After Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty passed away, because he had no sons, he passed the throne to his nephew Zhao Shu. Zhao Shu became Emperor Yingzong of Song, but he was always frail and ill, dying after only five years on the throne. He was succeeded by his son Zhao Xu, historically known as Emperor Shenzong of Song.
Emperor Shenzong of Song was a highly ambitious ruler who, during his reign, launched military campaigns against the Western Xia, seizing two thousand li of their territory. However, after a devastating defeat at the Battle of Yongle City, his dream of annihilating the Western Xia was shattered. Overwhelmed by this major setback, the emperor broke down and wept openly before his entire court. He later died in resentment before reaching the age of forty. During his eighteen-year reign, Shenzong campaigned against the Western Xia abroad and implemented Wang Anshi's reforms at home, making him a fairly accomplished emperor. Unfortunately, he died young, and both of these major undertakings ultimately ended in failure.
After the failure of the "Qingli Reforms," the problems of redundant officials, excessive military forces, and wasteful expenditures in the Northern Song Dynasty not only failed to improve but actually worsened. At that time, internal conflicts within the ruling class became increasingly acute, with frequent clashes between conservative and reformist officials. During Emperor Shenzong's reign, the Northern Song engaged in several wars with the Western Xia and Liao dynasties, intensifying ethnic tensions. To make matters worse, natural disasters struck the country for several consecutive years, plunging peasants into extreme hardship and triggering frequent uprisings across the land. In this context, Emperor Shenzong promoted Wang Anshi to the position of Vice Grand Councilor to lead reforms. The following year, Emperor Renzong further elevated Wang Anshi to the position of Grand Councilor.
Wang Anshi was exceptionally intelligent from a young age, able to remember everything he read after just one glance. His father served as a local official, and Wang Anshi traveled with him across the country during his childhood, gaining firsthand insight into the hardships of ordinary people's lives. As a youth, he set the ideal of "reforming the world and transforming customs," a goal he pursued throughout his entire life.
At the age of twenty-one, Wang Anshi passed the imperial examination and began his official career. As an upright and incorruptible official, he did many good deeds for the common people. He initiated water conservancy projects to improve water and land transportation, and during famine years, he lent grain from government granaries to the people to help them through difficult times. His outstanding achievements in office earned him the recognition of Prime Minister Wen Yanbo, leading to his promotion.
Wang Anshi was determined to implement reforms. He once submitted a lengthy memorial to Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty, proposing changes to laws and regulations, strengthening border defenses, abolishing the imperial examination system, and instead promoting talented individuals from grassroots levels to official positions. However, his suggestions did not gain Renzong's approval. After his mother passed away, Wang Anshi resigned from his post on the grounds of observing mourning. Later, when Renzong died and Emperor Yingzong ascended the throne, he repeatedly summoned Wang Anshi back to the capital. Wang Anshi declined each time, citing the need to mourn his mother and his own poor health. It was not until Emperor Shenzong came to power that Wang Anshi finally returned to official service.
The previous emperors, Renzong and Yingzong, either made only superficial attempts at reform or had no interest in it at all, but Shenzong and Wang Anshi saw eye to eye on the matter. With the emperor's backing, Wang Anshi acted boldly, launching a sweeping and dramatic transformation. This reform was far larger in scale and more forceful than the "Qingli New Policies" led by his predecessor Fan Zhongyan.
Wang Anshi's first breakthrough was in fiscal policy; he enacted laws such as the Farmland and Water Conservancy Law, the Equal Transport Law, the Green Sprouts Law, the Exemption from Corvée Law, the Market Exchange Law, the Square-Field Equal-Tax Law, the Baojia System, and the General Troop Law, comprehensively reforming finance, taxation, the military, and the imperial examination system, while also building water conservancy projects and developing agricultural production. This series of reform measures effectively reduced the burden on farmers, promoted the development of farmland irrigation and water conservancy, improved the state's financial situation, and strengthened the military power of the Northern Song Dynasty.
However, this reform greatly harmed the interests of the landlord and bureaucratic classes, sparking fierce opposition from conservative officials, a situation very similar to the Qingli Reforms. Under immense pressure, Emperor Shenzong's resolve began to waver. Coincidentally, a drought struck at this time, and a minister presented the emperor with a painting titled "The Picture of Displaced People," which depicted the aftermath of the drought: people wandering homeless, some in chains, others eating grass roots. The minister claimed that Wang Anshi's reforms defied Heaven's will, and that the drought was a divine warning to awaken the people. This led Emperor Shenzong to begin doubting whether the reforms were correct. Subsequently, two empress dowagers also led opposition to the reforms, tearfully pleading with the emperor, "Wang Anshi is using these reforms to plunge the realm into chaos!"
The following year, Emperor Shenzong, overwhelmed by the mounting pressures, demoted Wang Anshi and sent him to a remote post, appointing Lü Huiqing and others to take over the reforms. However, Lü Huiqing's excessive arrogance angered many court officials, increasing resistance to the reforms. The emperor had no choice but to recall Wang Anshi to the capital to continue leading the reforms. Yet by then, the conservative faction had already gained dominance at court, while the reformist camp was fractured from within, making the implementation of reforms nearly impossible. Disheartened by the reforms and devastated by the death of his beloved son during this period, Wang Anshi was demoted again by the emperor shortly after. From then on, he retreated from the world and ceased to involve himself in state affairs.
During the following period, although the reforms continued, their intensity and effectiveness had greatly diminished from before. By the time Emperor Shenzong passed away and Emperor Zhezong ascended the throne, Sima Guang was appointed as Prime Minister. Sima Guang had always held a negative stance toward Wang Anshi's reforms, and once he came to power, he quickly abolished most of the new measures introduced by Wang Anshi's reform, ultimately bringing the reform to a dismal end. The following year, Wang Anshi died of illness amidst grief and indignation.
Wang Anshi's reforms aimed to change the Northern Song Dynasty's situation of "accumulated poverty and weakness," achieving good initial results. Although they ultimately failed to avoid defeat, their influence cannot be underestimated. Liang Qichao highly praised Wang Anshi's personal character, academic cultivation, and political ideals, lauding him as a rare and perfect "complete person." During the reforms, Wang Anshi adhered to the view that "criticism from others is not worth worrying about," believing that during times of change, one need not heed gossip and slander. It was this conviction that sustained him until the very end.