The Dumb Prince of the Ming Dynasty

Today is a good day.

Zhu Yuanzhang and his ministers played music and set off fireworks together.

Today is another good day.

Zhu Yuanzhang, accompanied by his civil and military officials, arrived at the new examination hall.

He looked up and sighed with emotion: "Thirteen years have passed, and the imperial examinations have finally resumed."

"Yes, Father, all the scholars in the land have been looking forward to this day," Zhu Biao said from the side.

Zhu Yuanzhang gazed at the brand-new examination hall with an expectant look on his face.

In the fourth year of the Hongwu reign, he held a metropolitan examination, but then called it off, and it remained suspended for thirteen years.

That year, he discovered that most of the admitted students were young people.

Judging from their writing style, if they seemed capable of making contributions, he would try them out, but very few could put what they had learned into practice. He realized that the Yuan Dynasty's long-term neglect of the imperial examination system had led to a break in the educational system.

Especially for children from poor families, there is almost no school to attend.

The Ming Dynasty court was occupied by the founding nobles and the sons of the previous dynasty's aristocratic families, leaving ordinary people with little hope of advancement.

Therefore, his suspension of the imperial examinations was not a rejection of them; he wanted to build schools first and then resume the examinations.

Therefore, he established a large number of official schools.

He ordered the establishment of official schools from the capital to counties and villages, providing free tuition and room and board so that children from poor families could also study.

Learning is offered everywhere, and teaching is accepted by everyone.

More than a decade later, the official schools had shown results, and he believed the time was right, so he announced the restoration of the imperial examination system.

"Come, my beloved ministers, let's take a look at the new examination hall of the Ming Dynasty." Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand.

He walked at the front, followed by a group of civil and military officials, including Duke of Han, Li Shanchang; Duke of Xinguo, Tang He; Duke of Ying, Fu Youde; Marquis of Linchuan, Hu Mei; Marquis of Ji'an, Lu Zhongheng; and Minister of Rites, Lü Ben.

Marquis Ma Sandao of Poyang followed behind. He looked around but didn't see Li Jinglong.

As Zhu Yuanzhang walked on the newly constructed dragon path, a cold glint flashed in his eyes; he knew that shoddy workmanship was hidden within.

He glanced back, frowned, and turned to the eunuch Wang Jinghong, asking in a low voice, "Where is that kid Li Jiujiang?"

Wang Jinghong approached and whispered, "Miss Haili asked me to pass on a message to the Young Duke today, but he went to the inner palace to find her instead."

Zhu Yuanzhang felt a chill run down his spine.

He stopped and turned to look at the assembled officials: "The new examination hall is well-built, magnificent in scale. Look at this dragon path, it feels so solid to walk on."

He stomped his feet twice, making a loud thud.

"Lord Linchuan, you have rendered meritorious service."

Hu Mei stepped forward from the crowd, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty's decree to reopen the imperial examinations is a blessing for all scholars in the land, and I dare not shirk my duty."

He knew what was going on.

He oversaw the construction of this examination hall, and he knew perfectly well how much he had tampered with it, from the foundation to the beams, from the bricks to the timber, and how much silver he had embezzled.

But he wasn't afraid.

Those inferior materials cannot be seen with the naked eye; they only become apparent after three to five years of exposure to wind, rain, and sun.

By then, who will know who built the examination hall? And even if they did, who could bring up old grievances?

"good!"

Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly jumped up on the spot, put his feet together, and slammed heavily onto the blue bricks of the Dragon Road.

boom!

Hu Mei's heart skipped a beat.

"When the time comes, scholars from all over the land will have to pass through here with peace of mind," Zhu Yuanzhang said with a smile.

He then raised his right foot and stomped heavily on another blue brick next to him.

boom!

"Good, I feel safe stepping on it."

His gaze swept across the dragon path and landed on the side.

Then he stepped over it, one step at a time.

One foot to the left, one foot to the right, the steps were small, but each step was taken with extra force.

Hu Mei's forehead began to sweat.

Click!

Zhu Yuanzhang stomped his foot, and the stone beneath his feet shattered, leaving a pit.

Everyone stopped and fell silent, staring at the pit at the emperor's feet.

Hu Mei began to tremble, feeling that although the pit under the emperor's feet was small, it could bury her.

"What's going on?" Zhu Yuanzhang roared in anger. "Why is this stone so fragile? Is this the Dragon Road for the imperial examinations of my Great Ming Dynasty?"

The courtiers were all stunned, and no one dared to utter a sound.

Zhu Yuanzhang's face turned ashen. He took a few more steps forward, then lifted his foot and stomped down heavily again.

Click!

Another trap!

Hu Mei felt as if that foot had stepped on the top of his head, and he felt like he was going to faint.

"Marquis of Linchuan!" Zhu Yuanzhang roared menacingly, "Is this the job you've assigned us? When scholars from all over the land walk along this dragon road, they'll leave a hole with every step, creating dozens of large craters. How are they supposed to view the court? How are they supposed to view me, the emperor?"

Hu Mei hurriedly knelt down.

He wanted to say, "Your Majesty, if you hadn't used so much force, it really wouldn't have broken."

But he dared not utter a single word of these words.

"Your Majesty, perhaps there was an occasional oversight in the materials used here," he explained hastily.

Zhu Yuanzhang sneered: "We still occasionally chop off people's heads."

Hu Mei shuddered and collapsed to the ground.

Zhu Yuanzhang flew into a rage and drew the sword from the waist of the guard beside him.

The ministers' expressions changed drastically.

Hu Mei knelt on the ground, trembling all over, her teeth chattering.

Oh no, oh no, His Majesty is going to execute someone on the spot.

But Zhu Yuanzhang, carrying a knife, strode towards the row of brand-new pillars under the corridor.

He stopped in front of a large vermilion pillar, looked it up and down, gripped the knife with both hands, and slashed down fiercely.

Click!

A palm-sized gash was cut into the pillar.

Wood chips and some other unknown substance were dripping down from the opening.

Everyone's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"Come and see!" Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes were icy cold. "Is this a beam or a coffin lid?"

The entire place was deathly silent; not even the wind dared to whistle.

"Your Majesty, I know my crime." Ma Sandao felt the time was right, so he knelt down and said sincerely, "Your Majesty, please calm down. Have some water to calm your nerves. Don't be agitated. Listen to what I have to say."

Zhu Yuanzhang nearly choked: "Am I being irritable? Am I being irritable?"

"His Majesty wasn't angry; that's how normal people talk," Ma Sandao immediately replied.

Zhu Yuanzhang's lips twitched: "Speak!"

Ma Sandao pulled a memorial from his sleeve and raised it high above his head: "Your Majesty, this is my petition for forgiveness. I participated in the construction of the Imperial Examination Hall and embezzled three thousand taels of silver. I beg forgiveness. All of this was instigated by the Marquis of Linchuan. He embezzled even more."

Hu Mei was dumbfounded, her mind going blank.

You didn't even think for a second before selling me out?

No, wait, they've already prepared the folding paper. Are they planning to sell me?

"Hu Mei!" Zhu Yuanzhang roared, "Did you do all this?"

Hu Mei shuddered and pointed at Ma Sandao: "Your Majesty, it's not me, it's him. He was in charge of all the stone materials."

Upon hearing this, Ma Sandao not only remained calm but also laughed.

He chuckled and pulled out another thick stack of papers from his pocket.

"I knew you were going to implicate me, but luckily I was prepared. These are all testimonies from the material suppliers, and the evidence is conclusive."

Zhu Yuanzhang took the stack of papers and quickly flipped through them.

Those were all given to Ma Sandao by Li Jinglong.

He's been searching for so many days, he's already finished organizing it.

"What else do you have to say?" Zhu Yuanzhang threw the confession at Hu Mei's face.

Hu Mei turned pale and collapsed to the ground in despair.