The Ming Dynasty: I Fabricated Dreams for Zhu Di 100

Chapter 100: Zhu Di’s Tears, His First True Regret

Xu Miaoyun looked at Zhu Di’s blood-soaked hands and spoke frankly.

“Mother, my husband and I are of one heart and one mind. His mistake is also my mistake.”

“If you whip your daughter-in-law two hundred times, I have no objections.”

She was not a woman given to affectation. She dared to do and dared to bear the consequences.

During the Jingnan Campaign (the campaign launched by Zhu Di to seize the throne), as Zhu Di’s wife, how could she possibly have known nothing?

Zhu Gaoshi had said that when Li Jinglong led his army to besiege Beiping City, she had played a very important role. Zhu Gaoshi arranged the city defenses, while she calmed the families of the soldiers within the city. Perhaps her role wasn’t significant, but… she participated. There was nothing to argue about.

Empress Ma felt somewhat helpless; this wasn’t the time for the two of them to show their affection.

At this time, Zhu Gaoshi also stepped forward and said,

“Grandmother Empress, please don’t beat my mother. I will take her punishment!”

Having said this, Zhu Gaoshi extended his tender hand to protect his mother behind him.

In Zhu Gaoshi’s heart, he had no opinion about Zhu Di being punished—after all, Zhu Di often frightened him. He felt no qualms about his father’s punishment. But if Xu Miaoyun was beaten, he couldn’t accept it. His mother was not in good health.

Two hundred lashes, delivered without restraint! Women are inherently more sensitive to pain than men. He wouldn’t be able to endure two hundred lashes. After all, he had been afraid of pain since childhood. But if it was to take his mother’s place, even if he was afraid, he would resolutely accept it.

Zhu Di was somewhat silent. This little brat! When I was just beaten, you didn’t say a word. Miaoyun is beaten, and you step forward? Is my status in Zhu Gaoshi’s heart so low?

Seeing this, Xu Miaoyun quickly pulled Zhu Gaoshi behind her.

“Mother, Gaoshi is still young; his skin can’t withstand it. Please beat me instead.”

Empress Ma was very pleased to see Xu Miaoyun’s willingness to accept punishment. However, pleased as she was, she would still not show mercy. She ignored Zhu Di’s offer to take the punishment in his wife’s stead.

She swung the branch, striking Xu Miaoyun’s fair hand. Just one lash, and a striking whip mark appeared on Xu Miaoyun’s hand; the next lash would surely draw blood.

Xu Miaoyun gritted her teeth, her spirit taut. Empress Ma gave her no chance to breathe, continuing to strike Xu Miaoyun’s hand forcefully.

Two lashes! Three lashes! Four lashes!

After only four lashes, Xu Miaoyun’s hand was trembling uncontrollably. And there were still one hundred and ninety more lashes to go.

This caused Zhu Di intense agony. “Mother, please let me take Miaoyun’s punishment!”

But Empress Ma paid no attention, continuing to lash Xu Miaoyun’s hand.

After only thirty lashes, Xu Miaoyun was not just trembling in her hands, but her whole body was shaking. It hurt so much.

At this point, the branch in Empress Ma’s hand had broken in two. So she went out of the hall again, breaking another branch from a tree. She peeled it, and cleaned it with water. At the same time, she instructed her personal maid, Yu’er, to go to the Imperial Hospital and fetch several imperial physicians.

After giving these instructions, Empress Ma returned to the hall, preparing to continue whipping Xu Miaoyun.

Zhu Di then shouted loudly, “Mother! Miaoyun is pregnant! If you must beat someone, beat me; you can’t beat her anymore!”

Hearing this, Empress Ma paused slightly.

“Pregnant?”

Because in the early stages of pregnancy, a physician couldn’t detect it, Empress Ma didn’t know. But Zhu Di did; he only needed to count back ten months from Zhu Gaoxu’s birth date to deduce Xu Miaoyun’s precise conception date.

Upon hearing that Xu Miaoyun was pregnant, Empress Ma felt some compassion and stopped whipping her. Punishing a pregnant woman would affect the fetus.

But the punishment could not be entirely avoided. For the crime of rebellion, she had already been lenient by only ordering two hundred lashes. If the Founder Emperor (Zhu Yuanzhang) were here, it wouldn’t be simply lashes; it would be immediate decapitation.

“Old Fourth, considering Miaoyun’s pregnancy, I will let you take her punishment.”

“Do you agree?”

Zhu Di nodded, “I agree.”

Immediately, Empress Ma continued to whip Zhu Di’s hands. Even as blood flowed and his flesh was torn, she showed no sign of lessening the force. However, Zhu Di had practiced martial arts for many years; receiving nearly four hundred lashes would only render his hands unusable for a time. It wouldn’t cause too much lasting damage.

After she finished, Empress Ma looked at Zhu Di’s appearance and felt sorry for him. But she didn’t put down the whip. Instead, she raised her own hand and said, “You have committed such a grave crime, and I, as your mother, also bear responsibility. I failed to discipline you properly; I will also take your punishment.”

Zhu Di hadn’t reacted yet when Empress Ma forcefully struck her own hand with the branch. This scene pierced Zhu Di’s heart like a knife.

Mother!!!

He cried out, “Gaoshi, are you dead?! Hurry up and stop your grandmother!”

Zhu Di, because he had been kneeling for a long time and his hands were torn and bleeding, was powerless to stop her. He could only call for Zhu Gaoshi.

Hearing this, Zhu Gaoshi quickly hugged Empress Ma and pleaded,

“Grandmother Empress, this is our fault; it has nothing to do with you.”

“You shouldn’t be punished for us!”

“If it must be done, please beat your grandson instead!”

However, Empress Ma ignored Zhu Gaoshi. Zhu Gaoshi was only two years old and utterly unable to stop Empress Ma.

At this time, Xu Miaoyun also spoke with heartache, “Mother, please don’t do this. It’s a mistake we made as a family.”

“How can you take our punishment? If anyone must be punished, it should be me.”

Xu Miaoyun endured the pain in her hands and grabbed the whip from Empress Ma’s hand.

But even with Xu Miaoyun, Zhu Di, and Zhu Gaoshi pleading, Empress Ma paid no attention.

She simply said softly, “Miaoyun, have you forgotten what I taught you?”

Her eyes fixed on Xu Miaoyun. Looking into Empress Ma’s eyes, Xu Miaoyun’s eyes welled with tears as she slowly released the whip.

Suddenly, the only sounds in the great hall were soft sobs and the whip striking flesh.

At that moment, Zhu Di felt regret. Regret for his actions, for the punishment his mother was enduring. Recalling his mother’s care and concern for him, listening to the sounds of his mother being whipped for his mistake, Zhu Di’s tears began to flow uncontrollably.

Zhu Yuanzhang’s cane on his buttocks; he had remained silent, shedding not a single tear. Empress Ma’s branch on his hands, tearing his flesh and drawing blood; he had shed not a single tear. But when Empress Ma was punished for his fault, he cried.

Except for the time Miaoyun passed away, he had not cried in ten years.

Zhu Di choked back a sob, whimpering, “Mother…”

Empress Ma did not relent in whipping herself, even for a moment. The intense pain made her own hand tremble uncontrollably. Pain overwhelmed her brain. However, no matter how painful it was, even as her flesh was torn, she did not stop. She treated herself and Zhu Di equally; she struck herself with the same force as she had struck him.

Empress Ma was already somewhat weakened from fatigue, and the whipping only worsened her condition.

Soon, the two hundred lashes were complete. Empress Ma could no longer feel her left hand; she only knew it was bleeding. Her face was pale, and Zhu Di watched with heartache. Why couldn’t Zhuang Mu’s healing ability cure external wounds? The healing ability Zhuang Mu gave him could only cure diseases, not external injuries. Otherwise, he would not be so badly beaten.

After receiving a total of six hundred lashes, she also had little strength left in her right hand.

Then Empress Ma said to Zhu Di,

“After this punishment, I will not tell your father about this.”

“But you must tell him yourself.”

“I don’t know if this world is, as you say, a dream or reality.”

“Since you’ve come here, wanting to change the future here, you have a heart for amends.”

“If you truly can change the course of this world, if you can ensure that Mu Ying and Biao’er (Zhu Biao) live longer, then your crime of rebellion will be meaningless.”

“The punishment I give you doesn’t mean I forgive you, it doesn’t mean your father will forgive you, or your elder brother will forgive you.”

“Judging by the actions, not the heart, I hope you can do what you promised.”

This was the best solution she could think of. She was not like Zhu Yuanzhang, so stubborn that rebellion was a death sentence. Because she was not the Emperor; she was the Empress, and she was Zhu Di’s mother. She couldn’t simply execute Zhu Di for rebellion. This is why women shouldn’t interfere in politics; sometimes, they are swayed by their emotions, especially when it concerns their children. Mother and son are connected; mothers are often affected by their emotions. After all, Zhu Di was her own flesh and blood, born from ten months of pregnancy. She couldn’t be so heartless. But, objectively, Zhu Di’s rebellion was a fact. If this wasn’t handled properly, future generations might follow suit, negatively impacting the entire country. She couldn’t let her own feelings affect future generations for millennia to come.

“If possible, I will try my best to explain the reasons for your rebellion.”

“But I won’t interfere with your father’s decision.”

“If your father really wants to kill you because of this,”

“I…”

Empress Ma wanted to say that if Zhu Yuanzhang really wanted to kill Zhu Di for this, she would respect his decision. But as the words reached her lips, she couldn’t say them. Could she truly accept Zhu Di being executed? Sometimes, she read many books, believing she could be rational in many matters, but when reason and emotion clashed, she hesitated.

Zhu Di also kowtowed to Empress Ma and said, “Your son understands.”

“I will take responsibility for my actions. If the Emperor is determined to kill your son,”

“Your son… will have no objections.”

“This life, I will consider it payment to the Emperor.”

(End of Chapter)

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