Chapter 70 The first section Mencius annoyed Zhu Yuanzhang

One day in the fifth year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang sat in the hall and read "Mencius". Like all emperors, Zhu Yuanzhang greatly honored Confucius and Mencius.But to be honest, due to the complicated military and government affairs, he only listened to some fragments explained by literati, and did not study them systematically.Now that the world has been settled and everything is on track, he is also interested in reading the original scriptures to absorb some precious nutrition. If you don't read it, you don't know, and you will be shocked when you read it.As he read, Zhu Yuanzhang's complexion turned from happy to gloomy, his brows became more and more wrinkled, and his breathing became more and more coarse.Finally, he threw the book to the ground and said loudly: "If this old man lives today, I would rather be spared?" It means, if this old man lives to this day, can he still live?

The guards around were terrified, thinking, what happened to the emperor? It turned out that Zhu Yuanzhang read the following words: The people are the most precious, the country is second, and the king is the lightest. The common people are the most important, the country is second, and compared with the former two, the monarch is the least important. If the ruler treats his ministers like brothers and feet, then the ministers will treat him like his heart; That is to say, the monarch is polite to the ministers, and the ministers also respect the monarch.The king treats his ministers like dung, and the ministers also treat the king as nothing.

Zhu Yuanzhang was furious and immediately summoned civil servants, announcing that he would "remove Mencius to enjoy the Confucian Temple" from now on, withdraw Mencius' tablet from the Confucian Temple, and disqualify him from eating cold pork with Confucius in the Confucian Temple for thousands of years. With this order, there was an uproar in the court.The way of Confucius and Mencius is the foundation of China's statehood, and this move is as shocking as expelling Jesus from the church in a Christian country.Of course, the ministers came forward one after another to express their opposition.Zhu Yuanzhang ordered people to take out all the memorials piled up on a table and burn them, announcing that my will has been decided, and no one is allowed to say it again, otherwise he will be executed for the crime of "disrespect".

Now the court immediately calmed down, and everyone knew how powerful Zhu Yuanzhang was.But Confucius and Mencius have been worshiped in China for thousands of years, after all, there will be a few die-hard fans standing still.Qian Tang, Shangshu of the Ministry of punishment, insisted on his own opinion, and still wanted to enter the palace to intercede for Mencius. When Zhu Yuanzhang heard that Qian Tang had come for this matter, he ordered Jin Wu's guards to shoot him to death in front of the palace.The guards of Jinwu bowed their bows as ordered, and Qian Tang was shot with two arrows on each shoulder and arm, bleeding profusely, but he was still brave and unyielding, and rushed in in a daze.Seeing this, Zhu Yuanzhang also felt that Qian Tang was a man, so he asked him to come in and talk.Kneeling in front of the emperor, Qian Tang lamented that Mencius is indestructible, saying that Mencius has been revered by the world for thousands of years. Once it is abolished, not only China will be shaken, but the barbarians will also be shocked, and they will suspect that China is still the one that respects the way of saints. country?

Zhu Yuanzhang thinks about it too.From the matter of Qian Tang risking his life to break through the barrier, he also saw the weight of Mencius in the hearts of scholars, so he ordered Qian Tang to be sent to the imperial hospital for good treatment, and soon restored Mencius's qualification to enjoy the Confucian Temple.