Ming Dynasty: Charge, Emperor Yongle!

Chapter 95 The Wise Empress of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang: Your father is still your father!

"Old man."

"This matter cannot be left unresolved."

Zhu Di's eyes narrowed, and an invisible killing intent spread out, making the atmosphere in Fengtian Hall suddenly turn cold.

"call!!!

Zhu Yuanzhang felt the oppressive atmosphere surrounding Zhu Di and was horrified by his extreme ruthlessness.

"What do you want to do?"

"Kill them all?"

"No!"

Before Zhu Di could reply, Zhu Biao rushed in from outside the hall, interrupting him, "Father, you must not commit such indiscriminate killing!"

"Jupachi."

Empress Ma, supported by her maids, entered the Fengtian Hall.

"daughter."

Zhu Di immediately straightened his attitude, his eyes filled with filial piety.

"Wife, what brings you here?"

Upon seeing Empress Ma arrive, Zhu Yuanzhang quickly dismissed the eunuchs in the hall: "All of you, leave. No one is allowed to enter without my permission."

"Yes."

All the eunuchs and palace servants left Fengtian Hall, leaving only Zhu Yuanzhang, Empress Ma, Zhu Biao, Zhu Di and their family.

A hint of worry appeared on Empress Ma's dignified face as she softly said, "Chongba."

"Zhu Liangzu certainly deserved to die, and Tang Shengzong, Lu Zhongheng, and Zhou Dexing also deserved to die for their treason."

"But Hua Yunlong and Gu Shi surrendered without resistance, so their entire families should not be executed."

"These are all your old brothers who fought alongside you to conquer the world. If you do this, what will the world think of you?"

"Not only Feng Sheng, Fu Youde, and Geng Bingwen, but I'm afraid Tiande (Xu Da), Deng Yu, and Bao'er (Li Wenzhong) would also disagree with doing this."

"Father, Mother is absolutely right."

Zhu Biao glared at Zhu Di fiercely. If Zhu Di hadn't acted first and reported later, the matter wouldn't have come to this point.

"Big brother!"

Zhu Di touched the bridge of his nose, somewhat bored.

"Fourth brother."

"You're the person involved, what do you suggest we do?"

Seeing that his wife and eldest son were against it, Zhu Yuanzhang simply passed the buck to Zhu Di.

"You old man!"

Zhu Di's eyes widened, and he helplessly met the gazes of Empress Ma and Zhu Biao, saying gently, "Mother, elder brother."

"This matter concerns the dignity of the royal family. Zhu Liangzu, Tang Shengzong, Lu Zhongheng, and Zhou Dexing are plotting a rebellion and must be severely punished as a warning to others."

"The heads of the four men were hung on the Fengtian Gate, so that all civil and military officials could see clearly the consequences of not being able to defy the majesty of the emperor."

"The Yongjia Marquis's family was exterminated along with three clans; the Yan'an Marquis's family, the Ji'an Marquis's family, and the Jiangxia Marquis's family were all executed."

"Marquis Hua Yunlong of Huai'an and Marquis Gu Shi of Jining assassinated a prince; their crimes are unforgivable and they shall be executed immediately!"

"The entire family of the Marquis of Huai'an and the Marquis of Jining were exiled to Qiongzhou and demoted to commoners."

"Fourth brother!"

Zhu Biao wanted to say something more, but Zhu Yuanzhang stopped him, saying, "Just do as the fourth prince says."

"Fourth son, tell your mother, did you arrange this today?"

Empress Ma gazed with kind eyes at Zhu Di, who stood tall and straight.

"daughter."

Zhu Di made no attempt to conceal anything and stated frankly: "The feud between my son and Zhu Liangzu began in the first month of the lunar calendar."

"Zhu Liangzu's second son died at my hands. If I hadn't killed him, what face would the Duke of Wei's mansion and the imperial family have left?"

"His father exiled him to Lingnan, which was originally intended to give him a way to survive."

"But he took advantage of his association with Hu Weiyong, a close associate of the Communist Party, to return to the capital before his son and stir up trouble."

"My son's trip to Kaifeng was to see what kind of mess the Huaixi nobles had made of Henan and Jiangbei."

"You won't believe it until you see it; it's shocking how Fengyang Prefecture has been brought to the wrath of both heaven and man."

"Zhu Liangzu is a fool. He was used as a pawn and someone wanted to kill him to silence him."

""

"Behind this stands a group of nobles from Huaixi, including Feng Sheng, Fu Youde, and Geng Bingwen... none of them can escape."

"Taking advantage of the opportunity to eliminate the six marquises, Father can take back the imperial edicts and certificates in the hands of the nobles of Huaixi, and strip them of the foundation for their lawlessness. If they still do not know their own mortality and continue to prey on the people and oppress the good, even Heaven will punish them."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Fengtian Hall fell silent.

Empress Ma looked at this son who was both strange and familiar, and remained silent for a long while before speaking: "Fourth Prince, you've grown up."

"You've thoroughly mastered your father's tricks: 'Your salary and emoluments are the people's blood and sweat; the common people are easy to oppress, but Heaven is hard to deceive.'"

"daughter."

Zhu Di was moved and wanted to explain.

"You are the Prince of Yan, and in the future you will be enfeoffed in Beiping and govern this region."

"Mother knows you did the right thing. Just follow the path you want to take, walk a broad road to success, and have no regrets."

"Do you understand?"

Empress Ma did not reprimand Zhu Di at all; instead, she kindly gave him some instructions.

"it is good."

Zhu Di was filled with gratitude and nodded solemnly.

"Chongba, you and your son want to discuss important military and national affairs."

"I, a woman, will not interfere here. I will have the fourth prince dine at Kunning Palace tonight."

As Empress Ma spoke, she walked straight out of the Fengtian Hall.

Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao, and Zhu Di, father and sons, watched her departing figure, each with their own unique feelings.

"Boss."

"The fourth brother acted rather rashly."

"However, this reckless action opened up a new path for us to reorganize the army and the government."

"Since we're all here, let's discuss the fundamental strategies of our dynasty and the ranks of officials."

Zhu Yuanzhang changed the subject and got straight to the point.

"Yes."

Zhu Biao stopped pressing the matter and responded.

"Fourth brother."

Zhu Yuanzhang turned his gaze to Zhu Di: "What are your thoughts?"

"Old man, you really are taking advantage of me."

Zhu Di rolled his eyes. They were treating him like a laborer, leaving him with everything.

"Fourth brother, your father and I are both in the capital and have never been familiar with the local customs and traditions of other places."

"You traveled north from Yingtian Prefecture, through Henan, Jiangbei, Hebei, Shanxi, and then to the northern desert, and then through Beiting, Hexi..."

Back from Shaanxi.

"The provincial system and the new military system were both proposed by you."

"The saying goes, 'Don't bother two masters with one matter.' Taking advantage of this opportunity to suppress the nobles, we can get it done in one go."

Zhu Biao stared intently at Zhu Di, clearly harboring the same ambition as Zhu Yuanzhang.

"Dada dada!"

Zhu Di quickly gestured, "I'll talk, I'll talk, okay?"

He originally wanted to change the course of the Ming Dynasty according to his own ideas, create a more glorious country, and open up a new world for China. Now that Zhu Yuanzhang and his son Zhu Biao have handed the opportunity to him, he is overjoyed.

"Someone, bring me the map."

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand, and the eunuchs waiting outside the hall immediately spread a newly drawn map of the entire Ming Dynasty on the ground, clearly marking the two capitals, sixteen provinces, and twenty-five prefectures on the map.

Furthermore, Liaodong, Goryeo, Fusang, Ü-Tsang, Dokham, Guge, Mongol Yuan-Er-Stan, Yarkand, Yunnan,

Annam and other countries are also listed on it.

"Big brother, old man."

Zhu Di stood in front of the map and said seriously, "First solve the official system, then solve the military system."

"The Ming Dynasty implemented a system of nine ranks and eighteen grades."

"The Secretariat is the highest administrative center, with the Left and Right Chancellors both holding the first rank, and the Left and Right Vice Chancellors holding the second rank."

"The six ministers are all of the second rank, so the governor who is in charge of the administration of a province should be of the second rank."

"The provincial judicial commissioner, provincial surveillance commissioner, provincial administration commissioner, and provincial education commissioner are all of the third rank."

"For the Censorate to play its supervisory role, the Chief Censor should be of the second rank, the Left and Right Deputy Chief Censors should be of the second rank, and the Left and Right Assistant Chief Censors should be of the third rank, corresponding to the positions of Vice Minister of the Six Ministries and Minister of the Court of Judicial Review."

"A military commander who holds the power of a province should be a third-rank official."

"OK!!!"

Zhu Yuanzhang immediately applauded this arrangement, as it created a system of checks and balances between the central government and local authorities.

I see!"

Zhu Biao also understood Zhu Di's meaning.

The Ministers of the Six Ministries were of the second rank, while the Governor was of the second rank.

Although the governor was nominated by the Ministry of Personnel, just as the brigade commander was nominated by the Ministry of War, the two were not subordinate to each other.

To be precise, only the Central Secretariat could directly exert a clear superior-subordinate relationship of control over the provincial governor and military commander, but it was clearly impossible for any power to be delegated.

The provincial judicial commissioners, provincial administration commissioners, provincial education commissioners, and provincial construction commissioners were directly under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice, the Censorate, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of Works. They were responsible for reporting their work to the governor, but were not under the direct jurisdiction of the governor.

This ensures that local areas retain a high degree of autonomy, which is very important.

"Next, let's talk about the differences between a prefecture and a directly governed state."

Zhu Di went on to explain: "Prefectures were under the jurisdiction of provinces, and the system of prefectures and counties existed since the Qin and Han dynasties, forming a clear two-tiered system of governance."

"A high-ranking official in a prefecture is called a prefect, who is of the fourth rank, while the prefectural commandant is of the fifth rank."

"A high-ranking official in a prefecture is called the prefect, who is of the fourth rank. The commander of the guards is also of the fourth rank and is independent of the prefect's office."

"The prefects and commanders of the garrisons of the twenty-five directly governed prefectures were recommended by the Secretariat and the Grand Military Commission, and the emperor made direct approvals."

"In the future, local governors and military commanders will be selected from these prefects and garrison commanders."

"These frontier regions should become models of governance for our Great Ming Dynasty, and also incubators for cultivating capable officials and generals."

""

"it is good."

Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao both agreed.

A fine sword is forged through tempering, and the fragrance of plum blossoms comes from bitter cold. If they are unwilling to serve as officials or generals in the harsh and cold frontier, how can they be worthy of becoming high-ranking officials in the Ming Dynasty? If they can achieve results on the frontier and make great contributions to the country, their promotion is only a matter of course.

"The county magistrate is a seventh-rank official, the county assistant magistrate is an eighth-rank official, the county lieutenant is a seventh-rank official, and the patrol inspector is an eighth-rank official."

"Not only on land, but also at river passes and islands at sea, patrol stations can be set up. For example, the Penghu Islands off the coast of Fujian can be set up with the Penghu Patrol Station, the Nan'ao Island off the coast of Guangdong can be set up with the Nan'ao Patrol Station, and the Chongming Island at the mouth of the Yangtze River can be set up with the Chongming Patrol Station to patrol against illegal activities and apprehend smugglers."

Zhu Di put forward a groundbreaking suggestion: to make combating overseas smuggling a priority for the Ming Dynasty.

As early as the third year of Hongwu (1370), Zhu Yuanzhang abolished the Maritime Trade Office and implemented a strict maritime ban policy in order to curb the incursions of bandits along the southeast coast.

For a long time, wealthy merchants along the coast have been engaged in private maritime trade, smuggling goods to countries such as Japan. This practice has been repeatedly prohibited but never stopped. The purpose of establishing the patrol and inspection office was to confiscate the fleets of these wealthy merchants in preparation for the opening of the seas later.

"Um.

"6

Zhu Yuanzhang highly approved of this, believing that the maritime ban was the most important part of the Ming Dynasty's solution to external threats.

"Fourth brother."

"You haven't told the military yet?"

Crown Prince Zhu Biao listened with great interest and couldn't help but urge him on.

"Brother, please calm down."

Zhu Di rolled his eyes; he'd never seen Zhu Biao so impatient before.

If we're not mistaken...

"You don't intend to make any major changes to the Grand Commandery, just make adjustments to the existing structure."

"The Grand General's Office is the highest military and political center of our Great Ming Dynasty. The Grand General is a first-rank official, the Five Military Commanders are second-rank officials, and the Grand Protector should be a second-rank official."

"The military ranks of general are of the third rank, the rank of lieutenant general is of the third rank, the rank of guard general is of the fourth rank, and the rank of colonel is of the fifth rank."

"A military commander is a sixth-rank official, a dubo is a seventh-rank official, a tunzhang is an eighth-rank official, a shizhang is a seventh-rank official, and a wuzhang is a ninth-rank official."

"The border troops, imperial guards, and local troops will continue to use the garrison system."

"The Commander of the Guard is of the fourth rank, the Deputy Commander is of the fourth rank, the Assistant Commander is of the fifth rank, the Garrison Commander is of the fifth rank, the Commander of a Thousand Households is of the sixth rank, the Deputy Commander of a Thousand Households is of the sixth rank, the Commander of a Hundred Households is of the seventh rank, the Probationary Commander of a Hundred Households is of the seventh rank, the General Banner Commander is of the eighth rank, and the Junior Banner Commander is of the ninth rank."

Zhu Yuanzhang thought for a moment and then blurted it out.

"Indeed!"

Zhu Di was quite surprised that his cheap father was so quick-witted, but then he thought, after all, he was the Hongwu Emperor. If he didn't even understand these things, then he would be too incompetent.

"father."

"The selection of the commander of the Twelve Guards of the Imperial Guard."

Zhu Biao suddenly mentioned it.

"Boss, what do you want to say? Don't beat around the bush."

"We're your father, your father-in-law, what's there to be ashamed of?"

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned and shouted.

His eldest son was good in every way, except that he was too rule-abiding, unlike Zhu Di who was unrestrained and fearless.

I don't know whether it was right or wrong to let him learn Confucianism from Song Lian and others when he was young.

"Yes, Father."

Zhu Biao's heart skipped a beat, and he said solemnly, "The Imperial Guards are in charge of the inner palace, and only trusted confidants can be appointed."

"My son wants to recommend Sheng Yong as the commander of the flag bearers, Geng Tianbi as the commander of the vanguard of the government army, He Wenhui as the commander of the rearguard of the government army, Ping An as the commander of the central guard of the government army, and Xu Sima as the commander of the auxiliary guard of the government army."

"You've come to the same conclusion as the fourth prince. He just told me that he's going to let Geng Tianbi lead the vanguard of the imperial guards."

Zhu Yuanzhang's expression softened considerably, revealing a cunning, old-farmer-like slyness.

Besides Sheng Yong, who was a trusted general of the Crown Prince, the other four were Zhu Yuanzhang's adopted sons, and Geng Tianbi was also regarded as a nephew by him. With them leading the Five Imperial Guards, he could at least ensure that he would be safe and secure.

"Fourth brother!"

Zhu Biao couldn't help but look at Zhu Di, not expecting him to recommend Geng Tianbi.

Zhu Di smiled but didn't say much. Zhu Biao could arrange the selection of the Twelve Guards of the Imperial Guard because he was Zhu Yuanzhang's successor. But if he were to speak up, Zhu Yuanzhang might still be wary of his fourth son.

"Let Guo Ying and Hua Wei be the commanders of the Jinwu Left and Right Guards, Yun Gong and Jiu Jiang be the commanders of the Yulin Left and Right Guards, and Deng Ming and Chang Sheng be the commanders of the Huben Left and Right Guards."

After careful consideration, Zhu Yuanzhang named several people and appointed the remaining commanders of the Imperial Guards.

Guo Ying began fighting alongside Zhu Yuanzhang at the age of eighteen. His elder brother, Guo Xing, was enfeoffed as the Marquis of Gongchang in the third year of the Hongwu reign, with a stipend of 1,500 shi (a unit of dry measure).

Hua Wei is Hua Yun's son, and he is only twelve years old this year. Xu Yungong and Li Jinglong are the eldest sons of Xu Da, Duke of Wei, and Li Wenzhong, Duke of Cao. Deng Ming is the second son of Deng Yu, Duke of Wei. Chang Sheng is the second son of Chang Yuchun, Prince of Kaiping. These are all soldiers from the local fold.

"Yes."

Zhu Biao and Zhu Di naturally had no objection to this; Zhu Yuanzhang's move was both an act of kindness and the safest decision.