Chapter 12: Did Zhu Gaoxi receive help from an immortal?

When Zhu Yuanzhang saw what Zhu Yunwen was doing in the simulator, his face turned ashen. He had not expected that Zhu Yunwen's reduction of the princes' power would be so ruthless, even forcing the Prince of Xiang, who had grown up with him since childhood, to his death.

"You bastard!"

Zhu Yuanzhang angrily rebuked them. As the patriarch of the Zhu family, his greatest wish was for his descendants to live in harmony and not kill each other for power and profit.

Wasn't his decision to make Yunwen the crown prince precisely to prevent his second, third, and fourth sons from killing each other?

But he never expected that Zhu Yunwen would treat his uncles in this way after becoming emperor.

Zhu Yuanzhang was so angry that he was panting heavily. He picked up a bowl of hot tea and drank it down to calm down, and then patiently continued reading.

He finally understood why the other princes weren't helping Yunwen—it was because Yunwen had alienated himself from the world!

Besides the second son, Zhu Gaoxu, the eldest son, Zhu Gaochi, and the third son, Zhu Gaosui, also fought extremely hard in this war.

As for the fourth son, Zhu Gaoxi, you didn't originally have any expectations of him. He's just a six-year-old child; what could you expect from him? Now, by using Zhu Gaoxi's reputation, you've greatly reduced your own negative image of rebellion. That's already a way of helping you.

But what you didn't expect was that Zhu Gaoxi could actually help you.

[When you raise an army in rebellion, food and weapons are scarce, which is a major problem for you.]

At the same time, you are also unsure about this rebellion, because before you, which vassal king had ever successfully rebelled? You are anxious every day, but you cannot show it in front of everyone in the Prince of Yan's mansion, because you are the backbone of the Prince of Yan's mansion, and how can the backbone be flustered?

A few days later, your 6-year-old son, Zhu Gaoxi, actually saw through your anxiety and said to you:

"When my grandfather was still alive, he often told Gao Xi that he was going to pass the throne to his father when he played with him. But he passed away before he could depose his cousin Yunwen. Father, you don't need to worry."

Hearing the fourth brother's words, you were very excited and gained confidence in your rebellion.

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, thinking that this young Gao Xi was truly intelligent. Not only did he see through the fourth prince's thoughts, but he also fabricated lies to restore the fourth prince's confidence in his rebellion.

In any case, Zhu Yuanzhang believed that if he really wanted to make his fourth son the heir, he would have finished everything before his death and would not have left the Ming Dynasty with the trouble of internal strife. Therefore, Zhu Gaoxi's words must have been false.

Zhu Gaoxi's next words shocked Zhu Yuanzhang.

[You hugged Zhu Gaoxi, excitedly asking, "Really? Did Father really say that? Does Father really want to pass the throne to me?" You repeatedly confirmed with Zhu Gaoxi, and Zhu Gaoxi repeatedly told you that it was true.]

[At the same time, Zhu Gaoxi also brought you some extremely surprising news.]

[Zhu Gaoxi said that when your father, Zhu Yuanzhang, was conquering the world, he received help from immortals who gave him plenty of food and various weapons. After he conquered the world, he no longer needed them and buried them in several places near Beiping. Your father gave the addresses of these places to Zhu Gaoxi, and Zhu Gaoxi is telling you the addresses of these places today. You are half-believing and half-doubting, and you always feel that your fourth son is talking nonsense.]

But even if you decide to give it a try, send someone to investigate. And what you find will be extraordinary.

These things were all on a mountain, left out in the open. At first, you were curious—didn't anyone steal them? But soon, your curiosity was overshadowed by shock.

[The address Zhu Gaoxi told you about contains tens of thousands of tons of rice. This rice is extremely fine and exquisite. You are also familiar with farming and know that the rice currently produced in the Ming Dynasty could never be like this.]

Besides rice, you also found plenty of meat and vegetables in these places.

[There are several novel types of vegetables that will surprise you. According to your fourth son, they are called chili peppers, potatoes, and tomatoes. They are things that have never existed in the Ming Dynasty before. Your fourth son said that these were left to you by your father, who originally intended them to enrich the Ming Dynasty after you became emperor.]

Besides the food, you also saw a large quantity of ironware, probably over 10 pieces. These weren't weapons, but rather farm tools like hoes, shovels, sickles, and spades. However, the material of these tools, the steel itself, compared to the weapons in your army, was actually ten times stronger than even the strongest weapons in your army. These farm tools could serve as ready-made weapons!

Upon seeing the vast expanse of white rice and the endless meat on the screen, Zhu Yuanzhang abruptly rose from his throne, his legs buckling, utterly horrified.

"What?"

Song Zhong, who was on duty at the palace gate, was startled by Zhu Yuanzhang and thought to himself:

"His Majesty is becoming more and more neurotic."

Zhu Yuanzhang was absolutely certain that Zhu Gaoxi's words were all fabricated and used to deceive Zhu Di. He had no immortal help and had not left any "immortal objects" in Beiping.

And what about the steel that could be used to make weapons? If Zhu Yuanzhang had that, he would have already donned his armor again and marched onto the grasslands to attack the Tartars.

Zhu Yuanzhang, the emperor, was actually envious of these things while looking at them in the simulator.

"The fourth brother, who was originally penniless, has suddenly become a nouveau riche."

Zhu Yuanzhang now truly envies Zhu Di.

With such weapons and so much food, the fourth prince's rebellion is like adding wings to a tiger. No, that's not quite right. The fourth prince's rebellion, which started at a disadvantage, can now be considered a major advantage.

All of this was because of Zhu Gaoxi.

"Could it be that Xiao Gaoxi really had the help of immortals?" Zhu Yuanzhang pondered, stroking the jade seal that symbolized imperial power with one hand.

These things couldn't have been made by Zhu Gaoxi. Only an immortal could have made these things without anyone noticing.

Moreover, Zhu Yuanzhang himself had a simulator that allowed him to glimpse the future, so it's easy to understand why Zhu Gaoxi had the help of immortals.

"Immortal... could you please revive my sister and Biao'er?"

Zhu Yuanzhang looked on with anticipation. Although the simulator said that if he could simulate three emperors of the ages, it might be possible to bring people back to life, it was only a possibility.

Moreover... Zhu Yuanzhang felt that this simulator was somewhat inhuman. If he could really encounter an immortal, he could ask the immortal for help, and the immortal might actually help him.

simulation--

[You, Zhu Laosi, aren't stupid. Seeing so many good things, you finally realize that what your fourth brother, Gao Xi, said was a lie. He said these things were left to you by your father, and that your father originally wanted to make you the crown prince—that was just to deceive you. All these things were actually arranged by your little Gao Xi.]

[Because you know your father too well. If he had these good things, would he have left them to you? He might have already continued clamoring for the Northern Expedition and squandered all these good things.]

"What the fourth brother said is true." Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, his mood calm and composed.

Of course, more importantly, you think your father became senile in his later years, choosing your elder brother's son instead of you as crown prince. You think that if your father had lived a few more years, he might have become as senile as Emperor Wu of Han in his later years. So how could your father possibly leave these things to you?

Upon seeing this message on the simulator, Zhu Yuanzhang was furious: "What are you saying?! We merely established Yunwen as the crown prince, and the fourth prince actually says that I'm senile in my later years, and that if I live a few more years, I'll become like Emperor Wu of Han?"

"Emperor Wu of Han was a man of great talent and ambition, yet in his later years he forced his beloved wife and his own son to their deaths. How could our old Zhu be such a person!"

"Song Zhong! Go quickly and bring the fourth prince to the palace!"

"Go quickly!"

Zhu Yuanzhang roared. He never engaged in internal strife, and he couldn't stand such humiliation. He was furious and wanted to summon Zhu Di to the palace to give him a good scolding on the spot.

simulation--

[But you knew your little Gao Xi might not want to reveal anything, so you didn't press him too much. Instead, you took all the supplies and threw them into the front lines to fight.]

Just as you predicted, the one leading the troops to attack you from the north is Geng Bingwen, who distinguished himself in the Battle of Burerhai. You are overjoyed.

"Yunwen is muddle-headed!" Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but shake his head.

Geng Bingwen's greatest strength was defense. He might have some offensive skills, but Zhu Yuanzhang knew his fourth son well; the fourth son was better at offense than Geng Bingwen.

Why would Yunwen send Geng Bingwen on a northern expedition?

After thinking for a moment, Zhu Yuanzhang was taken aback:

"...It seems we've killed all the military commanders..."

However, Zhu Yuanzhang believed that although Zhu Yunwen had persecuted his uncles and damaged his reputation, he could rely on his legitimate position, make good use of Geng Bingwen, and do a good job in defense. In a few years, even if the fourth prince had divine assistance, he would surely be defeated.

But Zhu Yunwen chose to attack.

"It seems that Yunwen is not only cold-hearted to his uncles, but also extremely shallow in his strategic vision for the country."

Zhu Yuanzhang made his first real assessment of Zhu Yunwen.

This is completely different from his previous assessment of Zhu Yunwen as his "good holy grandson," and is the exact opposite.

"Was our judgment in choosing a crown prince really that bad?"

Zhu Yuanzhang fell into self-doubt, but he also felt that his previous choices were not wrong.