Zhu Yuanzhang and Fengyang

Author: Xia Yurun
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-12-01
Features: On the 18th day of the ninth lunar month in the year 1328 (October 21st on the Gregorian calendar), a life that would shake the history of China was born on the land of Fengyang—Zhu Yuanzhang. That year was the Wuchen year, the Year of the Dragon. Zhu Yuanzhang was born under the sign of the dragon. Later, this dragon-born Zhu Yuanzhang indeed lived up to the auspicious sign of his zodiac, becoming the true dragon emperor who ruled over China. After this "dragon" achieved success, later generations raised a question: Did Zhu Yuanzhang's rise to power in Huai'an, his hometown of Fengyang, have a causal relationship with his birthplace? As early as the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty, Wang Wenlu explained the above question in his essay "Dragon's Rise and Benevolence": Liu Bowen saw five-colored clouds rising over West Lake and knew it was the aura of an emperor, which should be in the southeast. Disguised, he used divination and fortune-telling to secretly visit the Jianghu region. First, he went to Wang Mian's home in Kuaiji and strolled with him. In the bamboo forest, he secretly had someone set off firecrackers. Mian, startled by the sound, sighed and said, "He lacks courage." He then went to Jia Ming's home in Haichang, where the newly built hall was exquisite. He spat on it. Jia Ming came out and ordered him to clean it up, sighing, "He lacks breadth of mind." So he went to Linhuai, where he saw that everyone was a hero with straightforward integrity, and even butchers and vendors had extraordinary charisma. When he bought meat and begged for mercy, he gave them a large piece of meat. He calculated that they were all destined to be kings and nobles, sighing, "The true emperor must be here. Otherwise, why are there so many people following the dragon?" In the evening, he met the future emperor and knew he was the true emperor, so he deeply befriended him, promising to help him achieve great plans. Later, he recommended and helped those who rose to prominence, bringing them to prominence through proper means. From this magical account, we can see that the rise of a true dragon emperor in Fengyang was no coincidence. The reason was the so-called "emperor's aura" that Liu Bowen saw at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. What is the "emperor's aura"? "Emperor" is an alias for the emperor, meaning the son of the Heavenly Emperor. It not only indicates that his regime is divinely ordained but also shows that he is of divine lineage, different from ordinary people. Gao Cheng explained the term "emperor" in Volume 1 of "Records of Origins": "The Shuowen Jiezi says, 'In ancient times, sacred people's mothers were impregnated by the heavens and gave birth to sons, so they were called emperors.' The Yuanming Yuanming Bao says, 'An Deng gave birth to a son with a human face and dragon features, becoming the first emperor.' The Records of Emperors says, 'The mother of Shennong, An Deng, belonged to the Youjia tribe, so the title of emperor was first given to the emperors of the Yan dynasty.'" Since the emperor is the son of the Heavenly Emperor, his head can manifest auspicious signs invisible to ordinary people—the "emperor's aura." This aura often appears at the birthplace and during the activities of the emperor. The "Records of the Grand Historian·Biography of Xiang Yu" says, "I sent someone to observe his aura, which was like dragons and tigers, in five colors—this was the aura of the emperor." The "Book of Jin·Astronomical Records" says, "The emperor's aura is red inside and yellow outside, covering all directions. Where it appears, there will be a king. If a prince wants to have a place to travel outside, this aura will also appear there first." From this, we can see that this "aura" is like chasing the wind and catching shadows, like a mirage. It appears in "five colors" or "five hues," and ordinary people generally cannot see it. Only a great master like Liu Bowen can perceive it. After Liu Bowen saw the five-colored clouds—the "emperor's aura"—he disguised himself and secretly searched for the true emperor. He first went to Kuaiji to meet Wang Mian, then to Haichang to meet Jia Ming. Wang Mian was a talented scholar of his time, and Jia Ming was a high official who had mastered the art of longevity. Both were famous scholars of Jiangnan at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. Liu Bowen saw that one was timid and the other narrow-minded, neither of whom could become a leader, so he went to Linhuai. "He saw that everyone was a hero with straightforward integrity, and butchers and vendors had extraordinary charisma. When he bought meat and begged for mercy, he gave them a large piece of meat." He then knew the true emperor must be here. The "emperor's aura" that Liu Bowen saw was actually his observation of the local customs, the demeanor, and the temperament of the people, leading him to conclude that the "emperor's aura" existed. According to modern perspectives, the "emperor's aura" that Liu Ji saw in Linhuai (now Fengyang) was essentially the customs, cultural characteristics, and the heroic, generous, straightforward, and magnanimous temperament of the local people, as reflected in their words and deeds. And this temperament, these customs, and these cultural characteristics were exactly what Liu Ji was looking for—the "emperor's aura." Does Fengyang really have the "emperor's aura"? Are the people of Fengyang truly as Liu Ji described? What were the cultural characteristics of Fengyang at the end of the Yuan Dynasty? How did they form? This book uses the scientific method of historical materialism and approaches it from the perspective of traditional Chinese culture, presenting the history of Fengyang for thousands of years before the birth of the "true dragon emperor"—Zhu Yuanzhang—to the readers. The readers can then identify the cultural characteristics of Fengyang over the millennia and the influence and role of Zhu Yuanzhang as a historical figure.