The Ming Dynasty was the last stage of China's feudal society, and the monarchs of this period reached a historical peak, and the eunuchs held power as a significant feature at that time.
Wang Zhen, Wang Zhi, Liu Jin, Wei Zhongxian, these eunuchs were all big names at that time, they held power, sold their official positions, and filled their pockets, which brought an extremely bad impact on the Ming Dynasty.
Wang Zhen was the pioneer of the eunuch dictatorship in the Ming Dynasty, and his dictatorship had both a special background of the times, as well as the drawbacks of the system and mechanism, as well as his personal factors.
Wang Zhen is a talented man born in Wei County, Hebei Province, and when he was young, he was an aspiring young man who was motivated and studied hard. His dream is that one day he will be able to display his ambitions on the Ming Dynasty and pay homage to the prime minister.
In the Ming Dynasty, in addition to studying the imperial examination and entering the civil service, you can also enter the palace as a eunuch to realize your ideal of wealth. Although becoming a eunuch requires sacrificing his "life", Wang Zhen believes that in order to realize his dream, this is nothing.
Therefore, he ruthlessly castrated himself himself, and then smoothly entered the palace and became an honorable eunuch. At that time, it was the last years of Ming Chengzu Zhu Di, and not long after he entered the palace, Zhu Di died.
Just ten months later, Zhu Gaochi, who had served as a prisoner for more than 20 years, also died of illness. In 1425, Zhu Zhanji succeeded to the throne as Ming Xuanzong. And Wang Zhen was appreciated by Zhu Zhanji because he was good at observing words and feelings, and he was soon appointed as the director of the East Palace, serving the crown prince Zhu Qizhen, who later became Ming Yingzong.
The opportunity of history made Wang Zhen move towards the ideal of his career, and the imperial power of the Ming Dynasty provided him with a hotbed of arbitrary power. At first, Zhu Yuanzhang, the Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, imposed strict restrictions on eunuchs, making the control of eunuchs very strict in the early Ming Dynasty.
However, by the time of Ming Chengzu Zhu Di, the situation changed. In the process of seizing the country, Zhu Di bought a large number of eunuchs around Zhu Yunwen, so that the eunuchs played a big role in it.
Therefore, after Zhu Di succeeded to the throne, he began to promote and appoint eunuchs, and the status of eunuchs gradually improved.
Although the great navigator Zheng He was a eunuch, he performed well in the Battle of Jingyan and received the important task of seven voyages to the West. During the reign of Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji, an inner study hall was set up in the palace, and smart and clever little eunuchs were selected to learn to read and write, breaking Zhu Yuanzhang's ban.
With the passage of time, the eunuchs began to participate in the government, and the eunuchs with palm seals and eunuchs with the pen became the highest power among the eunuchs. Wang Zhen was elected to the prince's side during the period when the eunuch power was rising, and he went all out to please the prince and seriously taught the prince to read and write, and the two had a close relationship.
Later, nine-year-old Zhu Qizhen succeeded to the throne as Ming Yingzong, and Wang Zhen was promoted to the eunuch of the seal of the celebrant because he was deeply loved and trusted by the emperor.
When the system of voting and approving red has matured, the cabinet will submit the emperor's opinion to the court after the vote is drafted, and the eunuch with the palm print of the celebrant will write the emperor's opinion on the chapter with a red pen, called "approving the red", and finally the cabinet will formulate and issue the edict.
The celebrant actually became the emperor's spokesman. However, Yingzong gave this important position to Wang Zhen, and due to his young age, he had little contact with the outside world.
This paved the way for Wang Zhen to take power in the future, but now he faces two of the biggest obstacles. Wang Zhen wanted to break through the restrictions of the "Three Yangs" cabinet and the Empress Dowager Zhang.
Although Zhu Qizhen became the emperor, he was too young to handle state affairs personally, so his grandmother, the Empress Dowager Zhang (Chengxiao Zhang Empress), was in charge.
As a veteran of Zhu Qizhen's succession to the throne, "Sanyang" has experienced the three dynasties of Zhu Di, Zhu Gaochi, and Zhu Zhanji, and his protégés and former officials are all over the government and the opposition, and his strength is strong. This makes it not easy for Wang Zhen to take power.
Under their rule, the Ming Dynasty had stable borders, clear politics, prosperous economy, and growing national strength. In particular, Yang Shiqi, the chief cabinet minister, has gone through the ups and downs of the Huan Sea, from the Battle of Jingjing to the struggle for the throne, and has always been the core figure of the civil official group.
Empress Dowager Zhang is even more powerful, not only the Yuan match of Ming Renzong, but also the mother of Ming Xuanzong. During her reign, she was well versed in government affairs, vigorously assisted Zhu Gaochi in handling government affairs, and made great contributions to the prosperity and stability of the Ming Dynasty.
After Empress Dowager Zhang became the Empress Dowager, she often had the right to decide on military affairs. Although she participated in government affairs, she always adhered to the principle of integrity and resolutely did not allow her family and relatives to participate in political affairs.
After Zhu Zhanji succeeded to the throne, Zhang's authority was further enhanced, and she was canonized as the empress dowager. At the request of the "Three Yangs" and the ministers of the imperial court, Empress Dowager Zhang began to listen to the government and became the most powerful figure in the early days of Zhu Qizhen.
At this time, Wang Zhen had become a palm seal eunuch, but he was facing great pressure, because there were wolves in front and tigers in the back. In front of "Sanyang", he always greeted him with a smile, bowed his waist, and showed humility and respect.
Although Zhu Zhanji's team of ministers is strong, they have an Achilles' heel, that is, the age structure is too old. Yang Shiqi is 70 years old, and Yang Rong and Yang Pu have long passed the age of sixties.
Therefore, Wang Zhen has enough time to wait for the opportunity.
Empress Dowager Zhang saw through Wang Zhen's ambitions, and one day, she sat down in the palace, and Yingzong stood facing the west, summoning the British Duke Zhang Fu and Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, Yang Pu and other old ministers.
After Zhang encouraged the ministers to assist the emperor, he sent someone to call Wang Zhen. When Wang Zhen knelt down, Zhang's face suddenly became serious, and he scolded sharply: "You did not follow the rules when serving the emperor, and you should be punished with capital punishment!" ”
The female officials next to him immediately put the knife on Wang Zhen's neck, which made Wang Zhen tremble. This move frightened Yingzong and several ministers, who all knelt down to intercede for Wang Zhen, and Zhang forgave him, but warned him: "People like you have often misled the country and the people since ancient times, and the emperor is still young and does not know the stakes."
Now because the emperor and the ministers intercede for you, they will spare you once. If you commit it again in the future, you will be severely punished. From then on, Zhang often sent people to the cabinet to inquire about political affairs, and once he found that Wang Zhen had made a decision that was arbitrary but not discussed with the cabinet, he immediately sent someone to summon Wang Zhen to rebuke him.
Therefore, during Zhang's lifetime, Wang Zhen was unable to truly control the government. Wang Zhen had no choice but to stop on the road of intervening in the government, adopt a strategy of yielding and seeking justice, waiting for an opportunity and adjusting his strategy.
In the middle of the Ming Dynasty, Wang Zhen gradually expanded his power by currying favor with the emperor, making friends with courtiers, and cultivating private parties. His influence was manifested in 1441, and the court's pilgrimage to him showed his great power.
Then, through ingenious means, he successfully attacked Yang Shiqi and others, further consolidating his position. In the end, he succeeded in removing the iron card that forbade eunuchs from interfering in political affairs and began his path to autocratic power.
Wang Zhen, once a poor Xiucai, relied on his own efforts to build a luxurious mansion for himself, and finally realized his dream of being a great minister and becoming popular.
However, after taking power, Wang Zhen's greedy nature was gradually revealed, and he used his power to form cliques for personal gain, vigorously promoting those who were sloppy and flattering, while brutally suppressing those who opposed him and disrespected him.
In addition, he also wantonly *** According to records, after Wang Zhen's death, his family property was confiscated, only gold and silver have more than 60 warehouses, more than 100 jade plates, more than 20 coral trees six or seven feet high, and countless other treasures.
All this speaks volumes about the depth of his ***. In 1449, Wang Zhen instigated Zhu Qizhen to personally conquer Wara, but he was defeated in Tumubao, known as the Tumubao Change, and Wang Zhen himself was beaten to death by the guard general Fan Zhong with an iron cone, which was his retribution for many evils.
Although Wang Zhen's death marked a short-lived victory in the Ming Dynasty's ** system, the Ming Dynasty's ** system was destined to continue to exist, and the mutual consumption of the civil and eunuch groups would only lead to the decline of the Ming Dynasty.