Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 830 Settlement
Qianqing Palace.

All the outsiders have been sent away, only our family members are here.

In addition to the brothers Zhu Shenzhu, Xu Jingqiu, Zhu Minlan and Zhu Mincheng, there was also sister-in-law Zhang. Even Xu Xiancheng, Wang Jinwu, Zhou Anmin and others were not there. However, Zhu Shenzhu specially brought his sister Zhu Xiuer to the palace to keep them company.

Since they were not outsiders, there were naturally not so many restraints. Besides, except for Zhu Xiu'er, Zhu Shenzhui had not seen his family for a long time. Now that they finally came to the capital, Zhu Shenzhui was happy and finally put down a worry.

The Ming imperial family did not have as many rules as the Qing. It was not like the Qing where sons had to kowtow to their fathers and think carefully before speaking. The reason why the Qing had so many rules was that it was founded as a tribe of barbarians, and it did not have a deep foundation. After entering the Central Plains, the "poor suddenly rich" deliberately made a set of complicated rules to reflect the majesty of the royal family in order not to be laughed at.

But it was not like that in the Ming Dynasty. There were rules in the Ming Dynasty harem, but they were far less complicated and strict than those in the Qing Dynasty. In particular, the relationship between father and son, and husband and wife was usually very casual. Not many people called the emperor father. Most princes just called him dad or father. Even the emperor did not call himself "Zhen" in front of his family, but only "I".

When they first entered the palace, everything was so new and curious to Zhu Minlan and his brother. The eldest brother could still hold back, but the always jumpy second brother could not be a good boy when there were no outsiders. He ran to the incense burner and looked at it for a long time, then picked up the jade ruyi on the desk and played with it, and then he saw the exquisite porcelain on the shelf in the hall, took it down and looked at it over and over again.

"Dad, why are there so many good things in the palace? Can you give this to your son?" Zhu Mincheng ran to Zhu Shenzhui and asked, holding an exquisite bamboo-carved incense stick in his hand.

"Cheng'er!" Without waiting for Zhu Shenzhui to reply, Xu Jingqiu scolded him with a stern face. Zhu Mincheng was not afraid of anything except his mother. Seeing his mother's unhappy expression, he was at a loss for what to do.

"Don't scare him." Zhu Shenzhui said to Xu Jingqiu, then hugged his youngest son and asked with a smile: "What do you want this thing for?"

"My son thinks this thing is suitable for storing needles and thread. Mother often does needlework for my son and brother at home. The sewing box that mother uses is a bit old. This tube is of the right size and is convenient to hold. My son wants to replace my old box with this tube so that it will be more convenient for mother to use in the future." Zhu Mincheng explained with a blink of his eyes. It would have been better if he hadn't said it. As soon as he explained this, Zhu Shenzhui burst into laughter, and even Zhu Xiu'er covered her mouth with her hands to laugh. Zhang and Xu Jingqiu also smiled, and Zhu Minlan secretly gave his clever brother a thumbs up. It's not known whether this kid's words are true or not, but the reason he found is very legitimate.

"Okay! It's rare that my son is so filial, so I'll give this to you." Zhu Shenzhui agreed happily.

"Thank you, Dad." Zhu Mincheng was very happy. He thanked him quickly with a sweet mouth. He happily held the tube in his hand and continued to play with it without letting it go.

Holding his youngest son in his arms and letting him play with the toy, Zhu Shenzhui said to Zhang: "Sister-in-law will live in Cining Palace from now on. I have had people prepare this palace. It is large enough and not far from the Queen's Kunning Palace. It is very convenient for daily movement."

After entering the palace, Zhang was always nervous and felt very anxious. As an ordinary woman, she had never seen such a scene before. Especially after arriving at the majestic imperial palace, she was shocked by everything around her and almost couldn't walk.

Now Zhang's mind is still in a mess. When Zhu Shenzhui was talking about the arrangements for her, Zhang had no idea how to answer. As for what the Cining Palace was, she never knew, let alone where the Queen's Kunning Palace was.

Just when she didn't know how to answer, Xu Jingqiu beside her held her hand, gave her a firm look, and said with a smile: "Sister-in-law, you are not an outsider, you deserve to live in the Cining Palace. Live there first, and we'll talk about it later. There is no difference between the palace and home, it's just bigger. You will get used to it after living there for a while."

"Sister-in-law, please live here with peace of mind. I will visit you more often. Although we are in the palace, it is convenient to travel back and forth. Don't worry." Xu Jingqiu had lived with Zhang for so many years and of course knew Zhang's character. Fearing that she would not agree, he quickly persuaded her again.

"Then... I... will live here first?" Zhang said hesitantly.

Zhu Shenzhui smiled and nodded, saying, "Stay here! Just live there with peace of mind. When you feel bored, you can go to Kunning Palace for a walk, or go to the back garden of Cining Palace to play. The scenery there is quite nice. If you really can't get used to living here, we can talk about it when the time comes." Since Zhu Shenzhui had made such arrangements, and Zhu Xiu'er and Xu Jingqiu also advised her so, Zhang accepted it without thinking.

However, Zhang did not know that the Cining Palace was actually the residence of the Empress Dowager. Logically, the Cining Palace should be inhabited by Zhu Shenzhui's mother, but Zhu Shenzhui's mother had passed away long ago. Zhang, as Zhang's wife, had made great contributions to the Zhu family. If it were not for Zhang who supported the family after the death of Zhu Shenzhui's father and brother, how could Zhu Shenzhu be where he is today?

Zhu Shenzhui had very complicated feelings towards Zhang. She was not only his elder sister-in-law and elder sister, but also half his mother. If Zhang was not qualified to live in the Cining Palace, then who else in the world could live there?
At the beginning, Zhu Shenzhu released Li Kangfei, the concubine of Emperor Taichang, from the harem and honored her as the Queen Mother. However, when he arranged for Li Kangfei to live in the palace, he did not arrange for her to live in the Cining Palace, but in the Renshou Palace. Empress Li Yan of Emperor Tianqi is currently being accommodated in the Qingning Palace. These palaces are all residences for the harem's elderly, but they are one level lower than the Cining Palace.

From this, we can see how high Zhang's status is in Zhu Shenzhu's heart. Neither Zhu Xiu'er nor Xu Jingqiu had any objection to this arrangement for Zhang. In their opinion, Zhang was fully worthy of living in the Cining Palace. If it weren't for Zhang, their Zhu family might have disbanded long ago and would not have been where they are today.

Not only did Zhu Shenzhu arrange for Zhang to live in the Cining Palace, he also wanted to confer a title on her.

Zhu Shenzhui had been prepared for this. After the coronation ceremony was completed and he became the real emperor, he would first enthrone the empress. Naturally, there would be no one else for the position of empress, and Xu Jingqiu was the only candidate.

After Xu Jingqiu became the queen, the next step was to enthrone the crown prince and the princes. Zhu Shenzhui currently had four sons, two born to Tana in Mongolia, and the other two were Zhu Minlan and Zhu Mincheng, born to Xu Jingqiu.

The former is not convenient to be canonized, but the latter is very necessary. The eldest son Zhu Minlan is definitely the crown prince, and the second son Zhu Mincheng is naturally the prince. In addition to them, the elder sister Zhu Xiuer will also be canonized as the eldest princess. These are all blood relatives of his, and they must be arranged first.

In addition, his father-in-law was naturally not left out. According to previous conventions, royal relatives were directly granted the title of earl. However, now that the title of nobility was about to be reformed, and Zhu Shenzhui wanted to change the noble system, it would be inappropriate to grant the title of earl according to previous conventions. Moreover, in the future, royal relatives would be granted temporary titles, not hereditary titles. Therefore, he could only let his father-in-law down and give him the title of lord.

Apart from his father-in-law, Zhu Shenzhu actually wanted to confer a title on his uncle Wang Rong the most. When he was the regent, Zhu Shenzhu wanted to confer a title on Wang Rong, but was directly rejected by Wang Rong. According to Wang Rong, Wang Jinwu had already been given a title, and it was not appropriate for the Wang family to have two earls. Moreover, if one family had two earls, it would attract criticism, which was not a good thing. At his age, it didn't matter whether he had a title or not. Even if he was the commander-in-chief, he would not be able to work for a few years. When the world was at peace, he would resign and return to his hometown to retire. What was the meaning of this title to him?

Zhu Shencui had no choice but to give up the idea. However, although Wang Rong would not be given a title, Wang Jinwu must be promoted. Wang Jinwu was currently the Earl of Ningshan, and after being promoted he would be the Marquis of Ningshan. Zhu Shencui also planned to give him a first-class marquis title directly as compensation.

As for the others, they would naturally be rewarded according to their merits and given titles. Of course, these titles would be of different levels. Except for Wang Jinwu who was a marquis, the highest title for the others was only an earl. In addition, there would be several viscounts and barons. These were all his old colleagues, so naturally he would not treat them unfairly.

There are also some generals who have made meritorious services in the army, and their titles will be awarded one after another. This is necessary. The army must be controlled in one's own hands, and one cannot be stingy when winning over these generals and bestowing them with titles and rewards. There is no need to test people's hearts. Only tangible benefits can make people truly loyal.

Excluding these people, Zhou Anmin would give him the title of second-class earl. After all, he was his brother-in-law and the commander-in-chief of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and his sister was the eldest princess. It was no problem for Zhou Anmin to grant him the title of second-class earl. Moreover, from before he started the rebellion to now, Zhou Anmin had helped Zhu Shenzhu a lot, and this contribution was real.

As for Xu Xiancheng's title, Zhu Shenzhu had discussed it with him privately before, but Xu Xiancheng finally rejected the idea of ​​title. According to Xu Xiancheng, although he was a relative of the emperor, he was a civil official, and his current position in the court was very important. If he was titled, he would directly become a noble from a civil official, which would not only affect his career, but also make him unable to continue to hold his current position.

Moreover, Xu Xiancheng had always wanted to be a famous official rather than a nobleman. He did not want to be granted a title. What he pursued was to help the emperor govern the country, make the country strong, and ensure peace and prosperity for the people. Therefore, he directly rejected Zhu Shenzui's kindness and continued to be a civil servant to realize his ambitions.

The Wenhua Hall where Zhu Shenzhu lived before was originally the East Palace. After he moved to the Qianqing Palace, the Wenhua Hall became vacant. After he ascended the throne and the crown prince was canonized, the Wenhua Hall would become Zhu Minlan's residence. Zhu Mincheng should also be relocated to a place in the East Six Palaces. However, considering that Zhu Mincheng is still young, Zhu Shenzhu thought it was not necessary to go through so much trouble and just live in the Queen's Kunning Palace first, and it would not be too late to make arrangements after a few years.

(End of this chapter)