The legal retirement age for state civil servants on the mainland is 60 for men and 55 for women. But in ancient times, there was no way to retire at the age of 60 when an official was an official, so what was the ancient retirement system like, and how much money could you get?
As early as the pre-Qin era, the retirement age of officials was set at 70 years old, but due to frequent wars and imperfect systems at this time, it was difficult for officials to have clear retirement standards.
It was not until the Two Han Dynasty that the retirement system was formally established, and two conditions were met to retire, first, to reach the age of 70. Second, more than 2,000 stone, that is, only high-ranking officials at the provincial and ministerial levels have pensions after retirement, how much is there? 1/3 of the original collar. The emperor will also reward you with gold, housing and other property to ensure that you have food and clothing. In addition, he would attend the pilgrimage every year, and the emperor would give another reward as a sign of grace. And low-level officials don't have a penny, and even if you reach the mayor level, you can only go home to farm and teach after retirement. Some officials were so good that the emperor was reluctant to let them go, so they would still participate in imperial politics after retirement, playing the role of advisers, with no actual power, but the right to advise. During the reign of Emperor Jing of Han, there was an official named Mei Cheng who retired due to illness, and Emperor Wudi of Han had heard of his name as early as when he was crown prince, and when he took the throne, he sent a car to pick him up. But the old man was old, could not withstand the toss, did not come up in one breath, and died on the road.
In the Tang Dynasty, the rule of retirement at the age of 70 was still followed, but the scope was extended to all officials, all of whom had to retire, and those above the fifth grade were reported to the emperor, those below the sixth grade did not need to play, and the pension was half of the salary. The later the Tang Dynasty, the better the treatment. During Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, even if you were demoted from governor to mayor, the salary you received when you retired was also taken as the governor of the province, and if you did not have a car or horse when you returned to your hometown, you could also use the official car of the imperial court. The most interesting phenomenon of the Tang Dynasty is that when you are an official, you also have to look at the face, an important criterion for hiring officials is physical appearance, if you are not at retirement age, but you are too anxious to grow up, old too fast, then sorry you roll up and leave, can't let you affect my Tang temperament. What's even more interesting. The emperor also gave cosmetics to the ministers every year, just to let the officials take good care, such as purple snow, red snow, etc., all of which were big brands at that time, just like the company's year-end bonus, giving you Estée Lauder and fairy water.
In the Song Dynasty, it was a good thing to heaven, and the whole country adhered to the principle that no matter how poor you can not be poor officials, at the beginning, after retirement, they still took half of their salary, but by the time of Song Shenzong, officials with excellent performance could get all salaries, and those with ordinary performance could get half of their salaries, and let their descendants inherit official positions, Song Dynasty officials are iron rice bowls, so the Song Dynasty people, like people now, desperately have to test for civil servants, and die in the system.
In the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang came on stage and said that this is not. No, you still want to eat me and drink me for the rest of your life? With a wave of the hand, the retirement age was changed to 60 years old, and the pension was all abolished, and the typical non-work was unpaid. Zhu Yuanzhang can be said to be the most critical emperor in history, but it is not a matter of being so harsh, and he can't let the officials below starve to death. Therefore, Zhu Di, the ancestor of the Ming Dynasty, changed the retirement age to 70 years old and gave some land, housing and other rewards. In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, a system of allocating rice was formed, and the state gave rice grain to officials at the level of Shangshu and above. This is a special favor that only a few people have, so retired officials of the Ming Dynasty have no mercy.
The retirement age of the Qing Dynasty was relatively early, and Qianlong retired at the age of 55 in 22. Qianlong retired at the age of 65 in 33, and by the Jiaqing period, it was stipulated that he would be 70 years old. In the late Qing Dynasty, the retirement age of officials was even more delayed. As for the pension, it is also based on the merit appraisal during the term of office to decide whether to receive a full salary or a half-salary. However, because the salaries of officials in the Qing Dynasty were composed of Li Lu and Yang Lian Yin, Yang Lian Yin was the big head, and it was not allowed to pay serious Li Lu after retirement, and it was pitiful, so everyone was worried that there was no guarantee after retirement, and the greed that should be greedy during the term of office and what could be fished also led to corruption in the officialdom. The treatment of ancient officials after retirement is not the same, but the pension life is not bad, either reading books and poetry, writing books, or drinking to feasts, enjoying the joy of nature, and indulging in the teachings of Buddha and Lao and exploring the way of health preservation.
Speaking of which, I have to say, why don't officials stay in the capital after retirement, and have to return to their hometowns? If you don't wait for a good first-tier city, you have to run to the third- and fourth-tier cities. In fact, there is a very important reason to stay away from political struggles. People in the rivers and lakes, unable to help themselves, will always offend some people and leave behind many political enemies. So many ministers chose to retire and stay away from the capital, how do you fight? As for me, I just want to live out my old age. For example, after helping to destroy the Wu Kingdom, Fan Li, the husband of the Western Division, in order to avoid staying in the dynasty, he bravely retreated, returned to the rivers and lakes, and lived his good life. The deeper reason is that Chinese the idea of returning to the roots of fallen leaves in his bones, no matter how long he stays elsewhere, he will not be able to compare with his hometown. Spending your old age in the company of familiar relatives and friends is also a blessing in life.
The times are developing, although today's retirement system is more perfect than in ancient times, after the retirement of national civil servants, their basic political treatment remains unchanged, job salary, grade salary is paid according to a certain proportion, basic salary, tool salary are paid according to 100% of the original salary, and there are more medical, disability, housing, funeral and other insurance benefits, which is also the reason why many people have to compete for those places. Now people have more choices for the elderly, but the idea of returning to the roots of fallen leaves is still an obsession in Chinese bones, and it is also a key factor for many people to consider when providing for the elderly.