Chapter 36: A Four-Year-Old Child Shakes the Imperial Court (Part 2)

"Yesterday, this little monkey of mine was chatting with me and asked me to grant him the title of general."

"I said, 'Give me a plan to quickly stabilize the disaster-stricken areas in the North.' It was originally just a casual remark, but guess what?"

"This little monkey actually gave me a surprise."

After finishing, Zhu Yuanzhang paused, seeing that some officials looked unconvinced.

Zhu Yuanzhang did not mind this, but continued: "This little monkey told me to recruit soldiers, raise troops to farm the land, and encourage voluntary migration, letting the common people move to the North of their own accord. This saves the imperial court quite a bit of trouble..."

As he spoke, he recounted the remarks Zhu Gaoxu had made yesterday.

As Zhu Yuanzhang finished speaking, the crowd of officials below was already in an uproar.

If it weren't for the fact that Lao Zhu was still sitting above, the Fengtian Hall would likely have exploded.

No one had expected that such a brilliant plan could have been spoken by a four-year-old child.

After a long while, once the officials had calmed down, Zhu Yuanzhang continued: "It seems you all agree this method is feasible? Since that is the case, I shall fulfill my promise and grant this little monkey a general's title to play with!"

As soon as his voice fell, the sound of the system suddenly rang in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind.

【Ding, congratulations to the host for adopting Zhu Gaoxu's suggestion, accelerating the stabilization of the northern disaster areas; Great Ming's National Fortune has increased by one hundred years.】

【The supreme and great Emperor Chat Group group leader Zhu Gaoxu has received a reward: Unknown!】

At the same time, a sound also rang in Zhu Gaoxu's mind.

【Ding! Great Emperor Chat Group group leader, you have received a reward: Sign-in System!】

"It's finally here!"

Zhu Gaoxu clenched his small fists, suppressing his excitement so he wouldn't cry out.

He had transmigrated for two years, and the golden finger he had been waiting for had finally arrived today!

At this moment, tears of happiness welled up in Zhu Gaoxu's eyes.

Unlike Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Yuanzhang felt a bit depressed.

Why is it that I go through all this trouble, yet the one who ends up with the benefits is always that little monkey?

Glancing gloomily at the teary-eyed Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Yuanzhang twitched his mouth, stopped wasting words, and directly issued an order: "The North is currently plagued by constant natural disasters, and there are rebels defying the heavens, looting and pillaging without regard for the people. I hereby appoint Zhu Gaoxu as General Who Suppresses Rebels, ordering him to recruit one thousand elite soldiers and head to the various provinces in the North to exterminate the rebels."

As soon as Zhu Yuanzhang spoke, Zhu Gaoxu sensed something was wrong, and after he finished, Zhu Gaoxu was completely dumbfounded.

Not to mention him, even the entire civil and military court could not understand what Zhu Yuanzhang was thinking.

Some officials even let their eyes scan back and forth between Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao, Zhu Di, and Zhu Gaoxu.

The implication was self-evident: this Zhu Yuanzhang plane placed far too much importance on Zhu Gaoxu.

The rank of general actually didn't matter; it was just a miscellaneous title.

Just like when he previously granted Zhu Gaoxu the title of Nanyang Commandery Prince, it was merely a title with no real power.

Even granting him the title of Great General would have been harmless.

But leading these one thousand elite soldiers was different. Don't forget who Zhu Gaoxu's father was—that was the Fourth Prince, Zhu Di.

By casually managing things within his own son's troops, these one thousand men could become a private army.

This move by Lao Zhu was too unexpected; no one knew he was going to pull this off today.

Zhu Di was so frightened he broke out in a cold sweat.

Seeing his eldest brother looking at him with slight dissatisfaction in his eyes, Zhu Di immediately stepped forward.

"Father Emperor, you must not!"

"Gaoxu is still a child and cannot shoulder such a heavy responsibility. I beg Father Emperor to retract the order and choose a capable person instead."

With Zhu Di stepping forward, the other officials also voiced their opposition, and even Zhu Gaoxu's maternal grandfather, Xu Da, stood up to object.

Yet, seeing so many people opposing him, Lao Zhu seemed as firm as iron.

"What? Do you want me to break my word to a junior?"

As soon as Zhu Yuanzhang's voice fell, Hu Weiyong finally could not sit still and stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, the Nanyang Commandery Prince is still too young, only four years old; how can he command troops in battle?"

"Furthermore, the northern Central Plains are so far from the Kyoto; the journey is arduous, and the Nanyang Commandery Prince is of royal blood and young, I fear he cannot endure it."

"Besides, the Emperor only promised to grant the Nanyang Commandery Prince a general's title. Now, by simply granting the Nanyang Commandery Prince the title of General Who Suppresses Rebels, how is Your Majesty breaking your word?"

Once Hu Weiyong said this, all the officials in the court nodded in agreement.

In everyone's view, even if Zhu Gaoxu was somewhat clever or talented, he was still too young for something like commanding troops.

Once there was the slightest mishap, it would cost lives.

Listening to the advice from the crowd of officials below, Zhu Yuanzhang slapped the Dragon Throne and shouted angrily, "What? Can I not even make this small decision now? Are you all trying to rebel?"

"You speak quite happily now, but when I asked you just a moment ago how to govern the North, why did you all become mutes?"

"If I were you, I would stay quiet and behave myself right now. Do you know why? Because I feel ashamed for you!"

"So many of you couldn't come up with a plan for me, yet it was solved by a four-year-old child. Now, what right do you have to stand here and oppose me!"

Following Zhu Yuanzhang's roar, the crowd of officials all shut their mouths.

Even Hu Weiyong opened his mouth, but nothing came out.