Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 286 "Ming" Religion

In the next three days, the two old ministers, Fang Xuanling and Zhangsun Wuji, showed great enthusiasm for work.

Moreover, this talented pair also inspired their subordinates to burst into enthusiasm, either actively or passively, and devote themselves wholeheartedly to the cause of creating a new religion.

996 is just the starting point, 007 is the destination.

The dawn of solving the barbarian problem once and for all has already appeared on the horizon.

Different from the previous "carrot and stick" policy to deal with barbarians, this open conspiracy of using religious tools to restrain the development of the other side is not only very novel, but also has practical feasibility.

It may sound wild and imaginative at first, but it is actually meticulous and vicious, which can be said to be very characteristic of the "Ming style".

If we can really make the barbarians stop their attacks, it will be a great merit that will go down in history!

It goes without saying that His Highness Li Ming, who led this matter, and other participants can also leave their names in history books.

The clerks worked tirelessly day and night with a responsible attitude of personally participating in history.

Three days passed quickly.

"Your Highness, the task you assigned me has been completed."

Fang Xuanling and Zhangsun Wuji had dark circles under their eyes and presented a thick stack of documents.

"These are the teachings and rules you are going to create. They were completed under the guidance of Master Xuanzang. They are based on the Indian hierarchy and have been modified to suit the habits of nomadic and hunting barbarians."

Changsun Wuji's throat was so dry that it seemed to be smoking, and his bloodshot eyes were still flashing with excitement.

Fang Xuanling was already in a state of confusion and had no strength to speak.

"Thank you for your hard work." Li Ming took over the heavy results and asked casually:
"Where is Master Xuanzang? Isn't he with you?"

"The wizard couldn't hold on any longer on the second night, so he must be sleeping soundly now." Changsun Wuji replied in a hoarse voice.

Master Xuanzang was shocked by the arrival of this small Ming Dynasty. It was his first time to experience such high-intensity work.

This man who crossed the Pamir Plateau in his physical body ultimately could not survive the crazy exploitation of the Ming Group. After all the information about Tianzhu was squeezed out of him day and night, he died.

He finally understood why the Northeast, a once barren land, had developed so rapidly under the leadership of His Highness Li Ming.

"Excuse me, I'll take my leave."

Changsun Wuji bowed lightly, then carried Fang Xuanling away and went back to catch up on his sleep.

The results they presented were very comprehensive, including new doctrines, canons, supporting creation myths and worldviews.

The general idea is that the world was originally in chaos, and it was the "Supreme God" who created the world as it is today. Human beings were created by the Supreme God, and are divided into five levels according to their birth and bloodline, corresponding to the five parts of the Supreme God from head to toe.

Well, it sounds like it is based on the Indian religion, mixed with the myth of Pangu creating the world.

The "Supreme God" here can be any nickname. For the Turkic ethnic group, it is replaced by Tengri, the shamanism they originally believed in; for the Mohe ethnic group, it is replaced by the god of heaven and earth; for the Persian ethnic group in the Western Regions, it is replaced by Zoroaster, the Zoroastrianism, and so on.

The main idea is to adapt to local customs and tailor a caste system that is most suitable for the physique of local babies for different ethnic groups.

"They have put in a lot of effort to achieve this level of completion in just three days."

Li Ming sighed secretly.

Next comes the highlight of this new religion - its doctrines and rules.

This part occupies the largest amount of space. Most of the content does not seem to be anything special at first glance. It is nothing more than persuading people to be good, respect their parents, help others, etc., and it is a mixture of the contents of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism.

The purpose is to show potential customers that this is a serious religion.

And amidst these large amounts of seemingly righteous insinuations, there are hidden illicit goods.

For example, there is a merit balance system, reincarnation, etc., and most importantly, a bloodline hierarchy system that is compatible with this set of myths.

Needless to say, this part of the content is from the "Indian Sutra" taken from Master Xuanzang.

It can be said that he made this plate of dumplings just for this dish of vinegar.

"Pingzhou is the holy city of our religion, Master Xuanzang is the founder of the religion, and the selection of the major priests is directly appointed by the founder of the religion...?"

When Li Ming read this, he couldn't help but frowned in distress.

He understood the intention of Fang Xuanling and others in inserting this clause, which was to achieve the purpose of indirectly controlling the various barbarian tribes by remotely controlling this religion.

Among them, the clause "the choice of priests is decided by the Patriarch" has a bit of the meaning of "Golden Urn Drawing", because the Patriarch himself, that is, Xuanzang and his descendants, are all under the control of Li Ming.

The logic of political organisms is indeed interconnected.

"but……"

Li Ming thought about it again and again and decisively crossed out this item.

Because this new stitched-together weird religion is so deceptive. If it flows back and turns China into a nation that lies flat and gives up like India, that would be a catastrophe.

From the perspective of short-term political games, Fang Xuanling and his colleagues' tactics can be said to be very clever.

But in the long run, we must guard against the poisonous weed ideology and cut off all possible connections between China and it.

“So, the name has to be changed.”

Li Ming closed the thick manual and saw two big words written on the cover:

"Mingjiao".

He couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth.

Are you afraid that the world doesn't know that it was me, Li Ming, who released this ferocious beast?

When will we fast forward to the scene where the six major sects besiege Guangmingding?
He also crossed out the two words "Mingjiao".

Apart from adding the isolation between China and this new teaching, Li Ming had no objection to the other contents.

“The framework is already there, and there’s only one small problem left.

"How can we make the barbarians believe it?"

…………

Most of the difficult things in the world can be summed up as putting other people's money into your own pocket.

If there is anything harder, it is to put your own thoughts into other people's heads.

The introduction of a new religion combines these two difficult things together.

It's important to get off to a good start.

Which lucky person should be chosen to be the first batch of believers of this ruthless "Ming Cult"?

…………

"Humph! What do you mean, old Prime Minister? Do you think that our people's worship of the gods of heaven and earth is wrong?!"

In the Pingzhou provincial government, a rough man wearing a tiger-skin robe, a dog-skin hat, and his hair combed back, slammed the table and started yelling at Fang Xuanling who was sitting across the table.

Fang Xuanling wiped the spit off his face expressionlessly and calmly used Goguryeo to comfort the rough man in front of him:
"Chief, you misunderstood. I have no intention of questioning your tribe's devout belief in the gods of heaven and earth. I am only sharing some advanced practices of other tribes in terms of specific sacrificial methods."

cut!
The chief turned his head away with disdain, his face full of expression that said "You, a Han Chinese, know nothing about Mohe."

He was the leader of a Mohe tribe, affiliated with the Suomote Mohe, and his territory was located in the northern border of the former Goguryeo.

Now they nominally submit to Li Ming, but they have been flirting with their fellow tribesmen outside, playing a double-edged sword. Li Ming highly suspects that the reason why the Mohe outside the country can accurately locate the settlement of the Ming Dynasty is probably because this tribe led the way.

However, due to his long distance, Li Ming cannot overturn the table with this traitor chief for the time being, so as to avoid causing more trouble.

Coincidentally, the tribal chief also disliked Li Ming.

It was a great shame and humiliation for the Mohe warriors, who were capable of conquering bears and tigers, to have to obey the orders of a young boy.

What’s more, that brat only knows Chinese and can’t even understand the language. How can he be in charge?

Therefore, whenever he had something to say, he would rather communicate with the old nanny Fang Xuanling rather than being labeled as "listening to the orders of a child" and being laughed at by his clansmen when he returned.

The two sides dislike each other, so they just get along.

However, this time, the chief felt that he could no longer make do with it.

Because that naughty kid called him from far away and actually had the crazy idea of ​​persuading their entire clan to convert to a new "Heaven and Earth God" religion.

This is totally out of line!

That little thing has formed path dependence by setting up a new organization outside the Tang Dynasty, and it wants to set up a new organization for the Mohe people's beliefs, right?
"I hope you don't misunderstand, Chief. I'm not trying to persuade you to change your beliefs. I'm just offering some advice and suggestions for improvement."

Fang Xuanling pretended not to notice the other person's sullen face and continued to speak:

"For example, the shamanism you Mohe people believe in believes that all things have spirits, and you have to worship everything. This is too complicated.

“It would be better to worship only one god, the God of Heaven and Earth. This would be convenient and would also allow the sacrificial rituals to be centralized, thus establishing the leader’s authority.”

The chief simply turned his face away, with anger and impatience written all over his face.

Who do you think you are, a little kid from the Han area, to say that we must believe this and not that?
Whether I want to believe in the gods of heaven and earth, the gods of nature, or the totems of ancestors is not up to you!

"The incarnation of the God of Heaven and Earth is you, the Mohe people. Your head is a Mohe noble, your torso is an ordinary tribesman, and your feet are slaves.

"People's status is determined at birth, and they enter reincarnation after death. If you are a slave in this life, you will be a noble in the next life, and vice versa."

What kind of a mess is this, reincarnation and hierarchy? Besides being called "God of Heaven and Earth", what does it have to do with Shamanism?

The chief's face grew redder and veins bulged on his fists.

He felt that the naughty boy was taking this opportunity to humiliate him and his tribe.

He decided that this time when he returned, he would formally break with this group of unreasonable Chinese people and burn all the settlements to the ground!
"If your tribe accepts this improved version of the 'Heaven and Earth God' religion, and accepts that whatever you owe in this life will be doubled in the next life, then surely -"

Fang Xuanling slowly revealed a mysterious smile and looked directly into the chief's eyes:

"Your people will be content with their current situation, no longer greedy, aggressive, competitive, and will not... have unreasonable expectations of their current status."

Tsk! What nonsense...

Oh?
After being hinted at to this extent, the chief finally vaguely understood the old prime minister's hidden meaning.

"You mean... as long as my tribesmen believe this, they will not rebel again and will not threaten my position as chief?"

Seeing that the other party had finally fallen into his trap, Fang Xuanling's smile gradually widened.

"Your people will not challenge your authority at all, nor will they even think about it. Your position as chieftain can be passed down to your children and grandchildren without fear of challenge.

"For ordinary people, the sufferings in this life will be multiplied into blessings in the next life. Since you will have everything in the next life anyway, why bother struggling in this life?"

Hiss...the chief's little brain finally started to work.

"In other words, as long as the tribesmen believe in this teaching, they will not rebel?"

"It's not that we dare not rebel, but that we don't want to rebel and are unwilling to rebel. What other ruling principles and social order could be more thorough than this?" Fang Xuanling patiently persuaded.

The chief finally vaguely realized the key point of this so-called "Heaven and Earth God" religion.

This is not a belief system at all, but a political tactic to consolidate the leader's absolute rule!
"Those barbarians don't respect me as a chief. If they get too little spoils, they'll rebel. If they get too much, I won't let them go. They're hard to serve! Some bastards are secretly eyeing my position and want to replace me!"

The chief slapped his thigh angrily, then threw his head back and laughed:

"But the old prime minister's idea is great! Let them place their hopes on the afterlife and stop bothering me in this life. We can deal with the next life in the next life!

"This teaching is good, but how can I make the barbarians in my tribe believe it?"

"How difficult is that?" Fang Xuanling gave a sophisticated suggestion:
"First, the other nobles in your tribe will automatically obtain a high caste. They are vested interests just like you, so they will naturally not reject this set of teachings, and will take the initiative to preach to the tribesmen on your behalf.

"As for ordinary tribal people, it's also simple. As long as you stipulate that whoever converts first will have a higher caste and can ride on the heads of his compatriots, then they will definitely flock to convert.

"In this way, the ruling order of the tribe will be forever stable, and the ruling status of you and your family will be forever secure."

"Very good, very good! What the old prime minister said makes sense!"

The chief stood up happily. He had completely "converted" to the new Heaven and Earth Religion and could not wait to spread the gospel to his tribesmen.

"You belong to my Ming Dynasty, so we are all one family. The stability of your clan is the stability of our country."

Fang Xuanling watched the chief leave with a smile.

Li Ming flashed out from the inner room, looked through the window at the excited figure of the Mohe man, and said:

"It went very smoothly. You are worthy of being the Prime Minister."

Fang Xuanling bowed his head and answered modestly:

“Your Highness was wise and formulated an appropriate rhetoric that covered all the questions he might ask.

"And the target we chose was also very suitable. The chieftain secretly rebelled against our Ming Dynasty, and his followers followed suit and secretly rebelled against him.

"He is so anxious about this that he will be desperate and will not be able to resist the temptation of this teaching."

As long as he can consolidate his rule, who cares about the future development of the ethnic group?
Li Ming grinned:
"That guy's tribe has been colluding with foreign enemies, cooperating with the Black Water Mohe to attack the Ming Dynasty, and he thought I didn't know.

"I had planned to wait until the weather got warmer this year and then I would wipe them out. But now, I don't have to do anything. They will die out on their own.

"As far as preaching is concerned, his collusion with the enemy is actually an advantage. He can spread this set of perverse doctrines faster and infect the entire Blackwater Wasteland."

Fang Xuanling pursed his lips, but couldn't help but sigh:
"Can the future of a nation be strangled so easily? It's just a few people who spent three days making up a storybook..."

“That’s what religion is.”

Li Ming said it calmly.

The two were silent for a long time.

After a long while, Li Ming broke the silence:

"Next, find a Turkic tribe to preach to. By the way, what gods do the Turks believe in?"

"Tengri. Like the Mohe people, it also belongs to a kind of primitive shamanism." Fang Xuanling answered accurately.

Li Ming clapped his hands:
"Okay, change the title and spread the gospel of 'New Tengri' to them."

…………

In the next few months.

A strange religious doctrine began to spread among the grasslands and mountains.

(End of this chapter)