Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 48 Zhu Yuanzhang’s reward!

The noisy scene immediately quieted down.

The soldiers dared not move anymore.

In the darkness, a eunuch walked slowly towards us, holding an imperial edict.

Yang Jing, Yuan Tai and Zhou Zhiqing were all important officials in the court. Naturally, they recognized this eunuch, who was the old man who often followed His Majesty. They could not lie, so they all knelt down immediately.

Zhu Yunhuan also followed suit and saluted.

The eunuch unfolded the imperial edict in his hand and read:
"The Emperor, by the Mandate of Heaven, proclaims: Yunhu, you recently presented a mimeograph drum machine to the Emperor. The Emperor is very pleased. You have made a great contribution to the Ming Dynasty!"

"That day you said you wanted to publish a newspaper, and I agreed. But that was also a public matter, and it couldn't be considered a reward."

"I forgot about it then, and only remembered it today."

"You are good at writing poetry and prose, but your martial arts skills are lacking. Governing the world requires literary virtues, but quelling disasters requires martial arts."

"Today I give you a precious sword, and I want you to remember that both civil and military affairs should not be abandoned."

"With this sword in hand, you can command all officials, dispatch troops, and act as you see fit."

"If anyone disobeys my orders, below the third rank, you are allowed to execute him first and report to me later."

"Third rank and above may also be arrested first and then convicted. I decree this!"

Listening to the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict reading the plain language in a hoarse voice, Zhu Yunhuan couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth several times.

Old Zhu's imperial edict was really written in a unique style.

However, it can also be seen that this imperial edict must have been written by Zhu Yuanzhang himself.

It was not done through the hands of any ministers, nor was it done by anyone else to polish or revise it.

In his imperial edict, Zhu Yuanzhang did not even mention the arrest of Lan Yu, but simply rewarded him with a precious sword.

This made Zhu Yunhuan somewhat confused.

Why did Lao Zhu deliberately avoid this matter?

Doesn’t Mr. Zhu know this yet?

This is impossible!
In the city of Jinling, any slight disturbance could not escape the eyes and ears of Zhu.

Not to mention something so big happened!

After the eunuch finished reading the edict, he saw that Zhu Yunhuan did not say anything, so he hurriedly whispered, "Your Highness, Prince Wu, please accept the edict!"

Zhu Yunhuan came back to his senses and said hurriedly, "Sun Chen accepts the order! Long live the emperor!"

The eunuch who delivered the imperial edict handed over a brocade box containing a precious sword.

Zhu Yunhuan took it in his hands, opened the box and took out the sword.

With a "swish" sound, he gently pulled out half of the blade.

The cold light reflected the surrounding flames, dazzling the eyes.

"What a good sword!" Zhu Yunhuan couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

With the smelting level and casting technology of this era, it is definitely not easy to forge such a precious sword.

I didn't expect that Lao Zhu would suddenly reward me with a sword and grant me such great power.

Zhu Yunxun put the blade back into the sheath, looked at Yang Jing, Yuan Tai, and Zhou Zhiqing, and said with a smile:
"Grandpa Emperor gave me this sword to command all officials and dispatch troops. Do as you see fit. Will you obey my orders?"

"Do you still want to rob people?"

The three of them looked at each other, saluted and said, "I dare not!"

The emperor suddenly rewarded the king of Wu with a precious sword at this time and granted him the power to act at his discretion. The meaning was obvious.

That is, they are not allowed to interfere with the King of Wu's arrest of Lan Yu.

"Since you don't dare, then get out of here!" Zhu Yunhuan said coldly.

The three of them didn't dare to say another word and left in disgrace with their soldiers.

He came with great arrogance, but left in a miserable state.

Zhu Yunhuan looked into the darkness in the distance, his eyes flickering, but he didn't say anything more.

He did not get entangled with Yuan Tai, Yang Jing and Zhou Zhiqing, and did not punish them on the spot, because he had other plans in mind.

In court struggles, it is important to use gentleness to overcome hardness.

The strike must be ruthless, accurate and swift, just like hitting a snake at its most vulnerable point, and you must make sure that the strike is effective in one go.

Otherwise, don't act rashly.

Of course, what happened tonight will not end so easily.

He is a prince, and if he does not seek redress after being oppressed like this, it will be difficult for him to gain a foothold in the court in the future.

Does he really think anyone can bully him?
However, this matter cannot be rushed.

There must be other people hiding behind these three people.

Only after a thorough investigation can we take action.

Unconsciously, Zhu Yunhuan had a deeper understanding of the court struggles.

Tolerance and recklessness, gentleness and ruthlessness are often not contradictory, but complement each other.

After the troops of the three judicial departments and the Ministry of Justice had all withdrawn, he said to the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict: "Thank you for your hard work, eunuch. Fortunately, you came in time, otherwise, I really don't know what to do."

"In fact, this servant has already arrived!"

The eunuch who delivered the decree raised his orchid finger and said, "I have been following behind, quietly, Your Highness."

Why didn't you come earlier to convey your order? Why did you show up at the last minute? Are you trying to have fun with me?
As if knowing what he was thinking, the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict explained: "When I left the palace to deliver the imperial edict, His Majesty specifically instructed me to do so."

"If Your Highness cannot successfully capture Duke Lan Yu of Liang, then there is no need to pass on this decree."

"You must wait until Your Highness captures the Duke of Liang and brings him to the Prince of Wu's mansion, and then no court officials come to cause trouble, before you can issue an order to grant the precious sword."

Zhu Yunhuan narrowed his eyes slightly.

Did Lao Zhu specifically instruct you?
He changed his mind and quietly told the people around him to go to the mansion and get a large stack of banknotes.

There was no way, he really had no money on him.

With Zhu Yunhuan's status and position, he didn't need to carry any money with him when he went out.

Only when facing the eunuch sent by Zhu Yuanzhang to convey his imperial edict would he personally give the treasure notes.

"This...this...I dare not accept this!" When the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict saw Zhu Yunhuan stuffing a thick stack of treasure banknotes into his hand, he repeatedly refused.

He looked extremely embarrassed and almost cried.

With a plop, the eunuch who delivered the imperial decree knelt down and said, "Your Highness, King Wu, please spare this slave!"

This sudden reaction surprised Zhu Yunhuan.

Suddenly, it occurred to me that Lao Zhu has always hated corruption and bribery.

The punishment is extremely severe.

The Ming Dynasty at this time was not the rampant and corrupt Ming Dynasty of later generations.

At that time in the Ming Dynasty, although not all officials were honest, not many people dared to openly accept bribes, let alone accept a bribe from the emperor's grandson!
If this gets to Old Zhu's ears, he will have his skin peeled off and his tendons pulled out.

"Grandpa Emperor has rewarded me with a precious sword. I am happy and will reward you with some money."

Zhu Yunhuan helped the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict to his feet and said, "This is not bribery, what are you afraid of?"

"I am the great King of Wu, the grandson of your majesty. How can I bribe you?"

"I will explain today's reward to Grandfather Emperor, and I will never punish you."

The eunuch who delivered the imperial edict held the treasure banknotes and asked tremblingly, "Is this really all right?"

Zhu Yunxun smiled and said, "It's okay! Grandpa Emperor never said that you can't accept the reward, right?"

"If you are afraid, you can report this to Grandpa Emperor after you return to the palace."

The eunuch who delivered the imperial edict then said, "Then I would like to thank His Highness the King of Wu for his generous gift."

He carefully put away the treasured banknotes and put them in his arms.

The look of anxiety on his face gradually turned into a hint of joy.

Although they were close attendants to the emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang was always very harsh to his servants.

The eunuch who delivered the imperial edict had a low income and did not dare to take bribes, so he lived a very hard life.

I unexpectedly got some money today, and I couldn't help but feel happy.

Then, he leaned over to Zhu Yunhuan's ear and whispered in a very low voice, "Your Majesty seems unhappy today and has lost his temper. Your Highness the Prince of Wu will be careful when he enters the palace tomorrow."

Is Mr. Zhu unhappy today?
Is it because of the incident of me catching Lan Yu?

But, that’s not right!

If this were true, he would not have sent eunuchs to convey his imperial decree, bestowing him with a precious sword and granting him great power.

But if not, why?

Zhu Yunhuan simply asked, "Does the eunuch know what it is?"

"I don't know about this." The eunuch who delivered the imperial edict said, "I will take my leave first!"

After seeing off the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict, Zhu Yunhuan returned to the mansion.

Then he saw Yang Shiqi standing in the yard waiting.

"Congratulations to Your Highness, congratulations to Your Highness!"

As soon as he saw him, Yang Shiqi congratulated him first.

Zhu Yunhuan stroked the precious sword with his hand, feeling quite proud, and said, "Thanks to Mr. Yang's guidance, I was able to receive the reward from Grandfather Emperor. Mr. Yang has made an indelible contribution this time!"

Zhu Yunhuan was indeed very satisfied with Yang Shiqi.

Let’s not talk about his ability to govern the country for now. Zhu Yunhuan didn’t need him to have such ability anyway.

Zhu Yunhuan had his own ideas on how to govern the country.

He used Yang Shiqi mainly to borrow his ability to fight in the court.

This is what Zhu Yunhuan lacks most at the moment.

After all, this person was an extremely rare person in history who served as a cabinet minister for forty years and remained untouchable for five dynasties!

When it comes to court struggles, it is no exaggeration to say that he has a "congenital holy body".

Sure enough, Yang Shiqi did not disappoint him.

Only he could come up with the idea of arresting Lan Yu without asking for permission.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang had hinted at it long ago, Zhu Yunhuan had never thought of it.

When he saw Yang Shiqi at this time, he was very happy and praised him.

Unexpectedly, Yang Shiqi smiled and shook his head, saying: "Your Highness, don't be too happy too soon."

"Although this precious sword is good, it is a little hot!"

(End of this chapter)