Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 160: Take Advantage of the Situation! (First Update)
West City.

The courtyard where Xia Zhibai lives.

At this moment, the door was closed and even propped up with wood.

The guards who accompanied him were fully armed and held knives to guard the courtyard.

Heiwa held a half-meter-long wooden stick in his hand and guarded Xia Zhibai's house at all times.

Dare not relax or slack off in the slightest.

Someone is going to commit a crime.

Ever since Xia Zhibai met those salt merchants a few days ago, many people with untidy hair and beards and fierce eyes appeared outside the courtyard where he lived. Some people even bumped into him, but were stopped by the guards.

even so.

There were always a lot of people wandering around outside the courtyard.

Instead, they gathered more and more.

Heiwa tried to seek help from the government, but the clerks in the Beiping Prefecture used the excuse that they were busy and did not send anyone. As for asking Prince Yan for help, the people in Prince Yan's mansion said that Prince Yan had gone to the military camp and was rectifying military discipline, and could not get away for the time being.

All parties asked for help, but no assistance was given.

Heiwa could only find a solution on his own.

In the end, he even called Luda and others over.

In the courtyard.

Looking at the people who were fully armed and ready for battle, Xia Zhibai shook his head helplessly.

He actually advised.

Tell Heiwa not to be so nervous.

These people are just pretending to be fierce and trying to scare people outside. They won't really rush in.

But Heiwa didn't listen and actively took various precautions.

Xia Zhibai shook his head.

He went to the side and saw Dalu and others were still sorting out. In the past few days of free time, Xia Zhibai taught Dalu and others a lot of words and also gave them some cram school knowledge of mathematics. Dalu and others cherished this hard-won opportunity and studied very seriously.

Seeing Xia Zhibai coming over, Dalu glanced at the yard and said with some concern: "Sir, the yard is not safe now, you should stay in the house."

Xia Zhibai laughed and said, "Unsafe? Who said that?"

"I think it's safe now."

"Heiwa, you are just scaring yourself."

"Although I know he had good intentions and was worried about me getting into trouble, as I said at the beginning, those people outside the house didn't rush in on the first day, and they never attacked me again."

"It's just a threat."

"And by the way, find out my details in Peking."

Dalu gave a bitter smile.

They are not as confident as Xia Zhibai.

If I guess wrong, it would be a big disaster.

Da Lu said: "You'd better be careful. There are many warriors in Peking. They have bad tempers and like to use violence when they are indecisive. This time you have set your sights on them. These warriors may not dare to attack you in anger."

Xia Zhibai nodded.

Of course he knew this.

But he also believed that if the Prince of Yan could not even control his own soldiers, then his ability to command the army would be too poor and he would never be able to become the famous Emperor Yongle in history.

He still had confidence in Zhu Di.

Warriors are easily angered and impulsive.

The first day he found the salt merchant was indeed the day when things were most likely to go wrong.

It almost happened.

But since nothing went wrong that day, Xia Zhibai knew he was safe.

Regardless of whether those military officers calmed down or not, Zhu Di would make them calm down. As for the situation in the past two days, it was just a test from Zhu Di's side. On the one hand, he wanted to scare himself and take the opportunity to vent his anger. On the other hand, he wanted to use this opportunity to explore his background in Peiping and see what else he had done in Peiping.

Zhu Di felt a little uneasy.

Because he only brought one person to Beiping and accomplished so many things quietly, right under Zhu Di's nose, and even forced Zhu Di to suffer a loss in secret. Anyone who encounters this kind of thing will feel a chill down their spine.

Zhu Di was no exception.

It is normal to do some "retaliatory" or "countermeasures" things.

Now it depends on grinding.

See who loses patience in the end.

Zhu Di wanted to write a letter himself to submit to him.

Take this opportunity to gain the upper hand.

This will allow the two of them to be "open and honest" with each other in the future and gain some advantages.

However, Xia Zhibai had seen through this trick early on and was not fooled at all. Except for Heiwa who took the initiative to go to Prince Yan's Mansion to ask for help, he had no intention of asking for help actively.

Xia Zhibai was very sure that Zhu Di could not survive him.

The group of ferocious and crowded people outside did look intimidating, but they were just strong on the outside but weak on the inside. Zhu Di was also very clear that if he didn't fall into the trap at the beginning, he would definitely figure things out quickly once he calmed down.

The bigger the formation outside, the less confident it will appear.

Because these people dare not act rashly.

Prince Yan's Mansion.

Zhu Di has been waiting.

Yao Guangxiao clasped his hands together and said with a faint smile: "Your Highness, your idea has failed again. Xia Zhibai was not fooled." Zhu Di sneered and said disdainfully: "So what if it failed? Just scare him. Otherwise, he will not know who is the real king in this land of Beiping. His little tricks are not worth mentioning in the face of absolute force."

"It's easier for me to crush him than to crush an ant."

"I just don't want to do that."

"It's not impossible!"

Yao Guangxiao nodded and said with a smile: "Your Highness does have this ability. The main reason why Xia Zhibai dared to be so arrogant is because Your Highness strictly abides by the law and Your Majesty is kind and filial, and does not want to bring disaster upon himself. Otherwise, it would not be surprising for a rebellious person like Xia Zhibai to die ten times."

Zhu Di's expression eased slightly.

He looked at Yao Guangxiao and said, "Tell me, what are you planning now?"

Yao Guangxiao said, "I think it is meaningless to continue besieging without attacking. With Xia Zhibai's intelligence, he must have realized the situation long ago. He will not be like Your Highness thinks and surrender to Your Highness in a panic. Continuing to besiege him will only make him look less confident."

"This farce needs to end."

Zhu Di frowned.

He was still somewhat reluctant.

How many days has it been since we've been around?
How much has he suffered during this period of time?
How can Xia Zhibai be so cheap?
He even wanted to have someone rush in and slash Xia Zhibai in front of him with a knife, and then rush in when the danger comes to save Xia Zhibai, so that Xia Zhibai would owe him a great favor, which would help to dispel his recent resentment.

Yao Guangxiao said: "Too much is as bad as too little."

"Scholars are different from warriors. Your Highness's tactics may work for warriors, but they will only backfire on smart people like Xia Zhibai. It may even make Xia Zhibai jealous because of a big embarrassment, which is not worth the loss."

"Judging from Xia Zhibai's work style, he is relatively quick and efficient."

"It won't be mixed with too much conspiracy and calculation."

"His calculations are only to achieve his goals."

"People like this are actually easier to negotiate with."

"and"

Yao Guangxiao paused and said in a deep voice, "The ironworkers assigned by the court to Xia Zhibai are already on their way and will arrive in Beiping soon. If the Beiping issue is not resolved as soon as possible, it may reach the ears of His Majesty, which will lead to many more variables."

"It can't be delayed any longer."

Zhu Di did not speak. He lowered his head and fiddled with the iron ring. Finally, he stopped and said, "Okay, send someone to inform Xia Zhibai and tell him that the Prince of Yan wants to see you."

"He really got away with it this time." Zhu Di was still a little indignant.

Yao Guangxiao shook his head helplessly.

Zhu Di's emotions were truly shown on his face.

No cover-up at all.

However, Yao Guangxiao also knew that Zhu Di was full of anger. His wings had already been cut by His Majesty, and he was humiliated by Xia Zhibai. Zhu Di's temper had been tempered a lot on the battlefield. If it had been a few years ago, he would definitely retaliate even if he was beaten and scolded.

And he was also very wary of Xia Zhibai.

This person is so weird.

Under normal circumstances, wise people will see changes in the world, and then plan, act and go with the flow. However, Xia Zhibai strangely rebelled against this situation. He took the lead in causing some things to happen, and then planned, acted and went with the flow. There is a big difference between the two.

Although this was Zhu Di's own mistake.

Take the initiative to provoke.

But Xia Zhibai was able to seize on a military discipline that no one paid attention to, and then lead the way to rectify the military discipline step by step. This ability of "making the most of a small effort" was too strong. He had vaguely understood why the current emperor would suppress the use of people instead of killing them.

Your Majesty wants Xia Zhibai to be the Wei Zheng of the Ming Dynasty.

But Xia Zhibai didn't want to be Wei Zheng, he wanted to be a "sage" who spoke for the people.

However, the Ming Dynasty does not need saints.

Your Majesty loves and cherishes talents, which is why he chooses to use them.

On the one hand, it tells Xia Zhibai that there is still a bright future ahead of him, and on the other hand, it is also a way to make the best use of people's talents.

Yao Guangxiao hesitated for a moment, then said in a serious tone: "Your Highness, you should take Xia Zhibai seriously. Your Highness, do you still remember how Yuan Gong evaluated Xia Zhibai? Yuan Gong called Xia Zhibai the contemporary 'King Wang' and 'Crying Blood Cuckoo'. In his eyes, the people are more important than the emperor."

"He has his own persistence in his heart."

"He can't become the Wei Zheng of the Ming Dynasty, and he won't become the Wei Zheng of the Ming Dynasty."

"And for this kind of person, anything that happens will definitely be good for him."

"He is only focused on business now. If he steps into the court to govern in the future, I am afraid that these things happening in Peking will be insignificant."

Zhu Di frowned.

He didn't understand why Yao Guangxiao said these words.

This is the Ming Dynasty, and it is not Xia Zhibai's turn to do whatever he wants. The reason why he avoided him this time was not because he was afraid of Xia Zhibai, but because he was afraid of His Majesty and the Crown Prince who were far away in Kyoto. Otherwise, would Xia Zhibai be worthy of being so arrogant in front of him?
Yao Guangxiao held Buddhist beads in his hand and recited a few verses of Buddhist scriptures in a low voice.

He doesn't think it was accidental.

Once is a coincidence, twice is a coincidence, but if it happens every time, it is definitely not a coincidence, but a carefully calculated plan, or at least a plan based on the situation.

They take things one step at a time.

Xia Zhibai takes one step and looks two or even more steps ahead.

He always looks higher and farther.

And
He is always right.

This is exaggerated and scary.

Any of the things Xia Zhibai did can be criticized, whether it was rectifying military discipline, winning over the Semites, or helping beggars, almost all of them were correct and in the right spirit.

Help the world and love the people.

The imperial court controlled the power, but Xia Zhibai did not do so. He chose to stick to the people's hearts.

(End of this chapter)