Those Things in the Ming Dynasty Part 1 The Great Emperor Hongwu _ Chapter 9 The decisive battle is inevitable
After Zhu Yuanzhang defeated Zhang Shicheng, he focused his main energy on dealing with Xu Shouhui, but he understood that his real opponent was not the superficial Xu Shouhui, but the huge shadow behind him-Chen Youliang.
During this period, Zhu Yuanzhang made two decisions that made him the ultimate winner of the war. The first decision was to build high walls, accumulate grain widely, and slowly become king. It was this decision that allowed him to avoid the world.
People should pay attention to the fact that while other leaders of the peasant uprising had inflated imperial ideas and used a tiger skin as a banner, and dared to feed thousands of people with only a few meters in the pot, Zhu Yuanzhang made full use of his time and continuously developed his own strength.
Another decision was to choose between Chen Youliang and Zhang Shicheng. At that time, everyone generally believed that Zhang Shicheng was relatively weak, and they hoped to deal with him first and use the land they occupied in Jiangsu and Zhejiang to expand their own power and thus fight Chen Youliang. It should be said that this decision regardless of
It is correct from any angle, but Zhu Yuanzhang showed his genius strategic vision at this time.
In actual decision-making, it is very difficult not to be affected by the opinions of others, especially the majority. When many people agree, many people will follow the crowd and even change their original opinions. Zhu Yuanzhang used his wisdom to tell
People, the truth is often on the side of the few.
Zhu Yuanzhang said to his counselors that your views are reasonable, but you have not seen the key to the problem: Zhang Shicheng is characterized by smallness, and Chen Youliang is characterized by arrogance; smallness has no vision, and arrogance tends to cause trouble. If
If I attack Chen Youliang, Zhang Shicheng will definitely not save him; if I attack Zhang Shicheng, Chen Youliang will definitely mobilize the entire country's troops to rescue him. I will have to fight on two fronts, and it will be difficult to say then.
Wonderful! So wonderful!
With such knowledge, if this person cannot conquer the world, who can?
Prelude to the war
No matter how they avoid it, the day of decisive battle will eventually come. This is the consensus of Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang.
In the nineteenth year of Zhizheng (1359), Chen Youliang had completely controlled Tianwan Kingdom. He had more soldiers than Zhu Yuanzhang, and his training level was higher than Zhu Yuanzhang's soldiers. What's more terrible is that his strength was exactly Zhu Yuanzhang's weakness-water
military.
Chen Youliang occupied Hubei and Jiangxi. In other words, he occupied the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, while Zhu Yuanzhang occupied Yingtian in the lower reaches. He had to fight with his head up. Since they happened to be on the same waterway, water battles became an inevitable method of war.
This is the reason why Zhu Yuanzhang repeatedly avoided decisive battles.
Although Zhu Yuanzhang did not understand physics, he also knew that using fishing boats to fight warships on the water was tantamount to suicide.
Just at this time, something happened that caused the decisive battle to break out in advance. This was something Zhu Yuanzhang never expected.
In November of the 19th year, Chang Yuchun led his troops to capture Chizhou. Chen Youliang was greatly surprised and prepared to arrange for troops to recapture it. However, when the incident was revealed, Zhu Yuanzhang was prepared and ordered Xu Da and Chang Yuchun to fight in an ambush. Chang Yuchun
Chun and Xu Da set up an ambush at the foot of Jiuhua Mountain, defeated Chen Youliang's army, and captured three thousand people.
At this time, Chang Yuchun's old habit broke out. He told Xu Da that I wanted to kill these three thousand people. Xu Da firmly disagreed and said that he would report it to Zhu Yuanzhang, but he did not expect that Chang Yuchun would be so courageous.
He dared to bury all three thousand people alive in one night without asking for permission!
Chang Yuchun had a purpose in killing and surrendering. He left a few people alive and asked them to go back and bring a message to Chen Youliang.
I am Chang Yuchun, and I defeated you!
Big trouble.
Chen Youliang’s anger
Chen Youliang was really angry. Since he joined the army, no one dared to bully him anymore. He always shrank in front of him. Who kind of person, Chang Yuchun, dared to provoke him!
He finally took action. This time it was no longer a small fight, but a fight to Yingtian and drove Zhu Yuanzhang back to farming!
Of course, this is what Zhu Yuanzhang did not want to see.
This time Chang Yuchun really attracted the wolf.
In the 20th year of Zhizheng, Chen Youliang led his most powerful fleet in China to Yingtian. The names of his warships were very majestic. I will talk about them in detail here: Hunjianglong, Blocking the River, Knocking Down the Mountain,
Jiang Hai'ao and others just needed to be named Jingpotian.
The name of the ship is majestic, but what about warships? It should be said that warships are also very powerful. Most of these warships are three stories high and equipped with all kinds of artillery. When using such a ship to fight Zhu Yuanzhang's fishing boats, you don't need to attack. You only need to ram them.
That’s it.
Chen Youliang notified Zhang Shicheng before the attack and asked him to attack Zhu Yuanzhang from both sides. Then he ordered his invincible fleet to set off for Yingtian with lightning speed.
Chen Youliang has a great characteristic in commanding operations. This person never seems to study the battle plan carefully, but acts haphazardly and hits wherever he wants. This characteristic has always made him criticized by military experts, but objectively speaking
, this is exactly his combat characteristics and the essence of his command art.
Even he himself didn't know where he was going to attack. How could the enemy know? Who could withstand this kind of person who doesn't follow common sense? Zhu Yuanzhang suffered his loss.
When Zhu Yuanzhang learned that Chen Youliang had led an army to attack, Chen Youliang's fleet had already captured the important military location to quarry stones. The speed made Zhu Yuanzhang speechless. And the most important barrier in Yingtian, Taiping, now stood alone in front of Chen Youliang's 100,000 troops.
.Because Chen's Han army did not expect to attack so quickly, there were only 3,000 soldiers in the city, with Hua Yun as commander.
Chen Youliang fully demonstrated the terrifying strength of his fleet in the battle to attack Taiping. He did not let the soldiers attack the city. He just asked the soldiers to drive the ships to the wall of Taiping City near the river, and use short ladders to calmly climb up the city.
Head, annihilated three thousand defenders in one fell swoop.
When Chen Youliang's Han army climbed down from the city wall, many defenders had not yet reacted and stared blankly at the Han army. They could not figure out whether these people had flown over with such a high city wall and the natural dangers of the Yangtze River.
?!
Taiping was breached, and Yingtian was like a naked child, exposed to Chen Youliang's sharp sword. Chen Youliang had killed Xu Shouhui and became the emperor. Now his target is only Zhu Yuanzhang, and he only has 10,000 naval troops. He seems to be vulnerable.
Zhu Yuanzhang was attacked.
The world is already in my hands!
It seemed that God was going to abandon Zhu Yuanzhang. No matter from any angle, he had no hope of winning. Every time he went to Xuanwu Lake and saw those broken fishing boats, he always had the urge to burn the garbage with fire.
But things always turn around. Shortly before Chen Youliang's army went south, God sent a great gift to Zhu Yuanzhang. This great gift was a person.
Astronomy is important
In April of the 20th year of Zhizheng, Zhu Yuanzhang's subordinate Hu Dahai captured Chuzhou. Hu Dahai was a general who cherished talents. He heard that there were several hermits nearby who were very talented, so he sent someone to invite them.
The so-called hermit refers to the kind of person who is still washing his face when others have finished lunch. He may not be really capable, but no matter what, it is always good to drag one more person into the water.
The names of these hermits are Ye Chen, Zhang Yi, and Liu Ji.
The first two people came immediately after receiving the invitation, but the last Liu Ji refused to come no matter how much he was invited.
Hu Dahai felt that this person was too arrogant and didn't want to invite him anymore, but someone told him that it didn't matter if Ye Chen and Zhang Yi were invited or not, Liu Ji must be invited because he knew astronomy.
People today have limited interest in astronomy, but at that time, it was an amazing skill that not everyone could learn. It was a kind of imperial science. The monarchs on the earth felt that the vast land could no longer satisfy their needs.
Desire and vanity have linked their destiny to the stars in the sky. When they were born, the stars descended to earth (usually it was windy and rainy), when they ascended the throne, the purple stars shone brightly, when someone took the throne, the alien stars took over the palace, and when they died, the stars took over the palace.
That's when a meteor hits the ground.
All in all, it is all related to the stars. Those who understand this knowledge are not just talents, they are simply geniuses.
So Hu Dahai reported it to Zhu Yuanzhang. Zhu Yuanzhang was very interested and sent a man named Sun Yan to summon Liu Ji. But Liu Ji refused to give him face. When pressed, he gave Sun Yan a sword in return. This was a
Seeing that the mission could not be completed, Sun Yan became anxious, took off his mask of warmth, and said a meaningful word to Liu Ji: This sword of yours should be dedicated to the emperor. The emperor uses the sword to kill those people.
Disobedient people (the sword should be offered to the emperor, and those who disobey orders should be killed).
Liu Ji understood that he could not afford to suffer at this moment, so he obediently went to work under Zhu Yuanzhang. But at that time, Zhu Yuanzhang did not understand his true ability and regarded him as a fortune teller or something like that.
Gold will always shine.
decision
When news of the fall of Taiping reached Yingtian, Zhu Yuanzhang summoned his counselors to discuss countermeasures. Different opinions emerged at the meeting. Most (note this word) advocated escape, while others advocated retreating to Zijin Mountain. However, these two groups
They are unanimous on one issue, which is to give up Yingtian.
These counselors who usually boasted about their sagacity revealed their true colors at this time. In addition to scolding Chang Yuchun, all they did was brag about the strength of the Han army, discuss how Taiping was lost, and how inferior their own army was.
All in all, all in all, you must not fight, otherwise you will perish.
Zhu Yuanzhang looked at these people with disappointment. He believed that most of them had packed their packages, prepared escape vehicles for their wives and children, and were ready to defect to the new boss at any time, and then stepped on him when he fell to the ground.
Adding insult to injury and taking advantage of others' misfortunes have always been the specialty of these people.
At this time, he saw Liu Ji, whose face was gloomy and uncertain. He seemed to have something to say, so he asked: "Liu Ji, do you have something to say? Say it."
Liu Ji's colleagues stopped talking and looked at Liu Ji. Since this man became a counselor under Zhu Yuanzhang, he has been taciturn and has not come up with any ideas. Everyone does not think highly of him, just because this man has a good temper and never comes up with any ideas.
If you get angry, your popularity is not bad.
Liu Ji stood up. The long time of waiting and listening had worn away all his patience. He revealed his true face. He was no longer a good gentleman, but Liu Bowen, who knew astronomy and geography from above, strategized and won the battle thousands of miles away!
He looked down at these so-called talents who usually thought highly of themselves with contempt, and said loudly in an almost hysterical tone:
"Those who say they want to surrender and escape should be killed immediately! Are you so cowardly? Although the enemy is powerful now, he is arrogant. As long as we lure the enemy deep and use ambush attacks, it is easy to defeat Chen Youliang! Just think about it!
Do you think someone who is running away has the nerve to call himself a subject?!"
He reprimanded those cowardly people, analyzed the situation in detail, and told everyone that Chen Youliang was not invincible. The people around him were stunned by him and looked at him blankly.
"If we lose Yingtian, where else can we go? Even though I am weak, I can still fight for my life! If you want to leave, you can leave, but I will never leave!"
"I'm not going anywhere, and I vow to live and die with Yingtian!"
His voice was like a violent storm, sweeping every corner of the hall.
Zhu Yuanzhang was very emotional, seeing so many so-called Conglong ministers who only planned for themselves, but this man who had just come to work under him could use his own courage to say such words as "living with the city". He was not without fear.
He knew very well that if Chen Youliang captured Yingtian, his many years of hard work would be ruined. Like Xu Shouhui, he would become a stepping stone to Chen Youliang's throne. It would be impossible for him to be a monk or a farmer, and the only thing waiting for him would be death.
Of course he wanted to annihilate Chen Youliang in one battle and make this annoying person disappear from the world, but Chen Youliang was so powerful that it seemed impossible to defeat him. The huge warship was like a terrifying monster that would kill him and his weak water.
The army was engulfed.
Then hide, but where can you hide? Chuzhou? Haozhou? Being chased around like a dog, and finally killed like a dog?
Liu Ji's words gave him courage. A weak scholar still has such determination. What should I be afraid of? I have nothing, and I have gone through many hardships and obstacles to get to where I am today. Can't I just give it a try?
He stood up, glanced at everyone with majestic eyes, and uttered four words decisively: The decisive battle here!
After determining the strategic direction, he summoned his counselors to discuss how to deal with the enemy. Usually at this time, the dog-headed strategists would put forward a lot of suggestions, both good and bad. It depends on whether the person who made the decision knows the goods. This is a huge profit.
At work, if the advice is right and used, you will become a great hero. If it is not used, you can prove your foresight afterwards. If the idea is a bad idea, it doesn't matter. A wife is hard to find, but the boss is still
It's easy to find, just change it.
Some counselors said that Taiping should be captured first, and then use Taiping as a barrier to fight Chen Youliang.
Another counselor said that we should take advantage of Chen Youliang's unsteady footing to attack him immediately and engage him in a decisive battle. If we attack the enemy halfway, we can gain full success.
From an objective perspective, both of these ideas seem to be good, and the people who proposed the strategies are also very knowledgeable, but do they really work?
Zhu Yuanzhang once again demonstrated his military genius, which would continue to help him in his future military career.
He analyzed that it would not work to attack Taiping first, because Taiping City is strong and there is no guarantee that it can be captured. Even if it is captured, it cannot be held in a short period of time. Chen Youliang will conquer Taiping in one go and then attack Yingtian. At that time, the main force will
The troops are extremely tired and cannot defend Yingtian at all. It is not advisable to take the initiative to attack the decisive battle, because abandoning the fortified city and not defending it, and attacking rashly, once the enemy fails to engage in a decisive battle or is defeated, the entire battle situation will become passive.
Finally, he expressed his opinion and pointed to Longwan outside Yingtian City:
"Right here."
Plans and Conspiracies
Zhu Yuanzhang's plan was this. Considering that his navy was inferior to Chen Youliang, he decided to lure Chen Youliang ashore, lead him into a predetermined location, and set up an ambush for him. He analyzed the attack direction of Chen Youliang's navy and believed that Chen Youliang's navy would definitely
It will pass through the Yangtze River, enter the Qinhuai River, and reach directly under the Nanjing City Wall. On this waterway, the only obstacle to warships is a wooden bridge on the Sancha River from the Yangtze River to the West City Wall of Nanjing. The name of this bridge is Jiangdong Bridge.
If Chen Youliang takes this route, Zhu Yuanzhang's army will directly face the Han army's terrifying fleet, so Chen Youliang cannot be allowed to take this route.
The cemetery Zhu Yuanzhang selected for Chen Youliang's Han army was Longwan. There was a large open area in Longwan. The Han army could only go ashore here, but his own army could use the local lime mountains as a shield and could attack the Han army from behind at any time. Here is
The best place for an ambush.
Zhu Yuanzhang summoned his senior generals, who fought with him from Haozhou to Yingtian. Each of them had experienced hundreds of battles, and Zhu Yuanzhang fully trusted them. In front of these generals, Zhu Yuanzhang swept away his previous hesitation and hesitation, and led
He announced his plan with a confident expression.
First, he instructed Shao Rong, who was stationed directly north of the city, to abandon his position because he was guarding the key place - Longwan.
Secondly, he ordered Yang Jing, Zhao Desheng, Chang Yuchun, and Xu Da to lead their troops to ambush in Longwan and Nancheng, and attack once the Han army entered the ambush circle.
Finally, he himself led the reserve team to station at Lion Rock in the northwest as the final decisive force.
"I am the commander-in-chief of this attack. When I wave the red flag, it means that the enemy has arrived. When I wave the yellow flag, you must attack with all your strength. The decisive battle is only now!"
However, Xu Da raised a question: If Chen Youliang's army did not capture Longwan and attacked Yingtian directly from the Qinhuai River, this plan would not be implemented.
Yes, that makes sense. Chen Youliang led a naval force and would definitely use the water route. Why should he give up his advantage to fight Zhu Yuanzhang on land?
A sly smile appeared on Zhu Yuanzhang's face. He pointed at one of the generals and said, "It depends on you."
This man's name is Kang Maocai.
This is a conspiracy in a strategic sense. Kang Maocai was originally a general under Chen Youliang, and later defected to Zhu Yuanzhang, but he still had secret contact with Chen Youliang under Zhu Yuanzhang's instructions. In today's terms, he was a double agent, who was buried under Zhu Yuanzhang.
A chess piece beside Chen Youliang.
Kang Maocai had already sent a letter to Chen Youliang, saying that he would switch sides and suggested that Chen Youliang adopt a waterway attack. He would meet Chen Youliang at Jiangdong Bridge and move the only bridge blocking the navy's advance, allowing Chen Youliang's navy to pass through Qinhuai.
The river reached directly under the Nanjing city wall. Chen Youliang was overjoyed and said that he would reward Kang Maocai after the victory. After receiving Chen Youliang's reply, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered Li Shanchang to rebuild a stone bridge overnight.
This stone bridge will give Chen Youliang the heaviest mental blow.
Zhu Yuanzhang announced his entire battle plan and looked at his generals with firm eyes: "Since we set out from Haozhou, we have experienced countless hardships and defeated countless enemies before we obtained the land we have today. Although Chen Youliang is stronger than us,
, but as long as we dare to fight, victory will definitely belong to us!"
"I believe I'm right."
Zhu Yuanzhang is an amazing person.
On the way to the door of victory, you will pick up many keys. Some of these keys are antique and some are shiny, but only one can open that door.
When making decisions, many people will put forward their own opinions in your ears, handing you the keys in their hands and letting you choose, but the most cruel part of this game is:
You only have one chance to try.
If you fail, you lose everything.
In the implementation of a campaign, there is only one most suitable opportunity, and those who can seize this opportunity are geniuses. - Napoleon
In that complicated environment and countless suggestions, Zhu Yuanzhang persisted in his own views and firmly grasped the key that opened the door to victory.
His success is not a fluke, he deserves it.
He is waiting for Chen Youliang's arrival.
Chen Youliang was immersed in great joy at this time. He had become the emperor. Now all the civil and military officials were bowing their heads in front of them, listening to his instructions. His fleet had already arrived at the city, and it was about to be defeated. Zhu Yuanzhang would
disappear from the world forever, and the people on this land will be under his management and become his subjects.
I am not a descendant of fishermen, never have been!
Good news comes one after another. Kang Maocai, who is placed in Zhu Yuanzhang's army, has become my insider. He will open the road to Yingtian for me tomorrow. My fleet will move forward to conquer this rich place, and then there is Zhang Shicheng, who
He is just a weak guy and will never be my opponent. I will be the final winner!
The Trap of Longwan
On June 23 of the 20th year of Zhizheng, which was the seventh day after Xu Shouhui was killed, Chen Youliang led his fleet to attack along the Qinhuai River and arrived at Jiangdong Bridge. Chen Youliang could not hide his excitement and landed ashore in person.
The contact code was whispered softly in the night:
Lao Kang!
No one answered.
Second tone:
Lao Kang!
Still no one answered.
Chen Youliang took a closer look at Jiangdong Bridge under the bright moonlight. He was surprised to find that this was not the wooden bridge Kang Maocai said, but a stone bridge!
Chen Youliang felt his blood coagulated. He shouted out a famous saying that countless people had shouted before and would be shouted by countless people in the future:
Fell into a trap!
According to his estimation, at this time there should be "torches ablaze, killing sounds everywhere, and ambush troops coming out." However, after he panicked for a while, he found that nothing happened. What was going on? Chen Youliang, who had always been shrewd, was now also a Zhang Er King Kong.
I couldn't figure it out. Could it be that something happened to Kang Maocai and he couldn't come?
In any case, it's very dangerous here and you can't stay here for long.
At this time, he received news that his brother Chen Youren had led 10,000 troops to land at Longwan, north of Xinhekou, and defeated the army stationed there, and was waiting for the arrival of the army.
Then go to Longwan to land.
Chen Youliang ordered the fleet to speed up and arrived at Longwan that afternoon. After that, he organized the soldiers to go ashore. Everything went smoothly, but what he didn't know was that a pair of eyes were watching him from the Lion Mountain not far away.
Those are Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes.
His prediction was correct. Chen Youliang gave up his attempt to attack Jiangdong Bridge. He was a suspicious person and must choose a safe attack method.
After confirming that all soldiers had entered the ambush circle, Zhu Yuanzhang waved the red flag.
At this time, the five armies hidden behind Lime Mountain, Yingtian South City, and Dasheng Pass appeared from different places, but they did not wave flags and shout, but quietly looked at the Han army because they did not receive the order to attack.
.
The soldiers of the Han army finally found themselves falling into a big sack. The enemy was right in front of them, and they could even see the reflection on their armor. However, these enemies remained motionless and looked at them with strange eyes, that kind of
His eyes were like a butcher looking at the pigs and sheep in his pen during the Chinese New Year in his hometown.
There was an eerie silence on the battlefield.
A tranquility more terrifying than death.
This is a gruesome scene.
They did not wait long in this terrible silence. Zhu Yuanzhang waved the yellow flag on the Lion Rock.
The five armies, led by Xu Da, Chang Yuchun and Feng Sheng, launched successive attacks on the Han army. The cavalry came and went, and they were invincible! The already panicked Han army could not resist, and they rushed to their ships one after another. However, this time
It was the time when the tide was low, and the ships ran aground. Most of the Han troops had no choice but to jump into the Yangtze River to escape. Chen Youliang squeezed into a small boat that could be driven to escape, and fled all the way to Jiujiang. His dream of victory was shattered.
In this battle, the Han army left 20,000 corpses and 7,000 prisoners on the battlefield. However, Zhu Yuanzhang's army suffered almost no losses and captured a hundred large ships and hundreds of small boats. Zhu Yuanzhang used these ships to prepare for the upcoming arrival.
Preparations are made for the final decisive battle.
Chen Youliang was defeated and fled back to Jiangxi. However, Zhang Shicheng, as Zhu Yuanzhang said, was "little" and watched helplessly as Chen Youliang was beaten up. He only sent a few thousand soldiers and horses to carry out an armed parade in the area bordering Jiangsu and Zhejiang with Zhu Yuanzhang.
After a while, he went back home. This person is indeed, as Chen Youliang said, only anxious when a knife is placed on his neck.
uninvited guest
One day after the victory in the Battle of Longwan, the Zen Temple on Purple Mountain welcomed a pilgrim. Although Yingtian was under the jurisdiction of Zhu Yuanzhang at that time, the public security situation was still not good, so the monks in the temple would close up at night.
Temple gate. At dusk that day, this pilgrim walked into the gate of the temple, saying that he could not go on his way at night and wanted to stay overnight. The young monk who looked after the gate saw that this man was good-looking (very ugly) and very vicious, so he did not dare to stop him.
Let him enter the inner temple.
The abbot of the Zen temple heard about this and hurriedly came out to take a look. When he first saw this person, he couldn't help being surprised, but after all, he was a person used to seeing big scenes. After taking a closer look, he suddenly felt that this person had something special about him.
He had a heroic spirit and carried a sword with him. He secretly speculated that this person was most likely a robber who went out to rob. He must not offend such a person. If he was angered and burned down the Zen temple, he, his wife and children would be destroyed.
What should I do, so I decided to keep him for one night.
Zhu Yuanzhang, the guardian of Yingtian, had already begun to visit privately incognito, which became his habit for decades to come. On this day, he went to the foot of Purple Mountain and saw the Zen Temple. He recalled his time as a monk, so he visited the temple.
.
That night, the abbot couldn't sleep because he was thinking about it. He was afraid that the person who was highly suspected of being a robber would come out to cause trouble at night, but he couldn't say it directly. He thought for a long time and finally came up with a good idea. He decided to invite this person
People go to the main hall to give Zen lectures.
The so-called Zen lectures are similar to the casual talks in the Wei and Jin Dynasties. After a group of people have had a full meal, they sit together and brag. Anyway, there is no tax on bragging.
Zhu Yuanzhang was woken up in the middle of the night and found out that he was actually asked to give a Zen lecture. He couldn't laugh or cry. He was such a shrewd person, so he naturally understood what the abbot meant. He lived in someone else's place, so out of politeness, he followed the abbot to the main hall.
At this time, there were only two of them in the empty hall. After sitting down separately, the abbot began to look at Zhu Yuanzhang.
As an excellent leader of the peasant army, his clothes must be simple, his face must be ferocious, and he looks relatively rustic, that's for sure.
A robber has reached this level and doesn't even have any better clothes. Even calling him a robber is flattering. At best, he is a country bumpkin.
But since we were talking about Zen, we still wanted to say something, so the abbot spoke:
"Who is the donor?"
Zhu Yuanzhang answered:
"I dare to trouble the Zen master to ask. My ancestral home is Huaiyou."
"What business do you hold?"
"I have no job at the moment, I'm just wandering around."
The abbot decided that his judgment was correct, and he was going to teach this country bumpkin a lesson:
"I look at the face of the benefactor, and it seems that there is murderous intent. The world is in chaos. I hope that the benefactor will choose a good career early, stay safe, and have nothing to do to explore Buddhism and understand the principles of life."
Zhu Yuanzhang remained calm:
“I don’t know what the principle of life is?”
"The principle of life is the word state of mind. I will give the donor two mantras and hope you can figure it out for yourself."
"Please enlighten me."
"Ancestors have a saying: If you forget about your surroundings, your mind will disappear. When your mind is gone, your surroundings will not be invaded. Life is nothing but illusion. Once you reach this state, you can enjoy peace."
Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the contemptuous monk in front of him, was silent for a long time, and then suddenly laughed!
The laughter echoed in the empty hall and lingered for a long time.
The abbot was shocked. Zhu Yuanzhang stood up, walked slowly towards the abbot, suddenly pulled out the sword from his waist and put it on his neck!
The abbot could no longer hide it, panicked, and said in a trembling voice:
"What do you want to do? If you want money, I can give it to you."
Zhu Yuanzhang:
"The Zen master is in such a good state of mind, why would he be afraid! Today's world is in chaos only because the people are in dire straits; the war is in chaos, and we can only watch the fire from the other side! If the world is peaceful, who would want to be a knight? If you and others are full of food all day long, marrying wives and having children, it is just an illusion.
It’s shameful to talk about your state of mind and live an ignoble existence!”
Then, he sheathed his sword and walked towards his meditation room.
The abbot finally discovered that this was an unfathomable person.
So, he shouted loudly to Zhu Yuanzhang's back:
"The poor monk has eyes but cannot recognize Mount Tai. How dare he ask the benefactor's name?!"
The back figure did not stop, but walked further and further away.
The abbot stayed up all night after returning to his room. His intuition told him that this man was a great person, and he decided to ask for details the next day.
The next day, he got up and went to Zhu Yuanzhang's Zen room, but it was already empty. On the wall of the main hall, there were a few lines of large characters written in cinnabar:
Killed all the millions of soldiers in the south of the Yangtze River, and the sword on his waist was still bloody!
The old monk didn't know the hero, so he just kept asking for his name.