The Fall of Two Ming Dynasty Titans

In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, two pivotal figures—Liu Bowen and Liao Yongzhong—passed away within a month of each other. Their deaths marked the decline of the “Zhejiang faction,” a powerful political group that had helped Zhu Yuanzhang establish his empire. While Liao’s death was straightforward, Liu Bowen’s demise remains shrouded in mystery. Some historians allege he was poisoned by Hu Weiyong, a rival minister, while others suspect Zhu Yuanzhang himself orchestrated the act. Regardless, Liu’s death signaled the end of an era.

Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor, shed a few perfunctory tears for his departed advisors. But before he could fully process their loss, an audacious scholar petitioned to reinstate the imperial examination system—a move that would ignite a fierce ideological battle.

The Controversial Revival of the Imperial Examinations

By the late Yuan Dynasty, the imperial examination system had been abolished, leaving the government’s talent recruitment in chaos. When the Ming Dynasty was established, Liu Bowen advocated for its revival as a means to select capable officials. In 1370, he personally oversaw the first Ming-era imperial examinations, reportedly recruiting many talented scholars.

However, Zhu Yuanzhang was deeply skeptical. He openly criticized the system, arguing that it produced bookish bureaucrats with no real-world experience. “How can such men govern the people?” he demanded. He pointed to military leaders like Xu Da and Li Shanchang—men who had risen through merit rather than exams—as ideal officials.

Liu Bowen countered that times had changed: “In an era of peace, we cannot use the same methods as in times of war to select talent.” Reluctantly, Zhu conceded—but his opposition ran deeper than mere skepticism.

The Hidden Threat in Confucian Texts

The real issue lay in the examination curriculum. Liu Bowen’s revived system followed the Yuan Dynasty model, testing candidates on the Four Books (annotated by Zhu Xi) and the Five Classics. These texts emphasized loyalty to authority and the unity of family and state—principles that, ironically, echoed the Yuan Dynasty’s ideology.

But one text, Mencius, contained dangerous ideas. A passage declaring “The people are the most important, the state next, the ruler least” enraged Zhu Yuanzhang. While Mencius intended to remind rulers of their duty to the populace, Zhu interpreted it as a challenge to imperial authority. Worse, Mencius’s philosophy implied a transactional relationship between ruler and subject: loyalty was conditional, not absolute.

Zhu, a former peasant who had clawed his way to power, could not tolerate such notions. Legend claims he once tore apart a copy of Mencius, screaming, “If this old man were alive, I’d have him beheaded!” Later, he ordered 85 “subversive” passages excised from the text.

The Abolition and Its Disastrous Consequences

In 1373, Zhu abolished the examinations outright. Instead, he implemented a recommendation system, allowing officials to nominate candidates. Predictably, nepotism flourished. Corrupt appointees repaid their patrons with bribes, and graft spread unchecked.

Realizing his mistake, Zhu responded with draconian anti-corruption measures. Officials embezzling as little as 60 taels of silver faced execution—often by lingchi (death by a thousand cuts). The most infamous punishment, “flaying and stuffing” (bo pi xuan cao), involved skinning corrupt officials and displaying their remains as grim warnings.

The Futility of One-Man Rule Against Corruption

Zhu’s reforms had a fatal flaw: they relied on his personal authority rather than institutional change. His Great Announcements (Da Gao) outlined harsh penalties but were never codified into permanent law. Worse, he encouraged commoners to arrest suspected corrupt officials—a policy that bred chaos.

As ancient Chinese statesmen warned, “Govern with the elite, not the masses.” Zhu’s populist approach backfired. Despite his brutality, corruption persisted, culminating in scandals like the Empty Seal Case, where officials exploited bureaucratic loopholes to embezzle funds.

Legacy: A Tyrant’s Failed Experiment

Zhu Yuanzhang’s war on corruption was both brutal and ineffective. His distrust of intellectual elites led to a decade-long suspension of the examinations, destabilizing governance. When he finally reinstated them in 1384, the system was firmly under his ideological control—purged of “dangerous” ideas like Mencius.

Historians debate whether Liu Bowen’s death or the examination crisis weakened the Ming more. But one lesson endures: autocratic rule, no matter how ruthless, cannot eradicate systemic corruption without lasting institutional reform. Zhu’s reign remains a cautionary tale of power unchecked—and the high cost of silencing dissent.