Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 327: Politics is all about pros and cons, morality is not a necessity!

“You’ll die.”

The last two words echoed in Zhu Biao's ears like a lingering sound.

Zhu Biao's face turned pale, and he took several steps back involuntarily.

Xia Zhibai's eyes were filled with sighs.

He didn't mean to scare anyone.

In history, Zhu Biao can indeed be said to have been frightened to death.

He and Zhu Yuanzhang always had differences in their ideas about governing the country, but because Zhu Yuanzhang was too strong, he had always suppressed him tightly. Eventually, Zhu Biao became depressed and fell ill. After returning from Chang'an, he suffered a sudden cerebral hemorrhage and died.

Zhu Biao lived a very repressed life.

As the crown prince, his every word and action were strictly restricted. What's worse, Zhu Yuanzhang had a strong desire for control. He did not allow Zhu Biao to have his own preferences. He only allowed Zhu Biao to do things according to the direction he designed. Zhu Biao became a puppet.

This is actually not just Zhu Yuanzhang's problem.

This is also a problem faced by many older generations.

People of their generation love obedience tests and exercising mental control over people. Even if everything goes well, they will still find fault with people simply to make them unhappy. Zhu Yuanzhang's childhood experiences in particular made his desire for control reach its peak after he came to power.

But this is not anyone's fault.

With such a prevailing atmosphere, who can blame anyone else?
Especially for most ordinary people, they can only experience the pleasure of authority through their children in their entire lives.

It will make these people even more aggressive.

Zhu Yuanzhang was a man with strong small peasant mentality. Deep down, he hated anyone challenging his authority, even his own son.

The system he created was also set up with the assumption that his descendants would be far inferior to himself. He only wanted his descendants to follow his instructions and do some foolish things. He did not expect or hope that his descendants would have ideas of their own.

This conservative and closed-minded thinking was also the real reason why a lot of strange things happened among the Ming emperors in the future.

Zhu Biao was both lucky and unfortunate.

He was lucky to be the son of Zhu Yuanzhang and the crown prince with the most stable position in history, but he was also unlucky to be the son of Zhu Yuanzhang. His father did not allow anyone to disobey him, let alone go against him, even if they had their own ideas.

People are always complex and contradictory.

Parents always expect their children to be the smartest people in the world, but when it comes to doing things, they always think that they are smarter than you. On the one hand, they ask you not to repeat their mistakes, and on the other hand, they strictly require you to do things according to their requirements.

The same was true of Zhu Yuanzhang.

Even more ruthless.

Because emperors are naturally suspicious and sensitive.

Their desire for control is only stronger than that of ordinary people.

Especially now that Empress Ma is gone, some old ministers who could have a say in front of Zhu Yuanzhang have also died one after another. Zhu Yuanzhang is gradually turning into a cold power monster, and Zhu Biao has become the biggest victim.

He couldn't resist, struggle, or escape.

Just endure it!

Xia Zhibai said leisurely: "The imperial family is the most ruthless."

"Your Majesty is a natural emperor, but because of his humble origins, his desire for control is stronger than that of ordinary people. In the Ming Dynasty, the prime minister has been abolished in essence, but the paper has not yet been announced. As for the crown prince, due to some of your majesty's unique power designs, the crown prince has replaced the prime minister's functions, and the crown prince has also lost his functions in disguise."

"Your Majesty believes in His Highness"

"It's just because Your Highness can't threaten Your Majesty." "Because all the people Your Highness can mobilize are Your Majesty's people. They trust Your Majesty far more than Your Highness. Of course, under the imperial system, this is perfectly reasonable, but also because of this, Your Highness is actually being sidelined. The position of the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty is actually the same no matter who replaces him."

"It doesn't make any difference."

"The same team can play different roles in the hands of different people."

"The current court of the Ming Dynasty is in your Majesty's hands and can perform their duties, but when Your Highness ascends the throne, I am afraid that Your Highness may not be able to do it as well as you want, because Your Majesty and Your Highness are different. Your Highness cannot reach the level of Your Majesty in terms of prestige, ability, and skills."

"Under the current system of the Ming Dynasty, there are very few people that the emperor can really use. Apart from the eunuchs around him, there are only the scholars in the Hanlin Academy. It is a pity that the scholars nowadays only talk about classics and ancient teachings, and are busy with pens and inkstones all day long. In fact, they are just talking about black and white and playing with words."

"If we rely on these people to govern the country, it will only lead to more chaos."

“Sages always tell people to be gentlemen, but gentlemen cannot govern a country.”

"The way to govern a country is not to distinguish between good and bad. No matter whether they are good or bad, they must be used as useful people. The significance of the imperial examination is to select useful people. There is no distinction between good and bad here either. Education and understanding are secondary."

“Although there has always been such a saying.”

“When the world is not yet settled, we should only recruit people with talent, not their conduct; when the chaos is over, we should not employ people who do not have both talent and conduct.”

"But how many perfect people are there in the world? It's already rare to find a few who can really get things done."

“Those who succeed are accompanied by their faults, and those who fail are accompanied by their faults.”

“No one is perfect, and no gold is pure.”

"Nothing is ever perfect, and relationships between people are often not eternal. All successes must be accompanied by failures, and all failures must be accompanied by failures. Moreover, the court is all about politics."

"Politics is all about pros and cons, morality is not a necessity."

"Political officials can only promote morality when there are no external threats and no internal pressure. At other times, promoting morality is a thankless task and even a waste of effort, which does not make up for the loss."

"The core responsibility of the monarch is to elect virtuous people, let the right people do the right things, and check and balance each other. In the past, there was also a way to use the methods of Legalism to promote the values ​​of Confucianism, thereby consolidating the imperial power and then achieving the political goal of a unified imperial dictatorship."

"If you only see perfect people, you will never be able to govern the country."

"I have said so much to Your Highness because I want to tell you that, looking back at the past dynasties, the heydays were all in the first few decades after the founding of the country, and the Ming Dynasty is probably in the next few decades, because the system of the Ming Dynasty is destined to get worse and worse as time goes by."

"Especially the ancestral law that is advocated."

“It’s even more ridiculous.”

"I advocate reform for my own selfish reasons, but it is also for the good of the world."

"Besides, I spoke from the heart, Your Highness."

"If Your Highness lives under this kind of fear and pressure for a long time, sooner or later, your mind will collapse, and by then, no medicine can cure you. Your Majesty can still listen to some of my advice now, but when he becomes arrogant and self-centered in the future, it will be too late."

"Your Highness needs to heal his mental illness."

Done.

Xia Zhibai stopped talking.

He said everything he should and wanted to say.

Whether Zhu Biao listened or not was not up to him.

Zhu Biao's face was pale and he was in a daze for a long time.

(End of this chapter)