Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 344: Barbarian Alliance
"Is there anything wrong with this news? It's only been less than 20 years since Buddhism was destroyed, and there are already so many monks and nuns on the register?"

In mid-May, shortly after Wang Shi led his troops north and Li Yi discussed the affairs of Buddhist monks and nuns with Fahai, the memorial from the Ministry of Shrines spread throughout Chang'an.

Many people don't care, while officials know the truth but dare not speak out.

When the news reached Longyou, Liu Jilian had already returned to Linzhou from Weizhou.

Gao Jinda was still questioning the authenticity of the memorial from the Ministry of Ancestral Hall, but Liu Jilian had already believed it.

At the same time, he felt relieved.

"This bastard almost let Li Yi find a way to survive..."

While Liu Jilong cursed in his heart, a smile appeared on his face: "This great Master Fahai is indeed very proficient in Buddhism. Even the Supreme Being can speak for him."

"I heard that Fahai subdued a giant snake in Jinshan Temple. People in Jiangnan said that the giant snake was seven or eight feet long and could swallow a cow in one gulp."

Chen Ying, who was sitting in the seat, spoke slowly, but Liu Jilong sneered: "Are you going to find someone to write a storybook?"

Liu Jilian had great respect for eminent monks such as Hongbian and Wuzhen from Shazhou.

However, he is not so good-tempered towards many monks who claim to be enlightened monks but do petty thefts.

Fahai did have a good reputation in Jiangnan, but Liu Jilian didn't believe that there were only a few hundred monks in Jinshan Temple with more than 2,000 acres of Buddhist land.

Putting aside other things, Pei Xiu's status as prime minister was clear to him. Even if Fahai, his eldest son, refused in every way, he could not resist the donations from officials and wealthy businessmen in Jiangnan.

If Jinshan Temple only had that little land, Fahai probably wouldn't even be able to raise enough money for the trip to Chang'an.

Of course, Liu Jilong did not think that Fahai was a fraud who stole his reputation. It was just that Fahai lied to Li Yi in order to protect the monks in the temple, which made Liu Jilong see the essence of the matter.

The essence is that the Buddhist temples and monks in the world must have occupied a large amount of resources in the world. The Ministry of Rites said that there are nearly ten thousand temples and millions of Buddhist fields, which is probably a conservative estimate.

After all, after Emperor Wuzong's destruction of Buddhism, the monks in these temples probably wouldn't dare to report more Buddhist fields in their temples.

In the old days, the Tang Dynasty Six Code stipulated that "Taoists are given 30 mu of land, nuns 20 mu; monks and nuns are also given the same amount."

Such regulations meant that monks and nuns could not only obtain land from the state, but also enjoy the privilege of not paying taxes.

In addition, the emperors of the Tang Dynasty also repeatedly granted land to monks in temples across the country. For example, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty ordered the construction of Ximing Temple in Chang'an. After the temple was completed, he also granted 10,000 acres of farmland, 100 houses for the monks, 50 carriages, and 2,000 pieces of silk cloth..."

Just these fields, houses, and silks were enough to support hundreds of soldiers and allow hundreds of civilians to live and work in peace and contentment. Yet they were awarded to the temple in this way.

This was just the royal reward. In addition, nobles and local wealthy people in Guanzhong and Hebei would also donate land to the temple.

These acres of land were called permanent fields by monks and nuns, and they made money through the management of the permanent fields and continued to annex land.

During the Yuanhe period, many temples accumulated considerable real estate through this method.

In the later stages of development, these temples even had too much land for the monks and nuns to cultivate, so they bought and sold horse slaves and hired tenants to do the farming.

In addition to land annexation, they also developed a complete financial system, including pledging and lending to the people.

Some temples even use the fact that the Dharma Ending Age is approaching to take advantage of believers' fear of the end of the world to make money.

If their methods had not been so blatant, Emperor Wuzong of Tang and Li Deyu would not have chosen to take action against them.

The initial campaign to destroy Buddhism did allow the court to accumulate a lot of money. Unfortunately, with the ascension of Li Chen to the throne, the court no longer strictly enforced the Buddhist monks, but instead adopted a tolerant attitude.

Honestly speaking, if Li Yi could really make up his mind to take action against Buddhist temples all over the world, and even conduct a thorough check on all Taoist temples, he could really gain a lot of wealth, and at least he wouldn't have to worry about insufficient money and grain in the national treasury for the next three to five years.

Fortunately, Fahai was proficient in Buddhism and successfully fooled Li Yi, otherwise Liu Jilong would have had a real headache.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilong couldn't help but say: "Buddhism and Taoism are prevalent in this world. Many people use the name of Buddhism and Taoism to make money, but the people still believe in this."

"If we can clean up all the Buddhist and Taoist temples in the world, send those who are not qualified to do so to the frontier, and take back the Buddhist and Taoist fields, I'm afraid we can really extend the life of the court for a dozen years."

"But unfortunately, our Supreme does not have such courage, let alone such foresight."

Liu Jilong's words made Gao Jinda next to him couldn't help but say:
"Eradication of Buddhism and Taoism from the world may cause civil unrest..."

"It's cleaning, not sweeping." Liu Jilong interrupted and corrected Gao Jinda, and said:

"There are tens of thousands of Buddhist monks and nuns in the world, but how many of them are truly devoted to the Way?"

"Pawning and borrowing are not just methods used by monks and nuns. Many Taoists are also adept at it."

"Clearing out this group of unqualified people will not only bring a lot of wealth to improve people's livelihood, but also solve some of the problems of land annexation. Why not do it?"

Gao Jinda couldn't find any fault with his words. After all, there were many unqualified people in every profession in the world.

Liu Jilong also continued, "I heard that there are a lot of monks in Hexi. I will write to Zhang Jieshuai later. Although monks are good, they can't be too many."

If Liu Jilian remembered correctly, in history, the Hexi Guiyi Army did have a sparse population in the later period because too many people converted to Buddhism.

There were not many Han people in Hexi, and as a result, many of them became monks in order to escape military service.

Forced military service is certainly wrong, but it also depends on the circumstances.

The situation in Hexi had already reached a point of life and death for the Han people, but this group of people still chose to become monks.

After Zhang Huaishen was killed, this situation became even more irreversible. By the time of the White-Robed Emperor Zhang Fengcheng, there were only 20 to 30,000 people in Shazhou, but there were thousands of monks.

If this problem is not eradicated at the root, it will become a chronic disease and it will be difficult to solve it in the future.

Because of this, although there are many Buddhist temples and Taoist temples in Longyou, there are no monks or Taoists.

Liu Jilian would not indulge this group of people. He could let monks and Taoists preach in Dokang Liugang and Tuyuhun areas, but not in Longyou.

He now wishes he could split one person into two to use, so how could he have the time to let this group of people enjoy peace in the temple.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilong looked at Chen Ying and asked, "How is Cao Mao doing in Lanzhou? Is everything going well?"

"It wasn't smooth, but there were too many Tanguts, Tatars, and Tibetans in Huizhou." Chen Ying explained:

"When the imperial court moved people to Huizhou, they originally selected refugees from Guannei Road."

"Most of these refugees were Han, Sogdian and Tibetan people, but later on many Dangxiang people mixed in."

"The population of Huizhou now exceeds 30,000, and nearly 60% of them are Sogdians, Tibetans, and Dangxiang people."

"It's not easy to sow discord. After all, their lives now are better than before."

"Besides, Zhang Zhifang has become more restrained after the chaos caused by the barbarians, so it is unlikely to cause too much unrest."

After Chen Ying finished speaking, Liu Jilong nodded to show that he understood, and then said: "If it is impossible to do it, then let's stop for now."

"As long as we can promote an alliance between Duokang and Dali, we can go south first and then seek the north."

"Yes!" Chen Ying bowed in response, while Liu Jilong calmed down and turned his attention to the political affairs of each state.

While he was concentrating on government affairs, Wei Gongluolu, who was appointed as Duokang ambassador by Shang Moyan, also came to Yangzhumie City.

In order to demonstrate his military power, You Shilong deployed more than a thousand heavily armored cavalry outside the north gate of Yangzhumie City, and arranged for musicians to hide behind the cavalry, preparing to intimidate the envoys with majestic music and the power of the cavalry.

Wei Gongluolu had never been to Yangzhumie City. When he saw the majestic city on the banks of Xi'er River and at the foot of Dian Cang Mountain from afar, he couldn't help but feel shocked.

The towering walls of Yangzhumie City, leaning against the Dian Cang Mountain and the Xi'er River, are so majestic that Wei Gongluo looks particularly small.

"Buzzing—"

Seeing Wei Gong Luoluo getting off the carriage, the ceremonial musicians played music, and more than a thousand heavily armored cavalrymen raised and lowered their spears in unison, creating a dull sound like that of a drum.

Faced with this scene, Wei Gongluolu did not feel too much pressure. Instead, he looked calm, with even a hint of indifference in his eyes.

Today, under the governance of Shang Moyan, Dokham's national strength is no less than that of Dali.

The grand ceremony included nine thousand elite cavalrymen in heavy armor, more than fifty thousand regular armored soldiers, and more than a hundred thousand barbarians.

Duokang also had nearly 10,000 elite armored cavalry, 20,000 armored cavalry infantry, and more than 100,000 civilians.

Duokang is indeed inferior to Longyou.

But when facing other forces, Duokang behaved very tough.

They really couldn't beat Liu Jilong, and that was only limited to Liu Jilong.

As for Cui Xuan, Gao Pian, You Shilong and others, although they are famous, they have never fought each other and do not know the strength of the other party, so naturally they are fearless.

"Meet the Ambassador..."

In front of the city gate, the two officials of high ceremony, Dong Cheng and Zhao Nuomei, came to greet Wei Gongluo and saluted respectfully.

"I have met the two prime ministers..."

Wei Gongluolu saluted with neither arrogance nor humility, and then followed Dong Cheng and Zhao Nuomei into Yangzhumie City by carriage.

Soon, everyone arrived in front of the Dali Palace and got off the carriages one by one. Compared with the Tibetan city of Lhasa, the Dali Palace was magnificent, but it did not shock Wei Gongluo.

He followed Dong Cheng and Zhao Nuomei into the palace, walked up to the Wuhua Tower, and met the Qingping officials and military generals of the grand ceremony on the fifth floor.

Regardless of whether they were civil or military officials, they all wore gorgeous official uniforms, and their textile technology was not inferior to that of the Tang Dynasty.

After all, the textile craftsmen of Dali were all plundered from Chengdu Prefecture in Xichuan in the early years.

Although Xichuan textile industry has made a lot of progress in the past few decades, Dali's textile technology has not fallen behind.

Wei Gongluo's eyes swept across the crowd and finally stopped on You Shilong who was sitting in the main seat.

You Shilong is not very old. He wears a red head bag and a colorful brocade robe. In terms of momentum and majesty, he is not inferior to Shang Moyan.

However, in Wei Gongluo's opinion, the person who weighs the most on his heart is still Liu Jilian, the lord of Longyou.

Liu Jilong is different from Shang Moyan and You Shilong. He started out as a slave and worked his way up to his current status step by step.

Even though he had not mobilized troops for several years, rumors that he was the reincarnation of the Elephant King still circulated in Tuyuhun, Dokham, U-Tsang and other places.

Lun Kongre, who was a threat to the city of Luoshui at his peak, was killed by him like a chicken in the Duomiwei Mansion, and his head was presented to Chang'an.

Whenever he thought of this, Wei Gonglu couldn't help but shudder.

"Ambassador?" Dong Cheng reminded carefully, and then woke up Wei Gongluolu.

After realizing what was happening, he quickly stepped forward and bowed slightly, "I am Wei Gongluolu, the envoy of Duokang, and I am honored to meet the King of the South."

Wei Gongluo respectfully addressed You Shilong as the King of the South. Although this title had one less character than the "King of Yunnan" of the Tang envoy, his sphere of influence had increased several times.

One is the king of Yunnan, and the other is the king of the South.

Although for You Shilong, who had already proclaimed himself emperor and changed the name of Nanzhao to Dali, Wei Gongluolu's practice of not calling him emperor made him feel a little uncomfortable, but the King of the South was always much better than the King of Yunnan.

To dispel the discomfort in his heart, You Shilong nodded slightly: "Ambassador, you have come a long way, thank you for your hard work..."

After he finished speaking, he looked at the waiters beside him and said, "Please take a seat and serve the meal."

The waiter bowed and then began to offer Wei Gonglu a seat.

After Wei Gonglu sat down, You Shilong did not speak in a hurry, but was planning how to cooperate with Duokang.

It has been two years since the disastrous defeat at Niutou Gorge. During this period, Dali has carried out almost no military operations except for the surprise attack on Lingxi.

This tragic defeat indeed dealt a heavy blow to Dali. Even though You Shilong wanted to lead his troops to attack Gao Pian several times, he was persuaded by Dong Cheng, Zhao Nuomei and others.

They were no match for Gao Pian, no matter how reluctant they were to admit it, it was the fact.

At present, Gao Pian has trained 30,000 elite soldiers in Dongchuan, and has also recruited the scattered foreign people in Dongchuan and Xichuan. Together with the foreign cavalry of the past, he has trained them into 7,000 elite cavalry, named Fenrongdu.

Facing Gao Pian who had a large number of elite soldiers and sufficient food, although You Shilong was reluctant to admit it, in his heart, Dongchuan was indeed a tough stone to chew.

Since we cannot attack Dongchuan, we can only attack Lingxi, Annan and Xichuan.

Lingxi had been looted once and it might not have recovered yet, so he only had two choices: Annan and Xichuan.

Among them, Annan was too small to satisfy his appetite, so he chose to set his sights on Xichuan.

Since we are going to attack Xichuan, if we can win over Shang Moyan as an ally, it will definitely reduce a lot of the pressure of the attack.

Cui Xuan of Xichuan had 50,000 soldiers, but it would not be easy to break through the Dadu River defense line if he launched a large-scale northern expedition.

But if Shang Moyan is in Victoria to provide support, then there will be no risk of error.

When Youshilong thought of this, the food was already on his table, and the same was true in front of everyone else.

However, for Wei Gongluolu, who is used to cooking in iron pans, he really doesn't like cooking in a cauldron.

Although the taste was not good, he still forced himself to eat a few bites, thinking that after returning to Jincheng, he would definitely kill a few more cows and sheep and buy two pigs from Longyou to eat.

While he was thinking this, You Shilong also slowly spoke and told him about the alliance between Dali and Duokang and the subsequent attack on Xichuan.

"The reason why we invited the ambassador here is to form an alliance between our two countries and jointly defeat the tyrannical Tang Dynasty!"

"As long as the ambassador agrees to the alliance, Duokang will attack Weizhou, Yizhou, and Maozhou, while I will attack Lizhou and Yazhou."

"As long as Dali can capture Chengdu Prefecture, all the money, food, people and craftsmen he plundered will belong to Duokang."

You Shilong showed his sincerity to the public. After hearing this, Wei Gongluo nodded, thinking that this was similar to what he had said in his own speech.

However, in order to gain as much benefit as possible, Wei Gongluolu still talked to You Shilong about the looted money, food, population and craftsmen.

"My eldest brother said that it's best to put everything on the table. How much is our share?"

"I think we need to settle this matter, and we need to get at least 50%. If it's less than that, we won't send troops..."

"Insanity!"

"Fifty percent? How many troops can you send out?"

"you……"

Wei Gongluo's words aroused the dissatisfaction of Fan Cuixie, Du Yuanzhong and Duan Zongbang.

The three of them sneered, but were soon interrupted by Dong Cheng: "Okay, shut up!"

After Dong Cheng scolded the three people, he immediately looked at Wei Gongluolu and started to discuss with him in a friendly manner.

"Fifty percent is too much, can it be less?"

Seeing that they were singing the same tune, Wei Gongluolu immediately knew that they couldn't split it equally, so he lowered his demands and said, "At least 60% and 40%, you take 60% and we take 40%."

"This... is still too much." Dong Cheng shook his head and complained:
"The ambassador should also know about our country's defeat at Niutou Gorge. We must take more. To this end, we can send 100,000 troops."

"One hundred thousand?" Wei Gongluo pondered after hearing this, but he did not dare to say that Duokang could also send out an army of one hundred thousand.

Even if Duokang can send out 100,000 troops, it is not his responsibility to say this. Moreover, if 64 doesn't work, 73 will also be fine. Anyway, Longyou will back them up.

Thinking of this, Wei Gong Luolu nodded and said, "If that's the case, then 73, no less."

"Okay," Dong Cheng quickly agreed, then looked at You Shilong.

Seeing that the negotiation was successful, You Shilong nodded and said, "In that case, how about setting the time for sending troops to August?"

"King Nan, I don't think this time is right."

In response to You Shilong's words, Wei Gongluo immediately shook his head to refute them.

Long before he set out, Shang Moyan had told him that it would be best to schedule the expedition after the beginning of spring next year.

Thinking of this, Wei Gong Luolu immediately explained the situation in Weixi: "King Nan doesn't know that we have snow all year round. The best time to send troops is from late March to early September every year."

"If we don't send out troops until August, even if I can hurry back now, I won't be able to mobilize the troops in time."

"Even if we can mobilize troops and send them out in August, we will have to withdraw by the tenth day of September at most, so it would be better to set the time of the expedition to the beginning of April next year."

"I see..." You Shilong didn't understand the climate environment in Weixi, so he looked at Dong Cheng.

Seeing Dong Cheng nodded slightly, he looked at Wei Gonglu again and said, "If that's the case, then let's set the date for the dispatch of troops on April 1 next year."

"At that time, our army will go north to attack Lizhou, while Duokang will send troops to attack Weizhou and Maozhou."

"As long as we can conquer Xichuan, or even occupy the states of Xichuan, we can join forces to attack Dongchuan to avenge the bloody wounds inflicted by Wei Gao and Gao Pian in the past!"

Wei Gao attacked Tubo, Gao Pian defeated Dali...

These two people can indeed be regarded as the blood feud between Tubo and Dali. Upon hearing this, Wei Gong Luolu bowed and said:

"With the Southern King in charge, our two countries will definitely be able to defeat the Tang Dynasty and seize Xichuan!!"

"Okay!" You Shilong and everyone raised their glasses, while Wei Gongluolu quickly picked up the glass and drank it all.

But as he drank the whole bottle, he thought to himself, "Since Dalun has agreed to form an alliance and send troops, I'm afraid it was with the instruction of Marshal Liu Jie."

"These idiots think they are so smart..."

The wine in the glass was finished, and You Shilong also clapped his hands.

Soon, women dressed in various costumes walked up from the fourth floor of Wuhua Building to the fifth floor, and the musicians hidden behind the screens also began to play music.

The music sounded in Wuhua Tower, spreading to Dian Cang Mountain and Xi'er River...

(End of this chapter)