Zhu Yuanzhang: My second son is invincible!

"Second brother, that mandrill just now... how much of your strength did you use?"

On the way, Zhu Biao suddenly asked a question.

Zheng Datou thought for a moment: "Just a little bit! Not enough... I'm afraid too much force will hurt Yaya."

Zhu Biao paused, hissing.

"Huh! What's wrong?"

"...It's nothing." Zhu Biao took a deep breath, trying to keep his expression calm.

He recalled the landslide he had just witnessed: half a cliff collapsed, the riverbed changed course, and more than a dozen old trees snapped at waist height.

That's only one-tenth of their strength.

If we go all out…

Zhu Biao dared not think about it.

But in a corner of his heart, a fire suddenly ignited.

Now, his second brother has returned.

Inheriting the legacy of Xing Tian, ​​and possessing the power to split mountains and shatter peaks.

"Second brother, how have you been these past years?" Zhu Biao suddenly asked softly.

Zheng Datou was pondering whether to stew the cured pork with cabbage or radish for dinner when he heard this and casually replied, "Great! I have enough to eat and wear, my parents love me, and Yaya is obedient. It's just that there are a lot of monsters in the mountains, so we have to clean them up every few days."

He spoke casually, but Zhu Biao was terrified.

"A lot of monsters?"

"It's alright! Last year, a pack of wolf demons wanted to come down the mountain to wreak havoc on the village. I chased them to their lair and wiped them out with one axe. That mountain, you see it? It used to be a point, but now it's flat." Zheng Datou gestured.

He did this secretly; the villagers had no idea.

Zhu Biao looked in the direction he was pointing.

In the distance, there is a barren mountain with a flat top that looks as if it had been cut by a knife.

He had previously thought it was formed naturally.

"How many...how many wolf demons are in that den?" Zhu Biao's voice was dry.

"Twenty or thirty, I can't remember exactly. Anyway, the village was quiet for a while afterward." Zheng Datou scratched his head.

Zhu Biao remained silent for a long time.

He finally understood why this village had been able to exist peacefully in the deep mountains and forests for more than 20 years.

Why can the people here live in peace and prosperity in a world ravaged by monsters?

Because his second brother is the guardian deity of this village.

"Brother, is this brother really going to take you to be a prince?" Da Ya interjected, her tone full of reluctance.

Before Zheng Datou could answer, Zhu Biao squatted down, looked Zheng Daya in the eye, and said softly, "It's not about taking him to be a prince. He was a prince to begin with. We're just bringing him home."

He took a piece of mutton-fat jade from his waist and stuffed it into Zheng Daya's hand, saying, "This is for you. When you come to Yingtian in the future, I'll take you to eat all the best food in the city."

Holding the jade pendant, Zheng Daya's eyes sparkled as she replied, "Really?"

"A ruler's word is his bond," Zhu Biao said with a smile.

As Zheng Datou watched this scene, he suddenly felt a soft spot in his heart.

Maybe... having more older brothers wouldn't be bad?

When the three arrived at the gate of the Zheng family compound, Zheng Dazhu was squatting in the yard chopping firewood.

Hearing the noise, he looked up and saw Zhu Biao behind Zheng Datou, and was stunned.

"Big Head, who is this...?"

Zhu Biao stepped forward, cupped his hands, and bowed deeply: "Junior Zhu Biao greets Uncle Zheng."

The axe in Zheng Dazhu's hand clattered to the ground.

Although he was a simple countryman, he had heard of the name of the current crown prince.

"You...you are..." His voice trembled.

"Dad, he said he's my biological brother," Zheng Datou said, supporting his adoptive father.

The courtyard was so quiet you could hear the wind.

In the kitchen, Zheng Huangshi poked her head out, still holding a spatula in her hand.

She glanced at Zhu Biao, then at the jade pendant peeking out from Zheng Datou's neck, and her eyes suddenly reddened.

"What was bound to happen... has finally happened."

She wiped her eyes and said in a trembling voice, "Let's talk inside! Big Head, go and cut the cured meat, cut a lot of it."

Zheng Datou said "Hey," and carried the wild boar toward the kitchen.

Zhu Biao looked at his retreating figure, then at the simple old couple in front of him, and suddenly lifted his robe and knelt down solemnly before Zheng Dazhu and Zheng Huangshi.

"Your Excellency raised my younger brother for twenty-two years, and your kindness is like giving me a second life. On behalf of my father and mother, Zhu Biao thanks you for your great kindness." He prostrated himself and kowtowed.

Zheng Dazhu panicked, wanting to help but not daring to: "No! Your Highness, you mustn't!"

"Very well, from now on, you two will be my parents, and the affairs of the Zheng family will be my affairs. When my younger brother is recognized by his ancestors, I will have someone bring you two to Yingtian, where you can enjoy a life of happiness." Zhu Biao raised his head, tears welling in his eyes.

Zheng Huangshi covered her mouth, tears streaming down her face.

Zheng Datou poked his head out of the kitchen, holding half a piece of cured meat in his hand. He looked at Zhu Biao kneeling in the yard, then at his adoptive mother who was crying her eyes out, and suddenly grinned.

"Brother, the cured pork is chopped up. Want to help start the fire?"

Zhu Biao stood up, brushed the dirt off his knees, and said with a bright smile, "Come on."

The sun completely sank behind the mountains.

In the kitchen of the Zheng family's courtyard, the firelight illuminated three busy figures: one tending the fire, one chopping vegetables, and one cooking.

In the courtyard, Zheng Dazhu held Zheng Daya in his arms, staring at the kitchen window, and remained silent for a long time.

More than ten riders waited quietly on the mountain road in the distance.

Smoke curled up from the kitchen.

Zheng Datou squatted in front of the stove, tending the fire with practiced ease, as if he had been doing it for over a decade.

Zhu Biao plopped down on the small stool next to him, rolled up his sleeves, and handed him firewood, not caring at all that the hem of his brocade robe was covered in dust.

"Keep the fire low, the cured meat needs to be stewed slowly," said Zheng Huangshi while chopping cabbage, her eyes still red.

"Why!"

Zheng Datou responded and pulled out a few pieces of firewood.

Zhu Biao's heart sank as he watched this scene.

His twin brother, the second prince of the Ming Dynasty, should have been living a life of luxury and being pampered by everyone, but now he's cooking in a kitchen in the mountains, and he's doing it so skillfully.

"Second brother, you often cook..." Zhu Biao asked softly.

"That's right! Mom's back isn't good, but I'm strong, so I do all the chopping and starting. Brother, do you know how to start a fire?" Zheng Datou asked with a grin, revealing a set of white teeth.

Zhu Biao shook his head and said, "The palace... has a kitchen."

"That's a pity. Lighting a fire is so much fun. Watching the flames jump around is so much fun, and it's warm in winter," Zheng Datou said earnestly.

Zhu Biao couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this.

At this moment, Zheng Dazhu came in with a bowl and chopsticks. He glanced at Zhu Biao with a complicated expression, then looked at Zheng Datou, and sighed: "Let's eat first, and talk while we eat."

Five people sat around a square wooden table.

A bowl of stewed cured pork with cabbage, a pot of wild vegetable soup, a dish of pickled vegetables, and two roasted wild boar legs that Zheng Datou had just brought back.

He baked it casually in the afternoon; it was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with the oil sizzling.

The food was simple, but the portions were large and filling.

Zhu Biao picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of cabbage, and put it in his mouth. It was salty and flavorful, even more to his liking than the imperial dishes in the palace.

"It's delicious," he said sincerely.

Madam Zheng wiped her eyes and said, "I'm glad Your Highness doesn't mind..."

"Auntie, just call me Biao'er. Here, I'm just Da Tou's older brother," Zhu Biao said with a smile.

Zheng Dazhu took a sip of his homemade wine and finally spoke, "Your Highness... Biao'er, you just said that Datou is your brother, what... exactly is going on?"

Zhu Biao put down his chopsticks and said solemnly, "Twenty-two years ago, in the fifteenth year of the Zhizheng era, my mother... who is now Empress Ma, gave birth to me and my second brother at Chen Di's home in Taiping Prefecture."

At that time, my father was still leading the army in battle when assassins suddenly infiltrated the city. In the chaos, my second brother was kidnapped and then disappeared.

He looked at Zheng Datou with gentle eyes and said, "Over the years, Father and Mother have never given up the search. Every year on my and my second brother's birthdays, Mother would go to the temple to pray for blessings, while Father ordered the Embroidered Uniform Guard to investigate secretly. Whenever there was any suspicious information, he would personally inquire about it."

Zheng Dazhu's hand trembled, and the wine spilled.

"Taiping Prefecture...Chen Di's family...In the spring of the fifteenth year of the Zhizheng era, my wife and I fled to the vicinity of Taiping Prefecture, and we found the child by the river outside the city..." he murmured.

"Which day?" Zhu Biao's breath hitched.

"I remember it clearly, October 12th. It was drizzling that day. The child was wrapped in a brocade swaddle and placed in a bamboo basket, floating downstream. Besides the child, there was also a jade pendant in the basket," Zheng Huangshi interjected, tears welling up in her eyes again.

"What about the swaddling clothes?" Zhu Biao asked, his voice trembling.

"I've kept it!"

Upon hearing this, Madam Zheng got up and carried an old wooden box out of the inner room. She opened it and found a slightly faded brocade undergarment inside. Although the material was old, its original exquisiteness was still evident.

"I'm afraid my child will ask about it when they grow up, so I haven't dared to throw it away."

Zhu Biao took the swaddling clothes, turned them over to the inside corner, where a small character was embroidered in gold thread: 樳 (hu).

His tears finally fell.