Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 115 Li Jinglong's death! Fang Xiaoru is actually a traitor?

At the command, the guards who had been prepared at the side immediately stepped forward and captured Li Jinglong.

The faces of many people in the field changed drastically.

Li Jinglong was the Duke of Cao and was also known as a "scholar-general".

He was handsome, and his manners were polite, which was very different from many military commanders who acted in a rude manner.

Because of this, he was very popular in the court.

Seeing that he was in trouble, many officials who had come to watch the ceremony suddenly became eager to come out and plead for him.

They communicated with each other with their eye contact, and Zhu Yunhuan saw the whole scene.

Finally, an official stepped forward.

"Your Highness, Prince Wu, Duke Cao is of noble status. Even if he is at fault, he should be tried by the three judicial officials and handed over to the court for public discussion before he can be convicted."

"How could Your Highness kill him so rashly?"

Zhu Yunxun asked slowly, "Are you trying to say that what I did was wrong?"

"Duke Cao openly questioned my qualification to be the master of all the military commanders in the world. Do you think he is right?"

The official bowed and said, "Your Highness, Duke Cao..."

"Answer my question. Do you think he is right or wrong?" Zhu Yunhuan interrupted him.

The official's face changed slightly. After a few breaths, he finally mustered up the courage to say, "I think what Duke Cao said makes sense."

"Your Highness cannot be the teacher of all the military commanders in the world."

"Okay!" Zhu Yunhuan waved his hand: "Then you can go on the road with Duke Cao."

When the guards heard this, they immediately held down the official as well.

Before anyone else could speak, Zhu Yunhuan glanced coldly at the crowd below and said, "If anyone wants to plead for Duke Cao, you can stand up now."

"Today is the opening day of the Daming Military Academy, so I'll kill a few people to sacrifice to the flag."

The scene fell silent for a moment.

Huang Zicheng, Fang Xiaoru, Qi Tai and the other three all glared at him angrily, but did not dare to say a word.

Even when Zhu Yunhuan's gaze swept over them, the three of them quickly suppressed the anger in their eyes, looked at their noses with their eyes and their hearts with their noses, not daring to move at all.

Even if they are not afraid of death, they cannot rush to give themselves up!

Li Jinglong finally panicked and shouted, "I am the Duke of Ming, the son of Prince Qiyang. What qualifications do you have to kill me?"

"Your Majesty has granted you a precious sword, but you are only allowed to kill officials below the third rank."

"For those above the third rank, they can only be detained first and then convicted."

Zhu Yunhuan smiled slightly and said, "You probably forgot that Grandfather the Emperor also ordered me to be the regent. All matters of the court, big or small, are decided by me."

"How you, as a duke, should handle this is naturally included in this."

"Take it down and chop it off."

Dai Wei grabbed Li Jinglong and dragged him down.

"You...you...if you dare to kill me, His Majesty will not let you go!"

"I want to see His Majesty!"

"You can't kill me, I want to see His Majesty!"

……

Li Jinglong was finally frightened and started screaming loudly.

He still fantasized about meeting the Emperor, but he didn't know that Zhu had already sent someone to convey the decree to Zhu Yunhuan, instructing him to handle the matter on his own.

In fact, it was a death sentence for him.

Soon, the sound stopped.

After a while, two guards brought up two bloody heads on plates.

Zhu Yunxun took a glance and waved his hand, saying, "Hang the head on the flagpole of the academy."

"Tell the people outside that the Daming Military Academy is an important place in the country. Anyone who attacks the academy without reason and disrupts the order of the academy will be killed like them."

The guards took the order and left.

Everyone in the field fell silent in an instant, and no one dared to say a word.

Huang Zicheng had signaled to Zhu Yunwen several times, hoping that Zhu Yunwen would step in to stop it and save Li Jinglong's life.

After all, he is Zhu Yunhun's brother. If he really tries to stop him, Zhu Yunhun will be in a very difficult situation.

However, Zhu Yunwen had always been thinking about killing Zhu Yunhuan at his mother's birthday party.

But I don't want to create any more trouble at this time.

They turned a blind eye to Huang Zicheng's hints.

Watched Li Jinglong being killed.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at him several times.

Seeing that Zhu Yunwen was indifferent, a smile appeared on her face, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

"Did everyone hear what Li Jinglong said just now?"

"Do you think he is right?"

"Let's discuss this."

After killing Li Jinglong, Zhu Yunhuan still did not intend to let go.

Upon hearing this, Chang Sheng was the first to respond: "Li Jinglong is talking nonsense and misleading the public. His words are not worth refuting at all."

"Your Highness, kill him to uphold the law. Well done!"

Once someone takes the lead, others will follow suit.

"What Li Jinglong said is totally wrong. It is not unjust to kill him!"

"I think Li Jinglong is clearly trying to guess the emperor's mind, thinking that he can use this to gain fame and fortune. He is dark inside and is wildly attacking the King of Wu and the King of Yan, slandering the Ming imperial family. He deserves to be killed!"

"What Li Jinglong said may sound reasonable at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it is all arrogant and rebellious. For such a villain, beheading him is a good thing!"

"Li Jinglong openly offended the King of Wu and disrupted the opening ceremony of the Ming Military Academy. If we don't kill him, how can we enforce the law and correct people's hearts?"

"Killing him alone is too light a punishment. I think his entire family should be killed!"

"I second the motion! The entire family must be executed. This way, no one will dare to offend His Royal Highness the King of Wu again."

……

There is only one head.

Li Jinglong was a duke, so the King of Wu could kill him just because he wanted.

If the King of Wu asked them to discuss the deceased's remarks at this time, certainly no one would stand up to speak up for Li Jinglong.

Otherwise, he would have to die like the official who had previously pleaded for Li Jinglong.

Everyone had their say and soon charged Li Jinglong with more than a dozen serious crimes.

Any one of them would be enough to get him beheaded.

In short, the King of Wu killed well and brilliantly!

Zhu Yunhuan listened quietly and ordered the people around him: "Record the crimes of Li Jinglong discussed by the officials in detail."

"Although we are not in the imperial court today, all the civil and military officials are here. If we discuss the matter together, it will be no different from discussing it in the imperial court."

"I will sort it out and publish it in the Ming Daily tomorrow, which will be just the right thing to do to appease the world's complaints."

When the clerk heard the order, he immediately obeyed it.

Zhu Yunhuan's gaze turned to Huang Zicheng, Fang Xiaoru and others in the audience seats.

Among the crowd watching the ceremony, many condemned Li Jinglong.

Yet, many remain silent.

They did not dare to resist openly, so they responded with silence.

"Mr. Fang, you are a well-educated scholar, and you have a great reputation among the Confucian scholars. There are countless people in the world who admire you."

"You have studied the teachings of the sages very deeply and are familiar with them. Tell me, according to the teachings of the sages, can an elder take a younger person as his teacher?"

When these words were spoken, everyone in the field was shocked again.

As everyone knows, Fang Xiaoru and the King of Wu have always been at odds.

At the beginning, he even openly refused to be the King of Wu's teacher.

Now that the King of Wu asked him in public, how would he answer?
Many people even secretly speculated that with Fang Xiaoru's upright character, he would definitely say something offensive to the King of Wu.

Perhaps the King of Wu used this move to kill Fang Xiaoru?

But many people still felt that it was wrong. If Fang Xiaoru took the opportunity to scold the King of Wu, even if he was killed, it would greatly damage the King of Wu's reputation.

There was really no need for the King of Wu to do this.

The best approach is to keep Fang Xiaoru silent.

Fang Xiaoru obviously did not expect Zhu Yunhuan to call his name, and he was immediately shocked.

But he quickly regained his composure and walked out.

Zhu Yunwen could no longer sit still.

He knew Fang Xiaoru's character very well, and he knew that he would never give in. Being able to remain silent was the greatest patience he could show.

If he had to speak, he would probably rather lose his head than say something against his will under the pressure of Zhu Yunhuan's power.

"Teacher Fang is a loyal and honest person." Zhu Yunwen pleaded for him, "Third brother, please don't embarrass Teacher Fang, okay?"

"Difficult?" Zhu Yunhuan laughed and said, "How can this be called difficult?"

"Mr. Fang is a man of profound knowledge and high moral character. I believe that Mr. Fang will not misinterpret the meaning of the saint at will and will speak directly."

"I'm asking Mr. Fang to come forward and comment on what Li Jinglong said just now, so as to set the record straight!"

"How can you say that this is embarrassing Mr. Fang?"

He slowly swept his eyes across the room, finally landing on Fang Xiaoru, and said, "I believe in Mr. Fang's character, and he will never say anything against his will."

"I can assure Mr. Fang that no matter what he says, nothing will happen."

"If anyone uses Mr. Fang's words to embarrass Mr. Fang or threaten Mr. Fang, I will be the first one to not forgive him."

"Mr. Fang, please!"

"Everyone is all ears!"

Fang Xiaoru knew that he had no choice but to say, "Since the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors..."

"Mr. Fang, there is no need to speak at length." Zhu Yunxun said with a smile, "Mr. Fang, you only need to answer my questions.

"According to the sage's intention, there is no order of learning, only those who are knowledgeable can be teachers, right?"

Fang Xiaoru said: "Yes!"

Zhu Yunhuan asked again: "Just now Li Jinglong said that elders cannot worship younger people as their teachers. Mr. Fang, did the saint say such a thing?"

Fang Xiaoru shook his head: "No!"

Zhu Yunhuan asked again: "The sage said: When three people walk together, there must be one who can be my teacher. The sage also said: Those who are quick to learn and do not feel ashamed to ask questions are called literary. Han Changli of later generations believed that there is no elder or younger person, and where the Tao is, there is the teacher."

"May I ask Mr. Fang whether Han Changli misinterpreted the words of the sage, or did he understand the sage's heart?"

Fang Xiaoru said: "What Han Changli said deeply captures the heart of the sage! Learning has no seniority or inferiority, only the Tao."

Zhu Yunhuan smiled slightly. Fang Xiaoru's answer was exactly what he expected.

After all, for someone like Fang Xiaoru, he would also annotate the words of the sage and give the explanation he wanted in his heart.

But this is also based on the premise that there is room for interpretation of those words themselves.

It's not something you can just say casually.

Explanation of the Bible is a very serious matter.

What's more, Zhu Yunhuan had already asked someone to investigate Fang Xiaoru and read his annotations on these issues to understand Fang Xiaoru's theory.

"Mr. Fang, do you think, according to the sage's theory, that elders can take younger generations as their teachers?" Zhu Yunhuan asked.

He quickly added: "Mr. Fang just needs to answer yes or no?"

"Yes!" Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Fang Xiaoru gave an affirmative answer.

In the field, whether those who supported Zhu Yunhuan or those who opposed him, their eyes dropped to the ground in shock.

No one would have expected that at this critical moment, Fang Xiaoru would actually stand on Zhu Yunhuan's side.

Zhu Yunwen, Huang Zicheng, Qi Tai and others were all stunned.

Previously, they were worried about Fang Xiaoru's safety, fearing that he would speak out and offend Zhu Yunhuan, bringing disaster upon himself. But after hearing his response, they all felt as if they had been slapped hard in the face by a loud slap!
Fang Xiaoru actually spoke for the King of Wu?

Could it be that he had secretly surrendered to the King of Wu a long time ago?
Zhu Yunwen felt as if someone had stabbed him hard in the heart.

I still think so highly of him and call him teacher all day long.

Who could have expected that he was actually a traitor?
Those who supported Zhu Yunhuan were ecstatic.

It turns out that His Royal Highness the Prince of Wu had already laid the groundwork.

Given Fang Xiaoru's reputation and prestige, and the fact that he was previously a well-known opponent, even he supported the King of Wu in this matter, which was enough to show that there was nothing wrong with the King of Wu's move.

With the endorsement of a saint, who would dare to say that the King of Wu was wrong?
Li Jinglong will be nailed to the pillar of shame forever!

Zhu Yunhuan turned around and asked the clerk beside him: "Have you recorded everything?"

The clerk hurriedly said, "Your Highness, everything has been recorded!"

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said to Fang Xiaoru: "Thank you Mr. Fang for your advice."

Fang Xiaoru was stunned for a moment, then quickly shouted, "I still have something to say!"

His answer just now was completely in compliance with the teachings of the saints, which was the education he received from childhood to adulthood.

He would never betray the saint, nor would he distort the saint's words just because of his hostile stance.

But this does not mean that he supports King Wu in taking King Yan, Duke Liang and others as his disciples!
He must make this matter clear so that others will not misunderstand him.

"I have asked all the questions I wanted to ask." Zhu Yunxun said with a smile: "Mr. Fang, if you have anything else to say, please save it for later."

"Today is the opening ceremony of the Daming Military Academy. We can't delay it."

"Someone, help Mr. Fang to go down and have a rest."

He knew Fang Xiaoru's character very well, and took advantage of this and used him to completely defeat Li Jinglong.

Killing Li Jinglong alone can only establish authority, but it is far from enough.

The most important thing is that he must have the moral advantage in running the Ming Military Academy.

Now that the goal has been achieved, Fang Xiaoru can no longer be allowed to continue talking nonsense.

At the command, the guards immediately came forward and took Fang Xiaoru away.

Fang Xiaoru still wanted to struggle, but the guards were prepared for this. One of them covered his mouth with his hands, and then grabbed Fang Xiaoru's arms on both sides, lifted his body off the ground, and carried him out.

After all, Fang Xiaoru was just a weak scholar. Once caught by the guards, he had no way to escape and was soon taken away by force.

Many people in the field witnessed this scene, but no one spoke.

Zhu Yunwen hated Fang Xiaoru for betraying him and would never speak for him again.

I just feel that even if Fang Xiaoru was killed by the King of Wu, he deserved it!

After that, there was no more trouble.

Prince of Yan Zhu Di, Duke of Liang Lan Yu and a number of noble and military officers all performed the ceremony of paying homage to their teacher in turn.

With the enrollment of the first batch of freshmen, the Ming Military Academy truly stepped onto the political stage of the Ming Dynasty.

Since then, the political landscape of the Ming Dynasty has also changed.

It even had a profound impact on the whole world.

These are all things for later.

……

Day two.

Early in the morning, Fang Xiaoru went to Prince Xian's palace as usual.

After the ceremony ended yesterday, he returned home and felt like there was a gust of air stuck in his heart that was difficult to release. He tossed and turned all night and couldn't fall asleep.

I hurried here today because I wanted to explain everything clearly to King Xian.

I just agree with the words of the sage and do not misinterpret his intentions. I am not betraying King Xian and supporting King Wu.

The King of Wu is despicable and shameless. He took his own words out of context. He is extremely hateful!
However, when he reached the door, he was stopped by the guards of the palace.

"His Royal Highness Prince Xian said that traitors are not allowed to enter the palace again."

"Fang Xiaoru, go back to where you came from!"

The leader of the guards used to call him "sir" respectfully and did not dare to be disrespectful in the slightest.

But today his face has completely changed.

"You...you..." Fang Xiaoru pointed at the guard leader and said, "I am the teacher of King Xian, please don't be rude!"

"Teacher?" The guard leader looked disdainful. "You openly betrayed His Highness Prince Xian, and you still have the nerve to say that you are Prince Xian's teacher?"

"Stop talking nonsense!" Fang Xiaoru said angrily, "When have I ever betrayed His Royal Highness Prince Xian?"

The guard leader smiled coldly: "Have you read today's "Da Ming Daily"?"

"This is all your good work!"

After saying that, he threw a newspaper at Fang Xiaoru.

Fang Xiaoru reached out and grabbed the newspaper, and then he saw a glaring and eye-catching headline -

"Li Jinglong was a traitor and misinterpreted the words of the sage. Fang Xiaoru refuted them one by one to set the record straight."

He looked at the content, which was a long article about how Li Jinglong's words were wrong.

Then, he solemnly quoted his own views and theories to refute Li Jinglong's words.

It just so happens that the content of those "views and theories" are all in the answers to several questions yesterday.

The newspapers did not make up any of his statements.

But why does it feel wrong to publish it like this?
The more Fang Xiaoru looked at it, the more he felt his blood boiling.

Suddenly, with a "puff" sound, he spat out a mouthful of blood.

My vision went dark and I fainted!

……

(End of this chapter)