The Dumb Prince of the Ming Dynasty

Zhu Yuanzhang cried as he muttered to himself.

"Bao'er was nineteen years old when he went to attack Chizhou with three thousand men and managed to scatter Chen Youliang's vanguard. I remember he was hit by two arrows in the leg during that battle, but he didn't utter a sound."

Li Jinglong stood to the side, listening intently, tears welling up in his eyes.

In the original owner's memory, her father was indeed a tough man, covered in scars.

"Bao'er has had a hard life since he was a child. His mother died early, and when he came to live with us, he was as thin as a monkey."

Li Jinglong was secretly moved.

The old man's crying was so genuine; if you were to say it was an act, he was an incredibly good actor.

Besides, there were only the two of them left in the funeral hall. Who were they putting on this show for?

"Your Majesty, please sit down for a while. Your legs must be numb from standing for so long." He stepped forward.

Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at him and let him help him sit down on the chair next to him.

After taking his seat, Old Zhu sighed deeply, his gaze falling on Jiujiang's face, and slowly said, "Jiujiang, now that your father is gone, you'll have to uphold the prestige of the Duke of Cao's mansion."

Li Jinglong nodded: "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will certainly take good care of my younger brother."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said, "Once your mourning period is over, we'll make arrangements for you. You'll start as a Vice Commander in the Left Army Commandery and gradually gain experience."

Vice Commander-in-Chief?

Doesn't that mean leading troops into battle to kill the enemy?

Li Jinglong's heart skipped a beat, and he said with difficulty, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid I'm not cut out to lead troops. Perhaps we should relinquish this post?"

"What did you say?" Zhu Yuanzhang's gaze suddenly turned cold.

Li Jinglong forced himself to say, "I know nothing about this matter. If I were to rashly assume office, I fear I would delay the important affairs of the court."

"Your father was a general who founded the Ming Dynasty!" Zhu Yuanzhang roared. "His son doesn't lead troops? How are we supposed to explain this to your father?"

Why should I, a time traveler, lead any soldiers?

Are you trying to get me to go back and trick Zhu Yunwen?

"Your Majesty, I really don't know anything. If I were to lead troops, I would surely make a mess of things," he said sheepishly.

Zhu Yuanzhang glared at him: "If you don't know how, then learn! When your father was a teenager, he also learned how to fight from us."

"But……"

"But what? You are Li Wenzhong's son; the blood of a military family flows in your veins!"

Li Jinglong panicked and blurted out, "Your Majesty, I am a complete fool! The Ming Dynasty is full of talented people; it doesn't need another fool like me!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang stood up in anger and stared intently at him.

"You good-for-nothing?" Old Zhu gritted his teeth. "If your father heard that, he'd climb out of his coffin and beat you! We'll beat you for him right now!"

He raised his hand to strike.

Li Jinglong instinctively shrank his neck.

On the very first day of my transmigration, I was beaten up by the Hongwu Emperor. This treatment is truly something else.

But as soon as Zhu Yuanzhang raised his hand, his body suddenly swayed, and he staggered backward.

"Your Majesty!" Li Jinglong reacted quickly, grabbing him to steady him. "Guards! Quickly, guards!"

Mao Xiang, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, rushed in with his men. When he saw Zhu Yuanzhang's pale face, he was terrified.

"Your Majesty!" Mao Xiang hurriedly stepped forward to help him up.

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand, steadied himself, and glared at Li Jinglong: "Focus on your father's funeral. We'll teach you a lesson later."

The Imperial Guards helped him up and they left.

Li Jinglong plopped down on the prayer mat and let out a long sigh of relief.

The candlelight flickered in the mourning hall, and ashes drifted in the air.

A moment later, Li Zengzhi tiptoed in and knelt down beside Li Jinglong.

The two brothers silently added paper money to the brazier.

The firelight illuminated two young faces, one sixteen and the other about thirteen or fourteen, their features somewhat similar.

"Elder brother," Li Zengzhi said, "Father is gone, and now only the two of us brothers are left in the Duke of Cao's mansion. From now on, we'll rely on you, elder brother."

Li Jinglong glanced at him sideways.

The boy still had tear stains on his face. To be honest, in the original owner's memories, this younger brother was a real jerk, incredibly annoying.

But looking at him now, he does seem a bit pitiful.

"Second brother," Li Jinglong said, intrigued, "what do you want to do in the future?"

Li Zengzhi raised his head, looking at the coffin: "I want to become a great general like my father! To gallop across the battlefield and serve the court!"

Snapped!

Li Jinglong slapped him on the back of the head.

Li Zengzhi was stunned by the blow, clutching the back of his head: "Brother, why did you hit me?"

"To become a great general like Father?" Li Jinglong cried out in anguish. "Look at our father, in the prime of his life, just over forty, and he was gone! What's so good about being a great general?"

Clang!

A muffled thud suddenly echoed in the mourning hall.

The two brothers looked up at the coffin at the same time.

The coffin lid seemed to move slightly.

Li Zengzhi's face turned pale instantly.

Li Jinglong was also taken aback for a moment, then said, "See? When Dad heard you say you wanted to be a great general, he was so angry he almost lifted the coffin lid!"

Clang!

Another sound.

Even Li Jinglong felt a jolt of fear this time.

No way? There's really something going on?

The wind blew through the mourning hall, causing the curtains to flutter and rustle.

Li Zengzhi's teeth chattered: "Brother, is Father really angry?"

Li Jinglong forced himself to remain calm: "If our dad could really lift the coffin lid, the first person he'd beat up would be you."

"Why did you hit me?"

"Because you're going to follow in his footsteps! He spent his life fighting and killing, his body covered in scars more than coins, and what did he end up with? He died young! He's in a hurry, he doesn't want you to repeat his mistakes."

Li Zengzhi looked at the coffin with suspicion, then at his elder brother: "What will I do in the future?"

"Of course, it's better to be a rich man! We have money and land; you could eat your fill even if you just lay around. Why go to war? Why become an official? Swords and spears have no eyes; what if one day..." Li Jinglong glanced at the coffin, "In short, isn't it better to live a peaceful life?"

Li Zengzhi looked puzzled: "But Father used to say that a real man should have ambition. He shouldn't be a good-for-nothing who just loafs around and waits to die."

"Ambition?" Li Jinglong earnestly advised, "Come on, let me count for you."

"Chang Yuchun, you know him, right? Our father's old comrade, the Prince of Kaiping, what a fierce and valiant general he was! And what happened? He died of illness during the Northern Expedition, only thirty-nine! Thirty-nine, even younger than our father!"

Li Zengzhi's lips twitched.

"And then there's our father, over forty. You do the math, which of these great generals lived long? What was the point of fighting and killing their whole lives?"

Li Zengzhi always felt something was off: "That's being loyal to the country."

"Being loyal is fine, but there's no need to risk your life." Li Jinglong patted his younger brother's shoulder. "Our family only needs one general like your father. He risked his life so that his children could enjoy a good life. Don't let your father down."

A gust of wind blew through the mourning hall.

Clang!

The coffin lid rattled again.

This time it was louder than the previous two times.

Li Zengzhi blinked fearfully: "Big brother, is Dad angry with you? Is he really turning on his deathbed?"

Li Jinglong was speechless.

"Nonsense, Dad agreed with me, he was so excited he was slapping his coffin."

Li Zengzhi: "..."

The two brothers exchanged a glance and simultaneously moved half a step to the side.

Stay away from the coffin.