Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

After discussing how to be a good monarch, Zhu Youjian, in high spirits, said:
"The most important matters of state are sacrifice and war."

"For a monarch, the most important things are sacrifices and war."

"In summary, it is divine right and military power, which are the most important powers of a monarch."

"It is essential to ensure that the people identify with the monarch in their minds, and it is also essential to have sufficient military force to protect the monarch's safety."

"As long as you master these two things, you don't need to worry about being destroyed."

"When you become feudal lords in the future, you must remember this."

This is a summary made by Zhu Youjian five years after he ascended the throne.

Initially, in order to seize power, he overthrew the eunuch faction and took control of all power, big and small.

But they soon discovered that this wouldn't work; they simply couldn't handle the workload.

Therefore, after eliminating the threat from the Jurchens, he quickly chose to relinquish power, retaining only the most core authority for himself.

During the process of decentralization, he discovered that the executive, legislative, and judicial powers in the Western separation of powers were not actually that important.

What truly sustains a monarch's position are what the ancient sages referred to as "sacrifice and war," which he summarized as divine power and military power.

With these two things, even if a monarch loses power, he can still use righteousness as a pretext to violently purge the court.

Conversely, even if one controls the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, one cannot stop the opposition of the people.

An immoral ruler will not gain the approval of the people, and his subjects will continuously oppose him.

A ruler who possesses virtue but lacks military power is equally ineffective. The numerous rulers throughout history who were assassinated attest to this point.

Therefore, Zhu Youjian now places the greatest emphasis on ideology and military affairs.

These are the core powers, the source of monarchical power.

The courtiers listened to the emperor's insights and each had their own understanding of them.

Although they had heard the saying "The most important matters of state are sacrifice and war" more than once, this was the first time they had heard the emperor explain it so bluntly.

This explanation, in particular, was given by the emperor in his capacity as monarch, and no one is more authoritative in this regard than the current emperor.

Anyone aspiring to become a feudal lord pondered these words in their hearts and kept them firmly in mind.
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Meanwhile, some people also discerned the emperor's subtext:
That is, apart from divine and military power, the emperor did not value other powers and might distribute them to his subjects.

Reflecting on the Emperor's actions these past few days, they were all somewhat agitated. Grand Secretary Cheng Jiming said:
"Your Majesty's words remind me of the time of the Three Kingdoms, when the last emperor of Shu Han said: 'The government is governed by the Ge family, but the sacrifices are performed by me.'"

"Only in this way could Shu Han maintain stability for decades with its average appearance."

"Unfortunately, the army's military might was insufficient, and it ultimately perished at the hands of foreign enemies."

Using the examples of Liu Shan and Zhuge Liang, they tested how much power the emperor was willing to relinquish.

If emperors were willing to delegate power like Liu Shan did to Zhuge Liang, they would be very willing to share power in this way.

Zhu Youjian had no prejudice against Liu Shan. After thinking it over, he said:
"Chengqing is absolutely right!"

"Although Liu Shan lost his country, he also had some foolish and incompetent actions."

"But his relationship with Zhuge Liang was a model of a ruler and his minister."

"Unfortunately, there has only been one Zhuge Liang throughout the ages. We cannot expect to have such a loyal and capable minister assisting the emperor."

"The reason I perfected the collective deliberation system is to treat the collective deliberation meeting as a meeting of strategists like Zhuge Liang."

"One person's plan is short, two people's plans are long, and three cobblers might have the abilities of Zhuge Liang in some aspect."

"In the future, the Cabinet and the five branches of government will further improve the system of collective deliberation and, under my leadership, exercise all powers."

The delegation of power to various departments was affirmed, and the need to improve the collective decision-making system was emphasized. The previously agreed-upon collective decision-making system must be effectively implemented.

For Emperor Zhu Youjian, allowing his ministers to wield too much power was dangerous. Therefore, he consistently promoted collective deliberation, ensuring that no single minister could control the reins of power.

The court officials had anticipated this, but they were quite satisfied with the emperor's statement that he would continue to delegate power.

In particular, the emperor's acceptance of the saying "the government is governed by the Ge family, but the sacrifices are performed by me" indicates that he will completely relinquish administrative power in the future.

The biggest beneficiary of this decision, of course, is the cabinet, which shares imperial power. Grand Secretary Han Kuang stated:
"I dare not compare myself to Zhuge Liang."

"I wish to convene with you all to discuss and jointly assist Your Majesty." "All matters of state, large and small, will be decided through collective discussion."

Under his leadership, the courtiers echoed and agreed with the consensus reached at the meeting.

For a time, harmony prevailed between the emperor and his ministers. Zhu Youjian addressed his ministers, saying:

"Thus, it can be said that 'government is decided by collective deliberation, while sacrifices are performed by the emperor alone.'"

"I hope all of you will keep this in mind and not act arbitrarily."

"If someone acts arbitrarily, they must bear greater responsibility."

He then said to them:

"When you become rulers, you can also follow this method. Don't expect every successor to be a wise ruler."

"In fact, Liu Shan was already considered an average person among many monarchs."

"His shortcoming was losing his country and not having enough military power."

"Furthermore, we allowed Qiao Zhou's ideas to circulate freely, thus losing our power over thought."

"Without Qiao Zhou's fallacies, the Shu Han state would have been united in resisting foreign enemies."

"Given the perilous nature of the Shu region, it is not impossible for it to survive."

"Qiao Zhou's ideas must be criticized; the Hanlin Academy could dedicate a special issue to them."

These words left the courtiers looking at each other in bewilderment.

They never realized that Qiao Zhou's ideas had such a great influence.

Even now, the emperor has to order the Hanlin Academy to specifically criticize them.

Seeing their state, Zhu Youjian sighed and said:
"Do you think that Qiao Zhou's ideas are just one person's opinion and should be ignored?"

"In fact, his ideas had a great influence. Even in this dynasty, many people still adhere to Qiao Zhou's ideas."

"During the Three Kingdoms period, under the influence of Qiao Zhou's ideology, the Shu Han state experienced a dispute between the pro-war and pro-peace factions, which led to the soldiers losing their will to fight and ultimately being destroyed by enemy invasion."

"During the Song Dynasty, many people shared this idea, seeking peace and stability in a precarious situation. They did not dare to recover the Yan and Yun regions when they were strong, and they did not even dare to recover the Central Plains."

"What is the final result? It is always the destruction of the country and the loss of the people, with the people being ravaged by foreign enemies."

"During the Xuande reign of this dynasty, some people also called for recuperation and development, believing that we should not wage war year after year and exhaust the people's resources, leading to internal and external troubles. As a result, the court abandoned Jiaozhi and other places."

"What were the results? The loss of the imperial court's strongholds in Southeast Asia, the Battle of Luchuan in the southwest, and the Tumu Crisis caused by the invasion of the Oirat Mongols."

"Qiao Zhou's words were very deceptive, but considering his actions, such thinking was absolutely unacceptable. According to him, at most, he could maintain temporary stability, but it would only bring greater war. In the end, he would be helpless and could only surrender to the foreign enemy."

"We should learn from Emperor Wu of Han's expansion of territory, and never emulate Qiao Zhou and others."

He instructed the officials of the Ministry of Rites:
"These examples must be listed to illustrate the dangers of seeking peace, opposing war, and surrendering."

"That will not bring peace; it will only embolden foreign enemies."

"Only by seeking peace through war can peace be guaranteed."

"Otherwise, the barbarians who fear power but do not appreciate virtue will continue to invade even after a peace treaty is signed."

“The consequences of each of the peace treaties negotiated by the former Song dynasty should be listed in an article.”

Qian Qianyi, who was acting as Minister of Rites, certainly dared not disobey the emperor.

He immediately accepted the task, saying he would collect manuscripts and publish a special issue of Hanlin Academy.

However, Zhu Youjian felt somewhat weary looking at the silent and bewildered officials.

He knew that the appeasement ideology represented by Qiao Zhou was deeply rooted in the hearts of these people and could not be eradicated in a short time.

This made him realize the importance of ideas even more. Given the current performance of his ministers, he was not at all comfortable handing over power.

Otherwise, it would be troublesome if these people left behind a mess like the Three Yangs. The Ming Dynasty does not have the strength to deal with the enemies that have risen under their indulgence.

At the same time, he became even more determined to enfeoff the various vassal states, intending to use their strength to force the court officials to prioritize military power. (End of Chapter)