The Ming Dynasty: The most ruthless imperial grandson, Old Zhu begged me not to kill him.

Chapter 198 Zhu Biao's Wish

Throughout history, sons have always assisted their fathers; who would have thought that today the roles would be reversed?

She needed to support her son and didn't need to concern herself with this matter.

If it's done well, it's my son's; if it's done poorly, it's my fault.

The thought of this filled Crown Prince Zhu Biao with resentment.

Zhu Xiong Ying breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing that he was still in charge of this military exercise, and patted his chest as he spoke.

"Father, rest assured, your son will arrange this matter perfectly, and there will be absolutely no mistakes!"

"Furthermore, I also had Xu Zengshou train a special unit. This unit is my hidden force, and it can play a crucial role in critical moments!"

"At this point, Crown Prince Zhu Biao said angrily."

"How dare you say that? As the grandson of the Ming Dynasty's crown prince, you dare to privately raise an army? Do you intend to rebel?"

Zhu Xiong Ying shook her head.

"My grandfather is the emperor, my father is the crown prince, whose will I rebel against?"

Crown Prince Zhu Biao was speechless for a moment, but after thinking about it carefully, it seemed that this was indeed the case.

The throne will eventually be passed to Zhu Xiong Ying.

There shouldn't be any major problem with increasing our strength now.

Of all his children, Zhu Xiong Ying seems to be the most suitable for that position now.

"This is a one-time thing, and it will not be repeated. If it weren't for Uncle Xu writing a letter to Father Emperor overnight to explain the matter, and with your grandmother vouching for us, Father Emperor and I would probably have already killed our relatives in Yingtianfu for the sake of justice!"

"Oh, right, I just got back and I have to go see Mother first. You'll come with me in a bit!"

Zhu Xiong Ying nodded and was about to leave when he heard Crown Prince Zhu Biao call out.

"stop!"

"How can I face my mother looking like this?"

"Go, find some people to help me wash up, and while you're at it, get me some food!"

Zhu Xiong Ying curled his lip; after all, it was his own family, so he had no choice but to comply.

After Crown Prince Zhu Biao finished washing and dressing, he went to Renshou Palace with Zhu Xiong Ying.

A palace maid witnessed this scene and, after making her way through a maze of twists and turns, arrived at the East Palace and told Lady Lü about it.

Lady Lü looked incredulous upon hearing the news.

"What did you say? His Highness the Crown Prince has returned. How could that be? Doesn't it mean His Highness the Crown Prince is accompanying His Majesty on an inspection tour and won't be back for a long time?"

The palace maid of the Ming Dynasty said in a low voice.

"I saw it with my own eyes, there's absolutely no way it could be wrong!"

Lady Lü was stunned when she heard this, her eyes flashing with resentment.

"Great! His Highness is finally back! Zhu Xiong Ying, let's see what you're going to do this time!"

"Someone, quickly bring Yunwen back! Tell him it's extremely important!"

Empress Ma was extremely excited to see Crown Prince Zhu Biao return.

Although he had many children, he valued the Crown Prince Zhu Biao the most.

"Biao'er, why are you back? Weren't you with your father?"

Crown Prince Zhu Biao said with a smile.

"Father is still inspecting Songjiang Prefecture and will need some time to return. I came back specifically to participate in this military exercise, and I will have to go back after it's over!"

Empress Ma nodded upon hearing this, immediately understanding Zhu Yuanzhang's thoughts. It was simply because Zhu Xiong Ying was too young; if he were to handle this military exercise alone, he might be looked down upon by the envoys of various countries, or they might have other ulterior motives. Therefore, she specifically sent Crown Prince Zhu Biao to oversee the operation.

"Okay, okay, I'm glad you're back!"

"You're out there living rough and windy, so your food and lodging must be less than what you'd find at home. Look how thin you've gotten!"

"Don't go back for dinner tonight. I'll have the kitchen staff prepare some extra food for you and Xiong Ying and his son to have a good meal!"

Crown Prince Zhu Biao chuckled upon hearing this.

"Thank you, Mother. It has been a long time since I have eaten a meal cooked by Mother herself, and I miss it very much!"

Empress Ma personally cooked the meal, and Crown Prince Zhu Biao was somewhat surprised as he listened to Zhu Xiong Ying explain the arrangements for the military exercise.

These arrangements are indeed quite novel; I've never seen them before.

But thinking about it carefully, if it could actually be done, it would be truly extraordinary.

He was greatly surprised when he heard that Zhu Xiong Ying was going to do business with the Northern Yuan people.

"Xiongying, you should think this through. Salt, iron, and tea are all extremely important resources. Smuggling them to the north is punishable by death!"

Zhu Xiong Ying sighed.

Zhu Yuanzhang was indeed very strict in his supervision of this matter.

But those who just want to make money don't care about these things.

They were all a bunch of people who valued money over life, and it's likely that a lot of things would end up in the north every year, with many nobles and officials in the imperial court involved.

The one Zhu Xiong Ying remembered most clearly was Ouyang Lun, the husband of Princess Anqing.

Ouyang Lun was indeed audacious. Not only did he participate in the tea-horse trade with the north, but he also openly beat a tax official to death, which can be described as extremely arrogant.

Zhu Xiong Ying expressed his thoughts, which left Crown Prince Zhu Biao somewhat puzzled.

This was the first time in so long that he had ever heard of wool being used to make clothes. Then Empress Ma came up from behind.

"Don't wrong Xiong Ying about this. What Xiong Ying said is true. Those wool clothes are indeed very warm!"

"I wonder where U.A. got their technology from!"

After saying that, he took out a wool coat from the cabinet next to him and handed it to Prince Zhu Biao.

Crown Prince Zhu Biao touched the woolen garment, his heart filled with shock.

If that's the case, then this wool does indeed have an extremely important function.

"Xiongying, this matter must not be leaked. Otherwise, the tribes on the grasslands might have some ideas. Moreover, the technology of making clothes from wool must not be revealed. This thing is of great significance to our Great Ming!"

Zhu Xiong Ying nodded and said.

"Don't worry, Father, I've already made arrangements for this. I'll have someone take care of it after the military exercise is over!"

"They certainly can't take away what our Great Ming possesses. At the very least, we should let them see the strength of our Great Ming, and they'll probably think twice about whether they dare to make a move in this regard!"

Following that, Crown Prince Zhu Biao inquired about the Japanese envoys and the construction of docks in the southeast.

It must be said that although Zhu Xiong Ying's arrangements seem somewhat bizarre, they are actually quite reasonable.

More importantly, the Ming Dynasty's treasury is now fully capable of supporting the situation, which makes him somewhat depressed.

I originally intended to use this as an excuse to pick a fight with Zhu Xiong Ying.

Zhu Xiong Ying himself had been reprimanded by Zhu Yuan Zhang many times, but he never expected his own son to do something so flawless that he couldn't find anything to say for a moment.

Crown Prince Zhu Biao was unsure whether he should be happy or sad.

(End of this chapter)