Zhu Di: My fourth son is a great emperor of all time?

Chapter 36 Yu Qian: Your Majesty, please establish Prince Qi as Crown Prince
It's impossible that Yu Qian was completely unaware of the coup at the gate.

But he was powerless to stop it.

All the civil and military officials now know very well that Zhu Qiyu had no children.

He was also seriously ill and was certain to die.

An emperor like this will not have any ministers on his side.

Under these circumstances, Zhu Jianshen, as the crown prince, would certainly succeed to the throne.

In other words, Zhu Qizhen did not actually seize the throne from his younger brother, but rather from his own son.

Zhu Di also shook his head.

I feel sorry for this result.

After all, it could have been stopped.

If Zhu Qiyu had been more ruthless and had killed Zhu Qizhen and Zhu Jianshen without hesitation, he wouldn't have ended up like this.

He believed that as long as Zhu Qiyu truly hardened his heart, Zhu Qizhen would surely die, and that wicked empress would be powerless to stop it.

He was seriously ill and had no children; it was all the work of the women in the harem.

"Many people have asked why Yu Qian didn't step in to stop the coup. The reason is simple: Yu Qian had no way to stop it."

"This was a coup. Zhu Qiyu was critically ill, and it was in accordance with the law and propriety for Empress Dowager Sun to reinstate Zhu Qizhen."

"At this point, it was not only Empress Dowager Sun who supported Zhu Qizhen's restoration, but even the civil service group was strongly supporting him."

"The reason why the history of the Ming Dynasty is so complicated is actually the opposition between the military and civil officials, coupled with the emperor's checks and balances, which created all sorts of strange vortexes."

"At this time, the civil service group had become increasingly powerful. If Yu Qian had stopped the coup, the final result would have been to trigger even greater internal strife in the Ming Dynasty."

“Local princes will also send troops under the pretext of supporting the emperor. In reality, only Zhu Qizhen’s ascension to the throne can stabilize the situation.”

"There are few historical records about Yu Qian during the Coup of the Gate. All we know is that the next morning, he went to court as usual wearing his court robes, and that same day, Yu Qian was imprisoned!"

"The coup d'état was a political upheaval, without any apparent reason, yet it was entirely logical and reasonable. Zhu Qiyu had no heir, so the ministers' loyalty to him was meaningless. At this point, no officials in the court supported Zhu Qiyu, which is why Zhu Qizhen won so easily."

Military clique versus civil service clique?
Zhu Di frowned.

He couldn't understand how such a confrontation had arisen between the court and the government.

At least during his Yongle reign, the two were in a very good balance.

But why did it suddenly become unbalanced?
Zhu Di was certainly not stupid, and he quickly saw through the true nature of the matter.

He felt that the root of the problem lay with the eldest son, Zhu Gaochi, and the second son, Zhu Gaoxu.

After all, the current antagonism between these two actually represents the antagonism between civil officials and military generals.

Zhu Di felt very sad.

He discovered that many of the problems that followed the Ming Dynasty actually originated in the Yongle reign.

This put Zhu Di under immense pressure.

I don't know how to change all of this.

As they pondered, the sky continued to fall silent, and what followed moved everyone deeply.

After Zhu Qizhen regained the throne, Xu Youzhen, a key figure in the restoration, advised him to kill Yu Qian, arguing that without Yu Qian's death, the restoration would lack legitimacy. Shi Heng drew his sword and slashed off a corner of the table, shouting, "Without killing Yu Qian, there will be no legitimate reason to seize power!"

"Yu Qian's crime was to collude with foreign vassals and attempt to overthrow the Ming Dynasty. Everyone knew it was a frame-up, but Yu Qian still had to die."

Yu Qian has been sentenced to beheading and his head displayed in public!

"On the 23rd day of the first lunar month, in the West Market of Beijing, the streets were packed with onlookers, and there was a chorus of weeping. Everyone knew that he was Zhongcheng!"

"In the marketplace, Yu Qian, his white hair disheveled and his prison clothes stained with blood, turned towards the Forbidden City and performed three kowtows: 'Your subject Yu Qian has no shame before Heaven and Earth, no shame before the Ming Dynasty!' Then the executioner's blade fell, and the backbone of the Ming Dynasty finally broke. Yu Qian, who defended the capital and prolonged the life of the Ming Dynasty, met a tragic end, his body torn apart!"

"Everyone in the world said that Zhu Qizhen made a mistake in killing Yu Qian, but so what? Zhu Qizhen not only killed Yu Qian, but also killed all the Jingtai officials who were related to Yu Qian. At this moment, Zhu Qizhen's heart was already cold-blooded."

"Later, Zhu Qizhen instructed the Embroidered Uniform Guard to confiscate his property, but they only found a set of official robes of a first-rank official and a bestowed sword, with no other money or valuables."

"Commander Lu Gao was stunned for a long time before secretly stuffing back the half string of copper coins that had been found."

The History of Ming Dynasty commented: "Humble and loyal, his righteousness shines as brightly as the sun and moon. He died unjustly, and the world mourned his loss."

The Great Wall is easy to build, but a true national hero is hard to find!
Yu Qian can be called a national hero.

Zhu Di was moved. He had already considered the possibility that Zhu Qizhen was incompetent, but he never expected him to be so foolish.

They actually killed Yu Qian.

If it weren't for Yu Qian, it's questionable whether the Ming Dynasty would even exist after that battle in the capital.

Such a person, who was also an honest official, is truly rare.

Although he had never met Yu Qian, Zhu Di seemed to see the soul of the Ming Dynasty hero returning to the underworld through the words of the heavens!
Zhu Di took a deep breath.

His eyes gleamed with a sharp light.

Seeing his grandfather's murderous gaze, Zhu Zhanji felt fear in his heart.

It could even be said that the person who provoked such great anger in Grandpa was actually him.

"Yu Qian died at the hands of Zhu Qizhen, but he left this world cleanly, not only physically, but also in terms of his reputation in history!"

[From a certain perspective, Yu Qian was also a selfish person. I think a major reason he was unwilling to stop the coup was his fear of damaging his reputation!]
Did Yu Qian not know he would die after Zhu Qizhen ascended the throne? Yet, for the sake of the Ming Dynasty's stability, he was willing to die!
[Were there any great meritorious officials of the Ming Dynasty in history who met a good end? Yu Qian, Zhang Juzheng—the Ming Dynasty was truly a terrifying dynasty!]
"Let's talk about Zhu Qizhen, this young man. After experiencing life as a prisoner in the desolate north and years of house arrest, all that remained in his heart was resentment."

Zhu Qizhen only remembered that Yu Qian had helped Emperor Jing ascend the throne and removed him from that position; he only remembered that when the Oirats wanted to negotiate peace, Yu Qian insisted on war; he completely forgot that it was Yu Qian who persuaded Emperor Jing, giving him the opportunity to be released; and he forgot even less that without Yu Qian, his Ming Dynasty would have long been shattered.

That's just how people are; they always remember the hatred others have shown them!

Just as Tianmu was speaking intensely, Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi suddenly came to Zhu Di's ear and whispered, "Father, someone wants to see you!"

"Absurd!" Zhu Di composed himself, his brows furrowed.

He was about to get angry.

Zhu Gaochi hurriedly said, "No one dares to stop us! That person is Yu Qian, the one you're looking for!"

Yu Qian?

Upon hearing that it was Yu Qian, Zhu Di's expression softened.

He really wanted to see Yu Qian.

Curious about what kind of person the other person is.

At Zhu Di's behest, Yu Qian entered alone.

All the officials turned their gaze toward Yu Qian.

Everyone wanted to see what this loyal minister of later generations looked like.

Zhu Di was also very curious, but when he got closer, he found that Yu Qian was completely drunk and reeking of alcohol.

However, Zhu Di did not blame Yu Qian. Instead, he laughed and said, "Yu Qian, do you want to be Li Bai?"

He only admired Qian.

To everyone's surprise, Yu Qian didn't appreciate it at all. He shakily steadied himself and looked at Zhu Di with a face full of anger: "For the sake of the Ming Dynasty, Your Majesty, please make Prince Qi the Crown Prince!"

(End of this chapter)