The fierce grandson of the Ming Dynasty

Kunning Palace.

Hearing Lao Zhu say that he would stand up for him.

Zhu Xiongying was delighted.

Sure enough, Old Zhu dotes on his eldest grandson the most!

It's clear that they didn't hold yesterday's matter against them.

As for the thirteenth prince, he was beaten for nothing.

Of all the people in the world, only Prince Yu, Zhu Gui, was injured...

And he, little Zhu, also established his authority in front of everyone!

From now on, if I don't like someone, I should reason with them first.

The "principle" in physics.

If we can't beat them, we'll go find Old Zhu.

But then, Zhu Xiong Ying noticed a noise coming from the side hall.

He was always eager for a good show and immediately threw out a potentially disastrous question.

"Grandson has remembered what Grandpa said! If Grandmother and I have different opinions, will Grandpa side with me?"

It turns out that the good grandson has gotten involved with a girl.

Zhu Yuanzhang's smile froze, and even the memorials at hand lost their appeal. He pondered for a moment, feeling somewhat guilty, and then stroked his beard, saying, "Of course, Your Majesty is..."

Just as Old Zhu was about to answer, he suddenly noticed his eldest grandson's peripheral vision, which kept glancing behind him.

He stopped abruptly, chuckled twice, and said, "What we just said was that we wanted to get rid of your imperial grandmother!"

"After all, how could our girl make a mistake in her words and actions?"

"snort!"

A soft humming sound rang out, and it was none other than Empress Ma, draped in an outer robe, striding up to the grandmother and grandson.

"Royal Grandmother!!"

Zhu Xiong Ying hurriedly called out and jogged over.

At that moment, Zhu Yuanzhang stood up, changed the subject, and asked, "Why aren't you asleep, sister?"

Seeing that it was cold at night, the eldest grandson was dressed in thin clothes.

As Empress Ma took off her outer robe and draped it over her grandson, pulling him into her arms, she rolled her eyes in annoyance and said, "Last night, I could see you were preoccupied, tossing and turning. How could I sleep well?"

"Besides, Xiong Ying, just like Biao'er, Shuang'er, and Di'er when they were little, is always a restless sleeper, constantly pulling back the covers!"

"It's easy to catch a cold at night, and I was worried about it, so I came to check on you..."

Both Empress Ma and Zhu Yuanzhang were people who valued relationships.

They talked about their children's childhood.

It's inevitable that I miss them a lot, and my voice became much weaker.

The longer we spend time together...

Zhu Xiong Ying's feelings are the most fitting.

Besides their status and position.

In every other respect, they are no different from ordinary elderly people!

During holidays and festivals, I think of my children who live away from home and want them to come home to visit often!

Unfortunately, being born into royalty meant being unable to control one's own destiny!

After a moment, Old Zhu sighed, "My second, third, and fourth sons have been enfeoffed for quite some time now!"

"However, the situation in various places is complex, and it will probably be difficult to return to Beijing for a family reunion in the short term..."

"We understand how you feel, sister! In a couple of months, we'll send a letter to the fourth brother and the others, inviting Gao Chi and Ji Xi to the capital!"

"It will be nice to have a lively celebration in the palace during the New Year..."

Upon hearing this, Empress Ma's expression softened considerably.

Zhu Xiong Ying was also somewhat excited.

Zhu Gaochi was eight years old at this time. He was the eldest son of his fourth uncle and the famous Emperor Renzong in later generations!

Zhu Jixi was his third uncle's eldest son, two years younger than him...

Once all these cousins ​​have gathered in the capital, they must answer the call, follow their elder brother, and do great things together!

After a while.

By candlelight.

After discussing family matters...

Zhu Yuanzhang was a workaholic, and as he began to deal with documents, his brows furrowed deeper and deeper.

Empress Ma leaned against the chair beside her, and seeing that her beloved grandson was not sleepy, she simply pulled him onto her lap and sat down. Then she looked at her husband and said, "I see that Chongba seems to have encountered some trouble. Why don't you tell me about it?"

Hearing this, Zhu Xiong Ying gradually came back to her senses from her reverie, leaned on her grandmother's shoulder, and listened quietly.

He could also see that since the Guo Huan case was brought to the public eye yesterday, Old Zhu's face had been clouded with worry.

Could it be that something unexpected happened during the investigation?

Old Zhu's next words proved his guess.

"Sigh, to be honest, sister, the tax and labor service records that Biao'er seized from the Ministry of Revenue have been checked multiple times, and at least on the surface, there are no problems!"

"But the evidence submitted from the local authorities, when added up, is definitely less than expected... My dear sister, tell me, where did these missing parts go?"

The Yellow Register of Taxes and Labor Services was a household register created to verify household registration and levy taxes and labor services.

It was officially established four years ago, in the fourteenth year of the Hongwu reign!

As recorded in the History of Ming: "Those who submitted documents to the Ministry of Revenue used yellow paper, hence the name 'Yellow Register'."

On the surface.

Zhu Yuanzhang pondered for a day and a night, but still couldn't figure out the crux of the problem, which is why he couldn't eat or sleep.

Not long after Old Zhu finished speaking.

Zhu Xiong Ying's eyes rolled, and she slowly raised her little hand.

"Grandpa, Grandma, I think I understand why!"

"Oh?"

Two pairs of eyes looked at each other almost simultaneously.

After exchanging glances with his daughter-in-law Ma Xiuying, Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes lit up, and he laughed, "What has our grandson thought of!"

"This really relieves Grandpa's worries. In a few days, your Grandmother and I will give you a big surprise!"

Zhu Xiong Ying, neither timid nor cheerful, straightened his chest and said, "This grandson dares not speak presumptuously, but only begs His Majesty to grant me a pen!"

As he spoke, he left his grandmother's embrace, stepped onto the table, and took the small calligraphy brush that Old Zhu handed him.

Empress Ma's heart stirred, and she followed.

Then, the beloved grandson picked up a brush and, stroke by stroke, wrote the lowercase character "一".

After doing all this, he added a horizontal line above and below the character "一", instantly turning it into "三".

Add a small vertical line above the character “十” to make it “千”.

This cycle repeats itself endlessly, causing the numbers to constantly change.

But then Zhu's eyes suddenly narrowed, and Empress Ma's phoenix eyes became deep and unfathomable.

They all suddenly understood.

Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Zhu Xiong Ying revealed the answer to the mystery.

"Grandpa, Grandma, look... this is the crux of the problem!"

"Our Great Ming Dynasty, from top to bottom, now uses simple numbers like 'one, two, three, four,' 'ten, hundred, thousand,' and 'ten thousand' for accounting. They're so easy to change!"

"Officials at all levels don't even need to destroy the original account books; they can simply add a line or two to the numbers, and one becomes three, two becomes three, ten becomes a thousand..."

"Even if the auditors check the accounts, they won't find any problems. In reality, these officials are mostly taking advantage of this loophole!"

In Chinese history, lowercase numbers existed as early as in oracle bone script.

Because it is simple and easy to learn, it has been passed down through generations.

The appearance of uppercase numerals was no later than the end of the Eastern Jin Dynasty.

As for its widespread popularity, it can be traced back to the reign of Empress Wu Zetian of the Tang Dynasty.

But the one who truly promulgated the ironclad law and changed the numerical records of money and grain to the more complex "one, two, three, four" and "hundred, thousand" was none other than Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty!

It was only during the investigation of Guo Huan's case that Lao Zhu discovered the problem and subsequently made changes.

As for today, Zhu Xiong Ying has essentially revealed the truth ahead of time.

Upon seeing this, Zhu Yuanzhang was both shocked and angry. He raised his hand, intending to slam his fist on the table.

Seeing his wife beside him, he finally held back and said, "What a despicable trick! We've been investigating for so long, and we never expected it to be such a dirty scheme!"

He then patted his grandson's head, turned and sighed, "My dear sister, look at him! Our grandson is far superior to us; he sees things so clearly! He's truly a modern-day Zhuge Liang!"

Empress Ma's expression was gentle and gratified. She glanced sideways and said, "Chongba, don't you even know who Xiong Ying grew up with!"