"Returning to the Late Ming Dynasty as a Tyrant [Transmigration]" by Qingniao Linxing
Synopsis:
Zhu Ci traveled into a book titled "Ming Dynasty Storms,"
The male protagonist is currently just a low-ranking soldier.
And he was the protagonist's first achievement, Zhu Ci, the third son of the Hongguang Emperor.
At that time, on his very first day after arriving, Zhu Ci was already facing the upcoming investiture ceremony for the Crown Prince.
The Emperor was doing everything in his power to kill him.
The factional struggles among the court officials were unending.
And just after he had finally become the Crown Prince for two months,
His father was beheaded by the Qing army,
And ahead of him, the Qing army pressed closer with every step, while behind him, Zhu Yujian pursued him relentlessly across a thousand miles.
Externally, he had lost the support of the people, internally, factional strife continued without end.
"The Fallen Crown Prince" Zhu Ci rolled up his sleeves, deciding to become a tyrant.
Kill those who are corrupt and lawless!
Those who sell official positions and titles shall die!
Those who favor their own faction and persecute others shall die!
Kill those eunuchs who abuse their power!
Corrupt officials cursed him as a cruel ruler, the scholar-officials cursed him as a tyrant, the eunuchs widely proclaimed that he had used his status as the Crown Prince to humble himself before the wealthy merchant Fu Cai in order to secure grain and fodder.
Later, the common people praised him for being capable at a young age, the literati called him an enlightened ruler, the eunuchs went even further, saying that he and Fu were like the green pines and cypresses, in perfect harmony as sovereign and subject.
Zhu Ci said to Fu with a smile, "See, there are even great scholars defending my views."
PS: Daddy-type top, the top is ten years older than the bottom.
[Highlight] This story features a transmigration into a book theme. The plot of the "original book" differs from the plot of this story. The main plot of this story focuses on opposing the Qing Dynasty; it neither exaggerates nor praises the Qing Dynasty. Any comments criticizing this will be deleted. Thank you for your understanding.
Content Tags: Time Travel, Historical Derivative, Transmigration into a Book, Power Fantasy, Infrastructure Building, Ming Dynasty Transmigration
Protagonist's perspective: Zhu Ci interacting with Fu
A one-sentence introduction: I am ruthless, I am also benevolent.
Theme: Bold, decisive, efficient.
Chapter 1
Nong Fengzheng, has His Highness not risen yet?
Not yet.
“This.. should Fengzheng go and ask? It would be bad if we missed the appointed time.”
There is still plenty of time, so there is no rush. His Highness has not yet fully recovered; it would be best if he sleeps a little longer.
Yes.
As the conversation between the man and the woman came to an end, the room fell silent once again.
Zhu Ci lay on the bed with his eyes closed, pretending to sleep while pricking up his ears to listen to the movements outside.
This kind of conversation had already repeated three times, without exception, it was always a woman urging him to get out of bed, while another gentle male voice was comforting her.
He didn't know where he was right now; he only knew that after having a drink with his brothers to celebrate the end of his undercover career, he woke up in this place.
Upon waking, he immediately sensed that something was wrong; in this unfamiliar environment, he subconsciously maintained his current state and refrained from making any rash moves.
He became even more cautious after hearing the conversation between that man and woman; the two of them spoke with a slight Jianghuai accent, yet it wasn't entirely the same.
Their conversation was brief, repeatedly mentioning the auspicious hour, the grand ceremony, the way they addressed him as His Highness.
What ceremony? What auspicious hour? What Highness? Where on earth has this drinking session brought him?
Zhu Ci tried to move his body slightly, but he only felt a heavy sensation, an indescribable discomfort throughout his entire body, as if.. this body were not his own.
He lay in bed analyzing the current intelligence, the more he analyzed it, the more he felt that the trouble was quite significant.
Just at this moment, the sound of footsteps gradually rose, the man known as Nong Fengzheng coaxed softly, "Your Highness, it is time to get up."
Zhu Ci feigned irritation and rolled over, opening his eyes just a crack to steal a quick glance at the newcomer. His heart sank; these hands were indeed not his own.
He had already felt it while pretending to sleep; there were thick calluses on the webbing between his right thumb and index finger, a very obvious scar on his left palm, but this body had none. Both hands were fair and tender, clearly those of someone raised in luxury.
Nong Fengzheng had no choice but to raise his voice slightly, even taking a cloth to wipe Zhu Ci's face directly.
The cloth had just the right temperature, neither too cold nor too warm.
Zhu Ci sighed, knowing that continuing to pretend to be asleep would not work. He could only put on a sleepy appearance and asked, "What time is it?"
In response to Your Highness, it is already the first quarter of the hour of Yin. If you do not get up now, you will not make it in time for the grand ceremony.
What on earth? Yin Zheng Yi Ke.. Zhu Ci took a moment to process that this must be using the ancient twelve-hour system.
However, even knowing that, he still couldn't react in time when it actually happened, so he could only frantically calculate in his mind: one shichen is two hours, midnight is the Zi hour.. Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao.. oh, it's a little after four in the morning.
Nong Fengzheng saw him sitting there with his eyes cast down, looking somewhat puzzled. "Your Highness? Is Your Highness feeling unwell?"
Zhu Ci heard the confusion in his tone, his mind began to race.
He didn't know where he was, he didn't know the identity of this body, he didn't even know the personality traits of the original owner of this body.
Others who travel through time can inherit memories, but he has nothing after his transmigration.
He nodded without saying a word. Although he could speak a bit of the Jianghuai dialect, it sounded somewhat different from this man's, so to avoid any problems, he decided it would be best to say as little as possible.
After Zhu Ci nodded, Nong Fengzheng immediately lit the lamps in the room.
Once the darkness in the room was banished, he saw Nong Fengzheng's appearance for the first time: he was dressed in Ming Dynasty attire, the fabric looked quite excellent.
He also took a quick glance around the room, with just a cursory look, he could tell the room was elegant and luxurious. Setting aside everything else, even the bed he was sleeping on looked vaguely similar to one he had seen in a museum before.
Could he.. have traveled through time to the Ming Dynasty?
If it's true, being called His Highness.. there's a high probability he is part of the Ming Dynasty imperial family; the only uncertainty would likely be the specific point in time.
After Nong Fengzheng had lit the candles, he turned and walked over, only then did Zhu Ci see his appearance clearly. Nong Fengzheng must not be young; he was at least forty years old. With his drooping eyebrows, recessed nose, naturally downturned corners of his mouth, hunched shoulders, he looked like a man who lacked any sense of initiative and was quite cowardly.
As Zhu Ci was analyzing these things, his gaze happened to meet the other's.
Nong Liangping froze for a moment, then felt a sense of confusion: His Highness seems.. a bit strange today.
He had not said a word since waking up, even after being forcibly woken, he did not lose his temper; he didn't even call for someone to come in and serve him, that look just now.. it seemed to carry a hint of inquiry. Although it quickly became calm, Nong Liangping still felt that something was very wrong.
He had followed the young master for over a decade and was the person who understood him better than anyone else in the world.
This Highness didn't even need to speak; with a single glance, he would know what the other person was thinking and what they intended to do, but now, it was as if a layer of mist had descended, leaving him unable to see anything clearly.
Nong Fengzheng felt confused. He walked over, leaned down, asked, "Your Highness, would you like this old servant to assist you with washing up?"
Zhu Ci nodded with reserve in response, but in the next second, Nong Fengzheng suddenly reached out and grabbed his shoulder, shouting sternly, "Who are you?"
Zhu Ci??
He had tried his best to do nothing at all, so how did he still get caught?
Although he knew that trying to pull off a deception was no easy feat, it had been discovered far too quickly.
Zhu Ci put on a look of terror and looked toward the window: "We've been discovered! Run!"
Nong Fengzheng instinctively glanced at the window, but in the next instant, Zhu Ci suddenly lunged. He twisted his body to break free from Nong Fengzheng's grasp, immediately struck the other's throat with the heel of his right palm, jabbed at his eyes with his left hand, simultaneously kicked at the other's knee with his left foot.
Nong Fengzheng reacted extremely quickly, swiftly leaning backward to evade his hands, while simultaneously shifting his footing, causing Zhu Ci's kick to miss as well.
The surprise attack failed, but Zhu Ci did not hesitate. In the next second, he grabbed a quilt and threw it over Nong Fengzheng. While the other man was struggling with the quilt, Zhu Ci quickly circled around his back and jumped directly onto him, wrapping an arm around Nong Fengzheng's neck. He said, panting heavily, "Do you want to die, or do you want to live?"
Nong Fengzheng ignored him and even tried to open his mouth to call for help.
Zhu Ci had no choice but to lower his voice and say, "If you aren't afraid of death, aren't you afraid for your Highness's life? If you don't want him to die, then shut up."
Nong Fengzheng hesitated for a moment, clearly feeling that his young master's safety was more important.
Nong Fengzheng gripped his arm, seemingly intending to perform a shoulder throw, but fortunately, Zhu Ci reacted quickly and released his hand, clutching his arm and stepping back several paces. Just now, when Nong Fengzheng had grabbed his wrist, his strength had been enough to crush bones.
If Zhu Ci hadn't issued a timely threat, it would have been more than just simple pain.
In this exchange, he failed to gain any upper hand and even suffered a loss; if it hadn't been because the opponent was wary of causing collateral damage, he might have been finished by now.
Nong Fengzheng's eyes were practically spitting fire as he strode over, grabbed Zhu Ci by the collar, demanded, "Where is His Highness?"
He was extremely puzzled. He had been guarding the outer chamber all night; if an intruder had broken in, there was no way he wouldn't have noticed a thing, unless the opponent had used some divine means!
Zhu Ci was very calm. Since Nong Fengzheng had stopped just now, it meant there was room for negotiation; otherwise, he might have been captured by this moment.
He patted Nong Fengzheng's arm and said, "Don't be so tense. He should be fine for now, but if you act impulsively again, I can't guarantee that."
Nong Fengzheng gave a cold laugh. "You'd better confess honestly, otherwise I have my own methods."
Zhu Ci tilted his head back. "Then you'd better think carefully about whether you want to be buried with me. You say I'm a fake—what evidence do you have? Just based on your feelings? Will anyone believe that? Most importantly, when such a massive incident breaks out, how many people will be implicated? Are they willing to be dragged down with you?"
Nong Fengzheng said nothing; aside from their identical appearance, this person before him shared no similarities with the Highness.
But he was right; without any evidence, no one in the manor would stand by him, especially at such a critical juncture.
Seeing that he remained silent, Zhu Ci said in a gentle voice, "From now on, cooperate with me, I will ensure your Highness's safety."
Nong Fengzheng asked, "What is your purpose? Do you want money or official positions?"
Zhu Ci said, sounding neither certain nor uncertain, "Would you believe me if I said I came here to help His Highness?"
“Help?” Nong Fengzheng narrowed his eyes. “Help with what?”
Zhu Ci spoke nonsense, "My master observed the celestial phenomena at night and discovered that Your Highness is facing a calamity of blood. Since he cannot avoid it, he is vital to the world and must remain safe, my master sent me here to help Your Highness overcome this hurdle."
Nong Fengzheng was momentarily stunned by what he heard, the strength in his hands loosened slightly. "Really?"
Hmm?
This reaction.. doesn't look good.