The fierce grandson of the Ming Dynasty

Inside the Kunning Palace.

Seeing his eldest grandson's prompt agreement, Zhu Yuanzhang paused, then smiled and said, "I have complete confidence in entrusting this matter to my eldest grandson!"

"All the necessary gifts have been prepared by the palace..."

Empress Ma glanced at her husband and added gently, "Of course, Xiong Ying is the most sensible and obedient!"

"But it's still quite cold in the capital during the first month of the lunar calendar, and the wind is strong outside. Wear plenty of clothes when you go out, or you'll catch a cold!"

Seeing the meticulous attention to detail in the interactions between Emperor Zhu and Empress Ma.

Zhu Xiong Ying was deeply touched and quickly bowed, saying, "Grandpa, Grandma, I've remembered it all!"

Then he went to the side and massaged the two elderly people's legs and backs, being extremely attentive, but he showed no sign of leaving.

He hadn't forgotten what his grandmother had promised!

After a short while, this happened.

Seeing his beloved grandson's big eyes darting around, looking as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

Empress Ma was the first to notice it.

She paused for a moment, then realized what was happening. She nudged Old Zhu beside her with her elbow and scolded, "Chongba, look at my memory! I've been telling you this so many times during the day. Didn't we prepare a generous New Year's reward for Xiong Ying?"

"You were so busy talking about visiting relatives that you completely forgot about this. Didn't you see the child? Is he still waiting here?"

Zhu Yuanzhang realized what was happening, pulled his beloved grandson into his arms, and said, "Look at your grandfather's memory, I almost forgot about this important matter."

"Speaking of New Year's gifts, they were prepared jointly by your grandmother and us!"

"Someone, go and fetch it for us!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiong Ying became even more curious and waited eagerly.

What rare and precious things could Emperor Zhu possibly possess?

After a while, a group of eunuchs entered carrying several wooden boxes.

When the first box was opened, Zhu Yuanzhang, emboldened by the alcohol, pointed to its contents with a hint of pride and said in a loud voice, "Grandson, pick this up and take a look. This is the 'Record of Ancestral Instructions,' which I personally revised!"

"It's exactly the same version as your father's version from the Eastern Palace! Every sentence and every word in it represents the foundation of governance that we've gleaned from half a lifetime of conquering the country!"

Empress Ma, sitting to the side, added gently, "In previous years, your imperial grandfather stayed up countless nights to revise this!"

"And this set of imperial annotations has been coveted by your fourth uncle and the others for a long time. Even your imperial grandfather wouldn't part with it, saving it specifically for you, Xiong Ying!"

They knew its value and that it contained Old Zhu's expectations.

After taking it out, Zhu Xiong Ying glanced at the gilded characters on the cover and said, "Grandfather, Grandmother, rest assured! Your grandson will recite it every day!"

The following gifts were a mutton-fat jade belt, an imperial ox-horn bow made by the Imperial Household Department, and a deerskin quiver that Zhu Yuanzhang wore when he fought on the battlefield in his early years.

In addition, there is a complete set of rare Song Dynasty editions of the Four Books and Five Classics.

According to Old Zhu's explanation, these were treasures that Xu Da collected from the palace when he conquered Dadu, the capital of the Yuan Dynasty. Most of them were annotated by great Confucian scholars of the previous dynasty, but even Biao'er's father didn't have them!

If this were in the future, I wonder how much it would fetch at auction?

The last gift, however, was carefully wrapped in two layers of brocade.

Upon opening it, it turned out to be a polished bronze breastplate with cracks on the edge and a small "Zhu" character engraved on the back!

No need to ask further, the story is there!

After a while.

Zhu Yuanzhang picked up the breastplate and rubbed the cracked surface, filled with reminiscence, saying, "My dear grandson, you don't know, but this breastplate was something I carried with me when we raised our army in Haozhou!"

"I remember that year, we were surrounded by Yuan soldiers in the city, and an arrow shot into my chest. I only survived because this mirror blocked it!"

"Later, during the battles of Jiqing and Poyang, it never left my chest. And this crack was made by a sword when I fought against Zhang Shicheng's generals on the battlefield!"

"When Yu Anqing was there, Zhou Dian and Tie Guanzi (Zhang Zhong) saw it and both said it was a gift from the gods, a treasure to protect our Great Ming Dynasty!"

Zhu Xiong Ying knew.

The Zhou Dian mentioned here is also known as Zhou Dianxian.

When Zhu De captured Nanchang, this man, acting like a madman, blocked Zhu De's horse and shouted, "Peace be with you!"

At first, Zhu didn't take it seriously, but after seeing some of its strange features, he took it with him to the army.

After the defeat of Chen Youliang, Zhou Dian immediately took his leave and went into seclusion in Mount Lu, disappearing without a trace.

Zhang Zhong, also known as the Iron-Crowned Taoist, was an expert in feng shui and physiognomy, and was considered one of Zhu Yuanzhang's core advisors in his early years.

Upon seeing Old Zhu for the first time, he remarked, "With dragon eyes and phoenix eyes, his nobility is beyond words; he will surely become emperor one day!"

In fact, even the feng shui layout of the imperial tombs and palaces was designed by Zhang Zhong.

Unfortunately, in the thirteenth year of the Hongwu reign, just before the Hu Weiyong case, this man retired after achieving his goal and disappeared without a trace.

In the early Ming Dynasty, besides these two legendary figures full of divine aura, there was also Zhang Sanfeng!

According to folklore, when Old Zhu was begging for food and down on his luck, he once had a chance encounter with Zhang Sanfeng.

He also said, "If you follow the will of Heaven and the will of the people, you will surely achieve great things in the future!"

However, after Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he searched for half his life, even arresting Zhang's apprentice Shen Wansan and exiling him to Yunnan, but he still couldn't force him to show up.

at the moment.

But judging from his grandfather's tone...

The protective mirror in front of me is none other than the Zhu family's heirloom!

Its value goes without saying!

After a moment's hesitation, Zhu Yuanzhang handed over the breastplate and solemnly said, "Grandson, I'm entrusting this to you today. Please keep it safe!"

Empress Ma added from the side, "Xiong Ying, since your imperial grandfather has spoken, hurry up and accept it!"

"This item may not be any gold or silver treasure, but it saved your grandfather's life and is the very path that led to the founding of our Ming Dynasty. It must be kept safe!"

Since things had been said to this extent, Zhu Xiong Ying had no choice but to accept it.

He accepted it, bowed deeply, and said, "Grandson kowtows to thank His Majesty for his great favor!"

"Back then, my grandfather used it to conquer the vast land of the Ming Dynasty! In two years, I, your grandson, will also use it to destroy the Northern Yuan and annihilate the Japanese pirates, creating eternal peace for our Ming Dynasty..."

What I have said comes entirely from the bottom of my heart.

How could Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma not understand?

In their joy, the two felt a sense of admiration.

But then the eldest grandson summoned a eunuch, who carried all the gifts back to his bedroom.

The warm pavilion suddenly became much quieter.

Empress Ma picked up the jujube tea and handed it to her husband, sighing, "That breastplate has been with you, Chongba, for almost thirty years; it's your life-saving item!"

"Even the second, third, and fourth sons, how many times did they pester you for a touch when they were little, and you wouldn't even let them touch you more than once? But today you gave it to your eldest grandson without batting an eye?"

Zhu Yuanzhang's imposing demeanor vanished, his gaze softened, and he took the teacup, took a sip, and laughed heartily, "Don't you even look at our eldest sister? How can they be the same?"

"Our eldest grandson is our legitimate heir, the rightful successor to the Ming Dynasty after Crown Prince Biao'er! Only by giving him this breastplate can we avoid disgracing the sword and knife he blocked back then!"

"As for the second, third, and fourth sons, those brats have all been enfeoffed as princes, each guarding their own territory. If they can live up to our expectations, manage their own little plot of land well, not prey on the people, and not cause trouble, then they've done their job!"