Qin Shihuang, Liu Bang, Li Shimin, Wu Zetian, Zhao Kuangyin, Zhu Yuanzhang, Emperor Qianlong, etc. are all very topical emperors. Among them, Zhu Yuanzhang and Emperor Qianlong have countless unofficial stories. The story of Emperor Qianlong Mostly because of his self-pleasure, and most of Zhu Yuanzhang's stories are related to his history of struggle. He turned from a beggar to the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, which is an extremely inspirational story in itself. Later, he was killed after he became emperor. So many officials added to his storytelling.
Zhu Yuanzhang lived a poor life since he was a child. He once had the experience of herding cattle for landlords to make a living. He also worked as a monk, begged for food, and lived at the bottom of society. But it was such a person who participated in an uprising and revolution that overthrew the Yuan Dynasty when he became an adult. He made great contributions during the war and finally ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor in 1368, becoming the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty.
After becoming the emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang worked hard to be a good emperor. He made a number of political reforms, continuously strengthened the imperial power, and firmly held power in his hands. He punished corrupt officials and truly wanted to create a good emperor. The imperial team made the Ming Dynasty permanent, but Zhu Yuanzhang was very ruthless. He killed too many officials, many of whom were founding heroes. This is what he is most criticized for.
Looking back at the Prime Minister, the past years flashed by like lightning. Zhu Yuanzhang transformed from the original cowherd to the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty. From the bottom to the top of the pyramid, Zhu Yuanzhang experienced the vicissitudes of life that ordinary people have never experienced. This also led to his complex and changeable character, which is a contradictory combination of self-confidence and inferiority, as well as magnanimity. Symbol of double personality with narrow-mindedness. In short, he is an extremely awkward emperor with a somewhat twisted personality. Such an emperor is destined to be difficult to serve.
Zhu Yuanzhang had never gone to school and did not know a few words, which made him feel very inferior deep down. You must know that most of the emperors in the past were talented and intelligent. Zhu Yuanzhang He was always worried about his own meager talents and knowledge, and he couldn't help but think that officials in the DPRK and the Central Government looked down on him. Faced with his own shortcomings in knowledge, he wants to make up for it through his children, so he attaches great importance to their education.
Once he saw the princes learning couplets, which aroused his interest, so he studied it carefully and finally understood the trick. Later, in a court meeting, when talking to the ministers about the increasingly powerful Ming Empire, the ministers were full of praise for Zhu Yuanzhang, and Zhu Yuanzhang became even more elated. On a whim, he exchanged couplets with his ministers. Zhu Yuanzhang pondered for a moment and came up with a couplet: "I am the best in the world." Zhu Yuanzhang was very confident in this couplet. You must know that Laozi not only refers to Lao Tzu Li Er during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, but also refers to Zhu Yuanzhang. As an emperor, he can be described as a pun.
As soon as this couplet came out, the ministers were in trouble and began to regret their flattery just now. They didn't know what to do with this couplet. This couplet is actually a trivial matter to the hated officials in the court, because they have enjoyed prosperity and wealth since childhood and are exposed to ancient and modern culture. However, everyone knows that this couplet superficially refers to Lao Tzu's high moral character, respect for the world, and high status. In fact, it means that the emperor himself has a supreme status and profound knowledge.
Everyone knows that the emperor of the dynasty was moody and would kill without batting an eye if something didn't go his way. The ministers kept silent and praised the excellent couplet one after another, but they all declined because of their poor talent and knowledge. Zhu Yuanzhang was naturally very happy, but a young minister wanted to express himself in front of the emperor, so he boldly said, "My grandson is unparalleled in the world." The ministers all lowered their heads with mocking looks, laughing at this man for not knowing how to observe words and expressions, and for being too inexperienced in the world.
How does this couplet match? Of course it is good purely in terms of couplets. On the surface, this couplet praises Sun Wu's military skills during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. In fact, it praises the excellence of Zhu Yunwen, the grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang. It fit perfectly with Zhu Yuanzhang's first couplet, but Zhu Yuanzhang became angry and ordered the official to be dragged out and executed. There are several reasons for this:
Firstly, Zhu Yuanzhang wrote the couplet to show his talents to his ministers. It would be better if the ministers couldn't stand up to him to show that he was more talented than him, and this man The ministers failed to understand the holy intention and thought that this was a great opportunity for them to get promoted and make a fortune, which angered Zhu Yuanzhang.
Secondly, even though the word "grandson" in the couplet can refer to Sun Wu from afar or Zhu Yunwen from afar, the word "grandson" sometimes means a curse. For example, whoever doesn't go is the grandson?, so Zhu Yuanzhang was very angry.
Thirdly, it is not impossible to praise Zhu Yunwen, the grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang, for his excellence. On the contrary, Zhu Yuanzhang himself also likes his grandson very much, but he said that Zhu Yunwen is unparalleled in the world. What about Zhu Yuanzhang? He's not dead yet, how could he endure such a couplet? Therefore, this official was not unjustly killed.
Of course this is just unofficial history and does not exist in real historical records. The reason why such a story appears is just to say that Zhu Yuanzhang was a cruel and easy-to-kill emperor. It is true that he did kill many officials. , it is true that his character is complex and even distorted to a certain extent, but Zhu Yuanzhang can still be called a good emperor.