March 8th, Big Footed Empress Ma

  The Empress with Big Feet, who is she?

  In the 13th year of Zhizheng (1353 AD), Zhu Yuanzhang, who was then 25 years old, received a letter from his childhood friend Tong He, inviting him to join the peasant uprising army. At that time, Zhu Yuanzhang had reached a dead end and after much deliberation, he ran to Guo Zixing's army to become a small soldier.

  Because Zhu Chongba was brave in battle, clever and resourceful, he led by example on the battlefield, and all spoils of war were handed over to him. He received rewards but always shared them with everyone, earning the admiration of all. As a result, Guo Zixing regarded him as his trusted confidant.

  Guo Zixing felt that Zhu Chongba would be of great help to his own career, so in order to win him over, he gave his adopted daughter to marry him. From then on, the army changed its name to call him "Zhu Gongzi". With a new identity, Zhu Chongba's humble name could no longer be used, and so Zhu Chongba gave himself a formal new name - Zhu Yuanzhang!

  The woman who made Zhu Chongba become Zhu Yuanzhang was called Empress Xiaoci Gao by historical records, and was known as the Big Footed Empress Ma among the people. However, Zhu Yuanzhang always referred to her by her maiden name: Ma Xiu Ying.

  Ma Xiu Ying was born in a chaotic world, with courage and wisdom. In the face of adversity, she stood firmly as Zhu Yuanzhang's solid backing. Once, when Zhu Yuanzhang was suspected by Guo Zixing and imprisoned, Ma Xiu Ying hid freshly baked large buns in her bosom and delivered them to the prison for Zhu Yuanzhang to eat. The hot buns were hidden against her skin, causing burns each time she sent them, but she didn't flinch, continuing to send buns again and again, burning herself repeatedly.

  There was another time when Zhu Yuanzhang fought against Chen Youliang, and ended up defeated, being chased by Chen. Zhu was injured and couldn't run, could only wait for death, but Ma Xiuying relied on her own unbound big feet to carry Zhu on her back and escape amidst the chaos of war.

  Zhu Yuanzhang was finally able to obtain the world, and Ma Shiying's contributions cannot be ignored. Later, Zhu Yuanzhang pacified the world and became emperor, and Ma Shiying naturally became empress. She was the woman Zhu Yuanzhang loved and respected most in his life, and he often consulted her opinions and even changed his decisions under her influence.

  For example, when Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to kill Zhu Wen Zheng, Ma Xiu Ying said: "He is your nephew, how can you bear to kill him?"

  So Zhu Yuanzhang listened to her words and changed Zhu Wen Zheng's punishment to imprisonment.

  For example, when Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to kill Song Lian, Ma Xiangyang said: "He is the prince's teacher, how can he be wrongly killed? The people all know to respect their teachers, our imperial family cannot disrespect them?"

  Then Zhu Yuanzhang listened to her words and pardoned Song Lian's death penalty.

  In his previous life, Zhu Yuanzhang was like a blood-stained treasured sword, emitting a murderous aura, majestic and powerful. Ma Xiu Ying, on the other hand, was like a scabbard that could contain his sharp edges.

  Ma Xiu Ying died at the age of 51, before Zhu Yuanzhang. After her death, Zhu Yuanzhang lost the scabbard that could restrain this precious sword, and from then on, his murderous nature ran wild, until he died, he was engaged in ruthless slaughter.

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  Hundreds of years have passed, and Zhu Yuanzhang and Ma Xiu'e from their past lives have all turned into dust.

  However, at this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang, who had gone through rebirth, stood in the small woods outside Qingliang Temple, facing the face of Miss San of the Ma family that had passed through hundreds of years and still made him feel extremely familiar. He almost thought he had returned to the 13th year of Zhizheng, when he was just a Jiufu Zhang under Guo Zixing, and standing opposite him was Guo Zixing's adopted daughter, Ma Xiangyun...

  Everything seems to have returned, back to those incredibly youthful years!

  "Hey, Zhu Ba, you're so rude! How can you keep staring at the young lady?" Zi Xingcai's voice broke into Zhu Yuanzhang's pleasant memories, pulling his thoughts back to reality.

  Zhu Yuanzhang's spirit suddenly woke up, and he was shocked to find that he had become Zhu Ba, while the woman in front of him, although looking exactly like Ma Xiuying, would not be Ma Xiuying but the third miss of the Ma family.

  He hastily lowered his head, no longer staring straight at Third Miss's face. As he lowered his head, his gaze swept from under Third Miss's feet, and he suddenly let out a soft exclamation. It turned out that Third Miss of the Ma family didn't have bound feet, but instead had a pair of large feet.

  By the end of the Ming Dynasty, foot binding had become a very common custom, especially among young ladies from wealthy families. It was rare to find one in a hundred who did not bind their feet. The "three-inch golden lotus" was one of the assets women used to show off their beauty and also a necessary quality for marrying into a good family.

  Miss Sanma of the Ma family surprisingly did not have bound feet? This is really too astonishing.

  Zhu Yuanzhang had an unstoppable thought that was sprouting wildly in his mind: if he could be reborn, then his beloved Empress Ma could also be reborn... This woman, who knows, might just be my Ma Xiangyang! Otherwise, why would they look exactly alike? Their feet are both big too! Is this the arrangement of the heavens for me?

  "Hey, Zhu Ba, you're really too rude! I told you not to look at Miss's face, but you're actually lowering your head and staring at Miss's feet instead. Is there anyone as shameless as you?" Zi Xingcai shouted angrily.

  "Xiu Ying!" Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly called out, wanting to make a probe to see if the woman in front of him was really his empress Ma Xiu Ying. If she truly was, no matter how well she concealed it, her eyes would reveal a hint of abnormality upon hearing this name.

  However, Zhu Yuanzhang was immediately disappointed. A look of confusion flashed across Miss Ma's face, and she obviously had no reaction to this name. She said softly: "Xiuying? What does it mean?"

  "Isn't the young lady's name Xiu Ying?" Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly asked rudely.

  "Ah! You...!" Third Miss took a step back, her face flushing red as she said: "My maiden name isn't Xiū Yīng, and I have no reason to tell you my maiden name."

  Zhu Yuanzhang let out a long sigh in his heart, this woman was not Ma Xiu Ying, although she looked very similar to her and also had big feet, but she absolutely could not be the reincarnation of Ma Xiu Ying.

  "Hey, Zhu Ba, what are you doing? You're not usually so rude. " Zi Xincui stepped in front of San Shaojie and blocked her view with her skirt: "The young lady is talking to you, and you don't even respond, which is already very rude... and now you're rambling on and speaking nonsense... Is it because you see that the young lady is about to get married, so you no longer consider her your master?"

  Zhu Yuanzhang furrowed his brow, lowered his head and said: "I dare not! Just now I was distracted and made a mistake, very sorry. Miss... what did you just say?"

  Seeing Zhu Yuanchang return to normal, Miss Ma's blushing face also returned to its usual pale complexion. She put on a slightly melancholic expression and said in a low voice: "Earlier I told the maids not to come find you, you must be angry with me, so you didn't help me think of a way to refuse the marriage... Alas! I hope you won't be angry with me anymore, now that I'm about to get married... soon I'll be leaving the Ma household. Whatever grievances you had against me before, please forget them. I hope that after I leave, you can carefully consider and choose one of the maids who likes you to marry."

  "Does Third Miss really not want to get married?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked suddenly.

  "Really don't want to... Alas..." Miss Ma San sighed and said: "Living a good life at home, suddenly marrying into a strange family, who can bear it?"

  As she said this, her eyes suddenly lit up and she exclaimed: "What do you mean by asking me like that? Are you planning to help me think of a way to refuse the marriage?"

  "No!" Zhu Yuanzhang lowered his voice and shook his head, "I'm just a small official in the imperial court, how can I interfere with Miss's marriage? Moreover, our wedding procession has already traveled halfway, we'll arrive at Cheng City within today, now it's too late to do anything."

  "I knew it..." Miss Ma San sighed grievously: "No one will help me... us women... alas... Zi Xin Cai, let's go back to the carriage."

  A master and a servant joined hands, walking slowly out of the small forest, with dew drops on her body shining brightly in the morning light.

  Zhu Yuanzhang quietly watched her figure disappear at the temple gate, a wave of indescribable emotions in his heart that he couldn't shake off.

  It was just at that moment that he had already thought of a way to help Third Miss refuse the marriage.

  He only needs to go to the place where Zheng Yanfu is hiding, untie the ropes on his body, and let him go to kill Zhang Douyao. The Zhang family in Cheng City will be finished, and this marriage will naturally come to an end.

  But what good would it do him? What benefit could he gain from it?

  No, doing so would bring him no benefits. Firstly, the marriage between Zhang's family in Cheng City and Ma's family in Baisui would be completely ruined, and the Ma family would lose an arm in the officialdom, which would hinder his future prospects to some extent. Secondly, he would also lose the merit of exposing Zheng Yanfu, and could not get the appreciation of the government. Finally, even if he let go of Zheng Yanfu, the latter might not be grateful to him, and might even become his enemy.

  Helping Third Miss refuse marriage is utterly disadvantageous and without any benefit, Zhu Yuanzhang absolutely does not want to do it.

  But why... did his heart waver?

  He slowly backed out of the small forest, walked to the gate of Qingliang Temple, and stood in a small courtyard in front of the Manjusri Hall. The small courtyard was very quiet, with several stone tables and stools inside. The sky had a slight white haze, with soft light sprinkled down, quietly covering the peaceful courtyard. The spring breeze blew gently, making the courtyard crisp and cold, just right for thinking about things.

  Zhu Yuanzhang stood with his hands behind his back, looking up at the sky... and for a long time, he couldn't calm down in his heart.

  What am I doing? What am I thinking about? What's good to hesitate about this matter? Walking into the woods, carrying Zheng Yanfu, sending him to the government office, it's just such a simple thing, and I can once again gain the opportunity to improve my status... And success is the process of grasping opportunities, utilizing opportunities, and stepping on opportunities to move up countless times. I don't need to hesitate at all.

  That's right, for someone like Zhu Yuanzhang who puts interests above all else, there is no need to hesitate at all...

  But... Zhu Yuanzhang's decision will affect the will of a woman! If she were an ordinary woman, Zhu Yuanzhang wouldn't care whether she lived or died, but she is not ordinary. Although she is not Ma Xiuying, she looks exactly like her... The woman Zhu Yuanzhang loves and owes the most to, even if their souls are different, he doesn't want to see a face that looks just like Ma Xiuying's crying and in pain...

  Across two lifetimes spanning over 200 years... There is only one person in the world who has the qualification to change Zhu Yuanzhang's mind without any benefit, and this person's name is Ma Xiu Ying.

  Zhu Yuanzhang is a sword, Ma Xiuying is the scabbard of the sword...

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