Zhu Yuanzhang: My second son is invincible!

...

Three days later, the grand court assembly will be held at Fengtian Hall.

Zhu Yuanzhang announced two things.

The first thing was to confer upon Zhu Jingbei the title of Crown Prince of Wu and bestow upon him a golden book and a golden seal.

Secondly, Crown Prince Zhu Biao and Prince Zhu Hui of Wu will lead an envoy to the Western Regions to promote national prestige and win over distant lands.

The court was in an uproar.

A minister stepped forward and advised, "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince is the foundation of the nation and should not travel far..."

Zhu Yuanzhang raised his hand to interrupt, saying, "The Crown Prince is also our son. It is only natural for a son to go out and serve his father. As for the foundation of the country, with me here, that is the greatest foundation."

The minister wanted to say something more, but was quietly pulled back by the people around him.

After the court session ended, Zhu Hui returned to the Prince of Wu's residence.

Upon entering, I saw Guanyin Nu packing her luggage.

"Wife, what are you doing?" Zhu Li asked.

"Pack your things, I'm going to the west with you." Guanyin Nu didn't even look up.

Zhu Hui scratched his head and said, "But...but my son is still young..."

"Take him with you. He is the heir of the King of Wu. He should broaden his horizons from a young age," Guanyinnu said, picking up Zhu Jingbei.

Zhu Li looked at her son, who was stuffing a jade pendant into his mouth.

"Okay, I'll listen to you," Zhu Li said.

...

On the first day of the tenth month of the twelfth year of the Hongwu reign, the mission departed.

Travel on ten enormous flying ships.

Zhu Biao and Zhu Li boarded the flagship "Zhentian".

Guanyin Nu held Zhu Jingbei and stood beside Zhu Hui.

Ten flying boats slowly rose into the air, below which were the people of Yingtian City, kneeling in a dense, dark mass.

"Set sail!" Zhu Biao ordered.

The airship turned and flew westward.

...

First stop, Tibet.

The Tibetan king had long heard of the Ming Dynasty's prestige and personally led his people out of the city to welcome it.

On behalf of the Ming Emperor, Zhu Biao bestowed upon the Zanpu a golden book and seal, appointing him as the "Commander-in-Chief of Tibet," a hereditary title.

The king was overjoyed and presented him with ten thousand taels of gold, a thousand yak cattle, and five hundred fine horses.

During the banquet, the king tentatively asked, "I have long heard of His Highness the Prince of Wu of the Ming Dynasty's unparalleled bravery. Would you be so kind as to witness it?"

Zhu Hui, who was gnawing on a lamb leg, looked up and asked, "What are you looking at?"

"Behold... Your Highness's divine might," the king said cautiously.

Zhu Hui put down the lamb leg, walked outside the hall, took out an axe, and made a feinting strike at a distant snow-capped mountain.

Boom...

The snow-capped mountain split open from its summit to its base, creating a deep gash hundreds of feet deep. The accumulated snow collapsed, creating a terrifying spectacle.

The king and a group of Tibetan ministers knelt on the ground.

"A deity! A deity has descended to earth!"

Zhu Hui put away his axe and went back to gnawing on the lamb leg.

Zhu Biao smiled and raised his glass: "Your Majesty, let's drink."

...

The second stop: the Western Regions.

Khotan, Kucha, Kashgar, Yanqi, and many other small kingdoms submitted to its rule.

Some were quick to offer their credentials and request annexation. Others hesitated, wanting to wait and see.

Whenever Zhu Di visited a country, he would perform the feat of "splitting a mountain" or "cutting off a river".

With three swings of the axe, all thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions knelt down.

Zhu Biao bestowed titles and seals upon each of them and set a date for paying tribute.

At the same time, it was announced that the Ming Dynasty would establish the "Anxi Protectorate" in the Western Regions to govern the affairs of various countries.

...

The third stop: India.

India is divided into North and South. In the North is the Kingdom of India, and in the South are various smaller states.

The king of India, relying on his profound knowledge of Buddhism and the protection of his country by eminent monks, was arrogant.

Zhu Biao presented the letter of state, but the King of Tianzhu tossed it aside after reading it: "The Great Ming? Never heard of it. Those small countries to your south pay tribute to me every year, so you should pay tribute too."

Zhu Biao smiled but remained silent.

Zhu Hui stood up and said, "What did you just say?"

A high-ranking monk standing beside the King of India stepped forward, clasped his hands together, and chanted mantras.

In an instant, golden light burst forth, and a colossal Buddha image appeared outside the hall, its power overwhelming all directions.

"This is a protector of the Buddha; if you..."

Before he finished speaking, Zhu Li pulled out his axe and made a feinting strike at the Buddha's shadow.

The Buddha's image dissipated, and the high monk coughed up blood and collapsed to the ground.

The King of India's legs buckled and he knelt down.

Zhu Hui put away his axe and went back to eating fruit.

Zhu Biao smiled and said, "Your Majesty, may we begin to talk now?"

...

The fourth stop, the far west.

There are more than a dozen countries of varying sizes here, with different languages ​​and customs.

Zhu Biao had his interpreter negotiate with each of them; some were willing to submit, while others were still hesitant.

Zhu Hui was too lazy to visit each one, so he simply chose the highest mountain and cleaved it in two with an axe.

The sound of the mountain splitting open could be seen from three hundred miles away.

Then, all the countries were willing to submit.

...

The fifth stop, further west.

There is a vast sea here, and land beyond the sea.

But Zhu Biao said that was about enough; any further and it would exceed the range of the flying boat.

"Let the third and fourth brothers come to these places from now on. We should go back now," Zhu Biao said to Zhu Li.

Zhu Li nodded and looked at Guanyin Nu.

Guanyin Nu held Zhu Jingbei in her arms. The little guy was over a year old and was just learning to speak.

"Father...Father..." he called out to Zhu Hui.

Zhu Hui chuckled sheepishly, "Hey!"

...

In August of the thirteenth year of the Hongwu reign (1380), the mission returned to Yingtian.

The journey lasted ten months, covering more than 100,000 li (approximately 50,000 kilometers), passing through 47 large and small countries, pacifying 42 of them, and bestowing titles upon 35.

The territory of the Ming Empire officially extended from the coast of the East China Sea to the far west.

At the grand court assembly in Fengtian Hall, Zhu Biao presented the thick "Travels in the Western Regions" and "List of Countries Submitting to the Emperor".

Zhu Yuanzhang opened the booklet and read through it page by page, his smile growing wider and wider.

"Very well, very well! Gentlemen, do you know what this means?" He closed the booklet and looked at the assembled civil and military officials.

The assembled officials knelt and prostrated themselves, saying, "Your Majesty is wise! May the Ming Dynasty last ten thousand years!"

Zhu Yuanzhang stood up, walked over to Zhu Biao and Zhu Hui, and patted them on the shoulders.

"Biao'er, Li'er, you've worked hard."

Zhu Biao bowed: "It is my duty to share my father's burdens."

Zhu Hui scratched his head and said, "Father, I didn't do anything, I just chopped down a few mountains."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed loudly: "Well done! Well done!"

...

That evening, a family banquet was held at Kunning Palace.

The whole family is together again.

Zhu Shuang rushed back from Southeast Asia, Zhu Gang rushed back from Japan, Zhu Di rushed back from the Mongolian steppe, Zhu Su rushed back from Luzon, and Zhu Zhen rushed back from Australia.

Zhu Jingbei is already a year and a half old and runs all over the place.

He chased after Zhu Zhen's pocket monster, running wildly all over the yard.

The little creature was chased and had to hide, eventually jumping up a tree and refusing to come down.

Zhu Xiong Ying, who was already six years old, sat next to Zhu Biao like a little adult, watching her cousin run around wildly.

"Dad, why can my brother run so fast?" Zhu Xiong Ying asked.

Zhu Biao laughed and said, "He looks like his father."

Looking at his children and grandchildren filling the courtyard, Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly said to Empress Ma, "Sister, pinch me."

Empress Ma pinched him.

"It hurts, it's not a dream." Zhu Yuanzhang rubbed his arm, laughing even more heartily.

Empress Ma laughed and said, "It's not a dream, it's real."

Zhu Yuanzhang picked up his wine cup and stood up.

Everyone quieted down and looked at him.

"My life has been worthwhile. From a cowherd to an emperor, from one person to a large family, from Yingtian City to the whole world... it's all been worthwhile," Zhu Yuanzhang said.

He looked at Zhu Biao and said, "Biao'er, from now on, this empire will depend on you."

Zhu Biao rose and bowed solemnly, saying, "Your subject will certainly not fail your father's expectations."

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Hui: "Second son, your eldest brother needs your protection."

Zhu Hui nodded: "With me here, no one can touch Big Brother."

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at his other sons and said, "You all, each guard your own territory and do your job well."

The brothers responded in unison, "Yes!"

Zhu Yuanzhang then looked at Guanyinnu: "Good child, you've been wronged to marry into our Zhu family."

Guanyin Nu shook her head: "Father, I'm not wronged."

Finally, Zhu Yuanzhang looked at his grandchildren scattered on the ground: Zhu Xiong Ying, Zhu Jing Bei, and Zhu Yun Tong (Zhu Biao's second son), who had just learned to crawl.

"Okay, okay." He smiled, tears welling in his eyes.

Empress Ma took his hand.

...

It was late at night, and the family dinner ended.

Zhu Hui carried the sleeping Zhu Jingbei and walked back to the Wu Prince's Mansion with Guanyin Nu.

The moonlight shone on the bluestone path, casting long shadows of the family of three.

"Wife," Zhu Li suddenly spoke.

"Um?"

Tell me, just how big is this world we live in?

Guanyin Nu thought for a moment, then pointed to the moon in the sky: "The old woman said that there are also gods on the moon. Could that be considered part of the world?"

Zhu Hui looked up at the moon and chuckled, "Then when our son is a little older, I'll take you up there to see it."

Guanyin Nu smiled: "Alright, I'll be waiting."

Zhu Hui hugged his son tightly and embraced his wife as they walked home step by step.

Behind me, the moonlight was like water.

Ahead, the lights were bright.