In the twenty-sixth year of Jiajing (1547), he was only 23 years old and became a Jinshi. This young Jinshi from Jiangling, Huguang was very satisfied and embarked on the road of officialdom. >>At first, he worked as an editor in the Hanlin Academy. At that time, Yan Song was the chief minister, the politics were corrupt, and the officialdom was dark. Zhang Juzheng devoted himself to his official career with enthusiasm. However, when he gradually understood the darkness of politics, he became melancholy and pessimistic. After working as an editor at the Hanlin Academy for seven years, he felt quite bored because he had a wealth of knowledge but no one appreciated him, so he resigned and returned home claiming illness. Plant half an acre of bamboo at home, and study with concentration on one side. Soon six years passed quietly. He became more knowledgeable. With the encouragement of his father, he returned to Beijing as an official and served as the Imperial College Secretary. In his spare time, he pays great attention to studying the experiences and lessons of the rise and fall of past dynasties, and pays careful attention to real politics. Soon after, Shizong died of illness. Xu Jie, a scholar, drafted a posthumous edict and consulted Zhang Juzheng's opinion. In the first year of Longqing (1567), he was selected into the cabinet, and his official career took a turn for the first time. >> In order to realize his ambition of governing the country, in the second year of Longqing, he wrote "Chen Liu Shi Shu" to Mu Zong, proposing to discuss the affairs of the province, invigorate the discipline, emphasize edicts, replace the name and reality, consolidate the foundation of the country, and order the military preparations. . Everything was in line with the current situation, but Mu Zong was not an emperor who wanted to make a difference. Although he appreciated Zhang Juzheng's talents, he did not adopt them. Mu Zong reigned for only six short years. In May of the sixth year of Longqing's reign, the nine-year-old ascended the throne of the emperor. It was the time for a nine-year-old child to play and play, but now he had to take charge of state affairs. This caused concern both inside and outside the court, but it provided an opportunity for Zhang Juzheng to assist the government. . >> The cabinet at that time was composed of Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng and Gao Yi. Gao Gong was the chief minister, and Gao Yi had just joined the cabinet a month ago. Both Zhang Juzheng and Gao Gong were the most important ministers who supported Mu Zong before his death. Of course, political affairs were It is controlled by Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng, but Zhang Juzheng is not the chief assistant and must be manipulated by Gao Gong on many things, but he is resourceful and scheming. Gao Gong, on the other hand, was outgoing and expressed deep concerns about whether Zhu Yijun, who was only nine years old, could fulfill the important responsibilities of the emperor. He once said to his officials in Wenyuan Pavilion: "How can a ten-year-old prince rule the world?" The words reached the ears of Shenzong's aunt Queen Chen and his biological mother Li Guifei, causing them extreme displeasure. However, the eunuch Feng Bao, the eunuch Bingbi, the chief ceremonial officer, openly opposed Gao Gong and introduced Zhang Juzheng as a foreign aid. As a result, Gao Gong's position as chief assistant was in jeopardy. The conflict between Feng Bao and Gao Gong has been going on for a long time. During the Jiajing period, Feng Bao was the Eunuch Bingbi, the Supervisor of Ceremonies. In the first year of Longqing, he was the Admiral of the East Factory and also the Royal Horse Supervisor. At that time, there was a shortage of eunuchs for the highest-ranking eunuchs, and according to his seniority, he was Feng Bao. However, Gao Gong recommended Chen Hong, the imperial eunuch, and after Chen Hong, he recommended Meng Chong, the eunuch of Shangshan. From then on, Gao Gong and Feng Bao had a grudge. Chen Hong and Meng Chong tempted Mu Zong to indulge in sensuality, causing Mu Zong's health to deteriorate. This also aroused the dissatisfaction of Empress Chen and Concubine Li, who naturally became close to Feng Bao. Just as Mu Zong was dying, Feng Bao, with the support of Empress Chen and Concubine Li, replaced Meng Chong, causing Gao Gong to be extremely unhappy. Therefore, Gao Gong wanted to use the power of the cabinet and public officials to get rid of Feng Bao, and discussed with Zhang Juzheng. Zhang Juzheng agreed on the surface, but secretly informed Feng Bao. On June 16, Shenzong met with court officials for the first time after taking the throne. Gao Gong went happily, thinking that this time he must expel Feng Bao. But the result was a big surprise. Shenzong sat upright, and Feng Bao stood beside him. Feng Bao read out the edicts of Empress Chen, Concubine Li and the emperor, and Gao Gong was ordered to return home and stay idle. After hearing this, Gao Gong almost fainted. Finally, Zhang Juzheng took him to his feet and left the court in embarrassment. Zhang Juzheng naturally became the first assistant. >> After Zhang Juzheng became the first assistant, he tried his best to curry favor with Empress Mu Zong and Shenzong's biological mother Li Guifei. Finally, he was trusted and respected Feng Bao, so that Feng Baoneng could work closely with him. One day in July, Shenzong said to Zhang Juzheng on the platform: "The queen is my legitimate mother, and the imperial concubine is my biological mother. You can add a few more words to the title of sir!" According to the custom of previous dynasties, when the emperor first established himself, he must respect the queen and his biological mother. Queen Mother, so Empress Chen was revered as the Empress Dowager Rensheng, and Concubine Li was revered as the Empress Dowager Cisheng. The two queen mothers entrusted Zhang Juzheng with external affairs and Feng Bao with domestic affairs. They were also very strict with the young emperor. The Empress Dowager Cisheng moved into the Qianqing Palace in the name of the Young Master of Wings. After every sutra banquet and daily lecture, she always asked Shenzong to repeat it and strictly supervise it. He also tried his best to cultivate Zhang Juzheng's prestige, so that the little emperor was somewhat in awe of Zhang Juzheng.
Once Shenzong made a mistake and refused to correct it, Cisheng always said: "Let Mr. Zhang (Ju Zheng) know about it, what will you do?" So Shenzong had no choice but to admit his mistake. >> In addition to political affairs, Zhang Juzheng tutored Shenzong in his studies. He arranged for Shenzong to have courses on Sutra and Ri Lectures. The young Shenzong liked calligraphy and history very much. Zhang Juzheng often told him stories about the governance of the emperors in the past dynasties, and asked him to choose some articles about monarchs' virtues and governance to make shadow frames for Shenzong to copy, so that the young emperor could be inspired in writing. . He also advised Shenzong that as a generation of emperors, he should not focus on calligraphy, but should pay attention to the study of emperors, because there were many emperors in ancient times, such as Emperor Wu of Liang, Emperor Chen, Emperor Yang of Sui, and Ningzong of Song Dynasty, who were good at poetry, calligraphy and painting. , but it does not help the country, so we should learn from many ways to govern the country and secure the world. Later, Zhang Juzheng had someone compile a set of "Illustrated Reviews of Emperors of the Past Dynasties", which extracted 81 good deeds that ancient emperors could imitate and 36 evil deeds that should be punished. Each one drew a picture and attached an explanation. Shenzong liked this set of books very much, and was also quite moved by Zhang Juzheng's loyalty. >> Zhang Juzheng established his authority in front of the young emperor, gained the trust of the two queen mothers, and had the support of the eunuch Feng Bao in the inner court. Therefore, during his term in office, he carried out drastic reforms to realize his political ambitions. >>He first started by rectifying the administration of officials. Zhang Juzheng witnessed the chaotic political situation during the Jia and Long periods and believed that the root cause lay in official corruption. In the first year of Wanli (1573), he proposed "testing the law". First of all, he emphasized that officials at all levels from the central to local governments must implement the law and make it effective. The assessment of officials is carried out step by step. The governors and inspectors evaluate the subordinate officials, and the Ministry of Personnel inspects and oversees the officials. The imperial court then uses it to examine whether the officials are worthy or not. And establish a system for taking exams according to the situation, so that everything is settled and explained. During the inspection of officials, Zhang Juzheng eliminated a number of redundant staff and rewarded a number of capable and upright officials. At the same time, the central government strives to improve the authority of the cabinet and strengthen the centralization of power to command the world. At the local level, it is necessary to distinguish between governors and governors, clarify their responsibilities, and use power to divide and cooperate to assist responsible departments in the implementation of central decrees. At the same time, the government, prefecture, and county schools were also rectified, the number of students was reduced, and a number of incompetent academic officials were dismissed. >> Zhang Juzheng also attaches great importance to border defense. He always supported the rectification of Jizhen's defense, and at the same time used the famous general Li Chengliang to defend Liaodong. Although the Little Prince's troops led more than 100,000 troops to harass the border several times, the border was safe due to the strong defense of Qi Jiguang and Li Chengliang. >>The main problem faced by Zhang Juzheng at that time was the financial crisis, so financial management became the focus of his reforms. He vigorously carried out economic reforms to increase revenue and reduce expenditure. On the one hand, he cut redundant officials and redundant expenses. At the same time, he also tried to save money on royal expenses in order to reduce expenditures. More importantly, he carried out a large-scale land clearing across the country and implemented one-step tax reform measures in order to increase The royal court’s financial revenue. >>The implementation of the "One Whip Law" has reduced the burden on some farmers who have no or little land, and at the same time alleviated the financial crisis. It unified taxes and levies, simplified collection items and procedures, and at the same time changed the taxation pairs from households and dings to dings and fields, which also reduced the burden on merchants. It inherited the "Two Taxes Law" and initiated the "dividing a man into an acre". It was a major event in the history of my country's taxation system. >> In addition, in order to develop production, Zhang Juzheng also paid attention to building water conservancy projects and eliminating floods in the Yellow River. During the Jia and Wan dynasties, the Huanghuai River flooded frequently and caused disasters, which could not be cured for many years. So he re-employed Pan Jixun and strongly supported him in river control. After more than two years, he finally achieved good results. >>While Zhang Juzheng was gradually implementing reforms, Shenzong also grew up day by day. He admired Zhang Juzheng's profound knowledge and courageous and capable style. At first, the relationship between the emperor and his ministers was very harmonious. Shenzong often paid attention to Zhang Juzheng's life. Once, Zhang Juzheng fell ill while on duty. Shenzong went to Nuange to personally prepare pepper soup and gave it to him. On a hot summer day, Shenzong asked his envoy to fan Zhang Juzheng; on a cold day, he ordered his envoy to spread a felt piece where Zhang Juzheng stood. Zhang Juzheng is also diligent and dedicated. But once Shenzong made mistakes, Zhang Juzheng was often quite harsh. Shenzong's treatment of Zhang Juzheng gradually changed from awe to disgust. Once, Shenzong read "The Analects of Confucius. Xiangdang" aloud and accidentally read "色波如ye" into "色贝如ye". Zhang Juzheng, who was standing next to him, said sternly: "It should be pronounced as 'Bo'!" Shenzong trembled violently and shuddered in his heart, thinking, "Is this the tone that a courtier should use towards a monarch?" ” So the rebellious psychology grew day by day.
Despite this, on the surface, their relationship was quite harmonious. >>In September of the fifth year of Wanli, Zhang Juzheng's father passed away. According to the customs of feudal ethics, Zhang Juzheng must leave his residence and observe mourning for three years. At that time, Emperor Wanli was still young and inexperienced, and was not yet strong enough to take charge of political affairs. The reform that Zhang Juzheng had planned for a long time had just begun. Therefore, Shenzong issued an edict to "seize love", saying that it was necessary for official duties, so Zhang Juzheng did not have to leave his job to observe filial piety, and he did not have to give gifts. Very thick. However, Zhang Juzheng's political opponents at that time, such as Wu Zhongxing, Zhao Yongxian, etc., used the excuse of seizing love to attack him. They accused Zhang Juzheng of being greedy for profit and salary. They said that "seizing love" was against ethics and wanted the court to remove Zhang Juzheng from his official position. Shenzong issued a series of warnings and the leading members of the imperial staff calmed down the rebellion against seizing love. In March of the following year, Zhang Juzheng requested to return home to bury his father, and Shenzong agreed. The emperor and his ministers met on the platform and wept relative to each other, but it was difficult to part ways. Three months later, Zhang Juzheng returned to Beijing from Jiangling, and the relationship between the emperor and his ministers remained as before. >> In the eighth year of Wanli, Shenzong was already eighteen years old. At this time, he felt that he had finished reading the classics, and Zhang Juzheng was in charge of political affairs. He was free, so he looked for entertainment strategies. Try your best to seduce. One night in November, Shenzong visited Xicheng. After drinking, he asked the eunuch to sing a tune. The eunuch opened his mouth and sang, but the tunes were not harmonious. Shenzong was furious and whipped the eunuch and cut off his head. of his hair. Soon Feng Bao reported the matter to the Empress Dowager Cisheng who had moved to Cining Palace. Shenzong was immediately called to the Empress Dowager Cisheng, was made to kneel down, and was severely reprimanded. Zhang Juzheng On the other hand, he interceded with the emperor and asked for punishment for the evil and sycophantic ministers. Sun Hai and the guest were kicked out of the inner palace with a stick. This punishment left a great shame on the adult Shenzong. His self-esteem was greatly hit, and the seeds of revenge were sown against Zhang Juzheng. >> When Zhang Juzheng was satisfied with his ambition, Shenzong became increasingly dissatisfied with him. In his later years, Zhang Juzheng mostly treated the promotion and dismissal of officials according to his own likes and dislikes. He gradually became arrogant, but he finally enjoyed all the glory and wealth during his lifetime. In February of the tenth year of Wanli, Zhang Juzheng passed away. Soon, Zhang Juzheng's political opponents during his lifetime wrote letters to impeach him. In March of the eleventh year of Wanli, Shenzong pursued Zhang Juzheng for official rank. In April of the following year, Zhang Juzheng's family wealth was lost and he received more than 100,000 taels of gold and more than 100,000 taels of silver. Zhang Juzheng's eldest son, Zhang Jingxiu, was forced to commit suicide, and his second son, Zhang Sixiu, and several other grandchildren were sent to remote areas for military purposes. The series of reforms he had carried out during his ten years in office were all wiped out by Shenzong's revenge.