I watched Er Chuang’s short video, and everything went numb!

[The living environment of Chinese farmers under the county system is completely different from that of European farmers under the feudal system. ]

[The ancient farmers in our Chinese impression are self-cultivating farmers or tenant farmers. The farmers in the manors in medieval Europe were actually serfs. ]

[Chinese self-cultivating farmers or tenant farmers can change their class through reading. Such examples are not uncommon in ancient Chinese history. ]

……

The plane of Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Di nodded slightly.

This is particularly obvious after the birth of the imperial examination system.

Although as people in later generations said, the imperial examination system has many problems, such as the monopoly of the imperial examination by the aristocratic families and the difficulty of poor students in the imperial examination.

But no matter what, this is at least a clear upward channel.

Children from poor farming families have the opportunity to change their fate by reading and participating in the imperial examination.

Not to mention the distant past, in his Ming Dynasty, there were many ministers who came from poor peasant families.

"Don't European farmers have this opportunity?"

Zhu Di heard the meaning from this passage, and continued to look at the sky screen with doubt.

……

[European serfs are a locked class, attached to the land, unable to leave at will, and will change owners along with the land ownership. They are the property of others, not people with free will. ]

[European serfs have no chance to study, cannot buy and sell land, and the descendants of serfs are still serfs, and they will never turn over. They will work like cows and horses for the lords all their lives and pay taxes in kind on time. ]

……

"Ah?!"

Many ancient people in all dynasties were shocked.

These are not farmers at all, they are clearly slaves, no wonder they are called serfs.

In ancient China, whether it was self-cultivating farmers or tenant farmers, they were far superior to slaves in terms of social status and various social rights.

"Is there no peasant in Europe who is not a slave?"

Many ancient people had such a question in their minds.

"In 1989, they felt that it was impossible for a country to be full of serfs.

Their suspicion was correct. Although most of the peasants in medieval Europe were serfs, there were still a small number of self-cultivating farmers.

It was just insignificant compared to the huge group of serfs.

……

[Even after marrying a wife, some people had to give the lord the right of first night. ]

[However, this right of first night was not as obscene as everyone imagined, and not all lords had this appetite. ]

[In fact, most of the right of first night eventually became a marriage tax. The bride and groom would give the lord some money, food or textiles to symbolize buying the right of first night back from the lord. 】

【And this rule even exists in later generations. 】

【In 2007, when the British King Charles was still the crown prince, he bought a 196-acre large house in Carmarthenshire, Wales.Manor. 】

[The previous owner of this land did not abolish the right of first night, and Charles did not pay attention to it after buying it. In fact, this right of first night is a marriage tax, but it was exaggerated by British gossip newspapers, which embarrassed Charles so much that he wanted to find a piece of tofu to kill himself. 】

[European serfs also know the rules. They will get married only after they have collected enough marriage taxes. There is no need for the lord to find a handle on the wedding day and make themselves unhappy. 】

The barrage flew out:

"Brave Heart" describes this incident, and the fuse of the war was because of this "right of first night."

"I heard that during the Yuan Dynasty, the "right of first night" was also implemented in China."

"Reply-This is false. Historians have not found relevant records in any historical materials such as "History of Yuan Dynasty."

"Reply-This statement comes from a book written by Xu Dazhuo, called "Records of Ashes", which records a case of a Menggu Jiachang occupying a bride. Later, in popular history books such as "Tear Off the Emperor's Fig Leaf", it became an institutional arrangement."

"Reply-Old Zhu in "The Proclamation of the Northern Expedition to Fight the Yuan Dynasty" In the book, the crimes of the Yuan Dynasty were listed, but this incident was not mentioned. It is estimated that it did not exist. "

"Reply - There must be non-institutional humiliation, but it is definitely not institutional."

"Reply - Yes, although the Han people experienced the emphasis on culture over military during the Great Song Dynasty, they were not so cowardly. If there was such a system, the people would have risen up long ago. The Yuan Dynasty would not have been able to rule for 90 years, let alone 9 years."

"Reply - Indeed, there was also the influence of Neo-Confucianism of the Song Dynasty at that time. Women had a strong sense of chastity and could not endure such a great humiliation."

"..."

Many ancient people from all dynasties looked at the giant screen in the sky and were extremely shocked.

Although in ancient China, it was common for landlords and tyrants to covet beauty and occupy other people's wives and daughters.

But this institutional "right of first night" system was something they had never heard of before.

And they are extremely disgusted with this system, which is simply disgusting and filthy. Even if it is for slaves, it is not so excessive.

They really don’t know how these serfs in Europe can endure it?

……

[Chinese self-cultivating farmers have property rights, can read and write, and can run around to exchange information. There are many European serfs with strong cognitive abilities, so once they rebel, their attack power and organization are several levels stronger than European serfs. ]

[In the eyes of their masters, European serfs are no different from animals. The serfs’ every move is under their noses, and they are watched closely by knights who practice killing all day. 】

Barrage flew out:

"The combat effectiveness is really different. Chinese farmers are often half-soldier and half-farmer, such as the Fubing system, while the serfs in medieval Europe have almost never touched a weapon in their entire lives, let alone training. They were killed by a charge from those well-trained knights and could not even leave the Novice Village."

"Serfs holding farm tools can only die in front of fully equipped knights."

"..."

The Great Tang Emperor Taizong plane.

Li Shimin's eyes were full of thought.

According to this statement, the main component of the ancient European army is the so-called knights?

And these knights do not farm and need to be supported.

In this case, he thinks that the number of knights should not be particularly large, otherwise they cannot be supported.

……

[These serfs cannot read and write, and have no contact with the outside world. They are a group of production tools with extremely poor combat effectiveness and incomplete personality. Let them hold it for a thousand years, and they can't think of an action program and strategic goal for rebellion. 】

[The Chinese peasants are facing the government of officials, and paying taxes to the emperor, so they know that the highest goal is to kill the emperor and do it themselves. 】

[European serfs lived in the enclosure of feudal lords. They only knew that it was the lords who bullied them, and they had no original motivation to hate the king. 】

[The biggest difference between the uprising of European serfs and Chinese peasants is that their goals are completely different. 】

[China is centralized, everyone knows where the emperor is, and they all go straight to the throne of the emperor. 】

[European serfs have their own masters, while the feudal system in Europe is "my younger brother's younger brother is not my younger brother". The top structure itself can't figure out who is my subordinate unit, and the world view is a mess. Who can you tell the uneducated serfs to make trouble? 】

[To put it simply, our peasants have been taught to obey the emperor since childhood, so we know to rebel against the emperor. But the serfs in Europe have never been taught to obey the king since childhood, but to obey the master, so they can only think of rebelling against the master at most. 】

……

The plane of Taizu of the Great Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yuanzhang thought about it for a while and felt that this statement did make some sense.

Under the feudal monarchy, these peasants, oh no, serfs were ruled by hereditary nobles and were the private property of the nobles.

Therefore, the nobles instilled in these serfs on a daily basis that they must be loyal to the nobles, not to the monarch.

And the nobles were also the ones who had been dealing with these serfs for many years.

In this case, the dissatisfaction of the serfs with low cognitive ability must be dissatisfaction with the nobles who oppressed them, and would not point to the monarch.

Because they could not think of anything deeper, the contradictions they could see were the contradictions between them and the nobles, so the targets of their rebellion and revenge would only be these nobles.

In this case, even if there were serfs rebelling, most of them would be small-scale and would not form a big climate, because these serfs each had their own targets for revenge and would not have the motivation to join forces.

But at the same time, under this system, the central government's control over the local areas becomes very weak, which will weaken the monarchy.

Relatively speaking, Zhu Yuanzhang still thinks that the monarchy is better.

As for the peasant uprising, he thinks that as long as the emperor governs the country well, it can be avoided.

……

[Although Japan is not a feudal system, it is roughly the same as the feudal system in Europe. The upper class on both sides are nobles, the middle class are knights or samurai, and the lower class are tenants or serfs. The knights or samurai are the ace fighters of the nobles, fighting other nobles externally and mainly responsible for keeping an eye on the lower class people internally. ]

[As long as the centralization of power is not completed and the feudal system is still in place, the details of the oppression suffered by farmers in different regions are different. The farmers cannot empathize with each other and it is difficult to unite. ]

[For example, the biggest hobby of my lord is to torture us. He forces everyone to run ten kilometers every day to exercise. Everyone hates him. And your lord hangs up a few friends every day and beats them. Everyone cries and hates him. ]

[But if you want to revolt, the hatred points of the two sides are not aligned, the interests are not unified, and there is no spiritual resonance. They tend to do their own things and cannot unite to overthrow the whole country. 】

【As long as China was not unified, such as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period or the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, there were no large-scale peasant uprisings, because the country was too fragmented and local powers were fierce. 】

【But as long as China completed national unification, every dynasty would end with peasant uprisings, because officials in the county system were appointed by the emperor, and they had their own grievances and debts. If they couldn't make ends meet, they would rush to the palace. 】

……

Many ancient political elites in the past dynasties looked at the giant screen in the sky and thought about it, and it seemed to be true.

Take ancient China as an example. Before the establishment of the unified dynasty by the Qin Dynasty, there were no large-scale peasant uprisings in the two thousand years before the Qin Dynasty.

You should know that although the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties before the Qin Dynasty were slave dynasties, there were peasants.

And although these peasants had a higher status than slaves, they were also exploited.

From this perspective, large-scale peasant uprisings seem to have occurred in unified dynasties.

One of the important reasons may be what people in later generations said, that they were too scattered, attached to different nobles, and cut into small groups. 0

Perhaps the peasants of this noble were oppressed, but the peasants of another noble lived well.

Without common hatred, it is naturally impossible for everyone to unite and rebel.

……

[Therefore, under the centralized autocratic system, peasant uprisings are time bombs that have already ticked. There is no confusion about whether they will explode, but only a matter of time. ]

[Often the old dynasty was overthrown after the peasant uprising. In the first few decades of the establishment of the new dynasty, the new rulers would relax taxes and recuperate. 】

【However, in the later period, it was inevitable to plunder the people's wealth. Perhaps it was because local officials were greedy for pleasure and did not know how to restrain themselves, or perhaps it was because the emperor was greedy for pleasure and did not care about the lives of the people. The peasant uprising would always be fueled again. 】

【This is a problem at the core of the system, and it cannot be solved by individuals. 】

【The peasant uprising isThe final outcome of the county-based centralized system is that no matter how concentrated the imperial power is at noon and how strong the national power is, as time goes by, peasant uprisings will always come at dusk. 】

【Then after a long night, dawn and a new dynasty will finally come again. 】

【This cycle repeats itself, and this is the unique cycle of the county-based centralized system. 】

Barrage flew out:

"Isn't this the law of dynasty cycle?"

"Now there is a saying that the people live better under the aristocratic politics of feudal monarchy than under the county-based centralized politics of monarchy. Therefore, under aristocratic politics, the people rebel less, the country exists longer, and can break through the law of dynasty cycle."

"Reply--Don't say it, the Xia Dynasty lasted 470 years, the Shang Dynasty lasted more than 500 years, and the Zhou Dynasty lasted more than 700 years, all of which exceeded 300 years."

"Reply--No, can this be divided into high and low? Here Aren't the common people an oppressed group under both systems? "

"Reply - There is indeed such a saying. The basis is that under the feudal aristocratic politics, the common people in the aristocratic territory are the aristocracy's base. The aristocrats know that they cannot oppress the common people too much, otherwise they will rebel. Under the county system, all officials will leave after working for a few years and don't care about the lives of the common people. "

"Reply - In fact, the aristocrats can grasp the line of preventing the common people from rebelling, and will not force the common people in their territory into a dead end. "

"Reply - But this principle, As long as the emperor is not particularly incompetent, he should understand that they will not really force the people into a desperate situation. In fact, they will treat the people better than the nobles because they cannot directly manage them and cannot accurately grasp the line of the people's rebellion. "

"Reply--That's right, but the territory of a unified dynasty is too large. The emperor cannot directly manage the people like the feudal nobles. He must rely on the court bureaucrats, and most of the bureaucrats only consider their own interests and not the overall situation. "

"Reply--That makes sense. If Many officials would do this if they could gain good political achievements and promotion by damaging the interests of the common people. ”

“Reply - So it still depends on the emperor's ability to govern the country and his ability to control the court officials.”

“Reply - Simply put, aristocratic politics can keep the common people half-dead. Although they will not starve to death, they cannot live a good life. But the centralized system of 4.2 degrees means that the upper limit is higher and the lower limit is lower. The people may live a good life, or they may not survive.”

“…”

The plane of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty.

Li Shimin looked at the giant screen in the sky and kept thinking in his heart.

At this moment, these statements on the giant screen do make some sense.

Whether it is a centralized emperor or a feudal aristocrat, as long as they are not particularly incompetent, they will not force the people to a desperate situation for the stability of their own rule.

In comparison, the emperorBecause the territory under the emperor's jurisdiction was too large, he had to rely on the power of the bureaucracy.

This was the problem.

How to ensure that officials could fully implement the emperor's will?

Li Shimin felt that in addition to carefully selecting officials, officials should also be fully supervised.

Thinking of this.

Li Shimin thought of those magical things in later generations, such as mobile phones, which could transmit sound over thousands of miles.

If the Tang Dynasty had those magical things, it would greatly improve the central government's ability to control local areas.

……

[Of course, there are troubles with centralization, but there are also troubles with feudalism in a country.]

[In ancient times, when a country's productivity was underdeveloped, it was more suitable for feudalism. When productivity developed to a certain stage and could break through the constraints of terrain, it was more suitable for centralization. 】

[Traditionally, it is believed that enfeoffment would allow local governments to restrict central power, but the Zhou Dynasty was able to last for a long time because the enfeoffment system was adopted in the early days, which actually strengthened the central government's rule over local governments. 】

[However, as productivity increased later, this ancient system actually hindered the country's development, so it had to be replaced by the more efficient county system. 】

……

Daqin plane.

Qin Shihuang nodded slightly.

The enfeoffment system was no longer appropriate, and he established a unified county system centralized dynasty in accordance with heaven's will.

Only in this way can Daqin become more powerful! .