Chapter 212 Culture and Education
The emperor handled the affairs of the southern counties coldly and did not dispatch troops to suppress the rebellion with lightning speed. At the beginning, there were objections in the court.

It is acceptable to temporarily tolerate external affairs, but how can we tolerate rebellion internally?

No matter which dynasty or era, unless the situation has become irreversible, the ruling power of the court and the majesty of the emperor must be proved as quickly as possible.

But as the rebels in various counties became less and less active, everyone seemed to realize that the chaotic times when a few local bandit leaders could rebel and sweep across several counties with hundreds of thousands of troops and rule their own territories were really over.

There were still some people in the world who were somewhat rational but not without ambition. They finally realized the current situation and realized that rebellion had no future. If they wanted to enfeoff their wives and children and to have wealth and fame, they could only serve in the court.

Xue Ju, Li Mi, Xiao Xin, Du Fuwei, Wang Shichong and others in Chang'an had completely given up hope. As people who had once ruled a region, who would be willing to be a subject and have their life and death dominated by the ruler?

But this incident really touched them. They were not surprised that the emperor was able to quell the rebellion in the south, but they were surprised that the emperor could win without fighting. What was even more shocking was that the emperor had such accurate control over the situation and people's hearts.

If this happened to them, they would definitely send troops to wipe out the rebellion immediately to deter it. Even if they knew that it would not amount to much, they would not dare to let it develop, for fear that a thousand-mile dam would be breached by a single ant hole.

At the court meeting, someone again proposed that it was time to put down the rebellion, and the ministers became even more enthusiastic and active, but the emperor still rejected the requests of several generals and instead ordered local governments to recruit soldiers for the southern expedition.

Recruiting soldiers has always been difficult, and only the children of Guanzhong would be eager to join the army. But this time was different from the past. The local generals were surprised to find that the soldiers who took the initiative to join the army were not only very active, but also of excellent quality.

There were even many who were former bandit leaders and robbers who had gathered in a certain area. They even surrendered themselves to the trap despite being wanted by the imperial court. The local authorities reported the situation to the authorities.

When the emperor learned about this, he immediately issued an edict, stating that no matter their past, as long as they voluntarily joined the army and marched south, their crimes would be forgiven, and the court would treat them equally and promote generals who had made meritorious contributions.

Once this decree was issued, the number of people who joined the army doubled, and many people who had hidden their identities revealed their names. The most famous ones were Dou Jiande, Liu Heita and Luo Shixin, who were defeated by the Duke of Wei and fled.

The emperor did not promote them, but he did not order their arrest either. He allowed them to join the army and gather them under the leadership of the local soldiers, Du Wei, to prepare to march south to fight the bandits.

There were a total of 70,000 soldiers recruited here. The emperor named them the Shenwu Army and sent royal family members Li Shentong, Duke of Yongkang, and Li Daozon, Duke of Lueyang, as main generals to lead the southern expedition.

But what was funny was that the Shenwu Army had only half left when the rebels took the initiative to apologize to the emperor and said that as long as His Majesty could pardon the death penalty, they would be willing to tie Dugu Huai'en up and bring him to the capital.

The emperor ignored them and issued an edict that only the rebel generals and leaders would be executed in this war. The soldiers and civilians in the rebel army were all innocent people who were forced to surrender. As long as they surrendered voluntarily, they would be pardoned and their crimes would never be pursued.

In this case, there is nothing much to say about this battle. The Shenwu Army was unstoppable, and the surrendered soldiers even took the initiative to act as civilians to be responsible for logistics and guidance, and the rebels were defeated one after another.

In the Shenwu Army, there were also some people who came to the fore, not to mention those who were already famous, such as the five heroes of the Xue family, Xue Wanshu, Xue Wanshu, Xue Wanjun, Xue Wanche, and Xue Wanbei.

There were also Cheng Zhijie of Dong'e, Pei Xingyan of Hedong, Duan Zhixuan of Zouping, Su Dingfang of Wuyi, Zhang Liang of Xingyang, Hou Junji of Sanshui, Zhang Gongjin of Fanshui, and Feng Shili of Fengyi.

Some of them were heroes who had been waiting for an opportunity in local places, and some were born in noble families of the previous dynasty, but they did not get to see the unification of the world after the Emperor ascended the throne. It was not easy for someone to rebel, and now they finally got the chance to shine.

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At the grand court meeting in Xuanzheng Hall, the emperor issued an edict saying: "The preface of the preface of the preface, the historian records events, examines the gains and losses, and makes every effort to adapt to changes, so as to establish righteousness, punish evil and encourage good, and learn more about the past and the past, so as to provide a reference for the future. Since Fuxi, Zhou and Qin followed suit, the Han Dynasty passed on the legacy, the Three Kingdoms received the mandate, and up to the Jin and Song Dynasties, the records are complete. Since Wei moved south and took the opportunity to pacify the country, Zhou and Sui passed on the throne, and the Liang family claimed to be a state, straddling Huaihai, Qi moved the turtle tripod, and Chen established the ancestral temple, all of them claimed to be the legitimate...

Be sure to check it carefully, collect old news, keep the meaning, and keep the calligraphy clear! "

Li Jiancheng ordered the establishment of the Hongwen Academy, and ordered the Secretary Xiao Yu and the Attendant Wang Jingye to compile the history of Wei; the Attendant Chen Shuda and the Secretary Linghu Defen to compile the history of Zhou; and the concurrent Secretary Feng Deyi and the Secretary Yan Shigu to compile the history of Sui...

Those appointed by the emperor were all people who held important positions and had great literary reputations. Only in this way could the history books compiled be passed down to future generations so that future generations could know about world affairs.

The emperor attached so much importance to culture and education that the officials from the Jiangnan and Shandong aristocratic families were moved to tears. Among the emperors of Guanlong, there were very few who really cared about culture and education and were willing to spend a lot of effort in compiling history. It can only be said that Your Majesty is worthy of being the master of literature and poetry who was famous all over the world in the past.

It's a pity that Your Majesty hasn't written any poetry or essay for many years. The civil officials were so happy that they kept shouting "Long live the wise emperor."

Secretary Linghu Defeng quickly took the opportunity to submit a memorial, requesting the purchase of posthumous works, and then the court organized the work of sorting out the books and classics. Since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, too many good things had been destroyed in the chaotic times and could not be passed down.

The emperor readily agreed and ordered him to find talented and eloquent people in the Hongwen Academy to undertake this task and compile the collected books and classics into a book.

After thanking him, Linghu Defen said, "I am not virtuous enough, so I would like to ask Your Majesty to order Mr. Ouyang, a scholar of the Hongwen Academy, or Mr. Yu, a writer, to preside over the matter."

Li Jiancheng looked at Ouyang Xun and Yu Shinan. Both of them were not young, but they were top figures among the literati.

Yu Shinan was also Yu Shiji's younger brother, but his temperament was completely opposite to his brother's. Even though his brother was extremely noble, he was willing to live in poverty and was always respected by his contemporaries.

Yu Shinan stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I am currently compiling the Book of Ominous and Auspicious Rituals and it has come to a critical time. I am afraid that I will be delayed by taking on so many responsibilities."

Seeing Yu Shinan decline, Ouyang Xun stepped out and accepted the order: "I am willing to obey your order."

The entire court meeting was spent discussing these matters, and the officials from the Ministry of War had no chance to report the victory in suppressing the rebellion.

When talking about culture and education, we cannot avoid religion, not to mention the rebellion of the monk Gao Tansheng some time ago.

“How many monks are there in the world today?”

The official in charge stepped out and said hesitantly, "Your Majesty, the exact number is unknown, but according to my calculation, there should be about 60,000 to 70,000 monks in all the counties and prefectures in the country."

There are only monks, not counting nuns. There are also Taoists and nuns. These people are not engaged in production. How many people are there in total?
Li Jiancheng frowned slightly. The two generations of emperors in the Sui Dynasty both worshipped Buddhism and Taoism, which led to the prosperity of religion. In addition, monks and Taoists were literate, so they became an indispensable and influential presence in society.

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(End of this chapter)