King Luhuang of the Ming Dynasty: My father, Ming Taizu

The next morning, the sun was shining brightly with clear skies.

Bursts of bird calls passed overhead. Pu Yongxin sat in the pavilion in the yard, looking at the three children in front of him who were wolfing down their food, with a faint smile on his face.

"Eat slowly, no one is competing with you for it."

Park Yongxin reached out and touched his younger son's head, then reached out and pinched his older son's face, his eyes full of doting.

His wife stood by, with an elite look in her eyes, silently looking at Park Yongxin, and never said anything.

"Dad, you said you had to go back to do some work. It will take a few days for you to come back."

The little daughter looked up at this time, with rice grains still on her chubby little face.

"Dad will be back soon."

Park Yongxin smiled at his daughter and said, "When dad comes back, I'll take you to the mountains to catch butterflies."

“You can also catch rabbits!”

The eldest son was a little excited. He looked at Park Yongxin and said, "Last time when I came here, my uncle told me that there are a lot of rabbits in the mountains. If we catch them and bring them back to roast, they are a delicacy."

"My son never had a chance to eat."

"I want to go too, I want to go too!"

The younger son was also shouting, but the older son stuffed a bun into his mouth.

"You don't even know where to go, where are you going?"

"I'm going!"

If it were in the past, Park Yongxin would have scolded the children when he saw them quarreling, but today he could not say a word. He just looked at his children silently, his heart as calm as water.

"Dad, when are we going home?"

After a while, the little daughter looked at Park Yongxin again, blinked her eyes and asked, "I have little rabbits at home. They can't see me and will be scared."

"It's okay, there are people taking care of the family."

Park Yongxin smiled gently, then looked up at the sky, sighed lightly, and slowly stood up.

"Dad has something else to do, so I have to go out."

"Listen to your mother here and don't make trouble."

When the three children saw Park Yongxin stand up, they also stood up and bowed slightly.

Pu Yongxin walked to his eldest son, patted his shoulder vigorously, and said in a deep voice: "When Dad is not around, you have to help Dad take care of your mother and your brothers and sisters."

"You are the eldest son in the family, so you have to bear the burden."

Park Yongxin had never said such words to his sons before. When he said them, his eldest son was slightly stunned, and then immediately nodded.

"I understand, Dad. I will take good care of the family."

"it is good."

A glimmer of tears flashed in Park Yongxin's eyes, but it only lasted for a moment before quickly disappearing.

He turned around and walked out with big strides, and the lady followed him immediately.

When she reached the door, she couldn't help herself and shouted to Park Yongxin, "Master..."

Countless words were stuck in my throat, but I couldn't say them.

Park Yongxin stopped and did not look back at her, but said in a deep voice: "Take good care of the child."

After saying this, he walked away quickly without stopping.

At the door, the woman held the hands of her two children, rested her chin on her eldest son's head, and spoke softly.

"Remember your father's instructions. Don't ever forget them."

After Pu Yongxin left the courtyard, he did not go to see his brothers. Instead, he mounted his horse and, along with his two most loyal servants, quickly left the city along the mountain path and headed straight for the manor outside Quanzhou City.

As soon as he came out of the mountains and onto the official road, Park Yongxin felt something was wrong.

Originally, although the official roads near Quanzhou were not very busy, there were a constant stream of merchants and pedestrians on both sides.

But today, there was no one on this official road, and it felt weird.

Park Yongxin thought about it for a moment and knew what was going on. He then smiled and turned to the followers around him.

"Sixth son, if you go out with the master today, I'm afraid you won't be able to come back alive. Are you afraid?"

The follower named Liuzi grinned when he heard this. He didn't say anything, but his smile was brilliant.

He was a child picked up from the street by Park Yongxin and raised in his mansion. He was his absolute confidant, the kind who would be with him through life and death.

Pu Yongxin also smiled and said nothing more. Instead of slowing down, he suddenly kicked the horse's belly and galloped on the official road with the two of them.

……

As a centurion of the garrison troops of Quanzhou, Xu Chong felt that he was quite lucky.

After joining the army, he encountered Japanese pirates causing trouble. He killed two of them in the battle to wipe out the pirates.

Thanks to this military achievement, he was promoted to a centurion after only two years of military service and had a bright future.

A few days ago, the governor came to inspect the area and was very impressed by his promising young age, so he transferred him to his side.

Although he was still a centurion, there was a world of difference between being in the army and being by the side of the governor. Xu Chong felt like he was about to fly.

Just when he thought he would be on the rise, a major incident occurred in Quanzhou City. The commander-in-chief was so frightened that he almost lost his soul, and most of the people around him also lost their souls.

The current Prince Lu came to Quanzhou, but was assassinated by someone from the Pu family!
God damn it! This is a big deal!
The governor summoned his men that day and told them that if they could not capture all the members of the Park family and appease the anger of His Royal Highness Prince Lu, then all of them would be in trouble.

It's the kind of bad luck that can easily lead to imprisonment and a lifetime of hardship.

When the commander-in-chief finished speaking these things, Xu Chong was completely stunned. After being sent out to block the road, his heart was filled with resentment and curses.

Why would a prince of the Ming Dynasty run to Quanzhou instead of staying in the capital?
And the people from the Park family, you are all fucking beasts!
The prince is here, you should kowtow to him and give money to him. Why are you trying to assassinate him for no reason?

You don't care about your lives, but you bring misfortune to me!

The road has been closed for a whole day, and Xu Chong's mind is full of these words. They are basically written on his face. His mood is extremely bad.

He could have risen rapidly in the imperial court. He only needed to stay by the governor's side for a few years and he could have become a captain or even a lieutenant general!

But because of the assassination of the prince, it’s hard to predict what will happen next!
In fact, not only Xu Chong, but also the soldiers under his command had the same idea.

Therefore, they were very rude when intercepting passing merchants and travelers. No matter what they were carrying or what they were going to do, they would be detained and questioned for two hours.

Some of the merchants who looked familiar came forward with sticky faces, but the soldiers did not look happy either. They just did their job impartially. As long as they found out that they had any relationship with the Pu family, they would send them all back to the city and hand them over to the Quanzhou prefect for punishment.

Although the soldiers were jealous of the seized commercial goods, they did not dare to take them. They sealed them all and sent them to the Quanzhou Port.

Whoever dares to make a fortune by assassinating the prince will be close to death. Even a three-year-old child knows this.

At this time, Xu Chong was sitting on a wooden stake nearby, drinking water from a leather pot. He frowned and looked at the pedestrian he had just stopped, his teeth chattering.

"Master, Master, I am really going home. I have nothing else on me!"

Several civilians were kneeling on the ground at this moment, kowtowing continuously, with pleading eyes.

In front of him, several soldiers had opened all the packages they were carrying, took out the contents one by one, and checked them carefully.

"You said yes?"

A soldier squinted at the passers-by and said in a deep voice: "That depends on us checking and finding no problems!"

"Master Jun!"

The commoner kowtowed and cried, "I just went into the city to buy some food. I really didn't do anything!"

"Shut up! If you say another word, you won't be able to leave today!" Upon hearing this, several people immediately shut up and just knelt down, not daring to say another word.

Xu Chong looked a little annoyed, frowned, stood up with the kettle in hand, and said in a deep voice: "Check it quickly! After the check, let them leave quickly!"

"Damn it, it makes me so angry just looking at this kind of wimp."

He was really angry.

It was even more unfortunate to encounter such a thing. Originally, he thought that if he could capture a few key people and send them to the prince, it would bring honor to the commander-in-chief and also give himself face. Then this bad thing might turn into a good thing.

But on this day, the most useful person he detained was just a small vendor who supplied goods to the Park family shop. It was obvious that this man was innocent.

But even so, he sent the man to the city, preferring to kill the innocent rather than let him go.

But Xu Chong became more and more annoyed by having to deal with these small fry all the time.

"Yes."

Hearing that Xu Chong was not in a good mood, the soldiers under his command did not dare to say much. They responded with a nod and a bow, and then conducted a quick inspection.

At this moment, the sound of horse hooves suddenly came from a distance.

Xu Chong immediately looked up and saw three horses galloping on the official road in the distance. They were so fast that the dust was flying on the road.

Xu Chong paused, and immediately said, "Stop him! Stop him now!"

He instinctively felt that there was something wrong with the person who came.

The entire city of Quanzhou is now under martial law, and relevant documents have also been notified to the surrounding counties.

Anyone who dares to speed on the official road at this time must have something wrong.

The soldiers under his command were stunned for a moment, then immediately stepped forward with spears in hand, standing behind the chevaux de frise in a fighting posture, their eyes fixed firmly ahead.

Soon, the three fast horses arrived close, but they did not charge directly at the barricades. Instead, they pulled the reins and slowly stopped.

The leader was a middle-aged man dressed in brocade. He looked wealthy, but his face was a little pale.

"Who are you? Come here for examination!"

A soldier shouted loudly, and Xu Chong also walked forward slowly with the hilt of the knife in his hand, frowning.

After the man got off his horse, he looked directly at Xu Chong and grinned.

"Sir, I am Park Yongxin, the head of the Park family. I don't know what happened and why you are blocking the road."

As soon as these words came out, Xu Chong felt his head buzzing. He subconsciously took a step forward and asked, "Who did you say you are?"

"I am Park Yongxin, the head of the Park family."

Park Yongxin squinted his eyes and chuckled, watching the general in front of him slowly open his eyes and show disbelief on his face.

"Quick! Get it for me!"

Xu Chong's voice was a little torn.

"We must not let him escape! Capture him!"

As soon as he finished speaking, more than a dozen soldiers rushed forward and pressed Park Yongxin to the ground.

During this process, Park Yong-xin and his followers did not resist at all.

After being pressed to the ground, Park Yongxin yelled, "Military, what's going on? What's going on?"

"I have never broken the law!"

"Damn it."

Xu Chong walked forward quickly, his face showing a wonderful expression, which showed excitement, fear and uneasiness, but mostly a smile as if the clouds had cleared and the sun had appeared.

"I knew I was going to have some good luck, but I didn't expect to run into such a big fish!"

"Tie him up and take him back to the city!"

……

At noon, the sun on the sea was quite scorching.

The door of Zhu Tan's house was open, and gusts of sea breeze blew in, carrying a slight fishy smell.

He didn't get off the boat all day today, and didn't care about the chaos in Quanzhou City, let alone how Sun Junchu handled it.

At this time, Zhu Tan was looking at the account book in his hand, his eyes slightly narrowed, and his expression was very intriguing.

The reason is simple, simply because he made a fortune, unimaginable fortune.

The cash confiscated from the Park family alone amounted to more than three million taels of silver. Add to that the Park family’s shops and goods in Quanzhou, and a rough estimate would show that the total amount would exceed several million taels of silver.

He had made a prediction about the Park family before, knowing that such a family that had been entrenched in the village for a hundred years must be extremely wealthy, but he did not expect that the Park family was actually so wealthy.

The current statistics are only a part of it, and many of the Park family’s farmlands and villas are not included.

If all this is taken into account, the Park family's total assets would probably be worth tens of millions of taels.

Holy shit, tens of millions of taels, he’s fucking rich enough to rival a country.

No wonder the Park family was able to fund the Japanese pirates, they are so rich.

While expressing his emotion, Zhu Tan also understood in his heart that if a gentry family wanted to accumulate this level of wealth, it would be impossible to do so by relying solely on business and farming.

There must be a lot more about them that is unknown.

At this moment, there was a sound of footsteps coming from outside. Zhu Tan didn't even look up, he knew it was Ma He coming.

"Your Highness."

Ma He walked up quickly, bowed slightly, and then said directly: "We have captured Park Yongxin, the head of the Park family."

"Ok?"

Zhu Tan was a little surprised to hear this.

The Park family had received the news in advance. In his opinion, they should have escaped very far away by now and would not be easy to catch.

He had ordered people to send a memorial to the capital regarding the relevant matter, but he himself did not order a pursuit of the person.

Zhu Tan is a prince after all. Although he was assassinated as a pretext for revenge, he cannot go too far.

If I order a large-scale manhunt for Park Yong-xin, it will cause unrest in the area and may even give people something to talk about.

"Where did you catch it?"

"In fact, it can't be considered that he was caught. He came to us on his own initiative."

Ma He said softly, "The governor of Quanzhou has ordered martial law on the surrounding roads, and all pedestrians must be carefully checked."

"It seems that Park Yongxin didn't know what was going on. He just ran straight over and was captured by the soldiers who were blocking the road."

Zhu Tan thought about it for a moment, then smiled and said, "Interesting."

"Has anyone asked?"

"I haven't asked yet, but the people below have asked several times."

"Pu Yongxin was clueless when asked. When he heard that his subordinates had done something that angered the heavens and the people, he was terrified and frightened to the point that he couldn't even stand up."

"The play was well acted."

Zhu Tan smiled and said, "This person is quite interesting. Bring him here and I will ask him in person."

"I obey your command." (End of this chapter)