What stories can reflect the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty? What a story!

The rule of Zhenguan refers to the peaceful and prosperous era that appeared in the early Tang Dynasty. Because Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty was able to appoint people on their merits, know how to make good use of them, open up ideas, accept advice humbly, and reuse Wei Zheng, etc.; and adopted some policies based on agriculture, reducing corvee taxes, recuperating, practicing economy, and improving the imperial examination system, etc., the society emerged Tranquil situation. The reign name at that time was "Zhenguan" (627-649), which was known as the "Reign of Zhenguan" in history. This was the first prosperous age of the Tang Dynasty, and it also laid the foundation for the subsequent prosperous age of Kaiyuan.

Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, reigned for 23 years, which enabled the Tang Dynasty's economic development, social stability, political clarity, and people's prosperity and health, resulting in unprecedented prosperity. Since his reign was Zhenguan, people called this period of his rule the "Reign of Zhenguan". The "Reign of Zhenguan" was the most dazzling period in the history of our country.

Taizong realized the great power of the people from the magnificent peasant war, learned the reasons for the demise of the Sui Dynasty, and attached great importance to the lives of ordinary people. He emphasized putting the people first and often said: "The people are the water; the king is the boat. Water can carry the boat and also overturn it." When Taizong came to the throne, he ordered light corvees and low taxes to allow the people to recuperate and recuperate. Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty cherished the power of the people and never easily imposed corvee services. He suffered from gas disease and was not suitable to live in the damp old palace, but he lived in the old palace of the Sui Dynasty for a long time. He also ordered the merging of prefectures and counties to eliminate the disadvantages of "few people and many officials", which would help reduce the people's burden.

At the beginning of Zhenguan, under the leadership of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, the whole country was united and the economy quickly improved. By the 89th year of Zhenguan, cattle and horses were everywhere, the people had enough food and clothing, they didn't close their doors at night, and they didn't pick up things on the street. There was a prosperous scene of Shengping.

Taizong reigned for more than 20 years, and no fewer than 30 officials were admonished. One of them, Minister Wei Zheng, gave advice on more than 200 matters and hundreds of thousands of words, all of which hit the mark and were very helpful in improving government affairs.

Taizong attached great importance to the selection of talents and strictly followed the principle of having both ability and political integrity. Taizong believed that only by selecting a large number of people with real talents and practical learning could he achieve great governance in the world. Therefore, he was thirsty for talents. He issued edicts on seeking talents five times, increased the subjects of the imperial examination, and expanded the scope and number of candidates so that they could be used. More talents are revealed. ?Because Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty valued talents, a large number of outstanding talents emerged during the Zhenguan period. It can be said that there are "a lot of talents, both civil and military". It was these pillars of talent who made great contributions to the formation of the "Reign of Zhenguan" with their intelligence.

Taizong of the Tang Dynasty attached great importance to the rule of law. He once said: "The law of the country is not the law of the emperor and his family, but the law that the whole world must abide by. Therefore, everything must be subject to the law." As a general, For a monarch with more than ten thousand people to say such words, Tang Taizong is indeed an enlightened emperor. ?After the law was enacted, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty set an example by taking the lead in abiding by the law and maintaining the uniformity and stability of the law. During the Zhenguan period, it was true that the prince committed the same crime as the people when he committed crimes. When enforcing the law, he was impartial and impartial, but when sentencing, Taizong thought repeatedly and was cautious. He said: "People cannot live again after death, and law enforcement must be lenient and simple." Due to Taizong's painstaking efforts, the legal system was very good during the Zhenguan period, with fewer people breaking the law and fewer being sentenced to death. According to records, in the third year of Zhenguan, only 29 people were sentenced to death nationwide, which almost reached the highest standard of the legal system in feudal society - "penal measures" that eliminate the need for punishment.

The idea of ??putting the people first, opening up the avenues of speech, and being open-minded to accept advice; reusing talents and the principle of meritocracy; being selfless and acting in accordance with the law constitute the basic characteristics of Zhenguan's rule and became the feudal rule. The best example of governing the world made the Tang Dynasty at the forefront of the world in terms of politics, economy, and culture compared with Western countries at that time.

The power of the Zhenguan Dynasty is unmatched by any other dynasty in China. Looking at several powerful dynasties in Chinese history, the symbol of prosperity is nothing more than a prosperous country, a strong military, and a prosperous people. The Zhenguan Dynasty made outstanding achievements in deep civilization (mainly referring to institutions and cultural heritage). It is precisely because of the foundation of Zhenguan's rule that Wu Zetian was able to "open the door to Kaiyuan", thus laying the foundation for the prosperous Kaiyuan era. The prosperity of the prosperous Kaiyuan era is evidenced by a poem by the great poet Du Fu: "Recalling the heyday of the Kaiyuan era, there are still thousands of houses in the small town, the rice is dripping with fat, the corn is white, and both public and private barns are abundant...". In line with the high development of productivity, the international prestige of the Tang Dynasty also reached its peak. It achieved successive victories in foreign wars and maintained a continuous offensive posture for more than a hundred years. Its territory expanded extremely, and the vast territories of Korea, Mobei, and the Western Regions were successively expanded. Incorporated into the territory of China, the western territory reaches directly to the Stone Kingdom (the city of Tashkent in Central Asia) on the east coast of the Aral Sea. In addition to the fruitful achievements known to these people, the civilization level of the Zhenguan Dynasty was also second to none in the world at that time. The following civilization achievements made the Han nation the best nation in the known world at that time.

During the Zhenguan period, farmers occupied a certain amount of land, their tax burdens were reduced, they had a stable production and living environment, a large amount of wasteland was reclaimed, and social and economic prosperity appeared. At that time, politics was relatively clear, economic development was rapid, and national strength was gradually strengthened. 1. The social order is unprecedentedly stable.

The social order of the Zhenguan Dynasty was unbelievably good. There were only twenty-nine prisoners sentenced to death in the country. In 632, the number of death row inmates increased to 290. At the end of the year, Li Shimin allowed them to go home to take care of funeral matters, and they would die if they came back next autumn (in ancient times, they were executed in autumn).

In September of the following year, all 290 prisoners were returned and no one escaped. At that time, China's politics were well-established, officials performed their duties, people lived and worked in peace and contentment, injustices were rare, and there was not much resentment in the hearts of the Chinese people. People who are well-fed and well-fed will not take desperate risks to survive; people with a peaceful mind are less likely to go to extremes, so the probability of committing crimes is very small.

Historical records:

During the Zhenguan period, "many officials were sincere and cautious. They controlled the families of princes and concubines, and the powerful and cunning people were all afraid of power and did not dare to invade. He deceived the poor people. There were no thieves in the business trip. The prisons were always empty. Food is given on the road. When travelers pass by in Shandong villages, they will be given generous gifts or gifts.

2. Open borders. /p>

The Tang Empire was the most civilized and powerful country in the world at that time. Its capital, Chang'an, was a cosmopolitan city, just like New York in the United States today. The Tang Empire at that time was the "Sunshine Zone" in the eyes of people with lofty ideals from all over the world. Talented men from all over the world risked their lives to go to the Tang Empire. After seeing the high prosperity and civilization of the Tang Empire, diplomatic envoys from all over the world felt that their country was in their hearts the same as the uncivilized "primitive forest". Almost, so I didn’t want to go back to China and tried every means to stay. China’s highly developed culture makes most people from all over the world feel proud to be Chinese (this reminds me of the green card in the United States today). "Expatriates" from abroad have settled in various places, especially in emerging commercial cities. There are more than 200,000 Western expatriates in Guangzhou alone. The Zhenguan Dynasty was one of the few open dynasties in Chinese history, allowing foreigners to enter the country. There are no strict restrictions on Chinese people leaving the country, that is, they are not worried about Chinese people forgetting their origins when they go out, nor are they worried about foreigners coming in and taking over the throne. This alone shows that the Zhenguan Dynasty is highly confident and firmly believes that its country is the best in the world. The most civilized and prosperous land did not worry about being submerged by foreign culture. The quality of the citizens of the Zhenguan Dynasty was so high that it neither discriminated against nor flattered foreigners, nor was it blindly xenophobic or "appropriate". It was neither humble nor arrogant. Great national spirit and kingly demeanor. Foreigners in China enjoy the same civil rights as Chinese people. Not only can they get rich, but they can also serve in politics. There are many expatriates from the Arab Empire and Japan. Few hold official positions in China, and some even serve as senior officials at the ministerial level.

In addition to accepting a large number of foreign immigrants, the Tang Empire also accepted batches of foreign students to study advanced culture in China. There were seven batches of government-sponsored overseas students in Japan, each with several hundred people. The number of privately financed overseas students was far more than this number. After returning from their studies, these Japanese students carried out the first modernization movement in Japan. ―The "Dahua Reform", that is, the Sinicization movement, from rules and regulations to clothing and customs, all imitated the Zhenguan Dynasty at that time, which made the Japanese nation in a primitive tribal state leap forward for a thousand years.

< p>Twelve hundred years later, the Japanese Empire carried out its second modernization movement, fully accepting Western culture, leaping forward hundreds of years again, and trampling on its former teachers. In the teacher's "courtyard" There were two tragic massacres.

The Japanese nation is not clever, it is just good at learning. This nation, which is half a step slower than others, has one greatest advantage - it is backward but not stubborn. When foreign civilization invades, it always humbly accepts a culture that is more advanced than its own nation, accepts the advanced achievements of human civilization in the fastest and most convenient way, and quickly leaps into the ranks of advanced nations.

It is not terrible for a nation to be backward, but stubbornness is the most terrible thing!

3. The only dynasty without corruption.

The germ of corruption in China's officialdom is so pervasive that the vast majority of Chinese people believe that corruption is an incurable disease of human society. Corruption is inevitable wherever there are "officials". When international students returning from countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States state to their relatives and friends that corruption has been basically eliminated in these countries, few people do not think that they are talking nonsense. In fact, corruption is not a common phenomenon in human society. There are many highly civilized countries on the planet that have basically eliminated corruption. Not only modern powers such as the United States and Britain, but even Singapore, which is mainly composed of Chinese people, has basically eliminated corruption.

The basic elimination of corruption mentioned here does not mean that corruption has been completely eliminated, but that corruption is a very rare phenomenon in the entire officialdom, and the amount of corruption is not large (one year's The amount of corruption generally does not exceed the person's salary for one year), and the duration does not last very long (it is rare to commit crimes for more than three consecutive years). They will be exposed quickly and severely punished without mercy. The Clinton incident is the biggest scandal in American politics, but a Chinese said: A village chief in our country is many times more romantic than Clinton. The president of the United States is really too useless...

The Zhenguan Dynasty is The only dynasty in Chinese history that was free of corruption, this may be Li Shimin's most commendable political achievement. In China under the rule of Li Shimin, the emperor took the lead in setting an example, officials were dedicated to the public good, and officials and subordinates performed their duties. Abuse of power, corruption and malfeasance dropped to the lowest point in history.

What is particularly valuable is that Li Shimin did not use cruel punishments to prosecute corruption. He mainly set an example and formulated a political system as scientific as possible to prevent corruption. In the face of a shrewd and self-disciplined ruler, officials have little motive for corruption, and it is not easy for corrupt officials to find a hiding place. Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty had the most severe penalties for corruption. Corrupt officials were all punished by being skinned. However, the number of corrupt officials in the Ming Dynasty was still rare in history. It can be seen that the prevention of corruption mainly depends on a set of scientifically revised political systems. Relying on subsequent crackdowns can only achieve temporary results and cannot fundamentally eradicate the social soil on which corruption breeds.

4. An initial attempt at a decentralized system.

The main feature of China's feudal system is the high concentration of power, with local governments obeying the central government, and the central government following the emperor's lead. This highly centralized political system has greatly restricted citizens’ creativity, initiative and flexibility, and can easily lead to tyranny.

The central government organization of China's feudal society implemented the "three provinces and six ministries system", but the division of powers among the three provinces of the Zhenguan Dynasty initially reflected the characteristics of modern politics - the principle of decentralization. The Zhongshu Province issues orders, the Menxia Province examines the orders, and the Shangshu Province executes the orders. To form a political decree, the prime ministers first held a meeting in the Political Affairs Hall located in the Zhongshu Province. After forming a resolution, it was submitted to the emperor for approval, and then the Zhongshu Province issued an edict in the name of the emperor. Before the edict is issued, it must be sent to the province for review. If the province deems it inappropriate, it can refuse to "countersign" it. If the edict lacks a countersignature, it cannot be promulgated according to law. Only the edicts "counter-signed" by the Menxia Province became official national laws and were handed over to the Shangshu Province for execution. This method of political operation is very similar to the "separation of powers" system in modern democratic countries. The separation of powers theory that emerged in the West in the 17th century was already applied to China's political system more than a thousand years ago by Li Shimin, further explaining The level of civilization of the Zhenguan Dynasty was so high. The most commendable thing is that Li Shimin stipulated that his edict must be "countersigned" by the province under his command before it can take effect, thus effectively preventing him from making imprudent decisions that would damage his reputation on a whim or in a bad mood. There have been 853 emperors in Chinese history, and only Li Shimin has such outstanding wisdom and broadmindedness (the founding president of the United States, Washington, is a bit like his student).

5. Highly developed commerce.

The economic characteristics of China's feudal dynasty were "emphasis on agriculture and suppression of business." The proportion of business in the national economy was quite low, and the status of businessmen was therefore several levels lower than that of farmers. This is also the main reason why China's feudal economy has never been able to develop substantially.

The Zhenguan Dynasty was the only feudal dynasty that did not discriminate against business. Not only did it not discriminate, it also provided many convenient conditions for business development. This further reflects Li Shimin's foresight. Under the initiative of Li Shimin's government, the commercial economy of the Zhenguan Dynasty made rapid and substantial progress, and new commercial cities sprung up like mushrooms after a rain. At that time, more than half of the world's famous commercial cities were concentrated in China. In addition to Jiaozhou, Guangzhou, Mingzhou and Fuzhou on the coast, there are also inland Hongzhou (Nanchang, Jiangxi), Yangzhou, Yizhou (Chengdu) and Shazhou (Dunhuang, Gansu) and Liangzhou (Wuwei, Gansu) in the northwest. The capital Chang'an and the accompanying capital Luoyang are cosmopolitan cities.

The world-civilized "Silk Road" is the link between the material civilization of the East and the West, but this commercial channel only reached its highest use value in the Tang Empire. The territory of the Tang Empire was unprecedentedly vast, and four important military towns (the Four Towns of Anxi) were established in the Western Regions. The western border reached directly to the Stone Kingdom in Central Asia (now part of Kazakhstan), providing a stable social order and effective business travel between the East and the West. As a result, business travel along the Silk Road continued, and a wide variety of bulk goods were transported between the East and the West, making the Silk Road a golden corridor for the entire world.

The Kaiyuan rule was a prosperous period in the early period of the reign of Emperor Xuanzong (Li Longji) of the Tang Dynasty. In the early days of Tang Xuanzong's rule, Kaiyuan was used as the reign name. At that time, Xuanzong worked hard to govern, appointed talents, developed the economy, promoted culture and education, and brought great rule to the world. It became the most powerful country in the world at that time. It is known in history as the "Kaiyuan Heyday"***29 Year.

After Xuanzong ascended the throne, he first appointed Yao Chong and Song Jing as prime ministers, and later Zhang Jiazhen, Zhang Shuo, Li Yuanhong, Du Luo, Han Xiu and Zhang Jiuling. They each have their own strengths and perform their duties faithfully, making the government full of vitality. Moreover, Xuanzong was able to accept advice humbly at this time, so the politics were clear and the political situation was stable.

Xuanzong adopted Zhang Jiuling's suggestion and formulated a transfer system for officials. Select capable people from the capital officials and transfer them as governors and governors to train their abilities and develop administrative experience. At the same time, those who have made achievements among the governors and governors were selected and promoted to officials in the capital. This internal and external interaction has enhanced communication, understanding and trust between the central and local governments. Xuanzong also divided the country into fifteen provinces and placed envoys in each province to supervise local state and county officials and inspect the performance of local officials. In terms of selecting talents, Xuanzong also reformed the imperial examination system and limited the number of people who passed the Jinshi examination to reduce the occurrence of redundant officials and improve the overall quality of officials.

Xuanzong was very frugal during this period. He stipulated that ministers below the third rank and those below the concubine in the inner palace were not allowed to wear ornaments made of gold and jade, and dismissed the palace maids to save money. He also ordered that all parts of the country were prohibited from mining pearls, jade and manufacturing brocades, thus changing the extravagant style of the harem since Wu Zetian.

He also ordered Yu Wenrong to conduct an inventory of fugitive households and foreign lands across the country. More than 800,000 households were found, which greatly increased the Tang Dynasty's tax revenue and sources of troops. Because of these measures, the Tang Dynasty's finances became abundant, and the country's granaries were abundant, making prices very cheap.

Specific:

Agriculture: ① Construction of large-scale water conservancy projects. ② Improvement of farming technology: Rice seedling transplantation is widely used. ③The development of tea production: The world's first tea monograph "Tea Classic" appeared in the Tang Dynasty. The author Lu Yu was called the "Tea Saint" by later generations. The practice of drinking tea began to flourish in the Tang Dynasty. ④Improvement of production tools: the emergence of a new agricultural tool - the curved shaft plow; the creation of a new irrigation tool - the barrel cart.

Handicraft industry: ① Silk weaving industry: many varieties of designs and colors, and superb technology. ②Ceramic industry: Yue kiln celadon, Xing kiln white porcelain, Tang Sancai (treasures of world crafts).

Business prosperity: ① Famous metropolises: Chang'an, Luoyang, Yangzhou, Chengdu. ②Chang'an City: The city is divided into squares and cities. The squares are residential areas and the city is a prosperous commercial area. Chang'an, the capital of the Tang Dynasty, was the center of exchanges between various ethnic groups and an international metropolis.

During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, poetry and poetry became the main content of the Jinshi examination. In order to select talents, newly admitted county magistrates were personally assessed in the palace examination. He was also very kind to Confucian scholars and ordered his ministers to search for the posthumous books of previous dynasties. He found nearly 50,000 volumes of books, which brought the cultural undertaking of the Tang Dynasty to its peak.

In terms of literature: The Tang Dynasty was the golden period of poetry creation in my country. There are nearly 50,000 poems by more than 2,000 poets that have been handed down to this day.

Representative poets:

①Li Bai (prosperous Tang Dynasty) - "The Immortal of Poetry" ("Early Departure from Baidi City", "The Difficult Road to Shu")

②Du Fu (prosperity-decline) - "Poetic Saint" and "History of Poetry" ("Three Officials" and "Three Farewells")

③Bai Juyi (Mid-Tang Dynasty) - "Qin Zhongyin" and "New Yuefu", Poetry reflects reality.

Calligraphy: "Yan Jin Liu Gu"

1. Yan Zhenqing: Created a powerful and honest new calligraphy style, called "Yan style", which is the most accomplished calligraphy in the history of our country after Wang Xizhi. He is a calligrapher, represented by the "Yan Family Temple Stele" and "Duobao Pagoda Stele". Yan Zhenqing.

2. Liu Gongquan: He drew on the strengths of others and came up with new ideas, forming the "Liu style". His characters are square and majestic, and his bones are strong and strong. It is represented by the "Mysterious Tower Stele".

Painting

1. (Tang Dynasty) Yan Liben: Good at figure painting, represented by "Pictures of Emperors of Past Dynasties" and "Pictures of Stepping Chariots".

2. (Tang Dynasty) Wu Daozi: "The Saint of Painting", pioneered the freehand painting of later generations, and his representative work is "The Picture of the King Seeing His Son Away".

Art treasure house

Representative: Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, Gansu Province (mostly excavated during the Sui and Tang Dynasties, with murals and colorful statues, it is one of the largest art treasure houses in the world

Xuanzong adopted Zhang Shuozhi's suggestion and implemented a recruitment system to replace the increasingly depleted government army system. In 722 AD, he personally selected 120,000 government soldiers and strong men as the permanent guards of the capital, and they were called "qi". He also set up ten military towns in the border areas to control foreign affairs as a measure to rule foreign races and consolidate border defenses.