The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 68 Deposing the Emperor and Establishing a New One
"If it weren't for Jianwen's suspicion, and the presence of treacherous officials like you in the court, who wreak havoc on the country and sow discord among the imperial families, how could I have led tens of thousands of troops, with the will to die, all the way south?"

If it weren't for the favor of Heaven, I would probably have become a wandering ghost long ago, or even been given a terrible posthumous title like that of the Prince of Xiang, and suppressed in the Yellow Springs!
Why can't I criticize it?

If Jianwen is innocent, is this the fault of the Prince of Xiang? Is this the fault of this prince?
If Jianwen is innocent, are all the generals and 100,000 soldiers who followed me in raising an army, those who died in Liaodong, Hebei, Shandong, and Henan, all traitors and villains? Was all their blood shed in vain?
If Jianwen is without fault, then all my battles—traveling three thousand miles, fighting against a million soldiers, and narrowly escaping death countless times—were they all in vain?
Tell me, how could Jianwen be without fault! How could Jianwen be without fault!

The autumn wind was fierce, the royal banners were flying, and the King of Yan expressed his feelings. The ministers were so intimidated by the King of Yan's imposing manner that they were speechless for a moment.

Seeing Fang Xiaoru and others speechless, and the officials and common people bowing down, Zhu Di looked around with a sneer, his hand on his sword. Today, he not only wanted power, but also to be upright and honorable.

"The matter of the Jingnan Rebellion will be completely clear today. What difficulty is there in that?"
However, Jianwen Emperor, having ascended the throne, was narrow-minded and intolerant of others. He forgot the teachings of the late emperor and was wary of his uncles who held military power. His sinister thoughts were discovered by treacherous officials like Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng, so they colluded to trample on their own relatives.

The Ming Dynasty was originally quite peaceful. The princes guarded the borders against the Mongols, the emperor held court, and the world was at peace. However, due to his sinister thoughts, war broke out everywhere, and families were torn apart. Hebei and Shandong were devastated, and countless people were displaced, some even dying on the road, turning into pitiful white bones.

If I were truly a traitor like Dong Zhuo and Erzhu Rong, why would Heaven repeatedly help me defeat the enemy? Why would the princes disobey the imperial court's orders and help me march south? And why would the imperial court, which possesses all the land under heaven, be defeated by me?

"If it weren't for the soldiers, the people, the elders, and the generals all pitying my injustice, how could they have united as one, never betrayed me for three years, and remained determined to march south?"

Zhu Di's voice resounded in everyone's ears, and his questioning grew louder and louder. It was as if an imperial edict had fallen from the high platform: "Jianwen's crimes are the greatest of all. If today it is a person of a different surname who tramples down the capital, will the Ming Dynasty perish after only two generations?"
He has sinned against the world, failed the state, disobeyed the late emperor's will, and betrayed the wishes of his clan. Therefore, though he is dead, his crimes are unforgivable. He is hereby deposed from his imperial throne and title, reduced to a commoner, and buried in the wilderness, to atone for his sins before Heaven, Earth, and the spirits of his ancestors.

When the Prince of Yan compared the emperor to Jie and Zhou, they had already anticipated this. Now, hearing these words spoken by the Prince of Yan, the officials below were still unsure whether it would be worse for Jianwen to receive a more egregious posthumous title or to have his imperial title revoked.

Seeing that all the officials and common people in the palace had been persuaded, Fang Xiaoru felt extremely resentful. The Prince of Yan was clearly plotting a rebellion, yet he had managed to absolve himself of all responsibility.

"Does the Prince of Yan intend to succeed to the throne as a member of a minor branch of the family? Although His Majesty has passed away, the main line still has heirs and princes. It is not His Highness's place to overstep his bounds. A few days ago, the Prince of Yan said that the Duke of Zhou assisted King Cheng, and now is the perfect time!"

A few days ago, Zhu Di said that the Duke of Zhou's assistance to King Cheng was ridiculed by Fang Xiaoru, but now Fang Xiaoru himself has brought it up. It's true that fortunes change.

Unfortunately, Fang Xiaoru was destined to achieve nothing. Li Qi had already made preparations for everything that might happen today.

Moreover, Zhu Di was an extremely intelligent man, and after Li Qi analyzed the logic, he was able to speak up himself.

Therefore, upon hearing Fang Xiaoru's words, Zhu Di angrily drew his sword and said, "The Duke of Zhou assisted King Cheng? Who is qualified to be King Cheng?"

Is it the King of Wu, who was already deemed unworthy by the late emperor, or the children whose fathers were merely commoners?
"King Cheng's father was King Wu of Zhou, who established the Zhou dynasty. King Wu's empire should naturally be passed on to his descendants. What about now?" King Yan's words, though somewhat forced, were not without reason. Zhu Yunwen was deposed from the throne, so his sons were no longer in the line of succession. Emperor Xiaokang himself was posthumously granted the title of emperor, so his sons were naturally even further behind in the line of succession.

Fang Xiaoru's face was deathly pale. If he had been forced to die by Zhu Di's violence today, he would have been willing to die. But now he had lost to the principles of Heaven and the laws of nature.

He found it hard to accept this outcome, and overwhelmed with grief, he coughed up blood.

Seeing this, Zhu Di felt a sense of pleasure. He had only felt this way before when he led his troops beyond the Great Wall. Now he finally understood why his father valued Li Qi so much in the later years of his reign. With Li Qi around, they could always gain the upper hand when facing the literati.

"The second emperor of the Qin Dynasty was Huhai, and he died young; Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty was incompetent and almost lost the throne to the Lü clan, but thanks to Emperor Wen, the dynasty lasted for four hundred years; Emperor Hui of the Jin Dynasty was incompetent, which led to the Yongjia Rebellion; Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty brought chaos to the world and also died after only two generations; Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty was exceptionally talented and thus the Zhenguan era came to pass; Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty, although not good at military strategy, was capable of governing the country through civil administration."

Throughout history, the founding emperors of great dynasties have always been wise and powerful. Whether a dynasty can continue depends on the second generation. If the second emperor is wise and powerful, the dynasty can continue for more than a hundred years.

In the present Ming Dynasty, in terms of literary talent, military strategy, seniority, rule, prestige, and prestige, is there anyone in the imperial family who can surpass me?

For the sake of the Ming Dynasty, if I, the King, do not sit on this throne, how can I possibly hand it over to someone else without causing chaos?

Zhu Di was so calm and composed that he didn't even bother to decline the throne three times. He wanted to tell the world that, based on both sentiment and reason, the throne should rightfully belong to him!
Even Fang Xiaoru and others were speechless. In such a situation, arguing was useless and would only make them a laughing stock.

Huang Zicheng said sadly, "How absurd! How can loyalty and treachery be so intertwined? He cannot serve the emperor or the people. He deserves to die! He deserves to die!"

But Zhu Di would not let him die so easily, because the matter was not over yet.

"Now that we have discussed the merits and demerits between myself and Jianwen, and where the throne should belong, let us now discuss the merits and demerits of the ministers, and their ultimate fate!"

Zhu Di descended two steps, casually handing the precious sword in his hand to Zhu Gaoxu, and then said with his hands behind his back, "In my edict to quell the rebellion, I clearly stated that the targets to be punished were Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng. They are naturally unforgivable. Fang Xiaoru's insistence on giving the Prince of Xiang a derogatory posthumous title is also unforgivable."

The crowd fell silent for a moment. No one had ever imagined that the Prince of Yan would actually question his ministers. But at that time, they were all serving their own masters. Shouldn't they have been held accountable for everything?

Zhu Di knew that this matter had to be done. Li Qi had said that when a new dynasty is established, it is necessary to rebuild the teachings of morality and re-establish loyalty, filial piety, benevolence and righteousness. Only in this way can the court have a legitimate image in the hearts of the people and win their hearts.

(End of this chapter)