Chapter 815: Pitying the Deformed Young Master to Understand the People's Hardships; Breaking Old Rules, Able Ministers Establish New

Another year of spring has arrived, with some happy and some sad. Zhao Nanxing felt he was the saddest person, while the Emperor of Ming knew very well that Zhao Nanxing was not pathetic at all.

He returned to Jiangnan, and the fact that he was beaten by the Marquis of Ningyuan might still be his talking point, a bargaining chip for him to continue to bargain with the powerful and wealthy families in Jiangnan.

After all, being beaten is also a kind of certification and label of not being liked by authority, and he will be sought after to a certain extent.

When someone asks for the price, he can proudly say: I was beaten by the Marquis of Ningyuan!

Baseness is the pass of the base. As long as Zhao Nanxing is shameless enough, this is also one of his selling points. As long as he, as a scholar, has this kind of shamelessness, he can cash it in.

The morality that these scholar-officials boast about is often no different from a prostitute in a brothel saying she sells her art but not her body. Not selling her body is mostly because the price wasn't negotiated. Once the price is negotiated, scholar-officials can also sell their morality and talk about the beating over and over again.

How many base scholars can talk about a little grievance for a lifetime.

Even if the local yamen fears the Emperor's holy will and forbids Zhao Nanxing from continuing to gather and teach, he, as a Juren, has a certain qualification to be exempt from taxes. As long as he hangs his land under others' names, he can also live the life of a wealthy man.

What is truly pathetic is the deformed households in the relief institution. Because they are born incomplete, no one will adopt them even if they enter the relief institution. Moreover, the conditions in the relief institution are a bit poor. After getting sick, no one will take care of them, and there is no medicine. Many illnesses only need a bowl of hot water, but even a bowl of hot water is not available.

Even because of the bullying of the children in the relief institution, they cannot eat, their bodies get worse and worse, and finally, they die in a corner where no one asks about them.

Even in the relief institution, most of the deformed children do not grow up to adulthood.

Before the New Year, Zhu Yijun would come to the relief institution to take a look. The East and West Relief Temples and the relief institutions have a large number of official residences. Once winter comes, people will flee there to spend the winter, which can be considered a rare warmth under the feudal imperial system and feudal rule.

The Emperor, Empress, and Crown Prince visiting in person can be considered Zhu Yuanzhang's ancestral law. Zhu Yuanzhang's idea of running relief institutions in various prefectures and counties was actually simple: when the poor and suffering have nowhere to go, if they have a place to flee to, they will not rise up and overturn the mountains and rivers of his Zhu family.

The official residences of the relief institutions are limited, and all expenses rely on donations. Coupled with some morally corrupt guys who embezzle from them, the relief institutions in various places have gradually become places where filth is hidden. Most of the money and grain donated cannot reach these children.

Zhu Yijun speaks of ancestral laws. He comes once a year. He dare not say that he can make the relief institution completely clean, but he can always make it a little cleaner. At least when he comes, these deformed children and unhealthy children can eat a mouthful of meat during the New Year.

Some powerful and wealthy families, in order to please the Emperor or to show their loyalty, will donate some money and grain the day before the Emperor arrives, so that the Emperor can see that their family is a family that accumulates virtue. For example, the Yao family in the West

Tucheng and the Mi family in the North Tucheng donate a large sum of money and grain every year, about 2,000 silver.

As the number one donor, Zhu Yijun can see the money and grain they donate every year.

Zhu Yijun knows very well that what he has done in these fifteen years is actually nothing special.

He has neither let the Great Ming walk out of the dilemma of the dynastic cycle nor changed the world. The world is still the world of the feudal imperial system. He is just repairing and patching up the original framework so that the Great Ming can continue to maintain itself.

"Dad, he and I are both human, there is no difference."

"After I practiced martial arts, I ate just as wolfishly. Mom and Grandma both scolded me, saying I had no etiquette, but I was hungry, and he was hungry too." Zhu Changzhi suddenly stretched out his finger and pointed at a child eating wolfishly, saying something that surprised Zhu Yijun very much!

The child Zhu Changzhi pointed at was only about eight years old, and his face looked very fierce, missing one eye, which made him look even more terrifying. But he was very thin, and it could be seen that his situation in the relief institution was not good. He was probably the kind of person who was excluded.

The world of children is not entirely about fighting and winning; there is also forming cliques. He is the kind of fierce and disobedient child, so naturally, he has few friends.

Zhu Changzhi was scolded for eating too fast after practicing martial arts. Empress Dowager Li was close to her grandson, and Wang Yaozhuo felt sorry for him. In the end, they couldn't control him, and it was left unsettled, letting Zhu Changzhi do as he pleased.

The Great Ming etiquette has very clear regulations on the eating of princes, which is not only regarded as a personal loss of etiquette but also regarded as a potential threat to social order.

The "Book of Rites, Qu Li Shang" clearly stipulates: Do not knead rice, do not put rice back, do not slurp, do not eat with sound, do not gnaw bones. That is, do not knead rice balls, do not put eaten rice back into the container, do not drool and swallow in large mouthfuls, do not make sounds when eating, and do not gnaw bones and make sounds, otherwise it is a loss of etiquette.

The "Tong Zi Yi" clearly stipulates: When eating and drinking, you must hold a spoon and chopsticks correctly, and do not show a greedy appearance.

Empress Dowager Li had also corrected Zhu Yijun's demeanor many times, but Empress Dowager Li had never corrected Zhu Yijun's eating etiquette. In Empress Dowager Li's view, the Emperor should pay attention to etiquette, while the Prince of Lu paying attention to it would instead disrupt the order.

The evolution of eating etiquette into a threat to social order was after Zhu Xi. Zhu Xi specifically pointed out in the "Four Books and Five Classics": Therefore, nourishing the moral nature is not just about nourishing the mouth and body.

That is to say, eating and drinking should be based on etiquette, which can nourish morality, rather than satisfying the desire of the mouth and belly.

Since then, eating etiquette has been related to moral conduct.

Zhu Yijun stretched out his hand, touched Zhu Changzhi's head, and said solemnly, "Zhi'er, you must remember this sentence you said, do you know?"

"Hmm." Zhu Changzhi nodded vigorously. He didn't know why his father was so solemn, but he knew that this was what he saw and thought of himself, and he would always remember it firmly.

Zhu Yijun asked with a smile, "Zhi'er,

how about letting him be your sparring partner? Entering and leaving the palace with the children of the meritorious officials, living in the official residence. Although he is missing one eye, if you save him from the relief institution, he will fight for you in the future."

"Like Uncle Luo?" Zhu Changzhi thought for a while and remembered Luo Sigong. The tall and sturdy Luo Sigong was the Emperor's last reliance and was now fully responsible for Zhang Juzheng's safety at the Quanchu Guild Hall.

Zhu Yijun nodded and exhorted, "Hmm, don't call him uncle outside in the future, otherwise those censors will hold onto it and not let go."

Zhu Changzhi respected Luo Sigong, who was willing to risk his life to protect his father, very much, but he would take into account the relationship between monarch and subject outside and would not call him that.

This might also be the reason why Luo Sigong became more loyal after growing up. The child didn't understand, and the words were all taught by adults. Zhu Changzhi's respect was because his Emperor father respected him very much.

"Good." Zhu Changzhi didn't understand the deep meaning of his father's arrangement, but he knew that his father was doing it for his own good.

Zhu Yijun had twenty sparring partners, ten children of meritorious officials, and ten little eunuchs, all the same age as him.

Zhu Yijun trusted the Commander Zhao Mengyou. Zhao Mengyou also refused countless temptations, entirely because his eldest son, Zhao Zhenyuan, was also the Emperor's sparring partner and was now in charge of auditing taxes at the Northern Internal Security Division.

Ten meritorious officials and ten little eunuchs were arranged in important positions. For example, the third ancestor, Li Yougong, was the internal official of the Admiral for Conquering Japan.

Zhu Changzhi also had sparring partners, but Zhu Yijun always felt that there was one less person who could fight for Zhu Changzhi.

Zhu Yijun gave Feng Bao some instructions. After the child with only one eye finished eating, he was called to the Emperor by Feng Bao. This child was a bit terrified, kneeling on the ground, trembling.

This was a huge figure. Those adults in the relief institution who held their noses high in the sky on weekdays could only bow and scrape when they saw these big figures.

"Follow Zhi'er from now on. What is your name? How old are you? Where are you from?" Zhu Yijun showed a smile he thought was warm and said, "No need to be nervous."

"Commoner Qian San, from Great Ming Prefecture, eight years old. My parents died in a great plague, and I have a younger sister." Qian San bowed again, hesitated for a long time, and said, "Can I take my younger sister with me? My sister is six years old."

"What if I don't agree?" Zhu Yijun was a bit curious. In the world of an eight-year-old child, which was more important, escaping the sea of bitterness or family?

Qian San took a deep breath, bowed again, and said loudly, "Commoner thanks Your Majesty, commoner... cannot leave."

Qian San had experienced too much human suffering and had already tasted the coldness of the world. He knew very well what he was facing was immense wealth, but he still cared about his little sister.

"It is not impossible." Zhu Yijun nodded and said, "You will be called Qian Zhizhong from now on."

"Thank Your Majesty! Thank Your Majesty!" Qian San kowtowed repeatedly.

His younger sister was only six years old and was a beauty in the making. Beauty lies in the bones, not in the

skin. This could be seen from a young age.

After a simple understanding, Zhu Yijun soon knew why Qian Zhizhong was excluded.

Some people spent some silver to adopt this little sister Qian. Calling it adoption was nothing more than selling her. Qian San probably saw that these people had bad intentions and tried his best to stop it, so little sister Qian was not adopted.

Qian San's obstruction was of no use. It was entirely because the end of the year was approaching. According to the practice of previous years, the Emperor would definitely come, so those adults in the relief institution did not dare to act too recklessly.

"Just enter the palace together and be a playmate for Zhi'er." Zhu Yijun said indifferently, it was just one more person to eat.

Zhu Yijun was mainly looking for someone absolutely loyal for Zhu Changzhi, someone who would dare to sacrifice his life at a critical moment. This was very important.

If it weren't for Lu Bing's protection, the Daoist Master would have died in the raging fire long ago.

Lu Bing's mansion was repaired by Empress Dowager Li's father, Li Wei. At that time, Li Wei was not the Earl of Wuqing, but a craftsman Li Wei.

It was also during that repair of the mansion that Li Wei entrusted Lu Bing to send his daughter to the Prince of Yu's mansion. Later, this daughter relied on her son to become the Empress Dowager.

After Lu Bing died, the counter-attack against him began. When the Daoist Master was still there, he could still protect him.

Lu Bing's son, Lu Yi, feared the fierce impeachment from the court and wanted to donate the mansion to the Earl of Wuqing, Li Wei, and seek protection under Li Wei. But before he could do so, the Daoist Master left. After that, no one protected Lu Yi anymore, and the Lu family was raided by the Longqing Emperor to calm the criticism.

After this incident, the Embroidered Uniform Guard completely declined. Even the Lu family, who protected the Shizong Emperor with their lives, ended up like this. Giving one's life for the Emperor, one must consider the consequences.

In the huge political turmoil, Lu Yi still saved his life and also saved the hereditary General Anyuan and the non-functioning Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

This mansion went around in circles and finally fell into the hands of Li Wei.

This mansion is called Qinghua Garden, also known as Li Garden, the first garden in the capital. During the Ming and Qing transition, the mansion was burned down. The later Qinghua Garden was also renovated on the ruins of this mansion.

Qinghua Garden draws spring water from the Western Hills and gathers it into a lake in the garden. The surrounding ten miles are all gardens. The pavilions and terraces in the garden are all available, with the beautiful scenery of willow embankments and flower seas.

Li Wei was a person who knew how to enjoy himself. He planted twenty miles of willow embankments along the lake, with countless Lingbi, Taihu, and Jinchuan beautiful stones. There were thousands of peonies and tens of thousands of peonies. Calling it a sea of flowers is no exaggeration.

Opposite Qinghua Garden, there was another large mansion, the Spoon Garden of the Mi family of Anhua. In the sixth year of Wanli, wealthy households were relocated to the capital. The Mi family of Anhua moved to the capital the following year and began construction in the western suburbs. They bought that piece of land. The scale was not as good as Qinghua Garden, but it was also extremely exquisite.

Zhu Yijun had always wanted to find an excuse to confiscate these two mansions to build a school.

Li Wei should have seen the Emperor's plan. After the Emperor grew up, Li Wei no longer

dared to act recklessly by relying on his status. If he acted recklessly again, he wouldn't even be able to keep his mansion.

When the Emperor was still young, the young master was suspicious, and acting recklessly was fine. Now that the Emperor is strong, if Li Wei acts recklessly again, no one can stop what the Emperor will do.

Empress Dowager Li can't either.

The Shanxi Governor Zhou Liangyin, as an external official who came to pay respects this year, rushed back to the capital on New Year's Eve. It was not that he had no submissive heart and was deliberately late, but the sudden heavy snow blocked the road, and the post road at Jiayu Pass was delayed due to icing.

After Zhou Liangyin bathed and changed clothes at the Huitong Hall, he immediately went to Tonghe Palace to see the Emperor. He had already missed the inquiry about governance at the red steps. If he came to see him after the New Year, that would be disrespectful.

New Year's Eve was still before the New Year. Coming to see him before the New Year was still to pay New Year's greetings to His Majesty.

"Your subject Zhou Liangyin pays respects to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty live ten thousand years in peace. Your subject is late, and I hope Your Majesty will forgive my sin." Zhou Liangyin entered the Imperial Study and immediately performed the great ceremony to see him. He came in a bit of a hurry, and his breathing was a bit rapid.

He hurried and hurried, and finally caught up.

Zhou Liangyin was still a bit afraid. Back then, his memorial offended both General Qi and the Marquis of Ningyuan, Li Chengliang. This was no longer an ordinary censor.

He had also spent ten years farming behind Hou Yuzhao in Danning Guard before he had the hard-won opportunity to turn over a new leaf.

The opportunity to change one's way of life, if one can have it once in a lifetime, is already a blessing from heaven.

"What sin is there? No need for formalities, no need for formalities." Zhu Yijun waved his hand and said, "Sit quickly. Zhang, bring a hand warmer to let Minister Zhou warm his hands. It's freezing cold, and his hands are frozen red. Bring another cup of good tea."

"Yes." Zhang Hong looked at the person and served the tea. This was a beloved minister, so it was the best tribute tea. If it were a minister His Majesty didn't like, he wouldn't even serve him a cup of horse urine.

Zhu Yijun turned sideways and said, "Hou Yuzhao is in the capital. He is going to Zhejiang to be the Governor after the New Year. You will be colleagues in the future, so move around more."

"Don't provoke the Marquis of Ningyuan. He is still angry with you. That Zhao Nanxing talked nonsense and was just beaten. You let Hou Yuzhao say a few good words for you, and the grudge from back then will pass. The Marquis of Ningyuan is a magnanimous person and will not be overly petty."

"As the old saying goes, it is better to resolve grievances than to keep them."

Zhao Nanxing and Zhou Liangyin did almost the same thing. They fought desperately at the front, but stirred up trouble by wagging their tongues at the back. Zhou Liangyin was exiled back then because he was an official, while Zhao Nanxing was just a commoner, so the way they were dealt with was different.

Some grudges, if the Emperor doesn't speak, can never be resolved in a lifetime.

"Your subject obeys the decree." Zhou Liangyin seriously pondered this sentence.

His Majesty was very satisfied with his work as the Governor of Shanxi, otherwise there would be no good tea;

His Majesty asked him to move around with Hou Yuzhao, which meant he could also make progress, and they would be colleagues in the future;

His Majesty asked him to find Hou Yuzhao to say good words. This peacemaker was not Hou Yuzhao at all, but His Majesty;

Zhou Liangyin was originally a Jin person and also a Jin party member, but he was an abandoned son. The plaque of the Jin party had been taken down and replaced by the Labor Party. The connection between Zhou Liangyin, this abandoned son, and the insignificant Jin party of Wang Chonggu and Wang Jiaping was broken.

The Jin party had already collapsed, and Zhou Liangyin had completely become a stray dog.

"Thank Your Majesty for your great grace." Zhou Liangyin bowed again, understanding that this was His Majesty pointing out a bright path for him. An official career without protection is like crossing the Flaming Mountain in the dog days of summer, without even a place to shade.

"You have done a very good job in the cleanup in Shanxi. I heard from Liang Menglong that you can finish the cleanup of redundant personnel in Shanxi next year. I don't understand how you did it." Zhu Yijun sat up straight and talked about official business.

The problem of serious redundancy in the Great Ming yamen had not been a year or two, but a stubborn disease.

It was not easy to gouge out rotten sores. Zhu Yijun felt it was impossible, just as difficult as cutting off one's own hands and feet.

And it was indeed very difficult. Guangling County was gouged twice before it was gouged out, but in this year or so, Zhou Liangyin actually dug out the rotten flesh in places like Datong Prefecture and Taiyuan Prefecture.

These were the two most difficult places in Shanxi. After gouging out these two places, the rest would be simple.

"Just as the censors said, your subject is excluding dissidents." Zhou Liangyin answered this question cautiously, because the people and yamen with the Jin party and nepotism were highly overlapping with those who ate idle rice and didn't work, and what the censors said was also the truth.

Zhou Liangyin admitted his mistake first, confirming that the accusation of the censors was true. He was an external official, in Datong Prefecture, not in the capital. These censors in the capital could turn black into white by making a tiger out of three people. Putting on a low profile was a means of self-protection by placing himself in the position of a victim.

This shaped himself into a weak party, achieving the effect of "I, Zhou Liangyin, do my duty, I just don't understand, everyone is doing the court's work, how come the more one does, the greater the grievance one suffers."

Zhou Liangyin could see that the Emperor was very satisfied with him, so admitting his guilt without pleading or arguing was also a means of self-protection.

Hou Yuzhao wouldn't do these things at all, but Hou Yuzhao was loyal to the monarch and patriotic.

Zhu Yijun shook his head and said, "It's very difficult to do it just by excluding dissidents. After all, in the yamen, not everyone who eats idle rice is a former Jin party member. If these censors could do it, I would also let them exclude dissidents."

If people leave, people come. Factionalism cannot be cleaned up at all, and it will even lead to fighting for the sake of fighting. Zhu Yijun did not approve of the impeachment of the censors.

Excluding dissidents can clean it up? If there were such a good thing, the two Song Dynasties wouldn't have ended up with "three redundancies and two accumulations." When it comes to factionalism, in which dynasty was it not fierce?

"Actually, it's quite simple. When cleaning up, first clean up the people who do the work. The work in the yamen

has no one to do. When everyone can't stand it, then build a new yamen for the people who were cleaned up before." Zhou Liangyin talked about his cleanup method. He thought for a while and added, "If you are ready to die and leave a suicide note, it will be easy."

"Your subject is just relying on the vast imperial grace."

Zhou Liangyin's words were already very direct. He was actually betting his life, which was the biggest premise.

Zhou Liangyin used his life as a bet and put it on the gambling table. If he won, he was loyal to the monarch and patriotic. But if he lost, he died. As a Governor, as a high official, how could His Majesty not investigate it?

If he lost, the powerful and wealthy families, the local gentry, and their mouthpieces and interest representatives who refused to obey orders would also have to die together, and the cleanup could still succeed.

This was why Zhou Liangyin dared to bet. He might lose, but his opponent would definitely die. What gave Zhou Liangyin this confidence was His Majesty.

Everyone knows the Emperor's personality. If he is willing to be decent, everyone can be decent. If he is not willing to be decent, then no one can live this life!

When His Majesty truly decides to take the Capital Camp and fight the world again, the people doing things below will all become simple.

This is political responsibility.

Having courage, having the determination to make progress, and having the determination to break one's wrist to survive, but specific problems still require specific methods. It sounds simple, but things are actually very complicated. The cleanup goes in three steps.

After checking all the clerks sitting in the yamen, clean up all the clerks sitting in the yamen; hire the cleaned-up clerks to a new yamen, with the new and old running in parallel; wait until the new yamen is running, and then directly clear all the old yamen.

The art of grafting.

Zhou Liangyin did not hide it, which was equivalent to doing the Guangling County incident again in Datong Prefecture and Taiyuan Prefecture.

After cleaning up all the clerks who did the work, the yamen in the two places fell directly into paralysis. Some people were idle at home, or even died for many years, but their families were still receiving salary rice, and they could not perform their duties at all.

However, the expansion of local officials requires the approval of the Governor. They were not allowed to recruit people, the people who did the work were cleaned up, and those who were eating and doing nothing could not perform their duties. These yamen had to secretly build new yamen and secretly bring back the clerks who were cleaned up before. In order to resolutely execute the instructions issued by the Governor, and in order not to be discovered by the Governor, they could only do it secretly.

Governor Zhou Liangyin "accidentally" discovered that the people doing things were still sitting in the office. After careful consideration and painful reflection, he revoked the cleanup order.

By this time, it was actually breaking the window. After this incident, everyone suddenly realized that the yamen didn't need so many clerks, so many miscellaneous officials, and so many yamen runners to maintain operations, and it was even more efficient.

This was to form a consensus, and also to "let them go in order to catch them" for the next step.

For the powerful and wealthy families and their minions, resistance

was effective. The Governor couldn't just watch the yamen fail and paralyze. This problem of redundant personnel would immediately worsen. "Letting them go in order to catch them"—this "letting go" was the step that made them crazy.

The Governor's authority was challenged, and the Governor could not manage the problem of redundant personnel. Anyway, it was public money. In just a few months, the redundant officials and personnel worsened rapidly. In the end, even the local powerful and wealthy families in Taiyuan and Datong Prefecture couldn't stand it, and the cleanup cut down precisely again.

After all, after the first round of screening, who the yamen needed was already clear at a glance.

"Minister Zhou has worked hard." Zhu Yijun said happily, "After you leave Tonghe Palace, remember to visit the Second Minister Wang and Vice Minister Wang Jiaping. They are all noble people. Even if you don't ask them to handle things, it's not good to offend them."

Zhou Liangyin was originally a Jin person and also a Jin party member, but he was an abandoned son. The plaque of the Jin party had been taken down and replaced by the Labor Party. The connection between Zhou Liangyin, this abandoned son, and the insignificant Jin party of Wang Chonggu and Wang Jiaping was broken.

The Jin party had already collapsed, and Zhou Liangyin had completely become a stray dog.

Zhu Yijun said this, so Zhou Liangyin had a reason to visit. In this way, a connection was established.

"Thank Your Majesty for your great grace." Zhou Liangyin bowed his head again, understanding that this was His Majesty pointing out a bright path for him. An official career without protection is like crossing the Flaming Mountain in the dog days of summer, without even a place to shade.

Local officials are not as good as current managers. The Emperor's holy grace is of course important, but one cannot trouble His Majesty with everything, so one must have help. But this mountain is not something anyone can enter if they want to. Without the holy decree, who would dare to accept him, this defeated abandoned son?

Zhou Liangyin left Tonghe Palace. He solved two problems that troubled him this time in the capital: the first was the past sins, which were ordered to be handled by Hou Yuzhao; the second was the future, and he could now be considered a member of the Pan-Labor Party.

Zhou Liangyin visited Hou Yuzhao and went to visit the Marquis of Ningyuan with Hou Yuzhao. The Marquis of Ningyuan gave Hou Yuzhao face, didn't mention the past again, and even treated him to a meal, which could be considered a happy time for both host and guest.

In the afternoon, Zhou Liangyin visited Wang Chonggu and Wang Jiaping in the name of paying New Year's greetings, implicitly mentioning Tonghe Palace, but without using power to oppress people.

Everyone was a thousand-year-old fox. Zhou Liangyin vaguely mentioned Tonghe Palace, which was equivalent to clearly indicating that His Majesty was very satisfied with the cleanup in Shanxi.

Wang Jiaping was naturally willing to accept him. The Labor Party was reborn on the ruins of the Jin party and needed to develop and grow, and Zhou Liangyin was a very capable official. There were never too many capable officials.

"Song Shanyong, the instructor of Tianxiong Academy, has come to the capital. Although he is only a Juren and an instructor of Great Ming Prefecture, His Majesty's holy decree has changed him to be the Registrar of the Imperial Academy, specializing in the method of cultivating talents in academies. This cultivation of talents is the future. Song Shanyong is worth winning over." Wang Jiaping mentioned a name.

Song Shanyong was an instructor in Great Ming Prefecture, and after more than ten years, he was still an instructor. It was actually worth the Labor Party gathering together to discuss so solemnly.

History tells everyone not to underestimate any salt smuggler, postman, or instructor. These three seemingly ordinary occupational groups often burst out with amazing power to change the era at historical turning points.

These three occupations have several common characteristics: poor background; salt smugglers walk on the edge of the law; postmen are at the end of the system; instructors are based in the cracks of culture;

They all control key social resources. Salt smugglers control the economic lifeline of salt; postmen monopolize information channels; instructors dominate the education system and have many disciples;

And most importantly, they all have strong organizational capabilities. Smuggling salt is a life-and-death business; postmen dispatch goods and transmit messages; instructors are teachers themselves, reading, literate, and understanding reason, and can constantly summarize experience and lessons in movements, correcting the limitations of peasant movements.

In times of crisis, they can all condense scattered forces and become the torrent of the era.

Any group of people with this kind of special quality should be valued. This is the historical experience and lesson of the Great Ming. For example, Hai Rui, instructor of Nanping Academy; Shen Shiqing of Nanhu Academy; Song Shanyong of Tianxiong Academy.