Chapter Nine: The Oppressive Presence of Zhu Yuanzhang

Zhu Yuanzhang walked step by step toward Liao Yongzhong, and the hearts of many onlookers tightened. Some were secretly watching the spectacle, wishing for Liao Yongzhong to make an even bigger scene.

"What? You feel aggrieved?" Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Liao Yongzhong and asked, his voice flat.

Liao Yongzhong’s eyes instantly filled with tears. He stared directly into Zhu Yuanzhang’s gaze and nodded forcefully. "Your Subject is aggrieved! Your Subject is deeply aggrieved!" As he spoke, tears began to fall.

"Since the Chaohu Navy days, I have followed Your Majesty through countless brutal battles. In the naval battle at Lake Poyang, if not for our Chaohu Navy fighting to the death, could Your Majesty have defeated Chen Youliang?"

As he spoke, he tore open his robe, revealing a torso covered in knotted muscles and crisscrossed with scars. Pointing to a terrifying scar on his left chest, he said, "This was left behind when I shielded Your Majesty." He then revealed the burn scars covering his back: "These were from when I piloted the ship, leading the suicide vanguard, fighting for our lives to burn Chen Youliang’s tower ships! After that battle, every family in my Chaohu Navy was in mourning! Later, I followed the Grand General to take Huai-dong, built naval stockades, defended against Zhang Shicheng at Hai'an, and pacified Huai-dong! I served as Deputy General of the Southern Expedition, attacked Fuzhou, and destroyed Fang Guozhen! In the first year of Hongwu, I led troops to pacify Minzhong and captured Chen Youding alive! Both Guang-dong and Guang-xi were taken by me! Half of the land south of the Yangtze River in Your Majesty’s empire was conquered by me! Is such merit not enough? Surely it is enough to be enfeoffed as a Duke? Yet, I am only the Marquis of Deqing!"

He sniffled hard. "Fine! The matter of sinking the ships at Guabu was my own foolish sentimentality! I shouldn't have been so loyal! The dukedom is gone; I accept that! Afterward, I put in my full effort to follow the Grand General on the northern expedition. Then, without a moment's rest, I led men by water, fighting through blood to enter Sichuan and take the land of Shu for Your Majesty! Another kingdom destroyed! Is this merit not great enough? I thought, surely I could be made a Duke now? But what I received was not a dukedom, but a halving of my salary and the prosecution of my household servants! Where is the justice in this?! Should your subject not feel aggrieved?!"

His eyes were bloodshot as he glared at Zhu Yuanzhang, demanding an answer. By the end, he was sobbing uncontrollably, truly feeling wronged to the core.

Many in the crowd turned pale. It was not because Liao Yongzhong claimed he had conquered half the land south of the Yangtze, but because he had brought up the sinking of the ships at Guabu. That was a subject not to be touched! Some immediately wanted to step forward and silence him, but Zhu Yuanzhang waved them off.

Seeing that Liao Yongzhong had finally finished, Zhu Yuanzhang, who had been standing there silently listening, finished the bowl of wine in his hand in one gulp. The next moment, he slammed the empty bowl onto Liao Yongzhong’s head! The bowl shattered into pieces.

He raised his right foot and kicked Liao Yongzhong squarely in the stomach, knocking him to the ground. Guards immediately rushed forward and pinned Liao Yongzhong firmly to the floor. Dark red blood snaked out from beneath his hair, dripping down his chin.

"Aggrieved? You have no right to be aggrieved!" Zhu Yuanzhang scolded. "Your contributions are not small, Little Liao, but look at these other Dukes—which one of them has not performed even greater feats than you? You have merit, but you have also committed many crimes! In the third year of Hongwu, when the Yang Xian case broke, a mountain of evidence was found in his residence. You, Liao Yongzhong, could be considered his accomplice! By law, you should have been beheaded! But how did I handle it? Yang Xian was executed, but for you, I remembered your contributions and your brother's service. Not only did I spare you, I even made you the Marquis of Deqing! And you did not conquer all of Sichuan; the primary credit for pacifying Shu belongs to Fu Youde! I acknowledge your merit in destroying Shu, but what did you do afterward? You led the way in smuggling private salt! Not only did you do it yourself, but you led the Chaohu Navy into it and acted as a protector for countless smugglers! The salt permit system is the foundation of the Ming tax revenue and the northern border defense! You know how important it is! You were well aware of the 'Salt Laws' and 'Tea Laws' I promulgated! Yet you ignored them, treating my words as nothing! For these crimes, you could be beheaded ten times over, and it would not be excessive! And how did I treat you? I only punished some of your servants and halved your salary. That was the lightest punishment imaginable! I still felt that you had great merit and had walked this path with me. But you? You damn fool, not only did you not restrain yourself or show remorse, but you also caused a scene in the Golden Palace in front of all the old brothers! You are very full of yourself, aren't you, Little Liao?"

Zhu Yuanzhang squatted on the ground, his tiger-like eyes fixed on Liao Yongzhong. He slapped Liao’s face, one blow after another, the atmosphere thick with oppression. "Since you are so aggrieved, and you’ve put on such a show in front of our old brothers, I will give you a chance to be made a Duke!"

Zhu Yuanzhang stood up. The hearts of the crowd rose with him, curious as to what this "chance" might be.

"Cao Xiu! Take the Imperial Guard immediately and raid the Marquis of Deqing’s residence! Let’s see if Little Liao is truly innocent, or if I have wronged him! If I truly have wronged you, Little Liao, I will apologize to you in public! I will even issue my apology to the whole world! And I will make you a Duke immediately!"

At Zhu Yuanzhang’s command, Cao Xiu, the Right Commander of the Imperial Guard, took the order and left. This was not a chance for Liao Yongzhong to be made a Duke; it was a chance to kill him. Zhu Yuanzhang clearly remembered what he had found during the raid in his previous life. A dragon bed, bright yellow robes, and many items that only he, the Emperor, was permitted to possess...

In his previous life, he had endured for a long time, hesitating for ages before making that decision. Now, he would not endure. He skipped the process and went straight to the result. Since Liao Yongzhong was so eager to court death, then let him die! Did he really think he dared not execute a nobleman? Did he really think he had to swallow his pride regardless of what they did? To hell with that!

Liao Yongzhong’s face turned pale. Much of the wine he had consumed turned into cold sweat. The feeling of grievance and bitterness vanished. How could the Emperor not act according to convention? He was really going to raid his home? On the night of the Lunar New Year? How could Zhu Yuanzhang be so heartless? How could he dare to do something that would provoke heaven and man?

According to his original plan, today’s act was mostly to vent his frustration and seek justice for himself. He thought he had figured out Zhu Yuanzhang’s temperament. Although the Emperor did many things that were unreasonable and restricted those who helped him conquer the empire, he was generally tolerant of them. He expected his actions would make Zhu Yuanzhang furious, but the punishment would be at most a beating in court or a few military canings. He might even lose all his salary. Those punishments were well within his tolerance. After all, he didn't live off his salary!

But who could have guessed that this "dog emperor" would go straight to raiding his house! This house could not be raided! He truly had things in there that could not see the light of day...

The other nobles were also shocked by Zhu Yuanzhang’s order. If they were truly raided, who among them didn't have some skeleton in their closet? Was the Emperor acting out of sheer rage? Yet, thinking of what Liao Yongzhong had done, they felt the Emperor’s actions were understandable. Liao Yongzhong had truly gone too far. Even a mild-tempered man would be driven to fury, let alone the Emperor.

Liao Yongzhong was panicked, but after the initial shock, he quickly calmed down. He felt a sense of certainty. The items in his residence were indeed excessive, but not to that extent! Even if they were discovered, his life would not be in danger. Zhu Yuanzhang would not dare to kill him! At most, he would be stripped of his title and office. If he couldn't be a Duke, he didn't care about being the Marquis of Deqing anymore!