The three of them chatted and unknowingly arrived outside the city. The scenery outside the city is indeed very different. The trees are lush and green, and they are all tall fir trees and poplars. Dense shade blocks out the sun and cool breeze blows.
Zhu Quan was the first to smile and said: "It's great here! It's so cool!" He then chanted loudly: "Green pines show off the purple cliffs, white rocks grow in mysterious valleys. Ganoderma lucidum grows on the rocks, and sacred trees grow on the peaks." Still thinking about Jiangnan.
Seeing his gloomy expression, Lianhua deliberately smiled and asked, "You don't like the heat. What will you do if you are grazing in the fields?"
As expected, Zhu Quan was not convinced: "What's wrong with me? I also lead troops to train, I also write memorials and official documents, and I also practice martial arts and study literature. It's not easy for me. Do you think it's easy to be a prince?"
Ma Sanbao smiled and said: "Princess, don't underestimate our Prince Ning. He is the most versatile prince in our Ming Dynasty. He has hundreds of disciples from all walks of life. He can do medicine, fortune-telling, astrology, and even make Qinzhong tea. You can ask him anything you want."
Lianhua opened her eyes wide and nodded in admiration: "It's amazing! I'm disrespectful. Can you teach me more?"
Zhu Quan was young and hot-blooded, and living in the frontier for a long time was lonely. It was rare to meet someone who liked him and could talk to him. When he saw Lianhua asking for advice, he immediately became interested: "Tell me! What do you want to learn?"
"There are so many things I want to learn. The most important thing is medicine, tea is also good, and I also want to play the piano. But it turns out that Master said that these things are taboo in Zen Buddhism..."
While joking and joking, we walked through a short official road and arrived at the foot of the mountain. Going up the mountain was a path in the woods.
The last time we were robbed in the Tieling Forest, so many people died, and I still have lingering fears. Lianhua couldn't help but feel nervous when she saw this similar forest path. She felt a little flustered after taking a few steps, and gently pulled the sleeve of Prince Ning next to her.
Ma Sanbao, who was walking in front, saw what she meant, turned around and comforted softly with a smile: "This is Daning Mansion, it's okay." The bright smile made Lianhua feel at ease, and she slowly loosened the sleeves in her hands.
Zhu Quan laughed loudly: "Hey, Princess Yining! This is my territory! Why are you so nervous? I guarantee you peace!"
Before he finished speaking, there was a rustling sound in the woods, and countless black lights whizzed towards him. It turned out to be a series of darts, whizzing incessantly. Ma Sanbao called out: "Be careful!" Before he could see him move, the waist knife somehow got into his hand. The knife flashed and the darts fell to the ground with a clanging sound.
Zhu Quan also drew his sword and shouted: "What kind of bastard dares to plot against me? Aren't you afraid of killing the nine tribes?" He turned his head to comfort Lianhua: "Don't be afraid! Let's see how we deal with them!"
The man in the forest remained silent, but the darts hit him harder and harder, but strangely, they always hit Lianhua alone. Ma Sanbao danced a sword into a net, sealing it watertight; Zhu Quan also waved his sword and shouted: "Niece-in-law! Who have you offended? They are all pointing at you!" Both of them protected the lotus.
King Ning was the most versatile among the kings in the early Ming Dynasty, and was known as the "Wise King and Wonderful Scholar" in history. He has mastered all the classics, astrology, medicine, divination and even Huang Lao's skills, playing the piano and cooking tea. He has written the Taoist treatise "The Emperor's Zhidao Taiqing Jade Book", the history "The Secret History of the Han and Tang Dynasties", the drama "Daluotian" and the tea ceremony " The collection of guqin music "Tea Pu", "Magic Secret Pu" and the commentary "Taihe Zhengyin Pu" are widely circulated to this day. It is said that King Ning's erudition was comparable to that of Dongxiehuang Yaoshi, a martial arts wizard in the Southern Song Dynasty. There are too many distractions, and the martial arts will inevitably be sloppy. I will block left and right, and gradually become a little busy.
Ma Sanbao shouted: "Your Majesty, please rest." Zhu Quan seemed unsteady.
Lotus stood behind the two of them, watching nervously, thinking in her heart: "Yes, who is this?"
"Baga!" "Xilao!" Amidst a burst of roaring, five figures fell from the sky. Wearing tight-fitting black clothes and a black scarf covering his head and face, he is not tall, but the scimitar he holds is extremely long. The sword was shining brightly and the cold air was pressing.
"It's Japanese swords! They are Japanese pirates!" Ma Sanbao shouted. The figure was shaking, the swords were flashing, and the weapons clashed with each other. The five men in black were forced by Ma Sanbao to form a circle back to back. Ma Sanbao calmed down and turned to Zhu Quan and said, "Your Majesty, please watch from the wall. Let Sanbao come here."
Prince Ning smiled and said: "I haven't fought for a long time, let me stretch my muscles." He waved his sword and shouted: "Hey! Japanese pirates! What are you doing in my Daning Mansion? You don't take this king seriously!" As he spoke, he hurriedly blocked the knife: "Hey! Do you understand what I'm saying? I don't know Japanese bird language!"
The five figures said nothing and continued to circle around cautiously, waving their long knives and pressing closer step by step.
With a "chi la" sound, Prince Ning accidentally cut his arm with a scimitar, and blood immediately flowed out. Ma Sanbao swayed left and right, blocking the five people, and then said: "My lord, you take the princess and go first."
Lianhua shook his head and remained motionless, while Zhu Quan refused. Regardless of the wound, he still waved his sword forward: "No! I won't leave if I'm in my place!"
Suddenly, there was a sound of hoofbeats, and several horses galloped towards them. The people on the horses flew in front of them before the horses arrived. It was King Yan and Wang Jinghong. The two of them hurriedly joined the battle group without saying anything.
The four of them worked together, and the Japanese pirates who were already at a disadvantage were suddenly in a terrible situation. It was useless to form a circle. With a few puffs, Ma Sanbao chopped down two of them and Wang Jinghong also killed one. Seeing that the situation was not good, the remaining two whistled and ran away. King Ning shouted: "They want to run away!" The sword was like the wind, King Yan was still shouting "Keep alive!", Zhu Quan had already dealt with them and turned back He looked at Zhu Di apologetically: "Fourth brother, my hand is a little too fast."
Zhu Di shook his head and sighed. He saw Prince Ning's arm and said, "Did you lose the prize? Come here!" He tore off the corner of his robe and bandaged it for Zhu Quan.
"These Japanese pirates have bad minds. Five people with such little ability dare to cause trouble here!" Zhu Quan's handsome face was full of disdain and asked King Yan: "Fourth brother, why are you so fast?"
Zhu Di lowered his head and carefully wrapped the wound: "I saw that the house was sending you horses, and I just finished my work, so I stopped by." After saying that, he glanced at the lotus with pity on his face: "Are you okay? Are you scared?"
Lianhua's face turned pale and she shook her head: "It's okay." The fear of the forest path deepened in her heart.
At this time, Ma Sanbao and Wang Jinghong had carefully inspected several Japanese corpses and picked up the darts and Japanese knives on the ground. Wang Jinghong walked up to King Yan and called out hesitantly: "Your Majesty!" while looking at the lotus.
Zhu Di secretly screamed that something was wrong, but the expression on his face did not change: "Say it!"
Wang Jinghong held two waist tags in his hands and said angrily: "This is the Wangfu waist tag. It belongs to Zhao Fang and Li San. They haven't come back for so long. I'm afraid the waist tag is on the Japanese pirates." Wang Jinghong looked at it again A glance at Lotus: "I'm afraid it's a bad thing. The news in Donggang is that the two of them crossed the river on June 27th, but never came back. They were probably killed in North Korea."
Lotus felt dizzy and was about to fall down. Zhu Di, with quick eyes and quick hands, caught him.
Zhu Quan shouted: "Zhao Fang and Li San, the two who went to Korea? Were killed by the Japanese pirates? How outrageous! Those were the royal soldiers!" As he spoke, he turned to look at Lianhua and asked with concern: "Yi Princess Ning! They came all the way here to deal with you, why did you provoke the Japanese?"
Japanese pirates! Why did I offend them? ! Why did North Korea offend them? ! Lian Hua's face was pale, and her usually peaceful face could not help but reveal sadness and anger. (Note)
The pity on Zhu Di's face became even stronger, he patted Lianhua's shoulder gently and comforted: "It's okay, I'm here."
After a while, he saw Lian Hua's face gradually calming down, and then asked again: "How fierce are the Japanese pirates in North Korea?"
"Yes. Last fall, the battle reached Jeollabuk-do. My late father, Cao Mengyi, led the army on an expedition, but was ambushed by Japanese bandits. He and my late brother, Cao Min, and his younger brother, Cao Xiu, died in battle and martyred their country."
Lian Hua burst into tears after saying a few words, and reluctantly continued: "This is how my father accepted me as his adopted daughter."
"It's so tragic! Are all my father and brothers dead?" Zhu Quan said quickly: "Don't worry! My fourth brother and I will help you!" The young man's face was filled with "generousness".
Zhu Di held the lotus and thought: It turns out that she came to Ming Dynasty for the Japanese pirates.
Although he and King Ning were able to control the mobilization of troops along the border, they were limited to guarding the Ming border. Leaving the customs and crossing the Yalu River to North Korea, such a big thing, must first obtain the consent of the father and the Ministry of War. Now that Mongolia is not at peace, given my father's character, he will not consider North Korea first.
However, Zhu Di looked at Lianhua's pale little face with tears in his eyes. However, this is her wish, and I have to fulfill it for her.
Zhu Di smiled, stared at the lotus, and continued Zhu Quan's words: "Yes, we will help you."
Ma Sanbao and Wang Jinghong bowed and shouted in unison: "Please give me your instructions!" Zhao Fang and Li San were killed, and they were extremely angry. Although Wang Jinghong and Zhao Fang and Li San were superiors and subordinates, they had always been good friends and were particularly sad.
King Yan looked at the two of them and thought for a moment: "Jing Hong, let's go to Seoul. Take a few people with you and set off early tomorrow morning. Don't bring official documents from the palace. It's taboo for the court to have personal relationships with vassal countries. It's time for Dao Yan to say it." Please report Princess Yining’s affairs here to the King of North Korea.” After a pause, he continued: “How Zhao Fang and Li San were killed, please let the King of North Korea find out.”
Then he turned to Lianhua and said, "Write those two letters of yours again and give them to Jinghong tonight." Lianhua was grateful and responded.
"Sambo, strengthen the protection of Princess Yining. Report to the Ministry of War that five Japanese pirates ambushed Prince Ning in Daning Mansion and was executed. Contact Donggang and Tieling Guards to find out how these people got in and whether they have any accomplices." Ma Sanbao agreed.
Zhu Quan agreed: "Yes, you got to Daning Mansion so easily! You dare to ambush me, it's so rampant." He added: "You don't overestimate your own capabilities!"
Zhu Di smiled, again with that careless smile: "From Yuan Zhizheng to Hongwu, the Japanese invasion has become increasingly fierce in coastal areas, and the people have suffered greatly. My father has sent envoys to Japan three times but to no avail. It is said that Due to civil strife and division in Japan, no one could respond to our envoy from the Ming Dynasty. It was not until the 25th year of Hongwu that the Northern Dynasties unified Japan. Most of the Japanese pirates now entrenched on the islands are samurai and ronin from the former Southern Dynasties, and their power cannot be underestimated."
He said and looked at Zhu Quan: "Brother Seventeen, don't be too careless. This time, these Japanese pirates are guessing that they are here for Yining. They probably don't want her to invite reinforcements from our court. However, Japanese pirates are cunning and may not harbor other evil intentions." , you should be more careful. The Ministry of War will report to the emperor after receiving the written document, and let’s see what the emperor has to say about the Japanese pirates’ invasion of Daning.”
Prince Ning seemed a little disapproving, they were just a few Japanese pirates. However, he was always convinced by King Yan and promised not to say more.
Lianhua had been listening attentively. Then she raised her head and asked, "So it turns out that Japanese pirates have been a problem in China for a long time?"
"That's right. From Shandong in the north to Fujian in the southeast, coastal areas have been plundered everywhere. My father has strengthened coastal defenses and set up sea bans. Although the Japanese invasion is complicated, it has not become a serious problem." Zhu Di looked up at the sky: "But the people along the coast can never live and work in peace and contentment."
Lian Hua looked at Zhu Di, with a mixture of admiration and admiration in her eyes.
Zhu Di seemed to be aware of Lianhua's gaze, smiled solemnly and said to Lianhua: "Securing the people and protecting the land is our mission and our wish. Although your Majesty sacrificed his life for the country, it was just what a man should do. Now you are here. The Ming Dynasty asked for orders for North Korea, and your Majesty, if you know the truth under the spring, you will definitely be comforted."
Lianhua was moved when she saw what he said sincerely. She nodded with a slight smile, and mist slowly appeared in her eyes.
(Note: Some scholars, such as "Yinghuan Zhilue" written by Xu Jiyu of the Qing Dynasty and "Eastern History Compendium" written by North Korea's An Dingbo, believed that the cause of the Japanese pirates in the Korean Peninsula was Japan's revenge on the Kingdom of Goryeo for cooperating with Mongolian Kublai Khan's expedition to Japan. The author thinks this is nonsense, and the Japanese pirates must not have such a high level of political awareness. If Princess Yining knew better, she would probably denounce it as bandit logic.)