The Ming Dynasty: A bookstore sells the history of the Ming Dynasty, leaving Emperor Chongzhen bewil

"law?"

Emperor Chongzhen frowned, looked at Zhu Ziming, and showed a puzzled expression.

After taking a sip of tea, Zhu Ziming did not rush to answer, but instead asked, "Tell me, since Qin Shi Huang unified the six kingdoms and completed the unification of the country, how many years did the dynasties on the Chinese mainland last?"

Emperor Chongzhen was still puzzled, but he still answered: "The Qin Dynasty lasted 14 years, the Western Han Dynasty 210 years, the Eastern Han Dynasty 195 years, the Western Jin Dynasty 51 years, the Eastern Jin Dynasty 104 years, the Sui Dynasty 37 years, the Tang Dynasty 289 years, the Northern Song Dynasty 167 years, the Southern Song Dynasty 152 years, the Yuan Dynasty 97 years..."

Emperor Chongzhen recited the lifespans of all the dynasties before the Ming Dynasty in one breath. This was nothing out of the ordinary for him, as he had been well-versed in history since childhood.

This time, it was Zhu Ziming who was somewhat surprised.

The other party was strange. It would be difficult for an average person to ask such a simple question as whether the Ming Dynasty had already perished, but it would also be difficult for an average person to know the lifespan of each dynasty in detail.

This strange knowledge structure made Zhu Ziming understand how it was formed.

All I can say is that the other party is no ordinary person.

In fact, no matter how imaginative Zhu Ziming was, he could never have imagined that the young man in front of him, who was cosplaying as an emperor, was actually an emperor, and moreover, the Chongzhen Emperor, the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty whom he had just mentioned.

At this moment, Zhu Ziming didn't think too much about it, but continued his journey of being a teacher, patiently guiding the conversation: "So, have you discovered any patterns?"

Emperor Chongzhen frowned: "What pattern?"

Zhu Ziming smiled slightly and said, word by word, "No dynasty in history has lasted more than three hundred years."

Suddenly.

Emperor Chongzhen's eyes widened suddenly, as if he had discovered something extraordinary.

He even subconsciously tapped his finger, probably calculating in his mind whether Zhu Ziming was completely correct.

The more I calculated, the more alarmed I became, because it really was just as Zhu Ziming said: from the time Qin Shi Huang unified the world until the Ming Dynasty, no dynasty lasted more than three hundred years.

Zhu Ziming was very satisfied with the other party's reaction.

It was clear that the other party was genuinely shocked, which made Zhu Ziming feel somewhat smug.

He has a considerable knowledge of history, and his writing of historical novels has also forced him to learn more about history.

"So, it could be said that it was a coincidence for one or a few dynasties to be like this, but it is no coincidence that every dynasty is like this, but rather a pattern."

Emperor Chongzhen nodded blankly, then asked, "What about the Ming Dynasty?"

"The same goes for the Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Ziming nodded and said, "The Ming Dynasty was founded in 1368 by Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty. It lasted for 276 years, through 16 emperors, and was destroyed in the 17th year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign."

"The same applies to the later Qing Dynasty; none of them lasted more than three hundred years."

"Therefore, the rise and fall of dynasties is not some vague fortune or destiny, but rather there are traceable patterns."

"Furthermore, as I mentioned earlier, the fall of the Ming Dynasty cannot be entirely blamed on Chongzhen. We can analyze it based on this pattern, because when Chongzhen took over the Ming Dynasty, it was already an ancient dynasty that had lasted for 260 years, and it was approaching the critical point of 300 years. No dynasty in history has ever lasted more than 300 years, so what makes you think you can expect Chongzhen to be able to do it?"

Emperor Chongzhen nodded in deep agreement.

This time, Zhu Ziming's whitewashing is reasonable and well-founded. Indeed, so many emperors in history have failed to do it, so why should we expect Chongzhen to do it?

Emperor Chongzhen felt somewhat better, but he was more concerned about why this had happened and why the dynasty's lifespan was only three hundred years.

This question had clearly piqued his intense curiosity.

Emperor Chongzhen asked, "Why is this happening?"

"Good question!"

Zhu Ziming used to be a tutor when he was in school. He really enjoyed teaching people. It's human nature to like being a teacher, and now he's fallen into that habit again.

"Because of the merger of means of production."

"Means of production?"

Emperor Chongzhen clearly did not understand the meaning of this word.

Zhu Ziming was not too surprised by this, because in his eyes Chongzhen was no ordinary person. His entire knowledge structure was different from that of ordinary people, and he wondered which teacher had taught him.

"The so-called means of production refer to the sum total of all factors of production used to produce goods and services, excluding human labor power itself. This may sound difficult to understand, but don't worry, I'll give you an example and you'll understand. It's like a chef who wants to cook. He needs kitchen utensils such as knives, pots and pans, stoves, and ingredients. The sum total of these factors he uses to cook is the chef's means of production."

"Without the labor of cooks, the means of production are just a pile of dead things, but without the means of production, even if a cook has a lot of skills, he can't make a decent dish. Therefore, the means of production are the amplifier and container of human labor, which determines what you can produce, how much you can produce, and how efficient you are."

Emperor Chongzhen listened attentively and understood some of it, but he still couldn't figure out what this concept had to do with the rise and fall of a dynasty.

Zhu Ziming continued, "And in feudal dynasties, what do you think was the most important means of production?"

Emperor Chongzhen fell into deep thought.

Feudal dynasty? The term "feudal" has existed since ancient times. The idea of ​​establishing a state by enfeoffing a kingdom should generally refer to a dynasty.

In a dynasty, the people are the foundation of the state, and food is the most important thing. Among the many factors that produce food, the most important is...

"land?"

Emperor Chongzhen wasn't 100% certain, but he had a feeling that this was the case.

Zhu Ziming nodded, giving him an approving look: "That's right, it's land."

"Feudal dynasties were based on a self-sufficient small-scale peasant economy, and land was the source of all living materials such as grain, mulberry and hemp, and the direct creator of wealth. Not only did the people rely on the land to survive, but the national tax revenue also mainly came from the land and the people attached to it, which was the economic foundation for the dynasty's survival."

"Therefore, land was the most important means of production in feudal dynasties, and the manifestation of the annexation of means of production that I mentioned earlier in feudal dynasties was the annexation of land."

Emperor Chongzhen had some difficulty understanding, but he grasped the most crucial point: land annexation.

Land annexation is not a new term.

"The rich own vast tracts of land, while the poor have nowhere to stand." This proverb, originating from Han Dynasty literature, vividly depicts the polarization caused by land annexation in feudal society.

Throughout history, various dynasties have enacted different laws to restrict and adjust land annexation. Among the more famous examples are the Equal Field System implemented from the Northern Wei Dynasty to the early Tang Dynasty, Wang Anshi's reforms in the Song Dynasty, and the Single Whip Law drafted by Zhang Juzheng in the Ming Dynasty.

Land annexation is a bad phenomenon, a consensus reached by emperors and wise men throughout history.

But to say that this is the fundamental reason for the rise and fall of dynasties? Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?

Zhu Ziming noticed the doubt in the other person's eyes, but he wasn't in a hurry. After taking a sip of tea, he said, "Let me use Zhu Yuanzhang as an example to explain, and maybe you'll understand."