Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 200: Even Empress Ma was stunned!
Empress Ma was shocked upon hearing this.

How did this civil official become like this later on, so audacious and utterly depraved?
How dare they do such a thing!
Kill the emperor!
Before this, she found it difficult to associate the killing of the emperor with those civil officials.

Her impression of civil officials had always been that, although they could be quite disgusting at times.

However, overall, it tends to be weak.

At the very least, they wouldn't dare to do something like killing the emperor.

In Empress Ma's view, targeting the crown prince was already the limit.

Who would have thought that these people would actually dare to kill the emperor!

Emperor assassinations were not unheard of, and Empress Ma was quite knowledgeable about history.

For example, at the end of the Han Dynasty, Liu Bian was deposed and later poisoned.

Generally, when dynasties change, most emperors do not have a good ending.

During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Liu Yu killed even more emperors.

In the later Tang Dynasty, eunuchs gained too much power in the court, controlling the military and turning the emperor into a puppet.

Those eunuchs could depose emperors at will, and of those deposed emperors, except for one who was imprisoned until death, the rest were basically killed very quickly.

She originally thought that such a thing would not happen in her Ming Dynasty.

But who would have thought that while the military officers and eunuchs stopped doing it, it was the civil officials who started doing it.

"In our Great Ming Dynasty, quite a few emperors died mysteriously, killed by those worthless literati."

Emperor Xianzong, Emperor Renzong, and Emperor Wuzong, grandfather and grandson, were all murdered one after another.

Both Emperor Xianzong and Emperor Renzong died after taking the wrong medicine prescribed by the same imperial physician.

"These people... are so vicious! They dare to lay a hand on the emperor!"

Empress Ma's voice involuntarily rose a little.

Imperial physicians, those are the ones who treat the emperor's illnesses!

He was, in essence, the royal physician, but this physician, who was supposed to be loyal to the royal family, became a killer, even taking the life of the emperor.

I can't even imagine this!

While deeply moved, Empress Ma quickly noticed something unusual about the matter.

"Zhongba, this... something's not right, is it?"

Prescribing the wrong medicine to the emperor, leading to his death, is an enormous crime.

The person who treated the emperor who died should have his entire family executed.

How could he continue to serve and then cause the death of another emperor?
Empress Ma expressed her bewilderment.

Zhu Yuanzhang sneered: "Sister, this is the strength of those civil officials."

After Liu Wentai caused Emperor Xianzong's death, he was only demoted and not even expelled from the Imperial Medical Academy; he remained in the Academy.

Moreover, after the storm subsided a few years later, he became the head of the Imperial Medical Academy.

They were living a very successful life.

Later, after Liu Wentai mistakenly prescribed the wrong medicine and poisoned Emperor Renzong, Emperor Wuzong, Renzong's own son, came to power and wanted to kill Liu Wentai.

Similarly, many people stepped forward to stop the emperor from killing Liu Wentai.

Ultimately, they simply expelled him from the Imperial Hospital.

Empress Ma found this strange.

Is this possible?

The imperial physicians managed to kill two emperors in a row, yet they didn't die.

They had also gained a clear understanding of the extent of the civil official's arrogance and domineering attitude.

These people are truly despicable, so arrogant and audacious!

They've stopped acting and brought many things out into the open.

The fact that he managed to kill two emperors in succession and still escape with his life demonstrates the immense power and arrogance of the civil officials!

It's simply sensational!

"Chongba, at that time, did our Great Ming Dynasty also experience something similar to the An Lushan Rebellion, like the Tang Dynasty in its later period?"

This led to the loss of vast territories, the rise of numerous regional warlords, the successive fall of the capital, and the constant flight of the emperor.

Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head: "Sister, although our Ming Dynasty has also experienced a series of troubles, they are far less serious than those in the mid-to-late Tang Dynasty."

The Ming Dynasty was never lost; it was only truly gone when the country was destroyed.

The emperor also did not flee.

They didn't lose too much territory, and the overall situation remained stable.

After listening to Zhu Yuanzhang's words, Empress Ma gained a new understanding of the arrogance of these civil officials.

Even when the Ming Dynasty was becoming more stable, these officials were still able to kill emperors one after another and commit such heinous acts. These civil officials are truly not good people!
"Sister, if these two died because the imperial physician prescribed the wrong medicine, then Emperor Wu's drowning is even more bizarre."

Emperor Wuzong was a good emperor. He dared to fight against the civil official group through his own methods and wanted to break free from their control.

When he was emperor, he personally led troops into battle and won victories, resolving border troubles. He also wanted to get things done and was quite capable.

But such a capable emperor was clearly the last thing those civil officials wanted to see.

Therefore, it was met with strong opposition from civil officials.

The final result was that Emperor Wuzong of Ming, who could personally ride into battle, fell into the water one after another and eventually died at the young age of thirty-one!
The most bizarre thing is that there was a gap of more than half a year between his last fall into the water and his death.

As a result, they managed to attribute the emperor's death to falling into the water.

Moreover, after he fell ill in the capital, his illness worsened with each treatment by the Imperial Medical Academy.

Later, he wanted to bring doctors from the common people into the palace to treat him.

His teacher, Yang Tinghe, the powerful Grand Secretary, resolutely rejected the offer.

Later, Emperor Wuzong died, but it was said that he died from drowning…

"boom!"

Empress Ma slammed her hand hard on the chair.

The fact that the usually serene Empress Ma could be reduced to this state shows just how outrageous the things these people have done are.

"Emperor Wuzong had no sons, so he needed to select someone from the imperial clan to inherit the throne."

That old bastard Yang Tinghe wants to find someone easy to manipulate to be the emperor.

After much deliberation, they chose the old Taoist priest.

In this matter, Yang Tinghe, that scoundrel, was fooled, and a happy ending was reached.

Before even arriving in the capital, the Jiajing Emperor began to challenge Yang Tinghe and wrestle with the civil official group, eventually bringing Yang Tinghe to the brink of despair.

Although Emperor Jiajing was not good at many things, he was very skilled in political maneuvering and political intrigue.

Even someone like him faced numerous dangers, with his residence repeatedly catching fire and nearly burning to death.

He was even strangled by a palace maid and nearly died.

He was saved by the imperial physicians of the Imperial Medical Academy.

Then, the imperial physician who saved Jiajing soon lost his life.

The man who killed two emperors got away with it, but the man who saved the emperors lost his life.

Girl, think about what's going on here. What the hell is all this nonsense?!
Furthermore, Emperor Jiajing had many sons, but none of them survived to adulthood.

He managed to turn all his many sons into a single heir.

This forced him to believe the saying that two dragons cannot meet...

His son was also ruined.

In terms of political maneuvering and ability, he is far inferior to his father.

There was virtually no resistance from the civil service.

After ascending the throne, this guy immediately began to govern with minimal effort.

His arch is a high arch.

It could be said that he let these people do as they pleased, and didn't care about anything.

Girl, do you know why we've always been so wary of these literati and absolutely refuse to let the emperor and scholar-officials share the world?
It's because we realized long ago that intellectuals are no good, or rather, any group that's too big or too dominant is no good.

The military generals were too powerful, leading to the chaos of the regional military governors in the Tang Dynasty and the endless troubles left by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.

When the power of intellectuals grows too great, they become extremely weak and incompetent, just like in the Song Dynasty, bowing and scraping to foreign powers, with humiliation being a constant theme throughout their rule.

It's also not good for eunuchs to be too powerful, especially if they are in charge of the army, which is a taboo.

As for the idea of ​​relatives of the empress seizing power, that is equally unacceptable.

History has taught us far too many lessons.

Later in the Ming Dynasty, the actions of these civil officials proved that our thinking was correct.

It was precisely because of the many lessons learned in history that Zhu Yuanzhang was often confused about who to rely on to govern the country.

"Then... how should we solve the problem of Chongba? We can't just keep refusing the imperial examinations, can we?"

"To establish new knowledge, eliminate much of the dross from old knowledge, and guide social trends."

He spoke of national and familial righteousness to the common people and to those who went to school.

Let them know what is right and what is wrong.

Knowing where to direct one's efforts, one should strive to enlighten the people. The emperor must stand with the people, for the people are the foundation of the nation.

The power of the people is boundless!
Of course, that's not enough.

We believe that we should try our best to maintain a balance between civil and military affairs.

Maintaining a balance between civil and military affairs is difficult, especially after increasing education and introducing the imperial examination system.

The increasing power of civil officials is almost inevitable.

However, we want to find a way to avoid this from happening.

Even if it cannot be avoided, we should try our best to delay the process.

Even if civil officials completely overpower military generals again in the future, it won't be to the point that military generals fall into obscurity.

Therefore, we plan to establish a military academy to train various talents.

At the same time, military examinations should also be held to select talents.

These skilled personnel, trained with specialized knowledge, should be sent to the military.

They were gradually made into the backbone of the army.

If conditions permit in the future, it would be best to promote a literacy campaign in the military so that all soldiers can learn to read as much as possible.

They tirelessly told them that they were soldiers of the Ming Dynasty, and their mission was to protect their country and its people.

They are the people's own soldiers...

Maintaining a balance between civil and military affairs was a difficult task for Zhu Yuanzhang as well.

The difficulty lies not in his life, but in what happens after his death.

Even with the experience of later generations to draw upon, he couldn't guarantee that he would be able to accomplish this task.

This ensures that military generals will not decline and be suppressed by civil officials again.

But he knew that his measures would greatly enhance the status of the military generals.

So that they wouldn't be completely powerless when facing civil officials.

"In addition, we think we should make corresponding regulations on our side."

It is clear that the emperor is the supreme commander of all the armies in the land, and no one can change that.

The emperor is the supreme commander of the three armies and possesses supreme military power. No one can take military power away from the emperor for any reason or in any form.

Anyone who dares to do this shall be condemned by all under heaven!

Zhu Yuanzhang made this decision after learning from the lessons that followed.

The rise of civil officials to power, their ruthless suppression of military generals, and even the emperor, began after the disgraceful defeat at Tumu Fortress by that scoundrel Zhu Qizhen.

With Zhu Qizhen in power, the civil officials who followed him began to frantically seize military power.

In the future, if an emperor wanted to touch military power again, there would be a good reason to restrict him.

Military power must never be diminished.

Without military power, one becomes like a fish on a chopping board, at the mercy of others; even an emperor is no exception.

If civil officials held military power and, once they became too powerful, could govern the country well, Zhu Yuanzhang would accept it.

It's not that it's impossible for him to let them grow in power.

However, once civil officials gained power, they became utterly inhumane.

They acted recklessly and arrogantly, making a mess of the world. They went as far as they could!

In that case, he would have to make corresponding regulations to clarify the legitimacy of the emperor's control of a large army.

The emperor holds supreme military power, although there is a possibility of scoundrels like Zhu Qizhen emerging.

However, not every emperor is like Zhu Qizhen.

The later Zhu Houzhao was quite good.

If Zhu Houzhao had been able to openly and legitimately take command of the army, it wouldn't have been impossible for the Ming Dynasty to experience a revival at that time.

The situation is very likely to change drastically...

"Zhongba, with these... will the problem be completely solved?"
In the future... once those who study the philosophy of mind come to power, after a long time, will they... lose their original intentions and start acting recklessly?
Will new groups not be formed?
Liao Yongzhong, Li Shanchang, and many others from Huaixi, when they followed you, Zhuge Liang, to conquer the world, all hated corrupt officials to the bone.

But once the Ming Dynasty was established and they held high positions of power, how quickly did they change their ways?

Empress Ma looked at Zhu Yuanzhang and asked the question that had been bothering her, revealing her deep concern for the future.

Zhu Yuanzhang fell silent after hearing Empress Ma's words.

"Girl, you're absolutely right, and your considerations are indeed very profound."

Apart from a few people of noble character and high awareness, most are mediocre.

They are greedy and lustful, wanting to hold more power and wealth in their hands for their own enjoyment, and even to pass it down to their descendants.

People trained using this new method will certainly be very useful at first.

However, over time, various problems may arise.

These are things we can't avoid.

After making these changes, we can't control what will happen next, nor do we have that much power.

All we can do is try our best to do things well, leave fewer problems for future generations, and set the tone for our Ming Dynasty.

As for decades or centuries from now, we can only rely on the wisdom of future generations!

We believe that when that time comes, there will definitely be insightful people who will stand up and try to solve the problem.

What happened next, only God knows…

Hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang felt a pang of regret.

In his previous life, he wanted to create an unchanging law that would last for all ages, so that he, as the founding emperor, could set everything up and pass it down to future generations without causing any trouble.

However, when he looked at the history of his own Ming Dynasty in modern times, he was clearly told that it was simply impossible.

Many policies have a limited lifespan, and no matter how smart you are, you can't predict what will happen next.

So now, starting over again, he no longer expects to create an era of lasting peace.

If what I have done can ensure that the Ming Dynasty is generally on a positive track while I am in power and for the next few decades or even centuries after my death, then I am satisfied.

Empress Ma nodded in agreement, showing her approval of what her son, Chongba, had said.

The matter of governing a country is indeed far too complex.

We can only rely on the wisdom of future generations...

……

"You captured Chen Zhili alive? Haha, well done! I will remember your great achievement!"

The naval battle near Baihua Island is now basically coming to an end.

After destroying the target, the warship that Zhu Di was on returned to its previous position.

Soon, news from all directions began to pour in.
Not long after, he learned of the capture of Chen Zhili.

Capturing an enemy general alive is a great achievement in itself and can greatly boost the morale of the army. Zhu Di would naturally not want to spoil the fun.

For an army to possess strong combat power, strict military discipline and a clear system of rewards and punishments are essential.

Moreover, this was the first battle fought by the Ming Dynasty navy, and it was fought so brilliantly.

After this battle, the pirates at sea are no longer a threat.

The Maritime Trade Office of the Ming Dynasty did not need to worry too much about these pirates when it went out to sea to do business.

Under such circumstances, Zhu Di would naturally not neglect those who had made great contributions.

He then personally met with the soldiers who had captured Chen Zhili alive and commended them.

As for subsequent rewards, they will be based on merit and there are corresponding standards.

These soldiers were greatly encouraged that they could personally come to see His Highness the Prince of Yan, and that His Highness praised their great deeds and personally said that they had accomplished a great feat.

She walks with a light, airy gait and her chest held high.

After these meritorious soldiers left, Zhu Di also had Chen Zhili brought up.

At this time, Chen Zhili's limbs were limp and the wounds were severely swollen.

People also seemed listless.

However, upon meeting Zhu Di, he mustered his spirits.

"Cut this scoundrel to pieces! Throw him into the sea to feed the fish!"

Zhu Di was too lazy to say anything more to Chen Zhili.

If it weren't for the fact that this bandit leader was captured alive by the soldiers and brought here...

He wouldn't even see him; he simply ordered him to be beheaded.

Originally, Chen Zhili wanted to show his indomitable spirit and even prepared to get close and spit on Zhu Di.

Who would have thought that this Zhu Laosi would actually issue such an order!
This made him angry and anxious.

He was a powerful figure who commanded a region, yet Zhu Di treated him like this!
Seeing that Ming troops were about to carry out Zhu Di's orders, he couldn't care less about his resentful feelings.

He hurriedly asked the question that he most wanted to know...

……

"Chongba, the fourth brother...did the fourth brother also pass away a long time ago?"

(End of this chapter)