Chapter 9

The eunuch was momentarily at a loss, trembling all over, and whispered in defense: "Your Majesty didn't say... to give twenty lashes, and to beat him hard?"

Zhu Di became even more furious, shouting loudly: "You scoundrels, when carrying out punishments, you always try to fool Me. Isn't there a difference between fake and real beatings?"

The eunuch was completely dumbfounded.

Clearly, when the emperor was furious, he had firmly demanded a harsh beating.

A hint of urgency flashed in Zhu Di's eyes: "How is he now?"

"The slave dared not let anyone harm his bones, but... but the lashes were quite solid, and there is blood!"

Zhu Di: "……"

The eunuch was already scared stiff, trembling like a sieve.

He had no idea that when the emperor was enraged, while cursing Zhang Ze's mother, he had actually only wanted to scare Zhang Ze and make him suffer a bit.

Zhu Di said: "He's just a child, how could you be so cruel?"

The eunuch: "……"

Zhu Di's eyes flickered with concern, and he said: "Quickly send for the imperial physician, and have the Imperial Medical Institute send someone to the Zhang family immediately."

The eunuch, feeling as if he had been granted a reprieve, immediately said: "Yes, yes..."

With that, he ran off, stumbling and falling.

Zhu Di, however, walked back and forth in the hall with his hands behind his back, sometimes lowering his head in deep thought, and sometimes muttering to himself.

"Shimei, Shimei, your son is too foolish. Look at how he has behaved... sigh..."

As he spoke, it seemed as if he was defending himself.

But suddenly, a growing unease overcame him, and he abruptly said: "Come, come, someone... prepare My horse!"

...

Zhang Anshi arrived at the Zhang family residence, which was quite grand.

Although Duke Rongguo Zhang Yu had died in battle, his sons, especially his eldest son Zhang Fu, were quickly favored by the Yongle Emperor and now held a high position, serving as the Deputy Commander of the Five Military Directorates at a young age.

However, Zhang Anshi did not rashly enter. Instead, he cautiously sent Zhang San to knock on the door and ask if Zhang Fu, the Deputy Commander, was at home.

The reason... might be that his reputation was not good. According to the memories of his original body, Zhang Fu always had a sour face whenever he saw him.

After a while, Zhang San returned, excitedly saying: "Young Master, I asked, and the Deputy Commander is still on duty at the Directorate."

Zhang Anshi let out a sigh of relief and nodded: "Alright, I know. Wait outside and keep watch."

Zhang San, spirited, replied: "Young Master, I understand."

Master and servant seemed to have a tacit understanding.

Zhang Anshi couldn't help but think, could the original Zhang Anshi... have been like a rat in the street?

He slipped into the Zhang residence, following a servant, and indeed found Zhang Ze in the bedroom.

Zhang Ze had been carried back, moaning and groaning as he lay on the bed, wailing for a long time. However, when his grandmother and mother heard that he had been misbehaving at school and had been punished by the emperor, they simply ignored him, saying he had disgraced the family.

For a moment, Zhang Ze stopped wailing and only moaned, not daring to move.

At this moment, Zhang Anshi looked around and, seeing no family members present, quickly ran in, saying: "I'm here, I've come to visit you."

Zhang Ze, upon hearing this, his body trembled. This tremor pulled at his wounds, causing him to grimace and moan.

However, Zhang Ze felt unexpectedly delighted and said excitedly: "Big Brother, you actually came."

Zhang Anshi, approaching the bed, saw his strange position and sighed: "Third Brother, you've suffered. As soon as I heard about your punishment, I rushed home to find a doctor and medicine for you."

Zhang Ze, upon hearing this, tears welled up in his eyes: "My grandmother and mother ignored me, only scolding me for being useless. When I was whipped this morning and saw Big Brother leave, I thought Big Brother didn't care about me anymore. Who would have thought Big Brother still cared about my injuries... Big Brother, you really..."

Tears streamed down his face.

Zhang Anshi looked at Zhang Ze with sympathy.

He may be a bit foolish, but... he is a genuine person, and can be trusted.

Zhang Anshi took out his porcelain bottle and said: "This is just a superficial injury, but if it gets infected, it could be fatal. This is a miraculous medicine I found. Remember to use it, apply it to the wound, understood?"

Zhang Ze, moved, nodded rapidly: "Just seeing you, my injuries are already half-healed. I... I lost my father, and my elder brother is strict with me. Only Big Brother is good to me."

Zhang Anshi: "……"

Zhang Ze added: "Second Brother is no good, he hasn't shown up."

Zhang Anshi comforted him: "Your Second Brother is different. He was also punished at school, and when he gets home, his father will probably beat him. He's probably being punished now and can't take care of himself."

Zhang Ze, upon hearing this, seemed to find it reasonable and smiled through his tears: "That's right, I forgot..."

Zhang Anshi again instructed Zhang Ze to remember to use the medicine, explaining some technical terms about inflammation.

However, Zhang Ze only moaned, and it was unclear if he had remembered.

Zhang Anshi, having no choice, placed the medicine bottle aside.

At this moment, two servants rushed in, one of whom was Zhang San, and the other was Zhang Ze's book boy.

They said in unison: "The Deputy Commander (Young Master) has arrived..."

Zhang Ze, angry, cursed: "If he's coming, let him come. Why are you wailing, oh, oh..."

Zhang Anshi, however, instinctively felt a sense of fear, as if the fear from the original Zhang Anshi had resurfaced. He said: "Take care, I'll leave first."

Without a moment's hesitation, Zhang Anshi ran off.

Zhang Ze, left with his mouth agape, even forgot to moan.

Zhang Anshi didn't want to run; he wanted to maintain his image as a man and a royal relative.

But his legs, for some reason, wouldn't listen to him.

Historically, Zhang Fu was a famous general of the Yongle era, known for his bad temper and hatred of evil.

Thus, Zhang Anshi hurried out of Zhang Ze's bedroom, intending to escape, but the servant said: "You can't go this way, Young Master is already in the front hall."

"I'm not afraid of him," Zhang Anshi muttered.

Saying this, he headed for the side door, but unfortunately, this was the inner residence, and the side door was always locked. Zhang Anshi, with no choice, found a low wall and climbed over it.

As he leaped down from the wall, he suddenly heard someone shout: "Who's that thief?"

Zhang Anshi, still in shock, looked up to see a group of horsemen passing by the wall.

The leader and his attendants were on tall horses.

The man on the tall horse had slightly dark skin, a long beard, and a pair of bold eyes under his thick eyebrows.

Zhang Anshi immediately said: "What's it to you?"

The man on the horse, hearing this, became furious and brandished his whip: "Seize him."

The attendants, all strong and fierce, were about to spur their horses forward.

Zhang Anshi immediately said: "I'm not a thief, I'm a classmate of the young master here. He fell ill, and I came to visit him."

The man on the horse, his eyes slightly narrowed, stopped his attendants with a wave of his whip.

It was Emperor Zhu Di, who felt somewhat uneasy. He had only intended to give Zhang Ze a taste of punishment, but hearing that he had been beaten unconscious, he realized he might have been too harsh.

As an emperor who had won the throne through war, he did not follow formalities. In his anxiety, he had left the palace in plain clothes to visit Zhang Ze.

When he passed by, he happened to see Zhang Anshi jumping over the wall.

Speaking of which, Zhu Di and Zhang Anshi were related, but Zhu Di did not particularly like Zhu Gaohui and had no special affection for Zhang Anshi, so they had never met.

Zhang Anshi, who did not look like a thief, was pale and dressed in fine silk, clearly a noble youth, and could not possibly be a thief.

Although Zhu Di's face darkened slightly, he now became patient.

This person was Zhang Ze's friend and had already visited him.

Zhu Di said: "Are you Zhang Ze's friend? What's your name?"

Zhang Anshi, seeing Zhu Di mention Zhang Ze's name, was not surprised. The Zhang family had a close relationship with many nobles from the Jingnan campaign, and this person... was likely one of them.

Zhang Anshi said: "Who else could it be? I am who I am, you can call me Guo Degang."

Zhu Di, searching his memory for Zhang Ze's classmates, quickly lost interest and asked: "How is Zhang Ze's injury?"

"He is my brother, Guo Degang, and a tough guy. He won't die."

Zhu Di: "……"