Jiajing Chengming

"how to say?"

Zhu Houcong put his hands behind his back, looked at the horse-drawn train that had stopped in front of him, and walked towards this side.

Zhang Cong followed and replied: "Because if such a car is really promoted, it will be a great help to transportation!"

"Whether it's the imperial court exercising power and deploying troops, or trade and relief, it can bring great convenience!"

"At the same time, it will be even more difficult for the wealthy to monopolize one side!"

"This way, it will be even more difficult for those who intend to deceive the crown prince to deceive him. Even if the crown prince himself is persuaded by those with ulterior motives and insists on returning the world to its previous state, it will not be possible to go back."

"The crown prince can only follow the general trend and do things for the public good, but it will be difficult for him to truly make the world his own!"

Zhu Houcong understood what Zhang Cong meant.

The emergence of four-wheeled carriages and horse-drawn trains simply meant the emergence of a new mode of production.

This new mode of production will greatly promote productivity, and at the same time greatly enhance the court's control over the local areas.

Therefore, no matter whether the prince becomes a conservative passively or actively, it is impossible for the Ming Dynasty to return to the conservative state of defending the interior and weakening the exterior in the future.

The direction of the Ming Dynasty will undergo a huge change as a result, and no matter what the prince's personal political views are, they will not be able to prevent this change.

Even if the prince becomes emperor in the future, he can only obey this change.

Otherwise, the prince's fate would be the same as that of the previous emperor Zhu Houcong, and his personal destiny would become tragic because of forcibly changing the status quo.

Zhu Houcong therefore admitted that he had indeed worried too much before and should not have cared about what the prince would be like in the future.

But now, the Conservative Party is still very powerful.

After all, the landlord class itself tends to be conservative.

Therefore, as a father, for the sake of the prince's safety, Zhu Houcong said at this time: "Then let's establish a prince, and select a Confucian official with both good character and learning as the East Palace Master!"

then.

Zhu Houcong said: "But the other princes cannot be prevented from studying. We should restore the ancestral system and set up a big hall in the palace to let the princes study together. One is teaching, and the other is teaching."

Zhang Cong and others bowed and agreed.

So, next, Zhang Cong, Gui E and Xia Yan each asked their people to submit a petition to establish a crown prince.

Zhu Houcong naturally approved his request.

Lu Shen, the chief priest of the Imperial Academy, was very happy about this, and he said to the new Minister of Rites Li Shi: "I didn't expect that Your Majesty would be so willing to accept the suggestion of appointing a crown prince."

"Yes."

Li Shi nodded and frowned, saying, "Logically, a strong emperor like Your Majesty who is unwilling to give up power to others would not be willing to appoint a crown prince."

"Although Your Majesty advocates sole rule, he is ultimately a wise ruler. I think he knows that if he doesn't appoint a crown prince, people will criticize him, so he still follows the will of the people and appoints a crown prince."

Lu Shen said.

Li Shi continued to nod, but still frowned. He looked at Lu Shen who was sitting opposite him and said, "But I still think that His Majesty did this because he has a kind of confidence! A kind of confidence that makes people wonder where it comes from!"

Lu Shen stood up at this time, waved his hand and said, "Why think too much? Regardless of whether His Majesty is confident that establishing a crown prince will not affect his imperial power and major policies, at least the establishment of a crown prince gives us hope of rectifying the court! Because the candidates for the East Palace Master can only be clean officials from the Hanlin Academy, the Zhanshi Mansion, and the Imperial College, so we can influence the future court by influencing the crown prince."

"Among all the upright officials in the court, the one who can be truly said to be knowledgeable is naturally the lecturer of the imperial lectures."

"In addition, Zhai Luan is also likely to become the master of the East Palace."

"At that time, it will really depend on whether you can make the prince truly become the wise and virtuous crown prince that the whole country is looking forward to."

Li Shi also said with a smile at this time.

Lu Shen therefore promised solemnly, "If I were the master of the Eastern Palace, I would do my best to make the Eastern Palace a crown prince who loves the people like his own children, observes etiquette and is benevolent, and does not make the people of the world feel uneasy about Your Majesty for thousands of years to come."

As Li Shi expected, Lu Shen and Hanlin Academy President Zhai Luan and others became the teachers of the Eastern Palace. After being appointed as the crown prince, the eldest son Zhu Zaigui, together with the second son Zhu Zaiyi and the third son Zhu Zaiyi, went to the newly established main hall of Wenhua Palace on the twelfth day of the eleventh month of the Jiajing reign to meet Lu Shen, Zhai Luan and other teachers.

On this day, the sky was covered with leaden clouds and it seemed like it was going to snow.

But because it was their first time to go out to study, the three princes still braved the severe cold and came to the main hall.

After Lu Shen and Zhai Luan paid their respects to the three princes, Lu Shen first asked the crown prince Zhu Zaigui: "I wonder what books your highness is being taught by the eunuchs to read now?"

Zhu Zaigui returned the greeting and said, "I have read the Annotated Four Books and the Introduction to Mathematics."

Lu Shen couldn't help but frown after hearing this.

He was not dissatisfied because Zhu Zaigui had only read "Collected Annotations of the Four Books" once, but because he heard the prince say that he had also read "Introduction to Mathematics".

He knew that the so-called "Introduction to Mathematics" was an introductory mathematics textbook compiled by the inner library at the request of the emperor, and was originally intended for the orphans raised by the emperor in the Xingming Academy.

But Lu Shen didn't expect that the emperor would teach this to his eldest son.

"Your Highness, as the crown prince of the country, you should only focus on studying the classics and understanding the great principles of the sages. You don't need to dabble in miscellaneous studies, so as to avoid losing sight of the main point and pursuing the trivial."

Lu Shen bowed his head and gave a word of advice.

Zhu Zaigui was less than ten years old, his worldview was not yet established, and he did not know much about human nature. After listening to Lu Shen, the legendary Confucian master who was admired by many students in the Imperial College, he naturally had no intention of questioning and nodded his head and replied, "I will follow what the master says."

"Now, Your Highness, please come out and read the Great Learning. I want to know how Your Highness is doing in his studies."

Lu Shen bowed again and said something at this time.

Zhu Zaiqi glanced outside the palace and saw that the snow was falling heavily and fast, like sharp ice blades, slicing through the sky and piercing the earth. The cold wind whistled through the cracks in the palace wall, hitting the window panes with a crackling sound, and he was quite hesitant.

Seeing this, Zhai Luan couldn't help but say to Lu Shen, "It's snowing outside, and it's freezing cold. Your Highness is a precious person, so it's not appropriate for you to go outside to study. You should study indoors."

Lu Shen said: "The saints said that when God wants to give a man a great responsibility, he must first make his heart and mind suffer, his muscles and bones tired, and his body hungry. Your Highness is the crown prince, so you should be able to endure things that ordinary people cannot endure and endure hardships that ordinary people cannot endure. Only then can you understand the true meaning of the saints' teachings! Therefore, if you want your Highness to study the classics, you must go outside the palace! It is precisely because it is cold outside that your Highness can temper his determination to study!"

When Lu Shen said this, he bowed to Zhu Zaigui again and said, "Your Highness, please move outside the hall and read!"

Zhu Zaigui was still a little hesitant and opened his mouth to speak.

But at this time, the cold wind outside was getting stronger and stronger, and suddenly it blew open the window, as if countless ice blades poured in, cutting people's faces painfully.

Even Lu Shen himself had to stand closer to the stove, and at the same time he shouted to Zhu Zaigui more sternly: "Your Highness, please move! Don't be lazy and afraid of hardship, and set an example for students all over the world!"

Zhu Zaigui couldn't help but shiver.

Zhu Zaihong stood up and questioned Lu Shen: "Why are you so fierce?"

"Shall we go too?"

The third prince Zhu Zaihe asked at this time.

Lu Shen glanced coldly at the second prince, then replied to the third prince: "You are not the crown prince, you don't need to set an example for the world, you don't have to go!"

Zhu Zaigui gritted his teeth and walked out of the hall. Then, he stood in the sea of ​​snow outside the hall and began to read "The Great Learning" in a trembling voice.

"The Way of the University..."

Lu Shen shouted again: "Your Highness, please speak louder!"

Zhu Zaigui shuddered, and then had to raise his voice.

At this moment, Zhai Luan couldn't help but turn around and ask Lu Shen: "Is it necessary to be so strict? After all, Your Highness is our crown prince!"

"If not, how can one cultivate the spirit of a saint?"

Lu Shen replied calmly. (End of this chapter)