The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 758: Not Entering the Imperial Temple
Later historians liked to compare Emperor Guangde with Duke Zhuang of Zheng, who forced his brother to death. They used a certain Spring and Autumn style of writing to praise the second emperor of the Great Qi for his purity and filial piety.

The result was counterproductive, and the world got to know Liu Kan's character and his dark and cruel inner world.

Gong Shuduan colluded with Jiang and planned to capture the capital and overthrow Duke Zheng. After learning the truth, Duke Zheng finally chose to forgive him.

He only exiled his younger brother and placed his mother, Jiang, under house arrest, "never to see her again until death", but he did not kill them all.

It's just that they were not completely wiped out.

Compared with the unfilial and unbrotherly Duke Zhuang of Zheng, the current emperor can be said to be the most pure and filial.

No matter how much resentment he had towards the Empress Dowager, Emperor Guangde maintained the most basic courtesy from beginning to end.

He would go to Kunning Palace every day to pay his respects to Jin Yuji and Yang Qing'er.

As per Emperor Guangde's instructions, Eunuch Li would immediately deliver the fruits, vegetables, and rare specialties presented to the Forbidden City by various provinces to Kunning Palace for the two empresses to enjoy. As for ordinary festivals, the gifts presented by the emperor to the empress dowager were beyond words.

Although the two queen dowagers had various dissatisfactions with Liu Kan, they did not take him too seriously because he was so filial.

If Liu Yufei had not been pushed onto the political stage by the rebels, and if the eldest princess had not been so ambitious, it is conceivable that such scenes of loving mother and filial piety would have been played out again and again in the Forbidden City in Nanjing, deep in the imperial palace, until the two empresses dowager grew old.

Unfortunately, there is no such thing.

The change occurred after the eldest princess was exiled to Junzhou.

As more of Liu Yufei's followers were arrested and interrogated, Liu Kan was surprised to find that his sister, the eldest princess favored by his father, had such great power.

Emperor Guangde suspected that the successive rebellions were probably related to the two queen mothers in Kunning Palace.

So, from one day on, Emperor Guangde no longer went to Kunning Palace and no longer paid his respects to Jin Yuji and Yang Qing'er.

The biggest difference between Liu Kan and his father is that he is a pragmatist.

The eldest princess's exile to Junzhou marked the complete destruction of the political forces that opposed the new policy.

The noble generals of the retired emperor's era either died or retreated, and no longer posed a threat - at least that's what the emperor himself thought.

As a kind of symbol of imperial rule, or mascot, the elderly Jin Yuji and Yang Qing'er must be alive.

Of course, it's just living.

Liu Kan was quite confident in the military force he controlled.

When the generals of various corps remained loyal to Emperor Guangde due to some political inertia, Liu Kan took advantage of this loyalty and eliminated Zhang Dong, Pu Gang, Lu Xiangsheng in a swift and decisive manner, subdued Deng Changxiong, and completed the real control over all civil and military officials.

It's time for a change.

By the beginning of the seventh year of Guangde, the new policy had achieved brilliant results in its implementation in various places.

The gentry and landlords regained control of the local areas, civil governance replaced military power, and the civil service became the new basis for imperial rule. Farmers, artisans, and the other "lower nine classes" returned to their original positions—slavery, to put it simply.

It is the arrogance of a time traveler to expect Liu Zhaosun to change the cannibalistic system that has lasted for thousands of years just by being in power for a few decades.

Liu Kan just wanted to make things go back to the way they were before.

The idyllic rural order in my heart was finally restored.

Farmers cultivate the land for generations, craftsmen work for generations, scholars study and become officials, and soldiers obey the orders of civil officials...

Liu Kan's political ideas were quite similar to the policies implemented by Zhu Yuanzhang in the early Ming Dynasty hundreds of years ago.

Both of them were obsessed with the rules and never stepped out of line. Zhu Yuanzhang listed the countries that he would not conquer, and Liu Kan followed suit, warning future generations not to repeat the path of the retired emperor Liu Zhaosun...
The only difference might be that Emperor Guangde was kind-hearted—at least that's what he claimed to be.

He thought that he would never commit such atrocities as slaughtering tens of thousands of people.

The military, as an important obstacle to the implementation of the new policies, has been basically eliminated.

Now, the biggest threat to the empire has changed from a soldier to his own sister.

Fratricide is the ultimate answer to all problems.

The reason why the eldest princess is still alive is not because Emperor Guangde is kind-hearted.

Since the death of the retired emperor, Liu Kan has been thinking about getting rid of the eldest princess day and night to avoid the same story as Empress Lü and Empress Wu Zetian.

The reason why we haven't taken action yet is not because we don't want to, but because we can't.

A series of changes that occurred after the implementation of the new policy disrupted Emperor Guangde's process of cleaning up his own house.

Pu Gang's rebellion and the Liaodong mutiny made the young and energetic Liu Kan realize that Liu Yufei had many followers. If he killed her rashly, it would be counterproductive and would bring him endless troubles.

If you want to get rid of Liu Yufei, you must get rid of her followers.

Therefore, Emperor Guangde dared to exile the eldest princess only after making sufficient preparations and laying the groundwork.

"I never thought that my sister would attract so many people with just a single call. I underestimated her."

~~~~
When the gentry and wealthy families in Jiangnan heard that Liu Yufei was going to restore the old system and retake their land, they wrote letters to the court, requesting permission for local militia to fight for the country and kill the bandits. Emperor Guangde agreed.

~~~
Unable to bear the sight of their children killing each other, Empress Dowager Cisheng and Empress Dowager Dong tried to persuade the emperor one last time, but Liu Kan remained unmoved. Eventually, the two empress dowagers hanged themselves in Kunning Palace. Upon hearing the news, Liu Kan rushed to Kunning Palace overnight, wailing uncontrollably.

In the end, the Queen Mother's death was attributed to Liu Yufei's rebellion, and an imperial decree was issued to announce to the world that after Liu Yufei's death, she was not allowed to enter the Liu family temple.

(End of this chapter)