Mountain Residency Notes: New Illustrated Edition

Author: Yu Qiujiu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-09-01
Features: His hardships in life were all self-inflicted. His ancestors had already laid a very complete foundation for the Chinese empire for him. He ascended to the throne at the age of eight and began ruling personally at the age of fourteen. As a young child, he could simply enjoy the fruits of their labor. What could he possibly do in front of such vast territory and such a prosperous fortune? His immature eyes, however, were filled with confusion as he fixed his gaze on two formidable figures—one was the most powerful minister of state, Ao Ba, and the other was Wu Sangui, who had led the Qing army into the Guan Pass as a traitor and now wielded military power in the south. Objectively speaking, for such important political forces closely tied to his ancestors and father, even a respected and formidable ruler might hesitate to take action, but Kangxi challenged them—and himself. At the age of sixteen, he swiftly eliminated the Ao Ba faction, and at the age of twenty, he launched a war against Wu Sangui, achieving a decisive victory after eight years of warfare. He essentially rebuilt the empire he had inherited, transforming himself from an heir into an entrepreneur. He matured, and there were almost no opponents left in his sight, yet he still often rode his horse through the forests, grasslands, and marshes of northern China. This was where his ancestors had risen to power, and he was searching for the foundation of his life and career. Every time he passed the Great Wall, he reflected deeply on this wall, which had been of great concern to emperors throughout the ages. His ancestors had broken through the Great Wall to enter, and without Wu Sangui, they would have succeeded anyway. So, what was the point of the Great Wall? A great court—could it really rely on these bricks for defense? But without the Great Wall, where would our defenses be? The result of his reflections can be seen in an edict he issued in 1691. That year, in May, General Cai Yuan of the Gubeikou Military Command proposed to the court that the section of the Great Wall under his jurisdiction was "severely collapsed and should be repaired." Kangxi, however, completely disagreed with him. His edict stated: Since the Qin dynasty built the Great Wall, the Han, Tang, and Song dynasties also frequently repaired it. Yet, at that time, were there no border troubles? In the late Ming dynasty, my great ancestor led his army to advance directly, and all the routes collapsed, none able to withstand it. It is clear that the way to defend the country lies in cultivating virtue and governing the people. When the people are pleased, the foundation of the state is secure, and the borders will naturally be fortified—this is what is meant by "unity is strength." As for the sections of the Great Wall in Gubeikou and Xifengkou, I have personally inspected them and found them mostly damaged. Now, if you want to repair them, it would involve mobilizing the people for the sake of the empire, which could only harm the people. Moreover, the Great Wall stretches for thousands of miles—how many troops would be needed to defend it? His reasoning was quite sound. I have always been skeptical of the "Great Wall complex" buried deep in our nation's heart, but after reading Kangxi's words, I found a kindred spirit from long ago. Because of this, the Qing dynasty became one of the few dynasties in ancient China that did not extensively repair the Great Wall, which I found quite satisfying. Of course, repairing the Great Wall for the sake of cultural heritage preservation today is a completely different matter. Kangxi hoped to build an invisible Great Wall. His talk about "cultivating virtue and governing the people" sounded too grand and abstract. In reality, he had both hard and soft measures. The hard measure was establishing the "Mulan Hunting Ground" outside the Great Wall, where every autumn, the emperor would personally lead over ten thousand officials, ministers, and military officers in large-scale "hunts." In reality, this was a grand military exercise, which not only kept the officials and ministers sharp and vigorous but also...