My father is Yongle, and all I want is to cultivate immortality.

Chapter 44 Nephew, your second uncle is doing this for your own good!

Zhu Zhanji looked at the pill in his hand, still somewhat hesitant.

"Nephew, come, come, don't be shy. These are pills that your second uncle has been refining in seclusion for some time. Although these pills are still flawed and not completely successful, I feel that if you take them, they might prolong your life and strengthen your body. Perhaps these pills can even help cure your father's illness. All of these are possible."

Zhu Gaoxu was making empty promises.

Zhu Zhanji was skeptical, but he still took out one of the pills, hesitated for a moment, and finally smelled it.

Upon smelling it, he found the odor extremely unpleasant, almost causing him to lose his temper.

"This...this..." Zhu Zhanji said, "Second Uncle, it's not that I'm picking a fight with you, but this pill smells a bit burnt, and its shape doesn't look like a pill at all!"

It has to be said that this good grandson is a little scared.

He had a feeling that his second uncle was setting him up.

Zhu Gaoxu covered his mouth, almost bursting out laughing, but he had great self-control.

"Nephew, what do you know?"

"Although this pill is charred on the outside, the heat is just right. Just trust your second uncle this once; it won't hurt."

Zhu Gaoxu said, "What's a little hardship compared to refining elixirs?"

He held his nephew's hand and said earnestly, "Nephew, you won't let me down, will you?"

Zhu Zhanji suddenly found his courage, looked at the pill in his hand, and then swallowed it in one gulp.

The Princess Consort of Han was also watching, and she glanced at Zhu Gaochi without leaving a trace.

Zhu Gaoxu simply gave her a smile, letting her figure it out herself.

After taking the medicine, Zhu Zhanji only felt a sharp pain in his abdomen.

Zhu Gaoxu asked, "Nephew, how are you feeling?"

Zhu Zhanji felt a burning pain inside his body, as if a fire was burning in his heart.

"Second Uncle, I... I feel like my stomach really hurts, and it feels like there's a fire burning inside me." Zhu Zhanji gritted his teeth, almost unable to bear it anymore.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Zhu Gaoxu smiled, but no one knew whether he was gloating or what he was laughing about.

"Nephew, this pain is normal; it means the medicine is working in your body!"

"If your second uncle is right, this pill is currently opening up your Ren and Du meridians. You just have to be patient. Just be patient and it will pass."

"Back then, your second uncle tasted countless pills in order to refine the Rejuvenation Pill. That's no less than what you've eaten."

"If this trial is successful, you will be the first creator of this elixir!"

Zhu Zhanji was still in a lot of pain!

Suddenly, it started rolling around on the ground, and it was rolling around wildly.

"My lord, aren't we going too far by doing this?" The Princess Consort of Han was a little scared.

"It's alright!" Zhu Gaoxu said calmly, "I know what I'm doing, so you don't need to worry."

Upon hearing this, the Princess Consort of Han said nothing.

After a long while, Zhu Zhanji, pale-faced, said in a trembling voice, "I feel like I can't go on. My stomach hurts so much. I need to poop. I can't hold it in anymore."

Zhu Gaochi and the Princess of Han: ...

Especially the Princess Consort of Han, she looked at her husband with a strange expression: You didn't put laxatives in this boy's pills, did you?

Zhu Gaoxu seemed not to notice anything; he was only staring at his nephew, and he couldn't have been happier!

I'll roast you over a fire, I'll turn you into a clay pot chicken!

This is your retribution, this is what you deserve.

Zhu Gaoxu remained outwardly calm.

He said with disdain, "Then why don't you hurry up and go to the outhouse? Don't dirty your second uncle's room. Your second uncle still needs to refine pills here."

"Yes, yes!"

Zhu Zhanji immediately went to the outhouse.

Seeing this, the Princess Consort of Han said with concern, "My husband, aren't you being too cruel to him?"

"Hmph, he only has himself to blame!"

Zhu Gaoxu said, "He is the crown prince, and I am doing this to temper his temperament!"

At this point, he put his hands on his hips and picked up another bottle of pills.

"There are still a few defective products here, and I was just wondering what to do with them. Now that my nephew is here, I can let him have a taste."

Princess Han began to feel sympathy for Zhu Zhanji.

Nephew, you're probably in for some trouble this time.

Zhu Zhanji walked over, his face pale, and he almost couldn't walk steadily.

Zhu Gaoxu looked at him: "Nephew, are you alright?"

"I...I'm fine!" Zhu Zhanji forced a smile onto his pale face.

"Do you feel anything after taking this pill?" Zhu Gaoxu asked.

"I only feel a fire burning inside my abdomen, but I don't feel anything else yet."

"Really?" Zhu Gaoxu frowned, muttering to himself, "This doesn't make sense, this doesn't make sense!"

He paced back and forth in the room.

"This doesn't make sense. Logically speaking, this pill is a top-grade pill. How come you didn't feel anything after taking it?"

Zhu Zhanji said with a wry smile, "Second Uncle, you yourself said that this elixir is a defective product, so of course you won't feel anything after taking it."

"If you feel anything, it'll be a stomachache and you'll definitely have diarrhea."

Zhu Gaoxu suppressed a laugh.

"No rush, no rush!!"

Zhu Gaoxu said, "I have other pills here; you can try them all!"

"ah!?"

Zhu Zhanji's eyes widened; he thought he had misheard.

Zhu Gaoxu personally took out a pill and waved it around in front of Zhu Zhanji.

Zhu Zhanji shuddered.

He only tried one pill just now, and it cost him his life. And now you want to try again?

"Nephew, this is another elixir I've developed, called the Vajra Mighty Pill!" Zhu Gaoxu said earnestly, trying to deceive people. "Once you take it, not only will you have immense strength, but lifting a cauldron weighing several hundred pounds will be no problem at all."

"Think of Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu. If he could do it, you can too!"

Zhu Zhanji shivered and took several steps back.

"Second Uncle, I... I've been feeling a bit feverish lately, and the effects of the pills I just tried haven't worn off yet. I'm afraid I won't be able to handle their effects!"

To be honest, he was genuinely scared.

"Nephew, your second uncle is only doing this for your own good!"

Zhu Gaoxu said earnestly, "If you have internal heat, this elixir will be even more nourishing."

"This powerful pill is specially formulated to treat all kinds of internal heat."

"Trust your second uncle, this pill can't possibly harm you, so just take it."

Zhu Zhanji was terrified. He felt guilty, as if his second uncle was setting him up.

"Second Uncle, I... I think we should just forget about it?" Zhu Zhanji was scared.

"Forget it? How can you just let it go like that?"

"Let me tell you, your second uncle works so hard refining pills, isn't it all so that he can research and develop new elixirs?"

"And if you succeed in testing the elixir, you will be the first meritorious official of the Ming Dynasty!"

Zhu Zhanji: ...