Ming Dynasty: A hundred-year-old immortal cultivator, Zhu Yuanzhang’s biological father

Xu Yingxu and Xu Zengshou sat awkwardly.

The Zhu Huai, who they originally thought was "in a different circle and incompatible", and the Zhu Xiongying, whom they once looked down upon from a high position, have undergone tremendous changes. Now, Zhu Xiongying has become an existence that is out of their reach, and has become the most noble royal bloodline of the Ming Dynasty, to whom they have to devote themselves and beg for mercy.

It was a sunny spring afternoon.

The weather at the end of February was pretty good, and the weather officially moved from early spring to late spring.

In the courtyard of the Zhu Mansion, all kinds of potted plants, weeds, and seedlings have turned a pleasing green.

In the central hall, the second and fourth sons of the Xu family were waiting for Zhu Huai anxiously.

Not long after, Zhu Xiongying arrived late.

This is the Zhu Mansion, Zhu Xiongying is the owner here. No matter who comes, Zhu Xiongying should sit in the main seat.

After seeing Zhu Huai, the two brothers of the Xu family stood up with somewhat unnatural expressions, clasped their fists and saluted, saying: "Zhu Xiongying."

Zhu Xiongying nodded, sat down, and then extended his hand to Xu Yingxu and Xu Zengshou and said, "Please sit down and have some tea."

The servant came over to pour tea and water.

No matter what attitude these two people had towards him before, Zhu Xiongying would not look down on them. He still maintained a neither humble nor arrogant attitude.

Even if Zhu Xiongying knew that the Prince of Zhongshan's Palace might be in trouble, even if they were in trouble now, Zhu Huaigeng would not be a mean person who would mock them.

"Do you two need anything from me?"

Zhu Xiongying tapped the celadon tea lid against the brim of the teacup, blew gently, and took a sip.

Xu Yingxu and Xu Zengshou looked around, seeming to want to say something but stopping themselves.

Zhu Xiongying said to his left and right: "All of you go down, don't come here without my order."

Seeing that Zhu Xiongying was so smart, the Xu brothers felt a little ashamed of themselves.

Xu Yingxu swallowed his saliva, looked at Zhu Xiongying, and said, "Mr. Zhu, I'm sorry."

Ok?
Zhu Xiongying's hand holding the teacup paused for a moment, and he put the cup on the table.

He looked at Xu Yingxu: "Young Master Xu, what do you mean by this?"

Xu Yingxu's face twitched, "Mr. Zhu, please don't call me Young Master. It's embarrassing for me."

Zhu Xiongying was puzzled: "Why?"

Xu Yingxu smiled bitterly but did not explain.

"Mr. Zhu, we were at the Xu residence at that time. Well, we spoke too harshly to you. We came here today to apologize."

Zhu Xiongying said, "Young Master, you don't have to be polite. What you said at that time was not wrong."

"Your father was a founding hero, the best general of the Ming Dynasty, and the right-hand man of the Hongwu Emperor. Sometimes birth is also a kind of luck. You were born into a good family and noble. This is undeniable. I envy you, but this is the fact."

"So I don't have any resentment for what you said to me at that time. I came from humble beginnings. I was a beggar, a Taoist priest, and a refugee. I am not in the same circle as you, the Prince of Zhongshan."

"So you don't need to apologize, you are just telling the truth."

After a pause, Zhu Xiongying said: "If I can't accept and face this reality, how can I survive in this world? It's important for people to know themselves. It's okay, and you don't need to apologize."

silence.

There was a long silence.

After Zhu Xiongying finished speaking, the Xu brothers stood there in a daze, their cheeks twitching.

If someone else said these words to the two brothers very seriously, they would even think it was natural and even think that the other person was very intelligent.

But the other party happened to be Zhu Xiongying, the most noble bloodline of the Ming Dynasty and the eldest grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang!

What a twist of fate, who could have thought that a mere businessman at that time would suddenly become the eldest grandson of the Ming Emperor!
But the other party doesn't know his own noble identity.

Xu Yingxu smiled awkwardly and said, "Mr. Zhu, what you said is a bit serious."

"So what if it's the Prince of Zhongshan's Mansion? So what if it's the number one military commander of the Ming Dynasty? Even if he is a founding hero, isn't his survival just a matter of the emperor's will?"

"Mr. Zhu said he envied us, and we envy him too."

Zhu Xiongying was puzzled: "Are you jealous of me?"

Xu Yingxu said: "Yes! You have had so many noble people helping you along the way... Well! My fifth sister once said that if we put aside our status, our achievements may not be as high as Mr. Zhu's."

"We were not convinced then, but now... we are convinced."

"Fifth sister is right. Master Zhu, you are a man who can accomplish great things. Our sights are set on the small piece of land of the Xu family in Yingtian, but you may have set your sights on the whole world."

"It's right for you not to bother with us, because we don't deserve you to be too upset."

Zhu Xiongying frowned, somewhat confused as to the purpose of the Xu brothers' visit.

"What do you two young masters want to say?"

The Xu brothers looked back and saw that there was no one there, so they stood up, walked to Zhu Xiongying, clasped their fists, and bowed deeply.

Zhu Xiongying stood up quickly and said, "My two young masters, isn't this a great gift to me?"

The Xu brothers shook their heads and smiled bitterly, and said to Zhu Xiongying: "Mr. Zhu, I have something to ask of you."

Zhu Xiongying said: "Tell me about it."

Xu Yingxu was silent for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "We know about your friendship with Fifth Sister, and we also sense that the Xu family may be in trouble and in danger recently."

"We don't know when the emperor's knife will fall on the Xu family."

"My two brothers used to look down on Master Zhu. Today, we are giving Master Zhu this great gift to sincerely regret our past ignorance."

"Mr. Zhu, you can argue with us, or ask us to do anything. It doesn't matter. But I beg you, Mr. Zhu, if my Xu family is in trouble one day, please don't ignore my fifth sister."

"She has been very concerned about our Xu family and the Zhongshan Palace. She has never seen our father since she was born, and our mother passed away not long after giving birth to our fifth sister. She has been raised by the three of us brothers."

"I have already hurt Fifth Sister's heart once last time, and this time I heard that the Emperor wants to marry Fifth Sister off again."

"We will not stop Fifth Sister and Master Zhu. Master Zhu, please consider our friendship and help Fifth Sister when the Xu family is in trouble."

The two brothers bent their proud heads tightly, and spoke humbly, each word coming from the bottom of their hearts!

Zhu Xiongying said seriously: "I don't know why you think I have the ability to save Miss Xu. I also don't know whether the emperor will touch your Zhongshan Palace."

"But what I can tell you is that I like Miss Xu. It's my own business. It has nothing to do with you. It has nothing to do with which family she comes from. I like the pure Xu Miaojin."

"Similarly, you are men of the Xu family, the young masters of the Zhongshan Palace. You shouldn't beg me for Xu Miaojin. Firstly, it degrades your status, and secondly, it also desecrates the relationship between Miss Xu and me."

"She is not a commodity, and there should be no human feelings or interests involved. I don't care about the life or death of your Xu family, but I will do my best to protect Xu Miaojin!" The two brothers of the Xu family were stunned and looked up at Zhu Xiongying with a determined face.

Xu Yingxu smiled bitterly and said, "I understand, thank you."

Zhu Xiongying shook his head: "I didn't help you with anything, you don't need to thank me."

"But I'm still very curious, why do you think I have the ability to protect Miss Xu's safety and why would you stoop so low to beg me?"

Xu Zengshou said: "Because of your grandfather."

Zhu Xiongying frowned and said: "But he is just an old man, at best a palace scholar, he may not be able to shake the will of Emperor Hongwu!"

Xu Yingxu shook his head and laughed: "You underestimate his power, haha."

"Even if you leave your grandfather aside, you still have the Huaixi nobles behind you. Since the emperor wants to protect them, it means that they will play a huge role in the future of the country. With them around, you still have the ability."

"Let's take a step back. Even if you are single now, I still believe you have the energy to protect a woman!"

"Zhu Xiongying, every step you take is very solid, and the foundation of each step is very solid. You may not even realize it yourself, but in fact, you have already firmly established your foothold in our Ming Dynasty!"

The world has undergone tremendous changes.

The once glorious Zhongshan Palace suddenly feels like it is on the decline.

Xu Yingxu and Xu Zengshou sometimes wondered, if they had not stopped the fifth sister and Zhu Xiongying at that time, if they had allowed the fifth sister to integrate into Zhu Xiongying's life, if they had allowed the fifth sister to have contact with the old man all the time, would the old man still have such a fatal blow to the Zhongshan Palace?
Maybe not, maybe the emperor will choose a gentler approach.

Because the old man always considers his grandson, his most beloved grandson, the eldest grandson of the Ming Dynasty who is above everything else in the Ming Dynasty!
The two brothers stared at Zhu Xiongying blankly, and after a long time they sighed slightly.

People should always be responsible for what they have done.

The two brothers clasped their fists to Zhu Xiongying and said sadly: "After listening to Master Zhu's words, we two brothers feel relieved."

As they spoke, they bowed again and said, "Excuse me."

In fact, Zhu Xiongying didn’t know that the etiquette of the two was not simple. This kind of etiquette was a courtesy to the king!

They faced Zhu Xiongying and retreated all the way to the door. From beginning to end, they never turned their backs to Zhu Xiongying, because according to Han etiquette, turning your back to the monarch is disrespectful!
Zhu Xiongying looked at the backs of the two brothers as they left, and for some reason felt even weirder.

Zhu Xiongying himself was not sure if he had the power to change Emperor Hongwu's mind, so why were the Xu brothers so sure that they had the power to save Xu Miaojin?
Why would they think so?
Although they just gave an explanation, Zhu Xiongying still felt that their explanation was a bit far-fetched.

They clearly believed that I must have this ability!

While the second and fourth sons of the Xu family went to look for Zhu Xiongying.

Xu Huizu also made a difficult decision.

Xu Miaojin looked at Xu Huizu and said, "Brother, if you want to talk, tell me everything you know. Tell me everything you know."

"Don't hide it from the emperor, because we don't know what the emperor knows about our Xu family. Instead of doing this, we might as well gamble on the emperor's old friendship!"

Xu Huizu listened carefully to Xu Miaojin's instructions and nodded: "Brother, I understand."

"Life and death... depends on tomorrow!"

"Brother, go to the palace to find the emperor tomorrow morning."

"Fifth sister, you are right. I cannot be so selfish as to gamble the fate of all the Xu family members. I may not want the hereditary title, but I also want you all to be safe!"

Xu Miaojin knew that this would be difficult for Xu Huizu.

The eldest brother inherited his father's will and skills. He learned martial arts and fought for several years, and then the Ming Dynasty came to peace.

He only had an eight-foot body and the ambition to serve his country, and he wanted to donate this body to the battlefield.

No chance.

Xu Miaojin stared at Xu Huizu seriously and said to him, "Brother, don't let the gains and losses of the moment determine your fate. I know your aspirations and your desire to serve the country. When the world decides, we may be able to spread our wings and soar!"

Xu Huizu secretly clenched his fist: "Okay!"

Late at night.

Xu Huizu left Xu Miaojing's boudoir and went to the study alone.

He opened the ancestral precepts left by Xu Da and stared at them in a daze: I should save the Han Dynasty with my life, and future generations will not forget it! A man should draw his sword and mount his horse, looking down on the world!
Xu Huizu muttered to himself: "Dad... Below Jiqing, we can defend the river and advance or retreat; below Changzhou, we can block the river and move east or west. You conquered both Jiqing Road and Changzhou Road, and you also conquered the beginning of the emperor's ambitions with your own hands!"

"My son is unfilial. My Xu family's foundation will be destroyed in my hands."

"You have been loyal to the emperor and patriotic all your life. I dare not make up stories about you. People are forgotten when they are gone, and the emperor's power is impermanent. Now the emperor wants to take action against the Xu family."

"I have no other choice. I will give up the foundation you have built throughout your life tomorrow!"

Xu Huizu murmured, tears welling up in his tiger eyes, which gradually blurred his vision.

The ancients often said that they dared not let down their ancestors, but at this time Xu Huizu was feeling ashamed of his ancestors. What a huge mistake!

The next morning, Xu Huizu got up early.

I tossed and turned last night and couldn't fall asleep.

Xu Huizu forced himself to cheer up, washed up first, then changed into formal clothes, and walked towards the palace resolutely.

There is no court meeting today. It is still early and the officials have not yet arrived for duty.

Xu Huizu walked outside the palace and found the eunuch on duty in the Palace Department, asking him to report to the emperor that Xu Huizu wanted to see the emperor. The eunuch in the Palace Department smiled and said to Xu Huizu: "Master Xu, the emperor is not in the palace."

Xu Huizu was stunned: "Oh? Please tell me where the emperor went?"

"Please wait a moment. I will go ask my godfather."

After the eunuch in the hall finished speaking, he took quick steps.

"Godfather, godfather."

Zheng He was tidying up the Jinshen Palace. Hearing this, he said calmly, "What's the matter that makes you so flustered?"

Relying on his own means, Zheng He has now completely established his foothold among the eunuchs in the imperial palace. He has spies everywhere and has more than ten godsons.

"Xu Huizu wants to ask where the emperor has gone."

Zheng He was stunned for a moment, then waved his hand: "Tell Lord Xu that the emperor is not in the palace."

The eunuch in the palace asked cautiously: "Don't you need to say anything else?"

Zheng He squinted at him and said, "Let me tell you, you are the emperor's dog! Your only master is the emperor!"

The eunuch in the palace turned pale with fear and said hurriedly: "Yes, yes, I know." (End of this chapter)