The First Prince of the Ming Dynasty

Prince Ning's Mansion.

Princess Zhu Ye of Jutan's condition has greatly improved. On this day, she came to visit her brother, not only to express her gratitude but also to seek his advice.

"Why did you send Yi'er to the capital, Brother Wang? Shouldn't you have sent Gui'er instead?"

Zhu Ye looked puzzled.

After all, Zhu Chenhao had described to her before that the second son should go to Beijing, not the third son.

Zhu Chenhao said, "My dear sister, there are some things you may not know, and you should not reveal them to others."

"Brother, just tell me, don't you believe me, sister?" Zhu Ye was also very curious about the recent changes in the Ning Prince's Mansion.

Zhu Chenhao frowned and shook his head, saying, "I couldn't believe it either. The third brother said he went to the future five hundred years ago and witnessed the prosperity of that time. After returning, he told me many things that he couldn't possibly know."

"Such a bizarre thing?" Zhu Ye was greatly shocked.

Zhu Chenhao sighed, "Otherwise, where do you think he found the medicine that could possibly be effective for your illness? Speaking of which, your illness is the same as Father's back then. I thought you would only wait until it was terminal, but in the end... alas!"

Zhu Ye said, "If that's the case, and he can help you, why not keep him by your side?"

Unlike others who immediately question their elder brother, Zhu Ye had complete faith in him.

In her view, since her brother believed that the matter had been verified and even brought it up in front of her, there was no need for her to question it further.

Zhu Chenhao said helplessly, "I haven't figured it out either. I don't know where to put him. Logically, I should let him stay in Nanchang to help me plan our uprising, after all, this is the insistence of generations of the Ning family. But... if we can really let him become the crown prince..."

"How could that be?" Zhu Ye said. "The emperor wouldn't be so foolish as to entrust the country to us."

Clearly, Zhu Ye was more rational than his brother in this matter.

"Look at this... This is a secret letter from Qian Ning, a favorite minister of the emperor. He says he will help my son become the crown prince. He also says that the emperor is considering having his third son adopted into the family. He didn't say whether the son would be made crown prince, but as long as he is adopted into the main line, he will have a chance to inherit the throne in the future." Zhu Chenhao's eyes shone with a bit more light, but at the same time, he seemed to have some worries.

Zhu Ye took Qian Ning's confidential letter, glanced at it, and frowned, saying, "Qian Ning is so careless; how could he just casually send out a letter like this?"

Zhu Chenhao said, "I have kept all the letters I exchange with the court officials. If the time is right in the future, I can even take them out and make the little emperor suspicious of everyone."

Zhu Ye returned the letter and asked, "If Yi'er really is adopted into the main branch, is this truly the outcome you hoped for, Brother?"

Zhu Chenhao then fell silent.

"Leaving aside whether adoption is feasible, even if it were, it's not realistic for Yi'er to become the crown prince. The emperor is still quite old. If we have to wait for decades, there are too many variables that could happen in the meantime. I'm afraid we won't live to see that day." Zhu Ye coughed twice as he spoke.

There was even a hint of sadness, as if he regretted not being able to see his elder brother achieve his great ambitions.

Zhu Chenhao said, "The third brother said that in history, I raised an army in the fourteenth year of Zhengde, but failed. The emperor died in the sixteenth year of Zhengde, and the throne fell to the Xing family, which benefited the Xing family for nothing."

"Xingfu?" Zhu Ye was also surprised by this result.

It is understandable that the Ning family did not obtain the throne.

The Xing family and the emperor are not exactly close relatives, so why should someone from the Xing family inherit the throne?

"In fact, the third brother is right about that. According to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, if the emperor suddenly dies and has not adopted an heir, the throne should be inherited by someone from the Xing Mansion. It is said that the current head of the Xing Mansion doesn't have many days left to live." Zhu Chenhao's expression was not good.

He schemed every day to get the throne, and his hair almost turned white from exhaustion.

He was also a dreamer.

Zhu Ye asked, "Brother Wang, in your previous letter, Qian Ning mentioned that the Emperor transferred Yi'er and Tang Yin to the Northwest at the same time. What does this mean?"

"Sigh! I might as well be frank with you. Yi'er's visions of the future were all fabricated by Tang Yin. In other words, everyone in the world believes that Tang Yin dreamed of the future, but he actually knows nothing about it. He was trying to feign madness to leave Nanchang, but Lao San exposed him on the spot. If Yi'er hadn't pleaded for him, I really would have killed him to prevent future troubles!"

Zhu Chenhao still couldn't hide his resentment when he mentioned Tang Yin.

Zhu Ye nodded slightly and said, "No wonder there's been so much talk about Tang Yin in Nanchang lately. So that's why..."

Zhu Chenhao said, "If the battle in the Northwest goes as the Third Prince predicted, and if the Third Prince and Tang Yin can win a victory together, they might win the Emperor's favor even more, and then his adoption would truly be within reach."

Zhu Ye said, "It would be best if Your Majesty could accept this calmly. Such a capable child may help you achieve great things in the future. If you just hand him over like this..."

"Back then, the people of the Yan family said that if they gained the world, they would share it with us. Now that my son has taken back what rightfully belongs to us, what is there for me to be resentful about? Alas!"

In the end, Zhu Chenhao couldn't help but sigh.

It seems that Zhu Yi's decision to join another organization was not as readily accepted as he claimed.

……

……

After Jiang Bin and Zhang Yong received the emperor's order, they immediately set off, taking Tang Yin and Zhu Yi with them, heading towards Juyong Pass.

The group did not pass through Xuanfu again, but instead set up camp in the wilderness, though they would pass through Tumu Fort along the way.

On the second day of the fifth month, the group arrived at Juyong Pass.

At this time, the emperor's decree was issued, ordering him to summon Zhu Yi to the capital alone, while Tang Yin would remain at Juyong Pass to wait with Jiang Bin and Zhang Yong.

The emperor's intention was clear to everyone: he left a complete decision-making team in the Northwest at Juyong Pass, waiting for him to personally meet with them there. Zhu Yi, on the other hand, was an insignificant pawn who could be transferred to the capital as a hostage.

"We'll set off this afternoon." Before leaving, Zhu Yi gave Tang Yin a few more words of advice: "The future may very well change because of the Battle of Zhangjiakou. As for border affairs, I can no longer provide you with accurate information."

Tang Yin said, "If that's the case, then wouldn't it be... if I stayed here?"

Tang Yin felt nervous.

He already lacked confidence in the future and thought Zhu Yi would give him more hints, but Zhu Yi's meaning was that he should figure it out himself.

"The emperor is not easily fooled," Zhu Yi advised. "Instead, you should demonstrate your true abilities and let the emperor see that you are worthy of his attention."

Tang Yin wore a bitter smile.

It's as if you're saying, if I were truly capable, would I have ended up like this? In your story, I'll even die in poverty in a few years. Are you praising me or mocking me?

"Remember what I said. Right now, we have to rely on the group of sycophants around the emperor. So you should try to build good relationships with them. Some paths you don't have to pave yourself; someone will pave the way for you."

Zhu Yi's main purpose was also to remind Tang Yin.

You only need to demonstrate your abilities once to convince Jiang Bin and Zhang Yong, and they will then help you cover up the lie.

Then you can just casually bring up some historical inevitability, and then will it still matter when the Tatars came and where they came from?

Tang Yin asked, "What did you do after you arrived in the capital?"

Zhu Yi shook his head slightly and said, "The decision-making power is not mine. My initial idea is to use your connections to create something that doesn't exist in this era. Once I've created it, I'll use it in different fields."

"Preparing for your father's future rebellion?" Tang Yin frowned.

He was thinking, "You said before that you neither side with the emperor nor support your father's rebellion."

From what you're saying now, it seems like you're still indirectly helping the Prince Ning's mansion?

Zhu Yi said, "I can also do something to make the emperor appreciate me. You should also speak well of me in front of the emperor. I thank you in advance."

"Rely on me? To speak well of you?" Tang Yin was also surprised.

So I'm that important?

Zhu Yi laughed and said, "Now you, Jiang Bin, Qian Ning, Zhang Yong, and the others are a unit. As long as you all need me, I will have a chance to inherit the throne as an adopted son in the future. Then, the two of us..."

Tang Yin exclaimed in surprise, "I've figured it out! You're not trying to help your father rebel, you're the one who wants to rebel! In other words, you want to start your own faction!"

……

……

Zhu Yi set off for the capital with only a few people with him, including the guards from the Prince of Ning's residence and the Imperial Guards sent by the emperor.

Among these Imperial Guards were Qian Ning's confidants, who had also instructed Qian Ning to escort Zhu Yi safely to the capital.

As for Gongsun Jin, he was temporarily left at Juyong Pass.

The main reason was that Tang Yin was unsure of himself. He needed someone who could talk to Zhu Yi, and Gongsun Jin, as his "companion" in the Ning Prince's Mansion who knew him well, was one of the few who knew that Zhu Yi had been to the future. Therefore, he could reach a consensus with Tang Yin on certain interests.

"It's really hard to part with the young master." On the top of Juyong Pass, Gongsun Jin and Tang Yin watched Zhu Yi and his party leave.

Tang Yin said, "Mr. Gongsun, you must have sent many gifts and met many people when you went to the capital, right?"

Gongsun Jin smiled and said, "We've sent quite a few gifts, but they were all necessary. Everything is to help the young master be adopted by the emperor. Did Mr. Tang get the answer he wanted from the young master?"

"What's the answer?" Tang Yin glanced at him sideways.

Gongsun Jin said, "Of course it concerns the future direction of the war in the Northwest! The Emperor is very likely to come."

"I doubt it," Tang Yin said. "The emperor leaving the capital is a huge deal. Do you think the court will let him do that?"

Gongsun Jin smiled and said, "But in the young master's previous prophecy, it was mentioned that the emperor would try every means to come to the Northwest on his own, and would travel back and forth between the Northwest and the capital many times, until he wanted to make a southern tour!"

Tang Yin said, "The so-called southern tour seems to be more like a southern expedition, doesn't it?"

"Hehe." Gongsun Jin's smile was somewhat awkward.

Clearly, in his view, Tang Yin still harbored resentment towards the Prince Ning's mansion and did not want to be associated with it.

Even your son, Prince Ning, said that your palace will rebel in the future and fail so badly. Why should others stand on your side and consider the issue?

Tang Yin realized he had gone too far, and he said, "If the emperor really adopts the third prince into his name, what will Prince Ning think?"

Gongsun Jin said, "Isn't this exactly what Your Highness has been pursuing? If that day ever comes, Your Highness will surely be overjoyed."

"Doesn't Prince Ning realize that this is merely a delaying tactic by the Emperor? Once outsiders launch numerous attacks on Prince Ning's residence, and rumors of treason spread, then... I'm afraid your young master might not even be able to save his life!"

Tang Yin seems to be making inferences, but he also seems to be stating a fact.

Zhu Yi was caught between the emperor and the Prince of Ning's mansion. Even without the Prince of Ning rebelling, the sheer volume of such rumors would harm Zhu Yi.

Will Zhu Chenhao stop preparing for a rebellion?

Or perhaps, upon hearing that his son had been adopted, Zhu Chenhao would put aside all his current efforts and simply wait for his son to succeed him in the future?

Obviously impossible.

Gongsun Jin said with a dark face, "Mr. Tang, do you now feel that you are about to gain the Emperor's favor, so you are preparing to... abandon the darkness and embrace the light?"

"Where is darkness, and where is light? Alas!" Tang Yin also sighed.

Clearly, in his view, he was in the same situation as Zhu Yi, both being used as pawns.

But how easy is it to go from being a pawn to a player who controls the world?

……

……

Inside the Leopard Room.

Zhu Houzhao obtained more secret reports from Jiang Bin regarding the Battle of Zhangjiakou. Although many of them contained exaggerated information, they still made Zhu Houzhao very excited.

"Look, Tang Yin is really capable. According to Jiang Bin, he was able to accurately predict the Tatars' movements and decisively realized that Zhang Yong did not want to send troops. So, he chose to trap them in the city like turtles in a jar. When the Tatar armored warriors entered the city and rampaged through, the stalemate was broken by the muskets presented by the Prince of Ning's mansion, and all the Tatars were killed!"

Zhu Houzhao paced back and forth excitedly, as if his biggest regret was not being there.

Qian Ning was puzzled.

Has Jiang Bin changed his ways?

The fact that Prince Ning was making firearms and using them in actual combat shows that the firearms were quite powerful. Jiang Bin not only did not attack Prince Ning for his ulterior motives, but also praised their effectiveness and put Prince Ning's son on the list of those who wanted to claim credit, even ranking him at the top.

This is just short of awarding Zhu Yi the top credit.

Qian Ning laughed and said, "I was worried that some people would say that the Prince Ning's mansion had other schemes. After all, making firearms is not something that princes should do."

Zhu Houzhao nodded slightly and said, "If they were to manufacture it secretly, they would definitely have ulterior motives. But since they have the capability to manufacture it and have also sent it to me along with the people and craftsmanship, what more could I ask for?"

"Then... could there be better muskets that Prince Ning hasn't reported?" Qian Ning seemed unsure of his stance at this point.

Zhu Houzhao laughed and said, "Isn't Tang Yin the one who made firearms? Do you think that Prince Ning, a mere prince, could find someone to make better firearms? Aren't the people in the Ming Dynasty who know the most about firearms all in the capital and the nine border regions? Haha."

Zhu Houzhao clearly looked down on Prince Ning.

What right does he have to challenge me?

To say he's honest and upright is just being polite; the truth is, he only guards a tiny area. If he wants to stir up trouble, he'll have to see how big the pond is and whether it can support big fish.