Chapter 1: The Prince of Chu

After the frost, the sky was clear and blue, and the Purple Mountain was painted in layers of colorful forests.

This richly colored mountain scenery, together with the yellow glazed tiles of the imperial city and the floating cosmetics on the Qinhuai River, formed a magnificent autumn landscape of Jinling.

"Damn, it's really beautiful..." The beautiful scenery made a chubby child with thick eyebrows and big eyes, who looked innocent, exclaim in a way that betrayed his lack of culture.

After being entranced for a while, he finally remembered the purpose of his high vantage point and hurriedly shaded his eyes to look far into the distance.

His gaze passed over the high palace walls and finally saw the government offices, mansions, pavilions, and terraces outside the palace, as well as the densely packed market and residential areas, bustling streets, and river surfaces filled with boats…

But he could not see any high-rise buildings, power poles, or signal towers… As far as the eye could see, to the horizon, there was not a single trace of industrial civilization.

"OMG..." The boy was stunned for a moment, no longer doubting the reality of the world before him, and finally accepted the fact that he had become a Ming dynasty person again.

Hey, why "again?"

"Hey, Your Highness, are you trying to fly?!" At this moment, a panicked scream from below brought him back from his daze.

Indeed, he had hit the jackpot this time, becoming a prince. And not just any prince, but the sixth son of the Hongwu Emperor, Prince Chu Zhu Zhen!

Well, compared to being the sickly son of a poor scholar, the paralyzed child of a criminal official, or the little grandson of a fallen official, this identity was much easier to accept.

At the moment, Zhu Zhen was standing on the roof of the main hall of the Wan'an Palace where he had grown up. Looking down, he couldn't help but feel as if the entire Forbidden City was at his feet.

A gust of autumn wind blew, and he couldn't help but shiver. The higher you go, the colder it gets.

His shiver frightened the old eunuch, who was so scared that he started to cry out.

"Oh no, don't move, don't move. Little Master, please don't move."

He raised his hands in a delicate gesture and stomped his feet at the palace attendants who had rushed over. "What are you waiting for? Hurry up and get the prince down!"

Several agile eunuchs quickly climbed up the ladder Zhu Zhen had used to reach the roof. They then carefully escorted the Prince of Chu down as if they were handling the most precious porcelain.

"Little Master, be careful." The old eunuch, wearing a steel fork hat and a light blue robe, lifted his feet to catch Zhu Zhen and slowly placed him on the ground, finally letting out a long sigh of relief and wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Whether from fear or because the prince was too heavy…

"I'm sorry for the trouble." Zhu Zhen apologized out of habit.

The old eunuch, upon hearing this, covered his mouth in shock and then said, "Oh no, Little Master, why are you so polite? Your illness hasn't fully recovered yet!"

Zhu Zhen was taken aback. Being polite was mistaken for being sick? It seemed he needed to adapt to being a prince.

"Are you going to teach me how to act… as a prince?" He raised his chin and gave the effeminate old eunuch a cold glance.

"Yes, yes, this old servant was too bold." The old eunuch was now relieved and quickly explained himself.

"Last month, the Empress entered the Inner Peace Hall, and Your Highness had… sigh, one bad thing after another in this Wan'an Palace, this old servant is really scared…"

As he spoke, he picked up the small embroidered handkerchief from his waist and sobbed, "If anything happens to Little Master, how can this old servant explain it to the Empress?"

"…" Seeing the old eunuch cry with tears in his eyes, Zhu Zhen felt a pang of sympathy and even shed a tear himself.

The memories of the little boy were a bit fuzzy, but Zhu Zhen remembered that his mother, Hu Concubine, had been sent to the cold palace, and he himself had fallen into the water a few days ago.

It was that fall into the water that allowed him to take the place of the little boy.

To say "taking the place" wasn't quite right; it was more like they had merged. For example, the tears he shed now and the heartache he felt when thinking of his mother clearly came from the little boy's emotions.

Sigh, it doesn't matter, he would get used to it gradually.

Zhu Zhen was a person who could adapt to any situation. He calmed himself and wanted to comfort the crying old eunuch but was at a loss for words.

He was only ten years old, and his memory was terrible. For example, he couldn't remember the name of the head eunuch of Wan'an Palace.

So for the first few days, he didn't dare to say or ask anything. It was only now that he felt familiar enough to joke, "Hey, are you Old Wang or Old Wang?"

"The old servant's surname is Wang, the water Wang, and my humble name is De Fa." The old eunuch, though a bit upset, didn't dare to say more.

"Alright, Old Wang." Zhu Zhen nodded and finally asked, "What exactly did my mother do wrong?"

"Ah, Your Highness, you are still young, you will understand when you grow up." Wang De Fa shook his head.

"Are you going to teach me how to act again?" Zhu Zhen raised his thick eyebrows, using the same tactic.

"Ha ha ha!" Before the old eunuch could speak, a loud laugh echoed from the Wan'an Gate. "Sixth Brother, you are finally fully recovered!"

Zhu Zhen followed the voice and saw three young men in round-collar dragon robes walking toward him with smiles.

The one in the middle, wearing a winged cap and a light yellow robe, was his eldest brother, the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Biao. He was in his early twenties, tall and handsome, with a gentle smile that made people feel as if they were basking in the spring breeze.

On the left of Prince Biao, wearing a red dragon robe, was the one who had just spoken—his fourth brother, Prince Yan Zhu Di.

Zhu Di was only about fifteen or sixteen years old, not yet of age, with his black hair tied back. However, he was already as tall as his eldest brother.

Both brothers had square faces, but unlike the fair-skinned, gentle Prince Biao, Prince Yan had a dark complexion, thick eyebrows, and large eyes, with very expressive and energetic movements.

Since Zhu Zhen fell into the water, his three older brothers had visited him every day.

Hey, did I forget to mention one?

"Ha ha, you're quite brave, climbing so high! Just like me!" Zhu Di praised Zhu Zhen's behavior and even tried to imitate it, scaring the eunuchs into quickly carrying away the ladder.

The Crown Prince, however, examined Zhu Zhen from head to toe and suddenly frowned.

Zhu Zhen's heart skipped a beat, unsure what was wrong.

The Crown Prince then reached out his hands and gently held Zhu Zhen's neck.

Zhu Zhen's heart raced, but then he saw his eldest brother's fingers straightening out the wrinkles in his collar and carefully smoothing them out.

The Crown Prince then brushed off the dust on his shoulders and finally smiled in satisfaction.

"…" Zhu Zhen also let out a sigh of relief. What was this? Obsessive-compulsive disorder or a Virgo?

"Since you can climb so high, it seems you are really fine. Go to school tomorrow." The Crown Prince's next words made Zhu Zhen's face fall.

"Oh, I'm still a bit dizzy." Zhu Zhen covered his head and swayed. Wang De Fa quickly supported him.

"Alright, stop pretending." The Crown Prince laughed and scolded, raising his right hand to tap Zhu Zhen's head. "This is something your fourth brother used to do, you can't fool your eldest brother."

"Eldest Brother, you shouldn't expose my shortcomings in front of everyone." Zhu Di protested, then smiled and pleaded for Zhu Zhen, "Tomorrow is the day the teacher checks our recitations. Let Sixth Brother go the day after tomorrow."

"Brother." Zhu Zhen gave Zhu Di a thumbs up, and the Prince of Yan smiled proudly.

"What do you mean? Am I not your brother?" Zhu Biao tapped Zhu Zhen's head again. "If I don't see you at the main hall the day after tomorrow, watch out for your little bottom."

"Understood!" Zhu Zhen quickly responded, feeling quite at ease with his brothers.

"Very good." The Crown Prince nodded and waved his sleeve. "All of you, step back."

"Understood." Wang De Fa quickly led the palace attendants out in a line.

In a moment, only the four royal brothers were left in front of the Wan'an Hall.

"Tell me, Sixth Brother, how did you fall into the water that day?" The Crown Prince then asked Zhu Zhen gently.