My father, Zhu Di, was granted a second life by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Chapter 32 Zhu Yuanzhang Becomes Suspicious

Faced with Zhu Yuanzhang's questioning, Zhu Gaoxi was in a dilemma. He couldn't very well speak ill of Zhu Yunwen in front of Zhu Jingyi.

But if he stammers and can't answer, wouldn't that make Zhu Yuanzhang look down on him?

Just as Zhu Gaoxi was worrying, Zhu Jingyi interrupted without any sense of propriety, "Grandpa, what does he know? Maybe he's even thinking about marrying Miaojin himself in the future."

If Zhu Jingyi were allowed to continue talking nonsense, then the image of Zhu Gaoxi as a young and ignorant child would be even more deeply ingrained in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind.

"Sister is wrong," Zhu Gaoxi said slowly, slowing down his speech to think as he spoke.

"As princes and grandsons of the emperor, marriages should be decided by the court. How can we only consider personal feelings? Back then, my second uncle married Wang Baobao's sister Guanyin Nu as his principal wife to show our sincerity in trying to persuade Wang Baobao to surrender. Although Wang Baobao did not surrender in the end, our sincerity was evident to all," Zhu Gaoxi said eloquently.

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded repeatedly. If his second son, that rebellious son, had any sense of responsibility, he wouldn't have imprisoned and abused his principal wife.

Xi'er is so young, yet he has such insight. Could he really be the reincarnation of Biao'er?

Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but feel somewhat bewildered.

How he wished that Biao'er were still alive to inherit the throne!

In this way, the Lan Yu case would not have happened, and Fu Youde, Wang Bi, and Feng Sheng would not have been sentenced to death.

Yunwen is still a bit too weak and lacks experience...

Although Xi'er is young, his father is a formidable fighter, and his accumulated military achievements and reputation over the years surpass those of his two older brothers...

"Grandpa, Grandpa, what are you thinking about?"

Zhu Jingyi's loud and boisterous voice pulled Zhu Yuanzhang back to reality.

"Grandpa, let's put these fish in a glass bottle and place it in the Qianqing Palace to cheer you up?" Zhu Jingyi brought the wooden bucket to Zhu Yuanzhang.

This girl is just like her mother; she's guileless, filial, and kind.

Zhu Yuanzhang was worried that the eldest maid of Chang Yuchun's family was too straightforward and not suitable to be the crown princess, but he couldn't help it because his sister liked her and decided that Chang Lin would be his daughter-in-law.

Yunwen's birth mother, Lady Lü, was calm and shrewd, but she never seemed entirely trustworthy. Who knew how many schemes and plots she harbored behind the scenes?

There were some things that Zhu Yuanzhang didn't want to investigate in detail, for fear of hurting Yunwen.

If Chang Lin hadn't died in childbirth and Xiong Ying hadn't passed away from illness, the position of Crown Prince would never have fallen to Yunwen.

If Chang Lin were alive, even if Xiong Ying were gone, there would still be Yun Tong, the legitimate heir.

Unfortunately, both Chang Lin and Xiong Ying were gone.

What a coincidence!

Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang broke out in a cold sweat.

People can't be idle; when they are idle, they tend to overthink. Zhu Yuanzhang hurriedly got up and walked towards the Qianqing Palace.

"Grandpa, Grandpa."

"Grandpa, Grandpa."

Zhu Gaoxi and Zhu Jingyi jogged after them.

The three generations of the family met Zhu Yunwen at the entrance of the Qianqing Palace.

"Brother, what brings you here?" Zhu Gaoxi asked.

"Talk to Grandpa if you have anything to say," Zhu Yunwen said, turning to look at the bucket. "You caught so many goldfish?"

"Brother, do you want some? I'll give you two." Zhu Gaoxi said generously.

"Let the younger brother keep him to play with," Zhu Yunwen said, following Zhu Yuanzhang inside.

"What is it?" Zhu Yuanzhang sat down on the kang by the window, closed his eyes to calm himself, and asked.

"Zhuo Jing, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, has submitted a memorial, and I am unsure what to do," Zhu Yunwen said, placing the memorial in Zhu Yuanzhang's hands. "Grandpa, are you tired? Why don't you rest for a while before reading it?"

"Not tired at all, why are you being so delicate?" Zhu Yuanzhang opened the memorial.

Zhuo Jing suggested that the Prince of Yan be moved to Nanchang.

This is clearly an attempt to weaken the power of the regional military governors.

What can the fourth prince do if he's reassigned to Nanchang? There are no remnants of the Northern Yuan forces there.

Are they going to treat him like a pig and feed him, weakening the power of the vassal kings through favoritism?

Zhu Yuanzhang tossed the memorial aside, his expression a mixture of anger and uncertainty. "Was this your idea?"

"No," Zhu Yunwen denied outright.

"You want to reduce the power of the princes?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked bluntly.

Huang Zicheng, the tutor to the Crown Prince, repeatedly hinted at the dangers of the powerful vassal kings, implying a desire to weaken their influence.

As the saying goes, "One who stays near vermilion gets stained red, and one who stays near ink gets stained black." Yunwen, who spends all his time with him, is inevitably influenced by him.

"If the princes do not obey orders, they will eventually become a hidden danger," Zhu Yunwen mustered his courage and voiced his thoughts.

"Yunwen, the remnants of the Northern Yuan frequently harass the border. If we don't let your third and fourth uncles guard it, who will? Xu Da, a meritorious general who once led troops on the northern expedition, passed away in the eighteenth year of Hongwu. In the past two years, in order to ensure your stability in the country, we have successively ordered the deaths of Lan Yu, Fu Youde, Wang Bi, and Feng Sheng," Zhu Yuanzhang said, narrowing his eyes at Zhu Yunwen. "If your uncles are untrustworthy, are those military generals trustworthy? We can't let Huang Zicheng lead the troops into battle, can we?"

By mentioning Huang Zicheng, Zhu Yuanzhang was clearly pointing out that Zhuo Jing's memorial was instigated by Zhu Yunwen.

Zhu Yunwen's face turned bright red. "Grandpa, no, I didn't want to reduce the power of the princes. I trust my uncles completely."

"Since the day we announced the enfeoffment, many civil officials have objected, saying that the Rebellion of the Seven States at the beginning of the Han Dynasty is a lesson from the past. Emperor Jing of Han was a victim in the Rebellion of the Seven States, wasn't he? So why did he still implement the enfeoffment system later?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked.

"Your uncles, the princes, have far less power than the vassal kings of the Han Dynasty. They only have a fixed annual salary and a royal palace to manage at their own disposal. They need the imperial decree to mobilize troops on the border. Even the chief clerk of the royal palace is appointed by the imperial court. Whether it is to supervise or to assist, your uncles can only accept the officials sent by the imperial court unless the officials have committed illegal acts."

Zhu Yunwen listened attentively and seized the opportunity to explain, "Zhuo Jing said that the princes' salaries are too high, and the court is under too much burden."

"Then let the Ministry of Revenue discuss it and come up with a comprehensive plan," Zhu Yuanzhang said with displeasure. "The excessive salaries of the princes are determined by the court, not by your fourth uncle. You should explain this to Zhuo Jing."

Zhu Yunwen accepted all of his grandfather's reprimands without offering any rebuttal.

"Grandpa is getting older and I don't know how much longer I can support you. You are young and your power is not yet fully developed. This is the time when you need to rely on the princes. We cannot let those with ulterior motives sow discord among our family members. Military generals, civil officials, nobles, members of the imperial family, and relatives of the empress—these forces need to be checked and balanced. If the checks and balances are lost, the next target of the dominant force will be to control the emperor and seize the throne," Zhu Yuanzhang said earnestly.

Zhu Yunwen seemed to understand and nodded, saying, "Grandpa, I understand."

"Yunwen, governing the country requires civil officials, while protecting the court requires military generals. You must not prioritize military over civil officials and thus undermine your military skills. Do not follow the example of the Song Dynasty, which focused on internal affairs while neglecting external ones," Zhu Yuanzhang earnestly instructed. "When you have time, spend more time with the military generals and don't spend all your time with Huang Zicheng."

"Grandson has remembered," Zhu Yunwen said, appearing humble and receptive to instruction.

Zhu Gaoxi sat quietly on a small wooden stool, listening attentively and benefiting greatly.

Huang Liang saw that the Emperor and the Crown Prince had important matters to discuss and wanted to stop him outside, but Zhu Gaoxi was very quick-witted and slipped in after only two or three rounds.