Ming Dynasty: I risked my life to teach the prince, the emperor begged me not to die

Chapter 349: Destroying the Japanese

In early October, winter came. The first snow of the 13th year of Hongzhi came earlier than usual.

The light snow like willow catkins gradually became heavier, covering the densely packed houses in Huaihua Hutong with a layer of white, making the place look like a spectacular sight.

Chen Ce lit the stove in his house. It was freezing cold, but he didn't go out. He sat beside the stove, reading a book absent-mindedly.

Did it fail?

Perhaps many people would think that Chen Ce’s layout for the southeast had failed, but only Chen Ce knew that this was just the beginning.

With Fu Yuan's intelligence and talent, as long as he sensed that the court had the intention of opening up the sea, he would definitely find a way to stop the court from further opening up the sea.

The only way was to let the Japanese pirates enter the inland to burn, kill and loot, so that the court would strengthen coastal defense and maritime bans and eliminate the possibility of opening the sea.

The Japanese are still in the era of the Warring States Period, and the islands are full of killing, war, poverty and hunger.

Once they have tasted the sweetness in the southeastern part of the Ming Dynasty, they will continue to pour into the southeastern part of the Ming Dynasty to stir up trouble.

Let me complete what Emperor Taizu didn’t do!
Destroy the Japanese!
Chen Ce's goal has never been to open up the sea. These were all pretexts. He was looking for a reason and excuse for the war. In order to find the reason for the war, he started planning very early.

Fu Yuan is his chess piece, the most important chess piece he has placed in the southeast, and so is Xu Jing.

From that time on, Chen Ce began to plan such a huge situation.

Even the historical materials about the Hongwu Dynasty that are brought up now are part of his plan, because the Hongwu Dynasty said in a reply letter to the Japanese Emperor that if you continue to be rude, I will send troops eastward to the coast and destroy your country.

The Japanese islands have copper mines and silver mountains that the Ming Dynasty needs, as well as vast land resources.

As long as the Japanese islands are conquered, all the royal family members in the country can be sent to the Japanese islands to enslave the Japanese people, so as to avoid harming their fellow soldiers in the country.

There is no game that is destined to fail, everything is going according to Chen Ce's plan.

However, Chen Ce hid his purpose very deeply. He never told anyone, and no one knew what Chen Ce was planning.

Perhaps he is the only one who understands this crazy plan.

Chen Ce was not sure whether he would succeed in the end. He wanted to set foot on the Japanese island as the master within his lifetime!
……

Zhu Houzhao was wrapped in a thick cloak, and his lackey Liu Jin's fair face was red from the cold. The master and servant came to Chen Ce's courtyard together.

Zhu Houzhao patted the snow off his body, handed the cloak to Liu Jin, exhaled a breath of cold air, and couldn't help saying, "It's so cold."

"Winter is coming earlier and earlier in Beijing every year. I heard it's still quite hot in the south."

Chen Ce poured Zhu Houzhao a pot of hot tea and started coughing uncontrollably again.

Zhu Houzhao slapped Liu Jin in the face with his backhand, stunning him.

"Go pour the tea! You're standing there like a log. I won't bring you out next time!"

Liu Jin then realized that he hadn't been slapped by the prince for a long time. He felt a little uncomfortable for a moment and quickly ran over to help Chen Ce pour tea.

"Little brother, you've been coughing more and more frequently recently, are you okay?"

Chen Ce shook his head and said, "It's okay. It's winter now. It's cold and freezing. It's normal to cough."

Zhu Houzhao was still a little worried, so he said, "How about I find a few reliable people to take care of you?"

"What do you think of Liu Jin? He is very obedient, comfortable to use, and flexible in thinking."

Liu Jin: "..."

Prince, stop it. I want to be at your side! Now you let me take care of this consumptive man. When you ascend the throne, will there still be a place for Liu?

Those damn eunuchs in the East Palace have always been coveting my position as the Crown Prince's companion.

Chen Ce naturally didn't need Liu Jin's care anymore. He smiled and shook his head and said, "Liu Jin should be left to you. I'm not used to being taken care of. I'm used to being alone."

The snow outside was getting heavier and heavier, and Liu Wentai came to Huaihua Hutong with a medical box.

This time the interval was a bit long. Something happened in the Imperial Hospital, which delayed him. When he walked into the courtyard, he apologized repeatedly: "Mr. Chen, I was delayed by something...ah, too..."

Zhu Houzhao interrupted calmly, "What do you mean by 'Tai'? What do you do?"

Liu Wentai understood immediately.

Is the prince hiding his identity?
He smiled awkwardly and said, "I want to say that I haven't come here often enough in the past few days. It's damn right."

Chen Ce looked at their poor acting skills and smiled knowingly.

Liu Wentai took Chen Ce's pulse and gave him acupuncture as usual.

Zhu Houzhao asked hurriedly, "Why are you giving him acupuncture? What's wrong with him?"

Liu Wentai sighed and said to Zhu Houzhao: "Tai... Oh, Master Chen's illness has worsened recently..."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Houzhao immediately became anxious. He hurriedly asked Chen Ce, "Didn't you say it was nothing serious? Why didn't you tell me if it got worse?"

Chen Ce shrugged indifferently and said, "It's no use talking about it. Even if Hua Tuo were alive, he wouldn't be able to save her. Why should I worry about you?"

Liu Wentai wondered where this Chen Ce came from. It was fine if the emperor was so concerned about him, but looking at the prince's condition, he was even more worried than his father was sick.

If he had not known that Emperor Hongzhi had no illegitimate children, he would have even thought that Chen Ce was the emperor's illegitimate child.

Zhu Houzhao said viciously: "You! You deserve to die!"

Liu Wentai: “?”

Why are you blaming me now? Your Highness, are you so unreasonable?
"You just said that you were delayed these days by something. Is there anything more important than diagnosing your little brother's health?"

"Just wait for me, you old man!"

Liu Wentai: “…”

He said hurriedly, "This, uh, this young master, it's really because...something happened in the southwest, and the Imperial Hospital has been very busy recently, so I was delayed."

Zhu Houzhao snorted, "What happened in the southwest that would have to trouble your Imperial Hospital? Your Imperial Hospital really has long arms, haha!"

Liu Wentai knew that if he didn't give the prince a reasonable explanation today, he didn't know how the prince would deal with the Imperial Hospital after returning to the palace.

"Well, to be honest, there has been a large number of malaria cases in the southwest. Some officials sent by the imperial court and some soldiers stationed in the Xuanwei Division have been infected with malaria."

"If it was just one or two people, it would be fine, but now the situation is quite serious. Hundreds of people have been infected since late autumn and early winter, and the number of infections is increasing every day."

"The medical resources in the southwest are scarce. If malaria is not properly treated, I don't know how many people will die. If it spreads to the various provincial governments in the southwest, it will be even more troublesome. The Imperial Hospital has to send people to the southwest to check the situation."

Zhu Houzhao said: "Did you go to the southwest? You didn't go? What are you worried about? What you should worry about most is your little brother's health!"

“Don’t be idle.”

The corner of Liu Wentai's mouth twitched. "Your Highness, you are so cruel. The bureaucrats and people in the southwest are all citizens of the Ming Dynasty. Aren't the lives of so many people important lives?"

(End of this chapter)