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In the 28th year of the Wanli Emperor's reign, spring seemed to arrive later than usual in the Forbidden City.

Inside the East Warm Pavilion of the Qianqing Palace, Emperor Wanli, Zhu Yijun, stood alone by the window, gazing at the towering chimneys of the newly built steam engine factory outside the palace walls.

Thick black smoke billowed out, like a ferocious black dragon, tearing a hole in the azure sky.

"Your Majesty, it's time for your meal," a eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs reminded him cautiously.

Wanli seemed not to hear, his fingers gripping the window frame tightly, his knuckles white.

His gaze was fixed on the urgent report that had just been delivered...

The King of Shu had already been executed on the spot in Chengdu.

"Su... Ning!"

These two words were almost squeezed out from between the teeth.

He remembered that afternoon three months ago, when Su Ning stood in this very warm room, looking at him with those unfathomable eyes:
"Your Majesty, the evidence of the Prince of Shu's treason is conclusive. If he is not severely punished, other vassal kings may follow suit."

At that time, Su Ning's tone was as calm as if he were talking about the weather, as if he were not killing a prince of the Ming Dynasty, but an ant.

"Your Majesty..." the eunuch's voice trembled, "The Grand Secretary requests an audience."

Wanli turned around abruptly, a hint of murderous intent flashing in his eyes, but he quickly regained his composure: "Summon them."

Su Ning stepped in, still dressed in a simple red official robe, but with the imperial sword bestowed upon him by the late emperor hanging at his waist.

"Your Majesty, the King of Shu has been brought to justice. His assets, totaling 3.2 million taels of silver and 450,000 hectares of farmland, have all been deposited into the national treasury." Su Ning's voice was devoid of any emotion. "Next, I plan to investigate the King of Qin..."

“Mr. Su!” Wanli suddenly interrupted, his voice trembling slightly as he tried to control himself. “The Prince of Shu is, after all, my uncle. You won’t even leave him a complete corpse?”

Su Ning slightly raised his eyes: "Your Majesty, treason is a heinous crime, punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family according to the law. I have only executed the ringleader, which is already an act of leniency beyond the law."

The warm room fell into a deathly silence, with only the jarring ticking of the Western-style clock.

Emperor Wanli gripped the sleeves of his dragon robe tightly, suppressing the anger in his heart.

He understood the situation better than anyone else:
Most of the generals of the new army were his cronies promoted by Su Ning; most of the officials in the Six Ministries came from Su Ning's faction; even the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the palace had long been infiltrated and riddled with holes.

What's even more frightening is that the economic lifeline of the Ming Dynasty is now completely in the hands of Suning.

Those steel mills, textile factories, and ocean-going trading fleets that make a fortune every day all have Suning's shadow behind them.

If we were to harm him, the entire economy of the Ming Dynasty could collapse.

"If Your Majesty has no further instructions, I shall take my leave." Su Ning bowed, his movements so perfect that not a single flaw could be found.

Watching Su Ning's departing figure, Wanli suddenly swept the teacup off the table.

"Too deceiving!"

He slumped back onto the dragon throne, recalling his conversation with Duke Zhang Weixian of England half a month earlier.

"Your Majesty, nowadays, seven or eight out of ten military and political powers in the court are controlled by the Grand Secretary. The new army only knows about Prime Minister Su, but not Your Majesty!"

"Am I just supposed to stand by and watch him do whatever he wants?"

"Your Majesty must be patient. The Grand Secretary's new policies have offended the gentry and officials of the land. We only need to wait, wait for the day he makes a mistake..."

"Wait?" Wanli smiled bitterly. "Wait until Su Anbang wipes out all the descendants of the Zhu family?"

The Prime Minister's residence at this time presented a completely different scene.

"My lord, this is evidence of the King of Qin's crimes." A trusted aide handed over a secret report: "He has been accused of illegally seizing farmland, abducting women, illegally mining gold, and robbing tombs. All of these are documented."

Su Ning casually flipped through the pages and said indifferently, "Make preparations, we'll take action in three days."

"Your Majesty..."

"His Majesty is a wise man." Su Ning's lips curled into a cold smile. "He knows that to harm me now would be to shake the very foundation of the nation. Moreover—"

He walked to the window and looked at the brightly lit industrial area in the distance: "He knows perfectly well who is responsible for the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty today."

The confidant whispered, "But His Majesty is young and impetuous; what if..."

“There’s no such thing as ‘what if’,” Su Ning interrupted him. “The new army is loyal to me, industry and commerce depend on me, and the people are grateful to me. If Your Majesty is wise, you should continue to be a peaceful emperor.”

Meanwhile, inside the Qianqing Palace, Emperor Wanli was staring blankly at a map of the Ming Dynasty.

The map shows the fiefdoms of various regional princes marked in red ink.

The names of the King of Shu, the King of Zhou, and the King of Chu have been crossed out. Next will be the King of Qin, the King of Dai, and the King of Su...

"Where is Prime Minister Su?" Wanli suddenly asked.

A figure emerged from the shadows: "Your Majesty, the Grand Secretary has just returned to his residence."

Did he... mention me?

"The Grand Secretary said... His Majesty is a wise man."

Wanli suddenly closed his eyes, his fingernails digging deeply into his palms.

A smart person? Yes! He is indeed smart enough.

They are wise enough to know that they cannot act rashly now, and wise enough to continue to be patient.

But Emperor Wanli still remembered the admonition of the founding emperor: "When the emperor is angry, millions will die."

Emperor Wanli was waiting, waiting for an opportunity.

Wait until this powerful minister makes a mistake, wait until the resentment of the gentry across the land reaches its peak, wait until there are still loyal and righteous men in the new army...

“Mr. Su,” Wanli muttered to himself, gazing in the direction of the Grand Secretary’s residence, “you’d better never give me that chance.”

The palace lanterns cast a long shadow of him. In this palace, which symbolized supreme imperial power, the young emperor experienced for the first time what it meant to be a lonely ruler.

At that moment, Su Ning was in his study reviewing a memorial concerning the establishment of a parliament.

In the candlelight, his profile appeared exceptionally stern.

This power struggle between the emperor and his ministers has only just begun.

……

In the winter of the 28th year of the Wanli Emperor's reign, the Forbidden City was shrouded in a somber atmosphere.

Late at night on the third day of the eleventh lunar month, a sudden, urgent chime broke the tranquility of the Forbidden City.

The Qianqing Palace was brightly lit, and the imperial physicians knelt all over the floor. Emperor Wanli, lying on the dragon bed, had a bluish-purple face and was no longer breathing.

"His Majesty... has passed away!" The Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial announced, his voice trembling.

Grand Secretary Su Ning rushed to the palace immediately. He carefully examined Wanli's body and found an unusual black mark on the emperor's fingertips.

"Summon Wang Zhizhen, the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard!" Su Ning's voice was as cold as ice. "Seal the palace gates; no one is allowed to enter or leave!"

After an all-night interrogation, a shocking truth came to light.

Aconite powder, a highly toxic substance, was found in the ginseng soup that Emperor Wanli drank in the evening.

All the evidence points to the same person: Zhu Changxun, the most favored prince of the Wanli Emperor.

“Your Excellency, this is the poison found in Zhu Changxun’s palace.” Wang Zhizhen presented a porcelain bottle. “There are also secret letters between him and Consort Wan, in which he mentions… that he should ascend the throne as soon as possible.”

Su Ning's face darkened, and he immediately ordered: "Seize Zhu Changxun and Consort Wan and imprison them in the Imperial Prison!"

The following morning, Su Ning summoned all civil and military officials to the Wenhua Hall.

"Colleagues," Su Ning's voice echoed in the hall, "after investigation, it has been confirmed that Prince Zhu Changxun colluded with Consort Wan to poison the late Emperor. The evidence is irrefutable!"

An uproar erupted in the court. Duke Zhang Weixian of England questioned, "Prime Minister Su, this matter is of great importance; shouldn't it be subject to a joint trial by the three judicial departments...?"

“Duke of England,” Su Ning interrupted him, her gaze sharp as a knife, “the late emperor’s body is barely cold, and the murderer is right before our eyes. What are we waiting for?”

"This……"

Su Ning then presented a secret letter written by Zhu Changxun himself, as well as a poison test report issued by the Imperial Medical Academy.

The evidence was irrefutable, and no one dared to object anymore.

That night, deep in the imperial prison.

Zhu Changxun roared hysterically, "Su Ning! You framed me! Father Emperor, it was clearly you..."

Before he could finish speaking, a white silk ribbon had already wrapped around his neck.

At the same time, Consort Wan was "forced to commit suicide" in the Cold Palace.

The following morning, Su Ning calmly announced at the court meeting: "The traitor Zhu Changxun, who murdered the emperor, has committed suicide in prison, and Consort Wan was buried with the late emperor."

The entire court was silent, everyone knew what this so-called "suicide" was all about, but no one dared to question it.

……

Three days later, Crown Prince Zhu Changluo ascended the throne with the support of Su Ning, and changed the era name to Taichang.

At the enthronement ceremony, Emperor Taichang sat timidly on the dragon throne, while Su Ning stood beside the throne, accepting the homage of the officials on behalf of the emperor.

"I...I am young and ignorant. From now on, all important matters of state will be decided by Mr. Su." Emperor Taichang said in a weak voice, following the prepared speech.

Su Ning bowed and said, "This old minister will do his utmost to assist Your Majesty."

However, it is clear to everyone that this Grand Secretary's "assistance" is no different from that of a regent.

After the court session, Duke Zhang Weixian of Yingguo held a secret meeting with several senior officials.

"This is clearly a trap set by Su Ning!" Zhang Weixian gritted his teeth. "His Majesty's death was too suspicious. No matter how stupid Zhu Changxun was, he would never poison the late emperor at this time!"

“But now the evidence is conclusive, and the new emperor is under his control…” the Minister of Personnel sighed.

Zhang Weixian's gaze turned cold: "Let him be smug for a few days. He will pay for this crime of regicide sooner or later!"

Meanwhile, inside the Grand Secretary's residence, Su Ning was reviewing memorials.

The confidant whispered, "My lord, it seems that the Duke of England and others are secretly conspiring..."

"A clown, nothing to worry about." Su Ning didn't even look up. "Order the Embroidered Uniform Guard to keep a close watch on him."

He put down his vermilion brush, looked in the direction of the Qianqing Palace, and a cold smile appeared on his lips.

The Ming Dynasty was finally completely under his control.

As for the crime of patricide, let it remain buried on Zhu Changxun forever!
……

The first snow of the first year of the Taichang era covered the golden tiles and red walls of the Forbidden City.

The young Emperor Taichang sat alone in the Qianqing Palace, watching the snowflakes falling outside the window.

He knew that he was nothing more than a puppet, and the real emperor was the Grand Secretary who stood in the Wenhua Hall and issued orders.

"Father..." the young emperor whispered, "How exactly did you die?"

No one answered him.

Only the howling north wind seemed to be telling the story of the deep-seated sins and secrets of this dynasty.

……

In the second year of the Taichang era, after the internal affairs of the Ming Dynasty were completely stabilized, Grand Secretary Su Ning turned his attention to the vast ocean.

Under his strong impetus, this ancient empire embarked on an unprecedented global expansion.

"Malacca is the throat of the Ming Dynasty and must be firmly controlled." Under Su Ning's personal supervision, the Ming Dynasty's Nanyang Fleet established large naval bases on both the east and west sides of the Strait of Malacca.

Thirty new gunboats were stationed at the Bintan Island base at the eastern end of the strait, while the Palembang base in Sumatra at the western end became the outpost for the Ming Dynasty to control the Indian Ocean.

Meanwhile, several expeditionary fleets sailed south: "Java Island has fertile land, suitable for growing three seasons of rice. Establish the Java Pacification Commission here and settle 200,000 people."

"Luzon is rich in gold mines, so the Luzon Military Command was established and garrisoned with 5,000 troops."

"Siam produces 10 million shi of rice annually, and is required to pay 3 million shi as tribute each year."

In less than three years, the Ming Dynasty's sun and moon flag flew throughout the entire South Pacific archipelago, from Malacca to the Timor Sea.

Every year, more than five million shi of rice and hundreds of thousands of taels of gold and silver were transported from these islands to the mainland of the Ming Dynasty.

Meanwhile, expansion in the north became even more rapid.

Su Ning personally ordered: "Establish the North Sea Commandery on Sakhalin Island, with a garrison of 10,000 troops. Establish the Toyo Province Administration Office in Japan, with a garrison of 30,000 troops."

When a general questioned whether the harsh, cold land of Beihai was worth developing, Su Ning stood before a huge nautical chart and pointed to the area with his baton: "This place has an ice-free port for three months every year. To the north, it can contain the southward advance of the Russian Kingdom; to the east, it leads directly to the New World. More importantly—"

He turned to his generals and said, "The fleet that departs from here can sail eastward along the Kuril Islands, all the way to a new continent that we have never set foot on before!"

In the fourth year of the Taichang era, a Ming Dynasty task force consisting of fifty warships sailed into the Indian Ocean.

Following Su Ning's secret orders, fleet commander Zheng Ming established a series of naval bases at key junctures:

Colombo, the port of Ceylon, controls shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean;

Muscat in the Arabian Sea, monitoring the Persian Gulf;
The port of Aden, at the entrance to the Red Sea, guards the Isthmus of Suez;

When the fleet arrived off the east coast of Africa, Zheng Ming inscribed on a stone tablet in Mombasa: "In the fourth year of the Taichang reign of the Ming Dynasty, the navy arrived here, and all the seas submitted."

In the spring of the fifth year of the Taichang reign, the most ambitious expedition began.

Ten specially designed ocean-going giant ships set sail from Sakhalin Island, carrying two thousand soldiers, craftsmen and scholars, and were led eastward by explorer Chen Yuan.

After three months of arduous sailing, they finally saw a completely new land.

In his logbook, Chen Yuan wrote: "This place has dense forests and wide rivers, which the locals call 'Golden Mountain'. We raise the Ming Dynasty flag here and name it 'Xinning Prefecture'."

Almost simultaneously, another fleet landed on the west coast of Central America and established the city of Anyuan.

Crops, tools, and technologies from the Ming Dynasty began to spread in this new continent.

By the time the Taichang Emperor reached the tenth year, the Ming Dynasty had established an unprecedented global system:
In Southeast Asia, sprawling plantations provided the local population with rice, spices, and sugar; in Northeast Asia, fishing grounds and the fur trade flourished; in the Indian Ocean, escort fleets protected merchant ships; and on the west coast of the Americas, new colonial outposts continued to expand.

Every year, thousands of merchant ships shuttled along these routes, continuously transporting wealth from all over the world to the Ming Dynasty.

In the imperial court, no one questioned Suning's expansion policy anymore, because everyone had gained tangible benefits from it.

……

However, Suning's ambitions are far from over.

Inside a secret room in the Prime Minister's residence, a brand-new world map has been drawn.

The next target was marked in red ink: a fast route across the Pacific Ocean, a new sea route to Europe, and the undeveloped Australian continent...

"This world will eventually be bathed in the glory of the Ming Dynasty." The powerful minister, in the prime of his life, stood before the map, his eyes still burning with the flame of conquest.

Meanwhile, the distant European countries were only just beginning to realize...

This dragon, awakening in the East, not only aims to dominate Asia but also to bring the entire world into its domain.

...(End of chapter)