Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 336: Old Zhu is delighted to learn the truth about the demise of his dynasty, and sighs about the difficulties faced by future generations of China.

Looking at Zhu Yuanzhang's confident and inquiring gaze, Liu Kuan shook his head.

"Your Majesty, although the Qing Dynasty was plagued by frequent uprisings, and in the late Qing Dynasty, the Taiping Rebellion broke out and affected most of China, the Qing Dynasty did not fall due to uprisings."

Taiping Rebellion?

Didn’t the Qing Dynasty perish due to the people’s uprising?
Zhu Yuanzhang quickly grasped the two key messages in Liu Kuan's words.

Although he was also curious about the Taiping Rebellion, he felt it was not that relevant to the topic and could ask about it later, so he asked, "Then how did the Qing Dynasty fall?"

Liu Kuan said, "In fact, the demise of various dynasties was mostly due to the existence of huge and irreconcilable social contradictions."

"For example, the fall of the Han and Tang dynasties was mainly due to the over-concentration of land resources in the hands of a few people, which created a survival crisis for the vast majority of the lower classes, forcing them to rise up in rebellion, which in turn led to the decline of the dynasty."

"Later generations called this social contradiction a class contradiction, and the class contradiction in the Han and Tang dynasties was primarily the contradiction between the peasant class and the landlord class. The aristocratic families in the late Han Dynasty, the aristocratic families in the late Tang Dynasty, and even the officials and gentry in the late Ming Dynasty were all, in the final analysis, the landlord class."

"But the situation was different at the end of the Song Dynasty and the end of the Yuan Dynasty."

"The contradictions between the peasants and the landlord class within the Song Dynasty were always serious, and by the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, they had reached a point of eruption, leading to peasant uprisings such as Fang La in Jiangnan and Song Jiang in Shandong."

"But the Song Dynasty also faced pressure from foreign invaders like the Liao, Western Xia, and later the Jin and Mongols. The ethnic conflicts between the Han people and the Liao, Western Xia, Jin, and Mongols were even more intense, which made it difficult for the conflicts between the landlords and the peasant class in the Song Dynasty to erupt. Therefore, the Song Dynasty was ultimately destroyed by foreign invasions rather than peasant uprisings."

"As for society at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, class contradictions and ethnic contradictions were mixed together, namely the class contradictions between peasants and landlords, and the ethnic contradictions between Han and Mongolians."

"It was precisely because these two enormous social contradictions erupted simultaneously that the peasant uprising, led by the Red Turban Army, erupted with such ferocity at the end of the Yuan Dynasty that it overthrew the militarily powerful Yuan Dynasty."

After hearing this, whether it was Zhu Di, Zhu Biao, or Zhu Di, Zhu Su, Zhu Zhen, Zhu Tan, Zhu Xiongying and other princes and grandchildren who had stronger comprehension abilities, they all felt as if they had been enlightened.

I just felt that the truth about the rise and fall of dynasties in China over the past thousands of years was revealed before my eyes.

Old Zhu couldn't help but slap his thigh. "Liu Kuan, your analysis of the fall of the Han, Tang, Song, and Yuan dynasties is truly brilliant. It hits the nail on the head!"

"By the way, what about the late Ming Dynasty in history? What was the main social contradiction that led to the demise of the Ming Dynasty?"

Liu Kuan said, "According to later analysis, the main social contradiction that led to the demise of the Ming Dynasty was the class contradiction between peasants and landlords."

"First, Beijing was conquered by peasant armies in the late Ming Dynasty. Second, if the people were not suffering internally and peasant uprisings had not occurred repeatedly, which eventually became difficult to suppress and quell, the Jurchens outside the Great Wall would not have been able to take advantage of the situation and invade."

After hearing this answer, Zhu Yuanzhang narrowed his eyes slightly, tapped his fingers on the armrest of his chair and said, "The class contradiction between peasants and landlords...Okay, please continue to talk about the situation in the late Qing Dynasty."

In fact, Zhu Yuanzhang realized long ago through Liu Kuan's various descriptions of the middle and late Ming Dynasty and the end of the Ming Dynasty that landlords and gentry would be the main cause of the demise of the Ming Dynasty. Now he is just more certain of it.

In history, Zhu Yuanzhang consciously suppressed landlords and powerful people. Today's Zhu Yuanzhang will naturally pay more attention to suppressing the landlord class.

However, the Ming Dynasty has now entered a historical crossroads and has begun to develop science and technology, industry, and attach importance to the development of overseas territories. Therefore, it is hard to say how Zhu Yuanzhang will eventually treat the powerful and gentry in the country.

"Social contradictions were particularly numerous in the late Qing Dynasty, such as those between peasants and landlords; between workers and compradors and capitalists; and between China and the foreign powers."

"These contradictions were so prominent and huge at the time that the conflicts between the Han Chinese and the ruling minority groups, such as the Jurchens, and even other minority groups, became secondary."

Old Zhu, Zhu Biao and others were surprised again after hearing this.

They did not expect that there would be so many social contradictions in the late Qing Dynasty, nor did they expect that the ethnic conflicts within China would become secondary contradictions.

Liu Kuan continued, "The demise of the Qing Dynasty was the result of these huge social contradictions accumulating to a certain extent. However, if we talk about the military forces that destroyed the Qing Dynasty at that time, they were actually mainly divided into two sides."

"First, it was a life-and-death army based on the small and medium-sized landlords and national capitalists of the late Qing Dynasty, but actually composed mainly of advanced scholars, enlightened gentry, and people from the underworld, united with a small number of workers and peasants."

"The second is the Beiyang Army, which was based on traditional Han Chinese landlords and gentry and comprador capital, and was actually developed from Han Chinese militia in the late Qing Dynasty."

"At the time, the Qing army launched an uprising in southern provinces, followed by the First Northern Expedition. The Beiyang Army, led by Yuan Shikai, initially helped the Qing government resist, but then, under pressure from Western powers, the two sides chose not to fight to the death, but to unite to end Qing rule and usher in a new era for China."

"Unfortunately, a significant portion of the Beiyang Army's foundation overlaps with that of the Qing court, representing the remnants of the Qing court. Furthermore, the Yuming Army is also full of factions and a chaotic mix of forces."

"So after the Qing dynasty was overthrown, conflict first broke out between the Xinming Army and the Beiyang Army, which led to the Second Northern Expedition. The previous video mentioned that the predecessor of the Xin Dynasty collaborated with another large group in the Northern Expedition, which was actually referring to the Second Northern Expedition."

"As a result, Your Majesty has undoubtedly witnessed, due to problems within the Yumi-gun, many of the predecessors of the Shincho Group were arrested and killed, and the cooperation between the two sides also broke down. As a result, the Shincho Group embarked on the path of independent military control and armed struggle."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but sigh, "These two major factions joined forces to overthrow the old dynasty. I've never heard of them coexisting peacefully, let alone the factions within one faction."

Liu Kuan smiled wryly and said, "Your Majesty, there were actually many factions within the Beiyang Army at that time." "That made peaceful coexistence even more impossible," Zhu Yuanzhang said. "Just like at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, Chen Youliang, Zhang Shicheng, and others all rebelled against the Yuan Dynasty, but before we could actually destroy the Yuan Dynasty, a decisive battle would have been decided between us, and only one side would rule Jiangnan."

"Didn't those murderous soldiers who overthrew the Qing Dynasty read history? How could they not know such a simple truth?"

Liu Kuan said helplessly, "Your Majesty, have you forgotten? I told you that they decided to cease fire and unite to end the Qing Dynasty's rule under pressure from the Western powers."

"At that time, whether the Beiyang Army or the Yuming Army wanted to establish a new dynasty, they would have to face oppression from the Western powers. If they fought to the death and reduced China to a wasteland, the future of China would be completely hopeless."

"Our ancestors would have to live under the oppression of the Western powers for generations to come. Chinese culture would have been difficult to sustain, and the rise of a new dynasty in the future would have been impossible."

"The situation then will likely become like those depicted in previous videos of Korea, the Philippines, Egypt, and other countries that were once colonized by Westerners, where independent national development will be difficult."

After hearing this, Old Zhu was stunned for a moment, then he sighed and said, "According to what you said, the leaders of the Beiyang Army and the Yu Ming Army in later generations still took the overall situation into consideration."

Liu Kuan nodded, "You can say that."

He went on to say, "At that time, China was truly at a critical moment of life and death. If we were not careful, we could fall into an abyss even greater than when the Mongols conquered the Song Dynasty."

"The Mongols destroyed the Song Dynasty, yet they also claimed to have inherited China. Although they destroyed the Han Dynasty, they did not destroy China."

"But given the situation at the end of the Qing Dynasty, if China had been divided up by Western barbarians, there would have been no China left on Earth. Even hundreds of years later, many of China's languages ​​and scripts might have vanished into the long river of history. As for cultural customs like clothing, they would have been even more difficult to preserve."

Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao and others imagined the scene described by Liu Kuan and were stunned for a moment. Only then did they realize how dangerous the situation in the late Qing Dynasty was for China.

Liu Kuan continued, "At that time, many predecessors and people of noble character and lofty ideals foresaw this great crisis facing China. Many were pessimistic or indifferent, but many others worked hard to find a way to save the country."

"Whether within the Beiyang forces or the Ming army, there were actually some patriots who truly sought a way out for China. It was just that they were limited by their own knowledge and did not choose the right path."

Perhaps because the topic was too heavy, the Zhu family fell silent for a moment.

After a while, it was Zhu Biao who spoke.

"Brother-in-law, what about the New Culture Movement and Enlightenment mentioned in the previous video? Why was Mr. Zhou's 'Diary of a Madman' so highly praised by so many patriots at the time?"

Liu Kuan asked, "Your Highness, have you ever thought about this while watching the previous video? Why did people cut off their braids and wear short hair, short jackets, or even Western clothes after overthrowing the Qing Dynasty, instead of reverting to Han Chinese clothing?"

Old Zhu frowned, as if he understood something.

Zhu Biao frowned and asked, "Yes, why not restore the Han clothing?"

Liu Kuan said, "This is the more terrifying problem facing China in the late Qing Dynasty. After nearly a hundred years of continuous defeats, ceding territory and paying indemnities, and lagging behind Western nations, the Chinese have lost their cultural confidence."

"At that time, some extreme people believed that everything China had done in the past was wrong and backward, and that everything the Western powers had done was right and advanced."

"So after the Qing dynasty was overthrown, this small group of extremists proposed the idea of ​​complete Westernization."

Complete Westernization?

Although Liu Kuan did not explain the meaning of this word, Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao and others understood it as soon as they heard it - it means complete Westernization!
Liu Kuan added, "Some people who have opened their eyes to the world and realized the huge gap between China and the Western powers have become extremely insecure. However, the vast majority of the people have become quite ignorant and stupid due to the Qing court's centuries of obsequious rule, and continue to adhere to some outdated or even wrong customs that have been passed down for thousands of years."

"For example, women's foot binding, marrying to bring good luck, ghost marriages, using human blood steamed buns to cure all diseases, and so on."

"It's fair to say that China at that time was caught in a dilemma, both internally and externally. Traditional culture contained some flaws, some even poisonous. At the same time, it was facing the onslaught of Western culture, which was fueled by advanced technology and a powerful nation."

"At that time, intellectuals, or scholars, were the ones most likely to recognize these problems and the huge crisis in China."

"Although most scholars were confused by this, many scholars worked hard to explore ways to save the country, and this awakened a group of people with lofty ideals, which led to the people and events in the previous five videos."

At this point, Liu Kuan looked at Zhu Biao and said, "The Diary of a Madman had two great characteristics, or uses, for people at that time."

"First, it was the first to adopt a completely vernacular writing style, completely abandoning the classical Chinese writing style that had been passed down for thousands of years."

"Secondly, he used the metaphor of 'cannibalism' to sharply satirize some of the dregs and even poisonous ideas in traditional culture."

"So, to other aspiring readers at the time, this "Diary of a Madman" was like a fearless hero, guiding people to break free from the shackles of old ideas!"

　Second update.

　　Good night~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)