There was deathly silence in Ma Enhui's Nuan Pavilion in Kunning Palace.

Zhu Wenkui sat slumped beside the bed, his face was pale and bloodless, his whole brain was confused, and the hand held by Ma Enhui kept trembling.

What did he just hear from his mother?

kill him!

His mother actually gave him instructions to kill Zhu Wenqi?

This was murder, and he was killing his half-brother.

Let alone killing Zhu Wenqi, a sibling, even if he were to kill another civilian, Zhu Wenkui, Zhu Wenkui would never dare to do such a thing.

What kind of temper does your father have?

Whenever he does anything to disregard human life, the bullets from the Type 42 flintlock rifle can be shot into Zhu Wenkui's head!

His father would not even go to the execution ground to take a look, and would not even shed a single tear!

"Mom, you can't do this."

Zhu Wenkui came back to his senses and held Ma Enhui's hand with his backhand. His voice trembled when he spoke, and his lips were trembling as he shook his head.

"Don't say this. If it gets to your father's ears, both you and my mother will be ruined."

"What are you afraid of?"

Ma Enhui closed her eyes and did not speak. Instead, she stood up on the bed and walked to the side. Zhu Wenkui followed closely behind her and asked doubtfully: "Mother, what are you doing?"

Ignoring her son, Ma Enhui opened a drawer and took out a pair of beautiful bracelets.

"This was worn by Empress Xiaocigao many years ago. It was given to me by Emperor Taizu when I married your father."

While speaking, Ma Enhui suddenly raised her hand and threw one of the bracelets to the ground.

There was a snap, and it shattered into pieces. Zhu Wenkui opened his eyes wide in shock.

Such a valuable object was broken into pieces by my mother?

"Now, this is the only one left."

Ma Enhui didn't even look at the odds and ends on the ground, as if the priceless accessories were just a pile of rubbish. She put the only remaining bracelet in Zhu Wenkui's hand: "Okay, its value is already higher than the pair just now."

Countless times higher.”

In an instant, Zhu Wenkui understood Ma Enhui's meaning like an enlightenment.

In the world today, only Zhu Wenqi is infinitely close to the throne, because Zhu Wenqi is about to capture Zhu Yunqi's heart's desire for a successor.

And when Zhu Wenkui figures it out through Zhu Wenqi, there will be two qualified successors in the world.

As long as Zhu Wenkui kills Zhu Wenqi, he will be the only bracelet left.

Zhu Yunwen would not be willing to punish Zhu Wenkui.

Even though Zhu Wenqi knew clearly that it was Zhu Wenkui who killed him, he could only endure it.

Because this country always needs a successor.

"On one side is the supreme throne, on the other side is brotherhood. When you are older, you can decide for yourself."

Ma Enhui lay back on her bed, closed her eyes and raised her hands: "Go ahead and think about it yourself."

Zhu Wenkui cried a few times, then raised his head to wipe away his tears. Without saying anything else, he bowed and left with the only remaining bracelet.

There was silence in the Nuang Pavilion, except for Ma Enhui's slight cough.

As the sun sets and darkness descends, everything will be covered.

But just like the calm sea, a moment of calm only creates bigger storms.

On the day Zhu Wenkui left Nanjing, two pairs of eyes were watching his leaving figure.

The standards of this research team are indeed quite high. In addition to Zhu Wenkui, the eldest prince, as the team leader, the two deputies are also famous people. One is Hu Chang, who was the chief official in handling the North Korean issue at that time.

The other person is Wang Yuzhun, who was a classmate of the first phase of Hupan with Zhu Wenkui, and is now also a third-grade minister.

The other team members are almost all capable officials selected from the Ministry of Industry and the General Affairs Department, plus a few elite students studying at the Hanlin Academy.

The research team left Beijing and took a train to Tianjin, then took the sea route all the way south until they arrived at the first destination of the trip.

The former capital of the Ming Dynasty is now Nanjing Prefecture, one of the prefectures directly under the central government.

It can be said that the purpose is very clear.

It's just that Zhu Wenkui didn't come up and rush to his second brother, who had not been masked for several years, with a straight face. When he arrived in Nanjing, he first stopped. After dealing with the reception of the Nanjing Prefecture's Yamen, he first boarded a must.

I walked through the door and met someone I had to meet.

That was the first Chief of General Staff of the Ming Dynasty, King Zhu Di of Yan.

"Wen Kui has met his fourth uncle."

Carrying a few boxes of supplements in his hand, Zhu Wenkui came over in a hurry. In the backyard of Prince Yan's Mansion, which was no longer glorious and seemed much deserted, he saw Zhu Di, who had already had a full head of hair.

Although the latter is already showing his age, his energy is still as good as before.

In the past few years since he retired, it can be seen that Zhu Di still plays with swords and sticks a lot. In the backyard, 18 kinds of weapons are clearly displayed, and with a few scarecrows for target setting and bayonet practice, this backyard is really a bit of a swordsman.

A chilling atmosphere.

"Hey, Wen Kui is here."

Zhu Di was busy teasing a little one at the moment. He raised his head when he heard the sound and saw Zhu Wenkui. A smile appeared on his old face: "Come on, bring anything else. Is there anything we need in Nanjing?"

He casually handed the things to an old housekeeper who came up to pick them up. Zhu Wenkui walked up and exchanged greetings, then looked at the toddler who was crawling around Zhu Di's knees: "This is Qizhen, right?"

"Yes, Zhan Ji's son."

Zhu Di chuckled and lightly kicked Xiao Qizhen: "This is your Uncle Wenkui, calling someone."

"Hey." Zhu Qizhen glanced at Zhu Wenkui with his big eyes, and shouted "Dad" inarticulately.

This made both of them laugh.

"It's uncle, not dad." Zhu Wenkui knelt down and said with a smile, "Uncle Bo."

The clinker Zhu Qizhen glanced at Zhu Wenkui twice, but turned his head and crawled back to Zhu Di's knees without responding.

"This little thing is afraid of life." Zhu Di laughed and scolded him for being a useless thing, and then asked the old housekeeper to take Zhu Qizhen away, and he led Zhu Wenkui into the hall.

"When you come to Nanjing this time, has His Majesty told you what to do?"

After sitting down, Zhu Di asked: "If you need help, just ask."

"I'd like to thank my fourth uncle first." Zhu Wenkui thanked him, and then said: "This visit to Nanjing is a matter assigned by the cabinet. My father only asked Wenkui to ask you how you are doing lately.

, and said that when you have time, you can go to Beijing, he and Uncle Zheng both miss you."

This sentence moved Zhu Di a little. He was an old man, and he was already sad about the spring and autumn. Plus, Zhu Wenkui mentioned Zheng He in his words, and it reminded Zhu Di of many years of stories.

"Yes, yes. After Zhanji's job is stable in another two years, and I can still move my old bones, I'll go."

After accepting the invitation, Zhu Di got down to business again: "What tasks have been assigned by the cabinet?"

"It was said that the Ministry of Industry was planning to restructure, so I was asked to take the lead in setting up a research team to look at the current situation of industries, factories and workers in the six provinces south of the Yangtze River and see if there were any social problems that needed to be solved urgently."

Zhu Wenkui said truthfully: "The best thing is to take a closer look at the provinces in the south of the Yangtze River. After all, you know that the south of the Yangtze River is responsible for more than 60% of the central government's finances and is a major financial and taxation area.

What's more, due to the downsizing of the Fifth Military Government, there was a conflict between the Southeast Military Region and the central government."

When he mentioned the Fifth Army Mansion, Zhu Di's face looked a little unpleasant, and he sighed after a while: "Back then, we were all old brothers who served our country through life and death, but now that this happened, none of them are in good health.

"

Zhu Wenkui couldn't answer Zhu Di's emotion.

He can't criticize Zhu Yunwen.

"Come on, it's all in the past." Zhu Di's emotions came and went quickly, and he encouraged Zhu Wenkui: "Since this is an errand assigned by the cabinet, you have to handle it well. If you need help, just ask me.

He said that in Nanjing, a lonely face is still useful."

"I don't dare bother you."

Zhu Wenkui said humbly, picked up the teapot and refilled Zhu Di's cup with tea. He put it down and said, "Oh, by the way, I asked my fourth uncle whether Wen Qi has been okay in Nanjing in the past few years."
Chapter completed!