Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Chapter 93 I'll Take Charge
As a duke, Chang Sheng holds a high position but does not have much power, which is the same as Chang Mao back then.

Although he is a Duke, sometimes he is not as good as some marquises. A Duke can only be a deputy general. The same is true for Chang Sheng. Now that he has become a Duke, he can only train soldiers at most. Only he, a Duke, cannot take charge of the Five Military Command Office alone.

But it didn’t matter. As soon as he arrived at the palace gate, Guo Ying greeted him with a smile.

Li Jinglong and Xu Huizu also showed their goodwill, and Chang Sheng nodded reservedly, apparently looking down on the second generation of nobles who also inherited the title.

Lan Yu couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Nephew, you two grew up together, why are you so cold?"

"Uncle, this is what you don't understand." Chang Sheng looked like he had seen through everything and said, "I should be a lone minister now. Our Chang family is already famous in the army, so how can we associate with other nobles?"

Lan Yu thought it made sense, but suddenly felt something was wrong, "You don't have to be like this, do you?"

Chang Sheng lowered his voice and said mysteriously, "Why not? People outside say that our Chang family is too powerful. Anyway, I am a useless person, so I am not afraid of being buried. As long as my uncle makes meritorious deeds in the army and I don't make mistakes in the court, I can naturally protect His Highness."

Lan Yu also thought it made sense, and said happily, "It has spread. His Highness summoned all the ministers yesterday and made a lot of arrangements."

As they were talking, they arrived in front of Wenhua Palace, and Lan Yu and the others also saw Mu Chun.

Chang Sheng immediately became enthusiastic and said, "Marquis of Xiping."

Mu Chun also greeted him warmly, "Duke Kaiguo, how are you these days?"

Mu Chun and Chang Sheng have a good relationship, mainly because Chang Sheng is a typical person who treats people differently. Knowing that Zhu Yunhuan is close to Mu Chun, he becomes close to her. Knowing that Concubine Guo Ning is taking care of Zhu Yunhuan, he behaves respectfully to Guo Ying as a junior.

"Remember to have someone go and pay respect to my elder brother when you go back." Holding Mu Chun's arm, Chang Sheng said, "And my sister-in-law and the others also need Xiping Hou to take care of them."

Even though Chang Mao was relocated to Longzhou after committing a crime, that was also in Sichuan. But even though his title of Duke was abolished, Chang Mao still acted arrogantly in Longzhou.

When in Longzhou, the local official Zhao Tiejian died. As a result, Zhao Tiejian's wife gave her beloved daughter to Chang Mao as a concubine. With the help of Chang Mao's power, she took charge of all the affairs of Longzhou.

This is also considered that a lean camel is bigger than a horse.

Although Muchun is in Yunnan, he is close by and can still take care of me.

A group of nobles also arrived and were immediately summoned into the palace.

Zhu Yunhuan was in a good mood and was giving face to these nobles, so of course they all had to look at their seats.

"The first batch of immigrants to Yunnan will be settled in a few days, and the Five Military Commandery must also do a good job." Zhu Yunhuan said seriously, "All guards must escort and guard them along the way and not slack off."

The nobles all understood this truth. This matter could not be done by civil servants alone, but also required the cooperation of the army.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Fu Youde and said, "Duke Ying, you led the army to pacify Yunnan and Guizhou before, so you should know which soldiers and civilians are suitable for Yunnan and Guizhou."

Fu Youde quickly said, "Your Highness, I think the people who should be relocated to Yunnan and Guizhou should be mainly young and strong."

Zhu Yunhuan also thought so and said, "It is indeed the right thing to do, but there are many local people and chieftains in Yunnan and Guizhou who are rebelling, and Xiping Hou is also re-establishing the garrisons and consolidating the fortresses. Do you have any rules in mind for the garrisons and the farming?"

Fu Youde quickly said, "Your Highness, I think Jianchang must be defended as well."

As the commander-in-chief who suppressed the rebellion of Jianchang Guard, Lan Yu immediately said, "Your Highness, after Jianchang is pacified, we should divide the troops from all directions, add nine post stations to Jianchang Prefecture in Heqing, Lijiang, and Jinchi, and set up guard posts in dangerous places to strictly guard against the enemy."

Jianchangwei, later known as Liangshan, was an important border town on the southern Silk Road leading to India, Myanmar and Iran.

Lan Yu continued, "I recommend Qu Neng, the commander-in-chief of Sichuan, to lead the army."

Qu Neng was also a man of great talent. His father, Qu Tong, was promoted to the position of deputy governor due to his outstanding military achievements. He was promoted to the rank of second-rank official, which was a high position of power. After Qu Neng inherited his father's career, he became the commander of Sichuan.

Fu Youde was unwilling to be outdone and continued, "Your Highness, I believe that Jianchang Wei's rebellion is actually because the chieftains of the Western Regions are unwilling to obey the king's rule. The court has pacified Jianchang this time, and the chieftains should be deposed and replaced by military establishment."

Directly incorporate Jianchangwei into the military stronghold, and directly control the original Jianchangwei and other places by garrisoning troops. Originally, it was a military stronghold, so it was natural to take advantage of the situation to defend it, first establish it as a military stronghold, and then consider building a city there.

Lan Yu was about to get angry and said, "Your Highness, I think we should set up a Xingdusi when we build a city, and at least set up three guards. If we increase it to six guards, Jianchang will have no worries." Fu Youde glanced at Lan Yu and continued to say to Zhu Yunhuan, "Your Highness, I think after Jianchang sets up a guard post, it should assist the King of Shu in practicing etiquette and education, and exempt the people from unnecessary taxes."

No wonder Lan Yu in history looked down on Fu Youde, and no wonder Fu Youde also looked down on Lan Yu. These two are competing for the position now. If we talk about the generals in the court today, these two are the candidates for the general. The others are far behind in terms of military merit and qualifications.

Zhu Yunhuan suddenly remembered that Qu Neng seemed to have a very good relationship with Lan Yu in history. After the Lan Yu case, if the King of Shu had not tried hard to protect him, he might have been implicated and killed.

During the Jingnan Campaign, Qu Neng led his sons Qu Yu and Qu Tao to lead a thousand cavalrymen and climbed the gate of Beiping City with ladders. Unfortunately, during the Battle of Baigou River, if Li Jinglong's flag had not been suddenly blown off by the wind, Qu Neng might have rushed directly to Zhu Di.

It seems that Qu Neng was defeated by Zhu Gaoxu and his troops after the defeat in the battle, and his son Qu Tao also could not escape the fate.

Zhu Yunhuan looked at Mu Chun and said, "I will discuss the household registration of the relocated people with the Duke of Ying and then hand it over to the Ministry of Household Affairs."

Lan Yu originally wanted to speak, wondering why Fu Youde should be left to handle such a big thing?

But suddenly seeing Chang Sheng making faces, Lan Yu tried to hold back, but she was still very unconvinced.

Zhu Yunhuan continued, "My grandfather had already had an idea about setting up a garrison in Jianchang, but the location of the garrison and the number of troops stationed there have not yet been finalized. How about this, Duke Liang, hurry up and sort out the matter and report it to me in the next few days. Qu Neng, right? Duke Liang has submitted a memorial requesting Qu Neng to be the commander of the Sichuan Xingdu."

Although Qu Neng was already the commander-in-chief of Sichuan before, this acting commander-in-chief was different because in addition to the provincial commander-in-chiefs, a separate commander-in-chief was set up in important border areas to implement a unified military and civilian rule.

Lan Yu immediately became excited, feeling that he was the one most trusted by the Crown Prince.

The Duke of Ying only helped to relocate the people and did only some small things.

But he, the Duke of Liang, was different. He had to preside over the establishment of a new Xingdusi and improve the construction of the southwestern border. The person he recommended was directly approved by the Crown Prince!
Xu Huizu and the others just listened. It was a big deal for Jianchang Guard to re-establish a guard post, and they knew about it before. But now, the Crown Prince suddenly had some say and suggestions on this matter, which was beyond their expectations, but also reasonable.

I heard yesterday that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince summoned the four great chancellors to discuss matters.

Zhu Yunhuan was carefully discussing with several great nobles the establishment of garrisons and garrisons in Jianchang. Naturally, he did not forget the imminent issue of relocating the population, which also needed to be discussed.

He didn't feel that he was overreaching, because all of this was allowed by Lao Zhu and he was encouraging it.

After discussing some things, Chang Sheng and Lan Yu were radiant, and each of them looked proud of it. Regardless of whether he was reused or not, just seeing the great power in the hands of Zhu Yunhuan, the crown prince, was enough to make them happy.

Even though they always said that the final decision would still be made by the emperor, they were able to take the initiative to arrange some things without the emperor's orders for discussions, and even decide on the candidate for the highest official of the Xingdusi. This was no small matter.

Zhu Yunhuan was full of confidence in front of several nobles, but he also needed to say something to Old Zhu.

Seeing Old Zhu, Zhu Yunhuan asked, "Grandfather, when you mentioned setting up a Xingdusi in Jianchang, did you mean Qu Neng?"

"Of course it's him. He made great contributions during this expedition with Lan Yu. When he was in Sichuan, he got along well with the Provincial Administration Commissioner and the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner, making the government orders in Bashu smooth and the people's hearts satisfied." Old Zhu smiled and said, "It's best for him to take on the responsibility of the Military Commissioner."

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "That's good. I have also paid attention to the suppression of the rebellion by Jianchang Guards before. When I discussed it with them just now, I took the opportunity to recommend Qu Neng."

Old Zhu laughed heartily and said, "Great! This is how you show favor. You should let people know where the favor comes from! You are also a thoughtful person. You still remember the previous rebellion."

Old Zhu was indeed happy, not only because Zhu Yunhuan showed his kindness clearly, which made Lan Yu, Qu Neng and others appreciate it.

What's more important is that my grandson paid attention to a lot of things in the previous memorials on the suppression of the rebellion. He considered not only the suppression of the rebellion, but more importantly, he thought about the construction and development after the suppression of the rebellion. This is something to be happy about.

"We'll issue an edict on this matter, and report everything to you first." Old Zhu was happy and saw that his grandson was capable, so he gave his full support. "You can handle it first, and remember not to say certain things, so as not to make it difficult later. It would be best if this matter is handled well, but it doesn't matter if it is not handled well. It's enough to let all the civil and military officials know that you are in charge."

Zhu Yunhuan nodded slightly and said, "In a little while, those nobles will submit memorials and ask for an audience."

Lao Zhu smiled and said, "Let me help you keep an eye on what these people are saying."

The Crown Prince was in charge, and the nobles might listen to him on the surface, but they still had to come to the emperor to get a clear order. Or they might agree with him in front of the Crown Prince, but they would say something different when they came to the emperor.

Even though Lao Zhu thought it was unlikely, it was not impossible. If there were anyone who was indecisive, he would definitely be punished!
(End of this chapter)