Chapter 23: Zhu Yunwen’s “Banquet to Bestow Titles and Territories”

On the 15th of the eighth month in the 31st year of the Hongwu reign.

Originally on the 15th day, Zhu Yunwen was supposed to hold a court meeting, but he believed that the Mid-Autumn Festival was a time for a family reunion. Therefore, he issued an imperial decree to postpone the court meeting to the following day, the 16th. He also arranged for officials to handle essential and important matters in the morning before returning home to gather with their families.

Not only that but those eunuchs and palace maids who were from nearby areas close to the capital were also allowed to return home to visit their families.

Those who had long distances to travel or had no families to visit would consider the palace their home. Lanterns were hung, decorations were put up, and mooncakes and other treats were distributed to enjoy the Mid-Autumn Festival together with the Emperor and the Empress.

Early in the morning, Ma Enhui started bustling around, arranging the palace maids to prepare for the family banquet in the palace.

Although Zhu Yunwen wanted to sleep a little longer, he was awakened by Ma Enhui and called upon the palace maids to dress in court attire. He was informed that he would receive congratulations in the Hall of Central Harmony and Hall of Supreme Harmony.

It was a time of elaborate ceremonies and rituals.

Zhu Yunwen didn’t like it, but he had to accept these rituals because they played a crucial role in the governance of the Ming Empire.

When the rituals crumble, it becomes a sign of the downfall of a nation.

The order of the court, the hierarchy of officials, and their conduct are all tied to these rituals.

What clothes to wear, which belt to match, how to speak when encountering the living, how to wail when facing the dead—all of these have prescribed manners.

Making a mistake is not simply met with a disapproving glance or a reprimand. It could lead to impeachment, a reduction in salary, or even severe punishment such as dismissal from office or execution.

Being in ancient times, it was necessary to adhere to the customs and rituals of that era. One couldn’t be too outrageous or proclaim ideas of individual liberation and freedom in dressing, as it would invite severe criticism…

In the Hall of Central Harmony.

Ma Enhui, along with Zhu Yunwen’s younger brothers, Zhu Yunteng, Zhu Yunjian, and Zhu Yunxi, as well as all the eunuchs and officials from the harem, knelt and paid their respects to Zhu Yunwen.

“In this golden autumn season, we congratulate Your Majesty and celebrate the glory of the Ming Empire. May Your Majesty enjoy good health and well-being, and may the nation of Great Ming be prosperous and the people live in peace..”

Ma Enhui performed the ritual with utmost reverence.

After receiving the congratulations and well-wishes from the crowd, Zhu Yunwen stepped forward to assist Ma Enhui and gestured for everyone to rise. He then spoke, “Today, on this Mid-Autumn Festival, I also wish for all of you to work together in harmony, with unity and virtue, to contribute to the prosperity of our Great Ming Dynasty.”

The people were filled with enthusiasm and expressed their determination not to disappoint the Emperor’s high expectations.

“What is this?” After signaling for everyone to leave, Zhu Yunwen noticed a memorial on the table and couldn’t help but ask.

Ma Enhui smiled and said, “Your Majesty, these are the gifts from the princes. Here is also a list of guests for the family banquet. I seek your decision on this.”

Zhu Yunwen picked up the memorial and unfolded it, and he burst into laughter.

Among the gifts from the Kings, the offerings from Zhu Di, the King of Yan, and Zhu Zhi, the King of Liao, were the most significant. Looking at the densely recorded details on them, it was needless to say that both of them had emptied their treasuries.

Zhu Di’s emphasis on the gifts was understandable to Zhu Yunwen. After all, the series of actions were directed toward Zhu Di, and he felt the pressure. Expressing loyalty and willingness to submit in this manner was reasonable.

However, Zhu Zhi, the King of Liao, also presented such lavish gifts was somewhat surprising.

However, benefits are still needed. Now, training the new army requires a significant amount of financial and logistical support. Although he had reduced the expenses by disbanding 100,000 troops, relying solely on savings is far from enough to sustain the new army.

The key lies in generating additional resources. These gifts are valuable, and he can keep some as reserves while selling the rest.

“As for the family banquet guest list, you can decide.”

Zhu Yunwen went to pay respects to Empress Dowager Lu, exchanged a few words, and then left.

In the evening, Zhu Yunwen hosted a family banquet at the Shenggong Hall to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. He invited his uncles, brothers-in-law, brothers, and relatives to attend.

Accompanied by music and ceremony, Zhu Yunwen took his seat and gestured for everyone to rise, he said, “This is the Mid-Autumn Festival family banquet, and all of you are my family. Please rise.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Everyone stood up.

“We congratulate Your Majesty on this auspicious occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival. May the moon shine brightly, bringing peace and prosperity to the people of Great Ming. May the civil and martial aspects of the empire flourish, and its reputation spread across the four seas. We wish Your Majesty good health and smooth endeavors in all matters.”

Zhu Di, as the head of the vassal kings, led everyone in offering their congratulations.

Zhu Yunwen smiled and once again asked everyone to rise before taking his seat.

“Since my ascension to the throne, this is the first time I have held a family banquet to entertain my uncles and brothers. Although it coincides with the Mid-Autumn Festival, a time for a family reunion, but mourning period has already passed, and uncles are about to depart for the distant borderlands. I feel a deep sense of reluctance.”

Zhu Yunwen expressed his genuine emotions.

Zhu Di, the King of Yan, and the King of Ning were suddenly taken aback. From Zhu Yunwen’s words, it seemed that he didn’t want everyone to go to their respective fiefs.

Zhu Zhi, the King of Liao, looked at Zhu Yunwen and after a moment, he spoke, “Your Majesty’s concern is the foundation of human emotions. I have a thought, but I’m not sure if it’s appropriate to bring it up?”

Zhu Zhi, the fifteenth son of Zhu, was granted the title of King of Liao and fief in Guangning, which is near the Yiwulu Mountain in present-day Beizhen City.

Zhu Yunwen looked at his uncle, who was only twenty-one years old and of similar age to himself and smiled, saying, “During a family banquet, there’s nothing that can’t be said. Please, go ahead and share your thoughts.”

“Your Majesty, the winters in Guangning are extremely harsh, with biting cold winds that seem endless. I truly do not wish to stay in Guangning and would like to earnestly request Your Majesty to grant me a different fief…”

Zhuzhi was not joking.

The winters in Liaodong were bitterly cold and living conditions were difficult.

He was born in Nanjing, and he had yet to fully enjoy the beautiful scenery of Jiangnan before being sent to this inhospitable and frigid region at the age of fifteen or sixteen. Though it was an impressive position to command tens of thousands of troops at such a young age, prestige alone could not satisfy one’s hunger.

Whenever there is a military report, he has to crawl out like a dog, trembling with fear. Sometimes he can’t even get a peaceful night’s sleep. He has been longing for the days in the capital all these years.

Taking advantage of his father, Zhu Yuanzhang passing away, he returned to the capital for the funeral, the stark contrast in lifestyles made him completely fed up with Liaodong. He has made up his mind that even if the Emperor wants him to be stationed there, He will pretend to be ill and stay behind.

“Uncle Liao is like a mountain and a pillar of the empire in Liaodong. Grandfather personally appointed uncle, how could I change that……” said Zhu Yunwen pretending to be hesitant.

No wonder Zhu Zhi presented such generous gifts. It turns out he was trying to take the backdoor approach. He’s quite a clever person.

Zhu Zhi quickly complained, recounting the hardships of life in Liaodong. Finally, he fiercely pinched his own thigh, disregarding the etiquette, and pointed at it, claiming it was frostbitten. He insisted that if he were to return, he might lose this leg.

Everyone took a glance and could clearly see the bruise, which didn’t resemble frostbite at all. This guy, even if you are faking it, you should put more effort into it. Besides, during the past few months, you’ve been running around in the capital, and everyone knows you’re perfectly fine.

If it weren’t for filial piety, you would have caused quite a few troubles by now.

Zhu Yunwen looked at Zhu Zhi’s earnest gaze, sighed, and said, “Since that’s the case, then Uncle Liao will stay in the capital for now to recuperate. As for the fiefdom, let’s change it to Songjiang Prefecture.”

Songjiang Prefecture!

The other vassal kings were suddenly taken aback.

Songjiang Prefecture was known for its fertile land, abundant resources, and beautiful scenery. It had been an important source of revenue for various dynasties throughout history.

During the Yuan Dynasty, Songjiang Prefecture was known as the “Land of Fish and Rice.”

During the Ming Dynasty, Songjiang was highly valued. According to the statistics from the twenty-fourth year of the Hongwu reign (1391) in the Ming Dynasty, the cultivated land in Songjiang Prefecture covered an area of 47,605 hectares, with an annual tax revenue of 1.4 million shi, Although this data reflects the heavy tax burden, it also indicates the abundant agricultural production in Songjiang.

In addition to the continuous cultivation of cotton, mulberry, and rice, the development of reclaimed land, and its rich resources, the region enjoys thriving commerce. To its west lies the nearby city of Suzhou, and to the southwest is Hangzhou. It is also within a distance of merely eight hundred li from the capital city of Nanjing.

Such a prosperous and important region, and yet the Emperor granted it to the King of Liao, Zhu Zhi!

朱植 felt a sense of surrealism and pinched himself to confirm that it wasn’t a dream. He quickly knelt down and expressed his gratitude, saying, “Thank you for your heavenly grace, Your Majesty!”

Many of the other princes looked on with envy at the delighted Zhu Zhi.

However, the King of Yan, Zhu Di, the King of Ning, Zhu Quan, and others, felt extreme fear.

If Zhu Yunwen were to follow in the footsteps of Emperor Taizu of the Song Dynasty, “relinquished military power over a cup of wine”, and stage a similar play of “changing fiefdoms” during the family banquet, should they agree or not?

If they agreed, they wouldn’t even have to return to their fief!

They could simply hand over their military powers and relocate to the southern regions!

If they were to refuse, the Emperor would likely wonder, “What do you mean? You don’t want to be close to me? You don’t want to enjoy wealth and prosperity and instead want to resort to violence?”

Zhu Geng, the King of Min, saw how Zhu Zhi had benefited and couldn’t help but recall his own days of hardship, eating sand in Gansu and enduring the harsh conditions of the wild lands in Yunnan. He was only twenty years old and had already suffered so much. Now that he had the opportunity to change it all, how could he not seize it?

He managed to find a piece of ginger from somewhere and discreetly rubbed it on his eyes, causing tears to flow uncontrollably. He cried out, “Your Majesty, I also want to change my fiefdom…”

However, Zhu Yunwen didn’t allow it, stating that Yunnan couldn’t do without the King of Min.

Zhu Geng couldn’t stop crying, as he really didn’t want to stay in Yunnan anymore. He was willing to endure the humiliation for the sake of his future happiness.

During the Ming Dynasty, Yunnan was far from the picturesque tourist destination it is in modern times, where people flock with bundles of money.

In those days, Yunnan was not only backward but also difficult to govern. The native people were not easily controlled. Today they captured a few elephants to rebel, and tomorrow they make a few spears and rob some food, Killing people was quite common.

Moreover, even in the 21st century, there are still many impoverished areas in Yunnan, let alone during the early Ming Dynasty over six hundred years ago!

Zhu Yunwen had enough and waved his hand, saying, “Alright, alright, I agree.”

Zhu Geng immediately stopped crying and thanked him, wearing a smile with tears on his face. He couldn’t help it, he had used too much ginger.

Zhu Yunwen looked at the others. Without waiting for a response from Zhu Di, Zhu Quan, Zhu Gui, Zhu Yang, and others, Zhu Yunwen spoke first, saying, “Uncles, let’s not think about changing fiefdoms. The Ming Empire still needs uncles to guard it so that I can sleep peacefully.”

“Your Majesty…” Zhu Quan gritted his teeth and shouted, “I don’t want to be far away from the capital. Please grant me your favor.”

“Uncle Ning, I just said not to think about changing fiefdoms,” Zhu Yunwen frowned and said seriously, “I need you to guard the Ming Empire. This is a family banquet. By agreeing to the requests of the King of Liao and the King of Min, I am already uneasy. If we continue like this, how will the empire’s borders fare?”

Zhu Qian could only retract his words, and Zhu Di and others also felt relieved.

As for Zhu Shangbing, the King of Qin, he was just an eight-year-old child and didn’t care much about such matters.

As for Zhu Jixi, the King of Jin, although he was in his twenties, he was still a second-generation prince.

Their father had passed away early, and the two of them had little prestige in the military. They had already held hands and entered the palace a few days ago, seeking Empress Dowager’s help to allow them to stay in the capital.

Zhu Yunwen, seeing that Empress Dowager had spoken, naturally agreed, but it was not announced publicly.

As a result, three of the nine Great Border Kings in the north were gone: Zhu Zhi, the King of Liao; Zhu Shangbing, the King of Qin; and Zhu Jixi, the King of Jin. There were still six remaining Great Border kings!

These remaining kings were the most troublesome ones!

As for Zhu Geng, the King of Min in Yunnan, he was not considered a threat. Changing his fiefdom was just going with the flow.

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