Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 917: Deposed King
Fengyang, the central capital.

King Tang Zhu Youjian is now imprisoned here, but in fact he is no longer King Tang.

During the Jiyi Rebellion, Zhu Youjian was very worried in Nanyang because the Jiannu invaded the capital and the country was in danger. He believed that as a vassal king of the Ming Dynasty, he could not sit idly by and watch the change. For this reason, Zhu Youjian wrote to Emperor Chongzhen and asked him to go north to defend the king. But how could Emperor Chongzhen agree? He directly issued an imperial edict to reprimand him. However, Zhu Youjian did not obey the imperial edict after receiving it. Instead, he ordered a thousand guards of the palace to leave Nanyang City and personally led the army north.

After Zhu Di, the princes of the Ming Dynasty no longer had control over the military. For more than two hundred years, the princes had no military power other than the guards around them, and the court stipulated that the princes could not leave their fiefdoms without the imperial edict. Therefore, Zhu Youjian's behavior could be described as "treason". Governor Yang Shengwu failed to stop him and could only write to Emperor Chongzhen to inform him of the matter. Upon hearing the news, Emperor Chongzhen was furious and hurriedly sent the Jinyiwei with an order to let him return to Nanyang. Not long after Zhu Youjian went north, he encountered a group of bandits in Henan at that time. He led his army to fight the bandits several times and both sides won and lost. In addition, the order from Emperor Chongzhen to return was delivered, so Zhu Youjian had no choice but to return, and the matter of serving the king eventually came to nothing.

After Zhu Youjian returned to Nanyang, the governor Yang Shengwu, under the instruction of Emperor Chongzhen, monitored him and sent troops to disarm his guards. Not long after, Emperor Chongzhen directly issued an order to depose Zhu Youjian as a commoner on the grounds that he violated the ancestral system, and sent him to Fengyang for imprisonment, and instead conferred the title of Tang King on his brother Zhu Youlong.

Zhu Youjian was full of passion to do something for the country, but he didn't expect to end up like this. This made Zhu Youjian not only heartbroken, but also deeply resentful of Emperor Chongzhen. During the years of imprisonment in Fengyang, Zhu Youjian had a very bad life. As a prisoner, he could be said to be living a miserable life. In order to survive, Zhu Youjian took out the only money he had to bribe the eunuchs who were guarding him, but it didn't work. Instead, he was blackmailed many times and even abused and tortured.

After enduring for a few years, the situation in the Ming Dynasty suddenly changed. Zhu Shenzui emerged and started his rebellion in Shanxi. In just over a month, he reached the capital and raised the banner of clearing the court and pacifying the national crisis. After Zhu Shenzui defeated (robbing) the Ming army in Jingying and Baoding in the capital, the capital was directly captured by Zhu Shenzui again, and the Ming Dynasty changed forever.

Zhu Shenzhui entered Beijing to control the central government and suddenly became the regent of the Ming Dynasty. Emperor Chongzhen was under his control. Later, Zhu Shenzhui was promoted to a prince as an ordinary member of the royal family, then to a prince, and finally replaced the emperor and ascended the throne.

Although he was imprisoned in Fengyang and cut off from the outside world, it was impossible that Fengyang did not leak any information about such a major event. As time went by, the imprisoned Zhu Youjian also learned about the great changes in the world. When he heard a lot about Zhu Shenzhui and learned how he ascended to the throne, Zhu Youjian, who appeared calm on the surface, was actually in turmoil, and even wanted to clap his hands and cheer excitedly.

Zhu Youjian did not have the slightest favorable impression towards Emperor Chongzhen. In his opinion, Emperor Chongzhen was not a qualified emperor at all. It was not a blessing but a disaster for the country to have such an emperor. What Emperor Chongzhen had done since he ascended the throne was incomprehensible. The country was declining under his rule. The world was in chaos, with internal and external troubles. As a vassal king, Zhu Youjian had a deep understanding of this. If this continued, the foundation of the Ming Dynasty would probably be destroyed in the hands of Chongzhen.

Zhu Youjian was a rare sober person among the princes of the Ming Dynasty, and it was precisely because of his sobriety that he felt depressed. If he stayed in his fiefdom like other princes, eating, drinking and enjoying himself, and ignored political affairs, he would not have these troubles. However, Zhu Youjian clearly saw the many crises facing the Ming Dynasty and was deeply concerned about them. That is why he took a huge risk and disregarded the royal family system to lead the guard army northward.

Before doing this, Zhu Youjian had considered the consequences. He knew clearly that his guards of only a thousand men would not be of any use at all, and he had no confidence at all in changing the situation of the Ming Dynasty. He just wanted to remind Emperor Chongzhen in his own way, and thereby wake up the many princes of the Ming Dynasty, so that the Ming royal family would be alert to the danger facing the country, and everyone could wake up and change the current situation.

It was a pity that Zhu Youjian was too idealistic. He did not see any change until he was imprisoned behind high walls. Moreover, other members of the royal family thought that his actions were beyond their capabilities. Many people even laughed at Zhu Youjian for being too naive. It was ridiculous that a vassal king had the same ideals as a three-year-old child. He brought this upon himself.

But when he heard about Zhu Shencui, Zhu Youjian's cold heart suddenly warmed up again. He finally saw that an wise ruler had finally emerged from the Ming royal family, and Zhu Shencui was much stronger than him, Zhu Youjian. Zhu Youjian had only risked his life to remind the emperor and the royal family, but Zhu Shencui was different. This man was almost like the Yongle Emperor back then. He not only possessed a powerful army, but also directly captured the capital by force, and even held the emperor hostage to command the world. He went from being a royal family member to a prince regent, and then from a prince to a regent prince, and finally took the last step to ascend the throne of the emperor.

This is something that people have to admire very much. Zhu Youjian asked himself that he could not do Zhu Shenzhui's level at all. In any aspect, he was far inferior. Moreover, since Zhu Shenzhui became the regent, the bad situation of the Ming Dynasty has also been greatly improved. Even Zhu Youjian, who was in confinement, felt such changes. With the continuous arrival of many news from the outside, especially the Ming Dynasty defeated Huang Taiji in the Battle of the Great Wall and drove the foreign enemies back to Liaodong, and then gradually solved the problem of Ming Dynasty bandits, the various bandits that had swept the Ming Dynasty for many years were destroyed one by one, the internal troubles of the Ming Dynasty were eliminated, and the local chaos returned to stability. Everything was changing for the better.

Zhu Youjian was amazed at this in private for many times, and was happy that the Ming Dynasty had a wise ruler. At the same time, Zhu Youjian felt a little disappointed. Although the Ming Dynasty was different now, he was still a prisoner. What did all the changes in the Ming Dynasty have to do with him? He had been imprisoned in Fengyang for several years. Even if the throne was changed, it would be difficult for him to regain his freedom based on his previous actions.

Zhu Youjian knew this very well. Even though he felt that Zhu Shenzhui was of the same kind as himself, no emperor would tolerate his previous actions. He was afraid that he would be imprisoned until his death, but Zhu Youjian never regretted it, because he had thought about such consequences from the moment he led the guards to the north. Now that the Ming Dynasty had a chance to revive, it was enough.

As the world changed, Zhu Youjian's life in Fengyang was much better than before. Because the eunuchs who abused him were instructed by Emperor Chongzhen. Now that Emperor Chongzhen himself was in danger, how could the people below take care of continuing to carry out Emperor Chongzhen's orders? Moreover, after the change of master, it was not clear where these eunuchs would go. They were all uneasy, so how could they take care of Zhu Youjian?

In this way, Zhu Youjian spent a few days comfortably. After the eunuchs who stayed behind in Fengyang Zhongdu were replaced, Zhu Youjian's living conditions became much better. Although he was still confined within the high walls, his daily life was not a problem at all. Not only that, even his daily needs for reading could be met. Except for not being able to leave the yard where he lived, Zhu Youjian's life security here was still good. Moreover, without the targeting of others, his life also settled down. After two years, Zhu Youjian's complexion became rosy to the naked eye, and he also gained a lot of weight. On this day, Zhu Youjian was reading a book. He was reading the "New Book of Tang". Zhu Youjian had read most of the Twenty-Three Histories. When he was a vassal king, he did not have much time to study. But now he was imprisoned within high walls and had plenty of free time. As his living conditions gradually improved, Zhu Youjian picked up these books again to read them carefully. While studying, he especially enjoyed reading the "New Book of Tang". Every time he read it, he had different insights, which benefited him a lot.

"Prince, take a break. You've been watching for a long time. You need to move around." Just as he was watching intently, a familiar voice came. The person who spoke was Zhu Youjian's wife, Zeng.

Zeng was married to Zhu Youjian after he was conferred the title of King of Tang in the fifth year of Chongzhen. Zeng was well-educated and had strong opinions. Zhu Youjian and his wife had a very deep relationship and the couple supported each other. No matter he was the King of Tang or a prisoner now, Zeng had always followed him to this day.

Not long after Zhu Youjian was imprisoned, the eunuchs who were in charge of them at the order of Emperor Chongzhen treated him very badly. Although Zhu Youjian took out the gold and silver he carried with him as bribes, hoping that the other party would treat him well, these eunuchs were still not satisfied. Not only did they demand bribes many times, they also found reasons to torment Zhu Youjian, and even used the ancestral system of the clan to make him suffer. Zhu Youjian was tortured so much that he almost lost his life.

At that time, thanks to Zeng's meticulous care, and because Zhu Youjian was seriously ill and malnourished, Zeng even cut off her own thigh to feed him, which helped Zhu Youjian recover his health.

Zhu Youjian not only loved and respected his wife, but he also felt deeply guilty because because of him, Zeng, who could have lived a life of wealth and glory, had to live a miserable life behind high walls with him. Zhu Youjian felt even worse when he saw that Zeng, who was only 28 years old, had gray hair on her forehead.

"I'll listen to you." Zhu Youjian nodded with a smile and put down the book he had not finished reading.

He stood up with Zeng's help, and the two of them walked slowly in the small yard, snuggling together.

The place where they were confined was just a small courtyard, which was only a dozen steps in radius. Walking in circles in such a small courtyard was the only way for them to exercise. Every day, Zhu Youjian would walk like this with Zeng for about half an hour at her request.

"The weather will get cold in a few days. I have been sewing new clothes for the prince these days, and he can wear them when the time comes." Zeng said with a smile.

"New clothes? The clothes we brought in before can still be worn, and where can we get cloth in this place?" Zhu Youjian shook his head slightly.

"Your Highness, you have forgotten that the last time Lord Zhang came to Zhongdu to offer sacrifices and visit Your Highness, he gave us two pieces of good cloth and some cotton. This time, it's just right to make new clothes for Your Highness." Zeng reminded.

Zhu Youjian just remembered this, raised his hand and stroked his forehead, self-deprecatingly said: "I forgot about this, luckily you remembered it, if you want to do it, then do it, but you should be more frugal when making clothes for me, one piece is enough, but you have to make two sets for yourself, you see your clothes are almost worn out."

"Isn't it wearable? I'm a woman and can wear anything, but it's different for Your Highness. You're a prince of the Ming Dynasty and you have to look respectable at least." Zeng said with a smile. She had worn this dress for several years and had been washed so many times that the original gorgeous colors had faded and some places were torn. Zeng had a deft hand and had carefully mended the clothes, so although it was not easy to notice, it was still visible if you looked closely.

Looking at Zeng, Zhu Youjian felt very upset. He felt that he was very sorry for his wife, for letting her suffer so much with him. Holding his wife's hand, Zhu Youjian had countless things to say, but in the end, he only said, "You have been following me for so many years, and it has been really hard for you..."

(End of this chapter)