Ming Dynasty: The ghost betrays the Confucian sage, my son Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 276 Zhu Yuanzhang: All the princes go overseas and fight for their own territory
Wenhua Hall.

Zhu Yuanzhang was holding a small court meeting. The ministers of various ministries and the Zuodu Yushi of the Duchayuan were all there. After discussing the important matters, Tao Kai, the Minister of Rites, came out and respectfully reported: "Your Majesty, the position of the Crown Princess of the East Palace has been vacant for a long time. I sincerely request Your Majesty and the Crown Prince to select a new Crown Princess as soon as possible to consolidate the foundation of the country."

All the ministers agreed, believing that the East Palace is the foundation of the country, and the position of the Crown Princess should not remain vacant for a long time. However, amidst the echoes, Lu Ben, the Minister of Civil Affairs, remained silent. Because of his special status, his daughter is the second concubine of the current crown prince. In order to avoid suspicion, he chose to remain silent.

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded slightly and signaled the courtiers to be calm, "We will consider this matter carefully."

After the meeting, the ministers retired one by one. Zhu Yuanzhang turned to Prince Zhu Biao and asked for his opinion: "What are your thoughts on the selection of the new crown princess? The concerns of the ministers are not unreasonable. The position of the crown princess really needs to be determined as soon as possible."

Zhu Biao frowned, thought for a moment and then responded: "Father, please let me think about it again."

There are only two choices for establishing a new crown princess: one is to marry someone new, and the other is to straighten the Lu family. Lu was not only born into a famous family, but the emperor and empress personally granted marriage to the prince, and she already had a grandson. Therefore, many ministers in the court tended to support Lu as the new crown princess.

After retreating from the court, Lu Ben and Tao Kai walked on the royal road together. Tao Kai couldn't help but ask: "Master Lu, why didn't you say a word just now?"

Lu Ben smiled lightly: "Master Tao, my daughter is now the crown prince's second concubine and the only concubine in the East Palace. As a father, I naturally need to avoid suspicion."

"We just hope that Your Majesty and the Crown Prince can make your wife the Crown Princess." Tao Kai said bluntly, "The Crown Prince's second concubine was married to His Majesty back then, and now that he has a grandson, she is undoubtedly the most suitable candidate."

Hearing this, Mrs. Lu chuckled lightly, "Haha, this position was destined for me."

She knew very well that once she ascended to the position of crown princess, her son Zhu Yunwen would become his legitimate son. The future battle for the throne with Zhu Xiongying may not be without a chance of winning. The biggest wish in her heart is to see her son ascend the throne and become emperor.

Lu Ben waved his hand and refused: "This is His Majesty's family matter. It's better for us not to interfere too much."

……

It turned out that Zhao Xuanzhen proposed in the letter to form an alliance with the Ming Dynasty to jointly conquer the Timurid Empire in the Western Regions. In recent years, the Timurid Empire has risen rapidly and has become a large empire spanning the east and west. Today, they continue to expand westward, but once they complete their westward expansion, they will inevitably turn around and head eastward.

……

Fourth Master Zhu was slightly stunned. They had not communicated with Zhao Xuanzhen for a long time since they last parted. He took the letter and read it quickly, and the corners of his mouth could not help but raise: "Does this woman want to cooperate with us?"

As soon as Ding Xiu left, the guards sent intelligence from the capital. After reading it, Fourth Master Zhu looked gloomy. After thinking for a while, he wrote an edict and sent it to the capital. Then, he wrote another letter to Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang.

On this day, when he was about to go out, Ding Xiu hurriedly came in and reported: "Your Majesty, there is a letter from the Empress of Beiyuan."

"Your Majesty, in the near future, you will be the legitimate mistress of the East Palace." The palace maid Cui'er whispered.

Now, this might be a great opportunity. The Ming Dynasty was planning to send its princes out to explore, so why not take this opportunity to let one of the princes lead an army to the west? An alliance with the Northern Yuan Dynasty is not unfeasible. After all, the Timur Empire's territory and military strength now exceed those of the Ming Dynasty.

Suddenly, the sound of announcing the edict came, and Wang Jinghong, the chief eunuch, held the edict in his hand and stepped in solemnly. Lu was shocked and immediately knelt down to receive the order. The maids and eunuchs around her also knelt down. Wang Jinghong slowly unfolded the edict and read it in a loud voice:

Fourth Master Zhu has been busy with college affairs during this period. Soon, the teachers and students from Xuanwu Academy in Beijing will be coming. Although busy, it is fulfilling, and when he comes back every day, he can have dinner prepared by Huang Lucai. He seems to be getting used to this kind of life.

Beijing, East Palace.

"I will reply to that woman right away." A hint of cunning flashed in Mr. Zhu's eyes. He quickly wrote a reply and gave it to Ding Xiu, asking him to send it to Beiyuan as soon as possible.

In accordance with the destiny of Heaven, the Supreme Emperor issued an edict:

Peking City.

"The Emperor's edict has arrived! The Crown Prince's side concubine, Lu, accepts the edict."

"The emperor has no selfish interests!" Tao Kai retorted.

Fourth Master Zhu frowned and fell into deep thought. According to historical records, the Timur Empire did plan to conquer the Ming Dynasty later. However, due to Timur's death during the expedition, turmoil broke out within the empire. As a result, the two most powerful empires in the world did not actually confront each other.

Mrs. Lu has been in a happy mood recently because rumors coming from all directions suggest that she will soon be canonized as a crown princess. The courtiers expressed their support one after another, and even the emperor and empress expressed this intention.

The crown prince's concubine, Lu, is usually very scheming and appears to be gentle and cheerful, but in reality she harbors evil intentions and plots. I observed his behavior and felt very sad and angry. The position of concubine to the crown prince cannot be filled by anyone who is not a virtuous and benevolent person. Lu's virtue is not worthy of the position and she has lost her original intention.

Now she is deposed from the position of crown prince's side concubine and demoted to crown prince's concubine as a punishment. I hope he will reflect deeply on himself and change his ways. If there is any bad behavior again, I will not be lenient.

This is it.

"Prince concubine Lu, please accept the order." Wang Jinghong said coldly. Mrs. Lu was kneeling there, as if she had been struck by lightning!

How can this be? It was clear that she was about to be named a Crown Princess, but the Emperor's decree not only ended her career as a Crown Princess, but also demoted her from a concubine to a concubine.

"No, this is impossible!" She yelled at the top of her lungs, her face twisted and hideous due to despair and anger, "This is not true, tell me, this is not true! Why is this happening?"

Wang Jinghong watched with cold eyes, indifferent to her struggle and pain: "This is the emperor's decree, and even His Majesty has no right to change it. Madam Lu, why don't you accept the decree quickly? Do you want to resist the decree and disobey it?"

Mrs. Lu was awakened by these words, and she took the heavy edict with trembling hands. A sneer flashed across the corner of Wang Jinghong's lips, and he turned and left, leaving Mrs. Lu alone to face this sudden blow. The edict in her hand seemed to weigh a thousand pounds, making her breathless. Finally, she couldn't bear the weight, and she collapsed, tears falling silently.

……

Wenhua Hall.

Zhu Yuanzhang was reading a letter from Master Zhu Fourth, which stated that the Empress of the Northern Yuan Dynasty intended to form an alliance with the Ming Dynasty to jointly attack the Timur Empire in the Western Regions. After reading the letter, his thoughts changed.

The last envoy sent by the Timur Empire was very arrogant and wanted to kill the Jinyiwei in the streets of the capital. Later, Mao Xiang, the commander of the Jinyiwei, killed one and captured the rest.

Zhu Yuanzhang personally summoned the envoys. Their attitude was extremely bad and they ordered the Ming Dynasty not to interfere in the affairs of the Western Regions, otherwise, they would send troops to the Ming Dynasty.

"It is true that Timur's empire cannot be allowed to grow." Zhu Yuanzhang frowned, "Otherwise, that cripple Timur will definitely conquer the Ming Dynasty. It is not impossible to form an alliance with Bei Yuan. But who should be the leader?"

Xu Da, Feng Sheng, Lan Yu, etc. flashed through his mind, and finally his eyes lit up: "This time, let the fourth child be the coach of the Ming Dynasty and lead the troops to the west. What dad said in the letter is right, the adult princes It’s time to throw them out, let the King of Qin go to Japan, the King of Jin go to Nanyang, and the King of Wu and Chu go to America.”

Thinking of this, he immediately ordered to recall King Qin, King Jin and King Yan from the vassal area to the capital. It's time to send them out, and the Zhu family's break has officially begun.

"Father." Crown Prince Zhu Biao came in hurriedly, with a worried look on his face, "Lady Lu just received an edict from the Supreme Emperor, depriving her of the title of Crown Prince and Second Concubine and demoting her to a concubine."

"Ah?" Zhu Yuanzhang was also a little surprised, but he was just surprised and waved his hand, "It's okay to waste it. Your grandfather must have seen something, and then Mrs. Lu can't be the princess. Biao'er, this Let’s discuss the matter later and discuss it with your mother later.”

"Yes." Zhu Biao nodded.

He knew that since his grandfather had given the edict, it could not be changed.

……

The staff hall.

As a minister, Lu Ben has been feeling particularly happy in recent days. The news that his daughter was about to be crowned a princess made him even more high-spirited surrounded by officials. The officials gathered around him and discussed the topic of Xuanwu Academy students being promoted one after another.

"No matter how good the academy members are, they still need to pass the assessment of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Mr. Lu, we will fully support you in the future."

"Yes, we have to fight against the academy party. Otherwise, they will think that the court is incompetent."

"They are all petty officials and cannot make a difference!"

Lu Ben listened, a smile flashed deep in his eyes. What he wanted was to take over. The former Huaixi Group and the East Zhejiang Literati Group were in decline, and the Academy Party was rapidly rising. Now, many people are standing behind Lu Ben, led by Lu Ben, and want to fight against the academy party. Lu Ben was naturally happy to expand his power in the court.

"Master Lu." Tao Kai, the Minister of Rites, came in hurriedly.

"Master Tao, why are you so panicked?" Lu Ben asked pretending to be calm.

"Don't you know yet?" Tao Kai said with a horrified look on his face, "I just received the news that the Supreme Emperor issued an edict today, abolishing your daughter's position as crown prince and second concubine and reducing her to a concubine. Mr. Lu, Your daughter can no longer be a princess."

Lu Ben seemed to be struck by lightning, his body staggered, almost unsteady, and he exclaimed: "How is this possible? Why is this happening?"

"The Supreme Emperor's decree has been issued, and even His Majesty cannot change it." Tao Kai sighed, "I never expected that the Supreme Emperor would take action at this time. Mr. Lu, have you offended him somewhere?"

Lu Ben's face turned livid. Of course he had offended the Supreme Emperor. He thought that the Supreme Emperor no longer cared. Unexpectedly, at this critical moment, he would be dealt a fatal blow.

The other officials all looked strange.

If Mrs. Lu cannot become the crown princess, then Lu Ben's future will stop here. Possibly, this was a warning to Luben that disaster would soon come to him.

(End of this chapter)