My father Yongle, building a five-good family

Chapter 94: Prince of Dinghai
Yingtian.

The vermilion palace walls are so deep and deep that the tender green weeping willows at the spring banquet are now covered in silver under the falling winter snow, just like a girl in the boudoir with lowered brows and eyes in a painting of ladies.

As night fell, the palace was silent.

But the sound of hurried horse hooves broke the peaceful atmosphere.

"Your Majesty, there is an urgent letter from Datong that has traveled eight hundred miles."

In the Qianqing Palace.

Even in the middle of the night, the lights were still on.

When Old Zhu heard Jiang Li's voice outside, he frowned unconsciously, and seemed to have thought of something. His brows relaxed slightly, and he raised his eyes and winked at a servant beside him.

The palace door slowly opened.

A biting chill came over me.

Zhu Yuanzhang didn't care about all this. He picked up the letter and read it line by line, trying not to miss a single word.

Because it was an express letter sent over 800 miles, the sentences were concise but did not miss any information, making the language appear simple and solid.

Zhu Yuanzhang knew at a glance that this document had been reviewed by the Chief Secretary of the Prince of Yan's Palace before being submitted.

The content of the letter seems simple at first glance, but it only mentions two things - cement and concrete.

But when Zhu Yuanzhang read the functions of the two, his veined hands suddenly exerted force and his eyes suddenly became sharp.

He didn’t ask any nonsense about whether the role of cement and concrete was real.

As the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang had a strong desire for control. The Jinyiwei, as his henchmen, were naturally firmly under his control, like a useful blade.

This letter, which was sent urgently from eight hundred miles away and was delivered to the palace walls by the Embroidered Uniform Guards who traveled day and night, was naturally not fake.

But...if that's the case, then things would obviously get serious.

"Fuck-"

Zhu Yuanzhang stood up suddenly and pulled open the dragon throne behind him with a sharp sound.

But he couldn't care too much at the moment. He held the letter in one hand and put the other hand behind his back, pacing back and forth in the empty hall.

When Jiang Lin saw this scene, his pupils shrank slightly, and he thought of the sound of cement and concrete he heard when he first arrived.

Seeing Zhu Yuanzhang's performance at this moment, Jiang Lin suddenly realized that perhaps these two things... are more important than he thought.

Zhu Yuanzhang paced back and forth for a while, then took out the letter again, read it carefully, and relaxed his brows slightly:

"Jiang Yu."

Jiang Li lowered his head and said in a deep voice: "I am here."

"Were cement and concrete really invented by Zhu Gaoyu?"

Jiang Li's mind was racing, and for a moment he had no idea what Zhu Yuanzhang meant by asking this question.

But on the surface, he still answered honestly:

"Your Majesty, according to the intelligence from the Royal Guards, it is roughly true."

"approximately?"

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned again.

Jiang Li did not dare to delay and recounted every detail of what had happened in Datong in the past few days.

When Zhu Yuanzhang heard that Zhu Gaoyu had just come up with an idea for fun, and in the end, by accident, he actually produced a decent cement product, even with Zhu's knowledge, he couldn't help but be silent.

He was somewhat amused and said in an ambiguous tone:
"This kid from the fourth family is indeed a blessed one."

"Although this cement is just his playful work, it will benefit the Ming Dynasty for generations to come. If we just treat him as a child and reward him arbitrarily, it would be unreasonable..."

Zhu Yuanzhang came to the table again at some point.

The tea on the table had already gone cold, but he seemed unaware of it. He picked up the teacup and took a sip. It was not until a cool feeling flowed down his throat into his stomach that Zhu Yuanzhang seemed to wake up from his thoughts.

"He must be conferred a title. But he is still young. If he is conferred a title of prince... I am afraid..."

Zhu Yuanzhang's words were halfway through his speech, but the words were swallowed up in his mouth and he ultimately did not utter them out loud.

However, beads of sweat were already oozing out of Jiang Li's forehead, and he almost lowered his head and buried it in his arms, looking as if he wanted to cover his ears.

As the most useful knife among his subordinates, how could Jiang Lin not know what Zhu Yuanzhang had left unfinished?

During this period of time, the Crown Prince always seemed to be concerned about his cousins ​​and uncles.

Including the last time when he was taking care of the emperor, Zhu Yunwen deliberately made his uncles kneel outside. Although Zhu Yunwen didn't say anything at the time, he always felt uncomfortable.

Zhu Yuanzhang was partial to the former crown prince, and as a result, he was also partial to Zhu Yunwen. He even went against the majority opinion and made Zhu Yunwen the crown prince when the crown prince passed away.

But this does not mean that Mr. Zhu does not love his other sons.

Yes.

Even five fingers have different lengths.

Partiality is inevitable.

But there is one more thing.

That means the palms and backs of your hands are all made of flesh.

Seeing that Zhu Yunwen was so hostile to his uncles, Zhu felt very uncomfortable.

It was clear in his plan that these vassal kings were there to guard the borders and resist foreign enemies.

It is also a means to protect the capital and consolidate the central government's rule.

But now... after what happened before, Lao Zhu couldn't help but feel a doubt in his heart.

Yunwen...will he really proceed step by step as he envisioned?

By the end of the 29th year of the Hongwu reign, Zhu Yuanzhang often felt exhausted when he was working on paperwork in the middle of the night.

Now at the age of sixty-nine, he clearly feels that his health is not as good as before.

Perhaps it was because he had grown old and no longer had the ambition, energy and courage he had in his youth, so Zhu Yuanzhang did not dare, nor was he willing to change his ways.

That night.

Zhu Yuanzhang put his hands in his sleeves, walked to the window, and watched the snow fluttering down his head. Jiang Li looked up quietly, and for a moment, he was dazzled. He could not tell whether the white on Zhu Yuanzhang's head was snow on his hair or white hair covering his temples.

a long time.

A sigh came from the palace:
"Zhu Gaoyu, son of my Prince of Yan, is a member of the royal family and has inherited the emperor's grace. He is now five years old. He has made great contributions to the country by inventing cement and concrete, and his virtue is a great help to the country."

"Hereby conferring upon Zhu Gaoyu the title of Prince of Dinghai, granting him a gilded silver book, a silver seal, an annual salary of 2,000 dan, and the fief of Dinghai County. I hope he will respect the heavens and follow his ancestors, be loyal to the emperor and love the people, and forever protect the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty."

Prince?

The title is still Prince Dinghai?

When Jiang Lin heard the imperial edict, his heart skipped a beat. For a moment, he was unsure of Zhu Yuanzhang's inner thoughts.

Jiang Li had already anticipated that he would not be conferred the title of prince.

Conferring the title of prince too early would, if nothing else, only make Zhu Gaoyu the target of public criticism too early.

It’s okay now that Zhu Yuanzhang is here, but let me say something disrespectful...what if Your Majesty passes away one day?
But this title is much more interesting.

Dinghai... This title sounds quite impressive at first glance.

However, Zhu Gaoyu's fiefdom happened to be Dinghai County of Ningbo. Some ordinary princes only enjoyed the title but had no fiefdom.

Zhu Gaoyu not only had it, but also a wealthy place like Ningbo, and it was the entire Dinghai County, not just a small area divided out from the county.

However, Ningbo, as a coastal port, is the closest port to the Japanese landing, and is also one of the areas most frequently invaded by Japanese pirates.

Dinghai County...

Ningbo...

Prince Dinghai...

What is the deep meaning behind this?

Jiang Li thought silently.

……

"Prince Dinghai..."

Zhu Yunwen had just woken up when he heard about this "big event". His good mood of the past few days was finally destroyed at this moment.

Oh, Grandpa Emperor, am I not your favorite grandson?

Obviously I am the crown prince.

But why...

In the Ming Dynasty, royal family members had to be at least ten years old to be granted a title, which was considered a relatively good situation.

Some unlucky guys, such as Zhu Gaosui, have never been granted the title of a prince even at his current age!

But that's exactly what happened. Zhu Gaoyu was only five years old, but he was conferred the title of Prince by his grandfather the Emperor.

Zhu Yunwen only felt that there was a breath of depression in his chest, which could not be released. It was stuck in his throat and difficult to vent.

Cement...concrete...

Is it really possible for a child to make something like this?
Zhu Yunwen didn't care whether others believed it or not.

But what he cared about was that the Emperor actually believed it without even a shred of doubt!

Is his preference for Zhu Gaoyu really that obvious? !

Prince Dinghai...

what!
Break through the stormy waves and calm the sea, and dare to make the sea calm and peaceful...

Grandfather Emperor, is this what you expect from Zhu Gaoyu?
What about Zhu Yunwen?

What does it matter?
To the north, Prince Ning and Prince Yan are stationed at the border, and local officials are ruled by uncles and vassal kings. Now, the emperor wants Zhu Gaoyu to quell the maritime threat.

What about him?
what does he do
There seemed to be emotions swirling in Zhu Yunwen's dark eyes.

The maids and eunuchs beside them all lowered their heads, closed their eyes and kept their mouths shut, not daring to say anything more.

It was because at some unknown time, a crack had appeared on the porcelain cup in Zhu Yunwen's hand.

tick.

There was a hint of blood in the air.

Zhu Yunwen lowered his head in a daze, spread out his palms, and belatedly felt a tingling sensation.

I didn't know when a gap suddenly appeared on the palm of my hand.

Bloody.

The gap is deep.

Even if it heals, it seems to leave a scar.

……

Let’s not talk about Zhu Yunwen’s complicated feelings for now.

Yingtian is right at the foot of the imperial city.

There are no secrets here.

In just one day, the decree of Prince Dinghai floated into every household like snowflakes.

Among them, there is undoubtedly Xu Miaoyun's family who stayed in Yingtian.

Upon hearing that the old man had made his son a prince, Xu Miaoyun heaved a sigh of relief at first, but before she could relax for long, her expression became solemn again.

However, Zhu Gaochi and his brothers were actually happy for their younger brother.

Zhu Gaosui felt a little sad, but after thinking about it, he felt that his younger brother becoming a prince... seemed to be a good thing.

Now, his eldest brother is the Prince of Yan, his second brother is the Prince of Gaoyang, and his youngest brother is the Prince of Dinghai...

From now on, Zhu Gaosui could walk sideways in Yingtian!
Who else!
It could scare Zhu Gaosui!
Hahahaha!

See you tomorrow, my dears!


(End of this chapter)