After the Battle of Jingyan in the Ming Dynasty, how did Zhu Di, the usher, treat the family of the former prince Zhu Biao?
No one escapes the doom that falls from the sky.
When Zhu Di entered the capital and took his nephew Zhu Yun to sit on the dragon chair he thought about day and night, he would never have thought that the Battle of Jingjing not only changed his fate, but also changed the fate of his nephews. As the sons of the emperor, they could have lived a comfortable and prosperous life, but the power struggle made them victims of fate.
What was Zhu Di's motive for getting rid of his nephew, and was he struggling with the emperor's anxiety and his uncle's guilt?
i.Zhu Yunwen: The emperor who has been abandoned for many years.
Before the outbreak of the Battle of Jingjing, Zhu Yunwen lived a carefree life. Zhu Yunwen was born in the Jinling Imperial Palace in 1382, the second son of the crown prince Zhu Biao. His elder brother Zhu Xiongying died young, so he became the eldest son of the crown prince, and after the death of his father Zhu Biao in 1398, he was chosen as the emperor's heir.
In the fourth year of Jianwen (1402), his grandfather Zhu Yuanzhang died, and Zhu Yunwen, who was only 18 years old, ascended the throne as emperor and changed his name to Jianwen. It stands to reason that it should be a great achievement for a young and promising new emperor to be able to sit on the dragon chair.
However, Zhu Yunwen made a fatal mistake at the beginning of his ascension to the throne, ** the clan, which caused his uncle Zhu Di to fight back. Why is Zhu Yunwen so reckless? It has to do with his character.
Zhu Yunwen is fierce by nature and has a strong desire for power. He hated his father Zhu Biao when he was alive, and as a son, he could only be cautious. Now, he has finally become an emperor and is eager to take all power back to him. Zhu Yunwen was arrogant and looked down on vassal kings like Zhu Di, believing that they should immediately give up their military power and submit to the imperial power.
As a result, Zhu Yunwen successively seized the vassal lands of Zhu Di, the king of Yan, and Zhu Zhen, the king of Jing, which aroused the great anger of these two vassal kings. Zhu Di preemptively rebelled in July 1402 and a fierce confrontation broke out with Zhu Yunwen. This is the famous Battle of Jingjing.
But Zhu Yunwen did not change his approach. He continued to go his own way, ignoring the advice of his ministers. Until July 1403, the capital fell, Zhu Di was forced to flee, and the Jianwen Dynasty was destroyed. Although Zhu Yunwen did not reign for long, his recklessness and willfulness directly led to the demise of his empire.
If Zhu Yunwen can give the landlord class a little color and unite his uncles, he can avoid military disasters and civil disasters. It's a pity that he ended up being a poor emperor abandoned by the times.
ii.Zhu Di's cruel choice of power.
In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang implemented the primogeniture inheritance system, which made Zhu Biao's position very stable. As the fourth son, Zhu Di has no hope of becoming emperor. However, after Zhu Biao's death, Zhu Yuanzhang made an exception to let Zhu Yunwen, who was only eight years old, take the throne. This undoubtedly gave Zhu Di hope - the concubines can be the heirs to the throne, why can't I?
In 1402, Zhu Yuanzhang died and was succeeded by Zhu Yunwen. Zhu Di believes that his time has come. He was determined to seize the throne. To do this, he is ready to do whatever it takes, even risking his life.
Zhu Di learned that Zhu Yunwen was going to intercept and kill the clan, and immediately sent troops to counterattack. It can be said that this is exactly the result he wanted. Because he cut off the back road of the clan, he had a legitimate reason to rebel.
After a year of arduous and bloody battles, Zhu Di finally conquered the capital in July 1403 and drove Zhu Yunwen out. When he sat on the throne of the emperor, his heart was undoubtedly filled with joy and satisfaction.
But the seizure of the throne was only the first step. Zhu Di realized that only by eradicating Zhu Biao's hereditary power could he truly ensure his own status and that of his descendants. Therefore, he uprooted Zhu Biao's sons.
This is undoubtedly a painful decision for Zhu Di. After all, Zhu Yunwen and the others were his nephews, and he should have protected them. But for the sake of power, they all sacrificed. This may have upset Zhu Di's conscience, but in the end he was right.
Zhu Di believes that the lives of the people around him are important, but the position of the king is even more important. For the sake of unparalleled imperial power, he did not hesitate to pay a greater price.
Third, Zhu Yun: The identity of the prince could not save his life.
Zhu Yun is Zhu Biao's third son, and his mother is Zhu Biao's concubine Wu. During the Jianwen period, he was known as King Wu. However, the good times did not last long, and after the Battle of Jingjing began, he could not escape his fate.
In July 1403, Zhu Di entered the customs, and Zhu Yunwen was unable to keep the crown prince. He was first demoted to the rank of king of Haizhou, and then exiled to Zhangzhou. Although this is only a change in title and place, it undoubtedly means that his future is in jeopardy.
Of course, Zhu Yunwen was soon recalled to the capital, directly demoted to a commoner, and imprisoned. Eventually, he was turned into a prisoner.
Zhu Yunwen lost hope for the future, died of depression, and died in Fengyang at the age of 39. It is indeed embarrassing that a middle-aged prince ended his life tragically like this.
What happened to Zhu Yunwen foreshadowed the fate of his other nephews. Zhu Di has made it clear that Zhu Biao's descendants have no chance of survival, and their identities cannot provide him with shelter.
Fourth, Zhu Yunzhu: A similar encounter with his brother.
Like his elder brother Zhu Yunwen, Zhu Yunwen also suffered a tragic end after the Battle of Jingjing.
During the Jianwen period, he was known as King Heng. After the Battle of Jingyan, he was first demoted to the rank of King of Huai'en and gave up the distant fiefdom of Jianchang.
Soon after, he and Zhu Yunwen were summoned to Beijing, stripped of their titles, and placed under house arrest. Around the thirteenth year of Yongle, Zhu Yunwen also died at the age of 29.
Like Zhu Yunwen, Zhu Yunwen could have lived the life of a prosperous and wealthy prince. Because of the change of martyrdom, he fell from heaven to hell.
As the son of Zhu Biao, it is said that he can share fame and status with his elder brother. But all in vain. This may be a reality that he can't accept until he dies, and it is also Zhu Di's punishment for their family.
5. Zhu Yunxi: A young man who will pay a heavy price.
Zhu Yunwen is Zhu Biao's fourth son and the last nephew left by Zhu Di.
During the Jianwen period, he was known as King Xu. After the martyrdom, he was first transferred to Shixi to return to the king and guard the tomb of his father Zhu Biao. Later, he was renamed King Ouning and was in charge of the prince's etiquette.
But the good times didn't last long. In the second year of Yongle, Zhu Yunwen's home caught fire, and he and his biological mother Lu were burned alive. She was only 16 years old at the time, in the prime of her youth.
Sadly, the young prince, who was still an adult, was burned with his mother. He could have lived a privileged life and inherited the glory of his father's generation. But he did not realize that the changes in the situation in Yasukuni had ruined his happy future.
Zhu Biao's youngest son, Zhu Yunwen, paid a heavy price. His tragic fate is undoubtedly the epitome of the family's decay. We can't help but ask, is this fire caused by Zhu Di?
The victory of the Battle of Jingyan allowed Zhu Di to ascend the throne and realize his long-cherished wish. Yet, countless innocent lives have been lost in this transfer of power.
Zhu Biao's two sons could have lived a stable and good life, but they had to fall victim to Zhu Di's elimination of political enemies. Although this is cruel, it is not difficult to understand Zhu Di's motive for doing so - to consolidate the regime and eliminate potential threats.
What does this bloody game of thrones mean for each other? Zhu Di conquered the country, but lost his son and nephew. Zhu Yunwen and others paid a terrible price and were destroyed by the fate of the times. The great wheel of historical evolution will eventually destroy the fate of the individual.
I have to admire the battle of fate between the emperor's uncle and nephew. Each of them is his own master, but in the end they reap great suffering. This is a desperate portrayal of the feudal dynasty and will bring deep thinking to future generations.