In 1573 AD, Zhang Juzheng, who had just been serving as the head assistant, wrote in a letter: “I had a deep understanding of reading the” Huayan Jing, Sadness and Wisdom Revelation “the winter before last. At that time, I made a vow to serve the dust with my body and mind, not seeking personal gain. At the same time, a magnificent reform began.”. The political and economic reforms led by Zhang Juzheng achieved the most prosperous decade of the late Ming Dynasty, and were regarded as a dazzling twilight by historians. Whether it was the brutal struggle before the reform, the efforts to turn the tide during the reform, or the unpredictable fate after the reform, Zhang Juzheng himself was closely linked to the success or failure of the reform, becoming a shining symbol of reform in Chinese history, attracting people to constantly interpret. In 1554, at the age of 30, Zhang Juzheng, the editor of the Hanlin Academy, suddenly resigned and left the land of beauty. This puzzled many people. Although the Hanlin Academy had no substantive administrative affairs, it could be considered the most noble place of the Ming Dynasty, and almost all the most important officials came from the Hanlin Academy. Zhang Juzheng was not very old and highly valued by the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, Xu Jie, and others. He had a promising future ahead of him. However, Zhang Juzheng left the capital without hesitation and returned to his hometown of Jiangling in the south, citing poor health. In fact, only Xu Jie was most aware that Zhang Juzheng left due to his dissatisfaction, disappointment, and helplessness with the government. At this time, the eleventh emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Jiajing, was sitting on the throne. During his early reign, Emperor Jiajing was still diligent in political affairs and rectifying the court system, but later he became obsessed with Taoism and was determined to become an immortal. He attached great importance to Qingci, which was a memorial written on green vine paper with a red pen during the Taoist fasting ceremony, dedicated to the Jade Emperor. Many ministers won the favor of the emperor by writing celadon, but some ministers were neglected by the emperor because they did not write celadon well. The Ming History records that Xia Yan, the head minister of the cabinet, often did not comply with the emperor’s wishes when he entered the Qing dynasty, which caused dissatisfaction from the emperor. However, another minister, Yan Song, gained the trust of the emperor by rectifying his affairs. Afterwards, Yan Song even attacked Xia Yan for colluding with Shaanxi Governor Zeng Mi and making close attendants. Emperor Jiajing even beheaded Xia Yan in public. After Xia Yan’s death, Yan Song succeeded in becoming the head minister. In order to devote himself to cultivation, Emperor Jiajing entrusted the affairs of the court to Yan Song. Yan Song flattered the upper and deceived the lower, took bribes and violated the law, and the political atmosphere became increasingly corrupt, with numerous corrupt policies and increasing internal and external troubles. Business legend: Yan Song gained the favor of this Emperor Jiajing because he knew how to write celadon, right? But Yan Song not only knew how to write Qingci himself, but also wrote beautiful characters and articles. After years of hard reading, he was also an extraordinary cultural prime minister. Yan Song had been in power for so long, 20 years, and everyone was so annoyed that they wanted to get rid of him, but they couldn’t get rid of him. In 1553 AD, Yang Jisheng, a member of the Ministry of Justice, proposed to the emperor to submit a memorial and impeach Yan Song on the ten major charges. This angered Yan Song and also angered the emperor who was in favor of him. The officials who impeached Yan Song were either expelled or executed on pretext. In this way, it was difficult for Yan Song to collapse, and if Yan Song did not collapse, the entire officialdom and social atmosphere could not improve. Zhang Juzheng felt a deep sense of helplessness. Before leaving the capital, Zhang Juzheng wrote a long letter to his mentor Xu Jie, praising Xu Jie’s high reputation while also pointing out that Xu Jie had too many scruples in times of national crisis, dared not speak directly to the emperor, and dared not fight against powerful officials, upholding justice. Shortly after entering the Hanlin, Zhang Juzheng wrote the “Commentary on Current Politics”, which pointed out five types of political problems at that time: the arrogance of the imperial family, the arrogance and laxity of the common officials, the following rules in official governance, the lack of border preparation, and the great loss of financial resources. These were the only memorials that Zhang Juzheng had written during the Jiajing period. He had already insight into the crux of the political situation at that time, keenly pointed out the shortcomings of the court’s politics, and hoped to arouse the emperor’s attention. However, Zhang Juzheng’s reform proposals were like sinking into a sea of rocks and did not have any substantial effect. With a depressed mood, Zhang Juzheng left the capital and embarked on the road back to his hometown. Business Biography: “On Current Politics” is his view on the time, one to make the upper class understand him. In fact, I think this is his main purpose. Of course, this “On Current Politics” later became a very important ideological foundation for his reform. Zhang Juzheng’s Former Residence is located in Jingzhou City, Hubei Province. In 1525, Zhang Juzheng was born here and was known as a child prodigy. At the age of 16, he passed the imperial examination and was selected as a jinshi at the age of 23. He later passed the imperial examination and entered the Hanlin Academy. He always had the ambition of governing the country and pacifying the world, but corruption in the officialdom left him useless. After returning to his hometown, Zhang Juzheng appeared to live a leisurely life, but in fact, he constantly paid attention to the situation and became more aware of the country’s crisis. In another letter to his friend Geng Zhiding, Zhang Juzheng expressed his deep concern about the political crisis. He said that greed is rampant and people’s grievances are deepening. If there are traitors taking advantage of the temporary gap, they cannot win. This situation is very bad, but it requires a brave and upright person to break the norm, clean up and eliminate the world’s major troubles. Zhang Juzheng has the ambition to shoulder the heavy responsibility of the world, so after living in his hometown for a few years, he still returned to the capital and temporarily succumbed to the officialdom, patiently waiting for the opportunity. On a late night in 1561 AD, the timing came when a large fire destroyed the Yongshou Palace in the West Garden, where the emperor was secretly studying Taoism. How to deal with the aftermath was consulted by Emperor Jiajing. Yan Song suggested that the emperor temporarily reside in the Zhonghua Palace in the South Garden, which accidentally violated Emperor Jiajing’s taboo. The Zhonghua Palace in the South Garden was once the place where Emperor Jingtai imprisoned Emperor Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty. Emperor Jiajing became suspicious of Yan Song, who was the best time to overthrow the martial law. Zhang Juzheng’s mentor Xu Jie took the opportunity to repair the Yongshou Palace as quickly as possible, allowing Emperor Jiajing and the emperor to repair it. Moving back to his favorite place and renaming it Wanshou Palace, Emperor Jiajing transferred power from Yan Song to Xu Jin. Yan Song’s situation took a sharp turn for the worse, and various crimes quickly surfaced. He was soon labeled as a commoner and tragically died. In 1564 AD, at the age of forty, Zhang Juzheng finally reached a turning point in his career. Under the arrangement of Xu Jie, Zhang Juzheng served as the lecturer for Prince Yu Zhu Zai. In his later years, Emperor Jiajing did not appoint a crown prince, and Prince Yu would inherit the throne in order, serving as the lecturer for Prince Yu. This meant that he could approach the future emperor. Two years later, Emperor Jiajing died. At the time of his death, it was Xu Jie, the head of the cabinet, who was in charge of the court. Time was very urgent. Xu Jie summoned Zhang Juzheng overnight and together they planned to draft the imperial edict of Emperor Jiajing. The next morning, the court announced that Prince Yu Zhu Zaiyuan succeeded to the throne and changed his reign name to Longqing. Xu Jie and Zhang Juzheng took the opportunity to incorporate their political views into the edict, emphasizing the late emperor’s reflection on his obsession with Taoism, thus rectifying the chaos and punishing the Taoist priest in charge of Xuanxiu. This restored the official position and reputation of officials who had previously been punished for opposing Xuanxiu, and the atmosphere in the court was one of them. New. The newly enthroned Emperor Longqing highly valued his old courtiers in the imperial palace, and as a result, Zhang Juzheng rose to prominence. He was appointed as the Left Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and a member of the Dongge University. Shortly after, he was promoted to the position of Minister of Rites and Grand Academician of the Wuying Hall, finally entering the core of the central government. In 1568 AD, at the age of 44, Zhang Juzheng presented a “Chen Liu Shi Shu” to the emperor, elaborating on his reform proposals from six aspects: provincial discussion, rectification of disciplinary guidelines, reiteration of edicts, verification of names and facts, consolidation of guidelines, and decoration of military equipment. Compared to the reform proposals made fifteen years ago, this time not only pointed out the shortcomings of the court’s politics, but also proposed corresponding prescriptions. Mao Peiqi: He has been in power for over a decade, almost 20 years, from the end of the Jiajing reign to the beginning of the Wanli reign. Therefore, he has a deep understanding of the country’s situation. He knows about border defense, finance, and taxation issues, so where to start? He will take advantage of the current situation in his memorial. Political disputes still confined Zhang Juzheng. In the first year of the Longqing reign, the list of cabinet aides ranked in order were Xu Jie, Li Chunfang, Guo Pu, Gao Gong, Chen Yiqin, and Zhang Juzheng. Among these six people, Zhang Juzheng had the shallowest qualifications and the power struggle was fierce between Xu Jie and Gao Gong. After Xu Jie, Zhang Juzheng’s mentor, was forced to retire, Zhang Juzheng was gradually pushed to the forefront. In the sixth year of the Longqing reign, Emperor Longqing passed away due to illness. He ordered Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, and Gao Yi to assist Crown Prince Zhu Yijun, who was the famous Wanli Emperor in history and was only ten years old at the time, unable to handle court affairs. For a time, Gao Gong, who served as the head of the cabinet, was in high demand, but the eunuch Feng Bao, who was trusted by the Empress Dowager and the Little Emperor, also held significant power. Business legend: In the Ming Dynasty, he eventually stopped managing the country because of the emperor. The external court of the country relied on the cabinet, while the internal court relied on the eunuch and the eunuch. If these two forces were not combined, they would fight. If they were combined, they would become the strongest alliance. As a high-ranking official in the court, Zhang Juzheng became the most decisive weight on the balance of power at this time. The answer to which side he would lean towards is actually very simple, it depends on who can better assist him in implementing his political views. On the morning of June 16, 1572, in the morning court, the eunuch issued a decree. Gao Gong thought it was an edict to expel Feng Bao, but he was demoted to a commoner. In this thrilling power struggle, Zhang Juzheng finally became the head of the cabinet. He formed a strong power alliance with the eunuch Feng Bao and received strong support from the Empress Dowager and Emperor. He firmly controlled the government for ten years and carried out comprehensive reforms with great fanfare. What kind of changes will this person who is deliberately planning to rise to power bring to the Ming Dynasty? The officialdom is what Zhang Juzheng is most familiar with, as well as what he is closest to and hates the most. Zhang Juzheng, who has been in politics for nearly 30 years, is very clear that the officialdom habits have become very turbid for a long time. Bureaucratism and copywriting are very scary. During the Wanli period, Ming officials only sought monopoly, but only hoped for nothing. A matter that could have been done in a few hours could have been delayed for several years, but ultimately came to an end. In this way, the court can still achieve anything, and all reforms cannot be discussed. Therefore, Zhang Juzheng submitted a memorial to Emperor Wanli, saying that the affairs of the world are not difficult to legislate, but difficult to law. Must do, not difficult to listen to, but difficult to say and must be effective. In Zhang Juzheng’s view, formulating regulations is not difficult, but what is difficult is that laws must be implemented. Therefore, in order to reform, Zhang Juzheng must first rectify the governance of officials. To rectify the governance of officials, it is necessary to first change the dragging atmosphere in the officialdom. Business legend: Let’s go look at the “Wanli Chronicles”. Don’t look at the back, just look at the first ten years. Zhang Juzheng is in his position, and in these ten years’ records, the strange things are so strange that you can’t understand. This student dares to hit the teacher, and the students dare to cause trouble. When standing in front of the class, everyone can avoid going to court. Then, when going to court, there can be fights, officials can fight each other, curse and fight each other. Then, officials who arrive late can pass through the line of the standing class, find their own position, and randomly search for it. It is already disorderly. As for the imperial censor who corrects the class, the three… If two people don’t report, neither of them will be in charge of this matter. You said that if the management of officials and civil servants in a country reaches this level, it will become so lax, And at that time, corruption was very serious, so the first thing to do was to reorganize this civil servant team. So, how to reorganize it is through assessment. In the first year of the Wanli reign, Zhang Juzheng proposed the method of passing the imperial examination and established a system of passing the imperial examination on a case by case basis. In order to ensure that each yamen strictly complied with the processing procedures set in the official documents, Zhang Juzheng required each yamen to register the memorials on a daily basis, with the content and processing period recorded in three separate books. In addition to one being the yamen’s bottom book, another was sent to the six departments and one was sent to the cabinet, with one being cancelled and the completion level of each task being evaluated every month. In order to effectively implement the Kaocheng Law, Zhang Juzheng adopted measures from top to bottom, gradually tightening the chain. The cabinet inspected six departments, six departments inspected six departments, the procuratorate and six departments inspected the governors and patrols of each province, and the governors and patrols of each province inspected local officials. Among these links, the six departments were very important. The six departments were the supervisory institutions with light rank and weight in the Ming Dynasty. The official rank of the six departments was only seven grades, but they could inspect the officials of the six departments of the second and third grades. Therefore, the six departments controlled the six departments. Zhang Juzheng also stipulated that if the six departments were concealed, cabinet officials would correct them, and the cabinet would control the six departments. As a result, the power of the cabinet was concentrated in the cabinet, and the power of the cabinet was concentrated in the first deputy Zhang Juzheng. He took charge of the overall situation, and officials at all levels no longer dared to perfunctory, resulting in a significant improvement in the governance of officials. Mao Peiqi: The core concept of Zhang Juzheng’s governance can be summarized into six words, which are called “respecting sovereignty” and “strict governance by officials”. The so-called “respecting sovereignty” actually means strengthening the control of the central government, and “strict governance by officials” means strengthening the management of local officials. Through strict management and centralization, he greatly improved administrative efficiency and facilitated the full implementation of all his policies, which led to the revival of the Ming Dynasty during the Wanli period. After the implementation of the Kaocheng Law, it received good results. Shi Yingyue, the Minister of Household Science, submitted a report to Shi Yingyue, and after several decades of abolishing the rule of accumulation and gradually improving it, scholars believe that the efficiency of the Ming Dynasty’s bureaucratic politics reached its peak in the ten years from 1572 to 1582. Mao Peiqi: At that time, there was a saying called “Central Order”. Although it was thousands of miles away, it was implemented at night. What did it mean? It said that the imperial palace would issue orders, even if it was far away, orders would be issued in the morning and executed in the evening. How did he achieve this? Zhang Juzheng adopted the method of rectifying the governance of officials. However, even so, Zhang Juzheng still had to bear a lot of pressure. Yan Guan Yu Maoxue proposed that Chongdun was opposed to the exam system. He believed that after the establishment of the exam system, although officials from all levels fulfilled their duties, it could not cultivate vitality for the country. Zhang Juzheng launched a counterattack. Under his influence, the Little Emperor accused Yu Maoxue of using Dun Da’s words to win people’s hearts and dismiss him from his position as a citizen. Zhang Juzheng continued to carry out bold reforms, using the principle of comprehensive verification, honesty, reward, and punishment to eliminate redundant officials. This move will inevitably face fierce criticism. In the eyes of those who oppose Zhang Juzheng, Zhang Juzheng is abusing his power, and his reform measures are also seen as deviant by conservative forces. In the third year of the Wanli reign, the censor Fu Yingzhen submitted a memorial linking Zhang Juzheng with the reformer Wang Anshi of the Song Dynasty. In his view, Wang Anshi’s proposal during the reform that there was no fear of changes in heaven, no law for clans, and no compassion for people’s words hindered the Emperor Shenzong of Song at that time. Now, he believes that the Wanli Emperor should respect changes in heaven, emulate ancestors, and empathize with people’s words, while Zhang Juzheng, like Wang Anshi, misled the Emperor. Fu Yingzhen’s memorial caused great dissatisfaction among Emperor Wanli, who sent him to exile. The young emperor wanted to punish Fu Yingzhen with torture, but Zhang Juzheng intervened to dissuade him. Zhang Juzheng hoped to quell the wave of opposition in a gentle way, but just a month later, a more intense wave surged up. Liu Tai, the censor of Liaodong, wrote a memorial of 5000 words, fiercely criticizing the imperial examination system, which was just Zhang Juzheng’s means of coercing six subjects and monopolizing power. He believed that Zhang Juzheng had completely forgotten the righteousness of the monarch and subjects, and his power was even higher than that of the emperor. Liu Tai’s memorial was not only sharp in language, but also deadly. Liu Taitai was a disciple of Zhang Juzheng, and this kind of impeachment made Zhang Juzheng truly taste the power. Zhang Juzheng, who had always boasted of his resilience, felt heavy hearted. He sadly submitted his resignation application, claiming that there had been no precedent of a disciple falsely accusing a teacher in the more than 200 years of the Chinese government, Now it has happened. At this time, the emperor could not do without Zhang Juzheng, who repeatedly urged him to stay and stated that he would punish Liu Tai severely. Zhang Juzheng then did not resign. Liu Tai was imprisoned and subjected to severe torture, but his words became more intense. Eventually, he was stripped of his citizenship and his old account was overturned four years later. He stayed in Xunzhou and died tragically there. Mao Peiqi: Everything Zhang Juzheng does is to strengthen imperial power and control public opinion. For example, he restricts the free expression of ideas, opposes free lectures, and orders the prohibition of all academies in the world. All of this is to strengthen the emperor’s control and strengthen the centralization of power in the central government. Business legend: Any reform will face strong opposition from vested interest groups, so this is inevitable. Therefore, Zhang Juzheng pays special attention to public opinion, and he is very strong in suppressing it, but these people are quite resilient. The death of Liu Tai did not affect others, and the opposition against Zhang Juzheng reached its peak in 1577. Zhang Juzheng’s father passed away, and according to the etiquette system, Zhang Juzheng should return to his hometown to mourn for his father for three years. This will inevitably delay Zhang Juzheng’s reform cause. With Zhang Juzheng’s tacit approval, the emperor issued an edict ordering him to continue to hold official positions and handle government affairs, instead of going home to guard the system. This practice is called seizing emotions. This incident goes against orthodox ethics and morality, causing many officials to impeach and demand that Zhang Juzheng leave Beijing. Mao Peiqi: Actually, Zhang Juzheng was performing a double reed play. Others criticized the emperor and said that the court could not do without Zhang Juzheng. Zhang Juzheng was very happy to hear this. However, many people said that Zhang Juzheng’s actions were not in line with etiquette and law, and that filial piety was the top priority in governing the world. As the Prime Minister, why don’t you do it yourself. Business legend: A righteous person, without such devilish thoughts, also thinks that Zhang Juzheng is doing something wrong. This is rightful, and it has always been a tradition. Why can’t you do this for the sake of your power? You are too unfilial, you are too indecent, and this kind of thinking has arisen. Therefore, this has a very negative impact on Zhang Juzheng. This is the Meridian Gate of the Forbidden City. In history, many stories have happened here, but only one was caused by filial piety. On October 24th, in the fifth year of the Wanli reign, officials Wu Zhongxing and Zhao Yongxian of the Hanlin Academy first accused Zhang Juzheng of embezzlement, and each was punished with a court staff of sixty. They were dismissed from their positions as citizens and will never be used again. The Minister of Justice, the Minister of Justice, and the Chief Minister, Shen Sixiao, also jointly submitted a memorial. They were each sent to the border to serve as soldiers with a court staff of 80 and never pardoned. When Wu Zhongxing and others were subjected to torture, the new successful candidate Zou Yuanbiao was carrying a memorial criticizing Zhang Juzheng to court. He witnessed the scene, but was not intimidated by the court staff. Instead, he became even more angry. He was worried that his memorial could not be submitted normally, so he falsely claimed that it was a false memorial and even gave some silver to the eunuch. The eunuch then submitted it on his behalf. As a result, Zou Yuanbiao spent money on severe punishment, but was also beaten by the court staff of 80 and left half disabled. He was sent to the border to be conscripted. Faced with enormous pressure, Zhang Juzheng attempted to retaliate with harsh measures, but unexpectedly attracted stronger public opinion attacks. In the end, Zhang Juzheng successfully stayed in the position of the top cabinet aide, but people’s evaluation of his character was greatly discounted due to the incident of seizing power. Business Biography: In the past, it was called ritual and law. Everyone had to follow the law, and you also had to follow the etiquette. Rites also have the function of the law, it is a supplement to the law. If you don’t follow this thing, if someone hits you, they will hit you one by one. Although Zhang Juzheng’s actions were harsh, the reform was able to go deeper. Zhang Juzheng pushed the reform towards the direction of finance. In the Jiajing and Longqing dynasties, the national treasury was unable to make ends meet for a long time. After Zhang Juzheng came to power, he proposed the policy of using more without adding taxes, and adopted a dual strategy of open source and cost reduction. He cut down on redundant officials and expenses, suppressed national and palace financial expenditures, and strengthened the management of border town money and grain to reduce the impact of military expenditures on finance. While cutting costs, Zhang Juzheng urged local officials to actively clean up past arrears of taxes in order to open up resources. However, such cutting costs and opening up resources are only superficial, and to completely change the reality of poverty in the Ming Dynasty, these alone are far from enough. Lin Xinchun, born in Shanghang County, Longyan City, Fujian Province, is a folk collector who began collecting various types of coins and old certificates in 1993. Among his collections, the oldest ones are several old objects from the Ming Dynasty. Lin Xinchun: This is the household registration form for the Qingzhang in Liancheng County, Dingzhou Prefecture. The Qingzhang is located throughout the county, and according to the arrangements within the province, the government, and the county, it is unified. Land inspections are conducted nationwide, and the Qingzhang is responsible for clearing and measuring the land. The Qingzhang household registration forms collected by Lin Xinchun are all land certificates from the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty. The land in the Ming Dynasty was divided into two types: official land and civilian land. Official land belonged to public land, state-owned land, civilian land belonged to private land, and commercial land belonged to households. With the deepening of reform, Zhang Juzheng must face a reality that on the one hand, the country and the people are poor, and on the other hand, it is the annexation of land by powerful powers and the exploitation of farmers by corrupt officials. For a long time, nobles and nobles enjoyed many privileges of exemption from taxation. After they annexed the land, this privilege continued to expand, seriously affecting the financial revenue of the dynasty. To change this drawback, clearing the grain in the fields is an effective way. In the sixth year of the Wanli reign, Zhang Juzheng was the first to carry out a pilot work of clearing the land and grain in Fujian. He chose Fujian because the Fujian governor was Zhang Juzheng’s fellow villager Geng Dingding, and also Zhang Juzheng’s right-hand man. In his essay “Answering to the Fujian Governor Geng Chudong’s Words to Reasonably Pacify the People,” Zhang Juzheng said that with merchants in power, goods and wealth were high, and the people were in high demand, there was no need to worry about their lives. The scene was different from the end of the Han and Tang dynasties. Obviously, Zhang Juzheng saw the harm caused by the scarcity of the people and the accumulation of wealth by the powerful and powerful, and linked it to the rise and fall of the country. Therefore, fiscal reform is the core of Zhang Juzheng’s reform, and the success or failure of the reform lies in this act. In his letter to Geng Dingzhi, Zhang Juzheng also elaborated in detail on the relationship between governing the country and ensuring the well-being of the people. He proposed that the way of governance lies not in ensuring the well-being of the people, but in observing their suffering. In his view, only by comprehensively clearing the land and returning it to the farmers can we win the hearts of the people and make the country prosperous and strong. Through more than two years of effort, by September of the eighth year of the Wanli reign, the Fujian clearing ended and achieved good results. The success of Fujian gave Zhang Juzheng great determination. In the ninth and tenth years of the Wanli reign, Zhang Juzheng decided to implement the Fujian Qingzhang Law throughout the country. However, this move would harm the direct interests of the privileged class and pose great risks. Although Zhang Juzheng had long believed in benefiting the country, he still needed to proceed steadily in order to achieve success. Under the strict supervision of Zhang Juzheng, the national land area after the Qing dynasty increased by more than 1.8 million hectares compared to the six years before the reign of Emperor Wanli. This is a testament to the achievements of Emperor Wanli. Business Biography: He laid a very strong foundation for the land reform of the entire country’s economy. From our traditional political perspective, he aimed to solve the problem of land consolidation, land occupation, and the country’s control over land, rather than being in the hands of the powerful. From another important perspective, as the commodity economy developed, I needed to reform. I wanted to turn this into a whip. I don’t even know how much land and family background I have, how can I whip it? How can I change it? That’s why a series of national policies were implemented at that time. The promotion of the One Whip Law was the most important reform in Zhang Juzheng’s finance. Before the implementation of the One Whip Law, the collection of taxes and levies was separated, with farmland as the collection object, summer tax and autumn grain collected, and household and population as the collection objects, divided into three types: Li Jia, Jun Yao, and Za Fan. After the implementation of the One Whip Law, the complexity was simplified, and taxes and levies were merged into one, all converted into silver for collection. corv é e was changed from being mainly borne by the population to being divided between farmland and household. The government took out a portion of the taxes and levies needed by the government, and hired people to handle them uniformly. Business legend: When this was achieved, it actually solved the problem of human constraints relatively. He relaxed this, and when Emperor Yongzheng shared the land and the head tax disappeared, all of it was collected in the fields. This problem was solved, and it was a good method in taxation. Zhang Juzheng’s whip method did not come out of thin air. During the Jiajing period, there were records of various regions in the south implementing the whip method. During this period, commercial agriculture in the Ming Dynasty developed rapidly, with markets and towns scattered everywhere, and the status of silver as a currency had been established. The maturity of these social conditions enabled the implementation of the One Whip Law. Zhang Juzheng’s contribution was to eliminate interference and promote the One Whip Law to the north and areas that had not yet been implemented. However, officials in Shandong strongly opposed the One Whip Law, believing that such reforms were applicable in the south but not necessarily suitable in the north. At this time, Zhang Juzheng already had supreme authority, and the whip method was finally implemented nationwide. Zhang Juzheng’s financial reform had achieved good results, with a reserve of seven million stones in the capital, three times that of the Longqing period, which was enough to provide for the consumption of the Beijing government for six years. Wan Ming: Zhang Juzheng’s reforms were actually recognized by the Qing Dynasty, and his reforms were indeed much more successful than Wang Anshi’s, because Wang Anshi was mainly a top-level designer, so in practice, he would encounter various obstacles. However, Zhang Juzheng was the early preparation of a century and a half. Business biography: I believe that a reformer may not necessarily invent any system. He discovered a local thing and promoted it to the whole country, which no one can replace. Zhang Juzheng played a role in this. Some of our views on Zhang Juzheng today are not very good, but mainly focus on his character. However, when Zhang Juzheng’s reforms were truly successful, his sense of crisis grew stronger and stronger. Whether it was clearing the land or using a whip method, he did not encounter impeachment on the surface like seizing emotions. In fact, Zhang Juzheng understood in his heart that he had offended too much power. In order to achieve the great cause of reform, Zhang Juzheng was already physically and mentally exhausted. Business legend: The most important thing is that he offended the local people. We call them the Jin gentry, and they have taken all the land to their homes. Now, when you measure it, you do not allow me to embezzle the land of this common people. Of course, this is a contradiction, a fierce contradiction. What is the other contradiction? These people have their agents in the court, and these agents are often officials emerging from some places. Therefore, these people in the court must constantly oppose your policies. In the eighth year of the Wanli reign, the iron fisted figure Zhang Juzheng, who had always been carefree, suddenly made a formal request for retirement. After the successful reform, Zhang Juzheng hoped for a good outcome for himself and his family. Emperor Wanli was raised by Zhang Juzheng from a young age, and for the sake of the great cause of the dynasty, Zhang Juzheng strongly urged the young emperor. The young emperor was also obedient to him. Now that the emperor has grown up, Zhang Juzheng felt that he should leave to avoid conflicts with the emperor. However, under the opposition of the Empress Dowager, Zhang Juzheng was unable to fulfill his wish. Although he consciously allowed the emperor to handle some government affairs with his own hands to demonstrate the emperor’s ability to act independently, Emperor Wanli still felt that he was shrouded in Zhang Juzheng’s power, which was very unfavorable to him. On June 20th, the tenth year of the Wanli reign in Jingzhou City, Hubei Province, the tomb of Zhang Juzheng. At the age of 58, Zhang Juzheng passed away due to illness. Emperor Wanli dropped out of court for several days and gave Zhang Juzheng a noble treatment, posthumously honoring him Wen Zhong and bestowing him with the title of Shangzhu State. Yin’s son was appointed as the Minister of Shangbao. However, after Zhang Juzheng’s death, the resentment that had arisen during his reign began to slowly vent. In addition to gratitude, the emperor also sought ways to vent his accumulated resentment. In the twelfth year of the Wanli reign, the second consort of the Liao Prince’s Mansion in Jingzhou Prefecture, Huguang, claimed that Zhang Juzheng had forcibly seized the property of the Liao Prince’s Mansion before his death. The ruthless and unjust Emperor Wanli sent eunuch Zhang Cheng and his attendant Qiu Shun to Jingzhou to investigate Zhang’s Mansion. During the investigation, Zhang Juzheng’s eldest son Zhang Jingxiu was unable to resist the punishment and ultimately expressed his anger and protest by committing suicide. For Emperor Wanli, the liquidation of Zhang Juzheng was the foundation for his own political prowess. To overthrow Zhang Juzheng in politics was to establish the emperor’s own authority. However, the successors of the university scholars all took Zhang Juzheng as a warning and blindly became familiar with him. After a brief period of diligent governance, Emperor Shenzong of Ming began the longest period of neglect in the history of the Ming Dynasty, failing to go to court for twenty years, resulting in a lax and corrupt system of rules and regulations. Business Herald: Actually, as a reformer and politician, what you need is not your attitude towards you, but your reform. Your political views will continue. Comrade Xiaoping, we say he is the greatest reformer in Chinese history. He did something that made this reform irreversible. No matter who you are, whether you scold me or hate me, you have to push this reform forward. This is what makes a great reformer. Zou Yuanbiao, who was beaten half to death by impeachment of Zhang Juzheng, was highly praised by many people. After Zhang Juzheng’s death, Zou Yuanbiao held important positions twice. However, when he saw the corruption of the government and the decline of the country, he couldn’t help but recall the vitality of Zhang Juzheng’s reform and proposed to rehabilitate him. He said that Zhang Juzheng’s achievements were in the country and his family. The famous upright official Hai Rui gave Zhang Juzheng an eight character evaluation, stating that he worked hard to plan for his country, but was defeated by his own efforts. When the Ming Dynasty was in a state of decline, the descendants of Emperor Wanli, Ming Xizong and Ming Sizong, remembered the former hero Zhang Juzheng and encouraged his subjects to turn the tide. Unfortunately, it was too late. After the dazzling twilight, the Ming Dynasty continued to decline along the path of decline until its downfall. 90 seconds in history: Matteo Ricci’s Gift. On the first Spring Festival of the 17th century, after waiting for 17 years, Matteo Ricci finally walked into the Chinese imperial palace in Beijing. Accompanied by the Minister of Rites, he entered the Imperial Palace and was surprised to find that there was no emperor on the throne. They could only bow to a throne that symbolized the emperor’s status. Although they did not see Emperor Wanli, the rare gifts presented by Matteo Ricci aroused the emperor’s strong interest, especially the one large, one small two self ringing clocks that Matteo Ricci gave him. This Western clock was completely different from traditional Chinese timing tools. Wanli ordered the construction of a clock tower in the palace to place a large clock, and the small clock would be used. Playing in front of him, the ministers in the capital were very interested in the prism brought by Matteo Ricci. They were fascinated by the unique shape of this optical instrument, the changing light and shadow Despite knowing nothing about its purpose, Matteo Ricci’s world map did not attract the attention of the emperor and ministers. In their indifference, Europe on the other end of the map underwent many significant social changes after entering the 17th century. Natural science and humanities were becoming increasingly prosperous and accelerating their transition to modern society.
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