Private armed forces and the Kaiyi Road may seem like two unrelated things, but they are actually closely related.
Opening up wider trade routes to foreign lands meant that more Song Dynasty merchants would go overseas to trade, which would inevitably lead to the emergence of more well-funded trading companies.
If the problem of private armed groups is not eradicated, it will create hidden dangers.
"What are your thoughts on these privately-run warriors?" Zhao Huan glanced at them. "Minister Shi, please speak."
Shi Xun stepped forward and said, “Confucian scholars use their writings to disrupt the law, and knights use their martial arts to break the law. Now, the Great Song Dynasty is peaceful and prosperous, and the people live and work in peace. Your Majesty’s merits are known to Heaven and Earth. If there are private individuals who raise warriors and are misled by those with ulterior motives, they will surely oppose the court and cause trouble in their regions. If they grow stronger, they may even evolve into the warlords of the former Tang Dynasty, and the world will inevitably be in chaos.”
Shi Xun's statement, "Confucian scholars use literature to disrupt the law," instantly displeased many of the ministers present. Some were about to stand up and hurl insults, but they all restrained themselves, remembering that they were discussing an extremely sensitive topic.
This civilian or non-court military force has always been a major concern for emperors throughout history.
Take, for example, the vassal states of the powerful Han dynasty and the regional military governors of the former Tang dynasty; they were all entities that broke away from the central government and intended to become independent.
Promoting commerce is certainly a good thing, but if it breeds a bunch of deformed monsters, wouldn't the world be thrown into chaos again?
One of the new policies of that year, which stipulated that "officials in office are not allowed to participate in private businesses," already defined the nature of officials in the Song Dynasty.
They were still a group of scholar-officials. In the past, they represented the interests of large landowners, because they themselves were large landowners.
Now, they have lost their land and are isolated from commerce.
Their identities are quite subtle. If we must distinguish which group they belong to, we can only say that they are scholar-officials!
A group of elites embraced the idea of "cultivating oneself, regulating one's family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world."
Of course, the imperial court stipulated that officials could not engage in business privately, but there would certainly be officials who used their power to seek commercial profits privately. After all, doing business in the Song Dynasty was so profitable that not many people could resist the temptation.
For example, if the emperor forbids me from engaging in commerce, no problem, I'll just obediently serve as an official.
But the young man from the cousin's brother of my seventh aunt's brother graduated from the Faculty of Commerce and Trade at the University of Tokyo. His family has some money, so he can go and do whatever he wants.
This is an issue that cannot be avoided in terms of policy.
Zhao Huan was also clear in his mind that the prohibition against officials engaging in commerce meant that officials' own families could not engage in trade, but did not mean that their relatives could not.
Take, for example, how many officials broke away from their families after this new policy was promulgated, just so that their status would not restrict their families.
Zhao Huan knew perfectly well how many officials in the court had relatives who were merchants, and what kind of businesses they were involved in.
As long as they don't cross the line, everything is negotiable.
Officials should just keep to themselves and their families honest and law-abiding.
People like Xu Churen have clearly crossed the line.
Shi Xun's words made many officials present feel uneasy.
Zhao Huan looked at his ministers and said that Zhou Chao, the Minister of the Three Departments, had a brother-in-law who ran a coal mining company in Taiyuan Prefecture.
Since the beginning of this year, money has been flowing in like paper.
This matter is also related to the emperor's northern expedition. The Jin dynasty was destroyed, and the territory of the northern border of the Song dynasty expanded unprecedentedly.
Rumors had been circulating in upper-class circles that the imperial court would gradually relocate people to areas outside the Great Wall.
The north is frigid, so the demand for coal is even greater than in the south.
The construction of an iron smelting plant in the capital city of Beidu increased the demand for coal.
From any perspective, all the actions taken by the imperial court now require the support of the people, yet the court is unwilling to implement unified management.
The recruitment model of the Shangyu Division has been in development for ten years and has been proven to be entirely feasible.
Naturally, there are many wealthy and powerful people who want to obtain a spot and profit from the various policies of the imperial court.
Especially the relatives of officials.
These past ten years have been incredibly lucrative.
When the forest is big, you'll find all kinds of birds.
Originally, everyone just wanted to make money peacefully, but as wealth accumulated, some people started to get arrogant.
They started to become arrogant and ignorant.
They thought that because they had some money, they could hire a private army.
In fact, having money doesn't mean you can do whatever you want.
The emperor said menacingly, "So, does that mean the Chen family of Guangzhou can be exterminated along with their entire clan?"
His words sent a chill down the spines of all the ministers.
Zhao Huan continued, "Gentlemen, for the sake of peace in the land, what do you suggest we do with the Chen family?"
How should this be handled?
Emperor, you've already given the answer yourself, why are you still asking us?
Why do you always like to play this trick!
The matter was already settled, yet they're forcing us to agree, as if we're the ones forcing them to exterminate the entire Chen family!
Thinking of this, everyone cursed Liu Yanzong.
"No one is speaking?"
"He should be executed!"
Zhou Chao was the first to stand up, his face flushed.
As he said this, he felt a little uneasy. After all, he also had relatives in business, and who knew if those guys would get too arrogant and cause trouble!
"He should be executed! He should be executed!"
"For the sake of peace and stability, he should be executed!"
"..."
Everyone expressed their opinions, but in their hearts they were all calculating how to get home quickly after leaving the palace and thoroughly investigate the outrageous deeds of their relatives.
If this isn't handled properly, I could be the next one to be executed!
Such cases are usually reviewed by the Court of Judicial Review and the Ministry of Justice. Once the emperor has made the decision, there is basically no room for maneuver.
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