Dynasties of ChinaMing dynastyMing dynasty lineage
Longqing · Reign 1567—1572
In less than six years of reign, he was lenient and did not do much, let go of his cabinet ministers, lifted the maritime ban, negotiated peace with me, and paved the way for the resurgence in the early years of Wanli.
Zhu Zaiji was the third son of Shizong and was granted the title of King Yu in 1539. After the death of Crown Prince Zhu Zaihen in 1549, Shizong was superstitious about the saying that "two dragons never meet" and stopped establishing a heir apparent for a long time. He lived outside the palace as King Yu for many years. The battle for the throne with his younger brother King Jing and Zhu Zaizhen did not end until King Jing's death in 1565. He ascended the throne in early 1567 and was named Longqing.
In accordance with the imperial edict, he appointed officials who were convicted of crimes in the Jiajing Dynasty and punished the local officials. He trusted Xu Jie, Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng and other cabinet ministers, and rarely interfered with political affairs. During his reign, the private overseas trade of Fujian Yuegang was opened, peace and tribute were negotiated with the Mongolian Anda Khan, and Qi Jiguang's northern town Jizhou was mobilized to build the Great Wall enemy tower, which greatly alleviated N&S border troubles. However, there was constant strife among cabinet ministers, and Xu Jie and Gao Gong resigned one after another. He died of illness in May 1572 at the age of thirty-six.
Muzong himself has mediocre talents, but he can freely appoint Xu Jie, Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng and other capable ministers. Although he was in power for less than six years, he achieved two major changes: the lifting of sea bans and the payment of tribute to Anda, which alleviated the problems of southern Japanese and northern captives that plagued the Jiajing Dynasty, and created conditions for Zhang Juzheng's reform in the early years of Wanli.
PoliticsBring order out of chaos
After he ascended the throne, he released Hai Rui and other people who had been convicted for their speeches in accordance with the imperial edict, and gave posthumous gifts to Yang Jisheng and other ministers who died unjustly. The alchemist Wang Jin and others who donated elixirs were imprisoned for their crimes, and the fasting ceremony was stopped. The bad governance in the late Jiajing years was corrected.
EconomyLongqing switch
Tu Zemin, the governor of Fujian, petitioned to lift the maritime ban. The imperial court allowed private merchant ships in Zhangzhou Yuegang to go to sea and trade in various places in the East and West, but it was still prohibited to go to Japan. Yuegang thus became the most important private foreign trade port in the late Ming Dynasty.
MilitaryQi Jiguang North Town Jizhou
In charge of military training affairs in the three towns of Jizhou, Changping and Baoding, Qi Jiguang, the famous general who resisted the Japanese. He built more than a thousand hollow enemy towers along the Great Wall in Jizhen. Taichung could garrison troops and store firearms, which greatly enhanced the defense to the north of the capital.
Lasting legacyMost of the Great Wall seen today was built in the Ming Dynasty. The hollow enemy towers densely covered with sections of the Great Wall such as Jinshanling in Hebei and Simatai in Beijing were mostly built during the period when Qi Jiguang was guarding Jizhen.
PeopleHai Rui Governor Yingtian
Hai Rui patrolled the ten mansions of Yingtian with the right censor of Qiandu, cracked down on the powerful, and ordered the return of the occupied land. Even the Xu Jie family, the chief minister, was no exception. He also dredged the Wusong River and Baimao River and implemented a whip method. He was impeached and removed from office the following year.
DiplomacyI answer the tribute
The grandson of Anda Khan defected to Ming Dynasty because of family affairs. Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng and Wang Chonggu, the governor of Xuanda, took the opportunity to negotiate peace with Anda Khan. In 1571, the Ming court granted Anda the title of King of Shunyi, and opened mutual markets in Datong, Xuanfu and other places, and wars in the north were greatly reduced.
Lasting legacyAnda Khan later built a city in Tumochuan, and the Ming Dynasty named it Guihua City, the predecessor of today's Hohhot in Inner Mongolia.
EconomyAmerican silver comes from the east
The Spanish established the city of Manila in 1571. Since then, large sailing ships traveled between Acapulco, Mexico, and Manila, bringing American silver in exchange for Chinese silk and porcelain. Merchants from Yuegang went to trade one after another, and American silver flowed into China.
PoliticsGu Ming entrusting the heir
In May, when Muzong was critically ill, he summoned bachelors Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, and Gao Yi to take care of him, and asked them to assist the ten-year-old Crown Prince Zhu Yijun. He died of illness a few days later at the age of thirty-six.
Muzong was deeply trusted as an official in Prince Yu's Mansion. During the Longqing period, he served as the chief assistant and also in charge of the official department, rectifying the official administration and presiding over the tribute of Ida. After Muzong's death, Zhang Juzheng and Feng Bao teamed up to expel him from the court.
After Muzong came to the throne, he joined the cabinet and participated in the planning of the tribute tribute and the rectification of border defense, accumulating reputation and experience. After Muzong's death, he became the chief assistant and presided over the Wanli New Deal.
After long-term management of the northwest frontier defense, he accepted Han Naji who came to surrender, and strongly advocated peace and tribute with me, which promoted the Longqing peace negotiation.