Daming: I am the Crown Prince

Xu Miaojin and Concubine Guo Ning were busy preparing the meal, while Old Zhu and Zhu Yunhuan sat aside with a clear conscience, and no one said anything about this scene. Most ordinary people were like this, and some women were not allowed to sit at the table.

As for Zhu Wenyao, he obviously didn't care so much. Now he had no idea about the country and the people. All he thought about every day was going out to play, playing with his great-grandfather, and playing with his great-aunt Baoqing.

Zhu Wenyao's coquettishness was natural. Seeing Old Zhu crossing his legs, he ran over, lifted his foot but was not satisfied, and anxiously patted Old Zhu's thigh.

Old Zhu naturally put his feet down happily, and Zhu Wenyao then successfully climbed onto Old Zhu's legs, put his fat face on Old Zhu's chest, and babbled something that no one else could understand.

Although he can speak, Zhu Wenyao is only a little over one year old and can only say simple words.

Old Zhu looked at Zhu Yunhuan and asked, "The canal dredging has been settled, but how about the treasure notes?"

Zhu Yunhuan said frankly, "It will take some time to see the results, and the people's hearts and minds will not be won overnight. Fortunately, the people in Jiangnan now know about the treasure notes, unlike in previous years."

Old Zhu smiled and nodded, saying, "We thought too simply a few years ago, thinking that this way the national treasury would not be depleted."

"It's just that the people are in trouble. In the past, the treasury was very empty and there were many places where money needed to be spent. Now it's different. There's no need to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs." Although the truth hurts, Zhu Yunhuan still said directly, "In a few years, I think the people will be able to use the treasure notes without worry, and the treasury will not be empty."

Old Zhu nodded and said, "You have to pay more attention to this matter. If we can think of this, who knows, the emperor in the future may also think of this. If the court does not have enough money, we can print treasure notes. This method can make money quickly."

No, printing a large amount of money seems to be able to solve some financial crises and complete the harvest well.

However, in the long run, doing so would easily lead to inflation and cause people to resist the treasure notes.

Old Zhu praised, "You think long-term, but you are still letting Yu Xin and Xia Yuanji do these things?"

"The main thing is to have Xia Yuanji keep an eye on it. After all, Yu Xin is the Minister of Revenue, and he has a lot to take care of." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "What I am least worried about now is that there is no one for the Minister of Revenue. Instead, other government offices are short of people."

Old Zhu had a different opinion. "The Ministry of Rites is not short of people. Chen Di can still do something. Bao Zhao can be in charge of the Ministry of Justice. He is also capable. The Ministry of Personnel can use Ru Hong. He is also your man. The Ministry of Works has Yan Zhenzhi. The Ministry of War is not in charge. You can control the Five Military Commandery, so you don't have to worry about rebellion."

Although Zhu Yuanzhang seems to be not very concerned about the affairs of the court, he sees many things very clearly. He is even now watching the fire from the other side of the river, and sees some things even more clearly.

When the food was ready, Lao Zhu and Zhu Yunhuan sat down and prepared to eat with greater ease.

Although Zhu Wenyao has not been completely weaned, he will eat some food. His hands are very quick and he will put anything he grabs into his mouth. This means that he basically does not need to be fed by others.

This is obviously a good thing. Children should not be spoiled too much. This is also Mr. Zhu’s philosophy of raising children.

After eating and drinking, Lao Zhu asked, "Yunxun, shouldn't we be more stable in the next two years?"

"Of course, I just want to dredge the canal and let the uncles patrol the border." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "I have just taken care of the sea trip, and that's all."

Old Zhu nodded. Zhu Yunhuan did have quite a lot to do, and each of them was a big deal. They were not all small matters, nor were they all internal affairs. None of them could be delayed.

"In fact, I am not at ease when my uncles go to Liaodong to be the vassal this time." Zhu Yunhuan said, "The place where the king of the frontier is located is relatively cold and harsh, and it is a strategic place, so there are many things to do."

Old Zhu also understood this truth, but still said, "No matter how hard it is, they can't suffer. After all, they are princes."

Areas like Liaodong are indeed bitterly cold, and some border areas in the northwest are also relatively remote, but Zhu Yuanzhang was still very decisive.

He treated his sons well enough, and he would definitely feel sorry for them when he should. These princes were sent to their fiefdoms, and their basic quality of life would definitely be guaranteed, and they would still be very wealthy.

Zhu Yunhuan also understood this truth. "Of course I understand that. In fact, I also understand that my uncles have complaints and feel that the places in Jiangnan and Guanzhong are better. But as a descendant of the Zhu family, I naturally have to shoulder the heavy responsibility."

Seeing Old Zhu nod, Zhu Yunhuan said, "When discussing with Daoyan today, we mentioned that dredging the canal is a big deal. We are also afraid that cruel officials will cause chaos, so we want Fourth Uncle and others to control it."

As soon as Lao Zhu heard this, he took it seriously, because he also understood that this was a big matter and of course it needed to be taken seriously.

Dredging the canal is a must, but we must also prevent some people from interfering with such a matter that benefits the country and the people, or doing things with ulterior motives that would shake the Zhu family's rule.

Old Zhu thought about it seriously and said, "It would be appropriate for the fourth brother to go, but you just took away their military power. If you let them do the work now, aren't you afraid that they will interfere in local politics?"

This can be said to be Lao Zhu's bottom line. Even though he is very protective of his people, he still has to be on guard against some things.

Even the three guards of the princes were in name only, and the princes might not be able to mobilize them. The more resolute red line is that the princes must not interfere in local politics, which is also the red line that the princes of the Zhu family dare not cross now.

If these princes were really allowed to start taking charge of matters such as dredging the canal, they might have the opportunity to slowly interfere in local affairs, which would obviously touch Zhu's bottom line.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "I have also thought about these things, so uncles have to work hard, but it won't end well."

Old Zhu stared at Zhu Yunhuan, and after a moment he couldn't help but complain, "You really like to use tricks on your own family."

It seems that there is really no big problem with this. Zhu Yunhuan really put a lot of thought into these royal princes and asked them to do a lot of things, but there may not be any benefits.

Zhu Yunhuan said disapprovingly, "There are many things to do at the beginning of the country, and my family must contribute. If things are done well, my uncles will enjoy wealth and prosperity, and my brothers can also enjoy their lives."

This made Old Zhu even more speechless. This Zhu Yunhuan was really a man of evil heart and was absolutely suitable to be the emperor.

This is not a real enjoyment at all, but Zhu Di and others will get things done and then completely take back the power.

In fact, there are precedents for this. When the princes of the Ming Dynasty first came to power, they guarded important places and controlled the generals. When the military power was taken back from the nobles, Zhu Yunhuan reduced the three guards of the princes.

Now let Zhu Di and others control and supervise the dredging of the canal. When things stabilize, it is estimated that these supervisory powers will definitely be taken back. It is impossible to truly decentralize power, especially it is impossible to give these princes real power.

In the future, these princes will only have noble status, but it is obviously impossible for them to expect to have real power.

Zhu Yunhuan was not ashamed and said to Old Zhu, "Grandfather, am I right to do this? My uncles must do more things if they are capable. If the Zhu family's kingdom is stable, they will also enjoy the good life."

Old Zhu naturally did not refute, but still said, "That's the truth, but some of your uncles may not understand it. They all say that the country is yours, and they don't care about other things."

Everyone understands that when one prospers, all prosper; when one suffers, all suffer. However, some of the Zhu clan princes did think that the country belonged to Zhu Yunhuan. They only thought about their own wealth and did not care at all whether they made things difficult for Zhu Yunhuan.

Zhu Yunhuan said indifferently, "It's good that you can figure it out. If you can't figure it out, I'm the emperor! It's not easy to punish the uncles, but I can inspire them."

Looking at Zhu Yunhuan's playful and smiling face, Old Zhu said with emotion, "It's okay to do this. It would be better if your father did it."

There is absolutely nothing wrong with what he said. It's not that Zhu Biao has any other ideas. It's just that as the eldest brother, Zhu Biao has more legitimate right to discipline his younger brother. After all, Zhu Yunhuan is his nephew.

Zhu Yunhuan said indifferently, "Even if you uncles are unhappy, there is nothing I can do. I am the emperor."

Old Zhu nodded and said, "Don't worry about this matter. Although I have abdicated, I am still the founding emperor. I will issue an edict without going through the six ministries. Then your uncles will have no choice but to accept it."

Zhu Yunhuan quickly took advantage of the situation and said, "This is not good. It is already a laborious task. Now that grandfather has issued an order, uncles have to do it even if they don't want to."

Old Zhu said jokingly, "This is still our will, not the court. You don't have to worry about taking back power in the future. Everything is done by us, and everything will be legitimate in the future."

In fact, everyone understands the truth. When Zhu Yuanzhang ordered Zhu Di and others to do something, it could be a "private matter". You can't blame Zhu Yunhuan in the future, because this matter was not an imperial decree, and it was not arranged by Emperor Zhu Yunhuan.

Old Zhu hugged Zhu Wenyao and joked, "Look at your father, he deliberately said these things in front of us. He felt embarrassed and said all these words to us."

Zhu Wenyao didn’t understand those things, but he knew that his great-grandfather was very happy, so he babbled happily in response.

Xu Miaojin was watching and listening nearby. She could naturally guess what Zhu Yunhuan was thinking, but she also had to sigh that her husband was really smart. Some things that might offend people were done by the Emperor's grandfather.

This is not just about offending people, but is also very stable. It has little impact on the court and ensures the safe placement of royal family members. This is the political strategy that a mature emperor should have.

Zhu Yunhuan felt at ease doing these things and did not think there was anything wrong with doing so.

Now that Zhu Yuanzhang is still around, it is obviously more appropriate for him to handle some matters. Even though Zhu Yuanzhang is now the emperor, the power he holds and his prestige in the court and the public are self-evident.

With such a powerful backer who can protect him, Zhu Yunhuan would naturally not be stingy. When it is time to let the backer come forward, he would naturally let the backer come forward.

Seeing that the lights were lit in the palace, Zhu Yunhuan prepared to get up and go back to rest.

Old Zhu asked, "What's your daughter's name?"

Zhu Yunxun said without thinking, "I've thought about it a lot before, but now I still think 'Jia An' is the best."

Old Zhu is rather casual about naming his daughter, let alone his granddaughter and great-granddaughter.

But he still asked, "From now on, your daughter will be named 'Jia'?"

Zhu Yunhuan nodded and said, "I thought so too. Let's use the character '佳' instead of the five elements."

Old Zhu nodded with more satisfaction. This was also a matter of inheritance. He gave his descendants twenty characters for their generation and also set a naming method based on the five elements, but when it came to girls, there was no set rule.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "I was planning to go and take a look, but the child is too young now, so I'll talk about it later."

Xu Miaojin said quickly, "I went to check and found that the child is indeed too small to be exposed to the wind. When the child grows up, Sun Chen will bring him to pay homage to Grandfather Huang."

Old Zhu touched Zhu Wenyao's head and said, "We'll talk about it later. There's no need to rush. You should give Wenyao a younger brother, or a younger sister. Take Yunxun for example. When he was young, he had his older brother, and later he had his older sister to take care of him. Now Wenyao is the only one. How can he follow us around all day?"

In fact, Xu Miaojin also thought that if she could get pregnant again, it would be the best thing. If it was a son, that would be the best, but if it was a daughter, that would be great too.

But sometimes it seems that these things cannot be forced.

Zhu Yunxun, who was urged to have a baby again, said, "I know all these things. Now that I am a little older, it would be better to have another child. If there is a difference of two or three years, Wen Yao can also bring his brother to play with in the future."

Old Zhu nodded with more satisfaction and said, "It's a good thing that the legitimate son is almost the same age. Two or three years is enough. When Wen Yao grows up, his brothers will be well-behaved and sensible."

Letting the older brother discipline the younger brother was also Zhu Yuanzhang's educational philosophy, and it was also a way to avoid some struggles for imperial power.

Zhu Yunhuan and Xu Miaojin returned to the Qianqing Palace. They were not necessarily in a hurry to have a baby. Some things could be left to nature.

After a good rest, Zhu Yunhuan went to bed early and got up early again. The new day still started with court attendance. There were still many political affairs that needed to be dealt with, so he would definitely be busy at the end of the day.

The dredging of the canal now seems to have been settled, and things are progressing rapidly and in an orderly manner, but there are other things that also need to be dealt with and cannot be delayed.

Zhu Yunhuan, full of energy, threw himself into the new day's work. He was quite confident that he could handle some things well.

Working harder and being diligent are the basic conditions for running a good government. Of course, these are not enough, and more strategies are needed. (End of this chapter)