Da Ming: I told you to die for your cause, why are you actually going to die?

Chapter 19 Old Zhu Has Gone Mad! [New Book, Please Add to Favorites]

Old Zhu stood frozen on the imperial steps.

That weathered, dignified face now displayed an unprecedented, almost blank, bewilderment.

He felt as if he had been struck by an invisible thunderbolt from the heavens, carrying with it a storm of the future, leaving him completely numb from head to toe.

My mind was buzzing, a complete blank.

Princes, dukes, 1.3 million shi of grain, 5.6 million people.
The sheer number of imperial nobles that Zhang Biao had calculated was so enormous it was suffocating. Before his eyes, it spun and piled up wildly, eventually transforming into a colossal mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood that could topple the entire Ming Dynasty!
Those are his descendants!

This is the most ironic and disastrous result of his proud "eternal law" that he believed could forever protect the country!
"And what kind of master are you? Do you expect all the people in the world to support your Zhu family? Do you treat the people of the world like livestock for your Zhu family?"

Zhang Biao's cold and calm questioning echoed in my ears like a curse.

Each word was like a red-hot branding iron, branding it fiercely onto the deepest, most unquestionable pride and foundation of his heart!
He fought his whole life to drive out the Mongol Yuan dynasty and establish the Ming dynasty, all for the sake of making life better for all the people in the world and to end the tyranny that treated the people like dirt.
But the very system he designed himself, a century later, pushed his descendants and the people into the abyss!
藩王
Tens of thousands of soldiers
The Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms
The Calamity of the Eight Princes
Brothers fighting amongst themselves, blood flowing like rivers!
Zhang Biao's sharp words pierced precisely the deepest, most hidden fears in his heart that he dared not think about!
He enfeoffed his sons to protect the central government and ensure the stability of the empire!

But the successor he chose, the only one who could keep those fierce brothers in check, is gone!
What will those princes, nourished by power and ambition, become after his death?
Is he a loyal minister? Or a source of trouble?

The bloody scene of brothers killing each other and the country being shattered, as depicted by Zhang Biao, was like a cold dagger that instantly pierced through all his hopes!

Storage space suspended
People's hearts are restless
careerist.
Seeds of turmoil.
Zhang Biao's final shout tore open the reality he had been trying to avoid and cover up with sadness and anger, revealing it in a bloody way!

Lü Ping and Qi Tai are not the end, but the beginning!
Inside the imperial court, undercurrents surged, and various factions were waiting and watching!
As long as he remains undecided, the seeds of turmoil will be sown ever deeper!
"I fear not being shattered to pieces, but only to remain awake in this world!"

Zhang Biao's upright figure, with his fearless yet compassionate gaze that seemed to foresee the future, appeared somewhat glaring, even sacred, in Old Zhu's chaotic vision.

Should he be killed? Old Zhu wished he could be torn to pieces!

but
Are we just going to kill him like that?
A slightly hesitant thought flashed through Old Zhu's mind, but he was quickly awakened by an indescribable, chilling coldness.

Killing this lowly seventh-rank censor would be as easy as turning one's hand.

One stroke of the sword would shut him up and temporarily quell the upheaval in the court, which had been completely overturned and exposed its rotten foundations.

But then?

Would killing Zhang Biao erase the horrifying data he calculated?

Can we stop the inevitable eruption of Mount Zonglu?

Can this eliminate the enormous hidden danger of vassal kings holding military power and becoming too powerful?
Can this unresolved issue of succession, which has caused widespread anxiety throughout the government and the public, be resolved?

No!

Killing him would be nothing but self-deception!
It's nothing but cowardly behavior!

Old Zhu has lived for over sixty years, crawling out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, stepping over the bones of countless enemies to sit on this supreme position. He considers himself to be as hard as iron, decisive in killing, and has never experienced true fear.

But now, faced with the immense and despairing predicament of the future that Zhang Biao had revealed with his life, an unprecedented, bone-chilling cold gripped him.

He felt like a giant standing on the edge of a cliff, with the ground beneath his feet crumbling inch by inch.

He possessed supreme power, capable of easily crushing the buzzing, danger-pointing insect before him, yet he felt a profound powerlessness towards the abyss itself, which was about to devour everything!
This feeling is so unfamiliar!

So frustrating!

"A fine one indeed. You must remain conscious in this world." Zhu Yuanzhang's voice was hoarse and broken, each word seemingly ground out from between his teeth, carrying a chilling aura: "Zhang Biao, you are very good. You are truly excellent!!"

He suddenly raised his hand, his withered fingers like eagle claws, pointing directly at Zhang Biao. His fingertips trembled violently with extreme rage: "Since I ascended the throne, the number of people I've killed could fill this Fengtian Hall! The skins I've peeled could cover this Yingtian Prefecture!!"

"But like you, like you..."

He was panting heavily, his voice suddenly rising in pitch, like the final roar of a wounded beast: "They ripped out our land, our descendants, and trampled our hearts underfoot! And they still claim it's for our own good! For the good of the Ming Dynasty—"

"You're the first one!!"

"Jiang Huan!!"

Old Zhu's voice was like a thunderclap, shaking the entire hall and causing the accumulated incense ash to fall in a flurry.

"Chen is here!"

Jiang Huan immediately knelt on one knee, his hand firmly gripping the hilt of the Embroidered Spring Blade, his knuckles turning white from the force, his eyes sharp as knives, awaiting the final command.

"Give it to us."

Old Zhu's bloodshot eyes were fixed on Zhang Biao's face, his gaze as if he wanted to devour him alive! As if he wanted to grind him to dust!

"Give it to us."

Don't breathe too hard, Lao Zhu!

Make it quick!
You can punish me however you like!!
As long as you can kill me!!!

Zhang Biao was so anxious his heart was in his throat.

"Draft an edict!"

Old Zhu's voice was filled with boundless killing intent and icy resolve: "Minister of Revenue Zhao Qian advised raising taxes in Jiangnan; his intentions are despicable! Order the Embroidered Uniform Guard to immediately search his mansion, arrest his entire clan, and execute them all! Zhao Qian himself, have his skin peeled off and stuffed with straw! Hang it in front of the Ministry of Revenue as a warning to others!"

"Lu Ping, Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, and Qi Tai, Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, have not shown any grief over the recent loss of the Crown Prince, but instead have presumptuously discussed the foundations of the state! They are hereby stripped of all their official positions and handed over to the Three Departments for investigation of their accomplices! Once the investigation is complete, their entire families will be confiscated and they will be prosecuted according to the law!"

"As for you, Zhang Biao!!"

The murderous intent in Old Zhu's eyes was almost tangible.

But he quickly suppressed it.

"call"

Old Zhu exhaled a heavy breath, then stared at the blue-clad figure, whose spine remained straight and who seemed ready to face death at any moment. His eyes were complex and unreadable as he spoke slowly and deliberately:
"Zhang Biao, a seventh-rank censor of the Censorate, is promoted to Left Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, and is granted the privilege of wearing a scarlet robe and a silver fish-shaped pouch!"

"Effective immediately, you shall be in charge of overseeing the Ministry of Revenue's finances, grain, and land taxes, and shall also secretly investigate the movements of the various vassal kings!"

"You are granted the authority to submit secret memorials directly to the emperor. Any illegal acts, regardless of who is involved, can be reported directly to the emperor!"

Boom——! ! !
This imperial decree was even more shocking than all the thunderbolts Zhang Biao had just witnessed combined!
The eunuchs and palace maids kneeling on the ground were completely dumbfounded, their minds blank!
Even Jiang Huan suddenly raised his head, his eyes flashing with disbelief!
Zhang Biao: "(⊙_⊙)"

It's confirmed: Old Zhu went on a killing spree in his later years because he went mad.

(End of this chapter)