The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the Somersault Cloud, Old Zhu was so envious he cried!

Zhu Yuanzhang was getting happier and happier as he thought about it, but when he turned his head, the expression on his face changed completely.

The Hongwu Emperor, who had just slammed his fist on the table in the imperial court, scaring all the officials into a panic, was nowhere to be seen.

Instead, she wore a sickeningly sweet, ingratiating smile that seemed to drip honey from her wrinkles.

He crouched down and approached Zhu Ming, bowing so low that he was eight degrees lower than when he saw his own father.

"Ming'er... my good son... my dear Ming'er..."

Zhu Ming was munching on a piece of osmanthus cake, not even glancing at him.

Old Zhu, however, didn't feel embarrassed at all. Instead, he went a step further, using his sleeve to wipe the crumbs from Zhu Ming's mouth, his tone so gentle it could melt honey:

"Look, this is called something like the 'Mirror of Reincarnation,' such a precious magical artifact. It's not safe for a six-year-old like you to have it in your hands!"

"It would be such a waste if it were to fall or break. Why don't you give it to your father and let him keep it for you?"

"What? You won't give it to me? I'm your own father, you think I'd swallow you whole?"

Zhu Ming swallowed the osmanthus cake, turned his back to him, and then turned away from him.

Undeterred, Old Zhu took small, quick steps to the other side and continued to smile apologetically:

"Besides, what use is this mirror to a little kid like you? To turn it into gold? You don't spend any money. To turn it into food? You have the gourmet tablecloth your master gave you; you can conjure up whatever you want to eat."

"If this treasure is in your hands, it's like casting pearls before swine—but if it's in your father's hands, it will be put to good use, you understand?"

He became more and more agitated as he spoke, and slapped his chest:

"I promise you, I'll only lend it to you for three days! Not a day more! I'll use it to do something important for the people of the world, and I'll return it to you as soon as it's done!"

Zhu Ming simply slid off the stool and covered his ears with his two little hands.

"I won't listen, I won't listen, you're just spouting nonsense."

Old Zhu: "..."

Zhu Biao, who was standing next to him, couldn't hold back and burst out laughing. He quickly covered his mouth with his sleeve.

Empress Ma held her teacup, her shoulders swaying, spilling two drops of tea.

Old Zhu's face turned bright red.

Since he became emperor, who among the imperial harem, civil and military officials dared to show him the slightest disrespect?

Now look what's happened. In front of her six-year-old son, she's said all the sweet things she's never said before, and he still won't respond.

Undeterred, he pulled out a gleaming gold ingot from his pocket and waved it in front of Zhu Ming:

"Ming'er, look what this is! Dad just found it in the treasury, it's pure gold, you can play marbles with it. And that mirror..."

Zhu Ming glanced at the gold ingot and snorted:

"I have as much gold as I want, why would I care about yours?"

After saying that, the little guy wiggled around and slipped away without looking back.

Old Zhu stood frozen in place, holding the gold ingot, when a gust of wind blew in from the palace entrance, making his beard twitch.

He suddenly felt that being an emperor was a bit boring!

Old Zhu was met with a rebuff. He stood frozen in place, holding the gold ingot, unsure whether to raise it or put it down, his old face turning a deep purplish-red.

Left with no other choice, he could only turn his pleading gaze to Empress Ma.

He understood.

In this vast palace, Xiao Liuzi acted as if he hadn't heard a word anyone else said.

But as long as his mother speaks, it's more effective than any imperial decree.

Let alone borrowing a mirror, even if it meant getting Xiao Liuzi to spit out the osmanthus cake he had just eaten, his mother could do it.

He didn't say anything at the moment, but kept glancing at Empress Ma.

Seeing Empress Ma lower her head to drink tea, he would glance even closer; seeing Empress Ma purse her lips with a handkerchief, he would raise his eyebrows even higher; eventually, he even started shrugging his shoulders and gesturing his chin toward Zhu Ming.

The meaning couldn't be clearer:

Good sister, good queen, my good sister, please say a few good words for me and borrow that mirror for us. We can use it for two days, just two days, okay?

Everyone in the room pretended not to see it.

Zhu Biao stared at the toe of his shoe, studying the cloud pattern on it with great care, as if a flower were embroidered on the shoe.

Empress Ma held her teacup, blew away the foam, and slowly sipped it, without even lifting her eyelids to look at Old Zhu.

She had been married to Zhu Chongba for so many years, from their humble beginnings in Zhongli Township to this Fengtian Palace. Ma Xiuying knew Zhu Chongba's character all too well.

I asked her to help me borrow a mirror, and she said it would take three days, but then another three days passed.

What if he doesn't give it to her then? How will she explain it to Ming'er?

In the end, Empress Ma, seeing his dedication to "serving the country and its people," softened her heart and decided to help him this time.

She put down her teacup, beckoned to Zhu Ming, and explained the reasoning to her son in detail: "If this mirror were used for the right purpose, it could save countless starving people in the world."

When Zhu Ming saw that it was his mother who spoke, he agreed without thinking.

This scene made Old Zhu, who was standing next to him, feel so uncomfortable that his teeth ached.

How come his words carry so much weight?!

He had just said all the nice things and even offered a gold ingot, but the other person didn't even lift an eyelid.

His mother just casually said one sentence, and this little brat agreed without even flinching!

Old Zhu stood to the side, looking extremely aggrieved and resentful.

But while Zhu Ming agreed, at the very end, he deliberately raised his head and earnestly gave a word of advice:

"A mirror may be borrowed. But you must be careful, for it can copy anything in the world except people."

The people in the room were all taken aback.

Zhu Ming frowned slightly and explained, word by word:

"Everything replicated by this mirror is the opposite of reality. The one that walks out of the mirror is not a soulless shadow; it has its own thoughts."

"The happier and more fulfilling your life is in reality, the more he hates you in the mirror. Then he will find a way to kill you, take your place, and live your life in your place."

After Zhu Ming finished speaking, the people in the hall felt a chill run down their spines.

Who would have thought?

What emerged from the mirror wasn't an obedient clone, but a living, breathing monster with its own thoughts, who even went against you.

The better you live, the more it wants to kill you.

Zhu Yuanzhang was stunned and stood there.

He was feeling quite pleased with himself just moments before.

He originally thought that the cloned person was a carbon copy of the original, with the same personality and mindset, and that life and death were entirely in the hands of the original, like his own clone or puppet, who would dare not do as he was told to do.

He had even figured out how to use it: first, replicate a hundred or two hundred thousand elite troops, all of them heavy cavalry, with bright armor and gleaming swords and spears.

Then sweep across the four seas and unify the world!

What Northern Yuan, what Japanese pirates, what red-haired barbarians, they all kneel down and sing "Conquer" to our Great Ming.

But upon hearing Zhu Ming's words,

A layer of cold sweat suddenly broke out on Old Zhu's forehead.

So this clone can turn against you?!

If he were to actually replicate an army of one million, those one million traitors would turn around and the first person they would want to kill would probably be him, the Hongwu Emperor.

Zhu Yuanzhang was quite self-aware in this respect!