Ming Dynasty: The Jingnan Rebellion has just been successful, and Zhu Yuanzhang has been resurrected

Chapter 81 The fate of the princes and Zhu Yuanzhang's confusion

Chuzhou City.

When the smoke cleared, apart from the faint smell of blood in the air and the large hole at the city gate, there was no sign that a great battle had broken out here not long ago.

Under the cover of night, the entire city was extremely quiet, as if it were dead.

"God bless you, I hope that the Emperor Yunhuan can control his troops."

"Alas, what a turbulent time! Why did the grandson of the Emperor Yunhu suddenly rebel? Moreover, he even fought all the way to Chuzhou City."

"Who could have imagined that Chuzhou City, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack, would fall so easily? After the news got out, the whole world was in an uproar."

"Even Chuzhou City couldn't stop the Emperor's grandson Yun Hun for a moment. It seems that the Emperor's grandson Yun Hun is really going to attack Yingtian Prefecture. I'm afraid no one could have guessed this result."

"I don't know how long Emperor Yunhuan will stay in Chuzhou City. I hope he leaves as soon as possible."

"."

Whether they are ordinary people, wealthy gentry, or high-ranking officials, at this time they all have only one identity, that is, ordinary people.

At this moment, all they could do was to close their doors and pray anxiously in the dark, praying that there would be no war.

War disaster, this is a word that scares people.

When a city is breached, it is the greatest disaster. Once it happens, the entire city will instantly become a hell on earth with corpses everywhere.

"Tap Tap!"

On the streets, cavalry were patrolling, maintaining the city's law and order and preventing scoundrels from taking advantage of the opportunity to cause chaos.

Inside the house, the crowd listened to the sound of the cavalry trampling the ground on the street, and they trembled and unconsciously slowed down their breathing.

For the people in the city, this night is destined to be a sleepless night.

Government office!

The government office was brightly lit at this moment.

Zhu Yunhuan was drinking with Ma Sanbao, Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Neng and others.

"Your Highness, I really didn't expect that we could get to this point. Everything seems like a dream." Ma Sanbao said.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled widely, raised his wine glass towards Ma Sanbao, and said, "I told you, your efforts will not be in vain."

After saying that, he took a sip of wine.

"Gudong!" Ma Sanbao raised his head and drank the wine in the glass.

He was filled with sorrow. He had thought Zhu Yunhuan's words were meant to comfort him, or perhaps to promise him something, but he had never imagined that it was actually a promise.

"Brother Hu, shall we continue our advance tomorrow? We should reach Yingtian Prefecture as soon as possible to avoid unnecessary troubles." Zhu Gaoxu said.

Now that everything is going smoothly, we should naturally make a concerted effort to capture Yingtian Prefecture. Only then will we be able to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Okay!" Zhu Yunhuan nodded.

"Your Highness, I am willing to be the vanguard in attacking Jiangning City!" Zhu Neng stood up and said in a deep voice with a respectful expression.

His thoughts have completely changed. Now he is eager to make achievements so that he can gain a foothold by Zhu Yunhuan's side.

It is an indisputable fact that Zhu Yunhuan has entered Yingtian Prefecture. If he does not gain a foothold as soon as possible at this time, he will not have many opportunities to stand out after Zhu Yunhuan ascends the throne.

It would be fine if he didn't have the ability, but he has the ability, so he is unwilling to destroy everyone.

"Sit down and talk, Zhu Neng, don't be anxious. There will be many more battles to fight in the future." Zhu Yunheng waved his hand and said with a smile.

"what?"

Zhu Gaoxu, Ma Sanbao, Zhu Neng, Tang He and others were all stunned when they heard Zhu Yunhuan's words.

They were about to capture Yingtian Prefecture, and the next battles to be fought were only Jiangning City and Yingtian Prefecture. However, Zhu Yunhuan said that there would be many battles to be fought in the future, which made them very puzzled.

"My uncles will not be content with what they have, and you don't think I will just be a king who maintains the status quo, right?" Zhu Yunheng said.

"I almost forgot, Hu Ge'er said before that even if he took the throne, he would still reduce the power of the princes." Zhu Gaoxu thought to himself.

If Zhu Yunwen's reduction of the power of the princes had some righteousness, then Zhu Yunhuan's reduction of the power of the princes after he ascended the throne would definitely cause resistance from the princes, and fighting would be very likely to happen.

There is a very important point here, Zhu Yuanzhang!
Although Zhu Yunwen's status was not as noble as Zhu Yunhuan's, he was the heir chosen by Zhu Yuanzhang. Therefore, even if the princes were dissatisfied, they had to endure it.

However, Zhu Yunhuan was different. He ascended the throne by rebelling, and the vassal kings would never recognize him.

"Your Highness, give the order and I will attack wherever you point." Zhu Neng said in a very decisive manner.

He is not the type to waste time. Since he has decided to join Zhu Yunhuan, he must fight for his life. Otherwise, how can he get out of his noble family?

The battles in the future will be fought on the battlefields in the future, but this will not prevent him from attacking Jiangning City now.

There is no greater merit than following the dragon.

Taking Jiangning City now would be equivalent to carrying Zhu Yunhuan into Yingtian Prefecture.

In the future, fighting with vassal kings or expanding territory by attacking foreign races will all be ordinary military achievements.

The two situations are different and the meanings they represent are also different.

"Brother Hu, just give Zhu Neng a chance." Zhu Gaoxu hesitated for a moment and spoke.

Zhu Neng has always recognized him, so he naturally has to help Zhu Neng as much as possible. Only by helping each other can they gain more power after Zhu Yunhuan ascends the throne.

At this moment, his thoughts had changed quietly. Before, he wanted to be a king, but now, he felt that staying with Zhu Yunhuan as a general was also very good.

When Zhu Neng heard what Zhu Gaoxu said, he gave him a grateful look. At any time, helping someone in need is more precious than adding icing on the cake.

Although Zhu Gaoxu just said it casually, for Zhu Neng, this behavior was no different from helping someone in need.

"Okay, since you said so, Zhu Neng, you will be the vanguard when we attack Jiangning City." Zhu Yunheng shrugged and said softly.

It doesn’t matter who is the vanguard, what he wants is to break into Yingtian Prefecture.

"Yes, Your Highness!" Zhu Neng said respectfully with a happy face.

Outside Chuzhou City!

Tie Xuan and Sheng Yong galloped all the way and finally arrived outside Chuzhou City.

"Finally we're here!"

Looking at the city in front of them, the two men looked at each other and both breathed a sigh of relief.

Along the way, they did not dare to stop for even a moment, for fear that if they were a little slow, Chuzhou City would be captured by Zhu Yunhuan.

"Let's go, General Sheng, let's go into the city." Tie Xuan said.

Sheng Yong nodded and said, "Master Tie, please!"

"please!"

The two exchanged pleasantries and headed towards the city gate.

"General Sheng, do you have any good plan to repel the enemy?"

"I don't have a good plan, but I do have a solution. Chuzhou City is easy to defend but difficult to attack. We can make good use of the city's advantages. In addition, the speed of Emperor Yunhuan's troops is amazing. I think his troops are mainly cavalry, and cavalry are not good at attacking cities."

"Haha, General Sheng, you and I are thinking the same thing. Let's stop the Emperor Yunhuan's army at Chuzhou City. He can't take another step forward."

"I wonder what the grandson of the emperor, Yun Hu, was thinking. Didn't he know the hidden dangers of advancing with only cavalry? Or did he become arrogant after defeating Duke Cao?"

"Who knows, but this is good news for us."

"."

The two chatted as they walked towards Chuzhou City.

It didn't take long.

The two of them arrived in front of Chuzhou City.

Not far away, the Great Snow Dragon Riders were on patrol. Their shining armor exuded a cool aura under the moonlight.

An invisible pressure spread in all directions.

"What's going on? What happened to the garrison commander of Chuzhou City? He actually sent troops to garrison outside the city." Tie Xuan was stunned and frowned.

"Lord Tie, something seems a little wrong. Why are they all cavalry? Moreover, the aura of these soldiers is a bit scary." Sheng Yong's expression also became solemn.

The two men stopped and looked at the big snow dragon rider not far away with surprise.

"His Highness has given an order, everyone cheer up!" Ma Sanbao walked over and said in a deep voice.

"Yes!" The Great Snow Dragon Riders responded in unison.

Ma Sanbao looked around, saw that nothing happened, turned around and left.

"Where's the city gate?"

Tie Xuan and Sheng Yong were stunned.

They didn't notice it before, but Ma Sanbao's coming and going made them pay attention to the direction of the city gate.

The original city gate became a big dark hole.

"Lord Sheng, something big has happened. Chuzhou City may have been breached." Tie Xuan said solemnly and bitterly.

"How is this possible?" Sheng Yong was dumbfounded and couldn't believe it.

Both of them had already figured out how to resist Zhu Yunhuan in Chuzhou City, but now they suddenly found that Chuzhou City had been breached.

In an instant, both of them were a little upset.

Tie Xuan was silent.

He was also unwilling to believe that Chuzhou City had fallen, but the scene before him showed that Chuzhou City had indeed fallen.

"Huh." Sheng Yong took a deep breath, forced himself to cheer up, looked at Tie Xuan beside him, and said, "Master Tie, what should we do now?"

They came to Chuzhou City under the order of Zhu Yunwen to resist the advance of Zhu Yunhuan, but now Chuzhou City has been breached. So, where should they go?
Tie Xuan was silent for a long time, then said, "Let's go to Jiangning!"

"Go to Jiangning?" Sheng Yong was stunned and hesitated, "Even Chuzhou City couldn't stop the Emperor's grandson Yun Hun, how could Jiangning City do the same? Even if we go to Jiangning City, I'm afraid it won't be of much use."

"We have to go even if it doesn't help much. Otherwise, are we going to go home and return directly to Jinan Prefecture?" Tie Xuan said.

Sheng Yong was silent. Given the current situation, he really felt that it would be better to return to Jinan Prefecture.

"Lord Sheng, don't lose heart. His Majesty and the other officials in the court must be thinking of ways to deal with the situation right now. It would be a good thing if we go to Jiangning and buy some time for His Majesty and the other officials in the court. We should be loyal to the emperor and eat his food. This is what we should do." Tie Xuan said.

"Oh, okay!" Sheng Yong sighed and compromised helplessly.

He wanted to return to Jinan Prefecture, but if he returned to Jinan Prefecture now, if the court finally stopped Zhu Yunhuan, he would be liquidated.

"Let's go to Jiangning. If the situation gets bad, we can just run away decisively." Sheng Yong thought to himself.

"Let's go!" Tie Xuan took a deep look at Chuzhou City and turned to leave.

Sheng Yong's eyes were complicated: "Grandson of the Emperor Yunhuan, are you really going to invade Yingtian Prefecture?"

A speechless night!
early morning.

"Cuckoo"

"Cuckoo"

As soon as the sky was getting light, a large group of carrier pigeons flew to Chuzhou City.

In the living room, Zhu Yunhuan was discussing the route of the advance with Zhu Gaoxu and Zhu Neng.

"Your Highness, letters from the princes!" Ma Sanbao walked over with a stack of letters.

"Oh? Are the uncles finally making any move? Come, let me see what they are going to do." Zhu Yunheng waved his hand and took the letter in his hand.

From the very beginning, he knew that the princes could not remain silent forever.

They were silent before because they wanted to watch the show. Now he is about to attack Yingtian Prefecture. It would be strange if these princes continue to remain silent.

"What will be the attitude of the princes?"

Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Neng and Ma Sanbao became nervous.

Since the Ming Dynasty was a feudal system, the strength of the princes could not be underestimated, especially those princes in the border areas who controlled a large number of troops.

"Let me stop and retreat?"

"Tsk tsk, what a big tone!"

"It seems that Zhu Yunwen has bowed to the princes!"

Zhu Yunhuan opened all the letters and read them through. He was stunned for a moment, and then his eyes became amused.

Things and history have changed.

Historically, Zhu Yunwen did not bow his head, and the princes did not help Zhu Yunwen.

"Sacrifice me? Will everyone be fine?" Zhu Yunheng smacked his lips.

"Brother Hu, what did the princes say in the letter?" Zhu Gaoxu asked.

Zhu Yunhuan took a deep breath and said, "Second brother, get ready for a fight."

"Ah?" Zhu Gaoxu was stunned for a moment, then frowned, his eyes unfriendly: "The princes want to help Zhu Yunwen?"

"Swish!"

Upon hearing this, Ma Sanbao and Zhu Neng's expressions changed.

The princes ended up standing on Zhu Yunwen's side, which was a bit unfavorable for them!

"Yes, they asked me to stop and withdraw the troops. How is that possible?" Zhu Yunhuan shrugged.

"What a bunch of ungrateful people! If it weren't for Hun Ge'er, who knows how Zhu Yunwen would have dealt with them. Now they are actually helping Zhu Yunwen. How despicable!" Zhu Gaoxu cursed.

"Crack!" Zhu Yunhuan took out a lighter and burned the letter. He said, "Actually, it's better for the uncles to get out of this sooner rather than later. We'll have to face each other sooner or later anyway. The sooner we get rid of them, the more peace we can have."

He also had to abolish the feudal system.

Instead of cleaning them up one by one in the future, it’s better to clean them up together!

"Your Highness, if this happens, won't the pressure on us be too great?" Ma Sanbao hesitated.

"It's a bit big, but we have no choice in this matter." Zhu Yunhuan said.

Ma Sanbao was stunned and lowered his head in silence.

The atmosphere became a little dull.

Zhu Yunhuan shook his head and chuckled, "What's going on with you? Is it really that stressful to go up against the princes? Besides, isn't this something we've already prepared for? If you're timid, I'll step in and fight you."

"Huang Ge'er"

"Your Highness."

Zhu Gaoxu, Ma Sanbao and Zhu Neng raised their heads and stared at Zhu Yunhuan in amazement.

Zhu Yunhuan said: "If you don't even have this little courage, I wouldn't choose to start a rebellion. Just go ahead and do it. I'll support you from behind!"

Zhu Gaoxu took a deep breath, his face full of fighting spirit, and said, "Huan Ge'er is right. What do we have to fear from the vassal kings? We have elite troops like the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry and the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry. Why should we be afraid of a battle?"

"Swear to follow His Highness to the death!"

Ma Sanbao and Zhu Neng also said this.

Zhu Yunhuan waved his hand and said, "Alright, get ready, it's time to set off. The uncles told me to stop, but I want to enter Yingying Tianfu as soon as possible and sit on the throne!"

"Yes!"

Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Neng and Ma Sanbao nodded, stood up and left.

Zhu Yunxun's eyes were deep, and he said calmly: "Uncles, I'll be waiting for you in Yingtian Prefecture!"

If he had to defend the city, he might have a headache and would have to think of a solution, but if a head-on battle broke out, he was not afraid at all.

Originally, he was still thinking about how to deal with the princes, but now, the princes have come to him on their own initiative.

That’s really thoughtful!

Yingtian Prefecture, the Imperial Palace!

Zhu Yunwen received replies from a number of vassal kings.

Except for a few, most of the princes expressed their willingness to send troops to support him.

"call"

Zhu Yunwen breathed a sigh of relief and said bitterly, "Zhu Yunxun, you are finished. I will grind you into ashes."

Zhu Yunhuan ruined his plan to reduce the power of the princes and humiliated him by trampling on his face, making him a complete clown and waste.

With such a great hatred, he wished he could eat Zhu Yunhuan!

"His Majesty!"

Fang Xiaoru, Huang Zicheng and Qi Tai walked over and bowed.

"No need to be polite!" Zhu Yunwen waved his hand, calmed himself down, and said, "The uncles have replied, and they will come forward to stop Zhu Yunhuan."

"it is good!"

Fang Xiaoru, Huang Zicheng and Qi Tai were all delighted when they heard this.

Zhu Yunhuan captured Chuzhou City and headed straight for Yingtian Prefecture. The three of them were under great pressure.

They relied on Zhu Yunwen. If Zhu Yunwen was driven off the throne, the glory of the three of them would naturally be gone.

After years of hard work, they finally waited for Zhu Yunwen to ascend the throne. They were full of energy and were ready to make a big move. But at this time, someone wanted to drive Zhu Yunwen off the throne. How could they agree?

"I have thought about it carefully. The method of reducing the power of the princes is indeed a bit too cruel. Even if we want to reduce the power of the princes in the future, we must pay attention to the method." Zhu Yunwen said softly.

"Cutting the feudal clan?"

Fang Xiaoru, Huang Zicheng and Qi Tai were stunned. They didn't expect that Zhu Yunwen was still thinking about reducing the power of the princes at this moment.

This shows that they are really not afraid that the vassal kings will turn around and help Zhu Yunhuan!

"Your Majesty, let's not mention the issue of reducing the power of the princes for the time being. If the princes find out, the consequences will be unimaginable." Fang Xiaoru hesitated.

Zhu Yunwen waved his hand and said, "I understand. I am only talking to you three here and will not say a word to anyone else."

Fang Xiaoru, Huang Zicheng and Qi Tai were stunned at first when they heard this, and then they were delighted.

What does Zhu Yunwen mean by this?
This shows absolute trust in the three of them!

"Your Majesty, will Prince Yan also send troops?" Huang Zicheng asked.

"Swish!"

Fang Xiaoru and Qi Tai pricked up their ears at the same time when they heard this.

Among all the princes, Zhu Di was definitely the most special one, making the court wary of him.

It is no exaggeration to say that if Zhu Yunhuan had not been there at this moment, it would probably have been Zhu Di who started the rebellion.

Although no one talked about this, everyone thought so.

"Fourth uncle did not reply to the letter, but I think he will obey the imperial edict in the end, otherwise he will be isolated by the vassal kings." Zhu Yunwen said with a smile.

Every failure makes one wiser. After this incident, he saw through many things.

For example, this time the princes came to Beijing to defend the king, which certainly helped to repel or destroy Zhu Yunhuan, but it also allowed the princes to unite and form a small circle.

"Prince Yan is still unwilling, but even if he is unwilling, it is useless. If he is restless in the future, I am afraid the court will not even have to take action, and the vassal kings will suppress him." Qi Tai smiled.

"Yes, although this incident is very bad, it is not without some benefits. At least in the short term, we don't have to worry about the princes causing chaos." Zhu Yunwen's face was full of emotion.

The biggest reason why he reduced the power of the princes was that the pressure from these princes was too great. He was afraid that one day he would wake up and find that the throne had been taken away by the princes.

Unexpectedly, Zhu Yunhuan's uprising took things to an incredible angle. Although he lost face and became a clown, his throne was consolidated.

From now on, anyone who wants to attack him must first ask the princes for their consent.

"In the future, the problem of vassal kings will probably be even more difficult to solve." Fang Xiaoru sighed in his heart.

However, there is nothing that can be done about it. In the current situation, the court has no more choices and can only move forward.

Yingtian Prefecture, in the small courtyard!
Zhu Yuanzhang still looked very confused. In the past two days, he had been reflecting on himself and thinking a lot.

For example, if he had allowed Zhu Yunhuan to inherit the throne, would everything happening now have never happened?

"Alas, we pay too much attention to balance." Zhu Yuanzhang sighed with a bitter face.

He chose Zhu Yunwen as his successor not only because Zhu Yunwen was well-behaved and sensible, but also partly out of consideration for the balance of the court.

In his opinion, if the emperor wants to rest assured, the court must maintain balance.

Since the old men who fought with him to conquer the world were all from Huaixi, after he established the Ming Dynasty, a behemoth appeared in the court, the Huaixi nobles.

Zhu Yuanzhang knew very well that it was not a good thing for one family to dominate the court.

Therefore, he began to suppress and dismantle the Huaixi nobles.

Since the Huaixi nobles were old brothers who had followed him to conquer the world and had an exclusive status, even if he tried every possible way to reduce and suppress them, the Huaixi nobles were still a behemoth in the court.

Zhu Yuanzhang knew that this would not work and would cause big problems.

So, he began to plan and support new groups.

It was at this time that the gentry in eastern Zhejiang appeared in Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes.

Faced with the huge Huaixi nobles, the Zhejiang eastern gentry was very weak, and the two were not on the same level at all.

In order to strengthen the power of the gentry in eastern Zhejiang, Zhu Yuanzhang asked Zhu Biao to marry Lu, and after Chang's death, he promoted Lu, the prince's concubine, to the prince's principal wife.

All this happened only because Lu's father, Lu Ben, was a member of the aristocratic family in eastern Zhejiang.

However, the Huaixi nobles were too powerful.

Even with the support of the Crown Princess, the gentry in eastern Zhejiang were still no match for the nobles in western Huaihe.

Just when Zhu Yuanzhang was having a headache, the bad news came that the emperor's eldest grandson Zhu Xiongying had died of illness.

When Zhu Yuanzhang heard the news, he was extremely sad, but at the same time, he also saw an opportunity for the rapid rise of the gentry in eastern Zhejiang.

If the Crown Princess is not suitable, then let the third generation crown prince of the Ming Dynasty become the backer of the Zhejiang East gentry.

He just couldn't believe that the efforts of three generations couldn't bring balance to the court.

From then on, Zhu Yunwen officially entered Zhu Yuanzhang's vision.

(End of this chapter)