Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 210 Upon learning the truth, Empress Ma could no longer hold back.
Empress Ma's voice was full of curiosity, and her heart was filled with doubt and confusion.

I initially thought the fourth prince was beaten because he rebelled, but later I realized it was because he didn't do a good job after becoming emperor.

But now, as Chongba recounts his story, he discovers that all his guesses have been refuted by Chongba.

Empress Ma was truly surprised that the fourth prince was being beaten, and that the beating by Chongba was quite severe.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at his sister, took a deep breath, and said, "Sister, this is because after the fourth prince became emperor, he was quite ruthless towards Biao'er's son."

Empress Ma was taken aback at first, then felt a sudden pang of pain in her heart, and all her doubts vanished instantly.

If we look at it from that perspective, then it makes sense.

"So, Zhu Yunwen's fate wasn't good?"

After asking this question, Empress Ma felt that something might not be quite right.

Given the things Zhu Yunwen had done, and the way Chongba cursed him whenever he was mentioned, even if Zhu Yunwen's fate was terrible, Chongba probably wouldn't have beaten his fourth son like that because of him.

As expected, Zhu Yuanzhang's next words quickly confirmed Empress Ma's guess.

"Zhu Yunwen, that beast, did not have a good end, but he deserved to die!"
Li Jinglong and our nineteenth son, also known as Prince Gu Zhu Hui, opened the Jin Chuan Gate together to welcome the fourth son's troops into Yingtian.

Upon learning this news, Zhu Yunwen, who was inside the palace, set himself on fire and died.

After the fourth prince arrived at the palace and extinguished the fire, he found Zhu Yunwen, who had been burned to death, among the dead bodies.

The fourth prince held Zhu Yunwen and cried bitterly, saying, "Silly boy, why did you have to do this?"

Regarding our fourth son hugging Zhu Yunwen and crying, and saying these words, many people have given different opinions.

Some people say that the fourth brother is just crocodile tears, a complete show.

Given that the fourth brother is a superb actor, it's not surprising that he would do something like this.

Some people say that this is the fourth brother's true feeling.

Some people say that the fourth son did this to stabilize the situation...

In our view, these should all be present.

There's an element of showmanship, an element of acting, and an element of calming people's hearts and stabilizing the situation.

But the fourth brother hugged him and cried, so he must have felt complicated, sad and upset.

When Zhu Yunwen was alive, the two were mortal enemies, so much so that they were bloodthirsty and disregarded family ties.

But now that the outcome is decided and one side is dead, all the previous struggles for interests have come to an end and temporarily subsided.

Then, thoughts of family and kinship came to mind.

Furthermore, given that Zhu Yunwen was the emperor appointed by us and was also Biao'er's son, it's perfectly normal for the fourth prince to react this way.

After all, people are often driven by emotion, and in certain situations, they may act on impulse.

Empress Ma nodded when she heard what her husband, Chongba, said, agreeing with him.

Empress Ma was somewhat moved by Zhu Yunwen's death, but also expressed her heartache and sorrow.

Zhu Yunwen brought this upon himself by not associating with people, so it's no surprise that he ended up like this.

What weighs heavily on her mind now is that the fourth prince probably didn't just target Zhu Yunwen.

Instead, they also targeted the other sons of the target, and might even try to eliminate them completely...

"Of course, just as the fourth brother said, 'Why did this silly boy have to go to such lengths?' Zhu Yunwen also had some similar experiences in his struggle with the fourth brother."

For example, during the Jingnan Rebellion, Zhu Yunwen later explicitly ordered that his uncle should not be harmed.

It was because of this summons, and because of the relationship between the fourth prince and his nephew Zhu Yunwen, that the situation became complicated.

Although we are enemies, we are ultimately one family.

The soldiers in front were also worried that if they really hurt the fourth prince, Zhu Yunwen would make them a scapegoat.

Therefore, the fourth brother was able to escape unscathed on several occasions.

After all, on the battlefield, given Lao Si's abilities, it would be extremely difficult for the enemy to capture him alive.

After learning about these things, the fourth brother even used them to do some things.

For example, leading a small number of troops to cover the rear.

But for example, taking some people to get closer and scout out military intelligence…

When Zhu Yuanzhang said this, he was at a loss for words.

The fourth brother has so many tricks up his sleeve, and he's really shameless.

However, in this world, you can't be shameless.

Especially for people who want to accomplish great things, if they don't have thick skin, they often won't succeed.

Empress Ma's feelings were somewhat complicated upon hearing this.

Regardless of whether Zhu Yunwen issued this order out of foolishness, a sudden pang of conscience, or for show.

However, judging by actions rather than intentions, the fact that he issued this decree and that the generals before him obeyed it shows that there was still some consideration for appearances between the two of them.

Furthermore, after the fourth prince entered the capital, he held Zhu Yunwen's corpse and wept bitterly, saying, "Why did the foolish boy end up like this?" This back-and-forth exchange can be considered a relatively good response to the matter.

Thinking this, Empress Ma couldn't help but look at her own son, Chongba.

I think the later generations' statement that Zhu Di was no less capable than his father, and the statement by Chongba that his fourth son was very much like him, are indeed correct.

He developed a thick skin when he was begging for food and working as a monk.

The fourth brother is just as thick-skinned; he really does look very similar.

"Girl, you have no idea how complicated the back-and-forth was between the two sides during the Jingnan Campaign."

For example, after Li Jinglong was dismissed, the fourth brother attacked Jinan, and Tie Xuan led his men to defend it to the death.

After the feigned surrender caused the fourth brother to suffer a great loss and almost die, the fourth brother was furious and wanted to use cannons to blast open the city of Jinan.

The situation in Jinan was critical, so Tie Xuan had people find a large wooden board, write "The Throne of Emperor Taizu Gao" on it, and hang it on the city wall to defend the city.

Seeing this, the commander had no choice but to order a halt to the bombardment, and Jinan was thus defended.

Zhu Yuanzhang was somewhat indignant when this matter was brought up.

Empress Ma was also somewhat dumbfounded.

Is it even possible to do that?
No... these people are really playing fancy tricks!
They even came up with a solution like this!

Emperor Taizu Gao, wasn't that my own Chongba?

That's really mean!

No wonder Chongba reacted that way when this matter was brought up.

"This Tie Xuan is truly a talented person."

Empress Ma paused for a long time before giving this assessment.

Besides that, he really didn't know what else to say.

"Girl, you're right, Tie Xuan is indeed a talented person."

Now, he is already beginning to make a name for himself at the Imperial Academy.

Tie Xuan and Sheng Yong can be said to be the fourth prince's lifelong enemies. During the fourth prince's southward march during the Jingnan Campaign, they fought fiercely with him, causing the fourth prince to suffer heavy losses.

Jinan was ultimately not captured, and setbacks were also encountered elsewhere.

Although they had their share of wins and losses, the fourth brother was unable to achieve the same resounding victory as he had against Li Jinglong.

Because of the presence of the two of them, the fourth brother's invincible and unstoppable momentum was halted, and he had to retreat.

Later, when the fourth brother went south again, he also avoided Tie Xuanshengyong and did not go through Jinan. Instead, he chose to go south from Xuzhou...

Speaking of these things, Zhu Yuanzhang felt a pang of regret, but also a sense of joy that his Ming Dynasty had such talented people.

If it weren't for that worthless idiot Zhu Yunwen, all these talented people would have worked for the Ming Dynasty and united against external enemies, how wonderful that would have been.

At the same time, I was also thinking about what it would be like if I arranged for Cheol Hyun-sung-yong and my fourth son to work together in the future.

It must be wonderful.

There are many versions of Zhu Yunwen's fate.

What we just mentioned is only what is recorded in official history.

In addition, there are many reports that the body that the fourth prince found was not Zhu Yunwen's.

Instead, in order to appease the people, stabilize the situation, and declare his complete victory, the fourth prince randomly found a charred corpse and used it as Zhu Yunwen.

In reality, the real Zhu Yunwen did not die.

Instead, he secretly fled and hid in a place, becoming a monk.

There are even some claims that Zhu Yunwen later fled China and went to live overseas.

Zheng He's repeated voyages to the Western Ocean were not primarily aimed at showcasing the power of the Ming Dynasty; one of his important purposes was to secretly investigate the whereabouts of Zhu Yunwen.

Of course, in our opinion, this statement is basically nonsense and should be taken with a grain of salt; it's far-fetched.

Comparatively speaking, it's more likely that Zhu Yunwen escaped and hid in some place to become a monk.

Of course, the version we most agree with is that Zhu Yunwen was burned to death...

After the fourth prince becomes emperor, Biao'er's son will inevitably be the first to be targeted, given his sensitive status.

Zhu Yunwen deserved to die, but Biao'er did not only have Zhu Yunwen as a son.

At that time, Biao'er had three other sons.

Yun Tong was the second son of Biao'er and our eldest son's wife. He was enfeoffed as the Prince of Wu in the first year of Jianwen's reign, and was demoted to the Prince of Guangze after the fourth son ascended the throne.

Later, the fourth brother was stripped of his title and imprisoned in Fengyang for failing to assist his elder brother…

Speaking of Zhu Yunwen, Zhu Yuanzhang felt a pang of sadness. After all, according to the original plan, he was Biao'er's second legitimate son, and after Xiong Ying's death, he would have become the heir to the throne.

Unfortunately, we failed to see through Lady Lü's true colors back then and made her the Crown Prince's principal wife.

Thus, he, the second legitimate son, became the third legitimate son, ranking after Zhu Yunwen, and was no longer eligible for the throne.

Later, due to a series of absurd things done by Zhu Yunwen, he lost his throne, was demoted to a commoner, and imprisoned in Fengyang.

It's fair to say that he's never had any good luck, but he's been plagued by all the bad luck...

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed upon hearing what Empress Ma had said.

Yunhu's grandson has a rather tragic fate.

But there's nothing that can be done about it. The winner takes all, and even with the bond of kinship, the fourth brother can't really trust him to continue being king.

After all, the fourth prince claimed to be acting in accordance with the will of Heaven to quell the rebellion, but in the eyes of many, he had already succeeded in his rebellion.

He would definitely have to be wary of the son of the person he was targeting.

Being stripped of his title and imprisoned in Fengyang sounds painful, but it's not without reason.

It's a bit unreasonable for Chongba to beat up the fourth brother for this reason.

That means it's very likely that the fourth brother did even more...

"Zhu Yunxuan was the fourth son of Biao'er, and his birth mother was the wicked woman Lü."

In the first year of the Jianwen reign, he was enfeoffed as the Prince of Heng. Later, the fourth prince demoted him to the Prince of Huai'en, and then deposed him as a commoner. He was imprisoned in Fengyang along with Yun Tong.

Zhu Yunxi was Biao'er's fifth son, and his birth mother was also Lady Lü.

In the first year of the Jianwen reign, he was enfeoffed as the Prince of Xu. The fourth prince was later enfeoffed as the Prince of Ouning and ordered to guard the Zhu Biao Mausoleum.

This is Biao'er's youngest son.

Because of his young age, the fourth prince did not imprison him in Fengyang, but instead had Lady Lü keep vigil with him for Biao'er.

However, this did not last long. A few years later, their residence suddenly caught fire, and the wicked woman, Lü, and her son perished in the flames.

Lady Lü died as a result.

Zhu Yuanzhang was overjoyed at the death of Lady Lü, only regretting that she died too late.

Biao'er's youngest son died as a result. Although Zhu Yuanzhang was somewhat saddened, he did not express particular distress.

Because they wanted to cause a fire so that they could kill Lady Lü in a reasonable way, since the two of them lived together, it would indeed be difficult for only Lady Lü to die.

It's understandable that both of them fell at the same time.

"Originally, Yun Tong and Yun Xuan were being kept in Fengyang and were doing well."

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he will continue to live there until he dies of natural causes.

But unsurprisingly, something unexpected happened.

They were implicated in the rebellion of Prince Gu, Zhu Hui.

Zhu Hui was the nineteenth son of Consort Hui.

Zhu Yuanzhang explained to Empress Ma that, after all, the nineteenth prince had not yet been born at this time, and if he did not explain, his own sister would not know who the nineteenth prince was.

"It's the one who opened the Jinchuan Gate with Jinglong and let Lao Si's troops into the city."

His original fief was in Shanggu County, Xuanfu. After the fourth prince became emperor, he changed his fief from the frontier to Changsha.

This guy is very dishonest. He thinks he has made a great contribution by opening the Jin Chuan Gate, and he is unhappy that the fourth brother moved him to Changsha and reduced his three guards.

After this thing was stationed in Changsha, it became arrogant and domineering.

Zeng Xian killed Bo Ruchang because he had never paid a visit to him.

He was also executed because Shi Lutinggang of Changsha had accused him of seizing farmland, embezzling public taxes, and killing innocent people.

Even worse, he plundered the people's wealth, recruited soldiers, bought up horses, appointed eunuchs, built warships and crossbows, trained sailors and soldiers, and attempted to seduce the eleventh prince, Zhu Chun, into forming an alliance to rebel and overthrow the fourth prince.

However, he was ousted by the fourth prince and in the fifteenth year of the Yongle reign, he was demoted to a commoner, and many of his followers were killed.

In the third year of the Xuande reign, this worthless wretch died in prison.

He was the son of the eleventh brother at the time, and had a conflict with the eleventh brother. In a fit of anger, he ran away to his uncle's place.

They were both born to Consort Hui and were brothers.

Then, the nineteenth prince started causing trouble.

He claimed that Zhu Yunwen had not died back then, and that he had personally released Zhu Yunwen when he was guarding the Jin Chuan Gate.

The eleventh prince's second son was actually Zhu Yunwen.

He also dragged his brother Zhu Chun into the rebellion.

Old Eleven was terrified by this guy's reckless actions and said he wouldn't go crazy with him.

He immediately dispatched someone to deliver the letter to Lao Si at top speed.

The fourth brother commended the eleventh brother and punished Zhu Hui, that reckless fool.

Following this incident, Yunhu and Yunxuan both died suddenly in Fengyang.

They claimed to have contracted an illness, but anyone with eyes could see that it was the fourth brother who had carried out the ruthless killings…

As Zhu Yuanzhang spoke, he took a long breath, his mood appearing rather unpleasant.

Empress Ma was equally heavy-hearted; such infighting and fratricide was truly heartbreaking.

It was something she didn't want to see.

At this point, all of Biao'er's sons were gone.

She also understood why her son, Chongba, had beaten the fourth son.

Empress Ma could understand why the fourth prince was so ruthless towards Biao'er's sons, and I believe the eighth prince could understand as well.

However, while understanding is one thing, whether one can accept it emotionally is another matter entirely.

Under these circumstances, it's understandable that Chongba would be unable to tolerate it and would beat Lao Si after seeing him.

After all, given Biao'er's maturity and Chongba's feelings for her, it's only natural that he would be heartbroken to see Biao'er's descendants end up like this.

"Zhongba, could it be... that Biao'er is going to die without an heir?"

When Empress Ma asked this question, her voice trembled slightly.

"No, Biao'er still has bloodlines."

"Grandson Zhu Wengui was imprisoned by the fourth prince in the high walls of Fengyang until he was released after Zhu Qizhen, that thing, was restored to the throne."

Due to his long imprisonment, he was over fifty years old when he was released and was completely ignorant of human nature.

Zhu Qizhen even arranged for him to marry and have children, but he died not long after, at the age of 56.

This was Zhu Yunwen's second son; his eldest son, Zhu Wenkui, was missing.

It is said that Yun Tong's bloodline has also been passed down.

There is no clear record of his eldest son, but his second son, Zhu Wenkun, is said to have escaped from Fengyang, changed his name, and was later born in Laizhou, where his family grew to over a hundred households…

Hearing this, Empress Ma breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"That's not so bad, at least our fourth son hasn't been completely wiped out."

He was much more benevolent than Emperor Taizong of Tang.

Emperor Taizong of Tang truly eradicated the threat at its root.

After pondering for a long time, Empress Ma finally uttered these words.

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed, "In truth, he is quite capable, but I just want to beat him up. I just feel uncomfortable and upset."

Empress Ma nodded in understanding...

"Girl, don't overthink it. Anyway, these are all things that happened in the past life. We're starting over in this life, so many things won't happen again."

Just listen and let it go; don't take it to heart.

We still have some official business to attend to, so we'll go take care of that first.

After the two stayed there for a while, Zhu Yuanzhang gave Empress Ma some instructions and then left.

We talked a lot about the future today, and I need to let my daughter process it all.

And Zhu Yuanzhang really needed to get down to business.

Otherwise, I'll have to stay up until midnight again tonight.

Empress Ma smiled and nodded upon hearing this: "Chongba, you can just focus on handling state affairs without worry. I won't overthink it."

As you said, these things happened in a past life and will certainly not happen again in this life.

As the saying goes, "By learning from history, we can understand our gains and losses; by learning from the future, we can gain even more."

After Zhu Yuanzhang left, Empress Ma sat back down in her chair, but her mind was still not completely over the incident.

She wondered how old she was, when she died, and what caused her death.

Whether he will be well-regarded by posterity...

You can also ask your own family member, Chongba, if there were any twists and turns in his son's succession after the fourth prince became emperor.

How did he perform after becoming emperor?

How did their own Ming Dynasty perish, and how did the Qing Dynasty, which replaced their Ming Dynasty, perform?

Of course, more importantly, she was eager to know what things would be like more than six hundred years from now...

(End of this chapter)