Daming: I am the Crown Prince

After the princes of the Zhu family became friendly and respectful to their brothers, they naturally began to care about Zhu Chong's affairs. Seeing that he was full of energy and even had the mood to teach his brothers a lesson, Zhu Gang and others naturally felt relieved.

But we still need to care about what we should care about, after all, this is a big deal.

Zhu Chong was poisoned, and theoretically he was a victim, so it seems that we should care about him. But if we think about the reasons, we will not think that he is just a victim. This leader of the Ming royal family still needs to be taught a lesson.

At the dinner, it was a lively scene, with more than a dozen princes together. Except for the King of Shu who had not yet returned, almost all the princes who were away had returned.

Even the 24th prince Zhu Dong and the 25th prince Zhu Du were present at the banquet. They are both only seven years old now. They are sitting at the same table with the 40-year-old Zhu Chong, who is also Zhu Yunhuan's uncle.

It was originally agreed that the princes would have a dinner together, but an uninvited guest, Zhu Yunhuan, came. When the princes were gathering together, Zhu Yunhuan, the emperor's grandson, came, and he was the only emperor's grandson who had this treatment.

Zhu Yunhuan looked around and found Zhu Gao, the 23rd prince, who was 10 years old. "Uncle 23, take him back to my uncles 24 and 25."

Zhu Gao was not afraid of Zhu Yunxun, so he said, "No, my mother said that I can't go back until I have a feast with my brothers."

Then he pointed at his two younger brothers and said, "Look at them like this, are you willing to go back?"

It seems so. Zhu Dong and Zhu are very happy now. They are also entertained by a group of brothers and they definitely don’t want to go back.

Zhu Chong said, "Yunhuan, leave it here for your brothers. I have only seen these little ones a few times."

"That's true. The uncles are away from home all year round, so it's hard for them to see the younger uncles." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "I'm still the best. I've basically seen all the uncles."

Zhu Chong took a sip of wine and said jokingly, "The younger one is afraid of you, and the older one has to be polite when seeing you. Look, this room is full of princes, but you, the grandson of the emperor, come here in a big way and are not polite at all. Which grandson of the emperor is like this?"

Zhu Yunhuan sat down and poured himself a glass of wine. "Second uncle, you still have the mind to drink. The court will be held tomorrow, and the censors will impeach you then."

Zhu Chong, who was not afraid of boiling water, said, "There have been many impeachments in the past few days. It's all caused by your subordinates! If you really protected me, wouldn't those censors be honest?"

The other princes suddenly became quiet. These topics were a bit sensitive.

Zhu Yunhuan, whose reputation was damaged, said unhappily, "Second uncle, you think too highly of me, don't you? With my current control, can I really control it? A few days ago, my fifth uncle ran out to have some fun, and when he turned around, I got scolded by my grandfather."

Facing the gazes of his brothers, Zhu Su, who was innocently caught in the crossfire, quickly said, "I wasn't having fun, I just went out for a walk because I was bored in the palace. Yunxun, other people don't know about this, but you don't know?"

Zhu Yunhuan ignored all this and looked at Zhu Chong and said, "Second Uncle, if there is really a punishment tomorrow, is it okay?"

Zhu Chong said very bluntly, "I have committed many evil deeds, and I have brought this upon myself. I have failed to protect the country and the people, and I have failed to appease the army and the people. Now I am tyrannical and unjust, and I deserve to be punished."

The other princes were more obedient at this time. Zhu Chong's status was special enough. If he was punished, the other members of the royal family would definitely behave themselves.

Zhu Yunhuan said calmly, "Second Uncle, then you can go back to your hometown and farm. According to the previous agreement, the supply of the Qin Palace will be reduced by 30%."

Zhu Gang immediately asked, "Supply reduction of 30%? Yunxun, we don't have much supply now."

Zhu Chong said directly, "I have done such a big mistake, so of course I will be punished. You should all be more careful in the future. In recent years, the princes of the royal family have committed many crimes outside, and most of the time it was my father and my brother who forgave them. Now you should behave yourself. If you eat, drink and have fun, naturally no one will care. If you harass the army and civilians again, you will definitely be punished."

Zhu Gang became even more anxious, "Second brother, what's going on?"

"What's going on?" Zhu Chong glared and said directly, "You are all wild horses that have broken free from their reins. We need to put on the bridle for you, so that you won't make big mistakes in the future! In the future, the princes of the royal family will also be evaluated. Those who are more honest will naturally take the allowance and live freely, while those who are dishonest will have their allowance reduced by one year."

Zhu Yunhuan lowered his head and drank silently. Naturally, he needed to keep a low profile at this time.

Zhu Chong's appearance made the princes feel unfamiliar. He looked so righteous that those who didn't know him would think he was a wise king who was dedicated to the public. Just listening to what he said and thinking about what he had done, I really couldn't figure out what kind of mentality this person had to have the confidence to say so!
Zhu Chong continued, "I have discussed this with my father. You have indeed been making too much trouble in recent years. You don't have to worry about the royal family evaluation method. As long as you behave yourself, everything will be fine. Naturally, you will be indispensable for our support."

Zhu Gang asked, "That's what I said, but if we really want to evaluate you, in the end, it still depends on the opinions of father and Yun Hun."

"That must be done in a customary way. I have discussed this with my father," Zhu Chong said directly. "This matter cannot be brought to the court. It still needs to be handled by the Imperial Clan Court. If the evaluation falls into the hands of court officials, we will be easily impeached."

Zhu Gang suddenly asked, "Second brother, what's the matter? Why are you discussing these things with father?" This was a wake-up call. Zhu Yunhuan, the crown prince, was just drinking here, but some things were actually said by the King of Qin who had committed a crime. It was really abnormal.

Even those who don't know think that the King of Qin is leading this matter, as if he is the master. Those who don't know think that these things are actually the ideas of the King of Qin and have nothing to do with the emperor and the grandson.

Anyone with a discerning eye knows that the method of evaluating royal family members was either the emperor's idea or the crown prince's idea.

Based on some understanding of these royal family princes, whether it was the previous reduction in royal family supplies or the current royal family evaluation, it is basically certain that it was the idea of ​​the Crown Prince.

Father, Your Majesty, you are reluctant to do these things. These must be some bad ideas of your grandson.

Seeing that things were almost done, Zhu Yunhuan took the initiative to speak, "These things still need to be discussed. Third uncle, fourth uncle, fifth uncle, and sixth uncle should all go and discuss it with grandfather."

This is normal, and the other princes have no objections because they all have jobs in the clan affairs office.

It doesn't make sense just to think about it. The official in charge of the Imperial Clan House and the nominal Imperial Clan Leader is the King of Qin. He now looks like a pawn of the Emperor and the Crown Prince. For the sake of his own title of King of Qin, this old guy is now licking it very hard.

Prince Zhou was not much better. This Zuo Zongren had always been the emperor's favorite 'youngest son'. Although he behaved like a dandy, he was also relatively obedient. At least he made the emperor and the crown prince feel at ease when it came to major matters.

There is no need to say much about Zuo Zongzheng Zhu Gang. The emperor and the grandson trusted him with many military and national affairs in the northwest, and Zhu Gang also handled them conscientiously. If we talk about the "Prince Gong" of the Ming Dynasty, it must be the Prince of Jin. Although he had acted cruelly before, his ability to handle affairs was also the most outstanding among the royal family.

Prince of Yan Zhu Di, the Right Clan Chief, was suppressed by his two brothers and had no say. Don't expect much from Prince of Chu Zhu Zhen, the Right Clan Chief. Although he is the sixth child, he is not a legitimate son and his status is inherently lower than that of his other brothers. Moreover, he is not the most favored prince.

Of the five decision-makers in the first Zongrenfu, the emperor and the grandson directly controlled the three with the most say. The remaining two were just staring blankly. The smarter ones would not go against the general trend. The smartest thing to do at this time was to follow the general trend instead of fighting for other clan members.

This matter has been thoroughly confirmed, and the other clan members now have no other ideas at all.

This is the general trend. Even though they are vassal kings, they cannot say much about some things and can only accept these arrangements honestly.

Zhu Yunhuan strolled back to the East Palace and saw his two sisters standing in the study with their heads down, while old Zhu was sitting on a chair reading a book.

Pointing at the table, Lao Zhu said disdainfully, "What's the difference between your handwriting and ghostwriting? It's been so long, and your handwriting still hasn't improved."

Zhu Yunhuan said, "It's fine as long as you can recognize it. I don't want to be Mi Fu or Wang Xizhi."

Old Zhu asked, "Did your second uncle help to cheat people?"

"Second uncle is the smartest one. He beat up the other uncles first to scare them." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "I now believe that the other uncles are afraid of second uncle. Look at the way he speaks. If anyone doesn't obey, he will beat them up."

Old Zhu was not surprised at all. "He and your father were like this before. As the two elder brothers, one convinced others with reason and the other with force. Now we are just asking, are you really sending your second uncle back to his hometown?"

Well, Old Zhu came here to "beg for mercy", after all, he still felt sorry for his son. Knowing what Zhu Chong did, Old Zhu was naturally angry. But when he calmed down, he was the doting Zhu Chongba again.

Zhu Yunhuan said, "Shang Bing has already returned to Xi'an. It would be a bit inappropriate to ask my second uncle to go back now, right?"

Old Zhu stood up angrily and said, "Okay, your second uncle cooperates with you so much, but you are still cruel! You were like this when we were here, and now that we are gone, will your uncles still have a way to survive?"

Zhu Yourong and Zhu Youling lowered their heads and dared not speak, both of them were a little scared.

Zhu Yunhuan said helplessly, "Grandfather, please don't scare my sisters. They are timid."

Old Zhu snorted coldly, "You are only allowed to scare our son, but we are not allowed to embarrass your sister?"

"Uncle will go back to Fengyang and live in the imperial city of Zhongdu, is that okay?" Zhu Yunhuan said helplessly, "Go home for a year, and as long as he doesn't cause any trouble, he can go back to Xi'an. There is no need for Uncle to be impeached by the censors, is that okay?"

Old Zhu was immediately happy and said to Zhu Yourong, "You are marrying as a princess now, which is a bit unfair. Let's find something to add to your dowry."

Yes, the emperor and the grandson are both cunning! (End of this chapter)