Ming Dynasty: The ghost betrays the Confucian sage, my son Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 277 The kings’ expedition! Zhu Yuanzhang: Give them a king’s heart

Under the capital city gate, there was a huge crowd.

A group of people entered the city slowly, led by Yanshan Guard Qianhu Zhu Neng. He was riding on a majestic horse with a majestic look. This time he came to Beijing with Zhu Di, King of Yan. Zhu Neng looked around, raised the corners of his mouth slightly, and commented disdainfully: "This so-called capital city is nothing more than this."

Zhang Yu, who was also from a thousand households, rode his horse forward and said, "Having said that, this place is still more prosperous than our Peiping."

"Humph, prosperity is prosperity, but look at this chaotic order, with people and horses mixed together, how can it compare to the orderliness of our city in Beiping?" Zhu Neng looked around dissatisfied, "Well, look at the dirty cow dung on the ground. ”

Zhang Yu frowned and reminded: "Lao Zhu, we are new to the capital, so it is best to be careful in our words and deeds, so as not to cause unnecessary trouble to the prince."

"That's natural. Besides, we won't be in the capital for long." Zhu Neng said with a smile, "Isn't it just for the Western Expedition that the emperor summoned King Yan to the capital?"

In the carriage behind them, the curtains were tightly closed, and sitting inside was the famous King of Yan Zhu Di. People on both sides of the street recognized this iconic carriage at a glance.

"Hey, didn't you say that two vassal kings cannot come to the capital at the same time? King Qin and King Jin just came a few days ago, and today King Yan also came."

"My second uncle's brother-in-law's brother is on duty at the Ministry of War. He said that the court might be making some big move. With the three kings gathering in the capital, there might be a war."

"Brother, how are you doing lately?" Zhu Di asked with concern.

Wenhua Hall.

"Are we going to fight again? Doesn't the imperial court want to recuperate? Moreover, the emperor has recently exempted several provinces from taxes. Where will the money come from to fight the war?"

His eyes were full of reluctance and worry.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the brothers in front of him and finally waved his hands: "That's it, you brothers haven't seen each other for a long time. Let's go get together first. After that, I will call you to assign tasks."

"Isn't this a good thing? My father often said that the Zhu family should protect the world." Zhu Di comforted.

Zhu Di lowered his head and replied: "Father, the child is still young and cannot bear the hardship of traveling long distances."

"In the previous assumption, you were all still within China." Zhu Biao sighed, "But now you are all going overseas. I don't know how long it will be before we can meet each other."

"I obey." Zhu Biao saluted respectfully.

"Everything is fine." Zhu Biao smiled broadly, "It's just a little lonely. Brothers are going to join the feudal clan one by one. The twelfth old man has been named the King of Xiang. In a few years, he will also go to join the feudal clan."

Then, he led Zhu Di out of the Wenhua Palace and went straight to the East Palace. Zhu Biao had not seen Zhu Di for more than a year, and he was in a good mood at the moment: "Fourth brother, I have prepared wine and food in the East Palace. We two brothers are going to have a drink today."

"Father, I have no intention of doing this." Zhu Di defended, "When the child grows older, I will definitely take him to Beijing to meet my father."

"Nonsense!" Zhu Yuanzhang shouted angrily, "With your and Miaoyun's cultivation, can't you protect a child? I think you just don't want to bring Gao Chi to see me, an old man?"

……

Zhu Di knelt down and worshiped Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang and Prince Zhu Di: "My son, I pay homage to my father, and I pay homage to His Highness the Prince."

"You don't know this, right? I heard that the Emperor's Ming Trading Company has made a fortune overseas. Ship after ship of silver is shipped back. The Emperor is not short of money now!"

In the carriage, Zhu Di closed his eyes and rested, but the discussion outside reached his ears word by word. With his current cultivation level, if he uses the Seven Ultimate Divine Gu, the movements in the entire capital will not be hidden from him. The carriage stopped steadily in front of the palace gate. Zhu Di got out of the car and told Zhu Neng and Zhang Yu to go back to Prince Yan's Mansion without expression, while he straightened his clothes and went into the palace to pay homage to the emperor.

"Fourth!" Zhu Yuanzhang stopped the pen in his hand and glared coldly, "Why don't you bring Miaoyun and the child back? We want to see our grandson."

……

"If you don't bring your children next time, you don't have to go back to Beijing." Zhu Yuanzhang waved decisively.

Zhu Biao, who was standing aside, smiled slightly and came forward to intercede for Zhu Di: "Father, the fourth child is about to go on an expedition to the west. Even if he brings his children to Beijing, he will not be able to stay for a few days."

Zhu Di walked into the East Palace and saw Mrs. Lu playing with Zhu Yunzhen in the palace, so she respectfully saluted Ms. Lu: "Meet my sister-in-law."

"Fourth Uncle, you're here." Lu responded enthusiastically, and led Zhu Yunwen forward, "Yunwen, come and pay homage to Fourth Uncle."

Although Zhu Yunwen was only over a year old, he looked at Zhu Di curiously with his big eyes. Zhu Di was amused by his appearance: "Yunwen, this kid, is taller than my Gao Chi."

"They are both similar in age and can study together in the future." Zhu Biao said with a smile.

He invited Zhu Di to take a seat, while Lu bowed slightly to them and stepped back gracefully. The table was filled with sumptuous dishes. Zhu Biao picked up his chopsticks and kept picking dishes for Zhu Di: "Come, try this and this. These are your favorite foods when you were a child."

Zhu Di looked at the mountains of dishes in his bowl and couldn't help laughing: "Brother, how should I eat so many dishes?"

The two brothers looked at each other and smiled, and the atmosphere suddenly became relaxed and happy. Zhu Di understood that his eldest brother still took care of him as he did when he was a child, and was worried that he would not be able to eat well outside. Zhu Biao raised his glass, clinked it with Zhu Di, drank it in one gulp, and spread his hands: "Did you know? After you handed over the Zhaotian Gang to Lao Twelve, he is now more majestic, even more majestic than you were back then. That day he even talked to his father. He said that without him, King Xiang, the capital would be over sooner or later.

"He is practicing hard every day." Zhu Biao responded, "He also said, 'I have to examine myself three times a day.'"

"When I come back this time, I will teach him some sword skills." Zhu Di said while eating, "Old Twelve is a talent that can be made. If he is trained well, he will definitely be successful in the future."

"Yes, the brothers need to be well trained. I hope they can all become useful talents." Zhu Biao's eyes were full of expectation and yearning.

"By the way, eldest sister, are they okay now?" Zhu Di suddenly asked.

The eldest sister he was talking about was Princess Lin'an, who married Li Shanchang's eldest son Li Qi two years ago. Although Li Shanchang had retired, his son still married the princess, which made the Huaixi nobles happy and thought that the emperor still valued them.

"The Korean father-in-law has been staying at home since he returned to Beijing." Zhu Biao chuckled and said, "He is a smart man. If the eldest sister marries his son, she will definitely live a good life. And Li Qi has also been named The Prince Consort is now a captain."

The two brothers chatted while eating, enjoying this rare reunion.

……

The next day, Kunning Palace.

Zhu Yuanzhang held a family banquet here and summoned the King of Qin Zhu Fang, the King of Jin Zhu Fan, and the King of Yan Zhu Di. Queen Ma prepared a sumptuous table of wine and food.

"My children, I have called you here today to see you off!" Zhu Yuanzhang raised his wine glass and said, "You are about to go on an expedition. Dad has something to say to you."

King Zhu Chen of Qin, King Zhu Fan of Jin, and King Zhu Di of Yan listened respectfully. After Zhu Yuanzhang thought for a moment, he said in a deep voice:

"I, Huaiyou, a commoner, crawled out from a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood. I became a generation of emperors. I know the pain involved better than anyone else. When you go overseas, you will also encounter this kind of pain."

"You are all vassal kings, so how can you be a king? As Lao Si said, the king will not be confused, the king will not obey, the king will not yield, the king will not support, the king will not give up, everything you do as a king will be kingly."

"Haha, fourth child, you are still very progressive. You are right. But, this is not enough! As a king, you must not have any weaknesses. Only by giving up yourself can you grow a true king's heart."

Empress Ma watched all this quietly from the sidelines. She witnessed how her husband transformed from a commoner to a generation of emperors. How much pain did that heart that had become stronger after countless hardships bear? Now, are her sons embarking on this challenging path?
Five days later.

King Zhu Di of Yan commanded the army and embarked on the western expedition. Zhu Yuanzhang stood on the city gate and watched the army drift away. Although he was deeply reluctant to give up, his expression remained as firm as iron.

Ten days later.

Qin King Zhu Ping led hundreds of warships and set sail from Xuanwu Lake to Japan. Zhu Yuanzhang stood at the dock, watching the fleet disappear between the vast water and sky. He sat for a long time before returning to the palace at nightfall.

Another five days.

Jin King Zhu Fan led a larger armada and headed for Nanyang. This time, Zhu Yuanzhang personally took a boat to see him off, and even caught a fresh fish by the Xuanwu Lake, which he shared with his son before saying goodbye.

……

Kunning Palace.

Queen Ma was busy cooking, and Huner stood aside. She knew that the Queen wanted to fill her thoughts with busyness. Her sons went on expeditions one by one, but she didn't know when Ma Yue would return.

"The dishes are almost ready." Weier reminded softly, "Actually, there are only a few of us, so we don't need to prepare so much."

"Your Majesty will eat more," Queen Ma responded.

"Eunuch Wang just came to send a message, saying that His Majesty has had dinner at Xuanwu Lake and will not be coming tonight." Wenger conveyed the news.

"In that case, let's enjoy it ourselves." Queen Ma's lips curled up slightly, showing a trace of self-mockery, "How about you drink a few drinks with me tonight?"

"Okay." Weier agreed with a smile.

Soon, the delicious aroma spread out from the table full of food. Queen Ma and Wen'er sat opposite each other. After drinking three drinks in a row, Queen Ma sighed softly: "The children have grown up and I don't need to worry about them anymore. I also want to go out for a walk and see what's going on outside." The world. Originally, His Majesty promised to take me on a tour, but now it seems that this promise is difficult to fulfill. "

"Then let me go with you!" Wen'er suggested excitedly, "I also have many places I want to go to. We can plan a route first, starting from Jiangnan, then all the way south to Yunnan, then going west in a circle, and finally Arrive at Peiping City.”

"Just do it and leave as soon as you say it!" Queen Ma said, "I will tell Your Majesty tomorrow, and then we will set off."

Weier became even more excited after hearing this. She had long wanted to go out for a walk. The two immediately began to discuss the route to take and what to bring.

(End of this chapter)