Chapter 733: Feng at Langjuxu

Feng and Shan are one term, but they are actually two separate ceremonies.

According to the Tang scholar Zhang Zhengyi, piling up earth into an altar to sacrifice to Heaven and report Heaven's merits is called feng. Clearing the ground on a small hill to report the merits of Earth is called shan.

In plain terms, feng is the sacrifice to August Heaven, and shan is the sacrifice to Sovereign Earth.

Feng is held atop a high mountain, and then shan is held on a small hill found beside that high mountain.

In history, after the Champion Marquis Huo Qubing performed feng at Mount Langjuxu, he immediately carried out the shan ceremony at Mount Guyan.

This battle of mine, Sage Zhang, in the northern desert, of course cannot compare with the Champion Marquis's destruction of the Xiongnu, which left no royal court south of the desert, but Zhang Zhao means to stage it even more grandly than Huo Qubing's feng at Langjuxu and shan at Guyan.

Because when Huo Qubing broke the Xiongnu, the Han dynasty was at its very strongest. He only needed to perform feng and shan on those two mountains, sacrificing to Heaven with Huaxia rites at the place where the Xiongnu themselves worshipped Heaven, thereby displaying the Great Han's might and shattering the faith in the Xiongnu's hearts.

But for Zhang Zhao at this moment, ever since the An-Shi Rebellion, the nation had sunk into ruin for two hundred years. Civil officials had lost their moral backbone, military officers had lost their glory, the common people lived in constant fear, and military governors, rulers of states, even the Emperor himself, lived in constant danger of death and the destruction of their realms.

Two hundred years of chaos, and above all, the instigators of these two hundred years of suffering were barbarians like An Lushan and Shi Siming.

Afterward, the Uyghur armies that helped suppress the rebellion went on to plunder Guanzhong and the Central Plains on a massive scale, and the Tibetans even fought their way into Chang'an.

Each and every one of these events made the Han people, tormented by two hundred years of suffering, begin to reflect. They wondered: was the Great Tang's policy of inclusiveness and openness a mistake?

They looked back and thought: we gave these barbarians glory, guided them toward civilization, let them leave the relatively barren lands of the Nine Zhaowu Clans and settle in the rich Central Plains.

We gave these barbarians, without the slightest stinting, honors and positions that even our own people could hardly obtain, yet they turned around and destroyed our nation and brought us profound disaster. Was this not the result of excessive favor and indulgence?

Two hundred years of pain had to have an outlet. There had to be a reason given.

In history, after the Zhao Song failed to recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan-Yun, with the Emperor's tacit approval and even active encouragement, the problem was entirely blamed on the Tang dynasty's openness to other peoples and its inclusiveness.

Everyone knows what happened after that. From the Emperor to the common people, from the court to the populace, the overall mood turned completely toward conservatism.

Since openness ultimately led to being taken advantage of, then we simply would not open up. We would shrink back and play by ourselves.

Although one cannot say the Tang dynasty's ethnic policies had no faults, that was not the main cause. One cannot lay all the blame on the spirit of openness and inclusiveness.

The two traitors An and Shi were indeed barbarians, but Qibi Heli, Ashina Simo, Li Guangbi, and Gao Xianzhi were also barbarians. One cannot strike down everyone with a single blow.

Therefore, the Song-era reexamination of Tang-era policies went completely astray and became a mere outlet for venting.

The damage it did to the Chinese national spirit is fully comparable to the report delivered by Su Suizong at the Twentieth Congress of the Soviet Communist Party.

One laid two hundred years of suffering entirely at the feet of the Tang dynasty's ethnic policies and its spirit of openness.

The other laid all the Soviet Union's problems entirely on the Dear Father, denying the vast majority of the Dear Father's contributions, seizing on a single point and endlessly magnifying it, until it escalated into personal attacks.

Both inflicted extremely severe, one might even say devastating, blows upon their own nations and even civilizations.

But objectively speaking, this current resentment toward Tang policy was not created by Zhao the Second or the Zhao Song imperial house after him.

It was not even created by the civil officials of the Zhao Song dynasty. At most, they played a role in adding fuel to the fire.

In essence, it was caused by the overall failure of the Central Plains dynasties, from the Han to the Tang, to solve the steppe threat.

If even the mighty Han and the glorious Tang failed, how much spirit could one expect later generations to have to keep striving to solve this problem? Not to mention that Zhao the Second Brother was never a heroic sage-ruler of firm will.

But in this time and space, history has gained one more choice, and that extra choice is me, Sage Zhang.

Zhang Zhao is very clear about his historical mission. He means to use the prestige of conquering the great desert and the steppe, the prestige of shooting down the Khitan at the height of their power, and the authority he has accumulated over sixteen years, to take up at this moment the heavy task, once again since the Han and Tang, of solving the steppe problem.

Therefore this feng and shan ceremony must inevitably be of the utmost grandeur.

In the third year of Shaoming, 948 CE, on the ninth day of the tenth month, Zhang Zhao issued an edict ordering the two sons of Yelu Deguang, the Temple-named Li Emperor of the Liao state, Yelu Jing and Yelu Yansage, to proceed to Pi Bei He City.

At the same time, he ordered the Myriad-Household Grand Protector-General of the Kirghiz, Li Guizhong, the Myriad-Household Grand Protector-General of the Yinli, Pugu Fengde, the Myriad-Household Grand Protector-General of the Naiman, Aluozhe, and the Myriad-Household Grand Protector-General of the Basmyl Imperial Guard, Ashina Chuo, who had already arrived near Mount Yanran.

The Pacification Commissioners of the two Western Zubu Lushan tribes, Lu Zhen, and the Lady of Lushan Commandery, Yulizi, were to set out immediately for Mount Langjuxu.

The remaining Yedugua, Dalimi, Northern Zubu, Uduqi Imperial Guard Chiliarchs, the four Dilie tribes, the Heichezi Shiwei, the Tulubu Shiwei, the Tieli, the White Tatar tribe, and other steppe tribal chieftains great and small were also ordered to accompany them.

On the eleventh day of the tenth month, Zhang Zhao carefully selected eight thousand infantry and cavalry from the armies on campaign.

Among them were the main forces of Zhang Zhou such as the Hanshan Capital, the personal army, and the imperial guard; auxiliary troops drawn from the various regional inspection offices and prefectural and county troops; conscripted stalwarts from Hexi and Longyou; and escort cavalry from the various tribes.

Of course, the Tibetan and various Qiang cavalry from the three prefectures of Xihai, Songpan, and Kangding, as well as the yabing guards and yabing officers of the Southern Tang and Wuyue, were all among them.

As for the remaining tens of thousands of troops, those belonging to the four Myriad-Households of the western desert followed Zhang Zhao, while the rest were led separately by Man Xiong, Huang Yingda, and others, and began to withdraw back inside the Great Wall by separate routes.

On the twelfth day of the tenth month, Zhang Zhao ordered Li Cunhui to take Cao Yansi — that is, Yaoluoge Jingming, the son born of the former Ganzhou Uyghur Renmei Khagan and Cao Yijin's daughter — and lead one thousand cavalry ahead to Mount Langjuxu to select the specific mountain for the feng and shan ceremonies.

And according to Zhang Zhao's requirements, it was best to use the very mountain where the Han Champion Marquis had first performed feng, and then, in accordance with ritual, to pile earth and build a platform at the feng site, and to break ground and clear earth at the shan site.

On the fifteenth day of the tenth month, Zhang Zhao personally led the army on a forced march from Lake Buir to the foot of Mount Langjuxu.

Of course they had to hurry. The rain and snow in the northern desert were growing more frequent now. If they did not hurry, once the great snow arrived, even padded clothing would not be enough to endure it.

Mount Langjuxu is actually an entire mountain range, and what we — that is, what Chinese people usually refer to as Mount Langjuxu — is the main peak of the Langjuxu range.

Li Cunhui and Cao Yansi, who had gone ahead as the army's vanguard, quickly found this main peak, because it was far too conspicuous.

Moreover, the Zubu people at this time also had the custom of sacrificing to Heaven on this mountain, and before them, the Uyghurs and the Turks had the same custom.

The howling north wind blew in small flakes of snow, one patch after another. Zhang Zhao wore a plain white monk's robe with a hood.

This kind of monk's robe, before the haiging style became popular, was a common monastic garment during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, very similar to the missionary robes of later Christianity, and was now the standard attire for dharma-transmitting monks of the Six Dharma School.

I, Sage Zhang, had arrived here the night before last, and then in a quiet chamber made from a single tent, I fasted, burned incense, and meditated in prayer for a day and a night.

At the same time, while Zhang Zhao prayed in the quiet chamber, several hundred monks outside were chanting the Four Great Doctrines of the Six Dharma School.

By the time Zhang Zhao opened the door curtain of the quiet chamber and appeared in his plain white monk's robe, outside there were already several hundred monks, plus herdsmen who had come from who knows where to pay him homage — at the very least a full two or three thousand people.

Seeing him emerge, the monks knelt and chanted "Namo the Supreme, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful, Great Perfection Wheel-Turning Dharma King," while the faithful herdsmen prostrated themselves in full obeisance.

Zhang Zhao stretched out both hands, and two serving maids chosen from among the Western Zubu people immediately stepped forward with lowered heads, removed the plain white monk's robe from Zhang Zhao's body, and then stripped Sage Zhang completely bare.

Stark naked, Zhang Zhao slowly walked into a pool behind him, washing the dust from his body in the pure water at the foot of Mount Langjuxu. After cleansing eighty-one times — that is, after a symbolic period of scrubbing —

Basmyl serving maids brought by Ashina Chuo, the Myriad-Household Grand Protector-General of the Basmyl Imperial Guard, came forward bearing the imperial dragon robes of the Central Plains Emperor, and dressed Sage Zhang in the Emperor's dragon robes.

This was full of meaning. Removing the monk's robe and putting on the dragon robes symbolized the transformation of Zhang Zhao's identity.

Correspondingly, when they saw Zhang Zhao put on the dragon robes, the monks of the Six Dharma School immediately rose to their feet and merely stood solemnly on both sides.

A eunuch dressed in palace attendant's robes called out in a high voice: "The Emperor ascends the imperial carriage. All officials and loyal subjects attend the sovereign."

The moment his words fell, banners shot up, drums and music burst forth, and the civil and military officials, the tribal chieftains, the eight thousand warriors attending the sovereign, and nearly ten thousand herdsmen began to converge. The sea of people surged like rolling waves, and all turned their gazes toward Zhang Zhao as he ascended the imperial carriage.

The two sons of Yelu Deguang, Yelu Jing and Yelu Yansage, took hold of the imperial carriage's harness before it as guides, and the procession slowly made its way toward Mount Langjuxu.

When they reached a small earthen mound southeast of Mount Langjuxu, Zhang Zhao stepped down from his carriage and, following Han custom, burned firewood in sacrifice to the Supreme God of Vast Heaven, then led his officials, soldiers, and generals—some fifteen hundred men—up Mount Langjuxu.

On Mount Langjuxu, Li Cunhui and Cao Yansi had already built the feng altar: fifty feet wide, nine feet high, with steps ascending on all four sides.

Zhang Zhao mounted the feng altar, personally buried the jade-disk genealogy recording the Zhang and Zhou dynasties' family registers beneath the platform, and recited the sacrificial address to Heaven drafted by Li Fang.

When this work was done, the civil officials and military commanders around him shouted "Long live!" three times and performed the grand rite of three kneelings and nine kowtows before Zhang Zhao, while Zhang Zhao bent past his knees and returned the empty-hand salute.

Such an occasion could not do without a speech. This had no precedent in any of the past feng and shan sacrifices, but Zhang Zhao's purpose in performing the feng sacrifice was to raise morale and continue the policies handed down since the Han and Tang—so of course he would break with convention.

"This is the place where the Champion Marquis of the Former Han performed the feng sacrifice. Here in former days he smashed the Xiongnu, so that no royal court remained south of the desert—a glorious achievement praised by later generations for a thousand years.

I believe that a thousand years from now, the deeds of the Champion Marquis will still be praised by the myriad people.

Since high antiquity, the Rong, Di, Hu, and Lu barbarians have been the great inner affliction of our Central Plains Huaxia people.

The two Han dynasties dealt with the border threat by meeting strength with strength and violence with violence for several hundred years, slaughtering the Xiongnu until they dared not look south.

But in four hundred years of Han rule, one cannot say the northern border threat was thereby resolved. This method was like the damming method used in high antiquity to control the floods—in the end it could not solve the problem.

When it came to the Great Tang, Emperor Taizong the Civil, drawing lessons from the two Han dynasties, with the greatest magnanimity and the majestic spirit of receiving envoys from all directions, changed the two Han dynasties' method of pure violence against violence and regarded Hu and Han as one.

But in the end, as all of you know, among those beyond the frontier there were loyal subjects like Qibi Heli and Li Guangbi, but also treacherous and murderous wretches like the two rebels An and Shi.

This method was like Yu the Great's channeling of the floods—only, alas, the barbarians' reversals far surpassed the rising and falling of floodwaters, and so in the end it failed just short of success.

And so today, I imagine all of you carry a question in your hearts: the damming of violence against violence does not work, and the channeling of embracing all and treating them as one does not work either.

How, then, is this realm to solve this difficult problem? After the Xiongnu came the Turks—a problem that stretches on without end.

Today we perform the feng sacrifice at Langjuxu, but who knows what race will appear north or south of this mountain some years hence, and bring endless trouble upon our descendants again."

Zhang Zhao's words stirred deep thought among the Han civil officials and military commanders, but on his right, the faces of the Protector-Generals of the grasslands, the Pacification Commissioners of the high plateau, and the Protector-General of Songmo were not so good—some even looked uneasy.

So, at this point, Zhang Zhao shifted his tone and, looking at these non-Han men, spoke with a note of shared feeling.

"The common people of the grasslands also need to eat. They too want to live good lives, just like the Han. I know this clearly in my heart.

This howling north wind begins blowing in the ninth month and blows for six or seven months at a stretch, freezing cattle and sheep to death, freezing common folk to death. Such bitter cold is like hell itself, and so the people naturally want to find a good place to live."

The assembled Protector-Generals all voiced their agreement, and Aluozhe, the Myriad-Household Grand Protector-General of the Naiman, spoke with tears in his eyes.

"The Supreme Heaven indeed knows our plight. On the grasslands one can only herd; the slightest natural disaster and one cannot survive. These hundreds of thousands, millions of common folk, for the sake of a mouthful of food, can only do filthy deeds. Truly the suffering is beyond bearing."

Zhang Zhao waved his hand for Aluozhe to rise, then looked again at the assembled Han officials and spoke.

"And this is precisely why neither damming nor channeling can solve the problem. Damming cannot slaughter every last person on the grasslands, and channeling cannot win over everyone.

The grassland folk who want a good life will always come south. Although it is only right that we fight them and kill them—what household does not fight when bandits and brigands come?

But this does not solve the problem. So long as they have nothing to eat, they will always come south.

And then there will be another Han-Tang cycle, another collapse of heaven and earth.

But the reason I have been able to become lord of the Central Kingdom and be acclaimed by the peoples beyond the frontier is that the azure heaven above has mandated me to solve this difficult problem!

Therefore, in addition to learning the violence-against-violence of the Former Han's Emperor Shizong the Martial and the all-embracing magnanimity of the Great Tang's Emperor Taizong the Civil, I have a method of guidance!"

At this point Zhang Zhao paused, giving the assembled barbarian and Han subjects a moment to absorb his words. Every one of them looked at Zhang Zhao, all wanting to know what this method of guidance was.

From this one can also see how important an emperor's prestige is. With these words, Zhang Zhao directly cast himself as the third man since Emperor Wu of Han and Emperor Taizong of Tang to solve the grassland problem, and even claimed that Heaven had mandated him to resolve it.

One could even say that he, Sage Zhang, considered himself greater than Emperor Wu of Han and Emperor Taizong of Tang, because the methods those two used to solve the grassland problem had been judged by Sage Zhang to be failures.

And one must understand that although Emperor Wu of Han has a mediocre reputation in literati circles, and Emperor Taizong of Tang has the stain of the Xuanwu Gate Incident, as of now these two, together with the First Emperor, are the very ceiling of emperors.

If someone like Zhao Da or Zhao Er came and said such things, they probably could not even finish before being shouted down by their subjects—or, however thick-skinned they were, they could not bring themselves to open their mouths.

As of now, only Sage Zhang—who rose from a single old servant, turned back the collapse of heaven when the Khitan entered the Central Plains and all hearts were in panic, and has now performed the feng sacrifice north of the desert—is qualified to say such things.

And moreover, everyone would listen patiently to the end, and look forward to his solution to this thousand-year-old unsolvable problem.

"I often wonder: west of the Gold Mountains there are countless rich lands. Why did we stop when we reached the Western Sea?

Those long-nosed, yellow-haired, heavily bearded barbarians are as numerous as the sands of the Gobi. Are they not the finest herding slaves?

West of the Western Sea, just among those I know of, there are the Kipchaks, the Majiks, the Bashkirs, the Bulgars, the Khazars, the Rus, the Germans—tens of millions of them. Why do we not go and conquer them?"

"Supreme Heaven, west of the Western Sea is too far. We do not have enough grain and livestock; we simply cannot make the journey.

Even if we did, it would be a matter of several generations, and by then those who were going to starve would have starved anyway." Li Guizhong, the Myriad-Household Grand Protector-General of the Kyrgyz, shouted.

Zhang Zhao swept his hand. "Why bring the women and children along?

We can mount our warhorses, don our iron armor, take up bows and arrows, and send the men first—to conquer those savages who do not even have much leather armor—and then bring the women and children over to enjoy the good life. Would that not do?

Do not say there are no warhorses, for this Venerable One has them. Do not say there is no iron armor, for this Venerable One has that too. This Venerable One also has grain, strong bows and heavy crossbows, and invincible iron cavalry—all of which can be supplied to you.

Let every young man of the grasslands become this Venerable One's fang and claw. With their valor, cut down those who refuse to submit like wild grass, and seize all they possess. Their fat cattle and sheep, their beautiful wives and concubines—all shall be yours.

This Venerable One hereby promises: so long as you gather beneath the swastika banner, every warrior of the grasslands shall possess at least one great village, one hundred sturdy serfs, and ten beautiful wives and concubines, with cattle and sheep too many to eat!

Let the horsemen of the grasslands, the warriors of the high plateau, the brave men of Songmo, and the heroes of the Han lands stand together. Let us no longer slaughter one another, but go west together to conquer the barbarians. Is that not good!"

Bayegusi knelt and shuffled forward on his knees to Zhang Zhao. "Most merciful Supreme Heaven, is this the future the Buddha has prepared for the faithful?"

Zhang Zhao nodded. "This is the Buddha's will. In the Western Ox Continent west of the Western Sea, there are countless barbarians to conquer and civilize. In the Eastern Victory Continent east of the great ocean, there are mountains of gold and silver waiting for us to gather.

Every faithful believer shall receive rich rewards, and every one shall become a man of rank!"

Heat and agitation rose on the faces of every grassland, plateau, and Songmo tribal chieftain.

It was the same principle as before: if an ordinary man raised this topic, everyone would scoff.

But when these words came from the mouth of the living god, the Khagan of the grasslands and Emperor of the Central Plains, then they were the will of Heaven itself.

And the Han officials understood as well: this so-called method of guidance was, in truth, diverting the calamity westward.

The court would provide money and grain, and could even provide elite troops, using the Six Dharma Sect to arm the restless elements of the grasslands and send them west to become lords over those barbarians.

Once this became established practice, guiding a batch away every ten or twenty years, the grassland population would remain perpetually at a low level.

Then the vast pastures of the grasslands would be enough to give the herders a relatively good life, and they would not come south—nor would they have the strength to come south.

Li Fang suddenly understood. He realized why the Emperor had asked him to help the Six Dharma Sect compile their scriptures: it was to wrap the rites, laws, and moral principles of the Central Plains inside the Six Dharma Sect's teachings, thereby subtly transforming the barbarians into Han.

At the same time, the Emperor was also promoting the Xia-lord-and-barbarian-subject states to the west. In the future, those small Xia-ruled, barbarian-populated states to the west would serve as supply stations for the grassland warriors pushing even farther west, and as homes connected to Central Plains culture.

What a magnificent, surging era this is! What does it mean to treat Hu and Han as one? This is what it means to treat Hu and Han as one.

Because from this day forward, there will be no Hu people on the grasslands or in the pine deserts — the Hu people are in the Western Ox-Herding Continent to the west.

Li Fang was nearly drunk with fascination. He knew how difficult this maneuver of the Emperor's was, but if it was carried out well — what was it called? A name left in the histories?

Don't joke around — that would be the lowest treatment, all right? This deserves a temple and sacrifices, all right!

"We have said that We shall regard Hu and Han as one. This is no jest. Therefore, from this day forward, there are no Hu people on the grasslands, because the Hu people and the barbarians are in the Western Ox-Herding Continent, in the Eastern Victorious Body Continent. Ministers and officers, will you aid Us?"

These words of Zhang Zhao were directed at the assembled Han officials.

Li Jingda suddenly felt an extraordinary shame. While their brothers were still scheming over petty gains, the Shao-Ming Son of Heaven's vision had already risen to heights they could never reach.

Chen Huzi dropped to his knees with a thud. This feeling of striving to resolve the great affairs of the world could never be given by a separatist regime.

Everyone stepped forward, knelt on one knee, and answered with folded hands: "Your servants will go through fire and water and will not refuse!"

Zhang Zhao laughed three times and walked to the lower-left corner of the altar. For Chinese sacrifices — especially this kind of ritual offering to Heaven — meat was, of course, indispensable among the offerings.

Zhang Zhao personally took up the knife and carved the great block of sacrificial beef, slice by slice.

He unexpectedly handed the first piece of meat to Li Jingda. "The Rain Master should know that we Han people have, since ancient times, insisted on great unity.

After centuries of division in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods came the Qin and Han. After centuries of opposition in the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties came the Sui and Tang.

Now, since the decline of the Great Dynasty, it has been in chaos for two hundred years as well. It is time for us to unite.

Go back and tell your elder brother: We can conquer even the Mobei grasslands. If We wished to march south with troops, your brothers' ancestral temples would long since have been lost. Tell him not to remain obstinate."

Li Jingda received the beef with both hands, and on the spot held the bloody roasted beef and gnawed at it, nodding his head heavily. "The Sage need not worry. Once your servant returns, he will immediately urge his elder brother to surrender his territory and submit."

The second piece of meat, Zhang Zhao cut for Chen Huzi. "Bochang, take this strip of meat back to the King of Wuyue. Tell him to come to the Eastern Capital next year."

Then Zhang Zhao thought for a moment and cut another small lump. "This is for Hu Jinsi. I hope he knows what he should do."

The third piece of meat, Zhang Zhao cut for the assembled chieftains, soldiers, and officers of Xihai, Songpan, and Kangding — especially Lun Boren. Zhang Zhao took his hand and said: "As for the affairs on the Qingtang Plateau, We await your tidings of victory."

Lun Boren was overjoyed beyond measure. He knelt and raised the meat above his head. "Your servant believes that the compassionate light of the Supreme Heaven will surely make the descendants of Langdarma repent and awaken."

After these three pieces of meat were distributed, Zhang Zhao ordered a great cauldron brought up. He personally chopped the sacrificial meat into mince, then placed it in the cauldron and boiled it into a meat soup. The thousand-odd people who had followed him up the mountain each received a share.

Then he also poured the sacrificial fine wine into a small stream to the left of the Dengfeng Altar. The eight thousand warriors and several thousand herders who had accompanied him all joyfully drank their fill of the mountain stream water, and the sounds of rejoicing carried for several li.

A new era had arrived!

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