Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 772: The First of the Kings
"Wen Tiren, you are so brave!" Zhu Shenzhui frowned, his tone was cold, and his eyes swept towards the other party like knives.

Wen Tiren kowtowed and said, "My words come from my heart. I am thinking about the Ming Dynasty and Your Highness! Your Highness! I beg you to take the Ming Dynasty and the people of the world one step further. If there is any guilt, I am willing to bear it all, even if it means my death!"

As he spoke, Wen Tiren's head banged on the ground, and he looked like a sincere man with tears in his eyes. Seeing his expression, Zhu Shenzhui knew that Wen Tiren did it on purpose, but he couldn't help but be moved.

What Wen Tiren said made sense. As long as Zhu Shenzhui did not get promoted, he would be constrained in many things, and people in the world would look at him differently. This was the difference between being a regent and an emperor. Moreover, Zhu Shenzhui had rejected Wen Tiren before because he was concerned about the stability of the political situation, fearing that a promotion at this time would cause a huge backlash.

But many things have both advantages and disadvantages. Although promotion would be a bit troublesome, the benefits are also real. In particular, Wen Tihen mentioned the Confucian issues of monarch, ministers, father and son, and said that if Zhu Shenzhui was just a regent, he would never be able to completely win the hearts of the people. Only by becoming an emperor and a ruler could some things be justified, and the world would be completely at peace.

With a light sigh, Zhu Shenzui looked at Wen Tiren with a complicated expression, and stopped him from kowtowing. Then he stood up and walked forward to help him up personally.

"I know you are loyal, sir, but this matter is so big that I have to proceed with caution."

As soon as these words came out, Wen Tihen was overjoyed, knowing that he had made the right move today. As long as Zhu Shenzhui had this idea, when Zhu Shenzhui ascended the throne, his position as the Prime Minister would be completely consolidated, and his previous dissatisfaction with him would not only disappear because of this matter, but also gain the emperor's favor.

"Regent, don't worry too much. I can take care of this matter. Even if there are objections, I can ensure that it is handled properly."

"This... are you sure, sir?"

"Of course!" Wen Tiren said without thinking, "This old minister has already thought about it for the regent. This matter can be divided into two steps."

"Oh, which two steps?"

"First!" Wen Tiren said, "The regent is now a county prince, but he actually receives the salary of a prince. He can be promoted to the position of prince first. With his merits as regent, there is absolutely no problem in promoting him to the position of prince, and no one in the world can find fault with him."

"Prince? Why? Are you planning to make me the King of Jin? If I am the King of Jin, how do you deal with Zhu Qiugui, the King of Jin in Taiyuan? Sir, don't forget that he is my great-nephew. I can't take the throne from my great-nephew, can I?"

As he said this, Zhu Shenzui couldn't help but laugh. His current title was Prince of Jiaocheng, and Prince of Jiaocheng belonged to the lineage of Prince of Jin. The earliest lineage of Prince of Jin was Zhu Yuanzhang's third son Zhu Gang. From this point of view, they all had the same ancestor, and Zhu Shenzui had a very high seniority in the lineage of Prince of Jin. The current Prince of Jin, Zhu Qiugui, had to call him uncle when he saw him.

After he became the regent, the Jin Wang faction was the first group to come to him. It was not because Zhu Qiugui and Zhu Shencui had a good relationship. In fact, Zhu Shencui had never met Zhu Qiugui. He was originally just an ordinary member of the royal family, while the other party was a vassal king (prince) of the Ming Dynasty. The difference in their status was too great. How could they possibly meet?

The key to Zhu Qiugui's doing this is to judge the situation, taking into account Zhu Shenzhu's status as regent, and on the other hand, taking into account Zhu Shenzhu's seniority and status in the Jin Wang family. Zhu Shenzhu ascended to the position of regent in this way and took control of the government. Whether the Jin Wang family was willing or not, they were already tied to Zhu Shenzhu in the royal family. Once Zhu Shenzhu fell, the Jin Wang family would definitely not be able to get away with it. In this case, Zhu Qiugui supported Zhu Shenzhu for self-protection. As long as Zhu Shenzhu continued to control the government, the Jin Wang family would be safe.

In addition, Zhu Shenzhu also secretly gave many benefits to the Jin Wang family. For example, in Shanxi's border trade, although most of the participants were Shanxi merchants, we should not forget that many of them had the background of the Jin Wang Mansion. Letting them participate in border trade was equivalent to directly giving them a way to make money, and everyone in the Jin Wang family could make a lot of extra money.

That's not all. Some time ago, Zhu Shencui reorganized the Clan Court, and he was naturally the Grand Clan Chief, but he intended to let Prince of Jin Zhu Qiugui be the Left Clan Chief. Historically, when Zhu Yuanzhang established the Clan Court, the first Prince of Jin was the Left Clan Chief. Now he just returned the title of Clan Chief to the Prince of Jin's Mansion, but its significance was extremely important. How could Zhu Qiugui not know Zhu Shencui's thoughts?

From these aspects, among all the princes of the Ming Dynasty, the Jin Wang family is the closest to Zhu Shenzhui and is also a strong supporter of Zhu Shenzhui. Now Zhu Shenzhui wants to be promoted to the prince from Jiaocheng Wang. According to the genealogy, the title of Jin Wang is the most suitable. But once Zhu Shenzhui becomes the Jin Wang, what will happen to Zhu Qiugui? Zhu Shenzhui can't take the throne from Zhu Qiugui, right? How can he do such a thing?

"Of course not the Prince of Jin!" Wen Tiren shook his head and said, "I have already thought about it for the Regent. If the Regent wants to become a prince, only one title of prince is most suitable."

"Sir, are you saying...?"

Seeing Zhu Shenzhui thinking for a moment, Wen Tiren nodded and said, "The Regent guessed correctly, this prince is the King of Wu!" "King of Wu!"

Zhu Shenzhu's heart was beating fast. King Wu! Wen Tiren hit the nail on the head. This title was indeed the best choice. Moreover, this title was of great significance among the vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty. As long as he became the King Wu, the whole world would know what he wanted to do next.

The position of King of Wu sounds ordinary, but it is actually very complicated, because this title was the title of Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang. Before Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor, he was first called King of Wu. He established a government and laid the foundation for the Ming Dynasty, which led to the later Ming Empire.

After becoming emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang only gave the title of King of Wu to two people. One was Zhu Yuanzhang's fifth son Zhu Su, who was named King of Wu in the third year of Hongwu. Later, Zhu Yuanzhang felt that the title of King of Wu was inappropriate, so he changed Zhu Su's title to King of Zhou, and thus the title of King of Wu was withdrawn.

The other person was Zhu Yunhuan, the third son of Crown Prince Zhu Biao. Zhu Yunhuan was conferred the title of King of Wu in the first year of Jianwen. However, after Zhu Di entered Nanjing City during the Jingnan Rebellion, he changed Zhu Yunhuan's title of King of Wu to King of Guangze. Since then, no one has been conferred the title of King of Wu.

From this point of view, the title of King of Wu is the most honorable among the vassal kings (princes) of the Ming Dynasty. It not only represents that Taizu was once the King of Wu, but also represents the head of all kings. Without sufficient strength and qualifications, ordinary royal families simply cannot afford it. Everyone knows what it means to be crowned the King of Wu.

Wen Tihen now proposed that Zhu Shenzhui be promoted to the position of King of Wu. His intention was very obvious. As long as he got the position of King of Wu, Zhu Shenzhui's title would be the highest among all the kings in the Ming Dynasty. Moreover, the title of King of Wu was of great significance. Everyone knew what would happen next once he was promoted to the position of King of Wu. This could be regarded as a vaccination for the people of the world, so that everyone could be mentally prepared.

"King of Wu..." Zhu Shenzhui muttered softly. He had to say that Wen Tihen's arrangement was good, and there was nothing wrong with promoting him to the title of King of Wu. Even though the meaning of King of Wu was different, it was just a princely title after all, and the Ming Dynasty had never officially stated that anyone who was promoted to the title of King of Wu must become the emperor.

But the hidden meaning of King Wu is there, and everyone will know it once he is promoted to King Wu. Doing so is both safer and more appropriate. It has to be admitted that Wen Tihen has considered it very carefully.

"Yes!" In the end, Zhu Shenzhui agreed with Wen Tiren's suggestion. Since he wanted to be promoted, this method was the best. It was a good idea to be promoted to King of Wu first.

"As for the second one, after Your Highness ascends the throne of King Wu, I think you will be able to ascend the throne in about a year. At that time, it will be appropriate for the current emperor to abdicate directly. Your Highness can leave this matter to me, and I will definitely arrange it properly." As he spoke, a hint of viciousness flashed across Wen Tihen's face. Zhu Shenzhui knew what Wen Tihen was planning without asking. It was nothing more than forcing Emperor Chongzhen to abdicate and then poisoning him to death.

Wen Tiren was a man who either didn't do anything or did it decisively. It was normal for him to come up with such a plan. However, Zhu Shenzhu didn't plan to let Wen Tiren do it for Emperor Chongzhen, because he didn't want Emperor Chongzhen to die. Moreover, Emperor Chongzhen was ambitious but incompetent, and was not a monarch at all. As long as he was controlled, he would not have any impact.

Moreover, the consequences of regicide were so serious that even Zhu Di did not dare to do it. In history, when Zhu Di attacked the Nanjing Imperial Palace, Emperor Jianwen set fire to the palace and his whereabouts were unknown. There are many rumors about the life and death of Emperor Jianwen. Some say that Emperor Jianwen escaped in disguise and became a monk. Others say that Emperor Jianwen fled to the sea by boat after leaving Nanjing, and Zheng He's seven voyages to the West were actually to find the whereabouts of Emperor Jianwen.

Others say that the so-called disappearance of Emperor Jianwen was just a smokescreen released by Zhu Di. In fact, Emperor Jianwen had died on the day the palace was broken into. In order to avoid being charged with regicide, Zhu Di deliberately announced that Emperor Jianwen was missing.

Even the wise and capable Yongle Emperor Zhu Di did not dare to do so, and deliberately used various news to cover up the matter. If Zhu Shenzhui directly killed Emperor Chongzhen, the waves would be even worse. He had to consider the consequences, so when Wen Tihen tentatively proposed to deal with Emperor Chongzhen, Zhu Shenzhui directly refused.

"Your Highness, if we don't get rid of the root of the problem, there will probably be endless troubles!" Wen Tiren advised hurriedly.

"I have my own thoughts on this matter. You don't need to say more, sir. Just do your own thing." Zhu Shenzhui said this, leaving Wen Tiren helpless and hesitant to speak.

Zhu Shenzhui said leisurely, "The first person to make clay figures for burials will have no descendants. Sir, you are well-read, so you naturally know this truth. There are some things I can do, but there are some things I cannot do. Moreover, since I have won the Ming Dynasty, as long as the people of the world are on my side, what does Zhu Youjian matter to? He was like this when he was the emperor, so after losing the throne, can he still turn the world around with his ability?"

Zhu Shenzhui's decisive words left Wen Tiren speechless and he could only say yes. The matter was settled. Although Wen Tiren did not meet all his expectations, at least Zhu Shenzhui agreed to his promotion, which was enough for him. When he left, Wen Tiren could not suppress the joy on his face. As he walked out of the Wenhua Hall, he looked back at the towering palace and his heart was filled with joy.

(End of this chapter)