Code of laws adopted in Japan in 702 AD, marking the shift from Yamato to Ritsuryo state administration. The ritsuryo system refers to the governmental structure defined by ritsu, the criminal code, and ryo, the administrative and civil codes. Such a system had long been in force in China, and the Japanese ritsuryo was an imitation of the lü-ling of T'ang China and incorporated many of its original articles. The Ritsuryo state used the T'ang dynasty model of capital city, from which trunk routes radiated. These formed the focus of regional administrative districts, which were further divided into provinces with provincial capitals. In this system, the emperor was an absolute monarch and the people were divided into two classes, freemen and slaves.