In the two-thousand-year-long feudal history of Yangyang Huaxia, there are as many as 420 emperors recorded in history, among whom there are indeed many cruel and murderous tyrants and obsessed with sound. But the reason why the Chinese nation has been able to keep moving forward is because there have always been many good emperors who are enlightened, wise, courageous, and tenacious in the great river of history. Zhu Gaozi was such a good emperor.
Zhu Gaozi was the eldest son of Zhu Di and the fourth emperor of the Ming Dynasty. He had a gentle and pure personality, composure and stability, and reigned for only one year but solved the four great problems of the Ming Dynasty. His merits laid a solid foundation for the famous "Rule of Renxuan" that followed, and also made him a good emperor who has been famous in history.
Before Zhu Gaozi was born, his mother, the later Empress Renxiaowen, dreamed of visiting her with a crown and a hand, and soon after Zhu Gaozi was born, so he was regarded as able to make a great achievement and was highly valued by his family.
At the age of seventeen, Zhu Gaozi was made the son of the world. Unlike his father Zhu Di, Zhu Gaozi was polite and dignified by nature, gentle and courteous, especially liked to read poetry and books, and was very accomplished in Confucianism, so Zhu Yuanzhang liked this little grandson very much, and all the teachers also praised Zhu Gaozi.
Zhu Gaozi showed astonishing political talent at a young age. Once, in order to temper Zhu Gaozi, Zhu Yuanzhang sent Zhu Gaozi to the army early in the morning to review the soldiers, but Zhu Gaozi returned after turning around in the barracks, and said that the soldiers were eating breakfast, and the early morning climate was cold, there was really no need to review the army at this time, and the soldiers should be selected to eat breakfast.
Zhu Gaozi's compassion for the military and the people was very touching. In the small tasks assigned to Zhu Gaozi by Zhu Yuanzhang later, he always reacted amazingly, was super efficient, and had outstanding literary ability, which was deeply appreciated by Zhu Yuanzhang.
Later, Zhu Yuanzhang died and passed the throne to the Jianwen Emperor Zhu Yunjiao, and Zhu Di, who was in Yandi, supported his own troops, was dissatisfied, and raised troops to attack. Zhu Gaozi was responsible for staying in the city of Beijing, and with his superior military acumen, he led his men to block general Jianwen's 500,000 troops and successfully defended Beijing. This move cleared the way for Zhu Di to claim the title of emperor, and Zhu Gaozi was also appreciated by Zhu Di.
After Zhu Di ascended the throne, he often led troops on expeditions, while Zhu Gaozi stayed in the court and supervised the country for Zhu Di. He was talented and of good character, and was sought after by many literati in the court, which laid the foundation for him to sit firmly in the position of crown prince.
Politically, he had a fierce vision, a strong sense of responsibility, and an amazing judgment, and he was a very capable leader. All along, Zhu Gaozi always exceeded the standard of the position entrusted to him by Zhu Di, so the courtiers praised him and respected the future emperor very much.
However, although Zhu Gaozi's character was loved and his political ability was very prominent, Zhu Di did not like this son very much, but preferred the second prince Zhu Gaoxi and the third prince Zhu Gaoxuan. These two children are both warriors with both wisdom and courage, and their personalities are very similar to Zhu Di.
Although Zhu Gaozi began to practice martial arts from a young age, he slowly began to gain weight by nature, and finally he was so fat that he was unable to move and needed to be supported to walk. All this disgusted Zhu Di, who was fond of martial arts and killed, and he thought that Zhu Gaozi did not look like his own temperament at all.
However, the feudal etiquette system at that time was very strict, and the imperial throne had always implemented the system of primogeniture succession, unless the eldest son was really unworthy of the throne. And Zhu Gaozi has excellent character and has repeatedly made military achievements, if he easily changes his position, I am afraid that it will cause dissatisfaction in the world, and may even be accused of disrespecting the ancestral rituals.
In addition, Zhu Gaozi was very popular with the people, and many important ministers in the dprk and China vigorously defended him and always gave good advice in front of Zhu Di, so although Zhu Di was not very satisfied with Zhu Gaozi, he only made the second prince and the third prince as candidates for the imperial throne, and did not change the change of crown prince.
Although Zhu Gaozi retained the position of crown prince, his life was not smooth. The two younger brothers always coveted their positions, and from time to time they came to trip themselves up. Zhu Di always disliked Zhu Gaozi, and always targeted him, and also sent his cronies to prison one by one.
However, Zhu Gaozi never forgot his original intention and silently endured. In politics, he also accumulated experience, broke through one difficulty after another, and accumulated strength to break through the darkness. Twenty years later, Zhu Di suddenly fell ill and died suddenly, and Zhu Gaozi finally ushered in the dawn and successfully ascended the throne.
After Zhu Gaozi ascended the throne, he carried out drastic reforms in the ming dynasty's government, solved four major problems, and restored the ming dynasty's government to a clear state. This is also why he reigned for only one year, he was able to go down in history, and his merits even exceeded that of many emperors who had reigned for decades.
First of all, he reorganized the cabinet, appointed many highly respected Hanlin scholars and outstanding officials, and pardoned many ministers who had previously been punished for their disagreement with Zhu Di, so that they could contribute to the imperial court.
He appointed meritocracy, vigorously reduced redundant officials and redundant troops, left only those who really did practical things, corrected the imperial program, and cleaned up the imperial discipline. This move won the hearts of the people, the efficiency of the operation of the imperial court increased rapidly, the phenomenon of collective corruption of the leadership disappeared without a trace, and the phenomenon of the magnates consolidating power was suddenly reduced.
Second, he also repaired his armaments, declared an armistice, and recuperated. He transferred all his well-prepared troops to the border, paying attention to defense so as not to be invaded by outsiders. At the same time, he pursued peace and was reluctant to start a war, hoping that the people could live and work in peace and rest.
He then abolished many cruel criminal laws, pardoned many former ministers during the Jianwen period, and rehabilitated a large number of unjust cases. He vigorously promoted Confucianism, reformed the imperial examination system, and often preached the scriptures and history to his courtiers, spreading the concepts of tolerance and benevolence.
In the end, he actively developed production, reduced the tax of servitude, and made the lives of the people better. He issued several edicts to establish a system of fair trade, active disaster relief, exemption from taxes in natural disaster areas, and the phenomenon of displaced people fleeing in all directions. He also set up a special organization to investigate the phenomenon of taxation in various places so as not to enrich the pockets of local officials.
It can be said that Zhu Gaozi's measures were a direct factor in correcting the chaotic situation in the Ming Dynasty, and he was a well-deserved Ming Emperor and Sage Emperor in the history of the Ming Dynasty. However, it is a pity that his premature death did not allow him to continue to complete his grand ambitions.
Although Zhu Gaozi reigned for a short time, his merits flowed for a hundred years and blessed all the people. It is said that people are inherently dead, some people's deaths are lighter than Hong Mao's, and some people's deaths are heavier than Taishan's, and Zhu Gaozi obviously belongs to the latter.
In his life, whether he was in a high position and admired by thousands of people, or when he was not valued and bullied, he never changed his original intention for a minute or a second. He always took the well-being of the world as his responsibility, which enabled him to go down in history and become a good emperor who was revered by the wise and respected in the mouths of future generations.