Chapter 297: Luo Guanzhong, a man of unparalleled wisdom, made the mistake of joining Zhang Shicheng and was unable to realize his ambitions

With this lofty ambition of "I was born at the right time, how can I let it down", Luo Guanzhong embarked on a new journey.

He believed that as long as he worked hard, he would be able to achieve something in this troubled world and realize his ideals and ambitions.

No matter what difficulties and obstacles await Luo Guanzhong ahead.

He will not be afraid and will move forward courageously.

After joining Zhang Shicheng's army, Luo Guanzhong quickly entered a new role.

He transformed himself from a mere scholar into a military strategist.

With his keen insight, Luo Guanzhong can not only deeply analyze people's hearts, but also accurately grasp the overall situation.

Whenever a war was being planned, Zhang Shicheng would always humbly ask Luo Guanzhong for advice, hoping to get valuable strategic guidance from him.

When Zhu Yuanzhang began to emerge, Luo Guanzhong carefully designed a strategy.

This strategy cleverly induced important generals under Zhu Yuanzhang to betray and surrender to the enemy.

He turned to work for Zhang Shicheng, which greatly weakened the strength of the Red Turban Army.

From then on, Zhang Shicheng was amazed at Luo Guanzhong's wisdom and became more dependent on and trusted him.

However, as time went by, Zhang Shicheng's stupidity and ignorance were gradually exposed.

He often ignored Luo Guanzhong's advice and acted recklessly, without considering the possible consequences.

This situation made Luo Guanzhong feel extremely lost and helpless, but out of loyalty to Zhang Shicheng and concern for the future of the country.

He continued to put forward his own views and tried to guide Zhang Shicheng to make more wise decisions through these suggestions.

However, although Luo Guanzhong had tried his best to persuade Zhang Shicheng, the monarch remained stubborn and refused to listen to any advice.

He continued to do his own thing, turning a deaf ear to Luo Guanzhong's good intentions and completely ignoring the advice of this strategist.

Once, Luo Guanzhong earnestly advised Zhang Shicheng to remain calm and act prudently.

However, Zhang Shicheng could not control his inner impulse. He always acted as he pleased and was unable to correct this bad habit.

Luo Guanzhong made sincere suggestions to Zhang Shicheng many times, hoping that he could realize and correct the bad habits that might lead to failure.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard Luo Guanzhong tried, Zhang Shicheng did not change at all.

He still goes on as he pleases and shows no remorse.

Finally, after experiencing countless disappointments, Luo Guanzhong finally saw through Zhang Shicheng's true face.

He understood that it was very difficult to change a person's nature.

Especially for Zhang Shicheng, it was an impossible task.

Luo Guanzhong gradually realized that he could not display his true talents under the rule of such a stubborn monarch who refused to listen to advice.

So after careful consideration, he finally made up his mind to leave Zhang Shicheng and no longer work for him.

Who knew that not long after, Zhu Yuanzhang successfully captured and executed Zhang Shicheng, thus establishing his leadership position in the rebel army.

However, for Luo Guanzhong, the situation became a little embarrassing.

Because he had been loyal to Zhang Shicheng before, it would be almost impossible for him to surrender to Zhu Yuanzhang now.

Moreover, Zhu Yuanzhang's subordinates inevitably doubted Luo Guanzhong's loyalty.

In addition, Zhu Yuanzhang had already gathered a group of loyal confidants around him, leaving not much room for Luo Guanzhong.

However, if it was just for this reason, Zhu Gang might not have abandoned this talented and wise man.

What really made things difficult for him was that Luo Guanzhong made another request in the secret letter.

He hoped that Daming Commercial Bookstore could help his other mentor and friend Shi Naian to publish the stunning work Water Margin, which is a classic masterpiece in the history of literature and has a far-reaching influence.

Since the early Ming Dynasty, "Water Margin" has been favored by literati and scholars and has become the focus of their heated discussions.

However, as time went by, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, the book was suddenly listed as a banned book by the government.

The main reason is that the protagonists in the book are all heroes who kill and burn people.

These heroes are brave enough to challenge the law with force.

He committed murder and arson at will, yet he was able to get away with it and evade punishment from the imperial court.

This behavior runs counter to the mainstream ideology and values ​​of Ming society, so it is not surprising that it was banned.

When talking about the thousands of years of Chinese history, we always fall into such a "vicious circle".

At the beginning of their careers, every emperor held high the banner of "seeking welfare for the people of the world."

But when they actually ascended the throne, they often only did one thing, which was to prevent others from rebelling by any means necessary.

Perhaps the only progress over thousands of years is that the control and oppression on people's thoughts has become increasingly severe.

However, as the most powerful prince in the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Gang knew that he would never be able to break out of this vicious circle.

He only needed to think a little to understand that if he presented "Water Margin" to Zhu Yuanzhang, the consequences would be disastrous.

First of all, Shi Naian, who has been dead for many years, will suffer the pain of having his grave dug up and his corpse whipped.

Secondly, his family and descendants could not escape the fate of being exiled.

In this case, who would dare to write similar books?

It is precisely because of the dilemma on this issue that the Ming Commercial Bookstore's essay competition has been unable to find suitable judges.

Zhu Gang didn't even know whether he should hold the essay competition as originally planned.

After all, if Luo Guanzhong sent his son to submit "Water Margin" as an entry, it would probably turn into a disaster.

Zhu Gang, who traveled through time from later generations, still has a certain historical filter for the four great classics.

Today, Shi Naian has become a cup of yellow earth, and Wu Chengen and Cao Xueqin have not yet been born.

The court's attitude towards Luo Guanzhong and "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" will greatly affect the dissemination and development of the other three masterpieces.

Of course, Zhu Gang knew very well that the most important thing at the moment was to tell the fable behind the "Monkey Show" well.

So, under the expectant eyes of his elder brother and father, Zhu Gang continued to tell the story of Mr. Wang's family.

"After making up his mind, Mr. Wang felt that the heavy burden that had been weighing on him for many years disappeared in an instant, and he became relaxed.

At this time, he completely forgot about the group of concubines in the backyard and focused on finding a suitable son-in-law.

Generally speaking, families with good family backgrounds would definitely not be willing to let their sons marry into other families as sons-in-law.

Therefore, Mr. Wang had to turn his attention to those families with poor financial conditions and difficult lives.

Only a family like this would agree to let their son marry into the family.

Besides, such families come from humble backgrounds and are easier to control in the future, so there is no need to worry about their daughters being bullied.

Soon, Mr. Wang sent his trusted men to various villages to look for people who met the requirements.

These people must be willing to let their sons marry into the marriage family. Of course, in exchange, Wang Yuanwai will give them a generous reward after the matter is accomplished.

This amount of money is enough for their family to have comfortable food and clothing for the rest of their lives.

After careful screening and selection by his confidants, five handsome young men were finally brought to Wang Yuanwai. "

(End of this chapter)