Exploring the Life of Zhu Houzhao, a Wuzong in Ming Dynasty

Ming Wuzong was a typical dissolute emperor in China. He was a short-lived emperor, and he was corrupt and shameless all his life. He built a "leopard house", which was full of feasts, grabbing men and women, and soaking in the gentle hometown of beautiful women all day, leading a drunken life. Ming Wuzong excessively pursued sensual pleasure and reused eunuch Liu Jin and other "eight tigers", which led to chaos in the Chaogang and miserable people. The national strength was weak and the eunuch was authoritarian, which was quite prominent during his reign. Finally, the absurd and lecherous Ming Wuzong finally died because of too much sex.

First, it is difficult to achieve great things, and eight tigers become problems.

In the fourth year of Hongzhi (A.D. 149 1), hongzhi emperor Xiaozong Zhu Min, who just turned 2 1, was blessed with a son. This is the first 1 1 emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and his mother is Empress Zhang. Because he is the queen's own, he is the eldest son.

Zhu Houzhao was the first emperor to appear as the eldest son since the founding of the Ming Dynasty. Besides, Zhu Houzhao's birthday is also a coincidence. He read out his birthdays in chronological order when he applied on Ding You Day in the first month of191. It happens to be "Shen, You, Xu, Hai". According to the official view of the star, this kind of "pearl-linked" is the life of the richest man. According to people's legend at that time, Zhu Houzhao's birthday was similar to that of Zhu Maoyuan Zhang, who founded Daming Foundation, and Daming Foundation was brilliant and prosperous. Therefore, the eldest son is also expected. In the fifth year of Hongzhi (AD 1492), Emperor Xiaozong of Ming Dynasty appointed Zhu Houzhao as the Crown Prince.

Ming Xiaozong ascended the throne of the emperor less than half a year after marrying Queen Zhang. The relationship between them is quite good. Therefore, Ming Xiaozong "has no luck in his life." However, after four years of marriage, Queen Zhang still didn't give birth to a prince. Xiaozong and Queen Zhang were particularly worried about this. In the fourth year of Hongzhi, the palace suddenly announced that Queen Zhang had given birth to a son without any pregnancy or other information. In the sixth month after Zhu Houzhao was born, Emperor Xiaozong of Ming Dynasty began to brew the title of Prince Dong Gong, which is quite rare in Ming history. Therefore, shortly after being chased as a prince, there were rumors in the capital that it was not the biological son of Queen Zhang. Although this is a rumor without real evidence, it is indeed a doubtful question whether Queen Zhang is her mother. Three years later, Queen Zhang gave birth to Prince Zhu, but she died soon. Therefore, Emperor Xiaozong of Ming Dynasty and Queen Zhang only have one son, that is.

According to historical records, Zhu Houzhao looks beautiful, jade-like and radiant. When I was young, I behaved abnormally and was very regal. Although these are all platitudes in official history books, it is true that Zhu Houzhao was deeply loved by Emperor Xiaozong of Ming Dynasty and was spoiled since childhood.

In the 11th year of Hongzhi (AD 1498), Crown Prince Zhu Houzhao began to learn books. Because of his cleverness and diligence, he was widely praised by people. But before long, because eunuchs Liu Jin, Gu Dayong, Ma Yongcheng and others didn't want to let the Crown Prince get close to the Confucian officials, they often talked and read intermittently with some business, guided the prince to play, practiced riding and shooting, and let the eagle chase the dog. As time went on, the prince gradually became worse than before. He didn't talk or read all day, and gained the reputation of "good riding and shooting", which was gradually known by people outside the palace.

In May of the eighteenth year of Hongzhi (AD 1505), Emperor Xiaozong of Ming Dynasty died of illness. Zhu Houzhao, who was only 15 years old, acceded to the throne, changed his country name to Zheng De, and designated the second year as the year of Zheng Deyuan.

Many drugs are difficult since ancient times. Ming Xiaozong has been ill for a long time, and his condition is serious and difficult to cure. However, since Emperor Xiaozong of Ming Dynasty died of nosebleeds due to overdose of medicine prescribed by doctors, the first important thing Zhu Houzhao did after he acceded to the throne was to investigate the person who was directly responsible for the death of Emperor Xiaozong. Liu and Gao Tinghe were executed; Qin Shi and Fang Shuhe were dismissed; Xu was demoted to a civil servant and sent back to his hometown; Toriyu, Li, Li, Li and others were demoted.

Zhu Houzhao was very young when he acceded to the throne. He should have been assisted by a good minister and loyal servant, but he didn't. At his side, there appeared the "Eight Tigers". The eight tigers are Liu Jin, Ma Yongcheng, Gao Feng, Luo Xiang, Wei Bin, Gu Dayong, Qiu Ju and Zhang Yong. They guide the Ming Wuzong game riding and shooting day and night, so they are called "Eight Tigers", also called Eight Sides.

Of these eight people, Liu Jin is the most cunning and insidious. Liu Jin, a native of Xingping, Shaanxi Province, was originally named Tan. After he entered the palace in Jingtai, he was named eunuch Liu Shun and changed his surname to Liu. Liu Jin is very learned and eloquent. When filial piety and Gu Dayong and other seven people waited on Zhu Houzhao, they were deeply loved by Zhu Houzhao.

Zhu Houzhao acceded to the throne, Liu Jin, Gu Dayong and other eight people were assigned to the palace, responsible for specific affairs. Since then, Liu Jin and others have sent hunting animals such as eagles and dogs to Zhu Houzhao all day to attract and accompany him to ride horses, shoot arrows and play with guns. Since then, Amin Wuzong Zhu Houzhao has been addicted to entertainment and his daily life is changeable. He no longer studies and doesn't care about state affairs.

Ministers saw that Ming Wuzong ignored state affairs and did not seek progress, so they wrote letters to remonstrate. In June this year, thunder shook the kisses of Fengtian Temple, the spines of the ancestral hall and the trees of the Temple of Heaven, and the pillars of the palace gate were destroyed or even burned. People think that the weather is abnormal, and it is the wrath of heaven that warns them. So, since the introspection as usual, request liegeman remonstrance. Ministers wrote letters in succession, as did college students Liu Jian, Li Dongyang, Xie Qian and others. To sum up, there are mainly five different things. One is to ride alone and drive away from the palace; The second is the frequency supervision bureau; The third is boating Haizi; Fourth, the eagle dog ejected from left to right; Fifth, the housekeeper provides food and drinks and does not choose to eat. Ming Wuzong made a false response to the suggestions of cabinet ministers, but ignored the suggestions of general ministers and even punished them. So many ministers' suggestions didn't work at all, and Mingwuzong still went his own way.

In August of the same year, the emperor prepared for the wedding, made Chang Xia the queen, and sent officials to welcome him into ouchi. Ministers' suggestions are getting less and less. Soon, college students Liu Jian and others pointed out three things that Wu Zong wanted to correct. Although Wu Zong accepted their suggestions, he did not correct them.

In September, Wu Zong reopened the banquet, but he wanted to abolish the lecture that afternoon. Liu Jian and others tried their best to remonstrate, which made Wu Zong very unhappy and forced him to manage.

Since then, Wu Zong has indulged himself more and more, playing in the palace and even imitating the market, opening various shops. Liu Jin and other eight people surrounded him day and night and became elbows and armpits. When courtiers saw more and more trips in Zhu Houzhao, they were tired of seeing North Korea, the New Deal was ineffective, the imperial edicts were not believed, and they didn't know how to reform the provinces. They have long been dissatisfied with the Eight Tigers and want to get rid of them. At this time, it coincided with the eunuch Cui Gao, and the courtiers took this opportunity to get rid of Liu Jin and other eight tigers.

In the year of Zheng Deyuan (AD 1506), the eunuch Cui Gao was ordered to go to Nanjing to supervise manufacturing. He wrote to ask Wu Zong to give him salt as a fund. The salt class set up a salt diversion, and its tax revenue was specially used to prepare for border defense, but Wu Zong did not hesitate to agree to Cui Gao's request. Soon, Liu Jian, Li Dongyang and others tried their best to remonstrate, demanding that Wu Zong change the imperial edict, and pointed out the harm that eunuchs in power did to the imperial court. Wu Zong was very unhappy after hearing this, and said, "Are all eunuchs harming the imperial court? You must know that six or seven of the ten courtiers have been doing bad things. " Later, Liu Jian and others tried their best to persuade and finally changed their idea of funding Cui Gaoyan. However, Wu Zong's trust in the Eight Tigers has not changed. Liu Jian and others did not know this situation, so they began to design and prepare to get rid of the eight tigers.

Since then, Li Dongyang, Liu Jian, Xie Qian and others have written to the court, asking Zhengde Emperor to severely punish Liu Jin and others and relieve the internal troubles of the court. 10 12, loyal Koreans led several ministers to the imperial court, pointing out that eunuchs Liu Jin and Ma Yongcheng had recently seduced the emperor, indulged in amusement and neglected government affairs, and demanded that Wu Zong take Liu Jin and others away for interrogation and punish them clearly. After receiving the letter, Wu Zong was so sad that he didn't want to eat. Liu Jin and others were even more frightened when they learned of the incident. Eight people were frightened and cried. Soon, they met Wu Zong under the leadership of Liu Jin. Liu Jin soon understood Wu Zong's psychology, so he dared Wu Zong to be angry with Wang Yue and other DPRK ministers. Emperor Wu was furious and immediately appointed Liu Jin to be in charge of the Li Si army. Ma Yongcheng and Gu Dayong were in charge of the East and West Factories, and Wang Yue and others were assigned to Nanjing Shouzuling. The next day, Li Dongyang and Liu Jian saw that things were irreversible and withdrew. Subsequently, Liu Jin sent people to hunt down Wang Yue and others all the way, only Xu Zhixing was spared. Since then, all the power in the DPRK has been dominated by the Eight Tigers headed by Liu Jin, who has the power to pour out the world.

Second, the factory guards were rampant and Liu Jin was punished.

Liu Jian and Xie Qian failed to punish Eight Tigers, but they let Eight Tigers master the power of state affairs. Liu Jian and Li Dongyang were forced to resign. Since then, although many officials with conscience are dissatisfied with what Wu Zong has done, few people dare to stand up and help Wu Zong. Liu and Lu Shushu, Wu Zong, pointed out that the two cabinet elders could not just resign and leave, and put forward five reasons to ask the emperor to retain them. Although everything was reasonable, General Wu ignored it, and Eight Tigers held a grudge for it.

When the Koreans were driven out of the court, Xu Ang also asked the emperor to make a judgment. Bewitched by the Eight Tigers, Wu Zong dismissed Xu Ang on the grounds of protecting the minister of the DPRK and cronyism.

Since then, in order to prevent court officials from saying things, Wu Zong ordered six departments to guard the affairs, and ministers were not allowed to leave the yamen. In addition, agents of the Royal Guard are constantly under surveillance. If anyone walks out of the yamen before You Shi, report it to the emperor immediately. However, officials as far away as Nanjing did not know the situation in Beijing, and they went to rescue Xie Qian, Liu Jian and others. Wu Zong and Liu Jin were furious. In order to deter officials, Liu Jin's fake son of heaven issued a letter to designate 53 people, including Liu Jian and Xie Qian, as "traitors" and posted a list in the court to crack down on officials. From then on, Liu Jin became the "inner phase", also known as the "site emperor". Since then, Liu Jin's power has been in full swing.

Courtiers are like fighting tigers, but they are swallowed by tigers. After stealing the military and political power of the imperial court, Liu Jin retaliated against the courtiers and used the East and West Factory and the Royal Guards to eliminate dissidents.

In order to crowd out dissidents, especially Confucian scholars and civil servants, as long as they make small mistakes, Liu Jin will go to hell to pay. In the third year of Zheng De (AD 1508), Liu Jin changed the old system, stipulating that anyone who took care of his relatives, worried about his illness or recovered from illness would be treated as absenteeism, and he could be pardoned within three months, fined for four or five months, arrested and interrogated in six or seven months, automatically dismissed in eight or nine months, and dismissed from office after October. Since then, the official department * * * has found out 146 civil and military officials who violated the law and discipline, and all of them have been dealt with according to the new rules formulated by Liu Jin, so many people have been dismissed.

Since the appointment of Liu Jin by Wu Zong, Liu Jin's power has become a powerful force, and the princes have been oppressed by his power and dare not be equal to him. Every time they visit Liu Jin, they always bow down. Liu Jin is not humble. If there is anything that makes him dissatisfied, he always scolds loudly, just like ordering his slaves. There are many people who protect themselves or flatter others. In the fifth year of Zheng De (A.D. 15 10), the Ministry of Military Science buttered up Liu Jin and impeached 6 1 officials, including his father, which was despised by people at that time. In order to avoid disasters and protect themselves, civil and military officials are obedient or silent, and dare not discuss current politics. When Liu Jin was authoritarian, only Luo Qiao was spared.

The thing is this: In the fifth year of Zheng De's reign, there was a drought in the capital, and Luo Qiao took the throne and asked the emperor to stop the game, abandon the villain and punish Liu Jin and others. Determined to die, he ordered his family to follow with the coffin and wait for the emperor's will in the palace. Liu Jin read the letter and flew into a rage, ordering the courtiers to discuss the crime. Li Dongyang, a great scholar, interceded for him, and finally pardoned him for death, but reduced him to a native teaching post in Jiangxi. Courtiers thought that something would happen to Luo Qiao, but he was only demoted, so everyone was surprised.

Ming Wuzong spent money like water, and eunuchs plundered it. Soon, the national treasury is empty, the inner government is in a hurry, and the grain depot in the northern border area is empty, and the border crisis may break out at any time. In this case, eunuch Liu Jin put forward a brilliant idea for Ming Wuzong, that is, official criminal law, with punishment instead of crime.

The Mi Criminal Law promulgated by Ming Wuzong really helped to alleviate the national financial crisis. Since the number of rice fines ranged from 1200 stone to thousands of stones, in the third year of Zheng De (A.D. 1508) alone, 182 officials were fined, and about 6,000 stones were transported to the capital. Together with those unpaid rice fines, more than 10000 stones were earned. In addition, nearly 100 times of grain was transported to border towns. Although it played a role for some time, it has many disadvantages, and the country is the last victim. Because the power to punish who and how much is in Liu Jin's hands, Liu Jin has become the biggest beneficiary. In addition, this kind of excessive punishment of officials has also become a powerful tool for Liu Jin and his followers to publish personal vendettas. Many loyal ministers were dismissed for the people and many honest officials were destroyed. People who are punished for doing business often pay bribes to Liu Jin in order to avoid crimes and disasters. Even people who usually claim to be loyal and straightforward often go through the back door to avoid the pain of the staff. Liu Jin made a fortune.