Chapter 4 Chapter 3 There is no Zhang Juzheng in the world
The absence of Zhang Juzheng caused our huge empire to lose its center of gravity, erratic in its steps, and finally slipped and fell into the abyss.It is slowly mired in a "constitutional crisis".The crisis was incomprehensible at the beginning, and as the years passed and the political situation worsened, the truth became clear, but the chance of returning to normal pace was gone forever.
As an emperor, he has been passively sabotaging his officials for a long time. Emperor Wanli is an unprecedented example in history.His motive was a kind of revenge, because his civil officials did not allow him to replace the eldest son Chang Luo with the third son Chang Xun as the prince.This wish could not be fulfilled, which made his beloved Concubine Zheng depressed.Another reason is that after the Zhang Juzheng incident, he understood that others, like him, have the duality of "yin" and "yang".Where there is "Yang", there is "Yin". There is both morality and ethics, and there is selfish greed.This kind of "yin" is definitely not something that can be eliminated by the power of the world.Therefore, he neither forced his officials to accept his ideas, nor opposed Chen Liao's opinions, but ignored them all.Naturally, his passive sabotage was not publicly announced in the form of an imperial decree, but it was obvious to others.
The emperor was determined to have a persistent confrontation with his officials with tenacious will, and the officials did not let him make Chang Xun the crown prince, nor did he make Chang Luo the prince, nor did they even let Chang Luo hold the crown ceremony so that he could study with the officials of the Imperial Academy.The two sides persisted like this for 10 years.
Under the pressure of strong public opinion, he had to give up his plan.But his submission was laced with hatred.The eldest son of the emperor was crowned prince, and the third son of the emperor was enshrined as King Fu to the country of Henan. Since then, the emperor's soul has been permanently scarred, and his officials have no chance to make him carry out his mission according to their will. up.The emperor was still the emperor, but was no longer willing to do anything to please his civil servants.Another 20 years like this.
Various statutory ceremonies are being held as usual, but the emperor is no longer present.The high posts were vacant, and he preferred to leave them vacant rather than fill them, so that the civil servants, with very few exceptions, had no hope of rising to the top.The courtiers' memorials to protest continued to be presented to him, but he did not reply.Because he knew that as long as there is a critical comment on the memorial, no matter whether it is a fierce refutation or a calm debate, these unapproved and original memorials will be sent to the office of the matter for copying and publishing, which hits the right spot. In the arms of a group of protesters, they have achieved the purpose of selling their names and exposing their lack of grace.The most appropriate way is to keep these hateful memorials, that is, to detain them in the palace without instructions.
So conscientious officials felt unable to carry out their tasks and had to submit their resignations.Wanli dealt with these resignations with the same attitude, neither offering condolences nor leaving the post.Some officials hung up their crowns and went away in anger. The Ministry of officials suggested that they should be hunted down and interrogated, but Wanli also ignored them.By the end of his reign, the voluntary resignation of a civil servant meant that a position had been abolished, because there was no longer anyone to fill the vacancy.
The emperor and his officials were familiar with poetry and books, and they knew that the classics and historical records were in favor of the officials rebelling against the king of injustice.But this innocence must reach the level of Jie and Zhou, that is, to impose extreme cruelty on officials and common people.This is not the case with the current Emperor Wanli, and besides ignoring documents of the above nature, he reviewed other memorials as usual.In other words, his passive sabotage and abandonment of his responsibilities are selective, and he himself can confidently express that he is pursuing the Taoist tenet of "governing by doing nothing".For this situation, the officials could not find any instruction in the classics to rebel.Therefore, although dissatisfaction and even anger continued to grow, it never developed into a civil war of "killing Dufu" or "side of the Qing emperor".
The emperor's abdication of duties did not paralyze the government.The Civil Service has an automatic control program that it has developed over the years.In the year of the ox, dragon, sheep, and dog, Beijing's general examinations and palace examinations are held as usual; the regular assessments of local officials and Beijing officials have not been abolished.The dispatch and promotion of middle and lower-level civil servants are decided by lottery.The Ministry of Officials made a list of all the candidates. Except for the local magistrate of his origin or his father, son, and brother's subordinates, what official position an official will take up is not determined by his morality or intelligence, but by the facts. A bamboo stick that has nothing to do with it.For these routine matters, the emperor approved as usual, and in most cases, the eunuch Bingbi, the supervisor of ceremonies, made Zhu's approval on his behalf.
After 48 years of Yuzi, Emperor Wanli passed away peacefully.He was buried in the Dingling Mausoleum, which he personally participated in designing, between the coffins of Empress Xiaoduan and Empress Xiaojing, concubine Gong.His beloved imperial concubine Zheng Shi lived 10 years longer than him.Since she was considered a monster of the country, she received no sympathy from anyone.In the past 10 years, she lived in a lonely cold palace in the Forbidden City, and she was separated from her beloved son Fu Wang forever.King Fu himself was also a scourge. It is said that Wanli gave him a total of 4 million mu of farmland before his death.Since he became the center of everyone's resentment, no one dared to make any excuses for him, saying that this number has been extremely exaggerated, and most of the land has been converted into silver, which does not exceed 20,000 taels per year.
The strange problem is that the issue of succession to the throne has long been resolved, and the Wanli Emperor has been in charge of his guests, and the dispute over the responsibility for delaying the establishment of an heir is even more serious than when the problem was not resolved.Whenever the past was mentioned, many courtiers were involved, and the war of words was followed by a war of words.At this time, the civil servants in the imperial court had split into several factions, and countless old and new enmities between them needed to be liquidated, and fierce disputes often started from trivial quarrels.The Wanli Emperor's decades of rule had so far caused irreparable damage to the civil servants.
The emperor is the head of a country, and he should do his best to maintain the balance of the civil society.It is not easy to do this, and it requires, in addition to impartiality and tirelessness, an extraordinary level of shrewdness.In view of the dual character of civil servants, it is necessary to give material rewards to make them willing to serve, and to mobilize their spiritual strength so that they are loyal to the state affairs according to the concept of ethics and morality.The starting points of these two goals have already diverged, and the means that the emperor can use to achieve the goals are also extremely limited.What Emperor Wanli did was exactly the opposite of this.He deliberately did not cooperate with civil officials, and his practice of not replacing officials was tantamount to removing the highest position.They have worked hard and deserved material rewards, promotions and fortunes, and glory to their ancestors. At this time, all of them are in vain, and their life-long efforts are in vain.Furthermore, he regards ethics and morality as a hypocritical decoration, so naturally he does not work hard on this aspect.Many civil servants who regard the teachings of Confucius and Mencius as a matter of course, now feel that their loyalty has become meaningless foolish loyalty.
Apparent tranquility is often illusory.The civil servants group lacked due cohesion, but concentrated countless conflicts of interest, forming an explosive group.During the 48 years of Wanli Emperor Yuyu, especially in the later period, the ministers had already seen through that Zhongshu Wufu had the ability to lead the overall situation, so they had to deal with the situation with a passive and perfunctory attitude.This kind of attitude is similar to the epidemic, and it will soon spread among the civil servants, making those who are loyal to their duties lack of confidence, and those who are corrupt will have more opportunities to take advantage of it.This downward trend intensified, bringing the entire dynasty to the brink of collapse.The reason why it can barely maintain it is because the alternative method has not yet been found.And in an empire as large and long-established as ours, even under unfavorable conditions, inertia alone can keep the dynasty alive for several years.
Needless to say, this atmosphere is pessimistic.Some civil officials, later known as the Donglin Party, were determined to turn the tide.Their ideal was that spiritual leadership could be established outside the emperor's throne.They have been familiar with the "Four Books" and Zhu Xi's annotations since they were young, and they have confirmed that a well-educated gentleman will never passively retreat or give up his duties, and what he needs is unremitting struggle for self-improvement.These self-proclaimed gentlemen, whether they are in government or in opposition, always flaunt their own virtues and criticize those who disagree with them as villains.Later, several members of this faction were appointed as officials of the Ministry of Officials and the Metropolitan Procuratorate, responsible for the investigation and impeachment of hundreds of officials.In regular reviews, they aggressively dismiss officials they perceive as flagging.
This movement to revitalize morality, although its advertised purpose is extremely grand, but without the emperor's auspices, it is expected that it will not succeed.The emperor is also a human being, not a god. Even if his will is called "imperial decree", it is not that his judgment is really higher than that of ordinary people.His overriding and mysterious power is endowed by tradition, beyond the scope of reason, and has a religious color, which makes his decisions the greatest authority in the world.If the officials admit that his decisions are really his own and not the manipulation of sycophants, absolute obedience, even if unfair, can be induced.Of course, the Donglin Party cannot possess such absolute authority, not to mention the 20,000 civil servants wearing brocade robes that day, as a whole, have lost the standard of judging good and evil. , On the contrary, can we set a standard that everyone recognizes?These dozens of officials tried their best to re-establish a moral ethics that can be recognized by others, but the result was counterproductive.Those who oppose them also use their way of governing people, that is, organize their groups in the name of morality and ethics to fight against them.
Wanli's death lost the last buffer factor.Small groups with mutual suspicion have openly blamed each other by this point.A series of questions were raised: the first emperor was hesitant about the question of successors, why didn't those who hold important positions in the central government speak out?As the chief assistant, Wang Xijue actually agreed with the previous emperor's proposition that the three kings should be crowned together, that is, the eldest son Chang Luo, the third son Chang Xun, and the fifth son Chang Hao should be crowned kings at the same time regardless of superiority or inferiority. What is the intention of this?If it weren't for the lack of backbone of the ministers to accommodate, why did the first emperor delay the issue of "the foundation of the country" for so long, making it difficult to deal with the consequences?It is said that Concubine Zheng still has a conspiracy to murder the eldest son of the emperor, why not conduct a thorough investigation?There is no legal procedure for reference to find answers to these questions, but they are emotionally provocative.The person who asked the question may not have the determination to get to the bottom of it, but just uses these questions as a pretext for accusation, pointing his index finger at the nose of the opponent, so as to gain the initiative in the party struggle.
It should be said that the system of this dynasty cannot allow this kind of party struggle to develop.Our judicial system is extremely simple and lacks a basis for adjudicating disputes.Even if a technical issue is sent to the imperial court for a decision, it must be translated into a moral issue, and the judgment is made in the name of the best or the worst.In this specific situation, only by making all civil officials follow the teachings of the "Four Books", treat people with sincerity, restrain their own selfishness, respect the interests of others, and make big things small and small things into nothing, can the court be united and help each other.If officials recite the words and sentences in the classics, call themselves gentlemen and others villains, and fight for profit and power under the cover of morality, this is to reverse the principle.Such an approach would lead to the disintegration of the Civil Service and the ungovernability of our Empire.You don’t have to wait until Wanli’s coffin to be carried to Dayu Mountain for burial in 1620 to understand. In 1587, Shen Shixing said that “there has been no country that has been able to achieve long-term stability like this since ancient times”, which has already made this truth very clear.
However, Shishi Bank did not have enough power to influence public opinion that day, and its influence has been even weaker since then.The issue of succession to the throne happened when he was the chief assistant, so many people felt that such a weak and incompetent person happened to be the head of Wenyuan Pavilion during these tense years.
When Shen Shihang was forced to resign in 1591, public opinion had lost sympathy for him.The reason for this needs to be traced back to the previous year, 1590.At the beginning of this year, Chang Luo, the eldest son of the emperor, was only seven and a half years old, but according to the traditional Chinese calculation method, he was already nine years old.At this time, he hadn't left the cabinet to give lectures, which caused uneasiness to many courtiers, worrying that he would not be able to have normal contacts with civil servants when he grew up.But to give lectures in the cabinet, he must have the name of the prince, otherwise it will be unfair.The problem is imminent. All the Beijing officials collectively put pressure on the four great scholars of Wenyuan Pavilion, asking them to use their prestige to urge Wanli to appoint Chang Luo as the prince.Therefore, the four academicians headed by Shen Shixing submitted their resignations to the emperor on the grounds that they could not explain to the officials.Of course, the emperor could not accept their resignation, because once they left, no one would dare to accept the first position.
So the emperor announced that he had no intention of abolishing the elders and establishing the younger ones, but he could not accept the threat of his subordinates.He said that if the courtiers stopped bothering him with the establishment of the crown prince within a year, he could make Chang Luo the crown prince in 1592.If someone continues to entangle with this, the establishment of the reserve will be postponed.Under the conditions of this compromise, the academicians returned to Wenyuan Pavilion to continue their work.
During this year, the officials followed Wanli's opinion and no longer urged him to stand up as a prince, but they all felt the heavy atmosphere.There are also many people who suspect that Shen Shixing has been lured by the emperor, and is using his reputation to guide the Beijing officials to support Chang Xun. In the spring of 1591, Wanli planned to award Shen Shixing Taishi, the highest civil official title, and even Zhang Juzheng only received such an honor before his death.Shen Shixing resolutely resigned, and Wanli proposed to give Shen Shixing an earl's salary, which is also unprecedented.Shi Shixing once again claimed with extreme panic that he had no merit to accept such a gift.Although none of the above proposals became a reality, it has made SHIH feel embarrassed.This special favor made others envious and made it difficult for him to perform the liaison duties between the emperor and the officials.Even though Shen Shixing was famous for his length and thickness, the officials would never want this extremely personable chief minister to make new contributions to supporting the crown prince.At this time, he became the target of public opinion attacks.In September of the Gregorian calendar of that year, Fujian Jinshi Li Guan impeached the chief assistant, saying that there was a problem with the Dayushan mausoleum project presided over by Shen Shixing. According to his information, water gushed out of the foundation.This magistrate, thousands of miles away, risked losing his future to participate in the impeachment of the chief minister. His purpose was nothing more than to publicly warn Shen Shixing: Although you have won the emperor's trust, the civil official group still has enough power. Shake your position if you are not accountable to the Civil Service.The official who wrote the letter was dismissed as a civilian afterwards, but in the eyes of civil officials, this sacrifice will never be meaningless.Since this person has earned a reputation as a loyal minister, if his calculation is correct, it is also desirable to be reinstated in the future.
In October of the Gregorian calendar, an official of the Ministry of Industry, because the deadline for the appointment of the prince as promised by the emperor was approaching, and he should be responsible for the preparations for the expenses of the ceremony, he fabricated a budget and submitted it to the emperor for approval.The emperor's Zhu Zhu made all the civil officials dumbfounded.Zhu Pi said that he had already stated that he would not allow his ministers to urge him to set up a reserve within one year. This Ministry of Industry official used the pretext of fabricating the budget to urge him. This is a violation of his order, and he must follow the statement. As said, delay the reserve.This kind of deliberate extravagance can't help but make the officials deeply worried. The emperor is so insincere, what will he use to maintain his prestige and rule the country?So they jointly asked the emperor to take back the approval, and hoped that the establishment of a reserve in the next spring, which he had personally promised, would be realized.Because Shen Shixing was ill, the second assistant Xu Guo wrote the joint petition of cabinet scholars.But this memorial is still led by Shi Shihang.
This large-scale protest made Long Xin furious.When Shen Shixing learned of the emperor's reaction, he immediately submitted a post stating that although his name was listed in the cabinet's joint memorial, he had not heard of it beforehand.The isolated emperor personally thanked Mr. Shen for his loyalty and love in Zhu Zhu.The matter could have ended here, because the scholar's disclosure post is a secret document, and after the royal review, it is usually returned to the person without publication.But this post was intercepted by Xu Guo, so he unceremoniously sent it to the Office of the Incident to transcribe and publish it.Shen Shihang immediately asked for the original document to be released, but its content has been circulated among civil officials, and this kind of request for documents that have been copied by the department is also a violation of the constitution.
Such a major incident forced Shen Shixing, who was on duty at the time, to participate in the affairs of the day. The wording of the impeachment was very strict, saying that he "evaded his words to betray his friends, and secret his words to deceive the king. Slow things down as a strategy of internal diplomacy", "Your Majesty is lenient but not punished, and the gods of the high temple will be killed."This means that Shen Shixing is a full-fledged double-faced and traitorous villain. Even if the emperor does not punish him, the gods of Emperor Hongwu will kill him.
Emperor Wanli did not realize the seriousness of the matter at first.He issued a decree ordering that he be demoted and transferred to other provinces during the incident, and ordered shishihang to work as usual.Shen Shixing was ready to return to the cabinet in accordance with the order, but the emotions of the civil servants were already in full swing and unstoppable, and one by one they handed over the chapters to impeach Shen Shixing.Obviously, SHIH cannot resist these moral accusations, his prestige has been wiped out, and he can no longer gain the trust of his colleagues.Once this situation became clear, he had no choice but to resign.In this case, the emperor's consolation was of no avail.If he doesn't go to Lianzhan again, he will definitely become Zhang Juzheng's second.
Before allowing Mr. Ren Shen to leave office, the emperor could not fail to take the necessary measures to restore his authority.The matter of making troubles and impeaching Shen Shixing has changed from relegation to external transfer to dismissal for the people.This is because he was praised by the civil officials, and the emperor asked the emperor to take back his order to punish him; while on the emperor's side, although he could not retain the high officials who were despised by his officials, he had to show his ability to repel the small officials they admired.Next, it was the second assistant Xu Guo's turn.For many years, he and SHIHS seem to be working together on the surface. This incident exposed his jealousy towards SHIHS, and his intentional disclosure of SHIHS's secret posts shows that his nature is not honest. Should hold an important position in the imperial court.As a result, Xu Guo was also impeached, and the emperor approved him to "return to his hometown for recuperation".It was two days later that the emperor accepted Mr. Shen's resignation.
In this tragic conflict, no one has won.The establishment of the reserve caused such a disturbance that two bachelors left their posts one after another.That being the case, even the most vehement people are inconvenient to bring up the matter again immediately, for fear of making things stiff and out of hand.Wanli is also very clear that no matter how much he loves Concubine Zheng Gui and Chang Xun, this act of abolishing the elders and establishing the younger will never be accepted by the courtiers. If he publicly insists on his own proposition, it will inevitably cause large-scale bloodshed in the end. This is contrary to what he believes in. It is contrary to the purpose of Buddhism, and it may not be possible to get what you want after bloodshed.Based on this consideration of both sides, a temporary stalemate has formed.
Wanli made many mistakes in dealing with Lichu.His first step was to canonize the Zheng family as imperial concubine, below the empress but above the other concubines.A son is more precious than a mother, and it would be logical for Chang Xun to surpass Chang Luo and become the Crown Prince.However, in the eyes of the vast majority of civil servants, this is young and young, which is naturally not in line with ethics.
Wanli himself also could not find a sufficient reason to disclose his intentions, so he could only find various excuses to delay.The first excuse is that Chang Luo is too young to withstand the torture of various ceremonies, and the second excuse is that the above-mentioned plan to establish a reserve belongs to the emperor's authority, and no one is allowed to interfere with it.While arguing with the courtiers, he suddenly got creative and canonized his three sons as kings but not the prince on the same day.The officials did not accept this method, so he found a third excuse, that is, the queen was still young and could still have children; if the queen gave birth to a son, he would be the crown prince of course without any disputes.Such excuses not only show his lack of credibility, but also expose his lack of courage, so the protests of officials will never die down.
This stalemate should be regarded as the "constitutional crisis" mentioned at the beginning of this chapter.Because the impasse cannot be broken, the reason is not the law.The issue of law has never been raised, that is, if the emperor must abolish the elders and establish the younger ones, it is not that he cannot find a theoretical basis.If our empire can really implement the rule of law, and the issue of succession to the throne is decided by an independent court, then the emperor entrusts a lawyer to defend according to written law and unwritten law, and he is very likely to win the case.
First, Chang Luo was not born with the right to inherit the great line, and his younger brothers also did not have this right.Because the emperor's sons had no name before being canonized, otherwise there would be no need to hold a special ceremony to confer the title of prince or king.Second, it is just a traditional habit rather than a mandatory regulation to establish the elders but not the young, which is more obvious after Yongle ascended the throne.As the fourth son of Emperor Taizu Hongwu, he seized the throne from his nephew Emperor Jianwen in the name of "Qing Emperor" without considering the priority of his second and third elder brothers.Therefore, insisting that succession to the throne must be in order of birth after 200 years is tantamount to denying the legitimacy of Emperor Yongle.Third, according to the regulations of Emperor Taizu Hongwu, the legitimate son has the priority to inherit the throne. It can be seen that the status of the prince is determined by the status of his mother, and the date of birth is secondary.Chang Luo's mother is Concubine Gong, and Chang Xun's mother is Imperial Concubine Huang. The aforementioned principle that the mother should be the most precious to the son can still be discussed before the ancestor's instruction.Fourth, if Wanli had to establish Chang Xun, he could also abolish Empress Xiaoduan and establish the Zheng family, making Chang Xun a legitimate son.In the history of this dynasty, the four dynasties of Xuande, Jingtai, Chenghua, and Jiajing all abolished the empress without causing political disturbances.
Why didn't Wanli take a tougher stance on this issue, such as resolutely announcing his proposition publicly, insisting that the establishment of a reserve plan belongs to his scope of power, and no one else can comment on it, and further threatening to abdicate automatically if the intention cannot be realized , this has been unable to find the answer.Perhaps there is a reason that can be used as an explanation, that is, this dynasty does not govern the subjects of the world by law, but by the ethics in the "Four Books".The emperor and all the subjects of the whole country knew that a father should not be partial to his son, an elder brother had the obligation to teach and love his younger brother, and a man could not change the order of seniority just because he loved a woman.It is precisely because these principles are generally recognized by people all over the world that our empire has a common spiritual program, so that we can work together and achieve long-term stability.If only the provisions of the law are used as the basis for governing the country, the foundation of our country will become a problem, and it will be difficult for more than a thousand county magistrates to lead the tens of thousands of common people under his rule as parents.Therefore, Wanli's attempt to abandon the elders and establish the younger ones, even though there is room for accommodation in the law, has long been out of line with the principles of ethics in the minds of officials who adhere to traditional concepts.The courtiers had never heard that the application of the law could be contrary to the teachings of the sages, and even the emperor had to admit it.Under the pressure of such strong morality and public opinion, he had to speak against his will in public, denying that he had any intention of abandoning his elders and establishing his youth.
The wish in his heart is difficult to realize and cannot be expressed clearly, and at the same time, there is a lack of think tanks who can conduct secret business. Since then, he has become a lonely monarch.He really wanted to draw the Grand Master of the Cabinet to his side, but he didn't dare to say it openly.However, things went against their wishes. The previous capital assistants always regarded themselves as the spokespersons of the ministers, constantly urging the emperor to appoint Chang Luo as the prince according to the order of seniority.The urging was ineffective, and the first assistant could only blame himself and leave.In this way, the emperor had to deal with several chief assistants with completely different personalities and different ways of urging, so the reasons found out were inconsistent, which made people feel more clearly that he was indeed insincere.
Although the situation is very unfavorable to him, he still does not give up his wish.The courtiers all speculated whether the emperor was persecuted by the Zheng family to go his own way, or he wanted to delay and wait for the queen to die naturally?It is said that Empress Xiaoduan's health is extremely problematic. If it is true, the imperial concubine Zheng will replace her as empress, it will be enough for anyone to find no basis to object.But Empress Xiaoduan refused to cooperate. She was sick and prolonged her life, and died only 4 months earlier than the emperor.At this time, Wanli had already succumbed to the will of the public, and Chang Luo had been crowned prince for 20 years.
Analyzing the above problems, there is another factor that cannot be ruled out, that is, after Wanli ascended the throne, although he sat on the throne that his ancestors had sat on, his responsibilities and authority were different from those of his predecessors.His ancestors were praised by his officials as absolute moral standards in every word and deed, but he grew up under the education of his officials.His sphere of responsibility was arranged by this group of civil servants.His feelings need to be absolutely suppressed.Although this difference is implicit in form, it is unambiguous in substance.The reason is that the founding monarch established the dynasty, and at the same time established the civil service system as an administrative tool, but today's civil service has already matured, and all they need is a monarch with a flat personality as the representative of the destiny. Mandatory arbitration when disputes cannot be resolved.They demanded that the conservative lord be cut off from daily life, and not bring personal hobbies and preferences in arbitrating disputes to cause more disputes.Frankly speaking, it is better for the emperor to have no opinion, so it is more representative of the destiny.This relationship has been set by Wanli's great-uncle Hongzhi as an example.The more modest and gentle Emperor Hongzhi was, and the more he was at the mercy of his civil servants, the more they praised him as Youdao Mingjun.
Such an emperor is actually no longer the handler of state affairs, but an authoritative symbol of state affairs.He should be good at being invisible.If he can maintain a vacuum of feeling and personality, and constantly practice various forms of etiquette to strengthen abstract ethical concepts, he will meet the above requirements.
Over the years, the civil service has developed a powerful force, forcing the emperor sitting on the throne to reject his personal will in the conduct of government affairs.The emperor had no way of resisting this power, because his authority came from the prostration and worship of the officials, and what he could actually control was very meager.He is the emperor in name, but in fact he is subject to the courtiers.Emperor Wanli came into contact with the truth of the matter with his wisdom, and realized that Li Changxun's plan could not succeed, so he became discouraged and became increasingly alienated from this bureaucratic group that manipulated reality, and adopted a long-term passive confrontation of sabotage.
After 1587, the internal and external situation was not peaceful. Yang Yinglong rebelled in the southwest, Boba rebelled in Ningxia, Japan’s Kanbai Toyotomi Hideyoshi invaded Korea, and Nurhachi in the northeast launched an attack between Baishan and Heishui. caused so much commotion.The main concern of the 20,000 civil servants in brocade robes is who will succeed him to the throne once the current emperor drives in his palace chariot for a banquet.Even after Chang Luo was made the crown prince and Chang Xun went to Henan, the matter was still not over.The slanderous Mrs. Zheng stayed by the emperor's side day and night. Who can guarantee that the situation will not change?Because of this, some loyal ministers made generous speeches, asking the emperor not to be lustful. Since ancient times, beauty has been a factor that lures people to do bad things.Then came the rumors.Some vividly describe various conspiracies that have taken place in the palace.Some say that woodcut idols were found in the palace.It is generally believed that if a person skilled in witchcraft inserted a needle into the idol every seven days, the person imitated by the idol would become sick to the marrow, and all medicines would be useless.Could it be that the imperial concubine Zheng really wanted to use this method to kill Chang Luo?Even more disturbing is the supposed discovery of idols of emperors and empresses.
In the panic atmosphere, another strange thing happened.There was a university student, who erected a wooden board next to the gate of Wenyuan Pavilion, on which were written ten precepts for being an official.Every day when he went to work, he stood in front of the card and read in a low voice, chanting words.Soon, rumors of old Shen Ge spread throughout the palace. It is said that he cast spells and curses in front of a wooden sign with strange characters written on it.The emperor was very surprised and asked someone to take the wooden plaque to have a look. After reading it, he immediately reprimanded the eunuch for talking nonsense and making trouble out of nothing.
Some rumors are also recorded in history books.For example, Concubine Gong is an older woman who lost her youth when she met Wanli.After that, she became blind again, so she couldn't continue to be favored by the emperor.Another story says that Wanli was seriously ill and was about to lose weight. One day he woke up and found that Concubine Gong's arm was under his head, and the tears on his face were still wet. without a trace.There is also a story about Chang Luo's grandmother, the Empress Dowager Cisheng.She opposed the emperor's attempt to abandon the elders and establish the younger ones, and had a special conversation with him:
Empress Dowager: "If you really want to do this, how will you explain to the people of the world?"
Emperor: "That's easy. I'll just say he's the son of a court lady."
Empress Dowager: "Don't forget, you are also the son of a court lady!"
These pretentious stories were not only passed on by word of mouth, but also published in jujube pears and printed into books.The question of the age when Wang and Wanli met was not clarified until more than four centuries later in the excavation of Dingling, because the epitaph clearly recorded the date of her birth. According to this, the year when she and Wanli met Just 16 years old, Wanli is 18 years old.
The development of woodblock printing not only made these books popular, but also made some unsigned leaflets and pamphlets with pseudonyms continue to appear.These leaflets and pamphlets increased the tense atmosphere in Beijing, making everyone involved in the vortex of inheriting the great tradition to varying degrees.There is a leaflet, the so-called "Demon Book", which openly declares that the prince will be deposed soon, and that King Fu will be called back to Beijing to take the throne in the East Palace, and points out the participants in this conspiracy and all their plans.The emperor ordered Dongchang Jinyiwei to closely investigate the author of the demon book, causing the entire capital to be shaken. Not only the people listed in the book were terrified, but other unrelated people were also uneasy.
As far as the civil official group is concerned, the dispute between Chang Luo and Chang Xun is nothing more than adding emotional color to their already existing conflict.Even if there were no Concubine Zheng and the Donglin Party, the estrangement and confrontation among the civil official groups had reached a very serious level.To explore its root, it can be traced back to the beginning of the founding of this dynasty.
Historians seem to have seldom noticed that this dynasty uses poetry and books as the foundation of its governance, and its degree exceeds that of previous dynasties.This was objectively possible at the beginning of the founding of the country.Emperor Hongwu launched a large-scale attack on big landlords and big families in various provinces, and the entire empire formed a society dominated by small and medium landlords and self-cultivating farmers.The imperial court issued repeated orders, advocating frugality and requiring civil servants to become servants of the people.Under this kind of atmosphere, the distance between the material desires in people's hearts and the moral standards in their mouths will not be too far apart, and at best, they will not be enough to become an obstacle in establishing politics.
When Zhang Juzheng became the chief assistant, the dynasty already had a history of two hundred years.The ideals and ethos advocated at the founding of the country have become farther and farther away from today's reality.Many problems should be resolved using organizational principles, but in fact they cannot be solved, and can only be replaced by partial personnel adjustments.
The root of this long-standing malpractice lies in financial arrangements.At the beginning of the founding of the country, the government formulated various systems based on the dogma in the "Four Books". It is an eternal truth that officials should live a simple and simple life.The civil service group formed based on this concept is an extremely large organization. Under the control of the central government, it has neither focus nor flexibility, let alone the ability to adjust with the development of the situation.Various technical forces, such as transportation and communication, analysis and statistics, investigation and research, control of finance, development of production, etc., are even more lacking.An inevitable consequence is that the government often feels alienated from private economic development or decline, so tax revenue and budget cannot be increased or decreased accordingly.
Fiscal rigidity, confusion, and lack of control, and the salaries given to officials are so meager as to be unrealistic, it is inevitable for officials to demand additional income.The "routine" of magistrates mentioned above is a general unwritten system.That is to say, additional taxes are drawn in addition to the prescribed tax amount: when silver is collected, a few cents and cents are added for every tael, which is called "fire consumption"; silk".In addition, for a local official such as the county magistrate, the living expenses of his family, the wine and food for entertaining guests, and the gifts for his superiors are all apportioned locally.对这种似合法非合法的收入，中央听之任之而又不公开承认。在各地区之间，这种收入则漫无标准，因为一个富裕的县分，税收上稍加几分，县令就可以宦囊充裕，而一个贫穷的县分要征收同样的数字，则已是极为暴虐的苛政了。这些情形使得所谓操守变成毫无实际意义。
更难于判断的是京官的操守。他们没有征收常例的机会，而全靠各省地方官以礼仪为名所赠送的津贴。银两源源不断地流入北京，尤其是在考核地方官的那一年为数更多，这就无怪乎那位独立特行的海瑞要称这种年头为京官的“收租”之年了。考核者既然接受了被考核者的津贴，还哪里谈得上一切秉公办理呢？
财政上的情况既是如此，在文官体制上，普遍使人感到困难的是各级地方官都没有实际力量足以应付环境的变化。他们没有完全驾驭下级的能力，因为各人自抽“常例”，即下级也拥有财政权；人事权则集中于北京，对下级的升降奖罚，上级只能建议而无法直接处理。
体制上有欠周全，文官集团更需要用精神力量来补助组织之上的不足。这有本朝的历史记载为证。那些孔孟的信徒，在一旦需要的时候，可以不惜牺牲以完成任务。有的文官从来没有受过军事训练，却可以领导仓猝集合的民兵固守孤城，最后杀身成仁；有的文官不顾溽暑疫疾，和民夫同饮食、共起居，在洪水的威胁下抢救危险的河堤。这些好处当然不应抹杀，然则它们带有冲动性质，也多个人成分，而且常常和紧急情况一起出现。一个具有高度行政效率的政府，具备体制上技术上的周密，则不致接二连三地在紧急情况下依赖于道德观念作救命的符塞。说得严重一点，后者已不是一种好现象，而是组织机构违反时代，不能在复杂的社会中推陈出新的结果。
这种局面不打破，文官的双重性格发展得越来越明显，这也是精神与物质的分离。一方面，这些熟读经史的人以仁义道德相标榜，以发挥治国平天下的抱负为国家服务，以自我牺牲自诩；一方面，体制上又存在那么多的罅隙，给这些人以那么强烈的引诱。阴与阳的距离越来越远，找出一个大家都同意的折衷办法也越来越困难。
以张居正的精明干练，他没有能解决这个问题。他的十年首辅生涯，仅仅刚把问题看清楚。他的一套改革办法使文官们感受到极大的压力而不能成功，而且招致了死后的被清算。申时行不得不把目标降低。他所说的“使不肖者犹知忌惮，而贤者有所依归”，就表现了他调和这阴阳两极的方针。他无意于鼓励不法，但也不能对操守过于认真。1587年京察之放宽尺度就是这种宗旨的具体说明。在他看来，嫂子已经掉进水里，决不能再像平常一样保持远距离的尊敬，而需要“援之以手”了。
就算是降低了标准，申时行也没有能达到目的。有一些自命为体现正气的年少新进，坚持“四书”中所教导的伦理观念，对1587年京察的做法表示了极大的不满。其中有一个顾宪成，所提出的抨击尤为尖锐。他和他的志同道合者决心要检举缺乏能力和操守的官员，而不惜重新撕破申时行所苦心缝补的破绽。申时行的对付办法就是把他调往外省。
所以，在立储问题还没有对京官形成普遍压力的时候，他们的内部关系已经十分紧张了。张居正的强迫命令固然失败，申时行的调和折衷也同样没有成功。在北京的两千多名文官中间，存在着对伦理道德和对现实生活的不同态度，互相顾忌而又互相蔑视。有的人出身寒微，把做官看作发财致富的机会；有的人家境丰饶，用不着靠做官的收入维持生活，自然就不会同意和允许其他人这样做。“四书”中的原则，有的人仅仅视为具文，拿来做职业上的口头禅，有些人却一丝不苟，身体力行。另外有一些人彷徨于上述两者之间；也有一些人由于人事的牵涉参与了对立的阵营。
文官之间的冲突，即使起因于抽象的原则，也并不能减轻情绪的激动。一个人可以把他旁边的另一个人看成毫无人格，他的对方也同样会认为他是在装腔作势地用圣贤之道掩饰他的无能。而眼前更为重要的是，立储一事绝不是抽象的原则，而是关系到文官们荣辱生死的现实问题。因为，凡是皇帝的继承权发生争执并通过一场残酷的冲突以后，胜利者登上皇帝的宝座，接着而来的就是指斥对方伪造先帝的旨意或是暴戾无道；因为九五之尊必有天命和道德做背景。如果不经过这一番左右舆论的工作，自己的胜利就不能名正言顺。而他手下的拥戴者，也总是要请求新皇帝以各种凶狠的手段加之于他们的对方，才能顺逆分明；自己流芳百世，政敌则遗臭万年，各有分晓。这种情形，在本朝的历史上至少已经发生过两次。
第三个登上皇位的永乐皇帝，如所周知，是用武力夺取了侄子建文皇帝的江山。在起兵的时候，他就大肆制造了洪武皇帝本来要传位于他、建文皇帝只是矫诏嗣位的说法。功成之后，他又大批杀戮了拒绝拥戴他的廷臣和他们的家属。第六代正统皇帝，在和蒙古瓦刺部落作战的时候被对方俘虏。廷臣和皇太后商量之后，拥立他的异母荣登极，是为景泰皇帝，俾使瓦刺不能以当今天子被其拘禁而作为谈判的要挟。最后瓦刺由于无利可图，只好把正统皇帝送回北京。一个国家不能同时存在两个皇帝，于是正统被称为太上皇，表面上在南宫优游岁月，实则乃系软禁。7年之后，拥戴太上皇的夺门复辟成功，改称天顺。功成之后，拥立景泰的臣僚受到了残酷的对待。被戮于西市的，就有功劳卓著的兵部尚书于谦。
1587年表面上平静无事，可是很多文官已经预感到如果皇储问题得不到合理解决，历史的惨痛教训必然会在他们身上重演。今天无意中的一言一语，一举一动，将来都可以拿来当作犯罪的证据。就算他们谨慎小心，缄口不言，也可能日后被视为附逆，未必一定能明哲保身。然而并不是所有的人都害怕这样的危险，有的人却正好把这危险看成表现自己刚毅正直的大好机会。即使因此而牺牲，也可以博得舍生取义的美名而流芳百世。因此，除了接二连三地递上奏章以外，他们还刻印了富有煽动性的小册子和传单，闹得北京城沸沸扬扬。
万历在他御宇的后期，已经清楚地看到自己不能避免历史的指责。他与臣僚不和，同时又是一个不负责任的君主，这已成为定案。既然无意于做积极有为的君主，现实又无可逃遁，他只能消极无为。然而由于他的聪明敏感，他又不能甘心充当臣僚的工具，所以即使消极，他仍然顽强地保持着自己的性格。
身为天子的万历，在另一种意义上讲，他不过是紫禁城中的一名囚徒。他的权力大多带有被动性。他可以把他不喜欢的官员革职查办，但是很难升迁拔擢他所喜欢的官员，以致没有一个人足以成为他的心腹。他对大臣们的奏折作出决断，可以超出法律的规定，但是他没有制订法律的力量，官僚之间发生冲突，理所当然地由他加以裁夺，但是他不能改造制度以避免冲突的发生，而且他裁夺的权威性正在日益微弱，因为他被臣下视为燕安怠惰。各边区的军事问题必须奏报皇帝，但是皇帝自己不能统率兵将，在平日也没有整顿军备的可能。他很难跨出宫门一步，自然更谈不上离开京城巡视各省。连这一点选择的自由都没有，居于九五之尊还有什么趣味？
大小臣僚期望他以自己的德行而不是权力对国家作出贡献。但是德行意味着什么呢？张居正在世之日，皇帝在首辅及老师的控制下作为抽象的道德和智慧的代表，所谓德行大部分体现于各种礼仪之中。他要忍受各种礼仪的苦闷与单调，这也许是人们所能够理解的。但几乎很少有人理解的乃是他最深沉的苦闷尚在无情的礼仪之外。皇位是一种社会制度，他朱翊钧却是一个有血有肉的个人。一登皇位，他的全部言行都要符合道德的规范，但是道德规范的解释却分属于文官。他不被允许能和他的臣僚一样，在阳之外另外存在着阴。他之被拘束是无限的，任何个性的表露都有可能被指责为逾越道德规范。
在他的母亲慈圣皇太后去世以后，礼部立即郑重制定了丧仪，宣布全国居丧27日，臣民全部服丧，帽子上缠以白布。全部京官一律被麻带孝，不许穿着朝靴而代之以草鞋，摘去纱帽的两翅而代之以两条下垂至肩的白布。大小寺院鸣钟3万响，昼夜不息。三日之内，四品以上的官员及其夫人分批整队前去慈宁宫举行礼仪上的号哭，号哭15次，全部人员的动作协调，一哭皆哭，一止皆止，有如交响曲。
人们看得很清楚，慈圣太后之被隆重追悼，并不是因为她个人引起了如此广泛而深沉的哀思。她不过是一个形式上的代表，她的丧仪象征了全国臣民怀念慈母的养育之恩，也表现了他们对皇室的忠悃。不难想象，这些官员和夫人在号哭完毕以后回到家里，由于为这隆重的丧仪所感染，势必要对长者更为孝敬，而全国的风俗乃能更为淳厚。然而万历皇帝却早已丧失了这样的信心。他已经把一切看透，仪式典礼只会产生更多的仪式典礼，作为全国的表率，他又必须在每一种仪式中使用全部精力去表现他的诚意。他在过去的生活里付出的精力已经太多了，他已经不再有周旋应付的兴趣，所以他以近日偶患湿毒，敷药未愈，行走不便作为理由，免除了自己应该在众目睽睽之下参加的繁文缛节。但这并不等于说皇帝有亏孝道，根据当日居留在北京的外国教士记载，皇太后入殓时的一切细节，都出于万历的亲手安排。
把传统上规定的天子职责置之不顾，时日一久，万历懒惰之名大著。有的历史学家认为他的惰性来自先天，也有历史学家则怀疑他已经染上了抽鸦片的嗜好。这些历史学家所忽略的是下面这样的琐事：万历既已免去了自己参加典礼的麻烦，却在用一些更为无聊的方法在消磨时光。每当天气晴和，他一高兴，就和宦官们掷银为戏。他自己做庄家，宦官把银叶投向地上画出的方形或圆形之中，得中者取得加倍或三倍的偿还，不中者即被没收。这种细碎的事情表现了一个喜欢活动的人物具备着充沛的精力，但又无法用之于作出积极的创造。皇帝的这种苦闷乃是历史的悲剧。
难道说守成之君就无法改造这些凝固了的制度、改造皇帝的职权进而改造他的帝国？似乎也不尽然。在万历之前，他的叔祖正德皇帝曾经试图这样做过。两人之间相隔约有半个世纪，正德的所作所为，对万历自然不是没有影响的。
正德在1505年即位的时候还不满14岁。他有超人的胆量、充分的好奇心、丰富的想象力。这样的人作为守成之君，可谓命运的错误安排。正德没有对传统屈服，他有他自己寻欢作乐的办法，而且我行我素，毫不不臣僚的批评所动摇。与书呆子作对，也许正是他引以自娱的办法。
正德登极未逾两年，他就搬出紫禁城，不再受宫廷内部清规峻律的限制。他新建的住宅名叫“豹房”，坐落于皇城中空旷之处，中有精舍、猎房及俱乐部。从此，他就在宦官、倡优、喇嘛以及异域术士的包围之中。如果兴之所至，他也偶然临朝或出席经筵，但更多的兴趣则在于游猎。有一次，他亲自训练老虎，为虎所伤，幸赖亲信江彬的救援才得免于难。
江彬之见信于正德，也在于他的大胆和机警。他身上有箭痕三处，其中有一处穿过面颊直到耳根。1512年，经过皇帝的面试，他就受到宠信，甚至和皇帝形影不离。过去正德已经在皇城里练兵，自从得到了江彬这样英勇的军官作为侍从，操练就更形频繁与正规化。土兵们被分成两营，皇帝自率领宦官组成的士兵为一营，江彬率领从边镇中精选的将士另为一营。部队的服装也与众不同，鲜明的铠甲上系以黄色的围巾，遮阳帽上插天鹅的翎毛，这些都增加了士兵们威武飒爽的气概。
正德皇帝整天忙于练兵，夜间则在豹房和各式各样的人物玩乐。对朝廷上文臣和宦官的冲突，他采取听之任之的态度。在他看来，这种争端是无可避免的，更何况处理这些事情并不是他的专长。
最富有冒险性的事迹发生在1517年。当时鞑靼小王子伯颜猛可屡屡犯边，这一年又率领五万骑兵入寇，围困了本朝一营官兵。皇帝准备御驾亲征，借此体会战争的实况，并且检验几年来练兵的成效。文官们对这一惊人之举竭力阻挠，首先是一个视察长城的御史不让他出关。这样的事情很容易解决，他随即下令解除这个御史的职务而代之以一个宦官。他出关之后采取了同样的办法，即不让任何文官出关。前后四个月，北京的臣僚几乎和皇帝完全失去联络。送信的专使送去极多的奏本，但只带回极少的御批。
当皇帝得胜回朝，一个戏剧性的场面出现了。他在事前命令宦官打开仓库，取出各种绸缎遍赏百官，要求他们尽一昼夜之力制成新的朝服接驾。由于过于仓粹，文武官员胸前的标志弄得混乱不堪。原来颁赏给有功的大臣的飞鱼、蟒袍等特种朝服，这时也随便分发。官员们所戴的帽子，式样古怪，由于皇帝的亲自设计。接驾的仪式也来不及订出详细的规定并事先演习。陈列在大道两旁、歌颂御驾亲征取得伟大胜利的标语布幔，因为皇帝自称“威武大将军朱寿”，官员们只能照写上款，并且不敢在下款称臣。偏偏上天不肯作美，那一天雨雪霏霏，百官鹄立直至夜晚，才看到皇帝在无数火把簇拥之下骑在栗色马上安然驾到。皇帝在城门口下马，接过首辅奉上的酒杯一饮而尽，然后驰马赴豹房休息，百官则依旧狼狈地踯躅于泥泞的街头。
皇帝把俘获的武器装备陈列于宫门之前作为战胜的实证。宫中的银作局特制了纪念这次不世之功的银牌，上附各色彩带。但是他的兴致丝毫也没有带给廷臣以鼓舞。翰林院全体官员拒绝向他祝贺，有的监察官自己责备自己失职而要求解职归田。虽然前方官军的围困因为御驾亲征而得以解除，而且终正德一朝，小王子也没有继续入侵，但是持怀疑态度的文官却坚决不承认这次胜利。他们强调说，我军伤亡达600人，而鞑靼却仅仅有16人战死。
1518年秋天，正德皇帝要求大学士草拟敕旨，命令“威武大将军朱寿”再次到北方边区巡视。对这项命令，四位大学士都不肯接受。其中有一位匍匐在地，泪流满面，说是宁可任凭皇上赐死，也不能做这种不忠不义的事情。正德对大学士的抗议置之不理，一切仍然按照原来的安排进行。在征途中，他又降下敕旨，封自己为镇国公，岁支俸米五千石。五个月之后，他又再次加封自己为太师。至此，他就成了他自己手下最高级的文官，位居大学士之上。
第二次的御驾亲征，由于鞑靼始终避免接触，虽然大肆搜索仍然找不到敌人的踪影，只能无功而返，在1519年春天回到京城。这9个月之中，廷臣的抗议先是数以十计，然后是数以百计。廷臣剀切地陈奏，京城无主，随时可能发生变乱。两位大学士提出质问说，陛下放着好好的皇帝不做，而自我降级为公爵，如果追封三代，岂非要使先皇三代同样地降级？首辅的抗议更为直率，他质问说，所谓威武大将军朱寿究竟是何人？如果并无此人，就是伪造圣旨，依法当处死刑。
对这些谏劝与抗议，正德依然不加理睬。他的性格过于放纵而又具有充分的自信，他的不拘小节已经和这些书呆子的观念距离得过分遥远，以致再也无法调和。他喜欢和臣下混在一起饮酒玩乐。一个女人如有情趣，那么不论她过去是娼妓、已经结婚或正在怀孕都毫无妨碍。在他的巡视途中，他和臣僚上下不分，以致巡抚在设宴时，他的席位竟没有筷子。事情发觉以后，臣僚们惶恐不已，他却认为不过是个笑话。有多少次他扔下饰有皇帝标志的专车专舆不坐，而去和别人挤在一部民用大车上。在他为祖母举行丧礼的时候，他看到地上满是泥水，就下令臣僚们免予磕头。但是他的好心肠并没有使所有的廷臣感激，有一位翰林院修撰因为没有机会在泥水中挣扎以表示对皇室的忠诚，就在事后写了一封奏折，引用孔子孟子的教训和皇帝辩论孝道。这篇奏折立即传开，执笔者舒芬乃得以名扬史册。
正德皇帝是否具有大将的才略，现在已经无法判断，因为他没有让文官参与他的亲征队伍，而武官又不会记录战况。可以确知的是，他在1517年的那次战役中曾经亲临前线。1518年冬天，他再度亲临西北边疆，正好遇上大风雪，从者瑟缩委顿，他却精神焕发，始终自持武器，端乘坐马，坚持不用舒适的乘舆。这些应该认为是难得的长处，在文臣的心目中却变得完全不可理解：为什么一个皇帝会放弃九五之尊而把自己降格到一个不识字的武弁的地位？这种惶惑以至愤慨，真正的原因是皇帝挖空了他们苦心构筑的政治体系。这个体系以仙鹤、鹧鸪、獬豸等等标志、无数的礼仪磕头和“四书”中的词句堆砌而成。正德虽然没有用明确的语言，但却用实际的行动对它作了全部的否定。
所以，当正德在1519年又准备以威武大将军的名义到南方各省巡视的时候，文官们就再也不能忍受了。全体监察官员联名诤谏劝阻。皇帝照例置不作答，他们就列队跪在午门外要求答复。这件事还没有了结，其他官员已经跟着递上了奏本，名为谏阻，实则颇有论辩并含有集体示威的味道。皇帝大为震怒，在江彬的建议之下，所有跪劝不去的146个官员每人受到廷杖30下，其中11人当场被打死或事后伤发而死。大学士全部引咎辞职，则为皇帝温旨慰留。
发生了这些纠葛，南巡的筹备工作拖延了好几个月，到秋间才得以成行。这次旅行与巡视北方不同，并无军事上的意义而专为游乐。江南的秀丽风光使正德乐而忘返。然而乐极生悲，在一次捕鱼活动中，皇帝所自驾的轻舟倾覆，虽然获救，但已使圣躬不豫。1520年年底他回到北京，1521年年初就在豹房病死。由于他没有子嗣，于是群臣和皇太后商议，决定迎接今上万历的祖父入继大统，是为嘉靖皇帝。
正德毫不费力地作弄了他的臣僚，显出了他比臣僚确乎要高出一手。其原因，表面看来在于皇帝具有传统赋予的权威，他想要做什么就可以做什么。其实，事情并不如此简单。
百官之所以绝对服从皇帝，即使不说是有条件的，但也决不是无目的的。君主专制本来与文官制度相辅相成，在这庞大的组织中，下层的官员把无数不能尽合事实的书面报告逐级递送到中枢，以其数量之多和情况之复杂而要期望中枢事事处置得宜，自然是不可能的。端坐在宝座上的皇帝，他的力量带有宗教色彩，其神秘之处，就在于可以使不合理的处置合理化。换言之，皇帝的处置纵然不能事事合理，但只要百官都能俯首虚心地接受，则不合理也就成为合理。正德皇帝不去培养这种神秘力量，反而偏要去表现自己的将才帅略，岂不是破坏了臣僚们对他绝对服从的大前提？
正德自称威武大将军，企图把皇帝和作为一个富于活力的年轻人的自己分为两事。不消说，他的臣下是不能接受这些看法的。以本朝幅员之大，人口之多，仅仅为了打败伯颜猛可，动员部队的力量就可能达到这个目的。问题在于，要不是威武大将军朱寿就是正德皇帝，他怎么能出入几个边镇，指挥所有的军队而且有足够的给养补充？反过来说，要是被任命为前敌指挥的将领都能有这样的行动自由，即使战胜外敌，我们的内政岂不大受影响？
事实上，我们的机构设计就不允许高级将领具有这样的自由。各边镇的总兵官一定要受该地区文官的监督，在指定的地区活动。如果不是这样，唐朝的藩镇可能重新出现，成为重大的祸患。而如上面所一再说明的，本朝的立国以伦理道德为根本，以文官集团为支柱，一切行政技术完全在平衡的状态里维持现状而产生。且不用说旁的武官，即使皇帝亲统大军，以动态作前提，迟早也会使国家的人事、行政、税收、补给各项制度发生问题。
正德的一生，一意孤行到这种程度，也有其特殊的原因。他的一生几乎谈不上家庭关系。他的母亲给他的影响微乎其微，宫中的妃嫔也没有一个人对他具有笼络的力量。在他登极的时候，三个大学士都以文章道德著称而缺乏解决实际政治问题的能力。一个天生喜欢活动的年轻人，看到一方面是他的朝廷逐日在按部就班、调和折衷的原则下办事，另一方面则是那么富有刺激性的鼙鼓旌旗、金戈铁马，他自然会不加思索地选择了后者。正德要求实现个性的发展，而帝国的制度则注意于个性的收缩。不论是出于自尊心还是虚荣心，正德利用他皇帝的地位和传统对抗。协助他在对抗中取得上风的，是过