The Ming Dynasty: A bookstore sells the history of the Ming Dynasty, leaving Emperor Chongzhen bewil

Yuan Chonghuan, who had just left the palace, was also extremely conflicted.

He had already resigned from his official post and returned to his hometown to take care of his elderly mother. When he heard that Prince Xin, Zhu Youjian, had eliminated Wei Zhongxian shortly after ascending the throne, he was very happy, not because of personal grudges, but because the Ming Dynasty had welcomed a wise ruler.

Before Wei Zhongxian's body had even decomposed, Yuan Chonghuan received an imperial edict from the capital ordering his reinstatement, which greatly surprised him.

He was surprised not only by his reinstatement, but also by his new position.

He was a commoner who had resigned from his official post. According to custom, even if the emperor wanted to reinstate him, he would have to start as a low-ranking official in charge of affairs, and then be promoted after serving as a clerk for a period of time. That would be reasonable.

However, the first position Emperor Chongzhen gave him was Right Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, in charge of adding Right Vice Ministers to the Ministry of War.

The positions of Right Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate and Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War were both second-rank official positions. In other words, Yuan Chonghuan went from a commoner to a second-rank official in just one day.

However, Yuan Chonghuan had come down from a high position, and having seen the ocean, he found it hard to be satisfied with a river. A second-rank official was really nothing to him.

After receiving his official appointment, Yuan Chonghuan did not rush to take up his post. Instead, he stayed at home for a while, doing nothing but fulfilling his filial duty to his mother. Soon after, he received a second imperial edict from the emperor, which was accompanied by Fan Jingwen.

This time, the emperor directly appointed him as Minister of War and concurrently as the Commander-in-Chief of Jiliao.

Everyone knows that the Minister of War is a formidable figure, but the Governor-General of Jiliao is even more remarkable.

In the Ming Dynasty, the highest-ranking local officials were the Provincial Administration Commissioner, the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner, and the Commander. These three positions did not supervise each other. Therefore, in order to prevent them from colluding or shirking responsibility, the court sent officials to inspect the local areas on behalf of the emperor. These officials were called governors.

Later, because the governor only governed one place and there was collusion between the governor and the local authorities, the imperial court sent a higher-ranking official to manage the governor, namely the governor-general.

Later, before the Tianqi era, the situation was so chaotic that even the governor-general could no longer manage the local affairs. So, he had to send a higher-ranking official, someone even more powerful than the governor-general, who became the Grand Coordinator.

In other words, at this time, when they arrived at their respective posts, the military governor was the most powerful official besides the emperor.

Fan Jingwen, who came with the appointment order, told me to set off immediately for the capital, as the emperor was eager to see me.

Yuan Chonghuan was flattered and dared not be negligent this time. He quickly bid farewell to his mother and rushed to the capital with Fan Jingwen.

The emperor showed his utmost sincerity, so much so that Yuan Chonghuan felt his heart surge with emotion and became somewhat elated.

Throughout the journey, Yuan Chonghuan pondered how to respond to the new emperor's extraordinary favor.

He felt that the first thing to do was to please the emperor and make him happy, so as not to fail the emperor's kindness. That's why there was the saying "recovering Liaodong in five years".

But who knew that when he actually announced the exciting goal of "recovering Liaodong in five years," the court officials were indeed excited, but the emperor was not excited at all. Instead, he looked complicated and even a little dejected, and finally hastily left the court.

What happened?

Yuan Chonghuan was completely baffled.

He sets ambitious goals first, then discusses whether they can actually be achieved later. In short, he paints a picture of a bright future, but whether it can be realized is another matter. Having been in officialdom for many years, he has mastered this art of painting a bright future, and it works in every way, whether dealing with superiors or subordinates.

Back in Ningyuan, almost everyone wanted to give up, but he refused. During the pre-battle mobilization, Yuan Chonghuan wrote a letter in his own blood, bowed to all the soldiers, and said while eating grass that if all the soldiers could fight to the death with him, he would be willing to serve as their servants.

The soldiers wept bitterly as they ate the pancake, and all begged to fight to the death.

Why is it that now that the "recovery of Liaodong in five years" promise is such a tempting prospect, the Emperor no longer finds it appealing?

afterwards.

Xu Yuqing, a supervising secretary in the Ministry of War, directly questioned Yuan Chonghuan about his strategy of "recovering Liaodong in five years." Yuan Chonghuan did not hide anything and truthfully replied, "It's just to appease the Emperor." Xu Yuqing sternly rebuked him, "The Emperor is extremely wise; how can you answer so carelessly?"

Is the Emperor really so wise that he could see at a glance that the goal he set was just empty promises?

Several days have passed since that day, and Yuan Chonghuan has remained in his Ministry of War. The Emperor has not summoned him again, nor has any news arrived, which has made Yuan Chonghuan increasingly anxious...

……

Inside the Kunning Palace.

Empress Zhou poured Chongzhen a cup of hot tea, placed it in front of him, hesitated for a moment, and then asked:

"Your Majesty, what's wrong?"

Ever since Emperor Chongzhen returned from visiting the imperial tombs, he has become very strange. He is often absent-minded and sits there blankly, seemingly lost in thought.

In fact, Emperor Chongzhen was an extremely infuriating person.

Even if one has never been to a bookstore or read the History of Ming, this is still true, let alone now.

He was not only reflecting on his history, but also on what the bookstore owner had told him.

Dynasties typically last only three hundred years, and the Ming Dynasty is now nearing that point. Land annexation has reached an irreconcilable level, and the only next step is to overthrow the existing regime and redistribute the land.

Unless a radical reform is undertaken.

The bookstore owner didn't continue the story there, but Chongzhen had his own guesses.

The emperor is the biggest landowner. What else could it be but a radical reform?

Isn't it just about removing the emperor?

These past few days, Chongzhen has become increasingly horrified by what he's been thinking about, which is one of the reasons for his internal turmoil and suffering.

Should he still go to the bookstore? Was the bookstore owner right or wrong? He didn't know! He really didn't know!

This question is so difficult!

Emperor Chongzhen raised his head and looked blankly at Empress Zhou.

Whether in the present day or in historical records, Empress Zhou was someone he trusted. From their youthful days as husband and wife to the fall of the country and the destruction of their home, Empress Zhou stayed by his side from beginning to end, never abandoning him.

Therefore, Empress Zhou was one of the few people he could trust after reading the History of Ming.

Emperor Chongzhen took the hot tea, sipped it to moisten his parched throat, pondered for a moment, and then said to Empress Zhou, "If, and I mean if, the Ming Dynasty were to perish in my hands, what should I do?"

Empress Zhou spat and said, "Your Majesty, please don't say such unlucky things. The Ming Dynasty was doing well, how could it have perished?"

Emperor Chongzhen said, "I met a wise man who said that the Ming Dynasty would perish in my hands, no matter how hard I try, the Ming Dynasty is destined to perish."

Seeing Chongzhen's solemn expression, Empress Zhou also became serious and asked, "Then do you believe it?"

"letter."

Emperor Chongzhen nodded.

These days he has been thinking about what the bookstore owner said. The more he thinks about it, the clearer it becomes, and the more clear it becomes, the more frightened he becomes. Moreover, a complete set of the History of Ming is right in front of him, so he has no choice but to believe it.

Empress Zhou said, "Since His Majesty trusts that expert, why not ask him for advice on how to solve this problem?"

Emperor Chongzhen replied, "The wise man said there is no solution unless... unless a radical reform is carried out."

Empress Zhou frowned: "What earth-shattering reforms?"

Emperor Chongzhen shook his head: "I don't know. Perhaps they want to get rid of me, the emperor? If that's the case, do you think I should continue?"

Empress Zhou remained silent.

After a moment of silence, Empress Zhou said, "I am just a woman and don't understand any grand principles, but I have heard the story of the man of Qi who worried about the sky falling. I wonder if Your Majesty has heard this story?"

Empress Zhou was actually quite courageous.

Not only did he help Chongzhen in eliminating Wei Zhongxian, but he also persuaded Chongzhen to flee south when the country was destroyed and the family was ruined.

If Emperor Chongzhen had truly listened to Empress Zhou's advice to flee south, the outcome might have been different. Perhaps he would have ruled along the Yangtze River, perhaps he would have fled to Taiwan, or perhaps he would have lived a life of ignominy in some unknown corner of the world.

But Emperor Chongzhen was unwilling to become that Zhao Emperor, and would rather die than flee south.

This time, however, when Chongzhen heard Empress Zhou's words, his eyes gleamed, as if he had suddenly come back to life.

"I understand! Thank you, Your Majesty!"

With that, Chongzhen headed out of the palace.

Not long after, Chongzhen returned, picked up a painting at random, and hurriedly left...