The Daxu envoys stayed in Heianjing and other places for a month, and returned to Lianyungang, Haizhou, and disembarked to return to Beijing. The process was tortuous, but when they returned to their country, they were immediately regarded by the Daxu government and the public as a failed attempt at diplomatic relations.
The letter from Japan was written in the name of the Regent, promising to choose an auspicious date to come to Daxu for tribute; however, they did not send envoys to pay tribute immediately, and it was not known whether the date would be ten or twenty years later. In addition, after returning to the court, the envoy Zhao Hong and others said that Japan's claim to the throne was disrespectful, and the court officials were furious for a while. Li Chuyun and other meritorious officials wrote to the court to declare war on Japan, first using military deterrence and then negotiating diplomatic relations.
However, some ministers believed that the Jiaolong Army had few ships, no large ships were built, and the sea route was long, so it was not possible to mobilize a large army in a hurry. They suggested that they could establish friendships with local officials in the form of private trade and then take their time.
When the Goryeo envoy heard that Daxu was dissatisfied with Japan, he was overjoyed and wrote to the emperor to advise him to occupy Tsushima Island first and then attack Japan. For some reason, as long as the Central Plains wanted to attack Japan, Goryeo was always happy to see it.
Daxu Wenwu was extremely angry. This was a very delicate mentality. If it was the Liao Kingdom that refused to pay tribute and call them father, no one would react. But if a weak country that they looked down upon was disrespectful, it would be unforgivable.
But Guo Shao did not show any attitude. He first summoned the chief and deputy envoys to the West Hall and listened to the statement of the chief envoy Zhao Hong in person.
Zhao Hong bowed and said: "Your Majesty, there are people in this country who think that we don't need to pay any attention to our dynasty. Some people are in awe of our dynasty's military prowess and national strength. They appear respectful but want to get away with it in terms of respect and etiquette, and don't want to anger our dynasty."
Deputy Envoy Zhang Yin also took the opportunity to bow and said: "I second the proposal." There are two reasons why the Japanese monarch and his ministers are so aggressive. First, they don't know that our dynasty is for the real benefit of the mines, and think that we are just showing off our power. If the Central Plains goes to Japan for the sake of fame, it is unlikely based on thousands of years of experience. Second, the Japanese monarch and his ministers think that the sea is vast and the road is long, and the court is far away, so they are not afraid. Whether they have contact with the Central Plains or are isolated overseas, they can calmly judge.
Hey. Guo Shao heard Zhang Yin's words and immediately paid attention to him. The first thing he said was: Oh, I remember that you helped me with arithmetic when we were in Pingxia.
Zhang Yin hurriedly said: It is my duty to serve you at your service.
When Zhao Hong heard this, he turned his head and glanced at Zhang Yin with an unhappy look on his face.
Even Guo Shao noticed this subtle movement, but Zhang Yin was unaware of it. His face flushed with excitement, he could not wait to hold up a stack of files in front of Zhao Hong, held them above his head, and said: "I am an envoy to Japan this time, and all the things I have seen, heard, and felt along the way are recorded in this book. Please have a look, Your Majesty."
Guo Shao gave a slight glance, and the eunuch Cao Tai stepped forward, took the file and presented it to him.
Guo Shao flipped through it and saw dozens of pages filled with words and pictures in tiny calligraphy. He immediately said: Your mission was not in vain.
The two men bowed hurriedly and said: Thank you, Your Majesty, for not punishing us.
After they left, Guo Shao was very interested in what Zhang Yin presented and began to read it immediately.
Guo Shao was certainly not unfamiliar with Japan. He had seen many TV dramas when he turned on the television in later generations. However, how much did he know about this opponent? Guo Shao thought it was very one-sided.
So for him, this is a familiar yet unfamiliar opponent. Guo Shao used to be most interested in actresses, but now he is most interested in Yinshan.
Guo Shao began to try to understand it, as he did with all his enemies.
After a rough look, Zhang Yin did not seem to write about the Japanese army in the file, probably because he had not seen it. When he opened the first page, it was not the emperor and important ministers as Guo Shao had guessed, but Shinto.
Zhang Yin wrote in the opening that Buddhism is very popular in Japan, and temples can be seen everywhere, but they also believe in Shintoism, and most of their customs have a lot of Shintoism shadows. Shintoism has many gods, some say hundreds of thousands, and some say millions.
Guo Shao immediately pulled out a booklet with the title "A Brief History of the Eastern Island Province" on the cover from the bookshelf in the corner of the imperial desk. He picked up the brush, opened it, and first wrote "Shinto" and then "There is no single supreme god."
But soon his view changed slightly. The supreme god in the book was called Amaterasu, representing the sun, and the emperor was the descendant of Amaterasu on earth, without a surname. Guo Shao suddenly understood why the Japanese king could not publicly pay homage, as this seemed to shake their belief value system.
After reading Zhang Yin's description of Shinto, Guo Shao recorded his personal views and understandings.
Guo Shao believes that compared with Buddhism, Shinto is very limited and imperfect, especially lacking the core content of universal philosophy, and mixing in many contents such as Confucianism, Taoism, legends and history. So from a religious perspective, Guo Shao thinks it is a relatively bad religion because it is too local, so it is narrow and difficult to be as expansive as Buddhism and Dashijiao.
However, Guo Shao believed that Buddhism was essentially a passive approach to the world, but Shinto was different. The goddess Amaterasu played a certain role in rallying people's hearts.
When he saw the magatama pattern, Guo Shao's idea became stronger. According to Zhang Yin's description, this kind of magatama can also be found in ancient tombs in China, and it should be something learned from Japan. But now, this kind of jade is rarely seen in China, and Guo Shao has never seen it; in Shinto, magatama is an ornament worn by the goddess Amaterasu.
Symbols and signs are things that can deepen the ethnic identity and create a unique culture.
Then the description of the main family and the lord family also made Guo Shao understand part of the social structure of Japan. Lords and main families are both landowners, and can be called landlords; lords offer their land to the main family in order to seek protection. Generally speaking: the main family is a large landowner, and lords are small and medium-sized landlords. In addition, there are farms in the form of royal family, temples, and nobles.
Guo Shao felt that Japan was more like a feudal system, and that the Central Plains dynasty, which was later called the feudal era, was actually centralized and there was no feudal system at all.
However, Japan's current feudal system is very subtle. The lords do not actually control the land. Many of them live in Heian-kyo and enjoy wealth and glory due to the offerings from their manors. The nobles, who are separated from the actual grassroots power, have created the cultural prosperity of Heian-kyo.
The management and protection of the farmland was in the hands of other people, the farm officials and the samurai leaders.
Guo Shao suddenly felt that if there was no external interference, Japan's problem was not the monopoly of power by relatives, but the village officials and warriors who actually managed the local farmland. The soil for warlord separatism had already been formed.
Guo Shao looked at it for the whole morning without realizing it, and only came to his senses when the noon drum sounded.
However, when he was reading the part that interested him the most, the poem of the most admired beautiful singer in his country, Guo Shao said to the eunuch Cao Tai standing beside him: Read it to me.
Cao Tai hurried forward and picked up the file. Following the direction pointed by Guo Shao, he cleared his throat and read aloud: The former Buddha has left, and the latter Buddha has not yet arrived.
. Born in a dream, what is reality. My body is the flowing water that tempts duckweed. My body tempts duckweed, but duckweed does not come, and I am sad and desperate. The thin stems of Lespedeza covered with dew, only the petals fall and scatter, but they are no match for my drifting body.
Guo Shao was pacing and listening carefully, when he heard a chuckle. Turning around, he saw Zuo You and the others with red faces, trying to hold back their laughter.
Guo Shao was surprised and said: What's so funny.
Zuo You bowed hurriedly and said: “Poems and essays are not funny, but they are funny when read by the eunuchs shaking their heads.
Guo Shao then turned around to look at Cao Tai, who was standing there with an innocent look on his face.
Assistant Minister Huang Binglian bowed and said: I am moved by Dongdao’s poems and essays, his soft music, his sorrowful and earnest groaning without any illness.
Cao Tai paused for a moment, standing there awkwardly, but the ministers were saying it was not nice, but the emperor did not say anything. He continued to recite a few poems, all about cherry blossoms, how beautiful, how short-lived, how fading, and so on, all of which were sad.
The ministers obviously disliked this style and severely criticized it.
But Guo Shao doesn't think so, he thinks it's just a difference in cultural aesthetics. To explain why, maybe it's because of the geographical climate of the mountains, forests and rain, anyway, he feels that Dongdao is beautiful in its sadness.
Guo Shao rubbed his forehead, didn't care about anything else, and prepared to eat a full lunch first. He pointed to the file on the table and ordered three copies to be made, with one copy each for the Privy Council and the Cabinet.
Cao Tai hurriedly said: I obey your order.
Some civil and military officials in the court believed that matters such as law and etiquette could not be compromised, and they advocated attack and punishment right away, saying that there was nothing wrong with respecting the emperor. However, decision-makers such as Guo Shao and Wang Pu could not act rashly, and they would understand the inferences before formulating strategies.
The emperor left the study, and several ministers also went to the dining room to eat. Most of the officials in Beijing ate in the government offices and did not go home for lunch. When someone casually mentioned the emperor's attitude towards Dongdao, Lu Duosun just said lightly: There is a booklet on the imperial desk. I accidentally saw it when I delivered the memorial. It is called Dongdao Xingsheng Shilue.
After hearing this, the other three people suddenly understood and stopped talking about it.
Zuo You looked at Lu Duosun with a teasing expression and said: That Japanese song does not sound good when sung by a eunuch.
Ludoson didn't understand what he meant and asked in confusion: "Do you want to invite a singing girl to sing?"
Zuo You smiled and shook his head, saying: "It would be great if Minister Lu could get another girl from Dongdao."
Zan Jurun and others immediately looked at each other sideways, realizing that Zuo You was making fun of the matter of Lu Duosun's marriage to Concubine Li when he was on a diplomatic mission to Dangxiang.
Ludoson blushed after hearing this. Doing such a thing would be considered flattery, which is not very glorious after all. He argued: If it is beneficial to the country, why should we be so particular about the details
He went to eat with the other three ministers, and changed the subject as he walked: Japan paid tribute in the name of the Regent, which was considered an official relationship. But they were just talking about it, and no one knew when they would pay tribute. The court couldn't send envoys to urge them right away.
Several people nodded in agreement, saying that they could not send any more people as it was not acceptable based on etiquette.