Law, there is no such word in ancient times.
The ancients' explanation of the law was often summarized in one word:
road.
Tao is the law of everything and the origin of the world. It's just that this way is a bit difficult to find. In Gu Zhengchen's understanding, law can only be said to be a content of "Tao".
Looking at Zhu Yuanzhang's sharp eyes, Gu Zhengchen walked to the side and sat down: "Your Majesty, Bai Juyi has a poem: The grass grows in Liliyuan, and it withers and grows every year. The wild fire cannot be burned out, but the spring breeze blows and grows again. This is a poem about the grass. Awareness of patterns.”
"Li Bai once said: The sky does not speak, but the four seasons move, and the earth does not speak, but all things come into being. This is also a kind of understanding of the law. Planting in spring and growing in summer, harvesting in autumn and storing in winter, all things in nature have seasons, these can be called For the rules.”
It is not that the ancients did not have materialism. For example, "Xunzi·Tian Lun" states that "Heaven's behavior is always constant, and it will not exist for Yao, nor will it perish for Jie."
It's just that you can't say this, because if you say it, you will get beaten. After all, Lao Zhu calls himself the emperor, and criticizing the "theory of induction of heaven and man" is no different from scolding Lao Zhu's non-original father (heaven).
Zhu Yuanzhang seemed to have some understanding, nodded repeatedly, and then asked: "What are the laws of the dynasty?"
Gu Zhengchen looked at Zhu Yuanzhang seriously and said solemnly: "Your Majesty, the laws of a dynasty are like a circle in my eyes. Some dynasties last for hundreds of years, and this one is a big circle. Some dynasties are short-lived for a few years or dozens. The year is a small circle. If you want to make the dynasty immortal, you must jump out of this circle, break the continuous rise and fall of the circle, and let the dynasty become a line, a line that is moving forward and moving forward!"
Circles and lines?
Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao listened with rapt attention and had a different understanding of the change of dynasties.
Song Lian was a little shocked and looked at Gu Zhengchen with eyes filled with wonder.
Liu Ji stared at Gu Zhengchen. His deep gaze no longer had the initial turbidity and lack of focus, but instead contained wisdom.
The Gu Zhengchen in front of him was actually more powerful than he imagined.
When they first met Jurong, he behaved unusually, but Liu Ji could not have imagined that this man had such a profound understanding of dynasty changes, and what he said was also so profound and simple, which was refreshing.
He seemed to know that Zhu Yuanzhang had not read much and had difficulty understanding profound things, so he chose the simplest words to describe complex things.
This kind of person has an unlimited future!
Zhu Yuanzhang knew that big circles and small circles, no matter what kind of circles they are, they all have one thing in common, that is, they are always connected with rising and falling. No matter where the starting point is, there is the end point.
The circle is like a fateful ring. No matter how hard it struggles, no matter how it is designed, no matter how hard it is pushed, it will perish.
But the line is different. The line has a beginning, but it continues without an end!
Zhu Yuanzhang understood the "destiny" of the dynasty and looked at Gu Zhengchen: "How to break out of the circle and become a line?"
Gu Zhengchen said seriously: "Your Majesty, if you want the dynasty to break away from the circle and become a line, you must solve a fundamental problem."
"what is the problem?"
Zhu Yuanzhang asked eagerly.
Gu Zhengchen's mouth moved slightly: "Eat."
The corners of Zhu Yuanzhang's mouth moved, but no words came out.
Gu Zhengchen said seriously: "Aside from foreign enemies, the force that subverts the dynasty is the people. As for the reason why the people picked up hoes and kitchen knives to rebel, Weichen thinks your majesty knows very well. In the final analysis, dynasties have changed over thousands of years. , in addition to the struggle in the power field, there is also the struggle for jobs.”
Of course Zhu Yuanzhang knew why the people rebelled, because there was no food and no way to live. If you didn't rebel, you would die, but if you rebelled, you might not die. This kind of either-or problem, there is no choice at all.
Seeing Zhu Yuanzhang deep in thought, Gu Zhengchen said: "If you want the people to have enough to eat, you need to ensure that most of the land is always in the hands of the people. This is the key to the immortality of the dynasty."
Zhu Yuanzhang stared at Gu Zhengchen with squinted eyes, remembering the scene of moving money in the palace.
He generously rewarded the vassal with land. In the future, if the court loses the land, the people will become tenants and sooner or later they will not be able to afford food. But if big households are allowed to usurp land, won't the common people become tenants?
Liu Ji, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke: "It is unrealistic to ensure that most of the land is in the hands of the people."
Gu Zhengchen looked at Liu Ji and replied calmly: "That's right, so in the middle and late stages of some dynasties, land annexation became more and more intense, which eventually led to the people having no place to rely on and no food to eat. The world is vast, but there is no place for the people to stand! Their dynasties are all It is a circle, and there is no escape from destruction. If the Ming Dynasty wants to be immortal, it must solve the problem of land annexation."
Liu Ji glanced at the silent Zhu Yuanzhang and said a word of warning to Gu Zhengchen: "This is where you are. If you openly submit a letter, haha, you will become the target of public criticism."
Gu Zhengchen took a deep look at Liu Ji and understood that his worries were not unreasonable.
Who is the culprit behind land annexation?
Rich man?
No, the real culprits are scholar-bureaucrats and officials! The amount of land they appropriated far exceeded that of the wealthy locals.
If you propose to curb land annexation, what else is it than offending officials?
If it affects the interests of others, it is natural to deal with it quickly.
However, there is no need to worry too much about this issue at this time.
It has only been six years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty. From a practical point of view, there is no obvious land annexation problem at present. Except for a few areas, such as Shanxi, such as densely populated areas in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, within a large area, there are fewer people and more land. The court is not worried. What is the annexation of land? It is a question of who will cultivate the wasteland and who will cultivate the land...
Gu Zhengchen informed Zhu Yuanzhang of the danger of annexation and said: "Your Majesty, although this matter is not an urgent matter, only an emperor with great courage cannot do it!"
Zhu Yuanzhang understood.
Land annexation is a matter for the grandson of the grandson, but whether it is the grandson or the grandson of the grandson, they will definitely not be able to do this. If they want to do this, they need to offend the scholar-bureaucrats, offend the officials, offend the nobles, and offend the nobles. The courage of the rich gentry in the world!
Let alone grandson, even Zhu Biao may not be able to solve it!
Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at Zhu Biao. After all, this son was a bit softer. If the matter was left to him, he might not dare to be an enemy of the ministers, and he might not dare to face the big names in the world!
"I have recorded this."
Zhu Yuanzhang said deeply, then stood up and looked at Liu Ji: "Will you accompany me for a walk?"
Liu Ji quickly agreed.
Zhu Biao, Song Lian and others stayed, so Mu Ying naturally needed to entertain them well.
Liang Jiajun was a little restless, and Gu Zhengchen did not forget to introduce him: "Prince, Master Song, Brother Liang and I are from the same hometown. He is a teaching assistant at Guozixue. He is very diligent."
Zhu Biao smiled and nodded: "He is a talented person with a bright future."
Song Lian praised him: "He is a teacher and a good example of learning."
Mu Ying raised her glass: "Drink to win."
Gu Zhengchen laughed: "Done it!"
