He acted swiftly, displaying unprecedented enthusiasm and initiative in dealing with Japan.
We should kill Japan as quickly as possible.
Japan was not at peace during the Song Dynasty.
Several forces are vying for power within the country.
Unable to afford the high upkeep costs, the Emperor relocated members of the Imperial Family to various regions, forming aristocratic groups. However, these groups were too strict in controlling their own interests, leading to a growing and increasingly powerful samurai group that was unwilling to serve them.
This era was the eve of the shogunate. The emperor's position was still very powerful, but the samurai were no longer the samurai of the past.
The nobles, however, remained the same as before, indulging in idleness and waiting for death, and the conflict was about to erupt.
Whether it's Fujiwara no Michinaga a century ago or the emerging Taira clan today, they are all manifestations of the growing power of the samurai.
Shen Tu Xin's actions within Japan clearly involved aligning himself with the Emperor, gaining absolute control over political resources, and then uniting with several old noble families to cultivate a group of samurai.
They began to put pressure on the new samurai group led by the Taira clan and vowed to reclaim the former glory of the nobility and the royal family.
But Zhao Huan, a person from a later generation, knew that the old Japanese aristocracy and the emperor's power were all show and no substance.
People like Shen Tu Xin, who were part of the traditional aristocratic power in the Song Dynasty, naturally chose to stand with the traditional Japanese aristocracy and the Emperor's power when they arrived in Japan.
In the eyes of such people, they never believe that those reckless brutes who rely on shouting and killing can achieve anything.
In fact, the Ping Group is precisely the result of the power it has accumulated over the years.
At this time, Taira no Kiyomori was only a thirteen-year-old boy, and his father, Taira no Tadamori, was continuing his efforts.
Shen Tu Xin's first target was Taira no Tadamori.
In fact, emerging samurai leaders like Taira no Tadamori were very eager for goods from the Song Dynasty.
Although their power is growing, they still have a poor background and need something to embellish themselves, and the goods of the Song Dynasty are the best way to enhance their status.
Now those old noblemen, who have hoarded a lot of things at home, are suddenly told that the maritime ban will be strictly enforced, which has angered them.
After understanding the stakes involved, Zhao Huan immediately wrote a letter to Han Feng.
Han Feng was instructed to send someone to secretly meet with Taira no Tadamori and to promise him a gift of ceramics from Jingdezhen, which were reserved for the prime ministers of the Song Dynasty.
This made Taira no Tadamori extremely happy, and he wished he could set up a memorial tablet for Zhao Huan at home and worship it every day.
While this was underway, a group of Imperial Guards disguised themselves as Japanese and infiltrated Japan, their goal being to capture Shen Tu Xin.
May has just arrived, and cherry blossoms are already in full bloom in both the Song Dynasty and Japan.
Recently, something has been circulating in Heian-kyo, Japan.
This matter was originally a secret, given the turbulent times and the sensitive nature of the events involved. However, the sudden gathering of a large number of landless farmers outside Heian-kyo naturally attracted the attention of various forces.
Those farmers without land wove cloth in some dilapidated houses.
And the number of people is increasing every day.
Meanwhile, in the unknown port, a large pile of cloth was quietly loaded onto a cargo ship of the Song Dynasty and left the port.
A day later, a pirate hijacked a fleet of Song Dynasty cargo ships and, upon discovering that the cargo was filled with ordinary cloth, flew into a rage and killed everyone on board.
This news naturally reached the ports of Japan, and somehow, it soon reached Heian-kyo (Kyoto).
Thus, the nobles of Heian-kyo had a new topic of conversation.
In mid-May, the situation escalated!
A group of fierce-looking samurai set out from Heian-kyo (Kyoto) and went to the workshops outside the city. Without asking any questions, they killed all the weavers.
This event was known in Heian-kyo as the "Weaving Rebellion".
The chaos in the textile industry acted as a fuse, igniting the conflict between the emerging samurai groups and the old aristocracy.
Because those weavers were found by Taira no Tadamori's men.
The Great Song Dynasty promised to buy the fabric from him with a large sum of money. The first payment has already been settled. Taira no Tadamori was worried about not having enough money to support his people, so he was naturally overjoyed that the Great Song Dynasty was willing to give him money.
Unexpectedly, they were wiped out by the old nobles.
This matter is naturally impossible to resolve peacefully.
Conflict could erupt at any moment.
While enjoying a life of luxury in the capital city of Tokyo, Zhao Huan saw the latest battle report: the largest riot in the history of Heian-kyo had broken out.
Two thousand warriors joined the fray, and the old nobles suffered heavy losses.
When Zhao Huan received this letter, it was already June.
Under the emperor's orders, the Qian family in the southeastern coastal region dutifully and secretly purchased large quantities of fabric from Japan at high prices.
These fabrics were very crudely made, incomparable to the workmanship of the Song Dynasty.
If others find out about this, they will definitely laugh at Qian for being brainless.
Why go through all that trouble, crossing oceans, to buy inferior goods at high prices? It's like having nowhere to spend your money!
If angry young people found out, they would curse: "The Qian family deserves to die! There are so many poor people in the Song Dynasty. Instead of spending money on the people, you are sending it abroad. You are inhuman!"
Therefore, to avoid unnecessary trouble, this matter was handled very discreetly.
After this incident, several merchant families along the coast received orders from the government.
These people assumed that since the Song Dynasty was vigorously promoting commerce, the court must have something good to offer them.
Unexpectedly, they were asked to pay high prices to buy fabric from Japan. In this sense, it's like they're constantly sending money abroad.
Fortunately, after Xu Churen hit them a few times, he gave them some candy.
What kind of candy?
Naturally, it's the policy benefits.
From building schools to constructing water conservancy projects, roads, and bridges, these matters concerning people's livelihoods were all allocated and distributed to various departments.
Compared to the money earned from this, the cost of buying the fabric is negligible.
So, at the end of June, a strange thing happened along the coast of the Song Dynasty: large quantities of inferior fabric began to be transported ashore.
When inspecting these fabrics, the Maritime Trade Office usually only glanced at them before letting them pass.
Meanwhile, within Japan, the power of the old aristocracy suffered a significant setback after the riots in Heian-kyo.
The emerging samurai group, having secured revenue from selling cloth, began to grow rapidly, expanding faster than ever before.
In July, the situation in Heian-kyo (Kyoto) became unprecedentedly tense.
Emperor Sutoku's elder brother, Shirakawa, publicly condemned the drawbacks of the isolationist policy and revealed the truth about the "weaving rebellion" to the public.
This caused a huge upheaval in Heian-kyo.
The once extravagant rich were desperately seeking new sources of wealth, never expecting that even tattered rags they usually disdained could fetch such high prices.
At this moment, the entire Heian-kyo went wild.
Moreover, news of this quickly spread to other territories of Japan.
An uncontrollable madness is unfolding.
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