In the history of China's thousands of years of feudal development, there have been many prosperous times, such as the "rule of Wenjing" and "The prosperous era of Han Wu" in the Han Dynasty, the "rule of Zhenguan" and "the prosperous era of Kaiyuan" in the Tang Dynasty. Generally speaking, the prosperous world is more likely to appear in the period of great unification, because the country is unified, the society is stable, and if the ruler is politically clear and has the talent to govern the world, there will be a prosperous situation of national peace and civil security.
However, in history, the phenomenon of the rule of prosperity in the chaotic world is not uncommon. For example, the Min state we want to talk about today is the most chaotic period in Chinese history, the five dynasties and ten kingdoms period, the separatist regime that is located in the southeast corner - although the Min state at that time was economically backward, the region was small, and the sense of existence in the five generations and ten countries with many political powers was not strong, but because of the emergence of one person, it made it a "chaotic paradise" for many separatist regimes that were economically rich and the country was peaceful. Because of the 30 years of meticulous governance of Fujian, he was honored by later generations as "Kai Min Wang", "Kai Min Sheng Wang", "Kai Min People Ancestor" and "Eight Min People Ancestor", which has been popular for thousands of years.
Wang Zhenzhi
This person's name was Wang Zhenzhi, the founder of the Min state during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.
1, born in a peasant family, the rise of the chaotic world is exposed
Wang Zhenzhi was a native of Gushi, Henan, whose ancestors had been farmers for generations. Wang Zhenzhi was talented and intelligent, and since he was a child, he loved to read the scriptures and history, and he was also good at learning martial arts, not only was he skilled in bows and horses, but he also knew the way of using soldiers. He has two older brothers, the eldest brother Wang Chao, the second brother Wang Zhenyi, the three brothers are very ambitious, often talk about literature and martial arts, heroic and righteous, and have a small reputation in the local area, when people call him "Three Dragons".
After the Outbreak of the Huangchao Rebellion at the end of the Tang Dynasty, Wang Xu, a butcher in Shouzhou, organized a peasant rebel army, declared himself a general, and captured Gushi City. Because of the urgent need to expand his power, he heard the name of the Wang brothers, so he invited the three Wang Zhenzhi brothers to join the rebel army and appointed Wang Chao as a military academy.
After Wang Xu attacked Gushi, he defected to Tang Cai Prefecture to make Qin Zongquan, and soon after, Qin Zongquan ordered him to attack the Huangchao rebels, and Wang Xu refused to obey in order to preserve his power. Qin Zongquan led an army to attack Wang Xu, but Wang Xu resisted, led the team to flee south into Fujian, and soon captured Zhangzhou and other places.
In the process of fleeing from Henan to Fujian, the Wang brothers followed all the way, fought bravely, and their prestige grew higher and higher. In particular, Wang Zhenzhi was brave and strategic, looked majestic and handsome, and often rode a white horse in battle, charging into battle, and the generals called him "White Horse Sanlang". "Judge is a majestic man, long quasi square mouth, often riding a white horse, the military trumpet 'White Horse Sanlang'."" (History of the New Five Dynasties)
Huangchao rebel army at the end of the Tang Dynasty
Wang Xu was small-minded and jealous by nature. At that time, a warlock told him that he had the spirit of a king in his army, and Wang Xu was so frightened that he began to kill the soldiers indiscriminately, using various pretexts to kill the strategic and burly people in the army, and even his brother-in-law was not spared. "Xu is suspicious, the ministry will have the ability to kill them, and the tide is quite afraid of it." (History of the New Five Dynasties)
At that time, the Wang brothers led their mothers to march with the army, and Wang Xu ordered the expulsion of the old, weak, sick and disabled on the grounds that the road was dangerous and there was little food. The Wang Chao brothers were very filial and resolutely disobeyed. Wang Xu was furious and wanted to kill the Queen Mother, and the Wang brothers and all the generals interceded together before temporarily giving up, but the Wang Chao brothers were still uneasy and worried about being harmed at any time.
Therefore, Wang Chao's brothers co-opted and encouraged some of the generals, taking advantage of Wang Xu's lack of preparation, launched a military coup and imprisoned Wang Xu, and soon after, Wang Xu committed suicide in grief. The generals then recommended Wang Chao as the main general, Wang Zhenzhi as the deputy general, the Wang brothers have since established a solid position in the army, and Wang Zhenzhi has also emerged with his outstanding talents.
Wang Xiaoyuan Image
2. Govern the army strictly, and eventually become the king by attacking the city and plundering the land
After the Wang brothers took over the army, they strictly enforced military discipline, showed compassion for the people, and did not violate the law where they passed, which was well received by the local people. At that time, Quanzhou's assassin Shi Liao Yanruo was violent, and the people were miserable. Hearing that the Wang brothers led their troops to pass by, they helped the old and the young to block the road and asked the Wang brothers to attack and expel Liao Yanruo and rescue the people.
Quanzhou is a famous city, the economy is developed, the Wang brothers conform to the will of the people, so the garrison attacked Quanzhou, the local people sent grain and grass, actively supported, a year later captured Quanzhou, beheaded Liao Yanruo. "If Shi Liao Yan of Quanzhou is corrupt and violent, and the people of Quanzhou are bitter, and the tide is slightly in its place, and the army is cleaned up, and its elderly ministers are leading the way to stay, the tide will lead the troops to surround Yan Ruo, and the tide will be over the years." (History of the New Five Dynasties)
The Fujian observation made Chen Yan admire the prestige of the Wang brothers for governing the army and loving the people, and the Tang Dynasty appointed Wang Chao as the history of Quanzhou. After the Wang brothers took charge of Quanzhou, they straightened out the administration of officials, pacified the people, and reduced taxes, which was deeply supported by the military and the people.
In 891, Chen Yan died of illness. Before his death, he knew Wang Chao's abilities and planned to let Wang Chao act as the military and political representative of Fujian. However, before Wang Chao arrived, he was seized power by Chen Yan's brother-in-law Fan Hui. Fan Hui was arrogant and extravagant and unpopular. Wang Chao then sent Wang Zhenzhi to lead an army to attack Fuzhou.
Because of the strong defense of Fuzhou, Wang Zhenzhi personally came to the front line and took the lead in the siege, after more than a year of protracted fighting, Fuzhou ran out of ammunition, Fan Hui was killed by his subordinates, Wang Zhenzhi took advantage of the victory and swung his division, and soon pacified the whole territory of Fujian, Tang Zhaozong appointed Wang Chao as the envoy of Fujian Jiedushi, and Wang Zhenzhi as the deputy envoy.
The geographical location of the Min state during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period
In 897, Wang Chao became seriously ill. In view of the situation at that time, Wang Chao proceeded from the overall situation and the long term, and did not pass the position to his son, but let Wang Zhenzhi take over. Soon, the imperial court also officially appointed Wang Zhenzhi as the envoy of the Mighty Army in Fuzhou. Wang Zhenzhi became a prince in charge of Fujian. After Later Liang destroyed the Tang Dynasty, Zhu Wen also made Wang Zhi the Prince of Min. "The Liang Dynasty opened the country, accumulated the Zhongshu Order, and sealed the King of Min." (History of the Old Five Dynasties)
3. Governing the country well, "Eight Min Ancestors" has been passed down for thousands of years
After taking charge of the Min state, Wang Zhenzhi fully demonstrated his ability to govern the country. At that time, there were many separatist regimes, the Min state was located in the southeast, the area was small, and the power was weak, and Wang Zhen knew that the situation was measured and adopted the policy of governing the country to protect the border and the people. Externally, it got along with the three neighboring countries of the Southern Han Dynasty, Wuyue and Wu, and called off the war. For the Later Liang and Later Tang dynasties of the Central Plains, which were called emperors, they have always been called Chennagong. His subordinates repeatedly advised him to claim the title of emperor, but he refused.
Internally, he eliminated the maladministration since the end of the Tang Dynasty, straightened out the administration of officials, often sent people to inspect various places, severely cracked down on corrupt officials and corrupt officials, and paid attention to appeasing the people with a policy of gentleness. Once, when more than 20,000 starving people in Huangliandong, western Fujian, surrounded Tingzhou, Wang Zhenzhi ordered that it be strictly forbidden to be killed, and personally went to the place to shout to the starving people: "The officials are really abusive, why should they be punished?" The unrest soon subsided.
Wang Zhenzhi has made great contributions to the development of Fuzhou
Wang Zhenzhi came from a peasant family and was well aware of the harm of extravagance and lasciviousness. As the king of a country, he attaches great importance to leading by example, frugality and simplicity. He usually eats fine tea and light rice and wears cloth shoes. Once, his clothes were torn, and he sewed them with an old bag in the warehouse and continued to wear them. Another time, someone came back from the south to offer him a glass bottle, he looked at it for a while, threw the bottle on the ground and said, "Liking strange things is the basis of luxury." I broke it, and future generations won't lose their minds because they like these things! ”
Wang's greatest contribution was to develop Fujian's politics, economy, culture, and expansion of Fuzhou City.
At that time, Fujian was known as a "barbaric land", with a shortage of talents and a backward economy. After Wang Zhenzhi took charge of the government, he straightened out the administration of officials and made politics clear. He also set up "recruitment halls" in Fuzhou, Quanzhou and other places, selecting talents and recruiting talents, attracting a large number of talents. "Wang Tan, son of Tang Xiangpu; Yang Yi, brother of Tang Xiangfu; Xu Yin, a well-known scholar of the Tang Dynasty, all of whom were eunuchs according to the trial." (History of the New Five Dynasties)
Economically, he advised farmers to reduce servitude, reduce taxes, and "tithe" the taxes on peasants' cultivation of "public lands," and encouraged peasants to reclaim land, reclaim land along the coast, expand the area of cultivated land, and improve and promote double-cropping rice. He vigorously advocated the construction of water conservancy, the construction of dams and embankments, and the dredging of Fuzhou's West Lake for 40 miles, benefiting a large area of farmland. In view of the local climate environment, farmers are encouraged to grow tea and export 50,000 or 60,000 catties per year.
Statue of the Ancestral King of the Eight Mins
Fujian is a coastal area, and Wang Zhenzhi is open-minded and actively develops overseas trade with foreign investors. Fujian's ceramic and iron production continues to be exported overseas, and with the development of overseas trade, Fujian's port and shipbuilding industry have also been greatly developed. Under his meticulous governance, the Min kingdom has been free of war for nearly thirty years, with social stability and economic prosperity, which can be called the "paradise" in the chaotic world of the five generations and ten kingdoms. A large number of literati and scholars avoided chaos and entered Fujian, and Wang Xianzhi reused them, built four schools in Fuzhou, developed education, and trained and organized literati to sort out historical books, and the cultural and educational undertakings in Fujian were unprecedentedly prosperous.
Shi Zai "judged from long mu to become rich. Every time he treats himself with frugality, he elects a good official, saves the cost of punishment, is light and thin, and rests with the people. For thirty years, a situation has been clear. "History of the Old Five Dynasties")
During his reign in charge of the Min state, Wang Zhenzhi also expanded the city of Fuzhou twice. Between 901 and 904, a city wall was built outside the original city, with a circumference of 40 miles, called Luocheng; (In 905, a sandwich city was built in the north and south of Luocheng, called South and North Moon City, which merged with the original big city, more than 7 times larger than the old city. Later, Fuzhou's outer port, Gantang Port, was opened, making Fuzhou's land and water transportation more convenient. Before the expansion of Fuzhou City, most of the ordinary people and vendors lived outside the city, which was very inconvenient. After the expansion, most of the people can live in the city, which greatly facilitates the lives of the people.
Wang Zhenzhi was revered as a god by the Mintai region
In 925, the 64-year-old Wang Zhenzhi died of illness and was given the title of "King Of Zhongyi". His son was immediately proclaimed empress dowager, posthumously honored as Emperor Zhaowu xiaoxiao,temple name Taizu. Because of his great contributions to the development of Fujian during his thirty years of reigning in the Min state, he was honored by later generations as the "Holy King of Kai Min" and "the ancestor of the Kai Min people". Song Taizu greatly respected Wang Zhenzhi's virtue and government, and in 974 issued an edict to rebuild the Zhongyi King's Ancestral Hall and personally wrote the four-character temple of "Eight Min People's Ancestors".
To this day, every year, thousands of Wang clan relatives at home and abroad come to the Min Wang Ancestral Hall, the Tomb of the Min King, the Min King Memorial Hall and other places to worship Wang Zhizhi and express their gratitude and admiration for the development and governance of Fujian by this chaotic Ming Emperor.
(Reference historical materials: "History of the New Five Dynasties", "History of the Old Five Dynasties", "Zizhi Tongjian", etc.)