NovelsAlex Chapter 1107: Changing Customs
Chapter 1107: Changing Customs
Chapter 1107: Changing Customs
"The legal system comes from the people..." Old Zhu tapped his knees with his fingers.
To be honest, this approach is actually very easy to be accepted by literati and Confucian scholars. The fundamental contradiction between Confucianism and the imperial system is the distribution of power.
Confucianism hopes to separate the imperial power from the emperor and achieve the goal of "the emperor and the literati ruling the world together". But how can they legitimately "share the world" with the emperor?
The Confucian scholars' method was to promote Confucianism as the discipline for governing the world and to package Confucian scholars as spokespersons for "public opinion". Court officials then fought for power in the court under the banner of "public opinion".
What Zhu Su proposed was to recognize the supremacy of public opinion at the legal level. On the surface, it gave Confucianism a better weapon, and Confucian scholars would naturally be willing to accept it.
"If we do this, it will be even more difficult for the emperor to control his officials," said Old Zhu.
"Yes. That's why we need to enlighten the people and let them represent their own will, so as to completely strip the halo of public opinion from officials." Zhu Su said.
"Officials can only be public tools, used to hold the power granted by the emperor. All power comes from the emperor, and the source of the power granted by the emperor is to teach them to govern the people well and comply with the destiny of making the people live and work in peace and contentment."
"So, failing to govern the people is the officials' fault and has nothing to do with the emperor?" Old Zhu raised his eyebrows.
"I never said that." Zhu Su said.
Old Zhu tapped his knee again and fell into deep thought. Taking public opinion away from officials and giving it to the emperor might indeed be a good idea.
Not only can it force the emperor to remember the will of the people, it can also make it impossible for these officials to legally control the emperor...as long as the halo of public opinion can be stripped away from the scholars.
"This is not something that can be accomplished overnight... You can do it, but if you want to completely change the legal system of the world, I'm afraid it will take many years." Old Zhu said.
"You and Song Lian, you should compile the things that need to be taught to the world as soon as possible, and then send them to us for review..." said Old Zhu. He thought of the factories, farms and other things he had seen along the way.
"In my lifetime, I have done a lot of good things to strengthen and enrich the people. If the people can accept the favor of my Zhu family, the world will be stable."
"That's exactly the truth!" Zhu Su clapped his hands and laughed, "Once the people are enlightened, they will know that officials are public tools. Then, as long as my Zhu family does not do anything to harm the people, the world will naturally be as stable as Mount Tai."
In fact, there is one thing that Zhu Su did not say to Old Zhu. If the Ming Dynasty successfully changes its legal system, everyone will get used to the fact that power comes from the emperor, and what the emperor does is in line with the will of the people... Then, as long as it is not invaded and destroyed by foreign enemies, even if the domestic situation is more serious, the emperor can guarantee the survival of the Ming Dynasty by giving up power.
All power was given to the Prime Minister, ruling without governing. Although power came from the emperor, it was the Prime Minister who actually exercised power...
This kind of constitutional monarchy-like political system might be the only one that can truly guarantee the long-term prosperity of the Zhu family...but this matter could not be explained to Old Zhu no matter what.
Zhu Su was also excited when Old Zhu agreed to reorganize the legal system for the Ming Dynasty. Although changing the legal system is not a matter of overnight, it must go hand in hand with enlightening the people.
But if the Ming Dynasty could change its legal system, it would mean that China would once again be a big step ahead of the rest of the world in terms of political system. And being ahead in the political system often meant that the entire country and nation had enough enterprising energy.
This vitality should be enough to enable China to avoid the tragedies of modern times and enable the Chinese nation to continue to prosper for a longer time.
"Your Majesty actually agreed?" Song Lian, with gray hair and beard, was writing a textbook suitable for enlightening the people in the rented courtyard. Suddenly learning that Zhu Su had already explained the "reform" to Zhu and even got Zhu's approval, the respected old man was so surprised that he overturned the inkstone on the table.
He never expected that this proposal, which was almost like "putting the shackles of public opinion on the imperial power", would actually be approved by Zhu Yuanzhang.
"Father Emperor has the people in his heart. And the emperors of the Ming Dynasty should also have the people in their hearts."
"Instead of asking the emperor to revere the illusory 'sky', it is better for the emperor to bow down and revere the people. This will ensure long-term stability in the Ming Dynasty... He can still distinguish the truth in this."
"Great, great." Song Lian was so excited that he didn't even care about the overturned inkstone. Even the wrinkles on his face smoothed out a lot.
"I have read the teachings of ancient sages for many years. It was not until my old age that I learned the new way of learning because of your advice, Your Highness."
"The new learning is based on facts and is all-encompassing. Even though I have written many articles, I still feel that I cannot finish describing the mysteries in it... But sometimes, after thinking about it, I feel that this vast knowledge cannot escape the word 'people-oriented'."
"But everything in this world always runs counter to the idea of people-centeredness..."
"Today, Your Majesty is willing to integrate the words 'people-oriented' into our Chinese legal system. Only then can our new school be considered to be truly prosperous!"
As he said this, he looked up to the sky and laughed, with tears in his smile.
"Master Song, please take good care of your health..." Zhu Su advised.
"What this legal system will look like depends on how we enlighten the people."
"As for the matter of enlightening the people, it still needs your supervision, Master Song, so that others will not go astray."
"Indeed, indeed!" Song Lian stroked his beard and nodded, "If the matter of compiling textbooks to enlighten the people is handed over to other people, I really can't rest assured!"
"Now, I only hate that the day is too short. I wish I could hang a long rope in the sky to tie the sun flying westward!"
Song Lian smiled, and this time his smile was filled with confidence.
After learning that Zhu Yuanzhang agreed to change the legal system, Song Lian put more energy into compiling textbooks to enlighten the people and make them understand the great cause of the people-oriented legal system. At the same time, Zhu Yuanzhang and his entourage also began to leave Xi'an and head east.
Xi'an, which is too industrialized, is not suitable to be the capital, and the same is true for many other northern cities. For example, Taiyuan and other places, because the people's livelihood was already in decline, and it is not suitable to fully develop farming in the north, so they all mainly develop in a way that industry and agriculture complement each other.
These cities, like Xi'an, are not suitable to be the capital. Therefore, after leaving Xi'an, the group simply stopped in other cities for a while and focused on heading to Shuntian.
As the new capital of Ming Dynasty in history, Zhu Yuanzhang actually treated Shuntian differently, hoping that it would be the new capital of Ming Dynasty.
When the group slowly arrived in Shuntian with the attitude of sightseeing, a group of officials going to the north, led by Liu Sanwu, also came to Shuntian Prefecture.
"Your old minister Liu Sanwu pays homage to His Majesty the Supreme Emperor and all the princes. May your majesty be blessed with good health..." In the royal palace of Shuntian Prefecture, Liu Sanwu paid homage to Lao Zhu, Zhu Su and others who had arrived here earlier.
Shuntianfu was the capital of the Yuan Dynasty, and Shuntianfu Palace was the imperial city of the Northern Yuan Dynasty. Except for the time when Zhu Di and Xu Da were stationed here together and Zhu Di lived there for a while during the battle against the Northern Yuan Dynasty, this imperial city was sealed most of the time.
However, the Yuan Dynasty spent a lot of effort to build the capital city, and the successive Yuan rulers were also extravagant and licentious, and they invested heavily in the imperial city. Therefore, although this imperial city of the Yuan Dynasty is old, it is not in disrepair and still has a bit of imperial atmosphere.
The place where Liu Sanwu and others were received was a side hall of the main hall of the Yuan Imperial City, which was similar to the Jinshen Hall in Yingtian Prefecture. Receiving ministers here made it seem as if Zhu Yuanzhang was still in charge of the world in Nanjing.
Seeing that Liu Sanwu and his companions had darkened their complexions, Old Zhu was also shocked and asked, "Mr. Liu, how did you become like this after all this journey?"
"He doesn't look like a scholar. He looks more like he's been farming in the fields... Could he have met with an accident?"
Behind Liu Sanwu, the officials heading north looked miserable, as if they had all suffered great injustice and were about to cry. On the contrary, Liu Sanwu had a righteous look on his face and said to Zhu Fu: "Report to the Emperor."
"I believe that we are traveling north to promote education and enlighten the people... I also heard that the north is in decline and the people are suffering."
"Since we are here to promote education, we should understand the sufferings of the people. How can we live a life of luxury?"
"In this case, I suggest that all my colleagues carry their book boxes on their backs as they travel. Along the way, they can experience the people's livelihood in the north and recall the hardships of studying in the past."
"I only hope that I can endure hardships and toil my muscles and bones, so as to temper my character and do a good job in enlightening the people."
"Oh?" Old Zhu raised his eyebrows, quite surprised. "We heard that you were in the capital, bringing people to prevent the boss from opening the special examination. I thought you were against this policy of enlightening the people."
"I never thought that I would have such an awareness?"
When Liu Sanwu was reminded of what he had done in the capital, he looked somewhat sad and said, "Before, I was stubborn and misjudged the world. But now I have repented."
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will do my best to run the school well, hoping to atone for my sins..."
Old Zhu smiled but said nothing. He knew why Liu Sanwu changed so completely. The fundamental reason was that his reputation was damaged. In order not to leave a bad name for eternity, he changed his attitude so drastically.
What these scholars pursue is a posthumous reputation... If he, Liu Sanwu, could become famous for opposing the emperor as in history, he would never change his attitude even if he was exiled or even beheaded!
Reputation is the most effective weapon to control these old stubborn people.
But the old man was already in his sixties, and at this age he was still carrying a book box all the way north, and was tanned like an old farmer, which was enough to prove his sincerity in repentance. There was no need to continue to toss and turn to establish authority.
So Old Zhu asked Liu Sanwu about what he had seen and heard along the way.
Liu Sanwu had come all this way just to redeem his reputation. As for how to redeem his reputation, he knew it clearly in his mind, that is, to fully support the "enlightenment of the people" to show that he had turned back from his mistakes.
He was a great scholar in the past, and this time he was forced to go north. Although it was nominally similar to exile, he really kept Xia Yuanji's advice in his heart and wanted to make a name for himself by "enlightening the people."
Therefore, along the way, he tried his best to understand the people's sentiments, aiming to find more basis for enlightening them.
"Your Majesty, I have indeed discovered a big problem since I traveled north from Yingtian."
"The Yuan court has been wreaking havoc for a hundred years. The severity of the collapse of Chinese rituals and music is shocking."
"During this journey, I have witnessed dozens of cases of corrupt customs."
"Among them, there are many cases of kidnapping, marriage fraud, and plundering the whole family, and the list is too numerous to mention."
"The people's morals are so corrupt, it's really... really a cause for regret!" said Liu Sanwu.
"Well, we also witnessed this incident ourselves." Old Zhu said, with a worried look on his face.
It has been more than 30 years since the Ming Dynasty came to power. Although many of its policies were pioneering, the Ming Dynasty was also thriving overall.
But in some dark places, there are still a lot of bad folk customs among the people, especially in the north which is much colder than the south of the Yangtze River.
Some of these gossips in the society used various names to play tricks and oppress the people. This had become a common practice. During his northern tour, Zhu had dealt with many such cases, and in recent years, he had issued many decrees to rectify such incidents.
However, the perpetrators of such cases usually hide among the people, and are extremely secretive while swindling people. Even the foolish men and women who are oppressed by them will protect these people due to various reasons such as clan persecution, fear of gods, and being deceived by them.
"This bunch of folk parasites, defrauding money, buying and selling people... It can be said that it has existed since ancient times and is a stubborn disease in the countryside. The imperial court has always been reluctant to intervene in order to avoid causing trouble. Therefore, among the people, stealing and robbing are both serious crimes. However, fraud and money are often attributed to the victim's carelessness. If you are deceived, you deserve it and can only admit that you have bad luck. Because of this, people often commit suicide in the folk. I have heard that some old people committed suicide by taking brine after being deceived. There are also countless people who hang themselves from the beams, jump into the river, or look for wells. I get angry when I think of it. I really wish I could kill all these shameless beasts!"
"Since Mr. Liu has also mentioned this matter, do you have any insightful ideas?" Old Zhu said.
"Your Majesty," Liu Sanwu said, "These gossipy women are black sheep. What they do is not wise. They just rely on the people's ignorance of the world to do those swindling things."
"I think that if we want to enlighten the people, we can't just sit in the school and wait for students to come to us. Instead, we should take our disciples to the countryside to understand the people's sentiments and spread education."
"Only in this way can it be called 'enlightening the people's wisdom'. What do you think, Your Majesty?"
(End of this chapter)