Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 182 Why has the Crown Prince changed?! Wasn't he inclined towards scholars?!

"Chongba, will there be any problems letting Biao'er handle this matter?"

Inside the Wuying Hall, Empress Ma looked at Zhu Yuanzhang and asked him a question.

His words revealed concern and worry for his son.

In the eyes of most parents, a child will always be a child.

No matter how old he is, he's still someone who makes people worry about him.

I can't put my mind at ease.

"Don't worry, girl, it's okay."

Biao'er is more outstanding than we thought.

Our Biao'er is not a pushover.

Biao'er also has a temper.

There are some things he needs to do to gain experience and get some hands-on experience.

We must also demystify intellectuals, see their true colors, and know that many of them are just utter rubbish and worthless scum.

Only in this way, when he becomes emperor in the future, will he not place too much trust in these scholars when governing the country.

This allows writers to exploit loopholes, and whatever they say becomes the truth.

Without any discernment, without any independent judgment.

They'll make a complete mess of the country from now on.

As Zhu Yuanzhang spoke, he couldn't help but think of Zhu Yunwen, that fool, and all the stupid things he did after becoming emperor.

They were truly fooled by the literati.

He believed it if a scholar said that excrement smelled good!

I've paved so many roads and poured so much effort into him.

But this bastard is so stupid!

All my hard work has been wasted!

Many good policies have been abolished, leading to a series of chaotic policies.

The literati and officials who had been suppressed by themselves began a frenzied counterattack and started their revelry.

I returned in the eighth year of the Hongwu reign, before Zhu Yunwen was even born.

If I had woken up more than ten years into the Hongwu reign and encountered that beast Zhu Yunwen, I would have given him a good beating!
To relieve the hatred in my heart!

We must learn from Zhu Yunwen's example.

Although I believe that given my son Biao'er's personality and intelligence, he couldn't possibly be as foolish as Zhu Yunwen.

They can be manipulated at will by scholars.

But his own family has a natural affinity for scholars.

Compared to myself, I've been too good to them.

Or one could say that Biao'er himself is also a scholar.

Under these circumstances, let Biao'er see the despicable faces of these people.

This will bring considerable benefits to the Ming Dynasty in the future.

Governing the country and managing state affairs is very important. We should be diligent in our duties, devote ourselves wholeheartedly, and strive for the development of the Ming Dynasty and the revival of China.

These are all important.

However, it is even more important to cultivate a qualified successor who can carry out the policies set out by the successor after his death, and even take them to a higher level.

Many policies can only be truly effective if they are consistently implemented.

Only then can the desired effect be achieved.

What we fear most is that policies are changed frequently.

Although the specific form of expression can be changed according to the specific circumstances.

However, on some fundamental matters, the essence cannot be changed.

Otherwise, they would be like that beast Zhu Yunwen, who, as soon as he died, began to deny many of the things his grandfather, the founding emperor, had done.

They made a complete mess of things.

That would truly make one want to vomit blood.

If he knew this from beyond the grave, he would rise from his coffin and deal with that beast!
"Sigh... Biao'er has it tough too."
He has a natural affinity for scholars and Confucianism.

Many of the principles discussed in the book involve faith, or rather, the thought of achieving them.

There is always a natural affinity for Confucianism.

Now that he has seen these things, he is prepared to do them himself.

It wasn't a good feeling for him.

Empress Ma spoke with a mix of emotion and heartache.

My own son, Biao'er, had just experienced the devastating blow of discovering that his bedmate, Lü Shi, was a beast.

Now, he is about to suffer another heavy blow from the literary figures he has always trusted and valued.

How cruel must this be for Biao'er?

How good could Biao'er's mood be?

Zhu Yuanzhang grasped Empress Ma's hand and embraced her.

"Girl, there's nothing we can do about it."

People need to grow and open their eyes to see the world.

And much of growth is often accompanied by pain.

This is especially true for faster growth.

These are unavoidable.

Don't even mention that our Biao'er is the Crown Prince, the heir to the Ming Dynasty.

Even if he is just the son of an ordinary family, he still has worries and pain.

Everyone has their own experiences, their own growth, and their own hardships.

These things are unavoidable.

Our Biao'er's status as the crown prince destined him to bear more responsibilities than others.

As parents, we can naturally do our best to help him remove as many of these thorns as possible from our Great Ming Dynasty.

But each generation has its own tasks and its own problems.

We are just one person; we can't possibly do everything for our descendants.

All we can say is that we'll do our best to leave him with a good foundation.

Now that Biao'er has become emperor, new problems will arise that need to be solved.

While we're here, let's give Biao'er a proper chance to temper his character.

Let Biao'er hone his skills; by then, things will be difficult for him.

He who bears the nation's disgrace is called the master of the state; he who bears the nation's misfortune is called the king of the world.

Empress Ma nodded after hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's words.

She understands the truth.

However, as a mother, I still can't help but worry in many situations.

"Haha, girl, don't worry, it's okay."

I believe Biao'er will handle things well.

It's good to let Biao'er get to know and see the true colors of these people.

"Then... Chongba, you said that Biao'er, the crown prince, is regarded as the hope by many scholars."

In these matters, if we were to be ruthless in dealing with intellectuals...

Won't that disappoint many scholars?

Will this discourage many scholars from obeying the court's orders and instead openly or covertly oppose it?

Empress Ma expressed her concerns.

His own son, Chongba, was utterly unkind to scholars.

Many intellectuals have strong opinions about this.

Many people also regard their family's children as their hope.

Therefore, many people have a lot of dissatisfaction when facing Chongba.

But as soon as they saw the sign, they saw hope.

They thought they should just endure it a little longer, until Biao'er, a person close to Confucianism, ascended the throne and became emperor.

Their lives will then get better.

Therefore, one's patience will be greatly improved.

To put it bluntly, Biao'er is like a carrot dangling in front of a donkey.

It can make the donkey suffer a lot of whipping, but it will also stop overturning the harness and kicking back because of the carrot, and continue to work hard.

But now, they've taken away the carrot that's called Biao'er.

Or perhaps they discovered that the radish wasn't tasty either, and that's how they became the ones whipping them.

There is no hope in either generation.

Many things that follow will likely be difficult to handle.

She was well aware of the immense power these intellectuals wielded.

They truly came together and formed a united front.

It's really difficult to handle.

Zhu Yuanzhang, knowing his sister's worries, spoke up upon hearing this:

"Girl, it's alright, don't worry."

Don't take these people too seriously.

If these people have the guts, keep jumping around. Cut down whoever shows up!

After being chopped down many times, they became more obedient.

They only got too much respect from us, and that's why they took advantage of us and thought we were important people.

After a flurry of blows, if killing one isn't enough, kill a hundred; if a hundred is enough, kill ten thousand; if ten thousand isn't enough, kill a hundred thousand!
If 100,000 isn't enough, kill a million!
Killing a few more would be fine.

They can cure all their bad habits!
Girls, don't worry, they'll all stick together, that's impossible.

While dealing with these people, we will also cultivate new intellectuals.

Moreover, it's not to say that all the old literati were birds of a feather.

There are also those who are loyal to the government and the Ming Dynasty, and are willing to contribute to the prosperity of China!
We don't need to care about the feelings of these insects.

There's no need to worry about them banding together and causing trouble.

Every time they cause trouble, we'll kill them. Only by eliminating these pests can our Great Ming Dynasty become better in the future.

We're not afraid of them causing trouble; we're afraid they won't cause enough trouble!

Only by causing trouble can we kill all these troublemakers.

If they don't cause trouble and just stay hidden, they'll never change their ways.

They lay in wait, accumulating strength.

"If we wait until after we're gone to start taking action, that will be the real headache for us."

"Girl, our Great Ming Dynasty will soon have a lot of money."

"Then, we'll get the girl lots of weird and wonderful things, things with an exotic flair."

I calmed my mind and shifted my attention elsewhere.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Empress Ma and said with a smile.

I feel very happy.

"What's wrong?
Is the Maritime Trade Office about to officially begin operations?

Empress Ma looked at Zhu Yuanzhang and asked.

"Yes, news came from the fourth brother's side."

"Now that everything is ready, the Maritime Trade Office can officially begin its operations."

Mentioning this matter made Zhu Yuanzhang particularly happy. The Maritime Trade Office had been in the works for so long, and now it was finally about to bear fruit.

Soon, a continuous stream of wealth will flow into the Ming Dynasty.

Life in the Ming Dynasty will get much better.

With money, many things become easier.

Confiscating property can indeed yield a considerable amount of money.

Money comes in very quickly.

But there are limits to the amount of property confiscated.

Moreover, the income is unstable, sometimes more and sometimes less.

It can only be described as a means of alleviating or supplementing the symptoms.

Opening up the sea is the right thing to do.

"That's a good feeling."

Empress Ma smiled.

Spending time together day and night, one naturally understands how much Chongba cares about the opening of the fishing season.

Having heard Chongba talk about it many times, he also knew how much benefit opening up the sea would bring to his Great Ming Dynasty.

They knew how significant it was to their Ming Dynasty.

Fourth brother, you've had a tough time with this.

The fourth brother is capable of taking on great responsibilities.

"I don't want those weird and strange things."

We are already doing very well in terms of food, clothing, and daily necessities.

Wearing too much jewelry can actually make a person feel uncomfortable.

Simple clothes and plain clothes are the most comfortable.

Not only is it easy to grow vegetables and feed chickens, but you also don't have to pay attention to them or worry about them getting dirty or damaged.

You should use your money wisely after you've made some.

I don't like these things.

Empress Ma smiled and shook her head.

"It's about... the pirates at sea. Chongba, are you confident you can deal with them?"

Will there be any problems?

I've heard that these pirates are not so easy to deal with.

It has clearly become a maritime hegemon.

When this matter was discussed, Empress Ma was somewhat worried.

"Don't worry, girl, we've already prepared everything for them."

He felt that we had cut off their source of income, and he didn't like us.

They want to give us a good thrashing the moment our Maritime Trade Office starts operating.

They should be taught a good lesson.

This has caused us heavy losses, and we will never dare to open the sea again.

But how could we not have thought of eliminating all these scoundrels?
We even melted down our Hongwu bronze bell to cast cannons.

For this moment.

Next, we'll show them real results with our cannons that times have changed!
Their approach won't work!

Firepower is king!

The truth is only within the range of the cannon!
"Whoever controls the cannons controls the truth!"

When he said this, Zhu Yuanzhang exuded a strong sense of confidence.

Based on the ideas and methods he provided.

Tao Chengdao and his team have already produced a large number of Hongwu cannons.

No fewer than six hundred were installed on the ship!

And later, as the technology for casting cannons became more and more advanced.

Not only was the cannon casting speed faster, but the cannons cast were also more powerful.

It already exceeds what he knows to be the highest power of the Red Coat Cannon.

Not only the Hongwu cannons, but also the Frankish machine guns have begun construction!

As for the pirates at sea, although they had dozens of large ships of two thousand liang each.

However, what was mounted on it was basically a trebuchet.

The trebuchet was indeed very powerful.

But compared to the numerous artillery pieces they possessed, it was far inferior.

The two are not even in the same league!
After so much meticulous preparation, it's finally time to put my skills to the test.

We can finally hold our heads high and drown all these pirates in the sea.

Not only these pirates, but also the Japanese pirates along the coast of the Ming Dynasty need to be dealt with.

Not only should we deal with these Japanese pirates, but we should also deal with the Japanese nation itself!
At the time when Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma were talking here.

The atmosphere at the Crown Prince's palace also changed drastically.

"You know you've wronged me?"

Zhu Biao's calm words startled Wu Bozong, who was overjoyed and preparing to take the opportunity to chat more with His Highness the Crown Prince, further cultivate their relationship, enhance his and Confucianism's standing in His Highness's heart, and take the opportunity to find out who the person promoted by His Highness to be the Vice Director of the Imperial Academy was.

He looked up in surprise.

Looking into Zhu Biao's eyes.

These eyes, which were usually so gentle, now held a sharp edge.

Beneath the sharp edge, there was also a great deal of heartache, anger, disgust, and even some murderous intent!
That's right, it's murderous intent!
This was something he had never seen in Zhu Biao's eyes before.

I never imagined that one day the Crown Prince would look at me with such an expression!

My heart skipped a beat, and I couldn't help but catch my breath.

A multitude of thoughts raced through my mind.

What... what's going on?
Why has His Highness the Crown Prince suddenly become like this?

Could it be... that His Highness the Crown Prince knows all about what's going on at the Imperial Academy?
Not only did they find out, but they also knew that they had agreed to contribute their efforts to protect and support them in this matter.

We absolutely must get this done!

How should I respond to this sudden questioning from His Highness the Crown Prince?

How can I answer in a way that is respectable, avoids getting involved, and clears my name from suspicion?

How could I not disappoint His Highness the Crown Prince?

In an instant, a layer of sweat appeared on his forehead.

In a flash, he came up with a solution.

Suddenly, he bent over, his body trembling like a leaf.

Some white foam appeared at the corners of his mouth.

His eyes rolled straight upwards.

After two or three breaths, he collapsed to the ground and fainted!

Pretending to faint at the slightest provocation in an emergency is probably an essential skill for many officials.

Wu Bozong's plan was to buy some time by pretending to be unconscious.

We need to think a lot about how to deal with such unexpected events.

Try to handle things properly.

On the other hand, it was also to let His Highness the Crown Prince see his pitiful state at this moment.

This would make His Highness the Crown Prince feel compassion and thus reduce his anger.

He knew very well that His Highness the Crown Prince was different from Zhu Yuanzhang, the tyrannical emperor.

He has always been kind-hearted, reasonable, and mindful of past relationships.

Even though this time, His Highness the Crown Prince has learned about many of the things they did.

His Highness the Crown Prince will be angry.

Then they specifically called me over to ask these questions.

But in the end, it was just a momentary outburst of anger.

As long as I handle things properly.

At this point, using this method will greatly reduce His Highness's anger.

Once you've regained your composure, it will be easier to continue the conversation.

However, this time the situation was different from what he had expected.

When Zhu Biao saw that Wu Bozong had actually pulled this trick on him, the disappointment and disgust in his eyes intensified.

"Somebody come!"

He shouted, "Scholar Wu has fainted! Treat him!"

At his command, people immediately entered from outside.

Those awls, each about half a foot long, were in my hands.

“Your Highness, his coma is the easiest to treat; it will be cured in just one treatment.”

As he spoke, the man took off Wu Bozong's shoes.

He grabbed the man's foot with one hand and held the iron awl in the other, then stabbed it into the sole of his foot.

It penetrates directly.

Wu Bozong let out a loud shout and sat up straight, looking incredibly energetic.

The pain was so intense that my body was trembling.

He was indeed a miracle doctor; his needles struck the mark and cured his coma in an instant!

"Awake now? If you're awake, then have a good talk with me about how you've wronged me."

Zhu Biao sat back in his chair and looked at Wu Bozong with an indifferent expression.

It was no longer as gentle as usual.

Upon seeing this, Wu Bozong could no longer maintain his composure.

He knelt down on the ground without paying attention to his bleeding feet.

He kowtowed repeatedly to Zhu Biao.

This was the first time he had ever been so disheveled.

"Your Highness, I am a sinful subject... I am ashamed before Your Highness."

Your Majesty, I regret that I failed to inform you when I learned that the people at the Imperial Academy were planning to do something excessive.

Instead, they chose to turn a blind eye.

Your Highness, I have failed to live up to your expectations.

Your Highness, please punish this guilty subject.

"This humble servant was wrong; this humble servant should not have acted this way."

Wu Bozong, however, was adept at downplaying the issue, only mentioning that he knew about it but failed to report it.

He remained silent about everything else.

He felt that he was already in such a miserable state, and he had even accepted some things.

They should be able to get away with it.

Zhu Biao wouldn't really go all out and hold them captive.

Given his status and position, His Highness the Crown Prince would at most be punished with three cups of wine as a penalty and this would not be repeated.

"Ha ha……"

Zhu Biao let out a cold laugh.

"Is that all? Do you think I'm stupid?"
I think you, Wu Bozong, are not just hiding the truth, you're preparing to rebel!

(End of this chapter)