The stupid son of Chongba

Chapter 139: Strangling Zhu Liangzu and stabbing Liao Yongzhong! Emperor Zhu's bloody threat!
Seeing that no one paid attention to him, the man suddenly raised his head!

bass!
He drew out the sword from Luan Yiwei's waist and held it tightly in his hand.

"Ugh!!!"

He just roared and stabbed a knife directly into Zhu Liangzu's belly!

"Bastard, how dare you!"

Zhou Dexing’s eyes widened, and he couldn’t help but want to stop it, but... it was too late!
scoff!

Blood splattered, covering half of the mad man's face!

"Haha, hahahaha!"

"Die, die, die!"

The man looked crazy and laughed like a madman!

chap!
chap!
chap!
The long knife stabbed Zhu Liangzu's belly again and again, crushing his internal organs into pieces!

The smell of blood burst out!
Blood dyed the yellow-brown logs scarlet, and the sticky blood dripped slowly onto the grass like paint...

Zhu Liangzu, who was lying on the ground, had his eyes wide open and his pupils dilated. He was deader than dead.

He would never have dreamed that after returning triumphantly from the Northern Expedition, what he would get was not promotion but death!
He never imagined that his death would be so miserable... He was stabbed to death by a peasant who worked hard in the fields!

"Hahaha, okay, okay!"

"I have avenged you, Dad, Mom, I have avenged you... I have avenged you, please look at it, please take a good look at it!"

The man gripped the hilt of the knife tightly and let out a long roar towards the sky!

"Good kill, Brother Niu!"

"It feels so good, so good! Give me the knife, I want to kill my enemy with my own hands!"

The smell of blood aroused the murderous intent in the hearts of the people around him! And the man raised the knife without saying a word!
"Cut slowly and carefully! Chop until you feel really happy!"

He wiped the blood off his face and grinned.

"We have only a short time to live!"

"Brothers! I'll go first! Zhu Liangzu has probably just turned into a ghost. I'll turn into a fierce ghost and fight him!"

"I'll wait for you on the road to the underworld!"

After that, there was a loud bang!
The man wiped his neck without hesitation and fell limply onto the wooden platform!
"Brother Niu!"

"Okay, let's be your companions on the road to the underworld! Brothers, kill Liao Yongzhong!"

"kill!"

Holding the knife handle, everyone was no longer satisfied with punching and kicking, but instead each of them took a knife. The white knife went in and the red knife came out, and blood foam formed a string of bubbles on the knife handle.

In just a moment, Liao Yongzhong had become a hornet's nest!

These people have gone completely crazy!

No one could persuade them, no one could stop them! Even the experienced generals had to avoid the sharp edge at this moment.

As the old saying goes, the fierce ones are afraid of the violent ones, and the violent ones are afraid of the desperate ones!
They are willing to sacrifice their lives to bring down the emperor! With the crazy energy of these people now, anyone who goes up to stop them will probably be stabbed twice!

Comrades... they are just comrades after all. There is no need to risk your life for a comrade who has been stabbed to death.

Chacha!

Chacha!

In a moment, Liao Yongzhong became as miserable as Zhu Liangzu. His bloody and mangled appearance made people feel physically uncomfortable!
Ma Xiuying covered her mouth and nose lightly as she looked at the purgatory-like tragic scene in front of her, with a complicated expression.

To what extent must these people be pushed to become like this?
Logically speaking, she still has some gratitude towards Zhu Liangzu and Liao Yongzhong, and has always taken good care of them, so she has some affection for them.

But at this moment, when Zhu Liangzu and Liao Yongzhong were stabbed in such a tragic state, Ma Xiuying did not feel the slightest pity or compassion in her heart, but just sighed softly.

"Why is it so...Human greed is like a snake swallowing an elephant."

She sighed,
"Isn't the title and salary given to you by the court enough for you to use? You have to exploit the common people and force them into this state..."

"Ugh!"

After a sigh, Ma Xiuying felt extremely tired.

This kind of mental exhaustion is more tiring than if Zhu Ju got into trouble a hundred times.

"Your revenge has been completed."

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the men in front of him and gave the order expressionlessly,

"Mao Xiang."

"Shoot them all."

Mao Xiang nodded decisively and waved to the imperial guards on both sides.

shhhhh!

shhhhhh!
Arrows were shot out mercilessly, piercing the chests of more than thirty dark and thin men!

"Uh!"

There was no scream, only a few muffled groans.

Everyone was hit by seven or eight arrows, and the most was hit by more than ten arrows. They were basically shot like hedgehogs!

But no one screamed.

"Brothers, cheer up!"

One of them had blood coming out of his mouth, but he still grinned and clenched his fists and said,
"Let's...don't lose points!"

"Uh!"

As soon as he uttered this sentence, he collapsed to the ground, dead.

Dozens of men gathered together and collapsed on the wooden platform, turning into a pile of corpses.

This scene is undoubtedly suffocating.

Even for the military generals who were used to seeing life and death, the scene before them made them feel depressed, not to mention the common people who had never seen such a scene.

Starting from the time Lu Zhongheng was killed, people began to flee one after another. By the time Zhu Liangzu and Liao Yongzhong were killed, only half of the people were left, and the others covered their eyes and ran away!
Especially those who came with children, they originally thought that the emperor was inviting everyone to watch a show, but who knew it was such a show!
Of course, there were also people who stared intently from beginning to end, and even clapped and cheered.

"Good! Good kill!"

"Your Majesty the Emperor... is wise! Kill these corrupt officials, and we ordinary people will have a good life!"

"Everyone says that Emperor Zhu is cruel, but today we finally see him! He is indeed a good emperor! He really kills corrupt officials! With such a good emperor, why should we ordinary people be afraid of not having a good life?"

"..."

Voices of praise also surged.

Zhu Yuanzhang's move undoubtedly greatly boosted the confidence of the people!

Faced with the corrupt officials and nobles who oppressed the people, he did not shield them or show mercy. Instead, he gave the best answer with this bloody picture!

At this moment, several imperial guards came riding over.

"Your Majesty!"

Song Zhong, the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard, dismounted and bowed, saying,

"We found hundreds of suits of armor and hundreds of swords, spears, and halberds in the manors of Zhu Liangzu and Liao Yongzhong!"

"In Liao Yongzhong's manor, he even privately built a blacksmith shop, which was used to smelt iron and forge armor!"

"In addition, both manors have dungeons! Many civilians are imprisoned in the dungeons! I have already settled them all."

"I have detained all of their families, servants, adopted sons, and craftsmen! The gold, silver, treasures, and various account books and documents in the manor are also being counted!"

After hearing this report, all the civil and military officials were shocked!
"Haha, there are so many surprises, one after another!"

Zhu Yuanzhang did not get angry but laughed and said,
"Great, great! You secretly hoarded armor, set up a private iron shop, and even dared to set up a private prison, abusing the criminal law against the people!"

“It’s really lawless!”

"Who was the one who wanted to plead for them just now? Stand up! Let us see!!"

The word "plea" was emphasized very strongly!
Zhu Yuanzhang's cold gaze swept over the generals, especially on Zhou Dexing, Wu Liang and others, and stayed on them for a long time, frightening them so much that they dared not breathe and their faces turned pale!
Each of these charges carries a death penalty!
Plus, there are so many common people here who are madly complaining! Let alone these two people pleading for mercy, even if Xu Da speaks, it’s useless!
The generals who had just ignored his pleas were now silent and dared not admit it at all.

Whoever admits it is now walking into trouble and seeking death!
"Humph!"

Zhu Yuanzhang snorted angrily, waved his sleeves and said,
"It's too easy for such a lawless and lawless beast to die just like that!"

"Come on! Peel off their skins and hang them on the Fengyang city wall! Let all the people and officials who come in and out see what happens to these beasts!"

Zhu Ju, who was standing aside, couldn't help but mutter upon hearing this:

"Fur lover Lao Zhu started..."

I remember when I was reading the history of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang's favorite thing to do was to skin and stuff the criminals with straw, using the skins of the criminals to intimidate the current officials...

I don't know what the effect is, but it's pretty scary.

"Zhuju, what did you say?"

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Ju beside him and asked in a cold voice.

Zhu Ju: “?!”

"No! I say that my father is wise. For such bastards, they should be skinned and stuffed with straw to deter future generations!"

He responded quickly.

At this time, there is no need to go against Mr. Zhu. After all, today's KPI has been exceeded.

The jade pendant had turned from green to blue!

"Skinned and stuffed with grass?"

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded slightly and said,
"Your suggestion is good. Just skinning them isn't enough!"

"Fill it with grass and make it look like a human. That way it will be intimidating!"

"Okay, just do as you say!"

Zhu Ju: “???”

Wait, what did I say?
I didn't say anything!

For a moment, Zhu Ju's face changed.

Oh no, the history books must record that it was he who suggested the skinning and stuffing with straw, which was adopted by Zhu Yuanzhang and then carried forward!
"besides--"

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the civil and military officials and said coldly,

"I don't believe that there are only three people like Zhu Liangzu, Lu Zhongheng, and Liao Yongzhong in the Ming Dynasty!"

"Perhaps there are some among you who are even more greedy, more corrupt, and more reckless than them!"

"I'm just lucky today and can stand on dry shore... But we have to remind some people that you can't always be so lucky!"

"So, let me give you a piece of advice. Just do your duty as an official honestly. You will be promoted to higher positions. We will not mistreat our meritorious officials. But if anyone wants to extend their dirty hands to the common people, I advise you to think carefully about whether your skin can withstand being peeled off!"

Ministers: "!!!"

The generals all retreated back into the ranks and disappeared in the rear.

No matter they were veteran generals or learned scholars, they were all silent at this moment, lowering their heads and not daring to say a word.

What happened today has brought them an unprecedented shock!
I naively thought that as long as everyone united, even Lao Zhu would consider their opinions.

But after actual practice, I realized... how ridiculous this idea is!
How about Zhu Liangzu?
How about Liao Yongzhong?
Both of them were people who should have been granted titles, but they were killed without any reason! Moreover, they were stabbed to death by ordinary people!
Whose words are effective?
Who can stop it?
Once Emperor Zhu raised his butcher knife, there was no way to stop him! He was not a cowardly Song Dynasty emperor, he was a ruthless ruler like Qin Shi Huang!

"Yang Xian!"

Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly shouted.

Yang Xian in the crowd shuddered, stepped out of the crowd with fear and trepidation, and bowed, saying:
"Your Majesty, here is my minister."

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at him and ordered in a cold voice:
"The matter of these three people cannot be resolved just like that! There may be a dark hand behind it!"

"I order you to thoroughly investigate the crimes of these three people, uncover all their pasts, and dig out all his accomplices! No matter who we find out, we will show no mercy!"

"Don't worry, just check it out! The Imperial Guard will cooperate with you."

When Yang Xian heard this, his pupils shrank at first, then he showed excitement.

"According to the order!"

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty. I will investigate the case thoroughly!"

After taking on this task, he was fully confident that he could inflict a heavy blow to the Huaixi Party!
And Hu Weiyong and others really changed their expressions at this moment!
This case was taken over by Yang Xian. No matter whether Yang Xian made a false accusation or a true accusation, they would definitely not have a good ending! Just the correspondence alone was enough to finish them off!

After Zhu Yuanzhang made this announcement, he turned to look at the people below the wooden platform.

"Fellow villagers, we have killed those who should be killed. Are you satisfied?"

He said in a deep voice,

"If anyone has grievances, or wants to make demands on us, please speak up!"

"If you miss this opportunity, you will miss this store!"

The people in the audience looked at each other in bewilderment.

A woman said boldly:
"Your Majesty, we are all your fellow countrymen. Can you give us some preferential treatment?"

"The current tax rate is still too high. Our kids can't even get enough to eat!"

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded.

"Yes, we have already explained that we will reduce the taxes in Fengyang."

He said,

"Starting this year, Fengyang's taxes will be the lowest in the entire Ming Dynasty! As long as Zhu Yuanzhang is here, this will not change!"

"From now on, if anyone dares to exploit you, you can just tie him up and come to Yingtian to file a complaint! We will never let him off easily!"

When the people heard this, they all praised and smiled happily.

"Thank you, Your Majesty! Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"Your Majesty is wise! Now we can live a good life!"

"..."

The pile of corpses on the wooden platform had already been dragged away and cleaned by the Imperial Guards. When it comes to cleaning, they are indeed professionals.

"Are you all satisfied?"

Zhu Yuanzhang just smiled at this moment, stood up and said,
"Before we came to Fengyang, we heard a few nursery rhymes. The nursery rhymes went like this—"

"Speaking of Fengyang, talking about Fengyang, Fengyang is a good place."

"Ever since Emperor Zhu came to power, there have been nine years of famine out of ten! Is that right?"

After hearing this song, all the common people lowered their heads, looking a little embarrassed.

They all contributed to the widespread spread of this word... After all, the emperor is far away and they can just curse the emperor when they have nothing to do, so they can vent their resentment.

"After hearing this nursery rhyme, my first reaction was anger, but my second reaction was shame."

Zhu Yuanzhang said loudly,

"It must be because we did something wrong that this kind of rumor spread among the people."

"It was after listening to this ballad that I made up my mind to go back to Fengyang to see how wronged the people here were to the point of scolding me like this!"

"You don't know until you see it. You will understand once you see it...Fellow villagers, you have indeed been wronged! Let me first thank you for not digging up our ancestral graves! After all, the people in Xixiang are planning to dig up our Zhu family's ancestral graves. If you had this idea, it would definitely be more convenient to dig it up!"

Hearing this, everyone laughed.

The atmosphere also changed from solemn to relaxed.

"Now, we have resolved all your grievances and grievances, and we will satisfy all your ideas and requests!"

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said,
"I would like to make a small request to the villagers here - can you compose a song to praise me? So that I can feel more comfortable listening to it?"

"We are Chongba, we are also people who care about our dignity!"

Everyone burst into laughter when they heard this!
"Ever since Emperor Zhu came to power, the people of Fengyang have been living a carefree life!"

"Hahaha, great! Fengyang is a good place. It produces emperors and generals, and the common people also benefit from it!"

"..."

A few talented people could come up with rhymes, which made Zhu Yuanzhang very pleased.

When it comes to corrupt officials, he explodes like thunder!

But to ordinary people, he is as gentle as spring rain.

This is Zhu Yuanzhang's way of governing the country! He clearly understood whose support constituted the supreme imperial power!

What are those meritorious veterans?
Kill if you want to kill, cut if you want to cut!
As long as the people's hearts are on our side, we, Zhu Yuanzhang, will always be invincible!
"Hahahaha, make up more, we love to hear them!"

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand, stroked his beard and smiled,

"Fellow villagers, don't cook at home today! Come to our palace, and we'll prepare a buffet for you!"

"Go back now and call up those villagers who ran away and those who didn't come, and tell them that the emperor is inviting everyone to dinner! Plenty of chicken, duck, fish and meat!"

As soon as these words were spoken, cheers broke out in the crowd.

All the people scattered like birds and beasts, ran into Fengyang City, and ran around to tell each other!
"Let's go, go back."

Zhu Yuanzhang slowly exhaled, glanced at the ministers, waved at Ma Xiuying and said,

"Girl, I'm a little tired."

"Everyone, go back to the palace..."

……

That night, a large buffet was held and the people of Fengyang were delighted. Listening to the story of the emperor beheading corrupt officials and powerful people today, they all applauded. With Zhu Yuanzhang's encouragement, all kinds of jingles praising the emperor emerged one after another.

Of course, this time it's from the heart.

However, some were happy while others were sad. The common people were feasting with relish, but the civil and military officials of Huaixi could not eat even though they looked at the sumptuous dishes in front of them.

"What should I do? I heard that Yang Xian didn't even come for dinner and has gone to investigate a case."

Zhou Dexing looked unhappy and whispered,
"I have correspondence with Liangzu and Yongzhong, and I also have a share in the account books in his manor!"

"If this is investigated, I'm doomed!!"

The people around him all looked solemn when they heard this.

"That bastard Yang Xian, even if we didn't do anything wrong, he would still make up some things to throw dirty water on us!"

Wu Liang said angrily,

"If he really catches us, will we still have a chance to survive?"

"When the time comes, the fate of Lao Lu and his men will be ours!"

"Damn it! Being a general is a life and death struggle, but it's so damn frustrating! There's no talk of promotion, but the butcher's knife is hanging over my head!"

After hearing these words, everyone felt the same way.

Yes!

It was too hard to work under Emperor Zhu! They didn't enjoy the glory and wealth, and they couldn't make any money. The miserable situation of Zhu Liangzu and others today was enough to leave a deep psychological shadow on them!

"Hu Weiyong, you have to think of a solution for us!"

Hu Mei frowned and said,
"We brothers can regard you as our backbone!"

"It's fine that Zhu Liangzu and the others didn't survive, and it's fine that you refused to stand up today, but now all of us are in danger, you have to think of a way, right?"

"Otherwise, I don't think you need to be the big brother anymore!"

He is no longer polite when speaking.

Hu Weiyong's plans always seemed good, but in the end they turned out to be completely wrong! He was no match for the emperor!
What’s more important is that every time they took the lead, he would just sit there and watch the show!

This will undoubtedly cause Hu Weiyong's status in the hearts of the generals to plummet!
Hu Weiyong took a sip of wine, raised his head slightly, and said in a cold voice:

"Do you think I want to be the big brother?"

"To put it bluntly, I'll just clean my ass now and stay out of this matter! Have you cleaned your asses?"

"Humph!"

When Hu Mei heard this, her expression suddenly changed.

"you!"

He was so angry that he clenched his fists!

"Alright, alright! Let's not lose our composure among ourselves."

Zhou Dexing saw that the situation was not right, and hurriedly tried to smooth things over.
“This matter involving Lawrence Lu, including Zhu Liangzu and Liao Yongzhong, cannot be blamed on Brother Hu.”

"We are all rough men. We can be of some use in the battlefield, but we are really at a loss in the court! We still need Brother Hu to give us some advice!"

These few words helped Hu Mei and others calm down their anger and look at Hu Weiyong again.

"Brother Hu, I was too aggressive just now. It's my fault."

"Don't take it personally."

Hu Mei bowed and admitted his mistake.

Hu Weiyong put down his wine glass, sighed softly, and said:
"I admit that I did miscalculate this time. I was too naive. It is indeed too difficult for us to fight against His Majesty! His cruelty and meticulousness far exceeded my imagination!"

"This time, His Majesty has obviously made sufficient preparations and must have investigated everything in secret! Otherwise, would he take us to that dilapidated village? Not to mention, the Imperial Guards searched these three manors so quickly, how could it be so fast!"

"This time, Your Majesty is just killing the chicken to scare the monkeys! We are the monkeys being fooled!"

After hearing this, everyone felt a little discouraged.

Yes.

They are all mighty generals on the battlefield, but in front of His Majesty the Emperor, they are just monkeys!

"However, your Majesty's killing of a chicken to scare the monkey has also made me more alert."

Hu Weiyong said in a deep voice,

"If we don't unite, the next chicken might be one of us!"

"You have seen today that our Emperor Zhu is not gracious! No matter how outstanding your achievements are, in his eyes you are nothing more than a meritorious dog!"

"If someone displeases him one day, he will kill the person without hesitation! It doesn't matter if you are a marquis or a duke!"

"So... is it okay to not be united? Brothers, after this battle, we must not have any illusions about the emperor!"

After hearing these words, all the generals nodded.

Indeed, I used to fantasize about being a brother who would risk life and death for Your Majesty!

But in the end, they don’t even treat you as a brother!
Hu Weiyong’s choice of words is very accurate, they are... just merit-governors!

When the cunning rabbit dies, the running dog will be cooked and killed when needed, just like Zhu Liangzu and Liao Yongzhong, who are insignificant.

Among them, some of them have not made as great contributions as these two!
"Brother Hu is right. Our words have no weight, so we must not disperse. Otherwise, we will be no different from stray dogs on the roadside!"

"We have to work together. Even if we can't protect anyone, we can always discuss countermeasures if something goes wrong, right?"

"Yes, that's right..."

"..."

Hu Weiyong was indeed a man of great eloquence. With just a few words, he boosted the team's cohesion and became the backbone again.

"Right now, Yang Xian is the biggest threat."

Hu Weiyong said in a deep voice,

"Once he finds any clues, he will definitely hunt us down!"

"Your Majesty, perhaps with this in mind, he gave such an important matter to Yang Xian to investigate. What he wants is to weaken the prestige of us Huaixi people! Especially the generals who returned from the Northern Expedition, they are so powerful that Your Majesty is afraid of them and they will definitely be suppressed!"

"So, we must find a way to get rid of Yang Xian!"

When the generals heard this, their expressions were all shocked.

"What does Brother Hu mean? Find a killer to kill Yang Xian?"

"Or maybe he died of a sudden illness without anyone noticing?"

For a moment, everyone had a lot of plans.

They may not be proficient in other businesses, but killing is their profession.

"Of course it's not murder. No matter how clean you do it, can you escape His Majesty's eyes? You have seen the ability of the Imperial Guards."

Hu Weiyong shook his head and said,

"Killing people will only arouse His Majesty's anger. What we need to do is to discredit Yang Xian! Let him lose his reputation and lose the emperor's trust!"

"Do you know where the ear of rice that Lin Xiu presented to His Majesty yesterday came from?"

Upon hearing this, all the generals shook their heads.

"He told me that he bought it from a merchant in Champa for ten taels of gold!"

Hu Weiyong laughed and said,
"We in the Central Plains simply can't grow such plump ears of rice! But there's nothing we can do, because Your Majesty just likes this stuff."

"Didn't Yang Xian rely on this rice ear to be successfully transferred back to the central government from Yangzhou?"

Zhou Dexing's expression froze.

"Brother Hu, what you mean is... Yang Xian's rice ears were also bought from someone else, not grown in his so-called responsibility fields?"

He said repeatedly,

"This is a crime of deceiving the emperor!"

"If this matter is found out, he will definitely be beheaded!"

When they heard that Yang Xian was going to be beheaded, all the generals became excited. Several Huaixi people had died, and it was time for Liu Bowen and Yang Xian's gang to bleed!
"Yes! In fact, the so-called auspicious signs are just people below deceiving the emperor. Strictly speaking, it is all deceiving the emperor, but the emperor usually doesn't care."

Hu Weiyong sneered,

"But this one is different. The emperor really believes it!"

"Not only did he really believe it, he also took Yang Xian as a model for the prefect and promoted it for two years! In addition, he even hung the rice ear in his imperial study! As a souvenir!"

"Just think about it, if he knew that Yang Xian had someone buy these rice ears, how angry would he be?"

Wu Liang's eyes lit up.

"Your Majesty has been made a fool of!"

"I never thought that even the wise and powerful Majesty would be played around by others one day, hahaha! Yang Xian is a civil servant after all, and he is much better at using tricks than us rough guys!"

At this moment, they actually felt a bit gloating.

Emperor Zhu, don't you always boast that you have the ability to judge people? Yang Xian is such a traitor right in front of you, and you still treat him like a treasure!

It's so funny!
"Don't be too happy too soon, we need evidence now."

Hu Weiyong whispered,

"The sooner the better!"

"We don't have His Majesty's royal guards, so we can only rely on ourselves!"

"You must have done quite a lot over the years, right? You must have some capable people, right? Send them all out to look for evidence!"

"This is a race. If Yang Xian investigates the case first, we will suffer. Otherwise, he will suffer!"

"Do you understand everything?"

When the generals heard this, they all nodded vigorously!

This game is a race with death. Either you die or I die!

They must mobilize all the resources they can, use all their strength, and get ahead of Yang Xian at all costs!

……

Fengyang Palace.

Zhu Yuanzhang was washing his feet with a frown on his face.

"Why are you frowning all the time?"

"It's all over. Don't think about it anymore. Get some sleep today. You still have to answer to God tomorrow."

Ma Xiuying handed over the foot towel and said softly,

"I'm at home, and I want to go out, but after a few days, I want to go back again."

"Especially this time, I was really tired. I just heard from the servants outside that Biao'er was also exhausted. As soon as he returned to the palace, he almost fainted. It was Chang who helped him back to his room."

When Zhu Yuanzhang heard this, his expression suddenly froze.

"What happened to Biao'er?"

He said hurriedly,
"Is the person dizzy? Have you seen a doctor?"

"Oh! This is a mistake. If I had known, I would have brought a few doctors with me! I am a little worried about the doctors in this place!"

Ma Xiuying waved her hand.

"It shouldn't be a big deal, just exhausted."

She sighed softly,

"How could he not be tired? He was already very tired after coming back from the ancestral tomb, so he just took a breath. Today he followed you to farm again."

"How can he plant rice in that field? It's under the scorching sun, and it's his first time planting rice. The key is... he's not as lazy as Little Orange, because he's the prince, so he has to do his best."

"This child is too strict with himself..."

Zhu Yuanzhang remained silent.

"We were indeed negligent in comparing ourselves to the benchmark."

He whispered,

"But there is no other way. We can only trust our own son! We can't trust anyone else!"

"Look at the second and third brothers, they are bastards, right? The most bastard one is the sixth brother, right? But no matter how naughty and mischievous they are, their hearts are with our Zhu family, and they care about the Ming Dynasty!"

"But look at those generals! They haven't even been given titles yet, but they've already started to commit crimes! We're sure there are many more like Zhu Liangzu and Liao Yongzhong, but they haven't been dug out yet!"

"How can we trust them if we delegate power to them and let them do the work? It won't be long before they sideline us!"

"This is also the reason why we haven't appointed a prime minister yet. We really don't trust them!"

In fact, the Ming Dynasty had a prime minister, and the crown prince Zhu Biao actually served as the prime minister.

The father and son, one being the emperor and the other being the prime minister, took charge of all the affairs of the empire!
But because of this, both of them were exhausted!
It was better that Zhu Yuanzhang was in good health, but Zhu Biao did not have such good physical fitness!
It can be said that since he stayed up all night to rescue the soldiers from the Patrol Inspection Division that day, his body has been in a state of extreme fatigue and loss, coupled with the fact that he has been busy taking over various tasks...

The fact that I managed to hold on until today before feeling dizzy can be said to be a testament to my extraordinary willpower!

"These generals really need to be restrained."

Ma Xiuying nodded and said,

"But civil officials should be better, right? I always think that Liu Bowen is a loyal minister and he is trustworthy."

"Song Lian is also a man of absolute integrity."

"But you are unwilling to reuse them."

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand.

"It's not that I don't want to use him. You know Liu Bowen. He's arrogant because of his talent. We can't get along."

Old Zhu snorted coldly.
"In fact, he has always looked down on us because we are from a peasant background and has never been open to us!"

"Recently, he has repeatedly wanted to retire and return home! Humph, it's obvious that he is dissatisfied with us and wants to retire to the mountains and forests!"

"With a person like this, even if you ask him to be the prime minister, he won't agree! What can you do?"

Ma Xiuying couldn't help feeling helpless when she heard this.

"You are a stubborn person. Liu Bowen is a polite person. If you think he is aloof and keeps people at a distance, then there is nothing you can do about it."

She hummed softly,

"No matter what, what he has done for you over the years is commendable."

"As for retiring, I promised him that I would allow him to retire after he succeeded, but you went back on your word, which made me lose face. It's as if my words as the queen don't carry any weight and I don't keep my word."

Zhu Yuanzhang curled his lips.

"Without him, those arrogant soldiers will be even harder to deal with! We are counting on him to lead the way!"

He raised his head and said,

"If he refuses to fight, then let Yang Xian fight! They are master and apprentice! We heard Yang Xian calling Liu Bowen his mentor, and Liu Bowen didn't object. If this kid goes up, Liu Bowen will definitely support him!"

"I'm quite optimistic about Yang Xian. He's capable and ambitious. When he governed Yangzhou, he was a role model for the whole country. He's just a little young and lacks some experience."

"Given time, he will definitely be able to take on important responsibilities! What do you think, let's make him the prime minister in the future to suppress Li Shanchang, Hu Weiyong and others?"

It can be heard that Zhu Yuanzhang had very high expectations for Yang Xian and wanted to train him to become prime minister!

"Do you trust this Yang Xian so much?"

Ma Xiuying tilted her head and asked with a smile.

"Of course, even though he's a little young, his character is impeccable! He's upright, just like Liu Bowen! We've been observing him for so many years, there's no doubt about it!"

Zhu Yuanzhang said confidently, as if it was a matter of course.

"I have never made a mistake in judging people!"

Ma Xiuying smiled slightly.

"I hope you don't make a mistake."

"Go to sleep. I'm tired... We still have to travel tomorrow."

As she spoke, she stood up and lay down on the bed.

"Hey, girl!"

Zhu Yuanzhang wiped his feet and said hurriedly,

"Why are you in such a hurry? We haven't finished talking to you yet!"

"There are some things that we can't make up our minds about. Can you help us with the consultation?"

Ma Xiuying was lying on the bed and responded:

"Your Majesty, the harem is not allowed to interfere in government affairs. Don't tell me about the past."

Zhu Yuanzhang: "..."

"Don't meddle in politics, we are a couple, always come together to discuss things, right? Isn't this behind closed doors?"

He ran to the bedside in two steps, pushed Ma Xiuying, and said,
"Wake up, stop pretending to be asleep!"

"I'm not sleepy at all right now! I killed so many people today, but that scene is still all over my mind! How can you sleep? Are you more focused than me?"

Ma Xiuying slightly turned sideways and glanced at Zhu Yuanzhang.

"If your majesty has nowhere to vent his energy, then go to the other concubines. Bring them all out. They are eagerly looking forward to your presence."

"I've left them alone in their empty rooms for the past two days. Who knows, they might have been whispering about me monopolizing the emperor!"

"Go, go, I want to sleep..."

Zhu Yuanzhang: "@#￥%……&@!!!"

"We are talking to you about serious matters, but you are treating me like a joke!"

Old Zhu said unhappily,
"We now need to determine the status of the meritorious officials, that is, their titles and salaries!"

"Are you sure you don't want to participate? If you don't, then we'll have to make the decision on our own!"

After hearing this, Ma Xiuying opened her eyes and climbed out of bed.

"You want to order it today?"

She said with some surprise,
"Let's talk about it when we get back. Why are you in such a hurry?"

Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head.

"There are deterrence and rewards, and alternating between relaxation and tension is the way to control subordinates."

"After giving them a scare today, we have to give them something sweet to calm their nerves. Otherwise, I'm afraid these people will turn away from us."

"It's hard to be an emperor..."

Ma Xiuying nodded.

"That's the reason."

"Okay, then I'll do my best to help you check so that you don't get confused."

Conferring titles is one of the emperor’s greatest powers, and is equivalent to dividing the most core interests!
The difference between dukes, marquises, earls, viscounts, and barons is like a chasm, and the treatment they can get is absolutely different from heaven and earth!

Ma Xiuying was naturally happy that her husband was willing to share this power with her.

Zhu Yuanzhang took out a stack of small pieces of paper from his arms, on which were written names of people, such as Xu Da, Tang He, Li Shanchang, Liu Bowen, Geng Bingwen...

"Starting from Xu Da, without a doubt, Duke."

Ma Xiuying judged,

"Li Shanchang, the Duke!"

"Tanghe, Duke!"

"Liu Bowen, the Duke!"

Zhu Yuanzhang: "???"

"Go away! I asked you to be our advisor, not to take over the leadership!"

"How can Liu Bowen be qualified to be a duke? He is so lucky to be an earl! Even Tang He is not qualified to be a duke!"

When Ma Xiuying heard this, her expression suddenly changed.

"Zhongba, are you confused?!"

(End of this chapter)