Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 129

Chapter 129 Intend To Be Empty
The Duke of England whom Emperor had asked about was an old man in his seventies who was still vigorous and had a red face. He was Zhang Fu, who had the same status as Yang Pu in the Great Ming Imperial Court and was ranked first among the military officials.

Zhang Fu, the word Wen Bi, was an auspicious person in Henan Province. He was a rare capable official with both civil and martial arts in the Great Ming Dynasty. His father, Zhang Yu, was a valiant general who stood beside Yongle Emperor Zhu Di as his right and left arm. However, in the Battle of the River, he died on the battlefield because he was eager to save Zhu Di, who was surrounded by enemies. Therefore, after Jingnan succeeded, Emperor Yongle, who was the son of heaven, chased after Duke Rong, and after Hong Xinian, he was crowned the king of Hejian.

As Zhang Yu’s son, Zhang Fu’s abilities weren’t any weaker than his father’s. In a sense, he was even better than his father. Not only did he perform well in the Battle of Jingnan, he was awarded the title of Marquis for his meritorious service. In the subsequent battle to pacify Annan, he also contributed to the annihilation of the country and changed the country’s name to Jiaozhi. As a result, Zhu Di, who was overjoyed, was awarded the title of Duke of England.

It could be said that most of what Zhang Fu possessed was fought by his own abilities, and it was unknown how much stronger he was compared to the ordinary officials of the second generation. After four dynasties, the young Duke of England had long since become a national treasure, complementing Yang Pu’s literary and martial prowess.

What was even more rare was that even though Zhang Fu had made countless contributions and enjoyed a high status, he did not rely on his favor to be proud of himself, and he even appeared to be keeping a low profile on a daily basis. The disciples of the sect rarely went out to cause trouble. Even in the court, he did not express his views and gave the stage to the young people behind him. As a result, he gained the respect of several Emperor and Manchu officials.

It was precisely because there were still such respected officials in the dynasty that they had the current glorious atmosphere of the Great Ming Dynasty. However, no one would know that after the wrong storm, old officials like Zhang Fu and Yang Pu would all perish. At that time, Da Ming could only rely on Yu Qian to become the pillar of the Heavens.

Feeling persuaded by Lu Zhen, Zhu Qizhen could only ask for help from the people he trusted the most. In terms of the uprising, the only thing that made him feel relieved and trusted the most was that he kept silent and looked at Duke Zhang Fu, who had no sense of existence.

After Emperor asked about him, Zhang Fu’s originally slightly narrowed eyes shot out two bright lights. He only swept across Lu Zhen’s face, causing his heart to quiver and he felt a strong pressure coming over. This kind of pressure couldn’t even be emitted by the high and mighty Emperor.

After glancing at Lu Zhen, Zhang Fu lowered his head and walked out to pay his respects. Then, he said slowly, “Your Majesty, although this old minister has ignored military affairs for a long time in recent years, some of the things mentioned by this county magistrate Lu sound reasonable. Especially the strategy he mentioned towards the Mongol people is indeed an old plan to conspire against the country.”

As soon as these words were spoken, many people revealed expressions of astonishment. Zhang Fu rarely spoke up, let alone praise someone. And today, he actually gave such a high evaluation to such a small county magistrate. It was truly unbelievable.

Seemingly noticing everyone’s suspicions, Zhang Fu explained, “Back then, when I led the troops against Jiao Zhi, it was only after several years that I was able to do all of this after several battles. Compared to Jiao Zhi, the Meng people on the grasslands were much harder to deal with, so it wasn’t a fantastic and sensational strategy for the Imperial Court to spend ten years, or even decades, slowly devouring them.

“Moreover, this is indeed the safest thing to do. Even if I lose, it will not be a loss to my Great Ming. But once it is done, the threat that the grasslands have posed to my Central Plains for thousands of years can be swept away!” At the end of his sentence, a cold light flashed in his eyes once again, making people dare not believe that this was an old man.

When Lu Zhen saw that he had endorsed his words, he was immediately overjoyed. This Duke of England was an important existence in the court, and Lu Zhen understood this point both now and in the past when he read history books. He believed that with this, his words were enough to attract everyone’s attention.

Sure enough, after Zhang Fu came to this conclusion, many people shut their mouths, especially those noble generals. Originally, they still wanted to stand on Wang Zhen’s side. After all, compared to civil servants, they needed a battle to improve their status. But now that Britain had set the tone, these people did not dare to go against it and could only remain silent.

As for Zou Fang and the others, their faces were deathly pale, because they knew that with Zhang Fu’s words, things would most likely have a conclusion that they did not wish to see.

Sure enough, Emperor hesitated for a moment before finally letting out a long breath. “It seems that I was too impatient before. I still have to be steady in this war. Lu Zhen, as a local official, you have the heart to the world and offer such a good plan for the Imperial Court. I am truly happy.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty, for your praise. I’m ashamed of myself.” Lu Zhen hurriedly bowed and thanked her again. At the same time, he thought to himself, “This time, I risked my life to help you defend against this possible catastrophe. I hope you won’t act as recklessly as you did in history.”

At this moment, Wang Zhen’s expression was as gloomy as Zhang Fei’s. Of course, he was Zhang Fei without a beard. Looking at the fellows in front of him who had ruined his good fortune, he wished he could get rid of everyone one by one. Unfortunately, neither Zhang Fu nor Yang Pu, nor even the Minister of War Xu Xi, could be dealt with by him now. So in the end, his gaze fell on Lu Zhen.

It was this fellow who had suddenly switched sides at this critical juncture, giving him a fatal blow. If he hadn’t appeared, perhaps this matter would have been settled and he would have followed Zheng He’s footsteps. Other people might not be able to do anything about it, but as a small grade seven county magistrate, did he really think that he was a Buddhist chanter?

With just one sentence, Wang Zhen was able to get the people from the Eastern Factory or the Royal Guards to take down Lu Zhen. As long as he entered these two yamen, he could be charged with whatever crime he wanted. For example, if he was convicted of colluding with the Meng people, he might even be able to turn the situation around after killing them to vent his anger.

Thinking of this, Wang Zhen’s gaze towards Lu Zhen had become extremely cold, as if a wild beast was peeping at a prey under its claws.

Lu Zhen also quickly sensed this kind of killing intent and danger. After a chill, he lowered his head. Of course, he knew what his choice would bring, but he would not regret making such a choice if a man did something in his life and did not do anything. Moreover, he was confident that he would be able to resolve this battle if he had been prepared.

Apart from Emperor, many people saw Wang Zhen’s killing intent. Those officials couldn’t help but sigh in their hearts. It seemed that this young county magistrate who had just helped the Imperial Court survive the calamity would have a very difficult time in the future.

However, there was nothing they could do about it. With Wang Zhen’s expanding strength, they didn’t dare to fight against him just to save an insignificant grade seven county magistrate like Lu Zhen.

Only Yang Pu, who was calmly standing at the head of the civil service, had a strange light flashing in his eyes. His gaze wandered back and forth between Lu Zhen and Wang Zhen, as if he was already planning something.

After Emperor finally gave up on the Mongol army, today’s court meeting finally came to an end. As a matter of fact, due to this heated debate, the court meeting today has been delayed by a lot compared to the past. Therefore, after Lu Zhen retreated to the last position of the queue that belonged to him, a eunuch stepped forward to declare his separation.

Zhu Qizhen saw that all the officials had no objections, so he slowly stood up and retreated to the Sure Body Hall under the escort of a group of eunuchs. Emperor’s clothes were too complicated, and the robes worn at the court meeting were even more solemn and unusual. It was a scorching summer day, so he naturally had to change his clothes in a flash.

As the eunuch that he trusted the most, Wang Zhen naturally needed to follow closely to the Spirit Palace. While sitting on the imperial carriage, Zhu Qizhen looked apologetically at Wang Zhen, who had an ugly expression on his face. “Mr. Wang, there’s nothing I can do about this matter. After all, it’s related to my great fortune, and I don’t dare to act recklessly.”

Wang Zhen’s expression quickly subsided, revealing a look of fear. “This old servant is too unconscious and impatient, so I wishfully wanted to do something for His Majesty. Actually, what Lu Zhen said is very correct. This matter really should be planned slowly.”

“I’m relieved that you think so.” When the Emperor heard this, he couldn’t help but reveal a happy and relaxed smile. However, he didn’t notice that Wang Zhen’s eyes were filled with killing intent.

Wang Zhen couldn’t wait any longer. Just as Emperor was being waited on to change his clothes, he had already found a trusted aide beside him and instructed with a gloomy face. The little eunuch nodded his head repeatedly and quickly rushed out of the palace gate. Obviously, the killing move against Lu Zhen was still activated.

At this moment, the officials were still slowly walking towards the palace gate. Especially some noble and old officials, they were walking at a leisurely pace. Judging from the situation, they would have to walk for a long time.

As Old Deshao’s chief aide, Yang Pu, his footsteps were even slower. When he saw a figure passing by, he suddenly said, “Hu Butang, wait a step.”

This was also an old man in his seventies. His hair had already turned gray, but he looked completely different from Yang Pu. Although he was wearing the robes of a high-ranking official of the second rank, his entire body possessed the essence and spirit of a martial artist. Thus, although he was old, his footsteps were quite fast. Hearing Yang Pu’s greeting, his footsteps immediately stopped and he hurriedly saluted, “I wonder if the pavilion elder has any instructions for me to stop.” His surname was Hu, and he was the Minister of Official Affairs of the current dynasty.

Minister Hu was not simple. Not only did he become a Jinshi at such a young age, he was even valued by Emperor Yongle. He had even sent him to do something extremely confidential. In other words, like Yang Pu and Zhang Fu, he was a senior official of the four dynasties with extremely high seniority.