Daming: I am the Crown Prince

The reason why he let Zhu Yunhuan go back to his hometown was simply because he didn't want to see him have any regrets. Zhu Yunhuan's starting point was also very simple.

If someone would infer that Emperor Zhu Yunhuan wanted to clean up the court while the retired emperor was returning to the imperial hometown, or to establish his prestige during this period, then they are overthinking.

Neither Zhu Yuanzhang nor Zhu Yunhuan believed that there were anyone in the court who was loyal to Emperor Hongwu or Emperor Chengkang, only ministers of the Ming Dynasty.

As long as you are capable and can make contributions to the Ming Dynasty, you don't have to worry about being purged.

It is just too much to think that a new emperor appoints new ministers. When Zhu Yuanzhang was in power, Zhu Yunhuan still used all the civil and military officials in the court. Even now, it is not said that the people promoted by Zhu Yuanzhang are not convenient to use.

After leaving the court, Zhu Yunhuan summoned Li Jinglong immediately and said, "Jiujiang, my grandfather will be returning to his hometown in a few days. Please help make arrangements."

Li Jinglong was stunned for a moment, then quickly asked, "Your Majesty, is the Emperor Retired returning to the Imperial City?"

"Why?" Zhu Yunhuan found it funny and said, "Grandfather went back in his early years. Now the weather is suitable, so it's a good time for him to go back. He is already this old, and he always misses his hometown."

Since joining the army, Lao Zhu has only been back to his hometown a few times. It has been more than 50 years, and the number of times Lao Zhu has been back to his hometown can be counted on one hand. Especially in recent years, no one thinks he will go back to his hometown again.

After being surprised, Li Jinglong immediately said, "I will do my best to protect the emperor along the way."

"Wen Yao should also go back with you, so that the journey will be safer." Zhu Yunhuan said with a smile, "This matter can be assigned to either you or Duke Wei. After thinking about it, you are the most suitable."

Li Jinglong suddenly felt a little regretful. He had agreed too early and should have waited a little longer.

Li Jinglong has been loved by Zhu Yuanzhang since he was a child, and he has always been favored by him. As for escorting Zhu Yuanzhang back to Fengyang, Li Jinglong also thinks it is his duty, and it is a good opportunity for him to pay homage to him.

But now there is Zhu Wenyao, which gives Li Jinglong a headache. There is no other reason, it is simply that Zhu Wenyao is too young and the identity of this child is too special.

Seeing Li Jinglong's embarrassment, Zhu Yunhuan laughed and said, "Only you can do this. I trust you, and you can have a say in my grandfather's eyes."

That is indeed the case. After all, Li Jinglong is also Zhu Yuanzhang’s nephew, and they are real relatives.

When Zhu Yuanzhang went to worship his ancestors, Li Jinglong followed him and kowtowed to them. No one could find fault with that.

Although he felt that the task was arduous, Li Jinglong had no choice but to take it on. He obviously had no room for shirking.

What's more, this task is not that difficult. It just requires more diligence and carefulness, and considering many things more thoughtfully. That's obviously enough.

However, Li Jinglong still spoke up, "Your Majesty, I think that Duke Wei's younger brother, Li Zengshou, is thoughtful and careful, so I'll let him accompany you."

Li Zengshou's meticulous mind was just a euphemism, and he still had to involve someone from the Xu family. This wasn't about avoiding suspicion or sharing risks, but if there was an opportunity to show goodwill, then he would do so.

After all, Xu Miaojin's position was stable, and Zhu Wenyao's position was even more stable. Even though Li Jinglong was the Duke of Cao, he had to consider some realistic things.

He had the trust of Zhu Lao and Zhu Yunhuan, but his descendants might not be able to gain such trust in the future.

The first generation is close relatives, the second generation is representatives, and Li Jinglong is already the third generation. In essence, the relationship between him and the Zhu family is becoming increasingly weak, and now they are more of a monarch and a minister.

But the Xu family was different. Xu Da was the first meritorious official, which made the Xu family and the title of Duke of Wei transcendent.

Now Xu Miaojin has become the empress again and has given birth to the emperor's eldest son. The Xu family will not be more noble in the future, but their status will undoubtedly be more stable. The title of Duke of Wei is basically destined to last forever with the country.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled and said, "That's true. Let him go back with us. The Xu family is also from Fengyang, so they can go back and offer sacrifices as well."

Xu Da was buried in Yingtian Prefecture and was also buried with Emperor Xiaoling, but the Xu family's ancestral tomb is in Fengyang. Because of Xu Da, his three generations of ancestors were posthumously named King of Zhongshan.

In fact, the Xu family has often sent people back to their hometown to worship their ancestors in recent years. Sometimes it is more convenient for these ministers to return to their hometown to worship their ancestors than for the royal family.

As for Zhu Lao and Zhu Yunhuan, they could only offer sacrifices in Fengxian Hall most of the time, and it became increasingly difficult for Zhu Yunhuan to go to Xiaoling Mausoleum.

Li Jinglong then asked, "Your Majesty, when the Emperor returns to the Imperial City, will he be escorted by the garrison commander or the twelve guards?"

The Twelve Guards were the emperor's imperial guards who were responsible for protecting the emperor and the palace during the Ming Dynasty. These soldiers were carefully selected and rigorously trained to be strong and skilled in martial arts.

These are the core combat power of the Beijing Army, and they are also the most loyal troops. The status of Fengyang garrison is also very transcendent. To be able to guard the army of the imperial city, don't they have to be confidants?

Just look at the current Five Military Commanderies and you will know that some trusted generals, even if they have not served as the chief officer of the Fengyang Liaison Office, have to go back from time to time to inspect.

Zhu Yunhuan replied without hesitation, "Send troops from the Twelve Guards to escort, and the garrison will welcome the emperor. You should discuss these matters with Duke Wei, and be careful about the escort along the way, and then report the matter to the emperor."

Li Jinglong didn't know what to say for a moment, because when the current emperor was the crown prince, he was used to throwing many things directly to the Hongwu Emperor to deal with.

It still seems to be the case now. When it comes to being lazy, there is no ambiguity at all.

Li Jinglong left in a hurry, because the task he had taken on was too heavy, and he had to be careful and meticulous, and there could not be any mistakes.

This is not a thankless task. It is because the emperor has absolute trust in us that he has entrusted us with this task. Even if other nobles want to take on this task, they can only stand by and watch.

After Li Jinglong left, Zhu Yunxun looked at Daoyan with a smile, "Why, do you think I should do something?"

The main thing is that Daoyan seems to be a thoughtful person. He habitually conducts a series of analyses on Zhu Yunhuan's every move, perhaps thinking that there is some deeper meaning behind it.

It wasn't just Daoyan. Some civil and military officials in the court were the same. They would indeed carefully analyze Zhu Yunhuan's every word and action, trying to figure out the emperor's thoughts.

Daoyan seems to be thinking too much now, mainly because Lao Zhu's identity is special and Zhu Wenyao's status is also special, which is bound to arouse people's imagination.

Daoyan did not hide his thoughts and said, "Your Majesty, isn't it a little unsafe for the emperor to return to the imperial city at this time?"

Zhu Yunhuan asked curiously, "Why is it not stable? Is it because I have just ascended the throne and still need the help of the emperor? Or is it that the Prince of Qin is in Fengyang now and he has extra thoughts?" Xia Yuanji next to him couldn't help shaking his head. He and Daoyan had a good relationship, but it was more about official business. The two of them didn't have much personal relationship because they could not talk to each other at all.

They got along well in official business, mostly because each of them was in charge of their own affairs. Xia Yuanji only needed to take care of financial matters, while Daoyan seemed to be a counselor who was involved in everything.

Looking at what His Majesty said, perhaps this is why Daoyan thinks it is not very "safe". This monk just likes to think too much.

Daoyan immediately said, "Your Majesty inherits the throne. This is what the people of the world wish for."

Just listen to this kind of flattery and don't take it too seriously.

However, Zhu Yunhuan also felt that there was indeed no obstacle to his ascension to the throne. The main reason was that Zhu Yuanzhang had appointed a crown prince very early on. Everything was reasonable and no one could find any problems.

Daoyan, who was teased by Zhu Yunhuan, didn't care and just said, "Your Majesty, I think there will be some criticism in the court if the emperor returns to the imperial hometown at this time."

The reason for saying this is naturally because Zhu Yuanzhang had just abdicated and was in a hurry to return home to wait. People who are not in the know might think that he was angry with Emperor Chengkang.

Daoyan also continued, "His Royal Highness the eldest prince is still young, and returning to his hometown to offer sacrifices at this moment will inevitably cause people to think too much."

This is also the truth. Originally, Zhu Wenyao was taken care of by Old Zhu. This has already made many civil and military officials think too much and feel that there is no need to doubt the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty.

According to some previous rules of succession to the throne, including the rules for enthroning members of the royal family as kings, one had to wait until the age of ten before being officially enthroned.

"Returning home means forcing me to appoint a crown prince?" Zhu Yunxun laughed, "Wen Yao is my eldest son, and he is a member of the Zhu family. It is only natural for him to go back and worship his ancestors now. How can there be so many people sitting around thinking about this?"

Daoyan felt that he was not the only one willing to think about things. It was very likely that there would be more people willing to think about things, and even more people.

But now it seems that there really is not much that can be done, because the emperor is just changing the topic as a joke, and what the emperor said makes sense enough.

Therefore, as long as Zhu Yunhuan did not issue the imperial edict, some people's wild guesses would just be wild guesses, and others obviously did not need to think too much about it.

After looking at Daoyan, Zhu Yunhuan felt a little helpless.

Daoyan's ability is beyond doubt, but he is too cunning. He is a counselor who is more keen on imperial power. When it comes to some matters in governing the world, Daoyan is not that enthusiastic.

There is nothing that can be done about it. After all, everyone has their own expertise. Daoyan learned the art of slaying dragons, not becoming a prime minister who governs the country and keeps the people safe.

However, Zhu Yunhuan obviously did not care too much. Having someone like Daoyan by his side was indeed very useful. For controlling the court, he was one of the best advisers.

After chatting with Daoyan for a while, Zhu Yunhu continued to concentrate on reviewing memorials. There were still a lot of state affairs to deal with, which naturally had to be dealt with in a timely manner.

Zhang Fusheng tiptoed to Zhu Yunhuan and said, "Your Majesty, Duke Wei wants to see you."

Zhu Yunhuan immediately became happy, "This is really urgent, coming here so quickly."

Xu Huizu was naturally a little nervous, and he was indeed very concerned. He was the Duke of Wei, and he was indeed thinking about maintaining the imperial power. But his nephew was the eldest son of the emperor, and was recognized as the future crown prince.

After Xu Huizu entered the palace, he said, "Your Majesty, I have a report."

"Duke Cao is looking for you, and you are a little anxious?" Zhu Yunhuan directly refused to be polite and asked, "Do you think it is not appropriate to let Wen Yao return home?"

Xu Huizu did not hide his thoughts. "I dare not say much about your Majesty's family affairs. But your Highness the eldest prince is still young and traveling hundreds of miles away. I am worried."

"The emperor is going back to his hometown, but Wen Yao is not going with him. Do you think I can take care of Wen Yao, or Miao Jin can take good care of him?" Zhu Yunhuan asked directly, "Wen Yao only recognizes his great-grandfather. Don't you know this?"

Xu Huizu was speechless, because there were some things he knew clearly. Sometimes he felt very proud and excited, but sometimes he was also worried.

Zhu Wenyao was taken care of personally by Zhu the Great. This was naturally known to everyone in the court and the country. It also basically announced that there was no suspense about the choice of the crown prince, and it could only be Zhu Wenyao.

But the child was too young, and Zhu Yunhuan was young and strong, so deciding on a crown prince so early sometimes made people think too much.

After all, to be realistic, there are few emperors in history who are completely defenseless against the crown prince. Appointing a crown prince too early might make some court officials think about supporting the crown prince, making the emperor suspicious.

Xu Huizu quickly replied, "Your Majesty, I am just worried that the eldest prince is young and the emperor is old, and they will be tired from the long journey."

Old Zhu took Zhu Wenyao back to his hometown. This meant that the previous emperor was taking the next emperor back to worship his ancestors. Who wouldn't be sensitive at this time?
And these two old people and the young one naturally make people feel a little worried.

Zhu Wenyao is less than two years old. Although Old Zhu is in good health, he is seventy-one years old, which of course makes people worried.

Therefore, Xu Huizu's concerns seem to be very normal. This is even the view of many civil and military officials. It is really difficult for people to be completely reassured by the combination of this old and young.

Any one of these two is extremely important to the Ming Dynasty's court and to the Ming Dynasty's country and people. They are key figures who influence the future of the Ming Dynasty, and there can't be any mistakes.

Therefore, it is not so easy for Zhu Yuanzhang to return home. He cannot just leave as he pleases. He may encounter considerable resistance in the court.

Especially with Zhu Wenyao along, it goes without saying that the resistance will be even greater.

Didn't Xu Huizu come to give advice? He was usually respectful and humble. After Xu Miaojing married into the royal family, he was even more cautious in his words and actions, and almost never refuted Zhu Yunhuan's wishes.

Xu Huizu’s concerns are completely understandable and this is a very normal thing.

However, it is obvious that there is no room for negotiation on the matter of Lao Zhu's plan to return home.

This is Zhu Yunhuan's decision, and this is also Old Zhu's decision, it's that simple! (End of this chapter)