Chapter 2: Disaster Author's Note ??txt ?? Traditional Chinese

  In the first year of Zhizheng (1344 AD), two pieces of news arrived. First, the Yellow River burst its banks, and tens of thousands of people in Shandong and Henan provinces became refugees. Even if they didn't treat ordinary people as human beings, they still had to guard against them rebelling, so repairing the Yellow River dikes became an essential task.

  But unexpectedly, in the government of Yuán, there were two different opinions, one believed that it must be repaired, and the other believed that it could not be repaired. In retrospect, this seems to be an unthinkable thing, the Yellow River floods and does not repair it, do you want to let the Yellow River change its course and drown so many people? There are too many unthinkable things in Chinese history, and this is no exception.

  Objectively speaking, in this matter, for the sake of maintaining the Yuan dynasty's rule, those who were mainly repaired were not necessarily loyal ministers, and those who opposed the repair were not necessarily treacherous ministers. The subtlety lies elsewhere, which will only be revealed seven years later.

  The one who strongly advocated for the compilation was Toghon Temür's famous prime minister, Toqto'a, who can be said to be the last of the Yuan dynasty's notable ministers. He implemented many reform policies and was known for his integrity and competence (the Song Shi was compiled under his supervision). However, what he did not expect was that his strong advocacy had already laid a large time bomb for the Yuan dynasty, pulling the fuse tight, waiting only for the weak spark.

  Another was the severe plague and drought along the Huai River, which was relatively simple for the Yuan government. Anyway, those who died of starvation or illness would no longer be a problem, and of course, superficial efforts still had to be made. The emperor (Emperor Shun of Yuan) had to issue an edict to provide disaster relief, and high-ranking officials in the Ministry of Rites had to contact grain and silver. Of course, it was also understandable for them to take some for themselves. Disaster relief supplies were allocated to various routes (local administrative units during the Yuan Dynasty), and local officials left some behind, then the provinces and counties. Layer by layer, only husks remained when they reached the hands of ordinary people. Then, local officials at all levels submitted memorials to the emperor expressing their gratitude, saying thanks for the imperial grace as usual, and comparing the emperor with ancient sage emperors Yao, Shun, Yu, and Tang. The emperor saw the reports, deeply feeling that he had done a great good deed, so he gave himself credit in his heart.

  Everyone is delighted, everyone is delighted, everyone is very satisfied.

  But ordinary people are dissatisfied, many people are not satisfied.

  Zhu Zhongba was definitely one of those extremely dissatisfied people.

  After the disaster came, on April 6th, Zhu Chongba's father starved to death. On the 9th, his elder brother starved to death. On the 12th, his elder brother's eldest son starved to death. On the 22nd, his mother starved to death.

  If this is a diary, it should be one of the most miserable diaries in the world.

  Zhu Chongba's wish was not excessive, he just wanted a home, his own children, to give his hardworking life, never bullied others, honest parents a peaceful old age, at least have enough food to eat.

  His home was not big, but the relationship between family members was harmonious and interdependent. Although his parents were poor, they would still bring back surprises for Zhu Chongba every day after working in the fields. Sometimes it was a small bamboo dragonfly, sometimes it was pork head meat that the landlord's family didn't eat. This was Zhu Chongba's home, but now everything is gone.

  Zhu Di's sister had already married out and his third brother had gone to live with his wife's family. Except for Zhu Di's second brother, there were no other members of the household left.

  At seventeen, Zhu Di watched helplessly as his loved ones died one by one. There is no greater sorrow in this world than this!

  His only way to vent was to cry bitterly, but after crying, he still had to face a major problem - burying his parents. However, there were no coffins, no mourning clothes, and no burial ground. He could only go find the landlord Liu De and ask him to find a place to bury his father, considering that his father had been a tenant of Liu's for his whole life.

  Liu De bluntly rejected him, with a simple reason: your parents are dead, what does it have to do with me? You work for me and I've given you food to eat.

  Zhu Chongba had no choice but to cover his relatives' bodies with mats and carry the door plank around, hoping to find a place to bury his parents. However, although the world was vast and everywhere was land, there wasn't a single piece that belonged to them.

  Fortunately, some kind-hearted people saw that they were indeed pitiful and finally gave them a place to bury their parents. "The soul wandered around searching for parents but none could be found, the will fell and the spirit was disheartened", this is the emotional recollection of Zhu Yuanzhang who later had enough food to eat.

  Zhu Zhongba didn't understand why his parents, who had tilled the land their whole lives, couldn't even rest in peace after death. The landlord never farmed, yet he was always well-fed and worry-free. Why? But Zhu couldn't think about this question now either, because he also needed to eat, he wanted to survive.

  In desperation, Zhu Di repeatedly prayed to heaven, from the Taoist Taishang Laojun to the Buddhist Tathagata Buddha, as long as he knew the name, the only content of his prayer was to live with his parents and have food to eat.

  But the result was very disappointing, and his young heart began to turn cold. He knew that no one could save him except himself.

  A flame of revenge began to burn in his heart.

  Such pain made him from fragile to strong.

  In order to have food to eat, he decided to become a monk.

  The Monk's Career

  Zhu Chongba chose a nearby temple, Huangjue Temple, where he did similar work to a long-term worker. He suddenly found that the monks there, except for having no hair, had an attitude towards him that was not much better than Liu De's. These monks had their own land and could get married (during the Yuan Dynasty), and if they had more money, they could even open a pawnshop.

  But they also need someone to do chores for them, and the monks there don't chant scriptures or worship Buddha, not even wiping the golden body of the Buddha. These tasks naturally fell on Zhu Hongwu, who had just entered the temple.

  Zhu Chongba endured all this, but apart from doing these menial tasks, he also had to serve as a cleaner, warehouse keeper and lamp oiler. Even so, he was often scolded. When the monks were drinking and eating meat, he still had to wipe clean the floor trampled by the pilgrims. Every lonely night, he could only sit alone in the woodshed, gazing at the sky outside the window, thinking of his parents who had been with him for over a decade.

  He is already very contented, he can eat his fill, isn't that enough?

  However, fate seemed to want to temper his will. Only more than 50 days after he entered the temple, due to the severe famine, all the monks had to go out to beg for alms. The so-called begging for alms is actually begging for food. Our familiar Comrade Tang Monk's usual phrase was: Wukong, go and beg for some vegetarian food. In plain language, it means: Wukong, go and beg for some food. I have investigated the issue of begging for alms before and found that even Zhu Chongba was bullied when he went to beg for alms. Since there were many monks, they often divided up the areas where they would go to beg, assigning leaders' relatives to richer areas and sending Zhu Chongba to poorer areas.

  It's your own fault if you starve to death, who made you Zhu Di.

  Zhu Chongba was assigned a location in Huai West and Henan. This is also the main famine area, who can give it to him?

  But from here on out, the gods of fate smiled upon him.

  In his wandering life, Zhu Chongba could only walk and had no ride to take, he was a real donkey on the go. He walked while begging for food, passing through cities and villages, going from door to door, sleeping in the mountains and under the stars. Every time he knocked on a door, it was a test for him, because what he often faced were cold eyes, sneers, and ridicule. For Zhu Chongba, knocking on that door might mean humiliation, but not knocking would mean starvation.

  Zhu Chongba had no parents, no home, all he had was a little self-respect, but the life of begging for food made him lose his last dignity. To beg for food, one cannot have dignity.

  Dignity of life and pressure of survival, which one is more important?

  Yes, Zhu Chongba, only when you lose everything can you understand your own strength and greatness.

  Zhu Chongba was different from other beggars, and it was precisely because of this difference that he did not remain a beggar (note this sentence).

  During his travels, he carefully studied the geography, mountains and customs of Huai Xi, broadening his horizons and gaining a deeper understanding. He also met many heroes (who were actually fellow beggars). At this time, he developed his own religious beliefs - Mingjiao, believing that when darkness envelops the earth, the great Maitreya Buddha will surely descend. In fact, given his life experiences, it's hard to say whether he really believed in Maitreya or not; we have reason to believe that the true Maitreya in his heart was himself.

  But Zhu Chongba's most important gain was: he had transformed from a helpless child who could only watch his parents die, a menial laborer who could only hide in the woodpile and cry softly after being bullied, into a strong warrior who could face all difficulties. A warrior armed to the heart.

  Long-term hardship can best temper a person's will. Many people, when faced with difficulties, can only blame heaven and earth, muddle along, while others, although also forced to bow their heads in the face of difficulty, have hearts that never surrender, they keep striving, believing they will ultimately triumph.

  Zhu Di was undoubtedly the latter.

  If it is said that before he went out to beg for food, he was still a confused young man, but when he returned to Huangjue Temple after three years of drifting life, he had become a confident person who could conquer everything.

  This is a great transformation, and many people may spend their whole lives without being able to complete it. The key to the transformation lies in the heart.

  For many of us, the heart is the weakest place, it's especially vulnerable to hurt. Betrayal in love, loss in family, and loss in friendship are all heavy blows. But for Zhu Chongba, what else can't be endured? He has lost everything, what's more unbearable than watching his parents die before his eyes, powerless to do anything, fighting with dogs for food, being spat upon and despised by people? We have reason to believe that on a certain painful night of contemplation, Zhu Chongba transformed this weakest place into the source of the greatest strength.

  Yes, even if you have a face that everyone envies, erudite knowledge, and wealth that can't be spent, it doesn't prove your strength, because the strength of the heart is the true strength.

  When Zhu Chongba was about to leave Huai Xi, where he had begged for food, and return to the Huang Jue Temple, he carefully recalled the place where he had stayed for three years, thinking about what he had gained and lost here, and then packed his bags and set off on the road home.

  Perhaps I will return, Zhu Di thought.