Huang-Ming Zuxun

The Huang-Ming Zuxun (, Ancestral Instructions of Imperial Ming) were admonitions and exhortations left by the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dynasty, to his descendants. The text was composed in 1373 under the title Record of the Ancestor's Instructions; this was changed to Huang Ming Zu Xun during the publication of the 1395 edition.

The book was divided into thirteen sections:

1. Preface (, Zhēnjiè)
2. Harem (, Chíshǒu)
3. Ritual Observance (, Yán Jìsì)
4. Risk management (, Jǐn Chūrù)
5. National Policy (, Shèn Guózhèng)
6. Protocol (, Lǐyí)
7. Legislation (, Fǎlǜ)
8. The Inner Chambers (, Nèilìng)
9. Eunuch (, Nèiguān)
10. Administration (, Zhízhì)
11. Guards (, Bīngwèi)
12. Public Works (, Yíngshàn)
13. Public Funds (, Gōngyòng)

The preface, composed by Zhu Yuanzhang himself, admonishes his descendants to exert a strict Legalist government. The work pins the survival of the dynasty principally on personal austerity and watchfulness—both over the practical administration of the empire, the niceties of ritual and etiquette on various occasions, and over various potential traitors, including their relatives, spouses, and officials, both military and civil.

Foreign policy

In the preface of the section () the Hongwu Emperor stated a policy that he would not conquer 15 neighbouring countries in order to maintain harmonious tributary relations with these countries and at the same time promote the development of trade between countries.

Accordingly, he created a list of countries not be invaded (), listed by locations are compared to Nanjing, then capital of the Ming Dynasty:

• Northeast: Joseon ()
• Directly east by the north: Japan ()
• Directly south by the east: Ryukyu Kingdom (), Island near Taiwan ()
• Southwest: Trần dynasty (), Khmer Empire (), Ayutthaya Kingdom (), Champa (), Sumendala (), Pandya dynasty (), Sunda Kingdom (), Old Pahang Kingdom (), Battak (), Melayu Kingdom (), Bruneian Sultanate ().

Sources