Ming Dynasty: Zhu Biao's younger brother, the most rebellious son in history

"Brother, you're awake. How are you? Did you rest well last night?"

"I'm different from you two. I'm not that delicate. I can fall asleep anywhere as long as I can lie down. I'm not like you two, you're so delicate. You woke up so early. You must have not rested well last night."

"Wrong, second brother, you really misunderstood us. We woke up early because we missed you. Besides, didn't you tell us that the early bird catches the worm?"

After hearing this, Zhu Kai rolled his eyes helplessly.

"Don't you know that the beginning of the day is in the morning?

What I taught you, just remember these plain words and go back with you. But you can't say them in front of your father, otherwise he will say that you are uneducated.

Even though my father himself was illiterate and uneducated, he was very strict about the education of us sons. Knowledge changes destiny, and you have forgotten that. "

"How could we possibly forget what Second Brother said? We keep it in mind all the time. Also, remember what you said about establishing the Tianxia Academy. When we return, we will definitely find an opportunity to mention it in front of Father."

"I thought your brains had turned to mush while riding on the road, but I didn't expect you to remember this incident so clearly."

Zhu Chong smiled and said.

"Brother, you are such a good joker. How could I be so stupid? I remember every word you said. I dare not forget it at all."

Zhu Gang also joined in.

"Honest words are hard to hear, but what Second Brother said was all for our own good. I'm afraid that in this world, apart from Father and Mother, you are the only one who treats us the best."

Zhu Kai smiled and patted his two younger brothers gently on the shoulders.

In fact, Zhu Kai still likes these two younger brothers very much, but now they are still young and not so eager for the position of crown prince. They also don’t think that he, as an older brother, will become a threat to them one day.

But as they get older, their desire for power becomes stronger.

By then, it would be hard to say whether the brothers would still have the same feelings towards each other.

Therefore, Zhu Kai has always been on guard against his two younger brothers, even though he knows that they have no ability to defend themselves against their ambitions.

"Where's Zhu Di? Have you seen him?"

"He must have gotten up a long time ago. He usually goes to the barracks and lives with the soldiers. How could he sleep in in the barracks? He must be more diligent than the rest of us."

"It's good that you know. I certainly don't suspect that he slept in. I just want to know where he went."

Just at this moment, Zhu Di came over from the stable.

Zhu Kai saw Zhu Di in the sunlight. He had a tall and straight figure and a handsome face. Didn’t he look like a sunny young man?
"Second brother, third brother, fourth brother, you are up so early."

"Old Fifth, you seem to have gotten up earlier than the rest of us. Are you going? What are you doing over there? Aren't there servants feeding the horses? Do you, a prince of the Ming Dynasty, have to do this kind of rough work yourself?"

Before Zhu Di could answer, Zhu Kai saw the dark circles under his eyes and guessed that he probably had not slept all night and had been watching over the stable.

"Old Five, you look very tired. The dark circles under your eyes are almost as big as a giant panda's."

"what?"

"What are black eyes? What are pandas?"

"You'll know if you look in the mirror. It's like you're possessed by a ghost. Did you not sleep all night?"

Zhu Di then understood what Zhu Kai meant, and he lowered his head and smiled.

"Second brother is really insightful. I really didn't sleep the whole night."

Zhu Gang said in shock.

"Zhu Di, are you an owl or a hawk? Why don't you sleep all night? Do you know that we have to travel all day? Can you hold on?"

"I really didn't dare to sleep. It's better to be cautious in this remote place. I stayed at the stable all night, afraid that someone would attack our horses.

If they had poisoned the horses, or even given them laxatives, they wouldn't have been able to leave today. If we were to delay our journey, what difference would that make us disobeying an imperial decree?"

Zhu Di was very thoughtful. Zhu Kai was not surprised by his actions because he knew that Zhu Di was usually a very cautious person and it was not surprising at all that he could do these things.

When Zhu Chong heard this, he began to admire Zhu Di a little.

"Old Five, you are indeed very thoughtful. I didn't tell you about this matter, but you were able to think of it. I am also very touched.

But, aren't there many Jinyiwei guarding here? Do we need to ask you to go and watch it in person?"

"There are too many people and too many eyes. The Jinyiwei are not the ones who obey the orders of the second brother, and most of the people in it are people we have never seen or know.

You can know a person’s face but not his heart. Who knows if someone will attack him from behind?

Money makes the world go round. It is normal for those people in the court who did not plot to murder my second brother to want to bribe the Jinyiwei with money.

In this remote place, they would ride away on horseback immediately after poisoning the person, without anyone noticing, so they would definitely get away.

By then, it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack for us to find someone.

Therefore, it is better to take preventive measures, eliminate these things in the bud, control everything I can think of, and ensure everyone's safety within my controllable range."

"Yes, if someone really wants to do something in this wilderness, they can easily run away. There are no surveillance equipment and no Sky Eye system at this time. How can we find them?"

Everyone was surprised to hear Zhu Kai say these words and nouns they didn't understand, but these people seemed to have gotten used to it a long time ago.

At this time, Wang Baobao also came down from upstairs. Seeing Zhu Kai and the others standing below, he felt a little embarrassed. How could he rest for such a long time with his status and position?
"Oh, Your Majesty, I'm so sorry. Maybe I got up a little too late and delayed your trip."

"You don't have to think so. We are not in a hurry to leave. We haven't had breakfast yet. Besides, you came from the grassland to our Central Plains, so it is certain that you will have some problems with the climate and environment.

Take more time to rest, and don't feel guilty. If I can't tolerate this, we won't be close friends."

Mao Xiang also walked out of the post station at this time. When he came in, he seemed to be exhausted. Where had he been so early in the morning?
"My Lord, you are all awake now."

"Mao Xiang, you went out so early?" Mao Xiang also noticed Zhu Kai's confusion, and he quickly explained his behavior.

"Oh, I think the weather is good today, so let's go out and explore the way, and then arrange for the people around us to protect you. Fortunately, there are no bandits or the like outside."

"Have you seen General Lan Yu?"

"He has been outside, trying to check if there are any bandits. After all, we are about to pass through a forest, and we have to climb over the mountain before we can walk on a flat road.

Fortunately, the weather is good today, it won’t rain, and the mountain road is not muddy and difficult to walk on, so Your Highness can rest assured.

By the way, have you guys not eaten yet? Let’s go in and eat first. The waiter has prepared everything.”

Mao Xiang's consideration was quite thoughtful, and Zhu Kai could be said to admire his thoughts.

However, he always felt that this guy seemed to be doing something he didn't know about, such as passing information to the court.

There are Jinyiwei people along the way. In addition to protecting themselves, they are also monitoring them.

This shows that Zhu Yuanzhang is worried about himself. Zhu Kai felt a little chilled when he thought of this.

After all, he could be considered Zhu Yuanzhang's biological son, and he was a brother of the Crown Prince Zhu Biao.

It’s just that Zhu Yuanzhang was indeed a little partial. No matter who it was, no matter how outstanding any of his sons was, in his heart, none of them could compare to the status of Crown Prince Zhu Biao.

While Zhu Kai was thinking, General Lan Yu walked in from outside. He was wearing armor and the sound of iron striking could be heard when he walked.

"General Lan Yu, I guess you didn't get enough rest last night. Come in and have some breakfast. We have to rush back to the capital before dusk today.

Today's schedule is a bit too rushed, you must eat and drink enough before setting off, otherwise it would be bad if you encounter bandits blocking the road in the mountains. "

"Second brother, you don't have to worry so much. What kind of bandits dare to stop the prince of the Ming Dynasty? Are they willing to die?"

"Once people are on the verge of despair, who cares about our status? In their eyes, we are just lambs to be slaughtered and chips to be exchanged for money. Who wouldn't want to take a chance if there's an opportunity to gamble?"

After hearing what Zhu Kai said, General Lan Yu hurriedly spoke.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I have been patrolling the area on horseback more than once this morning.

There may be bandits in the mountains, but we have so many troops. They will not dare to attack easily when they see that we are the army of the Ming Dynasty. Even if they are monsters, they will have to get out of the way quickly. "

"General Lan Yu and Lord Mao are here, so what do I have to worry about? Let's go in and have dinner first."

Zhu Gang also wanted to perform well in front of Zhu Kai, so he walked to the dining table and took out a silver needle from his arms.

"What are you doing?"

"Take out the silver needle and test it to see if anyone has poisoned the food."

Zhu Kai rolled his eyes helplessly. It's terrible to be uneducated.

When Mao Xiang saw Zhu Gang holding the silver needle, his face changed. After all, this was a question about his ability, and he must be very unhappy.

“Your Highness the Fourth Prince is really worrying too much. This inn was arranged by me.

There are members of our Jinyiwei inside, watching the situation closely without blinking an eye. If anyone dares to poison, then all of us Jinyiwei will be dead. We will have to face the emperor and face death when we return."

Zhu Chong also heard it, and he was very unhappy.

Zhu Chong smiled and quickly came out to smooth things over.

"Mao Xiang, we all believe what you said. My second brother didn't say he doubted you. It's better to be safe than sorry. It's normal for Zhu Gang to do this. Don't think too much about it. After all, you should always be on guard against others."

Zhu Kai thought that even if it was really poisonous, he wouldn't be able to detect anything with just a silver needle.

But this silver needle was not taken out in vain. After all, he had tested out that the commander-in-chief of the Jinyiwei in front of him was unfair and disrespectful to him.

It seems that he is really loyal to Zhu Yuanzhang alone, and he is so arrogant in front of other princes.

Zhu Kai quickly walked up, snatched the silver needle from Zhu Gang's hand, then walked to the side and threw it out the door.

"Brother, what are you doing? Let me test it out. It's no big deal to test it out. No one would feel guilty at this time."

Mao Xiang's face was now darker than charcoal. He immediately went outside to pick up the silver needle.

"Your Majesty, since everyone is worried, let's give it a try. Anyway, we are very confident in our arrangements, so there is no harm in giving it a try.

What the princes said makes sense. We should be on guard against others. Besides the princes, there are also people from the Mongolian tribe. If there is any problem, no one will be able to say anything. "

Zhu Kai had no idea what Mao Xiang would do under the instructions of Zhu Yuanzhang.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang did not like Wang Baobao in his heart, after all, he was once his enemy, but Wang Baobao had now surrendered to the Ming Dynasty, which meant that he would rise and fall at Zhu Yuanzhang's feet.

He would enjoy the feeling of having others submit to him, and he also had to see who Wang Baobao really was in order to save his life.

Even if he really wanted to kill him, that would be after he met him. He would never do it at this time.

Anyone who wants to attack Wang Baobao at this time must be his enemy.

"Master Mao, you don't have to be so excited. I know what's going on with this matter.

And there is nothing you can test out with just this silver needle.

This silver needle may not be able to detect all poisons, it can only detect arsenic.

There are countless kinds of poisons in the world. How can you guarantee that the person who wants to poison someone is using arsenic?"

After Zhu Kai said this, everyone present was stunned. Zhu Kai himself felt helpless and thought to himself that he should teach these guys a chemistry lesson.

"But the palace uses silver needles for testing. Second brother, you are now questioning whether these silver needles can detect all poisons." (End of this chapter)