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

Chapter 836 What is an Emperor?
Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Shencui waited quietly, not knowing how long had passed. As he heard soft footsteps outside, Du Xun reported that the prince had arrived. Zhu Shencui then came to his senses and let the prince in.

"Dad, I'm back." Zhu Minlan walked into the side hall and bowed to his father Zhu Shenzui.

"Have you sent away your aunt Tana and elder brother?" Zhu Shenzhui asked.

"They have already left. My son and brother Cheng personally saw them off through the city gate and watched them leave. Don't worry, Dad. They will be escorted by the Royal Guards. Uncle Jin Wu has also made arrangements. A letter has already been sent to my brother-in-law. He will meet them outside the Great Wall when the time comes. There will be no problem."

Although Zhu Minlan is young, he is very steady in his work. Zhu Shenzhui specifically gave this matter to him to arrange, and he didn't expect that he could arrange it so perfectly.

Zhu Shenzhui nodded with satisfaction, a smile on his face, and waved to Zhu Minlan, patting the seat beside him and said, "Come and sit down. You've worked hard for half a day."

Zhu Minlan thanked him and sat down next to Zhu Shencui. Zhu Shencui glanced at the expression on the prince's face and saw that he was a little melancholy, so he immediately asked him if it was because of Tengger and the others' departure.

Zhu Minlan nodded and said, "Dad, can't Aunt Tana and my brothers and sisters stay in the capital? Why do they have to go back?"

"What do you think?" Zhu Shenzhui asked back.

Zhu Minlan was stunned, and after thinking for a while, he asked, "Is it because of Tumed? Big brother is now the leader of Tumed, and he is also the Shunyi King of Ming Dynasty and Jurhan of Mongolia. With big brother in Tumed, the northern border troops of Ming Dynasty will be safe. Tumed is the barrier of Ming Dynasty in the north, and there will be no more war between Ming Dynasty and Mongolia. That's why Dad wants big brother to be in charge of Tumed."

"Haha, you see it very clearly." Zhu Shenzhui smiled slightly. His son was very smart and pointed out the key point in one sentence.

That's right, Zhu Shenzhui had just ascended the throne as emperor, and the stability of the Ming Dynasty was of utmost importance. Moreover, although the internal threat of bandits had been quelled and large groups of bandits had been completely dealt with, it would only be a matter of time before the remaining small or minor groups of bandits were completely wiped out, and they were no longer a threat.

But the Ming Dynasty still had an important enemy outside, that is the Jiannu in Liaodong. Huang Taiji had been dealing with internal affairs these days and could not spare his hands to deal with the Ming Dynasty for the time being. In addition, Zhu Shenzhu secretly sent people to secretly hook up with some Jiannu nobles under the pretext of opening up sea trade. Private trade has steadily increased. This method is used to divide the Jiannu internally, but this method has not yet worked. When Huang Taiji stabilizes his regime, he will definitely turn around and think of ways to attack the Ming Dynasty. The war between the two sides is far from over.

Apart from the Jiannu, the internal problems of the Ming Dynasty were not small. Although Zhu Shenzhui had made many changes from top to bottom in recent years, he had not solved the fundamental problems of the Ming Dynasty. Many of the things he was doing now were just to alleviate the situation, or to treat the symptoms but not the root cause. There were still hidden dangers under the surface calm. If these problems were not solved from the root, the Ming Dynasty would still not be able to truly change.

There are a lot of class contradictions, land contradictions, economic contradictions, political structures, etc. Many of them have accumulated over the past two hundred years of the Ming Dynasty. In addition, because of the Little Glacier, the climate in the Ming Dynasty has been abnormal in recent years, and natural disasters have emerged one after another. Although the past two years have been much better than the early years of Chongzhen, there are still disasters in various provinces. Even though the northwestern provinces have reduced taxes and levies, people's lives are still very difficult. The amount of silver the court has to pay every year is not a small amount. It is still difficult to maintain it just by relying on profits from border trade and maritime trade plus taxes from various provinces.

Under such circumstances, the stability of the Nine Borders is extremely important. Once a war breaks out in the Nine Borders other than Liaodong, the Ming Dynasty, which has just recovered, will be dragged down by the war. The huge war military expenditure and food expenditure are difficult for the Ming Dynasty to support. Once the Ming Dynasty is caught in a two-front war, it will inevitably collapse if the financial support can no longer be maintained.

Therefore, Tumed Grassland is the top priority of the Ming Dynasty. Only when Tumed is stable, the nine borders of the Ming Dynasty can be stable. Moreover, Tumed is now in the hands of Tana and her son, especially in the hands of Tengger who is about to take real power. Tengger is Zhu Shenzhui's eldest son and the eldest brother of the crown prince. As long as Tengger is there, the nine borders of the Ming Dynasty close to the Mongolian area will be safe. Tumed, as a barrier of the Ming Dynasty, can ensure the safety of the Ming Dynasty. This is extremely important.

As the crown prince, Zhu Minlan certainly understood this truth. Although he was a little depressed about his brother's return to the grassland, he soon realized the importance of Tumed to the Ming Dynasty. He also understood why his father attached so much importance to Tumed, especially when he helped Tana rebuild the tribe in the early days of the Astimur tribe, supported Tenger as the leader of the tribe, and gradually controlled the entire Tumed.

Zhu Minlan couldn't help but admire his father's foresight.

"But even if my eldest brother is there, where are Aunt Tana and my younger brother?" Zhu Minlan couldn't help asking again. Zhu Shenzhu shook his head slightly, and said earnestly: "Your Aunt Tana is a very smart woman. Now your mother is the master of the six palaces. It is far more appropriate for her to stay in the grassland than to come to Daming. As long as she is in the grassland, your mother will have no worries. This is a good thing for her and your mother."

"My mother? Dad, do you mean... No! Mother is definitely not a jealous person, she..."

"Child, remember! People change. Your mother is a good wife and a good mother, and so is Tana. But if our family were an ordinary family, these would be normal. But the royal family is different from ordinary people. Now your mother is the queen, and you are the crown prince. It is best for Tana and your elder brother to stay away from the Ming Dynasty in Mongolia. Once they really come to the Ming Dynasty, who can guarantee what the future will be like? If you don't want it today, can you guarantee that you won't be prepared tomorrow? This power and status often make people lose their normal mind. How many people in the world can resist it?"

"I'm not saying anything bad about your mother, but there are some things that need to be thought of in advance. If something like this really happens, not only you, but also your father will be in trouble. Your mother is smart and sensible, and so is Tana, so it's best for them to be like this now. I'm telling you these words today, just remember them in your heart, and don't tell anyone else. It doesn't matter if you don't understand them for now, you will gradually understand them when you are older."

Zhu Minlan opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he didn't say anything.

Looking at his thoughtful and somewhat conflicted expression, Zhu Shenzui reached out and gently patted the back of his hand. There were some things he needed to understand himself. No matter how smart Zhu Minlan was, it was difficult for him to understand many things without experience or age.

"As for your younger brother, it's the same thing. I have other plans for him in Mongolia."

"Dad, what do you mean...?"

"Do you know why I not only granted your elder brother the title of prince on the day I ascended the throne, but also gave your younger brother the title of county prince?"

"This..." Zhu Minlan was stunned. He concentrated on thinking for a while, and suddenly a look of astonishment appeared on his face: "Dad, are you worried about my brother?"

"Haha, I am naturally relieved about your elder brother, but being relieved about your elder brother does not mean that your father will be relieved about your elder brother's descendants. Time flies, and decades have passed. Tumed now dominates Mongolia. Since Lindan Khan, Tumed has become the most powerful force in Mongolia. Moreover, with the development of border trade with Ming Dynasty, Tumed has made a lot of profits, and its strength will become stronger and stronger in the future."

"I also know some of the things you and your eldest brother have been chatting about these days. They are nothing more than the wars in Mobei and Moxi, as well as the wars in Luocha Kingdom, or Tsarist Russia. I have watched your eldest brother grow up, and as a father, I know his temper, personality, and thoughts very well. To be honest, if we really talk about the ability to fight, the three of you guys tied together cannot compare to your eldest brother. Although your eldest brother has not really led an army yet, he is a child raised by your father and has Wang Hai to help him. How could he be a mediocre person?"

"The northern desert is no problem at all. With Tumed's strength and the help of Wang Hai, Burigude and others, plus the backing of the Ming Dynasty, Tumed will be able to take over the northern desert in a few years. After taking over the northern desert, they will annex the western desert and join forces with Junggar to attack Luosha in the west. Although Luosha is strong, its capital is thousands of miles away. Even if they can send troops eastward, they can't send many people. It's only a matter of time to defeat Luosha. Once Luosha is repelled, Tumed will control most of the southern desert, the entire northern Mongolia, and most of the western desert, and even go deep into the previous Western Regions."

"When Lin Dan Khan was at his strongest, he only controlled Chahar. The rest of the tribes were only under Lin Dan Khan's command, not directly under him. But once your brother succeeds, both his military strength and territory will far exceed Lin Dan Khan's. With such a powerful Mongolian tribe in the north, won't the Ming Dynasty be afraid?"

"Even if your Aunt Tana and Big Brother are here, they won't have any thoughts about the Ming Dynasty, but people will eventually grow old and die. Once they are old and pass away, your father and I will also be gone, and the Ming Dynasty will be inherited by you or your descendants. Have you ever thought about what this will be like?"

When Zhu Minlan heard this, he broke out in a cold sweat. What Zhu Shenzui said was absolutely right. As long as Zhu Shenzui and himself were there, or Tana and Tenger were there, the Ming Dynasty and Tumed would be safe and sound. After all, one is a father and the other is a son, one is an elder brother and the other is a younger brother, and even if the bones are broken, the tendons are still connected. No matter how powerful Tumed was, as long as the Ming Dynasty was in the hands of Zhu Shenzui or himself, Tumed would not dare to attack the Ming Dynasty. The two sides could maintain a good relationship, but once the older generation was gone, and the second or even the third generation grew up, how could there be any family affection between them?

The grace of a gentleman is cut off after five generations. By then, how could the prosperous Ming Dynasty not be envied and attracted by the Mongols? Even the descendants of Tenger, who controlled Tumed, would think that they were all descendants of the same ancestor. Why could you own the best land in the world and be the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, while they could only blow the wind and eat sand on the Mongolian grasslands?

Once this idea arises, war is inevitable. The Tumed, who originally served as a barrier in the north, will become the biggest enemy of the Ming Dynasty. If this war breaks out, no matter who wins or loses, it will be a regrettable ending for the Ming Dynasty and Zhu Shenzui's lineage.

(End of this chapter)