Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Zhu Yunhuan left the imperial city again, but this time no one had to worry about anything, because he was not far away and would return the same day.

After finishing the worship at the Xiaoling Mausoleum, Zhu Yunhuan and others went straight to the Eastern Mausoleum again. After worshiping Empress Ma, they naturally went to worship Crown Prince Zhu Biao and Crown Princess Chang.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Zhu Yunhuan and asked, "Old Four, if you were to become a vassal, is there a place you would like to go?"

Zhu Yunwen replied politely, "Your Highness, I know I am stupid and I dare not make rash comments on the important matters of the vassal. I will obey the will of your grandfather and your brother."

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "Then let's go to Uncle Twelve. I think that's a good place to go. We need to open up fertile land in Huguang, so we need a royal family to take charge."

Zhu Yunwen naturally would not have any objection. There was nothing wrong with going to Jingxiang. Although it was not as rich and prosperous as Jiangnan, it was better than going to some remote places.

To be honest, this is already a very good choice. I originally thought that if my brother, the Crown Prince, was still resentful about what happened in previous years, he might make things difficult for him.

If he was really sent to Yunnan or Guizhou, there would be nothing to say. If he was sent to Gansu or Liaodong, there would be nothing wrong with him. Not to mention that he dared not disobey the imperial decree, he would have to thank the emperor for it.

After all, many princes have gone to some seemingly remote and cold places. When it comes to him, the emperor's grandson, naturally no one would think that this is revenge or anything like that. It is just a normal arrangement for the fiefdom.

Even if he becomes a vassal and does not have a royal palace in the short term, there is nothing to complain about. We should understand the difficulties of the imperial court.

After all, the places where some princes were granted fiefs were too remote, and they were also located in relatively important places, so it was normal not to build a palace in the short term, and there was nothing to complain about.

Zhu Yunhuan then smiled and said, "Old Five will have to stay in the palace for a few more years. He is still a little young. We should wait until he is fifteen before discussing the enfeoffment."

Zhu Yunxi didn't dare to say anything. According to the rules of the "Record of Ancestors' Instructions", one can start to receive titles at the age of ten. But at this age, it is not certain that one will receive a title, and there will be no problem if he plays for a few years.

For example, Zhu Yunwen is now fourteen years old, but he is still just a grandson of the emperor. No one suggests making him a prince, and everyone thinks it is reasonable.

Zhu Yunxi spoke cautiously, "Brother Emperor, the fourth brother has not yet been conferred a title."

"How old is your fourth brother? He's not even fifteen yet." Zhu Yunxun smiled and touched Zhu Yunxi's head, "Just study hard. I think you're better at studying than your second brother. How about taking the imperial examination in the future?"

Zhu Yunxi said seriously, "Brother, you are wrong. I am the emperor's grandson. How can I take the imperial examination? This is against the court's laws."

Children of seven or eight years old can be said to be innocent, but they are not necessarily completely innocent. Zhu Yunxi knew his situation very well. When he was in the side hall, he could not control it, and he must be humble and polite outside.

This was not just what Zhu Yunxi did. The three brothers Zhu Yunwen, Zhu Yunwen and Zhu Yunxi all did the same thing. They also believed that this was the way to survive.

Even if he was dissatisfied with a thousand things in his heart, he dared not show it in front of his elder brother. He not only had to be respectful, but also act extremely harmless.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and didn't say much. When they arrived at the Eastern Tomb, the brothers Zhu Yunhuan and Zhu Yunxi also paid their respects to Zhu Biao and Chang Lan in accordance with the rules.

Although their mother was the crown princess, everyone knew that the crown princess had no sense of existence. It was even hard to say whether to add the title of "empress dowager" or not, it all depended on Zhu Yunhuan's intention.

This is of course a confusing account, but not that confusing. Princess Lu is still the Crown Princess after all, so it doesn't matter if you don't give her face, but you can't not give Zhu Biao face.

As for the concerns about the so-called empress dowager seizing power, the Ming Dynasty was not the Western Han Dynasty or the Tang Dynasty. Princess Lu, who had no foundation at all, could at most live in a side palace and eat vegetarian food and chant Buddhist scriptures under the title of empress dowager.

Just like nowadays, you just need to show up in certain occasions, and what to say and who to meet have already been arranged.

Don't feel resentful. Think about your three sons and the people in your mother's family. Even if you don't think about yourself, you need to think about them.

The scale of this worship was not small. All of Zhu Biao's descendants, except Zhu Yunwen, came.

Seeing Zhu Yunhuan standing at the front without hesitation, Geng Xuan and Zhang Fu also stood obediently aside. They were only Zhu Biao's sons-in-law, but they still had to pay their respects at this time.

Everyone knows a lot of things, so just follow along at this time. When it’s time to worship, do the worship. There’s no need to think too much about anything else, and there’s no need to say anything more.

This is the most normal approach. Some things are now clear to everyone. They are an inevitable trend and cannot be stopped.

Zhu Yunhuan looked around and said to Xu Miaojin, "I withdrew some craftsmen from Xiaoling some time ago, and I'm afraid that there are not enough manpower. The reconstruction of my parents' side will also begin after the New Year."

Although the Eastern Tomb is indeed similar in structure to the imperial tombs, and even shares a sacred road with the Xiaoling Mausoleum, it is now just the 'Tomb of Prince Yiwen' after all.

Xu Miaojin naturally knew about this matter. In the first half of the year, he was busy preparing for dredging the canal, etc., and some craftsmen were indeed transferred from the Xiaoling Mausoleum.

Xu Miaojin lowered her voice and said, "Father and mother will certainly understand your difficulties. We can rebuild the Eastern Mausoleum in the spring of next year. It won't take long to complete it."

Zhu Yunhuan also said mysteriously, "By then, we should be building three imperial tombs at the same time. We will be very busy in the future."

Zhu's Xiaoling Mausoleum must continue to be repaired as long as he is still alive. After Zhu Yunhuan ascended the throne, Zhu Biao's Prince's Mausoleum was upgraded to the Emperor's Mausoleum, and what needed to be rebuilt was rebuilt.

As for the new emperor's ascension to the throne, in addition to issuing a general amnesty and other things, he must also immediately begin selecting a site and start preparing to build the imperial mausoleum. This has been a consistent practice throughout the dynasties. The fact that Zhu Yuanzhang did not do so before was just an exception.

Such cases would not continue forever, and many rules would become stricter from the perspective of Zhu Yunhuan, so it was basically inevitable that three imperial tombs would be built on Zijin Mountain at the same time.

Xu Miaojin would not say anything about this because she knew that this was a matter of national importance and it was not her turn to express more opinions on these matters.

Zhu Yunhuan also knew that some things seemed inevitable, and there was nothing to worry about. These were things that had to be done, so naturally he would not complain about them.

Waste of money and labor, etc., do not necessarily have to be linked to the imperial mausoleum, these are not necessarily unnecessary expenses, etc. After returning to the palace after the worship, Zhu immediately called Zhu Yunhuan to the Qianqing Palace, "Is your father okay?"

"It's OK. I checked and everything is fine." Zhu Yunhuan said, "Next year, you should go over and talk to grandma, otherwise they will blame you."

Old Zhu immediately nodded and said with a smile, "We should go and take a look. We haven't been there much in recent years, which is really a bit wrong. Now that you are in charge, we can go and take a look."

Zhu Yunhuan thought the same thing. "I'll take Wen Yao to climb some mountains later. See how active this child is. I don't think the imperial city can hold this child back."

Old Zhu became serious, "You don't mind those things? Let's take them to your son. Who knows, you might be complaining in your heart."

"Grandmother, how can you not protect my offspring?" Zhu Yunxun said with a smile, "My mother will be so happy when she sees Wen Yao. When the time comes, I will bring him over to kowtow to him. This is also what Wen Yao should do."

Old Zhu said happily, "That's true. Apart from anything else, your grandmother is very generous and kind. She will definitely protect Wen Yao. It's only a matter of time before Wen Yao kowtows."

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "When he is ten years old, I will take him to his hometown to worship his ancestors. I will let Xu Huizu escort him, and I will feel at ease then."

Zhu Yuanzhang naturally had no objection to such an arrangement. Before he became emperor, he asked Zhu Biao to return to Fengyang several times, and after he became emperor, he asked Zhu Biao to personally preside over the ancestor worship.

These are all things that should be done, and they should also be done when it comes to Zhu Wenyao in the future. In the final analysis, this child has a different identity, and the eldest son has a special status, so some sacrificial matters should be performed by the eldest son.

Zhu Wenyao lay on Lao Zhu's legs, chewing on a teething stick. He is now at the age of teething and drools a lot every day.

Zhu Yunhuan touched Zhu Wenyao's little face and said, "It's because you are young, otherwise we would have made you the crown prince first."

Zhu Wenyao immediately raised his head, revealing two teeth as big as millet grains, and smiled at Zhu Yunhuan.

Zhu Yunhuan was immediately happy, "Grandfather, this is really our child. Normally, it doesn't work when I tease him, but now that I've made him the crown prince, he's willing to smile at me."

Old Zhu was also amused by Zhu Wenyao, "I didn't teach him these things. Now that he is really your son, he seems to be indifferent at ordinary times, but now that he is the crown prince, he should be his."

"Take him to observe government affairs in a few days. We need to discuss the dredging of the canal." Zhu Yunhuan said to Old Zhu, "This matter is too big. Grandfather must go there to take charge."

Old Zhu also nodded, "You don't need to tell me about this. Ordinary things are fine, but you have to ask about this matter no matter how busy you are. We can ignore other things, but we must know about this matter."

This is Zhu Yuanzhang's attitude. In most cases, he is willing to give up power, but when it comes to some matters concerning the country, he will definitely be very concerned and sensitive.

Zhu Yunhuan tried to reach out his hand, and his fat son really gave him face, and did not make a fuss this time. It might be because he was familiar with his biological father, or it might be because he gave him some face because of his position as the crown prince.

Zhu Yunhuan teased his fat son and said jokingly, "This child is definitely more promising than me. Looking at his performance, I guess I will make him the crown prince in two years."

Old Zhu also joked, "It's hard to say. Normally, he can be canonized when he is ten years old, but it won't matter if it's a few years earlier."

This can be regarded as Lao Zhu's flexible adjustment of some of his standards. Others cannot do this, but he can, and he doesn't think there is anything wrong with it.

"The canal issue is a big deal. Another thing is that we have to get the Maritime Customs affairs done this year." Zhu Yunhuan continued, "This year has been a year of suspension, which has also wasted time."

Going out to sea is not something you can do casually, and not every season is suitable. Everything depends on the ocean currents and the monsoon. After all, the Ming Dynasty's fleet was quite large.

Going out to sea in autumn and returning in spring is the most suitable time window at present. If you go further, it will take longer.

All of this requires a certain amount of preparation time. After all, these are all big things. Even though it seems that a certain amount of experience has been accumulated, Zhu Yunhuan does not want to make any mistakes in these matters.

Old Zhu said, "We can ask about the canal, but we won't interfere with the Maritime Customs. You can do whatever you want, and just let us know when the time comes."

These are also Zhu Yuanzhang's attitudes. He will not take care of everything now, but will only take care of the major events that he believes are of special significance to the country.

Dredging the canal and so on, these are considered long-term plans, and these are also things that Zhu Yuanzhang saw as benefiting his descendants, so of course they require great loyalty. As for the Maritime Customs, that is a "small road".

Zhu Yunhuan did not find it strange at all about Zhu Yuanzhang's attitude, because this had always been Zhu Yuanzhang's attitude and it was very normal.

As for Zhu Yunhuan, he naturally just had to do his own duties well. Although he seemed to be in power now, it did not mean that he could completely ignore Zhu's attitude.

Not to mention that he is only the crown prince now, even if he really ascends the throne and becomes emperor, he will definitely have to discuss some political affairs with Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Wenyao became impatient and began to twist in Zhu Yunhuan's arms, making humming sounds and obviously being very unhappy.

In order to prevent the child from crying, Zhu Yunhuan decisively put the little brat on the ground. If he continued to hold the child like this, the child would definitely cry. At that time, Zhu Yunhuan would be a thorn in Zhu's side.

You can't afford to offend the old ancestor, but you can't provoke the young ancestor either. The one caught in the middle is not just a grandson, but a real grandson!

Old Zhu was getting impatient and was about to order them to leave. "Alright, we still have to take Wen Yao to see his aunt later, you guys go back first."

Zhu Wenyao's little aunt naturally refers to Zhu's youngest daughter, Princess Baoqing, who is now only three years old. She is also the same age as Zhu Wenyao and likes to play with children the most.

Zhu Yunxun smiled and said, "My aunt has been a great help. I have to take better care of her in the future."

"No need. We can still take care of them for a few more years. When the time comes, we still have to rely on Wen Yao." Old Zhu picked up his fat great-grandson and said proudly, "Just take care of your brothers and sisters. The others don't need you!" (End of this chapter)