Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 98 The destiny has changed! There has never been any truth!

After Old Zhu finished speaking, he said, "Let's go back to the palace!"

Under the close protection of the guards, the carriage quickly left the East Palace and returned to the Imperial Palace.

Besides wanting to test Zhu Yunhuan and let him face the unbearable things in the world and grow up quickly, Zhu actually had other reasons in mind for not doing it himself.

That is for the upcoming court situation.

After waiting for so long, a storm is finally about to break out in the court, and a large part of it is due to the fact that Prince Xian Zhu Yunwen is fanning the flames from behind.

If Old Zhu took action at this time, he would capture Lu with lightning speed.

Zhu Yunhuan took advantage of his injury, and the grandfather and grandson tacitly ignored the affairs of state, and their plan of "luring the snake out of its hole" was ruined.

Officials would be so frightened by the sudden changes that they would not dare to have any other thoughts.

In order for the plan to proceed smoothly, Lao Zhu now needs to continue pretending to be sick and not take care of things.

No matter how angry, sad or upset he is, Lao Zhu can always remain rational and calm.

Don't let your emotions affect you and delay important things.

Another point is that Zhu Yuanzhang still had a little hope for Zhu Yunwen.

It was easy for Zhu to accept that Lu was a bad person.

After all, Lu is an outsider.

But what about Zhu Yunwen?
That's his grandson.

He was the successor to the Ming Empire that he had previously valued.

Is he really that bad?

Old Zhu still didn't give up.

Old Zhu wanted to see whether Zhu Yunwen would commit the heinous crime of fratricide!

Will he participate in Lu's plan?
Or have we been kept in the dark?
From this, we can also judge to a certain extent whether Biaoer’s death is related to him.

After all, the meals cooked by Lu were prepared by Zhu Yunwen and served to Zhu Biao.

Will he kill his father?
Lao Zhu couldn't believe it!

This is also the last bit of stubbornness of an old man, a grandfather.

……

……

……

The city of Jinling is in turmoil.

Just as Yang Shiqi led Zhu Gaoxu to execute a group of officials from the Tongzhengsi and sent their heads to all officials in the capital for viewing, another shocking news came.

At dusk that day, a monk in black, holding a letter from the Regent King Wu, suddenly led troops to seal off the Ministry of Revenue's warehouse and account books without any warning.

I don’t know how many officials stayed awake that night.

Prince Yan's Mansion.

Zhu Di waited anxiously for Yuan Gong to arrive.

"Mr. Yuan!" As soon as they met, Zhu Di couldn't wait to greet him.

Yuan Gong said, "The King of Yan urgently summoned me, but I don't know what it is about?"

"Come on, follow me to the courtyard first."

It was the time when the sun and the moon were about to rotate, and clouds covered the setting sun.

All I could feel was the brightness between heaven and earth gradually dimming.

Zhu Di took Yuan Gong outside and confirmed that there was no one around and there could be no ears. Then he said, "I will not beat around the bush today. Did Mr. Yuan really not see anything when he saw my nephew that day?"

Yuan Gong looked at Zhu Di deeply, with a complicated look in his eyes, and remained silent.

Zhu Di became even more anxious and said, "I am willing to be frank with you, sir. If you have anything to say, just speak up."

Yuan Gong stared at Zhu Di for a long while before saying, "To be honest with you, Your Highness, Prince of Yan, I said it all that night. People like the Prince of Wu should not exist in this world."

"What exactly do you mean by this?" Zhu Di asked.

"The course of nature is constant, but destiny is finite." Yuan Gong stroked his beard and said, "The number of Dayan is fifty, and forty-nine of them are useful. If one is eliminated, there is still a glimmer of hope."

"The fate of the King of Wu is one of these."

"I can't see through it, and I can't understand it."

"If I must say, he could be the emperor or go to jail. His ups and downs are beyond my ability to predict."

Zhu Di frowned and thought for a long time before he said, "When Mr. Yuan first met me, he said that I would be the emperor of peace for twenty years. Now, Mr. Yuan, please take another look at my fate. Has there been any change?"

Yuan Gong was shocked when he heard this.

Fate is determined by heaven, and although changes can occur, they are extremely rare.

The King of Yan asked at this time, probably because another major event had happened.

He stared at Zhu Di's face, his pupils shrank slightly, and after a long while he sighed and said, "The destiny has changed!"

Zhu Di's heart skipped a beat.

The letter that Yao Guangxiao sent to him suddenly came to my mind.

He has always believed in the old monk's abilities.

The old monk would never talk nonsense.

Since he said that, I'm afraid he really can't turn things around!

But I just feel unwilling!
"Your Highness, perhaps it's time to retreat!" Yuan Gong bowed deeply with his hands clasped.

Zhu Di stood there for a long time without saying a word.

After a full quarter of an hour, he said, "Thank you, Mr. Yuan, for telling me. I understand now!"

When you're done, turn around and leave.

Normally he walks as fast as a dragon or a tiger, but today he walks unsteadily, as if he has lost the energy to take big strides.

The sky was half dark and the evening breeze was blowing.

The figure that was gradually moving away had a desolate and miserable look.

The future is blocked and everything is just a mirage. How can I be content?

……

……

……

Prince Wu's Mansion.

It’s time to light the lamps.

Yang Shiqi rushed back with Zhu Gaoxu and more than a thousand memorials confiscated from the Ministry of Public Administration.

Zhu Gaoxu's face was still full of excitement.

The naughty kid showed off his prowess in front of people today, looking very proud of himself.

Zhu Yunxun asked with a smile: "Do you think this is fun, brother Xu?"

Zhu Gaoxu nodded repeatedly and clapped his hands, saying, "It's fun, so fun! Those officials were so scared that their souls flew out of their bodies, and they acted like cowards. It was so fun!"

"Then you just be good and listen to me. I'll call you when there's something fun like this in the future." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile.

I couldn't help but sigh in my heart, children are really easy to trick.

Even though they are very smart and know the interests involved, they do not have the self-control of an adult and cannot control their restless hearts.

Zhu Gaoxu was overjoyed, and immediately patted his chest and promised: "I will obey the orders of my brother, the King of Wu, in the future. Wherever my brother, the King of Wu's sword points, that is the direction I will flatten."

"Okay! You go down and have a rest first." Zhu Yunhuan was very satisfied with the naughty kid's performance.

After Zhu Gaoxu left, Zhu Yunhuan looked at the memorials he had collected and said, "As expected, this is what they were planning."

"I'm afraid I'll have to trouble Mr. Yang to assign some people overnight to sort them all out, categorize them, and copy them for review."

Yang Shiqi smiled and said, "Your Highness, don't worry. We have the manpower ready." "Although there are many memorials here, I guess most of them are trivial matters, or simply congratulations and greetings."

"It's easy to deal with."

"The only thing that needs to be taken seriously is those involving finance and taxation."

"However, now that we have taken the lead and sealed up the Ministry of Revenue's warehouse and account books, we have gained the upper hand."

“But until the books are settled, we still need to be careful.”

“No one knows how big a hole these people have dug here.”

Zhu Yunhuan nodded. At this moment, someone came from outside to report that a young eunuch wanted to see him.

Zhu Yunhuan let him in immediately.

As soon as the young eunuch entered the room, he knelt down and said, "I am Tao Xin'er, a servant in the East Palace. I heard some news today and came to report it to the King of Wu."

Zhu Yunhuan and Yang Shiqi looked at each other.

It was too strange that the eunuch from the Eastern Palace, who worked for Lu, suddenly came to report the news to him.

Next, Tao Xiner reported to Zhu Yunhuan what Lu had said to Huang Zicheng, as well as the possibility that Lu might attack him at the birthday party.

Zhu Yunhuan asked him why he informed him of the news. Tao Xiner said that he admired the King of Wu and could not bear to see him being framed.

He was offered a reward of silver, but he refused it and left in a hurry.

"The people from the Ministry of Inquiry reported that today a carriage left the palace under the strict protection of dozens of imperial guards and headed straight for the East Palace."

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "It seems that it must be the emperor's carriage."

"This Tao Xin'er came to inform on the emperor, which was probably arranged by Grandpa Huang."

"Mr. Yang's strategy has worked."

Yang Shiqi showed a delighted look on his face and said, "After meeting the emperor that day, I knew this was inevitable."

"It's just that the time is hard to determine."

"Today's situation has probably come to an end."

"This is a great time. Your Highness will not have to be restricted in your future work."

Zhu Yunhuan was still a little puzzled and said, "If Lu really had any plan, he would be very careful and not reveal it to the outside world easily. How did the emperor's spy know it so quickly?"

Yang Shiqi stroked his beard and said, "According to what Tao Xin'er said just now, he only heard the vicious words that Lu said to Huang Zicheng. As for what was planned at the birthday party, it is still unknown."

"I just told Your Highness that there would be danger and asked Your Highness to be careful."

"Although Lu's actions are secretive, she has too much resentment in her heart, so she is bound to complain at ordinary times."

"Especially in front of the attendants and confidants around him."

Zhu Yunhuan nodded slightly.

This is human nature.

People can act in front of outsiders, but they can easily reveal their true feelings to those close to them or to confidants they think they can trust.

However, these are just complaints and still not evidence of guilt.

Even if Lao Zhu knew about it, it probably wouldn't be that serious.

After all, Zhu Yunhuan was indeed trying to seize the position of crown prince from Lu's son Zhu Yunwen.

It is normal for the Lu family to have complaints about this.

Yang Shiqi knew the doubts in his heart and said, "I think your majesty discovered something when he was investigating the late crown prince, the eldest grandson, and Concubine Chang!"

Zhu Yunhuan was surprised and said, "I didn't find any clues at that time, but now I found the problem so quickly, isn't it impossible?"

With the level of technology in this era, it is unlikely that the problem will be found by re-investigating the original case.

"Suspicions are just doubts." Yang Shiqi said, "When Your Majesty has no doubts, those doubts are not problems."

"Once suspicion arises, just a little suspicion is enough to put her to death."

"For example, when the former crown prince was seriously ill, did she serve him tea and food, or even cook for him herself?"

Zhu Yunxun was stunned and said, "Is there any problem with this? After all, they are husband and wife. The husband is seriously ill, so it is only natural for the wife to do these things!"

"If your majesty doesn't doubt her, there will be no problem." Yang Shiqi smiled faintly, "If your majesty doubts her, then these meals and teas will bypass the East Palace Food Bureau and the Imperial Hospital. Who can say that there will be no problem?"

"But there was no sign that my father was poisoned at that time." Zhu Yunhuan was still puzzled.

"It's not important!" Yang Shiqi said, "The prince's body is worth a fortune, so it's impossible for him to open the coffin and do an autopsy again."

"The eldest grandson of the emperor, Concubine Chang, is also impossible."

"Maybe there was poisoning, but it wasn't discovered at the time."

"Maybe it's just that the food is mutually beneficial and incompatible, so it can't be found out."

"Or maybe Lu was just wrongly accused and she really did nothing."

"After all, if she really wanted to poison someone, she shouldn't have done it herself."

"Instead, it should be done by the imperial physician or someone from the Imperial Food Bureau."

"This way, if the plan fails, she can still shirk all responsibility."

"But Your Highness must remember that in the court, the truth is never important!"

"Time has passed, and whether it was Lu's fault or she was innocent, it is impossible to find out clearly."

"Your Majesty kept a close eye on her and heard her complaints, so he concluded that she had ulterior motives."

"Then the normal things she did before are no longer normal!"

"There is no truth to these things, and there is no need for the truth!"

“What matters is the people’s heart.”

"It's what your majesty thinks!"

"Your Majesty thinks she has it, so even if she doesn't, she still has it!"

"Because it happened so long ago, we can't find any evidence."

"But on the other hand, it also means that she no longer has the evidence she had at the time to prove her innocence!"

"I said those words to Your Majesty and planted seeds of doubt in Your Majesty's mind, not for the purpose of investigating the case."

"It's to help His Highness eliminate the biggest enemy!"

“Now it has blossomed and borne fruit!”

Zhu Yunhuan remained silent for a long time before he nodded slightly.

People's hearts can truly determine which way the balance will tip.

And evidence and truth, in many cases, are not important at all.

Only the weak value those things.

Because they need others to evaluate them and they need external forces to help them.

We must rely on evidence and truth to gain sympathy and help from the outside world.

But in this court, in the power struggle, what matters is the comparison of strength. Who has ever really cared about evidence and the truth?

It doesn’t matter whether Lu really did something or was wrongly accused!

Yang Shiqi could not get any real evidence that Lu had done any evil, but he used people's hearts as a knife and made Zhu Yuanzhang sentence Lu to death in his heart!

Politics is actually a philosophy that plays with people’s hearts!

From this point of view, no matter whether Lu did it or not, she deserved to lose!
After all, in this chess game with the Ming Dynasty as the chessboard and the people of the world as chess pieces, she is just a small shrimp!

While the two were talking.

Someone outside came to report again.

"King Yan requests an audience!"

……

(End of this chapter)