Daming: Brother, there is no future for monks, let's rebel

In the shadows, where no one could see them, a dozen or so eunuchs in brocade robes moved silently, their daggers and ropes hidden in their sleeves like snakes that never saw the light.

Gu Qingping raised her cup and took a small sip, her gaze sweeping across the room.

She saw a wisp of almost imperceptible white mist mixed with the fragrance of osmanthus drifting swiftly in the direction of the Xilan Hall.

The mist carried a very faint bitterness, but it was quickly masked by a sweet aroma.

She nodded almost imperceptibly, and Zhu Han immediately exchanged a glance with her across the distance.

Huang Qi swept from the side corridor to the center of the courtyard, pretending to tidy up the lampposts, secretly holding a silver bean in his hand.

The silver bean touched the ground silently, but a faint blue flame quickly ignited in the crack in the stone before going out.

The flames turned to smoke when they met the wind, casually blending into the fragrance of osmanthus, carrying a very light hint of borneol.

A moment later, the white mist beside the palace dissipated upon encountering the dragon's brain, leaving only the scent of fragrant herbs.

Zhu Yuanzhang was chatting and laughing with an old minister when he suddenly noticed that the fragrance had become stronger. He turned his head and asked, "Why has the fragrance been changed? It's quite spicy now."

The young eunuch standing by hurriedly replied in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, it is a newly developed aromatic fragrance from the Imperial Pharmacy, which can refresh the mind and invigorate the spleen."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and stopped asking questions. He picked up a piece of osmanthus cake with his chopsticks and smiled at Zhu Biao: "Crown Prince, come and try this dessert. I remember that you have loved it since you were a child, so I ordered the kitchen to make it specially."

Zhu Biao rose to express his gratitude and picked up the jade plate.

Gu Qingping turned to the side and whispered, "Your Highness, please wait a moment. I have a poem to accompany my dance. I would like Your Highness to compose a matching poem to enhance the banquet."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed heartily: "Good, good! The Crown Princess is very thoughtful."

As the music began, Gu Qingping slowly walked to the center of the stage, her long sleeves like wisps of smoke.

She began by reciting in her clear, melodious voice: "The autumn sounds of the Milky Way are urgent, the moon is cold on the cassia terrace."

She then tossed several soft, colorful ribbons from her sleeve. The ribbons missed their mark, but were suddenly lifted by a current of air from the shadows, transforming into five-colored swirling patterns, like a celestial vortex turning. The candlelight in the hall illuminated the ribbons, and applause erupted.

As the music ended, Gu Qingping bowed in thanks. Zhu Yuanzhang clapped his hands and said loudly, "The Crown Princess truly lives up to her reputation! Here, bestow upon her a pair of mandarin duck hairpins."

The eunuch presented the hairpin, and Gu Qingping knelt to thank him before returning to her seat.

She breathed a sigh of relief, but her fingertips under her sleeves were already slightly sweaty—the ribbon mechanism needed to be borrowed from the empty whirlwind bag, and if there was the slightest mistake, it would fall to the ground and reveal its flaw; fortunately, no one noticed.

Zhu Han turned his head and whispered, "Well done."

Gu Qingping replied softly, "I dare not take credit. The hidden fragrance has been dispelled; let's see what other tricks they have up their sleeves."

Zhu Han drank his wine in silence, but his gaze fell on a tall, slender woman among the ladies of the Zhaowen Hall outside the hall. The woman smiled, seemingly focused on watching, but her eyes kept glancing towards the Xilan Hall.

Suddenly, a night breeze blew up the palace lanterns, and a spark fell onto the grass.

The female historian was momentarily distracted, and her fingertips swiftly flicked the silk cord hidden in her sleeve.

Zhu Han's eyes turned cold, giving Huang Qi a subtle hint.

Huang Qi understood and suddenly darted out from behind the artificial hill, a short flute-like bone whistle in his hand, which he blew sharply into the air.

The extremely faint whistle pierced through the music and went straight to the lady's ears. She suddenly turned pale and clutched her chest as if she were about to collapse.

Those around her assumed she was unwell, and several palace maids quickly helped her up.

Zhu Han spoke from afar: "The talented lady of Zhaowen Pavilion is unparalleled in elegance. She has had a long journey overnight, so please take good care of her and do not disturb the banquet."

After he finished speaking, the eunuch in brocade robes immediately went to help the female historian and escorted her to a side hall to rest.

She staggered, her face ashen, as if she knew she couldn't escape the trap.

Deep into the night.

The lights flickered in the secret chamber of the Prince's mansion. The lady-in-waiting from the Zhaowen Pavilion was bound to a pillar, her once slender wrists now bearing bloody marks. Huang Qi stood beside her, expressionless.

Zhu Han approached, unfolded a sheet of plain paper covered with fine handwriting, and asked calmly, "Your name is Qiao Nian. You lost your father at a young age, and your mother's family is a branch of the Lu family. Lu Jian adopted you for twelve years, sent you to the academy, and recommended you to Zhaowen Hall, right?"

Qiao Nian's lips trembled, but she bit them hard and remained silent.

"Alright." Zhu Han sighed softly and handed the paper to Huang Qi. "Go and have the Imperial Hospital fetch thirty medical silver needles. Don't get her clothes dirty; these clothes were bestowed by the palace and will fade."

Qiao Nian finally felt fear and slowly raised her eyes, but still tried to remain calm: "Your Highness... what does Your Highness want?"

Zhu Han smiled gently: "I want you to tell me what he plans to do next."

Qiao Nian kept her eyes closed and didn't answer. Huang Qi had already taken out the needles; the first one was heated in the lamplight, its silvery light turning white. As the needle tip approached, Qiao Nian instantly broke down, her voice shattering: "No—I'll talk!"

Zhu Han raised his hand to stop Huang Qi: "Speak."

Qiao Nian burst into tears, unable to speak coherently: "Lord Lu... said that if the lantern festival fails, they should take advantage of the chaos caused by the lanterns and drums on His Majesty's return to the palace to launch a sneak arrow... behind the Crown Prince! If the Crown Prince is startled and loses his composure, they can take the opportunity... take the opportunity to question the virtue of the Crown Prince..."

Zhu Han's eyes turned cold: "Shoot him in the back? What a clever plan."

Qiao Nian sobbed, "The arrow was coated with a sleeping potion; it would only make him faint, not kill him... He said that this way, His Majesty would be suspicious, and the crime wouldn't be punished too severely..."

Zhu Han asked in a deep voice, "Who else is cooperating?"

Qiao Nian trembled as she recited the names of several mid-level officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Outside the Qianqing Palace, the palace lanterns had been extinguished, leaving only the silver moonlight dripping cold light from the eaves.

Zhu Han sat alone in a secret room in the Prince's mansion. On the table lay all the intelligence he had obtained from Qiao Nian, the edges of the papers curled up by the candlelight.

Huang Qi knelt down on one knee: "Your Highness, Tingdao has already laid an ambush, and the plan of using cold arrows... I dare say that none of them will succeed tonight."

Zhu Han shook his head: "If they are willing to let this situation fall apart, then they are not worthy of my efforts."

A cold glint flashed in his eyes as he ordered, "Go, arrest Lu Jian's cronies—Peng Zhao, the principal of the Ministry of Rites; Zheng Bin, the centurion of the Embroidered Uniform Guard; and Yu Mo, the clerk of the Ministry of Revenue—tonight. Don't make too much of a fuss; no one is to know before tomorrow morning."

Huang Qi accepted the order and left.

Zhu Han glanced at the diagrams on the table and tapped them lightly with his fingertips: "And Lu Jian—he won't sit idly by and wait to die. Keep an eye on his backyard. If he makes any move after midnight, don't let anyone leave the city."

A short while later, the bronze bell in the corner of the wall chimed three times softly. The sound of the royal palace's secret sirens rang out.

“Your Highness,” a black-clad spy reported, kneeling on the ground, “very few lights were lit in the Lu family’s inner quarters tonight, except for the study. An old woman dressed in white entered just now, claiming to be Lu Jian’s wet nurse. Half a moment later, a servant was dressed as the old woman and rode out of the city through the back gate.”

Zhu Han sneered: "Swapping the old for the young, what a clever trick."

He stood up, put on his cloak, and said, "Let's go and personally greet this 'messenger' sent by Lord Lu."

Outside the south gate of the capital, a dilapidated temple has been abandoned for many years. The clay statues of bodhisattvas inside are mottled, and the incense table is deserted.

The "old woman" servant hurriedly lifted the cover of the secret passage behind the Buddha statue, intending to put the secret letter into a ceramic pot.

"Moving so fast." A cold male voice suddenly rang out.

The servant was shocked and turned to run away, but he was kicked to the ground by Huang Qi as soon as he took a step.

Zhu Han walked into the temple gate and bent down to pick up the letter that had not yet been put in.

In the firelight, he unfolded the paper and glimpsed several lines of meticulously written small characters:
"If the plan fails, we must abandon the pawn. We should prepare in advance: the autumn offering and the Southern Examination will proceed as before—be vigilant and thorough investigative. For those who have not yet arrived, use Guixiang as their signal."

Zhu Han's gaze turned cold: "The Southern Examination... is it targeting the Censorate?" Huang Qi: "Your Highness, Zhou Zhen is a censor in the Censorate. He offended several people in the Ministry of War by impeaching the Beijing Garrison's account books case. Recently, there have been rumors that he has been 'targeted'."

Zhu Han squinted at the letter and said in a deep voice, "Lu Jian is planning to step down from the Crown Prince's side and instead shake the foundation of the court. He wants to set up a scheme to clean up the censors."

Huang Qi gritted his teeth: "Should I arrest Lu Jian immediately?"

“No.” Zhu Han folded the letter and put it in his sleeve. “Tomorrow morning, His Majesty will ask about the Moon Banquet. I need to show him irrefutable evidence. This letter—is not enough.”

He pondered for a moment: "Lu Jian's protectors are not only old acquaintances in the court, but also the salt transport network in Jiangxi... I must expose him before His Majesty, and I must proceed step by step. If I kill one to scare the other, I can wipe them all out tomorrow."

Huang Qi nodded: "Then this servant boy—"

Zhu Han waved his sleeve: "Capture him alive, silence him, and imprison him in the West Garden."

The next day at dawn, in the imperial study, Zhu Yuanzhang stood with his hands behind his back by the window, watching the old locust tree in the courtyard sway gently.

Several cabinet ministers stood respectfully to his side, all with solemn expressions.

Zhu Biao and Zhu Han entered the hall a step behind. Zhu Yuanzhang turned around and glanced at the two of them.

"Did you two notice anything unusual at last night's moon banquet?"

Zhu Biao turned his gaze to Zhu Han. Zhu Han bowed slightly and said loudly, "There is indeed unusual activity."

He took out the secret letter and presented it with both hands.

Zhu Yuanzhang took the letter, his brow furrowing from the very first sentence. After reading it, he sneered and slammed the letter on the table: "Lu Jian—how dare you!"

The officials in the hall all paled. Grand Secretary Li Shanwen couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, is Lu Jian, the Minister of Rites, suspected of treason?"

“It’s not treason,” Zhu Han said calmly. “What he did was manipulate the political climate and plot to seize the throne. He first set up a trap before the Crown Prince’s banquet, and tonight he plotted at the Censorate, trying to cut off His Majesty’s eyes and ears and to taint the Crown Prince’s favor again.”

Zhu Yuanzhang's face darkened, and he hissed, "With such cunning, how dare he wield the power of the Ministry of Rites?!"

Zhu Biao immediately stepped forward and knelt down: "Father, your son is unworthy and was almost taken advantage of. I am extremely ashamed."

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at him for a long time before finally saying slowly, "Your virtue is protected by others; your shortcomings are also covered up for you. But you yourself—you must know that this cover-up is not a permanent solution."

He turned to Zhu Han: "If you hadn't handled things well last night, we would have lost this round."

Zhu Han lowered his head and smiled: "Your Majesty, I am merely acting in accordance with the law and dare not make any rash judgments. Lu Jian should be arrested, but he should be uprooted even more."

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed, "He has been in court for more than 20 years and has a wide-ranging influence. If we move against him today, it will probably cause a huge upheaval."

“That’s why we need to be quick, accurate, and ruthless,” Zhu Han said calmly. “If he makes the first move, the consequences will be even greater.”

Li Shanwen bowed and said, "Your Majesty, if you wish to investigate Lu Jian, please allow us to jointly investigate his crimes of privately dispatching messengers and possessing secret orders with the Censorate."

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand: "No need for further discussion. The Crown Prince has not yet rendered meritorious service as the military supervisor, but the Prince has already established his authority. Therefore, Brother Han shall handle this case with full authority. Minister Li, you only need to cooperate."

Li Shanwen nodded in surprise: "Your subject obeys the decree."

Zhu Biao remained kneeling, his head still raised, when he heard Zhu Yuanzhang say, "Get up. From now on, you will discuss political affairs with the Prince every five days. I want you to learn his methods of planning and decision-making."

Zhu Biao's eyes gleamed, and he responded softly.

At sunset, Lu Jian was secretly invited out of the Ministry of Rites.

Unbeknownst to anyone, that very night a hundred soldiers from the southern garrison of the capital were suddenly dispatched under the pretext of "night training," and they did not return all night.

Rumors circulated among spies at several princely mansions in the capital: Prince Zhu had cracked the case with an iron fist, all the servants of the Lu family had been arrested, the study had been sealed, the secret accounts had been confiscated, and even Lu Jian's second son had been taken away.

The wind suddenly became stronger.

After the night wind passed, Zhu Han sat alone in the study of the Prince's mansion. The moonlight outside the window was like water, and the candlelight inside flickered. Gu Qingping suddenly arrived, draped in a light veil, and entered the room with a lamp.

“Your Highness,” she whispered, “His Majesty summoned me to the palace, saying he wanted to inquire about the details of what he heard at the Moon Banquet.”

Zhu Han slightly raised his eyelids, his gaze lingering on her face for a moment: "Are you afraid?"

Gu Qingping smiled and shook her head: "I'm not afraid. On the contrary, I want to use this opportunity to return the favor I owed."

Zhu Han chuckled: "You're even more composed than I thought."

Gu Qingping smiled faintly: "Because I understand that only if I don't lose myself can Biao'er stand firm. And you... must stay by his side."

He nodded, stood up, and straightened the gauze dress on her shoulders: "Go. Huang Qi will take care of you in the palace. I'll wait for you to return in the study tonight."

Inside the Chengqian Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang leaned back on the couch, his thumb lightly stroking the sandalwood cup lid, but his eyes were fixed on the woman kneeling on one knee in the hall.

Gu Qingping lowered her eyes and spoke in a gentle voice: "Your Majesty's question about the Moon Banquet is something I dare not conceal."

"I thought it would be a feast for moon-viewing and music-enjoying, but who knew that so many schemes were hidden inside."

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at her for a long time without saying a word. He was always good at distinguishing truth from falsehood, and although the woman's words were somewhat veiled, she did not deny them.

"Did you examine closely the dish of plum wine that Lu Jian handed over at the banquet?" he suddenly asked.

Gu Qingping calmly said, "The brew was indeed laced with something, but in such a small amount that it would be difficult for anyone but someone with a discerning eye to detect it. Before I drank it, I took a sniff and noticed a medicinal aroma in the fragrance, so I only moistened my lips without tasting it."

"Why not expose it on the spot?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked tentatively.

She raised her head, her eyes clear: "Your Majesty, if this were to happen on the spot, with so many dignitaries at the banquet, the Crown Prince would surely lose face. Lu Jian has set this up to disrupt our plans. Thinking of this, I have suppressed my fear and will leave the matter to the Prince for judgment afterward."

Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes flashed, and a cold smile appeared on his lips: "You're quite composed."

Gu Qingping kowtowed again: "This is merely a woman's opinion, but the Crown Prince is my husband, and the Eastern Palace is the foundation. What use is it if I cannot safeguard his dignity and the situation?"

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at him for a long time, then suddenly laughed and said, "Your words are better than those of several strategists. The Crown Prince is fortunate to have you."

He put down his cup and said, "From now on, you will come to the palace often. I also need someone with keen eyes and a keen mind by my side."

Gu Qingping bowed her head in agreement, said no more, and politely withdrew.

The night was still young in the Prince's mansion library.

Zhu Han sat down at the desk, wearing a robe. The bronze lamp was dim. Huang Qi came from outside to report:

"Your Highness, Consort Gu has returned."

Zhu Han nodded slightly: "Tell her to rest. She's had a rough time tonight, I won't see her."

Huang Qi hesitated for a moment: "She said... she wanted to personally report the details of the palace to the prince and did not want others to relay them."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Han stood up and walked towards the side hall. Gu Qingping stood in the hall, her eyes slightly red from the night breeze.

"What did Your Majesty say?" Zhu Han asked.

"They said they wanted me to frequently enter the palace to accompany the emperor."

Zhu Han was slightly taken aback, then smiled: "Your Majesty, this is also a reward. You've accepted it?"

Gu Qingping smiled: "Of course I agree. No matter how many things come up, I will still agree." (End of Chapter)