Chapter 2 Chapter 2 The Glory of the Emperor

No matter from which angle we look at it, Zhu Di is definitely not a good person. This person is cruel, cruel, and obsessed with power. In daily life, we absolutely don't want to be friends with such a person.But he is a really good emperor. An emperor never needs to use his personal good character to prove his wisdom. On the contrary, people who have been emperors in history are basically not good people, because good people cannot be emperors, and Zhu Yunqi is an ironclad proof. From the day a person ascends to the throne and becomes emperor, what he gets is not only power and position, but also many enemies. Almost everyone fights, ministers, eunuchs, wives (many), wives' relatives (also many), brothers and sisters, even parents (if they are still alive), he becomes the target of everyone.If you don't come up with some means to show your ability, it is easy to be kicked off the throne by others, and history has proved that the survival rate of the emperor who was kicked off the throne is very low.

For the sake of the throne, for the sake of his life, he must learn to plot tricks, and must deny his relatives. He must be stronger than the most tyrannical bully, and he must be more rogue than the most rogue hooligan. He cannot trust anyone.So I think, being a loner is really the best title for the emperor. Zhu Di is such a bully and rascal, and he is also a good emperor. He is full of energy, following the example of Comrade Zhu Yuanzhang, a model worker, he works late every day, dealing with government affairs non-stop.He loved the people, cared about their sufferings, and implemented a policy of recuperation. Under his rule, the Ming Dynasty became stronger and stronger.Wasteland has been reclaimed, people's living standards have improved, and warehouses are full of grain and coins.The economy, technology and culture have all developed greatly, and he created a truly peaceful and prosperous world with his own efforts.

He formulated many policies that benefited the country and the people, and implemented these policies well, making the Ming Dynasty stronger. If you want to explain in detail, you can list a lot of economic figures. These are all clichés, and the specific content can be determined. Refer to history textbooks of the past dynasties.I don’t want to write more, and I believe you don’t want to read more, but it’s worth thinking about, these measures have been done by many emperors in history, and have achieved good results, why Zhu Di can surpass most of them , Become one of the few recognized great emperors in Chinese history?

This is because he did what other emperors failed to do. Next, we will introduce the achievements of this great emperor. As we said before, he is definitely not a good person, but he is definitely a good emperor.He has made great achievements with amazing talent and ability, left us an immortal legacy, and still affects our country and nation more than 600 years later, so from this perspective, he is indeed a historical figure in Chinese history. The last great emperor deserved it. Speaking of writing a book, many people should yearn for it. It is indeed a happy thing to turn one's own efforts into a book. For some people who are not capable of writing a book, publishing a book There is still a way.For example, when I was in college, some of the school’s academic staff (not teaching) were jealous of the publication of books by people in the teaching and research section. They wanted to write books but they had no skills. A book was published.Of course, its sales are also predictable.

It is hard to believe that as early as hundreds of years ago in Zhu Di's era, someone did a similar thing, and it was Zhu Di who did it. As we said before, Zhu Di's cultural accomplishment is limited, and he should not be able to write any masterpieces handed down from generation to generation, so he can only instruct his subordinates to compile books, and the purpose is of course also for his own reputation.In fact, there is nothing to blame for this. Which emperor doesn't want to leave his name in history?Many emperors in the past have edited a lot of books. It is not uncommon to edit books, but Zhu Di is indeed a man of great talent and boldness.What he wants to repair is an unprecedented book, and what he wants to do is something that no one has done before.

He did it, and he compiled a great book with a glorious history and a long history-Yongle Dadian. But as we said before, he is just a decision maker. No matter how wise the decision is, it will not work if no one executes it. According to Zhu Di's idea, he wants to compose a encyclopedia that includes all subjects and categories in history. Undoubtedly, this is a daunting task that requires a suitable person to serve as the editor-in-chief. This person must have extensive knowledge, clear discernment, incomparable patience, and inclusive thinking. It is really hard to find people who meet the above conditions, but fortunately, Zhu Di did find such a person.

And this person's life is also closely linked with Yongle Dadian, his fate is like the book of Yongle Dadian, full of ups and downs, but full of legends. Therefore, before we introduce Yongle Dadian, we must first introduce this great editor-in-chief. In the thirteenth year of Yongle (AD 1415), Ji Gang, the commander of Jinyiwei, issued a strange order. He wanted to invite a prisoner in his prison to eat.This is big news. Ji Gang is Zhu Di's celebrity, the supreme commander of the Jinyiwei, and he condescends to treat a prisoner to dinner. Everyone is talking about it. The prisoner readily accepted the invitation, but when the dinner started, Ji Gang didn't come, but someone brought a lot of wine for the prisoner to drink. The preoccupied prisoner couldn't stop drinking. He recalled that Dreamy past events, soon drunk.

Seeing that he was already drunk, Jin Yiwei, who had already received instructions, opened the door and dragged him out. It was snowing heavily outside, and it was the first month of the month. The prisoner was thrown into the snow, and in this pure silver-white world, under the reminiscence of the past and the anesthesia of alcohol, he ushered in death. This prisoner is Xie Jin, known as the number one talented scholar in the Ming Dynasty, and the editor-in-chief of the Yongle Canon.This year, he was forty-seven years old. Xie Jin, born in the second year of Hongwu (AD 1369), was born in Ji'an Prefecture, Jiangxi Province. He was smart and eager to learn since he was a child.He lived up to everyone's expectations. In the 21st year of Hongwu (1388 A.D.), he passed the Jinshi examination in one fell swoop. Because his reputation in his hometown was already great, and it even spread to the capital, Zhu Yuanzhang also attached great importance to him. I also found time to meet him during my busy schedule.Zhu Yuanzhang's move made everyone think that a new political star was about to rise.

At that time, the political situation was complicated. Hu Weiyong had already been involved in the crime. Officials at all levels of the judiciary kept arresting ministers. Many people who were ministers in the same court today disappeared the next day. Now, many ministers have become the carefree faction, turning a blind eye and closing their eyes when things happen, just hoping to live until retirement. But Xie Jin is destined to be an unexpected person. In this precarious and hostile political environment, he did not retreat or flinch, but showed the backbone and bravery of an intellectual.

He bravely wrote a letter to Zhu Yuanzhang himself, criticizing the current malpractices, condemning unnecessary killings, and submitted a well-known article "Ten Strategies for Peace". Zhu Yuanzhang drew a picture of a peaceful world, and put forward opinions and criticisms on some current political systems. We have introduced Zhu Yuanzhang's character before, if you don't mess with him, he will come to trouble you, but Xie Bold dared to touch a tiger's butt, which really requires great courage.At that time, many people thought that Xie Jin was crazy, because only a lunatic would dare to provoke a lunatic.

It is difficult to verify that Xie Jin is not crazy, but at least he is not dead.Uncharacteristically, Zhu Yuanzhang accepted his criticism and did not trouble him. People at that time were stunned. They couldn't figure out why Xie Jin survived, so this Xie Jin, who dared to speak the truth, became famous all over the world. . After becoming famous, troubles also came. Although some people praised his brave behavior, others said that he was engaged in political speculation and wrote the letter because he saw the opportunity.But Xie Jin used his actions to shatter the so-called speculation.He did another earth-shattering thing. In the 23rd year of Hongwu (1390 A.D.), Zhu Yuanzhang killed Li Shanchang. This incident had a deep political background. The ministers at that time knew it very well and dared not say a word.But Xie Jin, who was never afraid, started to act again. He wrote to Zhu Yuanzhang on behalf of his friend to defend Li Shanchang. This was a very serious political incident. Zhu Yuanzhang was very annoyed. He knew that the article was written by Xie Jin, but unexpectedly, he still didn't do anything to Xie Jin. This incident gave Xie Jin a wrong signal. He believed that, Zhu Yuanzhang would not do anything to himself. Xie Jin continued his extremely dangerous game. He had great ambitions, defied authority, and dared to tell the truth, but he didn't understand at all that this kind of behavior was destined to pay a heavy price.Before long, he was punished. In the twenty-fourth year of Hongwu (1391 A.D.), Zhu Yuanzhang drove Xie Jin home, and threw him a sentence "use it after ten years". So, Xie Jin returned to his home along the road he took to Beijing three years ago to rush for the exam. The prosperity and wealth were just a dream, and the scenery along the road didn't change much, but Xie Jin's heart changed. He still didn't understand that he was punished like this for just telling the truth. Isn't the purpose of being an official for the sake of the world and serving the country?What's the point! Those shameless people who don't do business all day long, give up when encountering difficulties, and collapse when encountering obstacles, firmly hold the position of power. It's unfair that people who serve the country wholeheartedly like themselves receive such treatment. The days of being dismissed from office are depressing. The greatest pain for human beings is not having nothing, but losing everything after having it.The prosperity of the capital, the admiration of everyone, and the respect of the emperor, these past scenes are always entangled in Xie Jin's heart. When he was in his hometown, he kept thinking about a question, that is, why did he fail?scholarship?measure? No, not these, finally one day, he began to realize that the reason for his failure was childishness, childishness was a mess, and he didn't know what the officialdom was at all.Faith and integrity have no market above the court. If you want to succeed, you can only cater to the emperor. You must use political tactics, seize every opportunity, and constantly promote yourself to improve your status! Xie Jin finally found what he thought was the right path, and his life began to change. In the thirty-first year of Hongwu (AD 1398), Zhu Yuanzhang passed away. Seven years had passed since Xie Jin returned home. , even if it reaches the ten-year period, there will be no officials to do it. If you want to be an official, you can only rely on yourself! Relying on his previous network, he kept writing letters to senior officials and the emperor, asking for an official position. However, fate played a trick on him again. Although Emperor Jianwen knew that he was very talented, he was unwilling to use him and only gave him a small official. .He is going to be sent far away to the west for development.Fortunately, he reacted quickly and immediately found someone to clear up the relationship. He finally stayed in the capital and became a small official in the Imperial Academy. At this time, Xie Jin has completely lost the ambition of his youth. He finally understands the darkness and ugliness of politics. If he wants to climb up, he must not have principles and dignity. I want everything, but I can't have face! Dark world, I sell my soul to you, all I want is glory and wealth! Accepting his soul, God gave him a chance. Jing Nan began. Emperor Jianwen was about to fail, and Zhu Di was already in sight of victory. At this critical moment, Xie Jin had a conversation with his two friends. This conversation was recorded in history. , The three young people determined different directions in life. Here, we will first introduce two friends of Xie Jin, their names are Hu Guang and Wang Gen.The so-called things flock together, people are divided into groups, and those who can make friends with a talented man like Xie Jin are naturally not ordinary people. In fact, these two people are no less powerful than Xie Jin. Coincidentally, the three of them are all from Ji'an Prefecture, Jiangxi Province. At least he was among the top dozens in the country, but compared with the other two, he was far behind. Why, because these two were the number one scholar and the second place in the college entrance examination in the second year of Jianwen.In addition, the third name is Li Guan, who is also from Ji'an Prefecture, Jiangxi Province, and he is also a friend of the three.However, since he did not participate in this conversation, he was not mentioned.Great, the top three places were taken by Ji'an Prefecture in Jiangxi Province, which really makes people marvel at the development of education here.It is comparable to today's Huanggang Middle School. We are all from the same township and well-educated, so we naturally have many common topics. Now that the boss, Emperor Jianwen, is about to die, they want to sit down and discuss their future. These three people are close neighbors, and the place where they talk is chosen At the home of Wu Pu, the neighbor next door. Before they express their aspirations, we need to mention that Xie Jin, Hu Guang, Wang Gen, and Li Guan are all close servants of Emperor Jianwen, which means that they are all people close to the emperor and deeply trusted by him. , Their attitude towards the current situation can reflect the views of some courtiers at that time.Among the four, Wang Gen is quite special. What makes him special is that he has the most reason to be dissatisfied with the emperor. Why is this? Because in the imperial examination in the second year of Jianwen (1400 AD), he was the real champion! After Wang Gen passed the general examination, he took part in the palace examination. In the palace examination, he won the first place in the theory test. Originally, the number one should be his.But Emperor Jianwen thought he was not good-looking, so he gave the first place to Hu Guang (ugly, easy to Hu Jing, that is, Hu Guang also).In this way, the number one scholar in his hand flew away. Normally, he should have a lot of resentment towards Emperor Jianwen, but this world once again showed us the ugliness and sincerity of human nature. Emperor Jianwen is about to fall, and everyone's topic will naturally not be related to poetry, calligraphy and painting. What should I do when the boss steps down?The three made different choices.Of course, this choice is made in the bottom of my heart. The three performed as follows: Xie Jinchen talked about righteousness, and Hu Guang was also indignant and generous, saying that he could not share the sky with Zhu Di and died for the country with his own body.Wang Gen didn't speak, but wept silently. Performance after the talk: After Xie Jin finished his conversation, he packed his bags overnight, ran outside the city and surrendered Zhu Di, and he ran very fast, and relevant evidence was left in history-"Jin Chi Ye".Hu Guang surrendered the next day, and he was very obedient—"Called, kowtow to thank".Look, how efficient it is, call it, call it, and it will come as soon as it is called.The third place, Li Guan, is not far behind—"Guan also welcomes him". After returning home, Wang Gen, who was silent, said to his wife: "I am a minister who receives the state's salary. At this point, I can only die for the country with my own body." Then he calmly committed suicide. The country judges people by appearance, but he did not judge the country by power. That night, there were two people who spoke and one who didn't. The speaker made his promise, which eventually turned into a lie.Those who don't speak are silent, but they use actions to realize the promise in their hearts. In fact, as early as when they expressed themselves in different ways, there was already one person who saw their respective endings, and this person was Wu Pu who watched coldly. Just after Hu Guang delivered his martyrdom speech impassionedly, and left home with an upright face (his house is next to Wu Pu's house), Wu Pu's son said with deep emotion: "Uncle Hu (referring to Hu Guang) has It is really a good thing to be able to die for the country with such a spirit.” Wu Pu smiled slightly, and said, "This person will not die for the country. The only one among the three who will die for the country is Wang Gen." Wu Pu's son was young, so he didn't take it seriously, and was about to refute his father, but at this moment, Hu Guang's voice came from outside the door: "It's messy outside now, you have to take care of your things at home!" The two smiled wryly at each other. Having said that, we don't seem to be able to blame these surrenderers too much, especially Xie Jin. He has suffered a lot and gone through many ups and downs. He wants to succeed too much, and he must not let this opportunity pass by. People's hearts have their own opinions about the actions of these four people. Therefore, Xie Jin became Zhu Di's favorite minister. No matter what method he used, he finally realized his dream.From then on, he began his most brilliant life, but before that, we need to introduce the whereabouts of the remaining two members of the surrender trio. Li Guan: After Zhu Di came to power, he received many memorials from courtiers to Emperor Jianwen, and there were also many texts calling for him to be crusaded. He said to the ministers in the court in a joking tone: "You should all share in these memorials." All the ministers were terrified. In fact, Zhu Di just wanted to make a joke. He would not pursue the responsibility of these people, but an unexpected thing happened. It was this Li Guan who caused the trouble, he said calmly: "I don't, never have." Then he put on a contented look.He is a shrewd person who noticed this problem very early on. In order to avoid disaster, he never made a similar memorial. Now his ingenuity has finally paid off, but in a way he never expected. Zhu Di was angry, he walked up to Li Guan and threw the memorial in his face. "Are you still proud of it! You receive the salary of the country, and you are an official of the country. In a critical moment, as a close servant, you don't even say a word. I hate people like you the most!" Li Guan, who was trembling all over, huddled into a ball. He didn't expect that there would be a price to pay for being shameless. Afterwards, he was imprisoned for breaking the law, and finally died in prison. When he was dying, he finally repented of his behavior and cried: "Wang Jingzhi (Wang Gen's word is Jingzhi), I really have no face to see you." You." Hu Guang: Since then, his official career has been prosperous. Because of his good writing and ability to handle government affairs, he was appointed as one of the first seven members of the cabinet of the Ming Dynasty together with Xie Jin, and was later named a scholar of Wenyuan Pavilion.After his death, he was posthumously named Minister of the Ministry of Rites. He also created a record, that is, he was the first civil servant to receive a posthumous title in the Ming Dynasty, and his posthumous title was "Wen Mu". Looking at his life, this person didn't suffer any disadvantages, and he seems to have lived a very good life, but a person's character will eventually be exposed. After Hu Guang and Xie Jin defected to Zhu Di, Zhu Di saw that they were fellow villagers and had a good relationship, so he intended to make them his in-laws. However, although Xie Jin already had a son at that time, Hu Guang's wife was just pregnant. is female.At this time, Zhu Di, an expert in obstetrics and gynecology, asserted without B-ultrasound detection: "It must be a woman." It turned out that Hu Guang's wife had indeed given birth to a girl, so the leader was capable, and he actually had such a deep knowledge of obstetrics and gynecology in addition to government affairs.Afterwards, it turned out that this girl was indeed not simple. Unfortunately, I did not find her name in the historical materials. I only know that her surname must be Hu. This girl married Xie Jin's son as promised. Both families are rich and powerful, and they are a good couple that everyone envies.However, unforeseen circumstances caused Xie Jin to be imprisoned, and his son was exiled to Liaodong. At this time, Hu Guang showed his duplicitous nature again. When his in-laws fell into a well, he immediately looked around for stones.Ordered his daughter to divorce the other party. In that era, the fate of parents was everything, but this girl who was married by Zhu Di was a bit of Zhu Di's domineering, and she did something that would make her father ashamed.Hu Guang persecuted and persuaded her several times, but to no avail. In the end, he got his daughter's final attitude, which was not a separate document, but an ear. In order to show her determination not to separate, her daughter cut off her own ear as a sign of her will, and angrily scolded her father: "Although my marriage is unfortunate, it is up to the emperor to decide. You promised, how can you do this? I would rather die than marry you." Minute!" The behavior of this heroic woman caused a sensation, and through this, everyone saw Hu Guang's face clearly, and Xie Jin's son was finally pardoned and returned to the woman. Hu Guang, be ashamed, although you have read a lot of poetry and books and have a prosperous official career, your integrity is not as good as that of a woman! Again, people have their own opinions. The big reason why Zhu Di valued Xie Jin was that he accurately judged that Xie Jin was the one who could be the editor-in-chief of the ceremony.Therefore, in the first year of Yongle (AD 1403), Zhu Di solemnly handed over this job that could be glorious in history or exhausting to Xie Jin.His requirement is "everything can be written in one book, including the blunt words of a hundred schools of thought in classics and history, as for the words of astronomy, geology, yin and yang, medicine, divination, monks, and Taoism skills, it is not annoying to be voluminous." What a heroic words and wishes!Please don’t underestimate the matter of repairing books. At the time when information was not developed, books were easily lost even after they were published, because there was no habit of giving a copy to the library after publication, and many people read novels and other books. Look, but some academic books such as subsets of classics and history are rarely read (this is similar to now), and they are easily lost.And some books that are not handed down are more like the secret books in martial arts novels, hidden in the deep mountains and dense forests, unknown to everyone.To collect these books, a lot of money, manpower and material resources are necessary.Therefore, although each dynasty revised books, they were quite different.The poorer dynasties have a limited number of official revision books, and they only want to complete the one that must be completed-the history books of the previous dynasty. What Zhu Di wants to build is not just one book, but an encyclopedia that covers ancient and modern times, encompasses everything, and contains all the wealth of knowledge! This is not just culture, it is the embodiment of comprehensive strength including economy, and it is a symbol of a country's self-confidence and strength! Apart from the great ceremony, there is no other book! We can imagine that when Zhu Di handed over this work to Xie Jin, he entrusted hope and burden to this young man who was only 34 years old. Things have become a "general task" for Xie Jin. Xie Jin did not show political acumen on this matter. He naively thought that this was just a temporary interest of the emperor and wanted to compile a book for fun, so in November of the second year of Yongle (AD 1404), He submitted the first draft to the emperor, called "The Great Completion of Documents".It should be said that this set of first drafts also took a lot of hard work, but he didn't expect that in return for his hard work, Zhu Di scolded him severely. Zhu Di was very happy that Xie Jin completed the task so quickly, but when he saw the book Xie Jin sent up, he realized that this bookworm didn't understand the leader's intention at all.So he severely reprimanded Xie Jin for a while, and then put on a big battle. This formation is really big, which fully reflects the comprehensive national strength of the Ming Dynasty at that time. First of all, Zhu Di sent five academicians as presidents (not the kind of presidents in our society today). These five people, headed by Wang Jing, are all well-educated. Cheese.And another 20 officials of the Imperial Academy were appointed as vice presidents, and these 20 people were also famous scholars.In addition, Zhu Di also launched a general mobilization order across the country to call all knowledgeable people, no matter whether you are old or young, poor or rich, lame or lame, as long as you can turn your head and walk, that’s all. All of them were summoned for editing, roughly equivalent to our editors today. This is not over yet, Zhu Di took out a desperate posture, and must strive for excellence. He is still looking for people with certain abilities in various states and counties across the country, but this kind of ability is not knowledge, so who is he looking for? Woolen cloth? The answer is: people who can write well. Since it was a complete book at that time, it was necessary to collect a large number of books and materials. After these materials were found, someone had to be copied. to write. Since it is a book compiled by the Ming Empire, it must be decent, and the handwriting of the book must be beautiful and clear. If you want to find someone like me who has scribbled handwriting and can only type in front of the computer every day to copy the book, don’t say that Zhu Di is not used to it. I would feel ashamed myself.In those days, if you could write badly, you would be ashamed to greet people. This is a veritable cultural mobilization. It can be said that Zhu Di gathered the elite intellectuals from all over the country to do this.We have mentioned before that compiling books can also fully reflect the economic strength of the country. This is because if you want to call so many intellectuals to compose books for you, you have to state in the recruitment advertisement: board and lodging included, monthly salary.Don't think that intellectuals and scholars will do voluntary labor willingly, and they also have wives and children. Zhu Di is a straightforward person, and he solved the problem swiftly and resolutely. He set up the editing headquarters in Wenyuan Pavilion, and arranged accommodation for these book editors. Fan, the person who edits the book doesn't have to worry about anything, just edit your book. After reading our introduction above, everyone should be clear, without money, without a lot of money, can this book be completed? The impoverished dynasty can only be exhausted all day long, and a little treasury income is good enough to eat, so how can there be spare money to study books? It is not a lie to write books in the prosperous age. In addition to the people mentioned above, Zhu Di also sent a helper to Xie Jin to co-edit the book with him.This person said he was a helper, but he should actually be a supervisor, because before that, he had only been the second in command once. Unfortunately, the first in command was Zhu Di. This supervisor is Yao Guangxiao. Yao Guangxiao is not only good at strategy, but also very talented. Song Lian, the first scholar in the early Ming Dynasty, also admired his talent very much. At that time, Xie Jin was still wearing crotch pants. One can imagine Zhu Di's determination to put such a heavyweight next to Xie Jin. When Zhu Di put on such a luxurious lineup with overwhelming momentum, Xie Jin finally understood what a grand and glorious thing he was about to accomplish.If it cannot be completed or is not completed well, it is not just a matter of losing the official position. Don't say anything, start working hard! After being instructed by the leaders, Comrade Xie Jin finally corrected his attitude and moved in the direction instructed by the leaders. Facts have proved that Zhu Di did not misunderstand the person.Xie Jin gave full play to his talent and learning. He arranged all kinds of work reasonably, and carried out procurement, analysis, writing, and proofreading in an orderly manner. Every time he finished writing a part, he had to personally review it and put forward suggestions for revision.As the leader of this vast intellectual corps, he did a great job. When the editing team of thousands of people was operating in an orderly manner in his hands, and the ceremonies he compiled were approaching completion and perfection, Xie Jin finally realized his life value and dream. He was no longer an underappreciated scholar, but a national leader. pillars. In the process of compiling the canon, Zhu Di continued to give help and care. In April of the fourth year of Yongle (1406), Zhu Di took time out of his busy schedule to visit the editors who worked day and night at their posts, and Kindly asked Xie Jin what difficulties he had in work and life. Xie Jin thanked the leaders for their concern, and said that he would make persistent efforts to do a good job in order to repay His Majesty's kindness and live up to the expectations of intellectuals across the country.Finally, he pointed out that the part of the history of the canons has been almost completed, but there are still many shortcomings in the part of the subset. Zhu Di immediately said that if you have any difficulties, you can come to me, and you will definitely be able to solve them. Isn’t it just a lack of books?Immediately afterwards, he ordered the relevant department (the Ministry of Rites) to send people out to buy books. With such political support and economic support, coupled with Xie Jin's effective command and arrangement, countless diligent intellectuals worked day and night, and they worked hard on countless brightly lit nights, abandoning their own Family and entertainment, paid the price of health and even life (many of them died of overwork), just to complete this greatest book of all time. Many of them may not have any great ideals, because most of them are just ordinary scribes and editors, and at that time, they were just ordinary readers.Their lives seem to have nothing to do with the word great, but what they did was a great thing.History will not leave their names, but every page and every line of this great book is full of their painstaking efforts. Therefore, whether it is a editor who is too tired to vomit blood, or a bookmaker who spends all day copying books, they are all heroes, well-deserved heroes. Everyone is. With the unremitting efforts of these people, in November of the fifth year of Yongle (1407), this grand ceremony was finally completed. This book contains more than 7,000 to 8,000 books from the pre-Qin period to the early Ming Dynasty, with a total of 11,095 volumes, 22,877 volumes, and 370 million words. All are copied word by word by hand. Its content includes a subset of classics and history, astronomy, geography, yin and yang, medical skills, divination, Buddhist scriptures, Taoist scriptures, drama, crafts, and agriculture. It covers the wealth of knowledge of the Chinese nation for thousands of years. It is not just a book, but It is a pyramid in the history of Chinese civilization. What is even more rare is that the intellectuals of the Ming Dynasty, headed by Xie Jin, collected almost all precious cultural materials with a broad mind and inclusive thinking, leaving us a huge fortune. Zhu Di's dream finally came true, and he solemnly named this great masterpiece - "Yongle Dadian". Now, at last, I can say that under my reign, the largest, most complete, and most perfect book ever compiled!One day, I will grow old, but the glory of this book will always shine on the people of future generations, telling them the glory of our era! glory!But this is not only the glory of Zhu Di, it is the glory of our country and this nation!We have experienced thousands of years of ups and downs. We used to be glorious and powerful for a while, but we were humiliated and perished several times.But we did not give in in the end, our civilization was passed down and led us to stand up tenaciously. This is the greatness of Yongle Dadian. It is not just a book, but a spirit, a spirit of cultural inheritance and self-improvement. We want to thank this book, because without its birth, many ancient books would never be seen by us today. If you want to make a list of these books, I am afraid it will be very long. Here we only list some of them to let everyone understand the significance of this book, such as "Old Tang Book", "Old History of the Five Dynasties", "Song Hui Yao "Compilation", "Continued Zizhi Tongjian Changbian" and other books were all lost. It was not until the Qing Dynasty that they were compiled from the Yongle Canon and circulated in the world. So we say that Yongle Dadian is a pyramid in the history of Chinese culture. Xie Jin is an excellent chief engineer and designer in this project of building a Chinese cultural pyramid.His contribution is actually no less than that of Xu Da and Lan Yu who conquered the frontier.Although he does not have the heroism of attacking cities and villages among thousands of armies, nor does he have the scenery of swinging knives and iron horses in the desert, but he also has his own weapons, and his weapons are his pen and ink.It was under his leadership that countless hard-working intellectuals left us with the wisdom and knowledge of our ancestors, allowing us to understand the glorious past and the greatness of our ancestors. Facts have proved that those helpless scholars and scholars who are often ridiculed by us also have power, they are also strong, and they also deserve our respect. Who says that scholars are useless, but heroes are also shown in the pen! The Yongle Grand Ceremony is the most brilliant achievement of Xie Jin's life, and it is also the highest point of his life. However, at the end of this book, there is no figure of Xie Jin among those joyful people, because at this time, he has fallen from the peak of his life. , was relegated to Guangxi, which was inaccessible at that time.Why did the talented and outstanding Xie Jin fall into such a situation?Who is to blame for this? In fact, Xie Jin's fall into this situation can be described in one word-you have to blame yourself. Because he did something he was not good at - speculation. When it comes to speculation, Xie Jin is not a novice. We have previously introduced his glorious deeds of rejecting the temptation of the lowly official position of Emperor Jianwen and going to Zhu Di's side despite all difficulties. Of course, there are good reasons for his move .Because Zhu Di needs him, and he also needs Zhu Di.Xie Jin has fame and talent, while Zhu Di has power and money. Fang Xiaoru, the seed of reading, has been killed. In order to prove that not all scholars in the world are hard-headed, and to prove that there are still people in this world who are willing to cooperate with the new emperor, Zhu Di naturally regarded Xie Jin, who took the initiative to seek refuge, as a treasure.He not only appointed Xie Jin as the editor-in-chief of Yongle Dadian and the second edition of Taizu Shilu, but also entrusted him with important political responsibilities, leaving him an important position in the first cabinet of the Ming Dynasty.此任内阁总共七人，个个都是精英，后来为明朝“仁宣盛世”做出巨大贡献的“三杨”中的两杨都在此内阁中担任要职。 除此之外，朱棣还经常在下班（散朝）之后单独找解缙谈话，用今天的话来说，这叫“重点培养”，朱棣不止一次的大臣们面前说：“得到解缙，真是上天垂怜于我啊！” 解缙以政治上的正直直言出名，却因政治投机得益，这真是一种讽刺。 解缙终于满足了，他似乎意识到，自己多年来没有成功，只是因为当年政治上的幼稚，为什么一定要说那么多违背皇帝意志的话呢，那不是难为自己吗？ 而这次政治投机的成功也让他认定，今后不要再关心那些与己无关的事情，只有积极投身政治，看准政治方向，并放下自己的政治筹码，才能保证自己的权力和地位。 于是，当年的那个一心为民请命、为国效力的单纯的读书人死去了，取而代之的是一个跃跃欲试、胸有城府的政客。 也许在很多人看来，这也并没有什么大惊小怪的，只不过是一个人对自己人生的选择罢了，但问题在于，解缙在作出这个选择的时候忘记了一个重要而简单的原则，而正是这个简单的原则断送了他的一生。 这条原则就是：不要做你不擅长的事。 在我们小的时候，经常会有很多梦想，长大之后要干这个、干那个，现在的小孩想干什么职业我不知道，但在我的那个年代，科学家绝对是第一选择。我当年也曾经憧憬过自己拿着试剂瓶在实验室里不停的摇晃，摇什么并不重要，只是那种感觉实在是太好了。 但在长大之后，那些梦想的少年们却并没有真的成为科学家，至少大多数没有。因为在他们的成长过程中，无数的人、无数的事都明确无误的告诉他：“别做梦了，你不是这块料！” 这句话倒不一定是打击，在很多情况下，它是真诚的劝诫。 上天是很公平的，它会把不同的天赋赋予不同的人，有人擅长这些，有人擅长那些，这才构成了我们这个多姿多彩的世界。综合解缙的一生来看，他所擅长的是做学问，而不是搞政治。 可是这位本该埋头做学问的人从政治投机中尝到甜头，在长期的政治斗争中积累了一定的经验，便天真地认为自己已经成为了政治高手，从此他义无反顾地投入到了政治斗争的漩涡之中。 很不幸的是，他跳入的还不是一般的漩涡，而是关系到帝国根本的最大漩涡——继承人问题。 战争年代，武将造反频繁，原因无它，权位而已，要获得权位，最好的办法是自己当皇帝，但这一方法难度太大（参见朱元璋同志发展史），于是很多武将退而求其次，只要能够拥立一个新的皇帝，自己将来就是开国功臣，新老板自然不会忘记穷兄弟，多少是要给点好处的，虽然这行也有风险，比如你遇上的老板不姓赵而是姓朱，那就完蛋了。但和可能的收益比起来，收益还是大于成本的。 和平年代就不能这么干了，造反的成本太大，而且十分不容易成功（可参考朱棣同志的生平经历），但一步登天、青云直上是每一个人都梦想的事。于是诸位大臣们退而求其次，寻找将来皇位的继承者。因为皇帝总有一天是要死掉的，如果在他死掉之前成为继承人的心腹，将来必能被委以重任。但这一行也有风险，因为考虑到皇帝的特殊身份和兴趣爱好，以及我国长期以来男女不平等的状况，在很多情况下，皇帝的儿子数量皆为N（N大于等于2）。而如果你遇到一个精力旺盛的皇帝（比如康熙），那就麻烦了。 所以说拥立继承人可实在不是开玩笑的事情，可以比作一场赌博，万一你押错了宝，下错了筹码，新君并非你所拥立的那位，那就等着倒霉吧，覆巢之下，岂有完卵？你的主子都完蛋了，你还能有出头之日吗？ 可是解缙决心赌一把，应该说他是一个有远见的人，虽然朱棣现在信任他，但朱棣会老，会死，要想长久保住自己的位置，就必须早作打算，解缙经过长期观察，终于选定了自己的目标。 永乐二年（公元1404年），他在一位皇子的名下押下了自己所有的筹码——朱高炽。 关于朱高炽和朱高煦的权位之争，我们后面还要专门介绍，这里只说与解缙有关的一些事情。 其实这二位殿下的矛盾从靖难之时起就已经存在了，大臣们心中都有数，朱棣心里也明白。其实就其本心而言，确实是想传位给朱高煦的，因为朱高煦立有大功，而且长得比较帅。而朱高炽却是个残疾，眼睛还有点问题，要当国家领导人，形象上确实差点。 但是朱高炽是长子，立长也算是长期以来的传统，所以朱棣一直犹豫不定，于是他便去征求靖难功臣们的意见。不出所料，大部分参加过靖难的人都推荐朱高煦，这也可以理解，毕竟在一条战线上打过仗，有个战友的名头将来好办事。 有人反对。 只有一个人反对，这个人叫金忠，时任兵部尚书，和那些支持朱高煦的公侯勋贵们比起来，他这个二品官实在算不得什么。然而让人想不到的是，正是这个人影响了最后的结果。 这倒不是因为他本人的能力，而是因为在他的身后，有一个巨大的身影在支持着他。 这个巨大的身影就是那位不见踪影却又似乎无处不在的姚广孝。 如果我们翻开金忠的履历，就会发现他和姚广孝有着纠缠不清的关系，正是姚广孝向朱棣推荐了他，而此人的主要能力和姚广孝如出一辙，都是占卜、谋划、机断这些玩意。很多人甚至怀疑，他就是姚广孝的学生。 此人一反常态，面对无数人的攻击始终不改变自己的意见，并向朱棣建议，如果拿不定主意，不如去问当朝的大臣。 这真是高明之极，当朝和皇帝最亲近的大臣还有谁呢，不就是那七个人吗，而他们大都是读书人，立长的正统观念十分强烈，且这些人也很有可能已经和姚广孝搭上了关系，后来的事情发展也证实了，正是金忠的这一建议，使得原先一边倒的局面发生了根本性的变化。 我们实在有理由怀疑，这一切的幕后策划者就是那位表面上看起来不问世事的姚广孝，我们也不得不佩服这位“黑衣宰相”，他总是在关键时刻、关键问题上插入一脚，是十足的不安定因素，哪里有他出没，哪里就不太平。十处敲锣，九处有他，他活在这个时代，真可以说是生逢其时。 下面就轮到我们的解缙先生出场了，他正是被询问的对象之一，在这次历史上著名的谈话中，他展现了自己的智慧，证明了他明代第一才子的评价并非虚妄，而事实证明，也正是他的那一番话（确切地说是三个字）奠定了大局。 双方开门见山。 朱棣问：“你认为该立谁？” 解缙答：“世子（指朱高炽）仁厚，应该立为太子。” 朱棣不说话了，但解缙明白，这是一种否定的表示，他并没有慌乱，因为他还有杀手锏，只要把下一个理由说出来，大位非朱高炽莫属！ 解缙再拜道：“好圣孙！” 朱棣笑了，解缙也笑了，事情就此定局。 所谓好圣孙是指朱高炽的儿子朱瞻基（后来的明宣宗），此人天生聪慧，深得朱棣喜爱，解缙抓住了最关键的地方，为朱高炽立下了汗马功劳。 这是一次载入史册的谈话，在这次谈话中，解缙充分发挥了他扎实的才学和心理学知识，在这件帝国第一大事上做出了巨大的贡献，当然这一贡献是相对于朱高炽而言的。 朱高炽了解此事后十分感激解缙，他跛着脚来到解缙的住处，亲自向他道谢。 朱高炽放心了，解缙也放心了，一个放心皇位在手，一个放心权位不变。 然而事实证明，他们都太乐观了。朱高炽的事情我们后面再讲，这里先讲解缙，解缙的问题在于他根本不明白，所谓的大局已定是相对而言的，只要朱棣一天不死，朱高炽就只能作他的太子，而太子不过是皇位的继承人，并不是所有者，也无法保证解缙的地位和安全。 更为严重的是，解缙拥护朱高炽的行为已经使他成为了朱高煦的眼中钉肉中刺。而解缙并不清楚：朱高煦就算解决不了朱高炽，解决一个小小的解缙还是绰绰有余的。 然而解缙还沉浸在成功的喜悦中，他太自大了，他似乎认为自己搞权谋手段的能力并不亚于做学问。但他错了，他的那两下子在政治老手面前简直就是小孩子把戏。一场灾难即将向解缙袭来。 来得还真快。 永乐二年（1404）朱棣立朱高炽为太子后，事情并没有像解缙所预料的那样进行下去，他也远远低估了朱高煦的政治力量。事实上，随着朱高煦政治力量的不断发展，他的地位和势力甚至已经超过了太子一党。而且他的行为也日渐猖獗，所用的礼仪已经可以赶得上太子了。 此时，解缙做出了他人生中最为错误的一个决定，他去向朱棣打了小报告，报告的内容是，应该立刻制止朱高煦的越礼行为，否则会引起更大的争议。 真是笑话，朱高煦用什么礼仪自然有人管，你解缙不姓朱，也不是朱棣的什么亲戚，管得着么？此时的解缙脑海中都是那些朱棣对他的正面评价，如我一天也离不开解缙，解缙是上天赐给我的之类肉麻的话。在他看来，朱棣是对他是言听计从的。 然而这次朱棣只是冷冷的告诉他：知道了。 解缙太天真了，他不知道朱棣从根本上讲是一个政治家，政治家说话是不能信的，你对他有用时或他有求于你时，他会对你百依百顺，恨不得叫你爷爷。但事情办完后，你就会立刻恢复孙子的身份。很明显，解缙搞错了辈分。 朱棣给了解缙几分颜色，解缙就准备开染坊了，还忘了向朱棣要经营许可证。 这件事情发生后，解缙就在朱棣的心中被戴上了一顶帽子——干涉家庭内政。你解缙是什么东西？第一家庭的内部事务什么时候轮到你来管？ 此后解缙的地位一落千丈，渐渐失去了朱棣的信任，加上他反对朱棣出兵讨伐安南（今越南，后面我们会详细介绍此事），使得朱棣更加讨厌他。于是，这位当年的第一宠臣，永乐大典、太祖实录的主编在朱棣的眼中变成了一个多余的人，他做的每一件事都得不到朱棣的赞许，取而代之的是不断的斥责和批评。 朱棣讨厌他，不希望再看到这个人，只想让他走远一点，越远越好。但他并没有急于动手，因为他还需要解缙为他做一件大事。 这件大事就是永乐大典的编纂工作，如果此时把解缙赶走，大典的完成必然会受到影响，想到这里，朱棣把一口恶气暂时压在了肚子里。 可叹的是，解缙对此一无所知，他还沉浸在天子第一宠臣的美梦中，仍旧我行我素。朱棣终于无法继续忍耐了，解缙实在过于嚣张、不知进退了，于是，在永乐五年（1407）二月，忍无可忍的朱棣终于把还在编书的解缙赶出了朝廷，远远的打发到了广西当参议。 这对于解缙来说是一个晴天霹雳，好端端的书不能编了，翰林学士、内阁成员也干不成了，居然要打起背包去落后地区搞扶贫（当时广西比较荒凉），第一大臣的美梦只做了四年多，就要破灭了吗？ 解缙并没有抗旨（也不敢），老老实实的去了广西，此时的解缙心中充满了茫然和失落，但他没有绝望，因为类似的情况他之前已经遇到过一次，他相信机会还会来临的，上天是不会抛弃他的。 毕竟自己还只有三十六岁，朝廷还会起用我的。 然而他等了四年，等到的只是到化州督饷的工作，督饷就督饷吧，平平安安过日子不就得了，可解缙偏偏就要搞出点事来，这一搞就把自己给搞到牢里去了。 事情是这样的，永乐九年（1411），解缙获得了一个难得的机会，进京汇报督饷情况，一个偏远地区的官员能够捞到这么个进城的机会是很不容易的，按说四处逛逛、买点土特产，回去后吹吹牛也就是了，能闹出什么事情呢？ 可是大家不要忘了，解缙同志不一样，他是从城里出来的，见过大场面，此刻重新见识京城的繁华，引起了他的无限遐思，就开始忘乎所以了。偏巧朱棣此刻正带着五十万人在蒙古出差未归（远征鞑靼），解缙没事干，加上他还存有东山再起的幻想，便在没有请示的情况下，私自去见了太子朱高炽。 真是糊涂啊，朱高炽家是什么地方？能够随便去的么？ 解缙的荒唐行为还不止于此，他私自拜见太子之后，居然不等朱棣回来，也不报告，就这么走了！解缙真是晕了头啊。 果然，等到朱棣回来后，朱高煦立刻向朱棣报告了此事，朱棣大为震惊，认定解缙有结交太子，图谋不轨的形迹，便下令逮捕解缙，就这样，一代大才子解缙偷鸡不着蚀把米，官也做不成了，变成了监狱里的一名囚犯。 至此，解缙终于断绝了所有希望，皇帝不信任他，太子帮不了他，这下是彻底完了。 回望自己的一生，少年得志，意气风发，虽经历坎坷，却能够转危为安，更上一层楼，百官推崇，万人敬仰。那是何等的风光，何等的得意！ 可是现在呢，除了整日不见光的黑牢、脚上的镣铐和牢房里那令人窒息的恶臭，自己已经一无所有。输了，彻底输了，但愿赌就要服输。 解缙想不通的是，为什么最终会失败？自己并不缺乏政治斗争的权谋手段，却落得这个下场，他百思不得其解。 其实在解缙之前和之后，有无数与他类似的人都问过这个问题。但他们都没有找到答案，我们也只能说，解缙是在错误的时间、错误的地点，参加了一场错误的赌局。从才子到囚徒，怪谁呢？只能怪他自己。 如果事情就这样结束，解缙也许会作为一个囚徒走完自己的一生，或者在某一次大赦中出狱，当一个老百姓，找一份教书先生的工作糊口，但上天注定要让他的一生有一个悲剧的结局，以吸引后来的人们更多的目光。 永乐十三年（1415），锦衣卫纪纲向朱棣上报囚犯名单，朱棣在翻看时找到了解缙的名字，于是他说出了一句水平很高的话：“解缙还在吗？”（缙犹在耶） 缙犹在耶？这句话的意思很明显，就是问纪纲为什么这个人还活着，但同时这句话的另一层意思就是——他不应该还活着。 朱棣是擅长暗语的高手，在此之前的永乐七年（1409），他说过一句类似的话，而那句话的对象是平安。 事情的经过十分类似，朱棣在翻看官员名录时看到了平安的名字，便说了一句：“平安还在吗？”（平保儿尚在耶） 平安是一个很自觉的人，听到朱棣的话后便自杀了。 平安是可怜的，解缙比他更可怜，因为他连自杀的权利都没有。 长年干特务工作的纪纲是一个善于领会领导意图的人，他对这种暗语是非常精通的，加上他一直以来就和解缙有矛盾，于是便有了开头的那一幕。 解缙就在雪地里结束了自己的一生，洁白的大雪掩盖了解缙的尸体和他那不再洁白的心，当年那个正义直言的解缙大概也想不到自己会有这样的结局。 无论如何，解缙的一生是有意义的，因为不管他做了什么事情，是错还是对，都无法掩盖他的功绩，由他主编的永乐大典一直保留至今，为我们留下了大量的知识财富，当我们看到那些宝贵典籍时，我们应该记得，有一个叫解缙的人曾为此费尽心力，仅凭这一点，他就足以为赢得我们后世之人的尊重。