Prince Zhu Zhaohui, not yet five years old, watched his cousin, who was sitting in the main seat eating and drinking heartily, and his heart was filled with worry. His biological mother, Lady Ge, and his nominal stepmother, Lady Tang, were both very cautious, even though they were nominally his elders.
There was no other way. Zhu Tan was fond of poetry, literature, etiquette, and was respectful to scholars from a young age. He was also very knowledgeable. However, after being enfeoffed, he became a Taoist, spending his days burning incense, chanting scriptures, and refining elixirs in search of immortality. He died at the young age of twenty. Zhu Tan's only son, Zhu Zhaohui, is still nominally the heir apparent to the Prince of Lu and has not yet been able to inherit the title of prince.
A young eunuch hurried over and said cautiously, "Your Highness, we have seen His Majesty's envoy outside the city."
Zhu Yunwen was fearless, or rather, during his escape, he strangely discovered that the troops sent by his grandfather and father were always about five miles away from him. He couldn't shake them off, and they couldn't catch up with him either. This reassured Zhu Yunwen, and he continued his 'escape'.
"I'm going to Mount Tai tomorrow, let's talk about it later." Zhu Yunwen didn't care at all, eating and drinking, "I'll send some wine and drinks to those people, otherwise my brother will scold me if he finds out."
He had beaten the prefect, so be it; the censors impeached him, so be it—Zhu Yunwen had no regrets. At first he was afraid, but now he wasn't afraid at all. Especially after leaving the palace, Zhu Yunwen knew he had done many absurd things, but each time he escaped unscathed; his grandfather and father always turned a blind eye.
In truth, Zhu Yunwen was sometimes quite aware that it was precisely this seemingly useless demeanor that made him the good grandson in his grandfather's eyes. He only acted as a good younger brother by causing trouble to beg his elder brother.
Zhu Yunwen certainly enjoyed eating, drinking, and having fun. However, he wasn't entirely without cunning; his elder brother's position was too secure. Being a good younger brother was more important than anything else. To emulate Yunwen would be foolish; only Yunwen and his simple-minded mother would have such inappropriate little schemes.
Zhu Yunwen, that silly boy, happily toured Mount Tai, preparing to continue harassing his cousin and continue enjoying the life of a superior person in the Lu Prince's Mansion.
After all, there were many princes in Yingtian Prefecture, and the emperor and the crown prince were also there, so a mere county prince was nothing. But it was different in the Lu Prince's Mansion. There was no real Lu Prince, and the Lu Prince's heir was just a cousin. Everyone was hoping that he, as a county prince, would put in a good word for them.
He had just descended Mount Tai when he saw Li Jinglong leading a large army. With a bitter expression, Zhu Yunwen understood that his good days were over and his dream of traveling the world was now shattered.
"Cousin, is it really necessary to rush this?" Zhu Yunwen said with a bitter face, cupping his hands in greeting. "Give me another month, and I will go to the Emperor to apologize."
Li Jinglong laughed and said, "When we went to the northern desert before, His Highness the Crown Prince was dissatisfied with the cavalry's speed. I'll just take five hundred cavalrymen. Your Highness, why don't you come back to Beiping with me? Don't make things difficult for me."
While Li Jinglong was in a dilemma, Zhang Yu also rode up to the group of people, and he immediately saw a road ahead. Zhang Yu could be considered a surrendered general. He had once been the Privy Councilor of the Yuan Dynasty, and many of his former colleagues were now officials of the Ming Dynasty, although many of them were only mid-level military officers.
“Brother Li, Duke Cao is just ahead,” Zhang Yu said warmly and generously. “If we make a good impression on Duke Cao, we might be able to be introduced to His Highness the Crown Prince!”
Zhao Zhuosheng was very envious and said sourly, "Brother Zhang, please don't make things difficult for us. I failed to complete the imperial mission and still want to return to the capital to admit my guilt. How dare I go to Duke Cao's side!"
Returning to the capital to face punishment is certain. After chasing for over a month without bringing His Highness back to Yingtian Prefecture, he has clearly botched his job. He'll likely receive thirty lashes upon his return, or at least a severe reprimand.
Zhang Yu had initially intended to continue the invitation and have everyone join forces. However, he quickly realized that Zhao Zhuosheng and his men were truly unsuitable for military service. If they joined forces, the Prince would definitely be taken back to Yingtian Prefecture. Now, having messed up the mission, he would at most receive a beating, but he was still considered a confidant of the Crown Prince.
If they really brought His Highness the Prince back to Yingtian Prefecture, not only would the Crown Prince be angry, but they would also have no way to explain themselves to the Emperor and the Crown Prince. Everyone tacitly agreed that one should continue running while the other continued chasing; with good teamwork, they certainly wouldn't ruin this grand spectacle.
Just as a group of men from military backgrounds were putting on a show in perfect harmony, Yan Zhenzhi and the others suddenly became incredibly excited. They were about to make something of themselves; they had finally accomplished the task assigned by His Highness the Crown Prince.
It's heartbreaking to think about. Two or three years have passed, and while some of the craftsmen have submitted decent skills, they're only decent. They're not entirely satisfied, and the Crown Prince is even less so. The academy, which the Crown Prince has poured all his resources into, hasn't produced much.
Now, a craftsman named Li Tiezhu presents his skills. Although it consumes 10% more copper, the musket can fire a hundred times without exploding—that's a remarkable achievement!
Moreover, it has grooves inside the barrel, and the lead and iron blocks inside the barrel are more lethal, reaching up to 250 paces, making its range 10% longer than that of ordinary muskets!
This was great joy, and they only dared to announce the good news after confirming it several times. Having worked under Zhu Xiong Ying for a long time, they all knew his temperament. The Crown Prince could be disappointed indefinitely, but they absolutely could not let him have a false sense of joy.
Zhu Xiong Ying indeed lived up to this; he preferred practical, down-to-earth work and hoped for tangible results. He disliked empty promises and unrealistic pronouncements about impossible goals—those were things Zhu Xiong Ying utterly despised.
While strolling through the garden with Zhu Miaoqing, Zhu Xiong Ying was quite pleased with himself; his grandfather was a workaholic who didn't know anything about life. Influenced by his grandfather, Zhu Xiong Ying had also passively become a workaholic, rarely having any time to rest.
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
