The strongest eldest son of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 6 Stop talking! Please stop talking!

Zhu Yao was startled by Liu Bowen's reaction, a look of confusion on his face. He turned to look at him, his tone tinged with incomprehension: "Mr. Liu, what's wrong? Did you get a sore throat from eating hot pot? Why are you sweating so much and your complexion looks so bad?"

As he spoke, he turned to look at Zhu Yuanzhang, only to find that Zhu Yuanzhang had lost all the joy he had felt while eating hotpot. His face was ashen, his brows were tightly furrowed, and he exuded a suffocating aura of authority, like a volcano about to erupt.

"Dad?" Zhu Yao asked with concern. "Why do you look so pale? Is the hotpot not to your liking, or are you feeling unwell?"

Zhu Yuanzhang took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the surging anger and shock in his heart. He slowly raised his head, forced a smile, and tried to be as gentle as possible in his tone: "It's alright, Father is fine. I was just a little moved by what you said about the affairs of the court."

The gentleness on Zhu Yuanzhang's face vanished instantly, his eyes sharpening once more. "Corrupt officials should be killed! Kill them all!"

"These parasites oppress the people and corrupt the government; keeping them alive will only bring more trouble. It's better to kill a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free!"

Liu Bowen trembled! It's all over!

Zhu Yao shook his head slightly. "Dad, I don't agree with what you're saying."

"Corrupt officials commit numerous evils and should indeed be punished. At best, they should be dismissed from office and exiled; at worst, their property should be confiscated and they should be executed. All of these are reasonable. But to say that they should be killed outright, and that it is better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free, is something I absolutely cannot agree with."

"Father, think about it. You can't kill all the corrupt officials. Even if you kill a batch, if the system isn't changed and supervision isn't strict, new corrupt officials will keep emerging."

"But the loss of killing one good official is something that cannot be made up for by killing ten or a hundred corrupt officials."

"A good official can bring benefits to the people of a region, share the burdens of the court, and enable the people of a region to live in peace and prosperity. But if a good official is wrongly killed, the people of that region will lose their support, and the court will lose a useful talent. This loss is immeasurable."

Zhu Yao paused, then continued, "Even if the current emperor is wise and powerful enough to eradicate all the corrupt officials, what about the future emperors of the Ming Dynasty?"

"Can everyone be as diligent in governing and loving towards the people as His Majesty is now, and as indignant at evil? Who knows, in the future there will be incompetent rulers who appoint corrupt officials and neglect state affairs. At that time, without upright and good officials to check and balance the court, corrupt officials will run rampant, the people will be displaced, and how long can the Ming Dynasty remain stable?"

Liu Bowen sat to the side, his head spinning, cold sweat pouring down his body, and he screamed inwardly:

Stop talking! Please stop talking!

He knew Zhu Yuanzhang's temperament all too well. His Majesty hated nothing more than anyone making irresponsible remarks about the imperial descendants, let alone speaking so bluntly that the future emperor of the Ming Dynasty might be a tyrant. This was simply outrageous!

In the past, let alone such remarks, even the slightest mention of the royal family would have been fatal. At best, the entire family would be executed; at worst, nine generations of relatives would be exterminated. Zhu Yao is dancing on the edge of a knife, courting death!

Liu Bowen secretly glanced at Zhu Yuanzhang and saw that the emperor's face was terribly gloomy, and his aura of majesty was growing heavier and heavier, as if he was about to explode at any moment. His heart was in his throat, and he didn't dare to breathe, for fear that Zhu Yuanzhang would lash out on the spot in a fit of rage.

Not only is Zhu Yao's life in danger, but his entire group may also be implicated.

Just as Liu Bowen was filled with trepidation, thinking that Zhu Yuanzhang would fly into a rage and execute Zhu Yao on the spot, Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly fell silent.

His brows were furrowed, and Zhu Yao's words echoed repeatedly in his mind.

After a moment, the gloom in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a hint of approval and recognition.

Yes, Yao'er seems to be right.

He always believed that only by killing all corrupt officials could the Ming Dynasty be preserved and the people be able to live in peace and prosperity. However, he never thought that the loss of killing good officials by mistake would be so great, and he never thought that future emperors might not be as righteous as he was.

Zhu Yuanzhang raised his head, his gaze falling on Zhu Yao, his eyes full of appreciation, and his tone softened again, even carrying a hint of satisfaction: "Well said! Well said!"

"Your maternal grandfather has truly raised you exceptionally well. You are handsome, intelligent, and mature. Not only do you have the skills to do business and build roads, but you also have such a keen eye for things and can speak so insightfully. It's truly rare!"

Zhu Yao cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Zhu Yuanzhang, a sincere smile on his face, and said in a heartfelt compliment, "Father, you flatter me. I was just saying it casually."

"On the other hand, Father, I can see that you are no ordinary businessman."

"Your demeanor, your composure in the face of adversity, and your perspective on issues are all beyond the reach of ordinary people; I am far inferior to you."

"I still have a lot to learn from you!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang burst into laughter, "You little rascal, you certainly know how to talk."

"You've built such a business at such a young age and are able to benefit the local people; I'm still far behind you."

"You're the one Dad should learn from!"

Zhu Yao quickly replied, "Father, you're too modest. Without you, I wouldn't exist. In the end, it's still Father who's truly amazing."

"Haha, good, what a sensible child!"

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed even more heartily.

Liu Bowen, standing to the side, was completely dumbfounded.

He had followed Zhu Yuanzhang for many years and had never seen His Majesty look like this before.

So gentle, so patient, and able to praise each other so harmoniously, just like an ordinary father.

This is absolutely unprecedented!

Erhu was equally shocked.

As Zhu Yuanzhang's personal bodyguard, he was used to the emperor's iron-fisted and majestic demeanor, and to his frequent outbursts of anger and decisive killings, but he had never seen the emperor so cheerful and gentle.

For a moment, he was speechless and could only stand there dumbfounded, watching the father and son praise each other.

As the laughter subsided, Zhu Yuanzhang put down his teacup, his tone inquisitive: "Yao'er, what do you think should be done with those officials who used blank seals on documents?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yao took it as casual conversation and began to speak freely, "Father, in my opinion, this matter should be considered from two perspectives."

"Those corrupt officials who use blank documents to commit fraud, line their own pockets, and oppress the people should be killed without any injustice."

"They deserved their fate. Killing them would give an explanation to the people and to the imperial court."

"But then again, some officials do not intend to commit fraud, but simply want to save time and money by traveling back and forth."

"They were honest and upright officials who were dedicated to serving the people. It would be such a pity if they were also executed for this, and it would be a loss for the court."

"Take Fang Keqin, the prefect of Jining, for example. He was an honest and upright official who cared for the people. He devoted himself to the local water conservancy and the people respected him very much."

"He did not intentionally commit fraud, but it is heartbreaking that he was sentenced to death without any consequences because he was the local official in charge of the seal."

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned slightly upon hearing this, but did not interrupt; he simply listened quietly...