Daming: Grandpa Emperor, please get up and sit on my throne!

"By the way, based on observation, this person is not young... According to reports from below, judging from his figure and movements from a distance, he is at least fifty or sixty years old."

The fact that someone appeared at the Prince of Yan's residence, and was also closely related to the Prince of Yan's sudden mobilization of a large army, yet was so old... seemed somewhat incongruous, and naturally, he was noticed by the spies and mentioned.

Upon hearing this, the two Imperial Guards frowned, completely baffled.

"An elderly man, at least fifty or sixty years old?"

"Where did this person suddenly appear in Beiping?"

"Besides, how could an old man get involved in the Qing army's war?"

"..."

The three of them became increasingly curious about this seemingly out-of-the-way person. Now that they noticed this, the more they thought about it, the more unusual it seemed—there was something strange about it everywhere.

However, even after racking their brains and searching through all the information they had come across and gathered in Beiping Prefecture, they still felt completely clueless.

The three of them stared at each other in silence for a moment.

The man in black, dressed in a tight-fitting outfit, then spoke up, reminding them, "It seems the disturbances in Beiping Prefecture have completely subsided. You should send all the intelligence to Yingtian Prefecture as soon as possible. If there are things you can't figure out, you'll just have to investigate further."

Sending a message is indeed a matter of utmost importance.

The other two could only put the matter aside for now and nodded, saying, "Okay."

Subsequently.

The man in black retreated from the hut and disappeared into the night.

Not long after, another person emerged from the thatched hut, looking serious and solemn. In the quiet night, he mounted his horse and galloped away, heading south.

……

at the same time.

The silvery moonlight shone on the official road leading north from Beiping Prefecture, casting two long shadows on the ground.

Although it was night and only the moonlight was dim, the two people were in a hurry, walking very fast, as if they were fleeing something.

In the quiet air, only the sounds of the two men panting could be heard.

After a while, one of them said to the other with some concern, "Old Huang, can you still hold on? If not, let's find a place to hide and rest. Judging from the current situation, they should have shaken off all their tails long ago."

The person speaking was none other than Lu Wei, who had always served Zhu Yuanzhang.

However, Lu Wei was now dressed in tattered linen clothes. Thanks to his practice during the time he spent traveling from Yingtian Prefecture to Beiping Prefecture last year, he was now perfectly convincing as a "farmer," looking honest and simple.

As for Zhu Yuanzhang, he naturally became Huang Shiliu.

Under the cover of their secret guards, they fled directly north from the outskirts of Beiping. In order not to attract the attention of Zhu Yunwen's spies in Beiping, they could not ride horses anymore, otherwise, such a commotion would make them easy targets.

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand dismissively at Lu Wei's concerns, saying, "Who is Zhu... Huang Shiliu? We've traveled all over the world, how could we be so weak and frail?"

“That little wolf cub is no pushover, and the people he raised are no pushovers either. If we’re not careful…” Zhu Yuanzhang clicked his tongue, “tsk tsk, we’ll be the ones whose fate is uncertain!”

He was well aware that if he, a "resurrected emperor," were to suddenly fall into the hands of the Embroidered Uniform Guard... the scene would be extremely ugly.

Zhu Yuanzhang was certainly not a coward who feared death; he was just a little greedy and wanted to see more... to see what the Ming Dynasty would become in the hands of his grandson.

But here it comes.

Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly smiled with satisfaction and nodded, saying, "However, with the abilities of our great grandson now, the entire Ming Dynasty is truly in his hands, and he has military methods that we could never have imagined... Even if we were to be discovered by our great grandson and fall into his hands... I'm afraid he wouldn't be worried at all."

At this point, Zhu Yuanzhang slowed his pace considerably.

Lu Wei also slowed down, and said with a look of sudden realization, "Thinking about it carefully, it really is true. In that case, Lao Huang, you will definitely be safe!"

You only consider making things difficult for or even eliminating someone when they pose a potential threat to you; conversely, you don't care much about someone when they no longer pose a threat.

Therefore, before this, Zhu Yuanzhang was naturally worried about the conflict between the two emperors, but now he was not so worried - because the current Kaiqian Emperor was stronger than him, the Hongwu Emperor!

Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but laugh with relief: "Hahahaha! Yes! Good! That's how it should be! How long has it been? Our great grandson is truly amazing! Hahahaha!"

He was certainly pleased and happy.

On the one hand, he had fewer concerns, and on the other hand, the more powerful the new emperor of the Ming Dynasty was, the better.

"Isn't it all thanks to your good taste, Lao Huang! Hahahaha!" Lu Wei also took the opportunity to give a compliment, as was his habit.

Zhu Yuanzhang was naturally pleased to hear this. As he walked forward, he chuckled and said, "However, our sudden appearance is still a bit too shocking. It would be best if... we just honestly played the role of Huang Sixteen!"

Lu Wei replied, "The people I've arranged for you are the most reliable. I'm sure we'll be able to get to Daning Prefecture safely."

While the two were talking.

Two horses tied to the roadside appeared ahead.

Under the moonlight, the two horses looked very robust as they lowered their heads to graze.

Lu Wei's eyes lit up slightly, and he said, "Well, as if on cue, the horse that was arranged in advance has arrived. It will be difficult to catch up with you again."

"Hehehe, mount up, let's go to Daning!" Zhu Yuanzhang was in a good mood at this moment.

The two immediately mounted their horses and galloped northward through the night.

……

Daning City.

The Prince Ning's mansion, though not overly grand, exuded an exceptionally somber atmosphere.

The spirited and dashing Prince Ning, Zhu Quan, sat cross-legged in the main hall, his brows slightly furrowed as he muttered to himself, "Hiss... I shouldn't have refused my fourth brother's request to send troops... Could this have jeopardized the Ming Dynasty?"

His expression showed considerable hesitation and apprehension.

For nothing else.

Not long ago, he suddenly received an urgent letter from his fourth brother in Beiping, saying that things were about to get out of control in Yingtian Prefecture and that he should quickly gather his personal guards and go to the capital to carry out some kind of "purging of the emperor's inner circle and pacification of the country".

The letter also explained the situation in Yingtian Prefecture in detail. It even specifically mentioned something about "after the matter is accomplished, the world will be divided equally" and so on.

If there are no special circumstances, Zhu Quan would have no choice but to take responsibility. Furthermore, if such a mess really happened in Yingtian Prefecture, he would not be completely uninterested in the so-called "division of the world"—sending troops might be the inevitable choice.

However, since ascending the throne, Zhu Quan had met with Zhang Yuchu, the Celestial Master of the Zhengyi Sect, twice. This Zhang Yuchu was the senior brother of Zhang Yuqing, one of the core figures in the Chemistry Department of Zhu Yunwen's Alchemy Bureau, and had received some information from Zhang Yuqing earlier…