King of Han Dynasty of Ming Dynasty

East Palace.

After returning home from the Prince of Han’s mansion.

Zhu Pangpang was leaning on the soft couch in the pavilion, his eyes half closed, his right hand chasing a string of unknown beads, his brows furrowed, and no one knew what he was thinking about.

rustling.
Just at this moment, the sound of soft footsteps was heard.

Then, the gentle and voluptuous figure of the Crown Princess slowly walked in from outside the courtyard.

Seeing Zhu Gaochi leaning on the couch, lost in thought, she could not help but frowning, a hint of doubt flashed across her face, and she came over to him affectionately, put her jade hands on the prince's broad shoulders, squeezed his shoulders, and whispered softly:

"Your Highness."

"What's going on here."

"I heard from the people down there that you have been back home for almost an hour."

"I just sat there in the pavilion in a daze."

"What on earth has happened to make you so serious and so sad?"

"I even forgot the time I promised to exercise every day and gave up."

After hearing this.

Zhu Gaochi frowned and thought, feeling the comfort coming from his shoulders and the two soft spots pressed tightly against his back.

Logically speaking, there is such an ambiguous atmosphere.

It is normal for people to have some palpitations in their hearts.

However, at this moment, Zhu Gaochi did not know why, but faced with the Crown Princess's ambiguous gesture, his heart was calm and he did not have the slightest feeling or reaction.

"Hey"

After a moment, he let out a long sigh and slowly came back to his senses. He reached out and gently patted the jade hand on his shoulder, but the solemnity on his face did not diminish at all, and he shook his head subconsciously.

Then, as if he had thought of something, he pointed at the Crown Princess, motioned her to sit down on the couch next to him, and said faintly:

"My beloved concubine."

"What do you think is going on in the mind of this guy Lao Er?"

"I find that I am becoming more and more confused about what he wants to do."

"I always feel that he is much more thoughtful now than before."

"But!"

"Even though he has a lot of deep thoughts, I can't find any fault with him."

"No matter from which angle you look at it, it seems that the things he did were all for the public good, more than for personal gain. In fact, in many cases, he had no personal gain at all. He was only doing it for the public good, for the court, and for the country."

"you say."

"Does this bastard Lao Er really have no thoughts about that position?"

"Is it really just for the sake of the Ming Dynasty, for the sake of our Zhu family's kingdom, or in other words, to assist me with peace of mind?"

Upon hearing this, the Crown Princess frowned and suddenly raised her head. She looked at Zhu Gaochi, who was standing very close to her, with an expression of disbelief and surprise. She fell silent for a moment and did not give an answer immediately.

The two looked at each other.

The atmosphere suddenly became a little weird.

After a long while, the Crown Princess came back to her senses from her daze. She narrowed her eyes, a trace of solemnity flashed across her face, and her voice suddenly became extremely low. She asked:

"Your Highness."

"Before I answer your question, I wonder if you would be willing to tell me in detail what happened."

"For this reason, I can analyze it for you from the perspective of an outsider."

"If I don't know the reason for the incident, I dare not jump to conclusions on this issue."

This statement is true.

That makes sense.

Zhu Gaochi naturally knew the temper and character of his beloved concubine. He knew that she was not the kind of person who liked to be unbridled for no reason, talk nonsense, or gossip. He was worried that he did not know the inside story and that too many words would affect her judgment and lead to something irreversible.

to this end.

He simply sorted out his thoughts, his expression suddenly became extremely solemn, and he shouted towards the outside of the courtyard:

"Here comes someone."

"This courtyard, without my order."

"No one is allowed to enter."

"Those who violate the order can be arrested directly."

The soldiers who were waiting at the gate of the courtyard looked solemn, not daring to hesitate or neglect, and quickly responded:
"promise!"

Not long after.

Then a chaotic sound of footsteps was heard outside the courtyard. The soldiers who were waiting at the gate of the courtyard retreated several steps away from the gate the moment they received the order, keeping a sufficient distance from the courtyard.

At the same time, the soldiers who received the order looked solemn, their bright eyes looked around, and their right hands were on the hilt of the big sword slung across their waists.

The atmosphere in the field suddenly became solemn and murderous.

The pavilion where Zhu Gaochi and the Crown Princess were was isolated in an instant and became a vacuum zone.

The Crown Princess, who was leaning on the other side of the couch, couldn't help but change her expression when she saw the sudden change in the situation. She sat up straight unconsciously and looked at her husband with a serious face. She opened her mouth several times to ask something, but thinking about what Zhu Gaochi had done, she didn't say anything in the end and waited tactfully for him to arrange everything and answer her questions.

After a while.

Noticing the changes in his surroundings and hearing the chaotic footsteps disappearing all around, Zhu Gaochi still did not relax at all. He slowly stood up from the couch and inspected the secluded pavilion that had become a vacuum area.

Wait until you are sure that there are no outsiders in the pavilion.

Zhu Gaochi returned to the soft couch where he had been sitting, picked up the tea on the stone table, took a sip, and moistened his throat.

Afterwards, he simply organized his thoughts and recounted to the Crown Princess in detail everything that had happened since Zhu Gaoxu was crowned king until now, as well as what the two of them had discussed in the pavilion at the Prince of Han's mansion today.

One thing after another came out of Zhu Gaochi's mouth.

The Crown Princess, who was sitting on the side, had her brows furrowed deeper unconsciously, her expression changed from time to time, her face became extremely solemn, and she fell into silent thought. Her mood became a little worried, and her doubts became stronger.

at the same time.

She also always understood why her own prince acted like this, and finally understood why he looked so worried and stayed in the pavilion for more than an hour without letting anyone disturb him.

About it.

Don’t say that Zhu Gaochi was confused and couldn’t figure it out.

After listening to his narration of every incident, she thought she was clear-minded and a bystander who could see things clearly, but now she couldn't help but become confused.

Just this time.

She was also a little confused about what Zhu Gaoxu wanted to do and what his purpose was.

Looking at everything he did, it didn't seem like something that someone should do in an attempt to seize the throne or compete with the crown prince!
Instead,
No matter how you look at it, it seems like he wants to be the enemy of everyone.

He is just like a dog, a person who doesn't care about his relatives.

Say it.

Wait until everything is described.

Zhu Gaochi straightened his body, picked up the cup of tea that the Crown Princess had filled on the table, and took a big sip like a cow, moistening his slightly dry throat.

Then, he unconsciously glanced at the Crown Princess who was frowning, lost in thought, and whose expression changed from time to time.

He did not urge her, but leisurely added some tea to himself, quietly waiting for the Crown Princess to come back to her senses.

Time is like an arrow, the sun and the moon are like a shuttle.

Before he knew it, half an hour had passed. Seeing the Crown Princess in a daze, not saying a word, Zhu Gaochi stretched out his right hand and tapped the table lightly, saying:

"My beloved concubine..."

"How is it?"

"But there are different ideas about what is happening right now."

"What's your different opinion?"

“Don’t worry about saying it wrong, or saying it incorrectly.”

"In this courtyard, there are only you and me."

"No matter what we say in the courtyard, no news will get out."

"No one will know."

After hearing this.

The Crown Princess smiled noncommittally, with a hint of intriguing meaning flashing across her face. She half-squinted her eyes and looked Zhu Gaochi up and down. She did not answer his question immediately, but took the initiative to ask:
"Your Highness."

"Since the movement in recent months."

"You seem to have lost a lot of weight, and you don't get out of breath when you walk or run these days, right?"

“I’m doing a lot of things, and I’m getting more energetic.”

"is not it?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Gaochi was stunned, with a hint of confusion flashing across his face, as if he was a completely bewildered monk.

what's the situation?
What does this mean?
My beloved, what is this doing?
Isn't this a complete irrelevant answer to the question?

Why did you bring up this issue, and why did you bring up your own health condition?

Although I don't know what the Crown Princess meant, I know her character and she is definitely not someone who likes to act unrestrainedly for no reason.

In response to this question, Zhu Gaochi still nodded patiently and agreed:
"This is indeed true."

"During the past few months, I have been eating regularly, mostly light meals."

"My health is indeed much better than before, and I have lost dozens of kilograms."

"but."

"My beloved, how does this matter relate to what we are discussing now, or is there any intersection?"

In this regard.

The Crown Princess slowly picked up the tea on the stone table and took a sip. Then she couldn't help laughing. She pointed at the Crown Prince who was looking at her with a puzzled look, and shook her head.

"Your Highness! Your Highness!"

"This is what they call the person in charge is confused, while the bystander is clear!"

"you say."

"Second brother, what is the best thing that will happen when you get to this position, or reach that position?"

Having said this, she paused, her expression became solemn, and she suddenly changed the subject and continued:
"Please forgive my rudeness for what I am going to say next. It may sound a little unpleasant to the ear."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Gaochi waved his hand without commenting, then nodded in affirmation and said:

"No problem."

"We have been married for many years, there is nothing we cannot talk about."

"My dear, if you have anything to say, just say it."

The Crown Princess smiled, slowly stood up from the couch, picked up the teapot and thoughtfully refilled it with hot water, while softly replying:
"The second one wants to take that position."

"The most advantageous, and also the easiest and simplest, is that His Highness is no longer around."

"and."

"How did Your Majesty use the excuse to start a rebellion and seize the world, and gain the support of so many people?"

"Isn't it Emperor Taizu who chose Zhu Yunwen to inherit the throne, against the system and etiquette?"

"So as long as His Highness is gone, His Majesty will not slap himself in the face in order to stabilize the country and stop the gossips of the world, and will not be willing to see a strife among his own people."

"The only way is to make the second son the crown prince."

"This is how we can resolve this crisis of crown prince."

Having said this, she paused, then suddenly changed the subject and continued:
"Just the inside story here."

"And what's behind it."

"With Lao Er's mind and ability, I don't believe he can understand it, or should I say, he can't understand it."

"But even though he knew the problem and knew which method would be most beneficial to him, how did he do it and how did he choose?"

"When no one was able to help and we had searched for famous doctors, His Highness's health was deteriorating and no one was able to do anything."

"The second elder took the initiative to give Your Highness methods to warm up the body and improve various physical conditions."

"And the effect is remarkable, and there are no side effects."

"I think Your Highness should know better than anyone how your health is now compared to before, right?"

"In fact, I used to be wary of the second brother and had many prejudices, even biases."

"But regarding this matter, I see that His Highness's health is getting better and better."

"My thoughts, combined with some of my humble opinions, have also slowly changed."

"I now feel that some of the words of disbelief have some credibility in my heart, more or less."

Hearing this, Zhu Pangpang's hand, which was originally reaching out to pick up the teacup, froze in place. His expression changed slightly, and his brows unknowingly furrowed even tighter.

After a moment, he withdrew his hand without saying anything more, frowned and fell into deep thought.

A myriad of thoughts came to my mind during this time.

It was as if there was a time recording machine in his mind, and everything that had happened in the past few days flashed through his mind quickly.

I do not know how long it has been.

Zhu Gaochi, who was lost in thought, came back to his senses. His expression instantly changed. He slowly raised his head, half-closed his eyes and looked straight at the Crown Princess who was so close to him. He asked in a deep voice:

"You mean, the second brother really gave up on that idea?"

"Is everything Lao Er said true?"

"Is it all just me thinking too much?"

Asked three times in a row.

The atmosphere became depressing as the questions continued.

The Crown Princess looked at him for a moment without hesitation, shook her head at him, and replied:
"Your Highness, you are joking."

"The most difficult thing to understand in this world is the human heart."

"Whether the second brother is harboring evil intentions that we are not aware of, no one knows and no one knows."

"I dare not guarantee it either."

"But, Your Highness, does it really matter whether the Second Brother has rebellious intentions or other plans?"

"As long as it is beneficial to the court and the world, and does not cause any harm to us, why not cooperate with him?"

“Use stillness to control movement, and respond to ever-changing situations with constancy.”

"And while your majesty is still here, even if the second brother has great abilities, what kind of storm can he stir up?"

"Your Highness, why bother with this matter anymore!!" (End of this chapter)