Chapter 40: The Fourth Brother Rebels?

"The third emperor of the Great Ming?"

Zhu Biao murmured to himself. According to the proprietor, if things went as expected, the Yongle Emperor should have been Xiongying. But why would Xiongying choose such an ominous reign title as "Yongle"? Had no one around him cautioned him against it? Zhu Biao could not fathom it for a moment.

"Proprietor, is this third emperor truly Xiongying?"

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, I must warn you to steel yourself before I say this."

Zhu Biao’s expression froze. Had some accident occurred? Ah, wait—the proprietor had just mentioned that Xiongying died of smallpox in the fifteenth year of the Hongwu era. That meant the third emperor was not Xiongying. Then who could it be? Could it be Yunwen?

"Proprietor, is the third emperor Yunwen?"

"Your Highness, I suppose I must tell you: the third emperor of the Great Ming is your fourth brother, Zhu Di."

"The Fourth!"

How could that be? Zhu Biao’s face was etched with shock. He currently had three sons: the eldest, Zhu Xiongying, was the indisputable heir, his position unshakeable; the second, Zhu Yunwen, though formerly born of a concubine, had become a legitimate son after Lady Lü was named Crown Princess in the eleventh year of Hongwu; and the third, Zhu Yuncong, born of the same mother as Xiongying, was only five years old.

"Proprietor, I have three sons. Could it be that they all passed away, and having no heir, the throne fell to the fourth brother? But there are still the second and third brothers before him; by the laws of succession, it should never have come to the fourth."

"Your Highness, in truth, the Yongle Emperor, Zhu Di, did not inherit the throne. He seized it from Zhu Yunwen."

"Proprietor, are you saying the fourth brother stole the throne from Yunwen?"

Zhang Bo nodded slightly, acknowledging the question. Zhu Biao sank into deep thought. In his memory, the fourth brother was not that kind of man. Back when his father was still fighting to establish the Ming, he had been away at war, leaving the task of raising his younger brothers to him and his mother. In other words, he had watched them all grow up and knew them well.

The second brother was cruel by nature, the third was arrogant, but the fourth, compared to the other two, was more composed and did not engage in the lawless acts the others did. Therefore, in his view, there must be some hidden reason for the fourth brother’s rebellion.

"Proprietor, from what I know, the fourth brother is not such a man. Is there some hidden truth behind this?"

"In fact, as you suspect, the Prince of Yan’s rebellion was directly related to Zhu Yunwen."

"Oh? Related to Yunwen?"

"Yes. The Founding Emperor once asked Zhu Yunwen how he would handle the relations with the vassal kings once he took the throne. The answer Zhu Yunwen gave was very satisfying to the Founding Emperor."

"Wait, proprietor." Zhu Biao suddenly realized a problem. If the fourth brother was the third emperor and had seized the throne from Yunwen, that meant Yunwen was the second. And the first was his father, the Hongwu Emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang. Then what about him? Could it be...

"Proprietor, did I pass away early?"

"Yes, Your Highness. You unfortunately passed away in the twenty-fifth year of Hongwu, shortly after inspecting potential sites for the capital."

This... Zhu Biao was momentarily speechless. He never imagined he would pass away in a mere ten years. Did that not mean he would go before his father? How heartbroken his father must be! Not only would he lose Xiongying, but he would also lose his eldest son, leaving him unable to fulfill his filial duties. At this thought, a look of profound sorrow appeared on Zhu Biao's face.

"Your Highness, there is no need to be so saddened. The history books also recorded that the Imperial Grandson would die of smallpox, yet he lives on just fine. I believe you, too, can change your fate." Seeing that Zhu Biao was affected by the news of his early death, Zhang Bo offered words of comfort.

"Thank you for your guidance, proprietor. Where were we?"

"We were discussing how Zhu Yunwen answered the Emperor. He said he would first use benevolence to influence the vassal kings and rules to restrain them. If that failed, he would reduce their fiefs; if that still failed, he would move them to other regions; and if all else failed, only then would he take action."

It was a response so perfect that even Zhang Bo, a man of the future, could find no fault in it. If Zhu Yunwen had truly acted that way, he might have succeeded in weakening the vassals. But who would have thought he would jump straight to the final step?

Zhu Biao nodded repeatedly as he listened to this perfect plan. To him, there was nothing wrong with that approach.

"However, once Zhu Yunwen took the throne, he acted without hesitation, immediately beginning to purge the vassals. He stripped the princes of Zhou, Qi, Dai, and Min of their status, reducing them to commoners, and forced the Prince of Xiang to commit suicide by fire to prove his innocence. Seeing this, how could the Prince of Yan not rebel? The Campaign of Jingnan broke out, and he drove Zhu Yunwen from the throne."

To Zhang Bo’s surprise, upon hearing of Zhu Di’s rebellion, Zhu Biao did not fly into a rage. Instead, he remained calm and silent.

"Alas, Yunwen went too far; he brought this catastrophe upon himself." Although Zhu Biao agreed that weakening the vassals was necessary, it should not have been done in such a way—a way that was bound to trigger resistance. The Rebellion of the Seven States during the reign of Emperor Jing of Han was a living example. Furthermore, as a junior, to demote his own uncles to commoners and drive one to his death was an act of extreme unfilial piety. Such behavior chilled Zhu Biao’s heart.

"Yunwen was simply too immature."

Regarding Zhu Biao’s assessment, Zhang Bo remained silent. It wasn't just immaturity; it was a lack of brains. Though, perhaps he had been egged on by a couple of two-bit advisors.

"Your Highness, can you believe now that I come from the future of the Ming? If you still have doubts, you need only wait here a short while, and you shall meet Liu Ju and Liu Bei. You can then travel with them to the Western and Eastern Han dynasties to see for yourself."

Zhu Biao was already mostly convinced, as he had been thinking deeply during this time. To verify if the *Veritable Records of the Founding Emperor* were true, he only needed to watch for a single day to see if the events transpired as written. There was no reason for the proprietor to go to such lengths to deceive him with such an easily verifiable method. Thus, when Zhang Bo mentioned traveling to the Han dynasties, Zhu Biao became intrigued.

"Proprietor, how long would I have to wait?"

"Time flows differently here than in the Ming. One day here is roughly ten days in your time. A day or so should suffice."

"Ten days!" Zhu Biao shook his head. One day here meant ten days in the Ming—that was too long. The Ming currently had no Chancellor; the entire burden of the capital and the thirteen provinces rested on his father’s shoulders, and he usually assisted in handling state affairs. If he were away for ten days, his father would surely be worked to death.

"I cannot, proprietor. My journey here was specifically to thank you, and perhaps to bring you before my father so he might reward you—perhaps even grant you an official post."