Before Zhu Yuanzhang commanded the army to carry out the Northern Expedition, he issued a text in which he called himself "Huai Right Cloth", which not only concealed his "Ming sect" experience, but also diluted the life experience of tenant farmers and monks. However, according to history, it is an indisputable fact that Zhu Yuanzhang was originally a small shami at the Huangjue Temple.
Why did Zhu Yuanzhang have to become a monk? Is there no other path alternative to this path?
In the last years of the Yuan Dynasty, natural disasters followed, drought, locust plague, and then plague. Zhu Yuanzhang's big family, in a series of heavy blows, family members died one after another. In the end, only the second sister-in-law, the second brother, the nephew Zhu Wenzheng and himself were left. In the past, there were seven or eight laborers in a family, and they could survive on the tenant fields. But now, the landlord's family has no surplus grain.
At this time, there were three ways to go in front of Zhu Yuanzhang, to become a monk at Huangjue Temple, to join the Yuan Army, or to join the Red Turban Army. Zhu Yuanzhang was only seventeen or eighteen years old at the time, and the oppression of the Han and Southerners by the Yuan government made him know that there was only one way to die by defecting to the Yuan army; and the Red Turban Army was not prosperous at that time, and he felt that he could not rebel in case.
At the Huangjue Temple, Zhu Yuanzhang had a treasure in material terms. Ancient temple monks, monks with offerings from the family clans, and incense money from believers at least survived. However, due to the continuation of the drought, the grain production has been seriously reduced, and the temple can no longer afford to support a huge number of monks! Only the monks can be allowed to go out and make amends. In secular parlance, it is to eat!
Monks generally go to rich families, because such high-ranking families have surplus grain or spare money, on the other hand, they attach great importance to their reputation and hope to make good friends by helping monks. In several years of wandering life, Zhu Yuanzhang was not only able to be self-sufficient, but also traveled all over the mountains and rivers. In today's parlance: walk thousands of miles, read tens of millions of people.
Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang had to go to become a monk for reasons. That's to live! For a person living at the bottom of society, if he can survive, he will seize all opportunities! At the same time, as an identity and a profession, monks also had many livelihood conveniences in the social environment of common superstition in ancient times.
It is worth saying that Zhu Yuanzhang's period as Shami was not smooth sailing. Because there are temple fields and temple properties in the temple, the elders also need Xiao Shami to serve. When Zhu Yuanzhang repaired a letter to his compatriots in Guo Zixing's army, the letter was seen by other monks and reported to the official palace. In order to avoid arrest, Zhu Yuanzhang had to end his career as a monk and tie a red scarf to his forehead and walk towards Haozhou City.