The rulers of the Ten Kingdoms carried out the policy of protecting the border and the people, which was roughly divided into two types, one was: at the beginning of the five dynasties, the five separatist regimes of Wuyue, Fujian, Chu, Southern Han, and Jingnan implemented the policy of protecting the border and the people under the banner of respecting the Central Plains Dynasty.
First, Qian's protection of the border and the people
The "History of Wu Yue Bei" says: After Tang Tianyou, the Central Plains were troubled, Wang Jian of Xichuan was called Shu, Yang Xingmi of Huainan was called Wu, Liu of the South China Sea was called Han, and The King of Fuzhou was known as Zhi Min, "all stole the trumpet, or married relatives, or reached the appointment." They persuaded Qian Wei to claim the title of emperor, but Qian Wei said: "This son sits on the charcoal of the stove, and he sits on the charcoal of the stove, and he is on top of me: "Meaning: You call me the emperor autonomous, don't you also call me roasted on the charcoal stove?" His strategy was to divide the southeast without incurring conquest by the Central Plains Dynasty. "Instead of being the son of heaven behind closed doors and falling into ruin with the people of the Nine Tribes, it is better to open the door and be frugal, so that you will be rich and worry-free for life" ("With Dong Changshu").
Therefore, after the establishment of the Later Liang Dynasty, he was enfeoffed with Zhengshuo, paid tribute at the age of 199, and fulfilled the duties of a vassal. At that time, Wu was strangled in the north, and Qian Wei sent envoys from Mu Prefecture (Mu Prefecture ( in present-day Jiande County , Zhejiang ) , Xinzhou ( Xinzhou ) ( in present-day Ganxian County , Jiangxi ) , through Chu , to The Central Plains . Later, Wu annexed all of Jiangxi, and the Qian clan changed from haidao to Self-Deng and Lai into tribute. Qian was crowned King of Wuyue, a benefit to him by showing loyalty to the Central Plains Dynasty.
In Wuyue's neighboring relations, the biggest enemy was Wu. Because it and Wu have a long border from Jiangxi and Xuanshe to Taihu Lake. In order to fight for the city and land, the two sides fought for one or two decades. However, with the return of Jiangxi to Wu and Suzhou to Wuyue, the two sides realized that the opponent had strength and could not win by chance. The losses of the war are too heavy, which is not conducive to the people's living and working in peace and contentment, and endangers the stability of the regime. It was under such historical conditions that Wu Yue, after the Battle of Wuxi (919), responded to Xu Wen's suggestion to retire and stop the war against Wu. The prosperity of Wuyue and the protection of the border and the people are an important factor.
2. Ma Yin's protection of the people
Chu, like Wu Yue, proceeded from his own safety and took the Zhengshuo of the Central Plains Dynasty as a strategy to protect the border and the people. The "New Five Dynasties History of Chu Shijia" says that Ma Yinchu Wang Hunan, with a weak army and weak strength, was very worried about Yang Xingmi, Cheng Wei, and Liu, and asked Gao Yu, who replied: "Cheng Weidi is narrow and widowed, and it is not enough for me to suffer, while Liu Zhi is only in the five pipes." Yang Xingmi, Sun Ru's vendetta, although he paid him with ten thousand gold, could not win his favor. However, the king of The Emperor is obedient, and the cause of the overlord is also good, and now it is advisable to serve the imperial court in order to seek knighthood and exaggerate the enemy outside, and then retire to the army and agriculture, and the animal power is waiting for Er."
Gao Yu correctly analyzed the actual situation facing Ma Yin; Huainan and Hunan had a long border, and Huainan's powerful forces would surely spy on Hunan's territory. In fact, Huainan and Hunan had constant friction and wars in Ezhou, Yuezhou, Jizhou, and Qianzhou. Starting from this analysis, Gao Yu asked Ma Yin to use the banner of "Honoring the King" to protect the territory and stand on his own. Ma Yin adopted Gao Yu's advice and sought survival and development in the complex struggle to divide fangzhen.
3. Wang Zhenzhi's protection of the border and the people
At the beginning of Wang Zhenzhi's division of Fujian, when Jiangxi had not yet returned to Wu, Qian Wei concentrated on competing with Wu in the Taihu Lake area, and the border between Fujian and Zhejiang could be said to be safe and unsuspecting. Only the Fujian-Guangdong border has fought a battle. However, if Wang Zhenzhi did not honor Hou Liang as Zhengshuo, Then Wu Yue and The Southern Han Could Find An Excuse to Cut Down Min. It is also relying on the banner of "Honoring the King" to seek stability for a long period of time.
Fourth, Liu Yin and Liu's protection of the border and the people
Liu Yin and Liu Were knighted by Hou Liang and used the Later Liang era name. In the third year of Zhenming (917), Liu became publicly independent and established the state and changed the Yuan. During the ten years when Liu shi enshrined the Central Plains Dynasty as the zhengshuo, he pacified Lingnan, owned Lingnan, and won a stable political situation.
Gao Jixing and Gao Congzhi's protection of the territory and security of the people. Jingnan is located in the corner of the four wars, the land is narrow and weak, how to maintain their own survival is the most important thing for the Gao father and son. Jingnan not only submitted to the Central Plains Dynasty, but also to Wu. Jingnan's purpose of being a vassal can first seek political survival and second, he can be rewarded. However, the father and son of the Gao clan were not at peace, and they often violated the yin and yang, taking advantage of the contradiction and profiting from it.
At the end of Later Liang, Gao claimed to help Liang attack Jin (Hedong Li), invaded Later Liang's Xiangzhou territory, and after the defeat of the army, broke off relations with Later Liang for many years, and after The death of Emperor Zhuangzong of Later Tang, Gao took the opportunity to intercept the treasure goods transported by Tang from Chengdu at the mouth of the gorge, and sent troops to The Three Prefectures of Tang, Zhong, and Wansanzhou; during the Later Jin Dynasty, Gao claimed to help Shi Jingyao in his crusade against Wu and Hou Shu, and was rewarded with a hundred horses, while An Congjin rebelled against Xiangzhou and communicated with him. In short, the Gao clan has become more and more deceitful politically and militarily. Therefore, Gao Congzhi has the title of "Gao Laizi". And all this is carried out under the guise of "being a subject" to which it is. Jingnan's baojing and security people have their own characteristics.
The other is that the Wu, Southern Tang, Former Shu, and Later Shu separatist regimes, which were in confrontation with the Central Plains Dynasty, also implemented the policy of protecting the territory and the people. Among them, Wu and Southern Tang were the most vigorous.
Fifth, Xu Wen's protection of the border and the people
After Yang Xingmi established himself in Zhunan, he fought against Zhu Wen in the north and Qian Wei in the south, and the situation was quite sinister. He "recruited and scattered, rested with the people, and was lenient in political affairs", and at the same time "searched for troops and trained generals in an attempt to be hegemonic" to deal with Zhu Wen's military pressure.
After Xu Wen came to power, the situation in the relationship between Wu and his neighbors changed. Hongzhou in Jiangxi had been conquered by Wu, the Ezhou War had come to an end, and Wu's western territory expansion had been basically completed; the rule of the Chu state had tended to be stable, and the border between Wu and Chu had been largely fixed, thus creating the conditions for good neighborliness in the west.
Qian Wei had completed his control over the two Zhejiang provinces, and the border between Wu and Wu Yue was basically fixed. The situation on the quasi-water border in the north has been further stabilized. Under such historical conditions, Xu Wen began to promote the policy of protecting the border and the people and paying attention to good-neighborliness. He ended the war against Wu Yue and won twenty years of recuperation. He applied the principle of securing borders and ensuring the security of the people to the complex relations of neighboring countries.
After Emperor Mingzong of Tang attacked Jingnan, Gao Jixing was afraid and said that he would "raise the town to attach himself to Wu". According to the custom of taking advantage of the fire and looting between warlords during the Five Dynasties period, Xu Wen could accept Gao Jixing's annexation and wait for the opportunity to annex Jingnan. But Xu Wen did not do this, he said: "For the sake of the country's pragmatic and practical deeds to go to the false name, Gao Shi (Hou) Tang Jiuyi, Luoyang to Jiangling is not far away, (Later) Tang into the infantry riding attack is very easy, I with the boat master Tou Liu to save it is very difficult." "To make others surrender to themselves, but not to save him, to put him in danger," can be ashamed! He accepted Gao Jixing's contribution, and "resigned himself as a vassal", listening to him still attached to the Later Tang and defending his country.
Sixth, After Li Fu claimed that after the founding of the country, he adhered to the policy of protecting the border and ensuring the people
He grew up in the midst of five generations of war and hardships. He deeply understands the cruelty of military disasters and the violence of warlords. The Southern Tang Dynasty was prosperous and the country was strong, while the north was the period of Later Jin rule, and the society was chaotic. Under such historical conditions, not only the generals demanded the Northern Expedition, but also some scholars also advocated the Northern Expedition. However, Li Fu believed that "soldiers are deeply harming the people, and they sincerely cannot bear to repeat their words." Let the people be at peace, and our people be at peace, and why ask for it! He also said, "Contentment is not humiliating, and the ancestors of the Tao are the most disciplined", and the discussion of crusade is not to be mentioned.
Why didn't Li Fu advocate the Northern Expedition? Although the Southern Tang Dynasty had strong economic strength and a large number of soldiers, the conditions were not ripe for a large-scale Northern Expedition. Compared with the Later Jin and Khitans, the Southern Tang lacked a team that could fight in battle. At that time, Yang Xingmi was able to gain a foothold in Huainan and rely on the victory in the Battle of Qingkou, and the Battle of Qingkou, without Zhu Jin's cavalry, would be difficult to defeat Zhu Wen. The later Jin army had combat experience and was not comparable to the Southern Tang.
The Southern Tang was in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and the Later Jin Dynasty was in the Central Plains, and the Southern Tang also had disadvantages in terms of terrain. Chu, Min, Wuyue and Wu and Southern Tang were always hostile. After Xu Wen came to power, relations improved and they basically got along harmoniously, but once the Southern Tang raised troops and went north, they might wait for an opportunity to attack the Territory of the Southern Tang. Therefore, although the Northern Expedition reflected the good wishes for national reunification, it was difficult to succeed.
In the fifth year of the Sheng Yuan Dynasty (941), Liu of the Southern Han Dynasty sent envoys to Jinling to instigate the Southern Tang to attack the Chu state and divide its territory, but Li Fu refused. In the same year, Wu Yue was on fire, the palace office was destroyed several times, and Qian Yuanwan, the king of Wuyue, was frightened and went mad, and Song Qiqiu and others advocated taking the opportunity to capture Hangzhou, which was also rejected by Li Fu. He believes that it cannot be a disaster for others. Send people to Hangzhou to offer condolences and send supplies to relieve the disaster-stricken people of Wuyue. Until his later years, Li Fu also told Li Jin: "Good and good neighbors, with The intention of Emperor Anzong, it is not appropriate to attack the traces of the Sui Emperor, and to obstruct the troops, in order to kill themselves." ”
The policy of protecting the border and ensuring the people's security will make the Southern Tang Dynasty continue to be stable, and only then will it be possible for the social economy to develop. The development of social economy has created material conditions for national reunification. In this sense, there is no contradiction between the "protection of the border and the people" of the Southern Tang and other countries and the historical trend of the reunification of the Jin Dynasty.