Autumn turns to winter, winter turns to spring, and another year passes. Under the caress of the spring breeze, the heart of the Ming Dynasty, the capital, gradually wakes up. Just a few days after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the sound of New Year's celebrations is still heard.
While echoing, a piece of news has spread among the people: Wanli Ye Yujia is about to go south to Mount Tai to enshrine Zen.
Feng Chan is not only a respect for heaven and earth, but also a magnificent display of the Wanli ZTE in the past thirty years. To this day, almost no one in the world dares to question the "Wanli ZTE" because after almost a year of all-round publicity,
Let alone the scholars, even the traffickers and lackeys have clearly remembered the "ten perfect achievements" of Master Wanli.
The term "Ten Complete Martial Arts" was proposed by Gao Pragmatic. Although Liu Xin, who was far away in Tianzhu, privately commented on it as "bad taste" after hearing it. But it is different from Qianlong's so-called "Ten Complete Martial Arts". According to the Beijing News
According to the propaganda led by the industry, Wanli Ye’s current "perfect achievements" are really not nonsense, but objective facts that can be verified one by one.
What are the "ten perfect merits"? They are the following ten:
First, political stability: Thanks to the efforts of His Majesty Hong Fu, wise and wise, as well as the former prime ministers Gao Gong, Guo Pu, and many wise ministers up to the current cabinet chief minister Gao Pragmatic, the power struggle within the imperial court has been effectively controlled and
Balance made the politics of the country more stable, and the top and bottom were united as one, and they were able to cut through the metal, which laid the foundation for the current prosperity of the Ming Dynasty.
Second, economic development: Driven by the successive chief ministers, especially the pragmatic current prime minister, the economy of the Ming Dynasty has made great progress. Agriculture, handicrafts and commerce have all made significant progress, the national fiscal revenue has increased, and the people have
Improved living standards.
This point is particularly worthy of expansion: for example, in agriculture, Gao pragmatism introduced and promoted the planting and promotion of high-yielding species such as corn and sweet potatoes. It also experimented and promoted drought-tolerant rice from Northeast Japan in Liaodong, making it possible for the Ming Dynasty's north to grow even in recent years.
Despite successive years of disasters, the worst situation did not occur. The increase in grain production combined with the court's active resettlement policy minimized the losses caused by disasters. Both scholars and civilians called this "unprecedented in history."
Not to mention the handicraft industry. Ever since Gao Pragmatic founded Jinghua under the guise of "practical learning and practice", Jinghua has been the leader in the development of the new handicraft industry in the Ming Dynasty, and then led many official families of the practical school and northern merchants to become various companies under his name.
It is one of the supporting supply chains of the industry, from which all parties begin to develop together and promote each other.
Today, there are countless industrial sectors under the name of Jinghua. From military industry to people's livelihood, or dual-use, Jinghua is involved in almost all, but it also has some restraint.
This kind of self-control is especially rare. For example, in some industries that only involve basic people's livelihood, Jinghua can obviously continue to develop by relying on its first-mover advantage, but Gao Pragmatic ordered them to be sold off in batches and handed over to multiple private enterprises for free competition. However, Jinghua
Don't be a monopoly.
The most famous one here is Jinghua Soap - as the first key product of Gao Jingshi's fortune, in the 20th year of Wanli, Gao Jingshi made the basic formula of soap public, allowing private enterprises around the world to use it or develop new fragrances.
models, categories to compete with each other. This matter, including other similar matters, is also an important reason why Gao pragmatism can avoid many accusations among the scholars.
As for business, looking back now, the establishment of the "Beiyang Maritime Trade Alliance" can be regarded as a milestone event. It is not a "guild" in the traditional sense. It does not exclude or suppress internal competition, but it remains an overall business group externally.
As a result, the "internal harvesting" efforts of various families and companies within it were strongly suppressed, while the intensity of "external harvesting" was greatly enhanced.
If this model is enlarged to the national level, it is a bit like the so-called "mercantilism" in the West, which believes that the accumulation of national wealth is reflected in the amount of foreign precious metal currencies earned. However, the situation in Western countries is different from that of the Ming Dynasty. Mercantilism
There are serious consequences for them - heavy currency (precious metals) and light physical goods will often lead to domestic prices getting out of control, and then the products will lose international competitiveness, which will eventually curb the development of productivity. [Note: Considering that everyone does not like to read "papers"
”, I won’t expand on it.]
However, the Ming Dynasty was different. The Ming Dynasty and even many periods in ancient China were often troubled by one thing: high productivity, but a serious shortage of currency. To be precise, there was a serious shortage of heavy metal currency. And for a country, especially this country,
It's very, very, very harmful to the economy.
The problem caused by insufficient currency is not only the inconvenience of transactions, especially large-scale, high-value transactions, which are difficult to complete. Insufficient currency will cause the currency value to continue to rise and people's purchasing power to continue to decrease, thereby reducing economic vitality - for example,
Why did the rich people in ancient China like to bury silver and copper coins? In addition to "there are no good investment targets", another point is that the "money" will become more and more "valuable" even if it is left alone, then you
Of course, if you have as much money as you have, just leave it alone. Anyway, you will make money.
With all the money buried, private transactions become more difficult, the currency value of precious metals further rises, the vitality of the private economy becomes worse, and the vicious cycle cannot be stopped. And for the imperial court, the problem here is even more serious.
Why were taxes in ancient China often based on in-kind taxes? Obviously, in-kind taxes would waste huge manpower and material resources - for example, if you collect 1 million shi of grain and send it to the capital, it will be lost by several percent during transportation. But have all the dynasties of the past dynasties done this?
Are you a fool, can't you see this? Of course they can see it, but they can't solve it internally, because China's precious metal production is simply not enough compared to actual productivity. How do you solve it internally? Can you turn stone into gold?
Why is sea trade important? The productivity of goods in the Ming Dynasty is too strong but the precious metals are insufficient, and sea trade is to exchange goods and trade with overseas places with low productivity but abundant precious metals, and exchange the precious metals back, so that the domestic economy of the Ming Dynasty can achieve "
The balance between money and goods.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! After this balance is achieved, as long as the intensity is controlled pragmatically and the country is in a state of very slight inflation, those who bury silver and copper coins will find that
It is no longer cost-effective to bury money now. If you bury one hundred taels of silver in a year, you will lose 1-2 taels. So how can you do it? You must dig out the money and invest it in a profitable business!
Therefore, most of them will join the positive economic cycle system of high pragmatism and creation, either by introducing corn, sweet potato, drought-tolerant rice to increase production capacity, or by engaging in supporting handicraft production in Jinghua, or by joining the commercial torrent to promote commodity circulation - no matter what
, in any case, they all meet high and pragmatic expectations.
Therefore, sea trade is indeed about making "money", but the root is not about "money", but about using the "money" to achieve China's internal economic balance. Gao Pragmatic saw countless sea trade activities when he read novels in his previous life.
, but failed to see a few key points. Now, he has practiced it himself.
Precisely because this is a set of changes to the overall economic operation model, it is not as simple as just getting some money back, so it will take 20 to 30 years to lay the groundwork and gradually advance it. Fortunately, everything seems to be going well so far.
Third, military strengthening: The Wanli Dynasty reformed the military system to a certain extent through the restructuring of the Beijing camp, and strengthened the training and management of the army at the Beijing camp, that is, the "Central Army" level, which significantly improved the military strength directly under the Ming court and consolidated
The imperial power also made the political situation more stable.
In the early stage, the establishment of the elite force of the Imperial Guard not only improved the defense capabilities near Gyeonggi, but also improved external deterrence and actual combat capabilities. This can be seen from the Battle of Yuan Dynasty.
As for the border armies or local armies, Gao Pragmatic was unable to interfere too much in the early stage, and could only "temper" them in terms of logistics and armaments. Even so, the combat effectiveness of the border armies in various places has obviously shown a gratifying situation of gradually improving.
.The hierarchical military reform plan proposed by Gao Pragmatic not long ago is a reflection of the further deepening of military reform.
There are too many achievements of the military reform. In recent years, the Wanli Dynasty has stabilized the north, aided the east and conquered the west, and even brought "Ping Nei" with it. Which battle can I say did not benefit from the success of the military reform?
Fourth, cultural prosperity: In terms of culture and education, the Wanli Dynasty also made great achievements. Although the imperial examination system still has a major project that has not yet been completed, Gao Pragmatic has successfully made a small patch to the imperial examination: first "
Ten points system", and then give an "extra supplementary item for the same points".
That is to say, the imperial examination now implements a point system, with ten points being the full mark. The test questions are the same as before. They are nominally testing the Four Books and Five Classics, but in fact they are mainly testing the Four Books, especially the Classics. The real patch of Gao pragmatism lies in the "extra supplementary items for the same score" at the end
, that is, if two candidates or multiple candidates have the same score, such as ten points, then they can compete from the "additional examination subjects".
What additional subjects are there? For example, mathematics. This is one of the "additional examination" subjects added by Gao Shishi. However, although Gao Shishi has added several additional examination subjects, each candidate can only take additional examinations in the first round of examinations.
For one subject, unless the scores are still the same after the main exam and the additional exam, there will be no second round of exams - the second round is to continue to take an additional exam, and so on.
The purpose of this "imperial examination patch" is obvious. Scholars can no longer only focus on moral articles as in the past, because various "practical application" additional examination subjects will determine whether you pass the examination. Although to a certain extent, this will aggravate
There was no "involution" among scholars, but Gao pragmatically believed that this "involution" was beneficial.
Even if the original official is selected, the court doesn't know what his strengths are. Maybe he can't do anything except moral articles. When he gets to the place, he will only be played around by the officials. When he gets to the center... he can't do anything, and the party fights.
First place. But now, the strengths of officials are much clearer in the eyes of the court, and naturally they can better utilize their talents.
In addition, due to the improvement of the imperial government's finances, Gao pragmatically allocated special funds to improve the school buildings and teaching staff of schools at all levels (these existed in the Ming Dynasty and are introduced in the first volume of this book). This was very important for the popularization of education, especially
It was the popularization of education among poor students that played a big role in making the cultural atmosphere of the Ming Dynasty more intense, and literati and poets emerged in endlessly.
In particular, the expansion of frontiers and territories in these years has made today's literati gradually regain the boldness they had in the heyday of the Tang Dynasty. "Borderland literature" has flourished again, and "overseas literature" has emerged, bringing cultural creation to a new peak.
Fifth, diplomatic expansion: In terms of external relations, the Wanli Dynasty established good relations with neighboring countries and tribes through active foreign policies, expanding the influence of the Ming Dynasty. Whether it was the tribute of Tumut and Ordos,
The defeat of the Eastern Mongolian grasslands, the annexation of Korea, and the recovery of the Western Regions are all concrete manifestations of the "great power of tomorrow."
Of course, those tributary countries in the south that came and went intermittently in the past, because Gao Pangshi actually completed control over them through Jinghua, have now become the most disciplined vassals, completing tributes in strict accordance with the requirements of the court.
No matter how many tricks there are, at least in the eyes of the imperial court - and even in the eyes of the people of Shilin, the current tributary countries are simply obedient to "our heaven" and will never dare to act on their own. As the Beijing newspapers publicized
That way: "Since ancient times, there has been no greater success than this."
Sixth, social governance: In fact, the root of the so-called social governance is the official system. After Gao Pragmatic took office as the Minister of Household Affairs, the Wanli Dynasty strengthened the management and control of local finances, effectively reduced the corruption of local officials, and improved the
The credibility and execution ability of yamen at all levels make social order more stable.
For example, many of the income and expenditures of local government offices are now audited by commissioners dispatched by the Ministry of Revenue. These commissioners were hired by the Ministry of Revenue from the Finance Department of Jinghua Craftsman School after the "Dahubu Reform". They are not officials, or even
He is not an official. In theory, he has only an "employer and employee" relationship with the Ministry of Household Affairs. This can be regarded as a so-called "third-party investigation" in later generations, and the possibility of objectivity and neutrality is greatly increased.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Gao Pragmatic also considered that these people may also be bribed by local yamen, so he added a patch to strengthen the involution: If the finance of a certain local yamen has passed the review
, but later discovered by the patrol censor or uncovered the problem through other means, the financial specialist sent to investigate in the early stage will be held responsible.
If the finance is clear, the official system will be clean, and if the official system is clear, the world will be clean. Gao Pragmatic has always served as the Minister of Household Affairs, hoping to establish norms for the Ming Dynasty and form policy inertia through his long-term tenure. In this way, even if he leaves office in the future, these optimization measures
You won't leave immediately to cool down the tea, or just leave it if you don't.
Seventh, scientific and technological innovation: In terms of science and technology, the Wanli Dynasty certainly made great achievements. Gao Pragmatism not only strongly encouraged scientific and technological innovation and process improvement not only within the capital, but also in the court and among the people, and promoted technological progress in the fields of agriculture, handicrafts, and military.
There are so many specific achievements in this area that it is difficult to list them all [Note: Mainly because there are too many and it takes up too much space].
Eighth, the improvement of people's livelihood: This is the most direct aspect for ordinary people's perception. After Gao Pragmatic came to power, the court invested a lot of effort in disaster prevention, disaster relief, disaster relief, and post-disaster reconstruction. It was different from the indifference in the past.
(I don’t have the ability to ask) It’s so much stronger, it’s a world of difference.
In addition, various reforms to varying degrees in the tax law, water conservancy, and salt laws, as well as measures such as allowing gentry from all over the country to take the initiative to build bridges and pave roads under the "honor and honors" system, have ultimately improved people's living conditions and increased people's satisfaction.
and loyalty, which enhanced their centripetal force towards the imperial court.
Ninth, the construction of the legal system: China after the Han Dynasty was often "Confucian and legal", but the "rule of law" was never positively recognized by the court, and Gao Pragmatic relied on his "authentic Confucian" background and "Six Poems"
With the blessing of the prestigious title of "Number One Scholar", he dared to face up to the importance of legal system construction, added, revised and improved many legal systems, making the country's governance more standardized and orderly, and reducing social contradictions and conflicts.
Tenth, the integration of civilizations: In terms of sects and culture, the Wanli Dynasty also made great achievements. Through various means such as military conquest, economic and cultural attraction, it completed the huge achievements of opening up territories, and then used China's unique eclectic approach to
, Cultural tolerance promoted the exchange and integration of different sects and cultures, which not only enhanced the inclusiveness and diversity of the entire Ming Dynasty society, but at the same time did not indulge, and brought various civilizations together within the main body of Han civilization - pay attention to within
, not below.
These "ten perfect achievements" together constituted the resurgence of the Wanli Dynasty in the past thirty years, which enabled the Ming Dynasty to achieve significant progress and development in all aspects.
With the victory of the Western Expedition, now that the "Ten Complete Successes" have been accomplished, it is indeed time to seal Mount Tai and declare ZTE to heaven, earth, and all people!
On the day when the royal driver set off, the morning light was shining, and the streets of the capital were already crowded with people. The people wore festive costumes, waved their hands high, and had expectant smiles on their faces. They knew that what they saw today would be an unforgettable spectacle.
scene.
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Thanks to book friend "doni" for your monthly ticket support, thank you!
PS: I didn’t expect that it would be quite difficult to write a summary￣□￣｜｜. Checking the “information” you wrote by yourself feels... very subtle.