Zhang Juzheng (; 26 May 1525 – 9 July 1582), courtesy name Shuda (), pseudonym Taiyue (), was a Chinese politician who served as Senior Grand Secretary () in the late Ming dynasty during the reigns of the Longqing and Wanli emperors. He represented what might be termed the "new Legalism", aiming to ensure that the gentry worked for the state. Alluding to performance evaluations, he said: "Everyone is talking about real responsibility, but without a clear reward and punishment system, who is going to risk life and hardship for the country?" One of his chief goals was to reform the gentry and rationalize the bureaucracy together with his political rival Gao Gong, who was concerned that offices were providing income with little responsibility. Taking the Hongwu Emperor as his standard and ruling as de facto Prime Minister, Zhang's true historical significance comes from his centralization of existing reforms, positioning the reformative agency of the state over that of the gentry—the "Legalist" idea of the sovereignty of the state. The Wanli Emperor deeply respected Zhang as a mentor and valued minister. During the first ten years of the Wanli era, the Ming dynasty's economy and military power prospered in a way not seen since the Yongle Emperor and the Rule of Ren and Xuan from 1402 to 1435. However, after Zhang's death, the Wanli Emperor felt free to act independently, and reversed many of Zhang's administrative improvements. Biography Early career Zhang Juzheng was born in Jiangling County, in modern–day Jingzhou, Hubei province, in 1525, and was renowned for his intelligence at an early age, passing the county shengyuan examinations at the age of 12 and enrolling for the provincial juren examinations the next year, where the chief examiner failed him to prevent his becoming complacent. Finally, in 1547, he passed the imperial examination and was appointed as an editor in the Hanlin Academy. Zhang was embroiled in deep political turmoil from the start of his career, owing to the factionalism prevalent in the Ming bureaucracy at the time. He was one of few officials who had cordial relations with both Yan Song and Xu Jie, the leaders of the respective factions, but eventually assisted Xu in overthrowing Yan Song. Subsequently, under Xu's patronage, Zhang became a Privy Secretary in 1567, outlasting Xu himself and sharing power with his political rival Gao Gong. In 1572, shortly after the accession of the