With the development of human rights, many countries have abolished the death penalty system, and although China has not abolished it, its application in practice is also very small. However, in ancient times, under the notice of imperial power, there were many crimes for which the death penalty was applied, and the method of execution was also very cruel, and everyone was most familiar with it than beheading.
During the Ming Dynasty, there was a general who was sentenced to death for disrespecting the emperor, and he was Sun Rui. In the founding history of the Ming Dynasty, Sun Rui once made great achievements, and Zhu Yuanzhang also gave him an official and a knighthood, but this Sun Rui acted arrogantly and repeatedly confronted Zhu Yuanzhang. In order to maintain the emperor's face, Zhu Yuanzhang preferred that Sun Rui open the knife.
On the day of Sun Rui's execution, many people came to send him, after all, he had made great contributions to the Ming Dynasty, and although he committed a capital crime, he could not cover up his merits after all. At the execution ground, Sun Rui looked at the people who had come to deliver him, and with a feeling, he made a poem: The drums are three times urgent, and the western mountain is slanted; there is no guest house in Huangquan, whose house to stay in tonight.
The meaning of the poem is very obvious, Sun Rui is accusing Zhu Yuanzhang of ungratefulness and unloading and killing donkeys. Since ancient times, the founding heroes of the country have often suffered two fates after the founding of the country, either dying for various reasons or retiring in time. However, very few people can really retreat, and most of them have no good ending.
As soon as Sun Rui's poem came out, the faces of the beheading officers at the scene had already changed, and some even booed one after another, but no one stopped Sun Rui, and no one imposed additional punishment on Sun Rui, so they chose to stand by and watch. However, somehow, this matter reached Zhu Yuanzhang's ears.
In Zhu Yuanzhang's view, Sun Rui committed a capital crime, refused to repent before his death, and still satirized the emperor, which was a very bad act, causing very serious consequences. On the other hand, several officials on the side watched as Sun Rui was indifferent and did not make a proper performance as an official in safeguarding the dignity of the emperor.
Even Zhu Yuanzhang doubted whether these supervisors had an affair with Sun Rui or were involved. Therefore, with the idea of preferring to kill by mistake rather than let go, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered that all the prison officials at that time be sentenced to death and join the Nine Tribes. Among the emperors, Zhu Yuanzhang was notoriously fierce and notoriously suspicious.
Cao Cao once said that he would rather bear the people of the world than let the people of the world bear me. Here in Zhu Yuanzhang, this sentence is shown to be part-time. Of course, this may also be related to Zhu Yuanzhang's own birth, because he came from a poor folk family, worked as a monk, and also worked as a beggar, which is probably this great change in identity, which makes his heart full of sensitivity and suspicion.