this post was submitted on 15 Feb 2026
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"I LOVE LOOPHOLES" - any vassal dealing with a legalistic overlord (media.piefed.social)
submitted 1 month ago by PugJesus@piefed.social to c/historymemes@piefed.social
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[–] PugJesus@piefed.social 32 points 1 month ago

Explanation: In the period of Imperial China, many outlying states were accustomed to sending tribute to the Chinese Emperor. Rather than being solely monetarily important, it was more symbolic - by sending tribute, they acknowledged the Chinese Emperor as their overlord, and China as their rightful ruler. However, during the Ming Dynasty, the Chinese Emperor was expected (by the Chinese court) to send back a gift (consisting of CHINESE goods) that was GREATER than the value of the tribute - in order to demonstrate to the LESSER BARBARIANS the GLORY and MAGNIFICIENCE of China!

... some of the brighter vassal states caught on and started sending constant tribute, resulting in the secretaries of the Emperor demanding they only send annual tribute instead of "Whenever we feel like", as was the previous standard.