Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 275 The Rebellion of Zhu Yuanzhang during the Hongwu Reign
Inside the room, as Hu Weiyong laughed heartily and raised his voice to say these words, the room suddenly fell silent.

Everyone turned their gaze toward Hu Weiyong.

We're waiting to hear what insightful opinions Hu Weiyong has to offer.

Such an arrogant tone.

Faced with a tyrant like Zhu Yuanzhang, what can they possibly do now?
All I can do is vent here.

The world is no longer in the chaotic state it once was.

At that time, there were many people to choose from.

Whether it's Zhang Shicheng, Chen Youliang, or even Chen Youding, Fang Guozhen, and others further south, they are all acceptable.

How could things be like they are now, with the world at peace and full of people serving the emperor like dogs?

At this time, the dog emperor had seized power, and no one in the world was rebelling.

At this point, what other choice did they have but to follow Zhu Yuanzhang and live a miserable life under his rule?

Hu Weiyong spoke lightly, but didn't they also want Zhu Yuanzhang dead?
How could he not know that sitting here and cursing Zhu Yuanzhang wouldn't kill him?

But given the current situation, what other options are there besides sitting here grumbling and cursing Zhu Yuanzhang?
"Prime Minister Hu, what are your brilliant ideas?"

Fei Ju looked at Hu Weiyong and spoke.

After Fei Ju spoke, the others also pricked up their ears, waiting to hear what Hu Weiyong would say next.

Hu Weiyong spoke up: "Didn't you ever think of killing Zhu Yuanzhang?"

Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed drastically.

Although many of them curse Zhu Yuanzhang when he is mentioned, and even feel that Zhu Yuanzhang has wronged them.

They again claimed that they had a share in Zhu Yuanzhang's empire, and that Zhu Yuanzhang was ruthless and inhuman.

In reality, which of these people wasn't nervous when facing Zhu Yuanzhang?

Those who lived through those years and followed Zhu Yuanzhang through so many things know very well just how formidable this emperor, who rose from humble beginnings as a beggar and cowherd, truly was.

He came from a humble background, but his abilities far surpassed those of ordinary people!

Otherwise, Zhang Shicheng, Chen Youding, and others would also have been heroes of their time.

It's impossible to say that their deaths allowed Zhu Yuanzhang to gain control of the country.
And now the world is becoming more and more stable.

From the chaotic times until now, none of those who have opposed Zhu Yuanzhang have survived.

If the meritorious officials of Huaixi could unite as one and all oppose Zhu Yuanzhang's purges, then things would be much better.

However, the reality is that these people from Huaixi could not possibly be of one mind and all work together to deal with Zhu Yuanzhang.

Putting aside everything else, Xu Da and Tang He would never have rebelled against Zhu Yuanzhang.

Li Wenzhong was Zhu Yuanzhang's nephew, which goes without saying.

Chang Mao, who was granted the title of Duke because of his father's merits, would also be unlikely to oppose Zhu Yuanzhang.

After all, Chang Mao's older sister is now the Crown Princess, a true member of the royal family with a bright future.

As for Deng Yu and Feng Sheng, it was equally impossible to persuade them to oppose Zhu Yuanzhang.

Originally, Li Shanchang might have stood on their side.

However, ever since the Zhongdu incident, especially after the Empty Seal Case, Li Shanchang's backbone was completely broken, and he became the emperor's lackey.

In other words, all six dukes would stand on Zhu Yuanzhang's side.

With just these few people, how difficult would it be to kill Zhu Yuanzhang?

This is a difficult matter for him to handle.

Or rather, it's practically no different from courting death.

If Xu Da, Li Wenzhong, Tang He, and others had all joined in opposing Zhu Yuanzhang, then Zhu Yuanzhang would have had absolutely no chance of survival.
But such a thing is simply impossible.

They will only attack us immediately to protect the emperor after learning that we have done such a thing.

No matter what, the chances of winning this are slim.

"If you want Zhu Yuanzhang dead, there is only one way: to rebel."

When the word "rebellion" came out of Hu Weiyong's mouth, everyone's heart skipped a beat, like a drumbeat, and they felt a chill run down their spines.

Even though we already understood what Hu Weiyong wanted to do based on what he had said earlier.

But when I heard those two words from Hu Weiyong's mouth, I was still greatly shocked.

Some of the more timid ones are already thinking of escaping from here and don't want to stay any longer!

The mere thought of rebelling, especially against Zhu Yuanzhang, is terrifying.

Some people couldn't help but look out the window, while others picked up their teacups and kept drinking tea.

Even when the teacup was empty, they kept bringing it to their lips.

Some people suddenly seem to be covered in fleas, scratching their heads and cheeks, and some even want to say goodbye and leave...

Suddenly, everyone became extremely busy.

"Gentlemen, there's no need to look outside."

Before you arrived, I had already sent away all the irrelevant people.

You can rest assured.

Also, after you go back, don't tell anyone about this incident. When discussing important matters, you must also clear out any irrelevant people in the manor.

After returning home, they should all secretly investigate the people in their own households to see who is unreliable.

For example, those who have recently joined the household in the last year or two.

Even close confidants must be kept in mind and secretly investigated to see if they have been bribed.

To determine who is truly trustworthy and who has betrayed us.

Zhu Yuanzhang was a ruthless ruler, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard was everywhere, with spies planted all around us.

I have two in my residence, and I suspect your residence has more than one spy as well.

After you get back, check everything carefully.

Otherwise, they might gather evidence against you, kill you, and you'd be kept in the dark, even grateful to them.

That would be incredibly foolish!

Hu Weiyong's words caused everyone present to change color.

They were naturally aware of the infamous reputation of the Embroidered Uniform Guard; in fact, it was absolutely notorious.

It's something that sends chills down your spine and makes you want to grind your teeth in hatred.

In the dead of night, I feel a sense of dread, fearing that my family will be wiped out by the Imperial Guards.

Today, the Embroidered Uniform Guard has become a weapon in Zhu Yuanzhang's hands.

They could also bypass the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Justice, and the Secretariat to set up their own prisons and act on the emperor's orders.

Just thinking about it makes me feel uneasy.

These things alone are enough to make people feel terrified.

But upon hearing Hu Weiyong say this, he suddenly realized just how serious the matter was.

How despicable and hateful Zhu Yuanzhang was!

That wasn't enough; they even planted spies in the homes of these high-ranking officials!
Doesn't that mean they have no secrets from the emperor?

What is this damned emperor trying to do?
What kind of emperor would act like that?
Just the thought that their every word and action might reach the emperor's ears made them extremely uncomfortable!
Who doesn't have their own private matters?
Who can always speak and act legally and without violating taboos in their daily life?
Who could withstand such an investigation by Zhu Yuanzhang?
hateful!

Really abominable!
I've never seen anyone more despicable and shameless than Zhu Yuanzhang!

This is completely treating them like they're not human!
They treated them like livestock!
Is this the attitude an emperor should have?

It's not something an emperor should do!
Which emperor would be like him, guarding against so many court officials to the death?
Especially those of them who followed him to conquer the world back then, risking their lives for him.

Whom does he owe a debt to by doing this?
This treats them all like bandits! Especially those who have done many bad things, hearing Hu Weiyong's words at this moment, are both fearful and angry.

They knew the emperor was inhuman, and they knew he had done many inhuman things.

They also knew that the Embroidered Uniform Guard was there to do the dirty work for the emperor.

However, no one expected that the emperor could be so despicable!
They planted spies in the homes of so many people!

What is he trying to do?
Do you want to put all of us to death?

"Therefore, everyone should no longer have any concerns."
Stop thinking that Zhu Yuanzhang was so great.

If we don't rebel against him, we can only wait for him to kill us!
We rebelled against him and killed him. It wasn't that we wronged him, but that he wronged us!

Of all the things he's done, one by one, which one is convincing?

Which one is something an emperor should do?

We risked our lives for him, yet he was always wary of us and didn't treat us like human beings.

They constantly impose restrictions and infringe upon our interests.

That's not all; they also planted Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) on a large scale to monitor us.

What is he trying to do?
Isn't this blatant evidence of our crimes, meant to kill us later?

The days of conquering the world are long gone.

I don't need to wait anymore. At this point, I felt annoyed with us and I felt that we were not to my liking.

They're about to start cleaning us up!
We are only gathering evidence now. In the future, Zhu Yuanzhang will lose his patience and turn against us.

Rather than closing your eyes and waiting to die here, waiting for the Embroidered Uniform Guard to destroy your family and exterminate your clan.

Instead, we should take this opportunity to act first and fight back with all our might.

Strive to create a future for yourself!

Hu Weiyong emphasized, "Are kings, nobles, generals, and ministers born with a special destiny?"

He, Zhu Yuanzhang, was not an emperor before.

This cowherd was able to achieve such a feat and become an emperor.

"Then why can't we get ahead?"

Hu Weiyong raised his voice, his tone resolute yet highly persuasive.

Many people's blood began to boil.

Over the years, many of them have felt they have suffered too many injustices.

They felt infuriated by the inhuman things Zhu Yuanzhang had done.

They were cornered.

It was the emperor who acted inhumanely first, constantly coercing them.

At this moment, many resentments in my heart were stirred up.

He truly wanted to fight back and kill the dog emperor, just as Hu Weiyong had suggested.

They rebelled and seized the throne from this dog emperor!
Make him pay the price he deserves.

But after this thought lingered in my mind for a while, I thought about how powerful and terrifying Zhu Yuanzhang was.

Ultimately, it succumbed to reality.

"Minister Hu, Zhu Yuanzhang was indeed a wicked man, and truly infuriating."

But... but it's simply impossible for us to take down the emperor with just the number of people we have.

Especially now, we are all still unemployed and can't mobilize many people.

Under such circumstances, how could Zhu Yuanzhang be killed?
It would be better if they did nothing; if they actually did, then Zhu Yuanzhang would truly find an opportunity to crush them in one fell swoop.

Even Fei Ju, who had previously been most indignant when Zhu Yuanzhang was mentioned, couldn't help but speak with some caution about the biggest problem they were currently facing.

Upon hearing this, Hu Weiyong waved his hand and said, "I know what you are worried about."

I've considered that too.

As you all said, it was very difficult to rebel against Zhu Yuanzhang.

However, I think you've misunderstood some things.

What we are doing now is not a rebellion, but a coup d'état.

We don't need to fight against everyone with a single sword or spear.

All they had to do was stage a coup and kill Zhu Yuanzhang.

The Ming Dynasty is now entirely supported by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Biao couldn't handle things.

Moreover, since we launched a coup, it wasn't just Zhu Yuanzhang who was killed.

Besides Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao and all his other piglets also need to be dealt with!
The world today is entirely thanks to Zhu Yuanzhang.

Many people also obeyed Zhu Yuanzhang.

After we kill Zhu Yuanzhang, many people in the world will change.

Chang Mao, Xu Da, and many others, including Li Wenzhong, will all change their minds.

After Zhu Yuanzhang and his sons died, those people could no longer gather together.

When that time comes, we will take appropriate action here.

Give them appropriate rewards to win them over.

There will always be many people who are willing to listen to us, submit to us, and do things for us.

As for those who do not submit, it will not be too late to eliminate them then.

Only a small percentage of people would risk their lives for Zhu Yuanzhang.

Most people wouldn't.

As for the imperial court, there's even less to worry about.

After becoming emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang acted perversely and treated officials as less than human beings.

The people have suffered under Zhu Yuanzhang for far too long!

From the imperial court to local authorities, from the capital to the various provinces of the Ming Dynasty.

From ordinary people to gentry, countless people hated that Zhu Yuanzhang was not dead.

Countless people had long since had enough of Zhu Yuanzhang's harsh rule.

It was only because Zhu Yuanzhang was there that they were able to suppress the situation temporarily.

That's why I didn't dare to do anything.

As soon as Zhu Yuanzhang dies, the whole country will instantly descend into chaos.

Those who had long harbored deep hatred for Zhu Yuanzhang would also follow suit.

They gathered around us, joining us to deal with and strike down those stubborn and unyielding individuals.

This is what is meant by "those who follow the Way receive much help, while those who stray from the Way receive little help!"

After Hu Weiyong spoke, the room fell silent.

Everyone has different expressions.

Some people's breathing involuntarily became somewhat heavy.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that Hu Weiyong is absolutely right.

"Then...Prime Minister Hu, how can we kill Zhu Yuanzhang?"

(End of this chapter)