The Dumb Prince of the Ming Dynasty

"My father is dead!"

Li Jinglong suddenly sat up from the couch, then froze in shock.

"I want to inherit my father's title of Duke of Cao."

After a long while, his eyes gradually cleared, and he suddenly slapped his thigh.

"I just transmigrated here, how am I supposed to handle this?"

It turns out that the original owner had just witnessed his father's death and fainted. When he woke up again, he was a soul from the future.

Li Jinglong jumped off the bed and walked to the bronze mirror.

He's still a teenager, but his modeling is pretty good.

Historical records indicate that Li Jinglong was handsome and graceful in his youth, which earned him the favor of Emperor Taizu.

Sure enough!

With a little makeup, this face could easily be transformed into a foundation queen.

Nonsence!

I'd rather be a fool than a general covered in foundation.

"It's the seventeenth year of the Hongwu reign now, there's still time for everything," he muttered to himself.

Later generations called Li Jinglong the God of War of the Ming Dynasty, which was a sarcastic reference to his defeat when he led an army of 500,000 to attack Zhu Di.

After betraying Zhu Yunwen, he surrendered to Zhu Di.

In the end, he died in captivity.

The biggest incompetent fool of the Ming Dynasty!

"I'm sixteen years old this year (by the traditional Chinese age reckoning)," Li Jinglong muttered to himself. "When the time comes, I'll inherit the title of Duke, and I'll be a young Duke. The salary will be enough. What kind of soldiers would I need to lead? What kind of battles would I need to fight? Transmigrators fighting battles? That's the brain circuitry of a failed online novel author. What's the difference between that and a 'foundation-covered general'?"

He began to look forward to his future life.

Build a grand estate, beautiful wives and concubines, an infinity pool...

"Brother, His Majesty has arrived." A young man rushed over; it was his second brother, Li Zengzhi.

Holy crap, I almost forgot.

My father is dead!

Li Jinglong rushed to the mourning hall and threw himself before the coffin.

Bang bang bang, he kowtowed violently.

You shut up, go cry already!

Zhu Yuanzhang was standing to the side. If he couldn't cry, wouldn't he leave an impression of being unfilial?

What Old Zhu valued most was loyalty and filial piety.

Clang... Clang... Clang...

Either cry it out or faint from exhaustion.

"Jiujiang, Jiujiang, stop kowtowing." A sorrowful voice fell, "We know you're a filial son, and you can't accept your father's sudden death."

Li Jinglong raised his head, his eyes finally filled with tears.

This is the Hongwu Emperor! He truly exudes an aura of dominance.

No, it's murderous!

"Your Majesty, I have lost my father." He opened his mouth and burst into tears.

She cried so bitterly, it was heartbreaking.

Once she started crying, she couldn't stop.

Zhu Yuanzhang was moved when he saw this, and patted him on the shoulder: "Jiujiang, good boy, your father is gone, but you still have your great-uncle. He will take care of you in place of your father."

really?I do not believe.

According to unofficial historical records, it was you who sent someone to poison my father, killing him.

Tears streamed down Li Jinglong's face: "Your Majesty, how could my father have left us like this?"

Zhu Yuanzhang's gaze sharpened instantly, and he roared, "Guards!"

Li Jinglong, who was lying on the ground, shuddered.

What are they trying to do?

There's a murderous aura about him!

He truly felt the emperor's wrath, and a chill ran down his spine.

"Bring all the imperial physicians up here!" Zhu Yuanzhang shouted coldly.

Soon, the Imperial Guards brought in seven or eight imperial physicians, who knelt down in terror, trembling.

"I ask you, when I visited Duke Cao a few days ago, his condition had clearly improved, so how did he suddenly die?"

One of the imperial physicians kowtowed and said, "Your Majesty, Duke Cao has been on the battlefield for many years and has too many old wounds. The injuries have affected his organs and have all recurred. There is no hope of saving him."

"Incompetent doctors!" Zhu Yuanzhang roared in fury. "No, it was you who killed Bao'er! He was only in his forties, how could it be beyond saving?"

"Your Majesty, we are physicians, but we cannot cure fate."

"Yes, Your Majesty, we have done our best."

Zhu Yuanzhang stared at the coffin, his eyes blazing with murderous intent: "It was you who killed Bao'er! Guards, behead them! Pay for Bao'er's life! No, exterminate their entire families!"

"Your Majesty, spare my life!"

"Spare me, Your Majesty!"

"Your Majesty, we have done our best, please spare our lives!"

Li Jinglong, kneeling on the ground, was completely numb.

A doctor's dispute with the emperor?

Being a royal physician was a high-risk profession. If the emperor made a scene while he was being treated, he would die.

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger!" he hurriedly said. "My father has just passed away; such execution is against the natural order."

Zhu Yuanzhang roared, "What do you know? Shut up!"

Li Jinglong immediately shut up and watched helplessly as the imperial physicians were dragged away.

He remembered that historical records showed that after his father died, Zhu Yuanzhang did indeed issue an edict to execute the imperial physicians, as well as their wives and children.

Therefore, unofficial historical accounts speculate that Zhu Yuanzhang killed the witnesses to silence them.

It is said that Zhu Yuanzhang used the imperial physicians to poison Li Wenzhong. As for why Li Wenzhong was poisoned, some say he had colluded with Zhang Shicheng; some say he repeatedly advised Zhu Yuanzhang; and others say he was in danger of becoming the crown prince.

Although Li Jinglong had not thoroughly studied this part of the Ming Dynasty history, he believed that unofficial histories were simply fabrications.

Given Zhu De's personality, if he really wanted to deal with Li Wenzhong, he wouldn't have gone so far as to send someone to poison him.

When Zhu Wenzheng wanted to rebel, Zhu Yuanzhang whipped him, but ultimately didn't kill him.

Old Zhu lost both his parents when he was young and his wife in middle age.

Throughout his life, he valued family ties very much.

Li Wenzhong was his nephew, whom he had raised like a son. How could he possibly poison him?

"Bao'er, Bao'er, they poisoned you." Zhu Yuanzhang's face was filled with grief as he stared intently at the coffin.

Li Jinglong frowned.

Could it be that my father was really poisoned to death?

In the original owner's memory, a few days ago, his father's condition had indeed improved somewhat, and he had even called him to his bedside to give him some instructions.

"His Majesty may treat you as a son or nephew, but you cannot treat His Majesty as an uncle."

"Among the founding nobles, more than ten families have formed marriage alliances with the royal family, but His Majesty truly considers them relatives only the families of the Duke of Wei, the Duke of Xin, the Marquis of Xiping, the Marquis of Wuding, and our family of the Duke of Cao."

"Even so, remember this: you, me, and the descendants of the Duke of Cao's family will always be subjects of the Ming Dynasty, not any imperial relatives."

Looking back now, it felt like giving my last words.

Could it be that Father also knew his death was imminent?

The imperial physician poisoned my father? That's highly unlikely. We had no grudge against each other, so why would the imperial physician want to kill him?

But His Majesty ordered their execution, along with their wives and children, which is indeed suspicious.

"Jiujiang, you stay." Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand. "Have everyone else leave."

Everyone left, leaving only Zhu Yuanzhang and Li Jinglong in front of the mourning hall.

Zhu Yuanzhang stood before the coffin, motionless, tears streaming down his face.

Li Jinglong didn't dare to say a word.

Was Old Zhu genuinely moved, or was he just acting?

If this was acting, then he's a movie star, way better than me. I have to hurt myself before I cry.

He carefully examined Zhu Yuanzhang.

The Hongwu Emperor's hair had also turned gray. Although he was still robust, his age was evident.

"Bao'er, why did you leave so soon?" Zhu Yuanzhang sobbed softly. "We still need you to assist the Crown Prince. Alas, now that you're gone, we have fewer and fewer trustworthy people around us."

Li Jinglong lowered his head.

This old man is quite pitiful; he lost his father and mother in his youth, his wife in middle age, and his son in old age.

Old man, your sorrows are yet to come.