Zhang Juzheng

Zhang Juzheng, courtesy name Shuda, pseudonym Taiyue, was a Chinese politician who served as Grand Secretary in the late Ming dynasty during the reigns of the Longqing and Wanli emperors. He represented what might be termed the "new Legalism", aiming to ensure that the gentry worked for the state. Alluding to performance evaluations, he said: "Everyone is talking about real responsibility, but without a clear reward and punishment system, who is going to risk life and hardship for the country?" One of his chief goals was to reform the gentry and rationalize the bureaucracy together with his political rival Gao Gong, who was concerned that offices were providing income with little responsibility. Taking the Emperor Hongwu as his standard and ruling as de facto Prime Minister, Zhang's true historical significance comes from his centralization of existing reforms, positioning the reformative agency of the state over that of the gentry—the "Legalist" idea of the sovereignty of the state.