Chapter 33 Desperate Elm River

As a biography of Zhu Di, we should add his family life.Indeed, emperors also had families, but their families were extremely special.They don't have the troubles of ordinary people, but they also lack the warmth of the world.Power struggles are accompanied by bloody massacres, and it can be said that emperors rarely have normal family life. When Zhu Di was a vassal king, Zhu Yuanzhang canonized him a concubine, who was the eldest daughter of the founding hero Zhongshan King Xu Da.Xu's family was chaste and quiet since she was a child, and she was good at reading. Zhu Yuanzhang heard that she was virtuous, so he said to Xu Da: "I am a commoner friend with you, and those who are in agreement with ancient monarchs and ministers are married. I am worthy of Zhu Di." I don't know whether Xu Da felt the great honor, or felt that the king's order cannot be violated, in short, he immediately bowed his head and thanked him.The official canonization was in the ninth year of Hongwu (1367), when Zhu Di was seventeen years old.

In the battle of Jingnan, Zhu Di was quite able to rely on this princess.Zhu Di led troops to attack Daning, and Li Jinglong took the opportunity to besiege Beiping.At that time, the eldest son Zhu Gaochi stayed in Beiping, and the situation was very critical, thanks to the plan of the princess Xu.There were few soldiers in the city, so Concubine Xu urged the wives of the generals and civilians to join the battle, formed a group of female soldiers, put on armor, went up to the city and refused to defend, and finally persisted until Zhu Di returned to the army. After Zhu Di became emperor, the concubine was named queen.She routinely advised Zhu Di to rest with the people, and advised Zhu Di not to treat old and new officials differently.During the Battle of Jingnan, Xu Zengshou, Xu's younger brother, often sent information about Emperor Jianwen's court to King Yan, so he was killed by Emperor Jianwen.Zhu Di wanted to give him a posthumous title, but Xu objected.Later, Zhu Di still made Xu Zengshou the Duke of Dingguo, and let his son inherit the title. Xu said that this was not my wish, and did not thank Zhu Di.The Xu family also summoned the wives of the ministers whom Zhu Di relied heavily on into the palace, and asked them to take the people's livelihood into consideration and be good internal helpers.Xu also collected and edited "Nvxian" and "Women's Precepts", and compiled 20 chapters of "Internal Training".He also compiled the "Book of Encouraging Goodness" and issued it to the world to educate people's hearts.

In the fifth year of Yongle (1407), Xu died of illness. At the end of her life, she advised Zhu Di to cherish the common people, seek talents, be kind to the clan, and not to spoil his relatives arrogantly.Zhu Di was very sad about her death, and held a big fast for her in Linggu Temple and Tianxi Temple, and listened to the officials coming to offer sacrifices.Xu was posthumously named Empress Ren Xiaowen.Later, Zhu Di built Changling Mausoleum for himself in Tianshou Mountain in Beijing, where Xu was buried first.From then on, Zhu Di no longer registered as a queen. Zhu Di also has two beloved concubines, one is the royal concubine Wang of Zhaoxian, and the other is the concubine Quan of Gongxian Xian.The Wang family is virtuous, and she is very respectful in serving Empress Xu, and Zhu Di relies heavily on her.In his later years, Zhu Di had a violent temper, and his subjects offended him at every turn. Regardless of whether he was a prince, princess, or minister, he had been taken care of by the Wang family.After Xu's death, Wang was actually in charge of all major affairs in the palace.

The Quan family is a Korean, with a strong appearance and a good temperament. He is good at playing the jade flute, and is very much loved by Zhu Di.In the eighth year of Yongle (1410), the Quan family followed Zhu Di to the north and died in Lincheng, Shandong when he returned to his teacher. Speaking of Concubine Quan, there is still a long story in between. Since the Yuan Dynasty, the imperial court has asked Goryeo to present beautiful women every year.The Ming Dynasty remained unchanged.During the Hongwu period, there were many Korean concubines in the harem.Zhu Di himself was born to a Korean concubine.In the Yongle period, people were still sent to North Korea (in the last years of Ming Hongwu, Koryo was renamed North Korea) to draft women into the palace.

In the sixth year of Yongle (1408), Zhu Di sent his envoy Huang Yan and others to North Korea, rewarding the North Korean court with 1,000 taels of silver, 50 pieces of silk, 50 pieces of suxianluo, and 100 pieces of cooked silk. He once donated 3,000 horses to the Ming court.Before leaving, Zhu Di said to Huang Yan: "Go to North Korea and tell the king that there are well-born women, and choose a few future ones." So the Korean court ordered marriages to be banned, and virgins were widely collected for offering.But at the beginning of the selection, Huang Yan felt dissatisfied with the lack of beauty, and humiliated the person involved.The royal court of the Joseon Dynasty had to send various inspectors to re-election, and at the same time notified all places: "The former, don't push it hard, and there are many missed reports. It is more important for the big and small orders, rank officials, township officials, day guards, township schools, and students. , People from all households, if they are beautiful, they will choose them all. If there are people who are hiding or avoiding acupuncture, cutting off hair, and applying medicine, the theory is like the law." For the women selected from all over the country, Huang Yan and others have to look at them personally.A total of five people were selected this year; the daughter of Gongcao Dianshu Quan Zhizhong, 18 years old; the daughter of Zuo Siyin Ren Tiannian of Renning Mansion, 17 years old; the daughter of Li Wenming, the magistrate of Gong'an Mansion, 17 years old; The daughter of Lu Guizhen, the guard, is sixteen years old; the daughter of Cui Defei, the deputy commander of the Chinese Army, is fourteen years old.They were sent to Beijing together with twelve servants and maidservants and twelve firemen.On the day they set out on the road, the parents and relatives of the chosen lady cried loudly.When describing the selection of these women to Beijing, the Koreans wrote: Jiuzhongsi is graceful, Wanli chooses Pingting. ... It's hard to say goodbye to relatives, and I can't bear the tears to wipe away the zero.Melancholy away from each other, the mountains into dream green.

After these five ladies entered the palace, the Quan family was registered as a virtuous concubine, the Ren family was a Shun concubine, the Li family was Zhaoyi, the Lu family was Jieyu, and the Cui family was a beauty.Their father and brother were also granted official positions, such as Concubine Quan's elder brother was awarded the position of Guangluqing.But these officials are not responsible for food and salary.However, their salaries have to be paid by the Joseon court, because they are too far away from Beijing.At the same time, the noble concubine Zhang Shi was also registered as the daughter of King Zhongwu of Hejian, and the Zhaorong Wang family was from Suzhou.

Among the five daughters, Emperor Yongle loved Concubine Quan the most.Quan's appearance is strong and he is good at playing flute.Zhu Di saw her and asked her what she was good at.She took out the jade flute that she carried with her and played it. Zhu Di was very happy and immediately selected her above all the concubines.Ning Wang Zhu Quan once wrote a palace poem describing: Suddenly I heard the sound of the jade flute outside the sky, and it sounded like I was walking alone under the flowers. The autumn of the thirty-six palaces is the same color, and the moon is brighter somewhere.

The squid window is cold and the night is far away, and the clouds fly away from the sea and the moonlight. The palace drain has sunk into the reflection, and the beauty still teaches herself to play the flute. Wang Sicai, a female official in the palace (Si Cai is the official in charge of storing satin), was ordered by Zhu Di to go with Concubine Quan in the same chariot, and she knew Concubine Quan very well.She also wrote palace poems and sang: Qionghua moved into the Daming Palace, and the evening breeze was full of fragrance and charm. Win the king's chariot, and the jade flute is loud and bright in the moonlight.

However, this Concubine Quan will never live forever.In the tenth year of Yongle, Zhu Di led his troops out of the northern part of the Great Wall to conquer Mongolia and returned. Concubine Quan died on the way back in Lincheng, Shandong.Zhu Di was very sad, and buried her in Yi County, and ordered the local people to go out to guard the tomb. He planned to relocate her to Empress Xu's tomb in the future.Because he missed Concubine Quan, Zhu Di treated her brother more kindly.When granting him the imperial order, Zhu Di couldn't help but sighed with tears, too sad to speak. Why Concubine Quan died suddenly, no one suspected at first.However, during a quarrel between Lu Meiren and Concubine Quan's servants, they revealed unusual news.When Concubine Quan Gui entered the palace, Empress Xu was dead.Zhu Di asked her to replace the queen and take charge of the affairs of the Six Palaces.Lu Meiren was very dissatisfied with this, and once reprimanded Concubine Quan, saying: "The queen who has descendants is also dead. You have managed it for a few months, so rude!" So, Lu Meiren colluded with eunuchs Jin De and Jin Liang, and became a silversmith. The family borrowed arsenic, ground it into powder, put it in walnut tea and gave it to Concubine Quan to eat, and Concubine Quan died as a result.When Zhu Di learned of this, he was furious and executed both the eunuch and the silversmith.Lu Meiren suffered the worst punishment. Zhu Di ordered her to be burned with a branding iron for a month, and finally she was killed.Lu Meiren's servants in the palace were also killed, and hundreds of people were implicated in the murder.Zhu Di also forced the Joseon court to arrest Lu Meiren's mother and kill her.But this is really an unjust prison, and it was not revealed to the world until Yongle's later years.

It turned out that after Concubine Quan Guifei and Lu Meiren were selected into the palace, the merchant's daughter Lu was also selected into the palace.Because the Lu family has the same surname as Lu Meiren, they want to get married.But Lu Meiren was not happy, so Lu held a grudge.Later Concubine Quan died suddenly, and the Lu family took the opportunity to falsely accuse Lu Meiren of poisoning Concubine Quan to death, resulting in the above-mentioned tragedy. Later, the Lv family and the palace mermaid family behaved improperly and had an affair with the eunuch.Although Zhu Di was aware of it, he did not deal with it because he doted on Lu and Yu.Knowing that the secret was leaked, the two hanged themselves in fear of crime.This time things got serious.Zhu Di thought that the bad things were all caused by the Lu family, so he arrested all the maidservants of the Lu family for interrogation.These maidservants were overwhelmed by torture, so they pleaded guilty against their will, saying that they wanted to murder Zhu Di.Now that the crime of treason was revealed, a catastrophe of torture and killing was inevitable, and 2,800 people were killed in a row.On the day of execution, Zhu Di went to the execution ground to supervise them, and wanted to watch them be cut to death one by one.Some courtiers scolded Zhu Di face to face when he was about to be executed, saying: "Your own yang is weak, that's why you have an affair with the eunuch. What crime is there?" Draw it down.However, his longing for Yushi was hard to cut off, so he ordered people to bury Yushi next to Shouling.

When the case first broke out, the Korean concubines Ren Shi and Zheng Shi hanged themselves to death.Huang's and Li's were beheaded.Huang cited many people before his death.Mrs. Li said: "Anyway, they are all dead, why involve others! If I want to die, I will die myself!" Finally, no one was accused.At this time, most of the Korean women were killed, and only Cui was spared in Nanjing.Zhu Di once ordered the court ladies in Nanjing to go north, but Cui did not make the trip due to illness.When the massacre began, Han was confined in an empty room without food for several days.The eunuch guarding the gate took pity on her, and sometimes put some food at the gate, so she didn't starve to death.But all her servants were killed.Jin Hei, Han's nurse, was also imprisoned, but was pardoned afterwards. When Zhu Di killed indiscriminately (the 19th year of Yongle), on the night of Gengzi Day on the eighth day of April, there was a thunderstorm, and the three halls of Fengtian, Huagai, and Jinshen were struck by lightning and caught fire.The fire soared into the sky, and it was impossible to save it.The magnificent palace built after more than ten years of exhausting people's wealth was reduced to ashes, and many people lost their lives in the sea of ​​fire.The palace people rejoiced at the occurrence of the fire, thinking that the fire from the sky might make the emperor's cruel killing a little restrained.In the eyes of the people at that time, the change of the sky was a punishment for personnel.If there is a mistake in personnel, the genius will be furious and bring disaster. The next day, Zhu Di issued an imperial edict expressing self-blame for the punishment from heaven: I bowed to the destiny of heaven, and only presented the great plan, imitated the ancient system, and started to build the two capitals. It was the disaster of Fengtian and other three palaces on the eighth day of April in the nineteenth year of Yongle. I was terrified and at a loss.Are those who are interested in being lazy in respecting the rituals of heaven and gods?Or was the Fazu violent and the government affairs perverse?Or the villain is in power and the sage is reclusive, and there is no distinction between good and evil?Or the punishment and prison are unjust and innocent, and the right and the wrong cannot be distinguished?Or do you slander and flatter and then keep your honest words?Or expropriation and exploitation, and the disaster will affect the fields?Or rewards and punishments are improper and wasteful, and the country's use is excessive?Or the tax is too heavy and the corvee is uneven and the people's livelihood is not satisfactory?Or is there no way to recruit and adjust the army without interest, and the salary is empty?Or overwork requires a lot of demand and the people's strength is withered?Or is it because the treacherous gang of officials play tricks or the Secretary is soft, greedy, cruel and unrestrained?I am strict with the people, and I am against the sky. I am ignorant, and I have not found out why. Erwen and military ministers have been appointed by me, and we are all the same. If the results of my actions are inappropriate, it is appropriate to report that there is nothing wrong with it, and I will change it in order to return to God's will. Zhu Di's attitude of admitting his mistakes and introspecting seems to be extremely sincere.On the thirteenth day, Zhu Di issued another edict, announcing that "everyone who sees any inconvenience to the people and other unurgent tasks will stop all of them, and use Su's disadvantages to answer the heart of heaven."However, the killing in the harem was not included in the scope of his reflection. Zhu Di "killed without restraint, just like usual", and did not stop killing the palace people.More than 3,000 people were killed successively because of the Erlu case. There is another reason why Zhu Di killed so indiscriminately.In his later years, Zhu Di Pang loved the noble concubine Wang.It is said that the Wang family is virtuous, serving the emperor and empress with the same respect and respect, being dignified and courteous in the palace, kind and benevolent, and managing common affairs in an orderly manner, which is very important to Zhu Di.Zhu Di fell ill in his later years and often lost his temper. The concubine Wang Guifei often took care of him so that the palace people would not be condemned.From the crown prince, prince and princess down, they all trust Wang.Zhu Di even intended to make Wang the queen.Wang's death caused Zhu Di to mourn and aggravated his despondency.Since then, Zhu Di's actions have become more erroneous, and his torture has become more cruel. A few months before his death, Zhu Di asked North Korea to present beautiful women. At this time, Zhu Di was already sixty-five years old. However, no matter where these poor ladies are chosen, and no matter whether they are favored or not, they will inevitably die in the palace in the end.It turns out that in the early years of the Ming Dynasty, the system of burial for the emperor was still maintained. When Zhu Di died, more than 30 palace officials were buried.Even the most beloved Han family and the Cui family who survived the Lu family tragedy are also among them.On the day of martyrdom, they will be rewarded with a banquet, and then they will be led into the lobby, where many small wooden beds have already been placed.There was a loud cry, and the palace people were forced to stand on the wooden bed one by one, with their heads inserted into the hanging ropes.As soon as the eunuch standing aside removed the bed, the palace people ascended to heaven.When Mrs. Han died, she called to her wet nurse and said, "Mother, I'm going! Mother, I'm going!" The cry continued, and the bed was removed.Although the family members of the martyrs were called Chaotian female households, and received preferential treatment, the martyrs would also get a nice posthumous title and be buried in the imperial mausoleum, but how could this make up for their wasted youth and tortured lives! Not long after Zhu Di came to the throne, he once advertised himself as saying: "If a person is sincere, he must not have happiness. Once he has happiness and does not return, his desire will prevail. If the heart can be calm, it will respond when things come, and when things go, it will be like a mirror that stops water." Naturally, it is pure natural law. Every time I retreat and sit silently, I do not think that controlling this heart is the most important thing, and I also want to be a king, but if there is no increase in food and entertainment in the palace, the world will naturally be fine." Although Zhu Di He could not be called a licentious emperor, but he was by no means pure-hearted and ascetic. As soon as Zhu Di came to the throne, he ordered to "seek civil literate women to enter the office".In the first year of Yongle, the Ministry of Rites was also ordered to visit the military and civilian families of officials in Beijing to find women who were 15 to 20 years old and had a decent appearance and a leisurely temperament to prepare for the selection of the princess.He once ordered the female official Cai to go to Hangzhou to select literate women to enter the palace, which caused commotion among the people.At that time, someone wrote a poem saying: "The cloud and jade have returned to the horse's feet, and I will put on a golden house to store the eyebrows." The court attendants also had to be accompanied and supported by court ladies, which was very special in the entire Ming Dynasty. Zhu Di had four sons in total, the eldest son Zhu Gaochi was later Emperor Renzong.Although Zhu Gaochi is the eldest son, he is also benevolent and virtuous, but he is not liked by Zhu Di.He was very fat, so he was very clumsy, and he had to be supported when he walked, and he would inevitably stumble. Of course, it was difficult for him to lead soldiers out to fight.Zhu Di likes the second child Zhu Gaoxu the most.Zhu Gaoxu was named the King of Han. He refused to study since he was a child, and he was fierce.Zhu Di wanted to make him the prince, but was opposed by the ministers.The death of Xie Jin, a bachelor, and Huang Huai's imprisonment are related to their relationship with Zhu Gaochi.Fortunately, Zhu Gaochi had a clever son, Zhu Zhanji, who was loved by Zhu Di very much, so Zhu Gaochi's prince status was preserved.More than a year after Zhu Di's death, Zhu Gaoxu rebelled and wanted to seize the throne. At this time, Zhu Zhanji was in power and led his troops to the east.Zhu Gaosui, Zhu Di's third son, was named King of Zhao.The fourth son, Zhu Gaozheng, died without being sealed. Who is Zhu Di's mother?Since the Ming Dynasty, there have been different opinions.According to the patriarchal system, whoever is closest to Zhu Yuanzhang is qualified to be the emperor.So Zhu Di repeatedly declared that he "is the son of his father, Emperor Taizu, Emperor Gao, his mother, Empress Xiaoci Gao, and the younger brother of the crown prince, ranking above all kings." This trick really played a big role in his seizure of the throne.However, people gradually discovered that various official and private records are quite different from what Zhu Di said, and these records are also different from each other.Some say that Zhu Di and King Zhu of Zhou were born to Empress Gao, while the crown prince, King Qin, and King Jin were all descended from concubines.Some say that Zhu Di was born to Concubine Da, and the prince, King Qin, and King Jin were born to Empress Gao.Some said that Zhu Di's biological mother was a concubine.It is also said that Zhu Di was born of Hong Jila, the concubine of Emperor Yuanshun, or Weng, the concubine of Emperor Yuanshun, or the concubine Gaoli of Emperor Yuanshun. Since Chengzu said that he was the emperor's son and the queen's own son, he could not change his words after he ascended the throne. The name and identity of his biological mother were concealed, and the proper etiquette seal could only be given to Empress Gao.Who is Zhu Di's biological mother?The "Taichang Temple Records" in Nanjing in the Ming Dynasty believed that she was a concubine, and Prince Yiwen, King Qin, and King Jin were all born to Concubine Li.This is not only circumstantial evidence from the mouth of the eunuch guarding Xiaoling, but also someone in the Ming Dynasty entered the sleeping hall to find out what happened.The situation in the hall is as recorded in "Taichang Temple Ji": In the hall of enjoyment, Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma's seats face south, Zuo Shufei Li's seats are east to west, and concubine Wei's seat is west to east.People in the Ming Dynasty favored the left, which shows that the status of the concubines is higher than that of other concubines except Empress Gao.It turned out that this was an unrevealable secret.In order to secure his position on the throne, Zhu Di did not dare to publicly admit his biological mother, so he secretly enshrined his concubine here.There is a poem written in the Ming Dynasty: "Chengzu was born again, and the concubine dare not be equal. One sees a thousand things, and the "Record" is safe?" "Records" about Zhu Di being born to Empress Xiaoci Gao (Ma's family) is unreliable.Regarding the concubine, some unofficial history said that she was from Korea.After King Yan was born, Empress Ma raised her as her own son, and gave her concubine to death. It is said that she was tortured to death with an iron skirt, but it is not known whether it is true. In the 22nd year of Yongle (1424), Ming Chengzu led troops out of the fortress for his last northern expedition, but when his division arrived in Mobei, there was no trace of the enemy. It turned out that Arutai had already fled away with his subordinates.One day, he said to Yang Rong and Jin Youzi who were beside him: "I had a dream in the middle of the night last night, and someone who looked like a god-man in the painting told me: 'God is good at life.' Did God intend to protect them Mongolians?" During the march, Zhu Di saw the bones of the dead who died outside the Great Wall while serving in the army in previous years abandoned by the roadside.The army continued to advance, but there was still no enemy. At this time, the army was short of food.Yang Rong asked the sergeants to give the rest of the emperor's provision, and asked the sergeants to help each other and borrow money, and repay them double when they returned to the government in the pass.But the Northern Expeditionary Army still saw no trace of the enemy for a long time.Zhu Di couldn't help but feel worried and tired at this time.He said: "The north is cold early, once there is a change of wind and snow, the return journey is still far away, so we must worry about it." So he decided to return to his teacher. On July 17th, Gengyin, the army marched to Yumuchuan, Zhu Di fell ill from overwork, and died suddenly at the age of sixty-five.A generation of heros thus withdrew from the stage of history. At this time, the Sixth Division was away, and the capital had no owner. Zhu Di agreed to never disclose the news of Zhu Di's death.The internal minister Ma Yun discussed with the academicians Yang Rong and Jin Youzi, and the general's tin wares were collected and melted into a coffin (coffin), Zhu Di was buried, and then the tinsmith was killed.In this way, without knowing it, people put the scorpion on the dragon, and eat as usual every morning and evening.The army continued to march towards the capital, and at the same time sent someone to secretly report to the prince. The prince Zhu Gaochi came to the throne soon, and this was Renzong.Zhu Di was buried in the Changling Mausoleum of Tianshou Mountain, together with the Xu family. He was honored posthumously as "Emperor Qitian Hongdao Gaoming Guangyun Shengwu Shengong Pure Benevolent Xiaowen Emperor" and his temple name was Taizong.During the Jiajing period, Emperor Jiajing made a grand ceremony to respect his own parents, so he changed Zhu Di's posthumous title to "Qi Tian Hong Dao Gao Ming Zhao Yun Sheng Wu Shen Gong Chun Ren Zhi Xiao Wen Emperor", and the temple title was called Cheng Zu. Ming Chengzu Zhu Di was a very remarkable emperor, needless to say in the history of the Ming Dynasty, even in the entire history of China, he should also occupy an important place.But is Zhu Di really a sage lord?This is a very thought-provoking question.It is very easy to find some materials to prove his sageness from official records. For example, he cared about people's livelihood and was diligent in political affairs. In the first year of Yongle, he once said: Not long after I came to the throne, I was afraid that the people would lose their homes. I sat in every palace at night with candles, read the registries of the prefectures and counties, and memorized them quietly. Then go out and discuss with the officials.The locust drought in several places near Henan has made me restless, so I sent envoys to look at it, and it never stopped.It is my wish to live in a well-off life for the people of Sisi. For example, he is not in danger, and he is diligent in reading.On Guimao in February of the ninth year of Yongle, Zhu Di read the memorial at Youshun Gate, and the paperweight and golden lion on the imperial case were about to fall sideways, and Geng Tong hurriedly moved it to the case.Zhu Di gave a sermon on this: The tinyness of a device will be dangerous if it is placed in a dangerous place, and it will be safe if it is placed in a safe place.The world, a great weapon, can it be put in danger alone?You must be safe.Although the world is safe, danger must not be forgotten, so we must be cautious about small things.Accumulating small mistakes will lead to serious troubles. Small mistakes must be corrected, and small mistakes will be accumulated if they are not corrected.It's about to go bad.All of them lead to danger. He also said: I am merciful, entrusted to all surnames, afraid of Fuke's burden, busy with work day and night, dare not take time to wait... A husband who is cautious will prosper when he is governed, and a man who is safe and peaceful will be born of chaos. No matter what the purpose is, Zhu Di is indeed a diligent emperor.At the beginning of Yongle, he "drummed with four drums to prosper, sat quietly in clothes", "thinking about things in the four directions, and urgency is appropriate".There is early morning in the morning and late morning in the afternoon.After the affairs of the outer dynasty are completed, the affairs of the palace must be dealt with. "In my spare time, I read classics and history, and I never dared to relax in my spare time." "Sincerely thinking about the greatness of the world and the prosperity of common affairs, how can you be lazy for a moment! A moment of slack will be a waste of time." Some people suggested that he should be simple and silent, and he replied: " The king is noble and silent, but the world is so big, the people are at peace, and the interests of the matter must be obtained after extensive consultation." "It's better if you don't have enough to spread the word." Therefore, he must know everything personally.He once accused the Secretary of General Administration of "the Quartet's memorials to those who are not important tasks, and they don't hear about them."He said: "I am in charge of the world, and I want to know the people's conditions well. I dare not neglect even small things. If you hand over to the top and bottom, you will be prosperous, and if you don't hand in, you will be bad. Since ancient times, many people who have been ignorant of civil affairs have perished. You must hear about small things, and I never tire of listening to them." He once had the names of Chinese and foreign officials written on the south corridor of the Hall of Martial Arts, and watched them in his spare time to familiarize himself with the political situation. For another example, compared with later emperors, Zhu Di is still frugal.He once said: "The treasures stored in the inner government are all heaven's wealth, and they will be rewarded for their merits. Although I dare not spend them recklessly." The sleeves are exposed, and they come back.Some of the courtiers praised his virtue.He said: "Although I change new clothes every day, I think I should cherish my blessings. Therefore, I make more progress every time I wash them." This is quite influenced by Zhu Yuanzhang.He said: "In the past, the emperor's concubine bowed to mend the old clothes. The emperor was happy to see her and said that the empress is so rich, dignified and thrifty, and she can be a law for her descendants. Therefore, I always abide by the precepts and never forget them." Others, as Zhu Di said, "Governance is expensive in general", and there is no need to stick to small stories and small things. It can be said that there is no need for a hundred-year-old life", "the abnormality of one thing exists", which is not auspicious, "the sea is clear and bright, and the people live and work happily, which is the auspiciousness of this country", and it is believed that "although the sage of knowledge is born, it is also worthy of learning", etc. Wait. Although the above mentioned is not unfounded, it is still not convincing to call Zhu Di a sage.As we all know, the beauty of official books and the flattery of ministers are spared no effort. On the other hand, Zhu Di, the founder of Ming Dynasty, was eager to establish his achievements. Although he wanted to retain the title of sage and virtuous monarch, he really wanted to wash away the shame of the rebellious officials and thieves who usurped power and throne.Seeing him go out of Mobei five times, move the capital to Beijing, open Guizhou, revise "Yongle Dadian", exchange addresses of prefectures and counties, send Zheng He to the Western Ocean, and send Chen Cheng to the Western Regions, all of them are brilliant and brilliant, surpassing the past.Whether these achievements are merits or demerits, whether they are successful or not, they should be given due evaluation.However, its stall was too big and its pace was too fast. For more than 20 years, it drove the people all over the world into endless conquests and corvee service.If you want to "Simmin's well-off life", you can get it!In addition, his self-proclaimed sacredness must be hard to understand, he is ruthless and easy to kill, and he will attract public grievances. As for his strict control of the population, restoration of Jinyiwei torture tools, reuse of eunuchs, and establishment of the East Factory, he has always been criticized by people. However, looking at it from the perspective of historians, Ming Chengzu Zhu Di has his own historical status.Jiao Hong (1392-1449), a man of the Ming Dynasty, said: "Emperor Gao cut off the cruelty, and his career is not yet solid. It must be followed by a great sage, so that it can be established. The Han, Tang and Song Dynasties unified the world, and there is Taizong, which can last forever." Wang Shizhen (1526 ~1590) said: "Those who made great achievements after the Taizu didn't know that they became ancestors?" Ming people have their own standpoint.They value the long-term stability of the Zhu Dynasty more.For us, even if the Ming Dynasty's Guozuo was extended due to Ming Chengzu's achievements, it is not a reason for us to give him a positive evaluation.It doesn't matter whether the emperor's surname is Zhu or Li.The important thing is to see what he brings to the people and what he leaves in history. Looking around, there seems to be a regular phenomenon in Chinese history.Whenever a new dynasty is established and completes the cause of unification, its defects at the same time doom it to collapse quickly.Those who follow must perfect the system created by the previous dynasty and overcome its defects.At this time, a prosperous and long-lasting new dynasty emerged.You see, the Qin Dynasty unified the world through hundreds of battles, but lost in the complicated and harsh administration.The Han Dynasty replaced it, inherited the Qin system, and was able to stabilize the world under the rule of Huang Lao's inaction.The Sui Dynasty prospered after the war, but lost in the extravagance. The Tang inherited the Sui system to "reduce extravagance and save money, lighten the corvee and pay less, and select honest officials", and the "Government of Zhenguan" appeared.Although the later Zhou Dynasty had been reformed and had a unified atmosphere, it failed because it failed to eliminate the power of the military officials.Song Jizhi cut off the vassals and towns and strengthened the weak branches, thus completing the relative unification, and the founding of the country lasted for more than three hundred years.Zhu Yuanzhang established the Ming Dynasty, and its system can be regarded as complete, but the punishment was too complicated, the enfeoffment was too extravagant, and the civil and military imbalances. Zhu Yunqi forced the political transition, but caused civil strife.Zhu Di seized the throne with the vassal king, weakened the power of the vassals, and used both civil and martial arts to strengthen the centralization of power and extend Ming Zuo to more than 200 years.Looking at it this way, is Zhu Di's position in history clearer?Although Zhu Di was not the founder of the country, he was not the successor.For the Ming Dynasty, he inherited the system created by Zhu Yuanzhang and put it on a more solid foundation. Although he did not make any pioneering achievements, he took a crucial step.Of course, despite the different political views, Zhu Yunqi or someone else had to go at this step, but Zhu Yunqi fell.And Zhu Di used this to become a key figure in the history of the Ming Dynasty, and thus became an important figure in Chinese history.Through Zhu Di, the Chinese monarchy and patriarchal system was perfected, and the political structure of the Ming and Qing dynasties was established.