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

Chapter 51 I, Zhang, have lived my life according to the rules. [Seeking monthly votes]

Zhang Biao was taken away by Jiang Huan and the Imperial Guards, still shouting "be gentle" and giving instructions about "five pig heads".

Zhu Yunwen and her brother stared in disbelief as they disappeared around the corner.

"Yun Tong?"

Zhu Mingyue was the first to come to her senses. She glanced at the fragrant oil paper package in her brother's arms and called out softly.

Although Zhang Biao's appearance was unexpected, Zhu Yunwen seemed to be in much better condition than before.

"Huh?" Zhu Yunwen looked at Zhu Mingyue in confusion: "What's wrong, eldest sister?"

"you"

Zhu Mingyue glanced at the direction Zhang Biao had disappeared in with a complicated expression, then looked at Zhu Yunwen and asked, "Do you know this Imperial Censor Zhang?"

"do not know"

Zhu Yunwen shook his head, then immediately nodded: "I know him! He's a good older brother!"

"What kind of good brother! He's just a crazy, vulgar, and shameless lecher!" Zhu Mingyu interrupted angrily.

Zhang Biao's comment about her long, white legs particularly annoyed her. She thought to herself, "What kind of person is he?! How did he know I was wearing a long skirt?! It's like he thinks I've already seen them. How shameless!"
Zhu Mingyue ignored Zhu Mingyu's complaints and asked Zhu Yunwen in a low voice, "What kind of person is he? Also, did he give you this oil paper package in your hand?"

"Yes." Zhu Yunwen nodded emphatically and said, "It was given to me by a kind older brother! His cold-dressed pig's trotters are so delicious, would you like to try some, older sister? They're really good!"

"Shut up, sister! Let's go back! The palace is probably in complete chaos right now!"

Zhu Mingyu stomped her foot in frustration and then held out her hand to Zhu Yunwen, saying, "Give me that package you're holding! It's filthy, throw it away right now!"

"do not want!"

Zhu Yunwen was so frightened that he clung tightly to the oil paper package, as if it were the only piece of driftwood for a drowning person.

Zhang Biao's last words were like a red-hot branding iron, searing his chaotic and desperate heart.

"Don't underestimate a young man's potential" and "Don't let your sorrow become the sorrow of the Ming Dynasty"—these words are rough and straightforward, yet they carry a kind of almost tyrannical power that he had never felt before.

He looked down at the oil-paper package, the rich aroma of pig's trotters mixed with the spiciness of dogwood strangely dispelling the chill and desolation in his heart.

"Eldest sister, second sister"

Zhu Yunwen's voice was hoarse, less filled with despair and more with struggle as he said, "Good brother, please help us get the pig's head meat for Imperial Censor Shen."

"What time is it and you're still thinking about pig's head meat!" Zhu Mingyu was furious and was about to kick Zhu Yunwen like Zhang Biao did.

"Mingyu!"

At this moment, Zhu Mingyue quickly grabbed her younger sister, and then, seeing the stubbornness and unprecedented light flashing in Zhu Yunwen's eyes, she took a deep breath and nodded, saying, "Okay, Yunwen, let's go get it for him!"

"Miss!"

"okay!"

Zhu Mingyue displayed a hint of elder sister authority, utterly rebuking the enraged Zhu Mingyu.

Because she keenly sensed that this might be an opportunity for her younger brother to change.
That 'mad' censor named Zhang Biao seems to have the power to break the deadlock!
On the other side, the palace.

The old Zhu's bedroom behind the Huagai Hall.

The medicinal smell was strong, and even the ambergris could not suppress the dull, deathly silence.

Old Zhu lay on the dragon bed, his eyes vacant, his sallow face ashen, and his chest rising and falling weakly.

Several elderly physicians, their hair and beards all white, knelt before the bed, their foreheads dripping with cold sweat, seemingly discussing the pulse diagnosis in hushed tones.

The atmosphere in the room was as heavy as lead.

Liu Sanwu and Mei Yin, two trusted ministers of Zhu Yuanzhang, stood anxiously not far away, craning their necks and looking on with deep concern. Huang Zicheng, who had come to visit Zhu Yuanzhang, was not even allowed to enter the door, but paced back and forth outside, extremely anxious.

As for Zhang Biao? He was still on the long palace road leading to the Huagai Hall.

At this moment, Zhang Biao was being held firmly by two Imperial Guards, one on each side, and was being carried forward with his feet barely touching the ground.

Jiang Huan stood with his hand on his sword, his face so gloomy it seemed to drip water, each step he took making a dull thud on the gold bricks.

"Ouch, Commander Jiang, be gentle! My thin arms and legs can't withstand these two iron clamps of yours!"

Zhang Biao grimaced, but kept talking:

"I say, has His Majesty woken up yet? He's over sixty, and he still has such a temper?"
"It's just a pig's head, but it's quite lifelike, isn't it? Don't you think so, Commander Jiang?"

Jiang Huan's temples throbbed with veins, and he whirled around, his eyes like knives:

"Zhang Biao! Shut up! If you utter another word, I'll cut your tongue out right now!"

"No, no, no! Commander Jiang, please calm down!"

Zhang Biao immediately feigned a look of terror, then switched to a grinning face:

“What’s the point of cutting out my tongue? I’m counting on you to kill me with one blow! Besides, am I doing this for the good of the court?”
Unpaid wages destabilize the military, unsettle the people, and threaten the nation! This is honest advice, hard to swallow, don't you understand?"

He kept shouting all the way, his voice carrying far through the empty and solemn palace road, attracting the attention of the guards on duty and the palace servants passing by. Their faces were filled with astonishment and a hint of barely concealed curiosity.

This is the 'mad' censor who angered the emperor to the point of fainting, instigated a group of low-ranking officials in the capital, and turned the Fengtian Hall court assembly upside down.
Just as they passed near the Chunhe Hall, Zhang Biao's voice suddenly rose, and he began to sing in a deliberate, off-key tone:
"The pig's head meat smells so good, the Emperor is so angry he keeps snorting. Officials demanding back wages are for the sake of the country, how did it become my sin?"

The sound was like a demonic chant, clearly penetrating the tightly closed windows of the Chunhe Palace.

Inside the warm pavilion, Zhu Yunwen, who was forcibly suppressing his humiliation while copying the Book of Documents, suddenly trembled, and a large drop of ink fell onto the clean white Xuan paper, instantly spreading into a large patch of filthy black.

His body trembled violently, his face turned from white to green, and the carefully maintained facade of calm shattered instantly, revealing deep-seated resentment and humiliation in his eyes.

Zhang Biao! It's Zhang Biao again!
That persistent bastard!
How dare he! How dare he sing so brazenly within the palace walls, humiliating his imperial grandfather! Humiliating him!!

Lady Lü sat motionless, but the pen in her hand hovered in mid-air, a drop of ink quietly dripping from the tip.

Her face was expressionless, but a fiercer killing intent suddenly surged from the icy pool deep within her eyes.

Arrogant! Overbearing!
If this scourge is not eliminated, it will surely become a great scourge!
"Take it away quickly!"

Jiang Huan gritted his teeth, wishing he could tear this man to pieces immediately.

The group finally arrived at Old Zhu's bedroom, where the atmosphere was extremely oppressive.

Jiang Huan roughly pushed Zhang Biao into the room, while he himself stood guard at the door with his hand on his knife, like a demon god.

Inside the dormitory, Lao Zhu had already gotten up, but had not yet gotten out of bed.

He stared intently at Zhang Biao, his eyes burning with rage, and in his hand was an open book, spitting with saliva, with torn edges, and covered in Q-version comics, titled "A Record of Blood and Tears for Unpaid Wages".

"Zhang Biao."

Old Zhu's voice was like sandpaper scraping, carrying a heavy stench of blood and overwhelming hatred, each word seemingly squeezed out from between his teeth: "Zhang Biao, what exactly do you want?"

"I"

Just as Zhang Biao was about to speak, he suddenly caught sight of Liu Sanwu and Mei Yin out of the corner of his eye, and immediately stood up proudly: "Why should I, Zhang, explain my actions to others? The Emperor may kill or torture me as he pleases!"

Old Zhu: "."

Liu Sanwu and Mei Yin: "."

This madman is still being stubborn even when he's about to die!
(End of this chapter)