Zhu Yunying was still very grateful to his father, Zhu Yuanzhang, because Zhu Yuanzhang had laid a very solid foundation for the Ming Dynasty, which allowed Zhu Yunying, as his successor, to act decisively. He didn't need to worry about reviving the dynasty or about recuperation and development.

The country has a relatively strong foundation, which is why Zhu Yunying can now act freely and make great strides.

Many people think that Zhu Yuanzhang (the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty) was not good at economics or recuperation, which is simply a joke. Putting aside the fact that everything was in ruins at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, although it was not as difficult as Liu Bang's search for four horses of the same color, the early years of the Ming Dynasty were indeed difficult, and the once prosperous Yangzhou was almost a ghost town.

Such examples are numerous and can only illustrate that the Ming Dynasty was indeed in a difficult situation back then.

But now, Zhu Yunying doesn't believe that simply acquiring a silver mine or bringing back spices, gems, or gold and silver from Southeast Asia has revitalized the country. If you don't believe it, think about history; even after the Jingnan Rebellion, the nation was severely weakened.

Even so, it did not prevent Zhu Di from launching several northern expeditions and Zheng He's voyages to the Western Ocean, not to mention the construction of Tianjin and the relocation of the capital to Beiping.

This was partly due to the hard work and dedication of Zhu Di and his son, but without the solid foundation laid by Zhu Di, it would have been impossible to restore people's livelihoods in such a short time, and it would have been impossible to have such formidable strength.

Zhu Yunying was well aware that the Ming Dynasty was now far more powerful than it had been in history, and that was beyond doubt.

Putting other factors aside, without the Jingnan Campaign, the dynasty wouldn't have suffered such devastation, nor would it have been plagued by internal strife leading to heavy losses. Thanks to Zhu Yunying's existence, the nobility group retained considerable strength, and the Chang lineage wasn't completely wiped out.

As for the continued development of firearms or the continuous progress of Ming Dynasty ships, these can all be considered Zhu Yunying's small contributions. It seems he did quite a lot.

Ru Chang believed that the current emperor was a wise ruler. He had known this for a long time because he had been the emperor's study companion and had watched the emperor grow up.

Even so, he didn't consider himself particularly remarkable. Ru Chang knew better than anyone that the Emperor was precocious. Ru Chang had long since discovered that the Emperor was cunning and calculating, and he was also somewhat aware of the Emperor's ambitions.

Ru Chang was not surprised at all if the emperor became ruthless; he considered it quite normal.

As the saying goes, "A kind heart cannot command an army," and a ruler must be clear about rewards and punishments, so that people know that both thunder and rain are acts of imperial favor.

Marquis Zhang Wen of Huining did indeed have merit, but these lawless nobles were not the only ones who had been punished. At most, it was the Hongwu Emperor who dealt with them, and those nobles suffered even more tragic fates.

Zhang Wen became the target of a warning to others, becoming the first marquis to be stripped of his title and his entire family exiled after Emperor Ying Shi ascended the throne—a nobleman of considerable influence.

Ru Chang felt no sympathy for Zhang Wen's plight, as they were not part of the same group. Furthermore, as the Minister of Personnel, Ru Chang was well aware of Emperor Ying Shi's emphasis on rectifying official corruption; Zhang Wen's offense at this time was simply a matter of being caught in the crossfire.

Ru Chang is feeling increasingly pressured by Emperor Ying Shi, probably because the emperor's imperial authority seems to be growing stronger. In many ways, Emperor Ying Shi is starting to resemble Emperor Hongwu.

This feeling is probably not unique to Ru Chang; many people who have established themselves in the imperial court have likely felt the same way.

Many people are aware that when Zhu Yunying was still the Crown Prince, many felt that if he had ascended the throne, he might have become another Hongwu Emperor. After all, he was raised by the Hongwu Emperor, and his personality and style of doing things were quite similar in many ways.

Some of these people's predictions are now increasingly being confirmed. During the reign of the Crown Prince, there wasn't much concealment, but often the Hongwu Emperor took the blame, since even when the Crown Prince reviewed memorials, they still needed to be reported to Zhu Yuanzhang for approval.

Now that he has become emperor and holds great power, there are fewer people to blame. As a result, many things are known to be the work of Emperor Yingshi, and it seems that nothing has changed since the time of Emperor Hongwu.

"Your Majesty, the Three Judicial Offices have also begun investigating official misconduct," Ru Chang said, trying to remain calm. "Starting with the Ministry of Personnel, they have already uncovered some corrupt officials who abused their power, committed bribery, and perverted justice."

Zhu Yunying was not surprised at all. He played with the imperial seal and said, "This is normal. The Ministry of Personnel is in charge of the selection, evaluation, and honor of officials. It distinguishes between the good and the bad. Not to mention the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of War and the Five Military Commissions also have a lot of civil and military officials trying to get promoted every year. There are many connections involved."

This is a fact. Zhu Yunying was well aware of some things, and the civil and military officials, as well as the common people, were also aware of them. This is why it has been repeatedly prohibited but not stopped.

Ru Chang quickly knelt down, still trying to make her stance clear: "Your subject is guilty."

Zhu Yunying seemed noncommittal, saying, "Since you are guilty, then you will be allowed to atone for your crimes through meritorious service. The Ministry of Personnel is, after all, the head of the Six Ministries, in charge of all officials in the country. If the Ministry of Personnel is corrupt, how can we talk about good governance?"

Looking at Ru Chang kneeling, Zhu Yunying continued, "Let's punish her with three months' salary, and see how she behaves."

Despite Ru Chang being Zhu Yunying's most trusted confidant, Zhu Yunying clearly wouldn't show much leniency when it came to punishing her. This wasn't the first time Zhu Yunying had done this to his trusted confidants; for example, Zhuo Jing, a former confidant, still had no intention of being recalled to court.

Sometimes Zhu Yunying also admitted that he was a bit harsh and ungrateful. Once he lost patience and trust with some people, he obviously wouldn't give them many chances.

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