Li Shanchang of the Ming Dynasty: Photos of the Commoner

Summary This book takes the life of Li Shanchang, the founding hero of the early Ming Dynasty, as the main line, connecting the legendary journey from a civilian counselor to the founding prime minister, focusing on his core life background of "making contributions to the country and benefiting the mulberry fields". Li Shanchang served Zhu Yuanzhang with his wisdom and wisdom, assisting him in establishing the world and establishing laws. He was praised as "more meritorious than Xiao He" in the court. He also cared about people's livelihood, cultivated mulberry trees deeply, went to the Western Regions to promote cotton seeds, innovated farming methods, and laid the foundation for the Ming Dynasty to have "no worries about food and clothing". The book not only showcases his majestic talents and strategies in founding the country, but also depicts the ups and downs of the political turmoil of the Hongwu Dynasty - from being a highly relied upon "commoner prime minister" to the tragic ending of being involved in the game of imperial power and having everyone beheaded. The story uses the "inheritance of farming and mulberry" as a hidden thread and extends to the Jianwen and Wanli years: his descendants and disciples, adhering to his concept of "farming is the foundation of the country", spread cotton and rice seeds to Persia, Europe, and Africa, establishing a cross-continental farming and mulberry friendship; a hundred years later, his achievements were finally vindicated, and he was posthumously presented to the grand master and enshrined in the temple of meritorious officials. The people used cotton wadding and rice seeds as sacrifices, allowing the original intention of "serving the people" to transcend time and space. The whole book interweaves the intrigues of temples and fireworks in the fields, which not only restores the picture of the turbulent times in the early Ming Dynasty, but also highlights Li Shanchang's spiritual inheritance of "contribution lies in the country and benefits the people", and interprets the profound connotation of "immortal merit is not in gold and stone, but in the hearts of the people".