Jingtai: Making the Ming Dynasty Great Again

On the 19th day of the eighth month of the 14th year of the Zhengtong reign, inside the Zuoshun Gate of Beijing.

Zhu Qiyu stared blankly at the roll of yellow silk held in the hands of the eunuch beside him.

21 years ago, he inexplicably traveled through time and became a newborn child.

Later, he finally learned his true identity: Zhu Qiyu, the younger brother of Zhu Qizhen, the Great War God of the Ming Dynasty and a student from the Oirat Mongols.

From then on, Zhu Qiyu lived a low-key life of having many children and exercising diligently.

It wasn't until the night of August 17th, the fourteenth year of the Zhengtong reign, that news of Zhu Qizhen's capture at Tumu Fortress reached Beijing.

The next day, Empress Dowager Sun urgently summoned the civil and military officials in the capital and Zhu Qiyu to the Wenhua Hall.

At the meeting, Empress Dowager Sun and her ministers engaged in a heated discussion.

The court officials urgently needed a "great man" to take charge of the affairs of state, but Empress Dowager Sun insisted that imperial power should not fall into the wrong hands.

After several hours of quoting classical texts, both sides compromised and reached a consensus.

As all the ministers lined up, Jin Ying, the eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, unfurled a yellow silk ribbon and rang out in a sharp voice: "Ministers, listen to my decree."

Zhu Qiyu and his ministers all bowed and knelt in obeisance.

Jin Ying continued reading:

"Imperial Edict of the Empress Dowager".

Now the nation has suffered such a great calamity. The emperor personally led an expedition but was captured by the enemy. The imperial regalia is without a master, and the people are at a loss. My heart is filled with deep sorrow.

This matter is of great importance. After much deliberation and discussion with the civil and military officials, princes, and other members of the imperial family, we have concluded that at this critical juncture, we must first stabilize the foundation of the nation and temporarily take charge of state affairs in order to reassure the people both at home and abroad.

Prince Zhu Jianshen, the emperor's legitimate son, is naturally benevolent and filial, and should rightfully assume the position of Crown Prince to fulfill the hopes of the entire nation.

He is hereby established as the Crown Prince to solidify the foundation of the dynasty.

Prince Zhu Qiyu of Cheng, the emperor's younger brother, was wise, kind, and well-regarded.

He is hereby appointed to temporarily oversee all officials, command the army, and supervise the state. All government affairs shall be handled at the king's discretion. All civil and military officials shall wholeheartedly assist him and work together to overcome these difficult times.

The heavy responsibility of governing the state and its people is to be shared by me and the king.

This proclamation is hereby issued to the world, so that all may know.

"Your subject will respectfully obey Your Majesty's decree and will do everything in his power to secure the dynasty." Zhu Qiyu then rose and stood before the assembled officials.

"Your subject will respectfully obey Your Majesty's decree." After bowing to the imperial edict, the officials then faced Zhu Qiyu and knelt in worship.

Zhu Qiyu nodded slightly: "Please rise, my lords."

At Zhu Qiyu's signal, a eunuch nearby shouted loudly, "Attend court! Report what you need to report!"

The imperial court assembly, which had been suspended for several days, finally resumed.

An official dressed in blue stepped forward, bowed, and said:

"Your subject, Xu Cheng, lecturer of the Hanlin Academy, humbly submits this memorial to Your Highness!"

I observed the celestial phenomena last night and examined the calendar; I fear that the mandate of heaven may change and the fate of the nation may be jeopardized.

Now that the imperial carriage has fallen, the barbarian invaders are rampant, and their troops are heading straight for the capital.

Your humble servant, with tears in his eyes, believes that, for the sake of the ancestral temples, the state, and the people of the Central Plains, the imperial carriage should be temporarily moved to Nanjing, and efforts should be made to gradually restore order.

Zhu Qiyu looked at Xu Cheng with a cold smile; Xu Cheng was Xu Youzhen, one of the "Three Heroes of the Seizure of the Gate" in the eighth year of the Jingtai reign in official history.

At this time, Xu Cheng was only a fifth-rank lecturer in the Hanlin Academy, and in principle, he was not qualified to speak at this time.

Not to mention such treasonous words.

Before Zhu Qiyu could speak, the two eunuchs from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs beside him simultaneously shouted sternly, "How dare you!"

One of them was Jin Ying, who had just read out Empress Dowager Sun's imperial edict, and was now the head of the Directorate of Ceremonial.

The other person was named Xing'an.

Now that Zhu Qizhen is studying in the Oirat army camp, the country is in a state of emergency, and everything needs to be known by Empress Dowager Sun. The two of them are the messengers between the inner and outer courts.

Jin Ying stepped forward and said, "Now that the Emperor is on a northern expedition, the most urgent task is to discuss how to welcome him back."

What are your intentions in advocating for a southward relocation at this time?!

Zhu Qiyu glanced at Jin Ying and silently marked him as an outcast in his mind.

Jin Ying's meaning was clear: bringing Zhu Qizhen back was the top priority.

Another eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial, Xing'an, said, "The Oirat army is pressing in. The most urgent task is to discuss a strategy to repel the enemy and defend the capital. Anyone who suggests moving south to demoralize the army should be executed!"

The court was abuzz with discussion.

Zhu Qiyu raised his hand to stop the murmurs, then looked at Xu Cheng and asked, "Xu Shijiang, are your family members still in Beijing?"

Xu Cheng was stunned, not expecting Zhu Qiyu to suddenly ask this question. He blushed and couldn't even utter a complete sentence: "I...they...Your Highness..."

Zhu Qiyu smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, I was just asking casually."

Zhu Qiyu then turned to his ministers and asked, "What are your thoughts on Xu Shijiang's suggestion to move the capital south?"

A man dressed in a scarlet peacock-patterned court robe stepped forward and said sternly, "Anyone who speaks of moving south shall be executed."

The capital is the foundation of the nation; if it is moved, the entire situation will be lost. Have you not seen the example of the Southern Song Dynasty's relocation south?

Upon hearing this, Xu Cheng and others who advocated for the southward migration all trembled.

The speaker was Yu Qian, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War.

Jin Ying and Xing An belonged to the Directorate of Ceremonial, which were officials in the inner court.

Moreover, because of Wang Zhen, it's uncertain how many of the palace eunuchs will survive this incident.

So Xu Cheng ignored their reprimands and even wanted to argue back.

But it's different when Yu Qian says those words now.

Now that Minister of War Kuang Ye has died in Tumu, Yu Qian, the Left Vice Minister of War, is now the head of the Ministry of War and the future Minister of War.

His words could truly determine the life or death of Xu Cheng and others.

Upon hearing Yu Qian's words, Jin Ying immediately ordered the guards outside to drive Xu Cheng out.

"Wait," Zhu Qiyu said, his tone cold.

Before the regent himself could even speak, what right did this eunuch have to issue orders?!

Jin Ying then retreated in fear, realizing that he seemed to have overstepped his bounds.

Zhu Qiyu then looked at Yu Qian with excitement.

This is Yu Shaobao, who led the remaining troops to victory in the Battle of Beijing and saved the city from collapse.

Carved from the deep mountains by countless hammer blows, it faces the raging flames with indifference. It fears not being ground to powder or shattered body, for it desires to leave behind its purity in the world.

These are the lines of poetry that Zhu Qiyu had memorized in his previous life, and they are also a reflection of the life of the person before him.

However, in order to avoid suspicion, Zhu Qiyu almost never attended court assemblies and never had private relationships with these court officials.

So for more than a decade, he had never spoken to this idol.

Zhu Qiyu composed himself and slowly asked, "Does Vice Minister Yu have a good plan to repel the enemy?"

Seeing that Zhu Qiyu was no longer paying attention to him, Xu Cheng awkwardly retreated back into the queue.

The other ministers looked at Zhu Qiyu with strange eyes.

Zhu Qiyu directly asked Yu Qian for a strategy to repel the enemy, which was tantamount to rejecting the strategy of moving south and setting the tone for defending Beijing to the death.

Is this still the Prince of Cheng they remember?

Before Yu Qian could speak, another official stepped forward, bowed, and said loudly, "I, Jiang Yuan, a lecturer in the Hanlin Academy, second this opinion. What Vice Minister Yu said is a crucial plan for the nation. At this critical moment, we must resolutely defend the capital to the death and perish with it."

Zhu Qiyu remembered Jiang Yuan. Records show that Jiang Yuan strongly advocated the strategy of defending the capital to Zhu Qiyu, and his proposal was recognized and appreciated by Zhu Qiyu.

But what made Zhu Qiyu remember him was a strange anecdote that said he was the one who spearheaded the petition submitted by Huang Hong, the local prefect of Siming Prefecture, to change the crown prince.

Most importantly, he did not later join the cliques of the other civil officials.

Zhu Qiyu looked at Jiang Yuan, then at the others, and asked, "What are your opinions?"

All the ministers bowed and said, "We second that proposal."

Zhu Qiyu looked down with satisfaction, then turned to Yu Qian and continued, "Minister Yu, please explain in detail how to defend the capital."