Wang Xijue

Wang Xijue
52nd Senior Grand Secretary
In office 1593–1594
Monarch	Wanli
Preceded by	Zhao Zhigao
Succeeded by	Zhao Zhigao
Personal details
Born	1534
Died	1614 (aged 80)

Wang Xijue (Chinese: 王錫爵, 1534–1614) was a Ming dynasty court official in China. In a 1593 report to the emperor, he wrote: "The venerable elders of my home district explain that the reason grain is cheap despite poor harvests in recent years is due entirely to the scarcity of silver coin. The national government requires silver for taxes but disburses little silver in its expenditures. As the price of grain falls, tillers of the soil receive lower returns on their labors, and thus less land is put into cultivation."

References

• The College Board, 2006 AP World History Free Response Questions