novelraw Chapter 564 Attacking the Ming Kingdom in This Realm
Chapter 564 Attacking the Ming Kingdom in This Realm
At the same time, the sky returned to normal in an instant, and suddenly it was clear and sunny.
And this time.
Zhu Ying slowly descended from the void onto the city tower.
Zhu Yuanzhang rushed to Zhu Ying's side and asked excitedly, "Xiong Ying, how are you? Are you alright?"
Zhu Ying calmly replied, "Don't worry, Grandfather, Bodhidharma is no match for Xiong Ying."
When Zhu Ying said this, the weight on Old Zhu's heart finally lifted, and he laughed loudly: "Haha, I knew it! No one under heaven can harm my good grandson!"
Zhu Biao couldn't help but exclaim, "Father is right. Now that Xiong Ying has killed these two Shaolin masters in one fell swoop, I'm afraid that from now on, no one will dare to come and cause trouble."
"Bodhidharma and the Sweeper Monk were both the strongest experts in the former Song Dynasty. Bodhidharma, in particular, could almost be called the number one person in the [Comprehensive Martial Arts World]."
"Now that Bodhidharma and the Sweeper Monk have been killed, the Song Kingdom will naturally be able to achieve long-term peace and stability from now on!"
"Grandfather and Father, Xiong Ying believes that the most urgent task for the Ming Empire right now is to continue its expansion!"
"As long as we conquer the Ming Dynasty, and then take over Tibet, Dali, and the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, we can achieve the unification of the world!"
It has been about half a year since Zhu Ying led his troops into this [Comprehensive Martial Arts World]. Therefore, Zhu Ying naturally hopes to unify the world as quickly as possible.
"We agree with Xiong Ying's idea!"
"I'll say it again, Xiong Ying, you'll be fully responsible for military matters!" After witnessing Zhu Ying defeat two opponents, Bodhidharma and the Sweeper Monk, Zhu Yuanzhang was naturally even more confident in Zhu Ying's abilities.
And so.
Without further ado, Zhu Yuanzhang directly entrusted this military matter to Zhu Ying.
And just then...
Suddenly, a familiar voice reached Zhu Ying's ears.
[Ding! Killing Bodhidharma and the Sweeper Monk has rewarded you with 50 attribute points!]
This time, the system was quite generous, directly rewarding Zhu Ying with a full fifty attribute points. Of course, this is normal, after all, both Bodhidharma and the Sweeper Monk are top masters in this [Comprehensive Martial World]!
and.
Zhu Ying killed the two men with almost no effort, so naturally the reward attributes would be greater!
after that.
In the following period, Zhu Ying began to focus all his attention on fighting against the Ming Empire.
Seven days later.
The Ming army began its massive invasion of the Ming Dynasty!
……
at the same time.
Within the Ming Dynasty, in its capital city, and within the imperial palace.
At that time, Emperor Zhu Houzhao of the Ming Dynasty was under tremendous pressure, after all, everyone knew that Zhu Ying was about to take action against the Ming Dynasty.
this day.
In response to Zhu Ying's invasion, Zhu Houzhao convened another court assembly.
However, the court assembly was now deathly silent. After all, the civil and military officials of the Ming Dynasty had already discussed many times how to resist Zhu Ying's invasion.
However, no solution has been found to date.
"Speak up, everyone!"
Why isn't anyone saying anything?
On the dragon throne, the Ming emperor roared angrily at the officials in the Fengtian Hall with a sharp gaze.
Regardless of the Ming emperor's reaction, the civil and military officials inside the Fengtian Hall remained remarkably quiet...
This really infuriated Zhu Houzhao!
And just then...
A member of the Imperial Guard rushed into the main hall with a panicked expression!
"Report!"
"Your Majesty! Urgent report from the front!"
"The army of the Great Ming Empire has now crossed the border and is attacking our Ming Kingdom in three routes!"
no doubt.
When the Imperial Guards publicly informed the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty of this intelligence, the latter was greatly startled, and even nearly fainted from fright!
Simultaneously.
Inside the Fengtian Hall, upon hearing these words, the civil and military officials of the Ming Dynasty immediately began to discuss among themselves, showing great anxiety.
"Ah...so fast? The Ming Empire has finally made its move against us!"
"What should we do? The Ming Empire wiped out the Jin and Song kingdoms almost without shedding a drop of blood. With the strength of our Ming Kingdom, it is naturally difficult to resist!"
"How about we seek peace with the Ming Empire? If war really breaks out, the Ming Empire will certainly have no chance of winning!"
"..."
At this moment, Zhu Wushi, who had remained silent until now, said to Zhu Houzhao, "Your Majesty, things have come to this point, why not just pledge allegiance to the grandson of the Ming Emperor?"
"If we were to fight this grandson of the Ming emperor, my Ming Dynasty would certainly have no chance of winning!"
Zhu Wushi had already secretly pledged allegiance to Zhu Ying, so when he heard that the Ming Empire had launched a three-pronged attack on the Ming Kingdom, he decisively stepped forward and began to persuade the Ming emperor to surrender.
However, as soon as Zhu Wushi finished speaking, the Ming emperor roared angrily, "Absolutely not!"
"I have told you many times! You must never submit to the Ming Empire!"
Just as the Emperor finished speaking, a eunuch suddenly approached Cao Zhengchun. The eunuch whispered something in Cao Zhengchun's ear.
Immediately, a look of shock appeared on Cao Zhengchun's face.
The Ming emperor, sitting on the dragon throne, was clearly aware of this as well.
"Cao Zhengchun, what happened?"
Upon seeing this, Cao Zhengchun immediately spoke up: "Your Majesty, I have just received news that not long ago, the founder of Shaolin Temple, Bodhidharma, and this sweeping monk fought against the grandson of the Ming Emperor."
Clearly, as soon as Cao Zhengchun finished speaking, everyone's faces showed shock again! After all, they all knew very well that both Bodhidharma and this sweeping monk were top experts in the Song Dynasty.
Moreover, the two of them basically lived in seclusion in the martial arts world.
They generally don't show their faces in public.
Upon hearing Cao Zhengchun's words, the Ming emperor immediately pressed further, "Bodhidharma and the Sweeper Monk are attacking the Ming emperor's grandson together? This is a good thing for our Ming Dynasty! Tell me quickly, what was the result?"
Cao Zhengchun replied awkwardly, "Your Majesty, both Bodhidharma and the Sweeper Monk have been killed by the grandson of the Ming Emperor."
As soon as Cao Zhengchun finished speaking, the entire hall fell silent again.
No one could believe that these two experts from the Song Dynasty had been killed by the grandson of the Ming Emperor.
This completely shattered their understanding.
At this moment, Zhu Wushi also couldn't believe it.
Although Zhu Wushi was well aware of Zhu Ying's strength, in his view, Zhu Ying was only at the peak of the Divine Power Realm.
But now Zhu Ying has actually killed the Sweeper Monk and Bodhidharma on his own, which is enough to show that Zhu Ying's realm has entered the half-step Gangqi realm, or even the Gangqi realm level.
Therefore, Zhu Wushi was very clear that no matter how the Ming Dynasty responded, there was only one outcome: the demise of the country.
“Your Majesty, this grandson of the Ming Dynasty possesses an exceptionally high level of cultivation. If I am not mistaken, both Bodhidharma and this sweeping monk were at the half-step Qi Refining Realm. Since this grandson of the Ming Dynasty was able to kill them both so easily, it indicates that his cultivation level is likely…”
Before Zhu Wushi could finish speaking, the Ming emperor on the dragon throne suddenly roared, "So what? Even if he is a master of the Qi Refining Realm, I will never surrender! No one can take power from my hands."
At this moment, Cao Zhengchun, the chief eunuch, had a rather complicated expression. To be honest, Cao Zhengchun was naturally loyal to the Ming emperor, but now, after hearing the news brought by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he was completely bewildered.
Cao Zhengchun was a master, so he was well aware of the immense power of Bodhidharma and the Sweeper Monk.
Zhu Ying's ability to easily defeat these two demonstrates that he is now the strongest person in this martial arts world.
Therefore, the fate of the Ming Dynasty is already very clear.
"Your Majesty, I also believe that if we confront this grandson of the Ming Emperor head-on, it will likely be a losing proposition. The Ming Empire's army has not yet reached the capital. While Your Majesty still has some resources, why not negotiate with this grandson of the Ming Emperor?"
When Cao Zhengchun told the Ming emperor his idea, the latter only gave Cao Zhengchun a fierce look.
He then roared, "Cao Zhengchun, you actually want me to pledge allegiance to the Ming Empire! You bunch of ingrates! Don't forget, it was I who gave you these titles. If it weren't for me, would you be where you are today?"
After being severely reprimanded by the Ming emperor, Cao Zhengchun dared not utter another word.
So he simply shut his mouth.
At this moment, an official from the Ministry of War approached the civil and military officials and said to Zhu Houzhao, "Your Majesty, things have come to this point, so we can only fight back immediately. Now that the Ming Empire is attacking our Ming Kingdom in three routes, we must naturally send three generals to lead our Ming army to resist. Although the chances of winning are very low, we still have to fight against the Ming Empire's army."
At this point, Zhu Houzhao had regained some composure.
He nodded and said to the Ministry of War official in front of him, "Very well, in that case, this matter will be handled by your Ministry of War. Immediately assemble the entire Ming army; we must withstand the onslaught of the Great Ming Empire. Under no circumstances should we allow the army of the Great Ming Empire to set foot in our Ming territory."
After Zhu Houzhao finished speaking, he immediately chose to leave the court.
……
At this moment, Zhu Wushi suddenly appeared in front of Cao Zhengchun.
Zhu Wushi then spoke very politely to Cao Zhengchun, saying, "Eunuch Cao, you should be well aware of the current situation. If our Ming Dynasty were to truly confront the Great Ming Empire head-on, the consequences would be unimaginable. Eunuch Cao is a close advisor to the Emperor, and I hope you can persuade him to surrender to the Great Ming Empire as soon as possible; that would be the best course of action."
The reason Zhu Wushi said these things to Cao Zhengchun was mainly because he realized that Cao Zhengchun also did not want to go to war with the Ming Empire. During the court meeting just now, he saw the panic in Cao Zhengchun's eyes.
Therefore, in Zhu Wushi's view, Cao Zhengchun also wanted to submit to the Ming Empire.
Little did they know, Zhu Wushi had only guessed half of it correctly.
Cao Zhengchun was indeed afraid of the Ming Empire, but he also knew very well that as a eunuch, his only master was the Ming Emperor.
If Zhu Houzhao did not want to submit to the Ming Empire, then Cao Zhengchun naturally could not submit either.
So after Zhu Wushi finished speaking, Cao Zhengchun immediately said in an icy tone, "Lord Shenhou, you should be very clear about the Emperor's meaning, right? Since the Emperor has already said that he will live and die with the Ming Dynasty, then Lord Shenhou should stop discussing the matter of surrender."
After saying this, Cao Zhengchun left Fengtian Hall directly.
Seeing this, Zhu Wushi's face revealed a hint of helplessness.
He muttered to himself, "A bunch of fools, actually deluding themselves into thinking they could fight the Ming Empire. It's utterly ridiculous."
.........
night.
The Ming emperor summoned Cao Zhengchun to his palace.
The Ming emperor had sensed from the daytime court session that all the civil and military officials wanted to pledge allegiance to the Ming Empire, so at this critical moment, he needed to employ some tactics.
"Your Majesty, this humble servant pays his respects. Long live the Emperor!"
Upon meeting the Ming emperor, Cao Zhengchun immediately knelt down and paid his respects.
The Ming emperor spoke to Cao Zhengchun in a gentle tone, saying, "Eunuch Cao, please rise."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Then, Zhu Houzhao solemnly addressed Cao Zhengchun: "Eunuch Cao, I think you are well aware that many people within my Ming Kingdom want to pledge allegiance to the Great Ming Empire. I naturally do not wish to see this happen. Therefore, I am giving you a task: kill all officials who wish to pledge allegiance to the Great Ming Empire."
To be honest, Cao Zhengchun was immediately puzzled and confused after hearing these words.
Cao Zhengchun swallowed hard, his voice trembling as he asked, "Your Majesty, isn't this a bit inappropriate? The army of the Great Ming Empire is about to invade our Ming Kingdom. If we kill these officials now, wouldn't that cause internal strife?"
Zhu Houzhao said coldly, "We can't worry about that now."
The Ming emperor continued, "Furthermore, Zhu Wushi must also be killed. I know very well that my uncle is quite eager to pledge allegiance to the Ming Empire."
Zhu Houzhao was indeed a clever man.
Although he wasn't a martial arts expert, he was extremely perceptive. Long ago, Zhu Houzhao had suspected that Zhu Wushi was inclined to defect to the Ming Empire.
During the daytime court assembly, Zhu Houzhao became even more certain after hearing Zhu Wushi's speech.
Therefore, Zhu Houzhao wanted Cao Zhengchun to kill Zhu Wushi to eliminate future troubles.
However, Zhu Houzhao placed too much faith in Cao Zhengchun's abilities.
Cao Zhengchun said awkwardly, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid I'm no match for the Divine Marquis. The Divine Marquis is now at the peak of the Divine Power Realm, while I'm only at the Grandmaster Realm." (End of Chapter)