[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-transmigrated-to-the-northern-song-with-them":3,"chapter-i-transmigrated-to-the-northern-song-with-them-i-transmigrated-to-the-northern-song-with-them-chapter-331":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","I Transmigrated to the Northern Song with Them",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2319221,4535,"Chapter 331","i-transmigrated-to-the-northern-song-with-them-chapter-331",331,"\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although it had already been decided to move the capital of the Great Song from Dongjing to Beijing, and warfare in Liaodong continued, Beijing was burdened with countless petty affairs requiring Zhao Yu’s decisions; yet upon learning that the frontline had shifted to slow, gradual advances and could not swiftly destroy the Jin, Zhao Yu immediately resolved to return to Dongjing’s Bianliang City, ending his personal campaign.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Yu was well aware that, at least up to this point, Dongjing’s Bianliang remained the central hub of the Great Song, and as its emperor, he ought not remain absent from the imperial palace for long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The central hub is the core of a nation’s power; the emperor’s presence itself is a symbol of stability. Prolonged absence may cause the bureaucratic system revolving around imperial authority to suffer from misalignment and delayed decision-making. In the absence of supreme authority, officials inevitably grow inclined to shirk responsibility and pass the buck, and some may even exploit the vacuum for personal gain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the emperor campaigns or leaves the capital, communication between the frontline and the center often passes through multiple layers, easily leading to delays or distortion. Center officials, unaware of frontline realities, may issue impractical orders; while the emperor, stationed afar, struggles to promptly grasp subtle changes within the capital or across the realm—such as local disasters or civilian grievances.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The most immediate consequence of the emperor’s prolonged absence is unrest among court and populace. Officials speculate on his intentions; commoners fear instability; and malicious actors may exploit the chaos to spread rumors and incite unrest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, even during personal campaigns, if the absence is too long, the rear may breed rebellion due to “a young ruler and a doubtful state” (even if the crown prince is adult, he cannot match the emperor’s authority). History is replete with examples of emperors who failed in their campaigns due to instability at home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Therefore, the stability of the center is the foundation of a nation’s operation. As the core, the emperor, even when compelled to leave the capital for campaigns, must strictly limit his absence, relying on a robust regency system and efficient communication to minimize the risks of power vacuum; otherwise, even the wisest monarch cannot withstand the chain reaction of prolonged detachment from the center.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon learning Zhao Yu intended to return to Dongjing, Zhang Chun looked at him and nodded vigorously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing this, Li Lin asked: “You seem to strongly approve of His Majesty returning to the capital?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Chun spoke frankly: “This is the conduct of a wise ruler.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Lin asked: “Why say so?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Chun said: “When His Majesty ascended the throne, the exterior faced repeated rebellions in Qingtangcheng, and the Xia and Liao armies pressed together on the borders; internally, there was bitter strife between the New and Old Parties, the state treasury was empty, scholar-gentry clans seized vast tracts of land, leaving commoners with not an inch of soil, wealth disparity extreme, and the number of soldiers and officials excessive—forcing the court to spend colossal sums merely to sustain them, plunging the Great Song into deep poverty and weakness.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In His Majesty’s first year on the throne, he paid all back pay owed to soldiers; in the second year, he paid all back salaries owed to officials; in fifteen years, he completely resolved the Great Song’s three redundancies and two accumulations. He has also exempted the people from taxes over thirty times—averaging twice a year.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Politically, since ascending the throne, His Majesty has employed both New and Old Party members—but never fully trusted either. He judges solely by ability. In the end, he subdued both parties; officials who only engaged in factionalism without competence were all expelled from court. Our Great Song’s politics are now crystal clear.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is highly astute. Take the Chongzhen Emperor of the late Ming: he impulsively purged Wei Zhongxian at his accession. He thought factional strife was gone—but instead, the Donglin Party monopolized power, unchecked. In the end, Chongzhen lost control. He underestimated the complexity. He later lamented: ‘Had Wei Zhongxian still been alive, I would not have ended up like this!’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The hallmark of a revitalizing ruler is reform. The goal of reform is to raise revenue; the method is to reclaim land from local magnates and redistribute it to the people, allowing the court to resume taxation—just as His Majesty implemented the ‘Equal Taxation for Scholar-Gentry’ and ‘Land Tax Merged with Head Tax.’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You and I know that when the ‘Equal Taxation for Scholar-Gentry’ and ‘Land Tax Merged with Head Tax’ were first introduced, reform met fierce resistance. Countless scholar-gentry colluded secretly, attempting to sabotage the new policies. But His Majesty remained resolute, unyielding. He solved the root problems of land consolidation and tax inequality, abolished the thousand-year-old head tax, and finally gave the people the long-awaited respite—they no longer fled their homes or sold children to pay crushing taxes. The Great Song gradually emerged from its pit of poverty and weakness, regaining new vitality.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But Chongzhen? He lacked such courage. The Ming’s greatest local magnates were Zhu Yuanzhang’s descendants—like Prince Zhu Zhishu of Sichuan, who held seventy percent of Sichuan’s land; Prince Zhu Changluo of Henan was worse—Henan’s entire tax revenue couldn’t cover his personal expenses. Chongzhen dared not touch either. He cowered before them, then crushed the people with heavy taxes—beyond normal levies, he imposed countless extra exactions. Just the ‘Three Additional Taxes’ alone siphoned six million taels of silver annually from Jiangnan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Foreign warfare reveals a ruler’s true caliber.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Chongzhen was notoriously militarily inept and meddled recklessly. Ming troops lost field battles to the Qing. Fortified defense was the best option—but Chongzhen forced Lu Xiangsheng to fight them in open battle. The result? Total annihilation. Lu Xiangsheng died. Chongzhen panicked, hastily recalled Sun Chuanting and Hong Chengchou from Shaanxi. But by then, Li Zicheng, reduced to eighteen riders, had escaped.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“To resist the Later Jin, why not learn from others? He chose to emulate Zhao Ji: ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend.’ He allied with the Mongol leader Lin Danhan—the second historical alliance of Mongols against the Jin. But Lin Danhan wavered, did nothing substantial, and allowed Mongol cavalry to plunder the borders. Chongzhen pretended not to see.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He revived the Qin system of military merit to boost morale—but the result? Not a single Qing soldier was lost, yet all the Ming’s wandering beggars vanished.”\u003C\u002Fp>",1072,"2026-06-20T15:06:50.687Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","40e791e7ccdc249e9dd3d377631646cbded0a4ed6c3d04c0102c929c634e70fe","i-transmigrated-to-the-northern-song-with-them-chapter-332","i-transmigrated-to-the-northern-song-with-them-chapter-330",348,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-transmigrated-to-the-northern-song-with-them-cover.jpg"]