So, it was sixty thousand people rotating shifts on four sides, meaning even on a single side with three shifts, there were still several thousand people at a time. And these weren’t the later Ming troops who collapsed at the first blow—this was the twenty-fifth year of the Hongwu reign, and all the officers and soldiers were battle-hardened veterans, especially since these were the Imperial Guards, the emperor’s own troops, the most elite unit. He had to carry a burden on his back, cross a river dozens of meters wide and three zhang deep, then pass through a defensive zone guarded by at least several thousand elite soldiers, and ahead there was still a city wall.

Moreover, there were clearly quite a few patrols on the city wall, as you could see many lights moving about.

“If you can swim, you could carry me and take the water route. We could swim south all the way, and after passing Donghua Gate, we’d reach the area near the Imperial Ancestral Temple, which is secluded and deserted. From there, we’d keep going until we reach the southern wall of the Imperial City, climb over, and we’re out.”

She continued.

“You’re a princess—don’t you usually spend your days on music, chess, calligraphy, and painting? Why are you studying how to escape the palace?”

Edward Clark looked at her speechlessly.

“There’s no one to play with me in the palace. My brother used to come visit, but now he’s gone to his fief, so I’m left all alone, like a prisoner in the palace. If you take me out, I can take you to my brother. He’s been made Prince of Liao and sent to Guangning. I don’t know exactly where that is, just that it’s very far away—supposedly thousands of miles. Once we get there, whatever you want, he’ll give it to you.”

The little princess tried to entice him.

Edward Clark simply put her down, then picked her up and set her aside.

“You can’t leave me behind!”

The little princess panicked.

Edward Clark ignored her, instead reorganizing his backpack, sealing up the items inside, inflating the side air bladders, then slinging the pack over his shoulder. He walked behind her, grabbed her by the belt, lifted her up, and just went straight into the water. He tossed the backpack onto the surface as a float, then threw the noble princess onto it. Instinctively, she clung to the float, though her body still got wet...

“I am a royal princess!”

The little princess, unable to bear his roughness any longer, was filled with indignation.

“Oh!”

Edward Clark replied.

Then he ignored her, made a float out of his raincoat, and began swimming into deeper water, dragging the backpack along.

Her Highness the Princess, terrified, clung tightly to the backpack as he pulled her forward. On the pitch-black river, the two of them silently headed south. To stay hidden, Edward Clark kept as close to the shore as possible, taking advantage of the reeds and water plants for cover.

Soon, they reached Donghua Gate. There were indeed quite a few figures on the city wall, but no one noticed them below, and the lights on the wall barely reached them. The two of them slipped under the bridge without incident, passed under Donghua Gate Bridge, and continued forward. After passing the corner tower, they entered a crosswise section of the river. On the opposite side was a narrower river mouth; the little princess pointed it out, and Edward Clark swam over. Once they entered this waterway, there was nothing to worry about, as both sides were thick with trees, and behind the trees on the right loomed majestic buildings...

“The Imperial Ancestral Temple.”

The little princess spoke with barely suppressed excitement.

“Your Zhu family ancestors were poor peasants for eight generations.”

Edward Clark said.

Of course, that was just a figure of speech.

The Zhu family’s ancestors were probably self-sufficient farmers in Jiangnan, later classified as gold miners by the Yuan dynasty—which really just meant local gentry wanted to seize their land. Officials and gentry colluded to reclassify self-sufficient farmers as gold miners even in areas without gold mines, which meant they had to pay gold to the government. In the end, they could only buy gold to hand in, which was impossible, so they had to abandon their land and flee, and their land naturally fell into the hands of the local gentry.

No wonder Zhu Yuanzhang was so ruthless toward the powerful landlords of Jiangnan.

After fleeing to the Fengyang area, the Zhu family could only become tenant farmers, barely scraping by wherever they could find work.

Truly barely scraping by—you could tell from the birthplaces of Zhu Yuanzhang and his brothers. His eldest brother, second brother, and himself were all born in different places: one in Xuyi, one in Wuhe, one in Zhongli. In other words, their family kept changing employers year after year, working as tenant farmers for different landlords like refugees. Even among tenant farmers, this was the lowest class. In ancient times, everything was clan-based: tenants of the same clan got the good land, outsiders got the bad land, and these wandering tenants got the worst land of all.

No wonder they starved to death.

“So what if we were poor peasants for eight generations? Isn’t my father now the supreme ruler of the world?”

The little princess said proudly.

Edward Clark had no response.

Indeed, so what if they were poor peasants for eight generations? Now they were emperors.

But then he glanced at the little princess’s arm, and with a malicious grin, poked it.

She still maintained her royal pride, but when she looked down, by the faint glow of Edward Clark’s watch, she saw a small creature wriggling there. Her pupils instantly dilated, and she opened her mouth to scream, but Edward Clark quickly covered her mouth. As she thrashed about in panic, he pulled a leech off her arm...

“This is you!”

Edward Clark said with a smile, holding up the leech in front of her.

The terrified little princess had no interest in anything else. Like anyone who’s been through the same ordeal, she frantically searched her own body, even pulling open her collar to look inside...

But she couldn’t see anything.