Zhu Wenzhen was not only held down, but also beaten.
As a subordinate, Yan Qian was embarrassed to beat Zhu Wenzhen, so he held Chen Biao and watched Li Wenzhong and Chen Ying team up to beat Zhu Wenzhen.
From this point, it can be seen that Li Wenzhong and Chen Ying's fighting strength is slightly inferior to Zhu Wenzhen's. It takes two against one to pin Zhu Wenzhen to the ground and beat him with fists and kicks.
Chen Biao clenched his fists. If Yan Qian hadn't held him, he would have fallen to the ground and kicked Zhu Wenzhen twice.
Even when Yan Qian held him in his arms, he continued to cry out and cheer for his cousin and sworn brother.
Zhu Wenzheng was not one to take a beating. Even when he was outnumbered, he fought back. He was beaten like a pig's head, and the corners of Li Wenzhong's mouth and Chen Ying's eyes were also black and blue.
Men were often rough these days, and military commanders often engaged in fistfights. Everyone was very calm about it.
When Zhu Wenzheng finally begged for mercy, the doctor on board immediately came out with a medicine box and covered the three men's faces and bodies with plasters. The three men put their arms around each other's shoulders and reconciled on the spot.
The surrounding soldiers watched indifferently as the three young generals fought in public. Their expressions were just short of a handful of spiced watermelon seeds.
Yan Qian's eyelids twitched, and he lowered his eyes to watch Chen Biao wash his eyes.
Chen Biao looked at the plasters all over Zhu Wenzheng's face with satisfaction, and finally calmed down. When Zhu Wenzheng reached out his hand to him again, he obediently returned to Zhu Wenzheng's arms and let Zhu Wenzheng hold him against his neck.
"Let's go! Your sister-in-law has prepared a big table of delicious food for you. I'll teach you how to play with your nephew!" Zhu Wenzheng grimaced in pain, but he was in a good mood. "My son is so funny!"
Chen Biao held Zhu Wenzheng's head and tapped the back of his head gently: "Don't learn my father's bad habits. Is this son just for you to play with?"
Zhu Wenzheng laughed and said, "He can't even speak now, so what else can he do if he doesn't use it to play?"
Chen Biao knocked on the back of Zhu Wenzheng's head again: "I told you not to learn my father's bad habits!"
Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Biao laughed and joked for a while, and then they rode back with Chen Biao sitting on his neck.
Li Wenzhong and Chen Ying guarded on the left and right, staring at Chen Biao who was holding Zhu Wenzhen's head out of the corner of their eyes, fearing that Chen Biao would fall.
Yan Qian followed behind, speechless.
General Zhu, can you hold your brother in front of you when you ride? Are you two brothers doing some kind of trick by riding with the flag on your neck?
But Chen Biao had been very mature throughout the journey except when he asked for the manuscript, but at this moment he was as childish as Zhu Wenzhen.
So Zhu Wenzhen rode on a horse, and Chen Biao rode on Zhu Wenzhen's neck, and they paraded through the city like this, and returned to the General's Mansion in Hongdu under the shocked gazes of the people in the city.
Song, dressed in a cloth skirt and a straw hairpin, was already waiting at the door of the general's mansion. Seeing the strange postures of Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Biao, she couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh out loud.
She likes that when Zhu Wenzhen and Biaoer are together, she is in a good mood every day.
Zhu Wenzheng grabbed Chen Biao's two short legs that were hanging on his chest, jumped off the horse, and said with a smile: "Madam, I brought Biao back."
Chen Biao rode on Zhu Wenzheng's neck and bowed with a smile: "Hello, sister-in-law! I'm sorry to bother you during this time. I also brought a letter from Mr. Song!"
Song immediately returned the gift and then invited Chen Biao and Li Wenzhong into the house.
Chen Ying was still unmarried and lived with Zhu Wenzhen in the general's mansion.
The general's mansion is very large, but there are very few servants around Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Ying, and many rooms are still empty.
Chen Biao was not shy about it. He immediately occupied all the empty rooms in the general's mansion and plucked all the ornamental flowers from the farm that Zhu Wenzheng had received as a reward from Zhu Yuanzhang in Hongdu Prefecture. He then cleared the land and turned it into a workshop.
Zhu Wenzhen brought his soldiers to help, but Chen Biao kept giving orders and looking down on him.
Zhu Wenzhen immediately picked up a handful of dirt from the ground and threw it on Chen Biao's head.
Chen Biao rolled up his sleeves and started fighting with Zhu Wenzhen.
By the time Chen Ying ran out to stop them, the two men had already turned into dust.
Chen Ying couldn't help but yell at Li Wenzhong: "Don't you know how to stop it! The dirt is so dirty! What if Biao'er gets sick?"
Li Wenzhong, who was watching the fun from the side, pretended to be stupid.
Ever since Hongdu experienced a rebellion, there have been many Zhu family soldiers patrolling the streets, and the atmosphere among the people has become somewhat depressing.
As soon as Chen Biao arrived, Zhu Wenzhen took Chen Biao around to show off how well he had rebuilt Hongdu, but before he could finish three sentences, the two of them would start quarreling in the street, attracting many people to watch.
"Isn't this General Zhu? Who is that child?"
"I heard that he is General Zhu's younger brother, the famous Yingtian prodigy Chen Biao."
"Chen Biao? Shouldn't General Zhu's younger brother be called Zhu Biao?"
"Ah, I remember his name was Chen Biao, am I mistaken?"
Even in troubled times, the people can't help but want to watch the fun.
When Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Biao go out together, they always cause some trouble. Then Li Wenzhong is responsible for watching the show and cheering, while Chen Ying is responsible for cleaning up the mess. It is very lively.
After watching the excitement several times, the people were less afraid of Zhu Wenzhen, who had started killing people several times since he arrived in Hongdu.
When Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Biao were fooling around, they couldn't help but smile kindly on their faces.
General Zhu is also a young man.
Chen Biao asked Zhu Wenzhen to take him out, but not for fun.
Chen Biao is an overly cautious person. Even if his father assures him that Hongdu is very safe, he will still prepare for the worst.
Besides, he came to Hongdu to try out new things.
In Hongdu, Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Ying had the final say. Now that Li Wenzhong has come, even General Deng Yu, who assisted Zhu Wenzhen, has shut up and let these people from the "Chen family" do whatever they want.
But Chen Biao would not let Deng Yu off easily. He tried to make Deng Yu a coolie as well.
If Deng Yu was a serious veteran, Chen Biao would have simply taken a detour. However, although Deng Yu was the first "veteran" to follow Zhu Yuanzhang, he was not old at all and was one year younger than Zhu Wenzheng.
Deng Yu's original name was Deng Youde. His family was originally just ordinary farmers, but his father was born brave and was elected by the villagers as a militia captain, so he could barely be considered a "village elder."
Later, Deng Youde's father led his fellow villagers in an uprising but was shot and killed while fighting against the Yuan army. His elder brother, after inheriting his father's banner, soon died of illness. Deng Youde was left to take over his father and brother's banners and continue to control the military.
That year was the 13th year of Zhizheng (1353), and Deng Youde was only 16 years old.
Deng Youde was extremely brave and strict in military discipline. At that time, the people sought his protection and the number of his troops quickly expanded to 10,000.
In the 15th year of Zhizheng (1355), Deng Youde led more than 10,000 troops to Chuzhou to surrender to Zhu Yuanzhang.
This was the first time that Zhu Yuanzhang encountered someone leading his troops to surrender, and the number of people was so large that it was almost comparable to his own troops at the time.
Zhu Yuanzhang immediately laughed so hard that his teeth showed. He gave Deng Youde the name Deng Yu and appointed him as the commander-in-chief of the army.
Deng Yu's subsequent military exploits not only earned him numerous military achievements, but also earned him a special place in Zhu Yuanzhang's heart as the first person to surrender to him with such a large number of troops. Therefore, despite his youth, Deng Yu's status under Zhu Yuanzhang was comparable to that of Xu Da, Tang He, Zhou Dexing, and others, and even slightly higher than Chang Yuchun.
However, Deng Yu was unaware of Chen Biao's identity. Firstly, he was too young, and Zhu Yuanzhang was worried that he would be unable to control his mouth. Secondly, Deng Yu was not one of Zhu Yuanzhang's poor brothers. So, after Zhu Yuanzhang discovered that his son was too smart, he wrote letters to his brothers every day to show off his intelligence. By the time Deng Yu returned home after the battle, Zhu Biao had already become Chen Biao, and he had missed the opportunity to learn Chen Biao's identity.
However, Zhu Yuanzhang asked Deng Yu to assist Zhu Wenzhen and Chen Ying, and asked Chen Biao to stay in Hongdu temporarily. He had instructed Li Wenzhong and others to tell Deng Yu Chen Biao's true identity when necessary.
Therefore, Zhu Wenzhen and others have regarded Deng Yu as an insider. When they indulged Chen Biao, they did not avoid Deng Yu and let Chen Biao and Deng Yu get along well.
Chen Biao knew that Deng Yu was a very capable person and held a special position in Marshal Zhu's heart.
His father had mentioned Deng Yu's name to him many times, praising Deng Yu for his vision and ability to identify a wise leader. Marshal Zhu would definitely accept Deng Yu's favor.
"Let's not talk about him being posthumously crowned a king in the future! If he had a daughter, maybe she could even become the Marshal's in-laws!"
Chen Biao immediately felt very sorry for Deng Yu.
The Marshal's children and in-laws? Wouldn't that be dangerous?
He curiously asked Chen Ying about Deng Yu's current family structure.
This unlucky guy who might become the in-law of the Marshal's children just gave birth to a daughter this year.
However, when Chen Ying heard the Marshal say that he and Deng Yu might marry their children to in-laws, he was very unhappy.
Chen Biao wondered: "Is he a bad person?"
Chen Ying shook his head. "General Deng is a good man. He disciplines his troops strictly and treats the people well. But his wife, Cao, is truly unpleasant."
Chen Ying shouldn't have spoken ill of someone else's family behind their backs, but he wouldn't hide it from Chen Biao. Furthermore, since his adoptive father had mentioned the possibility of marrying his children to Deng Yu's, the affairs in Deng Yu's backyard were definitely related to Biao'er.
However, Chen Ying didn't know much about the situation in Deng Yu's backyard. He only said that every time Cao saw him and Zhu Wenzhen, she seemed quite arrogant, which made him quite unhappy.
Chen Ying believed that although Zhu Wenzhen did not reveal his true identity as his adoptive father's nephew, regardless of his and Zhu Wenzhen's identities as the lord's adopted sons, or Deng Yu and himself being Zhu Wenzhen's deputy generals, Cao's attitude towards him and Zhu Wenzhen was not a wise move.
Chen Ying was a man of broad mind and would not bother with the woman in the backyard, so he still had a good relationship with Deng Yu.
But the daughter born to the woman in the backyard might become Biao'er's sister-in-law, causing more trouble for Biao'er, so Chen Ying had to ignore Cao's stupidity.
Chen Ying didn't know much about Deng Yu's backyard news. This gossip started and died down, which made Chen Biao feel itchy.
So he took advantage of his young age and asked his cousin's wife if she knew about what happened in Deng Yu's backyard.
When Chen Biao visited Deng Yu, he met Cao once.
However, Cao just said a few words lightly and went back, without much contact with Chen Biao.
Chen Biao pretended to be calm and said, "I see that Aunt Cao doesn't seem to like me. Is it possible that Zheng and Ying have offended her in some way? If it is Zheng and Ying's fault, I am young and can help them."
Song tapped Chen Biao's forehead and said, "If Wen Zheng offends him, I will intervene on his behalf. Why would I need a child like you to worry about Wen Zheng?"
Chen Biao covered his forehead and smiled, "I've gotten used to it. It's great to have a sister-in-law. I can put Brother Zheng aside."
Song laughed so hard that her body shook.
After a long while, she stopped laughing and said, "Madam Cao is a little too proud. It's not our fault that she gave you the cold shoulder."
Chen Biao's eyes lit up, knowing that his cousin's wife must know more information, so he quickly asked.
Song was happy to share gossip with Chen Biao in order to keep him away from Madam Cao.
After Deng Yu's father started his rebellion, he always wanted to find a daughter-in-law with a good family background for his two sons.
Cao was the daughter of a retired Yuan Dynasty official, a family of scholars and poets, and reportedly a prominent and powerful family with a very long family tree. Deng Yu's father had saved this official during a military campaign, and the couple arranged a marriage.
Chen Biao asked curiously, "Could it be that after General Deng's father and brother died, the Cao family broke up the relationship, and General Deng snatched his wife back, so his wife hates him?"
Song smiled and said, "What are you talking about? General Deng is not that kind of person. A noble family values their promises, and General Deng has troops at his disposal, so he's not some poor man. How could they break off an engagement? It's just that General Deng and his wife don't get along."
At first, Song did not say too many bad things about Cao and tried her best to make amends for Cao.
But Chen Biao was so smart that he immediately figured out what was going on in Deng Yu's backyard from Song's reasonable and kind words.
Deng Yu's father could be said to be seeking repayment for a favor, but the Cao family could also be said to be seeking protection in troubled times. That's why Deng Yu was able to marry into this noble family.
However, Cao grew up in a wealthy family and had nothing in common with Deng Yu. She looked down on the peasant generals around Deng Yu who came from the same humble background as Deng Yu, and did not like to go out for social events, which led to a very tense relationship between the couple.
What made Cao even more upset was that Deng Yu was not only a rough man who was difficult to communicate with, but also lived a very rough life. Cao had been living a life of luxury since childhood and could not bear Deng Yu's rough life.
Deng Yu disliked Cao's extravagance, and Cao disliked the hard life she would have to live after marrying Deng Yu, so their relationship became even worse.
After Zhu Yuanzhang learned about this, he asked Madam Xiuying to persuade him.
Deng Yu, a general trusted by Zhu Yuanzhang, actually had a lot of gold and silver in his hands, but he was not used to a too luxurious life. Under the persuasion of Madam Xiuying, Deng Yu let Cao take care of things and stopped intervening in Cao's affairs.
Cao no longer complained about Deng Yu, but treated him coldly. After she had a daughter, she and her daughter moved to her own courtyard and stopped living with Deng Yu.
Deng Yu then took in several concubines and lived his own life behind closed doors.
The couple became strangers.
Chen Biao sighed, "She's so cold and indifferent to me, is it because I'm the son of a businessman?"
The wealthy and powerful families all looked down on businessmen, just like people in later generations looked down on nouveau riche.
Song said, "She always makes that face to everyone. It has nothing to do with her status. She was just taught badly by her family. She has a very spoiled and bad personality. Don't bother with her."
Chen Biao chuckled and said, "Sister-in-law, you were just saying nice things to her, why are you suddenly saying bad things about her?"
Song nodded Chen Biao's head again and said, "You are kind-hearted. I am afraid that if I speak too softly, you will suffer from her."
Chen Biao touched his forehead and said, "She's in the backyard. As long as I don't go to General Deng's house, what suffering can I endure?"
Song said, "I just want you not to go to his house."
Chen Biao asked, "Has your sister-in-law ever suffered at her hands?"
Song sneered, "What harm could I possibly suffer? I just saved a few poor servants from her who were nearly beaten to death, and she hated me for that."
Chen Biao was stunned: "Beat the servant to death?!"
Song said, "How could such a wealthy family as hers treat slaves as human beings? I'm afraid that the people of Hongdu Prefecture are just ants in her eyes. She can beat them to death if she wants."
Chen Biao frowned: "General Deng let her do whatever she wants?"
Song said, "The people she employs are servants brought from her natal family. How can General Deng be in charge of her dowry farm?"
Chen Biao frowned again, but didn't know what to say.
From a modern perspective, he felt very uncomfortable. But in this era, he could only do the same as his cousin's wife: give some advice when he saw her, and pretend he didn't see anything when he didn't. He couldn't possibly interfere in other people's family affairs.
Even Deng Yu had no control over his wife's dowry.
Cao is actually very pitiful.
Her family all married into other wealthy families, but she was forced to marry a vulgar peasant. She must have felt uncomfortable.
She was the daughter of an old official. She was of high seniority in the family and young in age. She had lived a life of luxury since childhood and had her way. However, after marrying a peasant, her quality of life declined. Even when she beat a servant to vent her anger, people would point fingers at her. Her life became even more miserable.
Chen Biao said, "Nowadays, widows can remarry. Since she is so miserable, it would be better for her to divorce General Deng."
Song shook her head. "They can't get divorced. The Cao family has prestige but no soldiers, so they rely on General Deng for survival. General Deng once tried to send Cao back home, but the Cao family said they wanted a chaste and virtuous woman, and if Cao was divorced, they would have to hang herself. So General Deng brought Cao back. Since then, Cao's temper has only gotten worse."
Chen Biao said: "It's pitiful. It's pitiful and hateful."
Song nodded silently.
She said so much to Chen Biao, actually it was also for Cao's own good.
Although her family did not tell her Chen Biao's true identity, she was very smart and Zhu Wenzhen was very kind to her and willing to discuss things with her, so she had roughly guessed Chen Biao's identity.
Given how much the Chen family values Biao'er, if Biao'er dislikes Cao, Cao might be forced to commit suicide.
Song didn't know how she felt about Cao.
On the one hand, she was disgusted by Cao's brutality in not taking the lives of slaves and ordinary people; on the other hand, she sympathized with Cao's pain of being forced to marry someone she didn't want to marry and being abandoned by her family.
Chen Biao said: "She is both pitiful and hateful, but most importantly, she is hateful. When she doesn't take human life seriously, she loses the qualification to be sympathized with."
Chen Biao frowned and said with disgust, "What woman in this world isn't pitiful? In troubled times, she can waste food at will, throw gold and silver into the water for fun, and beat a few slaves to death when she's in a bad mood. How can she be pitiful?!"
Song seemed to be thinking about something, and sighed deeply again, and liked Chen Biao even more.
Chen Biao doesn't care about other people's family affairs. He can't care about them either.
But he could write a letter to his father, asking him to stay away from the unknown prince who was married to Deng Yu's daughter, so as to avoid a fire in the other party's backyard and implicate the Chen family.
As Chen Biao wrote, he complained to Chen Ying, "Deng Yu's only daughter now is the biological daughter that Cao keeps with her, right? If this daughter has the same personality as her mother... Alas, the princess of a vassal state has immense power. I wonder how many innocent people she will kill."
Chen Ying said, "The commander-in-chief knows what's going on. If he sees that the Deng girl has bad behavior, he won't choose her as his daughter-in-law."
Chen Biao shook his head. "That's not necessarily true. Marshal Zhu couldn't even teach his own sons well. I heard his sons are all violent. Maybe they and the daughter of the Deng family would hit it off and exploit the people together."
Zhu Wenzheng climbed in through the window and asked curiously, "Biao'er, where did you hear people say that my adoptive father's son is not a good person?"
Chen Biao rolled his eyes at Zhu Wenzheng and said, "If you want to eavesdrop, just eavesdrop. Why did you climb through the window? The door is open, can't you just go through it?"
Zhu Wenzheng said, "I took the shortcut when I heard something interesting. Who would take the detour? You haven't told me yet. How do you know that my adoptive father's sons are bad? Even I don't know how many sons my adoptive father has, so how do you know?"
It couldn't be that Fourth Uncle was scolding Biao'er's younger brothers in private, right?
Chen Ying was more conspiracy-themed: "Could it be that someone is speaking ill of the lord's son in front of you, smearing the reputation of the lord's heir?"
"What? How could such a thing happen?!" Li Wenzhong also climbed in from the window.
Chen Biao rolled his eyes again.
What's wrong with you, cousins? If you want to listen, just listen openly. Why are you hiding outside the window? Why are you climbing through the window? The door is not closed!
Chen Biao said, "No one said anything. Have you forgotten that I am a fairy boy? Since I know that Marshal Zhu is going to be the emperor, of course I also know some other things. Anyway, you should avoid having too much contact with Marshal Zhu's son in the future. His sons are not good people."
Chen Biao thought of Emperor Jianwen and added, "His grandson is not a good person either. You must not get close to the Zhu family, or you will be implicated. The Marshal will not kill his sons and grandsons, so when his sons and grandsons commit crimes, those around them will suffer."
Zhu Wenzheng rolled his eyes like Chen Biao: "I don't believe it. His adoptive parents are such good people, how bad can their son be?"
Chen Biao said, "Look, my parents are such good people, do they have time to teach me and my brother? Marshal Zhu and Madam Xiuying are probably even busier than my parents. I guess they don't have time to teach the children."
Chen Biao thought, besides not having the time to teach his children, perhaps Zhu Yuanzhang's children also inherited his crazy side. If they were not restrained, they might become madmen who commit all kinds of evil.
Chen Biao didn't know how many sons Zhu Yuanzhang had, but the Zhu family princes did not do good things in their early years and were later raised to be fools, which was notorious.
After the fight between Emperor Jianwen and Emperor Yongle, it is estimated that many of the vassal kings would die or be weakened.
"Anyway, getting close to the Zhu family is bad news," Chen Biao warned. "You all have military merits, so there's no need to curry favor with anyone. Just be your own lone ministers. After the Ming Dynasty is established, stay away from the Zhu family's children. Do you understand?"
Zhu Wen Zheng: “Oh.” It’s impossible to be far away. My cousins are so funny.
Li Wenzhong: "Oh." You are standing right in front of me, how can I be far away?
Chen Ying: "...Yeah." He understood. He would stay away from his adoptive father's illegitimate sons and only be close to Biao'er.
Chen Biao nodded with satisfaction: "Hook."
Chen Biao's cousin, brother-in-law, and sworn brother absentmindedly shook hands with Chen Biao.
After Chen Biao made a promise with them, he reminded them again: "You must trust me!"
The three brothers nodded perfunctorily: "Yeah, yeah, I know."
Chen Biao said: "Including Marshal Zhu's prince, don't get along with him!"
The three brothers looked at each other, trying to suppress their laughter and said, "Okay."
Zhu Wenzheng picked up Chen Biao and said with a wicked smile, "Why are you suddenly talking about your adoptive father's prince who isn't even a prince yet? Are you worried that we're too fond of our adopted brother and are neglecting you?"
Chen Biao said unhappily, "Are you kidding? I'm doing this for your own good."
Chen Ying suppressed a smile and said, "Biao'er, don't worry. No matter how busy the lord is, he will not slack off in teaching his eldest son. He will definitely be a very good son."
Li Wenzhong nodded continuously: "That's right."
Chen Biao muttered, "Maybe. Perhaps his eldest son is indeed good. But he's just too good..."
Zhu Wenzheng's eyes widened. "Could it be that the Crown Prince is so outstanding that his adoptive father will be wary of him and want to kill him?!"
Chen Ying stood up suddenly, his body trembling slightly: "Impossible! The Lord would never do this!"
Li Wenzhong almost fell down: "Biao'er, don't scare me!"
Chen Biao frowned and said, "No, no, don't overthink it. Marshal Zhu really likes his eldest son and won't be afraid of the crown prince. Forget it, I only told my father about this matter. I didn't want to tell you, but..."
Chen Biao looked at his three brothers and frowned even more. "But you are all so amazing. You have achieved so many military achievements at such a young age. You will definitely be sent to the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace to accompany the Crown Prince and become his close ministers, right?"
Zhu Wenzhen, Chen Ying, and Li Wenzhong looked at each other again.
Well, that's true. Now they are the prince's "close" ministers, chatting with him.
Chen Biao had not thought about this matter at first. Today, when Zhu Yuanzhang's son was suddenly mentioned, he realized this very serious problem.
His father could also find an excuse to be stationed in another place and avoid much contact with the prince, and perhaps he could escape.
Even if the Hongwu Emperor went crazy, as long as they were outside the country and found something wrong, they would flee overseas. He didn't believe that the Hongwu Emperor could catch up with them by boat.
But his brothers were different.
My brothers are too young, and they might be sent directly to the Eastern Palace to keep the prince company.
Chen Biao held his head and thought hard, but he couldn't remember whether the ministers close to the Eastern Palace had suffered after the death of the prince.
Alas, how can I think about something that doesn’t exist in my mind?
If he had known that he would travel through the Ming Dynasty, he would have memorized the History of Ming Dynasty...
Well, it's impossible to memorize it. At most, he can read it a few more times.
Chen Ying said distressedly, "Biao'er, do you have a headache? Don't think about the future. It's not a good thing to actively spy on the future and reveal the secrets of heaven."
Zhu Wenzheng also came back to his senses and immediately held Chen Biao's head down: "Yes, yes, yes, don't think about it. Don't worry, your brother is so powerful and can protect himself!"
Chen Biao said, "It doesn't count as revealing the secret... Well, let me think about it, is there any way to make you safer? Wait, I got it!"
Chen Biao jumped up from Zhu Wenzheng's arms, but was pushed back into his arms by Zhu Wenzheng: "Do you all know the Marshal's adopted son?!"
Zhu Wenzheng said, "I know most of them. So, which of the Marshal's adopted sons wants to rebel?"
Li Wenzhong and Chen Ying also became nervous.
Chen Biao shook his head vigorously: "No, no. I'm asking, do you know someone named Mu Ying?"
All three of them looked puzzled.
Chen Biao said: "Mu Ying, that is, uh, the Mu of bathing, the Ying of hero, the same name as Brother Ying... and so on..."
Chen Biao realized an important problem: "Brother Ying, you are now the Marshal's adopted son!"
Chen Ying: “…Yes, that’s right.”
Chen Biao pressed his hands hard on his cheeks, pinching his round chin into a small V-shaped face. "You can't be the Marshal's famous adopted son, Mu Ying!"
Chen Ying: "...Ah? My last name isn't Mu."
Chen Biao asked, "Your original surname wasn't Mu?"
Chen Ying said, "I don't remember. But it's probably not Mu."
Chen Biao was puzzled: "Is there anyone among the Marshal's adopted sons who has the same name as you?"
The name "Ying" is very common, and it is normal to have the same name.
Chen Ying said, "I became the Marshal's adopted son relatively late, so I'm not familiar with the Marshal's other adopted sons."
Chen Biao looked at Li Wenzhong and Zhu Wenzheng: "You must know this, right? Even if Mu Ying hasn't become a general yet, he has definitely joined the army."
Zhu Wenzheng: “I can’t remember.”
Li Wenzhong: "I'm not familiar with the Marshal's other adopted sons."
The two thought about it carefully. Although Chen Ying's name was very common, among his adoptive father's dozens of adopted sons, it just so happened that there was no one with the same name as Chen Ying.
If the adoptive father really had an adopted son named Mu Ying, then it is very likely that he was Chen Ying. Although it is not known how Chen Ying changed his surname to Mu.
Could it be that Chen Ying’s relatives came to visit?
Chen Ying was also very nervous, worried that someone might want to find him to trace his ancestral roots.
After his father died, his mother was kicked out of the house and had to beg for a living with him. She soon died as well.
In this life, he only recognizes his adoptive father and mother and Biao'er, and has no desire to return to his ancestral home.
Chen Biao had no doubts. After all, Marshal Zhu had so many adopted sons that it was normal for his cousins to not remember them all.
When he was in school, his class had more than 40 students. After several years of schooling, he couldn't even remember the names of all his classmates. Zhu Yuanzhang's adopted sons would only become more unfamiliar with each other.
However, Chen Biao really doubted whether his brother Ying was Chen Ying.
Chen Ying thought so too.
He asked, "What happened to Mu Ying? Is he a bad guy?"
Chen Ying clenched his fists in his sleeves, feeling nervous.
Chen Biao came back to his senses. "Ah, no, Mu Ying is a good person. His family has guarded Yunnan for generations. Although he was not crowned a king, he was almost the King of Yunnan. The Mu family died with the Ming Dynasty. The last Prince Mu and the last Southern Ming Emperor died together. Well, it seems that they died together."
The three of them breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhu Wenzheng glanced at Chen Ying with a half-smile: "King of Yunnan, not bad, not bad. But what the hell is that Southern Ming?"
Chen Biao said: "There is no such thing as an immortal dynasty in the world. The Southern Ming was just like the Southern Song. It was a small court in exile from the Ming Dynasty and was quickly wiped out."
Zhu Wenzheng: “…Oh.”
Forget it. Our Ming Dynasty hasn't even been established yet. Why would I care about its demise? Even if I wanted to, I'd be dead and dusty. How could I care about my great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren?
Chen Biao said, "I'm thinking that if you know Mu Ying, you should follow him to guard Yunnan, or even a more remote place, and don't stay in the capital. But this also depends on the Marshal's opinion."
Zhu Wenzheng glanced at Chen Ying provocatively. "I think my adoptive father will definitely keep me in the Eastern Palace to accompany the Crown Prince. Mu Ying, if Mu Ying is Chen Ying, hehe, let him go to Yunnan and eat dirt alone."
Chen Ying's face turned dark and he really wanted to beat Zhu Wenzhen.
Li Wenzhong also teased Chen Ying: "Who knows, someone with the surname Mu might come to claim Ah Ying's relatives tomorrow, and Ah Ying will have to call herself Mu Ying. Hahaha. It's great to be the King of Yunnan. Ah Ying, you have to live well in Yunnan alone. I will definitely miss you."
Chen Ying was almost hurt from anger.
He doesn't want to leave Biaoer and go to Yunnan alone!
Whoever wants to be the King of Yunnan can be the King! I'd rather be a guard in the Eastern Palace for Biao'er!
Chen Biao shook his head. "I've thought about it carefully. Mu Ying shouldn't be my brother Ying. That Mu Ying might be a personal guard that the Marshal left for his son. He grew up with Crown Prince Zhu and has a very good relationship with him. But my brother Ying doesn't know any Crown Prince Zhu."
Zhu Wenzhen: "Oh." That Mu Ying was indeed Chen Ying.
Li Wenzhong: "So that's how it is." Ah Ying's name turned out to be Mu Ying.
Chen Ying lowered his eyes and said, "My last name is Chen, and it has nothing to do with Mu Ying."
Chen Biao nodded: "Yes, my brother Ying should have nothing to do with Mu Ying."
Zhu Wenzheng deliberately bullied Chen Ying: "That's not certain. Maybe he has a foster brother behind him. Biao'er, don't believe him. He may be hiding a brother from you!"
Chen Ying was speechless: "Wen Zheng, do you want to be beaten?"
Zhu Wenzheng raised his chin: "Am I afraid of you?"
Chen Biao waved his hand. "Definitely not. Even if it was originally, it's not now. Mu Ying grew up with Prince Zhu. After Prince Zhu died young, Mu Ying vomited blood and died when he heard the news of Prince Zhu's death. My brother Ying still doesn't know Prince Zhu. How could he have such a deep relationship with Prince Zhu that he died together with him?"
The expressions on Zhu Wenzhen, Li Wenzhong, and Chen Ying's faces froze at the same time.
Zhu Wenzheng's voice trembled: "Biao'er, Biao'er, do you know what you are saying? This is not nonsense!"
Li Wenzhong opened his mouth and tried to speak several times, but no sound came out.
Chen Ying felt dizzy and almost fainted.
Chen Biao waved his hand. "Although I don't know the exact future, I do have a rough idea of the general trend. You all know that I said Marshal Zhu would become violent in the future, so I told you to be cautious, not arrogant, and not to have too much contact with other generals, right?"
Zhu Wenzheng hugged Chen Biao tightly and bit the tip of his tongue hard, only then did his voice become normal: "Yes, you said so."
Chen Biao said, "The Marshal saw off Madam Xiuying and the Crown Prince one after another, so he may have suffered too much stimulation in his later years. Alas. No matter how good the Crown Prince is, you should not have too much contact with him. Do you understand? The Crown Prince is destined to die young. Besides you, only my father knows about this. My mother doesn't know either. You better keep it to yourself."
Chen Biao frowned. "If you hadn't made so many contributions, I wouldn't have told you that you would have become the Crown Prince's close ministers. Even if you are forced to become close ministers of the Eastern Palace, don't continue to assist the Crown Prince's son. You will really die, understand? If the Crown Prince dies, the Marshal will be close to madness soon. Let's find an opportunity to go to sea together."
Zhu Wenzheng: "Ah... going out to sea, okay?"
He looked at Li Wenzhong and Chen Ying.
Speak up! Don't leave me alone! I can't bear it!
Chen Biao glanced at his three brothers and smiled bitterly. "Well, it seems the stimulus was too great for you. Don't worry! I'll find a way out for you. My father knows this too. He's agreed with me that once the world is somewhat stable, he'll allow me to go overseas and buy property. You can find an excuse to go with me then. As long as you don't have too much contact with the Zhu family, you'll be fine."
Chen Biao jumped down from Zhu Wenzheng's arms, who could no longer sit still, and jumped into Chen Ying's arms, saying worriedly, "Hey, hey, hey, Brother Ying, are you okay? You're not really hiding a brother outside of my life, are you?"
Chen Ying shook his head: "No, you are my only brother."
Even if my adoptive father and mother have other sons, they are not my brothers. I only have one brother, Biaoer.
Died young... Died young...
Chen Ying had bitten his tongue, and his mouth was full of the taste of blood, which helped him to suppress the dizziness in his head.
Died with the prince...
He believed it, he was indeed Mu Ying.