The Biography of General Ge

In the mid-Wanli period of the Ming dynasty, natural disasters struck frequently, wars raged, and the imperial treasury was running dry. The Wanli Emperor ruled with an iron fist, sending eunuchs across the country to open mines and levy commercial taxes. The move angered his ministers and met resistance from local officials and gentry, sparking one popular uprising after another. In the twenty-ninth year of Wanli's reign, several thousand Suzhou weavers, led by Ge Cheng, killed tax officials, burned tax checkpoints, and stormed the weaving bureau where the tax inspector was based. The outcome is rather intriguing. According to Chen Jiru's Record on the Tomb of General Wu Ge, the Wanli Emperor dismissed Suzhou's tax inspector and abolished its tax checkpoints. Ge Cheng was released under an amnesty after thirteen years in prison.

Twenty-six years after the Suzhou uprising, several thousand local scholars and commoners petitioned for the release of Zhou Shunchang. The situation spiraled out of control and erupted into a riot, provoking the wrath of the imperial court. Five men later willingly took the blame and were executed. The people of Wu buried them together in what became known as the Tomb of the Five Men.

Today, 775 Shantang Street in Suzhou is home to the protected historic site known as the Tomb of the Five Men and the Tomb of Ge Cheng. The entrance and offering hall of Ge Cheng's tomb are now shared with the Tomb of the Five Men. The tomb faces west, with its mound enclosed by stone slabs. It lies just two meters east of the Five Men's tomb. Zhang Pu's celebrated Record on the Tomb of the Five Men was included in Guwen Guanzhi and became widely known. Although Ge Cheng's deeds came before those of the Five Men, and he was imprisoned for resisting taxes, he has now become little more than an appendage to their story. As Chen Jiru put it: “The Five Men died first, yet were the rear guard; the general died later, yet was the vanguard.”

Moved by this, I delved into the historical records and spun them into this account, to honor the spirits of the departed.