After Chen Biao finished laughing, he asked Zhu Yuanzhang, "Dad, everyone says that our Lord's Ming Wang is related to the Ming Cult? You wouldn't tell me that our Lord would establish the Ming Dynasty. You and our Lord proposed this, right?"
Zhu Yuanzhang quickly shook his head. "Biao'er, how could I betray you? My lord calls himself 'Ming Wang', which seems to indicate he's recruiting the Red Turban Army. But when he becomes emperor, he'll definitely ban that."
Zhu Yuanzhang himself was a member of the Red Turban Army, and he didn't even understand what the Maitreya Sect and the White Lotus Sect were. He had no good feelings towards them at all.
It was a rare opportunity for Zhu Yuanzhang to show off in front of his son. He proudly explained, "Biao'er, do you know the origin of the name of the Yuan Dynasty?"
Chen Biao said: "I don't know."
Zhu Yuanzhang was surprised: "Biao'er, is there something you don't know?!"
Chen Biao was helpless: "I would know it only if I have learned it. How would I know if I hadn't paid attention to it? Why is Da Yuan called Da Yuan? What does it have to do with me?"
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed. "Okay, okay, you're right. The origin of the Yuan dynasty's name comes from the interpretation of the Qian hexagram in the Book of Changes."
Chen Biao: “Oh.”
Zhu Yuanzhang: “…Oh?”
Chen Biao was puzzled: "What's wrong?"
Zhu Yuanzhang was even more puzzled. "Biao'er, I don't believe you can't memorize the Book of Changes. I've already told you the origins of the Yuan Dynasty's name. Shouldn't you immediately answer which allusion they used?"
Chen Biao lazily hugged the hand warmer and said, "Dad, accurately mobilizing memory requires energy, okay? Who would use their brain during daily conversations?"
Zhu Yuanzhang: "Uh..." He always felt that he should say something about his son's laziness, but he couldn't think of what to say for a while.
Chen Biao, who was too lazy to think, kept urging him: "Dad, why are you standing there? Keep talking."
Zhu Yuanzhang: "Oh. The origin of the Yuan dynasty's name is 'Great is the Qian Yuan, the source of all things, governing the heavens.'"
Chen Biao: “Yeah.”
Zhu Yuanzhang was speechless. I've already said the first sentence, and you're just trying to come up with the next one. How much brainpower do you have?
Under Chen Biao's urging, he sighed, losing the pleasure of showing off to his son: "The name of the Ming Dynasty comes from, 'The Ming Dynasty has its beginning and end, and six generations have established it. They ride six dragons to control the sky.'"
Chen Biao nodded while holding the hand warmer: "Oh, the lord recognizes the Yuan Dynasty as the orthodox dynasty."
Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said, "Although we are now... we are under the banner of expelling the barbarians, but in fact, from the perspective of us ordinary people, the concepts of Tartars and Han people are actually not that important. All we care about is who can let us survive."
Chen Biao knew that his father wanted to recall the good old days, so he quickly placed the hand warmer on his knees, picked up a cup of hot milk, and signaled Zhu Yuanzhang to continue with his eyes.
Zhu Yuanzhang's mouth twitched. He snatched Chen Biao's hot milk and drank half of it in one gulp: "Your grandfather lived under the protection of the Yuan Dynasty."
Chen Biao's eyelids twitched. He listened to Zhu Yuanzhang's words quietly and understood the meaning of his words.
The "Hua Yi Debate" was a concept proposed by the literati. Ordinary people were struggling to avoid freezing or starving to death, so they didn't have the leisure to think about the affairs of the Han or Yuan people.
They only knew that life was extremely difficult during the Song Dynasty, and that things got better after Kublai Khan became emperor. So they missed Kublai Khan.
Institutionally, the Yuan Dynasty as a whole severely oppressed the Han people, classifying them as the lowest race.
But in reality, for most of the lower-class people, there was no way to rise up. So the "discrimination" of the Yuan Dynasty was equivalent to no discrimination in their eyes.
Whether they are Han, Mongolian or other ethnic groups, the people at the bottom of society all live in the same miserable way.
Even the Han people could farm, but the lower-class Mongolian people lived a worse life than the Han people because the Yuan Dynasty emperor did not allow them to farm in order to prevent them from being sinicized.
Especially after the Yuan Dynasty, when wars broke out, Mongolians were drafted into battle in large numbers, and were required to provide their own weapons and horses. If they refused, their entire family would be killed. Many Mongolian civilians sold their wives and daughters to exchange for equipment, and even sold themselves into slavery.
Many poor Mongolians joined the northern rebels during the raging uprising, and even among the Red Turban Army were generals and soldiers whose surnames were Han but whose height revealed their Mongolian origins.
Chen Biao stretched out his hand, and Zhu Yuanzhang returned the half-empty bottle of milk to Chen Biao.
Chen Biao wiped his father's saliva off the rim of the cup with a handkerchief in disgust and drank the milk in small sips.
After taking a few sips, Chen Biao licked the milk stains from the corner of his mouth and said, "My lord, do you still think that no matter how bad the Yuan Dynasty was, it at least had a vast territory? It's a bit embarrassing to say that the regime was inherited from the Song Dynasty."
Zhu Yuanzhang was seen through by Chen Biao's thoughts and smiled embarrassedly: "My lord, you may have the same idea."
Chen Biao said, "My lord, you understand that the common people don't really care what ethnicity the emperor comes from. This is the superiority of your origin. The Yuan Dynasty ruler's fault isn't that he's Mongolian, but that he wasn't a good emperor. If the world is peaceful and the people have enough food and clothing, or even just enough to avoid starvation or freezing, then his rule can continue."
After saying this, Chen Biao sneered, "The Yuan Dynasty lasted only a hundred years, and for most of that time it was in extreme chaos. How could the people have lived a stable and good life for even ten years? Even in those ten years, the people would have missed them and recognized them. It was so easy to be a wise ruler."
Was the Yuan Dynasty really that good? Bullshit.
Kublai Khan was a formidable warrior, but his rule was completely hamstrung by the gentry. While other dynasties extended their imperial authority beyond the county level, the Yuan dynasty extended its authority beyond the province level.
Economically, the tax farming system was implemented, and the tax rate was extremely low. Even during the decade or so that the Yuan Dynasty claimed to be a prosperous era, only the rulers and Han Chinese landlords enjoyed the benefits.
Chen Biao drank the milk viciously.
The gentry and powerful were even more active in maintaining the Yuan Dynasty's rule than the Mongols themselves. If the Yuan Dynasty had not already declined, they would have known that the tide was turning and would have switched sides, seeking to join the next dynasty and continue their prosperous lives. They might still be cheering for the Yuan Dynasty.
Chen Biao suddenly asked, "By the way, what happened to General Deng's father-in-law's family? It won't just be forgotten."
Although he didn't understand why Chen Biao suddenly asked this, Zhu Yuanzhang immediately replied: "Kill them all, kill them all, leave no one alive!"
Chen Biao frowned and didn't ask any more questions.
It was normal in that era to confiscate property and exterminate families, but he didn't like it anyway, so he didn't listen.
This can also be considered as "a gentleman stays away from the kitchen."
He put down his glass of milk, wiped his lips with the back of his hand, and said, "My lord, by recognizing the Yuan Dynasty as legitimate, you are also trying to divide the Yuan Dynasty officials in the north, hoping that they will surrender. After all, the less fighting we can do, the better. The sooner the chaos ends, the more good life the people will have."
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "Biao'er, I can't hide anything from you."
Chen Biao sighed, "I really hate politics. It's much more troublesome than business. Dad, you have to warn the lord to be careful. The big landlords and powerful people have been spoiled by the Yuan Dynasty's imperial power and have become accustomed to being local tyrants. Even if they surrender to the lord, they will definitely do everything they can to continue the Yuan Dynasty's system. I think someone will come to contact the lord soon."
Zhu Yuanzhang scratched his head: "It can't be that fast? We...we are not that powerful."
Chen Biao said, "That's pretty impressive. But Dad, you suddenly pulled me aside and started talking a lot. Is there something hidden in your words? I'm too lazy to think. Can you just say it directly?"
Zhu Yuanzhang looked at his son who didn't want to use his brain at all, and began to scratch his head with both hands: "Son, can't you think for yourself?"
Chen Biao imitated Zhu Yuanzhang's tone: "Dad, can't you just say it directly?"
Zhu Yuanzhang frowned and said, "Son, can you use your brain?"
Chen Biao shook his head: "Dad, with you here, why should I use my brain? I'm still young, a little boy under ten years old. I haven't even been weaned yet."
Chen Biao pointed to the milk cup and said, "I am now depending on Dad. Dad only needs brains, but a young son doesn't need brains."
Zhu Yuanzhang: “…” Stare.
Chen Biao stared back.
Zhu Yuanzhang fell into deep thought: "Biao'er, this conversation sounds familiar."
Chen Biao smiled obediently: "Dad, it's definitely an illusion!"
Zhu Yuanzhang scratched his head again, then sighed deeply and said, "I'm not... I'm not afraid that you'll be dissatisfied with my lord's compromise. I noticed that your tone was very angry when you mentioned the Yuan Dynasty and the Mongol nobles."
Chen Biao was stunned for a moment, then laughed so hard that he couldn't straighten his back.
It turned out that his father was talking so much today and said so many good things about the Yuan Dynasty because he was worried about this matter.
This is completely the generation gap between modern people and ancient people.
Modern young people are all big talkers, but in reality, except for those with mental problems, most of them have "ethnic equality" ingrained in their hearts. Their dissatisfaction is only dissatisfaction with "inequality", not the desire to make the Han people "superior".
"Dad, you're overthinking it." Chen Biao wiped away the tears of laughter and said, "Dad, did you know that during the Tang Dynasty, the emperor actually didn't like the term 'Han people'?"
Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head. There was such a thing? He really didn't know.
Chen Biao smiled and said, "I've told you before that the Han Dynasty gave the people hundreds of years of stable life. So, during the long period of chaos that followed, the people called themselves Han people, a reflection of their nostalgia and recognition of the Han Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty emperors actually wanted to replace the term 'Han people' with 'Tang people', but unfortunately, everything has a first come, first served, and the Tang Dynasty... failed to achieve the miracle of giving the people a second prosperous era during the chaotic times."
Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes slowly showed excitement: "Biao'er, what you mean is..."
Chen Biao held out his hands. "The Yuan Dynasty let the people of ethnic minorities know that even if a minority emperor came in, their oppression would remain just as severe. This era is a good time to ease ethnic conflicts. It all depends on whether the lord has the ability to make everyone under his rule call themselves 'Ming people.'"
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded vigorously, his heart filled with excitement. "Yes, yes. The Han Dynasty was so many years ago? Why are we still calling ourselves Han people? From now on, we will all be Ming people! Uh, Biao'er, what are you doing with your hand?"
Chen Biao said confidently, "I'm sleepy and need a nap. It's too cold and I'm wearing too many clothes. I don't feel like moving."
Zhu Yuanzhang was speechless: "How lazy you are! You are such a grown-up, and you still let others hold you. Are you ashamed?"
Although Zhu Yuanzhang complained, he still moved very quickly and carried the chubby Chen Biao to the bedroom for a nap.
On the way, Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Biao'er, you've become more lazy since you responded to the sky. I think you've become fatter."
Chen Biao shrank his neck: "I didn't do that, don't talk nonsense, Dad, shut up!"
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed heartily: "You must be round!"
Chen Biao gritted his teeth. He pinched his soft cheeks and considered picking up martial arts again.
What's wrong with my body? Why am I gaining weight so easily? It can't be because I've been eating too much and being too lazy lately.
After Zhu Yuanzhang took his son to take a nap, he immediately returned to the Marshal's Mansion, which was renamed the Ming Palace, in high spirits and summoned his think tanks to discuss "how to make the people call themselves people of the Ming Dynasty."
Zhu Yuanzhang's only advisors were Li Shanchang, Ji Renshou, and Zhu Sheng in Yingtian. All three of them were preoccupied with Zhu Yuanzhang's plans to proclaim himself king and reform the political system.
Zhu Sheng: "My Lord, can you first conquer the world and then consider this matter?"
Ji Renshou: "My Lord, your idea is good, but a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step!"
Li Shanchang was the most blunt: "Busy. Think for yourself."
Zhu Sheng and Ji Renshou turned their heads to look at Li Shanchang with shocked expressions.
Isn't Li Baishi a very smooth person? How could he be so rude to his lord?
Zhu Yuanzhang rubbed his hands together and said, "Now that we have conquered so many places, we need to govern them. We must indeed take one step at a time, so we must start now! Baishi, I know you have a lot on your plate, but this matter is very important! Think about it, think about it more!"
Li Shanchang rubbed his dark circles and eye bags, stifled a yawn, and said, "I can't believe you wrote to Liu Bowen and the others. I haven't finished processing my paperwork yet, so I'll leave first."
Zhu Yuanzhang quickly stepped forward and put his arm around Li Shanchang's shoulders: "I'll help you with the paperwork, think about it quickly!"
Li Shanchang was furious: "What do you mean by 'help me deal with it! My Lord!' I'm helping you deal with it! You insist that the negotiations with Zhang Shicheng are the most important thing right now, and you need to calm down and think about this matter, and push all the chores to me!"
Zhu Yuanzhang said with a guilty conscience, "It is indeed extremely important. How about I lend you Biao'er? Biao'er has been too lazy recently and has gained weight."
Li Shanchang pondered for a moment and said, "Deal."
Zhu Yuanzhang breathed a sigh of relief.
Although Li Shanchang was not good at deploying troops, he was definitely an expert in matters concerning the people's livelihood. Without Li Shanchang's advice at this time, it would be impossible to succeed.
Li Shanchang ordered a cup of strong tea and drank it while thinking.
Zhu Yuanzhang waited quietly without urging.
Ji Renshou and Zhu Sheng looked at each other, ordered a cup of strong tea, and began to think.
The literati's gratuitous desire to compare themselves with others was back. Li Shanchang was offering suggestions, and so were they.
When he finished his tea, Li Shanchang breathed a sigh of relief and said, "My Lord, you have already been working on blurring the lines between ethnic groups. General Chang has done a great job on this."
Zhu Yuanzhang asked, "You mean, dividing the land?"
Li Shanchang nodded: "General Chang is too arrogant and conceited..."
He smiled and continued, "So you could say he treated everyone equally. When he distributed the land, he didn't look down on anyone based on their status. Biao'er had already made preparations. The labor reform system and the refugee points system, both designed by Biao'er, treated all people equally."
Zhu Yuanzhang seemed to be thinking about something.
Li Shanchang said, "When the Miao generals rebelled, the Miao soldiers did not revolt along with them. This is the benefit of this policy. However, we did not realize it at the time. It was not until my lord mentioned it today that I realized it. So my lord, do not worry. We are already working to convert the people into Ming people."
Zhu Yuanzhang didn't know why, but felt a little disappointed: "So I'm already doing this."
Zhu Sheng bowed and said, "My Lord, now you only need to organize what you have already done and announce it to the world, and issue a decree to make this matter permanent. Song Jinglian can handle the announcement, and Liu Bowen is the expert in the decrees."
Ji Renshou bowed and said, "My lord, education is also a very important part. Biao'er has printed a lot of literacy cards and textbooks. Although they will be used by the army first, they can also be promoted among the people. During the slack season, local officials may be able to gather the people and teach them literacy. With blackboards and literacy cards, it shouldn't be difficult to teach simple words and numbers."
Zhu Sheng thought for a moment and said, "The Qin Dynasty achieved the feat of unifying the written language. Perhaps we can build on this to promote Mandarin and make communication between the people smoother."
Ji Renshou looked at Zhu Sheng and said, "To promote Mandarin, we need simpler symbols to represent pronunciation. The current method of segmentation may be difficult."
Zhu Sheng said, "The Yuan Dynasty brought many foreign books. I see that most foreign languages are written with only phonetic symbols. We can just create a set of phonetic symbols based on their writing."
Ji Renshou thought about it and nodded: "In the future, my Great Ming will be a place where all nations will come to pay tribute, and all nations will have to learn my Great Ming language. Using a script with similar pronunciation to foreign countries will make it easier for them to learn my Great Ming language."
The two scholars discussed the matter and then looked at Zhu Yuanzhang to ask for his opinion.
Zhu Yuanzhang had no opinion.
He and Li Shanchang looked at each other and saw that the other was sweating coldly.
They were just thinking about how to make the people under their rule become Ming people, while these two great writers wanted all countries in the world to learn the Ming language.
Is this the difference in vision between them and top intellectuals?
Li Shanchang decided to work harder in the future to catch up with the top literati.
Zhu Yuanzhang... Zhu Yuanzhang immediately went back to show off to his son.
Look, how powerful the Lord is! He even wants to promote Mandarin!
When Zhu Yuanzhang exposed the fact that he had gained weight recently, Chen Biao, who was practicing martial arts hard, almost lost his legs and fell off the plum blossom pile.
Using foreign language to represent pronunciation? Isn't that pinyin?
Chen Biao had actually thought of this a long time ago, but he had never told anyone. He wondered if using a foreign language to represent pronunciation was a bad idea. Would other countries accuse us of copying the pronunciation of Chinese characters?
After listening to his father's recounting of the conversation at the meeting and his father's as-it-comes-of-course expression, Chen Biao couldn't help but feel a little dazed.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead, looked up at the sun, which had a very large aperture but was useless and not warm at all, and couldn't help but grin.
Zhu Yuanzhang was puzzled: "Biao'er, what are you laughing at?"
Chen Biao smiled and said, "Nothing. Okay, I'll continue practicing martial arts. Don't disturb me. Otherwise, it will be your fault if I gain weight."
Chen Biao just suddenly realized the biggest difference between himself and the people of this era.
Although he came from a modern society that was much better than this era, in his society, China was still trying to catch up with developed countries.
That's why he hesitates and looks back.
Although this era was a time of chaos, people at that time believed that no matter how chaotic China was, it was still the center of the world and the Celestial Empire.
Therefore, Mr. Zhu could borrow characters from other countries without hesitation to annotate Chinese characters.
In the eyes of Mr. Zhu and others, China is respecting you by borrowing your writing. In the future, you will all come to learn Chinese writing, which will alleviate your difficulties in learning Chinese writing. It is a gift from our Celestial Empire to you.
China is so confident in this era.
This can also be seen in the history of the powerful Han Dynasty and the prosperous Tang Dynasty. Both the powerful Han Dynasty and the prosperous Tang Dynasty were tolerant and open-minded, and they confidently absorbed the essence of foreign cultures in economics, culture, art, and religion, and quickly integrated them into their own cultural forms.
Chen Biao felt that he, a time traveler, was completely defeated by the people of today, at least in this respect.
Haha, Chen Biao was so happy that he jumped even harder on the plum blossom pile.
Zhu Yuanzhang moved a chair and sat next to the plum blossom pile to encourage Chen Biao.
The sound of his encouragement was so loud that Chen Biao was startled when he jumped and fell down with a "bang".
There were soft grass mats under the plum blossom piles. Chen Biao didn't get hurt, but he was very embarrassed to have grass debris all over his head.
Chen Biao was furious: "Dad! Stop making trouble!"
Zhu Yuanzhang applauded: "Biao'er, you throw it beautifully. Do it again!"
Chen Biao was so angry that he chased and beat Zhu Yuanzhang, who escaped with a very funny high-legged hop.
Ma Xiuying was walking her cat and dog when she saw this scene. She frowned slightly and asked, "What are these two doing?"
Chen Gou'er howled, "Bad dad! Chase dad! Beat him up!"
Chen Maoer looked around.
Ma Xiuying was curious: "Mao'er, what are you looking for?"
Chen Mao'er said softly and delicately, "Find a rock, hit Dad with it, and save Big Brother."
Ma Xiuying: "..." Didn’t you see that it was your eldest brother who was chasing and beating your father!
Ma Xiuying began to worry. Was she really incapable of raising her children? Before, when she wasn't home much, she'd found excuses for not raising the second and third children well. But now that she was the one taking care of the dog and cat most of the time, she couldn't find excuses anymore.
But Ma Xiuying thought about it again, the second and third children raised by Biaoer seemed to be of the same character. Maybe it wasn't a problem between her and Biaoer, but...
Ma Xiuying looked at a certain older naughty boy who had climbed onto the roof and was mocking Chen Biao, with an expression as if she had found the culprit.
…
In the midst of their busy schedule, Song Lian and Liu Ji received an urgent letter from Zhu Yuanzhang, assigning them a very important task.
But when these two people saw this important task, they did not feel moved at being reused or excited to participate in building a better world. At this moment, they had the same thought, which was "exhausting to death."
The number of civil servants under the lord's command has gradually increased, the grassroots civil service teams in various places have gradually been enriched, and the implementation of government orders has become much smoother.
However, the number of "civil servants" under the lord was still very small. Those with a little fame were too cautious to surrender to Zhu Yuanzhang.
After much difficulty, a group of scholars came to Zhu Yuanzhang, but were scolded away by Chen Biao. Regardless of whether these scholars deserved it or not, they felt sorry for their own kind, and other prestigious scholars also gave up the idea of coming to Zhu Yuanzhang.
Take a look at the civil service structure of a normal dynasty. The six ministries alone had twelve people, each with a top official, a minister, and two second-in-command, a vice minister. This group of scholars under Zhu Yuanzhang, capable of shouldering important responsibilities, couldn't even muster enough ministers and vice ministers to fill the six ministries, let alone the people who worked under them.
In previous dynasties, civil servants fought for power, divided regions and schools, and engaged in factionalism. Now, even if Zhu Yuanzhang's civil servants engaged in intrigue, it was limited to daily bickering. It wasn't that they didn't have a tradition of internal strife among the literati; it was simply too exhausting to engage in.
Thousands of miles apart, Song Lian and Liu Ji sighed at the same time. They had written so many letters, but hadn't a single friend or fellow student with comparable knowledge and ability responded?
If you don't respond, you will regret it when my lord becomes emperor!
Song Lian and Liu Ji painfully drafted imperial edicts and decrees for Zhu Yuanzhang in their busy schedule, which made the accompanying military generals feel very sympathetic.
Little did they know that Zhu Yuanzhang was now discussing an evil plan.
"There are indeed too few civil servants. I think Chang Yuchun is quite good at being a civil servant, and the others should have the potential as well." Zhu Yuanzhang clasped his hands together and placed them on his chin. "Hua Yun did a good job when he was guarding Yingtian. As long as they can read, they can actually handle most things."
The three civil servants, who were already busy as hell, nodded.
Li Shanchang lied openly: "In ancient times, there was no distinction between civil officials and military generals. Military generals govern the people, and civil officials lead the troops. They are one and the same."
Ji Renshou found evidence for this in ancient texts: "During the Zhou Dynasty, nobles were all granted titles based on military merit, and the same was true for civil officials. During the Han Dynasty, many civil officials in the imperial court also held titles, all of whom had made military achievements."
Zhu Sheng tried to convince Zhu Yuanzhang and himself by looking into the future: "My lord, your generals will all be high-ranking officials after you establish your kingdom and become emperor. They will all need to govern their respective regions. You can conquer the world immediately, but you can't rule it immediately. When there are no more wars, the nobles will be idle and will surely cause trouble to the people. My lord, you must teach them well."
The more Zhu Sheng spoke, the more he felt it made sense.
Isn't it! These illiterate, roughnecks might turn into big thugs after they have no battles to fight! We must let them study and clarify their aspirations!
Zhu Yuanzhang agreed very much and decided to take turns to have his generals come to Yingtian to help him learn to read and handle miscellaneous affairs.
We all come from humble beginnings, and this is our first time serving as an official. Let's learn and work hard together. Let's start by training the military commanders who are already literate!
Li Shanchang breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that he would not "devote himself to the country until his death" before the establishment of the Ming Dynasty .
He smiled relaxedly and said, "My lord, I heard from Biao'er that General Yan Qianyan's family is actually a farming and scholar family? Is his ancestor a Longtu scholar? There must be many generals like General Yan who have given up their pens to join the army. My lord, why don't you screen the generals' origins and family backgrounds and let them retire and turn to literature? Even if they want to continue fighting, they can learn from General Chang."
General Chang's "model" was very successful and Li Shanchang was very confident.
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded. "Yan Qian, Hua Yun, and Kang Maocai have all handled general affairs and are able to manage them in an orderly manner. They can be transferred to civil service positions. My adopted sons Li Wenzhong, Zhu Wenzheng, and Chen Ying are also very good at studying. Wei Biaoer has personally taught them. They can also serve as civil servants."
The three great scholars said in unison: "My Lord, please give the order immediately!"
Zhu Yuanzhang immediately ordered that Li Wenzhong, Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Ying be given an additional civil service position, and the civil servants assigned to them were transferred to places where civil servants were urgently needed.
Li Wenzhong, Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Ying all looked confused when they saw Zhu Yuanzhang's handwritten letter.
What does it mean to say, "Since you can read, why don't you become civil officials? The civil and military officials will work together more effectively." Even if we can read and become civil officials, we only have one person, and we can't do everything in between!
Li Wenzhong: "Oh my god, foster father, uncle, you... I... should I pretend to be sick?"
Zhu Wenzheng: "I'm tired. Let's destroy it. I will rebel against my fourth uncle and let Biao'er be the lord."
Chen Ying sighed, and honestly handed over his work to the prefect, asking him how to do his job.
Zhu Yuanzhang took a look at the reply letters from his three adopted sons, especially Zhu Wenzhen's fierce complaint, and silently threw the letters into the charcoal brazier.
Burn the reply letter and pretend you didn’t see it.
Yan Qian, Hua Yun and Kang Maocai received transfer orders and returned to Yingtian.
They were tricked back by Zhu Yuanzhang and thought he had some important mission for them, such as going north to attack the Yuan Dynasty or west to attack the Ming Dynasty.
As a result, Zhu Yuanzhang directly contacted the three men's military positions and gave them a set of scholar's robes.
Hua Yun burst into tears immediately: "My Lord, is there something wrong with Yun?"
Kang Maocai was even more apprehensive. Could it be that because he and Chen Youliang had a past relationship, his lord finally wanted to settle the score?
Only Yan Qian seemed to be lost in thought. When he followed Chen Biao, he had heard Chen Biao complain about "Chen Guorui" saying that there were not enough civil officials.
Zhu Yuanzhang quickly helped Hua Yun, who was lying on the ground crying, to her feet and said, "You have done nothing wrong. It's just that I have too few civil servants under my command. You all come from farming and reading families, know how to read and write, and are well versed in the classics. Therefore, I am allowing you to serve as civil servants for a while. When needed, you will still follow me into battle."
Yan Qian sighed inwardly. Sure enough, he was right.
Yan Qian and Kang Maocai both knelt down at the same time and accepted the scholar's robes.
Only Hua Yun stood there in a daze, speechless for a long time.
Hua Yun pointed at his own dark, bearded face and said, "Me? A civil servant? My Lord, are you trying to make fun of me?"
Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Why should I entertain you? Didn't you do a good job in Yingtian?"
Hua Yun's tears suddenly burst out even harder: "My Lord! Please don't mention Yingtian! Do you know how much hair I've lost! My Lord, please find someone else who can handle this civil official. I can't do it! I won't be a general, can I be your bodyguard again?"
Zhu Yuanzhang said sternly, "I don't lack personal guards, I only lack civil officials. If you still regard me as your lord, then be a good civil official!"
Hua Yun cried with tears and snot, as if Zhu Yuanzhang did not want him to be a civil official, but wanted to take his life.
Seeing a burly, dark-skinned man crying in such a pitiful manner, Yan Qian and Kang Maocai couldn't bear it.
The two of them looked away, pretending not to see it, so that they could bear it.
They were both unwilling to suddenly change from military generals to civil officials, unable to achieve success on the battlefield and instead having to work hard on paperwork in the office.
So when they saw Hua Yun, who was even more reluctant than them, also serving as a civil servant with them, they felt much better.
Hua Yun was once the commander of Zhu Yuanzhang's imperial guards, and his loyalty to him was evident. Therefore, no matter how much he cried, he had no choice but to obey Zhu Yuanzhang's orders.
Hua Yun brought his family to Yingtian and hugged his wife and cried again.
Hua Wenxun took a special leave and rushed back from the base to practice with Hua Yun.
Gao couldn't bear it any longer: "Why are you crying? What's there to cry about? You won't have to go to the battlefield anymore. My son and I can live a peaceful life with you in Yingtian. Isn't that a good thing? Speaking of merit, you have already made many contributions. Besides, being a civil official also has merits."
Hua Yun burst into tears, "But I don't want to be a scholar! I get a headache just looking at documents! Mother! My dear mother in the netherworld! Why did you teach me to read and write? Why did you marry into a farming and scholarly family?"
Gao was speechless and said, "Mother taught you to read and write, and you're complaining about it? Hua Wenxun, please tell me about your adoptive father!"
Hua Wenxun smiled bitterly. How could he dare to say that?
Zhu Wenzhen, Li Wenzhong, and Chen Ying all served as prefects. Not only did they have to train soldiers and fight bandits, they also had to divide land, adjudicate cases, collect taxes, and educate people... This tragic situation had spread to the ears of their lord's adopted sons.
The lord said that what General Chang could do, other generals could definitely do, so they should start with Zhu Wenzhen, Li Wenzhong and Chen Ying.
Now all the generals in the army "hate" Chang Yuchun.
We were all illiterate warriors, our jobs being to go to the battlefield and kill the enemy. Why did you work so hard, shouldering both the civil and military duties?
Chang Yuchun was the first person to win the title of domestic examinee in the Ming Dynasty.
All the generals looked at Chang Yuchun and felt the horror of internal circulation.
After Chang Yuchun learned about this, he was speechless and didn't even have the strength to sigh.
He was just trying to show his bravery to his lord while being responsible for farming and labor reform, so he took the people in the labor reform camp to suppress bandits. How did he attract the hatred of his colleagues again?
He did not try to be both a military general and a civil official. Instead, he tried hard to climb out of the pit of being a civil official and worked hard to make military achievements in every corner!
Chang Yuchun felt wronged and shed tears. He took the people from the labor reform camp out to hoe the land again .
Zhu Yuanzhang issued an edict praising Chang Yuchun and calling on generals to learn from him.
In particular, Zhu Wenzhen, who had been complaining more and more recently, was ordered by his fourth uncle, who was also his adoptive father, to copy the imperial edict ten times and send it to him for inspection.
Zhu Wenzhen took a deep breath and called a few Taoists to perform witchcraft.
I dare not curse my fourth uncle, but how could I not curse you, Chang Yuchun?
When Zhu Yuanzhang learned that Zhu Wenzheng was practicing witchcraft, he was stunned for a long time: "Is Chang Boren okay?"
Messenger: "General Chang is doing well. His labor reform army has almost reached Sichuan and has clashed with the Mingxia army several times."
Zhu Yuanzhang held his forehead and said, "It seems that this witchcraft is useless."
Zhu Yuanzhang wrote a letter to denounce Zhu Wenzhen's absurd behavior and warned Zhu Wenzhen that if he acted recklessly again, he would take away Zhu Wenzhen's military power and let Zhu Wenzhen return to Yingtian to serve as a civil servant.
Zhu Yuanzhang also said in the letter that General Chang had become even more courageous after being cursed by Zhu Wenzhen, and now he had defeated Mingxia and made them flee in disarray. He wrote to him every day, requesting to send troops to Sichuan.
Zhu Wenzhen was so angry that he burned all the voodoo dolls and never believed in these unorthodox ways again!
Chen Biao, who watched this farce, was very happy to see it.
He decided to cultivate better-tasting melons himself, so he came up with a set of "Quick-Training Textbooks for Generals and Civil Officials", which combined literacy, numeracy and the simplest economic and sociological knowledge.
"Dad, this is for you! Don't tell me I printed it!" Chen Biao handed the textbook to Zhu Yuanzhang with a smile.
Zhu Yuanzhang: "Okay!" Then he turned around and sold Chen Biao.