Zhao Defang's road to the virtuous king

"Ah!" Wei Ling cried, "Then... did Grandpa Taizu kill that minister?"

"No." Defang shook her head

"Father!" Wei Xian asked, "Then what happened?"

Defang sat on the chair and continued to preach, "Taizu's pillar ax broke the minister's two front teeth. The minister did not cry out for pain, but bent down and picked up the tooth and held it in his hand. Taizu asked: "You have teeth Sue me? The minister replied: I can’t sue Your Majesty, since there should be an official historian’s letter. At this time, Emperor Taizu turned his anger into joy, and rewarded the minister with a lot of gold and silk, as a token of appreciation for his courage to speak out.”

"That's great." Wei Ling smiled and said, "It scared the child."

"Little guy, your grandfather Taizu is a man of benevolence." De Fang said, "Emperor Taizu is in Beijing, but he always thinks about the soldiers guarding the border. My father heard from the people in the palace that after the second year of Qiande's attack, During the time of Shu, it snowed heavily in the capital. Due to the cold weather, felt curtains were set up in the martial arts hall. Emperor Taizu was wearing a sable fur hat and was talking to his father. The body is still cold. When the general of the Western Expedition attacked Shuangshui, how could he bear it? So he took off the sable fur hat and sent someone to give it to the commander-in-chief who was fighting. .”

"The sable fur hat," Wei Ling thought, "it's very warm."

Defang hugged Weiling, "Father Minger also make a thick hat for Linger, okay?"

"Well, thank you, Father." Wei Ling was very happy.

Concubine Di touched Defang's tea bowl and felt that it was still hot, so she pushed, "My lord, drink some tea."

"Thank you ma'am" Defang took a sip of tea

"The emperor Taizu is so sympathetic to his subjects, it is reasonable to win the world." Concubine Di said

"Well," Defang said, "Emperor Taizu also personally made medicine for Lu Huaizhong, the Hakka envoy who was ill, and sent an imperial doctor to treat him, and said to Lu Huaizhong: I have tried this medicine before, and it is very effective. You can take it with peace of mind. "

Concubine Di nodded, "Emperor Taizu's benevolent heart will benefit all ministers and people."

"Yes, ma'am, you know that the people of Cangzhou have been saying up to now: There are wronged emperors to take care of them, but no money to reward them."

"My lord, what is the meaning of this?"

"During the reign of Taizu, Zhang Mei, the governor of Anguo, was appointed as the governor of Cangzhou. But after he arrived in Cangzhou, he asked a commoner for thousands of dollars and forced his daughter into the mansion as a maidservant. So this person came to the capital. After filing an imperial petition, Emperor Taizu learned the whole story and summoned this person. Before he could speak, Taizu asked, "Is this place safe before Zhang Mei arrives in Cangzhou?" The visitor answered: "It's not peaceful, foreign enemies invaded." , Humiliated. Taizu asked again: "Is Zhang Mei still like this after he arrives?" The visitor answered: "Foreign enemies do not invade, and they can make a living." Then Taizu said: "Zhang Mei has contributed to his family and country, and I will not dismiss him easily. It is also for the people of Cangzhou, but I will make the decision for you when you suffer injustice. Emperor Taizu immediately decreed that the government should return the money to the person who complained for Zhang Mei, and asked Zhang Mei to return his daughter. He also rewarded Zhang Mei's mother with a lot of money, and told Zhang Mei: If you are short of money and food, you can go up to get it from me, but you can't ask for it from the people. Zhang Mei was panicked when she received the imperial decree, so she changed her life Xin, he is a clean official in the local area, and his political performance is quite good.”

"My lord," Concubine Di said, "Emperor Taizu really had a way. He avenged the common people, saved the face of the heroes, and made the good generals repent, and did more things for the people of the country."

"Well, Emperor Taizu is indeed a sage." Defang smiled, "But sages also forget things. The lonely king remembers that when he was young, one day Taizu summoned Zhang Rong in the Chongzheng Palace and treated him very well after asking about politics. Satisfied, he immediately promised to appoint him as chief official, but Taizu forgot about it afterward. Seeing Zhang Rong riding a very thin horse, Taizu asked him: "Why is Aiqing's horse so thin? Don't you feed it grain and grass?" Zhang Rong replied: "I will feed it every day." One stone of grain. Taizu was very surprised: How could he become so thin after eating one stone of grain every day? Zhang Rong replied calmly: I promised him one stone of grain a day, but he often forgot, that's why he was so thin Hearing this, Taizu suddenly remembered the matter of the Chongzheng Hall, so he issued an imperial decree the next day, appointing Zhang Rong as the chief official of Sima."

"Emperor Taizu is really a benevolent monarch. If he were placed in the previous dynasty, he might not be promoted and even lose his life."

"Yes." Defang nodded, "Emperor Taizu was heroic, benevolent and courageous, he pacified the chaos of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, and there are few opponents in the world."

Weiling sat on Defang's lap and said, "Father, isn't this called the benevolent invincible?"

"The benevolent is invincible? Hehe, Ling'er said it well." Defang nodded, "Emperor Taizu has the world in his heart and is upright. Prime Minister Zhao Pu once told his father that in the first year of Kaibao, the repair of the palace was completed. Emperor Taizu He personally gave each palace gate a name, then sat in the main hall, ordered people to open all the gates, and saw that all the gates were straight and open, without any shelter, the emperor Taizu said, "This is like my palace. There are few evil songs in the heart, and everyone can see it. "

Defang told a lot about Emperor Taizu. The children listened with gusto and were so excited that they didn’t want to go to sleep. Defang and Concubine Di finally let them go to sleep. The two were looking at the moon in the corridor, Defang said slowly "The past is over, but the lonely king sincerely hopes that our Great Song Dynasty will become stronger and stronger, and live up to the expectations of Emperor Taizu."

Concubine Di held Defang's hand and said, "Yes, the Taizu has a spirit in the sky, and he will protect the country and people of the Song Dynasty, and prosper for generations to come."