King of Han Dynasty of Ming Dynasty

The palace of the King of Han.

In a secluded pavilion.

At this moment, the Yingtianfu city has fallen into darkness. A crescent-shaped moon hangs high in the sky, and twinkling stars are scattered all around, lighting up the originally pitch-black night.

Zhu Gaoxu and Zhu Gaochi sat opposite each other, with Jinyiwei commander Ji Gang waiting obediently on the side. There was silence in the room, no one spoke much, and the atmosphere was extremely weird, making people feel depressed and uncomfortable.

That's it.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhu Gaoxu turned his head and glanced at the emperor's henchman who was waiting obediently beside him, Jinyiwei Commander Ji Gang. An intriguing smile appeared on the corners of his slightly raised mouth. He spoke to break the silence and said in a deep voice:
"Commander Ji."

"You will follow the whole city as we do and plan today."

"If nothing unexpected happens, based on the current situation, what the Crown Prince and I want to do and what kind of plan we have, Commander Ji should have some guesses and doubts in his mind, right?"

"Why don't you tell me about it?"

After hearing this, Ji Gang was slightly startled. His originally calm expression now showed a hint of fear and terror. At the same time, he suddenly had a very bad feeling in his heart. He did not dare to hesitate for a moment, and repeatedly waved his hands to signal, responding in a deep voice and denying:

“No, no, no”

"As a subject, one should fulfill one's duties as a subject."

"What this humble minister should know, of course this humble minister can know, and the Crown Prince and the Prince will also tell this humble minister frankly."

"If it is something I am not supposed to know, then as an official, I should not think too much, look too much, or ask too much. That is the most basic thing I should do."

"so."

"I am sorry for your ignorance in the words and questions you asked."

"I really have not thought about it, let alone had such an idea. Naturally, I cannot answer your question. I beg your Highness to understand me."

"Of course, if Your Majesty insists that I answer this question, then I will."

Having said that, Ji Gang tactfully chose to pause, and naturally did not say the rest.

But we are all smart, and some words don’t need to be said so directly. With just a little thought, we can understand and appreciate the implied meaning.

Simultaneously
One has to admit that Ji Gang is worthy of being the emperor's close minister and personal soldier, and is deeply trusted by Emperor Yongle. This guy is really smooth in his words and deeds, and his thoughts are extremely clear.

He was able to react so quickly and come up with the most appropriate way to answer in his mind.

Regarding the question asked by Zhu Gaoxu, Ji Gang seemed to have no answer and seemed to express that he knew nothing, but everyone knew that the real meaning of this answer was definitely more than that. His seemingly calm words were actually full of thorns, and he threw all the questions back to Zhu Gaoxu, the King of Han who asked the question without any hesitation.

This move really surprised Zhu Gaoxu. Ji Gang would actually answer his question in this way, which made him a little stunned. After a long time, Zhu Gaoxu came back to his senses and laughed. His eyes narrowed slightly, and a helpless look appeared on his resolute face. He pointed at Ji Gang who was close at hand and said with a smile:
"Commander Ji! Commander Ji!"

"You are worthy of being the old man's favorite and trustworthy."

"Look at how high the level of this statement is."

"It's simply impeccable, like a curled-up hedgehog, impossible to eat."

"result."

"After all this, it seems that I am a little stingy and unreasonable."

Listening to the seemingly joking teasing words, Ji Gang's pupils shrank, and the ominous feeling in his heart became stronger. At the same time, he had no idea what Han King Zhu Gaoxu was up to, what he was planning, and what he was calculating. Ji Gang was completely confused.

The more this happened, the more Ji Gang's guard became. He could tell that Zhu Gaoxu's words were mocking but actually meant to blame Yin Yang. He knew that he would not be able to accept such a big accusation, nor was he willing to accept it. He kept his expression unchanged and replied with a faint smile:
"Prince Han is joking."

"This is such a treasonous act. Even if I had ten times the courage, I would never dare to have such thoughts, let alone do such a thing. Please understand, Your Majesty."

"What I have said is all sincere and has absolutely no selfish motives or other ill intentions."

Sincere or not.

Whether there is selfishness or other malicious intent.

Zhu Gaoxu naturally scoffed at these remarks and treated them as bullshit. We are all mortals. Who can be without emotions and desires? Can anyone really become a saint?
is it possible?
Regardless of whether others believed it or not, Zhu Gaoxu didn't believe a word of it.

After all, the position of the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard is not something that a saint can hold firmly.

It’s just a matter of whether the so-called selfishness, malice, and desire are within a controllable range, and whether reason can be overcome by selfishness and desire.

In this regard.

Zhu Gaoxu frowned and pondered for a moment, then narrowed his half-closed eyes slightly. He looked up and stared at the Jinyiwei commander Ji Gang who was nearby for a long time, and the playful smile on his face became more and more intense.

At the same time, Zhu Gaoxu did not intend to play Tai Chi with Ji Gang or waste time pretending to be ignorant. He simply sorted out his thoughts, smiled frankly, and said in a deep voice:
"Commander Ji."

"For some time today, the prince and I have repeatedly heard some interesting stories about the commander, which made us not know what to do for a while. Whether we should believe them or not, the stories spread by others and the memorials presented to us have really made us distressed."

"Commander Ji, tell me, if you were in the shoes of the Crown Prince and me, what would you do?"

"Will you believe it or not?"

coming.

The main event is coming.

The real purpose was also fully revealed.

After hearing this, Ji Gang understood instantly, and realized that Zhu Gaoxu's blunt words meant that he was not going to beat around the bush with him. He tried his best to avoid the question, but he couldn't avoid it in the end, even if he pretended to be ignorant.

They come, the security.

Since there is no way to avoid it, the only thing to do is to face it calmly.

For this reason, Ji Gang did not intend to escape anymore. He slowly raised his head, his expression calm without any disturbance. He narrowed his eyes slightly and asked softly:

"Oh?"

"What anecdote is the prince talking about?"

"I wonder if Your Majesty can speak frankly..."

This is said.

The atmosphere in the field suddenly became solemn and oppressive. For a moment, it seemed as if everyone's breathing was so clear and audible. The three people looked at each other. No one spoke again. Time seemed to have been paused at this moment.

Just like that, after an unknown amount of time, Zhu Gaoxu was the first to withdraw his gaze from him. The originally calm expression on his face suddenly changed and altered. His eyes narrowed slightly, and his words became low at this moment. He spoke faintly:

"Well"

"There's nothing I can't say."

"According to what the prince and I have heard, Commander Ji seems to have become the richest and wealthiest person in the entire Ming Dynasty at some point in time."

The voice just fell.

Ji Gang's expression suddenly changed, and he could no longer remain as calm and composed as before.

After a brief hesitation, Ji Gang opened his mouth and was about to say something to defend himself or to exonerate himself. However, before he could finish his words, Zhu Gaoxu's voice came to his ears again, forcing Ji Gang to hold back the words that were already on the tip of his tongue.

“Where does all this wealth and money come from?”

"It seems that I have heard that there is a lot of money here. A lot of silver came from when the Jinyiwei investigated corrupt officials. Commander Ji intercepted and withheld the silver from those corrupt officials."

“I just don’t know if this is the case.”

"Hey"

At this point, Zhu Gaoxu paused, his expression changed, revealing a look of regret, and continued:

"Investigate corruption and investigate bad officials."

"The original intention was to recover the losses of the imperial court and the wealth that originally belonged to the imperial court, so as to replenish the already weak and empty treasury."

"Who would have thought that this person who was ordered to investigate corruption and punish guilty officials would do such a bold thing, and actually betray the emperor and the high hopes and trust given by the court by doing such a thing of lip service."

"That's right. Who could have imagined that the person investigating corruption and criminals is the most corrupt official in the entire Ming Dynasty court."

"Commander Ji."

"Do you think this is the most ridiculous and ironic thing?"

"Commander Ji, do you think this incident is the most interesting and funniest thing?"

Speak out.

It can be said that it is extremely sad.

at the same time.

When these words came out of the mouth of Han Wang Zhu Gaoxu word by word, Ji Gang's face unconsciously turned paler, and the uneasy thoughts in his heart also reached its peak, and at the same time, he became extremely confused.

How is it possible?

He never imagined that Prince of Han Zhu Gaoxu and Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi could know these secret matters so clearly.

He thought he had been careful and prudent enough in doing things on his own. All those who participated were his confidants who had followed him for many years. Not only that, those who cooperated with him also got their share of the benefits, and many of them got a piece of the pie.

How come everything was exposed right away?

Could it be that those people who had followed him for many years and whom he regarded as being on the same side with him were now instigated to rebel by the King of Han and the Crown Prince?

It shouldn’t be!

The trust between him and his confidants is not only based on interests, but also because he really grasps the weaknesses of those individuals. To put it bluntly, those people have put the lives of their families in his hands.

Logically speaking, it is unlikely that he would be turned against the government.

But the problem is that this kind of thing really happened right now, and Ji Gang couldn't figure out which link had the problem at all, even if he racked his brains.

At the same time, the current predicament made Ji Gang shudder. When he was summoned to the Prince of Han's mansion just now, Ji Gang thought that the Prince of Han and the Crown Prince needed his cooperation and he needed to take charge of the current matter himself.

It turned out that he was just overthinking. The two gentlemen in front of him were really coming for him!

Besides, if things go wrong, it might even cost him his life.

Can he admit such a big thing?

The answer is obvious. It is absolutely impossible to admit it, even if what King Han Zhu Gaoxu said is true, even if Ji Gang is terrified at this moment, he absolutely cannot admit it. He absolutely cannot admit it.

The consequences of admitting this matter would be something he could not have predicted and could not bear.

Therefore, the only way to fight for a chance of survival is to refuse to admit it.

As for resistance, taking the opportunity to capture Zhu Gaoxu and the Crown Prince, taking them hostage, threatening their lives, and leaving the territory of the Ming Dynasty?

Give me a break.

This move is even more unrealistic and unlikely.

After all, at this moment, he was not in his Jinyiwei prison, but in the Prince of Han's mansion. Since Zhu Gaoxu and the Crown Prince could speak so frankly, they must have made full preparations.

It might happen that outside the courtyard, there were already knifemen lying in ambush waiting for him!

As for capturing the Crown Prince and the King of Han before the ambushing swordsmen come in, that is even more unrealistic. If it were just the Crown Prince, Ji Gang would be absolutely sure that he could capture Zhu Gaochi easily. After all, the Crown Prince is generally recognized to be a weakling in combat, so capturing him would be too easy.

But the bad thing is that this guy, Prince of Han Zhu Gaoxu, is here!
Zhu Gaoxu, King of Han.
Let’s not talk about whether he’s smart or not, but this bastard’s boxing skills are really ridiculously strong, and not something that ordinary people can compare to. After all, this guy has come all the way from the Jingnan Campaign, and has charged into battle several times to save His Majesty from danger. This is not just talk.

Ji Gang believed that his boxing skills were no worse than anyone else's under normal circumstances.

But that was under normal circumstances, and the people he met were normal people. However, in Ji Gang's impression, Zhu Gaoxu, the Prince of Han, was obviously never regarded as a normal person, so the result of the resistance was self-evident.

Thinking of this, Ji Gang was silent for a moment, then smiled bitterly and said:

"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince"

"Let's not talk in secret. Let's speak frankly!"

"If there is anything, let's just talk about it" (End of this chapter)