“But after all, your grandfather is Samuel Thompson!” Edward Clark hesitated for a long time, still finding it hard to believe. Although his father had seen that Samuel Thompson was blinded by power and did not know when to advance or retreat, and would surely suffer a great loss in the future, he still did not believe that Zhu Yuanzhang would really kill Samuel Thompson. At most, he thought, Samuel Thompson would be dismissed from office and demoted in rank, or at worst exiled. After all, Samuel Thompson was the number one founding hero of the Ming Dynasty!

Actually, this was normal. Given the current situation, aside from William Thompson, the time traveler, even Zhu Yuanzhang himself probably hadn’t fully decided to kill Samuel Thompson yet.

“So what? Han Xin, Zhangsun Wuji—weren’t they all great contributors? But what was their end?” William Thompson retorted again.

“This…” Edward Clark was once again left speechless.

“If His Majesty truly intends to kill, the only way to save my life is to become a prince consort. I don’t have much time left. Before anything happens, I must become a prince consort of the Ming Dynasty!” William Thompson said again.

But just becoming a prince consort wasn’t enough, because that would only save William Thompson himself. If he wanted to save the rest of his family, he would have to do more. William Thompson did have some ideas about this. For him, the first step—becoming a prince consort—was actually the hardest.

“His Majesty has more than a dozen princesses, most of whom are already married. Among these prince consorts, they are either sons of nobles or have passed the imperial examination. Although you barely count as a noble’s descendant, your status is far too low. So unless you can pass the imperial examination, there’s only a sliver of hope. But the exam was just held this year, so you’ll have to wait at least three more years for another chance.” At this point, Edward Clark finally accepted William Thompson’s reasoning and began to analyze the situation for him.

After hearing this, William Thompson was speechless. How could he possibly have three years? He couldn’t even memorize the Analects, let alone take the imperial exam. So that path was completely unworkable; he’d have to find another way through his noble status.

While William Thompson and Edward Clark were discussing, they suddenly heard footsteps outside. Soon after, a maid came in to report, “Young master, the master has returned and asks you to come to the front hall. He says a guest is coming!”

William Thompson was taken aback by the maid’s words. He remembered that Richard Thompson had gone to the yamen early this morning, and it wasn’t even noon yet—why was he back already? And there was a guest coming?

“Cousin, how are you feeling? Why don’t you rest in your room? I’ll go tell uncle for you.” Edward Clark was still worried about William Thompson’s health, so he offered.

“It’s fine, let’s go to the front hall together!” William Thompson shook his head. He was also curious about the guest—someone who could make Richard Thompson come back from the yamen to personally receive them must not be an ordinary person.

William Thompson and Edward Clark went to the front hall and saw that Richard Thompson was indeed sitting there. When he saw them, he smiled and said, “I just got back and heard from the servants that you two had returned as well. It’s perfect—your fifth uncle is coming soon. You two should join us for a few drinks!”

“Fifth uncle? The one who… no, the one who married the princess?” William Thompson asked in surprise. Edward Clark had introduced him before—this fifth uncle was apparently named Philip Thompson, the youngest son of Samuel Thompson. When Samuel Thompson’s whole family was executed, only he and his two sons survived because of their connection to the princess.

“That’s right. I have a good relationship with your fifth uncle. I ran into him at the yamen today, and he said he wanted to talk, so we arranged to have lunch at home.” Richard Thompson smiled again. He didn’t get along well with most of his family, and only this younger brother Philip Thompson gave him a sense of familial warmth.

William Thompson and the others waited with Richard Thompson in the living room for a while. Soon, a servant came to announce that Philip Thompson had arrived. Richard Thompson eagerly went out to greet him, with William Thompson and Edward Clark following behind.

When they reached the door, they saw a tall, elegant middle-aged man standing outside, looking to be in his early thirties. He had a nose like a hanging gallbladder, eyes like bright stars, and three long whiskers on his chin, giving him an indescribable air of refined elegance.

“Fifth brother, why bother announcing yourself? Just come right in!” Richard Thompson greeted the man warmly as soon as he saw him. There was no need to ask—this was surely William Thompson’s fifth uncle, Philip Thompson.

“Etiquette cannot be neglected. Besides, with you personally coming out to greet me, third brother, I feel even more honored!” Philip Thompson joked, showing that he and Richard Thompson did indeed have a good relationship.

“Greetings, fifth uncle!” William Thompson stepped forward to pay his respects.

“No need for formalities. I heard your illness has improved, and I’m relieved!” Philip Thompson said warmly, helping William Thompson up. When he mentioned William Thompson’s illness, his expression grew a bit complicated—after all, the cause of William Thompson’s illness lay within his own family.

At this point, Edward Clark also stepped forward to pay his respects, and Philip Thompson exchanged a few polite words with him. Then Richard Thompson invited everyone into the living room, and the servants quickly brought out food and wine. The group ate and chatted as they went.

Eating with elders was actually a rather trying affair—not only was it hard to join the conversation, but you also had to deal with their questions from time to time. If an elder’s wine cup was empty, you had to be quick to refill it, or else you’d be considered impolite.

Fortunately, Edward Clark was there to keep him company, and Philip Thompson was focused on chatting with Richard Thompson, so aside from being a bit bored, William Thompson and Edward Clark actually had it pretty easy.