I open a history tutorial class in Daming

Chapter 117: The emperor ordered all the kings to return to the capital!

"There are over 300,000 members of the royal family who only eat and do nothing?"

Zhu Biao was shocked:
"Did they later receive all their expenses from the royal family?"

Zhu Yuanzhang also rubbed his forehead.

"Yes, it is."

"I was also very shocked after hearing this. This is not the original intention of establishing the feudal system at all."

"Every new dynasty would learn from the lessons of the previous dynasty's decline. Perhaps it was for this reason that the Qing Dynasty banned vassal kings and hereditary succession. Not every prince could even get the title of king."

"Isn't today's test about how to change national policy?"

"I thought, why not start with this feudal system while we are still strong and healthy, so as not to leave the mess to you later."

All in all, Zhu Yuanzhang just wanted to change what could be changed while he was still in good health.

Just like the first three of the four major cases of Hongwu in the future, he had been trying to find ways to clear obstacles for his son. The last case, the Lan Yu case, was only because Zhu Biao died, and Lan Yu was a relative of Zhu Yunwen. If he wanted to support Zhu Yunwen, he had to pave the way for Zhu Yunwen just like he did to Zhu Biao.

But Zhu Biao actually didn't like the feeling of his father always protecting him like this.

It's like... I've always treated him as a child who hasn't grown up?
"Dad, I don't think we need to rush this matter. They are still young..."

Before Zhu Biao could finish his words, his father raised his hand to stop him.

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at him and said calmly:

"It is precisely because they are still young and none of them have yet been enfeoffed that they are easier to deal with."

"According to the plan given to us by the Ministry of Works, the Qin Palace and the city wall in Qin will be completed next year, and then the second son will go to his fiefdom. In another year or two, the third and fourth sons will also go to their fiefdoms. Do you want to wait until everyone has settled down in their fiefdoms, then call them back to Yingtian and tell them not to go back from now on? Is this appropriate?"

His words directly blocked Zhu Biao's way.

That's indeed the truth.

Although the feudal system had been established long ago and the strategy of the nine feudal lords defending the capital had also been decided, as long as people had not yet taken root in the feudal lords' areas, the matter was still debatable.

If Zhu Biao had not died young as in history, and he really waited until he ascended the throne to reduce the power of the vassal states, even if his brothers were obedient to him, it would still be difficult to change the national policy. But it was different when Zhu Yuanzhang made the changes. He was the founding emperor and had prestige. If he insisted on doing something, no one could stop him, and his sons could only endure it in silence.

Seeing that Zhu Biao remained silent, Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Di with satisfaction.

"Old Four, from the beginning to the end, Biao'er and I have never hidden anything from you. You have heard it, and you know that this matter was caused by you."

"Do you have any objection to the change of feudal monarchy system?"

How could Zhu Di dare to have any objection?

He now understood why his father had said at the Imperial Hospital that he and Xu Miaoyun should stay in Yingtian Prefecture.

It turns out that he had already made up his mind to keep all the princes in the capital and then take action against himself?
But it is indeed as my father said. According to history, he was the vassal king who rebelled in the Jingnan Rebellion, and he also reduced the power of the vassal king after he ascended the throne. In short, this vassal king must be reduced in power no matter what. It would be a disaster if he sticks his head out or shrinks his head. It is better to solve the problem as soon as possible.

It also prevents my father from becoming suspicious in the future.

"I have no objection, but there is one thing. Miaoyun gave birth to a girl in Fengyang this summer. Although she is not a son, she is of royal blood after all. I was in a hurry to return to the capital this time. She is still young and needs a wet nurse to take care of her, so I did not bring her with me. If possible, I hope that father can send someone to escort her back to the capital."

Zhu Di bowed respectfully, without any dissatisfaction in his expression or eyes.

Nowadays, the status of daughters and sons is naturally different.

After Xu Miaoyun gave birth to a daughter, although the couple did not dislike her, they were not particularly concerned about her. Zhu Di did not treat her as his first child, let alone take care of her. He gave her to the wet nurse to look after. Even if they went to Fengyang, the capital of Zhongdu, to suffer, the adults would suffer, but not the children, so there was still some preferential treatment.

By mentioning the child at this time, Zhu Di also wanted to remind his father -

After all, I am your flesh and blood. Even if I did something wrong in history, it will never happen again in the future. Please don't vent your anger on me anymore!

Zhu Yuanzhang was very satisfied with the fourth brother's advice.

So he waved his hand and said:

"It's natural!"

"Pass on my decree and summon the kings of Qin, Jin, Wu, Chu, Qi and others to return to the capital from Zhongdu. If they have children, bring them back with them!"

"Another decree is issued to build a palace in the capital, and the regulations are similar to the residence of a duke. From now on, all princes who are crowned as kings or princes of counties will stay in the capital and not go to their fiefdoms!"

…………

Within a short while, this decree caused an uproar among the court officials.

The princes were enfeoffed in the third year of Hongwu, and their fiefdoms had been determined long ago. Many people had even begun to take actions, planning to send people to the prince's palaces in wealthy areas or areas with strong military forces to develop their own network of contacts.

But Your Majesty is so inexplicable. Why does he suddenly want all the princes to return to the capital and not let them become fiefs?

What happened? !
There were many smart people among the court officials, and soon someone thought of His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan who had hurried back to the capital with his princess.

He was the first person to return to Beijing, and he met the emperor as soon as he got back. He also met the emperor every day at noon. No one would believe that there was nothing fishy about it.

The problem is that they can't find King Yan at all!

It should be noted that although the older princes had been crowned kings, they all lived in the palace and did not have their own residences before going to Fengyang, the capital of Zhongdu, for military training. The same was true for Prince of Yan Zhu Di. After returning to Beijing, he could choose to continue living in his old residence in the palace or live outside. However, he chose to stay at Xu's house temporarily the night before.

When the court officials got the news, they swarmed to the door of the Xu family like cats seeing fish, handing out invitations and expressing their desire to meet the princess, and it would be even better if they could meet His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan.

This caused a mess for the Xu family.

Towards evening, at the Xu family.

Inside the restaurant.

When Zhu Di came out of the palace, he also took Xu Miaoyun away from the East Palace and returned to the Xu family together. He had been staying at home for an hour or two.

At this moment, Xu Yungong's face looked very ugly.

He rubbed his temple and said helplessly:
"What do you think we should do about those posts outside?"

"They came to my Xu family and specifically asked for the Prince of Yan and his wife. Although I can be the head of the Xu family now, I cannot overstep my authority and be the head of the Prince and his wife. I can only stay here and wait for the decision. If I were to refuse, I would have to use your opinion. But now they don't know that you have returned home. If I tell others, I'm afraid more people will come. If one of my father's old friends or brothers comes among them, how can I, a junior, respond?"

"Besides, my wife is still very excited and wants to show off in front of those people. If I hadn't used my sister to put pressure on her, my living room would have become a market!"

Damn it, those people outside are annoying enough, and now Madam Xie is making things worse. Xu Yungong wants to burn all those posts with fire!
Xu Miaoyun's face didn't look very good, and she obviously didn't expect things to develop so quickly.

Seeing this, Zhu Di reprimanded:
"She is pregnant now. Why take your anger out on me instead of her? If it doesn't work out, I can go out and deal with it myself!" Xu Yungong wanted to slap him twice.

It was you who caused the trouble in the first place, so isn't it your responsibility to deal with it yourself? And you still say "that's it"? What does that mean? Have you been wronged?

What's more, he had no intention of getting angry with his sister at all. It was just because of the difference in status that he couldn't scold Zhu Di directly. He could only complain casually.

"It's okay, big brother didn't do it on purpose. I know his difficulties."

In the end, Xu Miaoyun came out to smooth things over and changed the subject:
"Brother, among these posts, are there any that are more important? For example, has anyone come to the six parts?"

Her question stunned Xu Yungong.

After thinking for a long time, Xu Yungong slapped his thigh and said:
"There seems to……"

"It's not the six ministries, it's the Secretariat."

"Minister Hu has also sent someone here. His post is quite important, so I put it away separately. I was just thinking of asking you how to deal with it, but I forgot about it and just remembered it now."

Zhu Di narrowed his eyes and his mind started to work rapidly.

In fact, he was a man of both civil and military skills. Although he could not compare with Zhu Biao, who was chosen by heaven to be the emperor, he was better than him.

If the matter of abolishing the feudal system made Prime Minister Hu Weiyong come specially to deliver a letter, it does not mean that the matter is very important. It only means that Hu Weiyong's mind is not right.

As the prime minister, if Hu Weiyong really had an opinion on this matter, he should have gone directly to the emperor to argue with him. However, Hu Weiyong did not do so. Instead, he mixed in with a group of people who came to inquire about the news and delivered a letter to the Xu family.

Something is not right...

But he was still young after all. He sensed the problem but didn't understand what the problem was.

While he was thinking, Xu Miaoyun's face turned cold and he spoke decisively:
"Your Highness, Brother, this matter cannot be delayed any longer. We must return to the palace and hand over all the people who came to deliver the invitations today to our father."

The two grown men were both stunned.

Xu Yungong didn't understand what he meant:
"Sister, what do you mean? Although the people who come to deliver the invitations have ulterior motives, most of them are old acquaintances of Dad. If they were not familiar with each other before, they would not dare to come to my house now with such a thick face."

"If you take all the invitations directly to His Majesty and let him know how many people are coming, then when Dad returns to the capital, this matter..."

Zhu Di also had the same confused expression.

Neither he nor Xu Yungong could figure out why Xu Miaoyun had to make such a big deal out of it.

Looking at her husband and brother, two young men of similar age, Xu Miaoyun, who was still pregnant, sighed.

How did they end up with these two...

Idiot, what an idiot!
"There was no need to make such a big fuss when summoning the princes back to the capital from Zhongdu. Just find a reason, or no reason at all, just like when you summoned us back. Who would dare not go back?"

"When everyone comes back, I will issue a second decree to have people build the palace, etc. This way, I won't put you in a difficult position, because there are so many people who have returned, it's impossible for them to just focus on you."

"Why did the imperial edicts come out twice in a row? Have you ever wondered about that?"

Faced with Xu Miaoyun's question, Zhu Di and Xu Yungong looked at each other.

I really never thought about it...

Zhu Di asked tentatively:
"You mean, the emperor originally wanted to see how many people would come to the Xu family to figure this out, and also wanted to see our attitude and see how we would deal with these people?"

Xu Miaoyun nodded heavily:
"Exactly!"

"I hadn't thought of this at first, but my brother just said that even Prime Minister Hu has come to hand in a letter to see us. In terms of status, the official is naturally not as good as the son of a dragon and the grandson of a phoenix, but in terms of power, he has more power than the two of you put together."

"The matter of changing the feudal system is not a big deal, and some people in the court agree and some disagree, but it is not to the point where the prime minister needs to personally intervene. He is now second only to the emperor, so wouldn't it be faster for him to directly debate with father?"

"Father just wants to see their moves... maybe, he especially wants to see the Prime Minister!"

Zhu Di had originally agreed with Xu Miaoyun's idea, but after his wife finished speaking, he realized what had gone wrong.

Yes, didn’t the Emperor want to see how the Prime Minister Hu Weiyong would react?

But why should we look at Hu Weiyong?

Zhu Di was shocked when he thought of a possibility.

No way……

Could it be related to Song Shen again?

"I'm going back!"

He immediately stood up and hurriedly said:
"Miaoyun, you stay at home and don't worry about what's going on outside."

"Brother-in-law, give me all the invitations from the Xu family. Put the ones with higher official positions at the top. I will take them away later. Please help me find an inconspicuous corner door to leave."

"I may be back late, so you don't have to wait for me for dinner. Things are a bit tricky right now. Brother, if there is a way, you'd better test Song Shen and see what he says. This matter is definitely related to him. As for why, don't ask!"

Xu Yungong accepted this series of instructions with a dizzy head. He just nodded and didn't know anything else.

He now finds it outrageous.

Song Shen, Song Shen, Song Shen...

Has Brother Ziwei appeared in his life too often recently?
I just met him in the morning, and it would seem presumptuous to meet him again now.

I have to find a suitable reason...

After much thought, Xu Yungong had Zhu Di sent away quietly, and then turned to look at his sister.

Now his sister has become a think tank in his heart, so he asked with a sly look:

"Miaoyun, what excuse should I find to go see Brother Ziwei? It's not a good idea to go twice in one day."

Xu Miaoyun was speechless at his appearance. In addition, she had been thinking a lot today and her emotions had been up and down, so she felt very tired.

So after a while, she rolled her eyes in an unladylike manner:
"Today the Imperial Hospital confirmed that I'm pregnant. Isn't this a ready-made excuse?"

"You said I need to rest and not go out recently. Your Highness and I both hope that he can help us choose a name for the child and give it to the emperor for his approval. This can be regarded as a favor to the child."

(End of this chapter)