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

Everyone said that Emperor Tianqi was incompetent and that his favoritism towards the eunuch Wei Zhongxian led to the formation of the eunuch faction, which brought disaster to the world and was despised by everyone.

Even Emperor Chongzhen was quite puzzled and had some reservations.

In his eyes, his elder brother was not a stupid person. He remembered that when he was a child, the wooden toys that his elder brother made for him were exquisite and unparalleled, even surpassing the skills of folk craftsmen. He admired his elder brother at that time. Later, his elder brother became emperor and treated his younger brother very well. But why was such a good elder brother the tyrant whom the whole world cursed?

Emperor Chongzhen would never forget that when Emperor Tianqi was dying, he held his hand and smiled as he said to him, "My brother should be like Yao and Shun." In the end, he did not forget to remind him to be wary of Wei Zhongxian.

At the time, he didn't understand, but after hearing Zhu Ziming's analysis, Chongzhen suddenly realized that his elder brother had never abandoned the Ming Dynasty. On the contrary, he was protecting the Ming Dynasty in his own way, not letting others take over, even if it meant bearing the infamy before and after his death.

Perhaps given his brother's detached nature, he simply didn't care about infamy or how the world judged him.

A foolish older brother?

Do not!

I'm the stupid younger brother!

Thinking of this, Chongzhen felt as if his heart was being torn apart.

My elder brother did his best to hand over the Ming Dynasty intact to me, but I never understood his good intentions.

Damn it!

If Zhu Ziming hadn't been there, Emperor Chongzhen would probably have wept.

Although he tried his best to hide his emotions, he couldn't help but get teary-eyed and took a deep breath.

Zhu Ziming really enjoys chatting with this fellow book lover named Zhu Zhen.

Because he is not only a good listener, but also very empathetic, Zhu Ziming always gets more and more excited and his thoughts become clearer and clearer as he talks, and he can talk endlessly.

"What I've said so far, while not mainstream viewpoints, are not unfounded; they are all reasonable speculations based on historical facts. But what I'm about to say might be a bit of a conspiracy theory, so please take a look."

"Sir, please speak."

At this point, Emperor Chongzhen's fondness for Zhu Ziming had reached its peak, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he regarded him as his teacher.

"In the fifth year of the Tianqi reign, after the Tianqi Emperor finished his sacrifice at the Fangze Altar, he went to the West Garden for a boat ride, accompanied by Madam Ke, Wei Zhongxian, and others. At Shenshi (3-5 PM), he drank wine on a large boat in the shallow water north of the bridge. Later, he went to the deeper water to float in a small boat, but a gust of wind capsized the small boat, and he accidentally fell into the water and almost drowned. Although he was rescued, the fright left him with a chronic illness, and various treatments were ineffective, and his health deteriorated. Later, Minister Huo Weihua presented him with a 'miracle drug' called 'Linglu Yin' (Spiritual Dew Drink). Because of its sweet and delicious taste, Zhu Youxiao drank it every day, which led to edema. Gradually, he became swollen all over his body and eventually became bedridden."

"Until the seventh year of the Tianqi Emperor's reign, the Tianqi Emperor died in the Qianqing Palace. Prince Xin, Zhu Youjian, then ascended the throne, adopting the reign title Chongzhen."

"Everything seemed normal until he accidentally fell into the water, contracted a disease, tried to cure it but failed, drank some elixir, and finally died."

"However, if we consider the death of Emperor Tianqi together with the Red Pill Case that preceded it, doesn't it seem less normal?"

Upon hearing this, Chongzhen's breathing suddenly became rapid, and his fist clenched tightly in his sleeve, his knuckles turning white (not AI).

"In the first year of the Taichang reign, Emperor Taichang, Zhu Changluo, ascended the throne. Only ten days after his coronation, his health deteriorated due to excessive indulgence in sexual activity, so he summoned the imperial physicians for treatment. Cui Wensheng of the Imperial Medical Academy administered a laxative, but the condition worsened. Li Kezhuo, the Vice Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies, presented a red pill, which initially provided some relief to Zhu Changluo. He took another pill that afternoon and died in the early hours of the following day."

According to historical records, Zhu Changluo appeared "peaceful and dignified" and "without signs of illness" during his enthronement ceremony. However, a series of events afterward caused his condition to deteriorate rapidly. He indulged in excessive sexual activity, contracted an illness, and, despite medical treatment, consumed an elixir of immortality, ultimately leading to his death.

"Does this look familiar?"

"The entire process was almost identical to that of the Tianqi Emperor..."

boom!

Before Zhu Ziming could finish speaking, he was startled when Zhu Zhen suddenly slammed his fist hard on the table. His face was flushed and contorted with extreme anger, his teeth clenched, giving off a fierce and murderous aura.

He truly is a pure Ming Dynasty fan.

It's as if the person who died was his father.

Zhu Ziming inwardly scoffed, but outwardly reassured him, "Zhu Zhen, don't worry. What I'm saying is just conspiracy theory, without any substantial evidence. In fact, we can no longer see or change the true history, but I still maintain that in the face of eternal time, all history will continue to uncover the true past. History exists objectively, and no matter how historians and writers write it, history exists in its own way and cannot be changed."

"Um."

Emperor Chongzhen nodded, trying his best to control his emotions, but his whole body was still trembling slightly.

Zhu Ziming hadn't expected the other party to get so excited about a conspiracy theory about the Ming Dynasty. Zhu Ziming didn't understand, but he respected it.

Zhu Ziming poured him a cup of hot tea.

"Thanks."

Emperor Chongzhen thanked him and took a sip of the hot tea.

This was the first sip of tea Emperor Chongzhen had ever tasted here. Before this, he had never eaten or drunk anything from this place, but now, he did not hesitate at all.

After a long while, Chongzhen gradually calmed down and apologized to Zhu Ziming:

"Excuse me."

Zhu Ziming laughed and said, "It's alright, shall we continue?"

"Speak," Emperor Chongzhen said, his gaze intense.

Zhu Ziming nodded and said, "Alright, let's go back to Emperor Chongzhen now."