Daming Greedy Wolf Star

Chapter 183 This gift is for nothing!

Although Zhu Gaochi strongly invited Zhu Zhanhe to go in with him, Zhu Zhanhe still refused.

The reason is simple, it is against the rules.

Secondly, he followed Zhu Gaochi in, which could easily give wrong signals to some people, which may cause trouble in the future.

Standing outside the door, Zhu Zhanhe quietly waited until the noise inside returned to normal before he stepped into the banquet.

"The Crown Prince of Han has arrived!"

Following the eunuch's shout at the door, everyone turned their attention.

Wearing a white tuanlong suit, Zhu Zhanhe, who was nearly five feet tall (a foot in Ming Dynasty was equal to 34 centimeters), slowly stepped into the banquet, and came to the old man in front of everyone's eyes.

"The grandson pays homage to the emperor's grandfather, and the emperor's grandfather bows to Jin'an."

"I'm safe."

Zhu Di waved his hand, signaling Zhu Zhanhe to get up, and then waved again, obviously wanting Zhu Zhanhe to pass.

Below Zhu Di, opposite Zhu Gaochi and his son, there is an empty seat.

Zhu Gaochi is the prince, so he has no problem sitting at the emperor's lower echelon. Zhu Zhanji is now the canonized emperor's grandson, and he has no problem sitting at the prince's lower echelon.

but!

There is a problem with the empty seat opposite the prince.

Zhu Zhanhe lowered his head and hesitated for a moment, but still walked towards the location.

As Zhu Zhanhe sat down, the quiet banquet became lively again, but compared to before, there might be a little... change.

As a prince and the leader of civil servants, Zhu Gaochi must have been surrounded by many people on such occasions, but after Zhu Zhanhe arrived, no one dared to approach.

Huang Huai's fate has been decided. After the Lantern Festival, he will be skinned and stripped, and his home will be ransacked.

The dignified bachelor of Wenyuan Pavilion is just because he read Zhu Zhanhe's book... Oh no, it can't be said that he read Zhu Zhanhe's book, because the first person to speak was the official Chen E, and Huang Huai was just It's just a statement of approval.

Who would dare to provoke this evil star if he ended up like this just by expressing his approval?
However, just because they did not take the initiative to provoke him did not mean that Zhu Zhanhe would not take the initiative to settle accounts with them.

"His Royal Highness, how do you feel?" Xia Yuanji was one of the very few officials in the imperial court, and could even be said to be the only one who didn't care about outside opinions and could contact Zhu Zhanhe casually.

At today's New Year's Eve dinner, he was also the first to come to Zhu Zhanhe for a toast.

"How do you feel?" Zhu Zhanhe felt the old man's gaze, but he didn't care. He picked up the wine glass and drank one with Xia Yuanji.

"Look, no one except you dares to come within three feet of me. How can I feel?"

"Isn't this the feeling Wei Zhe was talking about?" Xia Yuanji poured wine for Zhu Zhanhe with a smile, and then pointed not far away.

"His Royal Highness, you may not know that today's New Year's Eve dinner is a little different from previous years, because this year's attendees are not only colleagues from the DPRK and China, but also envoys from various countries who have come to pay tribute to our Ming Dynasty this year."

"I have to say, I have seen all the things these people brought, and they are much better than in previous years. At least they are not fooled. This time, the Ministry of Accounts will lose less."

"Speaking of which, I have to thank you, Your Highness. If it weren't for your reputation, I wouldn't be able to suppress these people."

"I know about the envoy. I went to the East Palace before coming here, and my uncle told me." After listening to Xia Yuanji's words, Zhu Zhanhe smiled casually.

"But if you say that, it's a bit too much. You must know that I was still in Wa Kingdom when these envoys left for Beijing."

"You said that my name intimidated them, but I was not in Yingtian at the time, and I hadn't decided whether I wanted to come back. Where did the statement of intimidation come from?"

"Ehehehe..." Xia Yuanji nudged Zhu Zhanhe with his elbow with a smirk on his face.

"Your Highness, it's boring to say this. Who said we have to be in Yingtian to scare these people?"

……

While the two were talking, someone suddenly came forward. Xia Yuanji was standing in front of Zhu Zhanhe's table, between Zhu Di and the man, which seemed to be blocking them.

Xia Yuanji hurriedly wanted to retreat, but Zhu Zhanhe grabbed him, leaned over and whispered a few words in his ear.

Xia Yuanji took a deep look at Zhu Zhanhe, then nodded imperceptibly, turned and left.

"The crown prince of the Joseon Dynasty, Li Bing, came to pay homage with tribute gifts, wishing the Ming Dynasty a prosperous king, blessings to the world, and spreading throughout the ages!"

Zhu Zhanhe narrowed his eyes and looked at Li Chen.

Li Bao is Li Bao's younger brother and the current crown prince of North Korea. This means that Li Bao has been deposed.

The corners of Zhu Zhanhe's mouth turned up, because he knew that Li Zhen was probably about to make some move.

"Are you Li Chen?" Zhu Di, who was sitting in the highest position, spoke.

"His Majesty the Great Emperor, I am none other than Li Chen."

"Yeah." Zhu Di nodded slightly.

"Last year, North Korea submitted a petition to replace the Crown Prince. I was a little surprised at the time as to why the Crown Prince should be replaced. Later I heard that your brother Li Zhen was a promiscuous person. Is that what you said?"

"Grandpa Huang, my grandson knows something about this matter."

Before Li Chen could reply, Zhu Zhanhe stood up.

Everyone's eyes turned away, obviously not expecting that Zhu Zhanhe would interfere at this time.

You know, it is not that Zhu Zhanhe has never attended the New Year's Eve dinner before, but in previous years' New Year's Eve dinners, the emperor hosted hundreds of officials, and envoys would not participate.

The time when Zheng He returned from his third ocean voyage is not included. That time was special.

In the past, Zhu Zhanhe usually sat alone until the banquet was over. Occasionally, people like Xia Yuanji would come over to offer a toast, but there wouldn't be much of a disturbance.

But this time...

"Oh? That's right." Zhu Di didn't know why his grandson stood up, but he still followed Zhu Zhanhe's words and continued.

"Zhan He was on an expedition against Japan in the east, and the supplies at that time came from North Korea, right?"

"Grandpa Huihuang, that's right." Zhu Zhanhe bowed slightly, walked around the table, and walked in front of Li Chen.

"Previously, Sun'er conquered Japan. As a subordinate state of our Ming Dynasty and the closest place to Japan, North Korea naturally shouldered the heavy responsibility of helping our Ming Dynasty transport grain and grass."

"Speaking of the former crown prince of North Korea, Li Zhen, my grandson is very familiar with him."

Hearing this, Li Chen felt a thump in his heart and had a bad premonition.

Zhu Zhanhe's next words also confirmed his hunch.

"My grandson really can't forget the former prince of North Korea, Li Zhen, even if he wants to. After all, he is the only person in the world who dares to deprive our Ming army of supplies."

As he spoke, a playful smile appeared on Zhu Zhanhe's face.

"If you didn't stand up, I would almost forget it. I remember that day, my prince came to your North Korean palace to ask for an explanation. It seems that your North Korea... has not given me an explanation to this day, right?"

"His Royal Highness, your words are wrong."

Although it was the coldest month of the twelfth lunar month, the banquet was filled with small stoves for heating and surrounded by a fire wall (a hollow wall, similar to a kang), but Li Chen's forehead was covered with beads of sweat.

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince did come to the Joseon Palace in person that day, but the father had already handed over his elder brother to His Highness the Crown Prince. Therefore, why did His Highness the Crown Prince say this?"

"Oh?" Zhu Zhanhe's tone suddenly rose, making Li Chen's heart suddenly rise to his throat.

"Yes, I did ask for the Li Bao from your father that day, but I only interrogated him about the specific process of seizing my Ming Dynasty grain and grass baggage, but I did not impose any punishment."

"Since then, there has been no movement from North Korea, neither an apology nor any compensation."

"Could it be possible that North Korea thinks it's over if they deducted my Daming's grain and grass supplies and returned them according to the amount?"

"If this is the case, where will the majesty of our Ming Dynasty exist!?"

Zhu Zhanhe suddenly shouted sharply, and in response to the raised tone, Li Chen's legs instantly softened and he knelt on the ground.

"This...this matter is...our North Korea has not considered it carefully. When...we will give His Royal Highness an explanation after we return..."

"Explanation?" Zhu Zhanhe sneered and circled around Li Chen.

"How long has it been since this happened? It's been more than a year, almost two years, right? Only now did you think of giving Daming an explanation? What were you doing before?"

"Or... Daming doesn't say anything, you plan to expose this matter just like that?"

"Also, you don't want to give me an explanation, but you want to give an explanation to Daming's soldiers who fought in Japan, and to your suzerain country, Daming."

After saying that, Zhu Zhanhe bowed slightly to the old man, and then returned to his seat.

Zhu Zhanhe has never thought that he is a gentleman. If he has a grudge or an opportunity, he usually doesn't do it overnight. He basically looks for an opportunity to avenge it on the spot.

The last time he went to the Joseon Palace and went directly to the Joseon King Li Fangyuan, it was not that Zhu Zhanhe didn't want to resolve the matter directly, but at that time he was still leading troops to conquer the Japanese.

In any case, compared with the supply lines on land, the uncertainty of the maritime supply line is too great, so Zhu Zhanhe did not get things done.

But now, the conquest of Japan has been basically completed. The most important thing is that Iwami Ginzan has been taken over by the imperial court. If North Korea dares to make trouble at this time...

The last one conquered Japan, and the next one will be North Korea.

"Well..." Seeing Zhu Zhanhe return to his seat, Zhu Di's eyes narrowed.

He had never dealt with this matter before. Firstly, it involved his third son, King Zhao Zhu Gaosui, and secondly, this matter caused a lot of trouble for Zhu Zhanhe, so he thought of leaving it to Zhu Zhanhe, at least Let the kid vent.

Now that it was brought up on such an occasion, he would naturally not continue to pretend.

"Before, I thought that as a subordinate country of the Ming Dynasty, you had always done well before. In addition, Li Zhen was the prince who was scheduled to be deposed, so I didn't push too hard."

"I thought you would repent on your own, at least send someone to Yingtian, or go to the Japanese country with logistical supplies to admit your mistake to the Crown Prince of Han, but I didn't expect..."

"It's been almost two years, and this matter should have come to an end."

"Don't say that I don't miss the old relationship between the suzerain and subordinate countries for many years. I haven't attacked you for two years, which is already kind enough."

"Now, I will give you ten days."

"One ten days is enough for you to send the news back and send it here again."

"If there is still no result that satisfies me and the Crown Prince of Han, then Ming Dynasty will no longer be your suzerain state!"

"Come on!"

After speaking, Zhu Di called people mercilessly, and the Jin Yiwei who was responsible for security around him, and who had not known where he was hiding before, appeared with the voice, and escorted Li Chen out.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty..."

Li Chen's voice floated over the banquet, and it took a long time to disperse. It wasn't that his voice had any magic power, it was just that the Jin Yiwei took him away.

"continue!"

The troublemaker was taken away, and Zhu Di gestured to let everything continue as usual.

The banquet hall that was originally silent became noisy again, the dancers and jugglers who stopped continued their performances, and the envoys from various countries who were originally hesitant were now even more hesitant.

No one thought that Zhu Zhanhe, who could not even say a word in the past, would rise up and cause Li Chen, the envoy of a country and the crown prince, to be directly escorted out of the banquet venue.

Now, everyone is worried about whether Zhu Zhanhe will jump out again, whether he will become the next Li Chen, and whether he will put his country into a dilemma.

However, the banquet is still going on, and no one who is supposed to be there can escape, there is always someone who wants to come.

At this time, someone needed to break the deadlock, and Zhu Zhanhe was a little surprised by this person.

"Mu Ang, the commander-in-chief of Yunnan Province, pays homage to His Majesty. Your Majesty pays homage to Jin'an."

That's right, it's Mu Ang.

If it were normal years, Yunnan would only have tax revenue, which should not appear on such an occasion, but this year is different.

"Mu Ang..." Zhu Di's expression finally changed, he stood up with a smile, walked down the steps and came to Mu Ang.

"You, the Mu family, have guarded Yunnan for generations under the orders of Emperor Taizu Gao, and have made outstanding contributions to our Ming Dynasty. Now that Annan is added to our family, it is really a big thank you to you."

"Your Majesty, it's not hard." Mu Ang followed Zhu Di's strength and stood up straight.

"Previously, the Mu family guarded Yunnan, but Chen Jikuo proclaimed himself king and called the Kingdom of Dayue. The Mu family spent six years but still could not solve the problem. After His Highness the King of Han became a vassal, His Highness the Crown Prince solved the problem."

"The Mu family does not dare to take credit, and is even more ashamed."

"Well, Zhanhe, come here." The smile on Zhu Di's face remained undiminished, and he stretched out his hand to call Zhu Zhanhe over.

"Your father became a vassal in the [-]th year of Yongle. It has been almost four years. You know almost everything about Yunnan. As Mu Sheng said, Chen Jikuo's creation of Dayue Kingdom is all due to you."

"That's true. It's grandpa's fault that he hasn't been rewarded based on his merits until now."

"Grandpa is serious." Zhu Zhanhe lowered his head slightly, his tone calm.

"Zhanhe is a descendant of the Zhu family, guarding Huangming is what every descendant of the Zhu family should do."

"Chen Ji expanded our Ming vassal state and established himself as the king, and the Han king's lineage took control of Yunnan. This is the job of my grandson."

"My grandson doesn't dare to ask for rewards or anything like that, but there is a little..."

As Zhu Zhanhe spoke, he raised his head and glanced at the civil and military officials and envoys from various countries below.

"My grandson heard that Chen Jikuo's grandson fled to Siam, and Siam even named him a name and gave him an army. It seemed that he wanted to rebuild the Dai Viet Kingdom."

"I wonder if there will be envoys from Siam coming to Beijing this year? My grandson would like to find out."

"Oh?" Zhu Di's eyes narrowed, and his tone was full of danger.

"Where is the Siamese envoy!?"

"Siam... The envoy from Siam has met His Majesty the Ming Emperor, and His Majesty the Emperor bowed to Jin'an!"

When he saw Zhu Zhanhe, the Siamese envoy felt that something was not good. When he saw Zhu Zhanhe directly attacking the North Korean Crown Prince Li Sun on an occasion like today, without showing any sympathy, He knew he was going to suffer today.

Originally, he wanted to delay it as long as possible until the banquet was almost over and envoys from various countries had paid homage to Zhu Di before he came out. By then, even if Zhu Zhanhe had not left, he would probably not have much energy.

But unexpectedly, Zhu Zhanhe exceeded everyone's expectations and directly named Siam through Mu Sheng!

"Is what the Crown Prince of Han said true?" Zhu Di looked at the Siamese envoy who was kneeling on the ground and was shaking, with a serious expression and a low tone.

This kind of expression and tone was what Zhu Gaoxu was most afraid of before, because as Zhu Di's son, and the son who had been beaten the most, Zhu Gaoxu knew Zhu Di best.

Usually, it doesn't matter when the old man has this expression, because he may be deceiving you, but if even the tone changes, it means that you are really in trouble.

"This this……"

The Siamese envoy knelt on the ground, his body trembling uncontrollably. He really didn't know what to say.

Zhu Di is easy to talk about. People who sit in the highest position like Zhu Di are usually easier to fool, because emperors usually care more about reputation, so what the Siamese envoy is most afraid of is not Zhu Di, but Zhu Zhanhe.

Let me ask, if this can happen on an occasion like today, who doesn't know that Zhu Zhanhe is a person who has never been unreasonable?
When he was nine years old, he started to deal with corrupt officials and Japanese pirates. When he was ten years old, he built Jingguan on the grassland. When he was eleven years old, he burned Jiaozhi. Now at fifteen years old, he destroyed a country and turned its capital into a dead place where no one could be seen for thousands of miles.

Such a person is scary enough in itself, but the most terrifying thing is that he is still unreasonable.

"Okay, stop stumbling. I don't think you can explain why."

Seeing the pitiful appearance of the Siamese envoy, Zhu Zhanhe spoke with a bit of ridicule.

"I think it's because your king didn't teach you what to say when you encountered this when you set out this time, right?"

"I've always been very reasonable, and I've never made things difficult for irrelevant people."

"As for you, you are just an envoy. There is no point in making things difficult for you. Remember to ask your king when you go back if this matter has happened and how you plan to deal with it in the future."

"Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you that after the new year, I will return to Yunnan. At that time, you can tell your king that if he has any excuses that he thinks can be fooled, then send someone to Yunnan to find me. .”

"If you can fool me, then that's pretty much it, but if you can't fool me..."

"I think your king should be able to guess the outcome more or less."

"Oh, by the way, Chen Jizuo is still imprisoned in Jinyiwei's prison. If your king doesn't know, you can go and see for him. Remember to describe it to him after you go back."

Zhu Zhanhe's words could be said to be a clear threat, but no one could find fault with him.

Who in the entire Ming Dynasty didn’t know about Chen Jikuo’s affairs?It took the Ming Dynasty six years to finally pull out the thorn in Chen Jikuo. You, Siam, are stroking the beard of a tiger in front of you?
It's true that the birthday boy is looking for death by eating arsenic.

"Go back." Seeing that the Siamese envoy was still kneeling on the ground and not daring to move, Zhu Di said.

It can be regarded as giving Zhu Zhanhe a platform from the side. At least it confirms Zhu Zhanhe's statement.

The Siamese envoy woke up as if from a dream, kowtowed repeatedly, and then staggered back to the farthest distance, as if he was afraid that others would discover him.

It is estimated that if the occasion had not allowed it, he would have packed up overnight and returned to Siam. He did not want to stay here any longer.

"By the way, Grandpa Emperor." Zhu Zhanhe watched the Siamese envoy retreat, turned his head to look at Zhu Di, the corners of his mouth slightly raised as if he was telling others something.

Anyone who is familiar with Zhu Zhanhe knows that he has another idea, and it is also a deceptive idea.

"My grandson heard that last autumn, you sent Chen Cheng, a member of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, to the Western Regions as an envoy, but he encountered obstacles in the Seven Guards of Kansai?"

"Logically speaking, no one from the Western Seventh Guards should be present today, but Uncle Mu is here. I guess it's not just officials from the DPRK and China and envoys from various countries."

"Grandson would like to ask, have the seven people from Kansai, including Hami, Shazhou, Yuandong, Handong, Quxian, Aduan, and Chijin Mongolia, sent someone over today?"

As soon as Zhu Zhanhe finished speaking, the entire banquet fell into silence, even those dancers and the like fell silent.

There were envoys from North Korea and Siam before, and now Zhu Zhanhe took the initiative to mention the Seven Guards of Kansai. Everyone knew that His Highness the Crown Prince of Han was planning to start making things difficult for others.

"Tsk, tsk." Zhu Di smacked his lips, with a regretful expression and a little sigh in his tone.

"It's a pity. Grandpa originally planned to let Chen Cheng go to the Seven Guards of Kansai to declare the decree, and then go on an envoy to the Western Regions, but he hasn't come back yet. Grandpa thought about waiting for Chen Cheng to come back."

"So, no one from the Seven Guards of Kansai is present today. Those commanders, one by one, basically didn't come."

"Oh?" Zhu Zhanhe immediately cooperated with Zhu Di and sang along.

"So, wouldn't the people of the Seven Guards of Kansai be disobedient and disrespectful?"

"Hmm..." Zhu Di pretended to twist his chin, and it took a long time before he said a word.

"That's right, but before Chen Cheng, the person involved, comes back, everything is not very clear, otherwise, it is inevitable that some people will say that we, Daming, are unreasonable."

"Oh, that's such a pity." Zhu Zhanhe pretended to lower his head and sighed.

"Grandson really wants to buy two dancers from the Western Regions. It seems that there is no chance."

"Oh?" Zhu Gaochi stood up after hearing this, completely unlike his usual style.

"Father, speaking of which, Zhan He has reached the age of marriage, but he has been fighting for the country in the past two years, so he has been delayed."

"Weren't you trying to select a candidate for the concubine for Zhan Ji before? I think you can let Zhan He take a look. Maybe there will be someone Zhan He likes."

　Today’s two chapters are 6+4, totaling [-] words.

　
(End of this chapter)