Upon hearing the noise outside, Zhu Yuanzhang narrowed his eyes, then spoke calmly:

"Has it finally arrived?"

Meanwhile, in the imperial court, the officials all looked toward the entrance of the large store.

At this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang slowly stood up and then said expressionlessly:

"Announce that the King of Chechi and the Prince of Chechi are to have an audience."

As soon as he finished speaking, the King and Prince of Chechi Kingdom quickly entered.

They were still very nervous. After all, the Ming Dynasty was indeed very powerful, and the emperor who founded the Ming Dynasty would inevitably have a great psychological burden.

Moreover, they were already feeling guilty from the start, so naturally they were somewhat conflicted in the face of this situation.

But it's too late to regret it now. We're already here, so we have no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.

Having witnessed the power of the Ming Dynasty, they realized that Chechi Kingdom, located in the south, was nothing special.

It is precisely because people understand the power of the Ming Dynasty that they feel nervous.

Putting everything else aside, just look at the Ming Dynasty's imperial palace. Compared to the palace of the Chechi Kingdom, it is infinitely more high-end and grand.

This spacious hall, this majestic and imposing imperial court, with civil and military officials standing in rows on both sides...

This scene served as a stark reminder to the King and Prince of Chechi Kingdom of just how terrifying the gap was between the Ming Dynasty and Chechi Kingdom.

Especially when they walked up to the main hall and saw Zhu Yuanzhang sitting on the imposing dragon throne, their spirits trembled slightly.

Ultimately, how could the king of Chechi Kingdom be compared to the emperor of the Ming Dynasty?

How can he be compared to Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty?

Both are rulers of the same country, yet the difference between them is like heaven and earth, completely incomparable.

At this moment, the prince of Chechi Kingdom was also secretly shocked.

He even thought how lucky he would be if he could be born as a prince of the Ming Dynasty.

Just as he was lost in thought, the King of Chechi Kingdom crossed his chest with one hand, bowed deeply to Zhu Yuanzhang, and said:

"The King of Chechi Kingdom, accompanied by the Prince of Chechi Kingdom, greets His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty..."

Zhu Yuanzhang remained silent, merely observing the King and Prince of Chechi bowing to him.

After a moment, he slowly began to speak:

"No need for formalities... King of Chechi Kingdom, have you come to my Great Ming Dynasty to explain the matter of my grandson?"

If so, don't waste time. Produce compelling evidence as soon as possible to prove that the death of my Ming Dynasty's crown prince has nothing to do with the Chechi Kingdom or you.

Otherwise, this trip will likely only lead you to your death.

Zhu Yuanzhang's blunt words gave the King of Chechi Kingdom a bad feeling for no reason.

But he still insisted on saying:

"Your Majesty the Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty, the death of the Crown Prince has absolutely nothing to do with our Chechi Kingdom. Although the death of His Highness the Crown Prince is something our Chechi Kingdom also deeply regrets."

But what we didn't do, we didn't do. We can't force such a accusation onto us.

Furthermore, proving that we didn't do something we didn't do is not an easy task in itself.

Although our Prince of Chechi Kingdom has some conflicts with His Highness the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, they are basically just minor frictions that don't cause any real harm.

There is absolutely no reason for such a major conflict between the two countries. Furthermore, it is highly unlikely that our Chechi Kingdom would use this as a pretext to kill the crown prince of your Great Ming Dynasty.

This is not beneficial to us; on the contrary, it has many drawbacks, and we have no reason to do it.

And it has already come to this point, that I, as the king of a country, have to come with my prince to explain in person. If we really did kill them, wouldn't the consequences be even more serious?

We fully understand the serious threats and consequences that such an action would pose. Therefore, we would never do such a thing. We implore Your Majesty, the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, to consider this carefully.

It must be said that, from his perspective, there is some truth to his sophistry.

But if it were actually done, it wouldn't be impossible to defend it from this angle.

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned and said:

"This is not the evidence you provided. I still want to know how you can prove that this matter truly has nothing to do with the Chechi Kingdom?"

The King of Chechi Kingdom replied:

"However, the Ming Dynasty also has no evidence to prove that Chechi Kingdom did this."

Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at the Vice Minister of Revenue, who then stepped forward, looked at the King of Chechi, and said:

“I can testify that you admitted it yourself.”

The King of Chechi Kingdom spoke angrily:

"You're talking nonsense. This is clearly a frame-up. You can't find any evidence here, so you're deliberately framing me. It's utterly despicable."

It was indeed a case of the Vice Minister of Revenue deliberately framing them, which is why the King of Chechi Kingdom was exceptionally self-righteous.

The Vice Minister of Revenue merely snorted and said to Zhu Yuanzhang:

"Your Majesty, they have indeed admitted it, but now they are just making excuses. They are only a little afraid of my Great Ming and do not want to suffer this war of annihilation. So they will never admit it, please do not believe them, Your Majesty."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded slightly, then looked at the King of Chechi Kingdom. Just as he was about to say something, Prince Jin, Zhu Gang, stepped forward and said to the Vice Minister of Revenue:

"You are merely a vice minister of the Ministry of Revenue, while he is the king of Chechi Kingdom. It goes without saying which of you has more influence, right? You said he admitted it himself, but why would he admit it?"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!