The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 71 One should always have some integrity
As dawn broke and the first rays of sunlight began to fall, Li Qi returned to the palace to meet the Prince of Yan, who was about to become the ruler of the land.

This time, he was alone, and the matter they discussed was the same one they had discussed before, concerning Fang Xiaoru. Seeing how impatient the Prince of Yan was, Li Qi knew that the Prince of Yan truly hated Fang Xiaoru.

Li Qi naturally wouldn't try to persuade Zhu Di. He wasn't like Wei Zheng, who sought fame through honesty and insisted on going against the emperor in everything. His strategy was always to exert influence only at crucial moments.

Moreover, Fang Xiaoru's matter was something he had planned long ago. He had already sharpened a sword during the Hongwu era and was eager to strike.

The time has finally come!

How could he possibly give up!

"Your Highness should know that the Emperor once appointed me as the Grand Inspector of Customs to investigate matters concerning the influence of Mongol Yuan customs on the Ming Dynasty."

In the first year of the Jianwen reign, I discovered a shocking matter involving Emperor Taizu Gao, which was done by Song Lian, the teacher of Fang Xiaoru, and even spread throughout his lineage.

However, due to Fang Xiaoru's rise to power before Jianwen, I dared not speak out and kept the matter to myself. Now is the time to reveal it.

Upon hearing that the late emperor was involved, Zhu Di was immediately alarmed and hurriedly said, "Jinghe, speak quickly, and I will speak on your behalf."

Li Qi then slowly recounted the matter. Upon hearing it, Zhu Di was first furious, then overjoyed. After Li Qi finished speaking, he slapped the table and laughed, "Fang Xiaoru's lineage is about to die out!"

“Your Highness, since you took control of the world, this matter has been inescapable. You just granted a general amnesty in the palace. If you are too hasty in manipulating this matter, even though it is Fang Xiaoru’s affair, it will still implicate the student and be criticized. The words of amnesty are nothing but deceiving people’s hearts.”

Li Qi said in a deep voice, "We should proceed with this matter after the world has stabilized somewhat."

I have a good friend named Xie Jin, whom Your Highness has surely heard of. He is a renowned scholar, but he was implicated by me during the Jianwen reign and was unable to display his talents. He has long harbored the desire to serve Your Highness.

When the time is right, I will invite him to my residence and inform him of this matter. He is from Jiangxi, and having him handle this matter will neither incite conflict between the North and South nor tarnish Your Highness's reputation. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?

Zhu Di was quite satisfied with Li Qi's plan and was no longer in a hurry to agree. Just as he was about to agree, Li Qi suddenly coughed heavily and then vomited blood.

He was greatly shocked and said urgently, "Jinghe, what's wrong with you...?"

Li Qi hurriedly bowed and said, "Your humble servant has disturbed the health of the Prince of Yan; I deserve to die!"

Zhu Di said speechlessly, "You're spitting blood and still spouting such nonsense. I'll summon the imperial physician for you right now."

"Your Highness, there's no need."

Li Qi stopped Zhu Di's actions, and then explained to Zhu Di's puzzled expression: "In the twenty-third year of Hongwu, I was exiled to Jiangpu. In Jiangpu, I devoted myself to studying the classics and finally attained enlightenment. From then on, my body deteriorated. By the first year of Jianwen, it was already broken and beyond saving. At most, I could only hold on for another year or two before I could not recover."

I had thought I would remain idle at home and die in the Jianwen reign, which I deeply regretted. But Your Highness has succeeded in the Jingnan Campaign, and now I have another opportunity to put my talents to use.

Now I only hope to prolong the time, and with my meager talents, help Your Highness sort out the chaos of the Jianwen reign, and also create a meritorious deed that will be remembered in history. Military generals are all willing to die on the battlefield, and I also want to die in office, to devote myself to the Ming Dynasty until my dying breath.

I hope Your Highness will not despise this humble servant who is only half-crippled!

Zhu Di's expression was initially one of shock, but then it turned into deep emotion. He looked up at the sky and sighed, then took Li Qi's arm and said with emotion, "Jinghe, alas, you are my brother-in-law, and I am truly heartbroken."

It is my good fortune, Zhu Di, that Jianwen cannot use you; otherwise, where would I be today?

Your father has shown you mercy and spared your life; this is a blessing for our Great Ming Dynasty.

Now that you have become my subject, even if it has only been a short time, who can deny that this is our destiny?
If you are truly beyond saving, and only wish to dedicate yourself to the Ming Dynasty, I will certainly entrust you with the most important matters of the world. With your loyalty, talent, and virtue, would it be right if you could not leave a lasting mark on history?

Ugh.

"Jinghe, my heart is truly filled with sorrow. You should return to your residence today. Bring Lin'an to the palace the day before your ascension to the throne, and I will bestow rewards upon the imperial family there."

After bowing, Li Qi left the Huagai Hall.

As he stepped out of the Hall of Literary Glory and felt the warm sunlight on his body, Li Qi pondered the events that had just transpired in the hall. Revealing to Prince Yan, Zhu Di, that he was nearing the end of his life was something Li Qi had planned long ago.

He was not a former official of the Prince of Yan, but a foreign official who suddenly rose to prominence by offering advice. Now, Zhu Di values ​​his talent and therefore greatly appreciates and trusts him.

However, the relationship between the two sides was very fragile, and Li Qi was too clever, almost single-handedly creating the image of Prince Yan Zhu Di in the eyes of the world.

If Zhu Di were to consider this matter in the future, he would inevitably feel apprehensive. If any further changes were to occur, the emperor and his ministers would immediately become suspicious of each other.

Li Qi acted in this way, considering defeat before victory. A minister who did not want to become mutually disgusted with his monarch had to proceed cautiously step by step.

Just as he had said to Zhu Di, what moved Zhu Di the most was his dedication to the cause until his dying breath. Any monarch would love to hear such words, and in fact, Zhu Di was indeed very moved. His subsequent words to Li Qi were also a genuine expression of his feelings.

But once the emotions subsided, the most important part of Li Qi's words was actually "his days are numbered." These four words would always give Zhu Di immense peace of mind, even making him feel comfortable entrusting Li Qi with enormous power. And that was exactly what Li Qi wanted.

In this power struggle at the beginning of the Yongle reign, he had already achieved an absolute victory!

……

The impact of the Prince of Yan's punishment of the entire nation from the palace was like a raging wind, sweeping across the prefectures and counties of the land and reaching every corner that the government could reach.

Yingtian was naturally the first to be affected. Qi Tai, Huang Zicheng, and Fang Xiaoru, along with their entire families, were executed, exiled, or sent to the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment district). Apart from these three, almost everyone, whether officials, students, or commoners, believed that His Highness the Prince of Yan's benevolence was comparable to that of ancient virtuous rulers!
Those who were willing to surrender and had not committed any heinous acts were pardoned; those who were unwilling to surrender could commit suicide. Their families were not investigated, and their loyalty was even commended. Not to mention outsiders, even those involved thought that the King of Yan was unusually benevolent this time.

After returning home, Huang Guan, who had taken his entire family to the disaster, gathered them together and said to his wife and children, who were sobbing softly, "I had previously intended for you to go with me to the disaster."

"I wish to follow my husband (father) in death!"

Huang Guan shook his head and said, "Times have changed."

The sage said that a loyal minister does not serve two masters. Although I am not capable of great things, I still have this loyal heart. Since Your Majesty has died, it is my duty to die for your master.

But you don't need to do this, Prince Yan..."

Huang Guan's address to Zhu Di had unknowingly changed from "Yan Ni" to "Yan Wang" (King of Yan). He pondered for a long time, his mind flashing with hatred and indignation, before recalling the final scene of Zhu Di riding a horse and cracking his whip.

Huang Guan said slowly with a complicated expression, "The Prince of Yan may be a wise and virtuous ruler who can bring peace to the world. If one can serve such a ruler, there is nothing wrong with it."

"That's settled then. After I die, collect my body and report to the Prince of Yan. Once my identity is verified, you will all be completely safe."

After saying that, he turned and slowly walked into the house. The setting sun cast his shadow long. When the door was slammed shut, blocking out all the light, the low sobbing in the courtyard suddenly turned into a mournful cry like a cuckoo weeping blood.

It evokes a sense of desolation and sends chills down one's spine.

In the capital, it was not just one family that wept, nor just one family that suffered death; white banners were quietly hung in the dark night in the mansions.

Compared to Yingtian, which was already under stable control, the loyalists of Jianwen who had fled to other prefectures and counties were the unstable factors.

Tie Xuan, Sheng Yong, and Ping An gathered together, looking at the edict issued by Prince Yan, Zhu Di.

Tie Xuan said with a half-smile, "Prince Yan, Zhu Di, is truly cunning. He punishes the world to place himself at the highest position, and now that he has issued an edict, we have no choice but to obey."

How could they not see that Zhu Di's edict actually concealed great malice, stating that "those who are willing to be loyal to Jianwen will have their families pardoned and can be enshrined in Jianwen's Martyrdom Monument"?

Zhu Di didn't bother to arrest them; instead, he let them choose for themselves: either surrender or die for Jianwen, and they would even be rewarded.

This was not some conspiracy or trickery, but a blatant and open strategy, all based on the premise that Zhu Di had completely seized the initiative and the moral high ground.

"I thought I would be tied to Zhu Di and be able to rebuke him a few times, but now it seems that the situation is hopeless and Zhu Di no longer cares about us."

"News has come from the capital that many people have already died for His Majesty. If we were to live on in this world, we would only be burdened with the infamy of being cowardly and seeking fame."

After saying this, Sheng Yong let out a long sigh.

The world changes so fast that it's hard to keep up. They were clearly loyal ministers to the emperor, but they had to prove their loyalty to the world by dying, otherwise they would be cursed and even have to beg for posthumous fame from the rebels.

Even they themselves felt that the rebel Zhu Di was quite lenient, not implicating their families.

How ridiculous?

But that's reality!

After listening quietly to the two of them finish speaking, Ping An looked at the azure sky and said wearily, "Things have come to this, what else is there to say?"

"Go home as soon as possible to see your family one last time, then follow His Majesty in death."

After saying that, they turned and left without hesitation. Sheng Yong and Tie Xuan did the same, each heading home.

In the fierce autumn wind, the three had once met in Shandong and worked together to defeat the Yan army. But the mission failed so badly that they parted ways and went to their deaths!
It can also be described as fierce and valiant!

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(End of this chapter)