Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

"Good! Good! Good!"

"Chen Zilong writes well!"

"This is based on facts, without so many supernatural stories."

"Emperor Taizu should be portrayed in this way, and 'The Biographies of Heroes and Martyrs' should embody heroic spirit!"

Zhu Youjian was very satisfied with the opening of Chen Zilong's rewritten "Biographies of Heroes and Martyrs".

He did not agree with the original writing style of "Biographies of Heroes and Martyrs," believing that the seemingly fateful success actually belittled the founding emperor.

A person who rises from beggar to emperor can demonstrate his talent simply by writing about the facts; there is absolutely no need to embellish or exaggerate his deeds.

Chen Zilong's writing now perfectly aligns with his own desires.

Therefore, he quickly summoned Chen Zilong and encouraged him, saying:
"I am aware of your literary talent."

"Write down your ideas without worrying too much."

"If anyone has any objections, tell me. Let's see who dares to interfere with the creative process."

Chen Zilong was overjoyed, because the emperor's words were an affirmation of him.

And it helped him solve a major problem:

In fact, his portrayal of the founding emperor as an ordinary person was not only a consideration for the emperor, but also for the descendants of the founding heroes.

Those people have descendants, and if the writing is poor, it will be met with their criticism. For Chen Zilong, this young man, it would be a devastating blow as well.

With the emperor's words, he no longer needed to worry too much.

Everything can be attributed to the emperor, and no one can interfere with his work.

Chen Zilong happily expressed his gratitude and explained his thoughts to the emperor.

He planned to describe, according to the timeline recorded in history, how the founding emperor suffered hardships, how he joined the army, and how he rose to power.

It focuses entirely on Emperor Taizu, with other meritorious officials playing supporting roles.

Zhu Youjian affirmed him, saying:

"If the main character of a book is well-established, then half the battle is won."

"The heroism of the Taizu Emperor must be written out, focusing on how he awakened to the fact that the Mongol Yuan dynasty was a foreign race and that they had to be expelled to rebuild the Han Chinese dynasty."

“Other righteous armies that resisted the barbarians should also be written about in detail, while those who surrendered to the barbarians, such as Zhang Shicheng, should be criticized so that the world can recognize their despicable nature.”

"The standard for judgment should be whether or not one adheres to the Chinese stance. Anyone who sides with barbarians should be criticized and rejected."

"The greatest achievement of Emperor Taizu was driving out the barbarians, restoring China, and rebuilding the Chinese rituals and music that had been passed down for thousands of years."

"Finally, we can conclude with the movement I advocated to restore rites and music and to eliminate barbarian influences."

Using the actions of the founding emperor to endorse their own policies.

This was also the main purpose of Zhu Youjian's order to Chen Zilong to revise "Biographies of Heroes and Martyrs".

Unable to reopen the country, he wanted to use this book to remind people of the founding events.

By infusing the newly established grandeur of the founding of a dynasty into the revised rites and music, the decadence and accumulated ills of the past two centuries were swept away—

This may not be entirely achievable, but as long as some people are affected, it can bring about change in the Ming Dynasty.

In particular, he focused on supporting the scientific faction, including Chen Zilong and Zhang Pu, and many of them will surely become high-ranking officials in the court in the future.

If these people are influenced, it will certainly be reflected in their governance.

Zhu Youjian hoped that they would emulate the founding heroes and show greater courage in revising the rites and music.
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Chen Zilong agreed with the restoration of rites and music, and he also recognized the distinction between Chinese and barbarians; otherwise, he would not have started his new book with the Battle of Yamen.

However, he still had some doubts about the emperor's request.

Because Emperor Taizu started his rebellion relatively late, most of the credit for the early stages, especially for driving out the barbarians in the south, was attributed to other righteous armies.

He said very carefully:
"If that's the case, how should Han and Song be written?"

"Should we recognize the Little Ming King's imperial throne?"

This is a very sensitive issue.

Because Zhu Yuanzhang used the reign title "Dragon and Phoenix" and was also granted the title of Duke of Wu.

He later proclaimed himself King of Wu, thus becoming completely independent.

If we acknowledge the Han-Song regime, then we will have a ruler-subject relationship with Little Ming King.

This is something many people try their best to avoid; they do not recognize Han Lin'er's imperial throne.

However, Zhu Youjian didn't seem to care much about this and said:

"Speaking of Han Lin'er, the first thing to clarify is whether he is a descendant of the Zhao Song royal family."

"What does Minister Chen think?"

Chen Zilong immediately rejected the idea, saying:

"If Han Shantong and Han Lin'er were truly descendants of the Zhao Song imperial family, they would have restored the Zhao surname instead of establishing the incongruous Han Song dynasty."

"Furthermore, Han Shantong claims to be an eighth-generation descendant of Emperor Huizong of Song. If that were true, his ancestors would have recognized their lineage and enjoyed wealth and honor after the Southern Song Dynasty stabilized, and they would not have kept it a secret at all."

"I believe that Han Shantong is a fraud, just like Chen Sheng and Wu Guang who, during their uprising, falsely claimed to be Prince Fusu or Xiang Yan."

Now that this issue has been clarified, things will be much easier. Zhu Youjian said:
"At that time, there was another power also called 'Song,' which is now known as the Tianwan regime."

According to Song Lian's collected works, the name of the state established by Xu Shouhui was "Song", not "Tianwan" as he stated in the "History of Yuan".

"After this rebel army was usurped by Chen Youliang and declared itself 'Han,' it competed with Emperor Taizu for supremacy, but it was also an anti-Yuan force. To restore its original name, it could be called 'Xu Song,' on par with 'Han Song.'"

This was a statement that Chen Zilong had not paid attention to.

He never expected that the emperor would discover the true name of the Tianwan regime from ancient texts.

If Xu Song and Han Song coexisted, the legitimacy of Han Song would be shaken.

It was not the only Han Chinese force resisting the Mongol Yuan dynasty at that time.

Even earlier, Xu Song's uprising and declaration of himself as emperor were the first acts of righteousness.

He asked, quite puzzled:
"Since the Tianwan regime has a national name, why is it called Tianwan?"

"Isn't it only natural to call it Xu Song?"

Zhu Youjian initially didn't understand either, but later he figured out the Taizu's intention and exclaimed:
"Because calling it Xu Song means that the two great Song dynasties, Han Song and Xu Song, stood side by side."

"Emperor Taizu used the reign title of Dragon and Phoenix because he had feelings for the Han and Song dynasties and naturally considered them to be the legitimate dynasty. Therefore, he changed the reign title of Xu Song to Tianwan."

"He did this in preparation for accepting the abdication of Han and Song, but unfortunately..."

He shook his head, feeling quite regretful about Han Lin'er's death. If he hadn't died so suddenly, the Mandate of Heaven and legitimacy of the Ming Dynasty wouldn't be so conflicted.

Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang was fully able to accept his abdication and did not recognize the Mongol Yuan dynasty at all.

Unfortunately, Han Lin'er died suddenly, and all of this came to an abrupt end.

Xu Song's actions, such as changing the date, became completely meaningless.

It even led people to think highly of Han and Song, believing that Han and Song were the leaders of the rebel army and that Emperor Taizu was a minister of Han and Song.

In fact, the relationship between Emperor Taizu and the Han and Song dynasties should not be described as that of subjects, but rather as that of allies. He developed independently, and there were many such forces at the time.

The reason for using the Longfeng era name and accepting investiture from the Han and Song dynasties was because the dynasty was weak at the time and needed to be protected under the banner of the Han and Song. Moreover, after rebelling against the Yuan dynasty, they also needed an era name; they couldn't continue using the Yuan dynasty's dating system.

Once his strength was sufficient and he no longer needed the protection of the Han and Song dynasties, Emperor Taizu proclaimed himself King of Wu, thus achieving complete independence.

Upon hearing that Tianwan was Xu Song, Chen Zilong quickly realized what was going on and said:

"In that case, Emperor Taizu was not a subject of Han and Song, but rather, like the various rebel armies, he recognized Han and Song as the legitimate dynasty and chose this banner." "On the Xu and Song side, there were also many rebel armies that attached themselves to them. Their relationship with Xu and Song was the same as Emperor Taizu's relationship with Han and Song."

"At that time, there were two Song dynasties standing side by side among the rebel army."

Zhu Youjian nodded and said:

"That's exactly right!"

"The Han and Song dynasties never provided Emperor Taizu with a single grain of rice or a single soldier."

Instead, they used the bestowal of titles and rewards to disrupt the internal affairs of Emperor Taizu, leading Guo Tianxu and Zhang Tianyou to plot a split.

"Emperor Taizu adopted the reign title of Longfeng, just as the feudal lords at the end of the Qin Dynasty adopted the Zhang Chu reign title instead of the Qin second century year after they rebelled against Qin."

"This is simply recognizing the Han and Song dynasties as the legitimate dynasty, and no longer acknowledging the Yuan dynasty."

"This does not mean that Emperor Taizu was a subject of the Han and Song dynasties; they were allies—"

"Han Song helped Emperor Taizu block the northern barbarians, and Emperor Taizu led his troops to recover Nanjing, which helped Han Song stabilize the south, thus creating the opportunity for Han Song to launch a northern expedition."

This explanation is a bit far-fetched, but it's still plausible.

The relationship between rulers and ministers in chaotic times is also very chaotic. Emperor Taizu, who never served in the Han-Song court and only occasionally received summons, can indeed not be called a minister of Han-Song.

Even the Han and Song dynasties did not treat him as a subject; otherwise, they would have transferred him to a higher position in times of crisis.

The relationship between allies changes with the strength of the forces. Therefore, after Emperor Taizu became powerful, he was able to quickly establish himself and even come to the aid of the Han and Song dynasties, providing them with protection.

Once this relationship is clarified, other things can be explained. Zhu Youjian said:
"Although they were actually allies, Emperor Taizu was still very grateful for the protection the Han-Song regime had provided in its early stages."

"So when Han and Song were in danger, they sent troops to rescue Han Lin'er."

"After proclaiming himself King of Wu, he continued to use the reign title of Longfeng and regarded the Han and Song dynasties as the legitimate dynasty."

"Before becoming emperor, Emperor Taizu sent people to fetch Han Lin'er to Nanjing, but unfortunately something happened en route."

This was a regrettable matter for Zhu Youjian, and also a major issue affecting Zhu Yuanzhang's image.

According to folklore, Han Lin'er was drowned by Liao Yongzhong at the behest of Zhu Yuanzhang, and many people believe this to be the case.

Zhu Youjian naturally denied this, and in order to explain Chen Zilong's "Biographies of Heroes and Martyrs" properly, he said to Chen Zilong:
"You said that Emperor Taizu settled Han Lin'er in Chuzhou for three years, but then took him to Nanjing before becoming emperor. What was his intention in doing that?"

Chen Zilong had previously thought that Han Lin'er was killed on the orders of the Taizu Emperor, but when he heard the emperor ask this question, his brows immediately furrowed.

It doesn't make sense that they specifically sent someone to pick up Han Lin'er, and then killed him on the way.

If Emperor Taizu wanted to kill him, there were countless ways to do so in Chuzhou. There was absolutely no need to specifically bring him here to kill him on the way, thus arousing suspicion among the people.

So he replied according to the official statement:
"Han Lin'er's accident could be a shipwreck or Liao Yongzhong's doing."

"Emperor Taizu despised Yongzhong's injustice and later ordered him to commit suicide."

This is a very official explanation, but the cause-and-effect relationship is unclear, making it difficult to convince everyone.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many conspiracy theories, with suspicions that it was at the behest of the founding emperor.

Zhu Youjian wanted to clear the Taizu (Emperor Hongwu) of suspicion, and said decisively:
"This was not only Liao Yongzhong's doing, but also instructed by others."

"Emperor Taizu proclaimed himself King of Wu in the tenth year of the Longfeng era, which was the twenty-fourth year of the Yuan Dynasty's Zhizheng era."

"But at that time he did not use the Wu Yuanji reign title, but continued to use the Longfeng reign title."

"At this time, Han Lin'er was settled in Chuzhou, and the Han-Song regime was completely under the protection of Emperor Taizu."

"When the Taizu Emperor continued to use the reign title of Longfeng, he had the intention of having the young Ming King abdicate, and the chosen name of the country was also Ming."

"The change of the Xu Song regime to Tianwan was to prepare for this, to make the Han Song the only great Song, the legitimate dynasty in the hearts of the people."

"Unfortunately, many people in the court did not approve of it. Han Lin'er died suddenly, and the Longfeng reign title could no longer be used. Emperor Taizu had no choice but to hastily use the Wu Yuanjiu reign title before the founding of the dynasty."

They blamed the sudden death of Han Lin'er on Liao Yongzhong and other founding heroes.

As for the reason, Zhu Youjian didn't let Chen Zilong speculate, but instead inquired and guided him:
What's your opinion on Han Lin'er's status?

"Is he a legitimate ruler, and is he qualified to abdicate?"

This is a question that has been discussed by many people in the Ming Dynasty, and a conclusion has already been reached. Chen Zilong said without hesitation:

"Han Lin'er is like Liu Penzi of the Red Eyebrow Army, just a puppet in name only."

"He couldn't even control the Han-Song regime, and he had no blood relation to the Zhao-Song imperial family. How could he be considered a legitimate ruler?"

"Such a person is not qualified to abdicate, just as Emperor Guangwu did not need Liu Penzi to abdicate after defeating the Red Eyebrow Army."

Zhu Youjian nodded and sighed:
"This is a case of someone whose virtue doesn't match their position!"

"If a young person like you thinks like this, imagine what those unruly founding heroes would think."

"Han Lin'er couldn't even control the Han Song regime, and even needed the help of the founding heroes. Moreover, the founding heroes also followed the founding emperor to eliminate the Chen Han regime, which is to usurp the Xu Song regime and be able to be ranked alongside the Han Song regime."

"How could the founding heroes possibly look favorably upon Han Lin'er? Of course, they wouldn't want the founding emperor to accept his abdication."

"Therefore, Liao Yongzhong's actions may have been his own doing, or they may have been instigated by others."

"The final result was that Han Lin'er died midway, and Taizu could not accept Han Lin'er's abdication. He could only admit that the Mongol Yuan Dynasty had the Mandate of Heaven after being persuaded by some people, and launched a northern expedition on the grounds that it had lost the Mandate of Heaven."

"This leaves many questions unanswered and sparks a lot of debate on orthodoxy."

"If we had accepted Han Lin'er's abdication back then, would there be so many problems?"

"Liao Yongzhong truly deserved to die. No wonder Emperor Taizu only granted him the title of Marquis, and later ordered his execution for illegal acts such as unauthorized use of dragons and phoenixes."

This was Zhu Youjian's idea; he believed that it was far better for the Taizu Emperor to accept Han Lin'er's abdication than to acknowledge the Mandate of Heaven of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty.

The distinction between Chinese and barbarians will be clearer, and there will be less controversy.

Unfortunately, people at the time did not think so; they regarded Han Lin'er as a mere bastard, not as the legitimate ruler.

If the Ming Dynasty accepted his abdication, it would be anything but glorious.

Many officials who remained from the Yuan Dynasty believed that the Ming Dynasty had to inherit the legal system of the Yuan Dynasty in order to become the legitimate dynasty.

Therefore, Zhu Youjian guessed that Han Lin'er was most likely killed at the behest of these people, to force the Taizu to acknowledge the Yuan Dynasty.

The final outcome was as these former Yuan dynasty officials had hoped for. After failing to inherit the legitimacy of the Han and Song dynasties, Emperor Taizu had no choice but to acknowledge that the Yuan dynasty had a divine mandate and hastily compiled the History of Yuan to demonstrate the end of the Yuan dynasty's divine mandate.

The conflicting viewpoints in the Northern Expedition manifesto—that the Yuan Dynasty had the Mandate of Heaven, and that the Yuan emperors were barbarian rulers and therefore worse off than nonexistent—have sparked ongoing debate.

It wasn't until Zhu Youjian advocated the distinction between Chinese and barbarians and proposed a ruler who was half Chinese and half barbarian that the issue was barely resolved.

The consequences of this led Zhu Youjian to lament that it would have been better to accept Han Lin'er's abdication, as there wouldn't have been so many problems regarding the distinction between Chinese and barbarians.

Based on his thinking, Han Lin'er's position becomes quite clear.

Chen Zilong was a smart man, and of course he understood the emperor's meaning, and said decisively:

"Han Lin'er's death was definitely not at the behest of the Taizu Emperor."

"Emperor Taizu wouldn't even consider someone like Liu Penzi a threat."

"His death was caused by Liao Yongzhong's unauthorized actions, and he was punished by Emperor Taizu for it."

"Han Lin'er, like Liu Penzi, was a puppet supported by the rebel army against the Mongol Yuan dynasty. Unfortunately, he was not worthy of his position."

They planned to portray Han Lin'er in the same way as Liu Penzi and expressed their regret over his death.

Zhu Youjian was very satisfied and nodded in approval.

Regardless of what others speculate, he will stick to this point:
Han Lin'er's death may have been the result of a conspiracy, but it was definitely Liao Yongzhong's doing without authorization, or perhaps he was instructed by someone else.

Emperor Taizu must have had nothing to do with this matter, otherwise he wouldn't have created this absurd "Year One of Wu" three years after proclaiming himself King of Wu. (End of Chapter)