Ming Dynasty: Traveling through the harem, Zhu Yuanzhang was dumbfounded

Chapter 129 You work as a laborer to serve the people
"A Biao, shouldn't you be busy handling your own affairs in the palace at this time of day?

How come you still have time to come visit me?"

After explaining the fertilizer matter to Tao Chengdao, Yang Chen invited Zhu Biao to a garden pond.

He is usually the only one in this place, and few people can enter.

The last time Zhu Biao came here was also Zhu Biao.

After the servants placed all kinds of fruits and tea on the table, they left, leaving only Yang Chen and Zhu Biao.

Facing such ridicule, Zhu Biao just laughed dumbly and said:

"I have already dealt with everything that needed to be dealt with in the palace. I came to you today mainly for two things."

"Two things? If you, the prince, can come out for a walk, it must be something very important. Why not just tell me directly?"

The two spoke very directly, with almost no suspicion.

Soon Zhu Biao told Yang Chen what he wanted to say.

After understanding the cause and effect, Yang Chen couldn't help but laugh:

"Hahaha, I didn't expect that Your Majesty is so curious about my knowledge of the secret method of changing the world."

Zhu Biao sighed softly and asked:

"Brother Yang, I have a question. Is it convenient for you?"

"Hey! Ah Biao, you're too polite. If you have anything to say, just say it directly. Why are you being so polite to me?"

Zhu Biao was stunned and smiled:
"That's true, I'm old.

In fact, I don't understand why there are "dynasties" in later generations. Maybe it's not appropriate to say dynasty, but in my opinion, as long as there is a country name, there is a dynasty. I think I am right, right?"

"It's exactly as you said."

Based on his own understanding, he found that the saying "there is nothing new under the sun" is still gaining more and more value.

This is the only thing that confuses Zhu Biao.

You must know that the secret method of changing the world can overthrow the existence of a dynasty.

Zhu Biao found it hard to imagine that someone would be willing to pass on these secret techniques.

Yang Chen was silent for a while, and a sense of sadness wafted from his body.

Sensing that the atmosphere was not right, Zhu Biao wanted to change the subject.

This was the first time he saw Yang Chen like this.

"It's nothing, I just thought of some people."

After waving his hands to show that he was fine, he continued:
“In fact, many people like me, if they don’t deliberately try to understand, don’t even know that the knowledge they have come into contact with is actually the secret method to change the world.

A Biao, you should know that in later generations there is no class tradition like the one that existed in the Central Plains for thousands of years.

People do not need to kneel and kowtow when they see someone in a high position of power."

"Of course I know that."

Zhu Biao said with a heavy heart.

He wanted to change the world, but in the end he only had a vague understanding of the ideal world that Yang Chen talked about.

As a person in power, he knew very well how difficult it was to realize the world that Yang Chen described.

That is why he wanted to know why the secret method of changing the world could still be passed down to ordinary people in a world where people were in power in later generations.

Yang Chen looked at the bird standing on a branch in the distance and combing its feathers with its beak.

“However, in reality, this situation can only shorten the distance between the two, and it is difficult to completely eliminate it.

Including the world a hundred years from now."

Hearing this, Zhu Biao was confused and asked:

"Why? You didn't say that before. I vaguely remember you saying that in later times, it was not like today where ordinary people had to kneel down and bow their heads when they saw a high official."

Yang Chen laughed and said:

"On the surface, it is true, but some people say that doing manual labor is the same as being an official. What do you think, Ah Biao?"

Zhu Biao responded without even thinking:

"I would say that's nonsense."

Yang Chen nodded.

"Yeah, how could the two be confused?
It is unreasonable to force unequal things to be equal.

Ah Biao, if all the people in the world were like this coolie, would there still be hope for this dynasty? "

"no!"

Zhu Biao answered without hesitation.

"If the people are ignorant, the country will be in danger. If the people of the entire dynasty choose to blindly believe the words of the superiors, then this dynasty will be over.

It is just like in the late Yuan Dynasty, when so many Han people believed in the young emperor of the Northern Yuan Dynasty. As a result, they have now fled to the northern grasslands to live, far away from their homeland, and live a life similar to that of the Huns.

But what does this have to do with the question I asked you?"

Yang Chen did not answer immediately, but faced the sun. It was already afternoon and it was almost September. As the days were getting closer to the autumnal equinox, the weather was not so hot.

However, because it is close to the north, Nanjing City is still a little cool. Feeling the warmth brought by the afterglow, Yang Chen said lightly:

“Because many people know that no matter how the world develops in the future.

Whether it is through civil or military means, he can lead the people below to resist and criticize the superiors who oppress them."

Hearing this, Zhu Biao hesitated. If the people below wanted to rebel against the rule of his Zhu family one day, then wouldn't it be...
There is no doubt that a massacre is inevitable.

Yang Chen glanced at Zhu Biao, guessed what he was thinking, and said directly:

"Is the Crown Prince worried that this will cause instability in the Ming Dynasty?"

The other party didn't say anything, but just nodded as a sign of agreement.

“In fact, the prince does not need to worry about such a thing happening. The people actually ask for very simple things, that is, the fruits of their labor can be displayed.

For example, a child goes to school, but he is not good at studying, so he has to do hard labor. In the process of doing hard labor, he can earn everything he needs for his wife, son, and parents. In the process of doing hard labor, he can also be guaranteed everything in case of an accident.

If he encountered a shopkeeper who maliciously exploited him and did not treat him as a human being, as long as he reported the matter to the government, the government would immediately take him to deal with the malicious shopkeeper.

Do you think he is willing to betray his own court?"

"will not."

As the credibility of the dynasty declines, when people mention the word "imperial court", what they think of is not happiness but disgust. The demise of this dynasty is only a matter of time.

"So, a big part of the reason is that there are people who are willing to keep these things going.

It would be best if we could get to a point where even the children at the village gate could speak a few words.

By that time, it will mean that the people will have the ability to refute and identify those evildoers who use the imperial court as a mask to commit crimes among them. "

Zhu Biao narrowed his eyes slightly and said slowly: "So that's how it is. The secret method to change the world is not to kill all dragons, but to kill the dragons that hurt the people in the name of real dragons!"

At any time, in a large group of people, there is always a need for a "leader", and this leader must be able to enable the crowd to live a good life.

If one day, the leader goes against his original intention and not only fails to let the people live a good life, but instead desperately exploits the people, then another leader will be needed to stand up and kill the person who endangers the people.

This is an eternal truth.

Similar things have happened over and over again throughout the dynasties.

Originally, Zhu Biao was worried that if Yang Chen’s remarks spread among the people, it would endanger the leading position of the Zhu family.

But now it seems that he is confident that this will not happen.

As long as you firmly safeguard the interests of the majority.

The Ming Dynasty will be stable and prosperous, the politics will be clear and the people will live a hopeful life, which will bring family harmony and stable imperial power!
What he has to do is for the good of the world. As long as he is not a tyrant who is arrogant, extravagant and licentious, then what reason does he have to worry that the Ming Dynasty will perish at the hands of the people in the future?

To put it bluntly, if you don't do anything wrong, you don't have to worry about ghosts knocking on your door. Ever since he became the crown prince, Zhu Biao's ambition has always been clear, which is to become a good emperor that the people will remember.

If she knew that the Ming Dynasty fell because a certain emperor ruined the Zhu family's fortune, he would only sigh for a moment, and then wish that the next person to rule the Central Plains would be a benevolent monarch.

The reason is simple. He has witnessed how human nature is destroyed in times of war.

Among all Zhu's children, he was the only one who still remembered what happened to him and Empress Ma after they got lost from the large group.

In order to survive, he lost the face of being the son of the Marshal, was pressed into a mud pit by Empress Ma, and dressed up as a beggar fleeing.

Then he traveled hundreds of miles from the rear to find his father's base camp.

He promised that he would never forget this memory, which was why he asked his subordinates to give Zhu Xiongying steamed buns made of oats, which were eaten by the common people, mixed with some bran and bark powder, when he took Zhu Xiongying out.

He just wanted to let his son know that the people still had a hard life and that he should never become arrogant just because he was the crown prince.

"That's pretty much what it means. The one who is recognized by the common people is the real dragon, while the one who is opposed by most people or even the whole world is the real dragon.

Even if he appears to be a real dragon, who knows what he is actually, maybe a snake, or a fake dragon."

Yang Chen thought for a while and said.

Zhu Biao's novel angle was indeed something he had never seen before, but it was not a big problem, and it was true.

"If Your Majesty wants to learn the secret method of changing the world, then I will not be stingy. On the contrary, I have long hoped to tell you this method."

Yang Chen expected that Lao Zhu would be interested in taking high school courses.

"Oh? Brother Yang, why do you want to tell us this method? Why haven't I seen you have this idea before?"

Hearing this, Zhu Biao was obviously a little surprised.

If the other party didn't say these things, in a few decades, these things would probably be buried deep underground as Yang Chen grew older.

Unexpectedly, Yang Chen wanted to pass down this knowledge, which surprised Zhu Biao.

Just one or two sentences of this knowledge could overturn everything the Confucian scholars had learned throughout their lives. If a slightly smarter person delved deeper into it, he or she might be able to become a think tank comparable to Zhuge Liang in this chaotic world.

Yang Chen rolled his eyes and said with a frank smile:

"Why? Actually, it's very simple. I just hope you won't dwell on the past and worry about the future.

As the saying goes, 'What has happened will happen again, what has been done will be done again.' If I do something that causes a huge change among the people, your father will surely worry too much, then regret it, and finally take me with him before he dies.

It is even possible to erase all traces of my existence at all costs.

So I want to tell him that what is going to happen will happen, but my appearance will only bring these things forward.

But are these things necessarily bad things?
I have been your son's teacher for a long time. During this process, I have taught him a lot. In him, I see a vibrant future for the Ming Dynasty.

The Ming Dynasty will eventually fall into the hands of ambitious young people like Zhu Xiongying. It will not decline with the old age of your father, but will only become stronger and stronger with the inheritance.

Strong enough to be the only one in this world.

To do all this, you all need to understand one thing.”

“The tide of history will not stop moving forward because of human orders.”

In an instant, Zhu Biao felt a surge of excitement in his heart.

After a while, he asked curiously:

"It seems that I am more and more curious about the appeal of this secret method of changing the world in the future. I hope Brother Yang can teach me everything he knows tomorrow."

"It's probably difficult to teach you everything I know. Don't get me wrong, I'm not hiding my incompetence from you, but there's too much content here, and it's totally fine for me to reveal a little, but it's impossible to teach you everything, so I'm telling you this."

Worried that the other party might misunderstand him, Yang Chen opened his mouth to explain clearly.

The two of them continued to discuss in depth the secret method of changing the world, and finally Zhu Biao asked the other party to go back and do his homework well.

Then he would personally await his arrival at the palace gates.

"Besides that, there's Hu Weiyong. You said before that you were sure you could solve the two problems he mentioned. I wonder how sure you are?"

At the beginning, Zhu Biao explained to him the matter of Hu Weiyong.

Yang Chen was silent for a moment before he raised his head and smiled confidently:
“Whether it was the spread of the performance appraisal system that led to the lack of supervisors in the Ming Dynasty, or the unexpected events that occurred during the land survey, I can understand that the Ming Dynasty lacked many upright eyes and ears of the central government.

To be more precise, it should be your Majesty’s own eyes and ears.”

Since ancient times, it is not that there were no emperors who wanted to do practical things, but that the emperor's orders were passed down and changed as they were passed down.

In the end, it was not the emperor who governed the world, but the scholar-officials. No matter what the emperor ordered, the officials could not leave the palace.

The imperial edicts that the people heard were most likely the result of tampering by the literati.

Whether it is a benevolent government or a tyrannical government, it all depends on their writing skills.

Fortunately, Zhu Yuanzhang was very good at playing tricks, which made his subordinates less daring. However, many people thought that they could not be found guilty and took the risk to do it.

Zhu Biao had already sent people to investigate what Hu Weiyong had told him. Eight percent of it was true and two percent was false.

He had to admire Hu Weiyong for his courage to think and act.

"Since we are lacking eyes and ears, what should Brother Yang see?"

Yang Chen paused, touched his chin and asked:
"How many of your subordinates, including the spies Your Majesty mentioned, can read and write?"

Zhu Biao didn't understand, but he still recalled it and then replied:

"There aren't many people. Maybe only two or three out of ten can write and read."

"There are so few people who can make it this far, so there must be even fewer people who can make it."

"So, Brother Yang, what is your solution?"

Zhu Biao felt that the other party must have come up with some solution, otherwise he would not have said that. However, Yang Chen smiled slightly and said:
"How about this, you go back first, and I will personally explain this method to you and His Majesty. I will tell you all at once tomorrow, so that you will have nothing to worry about."

Seeing the other party's confident look, Zhu Biao understood. He was really curious about this.

"Okay, in that case, I will wait at the gate of the palace tomorrow and await your good news."

After saying that, Zhu Biao stood up and left.

(End of this chapter)