The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 842 Total War: Destruction of the Empire
Liu Kan realized that there was a gap between him and his father, an insurmountable gap.

The policy strategy that Liu Zhaosun planned for Liu Kan was completely different from what the emperor himself thought.

Liu Kan wanted to return government to the people and delegate power to the localities. He planned to stop blind external expansion, replace war with trade, fully disclose the salaries of Qi officials, introduce civilian forces to supervise government power, punish official corruption with laws, and stop various construction projects headed by Tianxin City...
Liu Zhaosun and Liu Yufei considered these measures to be utterly treasonous and unacceptable. If Liu Kan's plan could be truly implemented, and if Emperor Guangde's reforms could be successfully implemented, then the authority of the Great Qi, established for forty years ago, would likely vanish, and the legitimacy of the "Ultra-circular" empire established by the Emperor Retired would be severely impacted.

Turbulence is inevitable.

When it comes to resolving the internal and external troubles of the Great Qi, Liu Kan and Liu Yufei, brother and sister, have completely different approaches. Liu Kan believes that power should be decentralized, with appropriate benefits given to the people and European merchants, allowing the empire to actively integrate into the global trade market rather than continue to confront other nations. The pro-war faction, led by Liu Yufei, believes that the current chaos is simply due to the lack of authority of the imperial court. The solution is not to delegate power, but to further strengthen it. If there is any hesitation or weakness at this time, it will inevitably be attacked by various forces...

In short, there are huge differences between the two siblings, and whether they like it or not, civil war is inevitable.

Emperor Guangde bid farewell to his father and mother and returned to the Qianqing Palace alone. He pondered for a long time but could not figure out a foolproof plan to deal with Liu Yufei. Finally, he summoned his trusted ministers to discuss countermeasures.

If the situation continued to develop, Liu Kan would likely be deposed by the Emperor Retired and the Princess Royal. Emperor Guangde had been cracking down on opposition forces in recent years, and if he were to be deposed and lose power now, the consequences would be disastrous.

As long as the cultural gene of Confucianism on the outside and Legalism on the inside remains, there will be struggles every time power is transferred. Power struggles have always been life-and-death struggles with no room for compromise.

Grand Secretary Chen Zizhuang, Minister of Rites Zhang Huangyan, Minister of War Ruan Dacheng, editors of the Hanlin Academy Du Yinxi and Chen Mingxia were all staunch reformers who advocated peaceful coexistence with European countries... Upon learning that Emperor Guangde had finally made up his mind, a group of trusted ministers offered their suggestions.

Ruan Dacheng was the first to speak: "While the princess is still in the capital, Your Majesty should issue an imperial edict to execute her to prevent future troubles."

Zhang Huangyan countered that ordering Liu Yufei's death was now impossible. The Princess's backing was powerful, her followers spread across the government and the country. Of the Empire's thirty-two legions, more than six clearly supported the Princess. Such a figure was far beyond the power of a few clerks. If someone were to truly deliver the decree to the Princess's residence, they would likely never return.

"My sister isn't a kind person. When she was first born, the Empress Dowager Cisheng and my father doted on her, much more than I do." Liu Kan recalled something from a very distant past. "My father and mother doted on Liu Yufei since she was young. When she was one year old, my father asked the eldest princess in front of me if she could inherit his throne in the future."

Everyone sighed. They had never expected that Emperor Guangde was not even as good as a woman in the eyes of the retired emperor.

Du Yinxi reported the eldest princess's recent misdeeds to Emperor Guangde. Besides colluding with other ministers to slander the government, Liu Yufei also contacted foreign generals, kept assassins, and secretly stored firearms.

"Everyone knows Sima Zhao's intentions. The princess's presumptuous intentions are known to everyone in the world. Your Majesty, if you hesitate to make a decision, you will suffer the consequences! We can no longer ignore this!"

Several confidants kept persuading him, but Liu Kan was not completely confident in getting rid of the princess, so he rejected everyone's suggestions.

"The eldest princess submitted a petition to me the other day, hoping that during this period of the Han King's vassalage, she would also be granted a fiefdom in Beijing."

Everyone was horrified. Chen Zizhuang advised, "Yanjing is a strategically important place. Zhu Di of the Ming Dynasty launched his rebellion and seized the world from there. It's now the eldest princess's base. She has been operating in Beijing for a long time, and her residence has over a thousand guards. If you let her go, she'll rebel the next day, emulating Zhu Di's example of the Jingnan Rebellion. So I hope Your Majesty will reconsider."

Liu Kan said with disdain: "She wants to be the Yongle Emperor, but I am not the Jianwen Emperor. Don't worry, I have my own preparations..."

But what preparations did the emperor have? He didn't mobilize any troops or generals. Could his so-called preparations be to report his sister to the retired emperor?
"How could a princess ask for a fiefdom on her own? This is against the law and the legal system, and I'm afraid it would be detrimental to Your Majesty. The eldest princess's rash request to be enfeoffed in Beijing is neither reasonable nor logical."

Emperor Guangde stepped down from the dragon throne and sighed deeply, "If Liu Yufei wants this, how can I avoid this disaster?"

Chen Mingxia said, "How can the Princess ever be satisfied? It's better to deal with it as soon as possible and not let the root of the evil grow and spread. Once it grows and spreads, it will be difficult to deal with. We can't even completely eradicate the spreading weeds, let alone the princess who is doted on by the Emperor."

Liu Kan disagreed and said, "Those who do evil will eventually perish. Let them continue to be arrogant for a few more days. I will first agree to her memorial and let her return to the north."

News of Emperor Guangde's approval of the princess's transfer to Beijing spread quickly, sparking outrage among the pro-war faction, who saw it as a concession from Emperor Guangde under pressure. Liu Yufei, knowing she was on to something, stopped arguing with her brother and immediately received the imperial decree, moving her family to Beijing.

Prince Liu Qian of Han, however, refused to go to Xi'an. Xi'an was dilapidated and certainly not as comfortable as Tianxin City. On the first day of April, an imperial censor accused the Prince of Han of arbitrarily recruiting over 2,000 brave men from Tianxin City and other regions to serve as guards for the palace, stationing them at the four gates of the palace, known as the Shanglin Army. Liu Qian also secretly contacted the Princess, who had already traveled north, and recruited 300 fierce bandits from Yunxi, placing them throughout the streets of Tianxin City...

After hearing about this, Emperor Guangde summoned Liu Qian and severely reprimanded his ignorant brother in front of civil and military officials. He ordered him to disband the Shanglin soldiers and the Yunxi bandits.

On April 14th of the ninth year of Guangde, the retired emperor set up a hunting ground in the south of Tianxin City as usual. Emperor Guangde Liu Kan, Prince of Han Liu Qian, Prince of Chu Liu Yu, Prince of Jin Liu You and others accompanied him. Emperor Guangde ordered his four sons to ride horses and hunt to compete for victory.

The King of Han owned an Akhal-Teke horse from Persia, also known as the legendary Ferghana horse. It was said that the King of Han had purchased it from a Persian merchant at great expense. Today, the horse was brought to the hunting grounds. Liu Kan took a casual glance at it and was deeply attracted by it.

The horse's entire body was as black as charcoal, without a single strand of hair. From head to tail, it was ten feet long. From hoof to neck, it was eight feet tall. It neighed and roared, as if it were soaring into the sea.

"This horse has traveled thousands of miles to our country. It is a rare and exquisite horse, on par with Red Hare and Black Horse. However, it has a violent temper and refuses to be controlled by ordinary people. Everyone in the world knows that Your Majesty loves horses more than beautiful women. Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, and a fine horse is worthy of a hero. Please ride it and give it a try."

Liu Kan knew that this was a trick. Perhaps Liu Qian had already fed poison to the horse. If the drug took effect, his life might be in danger.

However, thousands of soldiers in the hunting ground were watching him, and his father and several princes were also observing him. If he was timid at this time, he would be at a disadvantage. It would be confirmed that Emperor Guangde only interacted with civil officials, and thus he would further lose the support of the empire's military men.

(End of this chapter)