Zhu Yuanzhang's original name was Zhu Chongba, with the courtesy name Guorui. He was born on October 21, 1328, and was a native of Fengyang, Anhui Province. His father is Zhu Shizhen and his mother is Chen. The family is very poor.
In 1344, when Zhu Yuanzhang was 16 years old, epidemic and drought claimed the lives of most members of his family. Zhu Yuanzhang was lonely and helpless, so he had to work as a boy and an errand in a Buddhist temple. Later, at the age of only 17, Zhu Yuanzhang left the temple and wandered around begging for alms. In 1352, Zhu Yuanzhang joined the army of the rebel Guo Zixing. After Zhu Yuanzhang joined the army, he was quickly appreciated by Guo Zixing because of his bravery in combat, flexibility and proficiency in writing. He was transferred to the commander's mansion as an errand by Guo Zixing and appointed as the ninth commander of the personal soldiers. Zhu Yuanzhang was smart and capable, handled matters appropriately, took the lead in battles, and handed over all the spoils he gained. When Zhu Yuanzhang received a reward, he always said that the credit belongs to everyone and distributed the reward to everyone. As a result, Zhu Yuanzhang's good reputation in the army spread quickly. Guo Zixing also regarded him as a confidant and always discussed important matters with Zhu Yuanzhang. In 1355, Zhu Yuanzhang conquered Hezhou in one fell swoop and was appointed as the chief military officer by Guo Zixing. In 1364, Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself King of Wu and established Baiguanshi. In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself emperor in Nanjing. His country was named Daming and his reign was named Hongwu. He successively pacified Sichuan, Guangxi, Gansu, Yunnan and other places and established a unified political power across the country.
Before Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he first ordered the Ministry of Rites to write down the Kao Si Goddess for the four generations of emperors including Gao Zu, Great Zu, Zu Kao and Xian Kao, and set up an altar in advance. Then, Zhu Yuanzhang led his princes and other disciples to build the Ancestral Temple under the orders of the God Lord. They honored his great ancestor as Emperor Xuan, his great-grandfather as Emperor Heng, his grandfather as Emperor Yu, and his father as Emperor Chun. They also presented jade treasures and jade books. After the title is awarded, a memorial ceremony will be held according to the prescribed ceremony. However, Zhu Yuanzhang did not know where his ancestral mausoleum was at that time. Someone reported that the ancestral mausoleum of Zhu Yuanzhang is located in Zhujia Lane in Jurong, Zhenjiang. So Zhu Yuanzhang asked people to build a mound of earth in Zhujia Lane, named "Long Live Mountain", and came to worship in person. Unexpectedly, the mound cracked. Zhu Yuanzhang Longyan was furious and severely punished the person who presented the memorial, and no longer regarded the mound as the location of the ancestral mausoleum.
One day, Zhu Yuanzhang vaguely remembered that when he was a child, his second sister once said to him: "My grandfather's tomb is beside Sizhou City, which is built along the Huaihe River." So, he ordered the prince to go there. Offer sacrifices and send officials to offer sacrifices every year. Because the worshipers did not know the exact location of the emperor's ancestral tomb, they could only raise their eyes to the west and pay their respects by the river. It was not until 1384 that Zhu Yuanzhang's tribe Zhu Gui came to the court to present a map of the ancestral mausoleum, and Zhu Yuanzhang figured out the location of the ancestral mausoleum. Zhu Gui told Zhu Yuanzhang that the ancestors of the Zhu family were gold diggers who moved to Sizhou from Zhujia Lane in Jurong. Zhu Yuanzhang's grandfather Zhu Chuyi once lived with his whole family in Sunjiagang in the north of the ancient Sizhou city. Zhu Gui's ancestors also moved here with Zhu Chuyi and became close neighbors.
It is said that one day, Zhu Chuyi was mowing grass in nearby Yangjiadun. When he was lying in the grass to rest, he saw two Taoist priests passing by. They were discussing that Yangjiadun was a geomantic treasure land and it was good to insert dead branches. will sprout. Just as he was talking, one of the Taoist priests picked up a dead branch and stuck it on the mound, then left. Zhu Chuyi was very curious, so he came to Yangjiadun every day to cut grass and observe the dead branch. After 10 days, he found that the dead branch actually sprouted. Zhu Chuyi was surprised and couldn't believe it was true, so he replaced it with a dead branch and stuck it on the mound. When the two Taoist priests passed by here again, they found that the branches they planted had been changed. They found Zhu Chuyi who had secretly changed the branches and said, "If you are buried here after your death, your family's descendants will have noble people. It’s a secret that must not be leaked.” After Zhu Chuyi returned home, he told his son Zhu Shizhen that he must be buried in Yangjiadun after his death.
In 1327, Zhu Chuyi died of illness. Zhu Shizhen buried Zhu Chuyi in Yangjiadun in accordance with his request. After Zhu Shizhen buried his father, he was unable to survive due to floods, so he took his family to the west and lived in Lingji Township, Xuyi County. Soon, Zhu Shizhen's wife Chen gave birth to Zhu Chongba, also known as Zhu Yuanzhang. With a cry, red light shot up into the sky, and the neighbors came to put out the fire with exclaims, only to find that it was the Zhu family who was overjoyed. This child born with auspicious signs was the later Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang.
The map of the ancestral mausoleum presented by Zhu Gui made Zhu Yuanzhang very excited and immediately began to order the construction of the ancestral mausoleum. In 1386, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered Crown Prince Zhu Biao to lead the civil and military ministers and craftsmen to Yangjiadun in the north of Sizhou City to start building the ancestral mausoleum.
Most of the emperors of the past dynasties built glorious mausoleums for themselves during their lifetimes and after their deaths. Zhu Yuanzhang was the first to build mausoleums for his ancestors, and he also included his great-grandfather, great-grandfather, and grandfather whom he had never met. All emperors buried in one tomb. Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the construction of the ancestral mausoleum precisely to thank his ancestors for blessing him to become emperor, and also to honor his ancestors.
Portrait of Zhu Yuanzhang, Taizu of the Ming Dynasty