Volume 1: Birth! Seven time travelers Chapter 98 I will go with thousands of people
"To Your Majesty: I arrived in Nanjing on the fifth day of February. On that day, I paid homage to the Mausoleum of Emperor Xiaoling on the Shenlie Mountain... The next day, I climbed Houhu Lake and entered the Yellow Book Library. What I saw and heard was shocking... Alas! If I cannot rectify it, I am afraid that something unbearable to talk about will happen soon! As a descendant of the Zhu family, I dare not worry too much about my own honor and disgrace. I will work hard for the foundation established by Taizu and the continuation of the country's prosperity until my death! I am determined to rectify the Yellow Book and consolidate the foundation of the country. No matter how strong the enemy is ahead, no matter what insults, slanders, conspiracies, intrigues, assassinations, and betrayals I encounter... I will go even if there are thousands of people against me!"
After reporting in detail to Wanli the near-collapse of the Yellow Book Library and expressing his determination in an impassioned speech, Zhu Youdong changed his tone and began to analyze to Wanli how to rectify the Yellow Book and thus consolidate the foundation of the country.
Thousands of words can be summed up in one sentence: rectifying the Yellow Book will affect all corrupt officials, tyrants and bullies in the world, and it will affect everyone. Therefore, before you have absolute power in your hands, you must never rectify the Yellow Book.
In short, Zhu Youdong was not afraid of death (if the Yellow Book was not handled well, he would definitely die a miserable death in the future), but he was also unwilling to charge into the battle and die in vain. Therefore, he told Wanli very straightforwardly in the latter part of the letter: I want to build an army, and I don’t need you to transfer this army to me (Wanli couldn’t do it either), I will build it slowly from scratch.
In short, I will find the soldiers myself, make the weapons and guns myself, and earn the soldiers' salaries myself. I want to build a strong army that will absolutely obey my orders and be invincible in this era!
"I, your Highness, have been deeply loved by you and was canonized as the Crown Prince when I was still a baby. I started learning at the age of four and all my teachers were outstanding people. If I really had evil intentions, I should have stayed in the capital and pretended to be good and served you. If I was really a traitor, why would I take such a risk? Why not wait for a few decades? However, the foundation of the country is rotten and the people have been harmed too much by the country's pests. I have only been in Nanjing for two or three days and I feel that it is about to fall. If we don't take drastic measures to cure the disease, decades later, we will all be ashamed to be the descendants of Taizu! I, your Highness, have a pure heart and I hope you will understand!"
After writing the letter, Zhu Youdong's forehead was already sweating in the late winter weather. He read it carefully again and again, and after making sure there were no obvious omissions in the letter, he collapsed on the armchair.
After taking a breath, he stood up again, picked up the letter with one hand and found the envelope with the other. Then he put the letter in without hesitation, sealed it, dripped wax, and stamped it.
"Hu~~" He let out a long breath again: "Alright, if the emperor doesn't trust me and wants to abolish my position as crown prince, then I will completely accept my fate. When the time comes, I will find a place to eat and drink to my heart's content for ten or twenty years, and wait for others to take my life."
There was no other way. Although the Ming Dynasty's control over the grassroots was basically gone, the government was still strict. Without the emperor's approval, Zhu Youdong would have to train his troops privately. If the troops were not trained well , all the military towns and guards would be on their way to destroy him.
However, it was also thanks to the fact that the government was basically in order at this time. Therefore, although the civil officials cut off the direct contact between the emperor and the military generals, the civil officials had to go through the emperor himself to deal with the military generals. To mobilize soldiers, they also had to go through the emperor himself. Therefore, as long as Wanli could support him, then in the days to come, no matter how many rumors there were, no matter how many memorials were submitted, he would be able to persist in getting things done.
Therefore, I must be determined to burn my boats and make all the problems clear to Wanli without exposing myself. It would be best if you support me, but if you don't, I will just accept my fate.
Of course, it is very unpleasant to leave one's fate entirely to others. But where can one find true and complete freedom in this world?
After thinking about all this, Zhu Youdong put the letter with the dried wax seal close to his body, then looked up and shouted outside the house.
"Wang Chengen!"
"The servant is here."
"Is Wu Youke back?"
"Mr. Wu came back at three o'clock last night after sending Mr. Lu home."
"Well, let him come see me when he gets up."
"I obey your orders. Uh..."
"Uh, what? If you have nothing else to do, go get some ginger from the imperial kitchen. I haven't slept all night and I have bald spots! When you get the ginger, come and rub it on me yourself."
The whole day of on-site education yesterday had yielded obvious results this morning. The people around Zhu Youdong would no longer persuade him not to work so hard. They understood from the bottom of their hearts why Zhu Youdong, as the crown prince and a six-year-old child, was so busy. Moreover, Zhu Youdong could feel from Wang Chengen that this eight or nine-year-old child had a clear sense of urgency.
Of course, there is more to gain.
"Young Master, actually, since the fourth watch last night, Eunuch Cao has been waiting for you in the outer hall."
"Otomo? What does he want? Let him in. You..."
"I will go to the imperial kitchen and prepare ginger for you."
Turning around tiredly, he went back to the chair behind the desk. Cao Huachun came in with his head lowered.
"Otomo, what's going on?"
"I am here to confess my crime and accept death."
"Uh-huh!"
Cao Huachun, who was looking down, only heard a "whoosh" sound, and then his eyes went dark. Zhu Youdong was already standing in front of him.
"What have you done to offend me? Why do you want to plead guilty and accept death?"
"Young Master... wuwuwu... Your servant, I was actually sent by Teacher Wang An to be by your side to record your every word and action."
"Wang An?" A cruel, metallic voice sounded above Cao Huachun's head: "Is this his intention or my father's?"
"I don't know. But from the beginning to the end, it was Teacher Wang An who gave me instructions. As for whether he reported it to the Thousand Year Old Master afterwards, I don't know."
"Hmm..." This voice sounded much gentler than the tone just now. "Stand up and talk."
"I think this is better."
"Get up and close the door!"
After Cao Huachun closed the door, Zhu Youdong was lying on the recliner again: "Tell me, why did you confess to me now?"
"In fact, ever since I came to my side, I have been admiring everything that my master has done, and I have actually been struggling in my heart. But Wang An is my benefactor after all. If he hadn't promoted me to the inner study hall, I'm afraid I wouldn't have the blessing to serve my master... But yesterday in Houhu, in Nanhua Palace, I really understood why my master was working so hard. I really understood what kind of wise ruler my Ming Dynasty needed to last for thousands of years. I really understood why my family had to work so hard on the farm but still had to let me enter the palace... My master! Although I reported many of my actions to Ciqing Palace behind my back, I dare to swear to heaven that other than that, I have never done anything to let my master down!"
"Hmm..." He stood up and looked at Cao Huachun for a long time. Zhu Youdong said, "Big companion."
This call of "great companion " made Cao Huachun feel refreshed all over: "I am here."
"From now on, can I trust you completely?"
"I will never betray my master's trust!"
"From now on, will you be able to carry out any of my orders unwaveringly?"
"As long as it is the young master's order, this slave will never be vague! Even if the person in front is my teacher, I, this slave..."
"Haha, why would I let you kill Wang An?" A hint of murderous intent flashed across Zhu Youdong's deep eyes. He smiled gently and said, "But what if I let you trick Wang An?"
In response to Zhu Youdong's question, Cao Huachun was silent for a while and then replied: "From today on, I will obey your orders. Don't say you are lying, even if you really want me to do something to Wang An..."
"I've said before that I won't force you to kill your master. But when you write the report to Wang An about what happened yesterday, you must write this..."
"I understand."
"Well, just write it here, and we can discuss it together when you're done."
"Yes, sir."
Cao Huachun sat down beside the desk to grind ink. Zhu Youdong opened the door, letting the dry and cold air from outside rush in. His head, which had been drowsy for a long time, suddenly became clear again.
"Interesting, the movement hasn't even started yet, and I'm already at risk of becoming an enemy of my own father. But, so what? Didn't I say, I'll go forward even if there are tens of thousands of people against me?"
