The Dumb Prince of the Ming Dynasty

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled slightly and raised his hand:

"My old brothers, these pardons are a gift from us. You followed us to conquer the world back then, braving mountains of knives and seas of fire, surviving countless near-death experiences. These things are what you deserve."

"Of course, we hope you will never need it. If you don't need it, your descendants won't need it either. It's not a talisman, it's an honor. It's our Great Ming remembering your contributions, it's us remembering your kindness."

All the dukes and marquises breathed a sigh of relief.

Li Shanchang bowed and said, "Your Majesty is wise and sagacious; we are deeply grateful."

"Your Majesty is wise!" the crowd echoed in unison, bowing down.

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand: "Go back now. Remember my words, keep a close eye on your own men."

"Your Majesty, we will keep this in mind."

The dukes and marquises filed out of the main hall.

Only two people remained in the main hall.

Pfft!

Li Jinglong immediately knelt down.

"Your Majesty! You see? I am unable to handle this task. You should find someone else capable."

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled slightly: "You seem quite shrewd."

"I'm just a clueless little rabbit; I can't outwit those old foxes," Li Jinglong said anxiously.

As he spoke, he began to build up his emotions.

He had memorized all the lines, starting with "Father!" He was guaranteed to be moved to tears.

"Let's not talk about this today," Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand.

"what?"

"Today I'll tell you a story from when we were young."

Li Jinglong: "..."

I'm all emotionally charged right now, and you think you can just stop talking like that?

No.

This trip can't be in vain; I must cancel my errand.

"Stop!" Zhu Yuanzhang glared. "Don't try to cry in front of me, or I'll beat you until you really cry. Remember that time with the twelfth prince? He was so badly beaten he couldn't get out of bed for half a month."

Li Jinglong certainly remembered.

Last year, His Highness Prince Xiang did something wrong and was severely beaten by His Majesty. He was beaten so badly that his buttocks were so swollen that he couldn't sit or lie down and had to lie on his stomach for a full half month.

The Prince of Xiang is His Majesty's own son.

They beat their own son like that.

What's so special about a grandnephew?

The emotions I had carefully cultivated vanished in an instant.

"Your Majesty," Li Jinglong looked up, "you may speak, I am all ears."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded in satisfaction.

He remained silent for a long while.

"When I was sixteen, I entered Huangjue Temple and became a monk."

Li Jinglong blinked.

Of course he knew about this. Who in the world didn't know that His Majesty had been a monk and begged for food in his early years?

"For what? For a bite to eat."

"There was a disaster back then. The fields didn't grow crops, and it didn't rain. Eventually, even the temple couldn't hold on any longer. We had been there for less than two months when the abbot dismissed the monks. We had no choice but to go out and beg for alms."

"It's basically begging."

"Knock on a door, bow your head, hold out your bowl, and beg for a bite to eat. Leftovers are fine, even spoiled food is fine. As long as you can swallow it, it's a good thing."

"Before we knocked on that door, we knew that what awaited us behind it might not be food. It might be disdain, contempt, or a vicious dog being unleashed."

"But we have no choice."

"We had no choice but to swallow our pride and knock on door after door. If one door cursed us, we'd move on to another. If another door unleashed their dogs, we'd move on to yet another."

"Winter in Huaixi is so cold. We were wearing monk's shoes with our toes sticking out, walking in the snow, knocking on doors for most of the day, but we didn't get a single grain of rice. Finally, we couldn't walk anymore, so we leaned against the earth god temple at the village entrance, thinking, 'I'm afraid I'll freeze to death here tonight.'"

A moment of silence.

Zhu Yuanzhang withdrew his gaze and fixed it on Li Jinglong.

"Kid, do you know what we went through those years?"

Li Jinglong opened his mouth.

"Compared to these," Zhu Yuanzhang smiled, "what are your current difficulties?"

Li Jinglong cursed inwardly.

Zhu Laodeng, you're using PUA on me again.

Why should I suffer?

"Three years." Zhu Yuanzhang's gaze was intense. "Do you know how we spent those three years?"

Li Jinglong raised his head, his face serious: "Those three years tempered Your Majesty's mind and broadened Your Majesty's horizons. It was because Your Majesty experienced those things that you were able to see through people's hearts, endure great hardships, and bear great humiliations, that you were able to achieve great things and lay the foundation for the eternal prosperity of our Great Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Yuanzhang shrugged: "Don't you understand perfectly well?"

Li Jinglong: "..."

"How can I compare to Your Majesty? Your Majesty is a dragon in the sky, while I am but a worm on the ground. Your Majesty can withstand it, but I cannot. I am nothing but a good-for-nothing."

"Alright, alright." Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand. "Look at your skin, it's just as thick as when we were begging for alms back then."

Li Jinglong became interested: "How did Your Majesty beg for alms back then?"

Zhu Yuanzhang said in a serious tone: "Back then, every time we knocked on a door and met a kind family, we would say, 'This humble monk doesn't eat vegetarian food, just have something simple.'"

Li Jinglong's eyes widened: "Not vegetarian? So you only eat meat and drink alcohol? Your Majesty, are you going to wear a monk's robe, shave your head, knock on someone's door, and tell them you're not a vegetarian?"

"Um."

"You've got some nerve."

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed heartily: "We really did manage to beg for quite a bit of wine and meat."

The atmosphere lightened a bit, and Li Jinglong took the opportunity to sigh, "Your Majesty, why did you take back those iron certificates of immunity from death?"

He asked very directly.

If we keep going in circles, we'll get caught up in the old fox's trap again.

Let's just break through this barrier.

Zhu Yuanzhang put down his teacup and remained silent for a long time before speaking.

"Our noble and military generals are good for nothing but killing."

"After the founding of the nation, we have always advised them to abide by the law, receive their salaries, and maintain peace. They should not take advantage of their merits to engage in corruption and bribery."

"We've been saying it morning and night, but they just won't listen."

"Do they think we don't know?"

"The courtyard of Tang Shengzong's family was seized. The original owner was a silk merchant who had his leg broken by his servant. The complaint was submitted to Yingtian Prefecture, but it was suppressed."

"Lu Zhongheng. He indulged his servants, who abused their power to harm the people. One of his servants rode his horse recklessly in the street, trampling an old woman selling vegetables to death. In the end, he paid twenty taels of silver to settle the matter."

"And then there's Lan Yu. He built a dragon boat and sailed down the river with singing girls. When the people on both banks saw it, they thought it was the emperor on an imperial tour and knelt down in a panic."

Zhu Yuanzhang sneered as he finished speaking:

"Heh, arrogant soldiers and fierce generals, meritorious officials from Huaixi, these words can kill."

"They have stirred up public resentment and threatened the safety of the imperial court."

"We absolutely cannot sit idly by and do nothing."

Li Jinglong understood.

In summary: Old Zhu couldn't tolerate it any longer and was about to unleash a massacre. Therefore, he needed to reclaim the ironclad immunity certificates. Only after reclaiming them could he unleash his killing spree.

"Hmph, a pardon from death." Zhu Yuanzhang sneered. "That's a favor we bestow upon them, not a right to embezzle and break the law."

"The law is as clear as the heavens, regardless of rank."

"Kill those who deserve to be killed, behead those who deserve to be beheaded."

Li Jinglong felt a tingling sensation down his back.

An old man who rose from beggar monk to emperor is about to start killing people; anyone who gets in his way will die.

What should I do?