I was to be executed by Zhu Yuanzhang, and Empress Ma smashed Zhu Yuanzhang's jade seal.

"Pretend to be sick?"

Zhu Yuanzhang was stunned for a moment, then laughed angrily, "Good! What a fine excuse for feigning illness! They all feign illness with us!"

"What about the Divine Machine Battalion?! What about Tong Huan?! He was promoted by us! Does he dare to disobey the imperial decree?!"

"The Divine Machine Battalion... was already... taken over by Xu Da's personal guards before the Duke of Wei arrived... General Tong Huan... he was placed under house arrest..."

"What?!"

Zhu Yuanzhang felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, his body swayed, and he almost fell to the ground.

The Divine Machine Battalion was his most elite firearms unit, his trump card to intimidate everyone!

Now, even this trump card has been easily taken away by Xu Da?

"Where are the Embroidered Uniform Guards?!"

Clinging to his last hope, he looked at Mao Xiang and cried out, "Where are our Imperial Guards?! Weren't you supposed to be all-powerful and utterly loyal?! Now that we need you, where have you all gone?!"

Mao Xiang knelt down with a thud and kowtowed heavily, his voice trembling with sobs.

"Your Majesty! It's not that we didn't try our best!"

"Her Majesty the Empress and the Crown Prince, together with the six Dukes, have taken control of the entire city of Jinling! Our brothers in the Embroidered Uniform Guard are either blocked outside the city or... or their families are being held captive, so we dare not make any rash moves!"

"And...and..."

Mao Xiang's voice trailed off as he spoke, "The morale of the army... the morale is low... the brothers all know about His Highness Prince Ying's affair, and about Minister Liu..."

"That's enough!"

Zhu Yuanzhang rudely interrupted him.

He didn't want to hear any of this.

These are all excuses!

All this talk about unstable morale and family members being controlled—it all boils down to betrayal!

A blatant betrayal!

He released Jiang Huan and slumped onto the cold dragon throne.

He looked around the empty yet magnificent palace and, for the first time, felt what true coldness meant.

This coldness isn't from the weather, but from people's hearts.

He thought he was the emperor, the only king of the country.

He believed he held the power of life and death over everyone, that he could decide the fate of the world with a single word, and that a single outburst of anger could cause the deaths of millions.

But these people betrayed him!

it is good!

I want to see what Ma Xiuying is going to do.

He wanted to see whether his old comrades, Xu Da and Chang Yuchun, listened to him, Zhu Yuanzhang, or to Ma Xiuying.

Zhu Yuanzhang, carrying a golden sword, strode out with the imposing presence of a dragon and the powerful stride.

He wants to see.

Can Ma Xiuying really make us abdicate?

But only today did he realize how wrong he had been.

When his most trusted brothers, wife, and sons all stood against him, he, as emperor, became a complete joke.

His imperial edicts could not leave the Fengtian Hall.

His troops existed only on the roster.

He was completely isolated by the dynasty he had built with his own hands.

fear.

An unprecedented fear, like a tidal wave, overwhelmed his reason.

He was no longer the decisive and ruthless Hongwu Emperor who commanded the country, but a prisoner trapped in a cage, awaiting trial.

No!

We can't just sit here and wait to die!

Zhu Yuanzhang's mind was racing.

He thought of those urgent military reports sent from the northern frontier, delivered by express courier.

I thought of Xiang Yu, Lü Bu, Han Xin...

Those names that exist only in legends.

I thought of their shared slogan.

"Welcome, Your Majesty!"

"Purge the court of corrupt officials and save our lord!"

A crazy idea resurfaced in his mind, clearer and stronger than ever before.

They didn't know that Mu Ying was already dead!

All their actions were aimed at saving one person!

Mu Ying's body...

Correct!

Mu Ying's corpse!

This is his only bargaining chip right now!

It was his last and most important talisman!

As long as this secret is not leaked, as long as the rebels believe that Zhu Muying is still alive, they will have some reservations and will not dare to really go too far!

He has the leverage to negotiate and the possibility to stall for time!

Thinking of this, a strange light reappeared in Zhu Yuanzhang's dim eyes.

A sickly smile appeared on his face.

He looked at Mao Xiang and Jiang Huan kneeling on the ground, his voice turning unusually cold.

"Reveal our decree."

"From this moment forward, Kunning Palace is a forbidden area! No one is permitted to approach! Violators will be executed without mercy!"

"Publicly announce that Her Majesty the Queen is overwhelmed with grief over the matter of the Prince of England and needs to rest!"

"Furthermore, immediately send men to the Imperial Hospital to 'deal with' all the imperial physicians who have had contact with the Prince of Ying and Liu Sanwu! We don't want to hear anything we shouldn't hear from them!"

"The most important point!"

Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes turned as sharp as a venomous snake's.

"Find a way to send someone out of the city! Spread the word that the King of England is 'seriously ill and recuperating in the palace'!"

"Spread the word as widely as possible! Let all the rebels hear it!"

Mao Xiang and Jiang Huan were terrified and broke out in a cold sweat.

The emperor is going to...

This is calling a deer a horse, confusing right and wrong!

This is treating everyone like idiots!

But would they dare disobey?

"I... obey your order!"

The two men trembled as they accepted this utterly absurd order, one that could change the fate of the Ming Dynasty.

While Zhu Yuanzhang was still in the Fengtian Hall, dreaming of his "deceiving the heavens and crossing the sea" scheme.

Inside the Wenhua Hall, a heated debate was taking place among the civil officials of the Ming Dynasty.

Leading the group were naturally the Left Chancellor Li Shanchang and the Right Chancellor Hu Weiyong.

Below, the ministers of the six ministries and the nine high-ranking officials were gathered in one hall.

These people were the civil officials who led the Ming Dynasty and were the brains that kept the entire empire running smoothly.

But now, this brain is in unprecedented chaos and fragmentation.

"Prime Minister Hu! Prime Minister Li! What's going on? We've been trapped in the palace all day. What's happening outside?"

Minister of War Wang Guangyang, who was the most impatient, was the first to ask a question.

Hu Weiyong glanced at Li Shanchang, whose face was ashen, coughed lightly, and said slowly, "Minister Wang, please calm down. I'm sure everyone has already guessed some of what's going on."

"Her Majesty the Empress and His Highness the Crown Prince, along with six generals including the Duke of Wei, had some disagreements with His Majesty regarding His Highness the Prince of Ying."

Hu Weiyong spoke very tactfully, but everyone present was shrewd and could easily understand the meaning behind his words.

What does it mean that some disagreements have arisen?

This is clearly a mutiny!

It's a coup!

"Disagreement? Prime Minister Hu, you make it sound so easy!"

Minister of Personnel Wu Lin sneered, "I saw it with my own eyes: as soon as the Duke of Wei and his entourage left the palace, they immediately mobilized the capital garrison and sealed off the entire city! Is this what you call a disagreement?"

"That's treason!"

A young imperial censor stepped forward, his face flushed, and declared indignantly, "Military generals interfering in politics and besieging the capital! This is an act of utter treason! We, as officials of the court, who are paid by the emperor, should sever all ties with these treacherous officials and traitors! We will fight to the death!"

His words were delivered with great passion and enthusiasm, drawing echoes from some of the younger officials.

However, most people looked at him as if he were a fool.

Fight to the death?

What are you going to use to fight?

Do you want your pen?

They have hundreds of thousands of fierce soldiers at their command, with swords and spears at their throats. How can you talk to them about loyalty to the emperor and patriotism?

"Imperial Censor Wang is mistaken."

Minister of Revenue Ru Taisu said slowly and deliberately, "The cause of this matter is that His Highness Prince Ying was wrongfully killed. It is only natural for the Empress to seek justice for her son. It is also reasonable for the Duke of Wei and others to help out out of consideration for past favors. How can this be considered treason?"

"In my opinion, their actions are more about 'purging the court of corrupt officials.' Their target is not Your Majesty, but rather those treacherous and wicked people who deceive the emperor and frame loyal officials!"

Ru Taisu's words were quite insightful.

He downgraded the nature of this mutiny from "treason" to "purging the emperor's inner circle".

This leaves room for maneuver for both sides.

More importantly, he introduced the concept of "treacherous villains".

Who are the treacherous villains?

That's a topic worth discussing.

The civil officials present all became quite interested in what to do.

This is an opportunity to choose sides.

If you stand on the right spot, you'll rise to great heights.

Standing on the wrong platform will lead to utter ruin.

……

However, as soon as Zhu Yuanzhang stepped out of the main hall, he heard the civil officials discussing the matter.

"Or, let's write a congratulatory memorial to bid farewell to the Hongwu Emperor!"

"We're not even dead yet, and the entire court is already discussing having us buried alive with them?"