Daming: The most ruthless tyrant in history

Chapter 1035 Ming Dynasty Politics (6)

The rain falls silently.

"Your Highness, if you don't want to ride in the sedan chair, at least let me hold an umbrella for you to shelter from the rain~" In the Forbidden City, the eunuch Pu Zhong in the residence of Prince Xin looked anxious and said to Zhu Youjian who was walking in the rain.

"Leave far away!"

Zhu Youjian stopped, glared at Pu Zhong and said, "I don't know what to do, why do you have to make a fuss here?"

Pu Zhong, who was holding an umbrella, and the eunuchs following him all knelt on the ground.

How could they not know why their prince was like this?

But they dared not say much.

If their prince gets sick after being caught in the rain and the emperor finds out, they will all be severely punished!

As time went by, the situation in the inner court changed quietly. At the end of the fourth year of the Tianqi reign, Zhu Youxiao issued an imperial decree to the whole country, prohibiting the entry of eunuchs from the public into the palace. All eunuchs entering the palace had to go through dozens of procedures such as approval, inspection, and registration by the inner court officials. Only those who passed the layers of selection could be castrated by the inner court officials and enter the palace.

This directly blocked the group of people who came to the palace with various intentions. The key was that the age limit was very strict, and no one over ten years old would be accepted. If anyone dared to cheat, once discovered, the entire three clans would be punished.

Since the promulgation of this decree, it has caused quite a stir.

What is most unacceptable is the group that has already castrated themselves, which is equivalent to completely blocking their last path.

But rules are rules, and no one can break them!

Moreover, after issuing this decree, Zhu Youxiao made up his mind to reduce the number of Ming people serving as eunuchs. It was also in that year that officials from the inner court rushed to Korea, Mongolia and other places to begin selecting people of appropriate age to enter the palace.

In the imperial Ming Dynasty, some systems were indispensable.

There’s no way, the background is here.

Zhu Youxiao can be changed, but he cannot be abolished, because if he really does so, it would be tantamount to denying himself.

However, the power of the inner court is shrinking, and it is only empowered in specific areas. This is the general trend.

Since the promulgation of this decree, Zhu Youxiao also did one thing, which was to appropriately relax the size of the palace maids.

After all, the palace maids in the Forbidden City would be released from the palace when they reached a certain age and organized by the inner court officials to marry people who had made contributions to the Ming Dynasty.

It is better to block than to open up.

Instead of worrying about other things, it is better to think about how to improve the system so that this important place, the inner court, can be closely tied to the lifeline of the Ming Dynasty. By implementing confidentiality measures, post-disaster systems, and condolence systems, we can try our best to ensure that certain hidden dangers are completely eradicated rather than being hidden in the dark.

The rain is getting heavier.

Zhu Youjian was a little absent-minded and walked towards the direction of the Yangxin Palace. He was thinking about one thing: who was so bold as to dare to do such a thing?
However, Zhu Youjian's move frightened all the soldiers of the Imperial Guard who were on duty and patrolling along the way.

Some officers came in the rain but were stopped by Park Chung and his entourage.

Pu Zhong and his men knew their prince's temper better than anyone else. It was useless to persuade him at this time, unless the emperor came. But the emperor was so busy, who would dare to disturb him?

But these officers were different. After learning about the situation, they sent people to the Royal Guard Governor's Office to report to the senior officials on duty.

Although Zhu Youxiao spent a lot of time in the Western Garden in recent years and rarely lived in the Forbidden City, the entire harem also moved to the Western Garden.

However, the Royal Guard Commandery has become increasingly strict with its guard duties.

Whether it is the Forbidden City or the Western Garden, the various systems are becoming increasingly strict.

The key is that the selection of the personal guards under his jurisdiction has also become stricter.

There is no such thing as hereditary succession.

Every certain period of time, the Royal Guard Commandery would take the lead in organizing the recruitment of fresh blood. Those who could join the Royal Guards were all brave men. The key was that their family background must be clean, and even their ancestors had to be checked for several generations. Zhu Youxiao demonstrated this with practical actions.

Those who can serve in the Royal Guard Commandery are all brave and loyal men of the Ming Dynasty, and after serving in the Royal Guard Commandery for a certain period of time, they will be sent out.

A promotion path extending through imperial power, the Royal Guard Commandery, and the Ming army was thus reopened by Zhu Youxiao.

Perhaps during this period, there were indeed a very small number of people in this group who would betray, but we cannot deny the importance of this extended path to the consolidation of imperial power based on the low probability of this event.

Reforms are not always dramatic; sometimes the changes brought about by subtle changes are far greater and more far-reaching than the former.

This is the change Zhu Youxiao wanted.

But the changes that Zhu Youxiao brought to the Ming Dynasty were not limited to this.

Click~
Lightning flashed from time to time and the rain was getting heavier.

"Hurry up!"

"Today is a good day for eating hotpot."

"Haha, I can take a break from my busy schedule this time, eat some meat, drink some wine, and I feel happy just thinking about it."

"Don't tell me, it's really like this!"

The Yangxin Palace at that time was a side hall.

Zhu Shugui and his companions were talking and laughing as they prepared various things in the hall. A copper pot was placed on a table with a strong charcoal fire. The clear soup was boiling while ginger slices, wolfberries, green onions and other ingredients were being stirred.

Around the copper pot, there are plates of dishes, both meat and vegetarian.

In one place, small ingredients are neatly arranged.

Zhu Shugui and his men were busy running around, while the eunuchs waiting outside the hall stood nervously. These tasks, which were originally theirs, were now taken over by these gentlemen.

How could this not make them nervous?

"Gui'er, bring me the sesame paste."

Zhu Yipai, who was sitting down, was busy distributing small dishes while he said to Zhu Shugui: "The soup is boiling, hurry up and don't delay eating the meat."

"Look how anxious you are."

Zhu Shugui glanced at him and said, but he stretched out his hand to hand over the small bowl of sesame paste, "It's like I haven't eaten meat in eight lifetimes. If this gets out, people will think that Your Majesty is mistreating me."

"You know shit."

Zhu Yipai took the small bowl and scolded with a smile: "This hot pot meat is delicious at the first bite, hurry up, I can't wait."

"Haha, that's true."

Zhu Cixuan at the side said with a smile: "The shabu-shabu meat is just the first bite, and the rest is all to fill the stomach."

"Everyone is hungry."

Zhu Shugui was merciless in his words, "Let everyone go hungry for a few meals and see if the food tastes good." But as he said this, he did not forget to distribute food to Zhu Yipai's people. Zhu Yihuang, who had been silent all the time, distributed the chopsticks and chive sauce to the people.

"Come on! Put the meat first!!"

After finishing all this, Zhu Yipai picked up a plate of mutton, picked up the chopsticks and put it all into the pot.

"You slow down!"

Seeing this, Zhu Shugui hurriedly picked up his chopsticks to help, "Don't touch the pot."

"Haha~"

Hearty laughter rang out in the hall.

Soon, the sound was heard again in the hall.

“Mmm!! That’s the taste!!”

Zhu Yipai chewed the mutton dipped in seasoning with contentment, a smile on his face. Most of the other people did the same.

However, Zhu Shugui did not forget to stuff some pickled garlic into the soup while eating.

"You still know how to eat!"

Seeing this, Zhu Yipai pointed at Zhu Shugui and said, "You were so busy eating the meat that you forgot to eat the pickled garlic."

"Here, take a sip."

Zhu Shugui put down his chopsticks, picked up the wine cup beside him, and said to the few people with a smile.

"Come!"

"drink!"

For several people, such moments of relaxation are rare. On weekdays, they either study in the Forbidden City or go to the Western Garden to study. If it had not happened to rain today, they would not have done so.

"Come to think of it, I wonder how Jian-ge is doing in North Korea."

Zhu Shugui, who had just taken a sip of wine, said at this moment: "Among our group, he ran the farthest. He went directly to North Korea. It's hard to see him all year round."

"Yes."

Zhu Yipai said with some emotion: "It's about guarding Korea, stationing in the vassal state, and taking care of other things. His Majesty has issued decrees several times, wanting to ask Jian Ge'er to return to Beijing to live for a while, but every time he was delayed because of something."

"Counting the time, it has been almost two years since Jian Ge returned to Beijing, right?"

Zhu Cixuan, who was standing aside, spoke at this moment.

"More than two years."

The silent Zhu Yihuang said at this moment.

"Are you willing to talk?"

Seeing this, Zhu Shugui glanced at Zhu Yihuang and said, "I thought you were going to be mute, haha, but I also heard that Jian Ge'er is going to have a son!"

"real or fake?"

Zhu Shugui's words made several people a little excited.

Even though there is a big difference in seniority between them, they have been together for so long that they no longer care about some rules.

"How could I possibly lie to you? Why didn't Jian'er mention this in the letter he wrote to you?" Zhu Shugui said with a smile upon seeing this.

"This really doesn't exist."

"But no."

Several people spoke up.

"Oh my god! You are showing off to me!" Zhu Shugui, who was originally smiling, glared at me and said, "You bastard, no, I want to get married too!"

"Haha~"

Zhu Shugui's words made everyone laugh.

They all knew about the two's little thoughts. Zhu Shugui relied on his seniority, and Zhu Youjian relied on his age. The two of them often quarreled, but everyone knew that this was just fun between men.

"Greetings to His Royal Highness Prince Xin!!"

The originally cheerful atmosphere suddenly became quiet as the salute sounded. Zhu Shugui, Zhu Yipai and others were surprised and suspicious. Why did Zhu Youjian, who worked in the central government, come to the Yangxin Palace at this time?

Because we grew up together, we know each other's personalities well.

Zhu Youjian was very serious about his work. As long as he was given a task, he would do it meticulously.

Because of this, Zhu Changxun and others who were with Zhu Youjian complained a lot, but there was nothing they could do.

"Brother Jian, what's wrong with you?"

Zhu Shugui ran out and saw Zhu Youjian soaking wet. He immediately ran forward and asked, "Why are you so wet?" He glared at the eunuchs behind Zhu Youjian and shouted, "Are you all dead?!"

"What happened?"

"Brother Jian, why are you caught in the rain?"

Read more latest popular novels at 6.9*shuba!

"Quick, go to the hall first!"

"Go and get..."

Looking at the busy people, Zhu Youjian, with red eyes, didn't know why tears flowed down his eyes. When the people saw this, they immediately surrounded Zhu Youjian and went into the hall. The door of the hall was closed by Zhu Shugui.

"Go, get the robe."

"Come, have a drink and warm yourself up."

"Where's the cleaning stuff? Go get it!"

When they saw Zhu Youjian like this, several people knew what was going on. They all knew about Qian Qianyi's failed suicide attempt. At that time, they were studying in Xiyuan.

But they did not expect that this would have such a great impact on Zhu Youjian.

After busy.

Zhu Youjian, wearing new robes, sat on the brocade stool in a daze, with his wet hair draped behind him. Zhu Shugui and others sat around Zhu Youjian, each with different expressions, and no one spoke.

"Have a drink with me."

After an unknown amount of time, Zhu Youjian spoke.

When Zhu Shugui and the others saw this, they looked at each other and immediately started speaking.

"drink!"

"I won't come home until I'm drunk today!"

"That's right! Screw your further studies!"

"drink wine!"

Several people stood up and picked up their wine glasses, and Zhu Shugui did not forget to hand the glass to Zhu Youjian.

"drink!"

Zhu Youjian, holding the wine glass, glanced at the wine and said with a smile.

Then he drank it all in one gulp.

Upon seeing this, Zhu Shugui and others raised their glasses and drank.

"Dangdang~"

At this moment, there was a noise from the palace door.

"Who!!"

Zhu Shugui frowned and looked over, "Get out of the way!"

At this time, everyone knew that Zhu Youjian was upset, so he wanted them to accompany him and outsiders should not interfere.

"Ancestor, it's me."

But outside the palace, Zhu Ciran's voice was heard, "My father asked me to come over and see my fifth uncle."

Now, Zhu Shugui could no longer sit still, and hurriedly stood up and ran towards the palace door.

Zhu Youjian and others stood up one after another.

Although Zhu Shugui is young, he is of a higher generation.

In the Liao King's line, that is the Shu generation.

One generation higher than Zhu Youjian's Yu generation in the Tang royal lineage.

squeak~
The tightly closed palace door was opened.

The first thing Zhu Shugui saw was Zhu Ciran standing in front of him, and behind him were Sun Kewang and his party.

"Greetings to Your Highness!"

Sun Kewang and his entourage raised their hands and bowed.

"Brother Ran is here."

Zhu Shugui smiled and squatted down, saying to Zhu Ciran: "I wasn't talking about you just now, please don't be angry."

"Ancestor, I know."

Zhu Ciran smiled and walked towards Zhu Shugui. Seeing this, Zhu Shugui hurriedly picked up Zhu Ciran. At this moment, Zhu Youjian and the others came over.

"Uncle Wu, are you okay?"

Zhu Ciran, who was being held, looked at Zhu Youjian with concern at this moment, "Father heard that you were caught in the rain, so he asked me to come over and also brought the imperial physician with him."

"fine."

Zhu Youjian smiled, walked forward and took Zhu Ciran, "Fifth Uncle is just a little upset."

"Father is right."

After hearing this, Zhu Ciran smiled and said to Zhu Youjian: "My father asked me, them, and my ancestors to drink with my fifth uncle."

"Father still has something to say to the ancestors."

Upon seeing this, Zhu Shugui and the others stepped forward and said.

"Ran Ge'er, what did His Majesty say?"

"Come, let me hug you."

Zhu Shugui and others smiled.

Zhu Ciran, who was snatched away by Zhu Shugui again, said seriously at this moment: "Father said, damn it, someone is bullying our family, you all should leave the Forbidden City and follow our people to do the work. This is what father said, I want to see if my Zhu family will be bullied like this?!"

Zhu Ciran spoke these words in a baby voice, but when Zhu Youjian heard them, he felt a different emotion in his heart, while Zhu Shugui and his group all had fierce looks in their eyes.

"Fifth uncle, I'm still young." At this time, Zhu Ciran stretched out his hand to Zhu Youjian and said, "I can eat meat, but can you ask Wang Ge'er and the others to drink with you? When my nephew grows up, I will drink with you, otherwise my nephew will get drunk."

"well."

Zhu Youjian smiled and hugged Zhu Ciran, his eyes slightly red.

"Uncle Wu, don't cry."

Seeing this, Zhu Ciran stretched out his little hand to wipe the tears from Zhu Youjian's eyes, "Father once told me that people are not born knowing what to do. If you make a mistake, it's okay. Just clean it up and try again. You can't just commit suicide after making a mistake once. This is called spirit... Hey, what's it called?"

"Your Majesty said this is called mental exhaustion!"

Li Dingguo, who was standing outside the hall, raised his little head and said.

"Yes, mental exhaustion!"

Zhu Ciran said with a smile: "So Uncle Wu, please don't waste your time."

"it is good."

Zhu Youjian said softly.

"Then let's drink?"

Zhu Ciran said at this moment.

"drink wine!"

"Ha ha!"

Zhu Youjian, Zhu Shugui and the others all spoke at this moment, while Li Guo, Sun Kewang, Liu Wenxiu, Ai Nengqi, Li Fuchen, Li Dingguo, and Yuan Zongyi walked into the hall one after another.

The palace door was slowly closed again.

But soon, it was opened again.

"Go, bring a few more jars of wine!" Zhu Ciran poked his head out and said to the people standing outside the hall.

"Here!"

Everyone outside the hall responded.

"Haha~"

Zhu Youjian and his group who were sitting there all laughed when they saw this.

"What are you all doing standing there? Sit down!" Zhu Shugui stretched out his hand and said to Li Guo and his entourage, "I've been wanting to drink with you for a long time."

But Li Guo and his group looked at Zhu Ciran.

"Everyone, sit down."

At this moment, Zhu Ciran stretched out his hand and said, "After drinking this wine, let's go with Uncle Wu to do our errands. Don't embarrass yourself when the time comes!"

"Here!"

Li Guo and his entourage bowed in response.

When Zhu Youjian saw this scene, he felt complicated inside, but his previous hesitation disappeared without a trace, and his eyes became firm!
It's just a setback, just find it back!

(End of this chapter)