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

A war is inevitable, and it also adds a topic of conversation for people in the capital.

Suddenly, the sound of gongs and drums rang out, and a group of people walked over from a distance.

The group hoisted two flags, one for the Duke of England and the other for the Duke of Qian.

The British official Zhang Mao came today to welcome Prince Qian Mu Kun to Beijing.

Mu Kun was only seventeen years old, and the old Duke Zhang Mao acted as a matchmaker and betrothed a Miss Fan to him.

In addition, for Zhang Mao, as the most powerful official in the Ming Dynasty and a local tyrant, it would be an honor for him to be able to participate in this imperial examination.

Everything was going well, but on the way past the front gate, they ran into Chu Tian and his men, who were fighting with Shao Xihuo.

Seeing that the two were about to fight, Zhang Mao did not rely on his status as an elder. He just thought that the nobles and the relatives were two sides of the same coin, so naturally he had to stop them.

Before the battle actually broke out, Zhang Mao had already defeated them badly.

All the servants in the Duke of Ying's mansion were occupied by Zhang Mao. They were all strong and good at fighting, and well-versed in military tactics.

A small impact separated these people, and then two tall horses caught up.

Zhang Mao lowered his head, looked at Zhu Tan, then looked at Shao Xi. Damn it, they knew everything, and they all had bad intentions.

This is a chain full of contempt, where civil officials look down on the nobles, and the nobles look down on the royal family.

However, Zhang Mao couldn't let these two groups of relatives do things too drastically, otherwise if the emperor heard about it, it would be difficult to explain.

"Do you still have any shame? You are fighting here. I don't see what you are checking. There are still a few days to check. If you have the guts, fight it out on the playground. Get down now."

Zhang Mao's words still retained his majesty.

Even Chu Tian did not dare to disobey the British Grand Duke. He just glared at Shao Xi fiercely and pointed, "If you were created by your father, then we will fight on the playground to let you know that I am not so easy to bully."

Shao Xi couldn't lose in front of the two dukes and so many people, so he held his head high and said, "Okay, come on."

The battle ended here, Zhu Tan walked forward and saluted Zhang Mao.

Only then did he realize that the person sitting next to Zhang Mao was Mu Kun, who had recently been conferred the title of Duke of Qian.

A name flashed through his mind. That was the famous princess, the descendant of Mu Kun!
But the prerequisite is that there really is such a person.

His eyes fell on Mu Kun, who was about the same age as him. There were two flags behind him, one for General Zhennan and the other for Yongzhen Yunnan.

I secretly thought that Mu Ying's lineage was indeed powerful. They actually became the first family in the Ming Dynasty to expand their territory!

Zhu Tan liked to make friends, and he also felt that Zhang Mao and Mu Kun were both very useful to him, so he changed his face and prepared to welcome him.

However, Zhang Mao naturally would not let Zhu Tan steal his limelight, but he could not just drive them away, so he brought Zhu Tan and the others along as well.

"Check his injuries. Don't break his arms and legs, or his brain." Zhu Tan was furious when he saw Zhang Wei and the others in such a miserable state. "You can't fight, but you can't run away?"

Zhang Wei chuckled: "Those southern barbarians are really cruel. They beat us to the ground with ropes. Sir, are we going to let them go like this?"

"Are you stupid? The Duke of Ying and the Duke of Qian are here today. What else can they do? If anyone wants to hurt me, I will make him pay the price."

Zhu Tan was thinking in his mind how to use the Earl of Changping to drag Jiajing's father into trouble and prevent Jiajing from ascending the throne in the future.

Even if his brother-in-law, the emperor's nephew, did not become the emperor properly, he would not let Jiajing gain the upper hand. In that case, everyone would be purged.

Zhang Wei understood clearly.

"Don't worry, Count, we will make sure people know how long he spends in the toilet."

Zhang Wei waved at Guo Ning, "Third brother, can I borrow some of your men to find out who Shao Xi has been in contact with recently?"

Using public funds for personal use is a political taboo, but considering Guo Ning's love for his second brother, it wouldn't be a big problem. He agreed immediately.

When he returned to the Duke of Ying's Mansion, Zhang Lun was still receiving his son.

Unlike Zhu Tan's previous visits, the door was open this time and the scene was grand. The princes and nobles who came after hearing the news came forward to greet him.

With the help of a knowledgeable person like Xu Guangzuo, Zhu Tan realized that it was a rather complicated matter for Mu Kun to become a duke.

Since he was not a direct descendant of the contemporary Duke Qian, the emperor had intended to grant Mu Kunshi the title of Marquis of Xiping to Mu Ying.

But for some reason, they were deceived by the people in the southwest, so Mu Kun was named Duke of Qian.

Xu Guangzuo smacked his lips.

"Second brother, although we and the Zhang Mao family are both founding heroes, and our ancestors were also granted the title of king, we are still a world apart from the Mu family that rose to prominence later. They are truly separated by land and live and die together!"

Under Xu Guangshuo's guidance, Zhu Tan realized that the Mu family not only had the seal of the Grand Marshal of Zhennan, but also controlled the power of the entire southwest, which could almost be said to be a country.

Fortunately, the Mu family has always been loyal to the Ming Dynasty and has never thought of rebelling.

Even if the Ming Dynasty is gone, the Mu family will die with it.

Not long after, another highly respected duke, Duke Cheng Zhu Fu, arrived.

This person's ancestor was Zhu Neng, a member of the Jingnan Army, and the descendant of Qiu Fu, the head of Jingnan.

But Qiu Fu was unlucky. When he died, his family line was wiped out and his family was exiled to Hainan.

So now in the Imperial City of Daming, there are three prestigious dukes, Duke Ying, Qian, and Cheng.

It was under the leadership of these three families that the nobles of the Ming Dynasty established a huge network and connections.

Zhu Tan thought that today's banquet was a prelude to the review by the nobles in a few days.

When everyone was present, he also saw something interesting.

It was bestowed by Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty. By the time of Hongzhi, its status had gradually declined.

However, Zhu Di was named after his noble status.

The only titles bestowed by Zhu Yuanzhang were given to Xu Fu, the son of Xu Da, Duke of Wei, and Guo Ying, the son of Marquis of Wuding, whose status was far inferior to that of the Jingnan Campaign.

The Duke of Dingguo Xu Guangzuo who sat next to him was also a descendant of Xu Da, King of Zhongshan, and also a descendant of important ministers in the Jingnan Campaign, but his descendants were worse than the previous one.

Moreover, Xu Yongning was expelled from the royal circle because he offended Emperor Xianzong. When Zhu Tan was talking quietly with Xu Guangzuo and Guo Ning.

Zhang Mao was the oldest and had the most seniority, so he prepared a sumptuous banquet to entertain Mu Kun, the Duke of Qian.

Finally, the person who came in after Zhang Mao attracted the attention of the three great talents in the capital.

This is Zhou Yu’s younger brother, Zhou Shou, Marquis of Yunqing. Following him are all relatives who have followed him since the reign of Emperor Xianzong, even "Shao Xi" who had just had an argument with Zhu Tan is among them.

Zhu Tan first had a quarrel with the Empress Dowager's in-laws, and today he almost had a fight with Concubine Dowager Shao's brother. Everyone has heard about this.

However, precisely because of this, most of the nobles just took the attitude of watching the show.

They were all wondering if they would turn against them again if they entertained Mu Kun, the Duke of Qian.

Of course, Zhang Mao would not allow others to ruin his reputation, so he emphasized it at the end of his opening remarks.

The meaning of this sentence is very clear. Chu Mu and others know that if they cause any trouble again, Britain will not let them go.

Mu Kun, who was invited, listened to Zhang Mao's words and humbly added two words. There was no substantive content, just some polite words.

However, this sentence expressed an attitude of being in the same boat, sharing weal and woe, and suffering together, which made all the nobles very happy.

Zhu Tan still values ​​this powerful nobleman very much. She has a natural liking for this ancestor of Princess Mu Jianping!

Zhu Tan came here today just to get to know some people, but soon after the banquet started, someone started to target him.

The first to speak was Duke of Cheng, Zhu Fu, who said in a strange tone, "Lord Jianchang, I heard that Lord Junma had some friction in the army. Does Lord Jianchang have such a bad opinion of the Beijing Camp?"

Zhu Fu took the lead, and the other two marquises followed suit, supporting the generals who were named in the Beijing camp.

But in his words, he was pointing the finger at Zhu Tan, and hardly regarded Zhu Tan as a traitor.

Zhu Tan had a smile on his face and skillfully pushed the responsibility onto him.

"Duke Cheng, what you said is wrong. I was just helping Minister Ma to organize the army and didn't say anything. What does it matter if I kill one of those ignorant eunuchs? The other generals are all reviewed by the military department. I can't handle it alone."

Duke Chengguo was speechless. Although he was of noble status, he still had to bow his head in front of the six ministers.

Ma Wensheng is very famous, and his opponent is Old Man Ma, which makes him doubt.

Ten years ago, Ma Wensheng carried out a major purge of the Beijing Camp. Most of the princes and nobles present had emerged from that depressing atmosphere.

However, Zhu Fu was interrupted by Zhu Tan before he could finish his words, and Yunqing Marquis Zhou Shou rubbed salt into his wounds.

He also had his own spies in the palace. He chuckled and said, "I heard that the reorganization in the capital was personally presided over by the Earl of Jianchang! He even made the son of Minister Ma a fourth-rank official. This is too generous!"

The nobles stayed away from civil servants, but were wary of collusion between the powerful, royal family members, and civil servants.

Zhou Shou's words were undoubtedly putting pressure on Chu Han, as this was related to his attitude and attitude.

Especially the incident that happened ten years ago made the princes and nobles full of hostility towards Ma Wensheng.

Ma Wensheng dealt with more than 30 generals, many of whom had close ties with them, so he has always been brooding over this matter!

Zhu Tan glanced at Zhu Fu, then at Zhou Shou, and couldn't help laughing. Although he was angry, he still held back. Otherwise, he would probably offend all these powerful people.

Zhu Tan smiled slightly, and the two generals Heng and Ha, with their left and right hands, seemed to have received the signal.

Xu Guangzuo looked at Zhou Shou with a hint of disdain in his eyes, "So what? Ma Cong is our good buddy. If there is this opportunity, can't he help Big Brother?"

Guo Ning also disliked the Zhou family, and followed up with, "That's right, we are so envious of you for allowing you to live in your own house. If you have the ability, let all your relatives and friends serve as errand boys."

One side responded sharply, while the other side sneered, but fortunately, no fight broke out.

Zhang Mao did not try to stop them too much. There was no loss for him in quarreling, and besides, this was an internal quarrel among relatives, and he did not want to get involved!
Besides, Xu Guangzuo and Guo Ning, two ignorant guys, one is the son of Duke Dingguo, and the other is the Marquis of Cheng'an who inherited the title, and they are both so ungrateful!
Of course, Shao Xi was speaking on behalf of the two people from the Zhou family, and his words were not proper.

Seeing that the impact would be wider and detrimental to the unity of the nobles, Zhang Mao spoke up.

"Today is a welcome banquet for Duke Qian's Mansion. Please don't gossip and hurt our feelings. Let's have a few drinks and watch the show later. I'm sure you will give me some face."

The title of Duke of England was so great that Zhu Tan, Zhou Shou, Shao Xi and others had no choice but to give up.

However, the banquet was not over yet and the singing and dancing had not yet begun.

Zhang Lun, the son of the Duke of England, received the report from the steward, walked quickly to Zhang Mao, and said loudly: "Dad, Li Dongyang, the Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion, sent someone with a famous sword to ask Jian Changbo to come over."

Who is Li Dongyang? He is the Right Prime Minister of the Ministry of Rites, in charge of military affairs, and also a cabinet minister.

In the Ming Dynasty, those who could become Grand Secretary were all people of high position and power.

However, such a distinguished minister came with an invitation to Zhu Tan, which was simply a slap in Zhu Tan's face.

These ministers are all prominent figures. Apart from their salaries, they are incomparable to princes and nobles in other aspects.

Even Zhang Mao didn't understand how Zhu Tan was favored by Li Dongyang and when did he become related to him?

Amid everyone's surprised gaze, the old steward came in again and bent down to report to Zhang Mao.

"Sir, the great scholar of the East Pavilion, Master Xie Qian, has sent someone with a business card to invite Lord Jian Chang to come to the mansion."

The hall suddenly exploded when the housekeeper said that.

First Li Dongyang sent someone to pick up Zhu Tan, and then Xie Qian sent someone to pick him up. What is this?

Since when did the ministers in the court become so respectful to the nobles and relatives of the emperor?

Did something go wrong?
But that was not the end. The gatekeeper of the Duke of England came running over in a hurry and shouted, "Duke, Mr. Liu, the Prince's Grand Tutor, Grand Secretary, Liu Jian, asked his son Liu Jie to bring his son to invite the Earl of Jianchang to the mansion for a gathering."

The hall suddenly exploded.

A prime minister, two grand secretaries, and the earl of Jianchang were invited to their homes at the same time. How glorious was that?
This has broken the royal family's record!

Everyone knows that although Zhu Tan is the younger uncle and is deeply loved by the Emperor Zhu Youtang, after all, they are just family, and Zhu Youtang also loves Zhu Tan very much.

However, why did the three grand secretaries look at Zhu Tan differently?

There must be something hidden in this! (End of this chapter)