Chapter 15: The First Step to Wealth

Hearing Sun Heding refuse outright, Zhu Cilang expressed understanding—of course he wouldn't give up that easily—and continued, "I have also heard of your talents, Lord Sun. To be framed and killed by treacherous ministers is truly a loss to the nation."

Zhu Cilang's words shocked Adam Schall and Sun Heding inwardly—they never expected that the current Crown Prince, at such a young age, could possess such insight.

Especially when the words "treacherous minister" came from his mouth—everyone present, including Xu Sheng and Wu Zhong, knew exactly who the Crown Prince meant by treacherous minister. That was none other than Wen Tiren, the Chief Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat.

"Your Highness," Wu Zhong reminded Zhu Cilang in a low voice, wanting him to be more careful with his words.

Zhu Cilang didn't feel he had been rash at all, and continued, "What? By framing loyal ministers, is Wen Tiren not a treacherous minister?"

"Your Highness, please say no more," Sun Heding hurriedly urged.

The fact that Zhu Cilang could openly state his position on the spot already moved Sun Heding deeply. However, Zhu Cilang's words would also bring trouble upon himself.

It was true that treacherous ministers had framed him, but in the end, it was Chongzhen who had ordered Sun Yuanhua's execution. Wasn't Zhu Cilang's statement an indirect criticism of the current Emperor?

Zhu Cilang naturally understood this reasoning, but he was not afraid. Here, aside from Adam Schall and Sun Heding, there were only Wu Zhong and Xu Sheng—these two would never betray him.

As for Adam Schall and Sun Heding, unless they had something wrong with their heads would they go report him. This was also the reason he dared to speak frankly—it was all to win over Adam Schall and Sun Heding.

Seeing that the time was about right, Zhu Cilang stopped wasting words and directly laid out his biggest bargaining chip: "Rest assured, Master Sun. One day, I will definitely clear your father's name."

Hearing the personal promise of the Crown Prince, Sun Heding's body trembled slightly, then he knelt on the spot, his eyes somewhat moist, and said, "This commoner is willing to die for Your Highness!"

Zhu Cilang helped Sun Heding up, then looked at Adam Schall and said, "Master Tang, I will petition His Majesty the Emperor to bestow an imperial plaque upon your Catholic Church. This should be of some help to your missionary work."

"Thank you, Your Highness. You are truly an extraordinary person—young in years yet bearing the bearing of a wise ruler." Adam Schall was so excited he was practically dancing with joy.

Seeing the two men won over, Zhu Cilang was naturally very pleased. The three of them sat down to talk in detail.

Zhu Cilang gave a rough overview of how flintlock muskets would develop in later generations, wanting to give the two men a goal for their research. He then chatted with Adam Schall and Sun Heding at length about astronomy, mathematics, and other fields of knowledge.

Adam Schall and Sun Heding exchanged glances, each seeing the shock in the other's eyes. Was this Crown Prince before them even human? Not even ten years old, yet knowing so much? Some of his knowledge was actually more advanced than theirs.

Could he truly be a reincarnated true dragon? By now, Adam Schall and Sun Heding, who had never been superstitious, actually felt a flicker of doubt about their own beliefs.

"Your Highness, it's time to return to the palace for your meal," Wu Zhong reminded softly.

Zhu Cilang was somewhat displeased and said, "What's the hurry? I regret not having met these two gentlemen sooner. Don't disturb us."

He wasn't deliberately showing off or currying favor—he genuinely found deep conversation with these two men.

Since coming to the Ming dynasty, although he had grown up here for a few years, in this ancient environment with no lights and no electricity, his heart still felt quite oppressed.

Especially the eunuchs and palace maids around him—either superstitious or nagging. If placed in the modern era, they'd be no different from idiots. Zhu Cilang could hardly converse with them at all, so he could only assign them tasks to do.

Today, meeting Adam Schall and Sun Heding and discussing modern knowledge, Zhu Cilang's heart felt as if it had been liberated.

"Your Highness, why not dine here and sample some exotic flavors?" Sun Heding suggested.

Zhu Cilang nodded and said to Adam Schall with a smile, "Fine. Today I shall dine at Master Tang's place."

Adam Schall was naturally delighted and hurriedly went personally with the servants to cook in the kitchen, while Zhu Cilang continued discussing flintlock muskets with Sun Heding.

Before long, Adam Schall and the servants had prepared a table full of sumptuous dishes.

Adam Schall personally carried out two cups of tea and said, "There isn't much good food in my home—I hope Your Highness will be lenient."

Zhu Cilang took the tea, glanced at it, and said with a smile, "I thought Master Tang was bringing me coffee—turns out it's Biluochun tea."

Adam Schall's eyes went wide as he said, "Oh, God! The coffee Your Highness speaks of is called the 'devil's drink' in our lands—it cannot be drunk. How would I dare serve such a thing to Your Highness?"

Zhu Cilang shook his head and said nothing. It seemed coffee hadn't yet become popular in Europe—at this time, the Catholic Church was still rejecting coffee. Later, after the Pope personally tasted it and deemed it drinkable and blessed it, coffee gradually spread throughout Europe. But that was still decades away.

"Is this chili pepper?" Zhu Cilang picked up a red chili from a dish and exclaimed in surprise.

Since coming to the Great Ming, he hadn't seen a single chili pepper in all these years. The spiciness in the imperial cuisine was all adjusted with mustard, scallions, ginger, and garlic—you couldn't feel any authentic heat at all.

"This is fanjiao—extremely spicy. Your Highness, be careful," Adam Schall hastily warned.

"Isn't this just chili pepper? I recognize it!" Zhu Cilang laughed heartily and took a big bite.

Instantly, a fiery sensation rushed straight to his head. Zhu Cilang felt refreshed and clear-minded, as if he were a different person. He had loved spicy food in his past life, and now tasting this long-missed flavor again gave him an indescribable feeling!

"This Crown Prince is truly a divine being!" Adam Schall and Sun Heding looked at Zhu Cilang with eyes full of admiration.

Although chili peppers had been introduced to the Great Ming decades ago and some people had tried eating them, because they were so spicy, those who ate them had their senses jolted and thought they had been poisoned!

After that, almost no one dared to eat them. They only treated chili peppers as ornamental flowers, recording them in a book called the *Manual of Herbal Flowers* under the name "fanjiao."

"Refreshing!" Zhu Cilang took a light sip of tea and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

During the meal, Zhu Cilang also chatted with Adam Schall about chili pepper matters—for instance, where one could obtain them in large quantities at present.

Although Adam Schall didn't know why the Crown Prince had developed such great interest in chili peppers, he still answered carefully and thoroughly. In the end, he even gifted some chili pepper seeds to Zhu Cilang and explained how to cultivate them.

Zhu Cilang understood at once—in another time and space, he had personally grown chili peppers before. Though it had just been for fun, he was extremely knowledgeable about them. Mainly, it was too simple—all you needed was to find a place with suitable temperature to plant them.

Zhu Cilang planned to buy land in the south under a private name to grow chili peppers on a large scale. In the end, he considered choosing the southern Anhui region—there, the roving bandits' rebellion had just been pacified, and many large landowners' fields lay abandoned and uncultivated. This was the most suitable time to buy them at low prices.

As for why he wanted to grow chili peppers, Zhu Cilang naturally wouldn't tell those two—this was a path to getting rich!

After the meal, Zhu Cilang first stabilized Adam Schall and Sun Heding, having them continue their research in the laboratory there for now. Once he returned to the palace and petitioned the Chongzhen Emperor, he would arrange for them.

Dear friends who have already invested, don't panic—I mailed the signed contract back to Qidian last Thursday, and it showed as signed for on Friday.

Because last Friday coincided with the Dragon Boat Festival and the weekend, the editors were all on holiday, so the status hasn't been changed yet. It should be updated within these next couple of days—please rest assured!