Zhu Yuanzhang in the cellar

Chapter 127: The ancient times had a more festive atmosphere than the modern times

Chapter 127: The ancient times had a more festive atmosphere than the modern times
After chatting with Zhu Di for a while, the banquet outside was almost over by the afternoon.

At this time, according to the celebration process, the festival money is given.

Zhu Di went outside himself and told the eunuchs to distribute the prepared festival money. The amount was not large, just for the sake of celebration.

But another important step is meeting with important officials.

New year and a new look.

For the entire country, national development requires not only a wise emperor, but also the ability and skills of the officials below to do things.

Therefore, at the end of each year, the emperor would meet with these ministers to encourage and reward them.

Zhu Yuanzhang and the elder Zhu Di summoned various ministers to the Qianqing Palace, while Zhu Yunfeng, the younger Zhu Di and Ji He strolled in the square outside the Qianqing Palace.

The first to come in was cabinet member Xie Jin.

Xie Jin met Zhu Yuanzhang twice in the Huagai Hall, in the 22nd and 23rd year of Hongwu.

The old Zhu in the fourteenth year of Hongwu was not much different from the old Zhu eight years later, except for a few more white hairs. Therefore, Xie Jin knew clearly that this was Taizu, and he knelt down as soon as he came in and said, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you."

"Ah."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said, "Xie Jin, you are a conceited person with scholarly spirit. I have asked you to retire for ten years. How are you now?"

Xie Jin was embarrassed and said hurriedly: "When I was young, I was ignorant and felt that I was well-versed in the classics, had strategies and talents, but I was not valued. Now every time I think about it, I feel ashamed."

He ranked tenth among the top three in the imperial examination in his early years, but he felt that he was very talented, so he wrote to Zhu Yuanzhang every day, including "The Story of Da Pao Xi" and "Ten Strategies for Taiping", thinking that his talents would definitely be valued.

As a result, I realized that I was too fanciful at that time. Many things were created behind closed doors. They had never been put into practice. They were purely the scholar's own imagination. If we had really done what he said, the country would have been in chaos.

The most important thing is that he actually felt that Li Shanchang was wronged, and he wrote a letter entitled "On the Injustice of Han Guogong" advocating for Li Shanchang to be rehabilitated.

Old Zhu doesn’t know whether Li Shanchang was wronged or not?

Wasn’t it Lao Zhu who wronged him?
But Zhu Yuanzhang had to kill Li Shanchang to eliminate future troubles.

So this matter was purely courting death. Old Zhu appreciated his talent and did not blame him. He just said, "This son is very talented. We should teach him and make use of him in ten years."

What he meant was that he did have talent, but he still needed to learn more and it would be ten years before he could use his talent, and then he was allowed to go home and teach.

However, Xie Jin did not live in seclusion for ten years. He was summoned by Zhu Di to serve as the chief minister of the cabinet after only eight years.

Apparently these eight years of retreat were quite useful.

After training at the grassroots level, he understood the sufferings of the people and his ideas were no longer as wild and unrealistic as they were in his early years. Instead, he was quite practical.

Zhu Di had just succeeded in suppressing the rebellion when he met Zhu Yuanzhang, who appointed him as the legitimate heir.

But the country remained turbulent after the Jingnan Rebellion.

With the help of Xie Jin and others, politics has become stable over the past six months, and production has resumed in areas that had suffered from war. It can be said that their contribution is indispensable.

However, thinking of Xie Jin's future fate, Zhu Yuanzhang cherished his talent and advised him, "It's good that you have such an understanding, but you must remember that the cabinet is to solve the king's worries and difficulties, not to cause trouble to the king. Don't go against the king's wishes in the future, and don't get involved in the dispute over the throne. The most important thing is not to be proud and indulgent because of your favor, and offend your colleagues everywhere. Don't be afraid to offend those treacherous ministers, flatterers and corrupt officials, but don't have disputes with upright and loyal officials, lest you die in the snow in the future."

'Died in the snow?'

Xie Jin looked at Zhu Yuanzhang blankly, not understanding what this meant.

But he came to his senses after a moment.

He has a high IQ and immediately understood that this was Lao Zhu reminding him of the future outcome.

His heart trembled for a moment, and he said hurriedly: "I will obey the imperial edict of Taizu."

"Well, let's go."

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand, signaling the next one.

Xie Jin left.

Before the next person came in, Zhu Di asked in surprise, "Father said Xie Jin would die in the snow, right?"

Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at him and said, "Xie Jin is arrogant. After he wins your favor, he will offend too many colleagues. He also supports Gao Chi and is framed by many people. In the end, you send Ji Gang to get him drunk and bury him in the snow."

"."

The elder Zhu Di opened his eyes wide and hurriedly wanted to ask the older Zhu if he knew about the future, but before he could say anything, the next Huang Huai came in.

Seeing this, Zhu Di had no choice but to swallow his words back.

Huang Huai was a Jinshi in the 30th year of Hongwu. He had only seen Zhu Yuanzhang a few times in his later years. Zhu's appearance had changed in his later years, but his temperament still left a deep impression on him, and he could not help but kneel down.

Old Zhu knew that he was upright, loyal and selfless, and would have a good end in the future, so he encouraged him and warned him to get along well with his colleagues and not to form cliques for personal gain.

The cabinet members of the Yongle Dynasty were all quite good, with many insights into literature, strategy, and state governance, and Zhu Di relied heavily on them.

The only problem is that they also fight among themselves and cannot work together.

This was also one of the beginnings of party struggles in the Ming Dynasty.

So Zhu hoped that they would stop fighting among themselves and focus their energy on governing the country.

After all, the separation of the five powers has greatly undermined the power of civil servants, and has divided them into four main bodies. If they continue to split and fight among themselves, it will not be beneficial to the country.

Huang Huai also knelt down to thank the emperor for his grace.

After he left, Zhu Di couldn't help but ask, "Father, do you know everything about the future?"

"Have you ever heard that the secrets of heaven should not be revealed?"

Zhu Yuanzhang said in a deep voice: "I can tell you a few words, but don't ask about many things. If you ask, things will change. I can only give you a few hints. Do you understand?"

"I see. I understand."

Zhu Di was overjoyed for a moment.

If my father knew what would happen in the future, wouldn't he no longer have to worry about the instability of his empire?
Soon, many cabinet members were received one by one.

After them came some nobles, such as Guo Ying, Geng Bingwen, and Mu Ying’s son Mu Sheng.

Zhu Yuanzhang conferred titles on 8 dukes and 52 marquises in the early Ming Dynasty. However, by the first year of the Yongle reign, only Guo Ying and Geng Bingwen were left. The rest either died early or were killed by Zhu Yuanzhang.

It can be said that being a noble in the middle and late Hongwu period was a strange thing. The fact that Guo Ying and Geng Bingwen were able to survive was considered incredible luck.

So when they met Lao Zhu again, they were so scared that they had to force themselves to get through the whole process.

Seeing this, Lao Zhu stopped torturing them.

In Lao Zhu's opinion, the two were like two old dogs and could no longer threaten Lao Si's kingdom, so there was no need to sentence them to death.

In the evening, Zhu Di and Zhu Di met with more than 30 ministers and gave them encouragement and rewards one by one.

They didn't prepare to leave until the time was almost up.

Zhu Yuanzhang walked out of the Qianqing Palace and sent someone to the harem to invite Empress Ma.

He stood on the platform of the Qianqing Palace and looked down at the square, and saw Zhu Yunfeng, Ji He and little Zhu Di sitting on the steps and chatting.

Little Zhu Di has now learned bad habits and has taken to smoking. He puffs out smoke, one cigarette after another, and is as happy as a god.

Zhu Yuanzhang moved closer with a gloomy face, trying to eavesdrop on what they were talking about.

But obviously his sneaky behavior was discovered. Zhu Yunfeng noticed someone slowly approaching on the steps out of the corner of his eye, so he quickly stopped the topic.

Seeing that he was discovered, Zhu Yuanzhang stopped pretending and asked, "What are you talking about?"

"nothing."

Zhu Yunfeng and Ji He stood up quickly.

Little Zhu Di immediately put out his cigarette and stood obediently behind Zhu Yunfeng.

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly: "Old Four, look at what you look like now. I asked you to lose weight but you are still so fat, and now you even smoke."

The young Zhu Di was scolded obediently. The older Zhu Di behind the old Zhu looked at his younger self with sympathy - he was fine, if his father only came once a year during the Chinese New Year, he would only be scolded once a year, but he, the young man, would suffer all the time.

"Don't you know how harmful smoking is to the human body? Do you want to be a good person in the future? You are idle all day long. Do you think you will degenerate if you can't become the emperor?"

"I'm telling you, you'll have a lot to do in the future. The world outside is so vast, and the army still has to go on expeditions. You must not be lazy."

"After you return this time, you must immediately join the military and participate in training. If you cannot lose weight, don't come back."

"You have to quit smoking too. And you two, do you two have so much free time?"

Old Zhu scolded little Zhu Di first, then turned his attention to Zhu Yunfeng and Ji He, saying, "All you do is play around. Are you here for a trip? You are not a child anymore. When the fourth child was your age, his sons would have grown up. Why don't you get married and start a family? Are you acting like two little kids?"

"."

Little Zhu Di, Zhu Yunfeng and Ji He stood there and didn't dare to say a word.

Obviously, seeing young Zhu Di smoking there, old Zhu was very angry and went crazy, scolding even the dogs passing by.

"Zhongba, what's wrong? I heard you yelling from far away."

At this moment, the voice of Queen Ma appeared from behind.

Kunning Palace was not far away. After passing Jiaotai Hall, it was the Qianqing Palace. It was only a few minutes' journey. So when Empress Ma arrived, she saw Zhu Yuanzhang standing on the steps and scolding the three little ones.

"Smoke, smoke!"

Old Zhu pointed at Little Zhu Di and said angrily, "Old Four is smoking over there!"

"All right."

Queen Ma came over and held his hand and said, "Don't be angry."

After that, she looked at little Zhu Di and said, "Old Four, listen to mother and quit smoking."

"Yes."

Little Zhu Di threw away the cigarette and lighter in his pocket and said, "I won't smoke anymore."

"Well, let's go."

Queen Ma nodded, looked up at the sky and said, "It's getting dark."

Old Zhu turned around and said to Big Zhu Di: "Old Four, prepare the gold. I will let Old Four come to get it after the New Year."

'Old Four, I'll let Old Four come and get it?'

Why is this so awkward?

Zhu Di scratched his head and said, "Yes, father."

"Well, let's go."

Old Zhu held Empress Ma's hand and walked down the stairs.

The elder Zhu Di did not dare to come over, but bowed and said, "Farewell, father and mother."

The three little ones were already at the bottom of the stairs, and they rushed into the underground palace and left first.

After Old Zhu and Empress Ma also went down to the underground palace, there was no movement for a long time. Then Old Zhu Di stood up, walked down the stairs with a shifty look on his face, walked to the entrance of the underground palace and looked down.

The underground palace of the Yongle Dynasty was an altar, with Zhu Yuanzhang's spirit tablet placed underneath. There was one on each side of the stone tablet. He usually didn't dare to go in, so he had no idea the function of the stone tablet on the right.

Zhu Di always believed that Zhu Yuanzhang disappeared instantly in front of his own portrait in the underground palace.

Afraid that his father was watching him, and that the eyes of the portrait seemed to be staring at the entrance of the underground palace, Zhu Di quickly retracted his head.

Turning his head, he saw the cigarettes and lighter that Xiao Zhudi had thrown on the ground not far away, so he curiously went over to pick them up.
"Old Deng is really bad."

After returning from the Yongle Dynasty, Zhu Yunfeng and Ji He started to tease Zhu Yuanzhang behind his back.

Zhu Yunfeng muttered quietly, "Not only are you finding excuses to scold us, you're also treating Old Four as a tool."

Ji Heze also responded in a low voice: "That's true, but logically speaking, the fourth brother should have taken advantage of it."

"Forehead"

Zhu Yunfeng thought about it and said, "That makes sense. The fourth brother is so happy over there. This really means that his father passed on the throne to him in the 35th year of Hongwu."

"What are you two whispering about?"

Old Zhu came in from the back and saw Zhu Yunfeng and Ji He whispering to each other in front of him. He guessed that these two guys must be saying bad things about him.

The young Zhu Di next to him immediately reported: "Dad, he said you are very bad and you only know how to squeeze me dry during the Yongle Dynasty."

"Old Four, you traitor."

Zhu Yunfeng glared at him. He was clearly standing up for him, the guy from another world, but this guy actually betrayed him without hesitation.

Zhu Yuanzhang glared at Zhu Yunfeng and said, "I'll settle the score with you later."

As he spoke, he helped Empress Ma up the stairs to the underground palace.
It was sunny over there in Yongle, but it was snowing heavily over here. The steps were frozen and very slippery, so he had to be careful.

"Hmph, Lao Si, your computer is gone. I need to set a password for you."

Zhu Yunfeng also glared at Lao Si and ran to the top of the stairs in two steps.

Little Zhu Di quickly said, "Stop, Fengzi, Brother Feng, I'll just call you brother, okay?"

Zhu Yunfeng turned around and saw Ji He was still downstairs, so he wondered, "Chi Chi, let's go."

Ji He scratched his head and said, "Fengzi, I want to go home."

"Oh."

Zhu Yunfeng then remembered that today was already the 28th, and the Chinese New Year would come in two days, so he said, "Let me see you off."

Ji He waved to Zhu Yuanzhang, Empress Ma, and little Zhu Di above and said, "Grandpa, Grandma, and Old Four, I am going home for the New Year. See you after the New Year."

Unlike Zhu Yunfeng who rarely sees his parents all year round, Ji He's family lives in the county town. After he became rich, he has to go home at least a few times a month to visit his parents and grandparents.

Ji He is now quite wealthy. His parents' relatives and friends often ask him to do things for them, and introduce him to countless blind dates. He had no choice but to run to Daming under the pretext of a business trip to hide away.

But at the end of the year there was really nothing he could do. Unless he cut off ties with his family, this kind of interpersonal relationship issue was unavoidable, and he would eventually be bombarded by his aunts and uncles.

Now is the time to go home to jail.

Zhu Yunfeng went down the stairs again, and little Zhu Di followed him and said, "Then I'll see you off too."

Zhu Yuanzhang stood on it, pondered for a moment and said, "Yunfeng."

"Yes, ancestor."

"If your parents don't come back this year, it will be the same as last year."

"Ok."

Zhu Yunfeng waved his hand.

Although I have been an orphan for several years, I have long been accustomed to not having my parents around.

But it is inevitable to feel lonely in my heart.

Especially in recent years, fireworks are banned.

The town no longer has the festive atmosphere.

Now I can celebrate the New Year in Ming Dynasty.