The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the Carpenter Prince!

Yang Lian's second assignment arrived, and Zuo Guangdou signed his name and submitted it together.

The wording was three times stronger than the previous one. It bluntly stated that Xiong Tingbi, who commanded troops in Liaodong, had not achieved a single victory with an arrow. Citing the precedent of the previous dynasty's three-pronged approach, it requested that the strategy be changed immediately to secure the border.

Zhu Youxiao finished flipping through it and put it on the corner of the table.

Yang Lian submitted his first memorial, followed by Zuo Guangdou's second, and within three days a third would surely follow. With three memorials piled on the imperial desk, Emperor Taichang could no longer suppress them, no matter how hard he tried.

The time for a major discussion is approaching.

But not today.

…………

At Chen Shi (7-9 AM), I entered the warm chamber to attend to the sick.

Emperor Taichang's complexion was slightly better than the day before, but only slightly. The dark circles under his eyes had faded, his lips were still dry, and his hand trembled occasionally when he held the medicine bowl.

After flipping through the examination papers for half an hour, Emperor Taichang put down his pen, rubbed his temples, and suddenly brought up a matter.

"The Imperial Medical Academy presented a prescription the day before yesterday, called something like Peiyuan Gubengao, which is said to be a mild tonic."

Zhu Youxiao's hands never stopped turning the pages of the exam paper, yet he listened intently without making a sound.

"Wang An took the prescription to be examined. The magistrate spent half a day checking the pharmacopoeia and said that two of the ingredients were inappropriate. One was that the dosage of deer antler was too high, and the other was something I can't remember the name of. In short, the prescription was rejected and a new one was drafted."

His tone was casual, as if he were talking about something insignificant.

When will the court's verdict be drafted?

"They said it would take two or three days."

Zhu Youxiao lowered his head and turned a page of the question book, his face remaining completely still.

He secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

The drug testing system is doing its job. Systems are like that; everyone finds them troublesome when they're first established, but you only realize how useful they are when you need them. Two months ago, these prescriptions of dubious origin were handed in, untouched and drunk by Emperor Taichang without a second thought. The rhubarb laxative used by Cui Wensheng that time came in the same way, causing him to have diarrhea thirty or forty times in one night.

However, this half-hearted relief was only half-full.

The system could block prescriptions, but it couldn't stop the emperor's desire for tonics. His constitution was weak, and he was sensitive to the cold in winter. The prescriptions written by those in the Imperial Medical Academy were always predictable and ineffective. Emperor Taichang grew impatient, and people outside began offering different prescriptions.

Peiyuan Gubengao (a traditional Chinese medicine). The name sounds appealing, and it's similar to the Hongwan (another traditional Chinese medicine).

If they stop it this time, there will surely be another time.

"Father, although the prescription revised by the Imperial Physician is a bit late, it has been tested and is therefore more reliable than any prescription from outside."

Emperor Taichang hummed in agreement.

Zhu Youxiao said no more. The more he advised the Taichang Emperor to administer the medicine, the more rebellious he became.

That's enough.

…………

He returned to the East Palace in the afternoon.

Today was not a day for a lecture on the classics. Sun Chengzong gave a lecture on the Book of Documents in a side hall of the Wenhua Hall this morning. After finishing his lecture, he bowed and withdrew, not attending to any other matters.

The two men only discussed the meaning of the scriptures. The words "Liaodong" were never mentioned from beginning to end.

After his attempt to trap Fang Congzhe at the Imperial Lecture failed, he didn't give up easily. Instead, he switched from fishing to lying in wait. Lying in wait takes time. So the Crown Prince showed him the timeframe—he sat upright and silent at the Imperial Lecture, and recited the meaning of the classics word by word during the lectures, leaving no room for doubt from beginning to end.

The Grand Secretary, after seven years in office, cast his line and got nothing; the bait didn't even get wet. Well, all for nothing.

…………

Zhu Youxiao sat by the window, whittling wood.

The wooden horse's body was already formed, its four legs were firmly in place, and its mane was complete, but it was missing a pair of ears. Every time his younger brother came to urge him, the ears were nowhere to be found.

Now that I have some free time, I should finally finish this chore I've been owing.

A small carving knife twirled between his fingers, finding the grain of the wood, and began to cut along it. The boxwood was fine-grained, and the knife didn't chip when cutting small curves. The blade slid over the wood, and a thin slice rolled up and landed on the table.

Ears are difficult to carve. They are small and pointed, thick at the bottom and thin at the top. If you apply too much pressure, they will chip. You have to work on them layer by layer and not rush it.

The important matters had been swirling in my mind all morning, and I had a mental list of preparations. But I put it aside for now and let my mind wander to the tasks at hand. I don't force myself to think about things I can't figure out; that's a temperament I've developed in the office.

The outline of the first ear was beginning to take shape when the curtain was suddenly lifted, and a gust of wind swept in.

"elder brother!"

Zhu Youjian rushed in, his shoes scraping against the gold bricks with a dull thud, almost slipping and falling. He had to reach out and hold onto the door frame to steady himself.

The nine-year-old child, dressed in an indigo cotton robe with mud smeared on the hem, had returned from playing in some yard somewhere.

"Slow down."

"Brother, you're cutting off the horse's ears! You've finally cut off the ears!"

"Um."

"Let me see," Zhu Youjian said, reaching out to grab it.

"Don't touch it. It's not fully formed yet; touching it will cause it to break."

Zhu Youjian withdrew his hand, leaned closer to take a closer look, and his eyes were almost touching the wood.

"Beautiful! Much better looking than the legs from last time."

"Last time, that leg was bent. When a horse runs, one leg is bent to push off the ground. If you don't believe me, go see a real horse."

Zhu Youjian was skeptical and, unable to think of a rebuttal, changed the subject.

"Brother, Zhang Mama, who serves Lady Dongli, came to see me today."

The knife didn't stop. "Hmm."

"The old woman said that Lady Ke went to see her yesterday and had a very long talk with her."

The carving knife paused slightly for a moment, then resumed its movement without leaving a trace.

"What are you saying?"

"I don't know. The old nanny didn't tell me; she was just whispering with Consort Dongli in the inner room." Zhu Youjian tilted his head and thought for a moment. "But the old nanny didn't look too happy when she came out."

Zhu Youxiao did not answer, but lowered his head and continued shaving.

When Madam Ke had a private conversation with the people from west Li's side, the old woman came out looking displeased.

He understood. Placing the porridge half an inch further away was a small, overt action, but a covert conspiracy that his brother had overheard. The cleanest communication channel is when the messenger himself is unaware that he is delivering a message.

"If you see that Granny doesn't look well in the future, just tell me." His tone was casual, as if he were talking nonsense.

"Yes!" Zhu Youjian nodded emphatically.

…………

The first ear was finished. Zhu Youxiao turned around and started on the second one.

Zhu Youjian didn't leave; he moved a low stool and sat down to watch. His two short legs dangled over the edge of the stool and swung back and forth for a while before suddenly speaking.

"Brother, Madam Ke said the trees on Coal Hill are growing really well. Can you take me climbing them sometime?"

The carving knife stopped.

It stopped right in the middle of the wood grain. The cut wasn't finished.

Zhu Youxiao did not look up.

Coal Hill.

A lump formed in my throat, I couldn't breathe, and I couldn't exhale.

He knew there was a crooked locust tree on that mountain. He knew that twenty-four years later, a person would be hanging under that tree. He knew that person would bite their finger and write the six characters "Do not harm a single commoner" on their clothes, and then the Ming Dynasty would perish. Two hundred and seventy-six years of rule, perished beneath that tree.

He knows everything.

That person is the younger brother sitting on the low stool in front of me, swinging his legs.

He is nine years old this year.

We need to go there to climb trees.

Something surged up in his chest for a moment, not sadness, but something far heavier. It was the sight of the two capitals and thirteen provinces overthrown before his eyes, the devastation of the land and the ruins of the state. It was all the things he dared not think about in this life he had transmigrated into, all of which were revealed by a single sentence from a nine-year-old child.

He pressed each item back into place, one by one, with great force.

The surface remained completely still.

"Brother? Did you hear that?"

Zhu Youjian tilted his head and looked at him. Suddenly, his brother stopped talking and moving, still holding the knife in his hand, as if lost in thought.

"Yes. I heard you."

The sound was very flat.

It was so flat it didn't sound like a reply.

"There are a lot of bugs over there. Don't go."

Zhu Youxiao lowered his head and continued shaving.

The second ear. The knife began to cut again. Steady, even, wood shavings fell onto the table.

The movements remained unchanged. The breathing remained unchanged.

The knuckles of the fingers gripping the knife had turned white.

Boxwood is not afraid of being squeezed, but the wooden handle of the carving knife is. The thin lacquer on the handle was squeezed out by the fingertips, leaving two shallow marks.

Zhu Youjian didn't notice. The nine-year-old child was preoccupied with the wooden horse, muttering, "This one seems a little bigger than that one."

Zhu Youxiao did not reply.

"Do not harm a single civilian."

He shouldn't have remembered those six words. But he did. He remembered them perfectly clearly.

When my younger brother wrote these six characters at the age of thirty-three, there was only one eunuch left by his side.

He applied more pressure. The second ear base was cut deeper, making it thinner.

…………

I can't say how much time has passed.

The second ear is finished. The two ears are different sizes.

"Brother, this one's crooked."

"A horse's ears are naturally positioned one in front of the other. If you don't believe me, go and see a real horse."

As usual, Zhu Youjian remained skeptical.

Zhu Youxiao handed over the wooden horse. "Take it."

"Really?!" Zhu Youjian's eyes lit up. He took it with both hands, examining it closely from all angles. "Finally, it has ears!"

Don't fall.

"Won't!"

He skipped and hopped out the door, clutching his wooden horse, and turned back at the doorway to shout, "Brother, you're the best!"

The curtain swayed twice.

The footsteps faded into the distance.

I can't hear you anymore.

The hall fell silent.

Zhu Youxiao sat in the chair, motionless.

The things that were just put back in place could be contained when my brother was around, but now that he's gone, they've all come rushing back from all directions.

Two capitals and thirteen provinces. The common people. Two hundred and seventy-six years of rule.

There is also a crooked locust tree.

He glanced down at his right hand. There were four shallow indentations on his four fingers, and the base of his nails was white, the blood not yet returning.

He slowly placed his hands on his knees and closed his eyes.

A breeze blew in through the window, carrying a few wood shavings onto the floor tiles.

I sat there for a long time.

It was quite a while before the light outside the window dimmed.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes.

There was no sadness in his eyes.

It was something very heavy—like a thousand pounds of force pressing down on my chest, but it was forcefully pushed back, becoming a breath that sank into my dantian and fell downwards.

Now that he's here, no one will be hanging under that tree anymore.

The Liaodong military pay must be investigated, and Liaodong must be stabilized. These two vast swathes of land must be scraped back inch by inch from the rotten-to-the-roots court. In his previous life, he had to work overtime until 2 a.m. to manage even a single county. In this life, this fifteen-year-old body carries the burden of two capitals and thirteen provinces. He'd rather die from exhaustion than give up.

No matter how well the trees on Coal Hill grow, it has nothing to do with his brother.

He didn't believe in the nonsense about dynasties ending after three hundred years. Fate is determined by people, not by heaven.

Principal Zhu You let out a long sigh of relief.

He exhaled a breath of stale air.

…………

Wang An arrived in the evening.

When Zhu Youxiao entered the hall, he was already flipping through the examination papers. The table was spotless, the sawdust swept away, the carving knife returned to the drawer, and everything seemed normal.

Wang An bowed and waited before the desk, informing him of two matters.

The first one.

"Your Highness, Grand Secretary Han has completed most of the inventory. The Ministry of Revenue has revealed the truth—the discrepancies are not only in the Liaodong military pay, but also in the silver equivalent of the grain transport tax."

Han Kuang acted faster and more thoroughly than expected. Emperor Taichang only asked him to "clean things up," but he even dug up the grain transport. Silently and quietly, he uprooted the enemy completely. New officials are full of enthusiasm when they take office; this kind of person who works hard without seeking credit is the most useful, but also the most dangerous.

However, the grain transport tax is not an option right now. The Liaodong tax alone is enough for the court to handle; if two taxes were to be imposed at once, Fang Congzhe would be ready to overturn the table on the spot. The pace cannot be disrupted.

"He was urged to expedite the Liaodong military pay. The grain transport should be put on hold for now."

Wang An agreed.

He paused for a moment.

"There's one more case."

Zhu Youxiao looked up at him.

"Grand Secretary Fang went to the Ministry of War today."

The hand that was turning the pages of the test book stopped.

"How long have you been gone?"

"About half an hour."

For seven years, he served as the sole prime minister in the cabinet, and when other departments had matters to attend to, they would simply send him a note. He rarely made a personal trip to the cabinet.

There was controversy over the Liaodong military pay and the replacement of the commander-in-chief; rumors of a major discussion had already spread. At this critical juncture, Fang Congzhe personally went to the Ministry of War and sat there for most of the hour.

When a senior leader personally visits a frontline department, it's either because a major incident has occurred and on-site firefighting is needed, or because he wants to do something that others don't know about.

"What was it like when you came out?"

Wang An replied cautiously, "Old Zhao from the gatehouse said that the Grand Secretary didn't look too good when he came out."

Zhu Youxiao did not respond.

The hall was quiet for a moment.

Wang An stood there with his head down, not daring to utter a sound.

Zhu Youxiao closed the notebook in his hand and placed it on the corner of the table, stacking it together with the two notebooks of questions from Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou.

"Osama."

"Your servant is here."

"The date for the grand meeting should be set. I will report to my father tomorrow."

"Yes."

Wang An waited a moment longer, and seeing that the Crown Prince had no further instructions, he bowed and took two steps back. He paused slightly as he reached the doorway.

"Your Highness, regarding Grand Secretary Fang's visit to the Ministry of War...should we send someone to inquire about it?"

Zhu Youxiao leaned back in his chair.

After a while, he only said two words.

"No need."

Wang An agreed and left the hall.

…………

Only the Crown Prince remained in the hall.

As dusk settled outside the window, the palace lanterns under the eaves had been lit sometime earlier, their orange light filtering through the window and illuminating half of the golden brick floor.

Several books on Liaodong were stacked on the table, with Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou's two folds on top.

Zhu Youxiao stared at the stack of papers. His fingers tapped unconsciously twice on the table.

Fang Congzhe went to the Ministry of War.

For most of the hour.

His complexion was unpleasant.

On the eve of the grand meeting, the seven-year-old Grand Secretary had an extra item in his hands.