The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 26 A Sage Ruler is Without Fault
"We didn't come here to listen to your nonsense. If you keep spouting this nonsense, we won't let you off the hook."

This was a very tricky problem, because Zhu Yuanzhang wasn't just testing him; he genuinely wanted to know the answer.

If Li Qi answers, he will be seen as lacking discretion and participating in the selection of an heir; if he does not answer, he will be seen as indecisive and disloyal to the emperor.

Zhu Yuanzhang had such an eccentric personality.

Fortunately, Li Qi had already come up with a solution. Faced with this situation, the only option was to use their own methods against them.

He raised his head, his face full of righteous indignation, and said earnestly, "I am not speaking nonsense. The world belongs to Father Emperor alone, and all the laws, rules, and systems of the world were established and set by Father Emperor."

The Emperor established the Ming Dynasty's ancestral precepts, and his subjects should naturally follow them in their conduct.

Therefore, I, your son, declare that Your Majesty has already established the rules, and there is no need for me to speak presumptuously. Anyone who violates them will suffer the same fate as Zhan Hui and Li Yuanming!

Zhu Yuanzhang understood what Li Qi meant.

As early as the case of Liu San Niangzi, Li Qi had already said that "the emperor's position should be passed on to the crown prince, and the positions of the princes can only be inherited by their heirs." This is the unshakable succession of the Ming Dynasty.

With the eldest son deceased, according to the ancestral precepts of the Ming Dynasty, the second son, Prince Qin, Zhu Shuang, should be established as heir.

Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang felt another pang of pain in his heart. At that time, no one had expected that the crown prince would die first.

He narrowed his eyes slightly. "You mean to establish a King of Qin?"

Li Qi replied solemnly, "This is not my idea, but Father's. Whatever Father says, a loyal subject only needs to obey."

“But even loyal and upright ministers have the duty to advise their ruler. Is it right for you to completely obey the ruler like this?”

Upon hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's question, Li Qi felt completely relaxed. The emperor appeared to be questioning him, but he must have been very satisfied with his answer.

"My father is exceptionally gifted and innovative. He established the Censorate in the Ming Dynasty. He believed that officials who reported rumors without being punished were responsible for their duties. This is one of the responsibilities of the Censorate."

Secondly, the emperor was without fault. It was a pity that Crown Prince Yiwen died young. However, the emperor was highly praised by the court and the public during his lifetime. He was the prime minister of a wise ruler. This was the emperor's achievement. Who in the world could surpass the emperor in cultivating a crown prince?

Since Father Emperor was able to raise Crown Prince Yiwen, he can also select another emperor for our Great Ming Dynasty who is capable of inheriting the throne. Therefore, I believe that Father Emperor can just laugh at the words of his subjects, but should never listen to them.

These are my heartfelt words, Your Majesty. I beg you to make a wise judgment!

Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but laugh. He knew Li Qi was flattering him, but what Li Qi said was also true. He was an unprecedented sage ruler, and asking his ministers about this matter was indeed a low-class act.

Li Qi felt relieved, knowing that the emperor had accepted his words. He had carefully considered Zhu Yuanzhang's character before deciding on these words.

"The King of Qin is cruel and does not resemble a ruler. He is barely fit to be a king, let alone to inherit the throne."

Zhu Yuanzhang never even considered letting the Prince of Qin ascend the throne.

Li Qi had already anticipated this scene, and he even guessed that Zhu Yuanzhang summoned him in order to prepare in advance for the possibility of establishing Zhu Yunwen as the heir apparent.

Because Li Qi now has two main identities: one is a relative of the imperial family, and the other is a leader of the northern literati.

Zhu Yunwen was surrounded by mostly southern literati, such as Qi Tai, Huang Zicheng, and Fang Xiaoru, a disciple of Song Lian whom Zhu Yuanzhang had prepared for him.

If Li Qi were to assist Zhu Yunwen, it would not only be possible to check the power of the southern literati and prevent them from becoming too powerful, but also to check the power of the maternal relatives such as Mei Yin. In the future, when the northern people become strong, it would also be possible to achieve the goal of moving the capital.

Despite clearly guessing the emperor's thoughts, Li Qi still spoke of establishing the Prince of Qin as emperor, which was naturally intentional on his part.

Zhu Yunwen was a sinking ship; he wouldn't tie the Li family to it.

Now he is bringing up the ancestral precepts of the Ming Dynasty, ostensibly to speak for the Prince of Qin, but in reality, it does add a touch of legitimacy to the Prince of Yan's succession to the throne after the Jingnan Rebellion.

Because the second son of the legitimate wife, the Prince of Qin, and the third son of the legitimate wife, the Prince of Jin, would both die before Zhu Yuanzhang, according to the imperial ancestral instructions, the fourth son of the legitimate wife, the Prince of Yan, should have succeeded to the throne!

Li Qi bowed his head respectfully and remained silent.

“The Imperial Ancestral Instructions were written by us and are for the benefit of future emperors. We cannot be bound by them. Prince Qin is not a proper ruler. For the sake of the Ming Dynasty, we want to establish the Crown Prince. What do you think?”

Li Qi knew that the second crucial part of this audience with the Emperor was approaching.

Although he intended to establish a future lineage between himself and Zhu Di, that was ultimately a matter for the future. Zhu Yunwen could distance himself from Zhu Di but not oppose him.

He kowtowed directly, his face full of sincerity, and said, "Your Majesty is exceptionally gifted and your wise decisions are brilliant. Your subjects follow your will without question and submit to your authority without reservation."

After habitually offering flattery first, Li Qi immediately added his own thoughts, "However, I have a question for Your Majesty." "Speak."

"Your Majesty's deep love for his grandsons is something I greatly admire. The Grandson's status is second only to the Emperor and the Crown Prince."

However, after the Crown Prince's death, the King of Qin, being both the eldest son of the legitimate heir and the head of the vassal kings, was the Emperor's own son, while the Grandson of the Crown Prince was merely a descendant of the Crown Prince. Therefore, it became difficult to determine who held the higher status.

The Crown Prince is undoubtedly the undisputed heir to the empire, but he is indeed a step below the Crown Prince.

Throughout Chinese history, the status of a son has largely depended on his father or mother. Even emperors who rose from humble origins had to posthumously honor their fathers and grandfathers as emperors for at least three generations. This is called "his lineage."

"If Your Majesty intends to establish a grandson as the Crown Prince, but does not wish to cause an upheaval in the court and among the people, I request Your Majesty to follow the example of Emperor Xiaojing of the Tang Dynasty, Li Hong, and posthumously confer the title of Emperor on Crown Prince Yiwen, so as to glorify the position of the imperial grandson!"

In reality, establishing a crown prince would not cause any upheaval in the court or among the people.

But some things are better left unmentioned, and no one would think of them. However, since Li Qi brought it up, it always feels like something is not quite right if Zhu Biao is not posthumously honored.

Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes lit up almost instantly. Li Qi's words implied that only the emperor's son could become emperor, a statement that he really liked.

Li Qi certainly knew that Zhu Yuanzhang liked it, after all, the entire Ming Dynasty was a hereditary dynasty. Since the Qin Dynasty established the monarchical autocracy, only the Yuan and Ming Dynasties liked hereditary succession so much.

Only in the Ming Dynasty could the status of nobles be maintained for more than two hundred years until the fall of the Ming Dynasty.

If it weren't for the system's requirement of a family lineage lasting five hundred years, Li Qi would have been prepared to directly obtain the title of Duke of Jingnan and then simply retire.

It was already unbelievable that the titles of the imperial family and nobles were all hereditary, but now even military officer positions could be hereditary. Thousand-household commanders were everywhere, and hundred-household commanders were worse than dogs. Even professions were hereditary. This system of nobility and household registration, which originated in the Yuan Dynasty, really ruined the Ming Dynasty.

"Li Qi, do you know what we admire most about you?"

“You never use underhanded tactics in your actions, but instead follow the path of sages and saints.”

In the Fengtian Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang's voice echoed endlessly.

"You are about to become famous again."

"You will serve the imperial grandson well in the future, so as to repay the kindness of saving your life."

……

Li Qi walked out of the hall, his eyes filled with both a smile and a sense of感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a feeling of deep emotion).

"Zhu Biao, this imperial throne is a way of repaying your kindness."

"Zhu Di, in history you abolished the imperial title that Zhu Yunwen posthumously bestowed upon Zhu Biao. In this life, can you abolish the imperial title that your father posthumously bestowed upon your elder brother?"
I'm really looking forward to it.

After time-traveling, he accomplished many great things, but none of them had a greater impact on the succession of the Ming Dynasty than "Zhu Yuanzhang personally posthumously conferring the title of Emperor upon Zhu Biao".

Zhu Di, Zhu Qizhen, Zhu Qiyu, Zhu Jianshen, and Jiajing—at least five emperors in total—were troubled by this matter, yet the people of the world only praised him for his fearlessness of imperial power, his uprightness and outspokenness, and his concern for the country and the world.

After all, no one knew that the King of Qin and the King of Jin would also die before the emperor, and no one knew about the future Jingnan Rebellion.

Although he wouldn't live to see that time, he couldn't wait to see his descendants use the "gate" left by their ancestors to bring glory to them!
And now, just as the emperor said, he should go and embrace immense wealth and honor.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

In April of the twenty-fifth year of the Hongwu reign, the Crown Prince died and was posthumously honored as "Crown Prince Yiwen".

In May, the emperor wanted to establish a crown prince and asked his son-in-law Li Qi for advice. Li Qi then cited the story of Emperor Xiaojing of Tang, saying, "When the emperor's son occupies the position of crown prince, the whole world submits to him."

In June, an imperial edict was issued:
Crown Prince Biao is naturally kind and benevolent, and his filial piety is pure and sincere.

His literary and martial talents are renowned both within and outside the country; his benevolence and filial piety are known throughout the world; his great virtue is famous throughout China; and the common people look up to him with longing.

With billions of lives at stake, the foundation for a grand military campaign is laid; yet, without signs of the five blessings, the honored guest is suddenly moved to a new position.

Alas!

The weight of my nature is heavy, and I am choked with emotion as I recall these events. It is fitting to uphold the deceased's will and bestow upon him a more honorable name. For a posthumous title is a record of one's deeds; an honorific title is a reflection of one's accomplishments. Therefore, he is posthumously honored as "Emperor Xiaokang." — *Veritable Records of the Ming Dynasty*

(End of this chapter)