From the "three old" system of the ancient kings, how the grass-roots rural organizations to manage the countryside?

The "county system" implemented during the Qin and Han dynasties only established a two-tier administrative system centered on counties and prefectures, and when it came to the countryside, where the population was more dispersed and the management was more difficult, the ancient monarchs adopted a kind of "imperial power not to go down to the counties" and relied more on grassroots self-governance. The government has also adopted a model of rural governance that relies more on grassroots self-governance.

Famous sociologist Mr. Fei Xiaotong defined this governance model as a "dual-track political theory" in his book "Native China": "On the one hand, there is top-down imperial power, and on the other hand, there is bottom-up gentry and clan power, which operate in parallel and interact with each other to form the 'the emperor does nothing while the world is governed' model of rural governance, shaping an image and unique model of 'dual-track politics' describing the logic of traditional Chinese political operations."

We take the "Three Elders" system implemented during the Qin and Han Dynasties as an example to explore how villagers, through the grassroots organizations in the countryside, accomplished self-governance management integrating administration, indoctrination and law and order.

Village China

I. The "Three Elders" System

1. The Origin of the "Three Elders" System

The "Three Elders" System Originating in the pre-Qin period, they were initially referred to as the township officials appointed by the court to educate the townspeople in the countryside. The Rites of Passage recorded: "Therefore, the Zongzhu is in the temple, the Sangong is in the court, and the Sanlao is in the school".

Tracing the roots, the emergence of the Sanlao system originated from the development of the patriarchal system and the concept of honoring and respecting the elderly.

The Book of Rites records that in order to promote the tradition of honoring the elderly, the Zhou Emperor specifically established the ritual of honoring retired officials with the same attitude as his father and brother.

This special tradition was meant to reflect the king's respect for the elderly who had made outstanding contributions to the country, and to preserve the Zhou dynasty's "patriarchal system" centered on blood relations.

The ancient people were influenced by the concept of clan, and villagers with the same family name would often live together to form villages, so the respected elders in the clan generally had great influence and binding power over their clansmen.

Note: Ancient Chinese society paid great attention to etiquette and law, and respected elders in villages often had a very high social status in the village.

So an important factor in the development of the "Three Elders" system from the beginning to the end was that it drew on the trust and respect of the villagers for the elderly.

At the same time, this practice of relying on capable and reputable local elders to manage the local area could also minimize the problem of improper governance caused by court-appointed officials who were unfamiliar with the local situation.

Ancient Respect for the Elderly

2. Selection Criteria for the Three Elders

The selection criteria for the Three Elders promulgated by Liu Bang, the first Han emperor, after he came to power were four:

1) those who were over 50 years of age;

2) those who were over 50 years of age; and

3) those who were over 50 years of age.

②, have good character and cultivation;

③, have high reputation in the local area, able to lead the masses to goodness;

④, the three elders of the township were elected by the people, and the three elders of the county were chosen from among the three elders of the township.

The Book of Han - Gao Di Ji Shang: "Lift the people more than fifty years old, have cultivation, can command the masses for goodness, set as three old, the township a person; choose the township three old a person for the county three old."

3. Functions of the Three Elders

The Three Elders were recognized by Liu Bang as local grass-roots social leaders who had to be both virtuous and prestigious.

They were allowed to be exempted from corvée service, and could make administrative suggestions to the local magistrate, prefect, and lieutenant, and participate in local political management.

The Book of the Han Dynasty (汉书-高帝纪上): The three elders of the township were chosen to be the three elders of the county, and they were allowed to work with the magistrate, chancellor, and lieutenant of the county in order to educate each other on matters, and were not to be exempted from corvée service.

The "three old man system" of the Han Dynasty was different from the Warring States period, which only favored "indoctrination" as a management function. When Liu Bang established the Han Dynasty, he was faced with a long period of turmoil brought about by the wars of the Qin Dynasty and the Chu-Han Dynasty, which triggered the migration of the people and the desertion of the fields, The city's destruction and a series of other problems.

Under these circumstances, Liu Bang needed to find another way to stabilize the social order and restore production in a short period of time.

This way was to use the information on Qin's household registration, acres of land and laws that Xiao He had brought from Li Si's chancellery, and then to work with the "Three Elders" who had been elected by the people to work together from the top down to set up the social order.

The Records of the Grand Historian (史记-萧何列传)：He was the first to collect the books of the Qin prime minister and the royal historian. Pei Gong know the world, the number of households, the strength and weakness of the people, and the suffering of the people, so that He got the Qin books as well.

1) assisting the county government in dealing with civil disputes;

2) responsible for educating the people;

3) responsible for cultivating and recommending talents;

4) responsible for stabilizing the local order.

II. How the "Three Elders" System Realizes the Management of the Grassroots

The model of rural governance that relies on the "Three Elders" to accomplish grass-roots self-governance is a Confucian idealization of a rural social state in which the townsfolk "In and out of each other's friends, watch each other's backs, and save each other from illness, the people are in harmony, and the education and culture are the same, and the production of force and labor can be obtained and leveled." (Han Shu - Food and Goods Zhi)

Next, we start from the system of township covenant, bloodline, social welfare and the authority of the Three Elders, to explore how the "Three Elders" specifically realized the management of the grassroots.

1. Township Covenant System

The township covenant system refers to "the promotion of the scholarly class and the cooperation of the rural people in sanctioning the behavior of the society in terms of morality and indoctrination, and in seeking the interests of the general public." ("The Chinese Township Covenant System")

In simple terms, the township covenant system is similar to the rules and regulations formulated by reputable village elders for the sake of the village's development, which are in line with the village's situation and can be beneficial to the village's development.

For example, the village covenant recorded in the Song Dynasty History - Lv Dafang biography mentions that everyone should help each other and abide by the law: "All those who are in the same covenant should advise each other on virtue and industry, regulate each other on faults and customs, and sympathize with each other in times of trouble and difficulties."

China's Township Covenant System

For the most part, township covenants don't have the force of law (unless they overlap with laws and treaties), and the rules and regulations set out by township elders serve more as a guide to the village's "ethos".

The core of the covenant is "morality", which emphasizes the need for neighbors to help each other, for husbands and wives to live in harmony, for fathers and sons to be righteous and filial, and for brothers to be respectful and friendly.

This is a kind of smart management wisdom, from the vast majority of township regulations, we can find that it emphasizes the content of the applicable to every household, to meet the vast majority of the villagers for the "happiness" of the expectations of the villagers, as long as the three old man a little guidance, will be able to get the villagers' support.

The village covenant system of governance, on the surface, it does not appear to have a binding force, but because of its existence can stabilize the order of the village, so that the villagers in the face of difficulties, there are more choices, this very "humane" rules in turn become an important factor in the village of the Three Elders can be managed well.

2, blood, generation

I believe that many friends who have lived in the countryside, will find an interesting phenomenon: the name of the village, the village is often associated with the main residents of a certain family name, such as Zhangjia Village, Zhaojiagou, Lijia Village, this phenomenon is very common in the Qin and Han Dynasties.

The pattern of living in clusters in the form of families originated in the tribal clan era, when human beings were still relatively weak and populous, and the only way to maximize their chances of survival was to live in clusters.

The bloodline is the bond within the family, and the elder with the highest seniority generally has a higher status in the clan. If this elder has outstanding ability, then, according to the "Three Elders" rule set by Liu Bang, this elder has a high chance to be chosen as the Three Elders.

In the village, the fact that an elder can be recognized by everyone indicates that he is quite outstanding in the village in terms of his character, his way of doing things, and his talent.

Villages tend to be small, and after decades of living together, there are so many interactions that people have fought with this elder, such as so-and-so was his student, so-and-so and he were in-laws, and so-and-so had been favored by him ......