Outside Yingtian Prefecture, a large and imposing procession was slowly advancing; this was not the army of the Ming Dynasty.

The emperor's carriage was now empty; it was just an empty carriage moving along. In fact, there was another imperial carriage in the procession, so this wasn't a staged "disguise" to prevent a possible assassination attempt by Zhang Liang.

The Ming Dynasty didn't just have emperors; it also had retired emperors. The retired emperors could use the emperor's ceremonial regalia and so on.

Looking at little Zhu lying on Old Zhu's lap, Zhu Yunying suddenly felt a little regretful. "We thought that Yin'er has grown up a bit and made some progress now, so we thought he could take care of Grandfather. We overestimated him. It's still Grandfather who has to look after him."

Old Zhu smiled and patted Little Zhu's head, saying, "Yin'er is still the one who takes care of us. A while ago, when we went out of the palace with him, Yin'er took care of us the whole way. He knew exactly which road to take and what food to eat."

"That's a good thing, but he's a bit too lazy." Zhu Yunying laughed and said to Old Zhu, "Our Yin'er has become more sensible."

Little Zhu sat up abruptly and said with dissatisfaction, "Dad, it's not that we're being unreasonable, it's just that our great-grandfather liked us to be like this."

Old Zhu was displeased and lashed out at Zhu Yunying, saying, "Yin'er is so well-behaved, and you're always causing trouble. If you hadn't said anything, he would have been so happy with his head on our laps! You think you're so great, so filial, huh?!"

Well, Old Zhu's blatant favoritism is nothing to be ashamed of. He has never hidden his biases; it was like that before, and it's still like that now. If Old Zhu lives to be a hundred, he might treat Little Zhu's offspring the same way in the future.

Zhu Yunying suddenly laughed and said, "Our Yin'er may be naughty, but he's a smart kid when it comes to important matters. I'll feel at ease knowing that you two are going back to our hometown together."

“That makes sense. He can’t be without us, and we’re worried that Yin’er will be bullied because he’s so young.” Old Zhu stroked Little Zhu’s head and said, “The last time we went home, we figured it might be the last time we went back to see our parents. Who knew we were still healthy enough to hold on until now? But this time it really will be the last time.”

Hearing what Old Zhu said, Little Zhu also fell silent, unsure of what to say.

Because of his existence, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty changed, and the course of history was altered. The Crown Prince Zhu Yunying (also known as Zhu Xiaozhu) is a fictional character. Whether the First Emperor (Zhu Yunying) lived a few more years because of Zhu Yunying is hard to say, but the fates of some people were certainly changed.

The simplest proof is Lan Yu, the general who was originally skinned alive by Zhu Yuanzhang and forced to eat straw. He was no longer just the "Duke of Liang," but also the Duke of Liang. The top-tier military group that Zhu Yuanzhang left for the future Zhu Yuanzhang didn't need to be purged, because Zhu Yunying could take over.

Lan Yu survived, and many of the military officers who were originally involved in Lan Yu's case also survived. Perhaps they didn't make it this far, but at least they didn't suffer any misfortune, their families weren't wiped out, and their titles weren't stripped.

Old Zhu's fate has also changed considerably; he's already seventy-three. Although he's become noticeably old and frail in the last two years, he's still alive and in good spirits, without the loneliness and melancholy of his later years as is often seen in history.

Old Zhu was in a good mood and said to Zhu Yunying, "If my health allows, I think we should stay in our hometown for a while longer."

Zhu Yunying smiled and nodded, there was no reason to object, "Alright, Grandfather has been away for many years and has been busy. This time when we go back, we will take a good look around. Ordinary people say they want to return to their roots, but we imperial family are probably not so fortunate."

Old Zhu sighed as well. In truth, he longed to be buried in his hometown of Fengyang, beside his parents. He hadn't been able to fulfill his filial duties in the past, and he couldn't do so after death either; this was a deep-seated regret for Old Zhu.

“Our parents can understand these things. They farmed all their lives, but they still starved to death.” Old Zhu stroked Little Zhu’s head and said, “We, as their son, have done quite well. At least we’ve built up this empire.”

Zhu Yunying agreed, saying, "That makes sense. Our great-grandfather and the others would be overjoyed to know about our great-grandfather's achievements."

"Our great-grandfather was so powerful, who wouldn't want to be like him!" Little Zhu said proudly, not wanting to be left out. "Our great-grandfather was an emperor, our grandfather was an emperor, and our father was an emperor! In the future, we will also be emperors! Let alone our great-grandfather being a commoner or a monk, even among those princes and nobles, how many are more powerful than our great-grandfather?!"

Little Zhu felt genuine pride and joy, which made Old Zhu extremely gratified and happy. He had fought his way through half his life for these children and grandchildren.

However, what Little Zhu said is indeed true. Putting aside Old Zhu's humble origins, even among those noble families, how many could establish a unified dynasty? This is truly a great achievement.

Compared to ordinary acts of bringing glory to the family, Old Zhu's achievements must have made his ancestors smile in the afterlife.

Even while laughing, Old Zhu couldn't help but complain, "Although we never hide our background, it's you bastard who likes to make up stories about us. We're just a novice monk in a temple, not some high-ranking monk. We don't have that kind of ambition."

That makes sense; there's a significant difference between monks and novices. If Zhu Yuanzhang had become a real monk and obtained a certificate of ordination, he might have had a chance to survive, and the Ming Dynasty wouldn't exist today.

Little Zhu was very happy and proud. "Our great-grandfather was a commoner from Fengyang. He begged for alms for many years. We are not afraid of what people say."

"A son doesn't despise his mother for being ugly, and a dog doesn't despise his home for being poor." Old Zhu looked at Little Zhu with satisfaction. "That's the truth. We don't need to look for those ancestors. We're just old farmers from Fengyang. Our descendants don't need to hide these things. Remember our origins, and our descendants should also know how to care for the common people."

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