The Ming emperor did not hold his stiff-necked pose for very long.
He had only just lifted his brush when he hesitated. After a moment, he finally muttered in a low voice,
"So… if that youngster's words are to be believed… was I wrong not to accept tribute from that Japanese shogun?"
Empress Ma was sorting through the notes she had hastily written down. Without even looking up, she replied irritably,
"If you refused them, then you refused them. The Japanese will certainly come again within half a year."
"If Your Majesty truly cares, you can have the interpreters at the Huitong Hostel question them carefully next time, then decide."
That sounded reasonable enough. The emperor nodded, offering himself a bit of justification.
"The Japanese are eastern barbarians. Yet this Ashikaga fellow styles himself 'Sei-i Taishogun.' I thought he was mocking us."
He raised the brush again, but before writing, another doubt surfaced.
"That youngster also said we would send envoys to Japan again next year. There must be a reason. Could it be that pirates will raid the coast early next year?"
The guess was sensible. Empress Ma nodded.
"Either it concerns the pirates, or perhaps unrest in Liaodong. In any case, it would be wise to have the interpreters learn more about Japan's situation."
"I will also organize everything the screen mentioned about Japan so they have something to compare when speaking with the envoys."
Hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang's attention drifted. He almost wished the screen would simply list the exact locations of future pirate raids so he could station troops there in advance and crush them head-on.
"That youngster… can't he just explain things clearly…"
Empress Ma glanced at the brush still hovering in midair, then at her husband's conflicted face. A teasing smile replaced her earlier seriousness.
"Chongba… are you afraid to talk with the Marquis Zhang?"
Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes widened.
"I drove the Hu Yuan back into the steppe and restored Han dress!"
"In less than a year I took Dadu again, reclaimed the Yan-Yun region, and founded the Ming!"
"The only thing I fear is being praised too much by the Marquis Zhang and Emperor Taizu of Song!"
Empress Ma merely smiled.
The emperor stiffened his wrist and began to write, as if inscribing words onto a screen like a ceremonial tablet. His strokes appeared upon the light screen in bold, gleaming script.
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[Server Chat Log]
Zhu Yuanzhang: Marquis Zhang invites me, how could I refuse?
Zhu Yuanzhang: It's just a pity my Yongle isn't here. Otherwise I would have my eldest son seek a bit of instruction from the Marquis.
Zhang Fei: Hah! The only thing I'm good for on the battlefield is brute courage. What could I possibly teach the Yongle Emperor?
---
Empress Ma clicked her tongue softly. She could see clearly that her husband's grin was practically splitting his face. Zhang Fei's single sigh about the Yongle Emperor pleased him more than praise directed at himself.
And now the emperor's brush moved without the slightest hesitation, flowing as freely as drifting clouds.
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[Server Chat Log]
Zhu Yuanzhang: Marquis Zhang, don't be modest. When I traveled Huai-xi in my youth, I often heard the people say that among Emperor Zhaolie's generals, only you were truly the most formidable.
Zhang Fei: Fierce but lacking grace. What use is that kind of strength?
---
"This Marquis Zhang…" Zhu Yuanzhang smacked his lips thoughtfully.
The man he was encountering now felt utterly different from the one recorded in the histories or described in folk tales.
But that line, "fierce but lacking grace," came straight from Chen Shou's Records of the Three Kingdoms. If Zhang Fei could quote it himself, did that mean he already knew everything about the Three Kingdoms?
For once, the Ming emperor felt a spark of curiosity.
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[Server Chat Log]
Zhu Yuanzhang: Marquis Zhang, what year are you in? Has Emperor Zhaolie already found Zhuge Liang? Do you know how sly Sun Quan is? Jingzhou must not be lost!
---
Perhaps because he had heard so many Three Kingdoms stories while traveling in his youth, Zhu Yuanzhang poured out his thoughts almost without restraint.
The screen quickly filled with replies.
---
[Server Chat Log]
Li Shimin: Too late, Old Zhu. The Strategist reached Chang'an last year.
Zhang Fei: He's already marched east past Tong Pass and reached Luoyang. Don't worry, Your Majesty Li Erfeng. We'll blast that Cao bandit this very year!
Zhao Kuangyin: The Strategist has already perfected cannon manufacture? Are there key techniques to share?
Li Shimin: The Strategist's artillery owes something to me as well. Zhao Da, guarantee you'll march into Goguryeo after pacifying Liaodong, and I'll share every secret so you can defeat the Khitans.
Zhao Kuangyin: Northern Han isn't yet destroyed. The Khitans must wait. Frankly, I'd rather ask Sun Simiao whether there's still some method for prolonging life…
Liu Bei: Emperor of Song, you are mistaken. Since you already know the disaster your brother brings, you will surely settle it. As for the rest, have you not heard what my own Gaozu said? Fate lies with Heaven.
Zhao Kuangyin: Emperor Zhaolie does not know. My eldest son has seen little warfare and only understands governance in rough terms. He does not possess the talent of the Yongle Emperor, who inherited Hongwu's policies. I truly cannot entrust the state to him yet.
Zhang Fei: That's true. Later generations never stop praising the Yongle Encyclopedia and those treasure fleets to the western seas.
Li Shimin: Refusing the empty honor of Mount Tai sacrifices while caring for the people's strength, and conquering Annam to raise Han prestige. Very good indeed.
Li Shimin: Only a pity he didn't also wipe out Goguryeo while he was at it.
---
Inside Kunning Palace, Empress Ma looked at her husband's foolishly delighted grin and felt helpless.
But thinking of how the praise was directed at Biao'er, she too felt warmth in her chest. After all, she knew better than anyone how much hope and effort her husband had poured into their son. And what parent did not wish for their child's success?
After enjoying himself for a while, the emperor's logic gradually straightened out again.
"If Zhuge Liang has already entered Chang'an, then perhaps Han, Tang, and Song all received heavenly favor and already know what happens after their time."
"In that case, those three emperors… might well envy my Biao'er!"
Despite her happiness, Empress Ma could not help laughing at how completely her husband's attitude had flipped.
She pinched her fingers together and, imitating the tone of a stage aria, sang playfully,
"Yesterday accused of deceiving the throne, punished to the kitchen hearth~
Today claiming Heaven's favor came from me, wrapped in silk and brocade~
No wonder they say a ruler's grace is impossible to predict~"
Zhu Yuanzhang's face did not change at all. In fact, he looked perfectly confident.
"When have you ever misjudged anything, my lady? If you say this screen isn't evil, then it isn't evil."
"But…"
"All those things Marquis Zhang mentioned… I should be able to do them too. If there really is a Hongwu year thirty-five, why wait to carry out works that benefit the people?"
"'The Hongwu Grand Compendium'… that name sounds pretty good, doesn't it?"
Empress Ma sat back down, smiling and shaking her head.
"Chongba, Chongba…"
"When Biao'er complains later, don't come begging me to smooth things over like you always do."
"Fine, don't help then," the emperor snorted.
"I've already humbled myself enough for his sake, even praising Tang Taizong to his face! If that got out, the court wouldn't believe it."
"Besides, we don't even know what this 'Grand Compendium' really is… hm? This Marquis Zhang…"
Empress Ma looked up as well. She saw the new lines appear on the screen, along with her husband's stubborn reply.
---
Zhang Fei: Both the Yongle Emperor and the Hongwu Emperor were men of great ambition. Between father and son, who was the greater ruler?
Zhao Kuangyin: Driving the Mongols out after their vast western conquests and restoring Chinese rule was no small feat. Hongwu's achievement was the harder one.
Li Shimin: Without Old Zhu foundations, Yongle's accomplishments would have been empty talk. But we know too little of their full lives to judge their merits.
Zhu Yuanzhang: Naturally Biao'er surpasses me!
---
"Well now," Zhang Fei shook his head and sighed.
"This Hongwu Emperor really loves his son. Almost like the Strategist and Ah Dou."
Liu Bei scratched his head. It was true enough… but somehow the comparison felt a bit strange.
Then he heard his third brother mutter to himself,
"Still, I wonder what the Yongle Emperor's childhood name actually meant."
Kongming felt a sudden chill. Too late to stop it, he watched helplessly as Zhang Fei flicked out a slip of paper. The words spread across the screen.
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[Server Chat Log]
Zhang Fei: I only know the Yongle Emperor's name is Zhu Di. But that childhood name, Biao'er, is rather amusing.