Chapter 238 Dragon Boat Festival
Su Che, a man from the Song Dynasty, once wrote an article praising the benefits of ceding Yan and Ji.
It is believed that the Song Dynasty's greatest fortune was the Khitan occupation of the 16 prefectures of Yanyun. While the Later Jin's annexation of Yanyun was indeed detrimental, it was also beneficial to the Song Dynasty. It is believed that the Khitan's occupation of Yanyun gave them access to the grain produced in the 16 prefectures of Youyun, ensuring their adequate food supply. The Khitan controlled all of Yanyun, enjoying the bounty of mulberry, hemp, jujube, and chestnuts, as well as wealth in jade, silk, and children. They levied heavy taxes on the people, extending their benefits to the entire North Sea. With sufficient food and clothing, the Khitans naturally had no need to invade the south to plunder.
The Song Dynasty had no shame in ceding territory, yet it enjoyed peace. This was God's blessing on the Song Dynasty. Some believe that the Song Dynasty did not need to recover the 16 states of Yanyun. They believe that the Song Dynasty was using leather and money to win over the Liao Dynasty, and now it only needed to send gifts to please the Liao Dynasty. When the Mandate of Heaven was no longer with the Khitan, the 16 states of Yanyun would automatically return to the Song Dynasty.
In ancient times, the Rong and Di tribes rose and fell, and one tribe always posed a threat to China. Emperor Wen of Han treated them with marriage alliances, but the Xiongnu grew increasingly arrogant. Emperor Wu of Han suppressed them with conquests, and the Central Plains became increasingly vulnerable. They were called the chosen ones of heaven, and it wasn't just one day. The current court's generosity towards them is no greater than that of Emperor Wen of Han, and the Xiongnu have been pacified and subdued. The Shi family's seizure of Yan and Ji is a testament to this.
When Jin Shizong was about to move the capital from Yanjing to the Central Plains, Liang Xiang, a Jin minister, advised Jin Shizong not to leave Yanjing. He said: "Although the Liao Dynasty is not large in area, if we control the Youyan area, we can force the Song Dynasty to pay tribute to the Liao Dynasty every year. After conquering Yan, although the Liao Dynasty is small, it will immediately attract Song Dynasty currency.
It is believed that Yanyun is located in a strategic location, with dangerous mountains to the north and Quxia to the south. It is like sitting in the hall and overlooking the courtyard. The people born there are brave and strong. Therefore, although Liao is small, it can control the north and the south by gaining Yan, and thus obtain Song currency.
Were the Jin people too arrogant to say this? The Liao Dynasty was clearly much larger, with an area of almost 5 million square kilometers, while the Jin Dynasty had only a little over 3 million square kilometers. The Liao Dynasty controlled both the southern and northern deserts, so its area was much larger. Why did the Jin people say that the Liao Dynasty was small?
Nomadic peoples routinely expand their territory on maps. For example, during the Yuan Dynasty, the 5 million square kilometers of Siberian territory from Lake Baikal to the Arctic Ocean actually had only one observatory. They gave the Yakut savages some food and clothes and hired them to observe the stars, and the station was located within the Arctic Circle.
But this does not prevent history textbooks from drawing it in the Arctic Ocean, which can be regarded as a kind of "confidence".
Objectively speaking, the Southern Song Dynasty behaved very rationally in the matter of joining forces with Mongolia to destroy the Jin Dynasty. If they had no other choice, they would have really wanted the Jin Dynasty to survive and carry the responsibility from the front. The Southern Song Dynasty also realized that Mongolia was too strong.
In 1231, a 400,000-strong Mongol army attacked the Jin Dynasty's Tongguan Pass for months, but failed to capture it, suffering heavy casualties. Consequently, Ogedei sent an envoy, Subuhan, to the Southern Song Dynasty to negotiate a passage through Sichuan, demanding the Mongols attack the Jin Dynasty's rear. He also demanded that the Southern Song provide 200,000 tons of grain to the Mongols. Of course, the Southern Song refused to agree, and Zhang Xuan, the commander-in-chief of the Southern Song Mianzhou Army, killed the Mongol envoy, signaling his refusal to form an alliance with the Mongols.
Furious, Ogedei dispatched Tolui with 30,000 cavalrymen to storm Dasan Pass, capturing 140 cities including Fengzhou, Xingyuan, Mianzhou, Jiameng Pass, Yangzhou, and Raofeng Pass. They swept across half of Sichuan, slaughtering over a million people before fleeing. This direct attack from Sichuan on the Jin rear completely collapsed the dynasty. The Southern Song suffered such a heavy loss, but it was helpless, as the Mongols were too powerful.
The Liao, Jin, and Mongol advances to the south followed a common pattern: a small number of elite troops oversaw field battles with vassal tribes while the Han army attacked cities. The cavalry moved swiftly, slaughtering the city if victorious and fleeing if defeated, with minimal losses to their own people. The Southern Song regime was extremely conservative, with the emperor wary of his ministers, and civil officials wary of military officials. Control over Lingnan was tenuous, and most of its troops came from the Yangtze River region, capable of defending their homes. Local gentry generally disliked northern expeditions, meaning they could not defend their territory if victorious, and would suffer losses if defeated.
The main forces of the Southern Song Dynasty were conservative, and it was impossible to imagine that they would make the right judgment. Nomadic tribes ate away the national strength of the Southern Song Dynasty bit by bit. The dynasty lasted for more than a hundred years because there were always one or two heroes who came to the rescue. When heroes did not appear, the Changhuang Line of Defense was like a decoration of earthen chickens and clay dogs.
Yue Lin, the third son of Yue Fei, was also known as Shangqing. He was born on October 15, 1130, in the Tangmen Army of Yixing. His mother was surnamed Li. In the third year of the Jianyan reign, Yue Fei married Li Wa in Zhangzhu Town, Yixing. After their marriage, they settled in Tangmen and gave birth to Yue Lin.
On New Year's Eve of the eleventh year of the Shaoxing reign of the Southern Song Dynasty (January 27, 1142), Yue Fei was unjustly murdered. Yue Lin was only twelve years old at the time. In the thirty-second year of the Shaoxing reign (1162), Emperor Xiaozong ascended the throne, and Yue Fei's unjust case was vindicated. Yue Lin was also thirty-two years old at the time. On April 23, the first year of the Longxing reign (1163), the Southern Song court issued an imperial decree reinstating Yue Lin as Right Assistant Secretary. He was later appointed Governor of Southern Jiangxi and granted the fief of Yixing. In the third year of the Chunxi reign, Yue Lin was appointed Magistrate of Qinzhou, Guangxi.
On May 5, 1178, during an audience with Yue Lin in the side hall, Emperor Xiaozong of Song said, "Your family's discipline and military tactics are far inferior to those of Zhang and Han. Your family has been wronged. I know this, and so do the people of the world!" Yue Lin bowed his head and wept, saying, "I am deeply grateful for your divine inspection and care!" Yue Lin then submitted a petition requesting the return of the imperial edicts, handwritten edicts, provincial edicts sent to Yue Fei by the Southern Song court, and some of Yue Fei's memorials that Emperor Gaozong of Song had bestowed upon him. Emperor Xiaozong of Song immediately ordered the return of the remaining original documents related to Yue Fei, which were stored in the Southern Treasury.
After Yue Fei's unjust case was overturned, Yue Lin took on the task of compiling historical documents related to his father, Yue Fei. However, he encountered great difficulties. This was not only due to the extensive deletion and destruction of documents during Qin Hui's reign, which left much of the original material incomplete, but also because several important generals and staff members of Yue Fei's army, such as Wang Gui, Niu Gao, Dong Xian, and Li Ruoxu, had passed away. Despite this, Yue Lin still exerted great effort and, with the help of various parties, collected some of the materials related to Yue Fei, including more than 80 imperial edicts and imperial decrees bestowed upon Yue Fei by Emperor Gaozong of Song, as well as some of Yue Fei's memorials.
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