Parallel Ming Dynasty: The more he compared, the more devastated Zhu Yuanzhang became.

In the original world.

After watching the video where Zhu Duo proposed solutions to the various hidden dangers of the Ming Dynasty's paper money, as well as his long-term economic plan, Zhu Yuanzhang sighed softly and said, "Issue my decree: implement this method. We must thoroughly clean up the mess surrounding the Ming Dynasty's paper money."

[Yes, Your Majesty!]

Beneath Zhu Yuanzhang's throne knelt the Minister of Revenue, trembling and barely daring to breathe.

However, the Minister of Revenue in this world is not Ding Yan. In this current timeline, Yu Ting and Ding Yan, having not made any significant achievements, are still slowly accumulating seniority in the officialdom, step by step.

"Step down. I'm giving you a full year to completely resolve all the problems with the Ming Dynasty's precious paper money!"

Zhu Duo has already laid out the solution right here. If you still can't accomplish this, then we'll chop off your head!

A trace of lingering anger still lingered in Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes, but his temper had clearly subsided considerably. When he summoned the Minister of Revenue earlier, he had genuinely intended to kill him.

But after hearing Zhu Duo's complete solution, he gradually calmed down.

Such an imaginative and unconventional solution was something they couldn't have come up with even if they racked their brains. It's likely that, apart from Zhu Duo, no one else in the world could have come up with such a method.

That's why he suppressed his anger and didn't vent it on the Minister of Revenue.

Perhaps it's because he's getting older, but his temper isn't as irritable and easily angered as it was when he was younger.

If he were in his younger days, he probably would have given the order long ago to drag this Minister of Revenue out and behead him as a warning to others.

A glint of shrewdness flashed in Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes, and he secretly admired Zhu Duo, thinking to himself, "What a talent Zhu Duo is!"

At such a young age, he possesses such profound insights and keen, unique perspective. With just a glance, he saw through the fatal flaw hidden in a nation's policy.

If he were a subject of our Great Ming Dynasty, we would certainly entrust him with important responsibilities, especially since he carries the blood of the Zhu family.

It's a pity that our Zhu family only had one Zhu Yunwen; there was never a Zhu Duo!

As Zhu Yuanzhang thought this to himself, he turned to look at Zhu Yunwen standing to the side. The more he looked at him, the more suffocated he felt, thinking that this grandson of the emperor was really too disappointing.

How can we possibly entrust the vast empire of the Ming Dynasty to him with peace of mind?

Zhu Yunwen's face was full of guilt. He clearly felt his grandfather's gaze on him, but he did not dare to look up and meet his eyes.

At the same time, his heart was filled with resentment. [Why did this bizarre celestial phenomenon have to occur at this critical juncture? If it weren't for this, I would have already taken the throne from my grandfather, instead of living in constant anxiety and fear.]

Damn it! Could it be that someone is behind all this? Deliberately creating such a spectacular phenomenon just to ruin my succession to the throne?

But someone truly capable of achieving this would never stoop to the level of a mere mortal like me, and would deliberately try to belittle me.

Or is it that somewhere in this world, there really is a person named Zhu Duo? Did he first use this strange phenomenon to plant a seed in my grandfather's heart, waiting for the right moment to suddenly appear and steal the throne that should have been mine?

Zhu Yunwen's mind was a jumbled mess, a jumble of thoughts, but no matter how much he pondered, it was all in vain.

Ever since witnessing Zhu Duo's abilities in the video, the Emperor's gaze toward him has grown more and more disdainful each day.

It's possible that in the end, Grandfather might not even intend to pass the throne to me!

[What a relief! Thank goodness Zhu Duo doesn't even exist in our world. Zhu Yunwen from that other world in the video is probably in deep trouble now...]

While secretly rejoicing, Zhu Yunwen couldn't help but feel a bit of schadenfreude.

Inside the Ministry of Revenue, Yu Ting and Ding Yan watched the screen, their hearts filled with jealousy.

Why doesn't our world have a Prince Zhu Duo?

If we had known this method sooner, we would have been promoted by now.

If His Highness Zhu Duo truly existed in this world, I, Yu Ting, would follow him wholeheartedly, without the slightest disloyalty!

As the two watched the video, the young Zhu Duo explained to "them" in a parallel world how to solve the hidden dangers of the Ming Dynasty's precious paper money. They could naturally guess what would happen next.

With Zhu Duo's brilliant plan, "they" in that world, with their great merit in solving the problem of the Ming Dynasty's paper money, will surely rise to prominence, and it's not impossible for them to even become the Minister of Revenue!

But looking at themselves, they are now doing the most tiring and tedious work in the Ministry of Revenue, but their positions are neither high nor low, neither good enough nor bad enough.

Even with all the envy and jealousy in her heart, it could only turn into a long sigh: "What a pity, there is no Zhu Duo in our world."

Just then, the video feed changed, and a clip of Zhu Yunwen began to play.

At the same age of ten, Zhu Duo was working tirelessly for the country and sharing its burdens, while Zhu Yunwen, after school, would lead a group of eunuchs to sneak into the back garden and squat on the ground to count ants!

They were counting with incredible concentration.

He would also occasionally place crumbs of snacks on the ants' usual path, and when the ants ran back to get reinforcements, he would secretly move the crumbs away. Watching a group of ants running around in circles on the ground, searching for food but unable to find it, Zhu Yunwen laughed heartily, holding his stomach.

Zhu Yunwen was laughing so hard he was doubled over, and the screen was instantly flooded with "hahahahaha" comments.

{So royal children played with these things just like us when they were kids!}

I always thought royalty were all pampered and aloof, never lifting a finger! This Zhu Yunwen, on the other hand, seems quite approachable.

Looking at him reminds me of my own mischievous son. When he was little, I would ask him to help with the work in the fields, but he absolutely refused. He would just squat under a big tree, watching the ants carry grasshoppers!

I chased after him and beat him up quite a few times!

However, it's quite disappointing that Prince Zhu Yunwen, who is already over ten years old, is still playing these childish games all day long.

{Especially compared to Prince Zhu Duo, he seems far too immature.}

That's right! I paid special attention to His Highness Zhu Duo's handwriting just now. At first glance, it was the work of a master calligrapher, with vigorous strokes and a dignified style.

Looking at Prince Zhu Yunwen's handwriting, it's truly appalling. To call it crooked and uneven is already being polite.

They're both teenagers, how come there's such a big difference between them?

{He's probably been spoiled by his elders. Besides, His Highness Zhu Duo's teacher when he was young was none other than Mr. Liu Bowen!}

-

Within the new world.

As he watched the scrolling comments on the screen, Zhu Yuanzhang's face was so dark it looked like it could drip water.

It's true what they say, you can't judge a book by its cover. Before comparing him to Zhu Duo, he seemed fine, but now, compared to Zhu Duo, Zhu Yunwen appears utterly useless and utterly incapable of being of any use!

Just then, Zhu Yunwen's teacher, Huang Zicheng, finally arrived at the main hall in a hurry.

Accompanying Huang Zicheng was another of Zhu Yunwen's teachers, Qi Tai.

Qi Tai was considered one of Zhu Yunwen's most capable advisors.

When Zhu Yunwen ascended the throne and began to reduce the power of the princes, he gave Zhu Yunwen a lot of advice. Although he was not famous throughout the country, he was quite well-known in the court.

Qi Tai was discussing matters with Huang Zicheng when he learned that the Emperor had urgently summoned Huang Zicheng to the palace. He also thought that Zhu Yunwen should be by Zhu Yuanzhang's side at the moment, and was afraid that he might say or do something wrong and displease the Emperor, so he also rushed over.

"Your humble servant Huang Zicheng—", "Your humble servant Qi Tai—"

"Greetings, Your Majesty!" the two said in unison.

After saying this, they both prostrated themselves on the ground, bowing their heads and waiting for Zhu Yuanzhang to tell them to get up.

But after waiting for a long time, Zhu Yuanzhang remained silent. The two men felt a sudden unease and knew something was wrong.

Huang Zicheng, in particular, had already anticipated that Zhu Yuanzhang would settle accounts with him when the video showed him helping Zhu Yunwen deceive Crown Prince Yiwen.

As soon as he reached the entrance of the main hall, he saw a video playing of Zhu Yunwen disregarding royal dignity and playing with ants on the ground. His heart sank instantly.

Compared to Zhu Duo, who was taught by Liu Bowen, the students they taught were worlds apart, like heaven and earth!

Zhu Duo completely outclassed Zhu Yunwen!

Zhu Yuanzhang stared expressionlessly at the two men prostrate on the ground and slowly said, "Are you wondering why I won't let you get up?"

Huang Zicheng trembled and hurriedly replied in a panic, "Your Majesty must be angry with this old minister for failing to properly educate the imperial grandson. This is all due to my dereliction of duty, and I am willing to accept any punishment from Your Majesty!"

Upon seeing this, Zhu Yunwen quickly slid off his seat and knelt on the ground with a thud. His voice trembled with tears as he said, "Grandpa, this has nothing to do with the teacher. It's all because I'm young and ignorant, and too playful. Please forgive me, Grandpa. If you must punish me, punish me alone!"

"Your Highness, as the sage said: 'If the teaching is not strict, it is the teacher's laziness.'"

Back then, I was too kind-hearted and couldn't bear to discipline Your Highness strictly, which led to this mistake. Your Highness was still young then, and playing is in your nature. I should have guided and supervised your studies properly, but I failed to fulfill this responsibility.

Therefore, this matter has absolutely nothing to do with Your Highness; it is entirely the fault of this old minister, who cannot shirk his responsibility.

Huang Zicheng never looked up; his forehead was pressed tightly against the cold ground, and his gray hair hung down to the ground, making him look very pitiful.

The princes standing to the side felt a pang of pity upon seeing this.

On his throne, Zhu Yuanzhang remained expressionless, his sharp eyes seemingly able to see through people's hearts, having already seen through their scrambling to take responsibility—it was all just a way to protect themselves.

But was Zhu Yuanzhang really so angry that he lost his mind?

While Huang Zicheng cannot be entirely blamed for this, as the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, it would be absolutely unacceptable for him to ignore the matter.

After all, his grandson, who was already over ten years old, was still squatting on the ground playing with ants, a fact that had been witnessed by all the people of the Ming Dynasty!

Therefore, he must give an explanation to the people of the world.

We must let all the people of the world know that the Zhu family's rule is reliable!

"Get up, everyone."

Zhu Yuanzhang finally closed his eyes slowly, no longer looking at Huang Zicheng.

"Considering your hard work in teaching the prince over the years, I will not pursue this matter further today."

"However, your official rank will be reduced by one level, and your salary will also be reduced accordingly. Besides, you are getting old, and your health may not be able to withstand it. So you should retire from the Imperial Academy."

"Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty!"

Huang Zicheng harbored no resentment. He bowed respectfully once more before standing up. He glanced subconsciously at Zhu Duo on the screen, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

"If only I had taught Zhu Duo instead of Zhu Yunwen back then..."

The video of Zhu Duo was still playing in the background.

Time flew by and it was the height of summer. One day, after leaving the palace, Zhu Duo strolled along the bustling streets. Suddenly, he stopped in front of a shop selling saltpeter.

{Original World: What is Prince Zhu Duo trying to do?}

{New World: Could it be that His Highness Zhu Duo wants to make fireworks?}

{New World: Saltpeter has many uses! I've heard that the muskets used in the army are made of saltpeter. Back when His Majesty was conquering the world, he relied on muskets to wreak havoc, routing Chen Youliang's army!}

{Original World: Besides making muskets and fireworks, saltpeter doesn't seem to have any other use.}

Zhu Duo was somewhat surprised to see shops selling saltpeter on the street, but then he thought that although there was some control over saltpeter in this era, it was not to the point of strictly prohibiting its sale to the public, so he was relieved.

Without saying a word, Zhu Duo took out his silver and bought the entire shop, along with all the saltpeter inside.

{New World: Prince Zhu Duo is so rich! He casually tossed out a hundred taels of silver and bought the entire shop!}

{New World: After all, Prince Zhu Duo is a member of the royal family, so it's perfectly normal for him to have this much money.}

If he doesn't have money, he can just borrow it from Mr. Liu Bowen.

Besides, those two officials from the Ministry of Revenue still owed him favors; asking them for some money would be a piece of cake.

{Original World: But I'm still very curious, what exactly does Prince Zhu Duo intend to do with so much saltpeter?}

One comment after another appeared on the screen, with everyone expressing their doubts and speculating about Zhu Duo's purpose in buying so much saltpeter.

Soon, Zhu Duo provided the answer to everyone through his actions.

Zhu Duo first found a clean small earthenware jar, filled it with water, and then brought over a larger earthenware basin, placing the small earthenware jar filled with water into the large earthenware basin.

He poured water into the gap between the two containers, and then dumped the saltpeter and several other stones he had bought into the water in the large earthenware basin.

A burst of white, cold air instantly emanated from the large earthenware basin. When Zhu Duo took out the small earthenware jar inside, the comments on the screen exploded!

Because the clear water in the small earthenware jar had turned into crystal-clear pieces of ice!

Saltpeter for making ice!

This scene shocked everyone in the original world, as well as the vast majority of ordinary people in the new world!