Daming: I am the Crown Prince

There is no need to worry too much about the affairs of the Maritime Customs. Although the rules and regulations have not yet been fully formed, some things are basically clear.

The reopening of the Maritime Customs is a foregone conclusion. The emperor will still restrict going out to sea, but this is definitely not a simple maritime ban policy. Necessary foreign exchanges, tributes, trade, etc. must still be done.

It is definitely necessary to restrict ordinary people from going out to sea, and to crack down on some maritime merchants who go out to sea to trade privately, etc. These are all understandable things.

In any country, smuggling and illegal border crossing are intolerable, let alone in the Ming Dynasty today. Everyone feels at ease doing this, and no one thinks there is a problem.

The control of the Maritime Customs would not be delegated to the local provincial governments, so it was not difficult for civil servants to gain absolute initiative.

The noble group wanted to take control, but that was unrealistic because the government was dominated by imperial power, with the nobles and clan members involved, and the gentry could also benefit.

Just serving a certain interest group, don't even think about such a good thing. This is a phenomenon that Zhu Yunhuan would never tolerate.

Whether it is the Maritime Customs or the maritime trade, in the final analysis, they all need to serve the Ming Dynasty, bring more financial resources, more gold, silver, jewelry, special materials, etc. to the Ming Dynasty.

The active Zhu Wenyao is not obedient and will not stay still even when he is held in the arms of Old Zhu. Now that he is learning to walk, he does not want to be held in anyone's arms.

"How about I hold him?" Zhu Yunhuan said with tears in his eyes, "I've only held my son for a few days, but I still need to teach him how to walk."

Zhu Yunhuan's words sounded sad, but Old Zhu didn't take it to heart. "You can't control this child. He has a bad temper and doesn't walk properly. He sits on the ground after taking a few steps. It's better for us to hold him in our arms for safety."

These may also be Zhu Wenyao's little games. Now he really needs someone to hold him so that he can walk a few steps. But after walking a few steps, he might suddenly want to squat.

Others were frightened, but the kid was happy. This was also his way of making trouble for others.

Only when you have taken care of a baby can you understand how difficult it is to take care of a baby. Especially for a little baby who doesn't know anything, it is naturally more difficult to take care of him.

"I discussed this with Miao Jin before. If Wen Yao can get away from it, I will take her back to my hometown." Zhu Yunhuan said, "In all these years, our Zhu family's daughter-in-law has never been back."

Old Zhu was immediately displeased, "Your mother never went back, but your grandmother did go back once, so don't talk nonsense about this."

Zhu Yunxun was speechless for a long time before he said, "Then it's time for Miao Jin to go back with you. Grandfather has only been back three times in these years. In a few days, he will take Wen Yao back with him as well."

These words prompted Zhu Yuanzhang to take action. It had been nearly forty years since Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself King of Wu. Zhu Yuanzhang went back to pay homage to the mausoleum three times in the early years of the founding of the country. More often, it was the crown prince and other kings who went back to pay homage to the mausoleum.

This is easy to understand. The emperor would not leave the palace easily. In addition, he was busy with government affairs, so Fengyang was not far from Yingtian Prefecture, and Zhu Yuanzhang could not find time to go back.

"That's fine. If we can hold on, we should go back in two years." Old Zhu said without hesitation, "I think Wen Yao is one or two years old now. He is still a little young for us not to take him with us."

Zhu Yunxun joked, "That's fine. When Wen Yao is ten years old, I'll let him go back to his hometown by himself. It's good for grandpa to go back alone. He can come back quickly and help take care of Wen Yao."

Old Zhu was in high spirits because his precious great-grandson was not behaving well again. He took two steps and then wanted to squat down again.

Otherwise, if Lao Zhu had been "carrying" the little fat boy, he would have sat on the ground. But even so, it was not enough. The little fat boy curled up his two fat legs, as if he was going to play on the swing.

"I'm afraid I can't take care of this child." Zhu Yunhuan joked with a smile, "I don't know where I have so much energy every day. It seems like I can't use it up."

Old Zhu was even happier. His great-grandson was white, chubby, lively and cute. Who in the palace didn't like him?
This is not a filter or anything. Chubby babies are cute. What's more, Zhu Wenyao is really chubby, and his little fat is pleasing to look at.

What's more, it is very brave and will babble a few words when it sees people. With its big eyes, it really is a lucky doll and everyone wants to tease it when they see it.

"We'll write the memorial this time when we get back," said Old Zhu. "Your seventh uncle didn't allow him to go to the memorial service. This is a big deal, and it's not his turn to go."

Zhu Yunhuan thought for a moment and said, "How about I take Zanyi with me? It's hard to say about the rest. Zanyi is the direct descendant of my great uncle after all. I'm thinking that I should give him the title of King of Jingjiang in the future."

Zhu Wenzhen and Zhu Shouqian, father and son, did disappoint Zhu Yuanzhang many times, but Zhu Yuanzhang still had deep feelings for his elder brother, so he never considered deposing the title of Prince of Jingjiang.

Zhu Yunhuan's words also made Zhu think. Zhu Zanyi was already sixteen years old, and Zhu Shouqian had been dead for five years. Zhu liked this great-grandson who grew up in the palace.

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "Next year I will have Zanyi go from Xiang and Chu to Shu, through Shaanxi, to Henan, Shanxi, and Beiping, east to Daning and Liaoyang, and return to the capital from Shandong, and have him visit the kings."

Old Zhu smiled and asked, "So, when he comes back next year, he's going to be a vassal?"

"Of course, Zanyi is humble and studious, unlike his brother Shouqian." Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "There will still be incense and offerings from my great uncle's side. When the time comes, I will grant Zanyi a golden book and golden seal, but they will be made like the book and seal of a county prince."

This is what makes King Jingjiang special. During the Ming Dynasty, when the kingdoms were enfeoffed, all took the first king to be enfeoffed as their ancestor. However, Jingjiang was an exception, with King Nanchang Zhu Xinglong as its ancestor.

After all, Zhu Xinglong is the eldest brother of Zhu Lao. It can even be said that if Zhu Lao had not taken over the empire, the eldest son of the Zhu family would actually be Zhu Wenzheng, Zhu Shouqian, and Zhu Zanyi.

The treatment given to the Prince of Jingjiang is very clear now, that is, he is a prince of a county. However, he still enjoys the treatment of a prince in terms of the emperor's favor.

For example, the Jingjiang Prince's Palace has farms, which the County Prince does not have. Also, the Jingjiang Prince's crown and clothing, carriages, ceremonial equipment, and court etiquette are generally the same as those of a prince, and the number of officials and guards is also within the scope of a prince's palace.

Old Zhu thought about it carefully before saying, "Use the golden book, but give the silver seal. Our family background is well known to everyone in the world, and we cannot let your great uncle down."

It is definitely inferior to the prince, but much higher than the county prince. This is the special feature of the Jingjiang prince, and it is also the special feature of the Jingjiang prince in the entire Ming Dynasty. Zhu Yunhuan did not think there was anything wrong with this, and said with a smile, "Zanyi is most likely to be able to protect the family business. Among us, Zanyi is the most disciplined."

Old Zhu sighed and said, "Now we just hope that Zanyi will take care of the family business, otherwise we don't know how to explain to your great uncle."

Zhu Yunhuan had always been very cautious about the issue of royal family. Apart from knowing that Zhu Yuanzhang attached great importance to his relatives, he also had other considerations.

No matter what, the royal family is also an extremely important force in the feudal dynasty, and plays an extremely important role in checks and balances, so naturally such a force cannot be ignored.

It is just that what needs to be regulated must be regulated. Being too lenient towards royal family members in the early years of the founding of the country is not necessarily a good thing.

Think about the bad deeds of King Qin and others. It's not just that the world was just beginning to be settled and there was chaos in other aspects. It's also because they relied on Zhu's tolerance, so they were fearless.

Zhu Yunhuan would certainly not continue to tolerate such things. This is why he has been intentionally or unintentionally improving the rules and regulations for the royal family over the years. Restrictions must be imposed when necessary.

Not only Zhu Yunhuan understood this, but also Old Zhu. And most of the clan members who were a little more sober could also understand such a situation.

Times have changed. Not every emperor will be as tolerant and indulgent towards the royal family as he thinks. After the new emperor ascends the throne, he will definitely show favor to the royal family when it is due, and suppress them when it is necessary.

After a brief discussion with Lao Zhu, we basically decided to go back to our hometown to worship our ancestors.

Zhu Yunhuan also needed to hurry up and make some arrangements. After all, he was in charge of all political affairs. If he left Yingtian Prefecture now, some things naturally needed to be arranged.

Although Zhu Yunhuan has now returned to Fengyang, it seems that political affairs can be handed over directly to Zhu Yunhuan. After all, Zhu Yunhuan is still the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and it seems to be the most natural thing for him to handle political affairs.

However, everyone was aware that Emperor Hongwu had not been involved in state affairs for a long time, and many things still needed to be handled by the Crown Prince Zhu Yunhuan.

What should be done now, naturally, is to arrange some things. Things that need to be dealt with promptly should either be delivered to him in time or reported to the emperor immediately. Rules must be set.

Although Zhu Yunhuan had only been away from Yingtian Prefecture for about half a month, he still had to make preparations.

Arrange everything well to avoid fluctuations due to emergency situations. The political situation must be stable when it needs to be.

Ten days or half a month is certainly not a short time. If there are some ambitious people, they might use such time to do something, just to make some small moves while Zhu Yunhuan is not in Beijing.

Daoyan was called to the Wenhua Hall, and Zhu Yunhuan said straight to the point, "During the days when I'm back in Fengyang, remember to draft the memorials, and report the urgent matters first."

In fact, there was a reason for choosing to return to Fengyang after autumn. It was not just because it was close to Lao Zhu's birthday party, but the most important thing was that some things had basically been arranged.

The collection of autumn taxes and other things have been completed, which naturally means that there is one less major event to deal with and we can deal with it calmly.

Daoyan said quickly, "Don't worry, Your Highness. Nowadays, the government affairs have their own rules. The government offices at all levels also know how to do things, and they will definitely not make mistakes."

This certainly makes sense. Now that the world has been settled, some major contradictions and hidden dangers have been resolved. It seems that now all we need to do is to take good care of domestic affairs, and we don't have to worry too much about other things.

The administration of officials has been rectified, there is no need to worry about the power of the prime minister, and the power of the noble group has been suppressed. It seems that there are no major hidden dangers in the internal affairs of the Ming Dynasty.

There are no internal worries, and external troubles are almost non-existent. There are no separatist forces and no external enemies. Now that the Ming Dynasty does not attack other forces, some neighboring countries can feel thankful.

All this naturally means that the current imperial court already has its own system, and many things can operate normally, and not all things require the emperor to make direct decisions.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "Just keep these things in mind. Remember to report border and military affairs to His Majesty as soon as possible."

Daoyan nodded, then asked cautiously, "During the time when Your Highness is not in Beijing, I think the Ministry of Rites and other government offices will have made more preparations. Should I prepare some?"

"What are you preparing for?" Zhu Yunxun said unhappily, "Don't get involved in these matters. Those who are talking about the disciples of the Crown Prince should behave themselves. Anyone who talks too much at this time will not be forgiven!"

It's not that Zhu Yunhuan was cautious, but he was worried that some people would go crazy in their attempt to climb up, and such a situation had to be guarded against.

There are indeed many voices outside now saying that the new emperor will ascend the throne, or that Emperor Hongwu is extremely determined to pass on the throne. Zhu Yunhuan has never been willing to add fuel to the fire.

At this time, he should keep a low profile. Sometimes he can't even acquiesce. He must directly deny and rebuke it. Otherwise, how ugly it will look!
Zhu Yunhuan, the person involved, was unwilling to say much about this matter. If those officials who were regarded by the outside world as the Crown Prince's followers said more or did something, it would embarrass Zhu Yunhuan.

Daoyan naturally understood this truth, but he was still very embarrassed. "Your Highness, there are all kinds of rumors out there now, and I have to prepare a few things to avoid being too hasty, which is not good."

Zhu Yunhuan glared at Daoyan fiercely and said, "Why are you in such a hurry? What are you preparing for? Just do your job as a university scholar, and you don't need to worry about anything else!"

These are now Zhu Yunhuan's attitudes. He will never admit some things even if he is beaten to death, and he doesn't even intend to admit them.

As for what preparations should be made, there is nothing to worry about. When the time comes, it will definitely be ready. There is naturally no need for him to worry about it too hastily and appear embarrassed.

Those are things that there is no need to worry about at all, because Zhu Yunhuan does not need to be anxious, he will arrange these things.

More importantly, the time has not arrived yet. It would be embarrassing to start preparing now. After Lao Zhu's birthday, everything can be prepared in full. (End of this chapter)