The Ming Dynasty: I Fabricated Dreams for Zhu Di 87

Chapter 87: Zhu Di’s Revelation, I Am the Third Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty

Thus, Xu Da strode towards the room where Zhu Di was located, his demeanor fierce.

Upon entering the room, Xu Da’s imposing presence softened considerably. His earlier display was merely an act; otherwise, it would make Zhu Yuanzhang think he was being perfunctory. He needed to maintain a proper attitude.

“Father-in-law? Why have you come?”

Xu Da moved a chair from the desk to the bedside and sat down.

At this moment, Zhu Gaoshi poked his head out and said, “Grandfather?”

Hearing Zhu Gaoshi call him grandfather, Xu Da beamed and lifted the boy from the bed into his arms.

Then he asked, “Why don’t you want to be a feudal prince?”

“Your abilities allowed you to defeat Xu Yonggong, defeat Mu Chun, and even fight Blue Jade to a standstill.”

“With a bit of battlefield tempering, achieving greatness is just a matter of time.”

Xu Da pinched Zhu Gaoshi’s chubby cheeks while speaking with a heavy tone.

Facing his father-in-law’s inquiry, Zhu Di prepared to give a perfunctory answer.

“I just don’t think being a feudal prince is very good; that’s my reason.”

However, Xu Da saw through Zhu Di’s lie immediately. His eyes darted around, his tone lacked conviction, and his words were full of falsehoods.

“That’s not the truth. I want to know why.”

“I heard from Your Majesty that to avoid becoming a feudal prince, you even said that if the Emperor died, the feudal princes would rebel.”

“This isn’t the Zhu Lao Si I know.” (Zhu Lao Si is a nickname for Zhu Di)

“The Emperor spoke to me today, saying that from now on, whatever you do will be counted against me.”

“I can shield you from the storm, but I need to know your reason for doing this.”

He couldn’t possibly shield Zhu Di from the storm without reason; Zhu Di was merely his son-in-law.

Moreover, their relationship hadn’t been very good before. It’s impossible to remain in the Emperor’s good graces, holding so many potential handles, just for a son-in-law.

Therefore, he needed a reason, a reason to protect Zhu Di. Otherwise, even if Zhu Di was his son-in-law, he would still ignore him and follow Zhu Yuanzhang’s instructions.

Zhu Gaoshi blinked at Zhu Di.

How should he choose? To speak or not to speak?

Seeing his silence, Xu Da didn’t waste words.

“Since you don’t want to say, then I won’t protect you.”

“I will strictly follow the Emperor’s instructions and restrict your actions. Young man, my stick is much thicker than the Emperor’s.”

“Think carefully before you answer.”

Xu Da was known for his strict military discipline, and he applied the same principles to education. Xu Yonggong’s current capabilities were a direct result of his strict upbringing.

They were all rough men, like Zhu Yuanzhang. Their son made a mistake? Beat him. That’s how Zhu Yuanzhang did it, and that’s how he did it. Mu Ying and Deng Yu also did it this way.

The exception was Li Wenzhong. Because of Li Zhen’s existence, Li Jinglong had rarely been beaten.

Who was Li Zhen? Even Zhu Yuanzhang would respectfully address her as “sister-in-law.” Naturally, with her protection, Li Jinglong had never faced any real discipline or constraints. Li Wenzhong also held a civilian post, so he let Li Jinglong be.

Still silence.

Xu Da sighed.

“Sigh.”

“Rest well these days. When you’re better, I will personally discipline and guide you.”

He slowly stood up, preparing to leave with Zhu Gaoshi.

Just as he reached the door, Xu Da opened it and was about to leave when Zhu Di, witnessing this, finally spoke.

“I am the Emperor. I will be the third Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty, with the era name Yongle.”

This statement left Xu Da’s foot suspended mid-air. He quickly retracted his foot, and peeking his head out, saw Xu Miaoyun standing dumbstruck at the doorway.

The words were not loud, but loud enough for Xu Miaoyun to hear clearly.

Father and daughter stared at each other, speechless.

After a moment’s hesitation, Xu Da quickly pulled Xu Miaoyun inside, then peeked his head out again.

Fortunately, there was no one within twenty paces.

Good! Good!

If Zhu Yuanzhang heard this, there would be no way to clear his name.

Inside the room, Zhu Di lay on the bed, Xu Da sat back down holding Zhu Gaoshi, and Xu Miaoyun stood beside him, still stunned.

“Young man, have I ever offended you? Although my attitude towards you is strict, it’s because you lack ambition.”

“Marrying my most beloved daughter doesn’t mean you’re going to get my whole family executed, does it?”

Xu Da looked at Zhu Di with a serious expression.

If this statement got out… Forget about him, Xu Da; even if any of the dukes heard it, it wouldn’t help. Treason! That’s a crime punishable by the execution of the entire family. Even him, Xu Guogong (Duke Xu), wouldn’t be spared.

Seeing Xu Da’s slightly flustered expression, Zhu Di smiled. “Didn’t you want to hear the truth? What I said is the truth.”

“You asked me why I don’t want to become a feudal prince, why I said that feudal princes would inevitably rebel.”

“The reason is simple: because I am a feudal prince, and I am the Emperor.”

“In the thirty-first year of Hongwu, my father died in the setting sun. The second emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yunwen, ascended the throne, changing the era name to Jianwen.”

“Zhu Yunwen was wary of the military power held by the feudal princes and intended to weaken their power. To protect myself, I rebelled in Beiping.”

“Four years.”

“I successfully fought from Beiping to the Capital City, seizing power, usurping the throne, and becoming Emperor.”

He originally wanted to say that he was purging the court of traitors and saving the nation.

But after some thought, he decided against it.

Such words are only for show; who would truly believe them? Xu Da and Xu Miaoyun weren’t fools.

Purge the court of traitors and save the nation? And then sit on the Dragon Throne himself? Did he get tired of cleaning up the court and decided to take a rest on the Dragon Throne?

Zhu Di looked at Xu Da calmly.

From Xu Da’s eyes, he saw disbelief.

He didn’t expect Xu Da to believe him after a few words.

“Father-in-law, you don’t believe me, do you?”

Xu Da swallowed hard and said solemnly, “Words cannot be trusted lightly.”

“Besides, how could you know about the future? Can you tell fortunes? Or did you hear it from someone else?”

Who can predict the future?

The reason why the future is difficult to predict is because of the uncertainty it holds.

He was more inclined to believe that this young man was either mentally ill or had been tricked by a charlatan. Otherwise, why would he say such absurd things out of the blue?

Zhu Di didn’t hide anything and revealed everything.

“I don’t know the future; I haven’t gone back in time.”

“After the Jingnan Campaign, I became Emperor, and I was both happy and afraid.”

“Since then, I’ve had a knot in my heart.”

“I couldn’t sleep night after night, dreaming that my father, wielding a large knife, would execute me in the Palace of Heavenly Purity for treason.”

“When I was almost sixty, I met a young man in a tavern named Zhuang Mu.”

“He said he could solve my worries, so he sold me a cup of wine and wove this dream for me.”

“An incredibly realistic dream to allow me to atone for my sins.”

This is how things began and progressed; that’s the general situation.

Even if Zhu Di’s words were largely true, even he couldn’t tell which parts were false within this information.

Xu Da helplessly rubbed his head. “According to you, Miaoyun and I are all just part of a dream?”

“But we have the most realistic memories, feelings, countless experiences, and even emotions.”

“How can it possibly be a dream?”

“Lao Si, are you sure you haven’t hurt your brain?”

After listening for so long, Xu Da finally came to a conclusion.

Zhu Di must have hit his head or somehow damaged his brain. Otherwise, how could he say such things?

That the world they had lived in for decades was just a dream created by someone?

No one would believe it, no one would want to believe it.

Family, friends, careers, lovers, children, etc.

There was nothing to suggest that their world was illusory.

Everything was incredibly real.

How could it be a dream?

Even bleeding to death, illness, the withering of plants, the changing of the seasons.

The cycle of the sun and moon.

History, the future, etc.

There was nothing that could prove that this world was a dream.

Even Xu Miaoyun quickly stepped forward.

She touched Zhu Di’s forehead with her own. “Strange, he doesn’t have a fever. Husband, what’s wrong with you?”

They had all had dreams.

Sometimes, dreams are indeed very real.

But over time, they would find that the dream would become increasingly unreal. They had never experienced that feeling.

“Father-in-law, didn’t I tell you?”

“I learned all my skills from a dream.”

“Now I want to correct myself; these skills are the result of real-life experience.”

“This is the dream.”

“I just didn’t want to say it at that time, so I switched the emphasis.”

“During the four years of rebellion, I faced life-or-death situations every moment.”

“That’s why I suddenly became so powerful, why I was able to defeat Xu Yonggong, Mu Chun, and fight Blue Jade to a standstill.”

Xu Da was still skeptical.

Xu Miaoyun quickly said, “Father, I think my husband is probably dazed, his mind is muddled.”

“These things are unbelievable. Let’s let him rest, and we’ll talk about this tomorrow.”

Perhaps the pain stimulated Zhu Di’s brain, causing him to say these things?

Zhu Di didn’t explain anything.

He simply said, “Crown Prince, you haven’t greeted your grandfather yet.”

“You shouldn’t need me to teach you this basic courtesy, right?”

(End of Chapter)

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