Managing Maritime Affairs 279
were in the position to make substantial capital investments in maritime
businesses, even though they did not personally go to sea. They were in
contrast to another group of small investors who did travel abroad, the
ordinary xiaomin who provided manpower and worked as seamen on
board the trading junks. This interpretation ties in with the development
of the Chinese junk trade in the following two to three centuries.
Toward a Regulated Maritime Environment
How should the triumph of Zhou Liang and his collaborators be
interpreted? Is it indicative of a total defeat of the traditional approach
to maritime affairs on the one hand, and an overwhelming victory of the
local interests on the other? The answer might be something in-between.
In the βirst place, the outcome illustrates the precarious position of a
high-ranking ofβicial who might βind himself in the midst of a political
conspiracy. This was simply part of Court politics all along in Chinese
imperial history. In the present case, corrupt ofβicials and inβluential
eunuchs paved the way for the powerful and wealthy families of South
Fujian and those people who indulged in power struggles to bring down
a high-proβile ofβicial whose actions threatened their self-interest in
maritime trade. Importantly, the unfolding of events should be looked at
from a broader perspective. There were three concurrent developments
during the late Ming that ushered in a changing social and economic
environment, namely: the development of the commodity economy that
was gaining momentum, the surge in the private shipping trade and the
appearance of large quantities of writings centering on the big question
of how to develop the country and save the people. The last category
was also known as the statecraft scholarship (jingshi wen) during
Ming-Qing times.
Returning to Zhu’s tragic fate, in the later years of the dynasty, he
was generally recognized as a conscientious defender of the status quo
and an upright ofβicial. He was loyal, βirm, incorruptible and, above all,
one of the few who dared to βight face-to-face battles against power and
wealth. As a responsible and caring ofβicial, he had undergone a thorough
investigation and possessed an understanding of the circumstances
that were responsible for the chaotic situation on the coast. He realized
that if the Fujianese people were to feed themselves they had to go to
sea and that they were resentful of ofβicial restrictions.^46 However, his
- Zhu Wan, “Haiyang zeichuan chumo shi” 海洋賊船出沒事 [On piracy], in
MJSWB, 205: 13a‒15b.