英文摘要 |
In the Ming dynasty, emperors had traditionally dispatched eunuchs in the imperial court to the local administrations to assume the position of Zhen-shou Zhong-guang(鎮守中官). Because intellectuals systematically erased historical records concerning their activities, their involvements in the local public affairs faded away in the history. By constructing a notorious image of these officials, intellectuals further blackened them as one of the fundamental hampers to the governmental operation in the Ming dynasty. From fragmental records in the local history, this paper re-presented activities of Chen Dao, who served as the Zhen-shou Zhong-guang of Fujiang for twenty years in Fuzhou in the mid-Ming dynasty. He had been involved in city planning, post- havoc reconstruction, management of local military, and coordination among departments of the province. In addition, he had also participated in historiography of local gazetteers and other cultural affairs. During his stay, Chen Dao not only established friendly relationships with the local intellectuals and high ranking officials, but enthusiastically dedicated to manifold city public affairs. Through an exploration of his activities, the study found that Zhen-shou Zhong-guang was a crucial link of communication among emperors, ministers, and the local administrators; consequently played a key role of the political implementation in the Ming dynasty. Due to their interference in a wide spectrum of administrative duties, activities of the eunuch officials incurred widespread discontent of intellectuals. The conflict with these officials eventually led to their return to the imperial court from the local administrative system. The records of their activities in the provinces were sequentially obliterated. The case of Chen Dao, however, proved that Zhen-shou Zhong-guang was a sophisticated political institution, which enabled his participation in the manifold city public affairs. |