The Ming Dynasty started with saving the eldest grandson

Chapter 467 The Killing Begins
"Not a human being, not a human being at all."

"For a few acres of paddy fields, they killed more than ten people in a family, not even sparing a few months old child."

"You beast, you beast."

"Yeah, I can't believe that the Saint's House would do such a cruel thing."

"That's nothing. Look at this guy, he's a beast... He drives out and kidnaps women he sees and rapes them..."

"This is not a saint's family at all, they are worse than animals."

At a roadside tea stall, a group of coolie porters were discussing something while eating hard-wheat cakes with tea.

The topic was naturally the most serious affairs of the Kong family.

This incident was so hotly discussed, and with newspapers reporting on it one after another, it can be said that it was known to the whole world.

The evil deeds committed by the Kong family have challenged the bottom line of humanity time and time again.

Especially for some older people who have experienced turbulent times, painful memories were evoked.

He developed hatred towards the Kong family.

Then they pass on this hatred to the people around them through oral communication.

The things that happen around us and the things that happen far away have completely different senses.

The anger of the general public was successfully aroused.

At this time, the tea stall owner suddenly said, "Stop talking, stop talking. There are a few scholars over there. Be careful that they will take us to the authorities."

Everyone suddenly fell silent, lowering their heads and not daring to speak.

After all, we are all people from the lower class and cannot afford to offend those masters.

When those scholars passed by the stall, they seemed to be oppressed by the smell of sweat and walked past quickly with a look of disgust on their faces.

This undisguised attitude made everyone feel even more suffocated and panicked, and no one spoke anymore.

After a long time, someone finally said, "Isn't it said that the great men of the Neo-Confucian school are upright and upright, and they speak up for the people?"

"I think we will be able to severely punish the Kong family and give justice to the people."

"Natural science? Ha..." Someone made a mocking sound:

"Those few people just now were all scholars of Confucianism. With people like this, how can we expect them to serve the people as officials?"

Someone echoed, "Yes, the Kong family is the ancestor of scholars, how could they handle it impartially?"

The scene became lively again and everyone started spreading rumors, some of which were not sure whether they were true or not.

"My neighbor's second uncle's brother-in-law's son was taken to the government by a scholar just because he said a few words."

"I spent a ton of precious money and was beaten with ten large boards before I was released."

"These scholars are very protective of their ancestors."

"Yes, how could they offend their own ancestors for the sake of the people?"

Someone lowered his voice and said, "I heard that those great masters of Neo-Confucianism actually united to seize the power of the emperor."

"It's not a plea for the people at all."

Some people also questioned: "No way, those masters dared to force the emperor to punish the prince and the prince consort."

Someone immediately responded: "Ignorance, can you tell me what else they have done besides these two things?"

"They forced the emperor to punish the prince and his consort, which was actually a power grab."

As they talked, everyone almost believed it. This was the only answer.

Moreover, the people have begun to worry: "If the Neo-Confucian master really wants to seize power... then what should we do?"

"Yes, the emperor is old, the emperor has suffered a stroke and is unable to walk, and the prince is still young..."

"Tell me, after those people come to power, will they take our land away?"

"It's hard to say, and I heard that the county magistrate hates people walking around."

"I wish I could build a high wall to surround the village so that the people can leave the village only when they are working on the land."

"If you leave the village on weekdays, you will be caught and beaten to death."

"Ah? What should I do? I can't go out to work. I will starve to death just relying on the little output from the fields."

"We won't starve to death. I heard that the imperial court is promoting Yin potatoes, and we have already started growing them in some places here."

"I'll plant some Yin potatoes in the future, and it won't be a problem to get enough to eat."

"But it's only enough to get half full. Forget about anything else."

"The Emperor must not give in. Those treacherous officials must be defeated."

"Only the emperor can make everyone live a good life."

"Yes, I hope the emperor can regain his strength and kill all these treacherous officials."

Discussions like this first circulated in major cities.

Word quickly spread throughout the country.

Naturally, Neo-Confucian officials and scholars would not tolerate such rumors, and began to take tough measures to prohibit people from discussing it.

Once discovered, the person will be arrested on the charge of spreading rumors and slandering the saints.

But the result was that it made the people believe more strongly that these officials who came from the School of Neo-Confucianism would definitely protect the Kong family.

Once people have such ideas.

Then the "moral" cloak created by Neo-Confucianism would no longer exist.

If one stands in a high position without any moral support, he will surely be slandered by everyone.

Various conspiracy theories also emerged.

The most popular and most accepted of them is naturally the view that the Neo-Confucian school was actually seeking to seize power.

The fact that things developed so smoothly was due to the positive effect of the missionary work in the previous ten years.

Of course, the main reason is that a series of good policies have greatly improved people's lives.

Although everyone lived a hard life, there were fewer miscellaneous taxes and they could eat their fill through their own efforts.

These are better days than ever before.

Especially for those who have just experienced turbulent times, the contrast is too strong.

The strong contrast also led to their recognition and loyalty to the Ming Dynasty and the royal family.

In the past, they were led by newspapers to believe that the great men of science were speaking for the people.

But even at that time, no people cursed the royal family.

Many people even believe that neither the emperor nor the ministers were wrong.

It is only natural for the emperor to protect his son and son-in-law.

Who doesn’t protect their own children?

The ministers are also worthy of praise for upholding etiquette and laws.

However, because of the Kong family's affairs and the deliberate guidance of newspapers, the direction of public opinion began to change.

To put it simply, in the past, everyone wanted a wise ruler and virtuous ministers.

But now the royal family and the ministers can only choose one.

Who do you choose?

The people chose the royal family without hesitation because the royal family could indeed provide everyone with food.

Minister?

If you dare to seize the emperor's power, you are a great traitor.

Even though it is the same evil deeds of the Kong family, different people focus on different things.

For example, what ordinary people are concerned about is the Kong family’s disregard for human life and bullying of men and women.

For example, the wives of high-ranking officials and wealthy families were more concerned about how the Kong family treated women.

After seeing the evil deeds of the Kong family published in the newspaper, Zhao Zhi immediately found her father.

"Dad, the newspaper said that if a woman marries into the Kong family, she will be locked in the courtyard and will not be allowed to leave for the rest of her life."

"Except for the personal maid, you are not allowed to have contact with anyone else. Is this true or false?"

Zhao Qian nodded and sighed, "Really, but not all women are treated like this."

Zhao Zhi breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's what I told you. How could there be such a harsh family?"

Zhao Qian smiled bitterly and said, "Do you think being locked up is a misfortune? You are wrong. Not being locked up in the Kong family is the greatest misfortune."

"The Kong family was afraid that their wives and concubines would cheat on them, so they would always guard against them strictly."

"If you look at another man on the street, you will be considered a whore and beaten to death."

Zhao Zhi was shocked: "Ah? How... is this possible?"

Zhao Qian said, "How can it be impossible? There are countless women who have been beaten to death over the years because of this."

"It's just that these charges were just concluded during the trial and have not yet been published in the newspapers."

He was also extremely disappointed with the Kong family and couldn't help but talk about many crimes that were not reported in the newspapers.

Zhao Zhi felt heavy-hearted after hearing this and had nightmares all night.

The next day, I was distracted frequently while choreographing a play with my girlfriends.

Even her best friend joked with her, asking her if she had fallen in love with a certain guy.

Zhao Zhi bit her lip and said, "You know, if the Kong family heard this, they would beat me to death."

My girlfriends were surprised: “Ah, why?”

Zhao Zhi told her besties everything that Zhao Qian had told him.

"If you look at another man, you will be beaten to death..."

"Force widowed women to move into the courtyard and not leave for the rest of their lives."

"And then they withheld the money and food of the widows... These women had no choice but to allow the Kong family to rape them in exchange for food."

"Many women chose to commit suicide because they did not want to be humiliated."

"The Kong family shamelessly wrote biographies of these women, saying that it was all due to the Kong family's benevolence..."

All these acts of persecution against women really shocked all the sisters.

They know that the current social atmosphere is conservative. Although the atmosphere in the Ming Dynasty has changed, the requirements for women are still very strict.

But no one would have thought that the Kong family could be so demonized.

"Given the influence of the Kong family on Confucianism, these rules are likely to be followed by more people... Then the fate of women in the world may be..."

These words made everyone feel extremely heavy.

They are all girls from wealthy and powerful families, and they have no worries about food and clothing.

Outside, they were protected by the small group formed by Fuqing, and no one dared to cause trouble for them.

The only ones who can restrain them are their parents and husbands.

But behind Fuqing is Chen Jingke, and their parents and husbands all hope to establish a relationship with Chen Jingke through their wives.

Naturally, they will not be restricted. Instead, they will be encouraged to participate in more small group activities.

Under such circumstances, they enjoyed the freedom that women of this era should not have been allowed to enjoy.

Precisely because they had enjoyed relative freedom, they could not accept the Kong family's ways.

Imagine being locked in a small yard for the rest of your life...

Just think about how her husband died and she was raped by her sanctimonious fellow tribesmen...

Imagine being beaten to death just because you said something wrong or looked at someone carelessly...

Just thinking about it makes them feel like they are going to collapse.

As a result, he completely hated the Kong family.

Someone might say, "You're already hating me?" That's too hasty, isn't it?

No.

Women's minds are inherently more delicate and sensitive.

Many times emotions are so inexplicable.

Then these women began to spread the evil deeds of the Kong family on various occasions.

Not only do they say this, they also demand that the women from other families must support them.

The Kong family is so evil, how could you not hate them?

Then you support the Kong family, you are the enemy of us women, we will isolate you and attack you.

Under such circumstances, more and more women joined their ranks.

Those who understand will understand the power of pillow talk.

What's more, the overall situation is now clear.

The emperor dug a hole, and Neo-Confucianism and the Kong family jumped into it. Now is the time for reckoning.

The Confucius family and Neo-Confucianism will inevitably be severely punished.

At this time, everyone naturally knows what to choose.

What's more, Neo-Confucianism occupies most of the civil service system, and a lot of positions will be vacated if they are eliminated.

Then don't we have a chance to move up?

Thus, a trend against the Neo-Confucian school began to form.

However, even at this point, everyone still believed that Zhu was preparing to severely hit the Kong family and suppress Neo-Confucianism.

I have never thought about destroying Confucius and abolishing philosophy.

Seeing that the time was right, Old Zhu changed his previous attitude and sternly urged Liu Xiao and others to try the Kong family case as soon as possible.

Liu Xiao and others were so regretful that their intestines turned green, but it was too late to undo what had happened.

They had no choice but to check it out.

At this point, the Ming Weekly no longer pretended and directly began to question the position of the leaders of Neo-Confucianism.

There is no need to find any other excuses, just bring up the affairs of the Kong family.

It's been more than a month, and you still haven't figured out the reason.

Could it be true, as the rumors say, that your integrity is just an act?

Was the previous attempt to force the emperor to abdicate simply to seize power?

Another article directly stated:
A science leader who did not want to be named said that they were urgently discussing how to survive.

It’s just that the internal strife is so intense that no one wants to be the one being sacrificed, so no strategy has been worked out until now.

And no one wants to bear the infamy of killing a saint.

This report has different meanings in the eyes of different people.

Ordinary people think that, just as we guessed, these rationalists are just hypocritical beasts in human clothing.

Those who consider themselves to be more rational think that this is probably a deliberate attempt to redirect the topic.

But only the core officials of the Neo-Confucian school knew that all this was true.

So, who leaked this information?
A crisis of trust once again emerged within the already divided Neo-Confucian school.

Naturally, they couldn't come up with any unified response plan.
-
Time soon came to May 18th, and good news came from the East Palace.

Crown Princess Xu Miaojin gave birth to a baby boy.

The crown prince's eldest son was born.

Zhu Xiongying has many children, currently four sons and three daughters.

However, the birth of the eldest son still shocked the court and the country.

This is because according to the etiquette of the Ming Dynasty, this child will be the first in line to the throne.

The happiest people were Old Zhu, Empress Ma and Zhu Biao.

Finally, I have met the fourth (third) generation heir. This is definitely an auspicious thing.

Zhu Yuanzhang issued a general amnesty and gave all children under the age of ten a box of canned meat as a token of universal celebration.

Let’s not even mention the Xu family. Even when the door was trampled down again, the smile on Xu Da’s face never disappeared.

With this child, the Xu family's position became more stable.

In addition to the Xu family, there is another family that is also very lively.

That is Chen Jingke’s home.

When it was confirmed that the Crown Princess had given birth to a baby boy, countless people sent congratulatory gifts to the Chen family.

This gift is for the future queen Xiao Yuanyuan.

This is the marriage arranged by Mr. Zhu and Empress Ma.

Well, Chen Jingke has two children, the elder sister is called Yuanyuan and the younger brother is called Tuantuan.

This is a nickname, and the formal name will be given after the child turns one year old.

This is naturally superstition.

Medical care was poor in ancient times and the rate of lumbar fractures among infants was high.

People believed that if they did not give their children a name, the child’s name would not appear in the King of Hell’s book of life and death.

The Black and White Impermanence would not be able to come and take the soul away to save the child’s life.

There are also some customs, such as giving children humble names so that they are easier to raise.

For example, dog balls, dung forks, baskets and the like.

Chen Jingke naturally knew that this was all superstitious thinking.

But again, there's no harm in it anyway, so why bother correcting it?

Once the living conditions are met, the trend will naturally change.

Therefore, he did not give the child a formal name, but used a nickname instead.

Well... he knew that inbreeding was not good, but it wouldn't be a problem if it was just one generation.

What we are afraid of is the marriage between close relatives of three or five generations, or even marriages between several fixed families for hundreds or thousands of years.

This will lead to terrible consequences.

Therefore, there was no strong opposition to this marriage.

Later, when the level of science and technology improved slightly, it was natural to put forward relevant theories and prohibit marriage between close relatives.

This will make things more natural and the resistance you encounter will be much smaller.

Closer to home.

Chen Jingke was both angry and amused at everyone's eagerness to please the future queen.

Isn't it too early for you to give gifts now?

Fuqing was very happy.

Not to mention Chen Yuan and Feng. Not only did the Chen family marry a princess, they even had a queen.

In the past, they would never have dared to dream of such a good thing.

Not only have outsiders' attitudes towards the Chen family changed, but even the attitudes of relatives and friends have changed.

For example, Xu Da treated Yuanyuan as his own.

As for Old Zhu and Empress Ma, let alone them, they were almost taking the child into the palace to raise him themselves.

Zhu Xiongying went even further and directly called himself the father.

The key is that he not only likes Yuanyuan, but also Tuantuan.

As soon as they met, he said, "Daddy is here to see you," completely ignoring the fact that he and the two children were of the same generation.

Just ignore it and no one will correct him.

Everyone should just discuss their own opinions.

And he likes two kids, isn't that better?

The birth of the crown prince's eldest son also allowed many people to see opportunities.

This is a huge happy event, so of course we have to celebrate it. Wouldn't it be ugly if it was stained with blood?
What if the bloody evil spirit hits the child?
So, some people took the opportunity to submit a petition, hoping that the emperor would suspend the killing and pray for the child.

The people of the Kong family also submitted a congratulatory message and a letter of apology, hoping that the emperor would forgive them this time for the sake of the saint.

They promised to repent and reform later.

Then...all these people were dismissed from office.

Zhu Yuanzhang made it clear in the court that the Kong family was guilty of heinous crimes that could not be tolerated by heaven, and that he would be indignant to the people of the world if he did not investigate thoroughly.

Anyone who dares to plead for him again will be punished with the same crime.

As for the Kong family, Old Zhu did not forget them.

He issued an order to confine all members of his family to their ancestral home in Qufu, and no one was allowed to leave without an imperial decree.

And ordered the army to blockade.

The person who carried out this task was Li Shanchang, who had just visited the Confucius Temple.

Now, the government and the public finally understood Zhu's determination, and no one tried to persuade him anymore.

But many people also began to worry about the Kong family, fearing that Zhu Yuanzhang would punish them too harshly.

Many scholars spontaneously went to Qufu, preparing to surround the descendants of the saint.

When Old Zhu heard this, he sneered and said, "Since they want to die, let them go."

"Let Fang Xiaoru publish this story in the newspaper. We'll see how many people will follow suit."

Chen Jingke couldn't help but take a breath and quickly advised:

"Your Majesty, too many people will die if you do this."

Old Zhu scolded: "Women's kindness, don't you understand it now?"

"Stubborn and corrupt people cannot be educated. They can only be wiped out with the force of thunder."

"It will make room for the new law to be implemented."

Zhu Xiongying also supported it, saying, "Looking back at history, how many reforms have been successful without bloodshed?"

"What is leather? The skin of an animal is called leather."

“Reform means peeling off the skin of the old law and replacing it with a new one, which is bound to involve bloodshed.”

"Besides, those who go to protect the Kong family this time are either die-hard Confucianists or those who seek fame and reputation."

"If these people are alive, they will only become an obstacle to the new law."

"Taking this opportunity to catch them all in one fell swoop is the simplest and most direct way."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "Xiong Ying said it well. A ruler must have such ruthless means."

Then he said to Chen Jingke: "You, kindness is your advantage, but it is also your biggest disadvantage."

Chen Jingke smiled bitterly and said, "I am too naive."

He naturally knew that reform would inevitably involve bloodshed.

How much blood was shed in the previous life before the sun rose.

But when he really got into it and saw so many people dying, he still felt a little bit sorry for it.

As Lao Zhu said, this is his advantage, but also the biggest shortcoming of a politician.

Of course, on the other hand, this is also one of the main reasons why the royal family dared to trust him.
-
The new issue of the newspaper has even harsher wording.

I would like to question the Neo-Confucian masters again. You are called the conscience of the Ming Dynasty and the guardians of morality by the people.

Ask yourself, do you deserve this praise?
He also directly pointed out that someone was making trouble in the court and tried to protect the Kong family from punishment.

However, this time the emperor did not give in and dismissed all the officials who pleaded for mercy.

Here, Lao Zhu was heavily praised.

Why did the emperor tolerate and do the punishment of the prince and his wife's husband when Neo-Confucianism forced him to do so?

Is he afraid?
No, it was he who knew that what the officials said was right.

Even his own flesh and blood were punished with great pain.

It is to give justice to the people.

Therefore, the emperor was not forced to do this, but he wanted to do it himself.

It's just that those officials of the Neo-Confucian school took the credit for themselves in order to gain fame.

The current handling of the Kong family is the best example.

The Kong family is a family of saints, but the emperor still demands that the law be enforced impartially for their criminal acts.

On the contrary, the Neo-Confucian officials who were previously aggressive and considered themselves to be righteous have been dragging their feet and have not yet reached any result.

This can be proved by this incident.

The one who truly cares about the world is the Emperor Emeritus.

Neo-Confucianism and Neo-Confucian officials are nothing but hypocrites.

Once this article came out, it was really a slap in the face.

Many officials could not bear this injustice and asked the emperor to severely punish Fang Xiaoru.

Then, they themselves were severely punished.

On the contrary, the leaders of Neo-Confucianism such as Liu Xiao and Zhao Shucai all chose to remain silent.

If we were to say which article had the greatest influence, it would be the last one.

This article talks about how many Confucian scholars ignored the evil deeds of the Kong family and went to Qufu to try to rescue the criminals despite the imperial ban.

Is this what you call morality?

Are you pursuing morality or power?

Among the people, this article confirmed the label of the Neo-Confucian school as a hypocrite.

Many people who were originally hesitant finally agreed with this truth.

Some people may say, "You believe it just like that? That's too foolish."

However, this is in line with the rules of communication.

What is the biggest rule of communication?
To sum it up in two words: simple and positive.

Simple means that what is communicated must be simple and easy to understand.

What is certain is that words cannot be ambiguous and must be spoken directly and directly, saying that things are like this and like this.

The more this happens, the faster it will spread and the wider the scope.

Why is no one listening to the rumors?
Because it is too complicated and not conducive to dissemination.

The same logic applies today. Neo-Confucianism definitely has its strengths, and there are many good people in the Neo-Confucian school.

But if you explain this principle to the people, regardless of whether they can understand it or not, the main thing is that they don't want to listen.

They prefer to hear simple, affirmative things.

The Neo-Confucian school is bad because they shield the Confucius family.

In short, the grand plan that Lao Zhu and his team had been planning for so long was finally accomplished at this moment.

Neo-Confucianism began to be questioned and denied by the public.

This article also had a consequence.

That is, many readers read this article and suddenly realized that this method can be used.

So he joined the ranks of those who defended the saint.

Some people really protect the descendants of Confucius out of a sense of moral responsibility.

Many more people seek fame.

If you participate in such a big event, it will be a lifelong qualification.

As for danger... Fortune and wealth are achieved through risk.

What's more, with so many people going there, could the emperor really kill them all?
As a result, more than 10,000 people went to Qufu to defend the so-called descendants of the saint.

Under the relentless pressure from Old Zhu, Liu Xiao and others knew they could not delay any longer, so they gave a report on the interrogation results.

Then Zhu Yuanzhang got furious on the spot, took out the evidence collected by the Jinyiwei, and asked why 60% of the evil deeds were missing.

Liu Xiao and others gave two reasons.

First, the Jinyiwei often exaggerated their statements; second, the officials in charge of the interrogation often covered up the crimes and were also deceived.

Old Zhu was so angry that he laughed: "You are so shameless. I was so blind that I let shameless people like you sneak into the court."

"Chen Ying, you come and tell the ministers what happened."

Because of his "merit" in forcing the emperor to abdicate, Chen Ying was recommended by the Neo-Confucian school and his official position was restored, making him eligible to attend court.

The expressions of Liu Xiao and others changed immediately.

Chen Ying? He betrayed?
Zuo Chuan, in particular, looked at Chen Ying who stood out in disbelief.

The junior whom he valued so much actually betrayed him?
But it's too late to say anything now, we have to find a way to deal with it.

Chen Ying participated in all their important decisions throughout the process.

Then, Uncle Zhao said, "Chen Yushi, you are also a participant in many things. If this boat capsizes, you will die."

The fact that he could say this on the spot showed that he was really panicked.

Chen Ying sneered, "Why do you say that, Mr. Zhao?"

"From the beginning to the end, there is only one ship and one flag in my heart, and that is the emperor."

After hearing this, those who reacted quickly had already made some guesses.

Was this person planted by the retired emperor?

Once this idea came into mind, all of Chen Ying's previous strange behaviors were explained.

Moreover, this is also in line with the emperor's style of doing things.

After all, he was the one who created the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

It is normal to plant a nail in science.

And everyone has reason to suspect that Chen Ying is not the only thorn in the side.

This made the Neo-Confucian officials even more frightened, and they always felt that everyone around them was suspicious.

Then, Chen Ying told all of these people's plans.

It means cutting off the tail to survive.

The Kong family sent a few people to take the blame, and the crimes that could be concealed were hidden, and those that could not be hidden were pushed onto the scapegoat.

As for the Neo-Confucian officials...

Let the emperor handle it himself. Whoever he punishes should die. Don't blame others.

The rest of the people have to take care of the family of the deceased.

In fact, it was all within everyone's expectations.

However, these are all private matters and cannot be made public.

If Chen Ying said it out in public at this time, it would be a crime of deceiving the emperor.

As expected, Zhu Yuanzhang was furious: "Come here, put Liu Xiao, Zhao Shucai, Zuo Chuan... all of them in prison."

He named more than thirty names in one breath, all of whom were the backbone of the Neo-Confucian school in the court and the main force in the previous forced abdication.

A group of Jinyiwei rushed into the hall and dragged all these people away.

A large area of ​​the court was left empty, and all the ministers were trembling with fear.

Everybody knows.

The killing begins.

(End of this chapter)