Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Inside the Wuying Hall, Crown Prince Zhu Biao looked at Zhu Yuanzhang and spoke.

Without asking further, this alone is enough to tell that Zhu Yuanzhang, as emperor, must have come up with some new ideas and was preparing to implement them, which would undoubtedly intensify the punishment of many people.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and said, "Biao'er, there's nothing wrong with it."

We've been preparing to implement this for a while now, but we didn't announce it before.

I just felt the timing wasn't right.

Fortunately, we feel the time is right, and it wouldn't be bad to announce it and finalize it.

An ugly daughter-in-law will eventually have to meet her in-laws.

"Keeping it a secret indefinitely isn't a good idea; we've given them plenty of time to prepare."

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Biao and said.

"If those people can't accept it, then they shouldn't accept it."

If you want things to explode, then let them explode.

We don't tolerate that here.

Zhu Biao thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "Father is right."

The Emperor did indeed give us enough time.

Now it is indeed time to release it.

This matter was bound to be dealt with sooner or later.

Even if it's delayed for another year or two before being announced to the public, it probably won't be any better.

It's still not much different from now.

Announcing the choice at this time would not be a bad idea.

There just so happens that there's a big move going on with the Kong family.

This made many people in the world understand the Emperor's meaning in this matter.

The Kong family brought this upon themselves by causing such a mess during the land survey, and that's why they're being treated this way.

This is also a good opportunity to make many people who would otherwise oppose him shut up at this time.

We should be able to withstand their power and intimidate them.

Upon hearing Zhu Biao's words, Zhu Yuanzhang smiled slightly.

"Biao'er, you're right, that's exactly what we think."

We're not young anymore, so if there are things we can do quickly, we should do them quickly.

Many things require caution, but many things don't need excessive caution.

"If you're capable of doing it, and you've reached a point where you're close enough, then you can start."

Zhu Biao nodded in agreement, but at the same time he couldn't help but wonder if his father's recent land survey in Shandong and his ruthless handling of the Kong family's offenses were all preparations for this moment.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this was how things should be.

My own father, the Emperor, truly lives up to his name.

It is truly beyond the reach of ordinary people.

Determining it at this point is indeed when the resistance is relatively small.

However, it will certainly cause a huge uproar.

But this is something that must be done, and it is inevitable that it will provoke opposition from those people.

Just as my father said before, how can we not farm when we hear cicadas chirping?

He then went to the cabinet and told everyone what had happened.

Many cabinet members, including Liu Bowen and Li Wenzhong, reacted strongly to Zhu Biao's words.

However, it was just that the reaction was a bit too strong.

Even after the initial surprise, they quickly settled into a sense of entitlement.

This was especially true of Liu Bowen.

After all, he was the one among them who knew the most about these matters, besides the Crown Prince, and also the one who considered them the most.

I knew from the very beginning that this day would come.

It's just that this day came earlier than he expected.

Of course, upon closer examination, now is indeed the best time to implement it.

Next, I'm afraid many people will suffer.

I just don't know if these people can cause any big commotion.

If someone rises to power, they will be killed one after another.

Even now, after the Kong family in Shandong has been thoroughly investigated, he still has the audacity to do such things. He has to admire these people.

Such people deserve to die.

As for Li Wenzhong, he quickly shifted his focus away from this matter.

Compared to the matter that was about to be implemented, he was actually more concerned about the military school that was about to be established in Beiping.

He wondered if he could write some books to record his knowledge and experiences.

They were brought to the military academy for people to study and reference.

In doing so, we can contribute our efforts and enable many people to learn from our experience.

He originally thought that these things should only be passed down to his son.

But now, he has come to terms with many things.

She felt that her son wasn't cut out for it.

Compared to myself, at least, I am far inferior.

Moreover, my uncle also said that every citizen has a responsibility for the rise and fall of the nation.

As a Duke of the Ming Dynasty and the nephew of my maternal uncle, as long as I don't make any major mistakes in the future, my family will surely share the fate of the country.

In this situation, the Ming Dynasty can become stronger and last longer.

So, it actually has many benefits for your own family as well.

Putting aside these rather selfish thoughts, didn't he also have some ideas to make the Ming Dynasty better?
After all, this was the Ming Dynasty that he had built by following his uncle and fighting bloody battles.

They also have many feelings about the Ming Dynasty.

"The matter is settled then. We'll discuss it at the morning court tomorrow."

Zhu Biao consulted with the cabinet members, and seeing that they had no objections, he finalized the matter.

"Next, I'm afraid quite a few people will feel uncomfortable."

These are some of Liu Bowen's thoughts.

……

"Your Majesty, I believe we need to actively prepare for war and fight against the Ming Dynasty."

Although the emperor of the Ming Dynasty issued such an order.

However, it is more likely that intimidation is being carried out.

They want to instill fear in us, thus throwing us into disarray.

Our area is characterized by high mountains, dense forests, and rugged roads, making it equally difficult for the Ming Dynasty to attack from any direction.

We are not without soldiers and generals here; we also have many capable and courageous warriors.

If Zhu Yuanzhang is ungrateful, he will surely make sure they don't leave alive!

The person who spoke was Zuo Cheng Lu'er.

"Back then, when Ming Yuzhen's side tried to invade us, they were also defeated and left battered and bruised."

Even today, there are still many brave warriors on our side of the Great Yuan.

"If Zhu Yuanzhang dares to come, he will only face certain death!"

Compared to the other person, Lu'er seemed more confident.

However, his energetic and inspiring words did not receive much response.

The atmosphere remained quite subdued.

The reason is simple: the Ming Dynasty was putting immense pressure on them at that time.

Even their royal court was destroyed, their emperor was captured alive, and then beheaded in front of so many people at the grand New Year's Day court assembly.

This alone shows how resolute Zhu Yuanzhang's attitude was on this matter.

Especially after publicly beheading their emperor, they immediately announced to the world that they would be waging war against them.

How can we keep people calm?

"Your Majesty, I...I dare to say that, given the current trend..."

If we were to fight them from here, it would be like throwing an egg against a rock—utterly futile.

We certainly have some resources on our side.

But this power wasn't that strong.

When Ming Yuzhen invaded, he was repelled because he only controlled the Shu region. He did not have many soldiers or generals under his command, and he certainly did not have many elite troops.

The Ming Dynasty today has gathered the armies of the entire land.

The royal court was destroyed, and Nahachu's relationship with the Ming Dynasty was ambiguous.

In other words, they are in the north and no longer have many concerns.

They could mobilize the entire nation's army to attack us. And back then, when we resisted Ming Yuzhen, the Duan family also contributed.

Now... I'm afraid the Duan family will no longer obey orders to fight against the Ming Dynasty.

Everything is unfavorable for us.

If we were to actually go to war with the Ming Dynasty, I'm afraid the odds would be against us.

The person who spoke was Zuo Cheng Dade.

On this matter, he offered a contrary opinion.

Moreover, it is more in line with reality.

The Duan family is a very powerful force here.

But now, they can no longer use them.

As for why they couldn't be used by them, he didn't say it explicitly.

But everyone present knew it.

This is still the result of the current King Liang's misdeeds.

Duan Gong and Ming Yuzhen fought together and made great contributions.

King Liang valued Duan Gong highly and married all his daughters to him.

But soon he began to suspect Duan Gong again.

He felt that Duan Gong's achievements were too great and threatened the master.

They planned to have his daughter poison Duan Gong to death.

As a result, a married daughter is like water spilled from a bowl.

His daughter not only didn't lay a hand on Duan Gong, but instead told Duan Gong the news.

Despite this, the King of Liang still managed to kill Duan Gong from behind.

Thus, he and the Duan family of Dali fell out.

Under these circumstances, it's already a great thing that the Dali Duan family didn't take advantage of their misfortune and instead joined forces with the Ming Dynasty to deal with them.

Don't even think about getting the Duan family to work for them anymore.
Totally impossible.

The Ming Dynasty today is far more powerful than Ming Yuzhen was back then.

Their strength is much smaller than it was before.

Even with high mountains, dense forests, and rugged roads, they are still not enough to rely on.

Otherwise, the Shu region wouldn't have been conquered.

"So what do you think should be done?"

Lur looked at Dad and asked, but there was nothing too harsh in his words.

Dade hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Your Majesty, please forgive my boldness, but I have no other selfish motives."

Based solely on the current situation, if we were to engage in combat, our side would almost certainly be defeated.

In that case, it would be better to surrender to the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yuanzhang's constant attempts to persuade the king to surrender indicate that he was actually not very willing to send troops to this area.

But the king has never agreed.

Now, things have changed so much.

That's something we could consider.

At this point, if one could still submit to the Ming Dynasty, one might still gain considerable benefits.

Dad seemed a little cautious, though he didn't quite say it aloud.

He was not met with anger.

Instead, they remained silent.

King Liang sat there without moving, his expression constantly changing.

It's clear that he's very conflicted about this matter.

It is difficult to make a decision in a short period of time.

Seeing this, Lu'er and the others did not say anything more.

After all, making this choice now is also a particularly difficult thing for them.

Because if you make the wrong choice, you'll be doomed.

This has a huge impact on them.

It's perfectly normal for their king to hesitate because of this.

After a long while, Bazalawami finally spoke: "I can't bear to leave this place. It's so beautiful here. I've lived here for so many years, and I really don't want to leave."

Previously, if they had given up here, they would have had another option: to detour back to the grasslands and seek refuge with the royal court.

But now that the royal court has been destroyed, they no longer have this one choice.

"Let's wait a bit. Dade, send someone to contact the Duan family and offer some favorable terms to repair the relationship and win them over."

Let's see how he reacts.

If... if things are alright on the Duan side, then we should prepare for war here and have a good fight with the Ming Dynasty.

If the Duan family is unusable, then we don't need to think about it anymore.

Surrender to the Ming Dynasty, that's all.

His voice sounded very heavy when he said this.

Making such a decision was not easy for him.

Upon hearing King Liang's words, Dade secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

If it's not about fighting to the death with the Ming Dynasty, then it's fine.

There's still a chance.

Making enemies of the Ming Dynasty now is tantamount to courting death from any perspective, with no chance of victory whatsoever.

Now that Your Majesty has made such a decision, it can be considered a good choice.

He felt that the Duan family would never agree.

After all, what the king did back then was indeed very unpopular.

This angered the Duan family.

Moreover, the situation is different now.

The Ming Dynasty was so powerful that it was terrifying and made people feel powerless.

Even with the addition of the Duan family, they were still no match for the Ming Dynasty.

However, if the king is willing to give it a try, it's not impossible.

At the very least, it can lessen the regret in my heart.

Moreover, there is enough time.

First, win over the Duan family; if that doesn't work, surrendering is fine too.

There was a slight worry that when the time came, the king might change his mind, refuse to surrender, and want to try again.

If that's the case, then this matter will be difficult to handle.

Trying it could easily lead to losing all your remaining capital.

With a large area in Kunming under our control, we can still have a good talk with the Ming Dynasty.

If even these are gone, then they can only be prisoners.

As prisoners of war, even their emperor could be beheaded by Zhu Yuanzhang, let alone their king.

Several years ago, an envoy from the Ming Dynasty died here...

With heavy worries, he quickly began to make arrangements.

Hopefully, it will have a good result...

……

Lan Yu, dressed in armor and holding a long spear, looked exceptionally spirited and invigorated.

Finally, we can start the war again!

This time, both he and Mu Ying are in the campaign to attack the southwest, and each can lead a separate army to launch an attack.

He was determined to perform well in the upcoming attack on the southwest and surpass Mu Ying.

Let Mu Ying know the gap between herself and him.

He's not worried about anything else now, except for those Yuan Tartars, he just hopes they won't surrender.

If that's the case, then things won't be very good.

…… "

"We're going to reinstate the imperial examination system."

Inside the Fengtian Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang addressed his ministers.

This one sentence alone left Liu Sanwu and many others stunned on the spot.

The imperial examinations have begun?
The emperor actually started the imperial examination system?
The imperial examinations are finally about to begin!
This is something they've always dreamed of!

But their happiness didn't last long.

Because Zhu Yuanzhang immediately spoke a second sentence... (End of this chapter)