Daming: I am the Crown Prince

A new day began, and Zhu Yunhuan prepared to go to court as usual.

Civil and military officials have lined up outside the Fengtian Gate, preparing to enter the palace.

A young eunuch walked up to Lian Zining and whispered, "Sir, His Highness has ordered that the Minister of Rites should be impeached in the court today."

Lian Zining immediately understood that he was not the absolute confidant of the crown prince and was not as good as Xia Yuanji and Huang Guan.

As for the six ministers such as Yu Xin, Yang Jing and Qi Tai, some people think that they are the confidants of the crown prince, but others think that they were discovered and promoted by the emperor and cannot be considered the crown prince's true team.

Impeaching Ren Hengtai was a pressure for many people, naturally because this Minister of Rites, who was born as the top scholar in the imperial examination, was the first civil servant known to everyone to have served in the Crown Prince's Mansion, and was the only one among the six ministers who was truly promoted by the Crown Prince.

To impeach the Crown Prince's confidant at a time when his position was becoming more and more secure was simply making things difficult for oneself.

But Lian Zining didn't care about those things. He had his own set of cognitions and persistence. The reason he didn't impeach before was only because he had the instruction of the Crown Prince, which was to be done a little later.

If the Crown Prince continues to suppress this matter, Lian Zining will impeach when the time comes, even if it means making the Crown Prince angry. This is the truth he has adhered to since he was a child, and this is also the integrity that he believes a scholar should uphold.

Now that the Crown Prince has clarified some things, Lian Zining naturally seems more confident.

The morning court started like this. First of all, it discussed some matters concerning the Five Military Commandery, reporting on border affairs and the expedition of the kings, which were major events.

Lian Zining remained quiet. When it was his turn at the Censorate, he stepped out of the room and said, "Your Majesty, Minister of Rites Ren Hengtai was sent to Annan to promote the country's prestige and educate people. However, he bought barbarians as slaves, which was a betrayal of the court's grace and violated the law. I hope Your Majesty will conduct a thorough investigation!"

With other censors on duty, some of Ren Hengtai's actions were no longer a secret, and no one would think of covering them up for him.

This can only be said to be Ren Hengtai's own fault. Perhaps he thought that no one would notice what he did in Annan because the emperor was far away, but the actual situation was that the court already knew what he had done.

Zhu Yunhuan also stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I think that Ren Hengtai is disgraced to be the Minister of Rites. What he did is really hard to talk about. Even if he is the Minister of Rites, it is hard to convince the public."

Old Zhu looked at Zhu Yunhuan and said, "Approve what you requested. Remove Hengtai from his post as Minister of Rites. The Crown Prince will investigate this matter. The Crown Prince will draft a plan and report it to me on how to deal with it."

The emperor's arrangements surprised everyone a little, but they were not particularly unexpected and were within reason.

In the more than three years since the Crown Prince was enthroned, the Emperor has spared no effort in training him, and the speed at which he has delegated power is somewhat unbelievable.

Especially in the past one or two years, the Crown Prince has performed so well that many people feel that the current Crown Prince, like the Crown Prince back then, has basically taken actual control of the Ming Dynasty's government.

All matters, big or small, are reported to the Crown Prince in advance, and then the Crown Prince reports to the Emperor after making a decision. This process is very familiar to many people, and most affairs are handled according to the Crown Prince's wishes, and everyone knows it.

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "The Ministry of Rites is the head of the six ministries. After Ren Hengtai is dismissed, the left and right assistant ministers should be in charge of the Ministry of Rites. The provincial examinations this year should not be neglected."

Old Zhu continued, "What the prince said makes sense. There will be a provincial examination this fall, and the Ministry of Rites must not slack off because of Ren Hengtai's matter."

The Ministry of Personnel has the greatest actual power, but in name the Ministry of Rites is the head of the six ministries, and being in charge of the imperial examinations is one of the responsibilities of the Ministry of Rites. This year there will be provincial examinations, and next year there will be metropolitan examinations, which are also big events.

Especially since a different North-South list case broke out in the last imperial examination, in which Zhan Hui and others lost their lives, next year's imperial examination will be officially divided into two lists, North and South, which will also be a test for the Ministry of Rites and other government offices.

Zhu Yunhuan also continued, "Grandfather, Ren Hengtai is the Minister of Rites after all. I think the three judicial departments should be ordered to assist in handling the case to avoid any false or wrongful convictions."

Old Zhu naturally would not object and said directly, "Grandson has considered everything. The Minister of Rites holds a special position after all. If we don't investigate thoroughly, it will be difficult to convince the public. All government offices should follow the orders of the Grandson and investigate the case thoroughly."

All the civil and military officials were extremely numb. The emperor and the crown prince were in unison and had arranged things very clearly. Many people actually knew what was going on in this matter.

Ren Hengtai's purchase of slaves in Annan was actually exposed by the Honglu Temple and Jinyiwei. These things were exposed before Ren Hengtai and others returned to the capital. Wasn't it the intention of the emperor and the grandson?

But there is no need to care about the details at this time. It was Ren Hengtai who did it, so don't blame others for knowing about it now.

The matter concerning Ren Hengtai seems to have come to an end. For many things, we just need to follow a certain procedure, and there will definitely not be any major omissions.

Suddenly, a guard entered the hall, knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, the Crown Princess has asked for an audience!"

Crown Princess?
Many officials were stunned for a moment. Many people knew what the situation of the Crown Princess was like. It was said that when the Crown Prince got married, the Crown Princess only showed up once and was asked to leave.

And now that the Crown Princess has sent someone to Fengtian Palace, it is naturally a big deal. This is discussing state affairs, and she would not dare to ask for a meeting in such an occasion even if she had a hundred courage.

Old Zhu said directly, "Announce." Zhang Fusheng entered the palace in small steps, so fast that some civil and military officials didn't know what expression to make. This person was the eunuch who served as the heir to the crown prince.

What about the Crown Princess sending someone to ask for an audience? In fact, it was arranged by the Emperor and the Crown Prince. But there was no problem with the procedure, and in name, it was still someone sent by the Crown Princess.

Zhang Fusheng knelt down and said loudly, "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince's Consort is pregnant, and the Crown Princess has specially ordered me to come and announce the good news!"

For a moment, all the civil and military officials were stunned, but soon they reacted and shouted loudly, "Great Fortune of the Ming Dynasty", "Congratulations to His Majesty the Emperor", "Congratulations to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince", etc.

The joy on Lao Zhu's face was beyond words. Even though he had known the good news a few days ago, he was still secretly happy in his heart.

Now that this matter has been announced in the court, it will naturally be announced to the world, and naturally one can enjoy everyone's congratulations openly. This is indeed a great thing.

The civil and military officials seemed to have once again witnessed the emperor's preference for the crown prince, because the series of praises and rewards were dazzling.

But all this is perfectly normal. The Crown Princess is pregnant, which is indeed a great joyous event for the Ming Dynasty. It is natural for the Emperor to be happy.

Chang Sheng felt a little regretful because Xu Huizu had already gone off to the war, otherwise he would have congratulated the Duke of Wei no matter what.

No wonder the Crown Prince said a few days ago that he wanted to let Jizu enter the palace to study with him. It turns out that the Crown Prince now has a child. This must be a great thing!

After finishing the morning court session, Zhu Yunhuan was ready to return to Wenhua Hall. However, many officials came up to him to congratulate him along the way, and Zhu Yunhuan could only smile and accept them patiently.

Daoyan was a monk, but he was also an official. "Congratulations, Your Highness. On the day of the birth of the Emperor's great-grandson, there may be some changes in the country."

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Daoyan and asked, "Oh, then Master, can you tell me what has changed?"

"Your Highness is wise. I am trusted by His Majesty and most of the important affairs of the court are handled by Your Highness." Daoyan said seriously and solemnly, "Your Majesty often shows that he is tired of the court and lacks energy. I think this is also to help Your Highness."

There is nothing to refute. Zhu Yuanzhang has been doing this for a long time. In the past two years, he pretended to be sick from time to time, or said things in the court that made people think about things.

Daoyan continued, "I think if Your Highness was mediocre, Your Majesty would not dare to give up power. Now that Your Highness is so brave and outstanding, Your Majesty will naturally be at ease to entrust the country to you."

Zhu Yunhuan pointed at Daoyan and said, "If this word gets out, I will be the first to hold you accountable!"

Daoyan didn't care and continued, "Your Highness, I think if Your Majesty tries again, Your Highness should stop shirking his responsibility."

Zhu Yunhuan stopped smiling and asked seriously, "Why?"

Daoyan said bluntly, "Your Highness, let's not worry about His Majesty's old age for now. It's just that Your Highness has great ambitions in his heart. If Your Highness ascends the throne, many things will surely go more smoothly."

Zhu Yunhuan asked, "It's not bad now, and I handle all matters."

"Your Highness, if the name is not right, then the words will not flow; if the words are not flowing, then things will not be accomplished; if things are not accomplished, then rituals and music will not flourish; if rituals and music do not flourish, then the punishments will not be appropriate; if the punishments are not appropriate, then the people will be at a loss." Daoyan said seriously, "Your Majesty has always trusted Your Highness, but Your Highness also has differences with Your Majesty on many issues."

After hearing Daoyan say this, Zhu Yunhuan fell silent. He knew that what Daoyan said was very reasonable.

Even though Zhu Yunhuan seems to be in charge of many things now, some of his powers seem to be no different from those of the emperor.

But those are just appearances. The person in charge of the Ming Dynasty is still Emperor Hongwu. There is no doubt about this.

The East Palace team and the Crown Prince's confidants were essentially the emperor's subjects. Even if the ministers tried their best to cooperate with Zhu Yunhuan, it was mostly because of the emperor's will.

So if you think about it carefully, Zhu Yunhuan should not be complacent, because what he has done now is not enough.

He is still just the crown prince, and that is an indisputable fact.

If he were the emperor now, then many things would become legitimate.

As for the possibility that Zhu Yuanzhang would still hold on to power after his abdication, it is indeed possible. However, considering that he gave up power without hesitation when he was emperor, it is unlikely that he would hold on to power after his abdication.

There are some things that really need to be considered. (End of this chapter)