Ming Dynasty: Empress Ma and I swapped clothes!

Chapter 94 Ma Wenxiang Meets Zhu Yuanzhang

Night fell.

The Qianqing Palace, the inner palace of the imperial palace.

Mao Xiang hurried over, went straight to Zhu Yuanzhang's desk, bowed deeply, and then said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, the person has arrived."

After listening, Zhu Yuanzhang pondered for a moment and calculated that, according to the time, the person he should be seeing now was Ma Wenxiang himself, not his own sister.

"Bring him to this palace tomorrow, and remember that no one else should know about this."

Zhu Yuanzhang gave another instruction.

Mao Xiang accepted the order.

After he left, a deep sense of anticipation finally appeared in Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes.

"How could a young man from the Ma family have the power of fate to switch bodies with our sister?"

"What kind of person is our sister? This mere farm boy, unless he has some extraordinary talent, is actually...is he even worthy of her?"

Zhu Yuanzhang muttered to himself, his doubts growing.

At this moment, outside the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Biao watched Mao Xiang's figure disappear into the distance, but he did not utter a sound, nor did he step into the palace to pay his respects to his father, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, once again.

I simply kept it in mind, nothing more.

……

The scene shifts back to the Ma family's large, three-courtyard mansion.

In Luoyang, paper was expensive, and land was even more expensive; the same principle applies to land in the capital.

After their initial trepidation, the entire Ma family was filled with joy upon settling here.

Although they had left Majia Village, they were now in the capital city, surrounded by prosperity. This was not only for the imperial examinations, but also because it transformed their family into the elite of the city.

Don't think that there was no distinction between villages, towns, counties, and cities during this period. People were still divided into different classes, and the same applies to different regions. It's not just a later invention.

There are quite a few things to consider here.

That night, the mother, Wang Shiyun, cooked a big meal, and the whole family enjoyed it very much.

Although Master Ma is still a military household, even if he were to be assigned a post, he would be assigned to the Imperial Guard Vanguard or Rear Guard within the capital, or to another garrison. It is highly unlikely that he would be assigned to a centurion post near Ma Family Village. Therefore, he can take a break for now and need not be too anxious.

Silent all night.

Ma Wenxiang slept soundly, enjoying both the comfort of the palace and the peace of his home.

So when he opened his eyes again, Mao Xiang was waiting outside.

"Your Majesty, His Majesty invites you."

Mao Xiang spoke slowly.

By this time, Ma Wenxiang had finished washing up and dressing properly. After greeting Mao Xiang, he got into his carriage and headed towards the palace.

Although the family was worried, there was really nothing they could do, so they could only wait for the time being or pray at home that nothing else would happen.

The carriages in the palace were different from those in the common people, but Ma Wenxiang felt quite uncomfortable sitting in them.

It was alright when I went out on imperial orders before, but now I feel like I have lice all over my body, and it feels strange no matter how I sit.

"Should everything be alright?"

Ma Wenxiang asked aloud.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured."

Mao Xiang reassured him, "His Majesty summoned me only to inquire about past events, at most the method of making refined salt, and that should be all."

Hearing Mao Xiang's words, Ma Wenxiang was not at ease at all; on the contrary, he was even more worried.

If it were Mao Xiang, his words wouldn't be very convincing.

So Ma Wenxiang closed his eyes and began to hypnotize himself: "When a person dies, the bird flies to the sky. At worst, I'll still be a hero after I die."

Ma Wenxiang murmured to himself, and gradually, he actually fell asleep.

This sight left Mao Xiang, who was standing next to him, equally stunned.

"That kid is sleeping really soundly."

When Ma Wenxiang groggily woke up, he was already in the Qianqing Palace, and he heard a sound beside him.

Ma Wenxiang swallowed hard, opened his eyes and looked around. He saw Zhu Yuanzhang right there in the hall, and the old face of a man in his forties was right in front of him.

Upon seeing this, Ma Wenxiang reacted instinctively and threw a punch hard.

Just as the fist was about to strike Zhu Yuanzhang, giving him a black eye, Zhu Yuanzhang retaliated, his calloused palm catching Ma Wenxiang's wrist. He then chuckled, "What, what are you planning to do? Or perhaps you're planning to assassinate the Emperor?"

Zhu Yuanzhang chuckled.

He could tell that Ma Wenxiang didn't mean it; he was just saying it on purpose to scare the kid and see what kind of person he really was.

Upon hearing this, Ma Wenxiang was furious and immediately began to plead for mercy on the ground.

"Your Majesty is innocent! You have been wronged beyond measure!"

Ma Wenxiang was terrified and pale-faced. He quickly explained, "What I did just now was purely an unconscious act by a commoner. It doesn't count."

With a soft hum, Zhu Yuanzhang, for reasons unknown, released Ma Wenxiang's wrist and strode back to his seat.

Seeing that Ma Wenxiang was still extremely frightened, Zhu Yuanzhang found it somewhat irritating and snorted irritably, "Why don't you get over here and sit down? You're at least half an empress in this palace."

Zhu Yuanzhang blurted out these words unconsciously, and then immediately felt that everything about them was strange.

Ma Wenxiang was on edge at the moment and didn't care about anything else. He was glad to have a seat and not be lying on his back like before.

He was already very content.

"This humble subject obeys."

Ma Wenxiang bowed respectfully and quickly found a seat to sit down.

After that, the entire Qianqing Palace fell into silence.

Zhu Yuanzhang remained silent, and Ma Wenxiang dared not speak either. The two stared at each other, feeling that something was off.

"His Majesty……"

Ma Wenxiang looked at the other person expectantly and spoke up.

Zhu Yuanzhang gave him a look, and Ma Wenxiang shut his mouth again.

"Are you comfortable staying in this palace?"

Zhu Yuanzhang asked.

Ma Wenxiang nodded subconsciously, then quickly shook his head as he realized what he had done.

Immediately, Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at Ma Wenxiang, who knelt down with a thud.

It wasn't that he was weak-willed; it was simply that Zhu Yuanzhang's aura was too overwhelming.

When he was the Empress, Ma Wenxiang didn't feel anything special, just a little psychological pressure. But now it's a completely different story.

When the person in front of you can take your life with a single sentence.

Few people could remain unperturbed, and Ma Wenxiang was no exception.

"Your Majesty, spare my life. I was truly unaware of this matter, and I am also innocent. I beg Your Majesty to see the truth."

Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to seize on Ma Wenxiang's weakness and use it to threaten him, but he swallowed his words back.

On one hand, he was concerned about his sister's reputation; on the other hand, as the emperor, did he really need to threaten this kid in front of him?

If there's anything you need, just give the order. Why bother with all this nonsense? It's too much trouble.