Shi Miyuan (Treacherous Prime Minister of the Southern Song Dynasty)
In the third year of Kaixi (1207), Han Zhouzhou's Northern Expedition failed, and the Kingdom of Jin came to ask for the mastermind. Shi Miyuan was the minister of the Ministry of Rites at the time, and conspired with Empress Yang and others to send Xia Zhen, the official in charge of the front office of the palace, to kill Han Kanzhou in Yujin Garden, and later sent a letter to him to send him money to ask for peace. Shi Miyuan was promoted to Prime Minister You in October of the first year of Jiading (1208) after the death of Han Tuozhou, and then took power in the Ningzong Dynasty of Song Dynasty for 17 years.
Shi Miyuan was so powerful that Prince Zhao Hong couldn't calm down. He once wrote in a few words: "Miyuan should be matched eight thousand miles away." Shi Miyuan was exiled to Xinzhou or Enzhou. Shi Miyuan was greatly frightened and secretly plotted to abolish the establishment. In August of the seventeenth year of Jiading (1224), Ningzong of the Song Dynasty passed away. Shi Miyuan issued an edict to support Guicheng and changed his name to Yun. He was Lizong of the Song Dynasty. He named Zhao Hong the King of Ji and lived in Huzhou. In the first month of the first year of Baoqing (1225), Huzhou native Pan Ren and others failed in their attempt to establish Zhao Hong as King of Ji. Shi Miyuan sent people to force Zhao Hong to hang himself, pretending to die of illness. Since then, he has been the sole prime minister of Song Dynasty for nine years.
Shi Miyuan had been in power for 26 years in the two dynasties and had been favored by Song Ningzong and Song Lizong. His seven close followers were called "four trees and three evils" by people at the time. Shi Miyuan and others surrendered and compromised against the Jin Dynasty, but plundered the people of the Southern Song Dynasty wildly. He seeks power and accepts bribes, and bribes are fair to the public. They also printed a large number of new huizi, and no longer exchanged them for gold, silver, or copper coins, but only exchanged new huizi for old huizi, and discounted the old huizi by half. As a result, there were too many parties, the currency value dropped, prices soared, and people were in dire straits. In the sixth year of Shaoding (1233), Shi Miyuan died of illness at the age of sixty-nine. The posthumous title is the same as that of the traitor Qin Hui, which has profound meaning.
During the twenty-six years that Shi Miyuan was in power, although the Jin Dynasty was threatened by Mongolia and had no time to visit the south, he was able to maintain the stability of the Southern Song Dynasty. However, he excluded dissidents, enriched himself with corruption, and increased taxes, which made the Southern Song Dynasty gradually decline.
He tampered with Song Ningzong's will, established Song Lizong to succeed to the throne, and used the Huzhou Incident to force the death of Ji Guogong Zhao Hong, interfering with the succession of the emperor. He was more excessive than other powerful officials in the Southern Song Dynasty. For example, Qin Hui noticed that Song Xiaozong, as a prince, was often against him, but in the end he did not succeed in changing Song Xiaozong's identity as the successor to the throne. But Shi Miyuan was different from the famous treacherous ministers of the Southern Song Dynasty, such as Qin Hui, in that his family did not receive a large amount of imperial honors. And it is not like Han Yuzhou who is so arrogant and overpowering, and his peak is too revealing.
Although "History of the Song Dynasty" did not include Shi Miyuan in the biography of traitorous ministers, it also had a very low evaluation of him. Miyuan was described in the biography as "Ning Zong collapsed and deposed King Ji, which was not Ning Zong's intention. He established Li Zong and remained as prime minister for nine years. He was good at using power and was dedicated to Jian Ren. Song Lizong respected his own achievements and did not think about the overall plan of the country. , Although Taiwan remonstrated with him for his evil deeds, he was not sympathetic. "
Although Shi Miyuan lived alone, he was also afraid of being a big tree and attracting attention. However, the courtiers did not want him to monopolize the government affairs, persecuted King Ji, and established Li Zong. Word. Although Lizong gave him a lot of protection because he felt that he had supported him, he could never find peace in the end. Therefore, he went to beg for return many times.
In his later years, he wanted to find a good cemetery in his hometown as his final destination. Unexpectedly, it caused a storm that almost caused him to suffer a disaster. According to legend, Shi Miyuan recruited many Feng Shui masters to find a cemetery, and finally settled on the Asoka Temple, a place with "eight auspiciousness and six auspicious signs". Shi Miyuan thought it was very satisfactory, so he ordered the temple to be demolished and a tomb built after the Mid-Autumn Festival in August of that year. When the monks of Ashoka Temple heard the news, they were as anxious as ants on a hot pot, and the abbot of Ashoka Temple was even more confused. At this time, a young monk named Shifan said that he had a way to protect the temple. With the permission of the abbot, the teacher went to Lin'an, the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty. On a dark and windy night, a poem like this was posted on the city gate, palace walls, and streets: "A piece of land to educate the king is often full of emperor's anger; the prime minister wants to do it" Grave, I wonder what the Lord means?" The people of Lin'an had long been resentful of Shi Miyuan. After seeing the poem list, they spread rumors: "Shi Miyuan wants to seize the emperor's energy and plot to usurp the throne." The news spread to the palace, and Emperor Lizong of the Song Dynasty knew about Shi Miyuan. As a person, in the past, he helped him to sit on the throne with one hand, but now there is no guarantee that Shi Miyuan will not usurp the throne. Then he sent Shi Miyuan into the palace to inquire about the matter. Shi Miyuan was also afraid that the emperor would fall out. Not only would he lose his wealth, he would also be afraid that the nine clans would be destroyed. So, he quickly lied and said: "The minister's tomb has been built in Daci Mountain of Dongqian Lake for a long time. The poem list was made out of nothing. I hope you can see clearly." In this way, Ashoka Temple was preserved, and Shi Miyuan's tomb was really built in Dongqian Lake. Huda Cishan.
After Shi Miyuan became prime minister, he not only restored the official positions of Zhao Ruyu, Lu Zuqian and others who supported Neo-Confucianism, but also summoned 15 old people, including Lin Dazhong and Lou Yao, to join the court. At the same time, the status of Neo-Confucianism was restored and Zhu Xi's works were ordered to be engraved and printed.