In fact, Zhu Yunying was quite adept at doing such things, and he learned from others' examples.

During Zhu Yuanzhang's reign, the entire court held him in the highest esteem. While this was essentially Zhu Yuanzhang's deliberate support, it also reflected his well-developed public image.

Even though many people understood that Zhu Yuanzhang was decisive and ruthless at heart, compared to the Hongwu Emperor, the civil and military officials still felt he was much better and naturally hoped that Zhu Yuanzhang would successfully ascend the throne.

Zhu Yunying sighed and said, "To be honest, we are helpless. Although the Ming Dynasty has been established for more than 30 years, many rules and regulations have been restored. However, the Mongol Yuan Dynasty trampled on our culture for a century, and the etiquette and laws have indeed fallen into disrepair. In recent years, our Emperor has abolished the customs of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, but there are still many people in the north who have the customs of the Hu people."

Xu Miaoqing also became worried and said, "Your Majesty, is the North still the same?"

Zhu Yunying said irritably, "That's right. Ever since Shi Jingtang ceded the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun and became a puppet emperor, the Yan-Yun region has been outside Han Chinese control for six hundred years. Wearing hair loose and robes fastened on the left is quite common there. If you ask me, the students of the Imperial Academy have overestimated the Song Dynasty!"

Zhu Yunying grew increasingly angry as he thought about it, and said, "We shouldn't have compiled history for the Southern Song! Even though the Jurchens were gone, they immediately had the audacity to submit to the Mongols, which was utterly shameless! And the Northern Song, when was it ever truly unified? Was the Yan-Yun region ever recovered? Not to mention the Khitans, when the Western Xia declared themselves emperors, how could they possibly deal with them?"

Zhu Yunying harbored such resentment mainly because of the tradition of compiling history for the previous dynasty.

The histories of Song, Liao, and Jin were all revised by Toqto'a during the Yuan Dynasty, and these are naturally considered official histories. The History of Song was compiled at the same time as the histories of Liao and Jin, and no one dared to say anything about it during the Yuan Dynasty, but in the Ming Dynasty, some people actually dared to speak out.

This means that the Liao and Jin dynasties were not worthy of being considered dynasties and therefore not deserving of official historical records, which also means they should not have the same status as the Song dynasty.

Originally, there were plans to include the History of Yuan, thus expanding the official history to the "Twenty-One Histories." However, many scholars objected, arguing that the Jurchen and Khitan were unworthy of official history and that their legitimacy could not be acknowledged.

If Zhu Yuanzhang hadn't ordered the compilation of the "History of Yuan" in his early years, acknowledging the legitimacy of the Yuan Dynasty, many people might still believe that the Yuan Dynasty wasn't legitimate.

Xu Miaoqing had naturally heard about these things, so she advised, "Your Majesty, those scholars are ultimately thinking about the orthodoxy of China."

"Legitimate?" Zhu Yunying snorted coldly, "Legitimate rule is something that is established through deeds, not something that can be declared in a few words! Everyone knows what happened in the previous dynasty. Did they really think they could just use euphemisms to make it happen?"

It must be said that standards are sometimes incredibly flexible and can be adapted to different situations.

Many scholars say that the emperors of the Zhu family were the type who were flexible in their standards, and some even feel aggrieved that the standards set by the crown prince of the Zhu family were meant to harm the scholars.

However, in many cases, for the sake of the so-called dignity of scholars, or the face of Confucianism, the moral standards of those scholars can change. In addition, because they hold the power to write books and wield the pen, they are adept at using euphemisms or concealing the truth from those in power.

Xu Miaoqing found it amusing and said to Zhu Yunying, "Your Majesty, it's not all like that. I think there are still some scholars in the court who are quite talented."

Zhu Yunying was a little puzzled and asked, "Oh? Then tell me, which scholars are so talented that even you heard about them?"

“It’s Yang Rong, the Hanlin Compiler who passed the imperial examination in the last year,” Xu Miaoqing explained. “I heard Ruyi mention it a few days ago. Yang Rong was the top scholar in the Fujian provincial examination, ranked third in the metropolitan examination, and ranked second in the second class of the palace examination. Ruyi loves poetry and literature, and Yang Rong’s poems and literature have an aura of wealth and good fortune.”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yunying immediately chuckled and said, "I have some impression of this person. Some time ago, my Yin'er even went to the Hanlin Academy. It was also my idea. Poetry and literature are minor arts, and they are of little use in governing the country and ensuring peace."

Xu Miaoqing felt that others might not have the right to say that, but her husband certainly did.

The imperial family of the Ming Dynasty were the first to know that Zhu Yunying was precocious, and all the civil and military officials knew that the current emperor was actually a poet. Even now, there are still stories circulating among the people of the current emperor’s masterpieces written under a pseudonym during the Lantern Festival.

Even so, Zhu Yunying never deliberately promoted his poetic talent, and often even denied it. The reason, of course, was that he didn't value poetic talent much, and he also worried that if the emperor had a certain preference, those below would follow suit.

If everyone is busy writing poems and lyrics, then who will study the classics and strategies for governing the country and ensuring its stability?

Therefore, only the heroic Zhu wrote the poem, and even then, he didn't personally pen it. It was definitely not Emperor Yingshi Zhu Yunying who wrote the poem; he disliked those ornate articles and flowery memorials.

Honestly, I've been using Yeguo Reading to read and follow my favorite books lately. It has easy source switching, multiple reading voice options, and is compatible with both Android and Apple devices. (yeguoyuedu)

Zhu Wenkun woke up and immediately grinned foolishly upon seeing Zhu Yunying. He seemed quite happy; the chubby boy could now recognize quite a few people.

Now that he was awake, Zhu Wenkun immediately crawled over on all fours. The chubby little guy didn't seem to have a neck either; after struggling to sit up, he still had his back to his father. Looking at him from behind, his back was indeed broad and muscular, with a thick, fleshy back.

“This boy is easier to raise than his elder brother.” Zhu Yunying said, stroking Zhu Wenkun’s face. “Yin’er was a bit too restless and mischievous when he was little. Wenkun is much better; he cries less and is usually quiet.”

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