I, Zhu Yunwen of the Ming Dynasty, resurrected Empress Ma at the start.

Zhu Yunwen looked at Zhu Yuanzhang and suddenly spoke.

"Old Deng, you can go now."

Zhu Yuanzhang was stunned on the spot.

What? Tell him to get out?

In all his years as emperor, this was the first time anyone had dared to speak to him like that.

But he had just said that he would never punish Yunhuo again...

He pointed to his own nose, incredulous.

"You're letting us out?"

Zhu Yunwen nodded. "Yes, if it wasn't you, then who else could it be?"

"Get out of here, this is none of your business. Go wherever you want."

Zhu Yuanzhang was completely dumbfounded.

He doesn't want to go out!

He just wanted to stay with the girl!

He was terrified that if he turned around, the girl would be gone again!

He looked longingly at Empress Ma.

Empress Ma looked at him and nodded slightly.

The meaning couldn't be clearer: get out.

Zhu Yuanzhang was filled with bitterness.

There's no love left. There's absolutely no love left!

Why is it always us who get hurt?

He walked out with his head down and shoulders slumped.

As he reached the door, he turned back for one last look.

Empress Ma waved her hand at him, "Go, go."

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed deeply and stepped out the door.

The door closed gently behind him, and the room fell silent instantly.

Empress Ma looked at Zhu Yunwen with a smile in her eyes.

"Yun-hu, is there anything you want to tell Grandma?"

Zhu Yuntong chuckled.

"Grandma is so smart. There is something I'd like to ask her for help with."

"What's wrong? Tell me about it."

Zhu Yunwen moved closer to her.

"I'd like to visit my great-uncle."

Empress Ma was taken aback.

Uncle-in-law? Lan Yu? Duke of Liang, Lan Yu?

She looked at Zhu Yunwen with a hint of inquiry in her eyes.

Why does this child suddenly want to see Lan Yu?

But she didn't ask any more questions.

She believed that this child could pull her back from the brink of death.

"The Duke of Liang is your maternal uncle, you should go and see him. Go if you want."

Zhu Yunwen shook his head.

"If I went by myself, that old Deng would definitely become paranoid. Now he sees everyone as someone who's about to rebel."

"So I'd like to ask Grandma for a favor."

Empress Ma nodded. "How would you like Grandma to help you?"

Zhu Yunwen blinked. "Lend me some of Grandma's keepsakes. Like... the Empress's golden seal or something."

Empress Ma was slightly taken aback.

The Empress's Golden Seal?

What does this child want this for?

She looked at Zhu Yunwen and remained silent for a moment.

In the end, I still chose to believe.

"Grandma can give it to you. But you have to tell Grandma what you want to do with it."

Zhu Yunwen thought for a moment, his face serious.

"rebellion."

Empress Ma's expression changed drastically; she could hardly believe what she had just heard.

"What?! Yun-hu, what did you say?!"

She grabbed Zhu Yunwen's hand, her voice trembling with anxiety.

"You want to rebel? Why would you rebel? What's wrong with you? We can take things slowly about the Crown Prince's matter, but you can't do anything foolish!"

Seeing how anxious she was, Zhu Yunwen quickly explained.

"Yes, yes, yes, treason!"

"I'm going to take Grandma's golden seal and recruit soldiers for her!"

"Then we'll enthrone Grandma as empress! Let her become the second female emperor in history!"

Empress Ma was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"Pfft, hahaha—"

I laughed so hard I almost cried.

"Oh dear... my precious grandson... oh dear..."

She clutched her stomach, laughing so hard she couldn't stand up straight.

Zhu Yuntong watched her laugh and chuckled along.

Empress Ma finished laughing, wiped her eyes, and looked at Zhu Yunwen with eyes full of doting affection.

This child is so adorable.

She didn't ask any more questions, took out a brocade box from beside her pillow, opened it, and inside was a gold seal.

The Empress's Treasure.

She picked it up and handed it to Zhu Yunwen.

"Alright, go do whatever you want. Grandma won't stop you."

"But you must remember, you must not do anything to harm the Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Yunwen took the golden seal, weighed it in his hand, and found it to be quite heavy.

He tucked it into his coat and patted it.

"How could that be? I am the most virtuous grandson of the Ming Dynasty, how could I possibly do such a thing?"

Empress Ma nodded with a smile.

"Go ahead, go ahead."

Zhu Yunwen stood up, walked to the door, and winked at her from behind.

"Grandma, wait for me! I'll go recruit soldiers and horses for you right away, and then I'll make you Empress!"

After saying that, he opened the door and ran away.

Empress Ma watched his figure disappear through the doorway, and couldn't help but smile again.

As she laughed, her eyes became slightly moist.

She hadn't laughed so heartily in such a long, long time.

……

The Eastern Palace.

In Lady Lü's bedroom, the candlelight flickered suddenly.

Zhu Yunwen sat at the lower end, his face swollen and covered in bruises, looking utterly disheveled.

He clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"Mother, are we just going to let it go like this?"

He suddenly looked up, his eyes filled with resentment and bitterness.

"He dared to kick me! He kicked me in front of so many people! Even you were offended by him!"

"Who does he think he is? A motherless bastard, what right does he have!"

Lady Lü sat upright on it, holding a string of Buddhist prayer beads in her hand, slowly turning them.

His face betrayed no emotion, but his eyes were so dark they seemed to drip with malice.

"What's the panic?"

She spoke, her voice chillingly calm.

"What's the panic?"

Zhu Yunwen choked.

"Mother..."

"Zhu Yunwen is nothing but a good-for-nothing," Lady Lü interrupted calmly. "A good-for-nothing I've spoiled for over a decade."

"It's just a stroke of luck; he's temporarily gained His Majesty's favor."

She let out a cold laugh.

"But so what?"

"Can pampering feed you? Can it make you a ruler?"

"Once this initial excitement fades, will His Majesty still care about him?"

As Zhu Yunwen listened, the anxiety on his face gradually subsided.

"So, what does the Empress Dowager mean...?"

"Wait."

Ms. Lü twirled the prayer beads between her fingers.

"Let him dig his own grave."

"He's so smug now, he's got a big ego, and he's offended so many people!"

"I'd like to see how long he can be so arrogant."

Zhu Yunwen nodded, but the unease in his heart still lingered.

He recalled the look in Zhu Yunwen's eyes when he kicked him earlier that day.

That look...

He's a completely different person from the cowardly good-for-nothing he used to be.

"Mother, but today he..."

"Write down today's accounts."

Lady Lü raised her hand, interrupting calmly.

"Now is not the time to act. His Majesty dotes on him, and the Empress Dowager protects him. If we act now, we'll be walking into the line of fire."

"But are we just going to do nothing?"

"Who said we're not going to do anything?"

A cold smile curled at the corner of Lu's mouth.

"Have someone keep an eye on him."

"I want to know everything about him: where he went, who he met, what he said, and what he did."

Zhu Yunwen's eyes lit up.

"Yes! Keep an eye on him! He'll definitely run back to Kunning Palace, and then..."

Before he could finish speaking, hurried footsteps approached from outside.

A young eunuch tumbled in and knelt down at the door.

"Your Highness, I hereby report that there is news from the other side!"

Lady Lü straightened her body slightly.

"explain."

The little eunuch kept his head down, not daring to look up.

"His Highness Yunhu spent the day with the Empress in Kunning Palace. He just... just now he came out alone and went back to his own courtyard."

"That's all?"

"Yes."

Lady Lü waved her hand.

The young eunuch bowed and withdrew.

Zhu Yunwen frowned, deep in thought!