History is the memory of things that have been said and done. —Carl Baker
Zhao Kuangyin, the grandfather of the Song Dynasty, learned the historical lessons of the division of feudal towns and frequent coups d'état since the fifth dynasty of the Tang Dynasty, and implemented the national policy of promoting literature and suppressing martial arts in order to achieve long-term peace and stability. The New Book of Tang discusses the clouds: "Fang is the time, the heavens will go to The Tang, the thieves will come out together, the five surnames, the soldiers have not tried to understand less, until the Song and then the world will be restored." Song Taizu launched the "Chen Qiao Mutiny" and the yellow robe was added, so he was quite wary of the warriors around him.
The History of Song records a conversation between Song Taizu and Shi Shouxin: "At the beginning of Qiande, the emperor drank alcohol and drank heavily because of the late dynasty and Shouxin, and the emperor said: 'I am not ercao, but I am the son of heaven, but if I am not happy for the sake of moderation, I have not tasted to sleep peacefully all night.' "Today, when the fate has been decided, who dares to have a different heart, why did Your Majesty say this?" The emperor said: "A man does not want to be rich, but once he has the body of a yellow robe and a ru, although he does not want to do anything, he can get it." Song Taizu confessed to Shi Shouxin, who had a heavy army, that he was worried about regime change. His concerns are not unreasonable, because from the Fifth Dynasty of tang to the beginning of the Song Dynasty, military coups have formed a tradition, such as Tang Taizong launching the "Xuanwumen Revolution", Tang Xuanzong launching the "Five Kings Coup", and Tang Wenzong sometimes having "Ganlu Changes", especially from Zhu Wen's killing of Tang Aidi in 907 to Emperor Zhou Gong's abolition in 960, which changed 6 regimes in the short period of 53 years, which was very frequent. Will history repeat itself in the Song Dynasty? Song Taizu's response method was to "release the military power with a cup of wine". The "History of Song" records Song Taizu's advice to Shi Shouxin: "The emperor said: 'It is better to accumulate more gold and live in the field house to leave off descendants, and the singers and dancers to live forever.'" There is no suspicion between kings and subjects, and there is no good. "Your Majesty thinks of this, the so-called life and death and flesh and bones." 'Tomorrow, all will be called sick, begging for military power, and the emperor will be subordinate to them, and they will all be scattered officials, and the rewards will be very generous. ”
Song Taizu's cup of wine to release military power was not enough, and he also asked the martial artists to study. In the third year of Jianlong (962), he treated Chenyun: "I want the warlord to study as much as possible to rule the Tao." In the third year of Qiande (965), Yun: "To be a reader of the Xiangshu." "By the Song Dynasty rulers of the Great Heavy Confucian. Song Taizu himself was the first person in the Song Dynasty imperial family to advocate reading with great fanfare, and opened up the Song Dynasty's Yangwen and martial arts.
Under the influence of Zhao Kuangyin, the grandfather of the Song Dynasty, Song Taizong then carried forward the tradition of reading. The "History of Song" records That Song Taizong: "Sexual addictiveness, Xuanzu general soldier Huainan, Broken Prefecture County, wealth and treasure are not taken, the first ancient book left the emperor, Heng Rao Lizhi, the emperor is an industrial and literary industry, multi-artistic ability." "His schooling is evident. Emperor Taizong of Song said of his close subjects: "Although the king is determined by martial arts, he must eventually rule with wende." Every time he retires from the dynasty, he does not abolish the book, and intends to act according to the success or failure of his previous life, so as to make the most of his gains and losses. Song Taizong's attitude of governing the country with civility was very clear. From the perspective of book compilation, the "four major books" of the Song Dynasty were compiled into three parts during the Taiping Revival period, especially when the "Taiping General Category" was completed, Song Taizong ordered the History Museum to enter three volumes, and it took a year of hard work to finally read the "Taiping General Category" and give it the name "Taiping Imperial Records".
In order to encourage scholars to study, the Song Dynasty continued to expand the number of examinations. In the Tang Dynasty, due to the limited number of places for admission to the imperial examination, many literati regarded joining the army and entering the curtain as a way to make meritorious achievements, so there is a saying in Yang Jiong's "March from the Army" that "it is better to be a centurion than to be a scholar". The Song Dynasty was different, and the rulers of the Song Dynasty continued to expand the number of admissions to the imperial examination, so that the scholars saw the benefits of studying. The "History of Song" records that Emperor Taizong of Song also made an exception to Zhao Changguo, who was not well written, and was "specially given and the first to persuade him". In the twelfth month of the second year of Yongxi (985), 458 jinshi were admitted. This year is the beginning of the expansion of enrollment, and since then, the number of admissions in each examination in the Song Dynasty has been dozens of times that of the Tang Dynasty, which fully demonstrates the preferential treatment of the imperial family to readers.
Therefore, the "History of Song" discusses the clouds: "The Yizu Revolution, the first use of literary officials to seize the power of the military subjects, the Song Of Shangwen, the end of this." Here Yizu refers to Song Taizu. Yizu was originally the god of the lord after the death of Yao's ancestors, and the History of Song honored Song Taizu as Yizu, and pointed out that the customs of Shangwen in the Song Dynasty originated from Song Taizu's Yangwen and wu's governing strategy.