King of Han Dynasty of Ming Dynasty

In the courtyard.

After arresting Ji Gang, he waved his hand to send him away.

The originally noisy and depressing atmosphere gradually became gentle with Ji Gang's departure.

The Crown Prince and Zhu Gaoxu sat facing each other, sipping hot tea in their cups. Their eyes moved around from time to time, and no one knew what they were thinking about.

Just like this, a long time passed.

The prince slowly put down the teacup in his hand. A cold murderous intent flashed across his originally calm face. He narrowed his eyes slightly and looked up at the King of Han who was sitting not far away and leisurely drinking hot tea. He said in a cold voice:
"Second child"

"Is what you just said true?"

"Can Ji Gang, this hawkish leader, really have such ambitions and such rebellious thoughts?"

Listening to the question, feeling the murderous intent that permeated the entire pavilion, Zhu Gaoxu slowly put down the teacup in his hand, and gently knocked on the table with his right hand, making a crisp "bang bang bang" sound. He raised his drooping brows, narrowed his eyes slightly, and stared straight at the prince who was looking at him closely. A playful smile appeared on his calm face, and he murmured in a low voice in response, saying:

"Boss"

“So what if it is, so what if it’s not?”

"Is it important?"

"Given Ji Gang's current position and what we are doing right now, do you really want to touch him?"

"Even if we don't care about what we are doing now, as for Ji Gang, has the prince ever heard such a saying? A big dog still needs to look at its master."

"Ji Gang is the old man's dog, no matter what Ji Gang does."

"Do you think it's really our turn to handle this matter? Are we really qualified to deal with him?"

"Let's talk again."

At this point, Zhu Gaoxu paused, then suddenly changed the subject, opened his half-closed eyes, and continued to respond:

"Ji Gang now."

"Although there are some things that are not right, it has not really reached the point I just mentioned."

"Boss, can you really use my speculation about what might happen in the future as an opportunity to punish Ji Gang?"

"Let's not talk about whether we think this is ridiculous or not. If the old man heard about it, what do you think he would think given his suspicious personality?"

"Don't think that the old man seems to have delegated power to you and me, allowing us to do whatever we want in Beijing. But once something really touches on the interests of the old man, he will feel threatened and insecure."

"Do you really think the old man can still sit still?"

"Don't forget how the old man got the position under his buttocks. There are some things we can do, but there are some things we may not be able to do."

"Even if I gave up all my power and just wanted to go to remote Yunnan to be a vassal, or take my family and some soldiers to leave the land of the Ming Dynasty and go to other places, the old man would not agree. He was worried about me. He was worried that I would follow his old path, that I would threaten the court, and that it would cause unnecessary changes. He was unwilling and would not allow me to leave."

"Don't think that the old man often says, 'The prince is ill, you should work hard'. Don't tell me whether I believe these words or not. Ask yourself, you must have heard them, and you must have thought about this problem and worried about it."

"Do you believe this, Boss?"

"Don't say that I am unfilial for talking about my father and king behind their backs. If our family were born in an ordinary family, we might not be like this. At the very least, if the old man had not taken 'that path' to sit in that position, it might not be like this."

"But the bad thing is"

"So, boss, you are smart. You should know clearly what you should do and what the consequences will be if you do something."

"For this reason, let's do our own thing honestly."

"There are also old men who have walked along 'that path'. Even their closest sons do not trust them 100%. They are always on guard against them, fearing that they will become uncontrollable and follow their old path."

"Do you really think that, with the old man's character, he really doesn't know about the ugly things that Ji Gang did, and that he really didn't guard against him?"

"The power of the Jinyiwei is granted by the emperor. The old man is just an obedient dog now. He is still useful to the old man. Once Ji Gang really thinks he is right, the end is self-evident."

"The so-called preparation and the so-called ability will vanish in an instant."

"Do you believe it or not?"

"For this reason, we should not worry too much about these things. They are not what we should worry about. As long as Ji Gang behaves honestly and does not disrupt our actions and plans, it is enough. We can just ignore other things."

This is said.

A series of questioning words.

The question directly stunned the prince, who fell into silence immediately, with a frown on his face, and no one knew what he was thinking about.

That's it.

The atmosphere in the courtyard, which had finally awakened and eased, became solemn and depressing again due to the Crown Prince's silence and Zhu Gaoxu's explanations and questions. For a moment, the two men looked at each other and no one spoke.

After a long while, the prince withdrew his gaze from her, and played with the teacup in his right hand. His pupils shrank, and he murmured in a low voice:
"Second child"

"I want a precise answer."

"Does Ji Gang have that ambition, or has he already started planning something?"

"Or"

"Give me all the evidence you have about Ji Gang and let me make my own judgment. What do you think?"

to be honest.

This matter, this hurdle.

It really became a thorn in Zhu Gaochi's heart, and it was certainly not something that Zhu Gaoxu could get rid of with just a few words.

Even though the Crown Prince pretended to refuse the position in front of Zhu Gaoxu several times in an attempt to let Zhu Gaoxu take the throne of the heir, deep down in his heart, did he really think that the Crown Prince was willing to give up the position?

If you really want to give it up, there is no need to say it out loud, you can just take action.

To put it bluntly, the so-called several excuses, in a sense, seemed sincere, but in fact they were also a test. Or perhaps the prince himself knew it clearly in his heart and understood Zhu Gaoxu's character, and he was sure that Zhu Gaoxu would not accept it or agree to it.

Otherwise, do you really think Zhu Gaochi could be so magnanimous?

Of course, the most important point is that the position of the crown prince is already like this, and he also has his own followers. How can he shirk his responsibility if he wants to?

That position is not something that can be achieved by just saying one thing, the Crown Prince, and being willing to give up the throne to someone more capable.

It was precisely because of so many problems forced upon him that Zhu Gaochi was so confident that he could say such seemingly sincere words several times.

And why was Zhu Gaochi so concerned about what Zhu Gaoxu had just said about the ambitions that Ji Gang might have in his later years? It was not because he thought that the ambitions that Ji Gang might bring would pose a greater threat than the current King of Han and King of Zhao.

The real reason lies in the heart of the crown prince Zhu Gaochi.

The throne and imperial power.

It belongs to the Zhu family and is the ancestral heritage.

People in the Zhu family can fight and have such thoughts. If outsiders have such thoughts and ideas, he, as the eldest brother and the crown prince, also thinks that he will not lose to his own family.

Of course, even if they lost, the Zhu family’s ancestral heritage would still belong to them and not to anyone else.

But for Zhu Gaochi, it means something completely different if others have such ideas and ambitions, because others are trying to steal the ancestral foundation of their Zhu family, and once they succeed, those of them will not be able to keep any bloodline.

The cruelty here.

This was something Zhu Gaochi could never tolerate and was unwilling to see.

So even though he knew that Ji Gang was not a big threat and that the old man was watching him, and that he would never let such a thing happen due to his caution, Zhu Gaochi still could not accept it. It was like a scale in the prince's heart that could never be touched by anyone. That was why the prince's reaction was so strong.

Only then would he say such a thing.

After hearing this, Zhu Gaoxu's expression suddenly became restrained. His eyes narrowed slightly and he stared straight at the prince who was very close to him. He frowned slightly and fell into silent thought.

To tell the truth.

The Crown Prince's reaction and behavior were indeed beyond Zhu Gaoxu's expectations. He never expected that the Crown Prince, who had been calm and composed in the past, would suddenly change his usual calmness.

The sudden change made Zhu Gaoxu fall into deep thought.

After a moment, a flash of inspiration came into his mind, and he seemed to have grasped something. His gaze towards the prince changed involuntarily, and he said in a low voice:

"Boss"

"You really should calm down. Then we can discuss the next matter in detail."

Say it.

Zhu Gaoxu said no more and sat quietly aside, like an old monk in meditation, sipping the warm tea in his hand.

As these words fell, the prince raised his eyebrows, paused in his heart, squinted his eyes and stared at the King of Han who was leisurely drinking hot tea. They were both smart people, so he naturally heard the implication of Zhu Gaoxu's words.

This was to wake him up, or it could be said to be a reminder to him.

At the same time, these sudden cold and harsh words were like a heavy hammer hitting the slightly impatient prince's heart, causing him to calm down, frown and fall into deep thought, and he also realized that he had been too extreme just now.

Just like that, after a long while, Zhu Gaochi calmed down his thoughts, turned his head and looked back. The expression on his face suddenly changed, as if he had become a different person in an instant. He had regained his usual calmness and said with a smile:

"Yes!"

"Old Second is right. We were indeed a little distracted and anxious just now."

"Hahaha"

"Even you can't hide Ji Gang's little tricks, so how can we hide those dirty things he did from an old man who is smarter than us?"

"By the way..."

"Second brother, based on your understanding of the old man, you said that the old man has been keeping silent about this matter and has been turning a blind eye to it, allowing Ji Gang to act freely."

"What exactly is he up to, and what is his plan?"

Say it.

There was an intriguing look on Zhu Gaochi's face.

After hearing this, Zhu Gaoxu smiled and looked back at the prince, saying:

"Why?"

"What is the old man's plan?"

"Boss, don't you really have any idea?"

"Raising pigs... you have to fatten the pigs up before slaughtering them for food, that's the only way to make money, right?"

"If you don't fatten me up, there won't be much meat. What's the point of eating it?"

As he spoke, Zhu Gaoxu paused, as if he had thought of something. His expression changed, his pupils shrank slightly, and he looked up with a little surprise and said:
"no?"

"Boss..."

"You bastard, you're not trying to steal my money, are you?"

"Want to snatch the old man's attention?"

"you……"

The words have not yet fallen.

Before he could finish his words, Zhu Gaochi waved his hand and interrupted Zhu Gaoxu's subsequent words. He raised the corners of his mouth slightly to reveal an intriguing smirk and said:
"Why not?"

"The old man is living a carefree life outside, with no worries about food and drink, while we two brothers are working like slaves in the capital."

"Money, there is no money, let us figure it out ourselves."

"Things, things still need us to do steadily and properly."

"How can such a good thing happen?"

"I don't want to do anything, I just want to pick up something ready-made and gain fame."

"Second brother, don't you feel aggrieved at all? Don't you really have such thoughts at all?"

"I didn't know about this before, so I didn't say anything. Now that I know about this, I just talked about this with Ji Gang."

"Don't you think it would be a pity if we don't extort some money out of it?"

"Are you willing to let go of such an opportunity?"

"Is it possible that the old man is only allowed to treat us as coolies and cheat his son, but he is not allowed to..."

"hey-hey……"

"Second brother, don't you think so?"

Dele.

It’s true, if you are not from the same family, you won’t enter the same door.

He is worthy of being the Crown Prince and the heir to the Ming Dynasty!

You reap what you sow.

Look, I like to cheat my son, and this son sees the opportunity and cheats me without mercy.

but……

Let’s do this!
To be honest, he really likes it.

Haha ...

It was rare for the boss to have such an idea. At the same time, he also wanted to see what the old man’s expression and reaction would be if he knew that the boss had moved the “fat pig” he had deliberately raised. Would he secretly swallow the loss?

I think it will be extremely interesting and fun.

Thinking about it, Zhu Gaoxu couldn't help laughing, looked at the prince beside him with interest, nodded and said:
"Okay!"

"Since the boss has such thoughts."

"We naturally support it."

"But you handle this matter yourself. I will not be involved in it."

"On your own merit."

"how?"

(End of this chapter)