When we open the most glorious chapter of the Ming Empire, it is not difficult to find that the turning point of the empire began with the second emperor of the Ming Empire.
This emperor led this country, which had a traditional small-scale peasant economy, and a dynasty that claimed to be a heavenly dynasty, into a greedy monster.
Various new policies internally forced the powerful gentry class to make concessions to farmers, workers, and even handicraftsmen and freelancers. This allowed the new business class to begin to have a voice in this country.
The annexation of foreign countries has expanded the traditional Chinese territory beyond recognition, and turned the country and nation's greed and desire for land into the exploration of the sea.
War, New Deal, War, Opening the Sea, War....
It is not difficult to find that during the transformation of the Ming Empire, every key node was always accompanied by various wars.
We don’t know why the emperor, who was both reviled and reviled, loved war so much.
Many people say that the war brought huge dividends to the Ming Empire, as well as an even bigger market. But we have to see another point, that is, through a series of foreign wars, the Ming Empire established a strong foundation outside the core territory of the empire.
A series of impenetrable island chains.
The conquest of these places relied on force, and what made these places indestructible was the Ming Empire, or to be precise, the Chinese nation, its daunting ability to assimilate and the cultural identity of the surrounding countries towards China.
But whenever they read this historical material, some scholars always have some doubts that they can't understand.
At that time, the Ming Empire was already the most powerful country in the world. According to normal logic, it would flaunt itself with virtue and stand tall in the East just like the Han and Tang Dynasties.
But the reason why that emperor made a series of reforms and put the empire on a path completely different from history is because the words left by that emperor always contained an inexplicable sense of crisis between the lines!
In this regard, Chinese scholars say that this is the traditional Chinese culture of being prepared for danger in times of peace.
But the West didn't see it that way, because the emperor's consciousness was too advanced, hundreds of years ahead of his time.
It took more than two hundred years for Western countries to realize the importance of the ocean and begin to explore. Through a series of brutal wars, they found a way to find product dumping grounds to alleviate population pressure.
However, just when they were complacent about this, they suddenly discovered that the Ming Empire in the East had been using this method for more than two hundred years with great proficiency.
Why did the Ming Emperor feel a sense of crisis?
Why does he have such advanced consciousness?
Perhaps we will never know such an answer, but we may be able to find some different answers in the diary left by the emperor.
——"The Ming Empire" 1984, Cambridge revised volume.
"The rise of any country... nation... is based on the suffering of other countries and nations!"
"The so-called law of the jungle is nothing like the law of the jungle!"
"We, the land of China, have a great empire in Asia that has lasted for ten thousand years. It has demonstrated its benevolence and virtue and inspired all the people. However, if you practice virtue, you must first be strong before you can be virtuous. As the ancients said, only when you have enough warehouses can you know etiquette."
“Only when a country is strong can it be virtuous, and only when its virtue can it win over the people from all over the world.”
"What is a strong country? It is not a military force! Since ancient times, there has been no country that has always been prosperous in martial arts. A strong country is not a country with a vast territory and abundant resources. If the land is large, you will be arrogant and have abundant resources, and you will be lazy and unwilling to make progress!"
“Only through pioneering can a country be strong!”
"If you are immersed in the dream of a heavenly empire and remain complacent, you will be like a frog in a well."
"If you don't open your eyes to see the world, you won't even know the changes in all the countries in the world!"
"If you start from me and fail to forge ahead, future generations will be arrogant."
"And we, China, are even less able to cope with major changes unseen in three thousand years..."
"And the pain of change does not last only a hundred years. The pain of pain does not stop with the loss of mountains and rivers. It is the pride of our nation that has been completely lost. The faith of our country has been shaken!"
"I'm afraid that my descendants will have to wander between the supreme glory of their ancestors and the painful pain of reality..."
——The Palace Museum's "Yongchang Secret Scroll"
~~
On the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, light snow was falling.
More than a dozen plain-clothed cavalry, guarding a carriage with green curtains, slowly stopped in front of Xiaoling Mausoleum.
The old eunuch guarding the mausoleum was already dizzy. With the support of the general guard guarding the mausoleum, he knelt tremblingly in front of the carriage.
"Slave..."
"I'm waiting to see you, Your Majesty!"
Pu Wuyong opened the curtain of the carriage, and Zhu Yunxi, wearing ordinary casual clothes, came out of the carriage.
"Get up!" Zhu Yunxi said as he looked at the extremely majestic but exceptionally empty Xiaoling Mausoleum.
"Your Majesty..." the old eunuch who guarded the mausoleum couldn't speak clearly, but his eyes were full of concern, and he said intermittently, "I don't know if the Emperor is coming, and my servants are not prepared..."
"No need to prepare!" Zhu Yunxi still looked at Xiaoling and said with a smile, "I also made a spur-of-the-moment idea, thinking that tomorrow is the Spring Festival, so come and have a look!"
As he spoke, he sighed, "In a folk family, children and grandchildren must be filial to their parents during every festival. But I... ah!"
"Your Majesty, please slow down!" Pu Wuyong led the way and said with a bow, "We just swept the snow, the steps are slippery!"
Zhu Yunxi glanced at the scene in the mausoleum, everything seemed to be in order.
The trees, flowers and grass have been carefully trimmed, and the entrance steps and the interior of the temple are spotless....
"The errand of the tomb keeper is well done!" Zhu Yunxi nodded slightly and continued to move forward.
The layout of Xiaoling Mausoleum is modeled after the Forbidden City....
It looks familiar, but also very strange.
Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma are buried here, and on the other side of the Xiaoling Mausoleum is Emperor Xiaokangxing Zhu Biao.
If viewed from the sky, this completely conforms to the definition of traditional Chinese dwellings.
The parents are in the middle, the eldest son is in the side...
After walking for a long time, Zhu Yunxi entered the temple where the old man's tablet was enshrined.
The hall of Nuo Da is very empty. Even if you are wearing soft-soled cloth shoes, you can still hear the echo of footsteps.
"Your Majesty!" Pu Wuyong moved a chair and placed it behind Zhu Yunxi.
Then he bowed his body and stepped back, silently walked to the outside of the hall and stood there.
~
"Grandpa Huang!"
A stick of incense was placed in the incense burner.
Zhu Yunxi clasped his hands together and said, "It's Chinese New Year, and my grandson is here to see you!"
As he said that, he smiled bitterly and said, "It's so fast. The New Year is here in a blink of an eye, and you have been gone for more than half a year! Last year, my grandson accompanied you to worship your ancestors, as if it was just now!"
"Don't worry. Before coming to see you, Emperor Xizu, Emperor Renzu, King Xuyi, King Linhuai, King Nanchang, and their grandchildren all paid homage to you!"
"Uncle Twenty-two also specially went to the ancestral mausoleum in Sizhou, the imperial mausoleum in Fengyang, to personally offer tributes!"
With that said, Zhu Yunxi sat down on the chair.
"My grandson has done quite well this year! This year, the income of the Ming Dynasty's treasury is 25% more than in previous years. According to the census, there are 14 million households in the Ming Dynasty, with a total of more than 80 million people.
.”
"Old man, it's not my grandson's boast. This number is 16 million more than when you conducted the census in the 26th year of Hongwu!"
"But having said that, it is better for you to lay a good foundation for your grandson. Only when the country is prosperous can the population grow!"
"Your old Hongshu is now grown all over the country, and the people have an extra ration of food. You are all grateful. There are people in Jiangxi who use Hongshu to make wine, which is privately called Hongwu wine..."
"The local magistrate said that the people don't know their dignity, so they are not allowed to call you that! My grandson told him that the people call you that because they miss you and appreciate your kindness!"
"Let them shout...let everyone in the world know that there is Hongwu Wine in the world!"
As he spoke, Zhu Yunxi's eyes gradually became moist, and he became slightly emotional.
"I know you always like to drink a few cups, so my grandson brought you some. In fact, my grandson has tasted it first. The wine doesn't taste good, it's just spicy..."
"But it is still wine after all. Because of sweet potatoes, there are fewer people who starve to death in the world, and it is rare for people to have more wine stars on their dining tables during holidays..."