novelaction Chapter 1458
Chapter 1458
"He..."
After being criticized by Zhu Quan, Zhu Yuanzhang instinctively wanted to defend Zhu Yunwen—his own grandson, he could speak for himself, but he couldn't stand others saying such things.
But Zhu Yunwen's actions...
That truly left him with no room for explanation or excuse.
He remained silent for a moment, looking embarrassed, before stammering, "He... as emperor, he's extremely busy with state affairs, so it's inevitable that he'll make some oversights. It's... it's understandable, isn't it?"
Then, without any sense of justice, he said, "Yes, that's how it is. You've never been an emperor, so you don't know. There are so many things to worry about when you're an emperor. How can you think about everything so thoroughly?"
"No son... Father, you..." Zhu Quan was so angry at his father's hurried attempts to find excuses for Zhu Yunwen that he couldn't help but laugh.
He's all good to his own grandson, but when it comes to that brat Zhu Yunwen, he starts making excuses for him. It's blatant favoritism and double standards!
"Okay, okay, I admit defeat."
"That's what happens when he's the eldest brother's son! Don't you think so? Just by standing there, he's the right one, isn't he?"
Despite his anger, Zhu Quan was clearly resigned to the situation. When he said this, his tone conveyed more of a sense of resignation than resentment.
After all, the old man has always been biased, and he's long been used to it.
"What? You seem a little unconvinced?" Zhu Yuanzhang never thought he was being biased, and even asked in return.
Zhu Quan dared not argue with this living father, so he could only say something he didn't mean: "No, no, you are the Hongwu Emperor, who would dare to disobey you?"
"I'm happy for you, and also for Fourth Brother! Fourth Brother is almost certain to escape with his life, so you won't have to lose your son, right?"
That's what they say on the surface.
But after speaking, he couldn't help but turn his head away and secretly purse his lips, rolling his eyes, thinking to himself, "Ha! He can mess up such a simple situation, and you call that an 'oversight'? Only you could say that! With his skills, if you put him in charge of guarding the border, he'd be enfeoffed one day and fall the next!"
"Hmph! Anyway, I won this time! No matter how eloquently you, you biased old man, talk, you're just fooling yourself."
He dared not openly refute Zhu Yuanzhang, but Zhu Quan was unconvinced and secretly made up a list of Zhu Yuanzhang's grievances.
As the saying goes, a guilty conscience makes one talkative.
Zhu Yuanzhang continued to defend Zhu Yunwen: "We were not wrong. He had a heavy burden on his shoulders and may not have considered everything. Anyway, it was his own fourth uncle who escaped, so it doesn't matter."
Zhu Quan turned his face away and mouthed the words "He has a heavy burden on his shoulders" with a disdainful expression, while rolling his eyes even wider.
But at this time.
Another burly man dressed in simple servant's clothes walked to the door, looked at Lu Wei inside, and gently knocked on the door frame.
Zhu Yuanzhang and his son Zhu Quan, who were arguing, stopped their silent competition and looked over together with Lu Wei.
Zhu Yuanzhang composed himself, his expression turning slightly serious, and said, "What news has come this time? Lu Wei, go and take a look."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Lu Wei replied, then got up and jogged over.
The man handed him a piece of intelligence and whispered a few words in Lu Wei's ear. Lu Wei's eyes widened as if he had heard something extraordinary, and a serious expression appeared on his face.
After the man dressed as a servant left, Lu Wei immediately returned to Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Quan with an extremely serious face.
This naturally left Zhu Yuanzhang somewhat bewildered.
The news he was receiving was exactly what he wanted—everything was fine in Yingtian Prefecture, Emperor Sun was firmly in power and no longer subject to anyone's interference; and the fourth prince was also spared…
Moreover, he had simulated it many times.
I don't think there's any possibility of an unexpected event occurring in any of the steps.
"What is it that you dare not listen to?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked with some curiosity.
Lu Wei hesitated for a moment, pursed his lips, and then clasped his hands in a fist and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, it is an urgent report from our eyes in Beiping."
"His Highness the Prince of Yan in Beiping has been arrested by the imperial envoy who rushed to the capital and is being escorted south in a prison cart to Yingtian Prefecture..."
Beiping and Daming were both located in the north of the Ming Dynasty, and the distance between them was not far. Therefore, news of Zhu Di would quickly reach Zhu Yuanzhang's ears.
Although Lu Wei was unaware of the full story, his subordinates had already informed him of the outcome—which is why he lost his composure.
The imperial court actually managed to bring Prince Yan back from the clutches of the Three Guards of Yanshan with only a thousand men?
How did they manage to do that? Did those people suddenly become cowards and hand over their master to be tied up and taken away?
"What!?"
"To escort them south to Yingtianfu?"
"Fourth Brother has been... arrested!?"
"Didn't Qiu Fu, Zhang Yu, and Tan Yuan already plan out the retreat route for Lao Si? Didn't they force Lao Si to run away?"
"..."
This news was completely unexpected for Lu Wei, as were Zhu Yuanzhang and his son Zhu Quan. They were naturally shocked, each saying a word as if they had seen a ghost.
Zhu Quan said in disbelief, "The Three Guards of Yanshan are prepared to fight to the death to protect their lord, and Beiping City is a place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack..."
"That imperial envoy took the order and mobilized all the garrison troops around Beiping. Moreover, these troops completely disregarded the camaraderie of having been commanded by Fourth Brother, fighting alongside him, and fighting side by side with him, and launched a full-scale attack on Beiping..."
"It's impossible for them to easily take Beiping and capture Fourth Brother, right?"
"..."