Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 222: Right and Wrong, Merits and Demerits, Chenghua Li Courtyard! [Please Subscribe]

"Your Highness Prince Yan is anxious again," Liu Kuan said. "Watch this video patiently, and you'll find the answer to your question."

Zhu Di had no choice but to say, "Okay, you can continue playing."

The video continues, and when Zhu Jianshen is dying, he recalls the scene of his first meeting with Wan Zhen'er when he was young.

The video then changes to Zhu Jianshen's childhood, and the background music changes from "Half a Lifelong Life" to "The Heavy Rain Is Coming".

"Now that the deposed Crown Prince Zhu Jianshen has been replaced by the Prince of Yi, the crown and robes bestowed upon the Crown Prince shall be taken back."

In the video, Zhu Jianshen, only five or six years old, kneels to receive the imperial edict. After the eunuchs forcibly remove his crown prince's clothing, Zhu Jianshen struggles, only to be pushed down by the eunuchs, who scrape his hand.

Afterwards, all the eunuchs and palace maids around him left him, and he was the only one left in the huge palace. He squatted in the corner and cried, looking particularly pitiful.

The camera turns, and the seventeen-year-old Wan Zhen'er is assigned by Empress Dowager Sun to come to the young Zhu Jianshen.

At this time, Zhu Jianshen had developed a stutter due to his previous experiences.

"In the third year of the Jingtai reign, Zhu Qiyu abolished his nephew Zhu Jianshen's position as crown prince and appointed his own son Zhu Jianji as the heir."

"For several years thereafter, the deposed Crown Prince Zhu Jianshen was kept under house arrest in the deep palace, like a prisoner. All the palace ladies kept their distance from him, except for the maid Wan Zhen'er, who remained loyal to him and took care of him meticulously."

Afterwards, a series of shots were used to show how Wan Zhen'er and Zhu Jianshen were bullied by palace servants in the cold palace and depended on each other for survival.

Then, a few short shots were used to tell the story of the "Change of the Gate" and the restoration of Zhu Qizhen and the re-establishment of Zhu Jianshen as the crown prince.

After that, Zhu Qizhen passed away, and the seventeen-year-old Zhu Jianshen ascended the throne.

"As soon as Zhu Jianshen ascended the throne, he appointed Wan Zhen'er, who was seventeen years his senior, as his concubine, causing an uproar in the court and the country."

"In the second year of the Chenghua reign, the 37-year-old Wan Zhen'er was fortunate enough to give birth to the emperor's eldest son. Emperor Xianzong was overjoyed and promoted Wan Zhen'er to the rank of Imperial Concubine. However, the following year, the eldest son died young."

"In the fifth year of Chenghua, Consort Bai gave birth to the Emperor's second son, Zhu Youji. In the seventh year of Chenghua, Zhu Youji was made Crown Prince. He died in the eighth year of Chenghua."

"Emperor Chenghua had been childless for a long time, and rumors were spreading inside and outside the palace that Concubine Wan was dominating the harem and forcing Emperor Chenghua's concubines to have abortions."

"In the eleventh year of the Chenghua reign, a fire broke out at the Qianqing Gate. Zhu Jianshen suspected it was a warning from heaven, so he announced the existence of the third son, Zhu Youtang, and in the same year, he was made crown prince."

"In the twelfth year of Chenghua, Zhu Jianshen promoted Wan Zhen'er to Imperial Noble Consort."

"In the first month of the twenty-third year of the Chenghua reign, Imperial Noble Consort Wan passed away; in the ninth month of the same year, Emperor Chenghua Zhu Jianshen passed away."

Although the female voice's explanation was simple, the content expressed in the video edited from various shots was quite complex.

For example, after Zhu Jianshen ascended the throne and named Wan Zhen'er as a noble concubine, he was still very attached to and loved her. Although Wan Zhen'er controlled the harem, she always took it as her responsibility to protect the safety of Emperor Chenghua.

There were misunderstandings between the two, but they mostly relied on and supported each other, and overcame many treacherous and dangerous situations inside and outside the harem during the Chenghua period.

When the video finished playing at the end of "The Heavy Rain is Coming", Zhu Biao, Zhu Di and others were all silent.

Zhu Biao then spoke first, sighing, "When I first heard my brother-in-law tell me about Zhu Qiyu deposing Zhu Jianshen as Crown Prince, I didn't think much of it. I never expected his fate to be so miserable. Not only was he imprisoned in the cold palace, but he was also bullied by the palace servants and developed a stutter."

"And for a child facing such a situation, the only palace maid remained loyal to him and even took good care of him. After spending several years together, it's only natural for them to develop feelings for him."

Old Zhu also sighed, but said: "Wan Zhen'er did indeed have the merit of protection. Zhu Jian is deeply grateful for her kindness and even has feelings for her. There is nothing wrong with that."

"But he shouldn't be so attached to Lady Wan, and certainly shouldn't allow her to monopolize the harem. Regardless of whether the difficulties mentioned in the video regarding his paternity are related to Lady Wan, I'm afraid her actions will incur the resentment of everyone within and outside the palace."

Hearing this, Liu Kuan couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty is wise. I also think that it may be Zhu Jianshen's excessive favor for Wan that has led to so many absurd things. Love sometimes needs to be restrained."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Di frowned and said, "This video isn't very clear. Did Wan murder Zhu Jianshen's bloodline when she was in control of the harem?"

"If this had not happened, why did Zhu Jianshen hide his third son after he was born and only reveal him to the world several years later?"

Liu Kuan said, "Your Highness, Prince of Yan, history is shrouded in mystery. Even those who experienced it firsthand may not understand the full truth, let alone future generations."

"However, I did once look into the matter of Zhu Jianshen and Wan Shi. I don't know whether it's right or wrong, but I'll just take it as my personal opinion. Your Highness, please listen to it for now."

Zhu Di nodded, "Just tell me what you want, I won't take it too seriously."

"As for Zhu Jianshen's hiding his third child, the mainstream view in later generations was that he did it to prevent Wan Zhen'er from seeing someone else's child and being saddened by the reminder of his own child."

"However, I believe Zhu Jianshen may have done this out of guilt. Zhu Youtang's biological mother, Ji, was also a palace maid, but she was younger and more beautiful than Wan Zhen'er. Zhu Youtang secretly favored Ji, and Ji also gave birth to a prince. I think this made it difficult for Zhu Youtang to face Wan Zhen'er."

"As for Wan Zhen'er's conspiracy to murder Zhu Jianshen's bloodline, I believe it is mostly a rumor, and it may even be a rumor with ulterior motives."

"First, in the eleventh year of the Chenghua reign, Zhu Jianshen appointed Zhu Youtang as the Crown Prince, and the following year he promoted Wan Zhen'er to Imperial Noble Consort."

"Plus, Wan lived until the 23rd year of the Chenghua reign, and caused Zhu Jianshen to follow her heartbrokenly. This shows that she had not truly fallen out of favor, nor had she lost her power in the harem."

"On the other hand, if Wan Zhen'er really had murdered the prince, Zhu Jianshen, in order to protect Zhu Youtang's growth, would have had to severely weaken Wan Zhen'er's power in the harem. If Wan Zhen'er really had forced concubines to have abortions, how could she have survived in the harem for over a decade after losing power?" "Secondly, the attacks on Wan Zhen'er at the time and in later generations can actually be seen as a smear campaign against Zhu Jianshen - if the woman Zhu Jianshen loved and favored so deeply was actually a vicious woman, doesn't that just prove that Zhu Jianshen was a tyrant?"

After listening to Liu Kuan's story, Zhu Di seemed to be thinking about something.

After a while, Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Whether Wan Shi is good or bad, there is no need to discuss it any further. Instead of this time, it is better to talk about how Zhu Jianshen governed the Ming Dynasty."

"Look at the video at the beginning. The situation Zhu Jianshen faced after ascending the throne seemed very bad."

Liu Kuan said: "Although Zhu Qizhen did some of the things an emperor should do in his later years, the Ming Dynasty was already riddled with holes in the previous chaos."

"At the beginning of Zhu Jianshen's reign, Hanlin Attendant Scholar Qian Pu colluded with the eunuch Wang Lun and Jinyiwei Commander-in-Chief Menda, intending to replace Li Xian, the regent left by Zhu Qizhen, and take control of the court."

"After Zhu Jianshen learned of this, he decisively executed Wang Lun and Menda, and demoted Qian Pu."

"Afterwards, Zhu Jianshen first rehabilitated Yu Qian and restored his reign title and temple name to Zhu Qiyu – that's how the video said he repaid evil with kindness."

"Zhu Jianshen subsequently promoted a number of capable officials and bestowed numerous honors upon Li Xian, the regent minister left behind by Zhu Qizhen."

"Through these two actions, Zhu Jianshen quickly stabilized the court and won the hearts of the people. Therefore, it was only natural that he would later achieve a series of military victories."

"As for Zhu Jianshen's specific martial arts, Your Majesty will know after watching the last video I prepared."

After saying that, Liu Kuan played the third short video.

The soundtrack of "The Elephant King's March" sounded, and the video was mainly based on shots from TV dramas such as "The Fourteenth Year of Chenghua", with a man beginning to talk about Zhu Jianshen's martial arts.

Zhu Jianshen ascended the throne at the age of seventeen, inheriting the mess left by Emperor Yingzong. The land annexation that had been accumulating since the early Ming Dynasty was reaching a peak, with millions of refugees from the southern and northern capitals, as well as Henan, Huguang, and Sichuan, leading to repeated riots.

"The Zhuang and Yao people of Guangdong and Guangxi, and the Miao people of Sichuan and Hunan, also rose up in rebellion. Local officials in Shaanxi and salt convicts in Jiangsu and Zhejiang gathered and broke the law. Meanwhile, the Mongols occupied the Hetao area, and the Jianzhou Jurchens invaded Liaoyang."

"This situation was no less dire than the last years of the Chongzhen Emperor. Yet, within a decade, Zhu Jianshen had eliminated this chaotic end-of-dynasty scene, replacing it with a peaceful and stable state where the people enjoyed peace and prosperity!"

Coincidentally, at this moment, the video showed the scene during the Chenghua period when troops were divided into three groups to suppress the Jianzhou Jurchens.

In the middle of the commentary, there are lines and texts appearing in the video.

"After the Tumu Incident, the Ming Dynasty's prestige was dented, and border affairs deteriorated greatly. Jurchen leaders like Li Manzhu and Dong Shan took advantage of the situation to repeatedly plunder the border, leaving Liaodong in dire straits."

"The Emperor has ordered that their nest be destroyed and their species be exterminated!"

"It is called in history - Chenghua Liting!"

The commentator then appeared again under the video footage of the battle.

"Zhu Jianshen carried the martial blood of the Zhu family. He inherited the fine tradition of Taizu, Taizong, and Xuanzong of planning before taking action. He orchestrated and achieved a series of victories against hostile forces surrounding the Ming Dynasty, including the Battle of Chenghua Liting, the Battle of Hongyanchi, and the Battle of Weining Lake."

"Zhu Jianshen was also very discerning about talent. He not only made use of a number of virtuous civil officials such as Shang Lu, Li Bing, and Peng Shi, but also promoted a number of capable military generals such as Zhao Fu, Zhu Yong, Han Yong, and Ye Sheng."

"It can even be said that Zhu Jianshen was the Ming emperor who valued military commanders the most after Emperor Taizong of the Ming Dynasty. During his 23-year reign, he conferred titles on nine nobles and one marquis, which is a clear indication of this."

"In less than ten years, Zhu Jianshen turned the dynasty's end, similar to the end of Chongzhen, back to the reign of Renzong and Xuanzong. He helped the Ming Dynasty emerge from the shadow of the Tumu Incident and showed signs of a revival."

"After Zhu Jianshen's death, his temple name was Xian and his posthumous title was Chun. Xian means "enlightened and versatile, a ruler who revived the Ming Dynasty"; Chun means "upright, righteous, and loyal." Zhu Jianshen was hailed as the Pure Emperor Xianzong of the Ming Dynasty, and he deserved it!"

After watching the video, Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di all breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhu Di then showed a look of joy.

I thought to myself, I never expected that that bastard Zhu Qizhen could give birth to a loyal and righteous leader who would restore the country. It was truly a pleasant surprise!

Old Zhu sighed, "According to what's shown in this video, the mess left behind by Zhu Qizhen is not as bad as the end of Chongzhen's reign, but it's definitely not good. If things go wrong, there will be chaos and a change of dynasty."

"Zhu Jianshen suffered so much in his childhood, yet within ten years of ascending the throne he was able to quell the rebellion and bring peace and prosperity to the Ming Dynasty. This is truly rare."

At this point, Old Zhu suddenly frowned and asked in confusion, "But didn't Zhu Jianshen reign for twenty-three years? He achieved so many great things in the first ten years, but there's nothing worth mentioning in the last thirteen years?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di also looked at Liu Kuan, wanting to know the answer.

When Zhu Di saw Liu Kuan's helpless expression, he immediately felt something was wrong.

As expected, Liu Kuan opened his mouth and said, "Your Majesty, after the seventh year of Chenghua, Zhu Jianshen focused his main energy on sorting out domestic affairs. Coupled with the concerns of his children and the harem, he became somewhat negligent in his duties and even made some actions that the civil officials would call 'foolish'."

Zhu Biao frowned and asked, "Sister-in-law, what do you mean by a foolish act as the civil officials say?"

　First update.

　　
　　
　
(End of this chapter)