Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1046 Death of Chen Bao
Late at night.

Zhu Youjian did not fall asleep. The lights in the room were still on. He held a book in his hand, but he did not read it at all. He seemed to be thinking about something.

His mind was still recalling what Zhu Shenzhui had said to him today. Zhu Youjian had never thought of Zhu Shenzhui's idea of ​​enfeoffment for royal family members, which also surprised him greatly. But after thinking about it carefully afterwards, Zhu Youjian couldn't help but feel tempted again.

If Zhu Shenzhui followed his words, his princes would no longer have to live with him in Changchun Palace and would be able to leave this cage-like palace and gain true freedom. Although they would face many problems in the future, leaving the Ming Dynasty and going overseas would not only be full of dangers, but they would also probably never be able to return to the Ming Dynasty, which was almost the same as exile.

But there is one thing that is different from exile. This kind of enfeoffment is free, and when you go overseas, you are nominally the master of a country, with the power of a real vassal king. Even if the country you are enfeoffed is small, it is still a country! If you are capable of operating and expanding overseas, you may even grow into a real kingdom in the future.

This is no different from the Zhou royal family's enfeoffment of princes back then. It is both a risk and an opportunity. Compared to staying in the Ming Dynasty and being imprisoned in Changchun Palace, this is a rare opportunity.

Should he accept Zhu Shenzhui's kindness? Let his prince go overseas? Zhu Youjian was undecided. He thought about it again and again, intending to judge Zhu Shenzhui's "conspiracy" from this incident. But he couldn't figure out anything that was disadvantageous to the prince. You know, if Zhu Shenzhui really wanted to attack him and the princes, there would be no need to deceive himself with this lie.

In fact, at this time, Zhu Youjian was already tempted. No matter what, he had to give it a try, right? It was fine for himself, but his princes were still young and they still had a future.

Zhu Youjian stood up subconsciously and paced back and forth in the room. He didn't know how long he had been walking. The lights in the room flickered slightly, which made Zhu Youjian frown.

"Wang Banban...!" Zhu Youjian blurted out, but he realized as soon as the words came out of his mouth that Wang Chengen was no longer there. This great companion who had been with him for more than 20 years, like a shadow beside him, would never respond to him as before, and it would be even more impossible to see his familiar figure again.

He closed his eyes painfully, but Wang Chengen's shadow still appeared in his mind, as if he would appear in front of him the next moment. But Zhu Youjian knew that this was impossible. Although Wang Chengen almost dragged Zhu Youjian into it because of his actions, Zhu Youjian did not blame Wang Chengen in his heart, but just sighed in his heart.

Thinking back to the present, Zhu Youjian finally made up his mind. It was impossible for him to succeed in this life, but his princes could not continue to stay in Changchun Palace with him. Even if Zhu Shenzhui would not kill them, who could guarantee that he would never do anything to them? And what about the crown prince Zhu Minlan? When Zhu Youjian thought of this young man in military uniform and full of vigor, he felt a little nervous. If Zhu Shenzhui passed away one day and the crown prince succeeded to the throne, would the new emperor be able to accommodate himself and the princes? Instead of gambling, he might as well take the initiative in his own hands and send all his princes away while Zhu Shenzhui intended to enfeoff the royal family. Then, even if he had any misfortune in the future, at least his descendants would have a place to stay overseas.

After thinking it through, Zhu Youjian called the four princes the next day and told them about it. When they heard Zhu Youjian say that the current emperor intended to grant fiefdoms to foreign countries and asked them whether they were willing to be granted fiefdoms overseas and leave the Ming Dynasty, the princes all showed surprised expressions and were shocked by the news.

After coming to their senses, the four had different ideas. The eldest son Zhu Cilang frowned, and after thinking, he said that he was unwilling to be enfeoffed overseas, and only wanted to stay by Zhu Youjian's side.

The third son, Zhu Cijiong, was somewhat tempted, but he was worried about his safety after going overseas. He was also afraid that he would not be able to survive in the wild land, so he was hesitant about the matter.

The sixth son, Zhu Cican, was the youngest and just a child. He had not yet fully understood the meaning of this and just left it to his father to arrange.

On the contrary, the fourth son Zhu Ci Zhao, who was of an eccentric personality, was eager to try. He agreed immediately and was willing to be enfeoffed overseas to try this unknown possibility.

Looking at these four princes, Zhu Youjian didn't know what to feel.

Zhu Cican was fine, after all, he was young and immature, and he was too young to be granted an overseas title. However, the performance of his eldest and third sons, whom he had always placed high hopes on, disappointed Zhu Youjian. He originally thought that Zhu Cilang would be the first to agree, after all, Zhu Cilang was once the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty, and his status was the most embarrassing compared to the other princes. Since there was a possibility of being granted an overseas title, he should take a gamble to leave this cage. However, Zhu Cilang did not show decisiveness and determination, but refused the matter instead, and even worried that he would have to continue to accompany him in Changchun Palace.

As a former crown prince, he did not have the courage that Zhu Youjian had hoped for, which made Zhu Youjian very disappointed. Zhu Youjian also saw Zhu Cijiong's hesitation. Where in the world can you take care of everything without any risk? If that was the case, how could such a benefit fall on their heads?
The two princes were usually good at studying and had likable personalities, which made Zhu Youjian pay more attention to them. But he did not expect that they would react like this at the critical moment of life, which made Zhu Youjian very unhappy. On the contrary, Zhu Ci Zhao, who he had always looked down upon, impressed him in this matter. Although Zhu Ci Zhao was only ten years old, he had the courage that his two brothers did not have, which was something Zhu Youjian did not expect.

Since the four of them had responded, Zhu Youjian understood their thoughts and immediately asked them to go back and wait for follow-up news.

Soon, Zhu Youjian told Zhu Shenzhu the attitudes of the four princes, saying that this division of fiefdoms was unprecedented. As the emperor, and the father of the four princes, he would temporarily allow one of the princes to be enfeoffed for the sake of prudentness. This prince was Zhu Cizhuo, who was only ten years old. As for the other three princes, they would continue to stay in Changchun Palace with him, and make a decision later, hoping that the emperor would agree.

After knowing the attitudes of Zhu Youjian and the princes, Zhu Shenzhui was not surprised. Originally, he just wanted to give it a try, whether it was one or four, it was the same to him. Since the fourth prince Zhu Cizhuo agreed, then it was him, and Zhu Cizhuo was not too old, a ten-year-old child was just right, which saved a lot of trouble.

The previous case of treason is nearing its end. All those who should be arrested have been arrested, and those who should be dealt with have been dealt with. The capital has gradually stabilized after experiencing another turbulence. However, in the south, a storm is brewing, but it does not seem to be the final moment yet.

Chen Bao of Nan'ao died. This guy, who was nicknamed "Three Feet Six Thousand" and hated by the people of Nan'ao, finally died. However, his death was the beginning of this storm. With his death, the originally solid internal structure of Zheng Zhilong's group also underwent irreversible changes.

Although Chen Bao was not a good person with a cruel and bloodthirsty personality, and was greedy for money, everyone knew that Chen Bao was loyal to Zheng Zhilong. As an old man beside Zheng Zhilong, he had followed Zheng Zhilong very early, and had always obeyed Zheng Zhilong's orders for so many years. It can be said that if Zheng Zhilong said east, he would never go west, and if he was asked to kill someone, he would rush forward with a knife without saying a word. He was Zheng Zhilong's loyal subordinate.

But such a person died at the hands of Zheng Zhilong, and was killed in a very despicable way.

After Zheng Zhilong decided to kill Chen Bao, he sent his brother Zheng Zhibao, Hong Xu, Gan Hui and others to Nan'ao, ostensibly to inspect Nan'ao, but in fact to prepare to attack Chen Bao. At the same time, Zheng Zhilong also asked Zheng Zhiwan to send 10,000 taels of silver to the Governor's Office, intending to bribe Hong Chengchou, the Governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, so that Hong Chengchou would stand idly by.

After receiving the silver, Hong Chengchou did not ask any questions or say anything. This attitude made Zheng Zhilong feel at ease and decided to attack Chen Bao. However, he did not expect that before Zheng Zhibao's men arrived in Nan'ao, Chen Bao got the news from somewhere that Zheng Zhilong was going to attack him. In fear, Chen Bao originally planned to use Nan'ao as a base to compete with Zheng Zhibao, but he was not sure he could control his subordinates. After all, they were all members of Zheng Zhilong's group. Although they obeyed Chen Bao's orders, they were still Zheng Zhilong's subordinates.

For a while, Chen Bao had no other good ideas. He was not sure about the chance of resisting with force. In desperation, Chen Bao could only write a letter to Zheng Zhilong, asking him why Zheng Zhilong wanted to kill him when he was loyal to him. On the other hand, Chen Bao abandoned Nan'ao to save his life, and ran away with his confidants and the gold and silver he had obtained over the years. Moreover, Chen Bao knew very well that if he fled overseas, he would not be able to escape Zheng Zhilong's pursuit. After thinking about it, he felt that the only way to save his life was to seek help from the court.

Chen Bao followed Zheng Zhilong for many years and was responsible for the "trading" of Zheng's group in the South China Sea, making money for Zheng Zhilong. Naturally, he knew a lot of Zheng Zhilong's secrets. Moreover, Chen Bao held an official position in the court and was also awarded the rank of General of the State. With such a layer of skin, as a general of the court, Zheng Zhilong could not decide his life or death according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty. As long as he sought protection from the court, coupled with the "secrets" in his hands, it might not be impossible for Zheng Zhilong to be cautious and spare him.

Chen Bao did not dare to return to Fujian, because he knew that Fujian was Zheng Zhilong's home base, and if he went there, he would surely die without a burial place. He was not familiar with the Governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, Hong Chengchou, and did not know Hong Chengchou's attitude. If Hong Chengchou and Zheng Zhilong joined forces, wouldn't he be caught in a trap?

In desperation, Chen Bao could only flee to Guangdong. After all, although Nan'ao where he was located was under the jurisdiction of Fujian, it actually belonged to Guangdong. Moreover, the current Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi was Xiong Wencan, who had previously been the Governor of Fujian and had never had a good relationship with Zheng Zhilong. If Chen Bao went to Xiong Wencan and got his protection, then his chances of escaping Zheng Zhilong would be much greater.

For this reason, Chen Bao ran towards Guangzhou after leaving Nan'ao, hoping to reach Guangzhou first and meet Xiong Wencan. In his opinion, as long as he met Xiong Wencan, with the secrets about Zheng Zhilong in his hands and the bad relationship between Xiong Wencan and Zheng Zhilong, it would not be a problem to save his life.

But Chen Bao never expected that Zheng Zhibao would know his whereabouts soon after he escaped from Nan'ao, and set an ambush to kill him on the way. When Chen Bao saw the people chasing him and blocking his way, he realized that he had no chance to escape. He was desperate and fought back, but was eventually chopped into pieces by Zheng Zhibao and his men. Several of his confidants also died at his hands, and the large amount of wealth he carried also fell into Zheng Zhibao's hands.

(End of this chapter)