Live History Broadcast: Opening Ceremony Spoilers - Our Ancestor Was Enraged

Chapter 34 Refugee Rebellion

During the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty

Zhu Di dared not look up at his father's gloomy face. What was going on? Were these good-for-nothing descendants never going to stop? Was Zhu Qizhen not enough, and now Zhu Zhanji was also failing him?

You should know that their father came from a commoner background and couldn't stand seeing ordinary people suffer!

At this critical moment, why is my older brother still out running errands?!

Zhu Biao, who was still working, suddenly sneezed.

While Zhu Di was racking his brains for a solution, he didn't notice that his father was approaching him, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

The outcome was predictable.

……

Lin Ke paused for a moment, then continued, “According to the epitaph of the late Guo Fujun, the prefect of Guizhou, Zhu Qizhen was preparing to resume his voyages to the Western Ocean in the eighth year of the Zhengtong reign. A large number of ships were to be built, which means that the abuse of manpower had begun to appear. As the saying goes, where there is oppression, there is resistance. Thus, the peasant uprising in the southeast occurred.”

"It can be said that the rebellion of the Yao people in the south had already begun during the reign of Zhu Qizhen. The court did not send anyone to appease them, or if it did, it did not have an effect."

"Based on these points, the Yao rebellion was becoming increasingly fierce. According to the Ming Shilu (Veritable Records of the Ming Dynasty), the largest Yao rebellion involved several provinces, such as Guangxi, Guangdong, Fujian, Guizhou, and Jiangxi."

"Therefore, in the early years of the Chenghua reign, the Yao rebellion in Guangxi had already broken out. Not only that, but the ethnic minorities in Sichuan also rebelled, and there were also peasant rebellions in Huguang and Jingxiang. This start was much worse than that of his father, Zhu Qizhen."

Zhu Qizhen, burdened with a mess: Here we go! Son!

Zhu Jianru (smiling): Hey, Dad!

"Zhu Jianru appointed Commander Zhao Fu as General Who Conquers the Barbarians to go south and suppress the Yao people's uprising. More than 100,000 Ming troops easily broke through 324 enemy strongholds, and the uprising ended just like that. However, the Ming Dynasty also gained the birth mother of the next emperor, Zhu Youcheng."

Emperor Zhu Jianru, the devoted emperor of the Ming Dynasty: ...

"Next is the second problem—the refugees from Jingxiang. In the early Ming Dynasty, the Jingxiang mountainous area, located at the junction of four provinces, was sealed off. However, the feudal dynasty's land annexation continued, causing many people to lose their land and flee to become refugees."

"The most fatal point was the Tumu Crisis. The Ming Dynasty, already beset by internal and external troubles, failed to effectively deal with the refugees, or rather, it simply couldn't afford to, and the crisis finally erupted."

"Jingxiang Mountain is surrounded by mountains, making it a good place to hide. In addition, there are no government offices and no taxes to pay. The land is also suitable for growing vegetables. What do ordinary people want? Isn't it just a peaceful life?"

"Jingxiang Mountain became a paradise for refugees, who flocked there. By the time Zhu Jianru ascended the throne, the number of refugees had already exceeded one million."

"However, people's hearts are fickle, and no one knows who the refugees next to them really are. The lack of government jurisdiction means that there is chaos here, and the law of the jungle applies here."

"There are no shortage of vicious and wicked people in the Jingxiang Mountains, as well as ambitious people. This is why, in the early years of the Chenghua era, the leader of the refugees, Liu Tong, led an uprising of 40,000 refugees."

"Zhu Jianru sent Zhu Yong to quell the rebellion. The rebels were mostly composed of refugees and did not pose a threat, so the uprising was quickly quelled."

"The government gave us two options: one was to send them back to their original place of residence, that is, to go back to their own homes and find their own ancestors; the other was to register them under another household registration. Most people chose the latter."

"But Jingxiang Mountain was not under the jurisdiction of the government. Several government agencies believed that it was none of their business, so the matter was left unresolved."

"This led to the second peasant uprising. The Ming Dynasty sent Xiang Zhong to quell the rebellion. On the other hand, Xiang Zhong sent people to negotiate peace, saying that if the peasants voluntarily came out of the mountains, they would not be punished and the government would recognize the land they had cultivated."

"In the end, if ordinary people can't survive, who will flee famine, and who will rise up in rebellion?"

"No class asks for less than the common people; all they ask for is a peaceful and prosperous life."

At this time, the various dynasties

The First Emperor and others fell into thought; this was not the first time Lin Ke had brought up matters concerning people's livelihood.

Later generations seem to have placed more importance on ordinary people.

Liu Che recalled Li Shimin's tearful outburst last time, and he couldn't understand how such an emotionally expressive emperor could win the people's admiration.

Hmph, I won't admit I'm a little envious!

Meanwhile, the First Emperor was thinking that his body had greatly improved after taking the elixir, and he would surely live longer this time.

In the past, I was too impatient, always feeling that time waits for no one, and that I was already getting old, but the policies in my mind had not yet been promulgated.

My original intention was to let the Qin cavalry conquer a vast territory, so that the people of Qin would never suffer from the ravages of war again!

So why not let the people of Qin live and work in peace!

The First Emperor looked at Lin Ke and thought to himself that not only the Qin Dynasty, but also the subsequent dynasties had all changed, hadn't they?

Lin Ke: "So when Xiang Zhong shouted for surrender, many thugs came out one after another. Did you all think it would be a happy ending? A situation where everyone was happy?"

General Judy (with a bad feeling): What else?!

Lin Ke shook his head: "Xiang Zhong did not keep his promise. Instead, he sent the refugees back to their hometowns and massacred those who disobeyed."

This action led to numerous impeachments, which Zhu Jianru ignored, leaving the decision-making power to Xiang Zhong at the front lines.

"Thanks to Xiang Zhong's iron-fisted approach, the problem of displaced people in Jingzhou and Xiangyang was temporarily alleviated."