What are the four major Hongwu cases during the Ming Dynasty?

The four major Hongwu cases in the Ming Dynasty refer to the Kongyin case, the Guo Huan case, the Hu Weiyong case and the Lanyu case.

The Kongyin case occurred in the ninth year of Hongwu, that is, 1376 AD. At that time, there was a rule in the Ming Dynasty that local finances needed to be reported to the central household department for verification every year. As long as one of the numbers was wrong, they had to go back and re-make it and stamp it with a public seal. However, for some provinces and cities that are far away, a trip to the capital is required. It took two months, so it was very inconvenient. So the local officials came up with a way to stamp the official seal on the blank paper. If the accounts are wrong, they can be corrected immediately, thus avoiding traveling back and forth. After evolution, the whole country basically did this. All the officials in the imperial court knew about this practice, but Zhu Yuanzhang did not know it. When he found out that local officials had done this, he was very angry and killed the officials in charge of seals across the country. Up to tens of thousands of people.

The Guo Huan case occurred in 1385. The imperial censor Yu Min reported that Guo Huan, the Minister of Household Affairs, and Zhao Quande, an official of the Envoy Department, and others were involved in corruption. After investigation, it was found that Guo Huan had embezzled tax revenue from Taiping, Zhenjiang and other places. , local governments also levied self-created taxes, totaling 24 million shi of grain. Personnel from the six ministries suspected of corruption were involved, and personnel from local agencies were also involved. In the end, more than 30,000 people were executed according to law from top to bottom.

The Hu Weiyong case occurred in 1380. The specific reason was that Prime Minister Hu Weiyong established a party, recruited officials from the DPRK and China to form a new front, tried his best to exclude officials who targeted Hu Weiyong's party, and attempted to rebel. After Hu Weiyong was exposed, Zhu Yuanzhang He ordered the Hu Party to be wiped out and more than 30,000 people beheaded. For this reason, Zhu Yuanzhang also abolished the post of prime minister and handed over all matters to the six ministries.

The Lan Yu case occurred in 1393. Lan Yu was the founding hero of the Ming Dynasty, but he acted arrogantly and defiantly. Zhu Yuanzhang ignored him. In the end, Zhu Yuanzhang executed him on the charge of treason. There were many party members involved, and more than 20,000 people were killed. After Lan Yu was killed, the founding heroes of the Ming Dynasty were basically eliminated by Zhu Yuanzhang.