Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 198: Yu Shaobao's Injustice, Empress Sun's Ability [Request for Subscription]

Liu Kuan sighed and said, "Your Majesty, Yu Qian's deeds had a profound impact on the Ming Dynasty in later history."

After hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang noticed Liu Kuan's strange expression and shifted his focus. He asked, "Why do you say that?"

Liu Kuan said, "After the Battle of Tumu, it was Yu Qian who first stood up. He went against the majority's opinion of moving the capital and shouted the slogan 'Anyone who suggests moving south should be executed.' He suggested defending Beijing. After he was promoted to Minister of War and was in charge of defense, he actually defended Beijing and repelled the Oirat army."

"Thus, whether viewed by later generations or by people of the Ming dynasty at the time, Yu Qian was a national hero who turned the tide – after all, if the Ming dynasty had moved its capital, it would likely have ended up like the Southern Song dynasty."

"Besides this, Yu Qian was also an honest and capable official. Although he entered the government as an imperial censor during the Xuande period, he later served mostly as a local official."

"While Yu Qian was inspecting Jiangxi, he overturned hundreds of unjust cases. Zhu Zhanji, seeing Yu Qian's outstanding ability, appointed him governor of Shanxi and Henan."

"At that time, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, Shandong, and even Hebei were already suffering from the decline of people's livelihood due to the several Northern Expeditions during the Yongle period. Many people fled to the mountains and became bandits."

"During the early years of the Xuande reign, there were several droughts and floods, resulting in many victims, refugees, and bandits."

"Yu Qian served as governor of Shanxi and Henan for more than ten years, eradicating banditry and ensuring the people lived and worked in peace. Although floods and droughts still occurred, Shanxi and Henan not only did not need food aid from the court, but instead accumulated hundreds of thousands of dan of grain each year."

"Because Shanxi and Henan are well governed, many refugees from Shaanxi and Shandong have gone there in search of food."

"After Shanxi and Henan were brought under great order, Yu Qian should have been promoted to the central government. However, by then, the Three Yangs had died, and Wang Zhen was in control of the government. Because Yu Qian refused to give him gifts and curry favor like other officials did, Wang Zhen regarded him as a dissident and suppressed him."

"Wang Zhen not only prevented Yu Qian from entering the central government, but also arranged for his followers to falsely accuse Yu Qian of being dissatisfied with the court, imprisoned him, and prepared to execute him."

"Because the people were outraged and signed a petition, Wang Zhen, under pressure, found a random excuse to release Yu Qian and demoted him to the position of Junior Secretary of the Dali Temple."

"Later, as the Oirat Mongols were rampant and repeatedly invaded the border, someone recommended Yu Qian for his military knowledge, and he was promoted to the position of Vice Minister of War. This led to the defense of Beijing the following year."

"As for his subsequent seven years assisting Zhu Qiyu, his achievements were even greater. I cannot recall them all, so I will not enumerate them."

"After Zhu Qizhen imprisoned Yu Qian and others, he couldn't find a crime to accuse Yu Qian of, so he asked Shi Heng, Cao Jixiang, and Xu Youzhen, who had led the coup, to offer advice."

"Shi Heng and his men could not find any evidence of Yu Qian's guilt, so they falsely accused him of making improper remarks and plotting to support the enthronement of Prince Xiang's son. They accused him of treason and executed him. His family was exiled to the border."

"It is said that when Yu Qian's house was ransacked, he had no wealth left, only some books, and the dragon robe and sword given by Zhu Qiyu. After Yu Qian was executed, many who heard the news mourned him deeply."

"Later generations even compared Yu Qian's unjust death to Yue Fei's, arguing that it chilled the hearts of the people throughout the country, leading to an increase in the number of Ming scholars pursuing their own selfish ends and a decrease in those willing to serve the country."

After hearing Liu Kuan's words, Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di realized how great an impact Yu Qian's affair had on the Ming Dynasty and future generations.

But at the same time, some doubts also arise.

While Zhu Yuanzhang was still thinking, Zhu Di couldn't help but speak first.

"Third brother-in-law, Yu Qian did make great contributions to the Ming Dynasty and was indeed an honest and capable minister, but Zhu Qizhen killed him mainly because he supported Zhu Qiyu, right?"

"Why did you just say that he died unjustly, and that future generations would rank his unjust death alongside Yue Fei's?"

Liu Kuan said, "Your Highness, Prince of Yan, the main reason Zhu Qizhen killed Yu Qian was indeed the struggle for imperial power, but this reason cannot be made public, because Yu Qian's original support for Zhu Qiyu was legal and reasonable in the Ming Dynasty."

"At that time, Zhu Qizhen was captured and even held hostage by the Oirat Mongols. They were threatening to use Zhu Qizhen as a puppet to rule the Central Plains. Under such circumstances, the Ming Dynasty urgently needed a long-term ruler, not a young emperor who was Zhu Qizhen's son."

"Let's put it another way. When the Oirat Mongols held Zhu Qizhen hostage and attacked Beijing, Zhu Qiyu, as his younger brother, could still order his soldiers not to worry about Zhu Qizhen's life. But could Zhu Qizhen's son do the same? It would be unfilial of him to do so."

"Under these circumstances, if the Ming Dynasty doesn't want to perish, it has no choice but to appoint a new ruler. Empress Dowager Sun also knew about this, so she agreed."

"Since Empress Dowager Sun agreed to Zhu Qizhen's restoration and re-entry, he cannot use this to punish Yu Qian. If he were to convict Yu Qian of treason, wouldn't that also imply Empress Dowager Sun's treason? This would still be against filial piety."

"It was for this reason that Shi Heng and others, who helped Zhu Qizhen restore the throne, fabricated the charge that Yu Qian intended to support the son of Prince Xiang."

"Your Highness is a first-rank official. 'Intent to support the throne'. Why do you say that? Because this story is fictitious. Naturally, they can't find any concrete evidence. They can only accuse you of 'intent to support the throne'."

"How similar is this charge to the 'false accusation' leveled against Yue Fei by Zhao Gou and Qin Hui? Both were national heroes who made significant contributions in resisting the invasion of the barbarians. It's only natural that future generations will compare Yu Qian and Yue Fei."

"In fact, not to mention later generations, even during the Ming Dynasty, many people spoke out for Yu Qian. Even Emperor Yingzong regretted killing Yu Qian on almost trumped-up charges in his later years."

"When Emperor Chenghua, Zhu Jianshen, the son of Zhu Qizhen, ascended the throne, he rehabilitated Yu Qian the following year. This shows that Yu Qian's injustice was known to the world at that time."

"So that's how it is." Zhu Di responded and seemed to be thinking about something.

Zhu Di certainly had political talent, but it was definitely not as high as Zhu Yuanzhang's. In addition, he was young at the time and his political insights were not very deep, which is why he had doubts about Qianzhi's unjust death.

Now, after listening to Liu Kuan's explanation, I feel that I have a great understanding of politics.

Old Zhu also spoke up at this time, sighing, "Yu Qian was a man of both literary and martial talents, and he was honest and upright. Unfortunately, he was born at the wrong time and had bad luck. Now that that bastard Zhu Qizhen has restored the throne, he is doomed."

"But even after seven years of house arrest, that bastard Zhu Qizhen hasn't made much progress. The way he murdered Yu Qian was so despicable that it will surely chill the loyalty of scholars across the country to the emperor and their country."

Zhu Yuanzhang didn't want to dwell on Yu Qian's affairs, so after making some comments, he changed the subject and asked, "How many years did that bastard Zhu Qizhen sit on the throne after his restoration, and what did he do?"

Liu Kuan was not so stupid as to bring up Yu Qian's affairs over and over again - although it was Zhu Qizhen who did it, he was a descendant of the Zhu family after all, and became the emperor of the Ming Dynasty twice. Zhu, Zhu Biao, and Zhu Di would definitely be ashamed to hear about this and would not want to listen to any more.

He briefly recalled and said, "Your Majesty, when Zhu Qizhen first restored the throne, his main focus was on settling accounts with officials such as Yu Qian and Wang Wen, who were trusted by Zhu Qiyu during his reign."

"For example, those who had offended him during the brief period before he was placed under house arrest after returning to Beijing; and those who had supported Zhu Qiyu in abolishing Zhu Jianshen's position as crown prince."

"Shi Heng and others who had planned Zhu Qiyu's restoration took advantage of this opportunity to engage in corruption, bribery, exclude dissidents, and form cliques for personal gain."

"Many capable officials and military commanders promoted by Zhu Qiyu and Yu Qian during the Jingtai reign suffered as a result, being killed, exiled, or demoted." "And after Xu Youzhen, Shi Heng, and the eunuch Cao Jixiang each gained control of some of the court's power, they fought for power and oppressed each other."

"Xu Youzhen, as a civil official, was expelled from the imperial court in the first year of the Tianshun reign. Zhu Qizhen, perhaps sensing the decline of imperial power, resorted to some tactical tactics and executed the arrogant Shi Heng, who held military power, two years later."

"Cao Jixiang believed that Zhu Qizhen intended to punish him, the heroes of the restoration, and since he was gradually losing power in the palace, he plotted a rebellion. After his plan failed, he was executed by slow slicing and his entire clan was exterminated."

"After Zhu Qizhen spent four years dealing with these three people, he promoted a group of virtuous and capable officials, which helped to restore stability to the court. The Ming Dynasty also broke free from the chaos of the previous few years and began to recover."

"However, although Zhu Qizhen had the idea of ​​governing the country well, he did not live for many years. He died of beriberi in the eighth year of Tianshun. Before his death, in addition to making instructions for his funeral, he also abolished the ancestral custom of burying concubines alive with the emperor."

"This is what I know about Zhu Qizhen's life and deeds."

After listening to Liu Kuan's words, Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao and Zhu Di were all quite moved.

This time, it was Old Zhu who spoke first. "I never expected that after Zhu Qizhen's restoration, he would actually show some of the methods that an emperor should have. It shows that he has some imperial talent."

"In the final analysis, it's all because that evil child Zhu Zhanji died too early, so no one taught Zhu Qizhen well."

"And then there's Sun. When Zhu Qizhen was young, Empress Dowager Zhang was acting as the governor of state. She should have been responsible for raising the child well. But she ended up letting a eunuch raise the child and turn him into a tyrant."

"The subsequent struggle between the brothers Zhu Qizhen and Zhu Qiyu for the throne, and even the dispute over the heir apparent, was also caused by the Sun family's initial mishandling."

"This Sun family only showed some decisiveness in dealing with the Tumu Incident. Her performance in educating children and reconciling relationships with the imperial family was truly unsatisfactory."

Zhu Biao and Zhu Di were thoughtful about what Zhu said.

Liu Kuan secretly shook his head - he felt that Old Zhu's evaluation of Sun was biased.

Sun did not educate Zhu Qizhen well - but at that time, Empress Dowager Zhang had the final say inside and outside the palace, so even if Sun wanted to educate her son, she might not be able to do so.

As for Sun's reaction and handling of the Battle of Tumu, Zhu Yuanzhang said they were good, so of course they were really good.

Sun agreed to Zhu Qiyu's ascension to the throne by making Zhu Jianshen the crown prince, and later issued an imperial decree to facilitate the coup d'état. Although for the Ming Dynasty, it was not a good thing to let the incompetent Zhu Qizhen replace the relatively wise and capable monarch Zhu Qiyu.

But in her personal opinion, it is normal to do so.

After all, her biological son was Zhu Qizhen - which woman could watch her own son being placed under house arrest and living in depression due to the pain of losing imperial power?

Not to mention that Zhu Qiyu broke his promise and deposed Zhu Jianshen from the position of crown prince, intending to transfer the throne to his lineage.

The fact that Sun was able to take advantage of Zhu Qiyu's serious illness and use the imperial decree to facilitate the coup d'état just demonstrates her ability and decisiveness.

Liu Kuan even suspected that the death of Zhu Qiyu's son and even Zhu Qiyu's serious illness might be related to Sun.

For example, this possibility: Zhu Qiyu appointed his own son Zhu Jianji as the crown prince, and Sun had Zhu Jianji killed to warn Zhu Qiyu to keep his promise.

Zhu Qiyu, either unaware or unwilling to accept the situation, refused to enthronize Zhu Jianshen even though he had no son. Sun waited for several years, but seeing no sign of Zhu Qiyu's repentance, she had no choice but to let him die.

There is a reason why the popular TV series "The Glory of the Tang Dynasty" in later generations uses Sun as the main perspective - this woman has something special.

However, Liu Kuan did not argue with Zhu Yuanzhang about the Sun family matter, as it was not worth it.

After Zhu Yuanzhang finished commenting on Sun, he stood up, stretched, and said, "It's getting late. We've finished talking about that bastard Zhu Qizhen. Liu Kuan, you should go back home."

"Yes."

Liu Kuan responded but did not retreat. He guessed that Zhu Yuanzhang had more instructions.

Sure enough, Zhu Yuanzhang continued, "The day after tomorrow is August 15th. The fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh brothers are all here. Find some suitable videos or movies to show."

"Didn't you download a lot of videos and a movie that day? Don't make excuses."

Liu Kuan smiled and said "yes" again.

Then he left Fengxian Hall.

Seeing Liu Kuan leave, Zhu Di also said goodbye and prepared to retreat.

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "You're in such a hurry to leave, are you afraid that I'll beat you up again?"

Zhu Di did have this worry, but he would not admit it. He smiled awkwardly and said, "Father, Miaoyun is waiting for me to return home for lunch."

Zhu Yuanzhang said to Li Gui, "Send someone to tell the fourth brother's guard to go back to the Prince of Yan's Mansion and tell him that the fourth brother is having lunch in the palace today."

"Yes."

Li Gui responded and went to make arrangements.

Zhu Di had a bitter look on his face and thought to himself: Didn’t the old man fight enough before?

Just as he was thinking this, he heard Zhu Yuanzhang say: "What do you two think after hearing about Zhu Qizhen's story? Tell me - Biaoer, give me an example."

　First update.

　　
　　
　
(End of this chapter)