Chapter 126: Setting up a Model of a Virtuous Minister
Zhu Yuanzhang didn't know much about Tuotuo. He only knew that he was good at fighting and did some good things for the people, such as reducing taxes.
Although the Red Turban Army was quite afraid of this wise prime minister who was good at fighting, they also admired Tuotuo.
After reading the concubine's manuscript, Zhu Yuanzhang learned that Toghto's predecessor had been a treacherous prime minister named Boyan, who was Toghto's uncle. One of the Yuan Dynasty policies that Zhu Yuanzhang hated most, such as the policy that prohibited Han Chinese from owning any iron or raising horses, was the work of Boyan.
Bayan not only prohibited the Han people from owning weapons, but also banned the use of iron farm tools; he dismissed Confucian officials from the court, stopped the imperial examination system, and excluded Chinese studies, but also forbade the Han people to learn Mongolian and Semu scripts; the policy of prohibiting officials of the Yuan Dynasty court from employing Han people was also his handiwork.
Even more absurd was that he felt that there were too many Han people and demanded the extermination of all Han people with the surnames Zhang, Wang, Liu, Li, and Zhao. The current old emperor, who was still a cowardly young emperor at the time, was frightened by Boyan's stupid talk and resolutely refused to allow it.
Bayan not only discriminated against the Han Chinese but also persecuted Mongol nobles. For example, he arrested and executed the King of Tan because he refused to marry his daughter. The Mongol tribes on the steppes gradually turned against the Yuan Dynasty.
Zhu Yuanzhang was dumbfounded. He even suspected that this man hated the Yuan Dynasty so much that he deliberately came to destroy it.
If people in later generations look through this part of history books, they will be surprised to find that the policies of the Yuan Dynasty, which were despised and reviled by later generations and made it look like a non-proper dynasty, were almost all created by Bayan, the powerful official in the late Yuan Dynasty.
Before Bayan supported the young emperor, after Kublai Khan and Temur, the three emperors Yuan Wuzong, Yuan Renzong and Yuan Yingzong all gradually implemented policies such as governing the country with Confucianism, making use of Han officials, reducing taxes and levies, and rectifying the administration of officials. The Yuan Dynasty gradually got on the right track and the national situation improved greatly.
If this had continued, the Yuan Dynasty's level of governance might have been comparable to that of the Qing Dynasty. While discrimination certainly existed and the drawbacks were severe, the people of the world still had a few decades of barely enough to eat, at least allowing for future TV dramas to portray a "Golden Age of XX."
Unfortunately, Emperor Yingzong of Yuan's reforms affected the interests of the conservative Mongolian forces, and he was assassinated on his way back from the northern tour.
Emperor Wuzong of the Yuan Dynasty reigned for four years, Emperor Renzong for nine, and Emperor Yingzong for four. The Yuan Dynasty emperors diligently governed for no more than twenty years. Afterward, there was a protracted struggle for the throne and the rampant misrule of powerful and treacherous ministers, with almost every emperor being a puppet.
In such internal strife, the Yuan Dynasty almost gave up on state affairs and only plundered the people's wealth for the enjoyment of the nobles and powerful officials.
After Bayan came to power, he became interested in state affairs, as interested as if he were playing house.
Until Tuotuo overthrew Bayan and took power.
Toghto first abolished Bayan's discriminatory policies against the Han people, allowing them to use iron tools and horses; reduced the salt tax in the south; rectified local administration; revived the Taimiao system abolished by Bayan; reopened the imperial examination system and appointed Han officials; held imperial lectures and built the Xuanwen Pavilion to teach the emperor reading; appeased the Mongol nobles and reorganized the grassland forces...
He also retired from hunting and cultivated land, supervised the compilation of three histories, and rectified military affairs, taking charge of both civil and military affairs. Although he held great power, he was not greedy for money or lustful, and was respectful to the emperor and never overstepped his boundaries.
Tuotuo seemed to want to use himself as a benchmark to rectify the customs of the Yuan Dynasty since Emperor Yingzong, re-establish the authority of the emperor, eliminate the internal strife in the court, and save the Yuan Dynasty from collapse.
Unfortunately, Tuotuo did such a good job that the court was more stable than ever before, and the peasant uprising outside was nothing to be afraid of. The emperor and his treacherous ministers had so much free time that they started practicing "Joyful Zen".
Not only did they capture women from decent families, but even the wives of officials and nobles were not spared, and they all became the objects of the emperor, his ministers, and great monks' practice of "joyful Zen."
The emperor, feeling ecstatic, listened to the slander of treacherous ministers and ordered Tuotuo, who was leading a large army to besiege Gaoyou, to remove Tuotuo from his military post and escort him back to Beijing.
Chen Biao, who was traveling back to Yingtian by boat through the canal, was also reading this manuscript.
Without his support, the old concubine would not have been able to complete the manuscript so quickly, so he naturally withheld one volume of the manuscript.
Chen Biao tried to get Zhu Wenzhen to study with him, but Zhu Wenzhen lay down on the deck and asked Chen Biao to read to him.
Chen Biao kicked Zhu Wenzhen twice, then sat on the deck, leaned Zhu Wenzhen against his back, and read to him.
"When Tuotuo received the imperial edict, he knew what had happened."
"The generals all knew that Tuotuo was the only good minister in the court, and they all wanted Tuotuo to live."
"The generals said that when the general is away from home, he may not obey military orders. They told Tuotuo not to open the imperial edict, but to continue attacking the city first, and then lead the army back to defend the king after victory."
"Tuotuo said that if he did not obey the king's decree, it would be a violation of the duty between the king and his subjects. He would rather go back and die."
Zhu Wenzheng, who had been taking a nap with his hands behind his head and eyes closed, opened his eyes and sneered, "Pedantic."
Chen Biao nodded and continued, "Before leaving, Tuotuo did not forget to appease the angry soldiers, hoping that they would continue to fight and serve the country. He also gave his horses, armor, and weapons to the generals."
"One angry general said that if the prime minister was killed, they would also die at the hands of treacherous officials, so it would be better to die before the prime minister. Then he committed suicide. The remaining soldiers were filled with grief and indignation." At this point, Chen Biao sighed deeply. "No wonder Zhang Shicheng's thousand-man army was able to chase down an army of hundreds of thousands. By the time Tuotuo was escorted back to the capital, this Yuan army was no longer able to fight."
Zhu Wenzheng asked, "What happened next? How did he die? Was he beheaded by a tyrant emperor? Like General Yue?"
Chen Biao's eyelids twitched, surprised that Zhu Wenzhen compared Tuotuo to the Yuan Dynasty as Yue Fei to the Southern Song Dynasty.
From an emotional point of view, Chen Biao believes that Tuotuo is far inferior to Yue Fei. But this old emperor of the Yuan Dynasty can indeed be compared with Song Gaozong.
Chen Biao said, "He was never able to appear before the emperor in Beijing to present his grievances, and was frequently exiled to various places. Seeing that he hadn't died despite all his torture, and still dreaming of appearing before the emperor, the treacherous ministers forged an imperial edict ordering him to commit suicide by drinking poison. Oh, by the way, in the 22nd year of Zhizheng, the old emperor vindicated him. This year, another minister further advocated for his grievances, asking the emperor to posthumously confer a title and a posthumous name on him."
Zhu Wenzheng was silent for a long time, then continued to sneer: "You regret it now? It's too late. When that guy named Tuotuo died, the Yuan Dynasty was already dead and could not survive."
Chen Biao nodded. Although he felt that it was not a good thing to not survive the Yuan Dynasty, he couldn't help feeling sad.
The dynasty was doomed to perish, not from the moment it actually perished.
For example, the Party Persecution in the Eastern Han Dynasty, the separatist regimes in the Tang Dynasty, the unjust killing of Yue Fei in the Southern Song Dynasty, and the current death of Tuotuo... For a dynasty, it may still be able to linger for a while. But lingering is just lingering, and the end of destruction is already visible, and further struggles are just prolonging life.
Zhu Wenzheng crossed his legs and swung his big feet. "Biao'er, what do you think the Lord will do with this book?"
Chen Biao said: "I don't know."
Zhu Wenzheng said: "What if it was you?"
Chen Biao was helpless: "Why are you like my dad, raising such terrible assumptions?"
Zhu Wenzheng said, "What's so scary about it? It's just talk. Go ahead, there's only you and me at the bow, and the boatman is at the stern, so he can't hear us talking."
Chen Biao sighed and whispered, "If it were me, I would deify Tuotuo. The higher Tuotuo's status, the more deserving the Yuan Dynasty would seem to be. By putting all the blame for the demise on the tyrant emperor and treacherous ministers, other officials in the Yuan Dynasty would feel at ease serving in the Ming Dynasty."
Zhu Wenzheng said, "Is that so? That's fine. There are powerful people among the enemy, which makes us look even more powerful. I agree."
Chen Biao was at a loss for words: "What's the point of your agreement? The key lies in what the lord does. Don't forget, one of Tuotuo's greatest contributions to the Yuan Dynasty was suppressing the Red Turban Rebellion."
Zhu Wenzheng shamelessly asked, "What is the relationship between the Red Turban Army and my Ming Army?"
Chen Biao stood up and stretched, then kicked Zhu Wenzheng, who was lying on the ground and unable to get up. "Just shut up, do you just like being beaten by the lord? All right, get up, let's go to the shore and rest for a while, and then we can go down the river to Yingtian tomorrow."
Zhu Wenzheng flipped upside down and did some fancy moves: "Ah... Hey!"
Chen Biao also cooperated very well and made a flower-shaped gesture: "Ah hey!"
Then the two brothers fought each other slowly at half the speed, just like old grandfathers practicing Tai Chi in later generations.
After the boatman stopped the boat, he went to the bow and asked the two young men to get off the boat, only to see that they were making a fuss again, which was particularly funny.
Although he was Zhu Wenzhen's personal soldier, he still believed that his commander was mentally ill and had led Young Master Chen astray.
I hope that after the lord learns about this, he will not beat the commander again.
This group of Zhu Wenzhen's personal soldiers have become very accustomed to their commander frequently going to their lord to seek fights.
按照陈小公子的话，打是亲，骂是爱，爱到深处用脚踹。他们主将就是欠揍。
After sailing for a few days, Chen Biao returned to Yingtian after being away for several months.
His younger brothers had known that he was coming back, just as he had been looking forward to waiting for Zhu Wenzhen. His younger brothers had passed by the city gate for several days, and as soon as they saw Chen Biao, they rushed over.
"Brother, I'm just passing by!" Although Chen Chong has grown up, his voice is still so sharp.
Chen Biao was originally very happy, but his face fell when he heard this, and he immediately turned to look at Zhu Wenzhen.
As expected, Zhu Wenzheng was already laughing so hard that he couldn't straighten his back: "Yes, yes, I was just passing by, just imitating you, my big brother."
Chen Biao bared his teeth at Zhu Wenzheng, then asked, "Where are the dogs and cats? Didn't they pass by?" He pointed at his second brother on his left and his third brother on his right.
Chen Chong and Chen Tan held Chen Biao's hands tightly and kept pressing against Chen Biao.
Chen Biao was helpless. He was almost crushed by his two younger brothers.
"They are young and can't go to places with too many people. They are prone to getting sick." Chen Chong said maturely, "I have sent someone home to inform them. They are waiting for their brother at home."
Chen Biao said with relief: "Chuang'er has become a very good brother."
Chen Jing jumped up and down and said, "What about me?"
Chen Xun rolled his eyes and said, "You have become a brother who is very good at leading his younger brother astray."
Zhu Wenzheng was very interested: "Oh? Tell me, cousin, how he led his younger brother astray."
Chen Jing blushed and said, "Don't tell me! I didn't do that!"
Chen Xun was not going to give his third brother any face and immediately complained: "He brought the dog up a tree and scared me half to death. Fortunately, the cat came in time to inform me."
Chen Jing's face turned from red to purple: "Little snitch! I won't play with him anymore!"
Chen Biao narrowed his eyes and looked down at Chen Tan.
Chen Jin immediately straightened up: "Brother, I have found servants to protect me! I won't fall!"
Chen Biao said coldly, "You'll fall even if you're protected. I've told you countless times not to climb trees. If you secretly climbed the tree by yourself, it's your fault. The servants allowed you and the dog to climb the tree, and even had the cat tip you off. You're both equally responsible."
After saying that, Chen Biao quickened his pace.
Chen Tan staggered when he was pulled, and quickly jogged to catch up with Chen Biao.
Chen Chong whispered, "You deserve it! I told you not to listen."
Chen Jing pursed his lips, looking like he was about to cry.
Zhu Wenzhen placed one hand across his chest and pinched his chin with the other, his expression of amusement becoming even more pronounced.
Chen Biao returned home with a stern face, and the servants of the Chen family, who had been smiling happily, immediately stopped smiling.
Chen Biao is the family's happy pill, the anchor, and the true head of the family. If he has a sullen face, someone in the family will definitely suffer misfortune.
After Chen Gou'er and Chen Mao'er pounced over, they saw that their eldest brother had a stern face, and immediately acted obediently. Even the most arrogant and domineering Chen Gou'er did not dare to say a word.
"Brother Zheng, ask the chef to make whatever you want. I'll talk to my uncle first." Chen Biao said, "Come here."
Zhu Wenzheng immediately said, "I'm going too! Is there anything I can't see?"
Chen Biao was helpless: "It's not a question of whether you can watch it or not, I'm hungry! Hurry up and go to the kitchen to order some food! We can teach people a lesson after we're full."
"Oh oh." Zhu Wenzhen knew that he would be there to watch the fun, so he left happily.
When Chen Biao went to look for Li Zhen, Li Zhen learned that Chen Biao had returned to Yingtian and was rushing back. He was now one of the chief managers of the Chen family's wealthy business, and was very busy every day.
When Chen Biao saw his uncle, he got straight to the point: "I've only been gone for a few months, and already one of my servants is leading my brother astray?"
Li Zhen was stunned for a moment and said, "Leading astray?"
Chen Biao mentioned the tree climbing incident and said, "Allowing the young master of the family to do dangerous things and hiding it from the person in charge is flattery. I don't remember ever teaching them this."
Li Zhen couldn't help but shudder when she saw Chen Biao speaking so seriously.
The servants of the Chen family were all trusted confidants handpicked by Zhu Yuanzhang himself. If anyone with two minds really appeared, it would definitely be a major threat.
Li Zhen's eyes couldn't help but flash a cruel light: "It was my uncle's negligence. I will check it out right away."
Chen Biao nodded, then rubbed his eyes and yawned: "Eat first, and then clean up slowly after you're full and have enough sleep."
Chen Biao turned around, tapped Chen Tan and Chen Gou'er on the forehead, and said, "I'll deal with you two slowly."
Chen Tan and Chen Gou'er both lowered their heads, not daring to breathe.
Chen Xun looked at his eldest brother's exhausted expression and couldn't help but glare at his brothers. Then he lowered his head in guilt and said, "Brother, I'm really useless."
Chen Biao hugged Chen Chong and rubbed his brother's head. "If you were useless, how could I find problems as soon as I got home? Children find problems, adults solve them. You did a great job, you are worthy of being my brother. When I left home, you were the eldest brother in the family. An eldest brother is like a father. You did a great job."
Chen Chong hugged Chen Biao tightly and said shyly, "Yeah."
Chen Jian's face was twisted with jealousy. He's only two years older than me! Why are you pretending to be my elder brother? My only elder brother is my eldest brother!
But he didn't dare say it.
Although Chen Jing was confused and didn't quite understand why his eldest brother was so angry, whenever his eldest brother was angry, everyone in the family would be worried. Especially since his eldest brother was difficult to get angry, and every time he was angry, it was even more terrifying.
Chen Biao did not teach his brothers a lesson immediately.
He first took his younger brothers to take a bath together to strengthen their relationship, and together they beat up his cousin Zhu Wenzhen who sprinted and jumped from ten meters away into the bathtub.
While beating their cousin, the younger brothers and Chen Biao regained their closeness and were no longer afraid of Chen Biao's anger.
Zhu Wenzhen, who made great contributions to family harmony, was rewarded by Chen Biao with a big chicken leg.
But when Zhu Wen was about to eat the chicken leg, Chen Gouer jumped up and took a bite of the chicken leg.
Zhu Wenzheng was speechless: "Just because your name is Chen Gou'er, do you really think you are a dog?"
Chen Gou'er: "Ugh!"
He spat the chewed meat onto Zhu Wenzhen, then turned and ran away.
Chen Biao: “…”
He couldn't believe it: "When did the dog learn this bad habit?"
Chen Jing immediately said, "I didn't teach him that! I definitely didn't teach him that! The most I taught him was how to pee!"
Chen Biao slammed the table: "Shut up! Are you going to eat or not?"
Chen Biao hurriedly finished his meal, and was then led by Chen Maoer to find where Chen Gouer was hiding. He then took Chen Gouer out and gave him a good spanking.
Chen Biao's lack of strength was due to his lack of strength compared to Zhu Yuanzhang's group of gifted military commanders. He was diligent in training and could still make a naughty child cry loudly by spanking him.
Chen Biao really didn't understand. He had only been gone for a few months, not years, so how could his brother have changed so much?!
Is this another version of "A day without seeing you feels like a long time"?!
Chen Biao was extremely worried.
Fortunately, Chen Gou'er was just a little naughty and was a good boy at heart. After being beaten, he apologized to Zhu Wenzhen obediently.
Zhu Wenzheng wasn't angry: "It's normal to be a little naughty when you're young . Biao'er, don't you like to step on my face too?"
Chen Biao said contemptuously: "You said I stepped on you, why don't you tell me why you were stepped on? Huh?"
Zhu Wenzheng said: "Anyway, you stepped on me, you are naughty."
Chen Biao wants to step on Zhu Wenzhen again.
With Zhu Wenzhen's jokes, Chen Biao felt a little more relaxed.
Li Zhen investigated the matter the next day and was overwhelmed with worry, not knowing how to handle the matter.
The Chen family servants were all Zhu Yuanzhang's trusted confidants, and those who could serve the Chen family children personally were even more trusted among the trusted confidants. In other words, these people knew the true identity of the Chen family children.
Therefore, when the Ming army successfully launched the Northern Expedition, they knew that this child would become a prince at the latest next year, and they would soon become the prince's attendants.
These people lost some of their sense of proportion and, instead of strictly following Chen Biao's orders, became overly indulgent and flattering towards the children.
They might have instinctively revered the "prince," or they might have been motivated by a desire to vie for power. But in Li Zhen's eyes, this was a betrayal of Zhu Yuanzhang and Biao'er.
If there is no such thing as concealing their identities, all we need to do is transfer them away from the prince; but now no one knows whether they will feel hatred after being transferred away and tell the secret to others.
Li Zhen sighed and informed Zhu Yuanzhang of the matter urgently. He also changed the reason he told Chen Biao, saying that Chen Biao had made great contributions in the Northern Expedition, so these people thought that the Chen family was going to soar to the sky, so they became complacent.
Chen Biao didn't think it would be that simple.
Everyone around his brother had been taught by him, almost endlessly. How could such a big difference exist in just a few months?
Chen Biao said with a stern face, "Uncle, please investigate further. Even ask Uncle Liao, who stayed in Yingtian, to sort out the detailed experiences of the people around Tan'er. It won't take long. It will take nearly half a month."
Chen Biao thought for a moment and continued, "From the time the news of Chen Zuren's death reached Yingtian until now."
Li Zhen's heart trembled: "Chen Zuren?! Could this matter be related to the Yuan Dynasty?!"
Chen Biao shook his head: "I don't know, but the timing is just a coincidence."
Li Zhen was puzzled: "Biao'er, how do you know the exact time?"
Chen Biao said, "They underestimate the child's sensitivity. I just need to ask Tan'er when the people around him began to indulge and pamper him."
Everyone underestimates children's sharpness and intelligence. After Chen Biao and Chen Tan explained the dangers, Chen Tan immediately recalled when the people around him started to act strangely.
Chen Chun also kept an eye on the people around his brother. By comparing Chen Chun's feelings with Chen Chun's records, he could get an approximate time.
Li Zhen's face turned pale.
He never suspected that the Chen family's servants had any ulterior motives, even though this time he was investigating based on the assumption that these people might have problems.
To be honest, Li Zhen breathed a sigh of relief after finding out that this group of people were just getting carried away.
He helped Zhu Yuanzhang take care of the children. If anything happened to people around the children, even if these people were chosen by Zhu Yuanzhang himself, Li Zhen could not escape the blame and could not escape the condemnation of his conscience.
If these changes are related to the residual element...
Li Zhen already wanted to kill someone.
Seeing his uncle's grim expression, Chen Biao immediately consoled him, "I believe them. Perhaps they are simply drifting. But their drifting mentality must have a cause. They won't suddenly become completely different just because I made great contributions to the Northern Expedition."
Li Zhen took a few deep breaths, suppressed the panic in her heart, and said, "I know."
On the third day, Zhu Yuanzhang's letter arrived.
Judging from the messenger's appearance, he must have traveled day and night without changing horses to get back.
Yang Xian also came with the messenger.
Yang Xian's elegant face showed a kind smile: "My lord said that these people are old brothers, so let me question them."
Li Zhen immediately knew that Zhu Yuanzhang was angry.
Although he felt reluctant, he still handed over all the investigation results to Yang Xian.
But when Yang Xian was about to take these people away, he was stopped by Chen Biao.
"Uncle Yang, I don't know what you do, but if I hand my people over to you, they won't be able to come back alive," Chen Biao said. "They just indulged Tang'er a little more. Their crime doesn't deserve the death penalty. I will interrogate them first, and then apologize to the lord."
Yang Xian was curious: "Biao'er, how do you know I'm following the lord's orders?"
Chen Biao was speechless: "Uncle Yang and I have worked together for so long, don't I know who can order Uncle Yang around?"
The kind smile on Yang Xian's face faded, and he said, "Biao'er, you should know that when the lord orders me to take action, no one can stop me."
Chen Biao pulled out a sign from his pocket: "It says 'The King is here in person'. Can you stop it?"
Yang Xian's face froze.
Chen Biao continued to pull things out of his pocket: "Here, here, here, ten 'The King of Ming is here' plaques in total! They're all real! Look at the back! They're for Chen Biao only!"
Yang Xian rubbed his stiff face, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "Biao'er, of course I believe you. But why do you have so many 'The Ming King is here' signs?"
For this brand, one piece is enough!
Chen Biao said, "The Lord wrote to me, saying he was afraid someone would embarrass me, so he gave me this plaque. He was also worried I might lose it, so he gave me a few extra pieces."
Yang Xian: "..." Well, it's something my lord can do.
So, my lord, you gave Biao'er ten "The King is Present" plaques, so how can you ask me to interrogate him without Biao'er's knowledge?!
Zhu Yuanzhang, who was far away in Peking, was furious: "A-choo!!"
