Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 77 Zhu Yuanzhang's Showdown
Daoyan was stunned on the spot, completely stunned by the impact of the unexpected news.

Speaking of which, when Daoyan first saw the monk in charge leading two eunuchs towards this side, he didn't take it to heart at all.

It's completely a mindset of not caring about anything.

Anyway, this eunuch is not here to see me.

He was only thinking in his mind how the emperor and Li Shanchang would fight next, and if they really fought, what the emperor should do to defeat Li Shanchang easily.

These things are much more interesting than scriptures or eunuchs.

It was in this state of mind that the eunuch was led by the monk in charge to him and told him that the emperor wanted him to enter the palace for a conversation.

How could Daoyan not be confused?

This man has always had a sharp mind and is quick-witted. He has also developed a thick skin because he often goes out to beg for alms.

At this moment, he stood there in a daze for more than ten breaths before he barely came to his senses.

Then he pointed his finger at his nose and asked, "Are you saying that Your Majesty wants to see me? Are you sure you're not mistaken? Are you looking for the wrong person?"

But he was so surprised that he even forgot some necessary etiquette.

"If the Master's Dharma name is Daoyan and his lay name is Guangxiao, then there is no mistake or omission.

This was indeed ordered by His Majesty himself."

The eunuch explained to Daoyan with a smile on his face without any impatience.

First of all, he could understand the monk's feelings.

On the other hand, this was a special order from the emperor, asking him to find and invite people into the palace.

No matter who this person is or how he behaves, he is a distinguished guest and should be treated well.

"Okay, let's go then. Thank you both for your help."

Just when the leading eunuch felt that he needed to speak out loud, persuade and appease the man carefully before he could let him follow him into the palace, Daoyan suddenly agreed.

Moreover, he didn't even do the necessary packing or stop, and just followed them directly.

The eunuch was slightly stunned for a moment, but did not say much. He made a gesture of invitation and led Daoyan away.

The monk in charge and some other monks followed consciously on the side.

Most people were shocked and confused, wondering about the origins of this guy called Daoyan who was specially invited by the emperor to meet him in the palace.

Especially the monk who had just spoken to Daoyan and talked about the prosperity of the capital was deeply shocked.

Besides being stunned, he kept thinking about whether there was something wrong with his expression or tone when he was talking to Daoyan just now.

I really shouldn't have looked down on him and felt superior to Dao Yan!
The more he thought about it, the more regretful he became, and he felt anxious and uneasy. He hoped that Lord Daoyan would not bear grudges, be magnanimous, and not bother with him about these things.

I also felt that when I met this Junior Brother Daoyan again, no, Senior Brother Daoyan, no! Master Daoyan, I must sincerely admit my mistake to him.

……

Not to mention how the monk was in a state of confusion and anxiety, just say that Daoyan followed the two eunuchs out of Tianjie Temple and headed towards the imperial city. He didn't say a word along the way, but followed behind with a bowl in one hand and a Zen stick in the other.

This made the two eunuchs secretly praise the monk for his good nature.

Judging from the monk's reaction when he was invited to the palace by His Majesty, he had probably never met His Majesty before.

I was completely unaware of your Majesty's summons.

They had already prepared their plans and were on their way to the palace when the monk Dao Yan peppered them with questions.

But who would have thought that this great monk had such great concentration.

Without even asking a single question.

This level of composure surpasses that of countless civil and military officials summoned by His Majesty.

"May I ask you two benefactors, what is the matter with Your Majesty summoning me? If it is not taboo, I would be grateful if you could reveal something.

This will also give me some peace of mind so that I don’t make mistakes in my haste and accidentally offend Your Majesty when I meet you next time.”

Daoyan chanted the Buddha's name and spoke with a sincere look on his face.

The eunuch leading the way in front twitched his face slightly and silently retracted his previous thoughts.

"Master, it's not that we don't want to talk about it, but His Majesty really didn't explain it in detail.

I just sent someone to tell you that we have come to Tianjie Temple to look for the Master and invite you to come into the palace for a chat."

The leading eunuch responded.

Monk Daoyan felt that the other party was most likely keeping it secret on purpose in order to take advantage of the opportunity to get some benefits from him.

So I just said thank you and said no more.

He still has to consider his image as a monk.

It was strange that Daoyan, who usually indulged in wine and meat and behaved in a somewhat unruly manner, cared about his image as a monk at this time.

Of course, the most important thing is that he, a poor monk, is really poor. Apart from a monk's robe, a pair of monk's shoes, a Zen staff, and an alms bowl, he has nothing else.

Even if I wanted to stuff something in, I couldn't.

He had already been disturbed by this sudden incident, and with countless thoughts in his mind, he could only continue to think secretly about why the emperor wanted to see him.

However, the questioning of the eunuchs just now was not in vain.

From their mouths, Daoyan confirmed that he had probably been targeted by the emperor for a long time and his itinerary was under the emperor's control.

Otherwise, why would the people sent by the emperor arrive less than half an hour after I arrived at Tianjie Temple?

Moreover, he directly instructed these people to come here to find him.

This made Daoyan more confused.

What virtue or ability have I possessed to deserve being remembered by an emperor like Zhu Yuanzhang?
When did I catch the emperor's eye?
After some thought, I had some ideas in my mind, but I was not sure.

I always feel like something is not right about this matter.

……

In the Wuying Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the monk in front of him.

He is fat and you can tell at first glance that he doesn't follow the rules and regulations.

Judging from his figure, he looks like Maitreya Buddha, but his triangular eyes ruin his kind face.

"Your Majesty, the actions that the Ming Cult is preparing to take in Zhongdu City have nothing to do with me.

I had only met that Ming Wang a few times many years ago, and I had just spoken to him casually.

Since then, I have had no contact with you."

After the greetings, while Zhu Yuanzhang was still looking at Daoyan, Daoyan had already spoken first.

However, he immediately distanced himself from the relationship with the Ming King.

Zhu Yuanzhang stopped looking at Daoyan and said, "I didn't say that the Mingjiao wanted to start an uprising in Zhongdu City, but you were secretly instigating it.

If you hadn't told us, we wouldn't even know about this.

It turns out that the Ming Wang actually has a close connection with you!"

As Zhu Yuanzhang spoke, his voice became serious, but there was a sense of unexpected gain in his seriousness.

Daoyan did not feel the slightest bit of remorse for confessing his crimes in front of Zhu Yuanzhang.

Because he had already determined in his heart that he was targeted by the emperor because of the Ming Cult incident in Zhongdu City.

There was only one reason why he was targeted by the emperor, and that was that some of his early interactions with King Ming were unearthed.

If I hadn't given you a few suggestions at the beginning, you wouldn't have become a Ming Wang despite your Ming Wang qualifications.

Of course, there is another possible reason why he was targeted by the emperor, which was that he had a lot of dealings with Gao Qi before.

Gao Qi was killed, and he fell into the emperor's eyes.

But Daoyan felt that the possibility of this happening was not very high, because the emperor only dealt with Wei Guan and Gao Qi at that time.

Many scholars who had close contacts with Gao Qi ignored it.

I don't stand out among these people.

More importantly, he never followed Gao Qi in criticizing the government.

Therefore, the only thing that really made Zhu Yuanzhang notice him was the Ming Wang incident.

The emperor knows everything, so there is no need to hide it. Pretending to be ignorant when you know the truth will only make you feel uncomfortable.

If the emperor really wanted to kill me for this, he would have done it long ago. There was no need to wait until now to specifically summon me and then kill me.

Daoyan didn't think he had such a great reputation.

"So, I have confessed myself without being asked."

Daoyan had calmed down by this time and was not too nervous facing Zhu Yuanzhang.

You can also follow Zhu Yuanzhang's words and make a little joke.

When Zhu Yuanzhang saw Daoyan's reaction, he thought to himself that Daoyan was indeed worthy of his reputation as the fourth think tank and the so-called Black-robed Prime Minister.

He immediately gave up the idea of ​​testing.

Looking at Daoyan, he said, "To be honest with you, I already know these things.

But why didn't I kill you, but instead brought you here to meet me?"

Daoyan shook his head and said, "I don't know either. I thought about it all the way here but I still can't figure it out."

He was actually telling the truth and seemed particularly honest and sincere.

"I think that Master Daoyan, you are a talented person with great strategies. It would be a waste of your talent to just be a monk.

So I'm going to call you over here and make you an official, where you can use your talents."

Daoyan's heart skipped a beat, then returned to normal.

Didn’t Emperor Zhu say that he wanted to give himself an official position?

Rather, it refers to the emperor's words that he has strategies in mind.

He suddenly felt as if the emperor saw through him.

This feeling only appeared when I was with Liu Bowen.

When Zhu Yuanzhang said he would give Daoyan an official position, he was not lying to Daoyan.

But I really want to absorb such a talent into the system.

It is a great loss to let such talents not serve the country and just live out their days like idle clouds and wild cranes.

As for whether or not Daoyan was afraid of taking advantage of the opportunity to cause trouble...

In my previous life, I didn’t realize Daoyan’s talent and didn’t pay much attention to him. But in this life, if I put him into the bureaucratic system, I can let him do big things. I will take his surname!

"Your Majesty, my abilities are limited, and I am not suited to take on such a big responsibility, let alone being an official. Your Majesty, you have truly misjudged me."

Daoyan declined very earnestly.

"Is it not clear whether you have talent or not? I can even use my writing skills to become an official, let alone you."

Daoyan still declined. He really didn't want to be an official. He had his own lofty ambitions.

"Master Daoyan is unwilling to be an official, not because of lack of talent, but because he is waiting for the right opportunity to assist the rebellion, right?" Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly revealed an intriguing smile on his face, looking at Daoyan and revealing his cards...

Zhu Yuanzhang's voice was not loud at all when he said this.

But these softly spoken words, when they fell into Daoyan's ears, were like thunder from the sky, which directly stunned Daoyan!

My mind went blank for a moment!

Countless storms surged in my heart!

He had always been calm, but now he couldn't remain calm anymore. No matter how strong his willpower was, it was useless.

The destructive power of this sentence is really too great!
Even if an ordinary person suddenly points at your nose and says you want to rebel, it is enough to scare you.

Not to mention, this happened right in the imperial palace, and the murderous founding emperor said these words to his face in person!

It would be easier to explain if I didn't have this thought in my heart, but the key is that I really do think this way in my heart, and I am really ready to wait for an opportunity to assist others in the rebellion...

I thought that the emperor's sudden sending of someone to summon me was already shocking, but I never expected that things would become even more exciting after meeting the emperor!

Compared with these, the emperor sending someone to summon him was just a drizzle!
In an instant, Daoyan felt that the monk's robe he was wearing had disappeared, and everything about him was exposed so clearly in front of the emperor.

The emperor saw everything clearly, even the heart, liver and lungs wrapped in thick fat were exposed!

This was a feeling he had never had before, even when he was with Liu Bowen.

He was conceited about his intelligence and thought that the smartest person in the Ming Dynasty was Liu Bowen, followed by himself.

Except when facing Liu Bowen, no matter who he faces, he can see through others.

But who would have thought that when I met the emperor today, everything turned out to be the opposite!
He was actually seen through by this emperor who, although they had never met formally, had already witnessed many of his methods and felt that he still knew a lot about him...

This feeling is simply unmentionable!

For a smart man like him, it was really uncomfortable.

There were huge waves of fear in my heart, my hair stood on end, and my body subconsciously tensed up.

He suddenly looked up and looked at Zhu Yuanzhang sitting on the dragon throne.

A pair of triangular eyes, full of fierceness and sharpness.

But it seemed like in an instant, the monk's robes he was wearing were torn to pieces, and he no longer looked like a monk. A sick tiger that had been imprisoned by the monk's robes suddenly emerged.

The momentum is terrifying!

Zhu Yuanzhang sat upright on the dragon throne, staring at Daoyan without blinking, without any unnecessary movement.

Although the contrast between Daoyan's before and after moments was huge, and the aura he revealed in an instant was indeed astonishing, it was not enough to surprise him.

In other words, Daoyan's reaction was within his expectations.

Under Zhu Yuanzhang's calm and even admiring gaze, Daoyan regained some composure.

He simply lowered his hand that was held upright in front of his chest, maintaining the Buddhist salute posture, and without moving his gaze away, he looked directly at Zhu Yuanzhang and said:

"Your Majesty is right. I am planning to assist the rebellion."

Things have come to this point, and the biggest secret hidden in my heart has been revealed by the emperor so mercilessly.

Daoyan was quite frank and directly admitted the matter.

Anyway, it makes no difference whether you admit it or not.

Life or death is completely beyond your control.

In that case, why not speak your mind?
In this way, even if I die, it will make me feel a little less cowardly.

Of course, everyone understands the truth, but in this situation, facing an emperor like Zhu Yuanzhang, how many people can behave like this?

"He's a man, quite honest."

The admiration on Zhu Yuanzhang's face became even more intense, and it was basically to the point where it was no longer concealed.

In the past, even if the other person was the emperor, Daoyan would feel unhappy if he spoke to him in such a tone and looked at him with such eyes.

But after what happened in Zhongdu City, Daoyan no longer had such thoughts.

It was natural for the other party to look at him like this.

"But you don't really think we'll give you this chance, do you?"

Daoyan shook his head: "In the past, I did have some ideas, and I thought there might be a chance.

But when we were in Zhongdu City, after Your Majesty shouted "Long live the people" and performed the ritual of kneeling and worshipping to commemorate the innocent people who died tragically, I gave up such unrealistic thoughts.

As long as Your Majesty is alive, this world will never be in chaos.

No matter who it is, there is no way to plunge it into chaos again.

Even though I am proud of my intelligence, I cannot and do not want to do it myself and plunge the world into chaos.

This has once again led to people suffering and corpses everywhere."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded secretly, and was quite satisfied with Daoyan's answer.

If Daoyan is really the kind of person who has completely lost his conscience, only wants to rebel, and is disregarding everything and treating human life as worthless.

No matter how talented this person is, I will definitely not keep him!
"If that's the case, why are you still unwilling to serve as an official and contribute to the world?
Are you still looking for an opportunity to rebel?"

Zhu Yuanzhang naturally knew the reason, but it did not prevent him from asking Daoyan in person.

"Your Majesty, when you were here, the world was as solid as a rock, nothing could be shaken.

But Your Majesty, there will be a day when you will leave.

There is no such thing as immortality in this world, and Your Majesty is no exception.

By then, the world might be in chaos, and I can finally get the opportunity I want."

"We won't give you this chance."

Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head and spoke seriously.

In my previous life, because Biaoer died early, many of the plans I had made around Biaoer came to nothing.

I can only hold back my grief and try my best to make adjustments and remedies.

But it was too late in the end, leaving such a big loophole. Not long after his death, the Ming Dynasty experienced great turmoil.

This kind of thing will never happen again in this life!

"Your Majesty, let me tell you the unpleasant truth: after death, one cannot control the afterlife.

Could the First Emperor have imagined that after his death, Hu Hai and others would do such things, and that the Qin Dynasty would perish in the second generation?

Emperor Wen of Sui also could not have imagined that Yang Guang would lead the Sui Dynasty he left behind to follow the same path as the Qin Dynasty.

Your Majesty, although you are wise and powerful, and a model of the sun and the moon, you can only govern your own generation.

Once the dragon passes away, how will things develop? Will there be chaos like the Qin and Sui dynasties? Your Majesty will have a hard time managing it."

After Daoyan said this, he was already waiting for Zhu Yuanzhang to become furious and kill him.

This emperor was not a good-tempered person, and what he said was so blunt, so it was normal for the emperor to kill himself.

However, Zhu Yuanzhang's reaction afterwards made Daoyan stunned again.

Because the emperor's expected rage did not happen, and there was not even any sign of the emperor being angry.

This made Daoyan stunned, and he also felt that the current emperor was more and more unfathomable.

However, what Daoyan did not know was that Zhu Yuanzhang reacted in this way because he knew that what Daoyan said was absolutely right.

If it wasn't for the fact that it was his own son, the fourth brother, who led the rebellion, according to the series of actions of that idiot Zhu Yunwen, perhaps his Ming Dynasty would have followed the same path as the Qin and Sui dynasties and perished in the second generation.

The imperial Ming ancestral precepts that he had formulated did not play any role and were directly destroyed.

What’s even more infuriating and ironic is that the ironclad stele prohibiting the harem from interfering in government affairs was actually smashed by the eunuch Wang Zhen!
If it weren't for his special experience and knowing all this, Zhu Yuanzhang would have started to chop Daoyan to pieces before he could finish his words, given his temper.

"After all you've said, what really gives you confidence is the feudal system we established, right?"

Zhu Yuanzhang collected his thoughts, looked at Daoyan and spoke.

Daoyan hesitated slightly, but felt it was reasonable.

The harm of enfeoffment of kings has been fully demonstrated by the Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms in the Han Dynasty and the Rebellion of the Eight Kings in the Jin Dynasty.

When Emperor Zhu decided to enfeoff his son as a king and send him to garrison various places in the future, there was a lot of discussion in the court and the country, and many people held opposing views.

There must be someone who will explain the interests involved to the emperor.

It's not surprising that the emperor knew this.

"If Your Majesty intends to abolish this feudal system in the future, then I will really have no hope."

When these words were spoken, Daoyan suddenly woke up and understood the emperor's true intention in this matter.

I'm afraid that many people, including myself, have been wrong about this before.

The emperor insisted on enfeoffing the kings, not because he did not learn his lesson, but because he was going to enfeoff the kings first and take back the military power from a large number of founding generals.

Then he took the initiative to reduce the power of the princes, took away the military power from the kings, and redistributed it.

It seems that nothing has changed, but after this incident, many things have undergone fundamental changes.

Moreover, since he was using his status as the founding emperor and a father to reduce the power of the princes, the princes would definitely be obedient and would not dare to say a single word!

wonderful!
It's so wonderful!

He is worthy of being the emperor who drove out the Tartars, restored China, and saw through himself!

It’s just unusual!
Daoyan couldn't help but applaud.

But the next moment, Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head and told Daoyan very clearly: "The feudal system of princes is a very good system.

We will not abolish it.

There is no such thing as using the kings to guard the borders, consolidate military power, and then reduce the power of the vassal states."

Daoyan was stunned again.

"If that's the case, then I still have the opportunity to assist others in conquering the world while the chaos is still going on."

"You have no chance."

"Your Majesty, do you want to kill me before you die?"

"We wouldn't do that either."

"Then I still have a chance."

"You have no chance."

Zhu Yuanzhang still shook his head, his tone as calm as before.

"Impossible! As long as Your Majesty doesn't abolish the feudal system, I can live to see Your Majesty's death. I definitely have a chance, and no one can stop me!"

Daoyan's tone also became unusually firm.

He didn't think there was any way to break the deadlock in this situation!

There is no way to break the deadlock!

Seeing that Daoyan had been forced into a corner, Zhu Yuanzhang opened his mouth and launched a final stab...

(End of this chapter)