Hunting is a sport for the nobility and is very popular both in Japan and in the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Ying's trip to Japan was more of a trip than a negotiation. The Japanese side had no chance to renegotiate the terms in the negotiation document, and everything was based on Zhu Ying's orders.

Even the most rebellious Japanese minister remained silent and watched Emperor Go-Komatsu stamp his seal on the treaty.

The moment the seal was affixed, it meant that the official jurisdiction of the entire Kyushu Island had been completely ceded to the Ming Dynasty.

Of course, similarly, Japan also obtained a large amount of high-yield crop seeds, each weighing more than 3,000 kilograms, totaling 10,000 kilograms.

After obtaining these high-yield crop seeds, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu quickly sent people to escort them back to Honshu Island. He would start full-scale planting as soon as he had received the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty.

On summer mornings, restless horses and dazzling nobles can be vaguely seen on the green hills.

Zhu Ying did not leave the field at this time. He sat high up in the stands, watching the competition between Japanese warriors and Ming soldiers below him.

Rather than being a hunt, it was more like a reflection of the military strength of the two countries and a show-off by the Ming Dynasty to Japan.

The Japanese warriors riding on short horses standing next to the Ming soldiers riding tall horses looked as ridiculous as clowns.

Hundreds of wild boars, leopards, elks, rabbits and other prey were released into the hunting ground.

According to the rules of hunting, the side that obtains more prey and is more ferocious will be considered the winner.

The hunt had not yet begun, and the faces of the Japanese nobles were all very ugly.

"I don't know what the general means. Why did he arrange such a program? Isn't this just asking for humiliation?"

"Our warriors are no match for the Ming soldiers. Doing this will only bring shame to the Emperor."

Among the nobles, a Japanese minister said bitterly.

He was a member of the royalist faction and was most opposed to the rule of the shogunate. Even though Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was now extremely powerful, he had no fear at all.

There was a lot of sarcasm in his words, without any scruples at all.

After he said this, he immediately aroused dissatisfaction among the shogunate faction.

He said angrily, "Am I wrong?"

For a while, no one could organize any speech against him.

But soon someone said: "Even if we lose, so what? Can we not participate if we lose? I think the general's idea is very good. This is to motivate our warriors and let them know how far they are from the Ming Dynasty."

“Only when you know your own gap will you work harder in training in the future.”

"We can't just stop fighting if we can't win, then we might as well surrender."

The person who stood up and spoke out made a counter-sarcasm, which immediately resonated with the people around him.

"That's right. Now that we have the high-yield crops of the Ming Dynasty, we no longer have to worry about having no food to eat. We should let the warriors train harder and strive to catch up with the might of the Ming Dynasty soldiers."

"The soldiers of the Ming Dynasty were not born so powerful. As long as we are willing to train hard, we will have such a day."

"The Ming Dynasty was founded less than 30 years ago, while Japan has a history of more than a thousand years. Now it is just a temporary humiliation."

The followers of the shogunate faction were obviously more motivated by such stimulation, which made the royalists, who were already few in number, appear very weak.

But among the crowd of these shogunate followers, a child of about ten years old looked at the Ming Crown Prince not far away with a twinkling gaze.

He is Ashikaga Yoshimochi, the son of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu who abdicated the throne two years ago.

When he ascended the throne, Ashikaga Yoshimochi was only nine years old, and this year he is already eleven years old.

Logically he should be very happy. Even though he did not gain the real power of the shogunate because of his young age, the inheritance had been confirmed and he would be a stable shogun when he grew up.

It sounds good, but the reality is very bleak.

Japan also practices the system of primogeniture, which is a cultural influence inherited from the Central Plains dynasties.

However, Ashikaga Yoshimochi was not the legitimate son of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. His biological mother was Fujiwara no Keiko, the daughter of Sanboin official Aki Hogen, so he was a concubine's son.

Logically speaking, he had no chance of inheriting the position of shogun, but Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, his first wife Hino Yoshiko, and his second wife Hino Yasuko did not have any sons, so they made Ashikaga Yoshimochi their heir and let Hino Yasuko adopt him as her son.

This is considered very good luck, because before this, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu had also been training Ashikaga Yoshimochi as his successor.

At this moment, God just played a joke on him.

In the year when Ashikaga Yoshimochi inherited the shogunate, his second wife Hino Yasuko became pregnant and gave birth to a son, Ashikaga Yoshitsugu, for Ashikaga Yoshimitsu.

This is the real legitimate son.

Unlike the son Ashikaga Yoshimochi gave birth to casually due to drunkenness, his second wife Hino Yasuko was the one Ashikaga Yoshimitsu truly loved.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was very fond of Yoshitsugu, and because of his favoritism, the relationship between Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and Ashikaga Yoshimochi began to deteriorate.

The biggest impact was that in the past two years, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu not only gradually took back all of Ashikaga Yoshimochi's power, but also cut off his ties with his generals. It was obvious that he wanted Ashikaga Yoshitsugu to inherit all his status.

Just as Ashikaga Yoshimitsu inherited the shogunate at the age of ten, he regained his power through political maneuvers.

As the son of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, Ashikaga Yoshimochi already understood a lot of things even when he was only in his teens. He could understand his father's preference for him, and even if the position of Shogun was taken back, Ashikaga Yoshimochi didn't think it was a big deal.

But the previous enthusiasm and current disgust, even defensiveness, made Ashikaga Yoshimochi feel very uncomfortable.

He didn't want to compete with his younger brother, but after his younger brother was born, his father no longer loved him and even treated him as an outsider.

Am I not my father's son?

In two years, the originally lively and lovely Ashikaga Yoshimochi became scheming. The powerful influence of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu made Ashikaga Yoshimochi's heart become somewhat twisted.

The more you don't want to give it to him, the more he wants it.

The only thing to be thankful for is that his younger brother is still of good age. He will have to be at least eight or nine years old to replace him, which means that he can still serve as the nominal shogun for another six or seven years.

Moreover, he vaguely guessed that his father wanted to seize the power of the emperor, and then merge the power of the shogun and the emperor, so that his younger brother Ashikaga Yoshitsugu would become the real emperor with real power.

This made him even more jealous, and every night when he lay in bed, he was thinking about how to seize power.

'The Great Ming Prince, this may be my only chance.'

Ashikaga Yoshimochi's eyes flickered. It was almost impossible for him to defeat his father. No matter if it was all the people in the Muromachi shogunate, the local daimyo, or the emperor's faction, no one could fight against his father.

But the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty is different.

When he saw his father trying to please the Ming Crown Prince like a lowly servant, he felt extremely happy for the first time in his heart.

At the same time, he also knew that the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty was more noble than the entire Japanese Empire.

Coincidentally, two nights before, he overheard the conversation between his father and the head of the Sasaki clan, Sasaki Yoshimasa, in the corner.

This made a lot of things clear for him.

For example, the Ming Crown Prince wanted to seize the territory of Japan, and Sasaki Yoshimasa and his father had the idea of ​​assassinating the Ming Crown Prince.

In the end, my father didn't dare to do so, because it might lead to the destruction of the entire Japanese country, which would truly disappear from history.

"If I tell the Ming Dynasty's grandson about the conversation between my father and Sasaki Yoshimasa, or provide evidence that they have plans to assassinate the Ming Dynasty's grandson."

"Then the Ming Dynasty's grandson will surely be furious and punish my father, or even sentence him to death."

"In this case, I will be the real Shogun."

Ashikaga Yoshimochi's eyes revealed vicious resentment as he thought about this possibility in his mind.

However, thinking of his father's death, Ashikaga Yoshimochi temporarily gave up this idea.

Because all power was taken away and he had no confidants of his own in the shogunate, once his father was sentenced to death, he would face the same situation as when his father inherited the position of shogun.

Those seemingly loyal subordinates will seize the power of the shogunate, and he is very likely to become a puppet.

This is not what he wants.

"It would be great if I could become the adopted son of the Ming Dynasty's crown prince. Then there would surely be many generals who would submit to me because they want to curry favor with the Ming Dynasty's crown prince."

Ashikaga Yoshimochi sighed subconsciously in his heart, but suddenly his eyes lit up.

Because he felt that if he acted in the interests of the Ming Dynasty, this would not be impossible.

Thinking of this, he raised his head and looked in the direction of the Ming Crown Prince again, wanting to find an opportunity to meet with the Ming Crown Prince in private.

"Hey, where are the people?"

At this time, there was no trace of the Ming crown prince in the stands. Ashikaga Yoshimochi turned around again and found that it seemed that his father Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and Emperor Go-Komatsu were both gone.

I was so absorbed in my thoughts just now that I didn't notice what was happening around me.

Ashikaga Yoshimochi gritted his teeth. Such an important change, but no one came to inform him, the nominal shogun.

At this moment, a loud noise was heard and Ashikaga Yoshimochi hurriedly looked down.

It was the Ming Crown Prince, dressed in military uniform, riding on a tall horse, holding an exquisite longbow, and obviously preparing to participate in the hunt personally.

Next to the Ming Crown Prince were the four great feudal lords, as well as the top aristocratic father of Japan, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and others.

But he was the only one missing.

…

"This is the first time I've seen the Crown Prince on a horse. I've heard that he was a master of martial arts in the Western Regions. Today I can finally see it for myself."

Zhu Ying's movements of climbing onto the horse were extremely familiar, and Zhu Gang could tell at a glance that he must be an extraordinary rider.

He immediately praised it.

After Zhu Gang finished speaking, Zhu Chong continued, "It's a pity that the emperor is not here. If the emperor saw his nephew hunting, he would definitely be very happy."

Since Zhu Ying arrived in the capital, he has never had the opportunity to demonstrate his military prowess.

The only two times were when he met the blind Zhou Ji when he was traveling with Zhu Gaochi and Xu Miaojin.

The result of Zhu Ying's actions naturally implicated his father, Zhou Dexing, Marquis of Jiangxia.

In the end, not only Zhou Ji was executed, but Zhou Dexing, Marquis of Jiangxia, was also implicated and killed by Zhu Yuanzhang.

From then on, Zhu Ying never showed his martial arts again.

Then again, Zhu Ying, who entered the palace shortly afterwards, did not have this opportunity. If the situation had reached the point where Zhu Ying took action, it would have meant a major event that would have shocked the capital.

Another time was an assassination attempt in the capital.

Zhu Ying and Zhu Yuanzhang were together that time. Zhu Ying killed several assassins in an instant. His methods were clean and neat, without any delay, and it was completed in a flash.

Both of these displays were very private, and even the princes were not aware of them, let alone others.

Therefore, Zhu Chong, Zhu Gang, Zhu Di, and Zhu Gui only knew about Zhu Ying's military prowess from rumors they heard when Zhu Ying was a businessman.

No one knows exactly how.

When an exquisite hard bow was delivered by Song Zhong himself, it really shocked several knowledgeable princes.

Although firearms are powerful, the bow is the romance of men in this era.

Currently, the army uses soft bows, which are more convenient for riding and shooting and increase the number of shots.

However, the hard bow was not banned, it was just transferred from the army to the hands of the nobles.

Especially in hunting activities, the hard bow can better demonstrate personal strength.

Zhu Chong and others could tell at a glance that the hard bow in Zhu Ying's hand was a two-stone strong bow.

For most nobles, one crossbow is already the limit. After all, most nobles are not likely to fight on the front line.

The seven-bowl hard bow is more commonly used for hunting.

What is the concept of two crossbows?

In the Eastern Han Dynasty, only a general like Huang Zhong could draw two stone bows.

For example, when Lu Bu shot the halberd at the gate, he used two stone bows.

In the Ming Dynasty today, the two-stone bow is no longer used as a strong bow for actual shooting, but is classified as a power bow, that is, a bow used to train strength.

However, Zhu Ying was now shooting with two stone bows on his warhorse without the help of his legs.

On horseback and off horseback, these are two completely different concepts.

The so-called Genghis Khan shooting the eagle also required him to stand on the ground and mobilize all his body's strength.

The Japanese nobles were a little confused and did not understand all this, but Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was well-read and naturally understood the concept of the two-stone bow of the Central Plains Dynasty.

At this time, after Zhu Ying took the hard bow, he easily pulled up a full moon and felt the strength of the hard bow, which was very necessary for the accuracy of shooting later.

When the princes saw this, they took a deep breath.

Zhu Ying's movements were so easy, especially when he slowly let it go after pulling it all the way, which showed his strong arm strength.

With such arm strength, he is an absolute expert selected from thousands even in the military.

Among the many famous generals who founded the Ming Dynasty, the only one who had such supernatural powers was King Kaiping Chang Yuchun, who had made outstanding contributions.

Even Xu Da did not have such terrifying military power.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was even more horrified, thinking to himself, "Fortunately, there is no assassination plan. If the Ming Dynasty's grandson really had the strength to shoot two crossbows, the assassinating warriors would not even have the chance to get close and would be shot to death."

No one would think that Crown Prince Zhu Ying was putting on a show. After all, this was hunting, not a performance, and it would only count if enough prey was killed.

Perhaps it was in line with the scene, at this moment, about a hundred steps away from the crowd, a sturdy wild boar suddenly broke in.

This wild boar was very ferocious. When it saw the people present, it was not afraid. Instead, it howled, as if declaring that this place was its territory.

Zhu Ying's eyes lit up. He was worried that he would have no chance to test shoot the bow since he had just gotten his hands on it. The wild boar came at the right time.

He then took out an arrow from the quiver hanging next to his horse.

He bent the bow, drew the arrow, and shot it out instantly.

Only the sound of breaking through the air was heard, and the arrow whizzed past and pierced the wild boar's head fiercely.

He groaned twice and fell to the ground with a bang.

Hearing this sound, everyone around felt a chill in their hearts and the scene was silent for a while.

The military power of the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty is so terrifying!