My aunt is Queen Ma

Chapter 132 Guardians of Chinese Culture

Once seated in the main hall, the two finally got down to business, mainly discussing the ongoing corruption case in the imperial city.

Zhu Biao sighed, "I thought that after decades of turmoil, everyone in the world would be very poor."

"I only realized today that only a portion of people are poor."

Ma Yu naturally knew what he was talking about: less than four hundred powerful families had their wealth of over seventy million strings of cash confiscated.

This doesn't even include assets like grain and land; it only includes gold, silver, jewelry, antiques, paintings, and real estate.

It is said that when the cellars where the money was hidden were opened, the people in charge of the raid were so enraged that their eyes turned red.

Just how extravagant are those wealthy people?

Some people use washbasins made of pure gold, and foot basins carved from a single piece of jade.

The basin that Zhu Yuanzhang used to wash his face and feet was made of brass.

It's no exaggeration to say they live more extravagantly than emperors.

Keep in mind that this was during the chaotic end of the Yuan Dynasty, a time when countless people couldn't even get enough to eat.

This is a true depiction of the saying, "Behind the red gates, meat and wine go to waste, while on the roads, frozen corpses lie."

Ma Yu thought about the extravagance of the powerful families in Jiangnan at the end of the Ming Dynasty and said:
"In fact, the impact of the chaotic times was still significant. Compared to the mid-to-late Song Dynasty, their lives were already quite simple."

Zhu Biao shook his head as he listened: "No wonder you keep saying that the imperial court should act on behalf of Heaven and redistribute wealth."

"The more I understand the world, the more I feel that your ideas are correct."

"By the way, how's it going with Yao Yunxin?"

Ma Yu said, "This matter can't be rushed; it won't yield results for at least three to five years."

Zhu Biao was indeed getting anxious: "Why is it taking so long? Should we send a few more people over to help?"

Ma Yu explained, "It's best not to. Everyone has their own ideas, and having too many people will only waste a lot of time on arguments."

"We are currently in the stage of setting up the framework, so it's best not to bring in too many people."

"Once the framework is established and the general direction is determined, we can then find someone to fill in the content."

"It can even be made public to the world, allowing people to comment freely."

Zhu Biao asked doubtfully, "Doing this would probably draw criticism from the whole world."

Ma Yu laughed and said, "As long as criticism is substantive, it can contribute to the development of new ideas."

"As long as the court remains steadfast in its convictions, scholars will eventually embrace new ideas."

Most people study in order to enter officialdom.

When the time comes, as long as the imperial court uses new ideas as the theme and conducts a few imperial examinations, most scholars will rush to switch their allegiance.

Zhu Biao said affirmatively, "You don't need to worry about my father and me; we absolutely support new ideas."

“Especially after this incident, my father became even more supportive of new ideas.”

Ma Yu asked curiously, "Oh, why?"

Zhu Biao said, "It's all because of the powerful families' wealth."

Once he said that, Ma Yu understood what was going on.

The powerful and wealthy deceived the emperor and oppressed the people, enriching themselves while impoverishing the country and its people.

However, under the existing ideological system, the imperial court had no way to deal with those wealthy families.

In Ma Yu's new ideas, the phrase "acting on behalf of Heaven" gave the court a reason to take action against wealthy families.

Given Zhu Yuanzhang's personality, whoever could get him to legally and legitimately extract money from the pockets of the wealthy would most likely gain his support.

This personality trait also happens to coincide with some of Ma Yu's ideas, which can be taken advantage of.

Zhu Biao came here today not to discuss how wealthy the powerful families were, but mainly to discuss how to crack down on them and dismantle their clans.

Then he explained his thoughts one by one.

Ma Yu had to admit that Biao Ge was indeed quite capable.

It's not surprising that he could think of relocating powerful families; it's something the ancients had already done.

In fact, Zhu Yuanzhang had used this tactic in the original world as well.

For example, in the third year of the Hongwu reign (1369), Zhu Yuanzhang relocated 140,000 wealthy households to Fengyang.

During the mid-Hongwu period, feeling that the population in the north was sparse, the government began to systematically relocate people from Shanxi to Henan, Shandong and other places.

During the late Hongwu period, there was a desire to adjust the national population.

Unfortunately, due to Zhu Biao's death, he was busy paving the way for Zhu Yunwen, and this plan was shelved.

After Zhu Di ascended the throne, he ordered a large-scale relocation of wealthy households from Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi and other places to fill Beiping.

These migrations effectively adjusted the population distribution.

Unfortunately, this policy was not continued as a system.

By the time of the Renxuan era, the population adjustment plan had been shelved.

We won't mention Emperor Yingzong and Emperor Daizong of Ming.

Emperor Xianzong spent over twenty years cleaning up his father's messes and had no energy left to implement the population relocation plan.

Emperor Xiaozong of Ming... can also be ignored.

Further on, the Ming Dynasty court was willing but unable to act, as the powerful clans in Jiangnan had already formed a significant force, and the court could no longer make any adjustments.

From this perspective, Zhu Yuanzhang was indeed very talented, recognizing the problem of powerful clans and wanting to adjust the population distribution.

Unfortunately, he realized it too late, and he didn't take it seriously enough.

After all, he only perceived this through his own experience, and his understanding of the power of local clans and gentry was far from sufficient.

But this time, there was no such problem. With Ma Yu's reminder, their understanding of this matter became clearer.

The idea of ​​adjusting the population distribution has become even stronger.

The plan was to relocate wealthy households to five locations: Luoyang, Chang'an, Fengyang, Anyang, and Beiping.

These five locations could relocate at least 600,000 to 700,000 households.

This would both facilitate the northward transfer of population from the south and alleviate the crisis of north-south divide.

This would also allow them to relocate wealthy people from their hometowns, thus depriving them of their influence over the area and weakening their power.

Wealthy people are rich, and their substantial capital can quickly make these places prosperous.

The loss of these 600,000 to 700,000 wealthy households was a huge blow to the local power in the south.

Correspondingly, the imperial court can more easily centralize power.

Meanwhile, the vacant positions left by wealthy people can be filled by landless poor people.

It can be said to be a win-win situation.

This action reminded Ma Yu of the Han and Tang dynasties, most likely drawing on relevant policies of the Western Han and early Tang periods.

If that were all, it wouldn't be enough to surprise Ma Yu too much.

After all, this is the wisdom left by the ancients.

The key point is that Zhu Biao was able to think of breaking up the various surnames and living together, and combining it with the migration of powerful families.

Due to war, a large number of classic texts were lost.

There are very few records in the historical books we can currently find about the forced cohabitation of people of different surnames.

I only learned the details from the unearthed Dunhuang manuscripts in my previous life.

Ma Yu had only mentioned it to Zhu Biao briefly, but Zhu Biao remembered it and even applied it in practice.

This means that the knowledge has truly been mastered.

If Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao had been able to implement population control policies and institutionalize them...

It can really alleviate many social problems.

But Zhu Biao certainly didn't come to hear his praise; he wanted his advice.

However, Ma Yu really didn't have any better ideas:
"Your method is probably the best solution at present, and I have no better suggestions."

"However, I can offer some other suggestions for your reference."

Zhu Biao laughed and said, "I knew you would have something to say, so tell me quickly."

Ma Yu pondered for a moment before speaking:
"For a group to work together as one, it must have a shared understanding."

"The Xia and Shang dynasties did not do a very good job in this regard."

"The Western Zhou Dynasty was the first to realize this, so they created and implemented the Zhou Rites."

"Later, based on the Zhou rites, the core ideology of the Chinese nation was formed."

"Culture became the standard for distinguishing between Chinese and barbarians." "It was precisely through the rites and laws of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and the patriarchal system derived from blood relations, that this was achieved."

"That's how we united everyone into one, forming the Chinese nation."

Zhu Biao nodded; he knew these things since they had been discussed before.

He was more curious about what Ma Yu would say next.

"However, only those who have received education are aware of the distinction between Chinese and barbarians."

"Ordinary people are illiterate and struggle to make ends meet every day. They have no sense of cultural identity or ethnic identity."

"Whoever gives the people food, they will turn to them."

"Therefore, during times of chaos, a large number of Han Chinese people would seek refuge with barbarian regimes."

"Those who truly have a sense of community are educated people, especially those from prominent families who form the backbone of this group."

"Although I despise aristocratic politics, I have to admit that they are the main force in protecting Chinese culture during times of chaos."

"They always upheld Chinese etiquette and refused to submit to the regime of the Hu people."

"During the Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties, a large number of aristocratic families migrated south for this reason."

"Later, it was only because some non-Han regimes took the initiative to Sinicize that they gained the support of the aristocratic families."

"But for a non-Han ethnic group, accepting Sinicization is the beginning of its demise."

"It won't be long before they become Han Chinese."

"During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, so many non-Han ethnic groups were basically assimilated into Han culture by the Sui and Tang Dynasties."

"But this situation changed when the aristocratic families were completely destroyed at the end of the Tang Dynasty."

During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, countless Han Chinese were ruled by non-Han regimes.

"The Liao, Jin, Western Xia, and Mongol dynasties all had a large number of Han Chinese serving them."

"Especially Mongolia, a foreign regime that refused to be Sinicized, was able to rule the world for nearly a century."

“In the era when aristocratic families existed, this was unimaginable.”

Zhu Biao frowned and said, "Didn't you say that scholars also have a sense of ethnicity? Why are they willing to serve the regime of the Hu people?"

Ma Yu sighed, "Firstly, what truly drives people is self-interest. The reason why powerful families uphold Chinese culture is largely due to their own interests."

"Ordinary scholars do not have such interests to consider."

"Specifically, aristocratic families belong to the nobility, so how do they prove their 'nobility'?"

Zhu Biao subconsciously replied, "Culture."

Ma Yu said, "Yes, it's culture."

"Power and wealth are something that everyone has the opportunity to possess, and there is no way to use them as a standard to distinguish between nobles and ordinary people."

"So you say you're expensive, but what makes you expensive?"

"Cultural etiquette".

“Since the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, culture and etiquette have been the standards for distinguishing nobles from ordinary people.”

"Whoever controls the culture becomes valuable."

"Why is the Chinese people nobler than the barbarians? Because we have culture and observe etiquette."

Confucius said: “Without Guan Zhong, I would be wearing my hair loose and my robe fastened on the left.”

"Because the Han Chinese people wear their robes with the right side overlapping the left, while the barbarians wear their robes with the left side overlapping the right."

"If you wear clothes with the left side overlapping the right, it's considered impolite and you'll be looked down upon."

"That's why King Wuling of Zhao's adoption of nomadic dress and cavalry tactics had such a great impact on society at that time."

"It can be said that he challenged the common understanding at the time."

"But no matter what, cultural etiquette became the standard of 'nobility,' and this idea was inherited by aristocratic families."

"They have always upheld Chinese etiquette, even in times of chaos, in order to maintain their 'noble' status."

"But whatever their purpose, they have in fact ensured the continuation and inheritance of Chinese culture."

"Ordinary scholars come from humble backgrounds and have a simpler understanding of 'nobility,' which is power and wealth."

"For them, glory, status, and everything else come from the power they wield."

"They will be loyal to whoever gives them power; culture and etiquette are not as important as power."

Zhu Biao frowned even more deeply; this explanation contradicted his understanding of morality.

But upon closer examination, it did make some sense, and he didn't know how to refute it for a moment.

Ma Yu didn't give him a chance to refute and continued:
"Of course, I am not saying that ordinary scholars do not have a sense of loyalty and righteousness."

"It's just that a large forest has all kinds of birds, and the intellectual population is too large."

"There are loyal men like Wen Tianxiang, and there are also treacherous villains like Qin Hui."

“Some would rather die than serve the barbarians, while others would recognize a thief as their father for the sake of power.”

"During the Yuan Dynasty, many Han Chinese gave themselves Mongolian names in order to curry favor with the Mongols and gain opportunities to serve in government."

"Many scholars also uphold Chinese etiquette, but due to their limited power, they can hardly make any waves."

"This brings us to the second reason: ability."

"Even if an ordinary scholar becomes a high-ranking official, how many people can he influence?"

"Even if they rise up in resistance, it will be difficult for them to cause much damage to the foreign regime."

“The powerful families are different; they often control one or even several prefectures and hundreds of thousands of people.”

"It is easy to raise an army of tens of thousands of people."

"In addition, their family's reputation is a brand in itself, which can attract many people to join them."

"Ordinary people may not have a sense of ethnicity, but they know who to follow."

"Elderly families possess a strong sense of community and the ability to unite the people as one."

"It indirectly maintained the unity of the Chinese nation."

"Simply put, their organizational and mobilization abilities are unmatched by ordinary intellectuals."

"Therefore, they often become the mainstay in resisting invasions by foreign races."

"This phenomenon was particularly evident during the Eastern Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties."

"And these are qualities that ordinary scholars do not possess."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Biao finally fully understood Ma Yu's thoughts and accepted his explanation.

Ordinary people may have the will, but are powerless to do so.

In chaotic times, only powerful families that control vast wealth and population and possess immense prestige have the ability to build up their power to fight against foreign tribes.

Powerful clans were equivalent to mini-courts in their localities, wielding widespread influence and possessing extremely strong mobilization capabilities.

With the imperial court rendered ineffective, they could seize power and mobilize local forces to resist the invasion.

By the end of the Tang Dynasty, powerful clans were completely destroyed, and local areas lost the power to possess such capabilities.

With the imperial court powerless, the local areas fell apart and were defeated one by one by the enemy.

In fact, in the original world, the Song and Ming dynasties were always overwhelmed by foreign invasions, and this was largely related to the situation.

During the Han and Tang dynasties, powerful local clans would mobilize local forces to fight against invading foreign tribes.

Whenever foreign tribes attacked, they would launch the first wave of resistance, buying time for the imperial court to mobilize troops.

The Song and Ming dynasties could only rely on the court located thousands of miles away.

By the time the imperial court reacted, the border had already been thoroughly ravaged.

This was especially evident when the Manchus seized power.

During this period, countless people of noble character stood up to resist.

However, their influence was ultimately limited, and they could only mobilize the power of one city or region, which led to their defeat by the Manchus one by one.

Of course, Ma Yu was not advocating for the aristocratic families.

The demise of aristocratic families is simply a major historical trend; there's no need to try to revive them.

However, we must clearly recognize the role that aristocratic families played in society.

When the aristocratic families disappear, who will take over this role?
Neither the Song nor the Ming dynasties in his previous life realized this, and they were unable to find a force or ideology to replace him.

Ma Yu said all this to point out this problem to Zhu Biao.

This issue is also related to the plan to crack down on clan power.

(End of this chapter)