On this day, in Zhengzhou on Jingxi Road, more than a dozen wealthy families and nobles temporarily formed a powerful armed force, led by the Li family of Zhengzhou, and headed towards the prefectural government office.
He Lingshi, the prefect of Zhengzhou, was related to the Li family by marriage, and the two families had close ties. At this critical juncture, the prefect would not offer much resistance. The only thing he could do was wait for the Li family to arrive with their men, make a show of it, and finally be forced to petition the court to abolish the Confucian scholar case and the "Law on Justifiable Defense".
This scene played out in almost many places, and in a short time, forces in various places began to collapse. Tokyo abolished the Confucian scholar case and repealed the "Justifiable Defense Law".
Around dusk, the Imperial Guards, dressed in black brocade robes, set out and quickly surrounded the prefectural government office.
"I am the Emperor's personal guard. You shall leave immediately to avoid death, or you will be killed without mercy!"
Li Fangyuan, the head of the Li family, said: "The current emperor is being held hostage by villains. As the emperor's personal guards, instead of going to the capital to defend the emperor and purge the corrupt officials, you are here attacking unarmed civilians. You are traitors to the Song Dynasty!"
Situ Heng said, "Traitors to the Great Song? You have no right to say that! Which eye of yours saw me lay a hand on unarmed civilians? When I was on my way north to kill the Jin invaders, why didn't you help me? Confucian scholars openly defying the court and the emperor is poisoning the nation and harming the people. The emperor's virtue spares them from death, yet you are stubborn and obstinate, daring to coerce the local government. Do you want to rebel against heaven?!"
Li Fangyuan said, "You henchmen treat human life like dirt. We have been taught by the sages. I do not believe that Heaven's justice is clear and that there is no law!"
"You mean you won't back down?"
"We are willing to die to defend our principles!"
"Good! Men, kill! Leave no one alive!"
A thousand Imperial Guards, their faces cold and devoid of emotion, charged forward with their swords drawn, and the two sides clashed in close combat, their blades locked in a fierce battle.
One of the Li family guards had half his head sliced off by a single blow from an Imperial Guard, with red and white brain matter spilling out.
The moment the knife struck, you could almost hear the sound of skull being cleaved open.
The Imperial City Guards are all elites selected from among the elite, each with exceptional skills and having undergone rigorous training, making their organizational and coordinated combat capabilities comparable to a real army.
How could this hastily assembled team possibly be a match for the Imperial Guards?
This is a battle between sheep and wolves, and there is no suspense whatsoever.
In just half an hour, the forces assembled by the powerful clans of Zhengzhou were almost completely wiped out. The government offices in Zhengzhou were taken over by the Imperial City Guard, and the prefect He Lingshi was found to have conspired with the rebel Li Fangyuan and was escorted to the capital.
After a night of searching, the remaining forces of powerful clans in the Zhengzhou area were wiped out.
The next morning, Li Fangyuan, his three sons, and the heads of more than a dozen other large families involved were all taken to the most bustling area and their crimes were announced in front of all the onlookers. They were then beheaded!
Such riots occurred not only in Zhengzhou, but also in places like Jingdong Road, Hebei, and especially in Luoyang, Xijing.
Luoyang held a very special place in the Northern Song Dynasty. It was the Western Capital. At the beginning of the dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin considered making Luoyang the capital. However, Kaifeng was already the center at that time, and more importantly, the river transport was well-developed. After much consideration, he decided to make Luoyang the Western Capital.
This place produced several outstanding figures during the Northern Song Dynasty.
For example, Fu Bi and Lü Mengzheng both served as prime ministers and once influenced the politics of the Song Dynasty.
The Fu and Lü families were prominent families in Luoyang. Although they had retired, their influence remained deeply entrenched.
In this case involving Confucian scholars, Luoyang was one of the places where the controversy was most intense. According to the investigation, members of both the Fu and Lü families were involved.
Wang Boyan and Li Shaochen were imprisoned in the imperial prison. The emperor ordered a thorough investigation into the Confucian scholar case, which angered the powerful and influential people in Luoyang.
The Fu and Lü families even brought out the memorial tablets of Fu Bi, Lü Mengzheng, and others, forcing the prefect of Luoyang to petition the court to immediately abolish the Confucian scholar case and the "Legitimate Self-Defense Law".
Almost all the officials in Luoyang had aligned themselves with the wealthy Lü family, and the officials sent by the court to investigate the Confucian scholar case were detained.
He was killed the next day. When the news reached Tokyo, the court and the public were shocked, and countless officials knelt before the inner palace, demanding to see the emperor.
On this day, not only did all the officials submit memorials demanding that the emperor stop the Confucian scholar case, but even the Empress Dowager came out to the emperor and cried, saying that the emperor was going to follow in Wang Anshi's footsteps and must not continue like this, otherwise the ancestral country would not be safe!
Zhao Huan first comforted the Empress Dowager, then turned around and hid in the imperial study, refusing to come out.
Anyone with a keen eye can see that the palace has been much more heavily guarded than usual in recent days, and the emperor has started to feign illness and not attend court.
Imperial guards are everywhere on the streets of Tokyo, and many people are being thrown into prison every day, making the city's jails overflowing these days.
However, this panic only spread among the upper class. The common people have been doing quite well recently. The court has exempted them from corvée labor, so they have more time to spend with their wives and children and more energy to work in the fields. They are not afraid of starving to death.
As for the trivial matters of scholars, they really have no control over them, nor do they have the mind to worry about them. They are simply grateful to the current emperor.
Some people even pray for the emperor every morning when they wake up, asking Heaven to grant him a long life, preferably one that lasts forever.
On June 28th, most of the scholars in Luoyang turned out, and the government offices in Luoyang temporarily lost the control of the imperial court.
This was the first time since the founding of the Song Dynasty that the Song Dynasty relied on...
The scholar went berserk.
The Imperial City Guard in Luoyang faced the fiercest resistance. At dusk, Zong Ze, the commander of the new army, led 10,000 elite troops to the gates of Luoyang.
Zong Ze did not linger and attacked the city overnight. With the scholars' riot, the defense of Luoyang was basically undefended.
The powerful clans of Luoyang naturally had their own armed forces, but most of these forces were spent fighting against the Imperial Guards, leaving Luoyang's defenses weak.
They did not expect the emperor to mobilize the army so quickly. Could it be that the emperor anticipated a riot in Luoyang?
Does this mean that the room for negotiation between the two sides has been further reduced?
It's important to understand that these people weren't actually rebelling; they just wanted to put pressure on the emperor and force him to compromise.
As long as the emperor compromises, a scapegoat can be brought out, and the matter will be settled, which is good for everyone.
But the intervention of the army is a completely different matter; it represents the emperor's determination.
Luoyang fell quickly, and Zong Ze led his army into the city.
After the new army entered the city, the respected heads of the Fu and Lü families came out and led the powerful figures of Luoyang to negotiate with Zong Ze.
In some respects, Zong Ze was also a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) and a scholar-official, so they were negotiable.
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