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

Throughout China's long history spanning thousands of years, countless dynasties have risen and fallen here, just like the waves in the ocean, rising and falling one after another.

Throughout history, countless philosophers and sages have sought answers to the question of the rise and fall of dynasties.

What exactly governs the rise and fall of dynasties?

Is it the will of Heaven? Is it the result of virtuous governance? Or is it a matter of popular support or opposition?

Philosophers and sages created divination, Qimen Dunjia, and Tui Bei Tu, or left behind proverbs such as "A wise ruler prospers, a foolish one perishes; an honest official brings prosperity, a corrupt one declines," or they wove the widely circulated theory of dynastic fortune.

There are many different opinions, and no consensus can be reached.

But today, Chongzhen heard a completely different story.

The rise and fall of dynasties is essentially a history of land distribution, annexation, and redistribution.

Is this truly the essence of the rise and fall of dynasties?

Chongzhen listened to the entire conversation and couldn't find any fault with it. The other party started by saying that the dynasty's lifespan was only three hundred years, and then used the deeds of the Taizu Emperor as an example to deduce the truth step by step. It was reasonable, well-founded, and self-consistent.

But Emperor Chongzhen remained skeptical.

He was a very suspicious person who never easily trusted others, let alone a stranger from the future.

Emperor Chongzhen thought for a moment and said, "According to you, if the problem of land annexation is solved, wouldn't that ensure the dynasty's long-lasting prosperity?"

"right."

Zhu Ziming nodded, then changed the subject, saying, "But under the background of feudal dynasties, there was no solution to land annexation."

Why?

Emperor Chongzhen, looking puzzled, pressed on, "Now that we've identified the crux of the problem, why can't we address it directly and completely resolve the land annexation issue?"

Zhu Ziming took a sip of water. He had talked a lot with the guest dressed as the emperor all afternoon, and his mouth was dry. Looking at the sky outside, he realized it was getting late. Thinking that he hadn't updated his novel yet, Zhu Ziming couldn't help but feel a little anxious.

"How about we talk about it another time?"

Emperor Chongzhen was also anxious. He had only said half of what he wanted to say, and if he stopped now, he would definitely be preoccupied with it and unable to eat or sleep when he got back.

"No, this is very important to me. Please, classmate... please, teacher, enlighten me!"

Emperor Chongzhen displayed his strong side as an emperor, but this time he didn't call him "classmate" but directly addressed him as "teacher".

Those who are accomplished come first, and it is not an exaggeration to call them "sir".

Seeing the other party's politeness, Zhu Ziming humbly replied, "I dare not presume to offer my guidance. These are merely some of my thoughts and insights, shared for discussion."

"Then please continue the discussion, sir. This is very important to me." Chongzhen looked at Zhu Ziming earnestly.

"All right."

Zhu Ziming is not good at saying no, and seeing the other person's eager eyes, he couldn't refuse.

"Going back to what we said earlier, in feudal dynasties, land was the source of all necessities such as grain and mulberry, and it was the most important means of production. Everyone wanted to seize it, which led to the occurrence of land annexation, right?"

Emperor Chongzhen nodded.

Zhu Ziming continued, "Then what is the fundamental contradiction in land annexation?"

Emperor Chongzhen shook his head; he truly couldn't answer that.

Zhu Ziming answered for him, saying: "The fundamental contradiction of land annexation is that the land on which everyone depends for survival is highly concentrated in the hands of privileged classes such as bureaucrats, nobles, landlords and gentry, who constitute a minority, while ordinary people, who make up the vast majority and are the main labor force, have no land or own very little land."

"Therefore, to solve the problem of land consolidation, we need to distribute the land concentrated in the hands of privileged classes such as bureaucrats, nobles, landlords and gentry to the people. To put it bluntly, we need to crack down on landlords and achieve the goal of 'land to the tiller'."

"But do you think feudal dynasties could have done that?"

Emperor Chongzhen, puzzled, retorted, "All land under heaven belongs to the emperor. If the court wants to do it, why can't it?"

Zhu Ziming didn't rush to refute, but said, "Alright, let's take the Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang as an example. When he was still Zhu Chongba, he was one of the ordinary working class. At that time, he watched his relatives starve to death in front of him. He hated the landlords who had seized his family's land. In other words, his opposing class was the landlord class. He wanted to overthrow the landlords, right?"

Emperor Chongzhen nodded; this was clearly beyond doubt.

Zhu Ziming continued, "Later, Zhu Chongba grew up to become Zhu Yuanzhang, who completed the great cause of expelling the Tartars and restoring China, and became an emperor whose word was law. Back then, he couldn't even find a place to bury his parents, but now, he can build as big a mausoleum as he wants."

"When he was still Zhu Chongba, he didn't understand that his parents had toiled on the land all their lives, yet they couldn't even get a proper burial after they died. Landlords never farmed, yet they had no worries about food and clothing. Now that he has become the emperor, the whole country belongs to him. His princes and grandsons have all been granted fiefdoms and received vast amounts of land, and their titles are hereditary."

At this time, was Zhu Yuanzhang still thinking about overthrowing the landlords? No, what he was thinking about was that his whole family and his descendants would be well-fed and clothed for generations to come.

According to the "Veritable Records of Emperor Shenzong of Ming", in the 23rd year of the Wanli reign, the total number of members of the Ming imperial family had exceeded 157,000.

"The grain produced by the two provinces is still insufficient to supply half of the stipends for the imperial family." Here, "the two provinces" refers to Shanxi and Henan, major grain-producing provinces. The grain output of these two provinces was less than half of the stipends for the imperial family.

"By the time of Chongzhen, the situation had become even worse. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the whole country was nurturing Zhu Yuanzhang."

Why is this happening?

"Because the Emperor has already treated the entire country as his own; he is the biggest landowner!"

These words stunned Emperor Chongzhen.

He just said he wanted to fight the landlords, but little did he know that he himself was the biggest landlord.

The phrase "the world nurtures Zhu" struck a nerve with Emperor Chongzhen.

If this term were uttered in the Ming Dynasty, it would certainly be a capital offense, or even the extermination of nine generations of one's family. However, it is undeniable that this term reflects the truth. Emperor Chongzhen understood better than Zhu Ziming just how terrifying the stipends for the imperial family were. To say that the whole country was supporting Zhu Ziming was not an exaggeration at all.

Zhu Ziming continued, "In order to maintain the rule of the imperial family and ensure the supreme authority of the emperor, it is necessary to establish a top-down system of governance. This system is centered on imperial autocracy, manages the country through a bureaucratic system, and the landlord class acts as the actual controller of local society. The three form a relationship of mutual dependence and mutual checks and balances."

"This destined the imperial power to rely on the bureaucrats and landlords, to stand on their side, and to represent their interests."

"So, if you were the emperor, could you beat the landlords?"

"..."

Emperor Chongzhen was speechless for a moment.

He understood, and he comprehended it, but he was still unwilling to accept it, because according to Zhu Ziming, even if he knew the ending, he couldn't change it.

"Are we just supposed to watch the dynasty perish?"

Zhu Ziming nodded: "Under the feudal system of imperial autocracy, there is indeed no way to change it unless there is a radical reform."

At this point, Zhu Ziming suddenly stopped: "Let's stop here for today, or we'll go too far off track."