Ming Dynasty: Charge, Emperor Yongle!

Chapter 93: Bloodbath at the Six Marquis Mansions, the Capital Trembles at the Name of the Prince of Yan!

In the fifth year of the Hongwu reign, in the middle of the twelfth lunar month, at the Jinyiwei (Im

"Your Highness."

"No fewer than two hundred people gathered at the Yongjia Marquis's residence."

"They are all adopted sons and nephews of the Marquis of Yongjia over the years, as well as the sons of tenant farmers on his estates."

Geng Tianbi, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, looked gloomy; the matter was escalating rapidly.

"What about the others?"

Zhu Di asked calmly.

"Your Highness."

Commander Mao Xiang's eyes flashed with a fierce light as he reported, "The residences of the Marquis of Yan'an, the Marquis of Ji'an, the Marquis of Jiangxia, the Marquis of Huai'an, and the Marquis of Jining have all strengthened their defenses recently. There are patrols day and night in the residences, and they are armed with long swords and shields."

"hehe."

Zhu Di smiled coldly and said sarcastically, "It seems they all know they have committed heinous crimes."

"However, some people think they have enough power to turn the world upside down."

"Zhang Wu, send someone to the Shenji Camp to order Liu Sheng to send three hundred musketeers, and also six muskets."

"Yes."

Without saying a word, Zhang Wu, the commander of the guards, went down to make the arrangements.

"Issue the order to summon all the imperial guards from the five capitals and the Northern Garrison Command to immediately seal off the six marquis residences and prevent anyone from entering or leaving."

"Your Highness."

Geng Tianbi's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly advised, "Shouldn't this matter be reported to His Majesty first?"

Just kidding. Six marquises, unlike the officials arrested by the Embroidered Uniform Guard before, the highest of whom was only the Vice Minister of Revenue. If they were to take action against them, the noble families of Huaixi would be in an uproar.

"His Majesty has decreed that the affairs of the Embroidered Uniform Guard shall be handled entirely by me."

"By imperial decree, we can act first and report later!"

"Do I need to tell you what that means?"

Zhu Di narrowed his eyes, his tone indifferent and devoid of any emotion.

"Yes."

Geng Tianbi had no choice but to agree and go to make the arrangements.

After watching him leave, Zhu Di said indifferently, "It seems that our Commander-in-Chief is not suitable to take charge of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

"Mao Xiang, you should discuss the matter of the Embroidered Uniform Guard with Jiang Huan and Song Zhong."

"Yes."

A hint of joy flashed across Mao Xiang's eyes, which was an admission that he was going to be promoted to the position of Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

At noon, the sun was high in the sky, and the chill of Nanjing seemed to be dispelled.

"Giddy up! Giddy up! Giddy up!"

A group of Imperial Guards officers and strongmen, dressed in goose-shaped hats and brocade robes with swords at their waists, walked through the streets and alleys with expressionless faces.

After this period of preparation, everyone in the capital knew of the Jinyiwei's fearsome reputation, and the common people avoided them at all costs.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince."

"Something terrible has happened!"

A eunuch rushed into the East Palace in a great hurry, stumbling and almost falling to the ground.

"What's the matter that you're in such a panic?"

Zhu Biao, who was reviewing memorials, frowned, put down his brush, and looked somewhat displeased.

"Your Highness."

"Your Highness, the Prince of Yan has mobilized the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

"Several thousand people were mobilized from the five garrisons in the capital and the Northern Garrison Command, as well as the Prince of Yan's Guard: three hundred musketeers from the Divine Machine Battalion."

What?

Upon hearing the news, Zhu Biao could no longer sit still. He jumped to his feet, his face filled with shock: "What did you say? Fourth Brother mobilized the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Divine Machine Battalion?"

"Your Highness the Crown Prince."

The eunuch added, trembling, "His Highness Prince Yan is leading the Imperial Guards to surround the residences of the Marquis of Yongjia, the Marquis of Yan'an, the Marquis of Ji'an, the Marquis of Jiangxia, the Marquis of Huai'an, and the Marquis of Jining."

Boom!

Zhu Biao seemed to have been struck by lightning, frozen in place.

After a moment, he came to his senses and roared, "Summon Sheng Yong and tell him to immediately take men to stop the Prince of Yan!"

"Yes."

The eunuchs serving the Crown Prince hurriedly went to relay the order, and more than a dozen Crown Prince guards rode out of the palace and galloped towards the Yongjia Marquis's residence.

At this moment, Prince Yan, Zhu Di, personally led 500 Imperial Guards and 300 Divine Machine Battalion commanders to the Yongjia Marquis's residence. The residence was surrounded by Imperial Guards from all sides, and not even a mosquito could fly out. The scene was tense and deadly. The surrounding officials and nobles stayed indoors, fearing that they would be caught in the crossfire.

"preparation!"

Jiang, the garrison commander of the Northern Garrison, drew his embroidered spring knife from his waist.

"Splash!"

The imperial guards present drew their swords, the flashing blades reflecting on their cold, stern faces, sending chills down one's spine.

"Da da da! Da da da!"

A sudden sound of horses' hooves in the distance interrupted their journey. Sheng Yong arrived at the scene, panting, and shouted, "His Highness the Crown Prince has given an order!"

"His Highness the Crown Prince has decreed: the Embroidered Uniform Guards shall return to their posts, and the guards of all dukes and marquises shall return to their respective residences. Those who disobey this order shall be punished according to military law."

"Your Highness."

Mao Xiang, Jiang, and others all looked at Zhu Di.

"Can His Highness the Crown Prince's orders control the Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

"The Embroidered Uniform Guard only obeys His Majesty's imperial edicts."

Zhu Di didn't even glance at Sheng Yong, and said indifferently, "Marquis Yongjia, Zhu Liangzu, gathered a crowd to plot rebellion, and his crime deserves to be punished."

"Come on, adjust the bowl-shaped gun."

"yes!"

The three hundred Shenji Battalion fire commanders ignored Sheng Yong. As the guards of the Prince of Yan, they naturally had no need to fear the Crown Prince. The group pushed the two bowl-shaped guns to the front of the Yongjia Marquis's mansion on their own, while the fire commanders behind them began to fill the single-eyed guns with medicine.

"Your Highness, Prince Yan!"

"Please think twice before you act!"

Sheng Yong dismounted and stepped forward to advise Zhu Di.

"Get out of the way."

Zhu Di's cold gaze swept over him, and Sheng Yong trembled. He had no choice but to step aside. He had not forgotten that the young man in front of him had destroyed the Northern Yuan with only eight hundred Ming soldiers and conquered Karakorum. His bloodthirstiness was so great that no one could control him.

"ignition!"

With Zhu Di's command, the fuses of the two cannons were lit.

next moment.

"Boom! Boom!"

White smoke quickly billowed out, and from the orange flames, stone projectiles the size of bowls shot out, piercing directly through the gate of the Yongjia Marquis's residence.

"ah?!"

A piercing scream came from behind the door, and two huge holes appeared before everyone's eyes.

"Bang! Bang!!"

Seeing this, the imperial guards quickly brought out a battering ram and smashed down the gate of the Marquis's mansion.

Before everyone appeared a group of fierce figures clad in armor and armed with weapons. Zhu Liangzu, the Marquis of Yongjia, stood at the very front, his blood-red eyes fixed on Zhu Di, as if he wished he could tear him apart and devour him.

"kill!!!"

Zhu Liangzu roared, and his adopted son, adopted nephew, servants and guards behind him charged toward Prince Yan, Zhu Di, with ferocious expressions.

To catch the thief, first catch the king. As long as they capture Zhu Di, they still have hope.

However, what they didn't expect was that they were greeted by three hundred fire-commanding soldiers from the Divine Machine Battalion.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The first rank of arquebusiers lit their fuses early, and the one-eyed commander aimed ahead, spraying out countless lead bullets.

"Pfft!"

The lead bullets pierced through the iron armor completely, hitting them directly and leaving large, bloody holes.

"Second row, place them!"

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The front row knelt down, the back row stood up, aimed at the enemy, and opened fire again.

Then came the third rank, which took turns providing cover fire. The three-stage firing tactic demonstrated unprecedented and terrifying power in this narrow area.

Before the hundreds of servants and guards of the Yongjia Marquis's mansion could even get close, they had already fallen into pools of blood, and the air was filled with the stench of blood.

"Capture and kill the traitor! Charge!"

Mao Xiang, the deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, personally rushed out of the crowd, taking the lead.

"kill!"

The group of imperial guards, their eyes filled with a desire to achieve great deeds, all turned to face the remaining people from the Yongjia Marquis's residence.

For a time, the two sides engaged in fierce fighting, with shouts of battle and the clang of metal echoing throughout the air.

"Zhu Liangzu".

"Are you very curious about how your youngest son died?"

"Although I didn't see it with my own eyes, I can guess what it is."

"Before Zhu Yu died, he was in unbearable pain all over his body, scratching his ears and cheeks, his face contorted in a terrifying grimace."

Zhu Di played with the prayer beads in his hand and slowly began to speak.

"It was you, it really was you who did it."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Liangzu's eyes nearly bled, hatred surfaced on his face, and his whole body was filled with murderous intent.

"Of course it's me, the king."

"Oh, right, and your eldest son, Zhu Xian, died without ever understanding how he died."

"Because I had his head chopped off with a single stroke, and blood gushed from his neck, staining the floor tiles of the Imperial Guard Commander's residence red."

"Tsk tsk tsk, you almost dirtied my boots."

"You should thank me for allowing you and your son to enjoy some more family time."

Zhu Di raised an eyebrow, looking at Zhu Liangzu with interest.

"I'm going to kill you!"

Unable to contain his hatred any longer, Zhu Liangzu brandished his long sword and charged directly at Zhu Di.

"Your Highness."

Zhang Wu and the other guards immediately stepped forward, wanting to protect Zhu Di, but Zhu Di shouted at them to step back: "Step back!"

And so, Zhu Liangzu rushed in front of Zhu Di as if he were in an empty field, his long sword ready to strike. Zhu Di lightly stepped to the side and dodged, then casually drew the Embroidered Spring Blade from the guard's waist, applied his strength to it, and swung it heavily from bottom to top.

"Clang!"

The long sword in Zhu Liangzu's hand was cleaved in two, and the tip fell straight to the ground.

"Smack!!!"

Zhu Di, holding the Embroidered Spring Blade, slashed it sharply with the back of the blade, leaving a mark directly on Zhu Liangzu's face.

"Pfft!"

Zhu Liangzu was struck by the immense force of the blade, and most of his teeth, still bleeding, fell to the ground, leaving half of his face swollen and purple.

"How dare you?"

"Gather six marquises and ambush me in Anqing Prefecture."

"Smack!!!"

Zhu Di struck Zhu Liangzu's left cheek with another blow, knocking out all his remaining teeth.

"Cough cough."

Zhu Liangzu coughed a few times, spitting out bloody teeth, staring at Zhu Di with resentment in his eyes, and said ferociously, "If it weren't for your good father, you little beast, I would have killed you long ago."

"When I was fighting and shedding blood for the Ming Dynasty, you didn't even know where you were."

46

"My biggest regret is that I didn't kill Zhu Chongba with one blow back then. Otherwise, how could you, this little beast, have been born?"

"How dare you, Marquis of Yongjia!"

Upon hearing this, Sheng Yong was terrified and angrily rebuked Zhu Liangzu.

If these words were to get out, Zhu Yuanzhang would likely be furious, and at that point, mountains of corpses and seas of blood would be unstoppable.

"Zhu Chongba was an idiot."

"Back then, I betrayed him, and he forgave me with just one sentence."

"I sent someone to assassinate his son, and he didn't dare utter a sound."

"Hahaha!"

Zhu Liangzu laughed maniacally, his voice echoing in all directions.

The sky has fallen!

Sheng Yong's face turned ashen. Zhu Liangzu's words had completely exposed the dark side of the Ming Dynasty, and the emperor would surely be furious.

"I'd like to know if you'll still be as stubborn as you are now."

Zhu Di placed one foot on Zhu Liangzu's head and said coldly, "Didn't you want to know how I killed Zhu Yu?"

"Don't worry, I'll take you to be with him right away."

"You little beast, come here."

Zhu Liangzu spat out a mouthful of blood and roared loudly, completely disregarding Zhu Di.

"call out!!!"

Zhu Di's eyes were colder than ever before. He gently waved his right hand, sending a burst of hidden energy into Zhu Liangzu's body.

In an instant, the hidden force entered his body, traveling along his meridians and bones, violently destroying his capillaries. Blood seeped from his pores, making him look as ferocious and terrifying as a demon crawling out of hell.

"ah?!!!"

Zhu Liangzu was tormented by this persistent, stabbing force, writhing on the ground in agony, tearing at his flesh with his bare hands. Even the profuse bleeding did nothing to lessen his pain. Everyone who witnessed this scene was horrified.

The screams and wails continued for a full quarter of an hour before Zhu Liangzu bit off his tongue and committed suicide.

"Pfft!"

With a swift stroke of his long sword, Zhu Liangzu was instantly decapitated, blood gushing from his neck.

"Guards, hang the head of the traitor Zhu Liangzu at Fengtian Gate."

97

"Yes."

The imperial guards, dressed in brocade robes, grabbed Zhu Liangzu's head and galloped off towards the palace.

"Your Highness."

"Marquis Tang Shengzong of Yan'an, Marquis Lu Zhongheng of Ji'an, and Marquis Zhou Dexing of Jiangxia gathered a crowd to rebel and were beheaded on the spot."

"Marquis of Huai'an, Hua Yunlong, and Marquis of Jining, Gu Shi, surrendered without resistance, and their entire families were imprisoned."

Geng Tianbi, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, rushed over to report.

Upon hearing these words, Sheng Yong felt a wave of dizziness wash over him. It was all over. All six marquises were finished, and so was he.

"All the criminals' relatives were taken back to the imperial prison, and six marquis residences were sealed off."

Zhu Di glanced at Geng Tianbi and gave the order.

"Yes."

Geng Tianbi turned around and went down to relay the order.

“Wuwu!”

"Go! Go quickly!"

With the execution of Marquis Yongjia Zhu Liangzu and his servants, adopted sons, and adopted nephews, there was no longer any resistance within the Marquis's mansion. The imperial guards drove out the women and servants one by one and confiscated their gold, silver, jade, antiques, and calligraphy.

More than two hundred corpses were piled up in front of the gate, doused with hot oil, and set on fire. Thick black smoke billowed into the sky, attracting the attention of countless people.

The six marquisate residences were all located in the most prosperous area of ​​the capital, a place where most dukes, marquises, and imperial relatives lived. The close proximity of the battle alarmed everyone.

The name of Prince Yan, Zhu Di, once again resounded throughout Yingtian Prefecture. This time, however, he brought not fame but infamy. He single-handedly slaughtered six marquis families, and who would not tremble with fear upon hearing it!