A Concubine-Born Son’s Poisonous Scheme: Shadow Wars in the Hongwu Court

A modern historian awakens in the body of Zhu Di, Zhu Yuanzhang’s fourth son, and immediately plunges into the brutal power struggles of the Hongwu era. As a son born to a concubine, he knows that under the ironclad rule of primogeniture, his future is nothing more than ruling a remote fiefdom, only to end up as a sacrifice to his nephew Zhu Yunwen’s campaign to strip the princes of their domains. But with a thousand years of historical knowledge at his disposal, he decides to rewrite his fate, using the most sinister schemes and ruthless methods to carve out a path to the throne through blood-soaked palace walls.

From plotting a witchcraft frame-up while still in his swaddling clothes to slowly poisoning Crown Prince Zhu Biao to death; from using Zhu Yuanzhang to eliminate Lan Yu to flattering Consort Lü into backing Zhu Yunwen’s rise, every move conceals a deadly threat. He becomes the puppeteer behind the board, letting his second brother Zhu Shuang destroy himself through greed and his third brother Zhu Gang die amid suspicion. Even Empress Ma’s compassion and Zhu Yuanzhang’s suspicion become blades in his hands. In the harem, he manipulates the consorts into fighting for favor and uses a major witchcraft case to purge his enemies. At court, he forges imperial edicts and sows discord between ruler and ministers, throwing the entire Hongwu era into chaos.

Yet every successful scheme brings him one step closer to the abyss. When Consort Lü’s ambitions spiral out of control, when Zhu Yunwen’s suspicions deepen, and when Zhu Yuanzhang’s final edict forbidding the princes from entering the capital is issued, he finally bares his fangs. Atop the walls of Beiping, Zhu Di clutches the secret order to “purge the emperor’s treacherous advisors” and gazes south with a cold smile. This deadly struggle, begun the moment he was born, will finally rewrite history in dragon’s blood!