“First, I never taught Your Highness that phrase.” Benjamin Lee said unmoved, “Second, the Prince of Qi is also my student. I cannot ignore the Prince of Qi’s life just to fulfill Your Highness’s filial piety. Thirty times.”

“Listen to what you’re saying, sir. He’s my brother too—would I really want his life?” James Johnson wiggled his thick eyebrows, coaxing, “When Father Emperor had my eldest brother question me, I didn’t give him up, and I certainly wouldn’t make things difficult for you, sir.”

“So you are…” Benjamin Lee said, “Forty times.”

“I just want to make a trade with Consort Ding to save my mother. But she definitely won’t take my words seriously, so I need you, sir, to help intimidate her a bit.” James Johnson said concisely. There was no other way—every extra word meant ten more repetitions.

“I see…” Benjamin Lee nodded slightly.

James Johnson was secretly delighted—it seemed there was hope.

But he was happy too soon. Benjamin Lee immediately put on a stern face and said, “But why should I help you? There’s no benefit for me. Fifty times.”

“There’s definitely a big benefit.” James Johnson already knew Benjamin Lee didn’t like him, and mere talk wouldn’t work. He had come prepared. “If you save my mother once, I’ll save you in return. That’s a fair trade, isn’t it?”

“You’ll save me?” Benjamin Lee couldn’t help but laugh, even forgetting to keep increasing the repetitions. “By the time Your Highness grows up, I’ll already be dust in the ground.”

“I mean right now, not in the future.” James Johnson stared with his big round eyes, wearing a ‘trust me, I’m right’ expression.

“Right now?” Benjamin Lee said with amusement, “Then please enlighten me, Your Highness—what danger is my life in?”

“If there’s no danger, why is Lord Chengyi hiding in the palace?” James Johnson said seriously, “It’s well known that Lord Chengyi has no ambition for court affairs. Since the first year of Hongwu, you’ve repeatedly requested retirement, and a few years ago you finally got your wish and returned home in glory. But soon after, you had to return to the capital in disgrace, and haven’t dared to step outside the city since. Isn’t it because you fear for your life?”

“Did the Emperor teach you to say this?” Benjamin Lee frowned deeply, a familiar feeling welling up inside.

“There you go again, sir.” James Johnson smiled wryly, “Would Father Emperor really discuss this with a ten-year-old child?”

“Is this something a ten-year-old could say?” Benjamin Lee snorted. “Sixty times.”

“Xiang Tuo became Confucius’s teacher at seven, Ban Zhao could write history at eight. When you were eight, sir, you could read seven lines at a glance and recite them from memory. You passed the county exam at twelve, and at fourteen you were already making profound arguments no one had made before. You were a famous prodigy—why do you think others can’t do the same?”

To prepare for this speech, the Prince of Chu had spent the whole night. Only this morning did he ask his fifth brother how to pronounce the ‘Tuo’ in Xiang Tuo.

“Oh, hahaha…” Benjamin Lee couldn’t help but laugh, his interest thoroughly piqued. “Your Highness is truly eloquent. Very well, tell me—who wants my life? I’m all ears.”

He set down his ruler, looking at James Johnson, making a show of listening intently.

“Hu Weiyong.” James Johnson answered confidently. He had seen countless versions of Benjamin Lee in TV dramas. In every single one, the person who ultimately killed this living Zhuge Liang was always that man named Hu!

“It’s not surprising that Your Highness knows this. The conflict between me and Minister Hu, or rather between the ‘Huai West’ and ‘Zhedong’ factions, isn’t exactly a secret.” Benjamin Lee took a small gourd from his sleeve, pulled out the stopper, and a strong medicinal wine aroma filled the air.

He tilted his head back and took a big swig, his clear, aged face twisting in pain. It was hard to tell if the wine tasted bad or if it stirred up sad memories.

James Johnson stood quietly to the side, waiting for Benjamin Lee to calm down.

He knew that the ‘Huai West faction’ Benjamin Lee mentioned referred to the group of founding heroes from Huai West who followed Zhu Yuanzhang in his rise. The ‘Zhedong faction’ was the group of scholars from eastern Zhejiang recruited after Zhu took Yingtian.

The former was led by Li Shanchang, while the latter’s leader was Benjamin Lee. After the founding of the Ming dynasty, under Zhu Yuanzhang’s deliberate manipulation, the latter faction rose rapidly, seizing many key positions and clashing fiercely with the former.

Although the Zhedong faction once held the upper hand, their foundation was shallow, and they ultimately lost. Both Li Shanchang and Benjamin Lee retired to their hometowns, bringing the first major factional struggle of the Ming founding era to a close.

But Hu Weiyong, who succeeded Li Shanchang, refused to let things go and always bore a grudge against Benjamin Lee for repeatedly thwarting his attempts to become prime minister, seizing every chance to eliminate him.

It was precisely because he was framed by Hu Weiyong’s men in his hometown of Qingtian that Benjamin Lee was forced to come to the capital to apologize.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang did not punish Benjamin Lee, he stripped him of his salary.

At that point, Benjamin Lee fully understood that leaving Zhu Yuanzhang’s sight meant certain death, so he dared not return home.

To dispel Zhu’s suspicions, he requested a teaching post at the main hall, hiding in the library all day and avoiding contact with anyone…

……

After a long while, Benjamin Lee finally said with a sigh, “The so-called ‘Zhedong faction’ no longer exists, and I’ve become a turtle hiding in its shell. Do they really need to wipe us out completely?”

“Does it really no longer exist?” James Johnson retorted, leaving Benjamin Lee momentarily speechless.