I am the prince of the Ming Dynasty, I don't give up

Chapter 110 A painful decision

Zhu Houxuan knew that doing so would make Empress Dowager Zhang even more angry and would offend her even more.

But he would not regret offending Empress Dowager Zhang, because he knew from the beginning that his relationship with Empress Dowager Zhang would not last long, and he had to choose sides between Zhu Houzhao and Empress Dowager Zhang.

According to historical records, Zhu Houzhao and Empress Dowager Zhang had a deep mother-son relationship and never had any grudges against each other.

If the emperor and the empress dowager really had a good relationship, they should pay their respects to each other every morning and evening according to etiquette.

However, Zhu Houzhao lived in the palace for two or three years and then moved to the Leopard House where he lived until his death. Except on important occasions, he never paid his respects to Empress Dowager Zhang and was even too lazy to see her.

Not taking the initiative to see his mother for more than ten years, is this called a deep mother-son love?
Historically, Zhu Houzhao died young, and we didn't see how sad Empress Dowager Zhang was.

Moreover, there are too many rumors about Emperor Zhengde’s life experience. There were already rumors before Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne!
Emperor Hongzhi and Empress Zhang had been married for four years but had not yet given birth to a prince, so officials requested that they appoint concubines. One day, Zhu Houzhao was born suddenly without any signs.

Then, the famous "Zheng Wang's Evil Words" case broke out.

Zheng Wang was a member of the Beijing Guards. He was poor and sold his daughter. Later, he heard that his daughter had entered the palace, so he asked someone to find out the news. He actually learned that his daughter had given birth to the prince. He was so excited that he showed off everywhere and even went to the prince consort's house to make relatives. He was soon arrested by the East Factory, and the eunuch Liu Shan who spread the rumor was also arrested.

Emperor Hongzhi tried the case himself but to no avail, so he handed it over to the Jinyiwei for trial. The chief judge of the Jinyiwei believed that all those who spread rumors and caused trouble should be executed.

The reply from Emperor Hongzhi was very interesting. The eunuch who spread the rumor was beheaded, but Zheng Wang, who claimed that his daughter gave birth to the prince, was spared by the emperor but was thrown into prison.

After Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne, he issued a general amnesty, but Zheng Wang was released. He even went to Dong'anmen to ask to see the emperor, saying that he wanted to see his grandson. The East Factory took action again and executed him.

What is even more bizarre is that the rumored mother of Zhengde (Zheng Jinlian) only announced to the public that "he has been sentenced." What does "he has been sentenced" mean? If the crime is based on the direct execution, it is so vague that it is hard not to make wild guesses.

This matter became known throughout the country, and everyone believed that Zhu Houzhao was indeed the son of the late emperor, but he was not born to Empress Dowager Zhang, but to the palace maid Zheng Jinlian.

How could Zhu Houzhao himself not know about such a big thing?
In addition, Empress Dowager Zhang had a strong desire for control and kept her husband and son under control. Zhu Houzhao did not dare to investigate the truth, and as a result, a rift broke out between mother and son.

Zhu Houzhao moved into the Leopard House just after his grandfather Zheng Wang was executed! Isn't it a coincidence?

It is really strange that Zheng Wang was spared the death penalty by Emperor Hongzhi; it is also strange that Zheng Jinlian's whereabouts are unknown; it is also strange that Zhu Houzhao moved out of the palace after Zheng Wang's death and no longer took the initiative to meet with Empress Dowager Zhang.

Anyway, there are too many rumors, and Zhu Houxuan doesn't dare to verify them. He can only wait and see.

These two mother and son are really estranged from each other. During the time that Zhu Houzhao came to the capital, he had several minor illnesses, but Empress Dowager Zhang never came to ask about his health, and she didn't even send anyone to ask about him.

The same was true of Zhu Houzhao.

This behavior forced Zhu Houxuan to speculate that Zhu Houzhao was a lonely man in a de facto sense.

According to this speculation, Zhu Houzhao has lacked family affection since the death of Emperor Hongzhi.

The arrival of Zhu Houxuan made up for this to a large extent, which is why Zhu Houxuan felt that the relationship between him and Zhu Houzhao improved so quickly.

If Zhu Houxuan's speculation is correct, then as the only vassal prince to enter Beijing in decades, he would be the first male blood relative to appear beside Zhu Houzhao after the death of Emperor Hongzhi (excluding male children born by princesses living in the capital).

Some people may ask, isn't there a Zongrenfu in Beijing? Aren't there many princes working in the Zongrenfu?

In the early Ming Dynasty, there were indeed princes working there, but after Yongle, the clan house was managed by ministers of honor and relatives, and the princes of various places were the objects of management. The reason for this impression is that the clan house in the Qing Dynasty was like this, with a lot of princes working in it.

It is precisely because of this that Zhu Houxuan chose to stand firmly on Zhu Houzhao's side.

Qin Ming was very quick. As soon as Zhu Houzhao received the news that someone was attacking the princes' palaces, Qin Ming came with the imperial edict to ask for a meeting.

Zhu Houzhao's face darkened when he saw Empress Dowager Zhang's imperial edict. After listening to Qin Ming's explanation of the situation, his face turned red again.

"What does she want to do? What does she want to do? Does she want to do that kind of thing again?" Zhu Houzhao shouted angrily.

Li Dongyang hadn't left yet. He couldn't help but frowned when he heard the word "also" in Zhu Houxun's words.

"Your Majesty! His Royal Highness Prince Jing is right, this is a fake imperial edict!" Li Dongyang said firmly.

He did not take the opportunity to use this incident to put more pressure on Zhu Houzhao. If he put too much pressure on the emperor, the emperor might give up Liu Jin. But after Liu Jin fell, there would still be Li Jin, Sun Jin, and Zhao Jin. It would be better to take this opportunity to get closer to the emperor. This has always been his philosophy.

"Your Majesty, the priority now is to try to calm this matter down!" Li Dongyang continued.

"Please teach me, sir." Zhu Houzhao calmed down. After all, Empress Dowager Zhang was the Empress Dowager of the Ming Dynasty, his mother.

If Empress Dowager Zhang made a fuss, he really wouldn't have much to do. After all, he wasn't cruel enough to put her under house arrest, as that would cause another disturbance.

"I will go to Renshou Palace to persuade Empress Dowager Zhang right away, but there is one thing Your Majesty needs to make a decision on as soon as possible," Li Dongyang looked straight at Zhu Houzhao.

Zhu Houzhao remained silent.

"Your Majesty, please let His Royal Highness the Prince of Jing leave Beijing!" Li Dongyang sighed again.

The conflict between Empress Dowager Zhang and Zhu Houxuan had reached such a point that only if Zhu Houxuan left Beijing could the matter be quickly resolved.

Zhu Houzhao also knew this. With Empress Dowager Zhang's strong personality, if Zhu Houxuan was still in Beijing, she would definitely continue to stir up trouble.

"But what happened today is not the Prince of Jing's fault! It was Zhang Heling and Zhang Yanling who made the mistake first. Doing this is too unfair to the Prince of Jing." Zhu Houzhao said painfully.

"Your Majesty, what you said is wrong! From what happened today, we can see that His Royal Highness the Prince of Jing is a man who understands the overall situation and is wholeheartedly thinking about Your Majesty. His Royal Highness the Prince of Jing will definitely understand Your Majesty," Li Dongyang continued.

"But." Zhu Houzhao was still hesitating.

"No buts, Your Majesty. If this happened on a normal day, Your Majesty would have dealt with it slowly, but the Zhu Zongxian Rebellion has not yet subsided, and there is another wave of unrest in the capital."

"If you don't make a decision when you should, you will suffer the consequences, Your Majesty!" Li Dongyang advised earnestly.

Zhu Houzhao closed his eyes in pain, and after a long while he said with difficulty: "Order the Prince of Jing to leave the capital."

After making this decision, Zhu Houzhao suddenly felt empty in his heart.
There are many theories about the mystery of Zhu Houzhao's identity. The truth is no longer verifiable. After all, this is just a novel. I have chosen a theory that is more favorable to the protagonist. Please understand.

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(End of this chapter)