The Hongwu Reign: Southern and Northern Campaigns and the Four Great Cases of the Early Ming

Zhu Yuanzhang led the warlords in pacifying Jiangnan, overthrowing the Yuan dynasty and founding the Great Ming. On the one hand, he governed diligently and cared for the people, encouraged recovery and growth, organized households into the registration system, promoted the civil service examinations, and cracked down on corruption and organized crime, gradually setting the Ming on the right path and bringing it to life. On the other hand, after losing his son in his later years, he deliberately engineered the Hu and Lan purges, brutally killing meritorious officials so his descendants could hold on to the throne. Drawing on historical sources and written in a witty, humorous style, this book tells the story of the Hongwu era under Zhu Yuanzhang’s rule.

Did Zhu Yuanzhang really set fire to the Hall of Celebrations and kill the founding heroes? Why did Chang Yuchun die suddenly in the army? Were Xu Da and Liu Bowen poisoned by Zhu Yuanzhang? This book seeks to solve these historical mysteries, offering a detailed account of the causes and consequences of the “Four Great Cases of the Early Ming” and Zhu Yuanzhang’s eight northern campaigns, so readers can learn about the Hongwu era and the real Zhu Yuanzhang.