Chapter 241: The Ruthless Men of the Great Ming

Hearing Zhu Youxiao say this, Song Yingxing didn't find it surprising. The reason was simple—this wasn't his first time dealing with Zhu Youxiao. From his attire alone, one could tell his family was no ordinary household, likely one of the capital's powerful elites.

Just look at his attendants—this was no run-of-the-mill noble. So under such circumstances, it was only natural that he couldn't come out to take the examination.

So Song Yingxing smiled and asked, "So, worthy brother, did you see anything interesting today?"

"Quite lively indeed." Zhu Youxiao said with a smile, "I didn't expect so many people to come, and both civil and martial talents alike—rather surprising. But it's also clear that many people are quite delighted."

Hearing Zhu Youxiao's words, Song Yingxing smiled and said, "Indeed. After all, this is an academy supported by the court and by His Majesty himself. It's no wonder it drew such a response."

Zhu Youxiao nodded and said with a smile, "Well said."

Just as Zhu Youxiao was about to say something more, two people in the distance walked over quickly.

Seeing the two of them, Zhu Youxiao smiled faintly. It seemed he had miscalculated somewhat.

The two men's reactions to seeing Zhu Youxiao were also different.

The one on the left was slightly older. Upon seeing Zhu Youxiao, his expression showed some surprise, though it was still fairly normal.

The moment he spotted Zhu Youxiao, he walked up, clasped his hands, and said, "Brother Bai, I never expected to see you here today. Have you come to take the examination as well?"

Looking at Song Yingsheng, who had come up to greet him, Zhu Youxiao said with a smile, "I'd like to, but unfortunately my family won't allow it. There's nothing to be done."

After saying this, Zhu Youxiao turned to look at the other young man beside Song Yingsheng.

The young man's expression upon seeing Zhu Youxiao was shock mixed with terror, terror mixed with disbelief, and finally his knees bent—he nearly dropped to the ground.

Qi Yuanfu, standing beside him, reached out and grabbed him, quickly locking his arm with his own to prevent any movement, while watching him warily.

Several people around them also quietly closed in.

Zhu Youxiao smiled and waved his hand, and only then did those people retreat.

After a long moment, the man's expression settled, and he forced a smile uglier than tears. He opened his mouth several times but couldn't find the words—as if his throat were squeezed shut, his face flushed bright red.

This man was naturally none other than the Song brothers' good friend, Zhang Yu, Zhang Tuizhi.

The Song brothers didn't know Zhu Youxiao's true identity, but that didn't mean Zhang Yu didn't either. He accompanied Feng Congwu into the palace every day—this wasn't his first time seeing Zhu Youxiao.

Though Zhu Youxiao was dressed differently now, Zhang Yu still recognized him at first glance, especially since Xu Guangqi was standing right beside him.

Seeing that Zhang Yu hadn't dropped to his knees for a full formal bow, Zhu Youxiao breathed a sigh of relief.

If he'd made a scene here, things would have gotten troublesome.

So Zhu Youxiao turned to look at the Song brothers and said with a smile, "Did you come here together? Won't you introduce me?"

Song Yingxing quickly said, "This is our closest friend, Zhang Yu, Zhang Tuizhi."

"If we speak purely of learning, Tuizhi may not match my elder brother. But when it comes to strategy, he's unmatched among the three of us. Moreover, he's an open and upright man—a very good person."

Zhu Youxiao took a deep look at Song Yingxing, then glanced at Zhang Yu.

I wonder if it's the two of us having different perceptions of people, or if you're just too naive?

This Zhang Yu is open and upright?

Though Zhang Yu had done quite a few things, not a single one could be hidden from Zhu Youxiao.

In Zhu Youxiao's view, this Zhang Yu was a textbook Strategist.

Heaven knows where Zhang Yu had learned it. In this era, the Strategist school wasn't exactly popular—it was a school the Confucians looked down upon. After all, playing with words and tongues wasn't considered anything impressive in their eyes.

In fact, Zhu Youxiao felt that the Confucians harbored such sentiments out of revenge.

Back in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, their sages hadn't been particularly favored. Confucius, Mencius, and even Xunzi—none of them had gained real employment, never getting the chance to realize their ambitions.

Instead, it was several of Xunzi's students who gained important positions—though they were Legalists. And those who were also employed were the Strategists.

So doesn't that prove I'm inferior to them?

After all, I wasn't employed while they were. Of course, that couldn't be admitted.

The one at fault certainly wasn't me—it was the era.

That's why there's the saying that there were no righteous wars in the Spring and Autumn period.

Now that a Strategist like Zhang Yu had appeared, he could already be considered a rare find.

Zhu Youxiao looked at Zhang Yu, a hint of amusement in his gaze.

Hearing Song Yingxing's words, Zhang Yu's heart was crying out in misery. He never imagined he'd encounter the current Emperor here.

Why would His Majesty leave the palace?

What kind of mess is this?

But after hearing Song Yingxing's introduction, Zhang Yu hurriedly bowed and said, "Greetings, Brother Bai."

Zhu Youxiao nodded.

He knew he couldn't stay here much longer, so he said, "I originally wanted to catch up with you all, but my family just sent someone to summon me. I can't linger here."

"Last time we met, I didn't leave you my address. Now that I know you're coming to the Imperial Academy, next time I'll come here to find you, and we can chat then."

Song Yingxing said with a smile, "That would be wonderful."

Song Yingsheng beside him said modestly, "We don't even know if we'll pass yet."

Zhu Youxiao glanced at Zhang Yu and said with a smile, "I'm sure with the three of you's talents, passing into the Imperial Academy will be no problem at all. So next time I'll come find you here. For now, I'll take my leave."

Zhu Youxiao clasped his hands and said, "The mountains and waters shall meet again—until we reunite."

The Song brothers hurriedly clasped their hands in return.

Zhang Yu, meanwhile, was covered in cold sweat and hastily said, "I see Brother Bai off."

Zhu Youxiao gave Zhang Yu a meaningful look. The meaning—figure it out yourself.

Then he turned and walked out.

After Zhu Youxiao left, Song Yingsheng looked at Zhang Yu and said with slight hesitation, "Did you know Brother Bai before?"

Hearing Song Yingsheng's words, Zhang Yu shuddered, quickly shook his head, and said nervously, "No, I don't. First time seeing him. I just noticed his extraordinary bearing and figured his status must be remarkable."

Song Yingsheng's brow didn't relax, but he slowly withdrew his gaze and didn't press further.

Having been in contact with Zhang Yu for so long, Song Yingsheng naturally knew his temperament—calling him a man who feared nothing under heaven wouldn't be an exaggeration.

But when he had just seen Brother Bai, the man was clearly not himself, and even now he still seemed not to have snapped out of it.

Still, judging by Zhang Yu's demeanor, he wasn't going to say anything about it, so there was no point in asking.

Zhang Yu breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Song Yingsheng look away.

He naturally knew what the look in Zhu Youxiao's eyes meant when he left, and he truly did not dare reveal Zhu Youxiao's identity to the two Song brothers.

If he actually told them, it wouldn't be helping them at all — it would be harming them instead.

At the same time, Zhang Yu also realized something: the Song brothers had stumbled upon a tremendous stroke of fortune.

No matter how they had come to know His Majesty, at this very moment they had already caught His Majesty's eye.

Still, Zhang Yu had some lingering concerns and asked, "How did you two come to know Brother Bai? You seem quite familiar with each other."

Song Yingxing laughed and recounted the matter, then said with some surprise, "I never expected to run into him here today."

Zhang Yu felt somewhat helpless — should he say the two of them were lucky, or that someone else was unlucky?

Now he also understood why His Majesty did those things in the palace and promoted all sorts of new learning.

It was because His Majesty frequently left the palace and knew very well what people outside were like.

After shedding that trace of timidity, Zhang Yu instead felt his heart stir with excitement — wasn't this his opportunity?

If His Majesty was so resolute, then his chance had come.

"Alright, we've been taking the exam for so long that we must be hungry. Let's hurry off to eat, and we can continue the exam in the afternoon." Zhang Yu hastily changed the subject.

He didn't want to keep talking about this matter; if he let something slip and the Song brothers pressed him, he wouldn't know how to answer.

Song Yingsheng gave Zhang Yu a deep look but said nothing.

He had already discerned that Zhang Yu knew this Brother Bai; and through Zhang Yu's behavior, he also understood that Brother Bai's identity was no ordinary thing — not merely out of the ordinary, but extraordinarily, extraordinarily out of the ordinary.

It seemed he would need to keep his wits about him from now on, Song Yingsheng thought hesitantly.

Zhu Youxiao, however, wasn't thinking about any of this — he had already boarded his carriage.

His mood was excellent right now. This trip out of the palace had yielded news beyond his expectations: the Imperial Academy was truly very popular.

Clearly the court was controlled by others, but there were many people at the bottom who wanted to climb up.

As long as he opened a crack and gave these people a chance, they would seize the opportunity and rise.

This was a good thing for him. So Zhu Youxiao was in quite a good mood.

Another thing that lifted his spirits was that he had encountered several formidable people today — such as the Song brothers and that military juren, Lu Xiangsheng.

This really was a tremendous surprise!

So Zhu Youxiao instructed Chen Hong, "Later, have them send the roster to you. I want to see exactly how many people took part in this examination."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Chen Hong hurriedly acknowledged from outside the carriage.

In truth, Zhu Youxiao wanted to see if there were any other familiar names. If there were, he would pick them out.

He didn't want to let talented people slip away for one reason or another and fail to get into the Imperial Academy. That would be a tremendous loss for himself and for the Great Ming.

In high spirits, Zhu Youxiao strolled about until the sun was about to set before returning to the palace.

After returning to the palace, Zhu Youxiao went to find Empress Zhang. He had bought quite a few gifts for her, and with his mood so excellent, he naturally wanted to go have a heart-to-heart talk with her.

All night long, orioles sang sweet and the stream flowed long.

Early the next morning, Zhu Youxiao rose bright and early, stretched his body, and ate considerably more breakfast than usual.

Seeing the roster Chen Hong presented, Zhu Youxiao began reading it with great interest.

Soon he discovered an interesting name:

Cao Wenzhao.

He wondered whether this Cao Wenzhao was the same Cao Wenzhao he was thinking of.

But surely there shouldn't be any mistake, right?

He'd have Chen Hong and the others look into it later.

Continuing to flip through, Zhu Youxiao soon spotted the name Wu Xiang.

This Wu Xiang was also a formidable man, and most crucially, he had a son of mixed reputation — the famous Wu Sangui.

Aside from that, Zhu Youxiao also spotted several familiar names.

Among them, one particular person caught Zhu Youxiao's attention — a very ordinary name, Li Xin.

Zhu Youxiao's gaze fell upon his place of origin: Kaifeng Prefecture, Henan. It really might be the person he was thinking of.

So Zhu Youxiao beckoned to Chen Hong. "Grind the ink."

He himself picked up the brush and wrote down several names.

After letting the paper dry a little, he handed it to Chen Hong and said expressionlessly, "Have someone look into these people."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Chen Hong took it and hurriedly acknowledged.

Though he didn't know why His Majesty wanted these people investigated, since it had to be done, he would have them go look into it — perhaps there would be no small harvest.

Not long after Chen Hong left, Zhu Youxiao heard a commotion and his brows immediately knitted together.

For Zhu Youxiao, the Western Park was a good place.

The environment here was pleasant, and most crucially, it was quiet — living here, no one disturbed him.

But now there was actually a commotion, and more importantly, who would dare make a racket on his turf?

Just as Zhu Youxiao was about to call someone to ask what was going on, Chen Hong came running in from outside.

Sweating profusely, he arrived before Zhu Youxiao and fell to his knees with a thud.

His face was filled with terror, his whole body numb, and his voice trembling as he said, "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened!"

Hearing this, Zhu Youxiao's face immediately turned cold, and he asked in a low voice, "What happened?"

"Outside the gate of the Western Park, many officials have gathered — they are kneeling in remonstrance!" Chen Hong said with a trembling voice, letting cold sweat blur his eyes without daring to raise a hand to wipe it away.

Hearing this, Zhu Youxiao's brows twisted tightly together.

Since the Great Rites Controversy during the Jiajing reign, kneeling remonstrance had become an extremely sensitive matter in the Great Ming, something the Emperor deeply dreaded.

Of course, in the eyes of the civil officials, things were exactly the opposite. Especially that cry they had raised back then: "The dynasty has nurtured its scholars for a hundred and fifty years—the day to die for righteousness is today!"

Even now, it still rang out with heart-shaking force.

Yang Tinghe's son, the Zhuangyuan Yang Shen, had likewise declared: "The state has nurtured its scholars for a hundred and fifty years—to hold fast to integrity and die for righteousness is today."

Afterwards, Junior Compiler Wang Yuanzheng, Supervising Secretary Zhang Chong and others blocked the Golden Water Bridge to the south, detaining and urging the assembled ministers, while He Mengchun, Jin Xianmin, Xu Wenhua and others rallied the crowd of officials.

More than two hundred court ministers then knelt before the Left Obedience Gate, begging Emperor Shizong to change his decree.

After that affair, collective kneeling remonstrance became a taboo topic. Because that time, the Jiajing Emperor had not compromised—he had men carry clubs and beat everyone back severely.

But it was precisely from that incident onward that the Jiajing Emperor's prestige plummeted. No minister at court supported him anymore, so he could only employ men like Yan Song.

Now that the matter of ministers kneeling in remonstrance had arisen again, Zhu Youxiao's expression instantly turned very ugly.

He knew this day would come; he simply hadn't expected it to arrive so soon.

Zhu Youxiao let out a helpless sigh.

Glancing at Chen Hong, who knelt trembling on the ground, Zhu Youxiao drew a deep breath and said in a voice as calm as still water: "Go, fetch Wei Zhongxian and Luo Sigong for me."