The most reckless man in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 349: Empress's Delivery
Qianqing Palace.

Emperor Zhu Houzhao and Prince Xing Zhu Youju were chatting.

Speaking of which, Zhu Houzhao discovered a very interesting place.

The more familiar he became with him, the more surprised Zhu Houzhao was to find that this Prince Xing was truly a man of great talent.

Not only was Zhu Youqiu proficient in poetry and calligraphy, but what was even more rare was that he had a long-term vision and insight into the general trend.

For example, regarding the Hetao area, Zhu Youlang expressed a different opinion.

"Your Majesty, when Emperor Yongle relocated Dongshengwei, he had no choice but to do so!"

"The King of Jin became a vassal state three years earlier than the King of Yan, and the Datong he guarded was a strategically important place. Shanxi is surrounded by mountains and rivers, and the land is rich in fine horses. Its people are strong and sturdy, which is why Shanxi produces generals. The north is close to the barbarians, and the King of Jin and the general Fu Youde are in-laws. He is in charge of Datong and has made many military achievements, which is not inferior to the King of Yan."

"Later, Taizu carried out a large-scale purge of military generals and veterans. In order to stabilize the special situation during this period, Taizu expanded and promoted the power of the Prince of Jin. He not only gave him the power to recommend local generals, but also approved the promotion of the Prince of Jin to remove Fang Zhao from the position of the seal holder of Dongsheng Guard in the intercalary twelfth month of the 25th year of Hongwu, and the request of the head of the palace guards to go to Fenzhou Guard to manage the affairs, and ordered him to rectify the Dusi, and even control the Dusi in normal times, returning to the era of the Record of Ancestors, and even control all local officials."

"The position of the King of Jin in the feudal system of the early Ming Dynasty was quite special. After the death of the King of Qin, the King of Jin, as the leader of all the kings, ruled the north. Because of his good relationship with the Crown Prince and the Crown Prince's faction, he was deeply trusted by the Great Ancestor. Some of the special powers he obtained might not be available to other kings, not even the King of Yan."

What Zhu Youqiu said at this moment were undoubtedly royal secrets.

But at the moment there were only him and Zhu Houzhao, so there was nothing taboo about saying these words.

"But Taizu himself never expected that the Prince of Jin, whom he used to check and balance the Prince of Yan, would die before him. This completely disrupted Taizu's plan, so Taizu immediately appointed the Prince of Jin to take over the throne, and secretly issued an imperial decree requiring the new Prince of Jin to make emergency preparations."

"In other words, the Jin vassal lineage was actually deliberately condoned by Emperor Taizu. Therefore, the Jin prince's power completely controlled the administration of the military towns from Datongwei to Dongsheng City, Zhezhekou Guarding Thousand Households (Three Jiang Cities) and along the Helan Mountains. For example, Fang Zhao, who was born in Dongsheng during the Jingnan Campaign, was clearly called an "enemy general" by the Yan army. The second Jin prince had always been dissatisfied with Emperor Yongle, so he was hated by Emperor Yongle. Therefore, the two guards and four guards of Dongsheng were military towns that had to be abolished during the Yongle Dynasty."

Zhu Houzhao was also quite moved after hearing this. These royal secrets were indeed frustrating.

Due to the struggle between the royal family and the princes, the Dongsheng Guard was once disbanded and moved inland, which affected today's northern border defense.

Zhu Houzhao felt a headache when he heard about the troubles of the Jin clan.

Zhu Jihui, the third Prince of Jin, was the third son of Zhu, the Prince of Jin. He was disliked by his father Zhu because of his misbehavior, so his father favored his eldest son Zhu Jihui. Zhu Jihui did not like his father favoring his brother, and when he learned that his brother was dissatisfied with Emperor Yongle's ascension to the throne, he took the opportunity to slander Zhu Jihui in front of Emperor Yongle.

As a result, Emperor Yongle had always harbored hatred towards Zhu Jihui, so he took the opportunity to depose Zhu Jihui from his title of Prince of Jin on the first day of September in the twelfth year of Yongle's reign and sent him to guard his father's mausoleum. Zhu Jihui then inherited the title of Prince of Jin.

However, after becoming the King of Jin, Zhu Jixun became even more stubborn and brutal. He poisoned his stepmother, Princess Xie, and placed Zhu Jixun and his nephew Zhu Meigui under house arrest. Later, he formed an alliance with the King of Han Zhu Gaoxu and conspired to rebel. Finally, in the first year of Xuande, the King of Han Zhu Gaoxu rebelled, but it was suppressed in a short time like a joke. The officials of the Jin government exposed the alliance between Zhu Jixun and Zhu Gaoxu, and he was stripped of his title the following year and exiled. In the end, the throne of Jin was inherited by Zhu Jixun's eldest son Zhu Meigui, returning to the legitimate line.

Zhu Houzhao felt sick whenever he heard about these scandals within the royal family.

"What Fourth Uncle said makes sense."

"The Jin clan is indeed not very peaceful. I will send a message to Liu Jin to clean up the farms of the Ning clan. The next target is the Jin clan!"

Because there was solid evidence of treason, Ning Wang Zhu Chenhao was beheaded in public. Except for the youngest of his four sons who was demoted to a commoner and exiled, the other three sons were all adults and were beheaded together. In addition, Liu Yangzheng, Li Shishi, Wang Lun and other close cronies had their property confiscated and their families exterminated. The Jiangxi officials and court officials in the capital who secretly colluded with Ning Wang were also purged by the Censorate. Those who deserved to be beheaded were beheaded, and those who deserved to have their property confiscated and exiled were exiled. There was nothing more to say.

If you dare to plot a rebellion, be prepared for the death of your entire family!

Because of the Ning Wang rebellion, Zhu Houzhao could be said to have made a fortune. A large amount of gold, silver and jewelry were sent to the treasury. In the short term, he no longer had to worry about the food expenses for the Beijing army soldiers.

Affordable!
We can afford to expand by tens of thousands more!
Liu Jin did a good job during this period. After clearing out the farms of the Qing clan, he went to Nanchang, Jiangxi to investigate the Ning clan.

Anyway, if any vassal king dares to commit a crime, the emperor will release Liu Jin, the mad dog, and seize the opportunity to investigate the land they have occupied. After Liu Jin finishes the investigation, he will hand it over to the Ministry of Households, which will redistribute the land to the people and resettle the refugees.

Under this pattern, Zhu Houzhao, this absurd emperor, was actually deeply loved by the people. People all over the world respected and loved him, and his imperial prestige was skyrocketing.

Zhu Youqiu was about to say something, but at this moment, Zhang Yong hurriedly trotted in.

"Your Majesty!"

"The queen is about to give birth!"

After hearing this, Zhu Houzhao was stunned at first, then he stood up and ran away.

Prince Xing Zhu Youjun stood there in a daze, his face full of confusion.

The queen is about to give birth?

Which lady?

Could it be... the Empress of the Central Palace?
Hiss... His Majesty the Emperor really keeps it a secret!
He didn't have time to think about it and followed Zhu Houzhao.

If the Empress is really about to give birth, and if she gives birth to a legitimate eldest son, then the Emperor's imperial prestige will skyrocket to an extremely terrifying level!

An emperor with a son and an emperor without a son are two completely different concepts. Take Emperor Jingtai Zhu Qiyu as an example!
"Your Majesty, slow down, Your Majesty!"

Zhu Youqiu trotted to catch up with Zhu Houzhao. The emperor's face was full of anxiety, and he ignored his fourth uncle behind him. At this moment, the entire Kunning Palace became busy.

Imperial capital, Changchun Palace!

"Quick! Have you informed His Majesty? And the Queen Mother?"

"Where is the midwife? Where is the midwife? And where is the imperial physician?"

The hurried voice of Qiu Chan, the head of Kunning Palace, echoed in the silent and deep imperial palace, and the screams of Queen Xia in the bedroom made the hurried attendants and palace maids involuntarily quicken their pace.

"To reply to the palace lady, the midwife has already gone in, and the imperial physician is waiting in the side hall!"

"Your Majesty is on his way, and someone has already gone to the Queen Mother's place to report!"

It was already midnight. Logically, the palace should be silent and no one dared to make loud noises.

But tonight is destined not to be peaceful!
Qiu Chan breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that, but he was still so nervous that his whole body was shaking, and cold sweat had appeared on his palms without him noticing.

Because the Queen is about to give birth!
If a daughter of the emperor was born, it would be fine. At most, she would be the apple of the eye of the entire Ming Empire, and there would be an extra beloved princess in the harem.

But if a royal son is born, he will be the emperor's eldest son and the future crown prince!

Since ancient times, according to the patriarchal system and etiquette, the basic principle for determining the crown prince is "to determine the eldest son rather than the most virtuous, to determine the son based on nobility rather than the eldest son"!
As the eldest prince, this identity alone gives him advantages that other princes cannot match!
What's more, he is the son of the Queen, so he is the legitimate son!
As the legitimate son and the eldest son, as long as he can grow up safely and not die young, he will definitely be the crown prince in the future, and no prince can shake his position!

Throughout the dynasties, it was common for the emperor to suddenly have a son and be so overjoyed that he would enthrone him as the crown prince!
For example, when Emperor Chenghua learned that Emperor Hongzhi was still alive, he was so happy that he cried and immediately appointed him as the crown prince. Even when Concubine Wan later wanted to support other princes to ascend the throne, she was strongly opposed by all the civil and military officials in the court, and it was impossible to shake Emperor Hongzhi's position as the crown prince!
But Emperor Hongzhi was not even the legitimate son of Emperor Chenghua!

But even so, Emperor Hongzhi still received strong support from the civil and military officials in the court, which enabled him to ascend to power despite all the abuses by Concubine Wan!

Prince! That is the foundation of the country!

"call……"

Qiu Chan let out a long breath, then stepped into the bedroom.

She was highly respected and trusted by Queen Xia, so she naturally could not take it lightly at such a critical moment.

If someone wanted to do something outrageous while everyone was in panic, it would be very easy!

Having lived in the harem for so long, Qiu Chan had seen countless intrigues and schemes. She had to force herself to calm down, and engrave all the participants tonight into her mind, staring at their every move!
When Queen Xia's screams became more and more sharp and rapid, Zhu Houzhao finally arrived at the scene!

"Your Majesty, the Queen..."

"What happened? Are mother and child safe?"

Zhu Houzhao rudely interrupted the palace servant's report and asked clearly about the topic.

But the screams that followed from the bedroom made his heart sink into a knot. The answer to the previous question was already obvious!

Many palace people noticed that one of Zhu Houzhao's feet was still bare, and they instantly became nervous!
Prince Xing Zhu Youlang finally arrived with a shoe in his hand. After taking a deep breath, he squatted down and put it on the emperor.

"Your Majesty, we cannot rush when a woman is about to give birth. We can only wait patiently."

Zhu Youji himself had two sons, but unfortunately the eldest son died young. The second son was safe and healthy, so he had quite a bit of experience.

But Zhu Houzhao refused to listen and spoke with a wry smile.

"Fourth Uncle, you should understand how important this matter is to me!"

Zhu Houzhao's eyes were deep and his tone was deep.

"If he is the eldest son, I will definitely appoint him as the Crown Prince!"

The eldest son is the first choice for the crown prince!
Moreover, Zhu Houzhao himself was in urgent need of a crown prince to consolidate his current throne and increase his imperial prestige!

Only when the East Palace is in the right position, people will not be tempted and the court will be completely stable!
Zhu Youqiu naturally understood this principle.

"Your Majesty, don't worry, it must be the emperor's son!"

Zhu Houzhao forced a smile and nodded.

It must be a son!
Otherwise, I would really be outshined by the savages!

(End of this chapter)