Those Stories of Ming: Volume III

A twist of fate changed the fortune of the sixth emperor of Ming. Zhu Qi Zhen, with the help of some officials loyal to him, got back the throne of his brother, who was dying anyway. But one of the first things he did after becoming the emperor again was to kill the famous general who saved the empire from being destroyed by the Mongols when he was imprisoned by them. Later, he found out he had been hoodwinked but it was already too late. In a few years, the tumultous life of the Ming emperor ended. On his deathbed, he decreed to abolish the tradition of sacrificing his concubines at his death. Perhaps for this act, he was given the posthumous title of the Wise Father of Ming, although most of the things he did was not wise.

His feckless son, having led a life that was always full of uncertainty and danger, fell in love with his nurse, who was more a mother to him than a wife. She provided the sense of security that he always craved during his childhood and youth.

Luckily enough, a chance encounter with a palace maid gave the weak emperor a child that was wise, smart, and hard working. After his death, the new emperor brought the Empire of Ming from continous decline to a momentary rise. But unfortunately, the hard working emperor perhaps worked too hard. He died young and the throne was passed to the only son of this wise emperor, who was too much a doting father. The result was that the new emperor was more of a playboy than an emperor. The adventure seeking playboy did many things that would have even awed many modern playboys. He played so hard that even a war was just one of the fun things to do. But still, not all the things that meant fun to him belonged to him. When one of the guardian princes rebelled, he was not there to suppress it. So he was very disappointed. But nonetheless, he decided to have an expedition anyway. Then after completing his expedition that saw no action, he died mysteriously on his way back to the capital.