A century-old family that runs through the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 23 A tragic generation of famous generals

In the 24th year of Zhizheng year, Zhu Wenzheng first surrendered to Xuling and other villages and gained more than 25 people. In the [-]th year of Zhizheng year, he defeated Deng Zhongqian in Xingan. However, he who should have been rewarded was suddenly dismissed from office and imprisoned. For a time, many people who did not know about it The two looked at each other in shock, wondering what had happened.

"Look, look, what does this mean!" In King Wu's palace, Zhu Yuanzhang held a letter in his hand and was pacing angrily.This was a secret report from Jiangxi Inspector Li Yinbing. It recorded the news that Governor Zhu Wenzheng secretly contacted Zhang Shicheng and wanted to rebel. Looking at the detailed report, he couldn't help but feel angry.

"Gu is his biological uncle!"

Yan Ling stood aside and listened to Zhu Yuanzhang's complaints.

"Ruixuan, tell me, why is this happening? What did I do wrong?"

Of course Yan Ling knew what the problem was.

The reason is the reward.

After the Battle of Poyang Lake, Zhu Wenzheng was undoubtedly at the forefront in terms of rewards for his merits. After all, without him defending Hongdu, there would have been no great victory. Therefore, he should not only be the first in credit, but at least he should be among the top ones. , rewards are indispensable.

Perhaps because he was from his own family, Zhu Yuanzhang asked directly:
"What office do you want?"

Zhu Wenzheng’s answer is very level:

"You can't convince others by giving official titles to your own people first instead of giving them to others. Besides, uncle, you have achieved great things, so why should I, nephew, worry about not getting rich?"

The effect was remarkable. After hearing what he said, Zhu Yuanzhang liked him even more and asked him to guard Jiangxi, but he was not promoted to the governor.

The problem is that Zhu Wenzheng is just humble and modest!He is actually a very clever person. What he means by saying this is to make Zhu Yuanzhang think that he is sensible and then give him a higher official position.

Unexpectedly, Zhu Yuanzhang didn't hear it at all.

This is just great.

Although Zhu Wenzheng was very good at fighting, his own character flaws were also obvious. He actually had some violent elements, and his lascivious behavior in the early days of guarding Hongdu was not an act. He was really good at it.Because he didn't get an official position, he was dissatisfied, so he levied violent taxes in Jiangxi, raped women, and even decorated his bed with dragons and phoenixes!He also told people bad things about Zhu Yuanzhang everywhere.When the incident reached Zhu Yuanzhang's ears, he sent someone to scold him. Now he became frightened and wanted to surrender to Zhang Shicheng.

In the final analysis, the reason was that Zhu Yuanzhang did not understand the ways of the world.

But the question is, how could he tell Zhu Yuanzhang this?I said before that your nephew was just being polite. Who told you to take it seriously? This is all your fault?

There’s no way to tell!

So he could only agree with a wry smile: "Perhaps it was because of his arrogance and arrogance that he made great achievements and was condemned by His Highness."

"Snapped"!Before Yan Ling finished speaking, Zhu Yuanzhang had already grabbed the porcelain bowl and threw it to the ground:
"This beast! He had meritorious deeds in the Poyang Lake War, but didn't others do the same? Why do others still stick to their duties!"

"Ruixuan, ask him on behalf of Gu why this is happening!"

Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes were shining with light, and Yan Ling could clearly see that it was murderous intent.

He did not dare to stay any longer, for fear that if he took a few steps slower, Zhu Yuanzhang would change his mind and kill Zhu Wenzheng directly.

Yan Ling still had a good impression of Zhu Wenzheng, who had left a great name in youth history. It was a pity for such a famous general of his generation to end up like this, and Yan Ling felt sorry for him.

"Why? How dare he ask me why!" Zhu Wen was roaring in the damp and dark prison.

"Why! During the Battle of Poyang Lake, everyone was promoted and became wealthy. Only I, the governor-general of Nao Shizi! Even Zhu Wenzhong, a man with a foreign surname, was promoted and became rich along the way. I, his nephew, How dare you ignore it! He really thought that if he changed his surname, he would be his son!"

How dare Yan Ling accept this!All I can do is keep saying: "Master Governor, be careful what you say."

Zhu Wen is Zhu Yuanzhang's nephew.In the entire Xiwu, except for Zhu Yuanzhang's sons, there were only two people closest to him by blood.One is his nephew Zhu Wenzhong, and the other is him, Zhu Wenzheng.After all, Zhu Wenzhong was a nephew. His sister (who was later posthumously named Princess Cao) was already married and could not be considered a Zhu family. Therefore, in the entire Zhu family, the person closest to Zhu Yuanzhang was actually Zhu Wenzheng.

However, at this time, even Zhu Wenzhong had been promoted from a mere servant to the governor of Youcheng. Although Zhu Wenzhong was in the 17th year of Zhizheng, he led the army for the first time at the age of 19 and made many military exploits. However, Zhu Wenzheng was the one who attacked Jiqing that year. He had already made his debut at that time. Over the years, he had attacked Changzhou, defended Hongdu, and fought against Poyang. Zhu Wenzhong could not compare to him no matter what.

However, Zhu Wenzhong's official position has been soaring. Although it is not as good as Zhu Wenzheng's "control of Chinese and foreign military affairs" and the No. 1 military commander (Chang Yuchun, Xu Da, and Yan Ling are all in Zhongshu Province), but The speed of promotion is not unsatisfactory, and it is only a matter of time before he catches up with Zhu Wenzheng.

This made Zhu Wenzheng even more jealous.

"Ruixuan, ask him, without Hongdu's persistence, how could Poyang's great victory have happened? How did he repay me for my incredible contribution?"

Even though Zhu Wenzheng was behind bars, he was still arrogant.Thanks to Yan Ling, although the two were just acquaintances, Yan Ling had managed the place and made great achievements in battle over the years. Zhu Wenzheng also admired him quite a lot. If it were replaced by someone like Liu Ji, he would probably It’s not like I’ve been scolded so badly.

Yan Ling didn't answer.

"I'm afraid His Highness is extremely angry..." He shook his head: "The Governor had better confess his guilt as soon as possible and apologize to His Highness. Otherwise... he may be killed."

Zhu Wenzheng was stunned for a moment, as if he didn't believe his ears: "Ruixuan, are you kidding me? How could my uncle kill me?"

Although Zhu Wenzheng conspired to surrender to Zhang Shicheng, after all, he had many military exploits and was still a relative of Zhu Yuanzhang. He always thought that he was under house arrest against the odds.

"It's just because you are His Highness's nephew..." Yan Ling said softly, "His Highness is even more angry... The Governor had better make a decision quickly, otherwise I will be helpless if His Highness's edict comes."

Zhu Wenzheng was stunned for a moment.Yan Ling's words hit the core of the problem. He was not a fool and he figured it out in an instant.

"No, no..." Zhu Wenzheng seemed to have just woken up at this moment.He is a good-tempered person, and now that he has glory and wealth in his hands, of course he is not willing to die like this: "Ruixuan, help me beg my uncle, no, His Highness, for mercy. I know you can do it. You are His Highness's important minister..."

"Whatever you want, gold, land, I'll give it to you, as long as you can help me." Zhu Wenzheng looked at him with pleading eyes.

Since being imprisoned, other acquaintances have avoided him, and he has only Yan Ling to turn to.At this time, he was already in a state of confusion. Even if he was a little clever, he couldn't think of a way to save himself.

Yan Ling was silent for a moment.

To be honest, this ending was Zhu Wenzheng's own fault. Even if Yan Ling waved his sleeves, there was nothing he could feel sorry for.

However, he thought about it and finally decided to give him a hand.

If you want to keep your family alive, you need helpers, and saving Zhu Yuanzhang's nephew is a huge favor; moreover, Zhu Wenzheng was also a famous general of his generation, so it ended like this, or he ended up depressed and miserable like in history. In the end, it was somewhat of a pity.

　Thanks to "Colonel's work" and "0I'm weird0" for their recommendation votes

　　


(End of this chapter)