42. On the Fall of the Song and Ming Dynasties to the Mongols and Manchus:Cattle and horses care not who their master is

The fall of the Song and Ming dynasties to the Mongols and Manchus remains deeply perplexing. In the age of cold weapons, where population size determined the outcome of wars, the Han Chinese, possessing an absolute demographic advantage, could have resisted. Had they truly fought back, it would have been utterly impossible for the Mongols and Manchus to rule over them. Yet, the Han Chinese chose not to resist, willingly submitting to foreign rule for nearly 400 years. From a modern perspective, this seems incomprehensible. Yet when you realize that cattle and horses care not who their master is, and slaves care not who their master is, you can understand why the people of the Song and Ming dynasties did not resist. In the final years of these dynasties, rulers universally oppressed, exploited, and enslaved their people like cattle, horses, and slaves. Under such conditions, when faced with foreign invasion, the common people had no incentive to join the government in resisting the enemy. Moreover, from the people's perspective, whether the foreign invaders won or the imperial court prevailed, they would still be forced to pay taxes and grain, enduring enslavement. The outcome of the war had no bearing on their miserable fate. Given this, why should the people risk their lives to resist the enemy? If slavery was inevitable, did it truly matter to whom they were enslaved? On the contrary, the people not only refused to aid the court in repelling invaders but actually took pleasure in witnessing the court's defeat. In their minds, when foreign forces dealt a crushing blow to the court, it felt like a form of vindication for their own suffering. This mirrors the immense satisfaction one might feel upon seeing a village bully beaten by people from a neighboring village after having been tormented by that bully oneself.

This phenomenon of people delighting in the imperial court's brutal beating by foreign enemies was not unique to the late Song and Ming dynasties. Any regime that treats its people like cattle and slaves will inevitably face a populace eager to see its destruction when invaded by foreign forces.

Based on this analysis, we can confidently assert that had the Battle of Beijing occurred during the Ming Dynasty's late period rather than its early years, even with a great leader like Yu Qian at the helm, the outcome would have been defeat, not victory. For the people of the early Ming understood that if the Mongols reclaimed the Central Plains, they themselves would become slaves. Yet life under the Ming was preferable to slavery. Thus, while the populace appeared to aid the court in repelling foreign foes, they were fundamentally defending themselves—this mutual interest formed the bedrock of the Beijing Defense's victory.

Based on this analysis, we can infer from Japan's failure to conquer China that the Republic of China government treated its people far better than the Qing government did.

Knowing history illuminates the future. Regardless of the era, whenever a government treats its people like beasts of burden, facing foreign invasion will inevitably lead to the same fate as the Song and Ming courts. To avoid the fate of the Song and Ming courts, there is only one solution: treat the people as masters of the nation, not slaves of the government. Therefore, only by genuinely implementing a democratic system can a nation avoid perishing under foreign invasion. Democracy means citizens truly become masters of the state. How could masters of a nation stand idly by while it collapses? Once a nation falls, citizens transform from masters into slaves of the enemy. Thus, whenever foreign enemies invade, the people will naturally fight unconditionally for themselves. Only then can the nation be assured of freedom from external threats. Slaves care not who their masters are, but masters will never wish to become slaves—this is an eternal law dictated by human self-interest. Therefore, to prevent a nation's demise, there is only one path: to make the people the masters of the nation.