"Father, if that Record of Misconduct truly exists, why not let your sons read it, so that we may diligently correct ourselves?"
As soon as Zhu Biao spoke, the other princes also raised their heads. Each of them showed some expectation in their eyes.
Even Empress Ma turned her head and looked on with faint amusement.
The husband she had chosen possessed a love of learning that she had never seen equaled in her life. At the same time, his fondness for instructing others was likewise unmatched.
But unlike those sour and pedantic scholars, he actually possessed the authority to do so. It was rather infuriating when one thought about it.
To his sons, Chongba was their father.
To the people of the realm, the Hongwu Emperor was their sovereign.
Therefore, when later generations mentioned that the Ming dynasty possessed a work titled the Great Proclamation, Empress Ma did not find it surprising at all. That was entirely in keeping with Chongba's character.
As for how he would respond to the matter of the Record of Misconduct…
"If you all behaved yourselves properly, why would I write such a book?"
Sure enough, Zhu Yuanzhang's face was full of disdain. He immediately countered with a forceful question while sweeping his gaze across his sons.
"If you and your descendants could all be like the Crown Prince, then the Record of Misconduct would surely remain blank pages. What would there be to write, and what would there be to record?"
"If things truly were so, perhaps I might instead write a Record of Worthies to praise you!"
As the Ming Emperor's gaze moved across them, Zhu Shuang felt somewhat uneasy.
Zhu Gang immediately lowered his head in guilt.
He felt that if their father truly wrote such a book, he would certainly be listed at the very beginning. Would that not mean losing face before later generations?
Zhu Di also guiltily turned his eyes aside.
Perhaps it was only an illusion, but he felt that when their father spoke the words "behave yourselves properly," his gaze seemed to linger particularly on him.
This caused the Prince of Yan to grow anxious.
He even had the sudden urge to summon Fang Xiaoru and question him about what exactly this so-called "Upholding Heaven and Pacifying the Difficulties" meant.
But he knew that such a thought was likely nothing more than wishful thinking.
At present it might even be better to pray for Fang Xiaoru in advance.
After all, now that the man's name had entered their father's ears, it would be difficult for him to remain unnoticed.
Yet when the uneasy Zhu Di turned his head, he did not notice that his father's gaze toward the light screen also carried a measure of unease.
Although his sons had said nothing, Zhu Yuanzhang could not deceive himself.
How could he possibly forget the name Ye Boju?
In the ninth year of Hongwu, his sons had not yet been sent to their fiefs and were still in the capital.
At that time, the celestial phenomena had indeed been interpreted as signs that the ruler had lost virtue.
Under the circumstances in which Hu Weiyong had effectively become the sole chief minister, the fact that Ye Boju's memorial reached Zhu Yuanzhang directly inevitably aroused suspicion.
Thus Zhu Yuanzhang seized the opportunity to unleash his thunderous anger.
In the end, Hu Weiyong had to mediate tactfully.
Through this push and pull between emperor and minister, Ye Boju ultimately died in prison.
What Zhu Yuanzhang had not expected was that Ye Boju's fellow townsman Fang Xiaoru would later write his biography and pass it down to posterity.
Now, through the light screen of later generations, those words had returned, becoming literary thorns lodged in his heart.
The thorn did not truly injure him.
Yet in moments of rest or movement, it inevitably reminded him that he had little connection with the title of a benevolent ruler.
As for Ye Boju's memorial criticizing the enfeoffment of princes, even if Zhu Yuanzhang refused to believe it, he could not help harboring some doubt in his heart now.
After all, the fourth son…
[Lightscreen]
[If the thirteen Northern Expeditions of the Ming dynasty truly achieved what their proclamations declared, "driving out the Hu and restoring China," then that era could be called the time when the stars of Great Ming shone most brilliantly.
Yet as the sole helmsman of Ming at that time, the consequences of Zhu Yuanzhang's indulgent affection toward his sons could also be described as a time when another sort of "stars" shone brilliantly.
However, it is more appropriate to leave those matters for the next episode.
After all, the success of Zhu Di, the Ming Chengzu, in ascending the throne was related, whether positively or negatively, to this group of brothers.
In fact, if one examines matters carefully, the problems of meritorious nobles and feudal princes in the early Ming were similar in essence.
In the early Ming, whenever a meritorious noble committed an offense, other nobles would inevitably step forward to plead on his behalf. Such incidents appear repeatedly in the historical records.
From the perspective of those nobles at the time, they were all brothers of the Huaixi faction. If one of them killed a few commoners and the emperor reacted with great fury, was that not making a mountain out of a molehill?
The situation with the feudal princes was quite similar.
There are more than a few records of Crown Prince Zhu Biao pleading on behalf of his brothers.
For example, Zhu Shuang committed numerous improper acts and was summoned back by Zhu Yuanzhang for reprimand. It was Zhu Biao who mediated the matter.
When Zhu Gang, within his fief, tied people behind swift horses for amusement and even practiced execution by dismemberment merely for excitement, Zhu Yuanzhang shouted that he would strip him of his princely title. Once again it was Zhu Biao who intervened, protecting his younger brother and allowing him to escape punishment.
Of course, some people believe that Zhu Biao was merely a convenient excuse.
In fact, according to the Record of Misconduct, the number of cases in which the princes killed commoners for entertainment was quite astonishing.
Yet Zhu Yuanzhang's most severe punishment was usually nothing more than summoning them back and scolding them harshly. Beyond that, there were no real penalties.
Zhu Yuanzhang disliked the way the Huaixi brothers and the descendants of meritorious nobles protected one another.
Yet when it came to his own family, he himself could not escape the same pattern.
However, in a feudal age, an emperor who held absolute power possessed the privilege of being unreasonable.
In the end, before Zhu Yuanzhang's death, the troublesome meritorious nobles were eliminated in a single purge, while the feudal princes who abused the people for amusement remained as immovable as mountains.]
Zhu Yuanzhang had just begun to feel his mind settle somewhat.
But after reading this passage, his anger surged again.
He even leaned forward, trying to reach out and strike his son's head.
"And you dare to call yourself an ancestor? What kind of ancestor are you supposed to be!"
Zhu Di naturally did not dare to dodge.
He endured the slap stiffly.
But before a second blow came, he looked up and saw his elder brother standing between them, attempting to persuade their father.
"Father, whether temple title or posthumous title, who would discuss such matters while a person is still alive? This so-called Chengzu was most likely bestowed by later generations. What does it have to do with Fourth Brother?"
Yet these words of persuasion seemed only to pour oil upon the flames.
Zhu Yuanzhang immediately burst into curses.
"Get lost! Even if the temple title was not chosen by the fourth one himself, would it not still be his descendants who did it? How could it have nothing to do with him?"
"The one he bullied was your son, Biao. Even if he used the name of an uncle, it was still rebellion against his superior. Yet here you are trying to play the good man!"
"You may mediate when the second one wastes the people's labor and wealth, but when someone tears living people apart for amusement, can you still speak kindly for him?"
Such fierce words displeased Empress Ma.
She simply slapped the table and said sharply,
"Did not later generations already say that the one holding absolute power was you? Biao merely spoke a few words out of brotherly affection. Was that also wrong? In the end, was it not still you who made the decision? How did it become Biao's fault?"
Meanwhile Zhu Shuang was deep in thought, trying hard to recall what actions of his might count as crimes.
When he turned his head, the third brother had already knelt down directly and was crying loudly.
"Father, please judge clearly. You may send the Jinyiwei to investigate if you wish. Your son has been in his fief for less than three years. Even if I once whipped a cook, he has since been well fed and well treated. That cook has not even needed to enter the kitchen for two years."
"As for tying people behind galloping horses or tearing them apart for amusement, there is absolutely no such thing!"
Zhu Su was still holding a book and pondering over it.
Seeing the situation, he could no longer focus on the text.
At that moment he heard Zhu Zhen, beside him, mutter somewhat uneasily,
"I should not commit such a mistake, right?"
With a sigh, Zhu Su saw that the fourth brother was still lowering his brows in an effort to appear obedient.
Thus he replied,
"You should continue studying your military treatises. If you relieve Father's worries by suppressing bandits for him, how could such matters ever arise?"