Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Li Shixuan was a descendant of Li Shanchang, which was recognized by all the ministers.

When Li Shanchang was executed, not all of his family was wiped out, as Taizu pardoned his sons and spared them.

His eldest son Li Qi and Princess Lin'an had two sons, one was the commander of the garrison guards, and the other was the flag bearer guard pacification, but later the hereditary title was abolished.

Both of them left descendants, who served as county magistrates and prefectural judges through imperial favor.

It can be said that although the Li family was in decline and could not be compared with the descendants of meritorious officials with titles, it was still a family of officials and could enter the officialdom through imperial favor.

His descendants were also quite numerous, and Li Shixuan was one of them.

After confirming his identity, Zhu Youjian said:
"How should one be convicted of forging an imperial edict?"

Zhang Jiude, the acting president of the Dali Court, said:

"Anyone who forges an imperial decree, or adds to or subtracts from it, shall be beheaded."

"Those who fail to carry it out shall be hanged."

"The imperial edict that Li Shixuan brought was a forgery and he should be sentenced to death for not having carried it out."

Zhu Youjian nodded slightly and said:
"Then let it be so convicted!"

"There is no need to hold a trial for this case with great fanfare, so as not to cause controversy."

Then he asked his ministers:

"Li Shixuan is the descendant of a meritorious official and the daughter of a princess, so he should be among the eight candidates."

"Does the crime he committed fall under the ten evils? Can it be reduced?"

The Eight Discussions include clauses such as discussing relatives, discussing old friends, and discussing nobles. If anyone who meets the conditions commits a crime, the crime needs to be reported to the emperor and the decision will be made by the emperor.

Li Shixuan's status was such that he could barely meet these requirements. As long as he did not commit an unforgivable crime, he could be pardoned by the emperor.

Han Yu thought of the emperor's previous intention to hand Li Shixuan over to the noble court for trial, and he understood the emperor's intention and replied:

"The fifth of the eight discussions is about ability, which refers to those who have great talents and are able to organize the army, manage government affairs, assist the emperor, and be a role model for human relations."

"Li Shanchang shared the same aspirations with Taizu and risked his life to conquer the world. He was once praised as the first meritorious official."

"I think we can discuss the ability."

When the other ministers heard this, they all echoed it.

Most of them sympathized with Li Shanchang and agreed with the emperor's decision to pardon Li Shixuan's crime.

After all, as a subject, who doesn’t hope that his descendants can have their crimes pardoned by the emperor?

Even if Li Shixuan's edict was forged, it could not be considered treason or endangering the country. His behavior was not among the ten evils.

Zhu Youjian saw the attitude of the ministers, nodded slightly, and decided:
"In this case, I will pardon Li Shixuan's death penalty based on the Eight Opinions' proposal for marriage."

"However, he forged the imperial edict. If he is not punished, it will not be enough to deter the world. I sentence him to exile overseas and never set foot in the Central Plains for the rest of his life."

After deciding on the punishment for Li Shixuan, Zhu Youjian saw that most of the officials sympathized with Li Shanchang, and asked:

"When I decided on the Purple Pavilion heroes, I ordered the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Household Department to compile the list of Taizu heroes and Chengzu heroes, and to build temples for them in Nanjing and Beijing respectively."

"How is the progress of this matter? Is there any result?"

Minister of Rites Wen Tiren said:

"I will follow your majesty's order and try to include as many meritorious officials as possible in the Temple of Meritorious Officials."

"There are six people in the main hall of Taizu's Temple of Meritorious Officials: Xu Da, King Wuning of Zhongshan, Chang Yuchun, King Zhongwu of Kaiping, Li Wenzhong, King Wujing of Qiyang, Deng Yu, King Wushun of Ninghe, Tang He, King Xiangwu of Dongou, and Mu Ying, King Zhaojing of Qianning."

"Eight people in the western sequence: Hu Dahai, Duke of Wuzhuang of Yue, Zhao Desheng, Duke of Liang, Hua Gao, Duke of Wuzhuang of Chao, Yu Tonghai, Duke of Zhonglie of Guo, Wu Liang, Duke of Xianglie of Jiang, Cao Liangchen, Duke of Zhonglie of An, Wu Fu, Duke of Weiyi of Qian, and Sun Xingzu, Marquis of Zhongmin of Yanshan."

"Seven people in the Eastern Sequence: Feng Guoyong, Duke of Ying; Geng Zaicheng, Duke of Xihai; Ding Dexing, Duke of Ji; Zhang Desheng, Duke of Cai; Wu Zhen, Duke of Hai; Kang Maocai, Duke of Qi; and Mao Cheng, Duke of Donghai."

"These twenty-one people, along with Duke of Yun Liao Yong'an and Marquis of Yongyi Sang Shijie, are all eligible to be enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple."

"During the reign of Emperor Jiajing, Liu Ji, the Earl of Chengyi, and Guo Ying, the Duke of Yingguo, were given the title of Duke of Yingguo."

"I think these twenty-five people should all be included in the Temple of Taizu's Meritorious Officials."

Zhu Youjian nodded slightly, looked at the ministers, and said:

"These twenty-five people, except for Liu Ji, the Earl of Chengyi, are all military generals."

"Are there any other civil officials with outstanding achievements who can be included in the Temple of Meritorious Officials?"

This sentence made the ministers very happy. They were all civil officials and of course they hoped that some of them could be included in the Temple of Meritorious Officials and even be enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple.

Thinking back to the Li Shixuan imperial edict case discussed earlier, these people already understood the emperor's thoughts. Han Yu said:

"In the third year of Hongwu, Li Shanchang was given the title of meritorious official. He was compared to Xiao He in the poem he wrote, praising him even more."

"He will be granted the title of Duke of Han, with an annual salary of 4,000 dan, and his descendants will inherit it."

"I think such meritorious officials should be included in the Temple of Meritorious Officials of Taizu."

All the ministers agreed with this, and most of them believed that Li Shanchang was qualified to be included in the Temple of Meritorious Officials.

In fact, in the second year after Li Shanchang was killed, someone defended Li Shanchang and Taizu did not blame him.

It can be said that there were many people in the world who felt indignant for Li Shanchang, and most of them believed that Taizu was too harsh on his meritorious officials.

Zhu Youjian saw that most of the ministers agreed and understood their thoughts.

However, in order to maintain the glorious image of Taizu, he certainly could not completely overturn Li Shanchang's case. After looking at the ministers, he suddenly said:

"Do you know why Li Shanchang died?"

The ministers looked at each other and remained silent for a while.

Most of them believed that Taizu was looking for reasons to kill meritorious officials, but it was difficult for them to say it in front of the emperor.

Minister of Rites Wen Tiren guessed the emperor's intention and said:

"Li Shanchang's crime is that he knew about the rebellious plot but did not act, and was suspicious and wait-and-see, which is truly a great act of treason."

"So Taizu executed him so that his meritorious officials could learn from him."

Zhu Youjian nodded slightly, of course agreeing with the charges made by Taizu, and then asked the ministers:

"Li Shanchang was 77 years old at the time, already in his twilight years. Why did Taizu think he was a traitor?"

"Have you ever thought about this?"

The ministers wanted to say that Taizu just wanted to kill the meritorious officials, but they obviously could not say that in front of the emperor.

They all said they didn't know and did not answer this question.

Zhu Youjian sighed and said:

"It's not surprising that you don't understand. After all, you are all loyal subjects and have never thought of treason."

"The reason why Taizu killed Li Shanchang was because the lesson Sima Yi left was too profound, so he had to kill him."

"Li Shanchang was suspicious and waited and watched. He knew Hu Weiyong was plotting rebellion but did not report it. Once Taizu fell ill, he naturally worried about him."

"In order to avoid bringing disaster to future generations, we can only remove it at the request of the ministers."

"Otherwise, even if Li Shanchang lived another 20 years, how would we know who the people in the world are?" When the ministers heard these words, they were shocked and knew that the emperor was speaking from the bottom of his heart.

This reason has actually been speculated by some people, but when it comes from the emperor's mouth, it still makes people feel deeply chilled.

Who would have thought that what Sima Yi did a thousand years ago would happen to Li Shanchang a thousand years later, causing him to be killed.

If Sima Yi had not usurped the throne in his old age, Li Shanchang would probably not have been killed. His crime would not necessarily be considered treason.

However, with the precedent of Sima Yi, Taizu did not dare to gamble on this possibility. As long as Taizu was sick and weak, he would doubt Li Shanchang's intentions.

In the case of uncertainty about whether Li Shanchang could survive, Taizu's best option was to kill Li Shanchang, so as not to let this powerful and meritorious official affect the subsequent emperors.

It can be said that Li Shanchang died because of Sima Yi. An arrow shot by Sima Yi a thousand years ago hit this man a thousand years later.

The ministers who understood this matter, while feeling sad for the death of the rabbit, could not help but blame Sima Yi who lived thousands of years ago.

If this person had not plotted to usurp the throne, why would the emperor have killed the retired old minister?

Sima Yi has truly left a legacy of disaster that has lasted for thousands of years and is still harming people today.
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Looking at the faces of the ministers, Zhu Youjian knew that they were somewhat frightened. So he told the ministers about his previous idea of ​​setting up the Council of State:
"I established the Council of State and set an age limit for retirement."

"It is to make the monarch and his subjects get along well with each other and avoid random suspicions."

"When ministers retire, they only need to refrain from interfering in government affairs and report to the emperor any conspiracy to disrupt government."

"How could the emperor suspect that the minister had rebellious intentions?"

"The establishment of the Council of State Affairs is to ensure mutual trust between the emperor and his subjects, so as to prevent some ministers from being old and powerful and forcing the emperor to make painful decisions."

These heartfelt words still made the ministers feel chilled, but also gave them some comfort.

Just as the emperor said, as long as they do not interfere recklessly after retirement and report the rebellion when they know of it, why should the emperor bear the reputation of killing old ministers and have to kill them?

Some people, in particular, felt relieved when they saw the emperor's young face:

Even though most of the Ming emperors did not live long, the current emperor has at least twenty years to live.

Most of these old ministers will die before the emperor grows old.

Therefore, they can focus on making achievements without worrying that the current emperor will kill his meritorious officials.

However, there were also some people who were determined not to cling to power, lest the emperor felt that his power was too great and would get rid of them out of fear when he was sick.

It can be said that Sima Yi’s behavior is still causing harm and affecting the mutual trust between the monarch and his subjects.

Some people are more grateful to Zhuge Liang because of this, and understand why Zhuge Liang was highly respected by all dynasties.

In fact, everyone hopes that the monarch and his subjects get along well with each other, and does not want the emperor to kill his subjects indiscriminately because of some suspicion.

The emperor also expected his subjects to be as loyal as Zhuge Liang. The emperor who first praised Zhuge Liang was Sima Yan, a descendant of Sima Yi. However, the Sima family did not gain power legitimately and was eventually usurped by Liu Yu.

The Ming Dynasty does not have such powerful ministers now. After Zhu Youjian explained his views without hesitation, he said to the ministers:
"It's a bit far-fetched to say that Li Shanchang committed treason, but no one can be sure whether he had rebellious intentions."

"So his crime remains unchanged and he will still be judged according to the time of Taizu."

"But his contributions are real and he should be listed in the Temple of Meritorious Officials."

"I hope he will become the City God and confess to Taizu after meeting him."

After establishing this principle, Zhu Youjian said:
"The meritorious officials of Taizu, Chengzu, and Zige were given titles and honors in the same manner."

"If Li Shanchang's descendants succeed in establishing a fiefdom, I will grant them the hereditary title of earl."

"But Li Shixuan is excluded. He is an exiled criminal."

This measure made the ministers, who had just been cautious, feel relieved.

The current emperor is still magnanimous, which is equivalent to actually pardoning Li Shanchang's crime.

After discussion, they restored Li Shanchang's position, title and honor rank, and posthumously named him Xiang Min, which seemed to be a show of mercy and redress.

Li Shanchang's eldest son Li Qi was posthumously awarded the title of Earl of Hancheng. His descendants could inherit this title, provided that they opened up fiefdoms overseas.

After Li Shanchang, there were five other civil officials, including Zhu Sheng who refused the title bestowed by Taizu, Tao An, Duke of Gusu, Ye Chen, Marquis of Nanyang, Song Lian, the first civil official of the founding of the country, and Zhang Yi, whose contributions were not second only to those of the generals. They were also included in the Temple of Meritorious Officials and could be enshrined in the Taimiao.

Duke Feng Sheng of Song and Duke Fu Youde of Ying were sentenced to death for the same reason as Li Shanchang, but were also pardoned. They were posthumously named Wu Zhuang and Wu Jing, and their descendants could inherit the title of Earl.

These two people had many civil servants speaking for them, especially the descendants of Fu Youde, who were friends with many civil servants.

Fu Tingyi, one of Dong Qichang's disciples, is a descendant of Fu Youde.

Fu Zonglong, who succeeded Zhu Xieyuan as the governor of Sichuan, Guizhou and five provinces, was also a descendant of Fu Youde. He was a Jinshi in the 38th year of Wanli, and his fellow scholars included Qian Qianyi, Yang Sichang and others.

The current line of King Jin is also descended from Fu Youde's daughter.

It can be said that Fu Youde's descendants are quite prosperous. As early as the Jiajing period, Fu Youde was given a temple and a plaque, which was actually rehabilitated.

Zhu Youjian did not encounter much resistance in his rehabilitation this time. He also rehabilitated some other founding heroes who had not committed serious crimes, allowing their descendants to open up viscount and baron territories. If they already had hereditary positions, they could be promoted one level when they were converted into titles.

The meritorious officials who did not receive posthumous titles will also be given posthumous titles this time to give them the status they deserve.

In the end, the number of meritorious officials in the Taizu Gongchen Temple was determined to be 33. They were also entitled to be worshipped in the Taimiao and receive sacrifices from the emperor.

The number of people in the Chengzu Meritorious Officials Temple was even greater, but their enshrinement in the Imperial Ancestral Temple was strictly limited. Zhu Youjian restored Yao Guangxiao's enshrinement, and together with Zhang Yu, Zhu Neng, and Wang Zhen, only four people were enshrined in the Chengzu Temple.

Those who were granted titles during the reign of Emperor Chengzu were all listed in the Temple of Meritorious Officials. Most of their descendants were nobles and still inherited the titles.

In order to prevent these nobles from making trouble, Zhu Youjian had to include their ancestors.

Among them, thirty-three people were included in the Temple of Meritorious Officials for their contributions in the Jingnan Campaign.

There were thirteen people who followed Emperor Chengzu in his campaigns and were granted titles.

There were three people who were granted titles and achievements during the Renzong and Xuanzong periods, but their achievements were established during the Chengzu period.

There were four civil officials who were appointed during the reign of Emperor Chengzu and later entrusted by Emperor Xuanzong to take over the throne:

The Three Yangs, who had been recommended by the ministers in the previous selection of Purple Pavilion heroes, were listed as Chengzu's heroes this time together with Hu Yi.

However, their achievements are not prominent among Chengzu's meritorious officials and can only be ranked at the back.

These fifty-three people were Chengzu's meritorious officials. Their descendants were also allowed to establish fiefdoms overseas and at least have the title of earl.

In fact, most of them now hold the titles of dukes, marquises, and earls, and they stay in the capital and are unwilling to go overseas.

The other Purple Pavilion meritorious officials were also given the honor of being enshrined in the Taimiao and receiving sacrifices from the emperor.

The more troublesome one is Yu Qian, as it is obviously inappropriate to enshrine him in the temple of Emperor Yingzong. Emperor Jingtai, on the other hand, has no temple either, as he does not have a temple name.

Finally, at the suggestion of Zhu Youjian, the ministers gave Emperor Jingtai the temple name Daizong, and his posthumous title was increased to seventeen characters, in line with his status as the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

The Jingtai Mausoleum also needs to be rebuilt to better conform to the regulations for imperial mausoleums.

However, he was placed directly in the Temple of the Emperor in the Imperial Ancestral Temple, because the Xianzong and Xiaozong who came after him were already in the Temple of the Emperor.

In fact, he didn't spend a single day in the Taimiao sleeping hall before he entered the back hall.

At this point, the matter of identifying meritorious officials was finally settled.

The Ming Dynasty’s Imperial Ancestral Temple and Temple of Meritorious Officials would also have to change accordingly.

The meritorious officials of Taizu, Chengzu and Zige constitute the new meritorious official system of the Ming Dynasty. (End of this chapter)