Since the Accounting: A Chronicle of the Roman Khanate

Chapter 675: Do the Ming Cult members need to be armed to defend the Persian headquarters?
Guo Kang himself was quite clear about these things, but he had to think about how to explain them to others in a safer way.

Now everyone is used to his way of speaking, so even if he forcefully says "it will definitely be like this in the future", there won't be any problem. But Tuo Huan and others will definitely brag about it everywhere, saying that he is like a prophet. Guo Kang has always felt that this is not good, so if he can avoid it, he will try to change the way he speaks.

Fortunately, Seris has a long history and many cases that can be used as reference. Guo Kang has also read a lot of books in recent years. After thinking about it for a while, he found a recent example.

"When the Southern Song Dynasty was first established, it was said that there were three major disasters in the world, namely the Jin people, the pseudo-Qi and Yang Yao." He said: "Among these three, Yang Yao's army also developed from folk sects."

"Yang Yao was originally a subordinate of Zhong Xiang, who was a businessman from Wuling. Starting from Zhong Xiang's father, the family gradually became wealthy because of their good business. Zhong Xiang was chivalrous and admired the great heroes of the Han Dynasty, such as Zhu Jia and Guo Jie. Later, he joined Manichaeism and took the opportunity of preaching to travel around and treat people."

"While working as a witch doctor, Zhong Xiang came into contact with many common people. The Song Dynasty had heavy taxes and levies, and the people's livelihood was very difficult, so Zhong Xiang provided relief. He found that relying on himself was not enough, so he used Manichaeism to establish a church organization, requiring believers to pay money according to their family conditions to help each other. If it was not enough, he would pay the difference himself. Someone advised him that this was the government's business, why did he care about it. Zhong Xiang said that officials only treated the area under their jurisdiction as an inn and themselves as guests, and they would make a fortune and leave without caring about the lives of the people. He saw the hardships of the people and felt sorry for them. He did not need fame or fortune, but only wanted peace of mind. After that, he continued his activities."

"Everyone says that the government of Seris has the functions of both the lord and the church." Tuo Huan laughed and said, "These things should indeed be the work of the church - you see, if the government and the church don't care, then someone will naturally take care of it."

"Yes. His actions also caused dissatisfaction among other local tyrants, so people often reported him to the government and wanted to destroy his church." Guo Kang nodded: "Other people are not stupid either. I think they can see the hidden dangers. However, Zhong Xiang was very tenacious and persisted."

"In the constant friction, his understanding of the doctrine became more and more radical. He began to spread the word that in the face of God, there is no distinction between noble and humble people. However, the laws of the Song Dynasty divided people into noble and humble levels, which was against the will of heaven. Therefore, he wanted to establish his own laws to equalize the noble and humble, and the rich and the poor within the church. This slogan was very attractive to the local poor, so people around rushed to join the church. In this way, he initially gathered strength."

"This statement sounds so familiar." Zhu Wenkui also commented: "It seems that this statement can be seen all over the world."

"Yes, his teachings are not much different from those grassroots sects in Europe." Guo Kang said, "Let's not talk about the Tabor sect. When Brother Tian was preaching among the people, he was even more radical than him."

"The early God Worshipping Society was indeed a grassroots religion." Zhu Wenkui agreed, "And they should also be related to Manichaeism. When Manichaeism was founded, the God Worshipping Society had a lot of influence. Those baptism ceremonies and so on were obviously learned from the God Worshipping Society. It's normal that what they claim is similar to that of the God Worshipping Society."

"Is that so?" Tuohuan nodded, half understanding. "To be honest, I don't know much about this religion. I think I've only heard of this name before, but I forgot where I saw it."

"There's no need to research it specifically. This religion has long been invisible in our area." Guo Kang comforted him: "They were active in the Mediterranean region hundreds of years ago. It's just that later, this sect became active in the Central Plains. During the Song Dynasty, many people organized churches based on Manichaeism and prepared for rebellion. The more famous Fang La also rose in this way."

"I didn't expect it to have such a strong presence in the Central Plains." Tuo Huan understood: "Then did it still exist after the Song Dynasty?"

“Yes,” Zhu Wenkui said, “among the people, the influence has been there for a long time.”

"Is that so?" Tuo Huan said in surprise, "I'm not surprised that he studies these things every day. You know so much too? It seems that even in the Central Plains, the influence of unofficial religions cannot be underestimated. I really need to catch up on my studies."

"Well, Manichaeism is commonly known as the Ming Cult. Guess why I know that..."

"what?"

Tuohuan was stunned for a moment before he reacted.

"This religion is a bit like Buddhism. It has long been in decline in its native land, but it has flourished in the Central Plains." Guo Kang explained: "And in Persian history, it has little presence, and is even worse than Buddhism in India."

"The people over there are indeed different. If it were our people, the believers would definitely think about fighting back every day." Tuo Huan commented: "There will definitely be people who want to restore the parish there under the banner of recovering the holy land."

"I haven't heard of this..." Zhu Wenkui scratched his head: "I don't think San'er - Miss Tang has ever mentioned this before."

"The followers of the Ming Cult in the Central Plains may not even know that their sect originated from Persia." Guo Kang was very sure: "But this is not just a feature of the Ming Cult, it's basically the same for all religions."

"We have been saying before that compared to religion, cultural customs are more difficult to change. Therefore, if religion wants to spread better, it must adjust according to local cultural characteristics. The better the localization, the easier it is to spread, and the more vital the church will be." He said, giving an example: "Haven't we met with people from the Coptic Church several times in the past few days? Have you noticed their symbols?"

"Which symbol is it?" asked Da Lama Wang.

"It's the old version of the cross." Guo Kang said.

"The one with a 'T' under the circle?" Zhu Wenkui also remembered: "Jeanne showed me their collection before, and it seemed to be this thing."

"Yes, that's it." Guo Kang nodded. "It's not a new invention after the rise of Christianity. It's the 'Ankh' symbol that the ancient Egyptians had been using. The church didn't even bother to change it, so they just used it. It's just that the name was changed to 'Coptic Cross', and they said it was the exclusive symbol of their Alexandria Patriarchate."

"That's true...very localized." Tuohuan exclaimed.

"It's more than just symbols. When the missionaries were preaching, many Egyptians directly worshipped the Virgin Mary as Isis and Brother Angel as Horus." Guo Kang added: "In general, if the local culture is relatively weak, then the church will retain more of its own characteristics; but if the local culture is rich and difficult to change, then the church will have to make more compromises. The situation in Egypt is an example."

"That makes sense." Tuohuan understood.

"If you ask me, the decline of Manichaeism has caused everyone to lose contact with the Persian headquarters, which is actually a good thing for the Ming Cult." Guo Kang continued to comment: "For a religion like ours, if we want to develop in Seris, we probably have to wait until the civilization of the European mainland completely declines."

"How did you come to this conclusion?" Zhu Wenkui also became curious.

"This is an old problem. If we resolutely refuse to change, then we won't be able to pass on our teachings. But if we honestly localize our teachings, we will be easily accused of heresy by believers in other places. Why are there so many heretics in Egypt and Syria? I guess it's the same situation." Guo Kang answered. "Which place do you think is the most remote, has the most unique culture, and has the richest heritage?"

"That must be the Central Plains." Zhu Wenkui understood immediately: "All foreign religions will definitely undergo huge changes when they arrive there."

"Yes, but it's embarrassing for the church itself." Guo Kang spread his hands: "What do you think, should we support this kind of localization? If we support it, it's tantamount to admitting the act of self-modification of doctrines, which is taboo for all religions. If we don't support it, it will be difficult for the church to survive."

"It's the same for local religious organizations. If they deny their place of origin, they will undermine their doctrine and reduce their legitimacy. If they don't deny anything, they will face interference from the headquarters and various problems of not adapting to the local environment. There are probably two ways to solve this problem."

"The first is to prove that they are the most legitimate place, surpassing the place of origin. The influence of Master Xuanzang is so great, largely because he held debates in India and won consecutively, proving that the level of Buddhism in the Central Plains has surpassed that there, and it is no longer like the early days of Buddhism, where foreign monks are needed to preach and supervise believers. After this process of enchantment, they naturally don't care about orthodoxy or heresy. After that, the popular Buddhist sects were almost all local, and had little to do with India. This is a manifestation of this."

"The second type is like Manichaeism. Although it has not experienced Qimei, the Persian church has long since declined and lost its influence. Without the interference of members of the 'orthodox church' from the place of origin, it naturally does not need to worry about these problems. And when the local church becomes powerful, even if the Persian headquarters suddenly appears and claims that they are the orthodox and demands that everyone obey their orders, the believers will only think that they are mentally ill and will not pay attention to them."

"It seems that only the Nestorian Church had preached in Seris before." Tuo Huan commented: "It seems that only their loose church is more suitable for that place."

"Yes. Our Christian church is more organized than Buddhism and Manichaeism. But because of this, it is more difficult to preach in places like the Central Plains. The church cannot give up European elements and will certainly not be able to help but supervise the heresy of the Seris Diocese; but if the Seris Diocese wants to truly become a popular religion, it must give up these elements." Guo Kang nodded.

"There are only two ways to solve this problem: Either the Seris Diocese produces a master of scripture at the level of St. Peter to directly build their own legitimacy. Even if they cannot surpass Europe, they must be able to keep pace. Or, the European church declines on its own and is unable to interfere with the East in terms of secular and religious affairs."

"It may sound harsh, but in my opinion, the more local believers look up to outsiders and regard the European church as sacred, the more detrimental it is to faith itself." He concluded, "Because this will not cultivate down-to-earth grassroots priests and prestigious theological scholars, but will only attract ambitious people who take advantage of information asymmetry and brainless mouthpieces. How can the church be run well in this way?"

"That's right." Lama Wang agreed. "We, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, follow the first path. Although we are in the Mediterranean world, we are actually a church of Seris culture. Therefore, European churches always like to regard us as heretics and often attack us. But over the years, we have proved that we are better than them. The neutral believers who originally had doubts, and even the priests who opposed us, have gradually begun to recognize us."

"Now I understand." Tuohuan nodded: "However, the Egyptians should not use religious sects to resist like the people in the Central Plains and Bohemians."

"That's true..." Guo Kang thought about it and felt that it was true: "The Egyptian people are not afraid of fighting for their own nobles and then being sold out. They can't organize their own forces..."

"Right. In Seris, the imperial court can at least call for pacification of the civilian armed forces. I remember Lao Luo said that his master had written such a novel before." Tuo Huan said, "Although the ending is not very good..."

"The Song Dynasty did grant pacification to many sects. However, Zhong Xiang's sect was not granted pacification by the emperor," Guo Kang said. "They were content to stay in their hometown and serve as a mutual aid organization for a long time."

"The local gentry didn't like them and would report Zhong Xiang from time to time, saying that he was gathering people to preach and was preparing for a rebellion. But Zhong Xiang was no ordinary man. He was good at business and his family was wealthy. Every time someone reported him for treason, he would spend money to bribe people and deal with it."

"Ah? Even treason can be suppressed?" Tuohuan asked in surprise.

"This is the setting of the Song Dynasty." Guo Kang replied, too lazy to analyze it carefully.

"Unlike Fang La and his men, they probably really didn't have any ideas. They operated for twenty years but never raised an army to fight against the imperial court. Later, when the Jin army marched south, Zhong Xiang responded to the call and organized an army of 300 people, led by his son Zhong Ang, to Bian Jing to defend the emperor. However, before they arrived, Emperors Huizong and Qinzong surrendered. The rebels disbanded, and the matter of defending the emperor came to nothing."

"Zhong Ang was unwilling to give up, so he took his fellow villagers and changed his route to the southeast to follow King Kang Zhao Gou. At this time, they were not only not rebels, but also meritorious officials who participated in Zhao Gou's succession ceremony. However, after ascending the throne, Zhao Gou did not want to resist the Jin people and disbanded the rebel army again. Zhong Ang and others could only return home in disappointment."

"Why do I feel that they are even more outrageous than the Bohemians..." Tuohuan said speechlessly.

"That was the situation at the time." Guo Kang spread his hands. "Also, although Zhao Gou wanted to seek peace, the Jin army did not stop. The various rebel armies also took advantage of the situation to plunder everywhere."

"Kong Yanzhou, a militia commander of the Song Dynasty, surrendered to the Jin Kingdom and gathered tens of thousands of people. They all shaved their heads, kept braids, dressed like Jin people, and marched south. This may be the first recorded army that shaved their heads and changed their clothes. However, compared with the Jin people and traitors, the Southern Song court was more afraid of the people's arming. After the rebels were sent home, Zhong Xiang and others became alert and did not disband the militia, but continued to prepare for war. As a result, they were reported for illegally resisting the Jin Dynasty, arrested, and sent to exile. Fortunately, Zhong Xiang was often reported and had become skilled. He soon used the back door again, made some arrangements, and was released again."

"When the Jin army marched south and attacked Changsha, the governor Tang Que was promoted to the pacification envoy and mobilized soldiers and the militia of Zhong Xiang and others to march north to resist. However, the Song army had been poorly armed for many years, and after the two sides fought, they were quickly defeated. The various units were scattered and the officials fled for their lives. Zhong Xiang was prepared and suffered little damage. He gathered his soldiers and prepared to continue to protect himself."

"The local gentry thought that this group of people was a huge threat, so they took the initiative to open the city to welcome Kong Yanzhou, hoping that he would drive out Zhong Xiang's troops. Zhong Xiang was furious and finally officially raised the banner, proclaimed himself the King of Chu, and raised his army to rebel. Although Kong Yanzhou's bandits were scary, their combat effectiveness was far inferior to that of the regular Jin soldiers. After the two sides fought, the militia rushed around and fought indiscriminately. The braided soldiers could not resist and were directly defeated and scattered, with heavy casualties. Kong Yanzhou was the only one who escaped."

"So which side does this rebel leader belong to? The Southern Song Dynasty or the Jin Dynasty?" Tuohuan asked.

"Both sides recognized him." Guo Kang said: "The Southern Song Dynasty actually didn't care which side he was on. He could suppress the people, so the court was happy to give him a title and support."

"However, this man's enemies were not limited to the common people. After escaping back to the old camp and gathering soldiers, Kong Yanzhou believed that all the local people were unreliable, so he let his soldiers kill them. The local gentry gathered in the city at this time and wanted to persuade him to stand up for them and quickly attack the peasant army, but he ended up killing them all."

"After that, Kong Yanzhou did not dare to underestimate the enemy and began to make serious plans. However, Zhong Xiang and his son lacked military experience and were eventually defeated and killed in a surprise attack. Their followers joined Yang Yao, who had risen earlier and resisted more resolutely. After Yang Yao was defeated and killed by Yue Fei, these people were recruited by Yue Fei."

"Yue Fei was later unjustly killed by the court, while Kong Yanzhou continued to serve as an official in the Jin Dynasty. He became famous for taking his own daughter as a concubine, and finally had a good end. Before his death, he submitted a memorial to Wanyan Liang, instructing him on how to march south."

"After Yue Fei was rehabilitated, his grandson Yue Ke collected historical materials and recorded relevant events. Half of the soldiers in Yue's army came from Zhong Xiang and Yang Yao's troops. Therefore, their information is much more detailed than that of other loyal armies and rebels."

"Although there are huge cultural differences at the two ends of the world, some things are still very similar." Guo Kang spread his hands: "Knowing this, I can roughly guess the fate of the lower-level followers of the Hussite sect."

(End of this chapter)