My father, Zhu Di, was granted a second life by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Chapter 93 Intimidating Li Jinglong

Threatening someone with their life is the behavior of bandits, no different from robbers, and Li Jinglong disdains to associate with them.

However, when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head.

Whether it was a delaying tactic or a feigned agreement, Li Jinglong agreed to Zhu Gaoxi's demands in their entirety.

"After this is accomplished, the Duke of Cao will be granted the title of Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, and his annual salary will be increased by one thousand shi (a unit of grain). He will be the chief advisor in any major affairs of the court," Zhu Gaoxi solemnly promised.

Historically, Zhu Di granted Li Jinglong these privileges after ascending the throne, and Zhu Gaoxi simply copied them.

"I believe Duke Cao will definitely keep his promise, otherwise Princess Pingyang's life might not be so easy," Zhu Youdun said with a gentle and refined smile.

Li Jinglong's beloved daughter is about to get married; she will be marrying Zhu Jihuang, the Prince of Pingyang, the third younger brother of Ji Xi.

I, the dignified Duke of Cao of the Ming Dynasty, have never suffered such humiliation!

He was filled with hatred and gritted his teeth, but there was nothing he could do. Li Jinglong had nowhere to vent his anger, so he could only clench his fists and hope to leave the bandit's den as soon as possible.

"Lord Cao, don't be angry. We're all on the same side. We should work together from now on."

Seeing that Li Jinglong's face was ashen with anger, Zhu Gaoxi gently advised him.

"This hypocritical skill of sweet talk is truly masterful," Li Jinglong thought to himself, turning his face away.

"As you surely know, my grandfather values ​​the King of Wu the most. If the Duke of Cao were to go against my grandfather's will, wouldn't that be a violation of ancestral teachings and a great act of treason?" Zhu Youdun asked slowly and softly.

"I will do what I promised you," Li Jinglong promised with a stern face.

"Does the Duke of Cao seem displeased because he doesn't think highly of me?" Zhu Gaoxi asked, leaning closer to Li Jinglong and staring into his eyes.

"Your humble servant dares not," Li Jinglong said, taking a step back and bowing with his hands clasped.

"It's getting late, Duke Cao, you should get some rest. I won't disturb you any longer," Zhu Gaoxi said, turning to leave, with Zhu Youdun following closely behind.

With those two plague-like figures finally gone, Li Jinglong breathed a sigh of relief. He would think of a better strategy when he returned to his residence the next morning.

It is not my style to let a mere child be manipulated at will.

Just wait and see. One day, you'll be crying out in regret.

The next morning, as soon as dawn broke, Li Jinglong fled the Wu Prince's residence as if he were escaping.

Guan Tong immediately reported the news.

"He must hate us to death," Zhu Gaoxi said with a grin.

"Thinking about it carefully, we didn't do anything too outrageous. We just put a sword in front of him," Zhu Youdun couldn't help but laugh out loud. "I didn't expect him to be so scared."

Li Jinglong grew up in a pampered environment, a true playboy, and had never truly faced any danger.

Historically, Zhu Di described him as "a spoiled son, lacking in strategy and arrogant," which was indeed insightful.

Zhu Gaoxi sighed inwardly for a moment, then began to consider his next steps.

"We need to find a skilled female doctor to send over. Do you have a suitable candidate, brother?"

Zhu Youdun pondered for a long time before slowly saying, "There is a lady named Xia in Kaifeng who is skilled in medicine and specializes in treating women's diseases. Because her husband is seriously ill, she came to Kaifeng to stay with relatives. She has a three-year-old daughter."

Zhu Gaoxi didn't want his mother to do such a risky thing, but couldn't think of any other way for the moment. After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "Is it reliable?"

"It's reliable. After Xia Niangzi's relative passed away, her family quickly spent all their savings and were left destitute. So, the King brought her husband, Xia Ding, into the palace for treatment."

If Lady Lü really did something immoral back then, she would most likely have started with food and medicine, and sending a female doctor to investigate would have been the most appropriate course of action.

However, the Eastern Palace is within the Lü family's sphere of influence. For the female physician to conduct a secret investigation there is tantamount to provoking the wrath of the powerful. If discovered, she could be executed immediately, which is extremely risky and would be a matter of life and death.

Zhu Gaoxi did not want to watch people die, and found it difficult to make a tough decision.

Zhu Youdun was also in a dilemma, but he couldn't think of a better solution. After some internal struggle, he finally made up his mind: "I will write to my father and ask Lady Xia."

"Brother, if Lady Xia agrees, all expenses for her husband and daughter will be covered by the Wu Prince's Mansion from now on."

With the future uncertain, Zhu Gaoxi could only make these promises for the time being.

The next steps were to be handled directly between Zhu Jixi and Li Jinglong.

Zhu Gaoxi didn't reveal much to him, only saying that the Duke of Cao was willing to help.

Zhu Jixi had drunk a lot of wine with Zhu Gaoxu last night and had a splitting headache. He was in a hurry to go back to the Prince of Jin's residence to catch up on his sleep. He quickly ate a couple of bites of breakfast and left in a hurry.

After seeing Zhu Jixi off, Zhu Gaoxu rushed over excitedly, bringing his imposing face close to his. Suppressing his excitement, he asked in a low voice, "How was it? Did that old bastard Li Jinglong fall for it?"

Zhu Gaoxi gave him a thumbs up, silently praising him.

Zhu Gaoxu gave him a triumphant look, swaggered out, and pretended to be furious, shouting, "You've got quite a temper, daring to ignore your second brother. Be careful you don't piss me off, or I'm not serving you anymore, go back to Beiping."

Zhu Gaoxi and Zhu Youdun exchanged a smile upon hearing this. Zhu Gaoxu was speaking to the Embroidered Uniform Guards who were monitoring the Prince of Wu's residence.

Xie Jin and Yin Changlong had already arrived and were hiding in a secluded corner, observing secretly.

After Zhu Gaoxu had gone far away and he saw that no one was around, he hurried into the house.

Upon seeing Zhu Gaoxi, the two breathed a sigh of relief, finally getting a chance to speak with the prince.

"Mr. Xie, Lord Yin, let's eat together."

Zhu Gaoxi smiled and invited the two to sit down, then asked Sanbao to bring over two sets of tableware.

They had so much to say that they had no appetite for food and waved their hands repeatedly in refusing to eat.

"No matter how important the matter is, you have to eat first."

"There's no way they could have something extremely urgent going on," Zhu Gaoxi insisted kindly.

Yin Changlong did not answer. He walked to the door and looked around before returning to Zhu Gaoxi's side with peace of mind. He respectfully bowed and said, "Your Highness, Lord Guo has not come over these past two days because his daughter is ill. If this coincidence continues, it will inevitably arouse suspicion."

"Your Highness, Lord Yin's concerns are very important, and I second his opinion."

Xie Jin then lowered his voice and spoke more bluntly, "It would be better for Lord Guo to avoid confidential matters. Otherwise, it will become a major hidden danger. If someone else takes notice, it will only harm Lord Guo."

Zhu Gaoxi understood that the two of them had probably figured out the situation and guessed that the struggle for the throne had already begun.

As the son of Marquis Guo Ying of Wuding, Guo Ming's involvement would indeed make him too conspicuous and could easily attract unnecessary trouble, or even become the Crown Prince's breakthrough point in dealing with the Prince of Wu's residence.

The concerns of the two are indeed thorny and urgently need to be addressed.

If the plan to "stir up trouble" is successfully implemented, Zhu Yunwen will surely launch a fierce counterattack.

Any loopholes in the Wu Prince's defense system could be exploited by Zhu Yunwen.

Guo Ming was physically weak and unable to protect himself. Moreover, he frequently traveled between the Prince of Wu's residence and the Marquis of Wuding's residence, making him the weakest link in the chain.

Zhu Gaoxi did not want Guo Ying to get involved in this matter, but he could not stop Zhu Yunwen from using Guo Ming's safety to force Guo Ying to make a statement.

It would be best to keep Guo Ming away from the conflict and wait until things settle down before returning to the capital.