Chapter 216 Old Wei loads the ammunition, Little Wei fires.
Holy crap.
Here it comes...
Same recipe, same taste.
"How many scholars does my Great Tang Dynasty have?"
"How many people in my Great Tang Dynasty still cannot afford to go to school?"
"There are still so many ignorant people in my Great Tang Dynasty!"
"The Tang Dynasty can't even train its own people..."
"You're telling me you're going to teach the Liao people?"
What do you want to do?
"Teach them all so they can attack my Great Tang?"
Sure enough, Xiao Wei was laying the groundwork earlier.
They were all immediately glad that they had stepped forward a step later.
"You...you..."
Lu Chengqing's face turned red, and he pointed at Wei Shuyu, unable to speak.
It is undeniable.
Education in the Tang Dynasty was still quite backward.
Scholars were controlled by the aristocratic families, and paper was expensive, so ordinary people simply couldn't afford to read.
That is incorrect.
Kong Yingda stepped forward, bowed to Li Shimin, and said, "To educate the people, we must not teach them knowledge, but rather etiquette and principles."
"Make them respect and submit to my Great Tang!"
Upon hearing this, the assembled officials couldn't help but nod in agreement.
In short, it's about brainwashing them.
Confucius taught the world and his name will be remembered for eternity.
As a descendant of Confucius, Kong Yingda will certainly spare no effort to make this happen!
“Uncle Kong is mistaken!” Wei Shuyu replied with a smile.
"Where is the difference?"
Kong Yingda asked, puzzled.
"If you try to educate them, will they have to listen?"
Wei Shuyu thought to himself, "If I don't have several thousand burly disciples watching over me at all times, how can they submit?"
“With a million-strong army, how dare they disobey?” Kong Yingda immediately retorted.
Perhaps realizing his words were inappropriate, he added, "Once they understand the principles, they will naturally be grateful to our Great Tang!"
"Just like our ancestors traveled around the world, teaching and enlightening people."
Kong Yingda brought up Confucius.
If this answer is not good, it may provoke an attack from all the Confucian scholars.
"The reasoning is correct."
Wei Shuyu nodded: "But Confucius taught the world from the perspective of an observer."
"And what about the Tang Dynasty?"
"Yet they are teaching from the opposite side of the enemy..."
Let me give you an example.
"It's like two people fighting."
“Uncle Kong, if you try to mediate from a third-party perspective, they might listen.”
"But what if it's just the two of them?"
"If you beat him into submission and make him yield to your tyranny, he might temporarily submit."
"What if we wait until he becomes powerful someday..."
"Will he continue to submit to you, or will he turn around and fight you?"
Wow.
The courtiers were in uproar.
The words may be rough, but the principle is sound.
If we enlighten the Liao people, what if they turn around and attack the Tang Dynasty?
"We Confucians are confident that we can educate and enlighten the people!"
Kong Yingda retorted with an unhappy expression.
"Um."
Wei Shuyu nodded: "Let's assume Uncle Kong has that ability..."
“But there are so many Liao people.”
Can you guarantee you'll convince every single one of them?
Wei Shuyu looked around at the assembled officials, and just when they thought he was about to launch into a tirade...
Wei Shuyu suddenly called out, "Father!"
Wei Zheng turned around and looked at his son with a puzzled expression...
Why do the Liao people hate our Great Tang?
Wei Zheng immediately understood his son's meaning.
He immediately took a step forward...
"Many Liao people migrated north and later lived in the Sichuan and Hanzhong regions, intermingling with the people of the Central Plains." (This refers to the present-day Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan regions).
"It was the suppression during the Qin and Han dynasties that forced them to move back to Lingnan!"
Wei Zheng had just finished speaking.
Wei Shuyu immediately nodded in agreement: "Driving them out of their own homes is an act of revenge for the loss of their land!"
Wei Shuyu suddenly stepped forward: "Let me ask you all again, what is the purpose of the Tang Dynasty's education?"
"Does this mean we should thank us for driving you away?"
"The Liao people are just backward in their thinking, not stupid!"
"Can mere education truly restore the hatred that has accumulated over hundreds of years?"
The courtiers felt a chill run down their spines.
Those words were too harsh.
They drove people out of their homes and then told the barbarians, "We're doing this for your own good."
Who could tolerate that?
The most disgusting thing is... Old Wei and his son teamed up!
Old Wei was in charge of loading the ammunition, and Little Wei was in charge of launching it.
Damn it, how am I supposed to criticize this?
After Wei Shuyu finished speaking, Wei Zheng began to add more...
"Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty levied exorbitant taxes and levies!"
"The previous dynasty captured a large number of Liao people and enslaved them!"
"Even in my Great Tang Dynasty, we captured quite a few..."
"In the seventh year of the Wude era, Dou Gui defeated the rebels at Fangshan and captured more than 20,000 people."
"In the ninth year of the Wude era, Guo Xingfang attacked the rebellious Liao people in Hong and Ya prefectures, inflicting a great defeat on them and capturing 5,000 men and women..."
Upon hearing this, Wei Shuyu's eyes grew brighter and brighter.
With so many excuses, if you still can't win the argument, you might as well just smash your head against a block of tofu and die.
He immediately stepped forward three steps and rebuked them sternly and righteously...
"Listen to this, everyone..."
"This kind of deep-seated hatred, a hatred ingrained in one's very bones..."
"What exactly did the Tang Dynasty use to educate and civilize its people?"
"You think they can become Buddhas just by talking?"
"If that's truly your opinion, then I have nothing more to say!"
Wei Shuyu flicked his sleeve and retreated to the very back.
Li Shimin's expression was slightly gloomy.
This is an insult to the Tang Dynasty, calling it tyrannical!
but……
This is the Emperor's fault, it has nothing to do with me.
"How dare you!"
Changsun Wuji stepped forward and angrily rebuked him.
He originally planned to wait for Wei Shuyu to make a mistake before reaping the rewards.
But now...
Wei Shuyu insulted the Tang Dynasty, and the officials all bury their heads in the sand.
As the head of all officials, he had no choice but to appear in public.
"The previous dynasty was tyrannical, but our Great Tang Dynasty remains upright and honorable!"
"At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, the imperial court also issued a decree to release the slaves of the Liao people!"
"But the Liao people show no remorse and have repeatedly plundered our Great Tang. You tell me..."
What should we do in this situation?
"Although they were slaves, the Tang Dynasty did not harm their lives."
"They are still provided with food and drink; this is already an act of great benevolence from the Tang Dynasty!"
The ministers nodded in agreement.
Although the Liao people were slaves.
But for a prisoner, not killing them is already a favor.
Why make so many demands?
"Can this resolve centuries of hatred?"
Wei Shuyu asked casually.
The ministers' lips twitched.
Changsun Wuji talked about so much, and you only said this one sentence?
And it makes perfect sense, in a way.
However, Changsun Wuji was not so easily deterred...
"When two sides are at war, taking prisoners is a perfectly normal thing."
Wei Shuyu immediately interrupted, "Can this resolve the hatred?"
"The Great Tang Dynasty..."
"Is it possible to resolve the hatred?"
"you……"
"Is it possible to resolve the hatred?"
Grass!
Changsun Wuji was so angry he was practically steaming.
"Can you please stop talking nonsense!"
Changsun Wuji launched into a tirade of curses.
"That doesn't make sense."
Wei Shuyu replied seriously, "It seems like you're the one who's always talking nonsense, aren't you?"
"I'll just ask you one question: can what you've said eliminate the Liao people's hostility towards the Tang Dynasty?"
Changsun Wuji remained silent.
After a long pause, he replied, "When two countries are at war, either the other side ransoms the prisoners of war, or they become slaves."
"This has always been the case, from ancient times to the present."
"Does that mean we have to send them back intact after they attacked our Great Tang?"
The courtiers were also troubled.
This is an unsolvable problem.
"You're right."
Wei Shuyu shrugged: "But that's your idea!"
"What do the Liao people think?"
"What they hate may not be the Tang Dynasty, but their race!"
"They hate the people of the Central Plains!"
well.
Another defeat?
The courtiers sighed...
In an ordinary prefecture, if someone doesn't listen to reason, just kill a few more people to establish authority.
Even foreigners and different races can be educated and assimilated!
But the Liao people...
To put it simply, it's because they live in a mountainous area.
The Tang Dynasty couldn't break through!
What do we do now?
The ministers looked at each other, unsure of where to begin.
Could it be that this concerted and effective educational strategy was aborted because of a few words from Wei Shuyu?
Just when the court officials were at a loss, Cheng Yaojin suddenly stepped forward and asked in a nonchalant manner...
"Wei boy, since you think that education won't work..."
"Then tell me, how should the Liao people problem be solved?"
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