late.
But now, taking advantage of the king's division's advance, the counterattack began immediately. After San Yisheng's exit, several ministers agreed with him.
You must know that those present are the absolute top leaders of Xiqi. This is already an opposition force that cannot be ignored.
"This statement is wrong. There is no turning back when the bow is fired. The brave will win at the critical moment of reform. This is what Donglu Jiang Wenhuan said. That reckless boy knows this truth. Why did the doctor say this and cut off his arm before the battle?
"
However, if there was opposition, there would naturally be support. It was not convenient for Ji Chang's sons to come forward, so Tai Bian took a trembling step forward and said.
He was also one of the Four Friends of King Wen. Boyi Kao was the crown prince, and the school he opened was nominally opened by him. In fact, it was this old man with white beard and hair who mainly imparted knowledge.
There is no doubt that Tai Dian is a staunch supporter of the reform, because he is not from Xiqi, but a wise man who came to King Mu Wen for his "good care for the elderly". He is highly virtuous and respected by the people of Xiqi.
Not only Tai Dian, but also Hong Yao, a middle-aged man in white robe, also stood on the side of supporting the reform. He was the last of King Wen's four friends. When King Wu attacked Zhou, he held the sword to defend him.
As the leader of the bodyguard.
Nangong Shi was in charge of the military, San Yisheng was good at government affairs, Tai Dian was in charge of education, and Hong Yao was the head of the chamberlain. These four people were Xiqi's team.
But when Nangong Shi died, everything collapsed, the army pressed on the territory, and the ministers of the two factions began to quarrel again.