"Your Majesty, it's time to drink medicine."
Li Qing brought the decoction and brought it to Lao Zhu.
Lao Zhu's body and bones were getting worse day by day, but his spirit was still good, giving people a sense of survival, but Li Qing knew that Lao Zhu's time was running out.
The reason why he is in good spirits is because Lao Zhu is holding on.
Zhu Yuanzhang lazily moved his body, took the medicine bowl and drank it in one gulp. Then, he tightened the blanket covering his body and complained, "It's spring, but it's still so cold."
"Yes, I also feel that it is a bit colder this year." Li Qing followed him and said.
In fact, it's not cold at all. The temperature during the day is no less than 20 degrees. How can it be cold? It's just that Lao Zhu's body is too weak.
This year has already been the thirty-first year of Hongwu, and Lao Zhu has passed seventy. This age can be considered a long life, especially for an emperor, living such a long life is really not a short time.
Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at the sunny sky outside and slowly sat up, "Li Qing, come with us to have a chat in the sun."
Li Qing nodded and helped him to a sunny place. Lao Zhu was already a little unsteady, and most of the weight of his body was on Li Qing.
If it weren't for Li Qing's support, he wouldn't even be able to stand.
Xiao Guizi was very discerning and immediately moved the recliner.
Zhu Yuanzhang was half lying on the chair, bathing in the sunshine, his body gradually felt warm, and a faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
"Time flies so fast. Thinking about the glorious years in the past, it seems like yesterday. In the blink of an eye, we are all over seventy." Zhu Yuanzhang's face was full of nostalgia and reluctance. "It's rare for people to be seventy, and they want to find a brother to talk to. It has become a luxury.”
Li Qing slandered: Those good brothers of your age were either killed by you or tortured to death by you. It is really hard to find them now.
"During this period of time, we feel more and more lack of energy. Sometimes I feel very tired after reading two memorials." Zhu Yuanzhang said bitterly, "Li Qing, is our destiny coming soon?"
"Long live the Emperor." Li Qing said with relief, "The Emperor is just too tired these years. He just needs to rest for a while."
Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head and smiled bitterly. How could he not know how his own body was doing?
He narrowed his eyes and looked directly at the scorching sun, "Everyone in the world will inevitably die. The only thing that remains unchanged is probably the sun, moon and stars."
Then, his eyes brightened, "The sun and the moon are bright; our Ming Dynasty will be with the sun and the moon for eternity."
"It will definitely work." Li Qing nodded affirmatively, as if coaxing a child, "And it will get better and better."
"Well." Zhu Yuanzhang was very pleased, "Speaking of it, we have never enjoyed a few days of happiness in our lives;
Born in poverty, he almost starved to death when he was young, and was bullied by Liu De. Later, there was a famine, and his parents and family...sigh;
Without strength or background, as a monk you will be bullied and ordered around, and you won’t even get a chance to get money from alms;
After joining the army, he not only narrowly escaped death on the battlefield, but also nearly lost his life many times in the rebel army;
If you perform too well, you will be ignored by the superiors; if you perform too poorly, you will be kicked out of the team. It’s difficult..."
Zhu Yuanzhang kept talking, and Li Qing kept listening.
Comparatively speaking, if he had traveled back in time to Lao Zhu's era, he would have probably starved to death in a famine without a special physique.
Never could he be like Lao Zhu, go down in history and become the founder of a dynasty.
Thinking carefully about Lao Zhu's life experience, how can it be summarized with the word "difficult".
It's just... so damn hard!
First, he must be able to survive famine, and then he must be able to tolerate anger. After joining the army, he must survive the fighting, and he must know how to hide his clumsiness and not be jealous of his superiors;
After becoming the leader, you have to show sympathy to your subordinates and make them willing to work for you;
At the same time, we must guard against arrogance and impetuosity, and we must not be complacent. After we develop and grow, we will have to face powerful forces like Chen Youliang and Zhang Shicheng who are far superior to ourselves;
Finally, there is the Yuan court!
The difficulty involved in this, let alone the experience, makes my scalp numb just thinking about it.
How did Lao Zhu get here? ?
Zhu Yuanzhang spoke proudly: "We are originally a poor people on the west side of the Huaihe River. What does the world have to do with us?"
His eyes sparkled with unparalleled pride. This was a waterless boast, but it was also true.
Li Qing said respectfully: "There is no such emperor as the Emperor before or since!"
"That's right!" Lao Zhu said cheerfully, "We think so too."
…
Lao Zhu is really old, and his life is coming to an end. He is still full of energy when recalling the past, but in the end he is not strong enough and falls asleep while talking.
Xiao Guizi brought a blanket to cover him. Li Qing stayed for a while, and when he saw that he didn't wake up, he left the palace.
The next day, Zhu Yuanzhang, who had always been diligent in his duties, did not go to court, and Zhu Yunwen presided over the court.
The ministers were shocked in their hearts, but they were secretly happy.
Finally, it’s time to get through it!
On the third day, the fourth day, the fifth day... for more than ten days in a row, the emperor's grandson presided over the morning court, which seemed to be foreshadowing something.
The joy in the hearts of the ministers became more and more intense, and at the same time, the news that the dragon was ill spread like wildfire.
All the officials looked worried but felt happy in their hearts.
On this day, Marquis Yongqing, who always stayed out of court affairs, appeared at Fengtian Hall early and stood very far forward, only one position behind Li Jinglong.
The civil servant looked angry, and before the emperor's grandson arrived, he began to point and make insinuations.
Judging from Li Qing's resume and title, Tuoduo is a noble person, so naturally they have to make irresponsible remarks.
Li Qing, on the other hand, acted as if nothing had happened. Not only was he not embarrassed, he was even talking and laughing with Li Jinglong.
Encountering such a shameless man, these civil servants had no talent and knowledge, but there was nothing they could do.
A quarter of an hour later, the noisy court became silent as Zhu Yunwen walked into the main hall.
All the ministers looked at their noses and hearts, standing straight and upright, with their hearts agitated.
Because not only Zhu Yunwen came, but Zhu Yuanzhang also came, and he was in good spirits and looked alive.
After a while, Zhu Yuanzhang sat on the dragon chair, with Zhu Yunwen at his side.
"Long live my emperor! Long live the emperor!"
The ministers all moved in unison and bowed in salute.
"Everyone is safe."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
After all the ministers stood up, Zhu Yuanzhang said calmly: "I won't go to court for more than ten days. I heard that I am about to die. Who said that?"
His cold eyes glanced at the ministers, his gaze was so sharp that no one dared to look at him.
Wherever Lao Zhu looked, that person shivered uncontrollably, and finally fell to his knees.
After walking around, there were almost no people standing. The few remaining people saw that all the ministers were kneeling, so they also followed the crowd and bowed down.
Only then did Lao Zhu show a hint of satisfaction, "Get even!"
The ministers stood up tremblingly, not daring to raise their heads, for fear of meeting that cold gaze.
"Li Qing."
"I'm here."
"You have always been talented and learned. From now on, I will appoint you as a member of the staff. Start from the bottom first. Don't slack off."
"I obey the decree."
Gai Shizhong is only a seventh-rank official, but he has a lot of power. Especially the Ministry of Personnel, Gai Shizhong, has the power to supervise the promotion of all officials.
After all, the emperor is also a human being. With so many officials in the Ming Dynasty, it is impossible for the emperor to know every official's performance. Most of them are drafted by the Ministry of Personnel for promotion lists, and the emperor adopts them as appropriate.
But before this list is handed over, the official must go through it.
Although the officials are of humble character, they still have great authority!
At the same time, he is still a spokesman for the matter, and he has the power to report the matter.
Moreover, Li Qing has the title of Marquis and the official title of Crown Prince and Grand Master, so there is no issue of inferiority.
Of course, by doing this, Lao Zhu also meant to pave the way for his grandson.
Once the emperor and his courtiers, it is better to leave the rewards to the grandson for his kindness.
The Minister of Civil Affairs suddenly felt dizzy, but he didn't dare to fart.
After Zhu Yuanzhang appointed Li Qing, he focused his energy on government affairs. He looked very motivated, and the original joyful mood of the officials was gone.
…
In the following days, Zhu Yuanzhang did not go to court again, not because he did not want to, but because he could not because his health was too poor.
Gradually, the ministers felt relieved, and just when they were filled with joy again, Zhu Yuanzhang went to court again.
If this happens three or four times, the officials will become numb, their mentality will gradually stabilize, and they will do their jobs honestly.
Time flies so fast, and it’s already June (leap May) in a blink of an eye.
Lao Zhu's body collapsed completely. He could no longer get out of bed, could not eat and drink, and his physical condition was extremely poor.
He knew that his time was approaching, so he called his grandson and began to make final instructions.
In the Qianqing Palace, there were only two grandsons.
One is half lying down and the other is kneeling.
The face of the lying man was full of relief, and the face of the kneeling man was full of tears.
"Good boy, don't cry anymore." Zhu Yuanzhang said with a kind smile on his face, "Grandpa is very content to live to such a long age."
"Grandpa Huang will definitely get better." Zhu Yunwen sobbed, "My grandson will ask someone to call Li Qinglai now. He will definitely cure Grandpa Huang."
"Grandpa's death is approaching, and there is no way to save him. There is nothing we can do for him." Zhu Yuanzhang smiled bitterly, paused, and his cloudy eyes became sharp again, "Yunwen, what you say next will be remembered to death."
Zhu Yunwen trembled, kowtowed respectfully, and said in a tearful voice: "Grandpa, please tell me."
"Huh~" Zhu Yuanzhang exhaled a breath and said majestically, "After we die, the funeral must be quick and simple, and don't make it big. At the same time, restrain the vassal king and don't..."
He looked sad, "Don't let them come."
Lao Zhu was in pain in his heart. As a father, he didn't want his son to send him on his last journey. However, Zhu Yunwen was not Zhu Biao after all.
Master Shaoguo is suspicious that with so many vassal kings coming to Beijing at the same time, there are too many unstable factors.
"Yes, my grandson has remembered it." Zhu Yunwen kowtowed, tears streaming down his face.
Zhu Yuanzhang took a breath, and then said: "Qitai, the left minister of the Ministry of War, was the judge of the provincial examination in the 17th year of Hongwu. This person is an upright and honest official. You can make him a confidant after you ascend the throne. This person can be trusted...ahem..."
Zhu Yunwen rushed forward, caressed his chest, and nodded to assure him, "My grandson will remember it."
After a while, Zhu Yuanzhang stopped coughing and added: "It cannot be reused."
