This book is the third part of the series of rewriting the history of the late Ming Dynasty, and it can be seen very clearly that the Ming Dynasty after Zhang Juzheng's death began to show decline. The government was lazy, the party was constantly fighting, the eunuchs were rampant, and the loyal people were slaughtered. The extreme prosperity gradually turned to decline, and the curtain above the historical stage of the Ming Dynasty began to slowly fall.
In "The Fifteenth Year of Wanli", I feel that Shenzong seems to be a little pitiful. When he was young, he was severely disciplined by Zhang Juzheng and was nervous and depressed; After ruling independently, it was taken by the system, and it could not go along with its wishes. So there is a silent rebellion in a negative way. However, the detailed historical materials in this book confirm that Shenzong was a person of "wine and wealth" in the later period, and laziness was not completely against the system, but indulged in alcohol and led to physical decline, and he was indeed unable to govern the dynasty. He was diligent in gathering and neglecting the dynasty, and even let the mining tax eunuchs run rampant, levied and extorted violently, and corruption was allowed to breed and even reach its peak through the system, provoking popular uprisings. Shang Qi made sex, and the courtiers did not agree with it a little, so they issued an order for the court staff, which was extremely cruel. Therefore, "the death of Ming is actually the death of the Divine Sect" is not a lie.
In the feudal dynasty, the king of a country bears the responsibility of the country and the people, and continues the great cause of the ancestors. You can't be regarded as an ordinary person, and you can't be judged by the standards of ordinary people. Once you become an emperor, you have to take responsibility. In particular, the Ming Dynasty abolished the prime minister system and gained greater totalitarian power, and all decisions were made by themselves. Therefore, Shenzong did not deserve sympathy, not to mention that not only did he not listen to his advice, but he cruelly punished those who made suggestions. Except for the extremely loyal people, the other ** is to get by.
There are also discouraged and upright**, who break away from the whirlpool of politics and give lectures in non-governmental academies. is only "teaching practical skills to exhaust the scriptures", but it is slandered as "remote ruling the government". The Donglin Academy was most obviously accused of being the Donglin Party. This book clarifies the nature of Donglin Academy and argues that Donglin is not a party. We can also see the rise and fall of the private education system from the description in this book.
However, there are always risks associated with the unofficial exchange and dissemination of ideas, both Chinese and foreign, especially if they cannot be absolutely consistent with official ideas. Although the Ming Dynasty did not prosper"**, the upright people still have no place to stand, as long as they are regarded as members of the Donglin Party, they will suffer terrible disasters. Party strife has become an effective means of striking at opponents. Once the idea of party struggle became a fixed thinking, there was no longer a distinction between right and wrong, only the party and the non-party, and the consequences not only affected the late Ming Dynasty, but even affected the Southern Ming Dynasty. As a matter of fact, the idea of the party fighting against different parties has not been eliminated in China and even in the West, and it will be more obvious in both political and business circles, wherever there is an organization, where there is change. Add to that the lack of justice and rational thinking on the part of leaders, and the consequences are even greater.
Shenzong did not leave a good political legacy and excellent genes to his descendants, his son was greedy for sex and short-lived, and his grandson was greedy for play and became a puppet of eunuchs. The dark eunuch** is unbearable to read. The only thing that inspires is that no matter how dark it is, there is always a glimmer of light shining through. Integrity is precious, but it is never scarce. We must not forget these iron-clad warriors who bravely marched forward for the faith of justice. No matter what era it is, such people are the backbone of China and deserve to be an example for us to learn from. In the era of entertainment-oriented consumption, the figures of these role models have disappeared, jokingly beautifying the emperor and the general. This is even more embarrassing and sad.
I hope that those in the position of power will look back on this period of history from time to time. It's not about nostalgia, it's about not repeating the mistakes of the past!