Zhu Yuanzhang in the cellar

Chapter 234 Old Zhu angrily rebukes Chongzhen
During the Hongwu era, it was said that officials had to prepare their wills and coffins before attending court.

Because nobody knows whether confiscation of property and extermination of the clan or tomorrow will come first.

The risk of being beheaded is far greater than it would be tomorrow.

By the time of the Chongzhen Emperor, all the civil and military officials had straightened their backs.

They lined up in rows and followed Zhu Yuanzhang as he swaggered into the city.

No more worries about being killed.

It's not that I'm not afraid, it's that I've already killed them.

After Zhu Di arrived in the capital, he sealed off the city for five days and executed people according to the list.

At that time, there were nearly three thousand officials of all ranks in Beijing.

More than a month has passed, and only about 1,640 remain.

These are all individuals who have been certified as having died for their country, fled south, or lived in seclusion and refused to serve in government.

With this confidence, there's nothing to be afraid of.

Zhu Yunfeng even heard that a competitive trend had recently emerged in the capital, with people vying to see who had the toughest backbone.

The surviving officials were gradually divided into different ranks.

The most elite group consisted of families who committed suicide by self-immolation, hanging, or jumping into rivers to die for their country.

The second group consisted of those who committed suicide or fled to the Southern Ming, where they served as officials, recruited soldiers to resist the Qing, and were killed after their defeats.

The lowest tier consisted of those who survived by hiding in their hometowns or deep in the mountains, choosing not to serve in government.

It has to be said that hierarchical social distinctions exist everywhere.

The imperial examinations were divided into three ranks: the first rank was Jinshi (进士), the second rank was Jinshi Chushen (进士出身), and the third rank was Tong Jinshi Chushen (同进士出身).

Layer upon layer of contempt, layer upon layer of pressure downwards.

At the very bottom, and most despised, were the Juren who had failed the provincial examination but were granted the title of Jinshi.

The phrase "a concubine, a fellow Jinshi" is a typical joke in the hierarchy of officialdom.

As a result, now even the question of who dies with more dignity has become a competition.

Even eunuchs like Wang Chengen, Gao Shiming, and Gao Yushun, who were once cursed as eunuchs by civil officials, raised their heads and straightened their backs, and were called the Three Loyal Ones by their contemporaries.

After all, even setting aside Wang Chengen's suicide with Emperor Chongzhen, the fact that Gao Shiming and Gao Yushun set fire to their home and perished as a family is shocking enough.

The massive procession, surrounded by civil and military officials and soldiers, led Zhu Yuanzhang through the Daming Gate and Chengtian Gate, arriving at the Fengtian Gate Hall, where he usually held court in Nanjing.

Historically, Zhu Yuanzhang only went as far as Beijing and Kaifeng in the early Ming Dynasty; he never went to Beiping (Beijing).

History has changed. He personally led an expedition against the Mongol chancellor Naghachu, passing through Beiping, and led Xu Da out of Liaodong to sweep across the Mongols and Jurchens, bringing a large area of ​​Northeast China into the territory of the Ming Dynasty.

However, the Forbidden City in Beijing had not yet been built at that time; the residence was the Yuan Dynasty's Dadu Palace.

Later, he went to the Yongle reign, as well as the Hongxi and Xuande reigns, but at that time he basically just wandered around the Qianqing Palace.

This was the first time he had entered the Forbidden City through its main gate and glimpsed the entire magnificent palace.

"Fourth Prince, this palace is beautifully built; it's even more magnificent than my palace in Nanjing."

Zhu Yuanzhang stood outside the entrance of Fengtian Hall, looking at the magnificent palace. The glazed tiles reflected a golden light in the sunlight, and he couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

Zhu Yunfeng said happily, "Of course, after all, it was the residence of the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties."

Old Zhu's face immediately fell, and he said, "From now on, it will not be the same. It will only be the residence of the emperor of my Great Ming Dynasty."

After saying that, he stepped into the Fengtian Hall.

The hall was very grand and spacious, capable of accommodating hundreds of people for court meetings, after all, this was originally the place where grand court meetings were held.

The Qianqing Palace was where the emperor held small meetings with his ministers, and it also served as his sleeping quarters and office space. As a result, it was divided into many rooms, making it seem much smaller.

Zhu Yuanzhang walked slowly through the hall, ascended the steps one by one, then lifted his dragon robe and sat directly on the dragon throne.

Everything seemed so natural, without any unnecessary delays, even though most of the ministers present today were actually seeing Zhu Yuanzhang for the first time, including Emperor Chongzhen.

However, Lu Jiude, the eunuch in charge of Fengyang, once described Zhu Yuanzhang's appearance to Emperor Chongzhen, and a court painter painted it, which was then compared with the portrait of Emperor Taizu in the palace collection.

They are not exactly the same, but they are about 80 or 90 percent similar.

In fact, the portrait of the shoehorn-shaped face that circulated in the Ming Dynasty since the Jiajing period was actually a dragon image circulating in the palace, used to highlight Zhu Yuanzhang's divinity.

His real portrait was kept in the palace and many ministers had seen it.

Therefore, when Zhu Yuanzhang stepped off the ship, many ministers present, including Emperor Chongzhen, were certain that he was the true Emperor Taizu.

At this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang was completely at ease, as if he had rehearsed it thousands of times. He sat calmly above, looking down at the ministers below. Everyone felt that he was an emperor who had stepped out of a portrait!

"Greetings, Your Majesty! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

Everyone knelt down without being told to.

Aside from a few people who took the lead in shouting, the others followed suit, and for a moment they appeared quite orderly, with a dense mass of people kneeling on the ground below.

Near the steps was Emperor Chongzhen's family.

Zhu Yunfeng naturally did not kneel. He had already run up to the stage and stood to the right front of Old Zhu like a prince, looking down at the officials below.

Emperor Chongzhen and his family also knelt down.

Zhu Youjian's face showed a hesitant and complicated expression. After struggling for a few seconds, Empress Zhang and Empress Zhou pulled him down before he finally knelt down.

no way.

His personality is that of someone who would stubbornly deny everything even if he were to hang himself.

He shifted all the blame onto his ministers, refusing to take any responsibility himself.

Even when faced with Zhu Yuanzhang's accusations, he stubbornly refused to admit his mistakes, even though the other party was his ancestor.

of course.

At that time, even Emperor Chongzhen couldn't be 100% certain that it was really Zhu Yuanzhang reincarnated, so he could still maintain a facade of integrity on the phone.

Now that I've actually met Lao Zhu, it would be a lie to say I'm not intimidated.

When the ancestor actually arrived, it was already quite good that he didn't kneel down on the spot at the dock.

Therefore, given the current situation, one still has to kneel.

Chinese people kneel to heaven, earth, parents, and ancestors.

Consider it as kowtowing to our ancestors.

"Be flat."

Zhu Yuanzhang pondered for a moment and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

The ministers rose.

After everyone stood up, Zhu Yuanzhang slowly spoke: "Since I founded the Ming Dynasty, it has lasted for 276 years."

Speakers had already been set up inside the Fengtian Hall.

Zhu Yunfeng also took a small microphone and clipped it to Lao Zhu's chest.

His voice was loud and clear, so loud that even in the spacious hall, hundreds of officials below could hear him.

"Throughout history, the rise and fall of nations have all been limited to a period of about three hundred years, and the Ming Dynasty was no exception."

Old Zhu continued, "In 276 years, my descendants have not been weak and have chosen to hang themselves to die for their country. I am somewhat gratified, and that should be enough. I should no longer descend to the mortal world to interfere in worldly affairs."

"However!"

He then changed the subject, stood up from his chair, went to the steps, looked down at the assembled officials, and said sternly, "However, if the country is still ruled by Han people, even if it is Li Zicheng's Great Shun, it is no big deal."

“But when I look at the long river of history, I have personally witnessed the future empire being taken over by the Manchu Jurchens from beyond the Great Wall, who were the descendants of the Jianzhou Jurchens whom I took in back then. Seeing this makes me even angrier.”

"When I drove out the barbarians, I restored the clothing and customs of the Han people. What I removed were the customs brought by the Yuan people, and what I restored were the etiquette of the Han people."

"In the end, the land will once again fall into the hands of the barbarians, who will force us to shave our heads and wear their clothes, thus destroying the foundation of our Han dynasty!"

"I am not satisfied!"

"I am deeply resentful!"

“I have seen those barbarian barbarians slaughter countless Han people, and there are countless Han scum and lackeys serving them and helping them commit atrocities.”

"I wish I could kill all the Jurchens in the world, and all these beasts who are the lackeys of the Jurchens."

Old Zhu's tone was getting colder and colder.

The courtiers below could even sense a terrifying killing intent emanating from his words.

Whether it's murderous aura or murderous intent, these things don't actually exist, but when a person's eyes and expression are almost chillingly cold, this feeling can make people feel that it has become tangible.

"So I have come."

Old Zhu walked slowly and steadily on the stage, looking down like a lion, and continued: "I have come to the world more than two hundred years later. In addition to killing all those who deserve to die, I also want to find out why the country has fallen and see who has ruined my world."

"Emperor Chongzhen, Zhu Youjian, was simply incompetent and mediocre, possessing only diligence and integrity. He could not shoulder his responsibilities, nor could he save the Ming Dynasty from its dire straits. He certainly made mistakes, and he had to bear great responsibility for them."

However, it would be biased to place all the blame on him alone.

“I have seen that many of the civil and military officials in the court own land in Jiangnan. In order to avoid paying taxes, you have colluded with local officials to impose the three taxes on the common people.”

"For your own selfish desires, you have tried every means to seize land from the people, causing countless people to become homeless and displaced."

"In years of famine, the imperial court managed to raise a batch of relief grain, but by the time it reached the disaster victims, very little was left."

"Is all of this to blame on the emperor?"

"But Chongzhen, I still say you are incompetent and have made great mistakes. Do you know why?"

Old Zhu looked down at Zhu Youjian.

Zhu Youjian had already fallen silent, head bowed. When asked by his father, he simply shook his head and said, "Grandson doesn't know."

"Because you're stupid!"

Zhu Yuanzhang rebuked him: "You are utterly foolish! You can't see who is deceiving you, you can't see which officials in the court are truly capable and which are just corrupt and deceitful parasites. Many loyal officials like Sun Chuanting and Lu Xiangshan placed their hopes on you, yet you instead doubt them. Lu Xiangshan died on the battlefield, and you still listened to the slander of a eunuch, thinking he deserted. Sun Chuanting almost died of illness, and you even arrested and imprisoned him. How could I have such a foolish descendant as you?"

Emperor Chongzhen remained silent and said, "The situation is complicated, and besides, people's hearts are unfathomable. Who can know if they are true or false? Our ancestors saw the future and knew they were loyal. But I am but a mortal and cannot distinguish between loyalty and treachery."

"But isn't this your mistake of not being able to judge people?"

Zhu Yuanzhang countered, "To harm loyal ministers and trust treacherous ministers—isn't that the act of a foolish ruler? So why do you still feel wronged? Why do you think it's all the ministers' fault, and that you are blameless?"

Emperor Chongzhen was stunned for a moment, and finally sighed, "It was my fault, I know I was wrong."

You're wrong.

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed deeply: "Diligent governance does not mean you are not incompetent. Your intention to turn the tide was good, but you handled things haphazardly and poorly. Besides that, do you know what I think is the most foolish thing about you?"

"I don't know."

Emperor Chongzhen answered honestly.

He was a muddle-headed emperor his whole life, and even on his deathbed, he couldn't understand why the country had become like this.

Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head and said, "Your biggest mistake is that you didn't see the situation clearly. The wealthy gentry in Jiangnan are hiding their land and evading taxes, living a life of debauchery. The court is full of corrupt officials with countless riches. Li Zicheng tortured officials and wealthy households in the capital and got tens of millions of taels of silver. You yourself went to raise funds and couldn't even raise two hundred thousand taels. You still can't see the essence of the matter. You are truly unworthy to be a ruler."

The later claim that Li Zicheng amassed 70 million taels of silver is, of course, a rumor.

In fact, the practice of receiving bribes did exist, but there are no specific records of the amounts. Generally, officials would receive around 10,000 taels of silver, while the wealthier ones would receive over 100,000 taels. The richest person was Chongzhen's father-in-law, who received 520,000 taels.

At that time, there were about 3,000 officials in Beijing. Including various nobles, eunuchs and other high-ranking officials, the number of people who were tortured to pay their wages was at least 5,000 to 6,000, and 1,600 people died as a result.

However, it should be noted that if five or six thousand people paid their wages, and each person paid an average of ten thousand taels of silver, it would seem that they could raise a total of seventy million taels of silver.

In reality, these officials were all visiting officials, none of them were from the capital. At most, they would own property in the capital, and the money they embezzled would be sent back to their hometowns to cultivate land. For example, Xu Jie, a major corrupt official, sent all the money he embezzled back home, which resulted in his family owning more than 400,000 mu of farmland.

So these people might have total assets of 700 million taels, let alone 70 million taels. But that's total assets; they don't actually have 70 million taels of cash. Finding 10 million or 20 million taels would be the limit.

Therefore, the claim of 70 million taels is pure nonsense without any historical support.

Even so, corrupt officials preferred to send the money back to their hometowns to buy property, or hide it so that it would eventually be plundered by Li Zicheng, rather than donate it. This shows that everyone at the time was self-serving and completely unaware of the impending crisis of national demise.

Emperor Chongzhen had already realized this, but he watched helplessly as the Ming Dynasty perished, only thinking about fundraising and never considering learning from Li Zicheng, killing all the corrupt officials in Jiangnan, and plundering the entire court of corrupt officials.

"Sometimes, being a king requires more than just benevolence; it also requires knowing how to wield a knife."

Old Zhu sighed, "Besides killing those who do things for you because they are incompetent, have you really killed those scourges that are destroying the foundation of the Ming Dynasty? That's where your stupidity lies."

Emperor Chongzhen turned around and looked at the court officials. His eyes, which had initially revealed murderous intent, suddenly turned into confusion.

He only understood after listening to Lao Zhu's words.

He killed the wrong person and protected the wrong person.

Not many corrupt officials were killed, but countless loyal ministers were killed.

But now, where are there any corrupt officials left in the government and among the people?
Maybe there is.

But they all later died for their country.

Those who surrendered were all killed by Zhu Di.

Yourself.

So who should I hate?

(End of this chapter)