"You are right. A hero is afraid of seeing his old neighbors. The emperor has this mentality now, and he is a little afraid of the people around him."

"That must be the old men who followed the emperor to conquer the world. Would the emperor really be afraid of them?"

"They are the people the emperor knows best, and at the same time, they also know the emperor best. Isn't that scary enough?

The Emperor's intentions cannot be guessed casually, and that is why the Emperor's wealth cannot accommodate people like them.

This guy Liao Yongzhong doesn't know what it means that the cunning rabbit dies and the running dog is cooked.

In the current situation, others don't even have time to be low-key in their conduct and work, but he can still be so arrogant and domineering in the capital.

I heard that he built many houses, occupied the houses of the people around him without permission, and forcibly took all the surrounding land into his own yard. The scale of his mansion has long exceeded the standard."

"Your Highness, how did you know about this? We haven't been back to the capital for more than a year."

How did Zhu Kai know this? Of course, he relied on the knowledge he had mastered and the history he had learned.

After all, he is a time traveler who can see through everything with a God's perspective. Moreover, after the New Year this year it will be the eighth year of Hongwu. So many things happened this year, the biggest of which was the death of Liao Yongzhong.

"I think he is just going to die. We don't need to care about him. There is a saying that goes, 'Good words cannot persuade a damned ghost.'"

"Your Majesty, I think this matter is not as serious as you think.

Perhaps the emperor just sent someone to investigate casually and understand the situation. He has been with the emperor for so many years and has made many contributions. The emperor will not have the heart to kill him. "

"Even if the emperor doesn't kill him now, he will definitely take action against him for the sake of the Crown Prince. One is Liao Yongzhong and the other is Hu Weiyong.

These two people are the emperor's biggest worry. If he doesn't get rid of them, he will have trouble sleeping all night."

"So that's how it is. Anyway, I don't really understand what's going on in the court, but as long as it doesn't involve the prince and my family, it's fine."

Xu Miaoyun must be very concerned about his mother's home, as all his relatives are there.

"If you want to keep your family's wealth and glory, you have to think of other ways."

"My Lord, I hope you can understand.

The reason I say this is not because I want to keep the wealth and glory of my family. Wealth and glory are like passing clouds, they will be gone in the blink of an eye and it doesn't matter.

As long as people are alive, it is more important than anything else. Don't let them end up in a miserable way. From ancient times to now, few truly meritorious officials can survive."

"Miaoyun, I didn't expect you to see this matter so clearly. I'm still thinking about how to persuade you."

"That's because I've been with the prince for so long, and I've seen and heard everything he's done. I naturally know what's most important, and I won't think about those unreliable things.

But I really can't understand why there are many people in the court who rely on their own merits to show off in front of the emperor, so why can't the emperor tolerate Liao Yongzhong? "

"You want to know why?"

Xu Miaoyun smiled shyly.

"Your Majesty, I have already asked this question. I must want to know. Your Majesty, please stop teasing me."

“These should all be traced back many years.

The brothers Liao Yongan and Liao Yongzhong, commanders of the Chaohu navy, have been loyal to their father ever since they followed him.

Liao Yongan was defeated in the battle of Taihu Lake and was captured. He would rather spend the rest of his life in prison than surrender like Zhang Shicheng. This moved his father very much, so he remotely granted him the title of Duke of Chu.

"Love for the whole family, Liao Yong'an's younger brother Liao Yongzhong is more likely to be trusted and valued by his father."

Xu Miaoyun listened carefully, and then couldn't help but speak.

"I also heard from my father that the brothers Liao Yongan and Liao Yongzhong were loyal to the emperor. They brought most of their troops to join the emperor.

If it weren’t for the Emperor’s support, the military strength wouldn’t have grown so fast.”

"It seems that General Xu Da has told you this many times."

"I eavesdropped on my father's conversation with my mother and brothers."

"You……"

"Your Majesty, it's all my fault for interrupting you again. Please continue speaking. What's next?

Logically speaking, brothers like them should have high status, and now the emperor has given them corresponding treatment. I really can't figure out what they are dissatisfied with. "

"Liao Yongzhong is a man of great resourcefulness and bravery. He soon became the first naval commander under my father.

At that time, our Ming Dynasty had not yet been established and the people under my father were not very good at water warfare. Only one person could take on such a heavy responsibility, and that person was Liao Yongzhong. "

"If that's the case, then he is a one-of-a-kind existence. No wonder he is so arrogant. No one can replace him, so he naturally takes on the posture."

"There was a battle at Panyang Lake. Liao Yongzhong fought a battle that shocked the world and made the gods weep. His contribution was second only to General Chang Yuchun. My father also praised him as a brave and selfless man."

"It turns out that from this moment on, his status before the emperor has changed greatly."

Zhu Kai nodded and continued.

"At that time, Liao Yongzhong fought several more battles and made great contributions. My father personally wrote in large vermilion characters, 'His achievements surpass those of other generals, and his wisdom surpasses those of other generals.' These characters were made into a plaque, which still hangs in his residence today."

"Yes, I have also heard my father mention this matter. It was so glorious at the time. The whole court and even the whole capital knew that the emperor personally bestowed him with a plaque. This was a unique favor."

"Father regarded Liao Yongzhong as his confidant."

"So, Liao Yongzhong is indeed very capable and has won the emperor's attention, but how did things develop to this point?
Even if the emperor had suspicions, how could he have suspected him? The emperor was not suspicious of anyone except Liao Yongzhong. "

"Sometimes, things in this world go wrong all the time. It was precisely because he was trusted and valued by the emperor that the emperor asked him to do that big secret that was kept secret from the heavens and the earth."

Xu Miaoyun came close to Zhu Kai, widened her eyes, and asked seriously.

"What is so secretive? The fact that the emperor was able to find Liao Yongzhong is enough to prove that he trusts him. This is reasonable and not contradictory."

Zhu Kai whispered four words. "Guabu sinks the boat."

"what?"

This matter was relatively secretive in the Ming Dynasty at that time, and it can be regarded as an unsolved case.

After all, the parties involved are no longer alive, so it doesn't matter what the living people say. It was from this incident that Zhu Yuanzhang really began to change his mind about Liao Yongzhong.

They were wary of him. Even if they gave him many rewards, they had already doubted and distrusted this person in their hearts and would not use him again.

"Guabu sinking boat? What on earth is going on?"

"Do you know Little Ming King Han Lin'er?"

"I know. He was once the emperor's greatest enemy."

"From this incident on, Liao Yongzhong thought that his intelligence and wit were admired by the emperor, and that he had accomplished extraordinary feats and had a bright future. Little did he know that this was the beginning of his real tragedy."

"The beginning of tragedy? It shouldn't be that serious, how did Your Majesty know? The Emperor only had some suspicions and guesses about him, but it shouldn't be as serious as Your Majesty said, it has become a tragedy."

Zhu Kai knew that he had let something slip.

“At first, the emperor was worthy of Liao Yongzhong.

After pacifying Zhang Shicheng, the emperor ordered Liao Yongzhong to be the deputy general of the Southern Expedition, and to march south by sea, and join forces with the General of the Southern Expedition Tang He to attack Fang Guozhen. Later, he joined forces with Tang He to lead the water forces to attack Fuzhou.

Later, when Chen Youliang was pacified and the army marched south, the emperor recalled Tang He.

He ordered Tang He to build the transport vessels, and gave Liao Yongzhong the seal of the General of the Southern Expedition, allowing him to accumulate prestige on his own, in order to pave the way for his special reward in the future.

"In that case, the emperor was really kind to Liao Yongzhong. He was ready to give him a lot of special treatment from that time on."

Xu Miaoyun felt a little confused after hearing this. Zhu Kai was not very old, and the things he talked about happened decades ago. Zhu Kai was not born at that time. How could he know so many details?

"My Lord, where did you hear these old stories?"

"Oh... I heard it from the people around me. Then we talked about it one by one and gradually I heard everything. But we still have to look at the whole situation. I just analyzed it and it's not completely certain and there is no substantial evidence."

"Your Majesty, you are so amazing. You can even guess so accurately. I admire you more and more."

Xu Miaoyun looked at Zhu Kai with starry eyes. He had an indescribable admiration for Zhu Kai.

Zhu Kai felt a little embarrassed by this expression and his face turned red.

"Your Highness, what happened? Tell me quickly. What happened later that led to so many conflicts between the emperor and Liao Yongzhong? Even now, he wants to convict him even though the people who wanted to investigate secretly are investigating him.

The emperor always valued him so much before he became the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, but now that he has become the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, he cannot tolerate him. There must be something strange going on here."

"You are right. There are too many things involved. It is impossible to explain them all in one day or one night. Besides, the conflict between the two of them did not arise suddenly."

"Yes, a three-foot-thick ice doesn't form overnight, and a drop of water wears away a stone over a period of time. The emperor's thoughts about Liao Yongzhong definitely didn't come about overnight.

It is precisely because the accumulation of time has become unbearable that he has resorted to this desperate measure. "

“Yeah, that’s what I thought too.

At the beginning, the emperor asked Liao Yongzhong to do this top-secret thing, but Liao Yongzhong was just a military man after all, and he lacked the necessary brains.

He didn't seem to understand that such activities involved the emperor's privacy.

He should act as if nothing happened, and it would be best if he did not bring it up again, never mention it in front of the Emperor, so that the Emperor can put the matter behind him and forget about it as soon as possible.

He could be saved, but Liao Yongzhong did exactly the opposite. He wanted to use this incident to win favor and gain credit."

"How could he do such a stupid thing?"

"Zhu Yuanzhang has commended Liao Yongzhong's contributions many times, but although he did have contributions, he also did some things wrong.

At the beginning, he was asked to pick up the surrendered Little Ming King Han Liner.

When passing by Guabu, his boat capsized, causing Han Liner's death. This incident became an unsolved case. He said it was not intentional, but he would bring it up in front of the emperor from time to time. "

"If this is just a coincidence, I don't quite believe it.

In fact, this is not the case, and I think the emperor also has concerns in his heart.

When the emperor asked Liao Yongzhong to pick up the surrendered people, he did not intend to let him deal with it privately. He dared to kill the young Ming King without the emperor's permission. "

Zhu Kai looked at Xu Miaoyun saying these words angrily, and he immediately asked from the side.

"Do you also think that Liao Yongzhong did this on purpose? Do you understand why he wanted to kill Han Lin'er?"

“I don’t think it’s because he acted on his own, nor because he didn’t take the emperor’s words to heart. It’s simply because he is a brainless person, Your Majesty. As you said just now, he is a rough man.

When these important matters were given to him, he might have just felt that he had dealt with Little Ming King in private.

The emperor would definitely be very happy if he knew this, but he didn't think this matter through.

Everyone in the world already knows about it, and by then people will only say that this is the outcome of surrendering to Zhu Yuanzhang, which will not be conducive to the emperor's next plan.

Liao Yongzhong has such a narrow mindset and thinks too little that he does such stupid things.

Ever since this incident, the emperor's attitude towards him has completely changed, and he has begun to distance himself from him intentionally or unintentionally. Even though he has made great contributions and has a great status and position, the emperor does not want to use him anymore.

It was because of this incident that the emperor completely saw through what kind of person he was."

"I see. It seems that the emperor has been angry for a long time. It is not easy for him to endure it for so many years before he got angry."

Sometimes Zhu Kai couldn't understand why Zhu Yuanzhang felt a special compassion for Han Lin'er, who died inexplicably and unknown ways.

Perhaps this is what the emperor is thinking. You can never guess it. The result is always unexpected and shocking. (End of this chapter)