Wanli Emperor Zhu Yijun (Part 2)

In the spring of the forty-first year of the Wanli Dynasty (1613 AD), the Wanli Emperor ordered Zhang Wudian, the inspector of Liaodong, to send a message to the king of Korea, ordering him to recruit soldiers himself, step up training, and build ordnance and warships in order to be practical. In May, the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Officials of the Imperial Household said: "Over the years, the discussion has been confused, the imperial court has not asked questions, and it has been used in vain to make false remarks, causing the ministers to be suspicious and fearful, and they all want to go, and even hurt the national body." Since now, there are still those who have formed parties and disorderly governments, and they are not guilty of sin. It can be seen that in the late Wanli period, the courtiers formed parties for personal gain and attacked each other, resulting in many people resigning from office. The Wanli Emperor had a clear understanding of this, so he admonished the officials to stop attacking each other. In September, the official Shangshu Zhao Huan left his post.

In the spring of that year, the courtiers successively asked the Wanli Emperor to let King Fu return to his fiefdom, and the Wanli Emperor announced that the departure time of King Fu would be changed to next year. Soon, the Wanli Emperor suddenly sent a message that if King Fu's zhuangtian did not reach 40,000 hectares, he would not be in the domain, and the imperial court was in an uproar. Shoufu Ye said to Gao Jin: "The demand for 40,000 acres of land cannot be met, and the return of the Fu King to the fiefdom is far away, so will His Majesty's holy will not be dishonest to the world?" This contradicts the ancestral system, the king of the clan did not return to the fiefdom for a long time, and this incident only happened during the Jiajing period. At that time, King Jing did not go to the fiefdom for a long time, and your father, King Yu, could not be stable, so how could he follow suit? ”

In the first month of the 42nd year of the Wanli Calendar (1614 AD), the chief military officer Liu Ling quelled the rebellion of Jianchang (present-day Huludao, Liaoning). In February, Wanli Emperor's biological mother, Empress Dowager Cisheng, died. In March, Zhu Changxun, the Fu King, who was favored by Wanli, finally took the throne and had a fief in Luoyang, Henan. The dark clouds of the "battle over the origin of the country" have finally dissipated! In April, Empress Dowager Cisheng left her to pardon the world. In August, Ye Xianggao Zhishi. Thirty-six years after the Wanli Calendar, Ye Xianggao single-handedly supported the cabinet for seven years, known as the "Sole Minister". However, this time, Ye Xianggao did not really withdraw from the stage of history, and soon after he was activated again, but it was already the first year of the Apocalypse seven years later.

In this year, the Wanli Emperor sent officials to Changzhou, Shen Shixing's hometown, to offer condolences, and the edict arrived at the gate of ShenFu, and Shen Shixing had passed away.

In May of the forty-third year of the Wanli Calendar (1615 AD), one of the three most suspicious cases at the end of the Ming Dynasty, the "Strike Case", occurred.

At dusk on the fourth day of the first month of May, a man, armed with a wooden stick, broke into the Ciqing Palace where the crown prince Zhu Changluo lived, intending to assassinate the prince and injure the eunuch who guarded the gate. In broad daylight, stabbing in the palace with a wooden stick sounds strange in itself. The Wanli Emperor immediately ordered someone to interrogate him, and the man's name was Zhang Cha, and his behavior was sometimes crazy and sometimes sober. As the interrogation progressed, a shocking conspiracy was involved, and finally two low-ranking eunuchs in the palace of King Fu's biological mother, Zheng Guifei. This matter was more and more pointed at King Fu and Concubine Zheng Guifei, and public opinion was fierce for a while. Zheng Guifei cried to the emperor, saying that she had been wronged, and the Wanli Emperor also felt that he could not protect her, so he ordered Zheng Guifei to explain to the crown prince Zhu Changluo. The prince's attitude is very enlightened, of course, it may be that there is no choice, and it is recommended that the case end with Zhang Cha. The Wanli Emperor was very satisfied with the prince's statement. In the end, Zhang Cha was executed for the crime of madness and adultery, but the eunuchs in the palace of Zheng Guifei involved in the case were not implicated. Before his death, Zhang Cha once said: "Conspiring to do things, failing things, pushing me to death alone, and many officials did not ask about it." The "attack case" is full of too many doubts, one theory is that Zheng Guifei's faction is desperate to make King Fu ascend to the throne of the crown prince, and the other is that the crown prince Zhu Changluo directed his own bitter meat plan. In any case, after this suspicious case, Zheng Guifei's power was weakened, and the position of the crown prince Zhu Changluo began to become stable.

In March of the forty-fourth year of the Wanli Calendar (1616 AD), the solar eclipse. Great famines occurred in Beijing, Shandong, Henan, Huai, and Xu, and the imperial court gave relief and land allowances respectively. In June, the Xiangfu section of the Yellow River (Kaifeng, Henan) broke its banks, flooding several prefectures and counties. In July, the leader of the Hetao tribe, Ji Neng, led an army to attack Gaojiabao, and the general Wang Guoxing was defeated. In the same month, there was a great drought in Shaanxi; floods occurred in Jiangxi and Guangdong; locust plagues occurred in Henan, Huai, Yang, Chang, and Zhen; and thieves in Shandong rose up. In November, a fire broke out in lund Hall.

In the first month of this year, the fifty-eight-year-old Nurhaci took the throne of the Great Khan in Hetuala (present-day Xinbinxi Old City, Liaoning), the first year of the Founding Yuan Mandate of Heaven, the national name Dajin, known in history as Houjin.

In February of the forty-fifth year of the Wanli Calendar (1617 AD), there was no rain, and the edict ordered the subjects to introspect themselves. In May, after a long drought and no rain, the Wanli Emperor ordered his subjects to cultivate themselves and reflect. In June, there was a famine in The Capital Division, and the local officials requested relief, but they did not receive a timely reply.

In March of the forty-sixth year of the Wanli Calendar (1618 AD), Houjin Nurhaci sent an army to attack the Ming army. Before leaving, Nurhaci wrote the "Seven Great Hates" to the heavens. On April 15, Houjin bubu and cavalry besieged Fushun City, the Ming army guerrilla Li Yongfang surrendered, the king of the defending city qianzong ordered Yin to die in battle, Fushun was occupied by The Later Jin soldiers, the whole city fell, and the Later Jin soldiers drove all the residents of the city to Quang Ninh City. On the 21st of the same month, Zhang Chengyin, commander-in-chief of the Ming army's Guangning Army, led the deputy general Po Tingxiang, the staff general Pu Shifang, and the guerrilla Liang Rugui to aid Fushun. After the Jin soldiers took advantage of the victory to fight, Zhang Chengyin and Pu Shifangli were killed in battle, and After Po Tingxiang and Liang Rugui broke through, they saw the lost general and fought and died. More than 10,000 Ming soldiers died, and none of them survived. The news reached Beijing, and the people were shocked. In July, Hou jin entered southwest of Hetuala (present-day Xinbinxi Old City, Liaoning) and besieged qinghebao city (present-day Benxi, Liaoning), and the Ming army was defeated and the city fell. The strategic position of the Qinghe River is very important, located among the four mountains, east of Kuandian (north of the present-day Yalu River, above Dandong), south of ài) Yang (northeast of present-day Fengcheng, Liaoning), and north of Shenyang. Once the Qinghe River was lost, Liaodong lost its barrier. When the Later Jin army besieged the city of Qinghe Fort, the Wanli Emperor ordered the dispatch of troops from Shanhaiguan, Baoding, Tieling, Datong, Guangning, and Kaiyuan to help, and specially gave Liaodong a sword to Yang Hao shangfang, which could behead the general officers or subordinates.

In September, the Liao garrison lacked food and salaries, and officials asked for the allocation of provincial taxes and silver, but did not receive a timely reply. In the same month, the world was sent to the field.

In February of the forty-seventh year of the Wanli Calendar (1619 AD), Yang Hao swore an oath in Liaoyang, but due to heavy snow and getting lost, the armies could not part ways to attack Houjin according to the original date, and the secrets of the army had been leaked. Nurhaci received the news, and the camera waited, ready to meet the attack of the Ming army. On the first day of March, Du Song, the commander-in-chief of the Ming Army's West Road, wanted to win the first prize, and first led his army across the Hun River (a tributary of the Liao River), lianke two small villages, and then took advantage of the situation to venture into the mouth of the Salhun Valley on the south bank of the Hun River. Nurhaci heard the news and ambushed Taniguchi with his elite cavalry. When the Juniper army was more than halfway into the valley, the Houjin ambush suddenly rose, the Ming army suffered serious losses, and after three days of fierce fighting, the entire juniper army was defeated and Juniper was killed. Immediately afterward, Hou Jin quickly returned to the division to attack the Ming Army's North Road Malin I Army. When Marin learned of The Juniper's defeat and attempted to form a camp to consolidate himself, The Jin gathered his troops to attack hard, and on the second day of March, Marin was defeated again. At this time, both the western and northern roads of Liaodong passed through Yang Hao were defeated, and Liu Ling (tīng, the silk ribbon on the ancient peiyu) and Li Rubai on the south road immediately stopped advancing. Li Rubai was ordered to return to his division. Liu Ling's army had penetrated three hundred miles deep, and the Ming army continued to fight heroically, and Houjin could not be broken. Nurhaci then used a ruse to instruct the Ming army to descend with a juniper arrow, falsely claiming that the juniper army had won, and luring Liu Ling's army to go straight forward, and finally causing it to be attacked by Hou Jin. On the seventh day of march, Liu Lingli was killed in battle and the entire army was destroyed. Only Li Rubai's army was able to withdraw. The war lasted only five days, the Ming army lost three roads, the civilian and military generals died more than 300 people, 90,000 soldiers (one said more than 45,000 people), 40,000 horses, and countless ordnance. When the news of the defeat of the Ming army reached Beijing, there was a shock inside and outside the imperial court. Some people impeached Yang Ho and Li Rubai, but the Wanli Emperor did not allow it. Li Rubai committed suicide. The Battle of Salhu was a crucial battle between the Ming Dynasty and the Later Jin Dynasty, which ended with the defeat of the Ming army and the complete victory of the Later Jin. Since then, the situation in Liaodong has undergone a fundamental change, and Houjin has shifted from defense to offense, laying the foundation for its subsequent entry.

In June, Nurhaci personally commanded 40,000 troops (another 10,000 people, another said 60,000 people) to attack the important town of Kaiyuan in Liaodong Province. Ma Lin, the commander-in-chief of the Ming army, did not learn the lesson of the defeat in the Battle of Salhu, did not know how to gather troops to defend the city, the soldiers were all outside the four gates, the city was empty and defenseless, after hearing that the Jin soldiers arrived at the city, hurriedly responded to the battle, and immediately collapsed. On June 16, the Houjin army occupied Kaiyuan, and a group of generals such as ma Lin and deputy general Hualong were killed in battle, and the soldiers suffered heavy casualties. At that time, the Ming army's Tieling Wei sent 3,000 people to help, and they were also defeated by the Houjin soldiers. By 25 July, Tieling had also been captured by Nurhaci.

In September, the courtiers knelt down the steps of the palace and asked the Wanli Emperor to handle political affairs, but received no reply.

In April of the forty-eighth year of the Wanli Calendar (1620 AD), Empress Wang died. In the same month, Wanli Emperor fell ill. In July, Wan Li was seriously ill and summoned the British gong Zhang Weixian at the Hongde Hall, the university scholar Fang Congzhe, The Shang Shu Zhou Jiamu, Li Ruhua, Huang Jiashan, Zhang Wenta, Huang Keyi, and the attendant Sun Ruyou, and encouraged the ministers to be diligent in their duties. On July 21, the Wanli Emperor died at the age of fifty-eight. The edict ceased all mineral taxes and the addition of weaving. In September, he added the honorific title Fan Tianhe Dao Zhe Su Dun Jian Guang Article Wu An Ren Zhi Xiao Xian Emperor, temple number Shen Zong, buried in Dingling.

Throughout the life of the Wanli Emperor, the first ten years of his reign relied on the assistance of Zhang Juzheng to carry out a top-down, drastic reform of the empire, which not only profoundly affected the later direction of the Ming Empire, but also left valuable wealth for future generations. By the time of Zhang Juzheng's death, the imperial bureaucracy, finances, and military affairs had been renewed. When the Wanli Emperor was pro-government, he was once full of ambition, and then the restrictions in reality made him gradually understand that the emperor could not decide everything. When he found that he could not spoil his concubines according to his own preferences, nor could he pass the throne to his beloved son, his heart was full of frustration. Therefore, in the later stages of his reign, the Wanli Emperor used an attitude of non-cooperation to confront the courtiers who represented the moral standards of feudalism. During this period, the Wanli Emperor commanded three far-reaching battles, all of which were won, but the cost was high, and the pace of the empire became heavier and heavier. During the Wanli Emperor's confinement of the deep palace, the Jurchens rose rapidly, and the defeat at the Battle of Salhu caused the Ming Dynasty to lose almost all of its territory outside Shanhaiguan, and the defense portal in the north of the empire was opened. The Wanli Emperor would not have known that twenty-four years after his death, the Ming Empire would be in vain! It ends with the evaluation of Wanli in the History of Ming: "Therefore, the commentators say that the death of Ming is actually the death of the Divine Sect. ”

【Afterword】

When it comes to the Wanli Emperor, the first impression is his legendary experience of not going to the dynasty for nearly 30 years. So for Wanli, I've always been curious, what is the reason why he did this? Why can he still become the longest-reigning emperor of the Ming Dynasty even though he has not been in the ming dynasty for most of the time? So, I decided to study and explore his life in a different way. The best way to study a person is to look at what he does. The History of Ming and the Records of the Ming Dynasty are two very good books for understanding the Wanli Emperor, the former recording all the important events related to the Wanli Dynasty in detail according to the year, which is more convenient to read; the latter is relatively less readable and can be used as a verification comparison material. In addition to the "Benji Volume 20" and "Benji Volume 21" in the "History of Ming", the biographies of concubines, courtiers, and eunuchs are also a good supplement to the understanding of the Wanli Emperor. In addition, Mr. Huang Renyu's "Fifteen Years of wanli" is also a good book to understand the wanli emperor and the politics of the Ming Dynasty.

Wanli Emperor received systematic and rigorous training from an early age, which laid a very good foundation for his rule. In the first ten years after his succession, Wanli was still in the stage of learning and doing, and the important decisions of the country were decided by the cabinet headed by Zhang Juzheng. After Zhang Juzheng's death, the Wanli Emperor went to the front of history. The liquidation of Zhang Juzheng and his ally Feng Bao was basically more about establishing their own authority.

For some of the tests experienced by independent government, the Wanli Emperor also made his own response, and all three major marches were won. In particular, the war of entering the DPRK and resisting the Wokou was basically the best choice and result under the overall command and strategizing of Wanli alone, which may have been the best choice and result under the historical conditions at that time! Of course, the words "no report" can be seen everywhere in the "History of Ming", indicating that the Wanli Emperor often chose to directly ignore things that he did not approve of, which was quite fatal to the enthusiasm of the courtiers. In the later period of Wanli's reign, a large number of officials left their posts, and once only Ye Xianggao was the only one in the entire cabinet who struggled to support him. For money, the Wanli Emperor even grabbed wealth for himself by increasing the mining tax, and the eunuchs who served as mining supervisors everywhere did nothing wrong, resulting in many tragedies. With regard to the issue of Li Chu, the preference for the third son and neglect of the eldest son made the country unstable; the entire imperial court was caught up in a long-term debate and confrontation because of the selection of the crown prince, which greatly wasted administrative resources. Under long-term pressure, crown prince Zhu Changluo mysteriously passed away 29 days after succeeding to the throne, and the 16-year-old Emperor Tianqi took over the throne. The rise of the Jurchens also made the decline of the Wanli Dynasty quickly magnified. Even after the defeat at the Battle of Salhu, the Wanli Emperor still refused to ascend to the throne and allowed the empire to slide into the endless abyss. Therefore, the "History of Ming" believes that the demise of the Ming Dynasty began with the Wanli Calendar.

We often add assumptions to history in the hope that the bad endings will change. If the Wanli Emperor had established the crown prince very early and systematically disciplined the prince earlier, even if he did not go to the court for 30 years, would the prince not be so eager to indulge himself after succeeding to the throne? Thirty-nine-year-old Zhu Changluo, at least in terms of age, would he look more reliable than his sixteen-year-old son, who loves carpentry?

The reason why the Wanli Emperor had replied that his courtiers were not going to the court was because of a leg disease. More than 300 years later, the Dingling Tomb where the Wanli Emperor was buried was excavated, and the on-site personnel found that his right leg was curled up, and the left leg was obviously longer than the right leg. This may indeed be one of the reasons why he has not been in the dynasty for many years!

【Wanli Emperor Zhu Yijun (Part 2) End】