Preface
In the prosperous era of the Tang Dynasty, there was a hero who made meritorious contributions to the country, but his fate was unfortunate and he died young on the way to exile. His death made Tang Xuanzong deeply regret, and later generations felt unfair to what happened to him.
The dynasty has changed, and there have been many heroes, but how many people can really change the general trend? Yu Wenrong, this name may not have you heard before, but his story is enough to move people. Yijie Buyi, with extraordinary wisdom and courage, turned the tide and made immortal contributions to the Zhongxing of the Tang Dynasty.
However, God is jealous of talents, and prosperity will decline. Just when his career was in full swing, a bloody storm was brewing secretly. Those powerful nobles whose interests were damaged in the reform, they secretly colluded, waited for an opportunity to retaliate, and vowed to put Yuwen Rong to death. A thrilling political game has begun......
Yu Wenrong: The edge of reform ignited the fire
In 729 AD, the Tang Dynasty fell into an unprecedented financial crisis. The treasury was empty, the military salaries were exhausted, and even the emperor's dragon robe was about to turn into a patch jacket. Tang Xuanzong was anxious, he knew that if he didn't take any measures, the prosperous era would become a chaotic era.
At this critical moment, a small official named Yu Wenrong stood up. He bluntly pointed out that the crux of the problem is the escape from the family. It turned out that many people fled their hometowns one after another in order to avoid taxes and forced labor, and became wandering "fugitives". They neither pay taxes nor serve, seriously affecting the country's revenues.
Yu Wenrong's analysis hit the nail on the head, and Tang Xuanzong's eyes suddenly lit up. He nodded again and again, and exclaimed, "This son is not simple! As a result, Tang Xuanzong made an exception to promote Yuwenrong to be a member of the military department, and entrusted him with the important task of presiding over the nationwide inventory of fugitives.
Yu Wenrong lived up to the emperor's expectations. He formulated a complete set of thorough reform plans, starting with household registration inventory, land measurement, tax reform, etc., to prescribe the right medicine and solve them one by one. In order to improve efficiency, he also selected 29 capable officers to go to various places to supervise the matter.
The reform has achieved initial results, and in just three years, it has increased the taxpayer population of nearly one million households for the imperial court, and the fiscal revenue has also increased substantially. The people returned to the land, agricultural production was restored, and society gradually stabilized.
Seeing the outstanding results, Tang Xuanzong was overjoyed. He personally summoned Yu Wenrong and praised him in front of the Manchu Dynasty civil and military: "Qing shares worries for the country, and his contribution is indispensable." How should I reward you?"
Yu Wenrong replied humbly: "The minister is just doing his duty loyally and sharing his worries for His Majesty." To be able to get His Majesty's appreciation, the minister is already satisfied. After hearing this, Tang Xuanzong appreciated Yu Wenrong's personality even more. He immediately issued an order, gave Yu Wenrong a gorgeous official uniform, and promoted him to the Huangmen Shilang, in charge of the secrets of Zhongshu Province.
From obscurity to extreme ministers, Yuwenrong proved his talent with practical actions. With his extraordinary political wisdom and outstanding administrative ability, he turned the tide and solved a seemingly unsolvable crisis, making immortal contributions to the Zhongxing of the Tang Dynasty.
However, God is jealous of talents, and prosperity will decline. Just when Yu Wenrong's career was in full swing, a bloody storm was brewing secretly. Those powerful aristocrats whose interests were damaged in the reform have long regarded Yuwenrong as a thorn in the side and a thorn in the flesh. They secretly colluded, waited for an opportunity to take revenge, and vowed to put Yuwen to death.
The reform touched the interest groups and made a big move, triggering a counterattack
Yu Wenrong's reforms were initially effective, but they soon aroused strong resentment from those whose interests were damaged in the reforms. Among them are some powerful people and ministers of the DPRK and China.
The first to bear the brunt were the powerful landlords who hid their land and evaded taxes. The agricultural judges sent by Yu Wenrong went deep into various places to investigate and expose many of their illegal acts, causing their interests to suffer heavy losses. Annoyed and angry, these people began to spread rumors that Yu Wenrong's reforms had seriously harmed the interests of the people.
This is followed by some local officials. Yu Wenrong severely cracked down on the falsification of forced labor taxes, cut their illegal income, and sent commissioners to supervise their work, so that they were like thorns in their backs. As a result, they also wrote to impeach Yu Wenrong, claiming that his actions were too radical and disrupted the local order.
What's even more tricky is that even some ministers in the court began to oppose Yu Wenrong. Prime Minister Zhang Shuo is one of them. Zhang said that he was Yu Wenrong's immediate boss and was in charge of Zhongshu Province, so it stands to reason that he should support Yu Wenrong's work. But in fact, Zhang said that he hindered Yuwenrong everywhere and made things difficult in every way.
It turned out that Zhang Shuo and Yu Wenrong had a personal grudge. Zhang Shuo's daughter married Yu Wenrong's son, but the marriage later broke down, and Zhang Shuo thought that Yu Wenrong was the obstruction. In addition, Zhang Shuo was a person who was very happy, and he saw that Yu Wenrong was famous in the reform, and he was worried that his position would be threatened, so he opposed him everywhere.
Yu Wenrong repeatedly complained to Tang Xuanzong, but Zhang said that he insisted that Yu Wenrong was framing him. Tang Xuanzong was in a dilemma, so he had to stand still for the time being. Yu Wenrong was annoyed, so he joined forces with Cui Yinfu and others in the imperial history to collect evidence of Zhang Shuo's crime and concentrate on impeachment.
Zhang said that he knew that he was wrong, so he had to bow his head and admit his mistake. Tang Xuanzong thought that he was his old minister, and he couldn't bear to depose him, so he just removed him from the position. Yu Wenrong did not give up, and reprimanded Zhang for all kinds of wrongs. Tang Xuanzong was furious and demoted Yuwenrong to the assassin of Weizhou.
Returning to the court and making new contributions will eventually become the target of public criticism
In the seventeenth year of Kaiyuan, Yu Wenrong was recalled to the court again and served as the squire of the Yellow Gate, and Pei Guangting held the Great Seal of Zhongshu Province. This time, he was full of ambition and said to people with pride: "Let me work for a few months to ensure peace in the world!"
When these words reached the ears of those political enemies, it was tantamount to a resounding slap in the face. How could they let Yuwen Rong get his way? So, a new round of calculations and framing began.
As soon as Yu Wenrong took office, he began to drastically rectify the rule of officials. He first severely punished corrupt officials and corrupt officials, and some children of powerful families were arrested and imprisoned for taking bribes, which caused a shock in the government and the opposition. He then set about reforming taxes to reduce the burden on the peasants, and vigorously built water conservancy, dredged rivers, and reclaimed wasteland.
For a time, the decree was unimpeded and the people were happy. The people praised Yu Wenrong as a good prime minister, and even the emperor praised him. However, the good times were short-lived. During Yu Wenrong's reign, his words were sharp and offended many dignitaries. Especially in the court, in front of the Manchu civil and military, he accused the imperial historian Li Chaoyin of dereliction of duty, which completely angered Li Chaoyin.
Li Chaoyin colluded with Yu Wenrong's sworn enemy, Li Linfu, the secretary of the ministry, and the two conspired to accuse Yu Wenrong of arrogance and lack of king. Tang Xuanzong was furious and immediately ordered Yu Wenrong to be arrested and imprisoned. Yuwenrong couldn't argue, so he had to arrest him with hatred. In prison, he washed his face with tears every day, not knowing when he would be able to clear his grievances.
Li Linfu and the others did not intend to give Yu Wenrong a chance to turn over. They slandered Tang Xuanzong again, saying that Yu Wenrong was still unrepentant in prison, and he was disrespectful, and asked to be reissued. Tang Xuanzong listened to the slander and ordered Yuwenrong to be demoted to the history of Ruzhou Assassin.
Yu Wenrong was discouraged, so he had to pack up and say goodbye to the capital. Before leaving, his old subordinate Cui Yinfu made a special trip to see him off. The two hugged and cried, and Yuwenrong took Cui Yinfu's hand and said, "I'm going to go, I'm afraid I'll never come back." You have to take care, don't be like me who doesn't know how to judge the situation. "
Cui Yinfu burst into tears and nodded again and again. Yu Wenrong told him again: "I have made too many enemies in the DPRK, you must be careful and don't be implicated." Bidding farewell to Cui Yinfu, Yu Wenrong took a few cronies and went on the road in a mighty way. Along the way, he reflected on what he had done, filled with remorse.
When he arrived in Ruzhou, Yu Wenrong was not depressed, but as always, he was diligent and loved the people. He built city walls, dug water conservancy, and built schools, which won the love of the local people. However, his political enemies did not let him go. Li Linfu and others also reported to Tang Xuanzong that Yu Wenrong was recruiting troops in Ruzhou and intended to rebel. Tang Xuanzong was furious and ordered Yuwenrong to be demoted to Yanzhou Sihu to join the army, which was actually exiled to the frontier.
When Yuwen Rong heard the news, he was filled with grief and anger, and fainted on the spot. When he woke up, he had to go on the road in tears. This time, even cronies did not dare to accompany him. Yu Wenrong was alone, displaced, and finally came to Yanzhou. Yanzhou is located in a remote area, the people are fierce, and as soon as Yu Wenrong arrived, he was subjected to all kinds of difficulties by the local heroes.
They deliberately defaulted on taxes, resisted forced labor, and even openly beat officials. Yu Wenrong did not show weakness, severely punished those who violated the law and discipline, and quickly stabilized the situation. Just when Yuwenrong worked hard and was about to turn the situation around, the change came again. What he did in Iwaju once again attracted the jealousy and framing of his political enemies.
This time, Li Linfu and others accused Yu Wenrong of being a fish and meat in Yanzhou, bullying his superiors and subordinates, and embezzling on a large scale, and he has become an incorrigible silverfish. Although these accusations were false, under the manipulation of Yu Wenrong's political enemies, Tang Xuanzong still ordered his arrest. Yu Wenrong was escorted to Chang'an, where he was humiliated along the way.
When he arrived at Tongguan, Yu Wenrong was already covered in bruises and was dying. At this moment, he suddenly learned that he had been pardoned! It turned out that after Tang Xuanzong's anger subsided, he remembered Yu Wenrong's old merits and finally ordered him to be pardoned.
However, the heavens did not grant the wish. Just as Yu Wenrong was about to leave for Chang'an, his body could no longer support it, and finally closed his eyes forever on a cold night.
Heroes of the ages Later generations commented on injustice
When the news of Yu Wenrong's death reached Chang'an, the government and the opposition were in an uproar. Some people complained about him, some people fell into the well, and all kinds of gossip were boiling. Yu Wenrong's political enemies trumpeted his crimes, saying that he was arrogant, unsightly, corrupt and bribed, and brought disaster to the country and the people. For a while, Yu Wenrong seemed to have become a heinous sinner.
However, there are also many people who stand up to defend Yu Wenrong. They pointed out that Yu Wenrong's achievements in reform are obvious to all. He overrode public opinion, presided over the inventory of fugitive households, saved millions of tax-paying households for Datang, and added a lot of financial resources to the national treasury. What a credit!
When Yu Wenrong was a local official, he was also conscientious and conscientious to benefit the people. He dredged the old route of the Yellow River in Weizhou, reclaimed thousands of hectares of fertile land, built city walls, dug water conservancy, and built schools in Ruzhou. Everywhere he went, he benefited the people.
It is true that Yuwen Rong is a strong person, offended many powerful people, and was finally framed. But that doesn't take away from his merits. On the contrary, it shows his courage in fighting against corrupt forces.
Time is the best proof. With the passage of time, people gradually realized the true value of Yuwenrong. The Tang Dynasty poet Bai Juyi wrote in the "Collection of Reading Yuwen Prime Ministers": "The public is the third month of the month, and the world is called the peacetime." If he was not slandered at that time, he will be rich and ripe today. "
Bai Juyi's evaluation represents the views of many people of insight in later generations. In their eyes, Yu Wenrong is a good man who dares to do things and reform, and is a rare talent. If he hadn't been framed, he would have been able to lead Datang to a more prosperous future.
However, what is sad is that Yu Wenrong eventually fell victim to the power struggle. His tragedy is not only due to his personal character and way of doing things, but also due to the limitations of the times and systems. In that era of absolute monarchy, the fate of courtiers was often in the hands of the emperor.
Although Yu Wenrong has shortcomings and deficiencies, his reform achievements and feelings for the people cannot be denied by anyone. He made great contributions to the financial reform of the Tang Dynasty and worked for the welfare of the people, which should be recorded in history and praised by future generations.
epilogue
Heroes of the ages, later generations commented on injustice, this is the best portrayal of Yu Wenrong. When we cherish his memory and learn from him today, we should inherit and carry forward his excellent qualities, and at the same time, we should also draw lessons from him and treat reform, history, and life with a broader mind and wisdom.
Let us pay tribute to Yu Wenrong and all the sages who fought for the country and the people! Their spirit will always shine in the long river of history and illuminate our way forward.