Ming Dynasty: The Jingnan Rebellion has just been successful, and Zhu Yuanzhang has been resurrected

Chapter 188 Grandfather, you really are heartless!
At this moment, Zhu Yunwen was intentionally emulating Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, and gradually bringing the grasslands under his control.

Zhu Yunwen's personal abilities may not be as good as Li Shimin's, but with the help of the system, his advantages are definitely greater than Li Shimin's.

Who can beat someone who's cheating?
How can mortals compete with immortals?

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Kohler stood up, his whole body filled with excitement.

At this moment, his resolve to follow Zhu Yunwen was stronger than anyone else's, because only if Zhu Yunwen ruled the grasslands could his position be effectively guaranteed.

Of course, as time goes by and he gains a foothold on the grasslands, his loyalty to Zhu Yunwen may not be as high. However, for now, he is still extremely loyal to Zhu Yunwen, to the highest degree.

There are no permanent friends, but there are permanent interests. This is absolutely a wise saying that applies at all times.

"Arutai, where do you think Benyashiri will flee to?" Zhu Yunwen's gaze fell on Arutai, a faint smile on his face.

Arutai's heart sank, feeling somewhat helpless.

Zhu Yunwen's question was a dead end; if he didn't answer, he might be killed.

He could sense that the Ming emperor in front of him, as well as the group of Northern Yuan generals, had a cat-and-mouse mentality towards him and the group of Northern Yuan generals. The most terrifying thing about this mentality was that the other party didn't care much about their lives.

In other words, if he displeased Zhu Yunwen, the likely outcome would be death.

The problem is that he stayed behind to cover the rear, precisely to give Benjamin enough time to escape.

Kohler's recent promotion has made all the Northern Yuan generals green with envy. They are eager to make a name for themselves in order to win favor with Zhu Yunwen. This means that he cannot simply use some words to appease Zhu Yunwen.

"What are you dawdling about? His Majesty is asking you a question, can't you hear me?" Li Jinglong frowned and reprimanded him.

"Jinglong!" Zhu Yuntong waved to Li Jinglong, knowing in his heart that Arutai was struggling with his inner thoughts.

This process requires a great deal of patience. If Arutai chooses to remain loyal to the Northern Yuan, then he can simply kill him. If Arutai truly surrenders to the Ming Dynasty, then he can be trusted more.

Therefore, he was not in a hurry.

Regardless of the outcome, he is guaranteed to win, so why should he be in a hurry?

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Li Jinglong nodded and said no more.

The scene suddenly fell silent.

Time passes minute by minute.

"His Majesty the Emperor has presented the Prime Minister with a difficult problem!"

"I actually hope the Grand Tutor doesn't say anything. That way, might I have a chance to gain His Majesty the Emperor's favor later?"

"If the Grand Tutor doesn't speak up in the end, will His Majesty the Emperor kill him?"

"Grand Tutor, hold on! Do not betray the Khan!"

"What will the Grand Tutor do? However, given the current situation, it would be most advantageous for me if the Grand Tutor continued to serve the Great Khan."

"Given the current situation, the dead Grand Tutor is the best Grand Tutor. We will then be able to take over his power."

"."

The eyes of the Northern Yuan generals flickered, and all sorts of thoughts arose in their minds.

If they could, they would love to make the decision for Arutai and send him to the abyss of death.

Everyone can see the situation clearly: the Northern Yuan is finished.

Therefore, whoever gains Zhu Yunwen's favor now will gain immense power; Kohler is the best example of this.

During this period of reshuffling of power in the Northern Yuan, the presence of Arughtai was not good news for the Northern Yuan generals.

Putting everything else aside, Arughtai's position is already established; he will definitely occupy a very important position.

There are only so many seats. If Arutai takes one, there will definitely be even fewer seats for others.

Ultimately, it all comes down to self-interest. Of course, all of this is because the Northern Yuan couldn't defeat the Ming Dynasty, so everyone had no choice but to follow in the footsteps of the Ming.

"Hoo," Arughtai exhaled a long breath after an unknown amount of time, looked at Zhu Yunwen, and said, "Your Majesty, I think we should pursue the Oirats. Benyashiri is likely to go to the Oirats to hide."

"Oh, Grand Tutor, why couldn't you hold on!"

"What a pity. I never expected that the Grand Tutor would betray the Great Khan in the end. Not long ago, he risked his life to hold the rear and buy the Great Khan more time to escape."

"I really didn't expect that the Grand Tutor would actually surrender in the end. If you were going to surrender, you should have done so sooner. I've been waiting for so long for nothing."

"Arutai, you old codger, so you're afraid of death too. I thought you would be loyal to the Great Khan. It seems I overestimated you."

"Although I am somewhat disappointed, I can understand it. The Prime Minister has pledged allegiance to His Majesty the Emperor, so it's not too bad."

"."

The Northern Yuan generals felt incredibly conflicted upon hearing Arughtai's words.

To be honest, many people hoped that Arutai would remain loyal to Benjamin, because then Arutai would most likely die in the end, and they would have their chance.

However, Arughtai ultimately chose to surrender to the Ming Dynasty, a result that was acceptable to most of the Northern Yuan generals, especially those who had a good relationship with him.

"The Oirat? Alright, then let's go after the Oirat!" Zhu Yunwen nodded.

During this deep dive into the grasslands, the Oirat were given a much higher priority than the Tatars, mainly due to the Oirat's historical growth trajectory.

Historically, the Oirat Mongols rose to power and unified the grasslands, and the Tatars were directly integrated into the Oirat Mongols.

"Your Majesty, a letter from Yingtian Prefecture!" Ma Sanbao approached Zhu Yunwen with a letter in his hand.

"Hmm?" Zhu Yunwen was taken aback upon hearing this, stopped his horse, and quickly opened the letter.

"What's going on? Has something happened in Yingtian Prefecture?"

"A message from Yingtian Prefecture at this time, could it be that something really has gone wrong?"

"Just how important must it be that news has reached the grasslands?"

"."

Zhu Di, Lan Yu, Zhu Gaoxu, Li Jinglong, and others were filled with curiosity.

They all clearly understood that if news from Yingtian Prefecture could reach the grasslands directly, then it was definitely not a trivial matter.

After opening the letter, Zhu Yunwen quickly glanced through its contents, his expression turning somewhat strange: "Zhu Yunwen is indeed restless, but the imperial family truly has no kinship!"

In later years, some history enthusiasts on the internet jokingly said, "There is no kinship in the imperial family."

Of course, Zhu Yuanzhang's current actions don't mean he has no family affection at all; rather, he's currently focusing his affection on Zhu Yunwen, thus appearing somewhat cold towards him. However, looking at it from another perspective, isn't Zhu Yuanzhang's behavior also a way of protecting Zhu Yunwen?
"However, in this way, Zhu Yunwen is completely no threat at all!"

"If Chongba treats you well, that would indeed be a very good thing."

Zhu Yunwen smiled slightly.

The image of Zhu Yuanzhang in his mind gradually overlapped with that of some feudal mothers-in-law in later generations who favored sons over daughters. If a mother-in-law could not conceive or gave birth to a daughter, she would definitely be a wicked mother-in-law who would cause all sorts of trouble. However, if a mother-in-law could give birth to a son, then she would serve her like an empress dowager.

Although the story sounds extremely absurd, even unbelievable, it is indeed true, and there are countless examples of this.

The same person can be completely different depending on whether they are a wicked mother-in-law or a devoted and selfless mother-in-law.

"What exactly did the letter say? It doesn't seem to be bad news, otherwise His Majesty wouldn't be laughing."

"I wonder what was written in the letter that made His Majesty laugh."

"Judging from His Majesty's current appearance, Yingtian Prefecture should be safe. However, His Majesty did not suffer a defeat on the grasslands, but even won an unprecedented victory. Under such circumstances, who would dare to be restless?"

"Yingtian Prefecture should be stabilized now, and the Ming Dynasty should be officially under His Majesty's full control from now on."

"."

Zhu Di, Lan Yu, Zhu Gaoxu, Li Jinglong, and others all thought to themselves.

Seeing Zhu Yunwen's smiling face after reading the letter, their somewhat uneasy hearts instantly calmed down.

There must be nothing wrong with Yingtian Prefecture, and it may even be developing in a positive direction. Otherwise, why would Zhu Yunwen be laughing?

Zhu Yunwen didn't say much. After putting the letter away, he waved his hand and said, "Let's go to the Oirat!"

"Your Majesty the Emperor, I'll lead the way for you!" Kohler said with a beaming smile as he stepped forward.

“Good dog!”

The Northern Yuan generals cursed inwardly as they looked at Kohler's obsequious manner, but at the same time, they couldn't help but feel envious.

Zhu Yunwen waved his hand and said, "No need, I can find the location of the Oirat!"

"Huh?" Kohler, Arutai, and the other Northern Yuan generals were all a little confused upon hearing this.

The next second, the group of people came to their senses, their eyes all darting around uncertainly.

They wanted to find out who Zhu Yunwen's mole was!
The current situation of the Northern Yuan is largely due to the insider who surrendered to Zhu Yunwen.

Many eyes frequently wandered over Kohler.

If Zhu Yunwen conquers the grasslands, Kohler will definitely be the biggest beneficiary.

From the perspective of what could have been gained, Kohler is undoubtedly the prime suspect.

Kohler sensed the suspicion from the Northern Yuan generals and smiled bitterly to himself: "I wish I were His Majesty the Emperor's inside man, but I'm really not the one he's looking for!"

His mouth moved as if he wanted to explain, but he ultimately gave up.

Let them have their doubts; he's upright and has nothing to fear.

Another question is, if he were to explain at this time, would it displease Zhu Yunwen?
His current power all comes from Zhu Yunwen, and he hasn't even received his due yet. If he offends Zhu Yunwen now, his losses will be enormous.

So let the misunderstanding continue. In any case, he's already considered Zhu Yunwen's lackey by all the Northern Yuan generals.

No need to worry if you have too many debts, no need to worry if you have too many lice.

He's already a lackey, so adding the identity of an inside agent won't hurt!
"Hehe, if I was able to find you before, finding the Oirat will naturally be no problem for me," Zhu Yunwen said with a light laugh.

"As expected, there was an inside man!"

"Who exactly is this inside man?"

"Kohler isn't the mole, damn it, this mole is hiding so well, who is he?!"

"."

Upon hearing Zhu Yunwen's words, the Northern Yuan generals became even more certain that some of them had defected to Zhu Yunwen.

"Giddy up!" Zhu Yunwen didn't explain anything, pulled on the reins of his warhorse, and rode towards the Oirat.

"Boom!"

The Great Snow Dragon Riders and Tiger Leopard Riders followed, but unlike before, this time the troops accompanying him to conquer the Oirat Mongols also included troops from the Northern Yuan.

Oirat camp!

Dorjibo and Benyashiri ran for their lives, not daring to stop for even a moment.

"Great Khan, the Oirat camp is just ahead. We can finally breathe a sigh of relief." Dorjibo looked at the camp not far away and gasped for breath.

"Hmm!" Benyashiri nodded, his mood somewhat somber at the moment.

Not long ago, he led the Northern Yuan army, with the assistance of Arughtai and Mahmud, rampaging through Liaodong and launching a fierce attack on Beiping.

Who could have imagined that the situation would suddenly take such a turn for the worse, and now he's ended up like a stray dog.

After relaxing, his expression turned somewhat melancholic: "Grand Tutor."

In order to buy him time to escape, Arughtai volunteered to stay behind and cover his retreat.

He had witnessed the terrifying power of the Great Snow Dragon Riders and the Tiger and Leopard Riders. If Arutai were to cover the rear, the outcome would undoubtedly be dire, without any doubt.

He may never see Arughtai again.

"Great Khan, when you see Mahmud later, remember not to mention the Grand Tutor," Dorjib warned Benyashiri, remembering something.

There was animosity between Mahmud and Arughtai, and Benyashiri was placed on the throne by Arughtai. Under such circumstances, if Benyashiri were to speak from Arughtai's perspective, no one could guarantee that Mahmud wouldn't do something bad.

Benyashiri understood the meaning behind Dorjiber's words and nodded, saying, "I know!"

After being interrupted by Dorjiber, he thought of his previous attempt to recruit Mahmud, but after being disciplined by Arughtai, he gave up the idea.

Looking back now, if they had continued to send friendly signals to Mahmud, he probably wouldn't have needed to be so discreet at this point.

It's a pity, things couldn't have been rushed. He never expected that even though he had already gone deep into the grasslands, the Ming emperor could still lead people to catch up. This kind of thing is simply outrageous, and there's nowhere to reason with him.

"Alas," Dorjibo sighed inwardly, leading Benyashiri toward the Oirat camp. He knew that the era of Arughtai had come to an end.

(End of this chapter)