Ming Dynasty: Traveling through the harem, Zhu Yuanzhang was dumbfounded

Chapter 82 Zhu Yuanzhang and his son pay a visit to Emperor Yongle!

At this moment, inside the military camp of the Imperial City Governor's Office.

This place is ten miles away from the imperial city of Yingtian Prefecture, and is the place where the Grand Marshal's Office controls the military forces of the Kyoto.

There are secret sentries standing guard within a radius of 100 meters to prevent strangers from approaching.

Before the 13th year of Hongwu, the Grand Marshal's Office was an important organizational structure responsible for controlling military command throughout the Ming Dynasty.

The person currently serving as the governor here is Xu Da, Duke of Wei, one of the six dukes of the Ming Dynasty.

On weekdays, Xu Da was responsible for the training of the Imperial Guards, and also needed to teach some younger generals.

Even the prince.

The vast training ground was dusty and many soldiers were wrestling there.

Since the Song Dynasty, Yue Family Army has been famous throughout the world. This invincible army used a special training method.

When he arrived in the Ming Dynasty, someone presented Wu Mu's posthumous letter to many generals in the Ming army, which made them understand.

If you want to make an army powerful, you must make every soldier strong.

There cannot be any weak ones mixed in.

Soldiers can improve their physical fitness and become more powerful in combat through wrestling.

In a battle field filled with fine sand, Zhu Di, wearing light armor and holding a long spear in his hand, was fighting with his opponent.

Both sides were using halberds, and the wooden sticks kept colliding in the air, making crisp sounds.

Suddenly, Zhu Di's eyelids twitched and he lost consciousness for a moment. His opponent took advantage of the gap to avoid his block and stabbed him in the chest with the halberd head.

Severely hit by this blow, Zhu Di flew backwards instantly and fell to the ground, with half of his body moving out of the confrontation range of the fine sand field.

"Humph! You actually have the mind to think about other things during the battle. If you had been on the battlefield in the past, you would have died hundreds of times!"

Sharp shouts followed one after another, and Zhu Di covered his aching chest and looked up at the other party.

The man standing in the desert confrontation area is an old general, he is Xu Da, Duke of Wei.

Although he is old, Xu Da's eyes are still as sharp as a torch. His face is thin, but still resolute. One can even vaguely see some scars on his neck and cheeks.

These fatal scars are the glory of men.

"Remember this, when you are on the battlefield, you have only one thing in mind, and that is to kill all the enemies!
Don't think that as a vassal king you can only sit on the city wall and give commands without having to fight deep into the enemy's territory.

I tell you, when you fight with the enemy, you must take it seriously, because you never know if the enemy will have any tricks up his sleeve.

If the city wall is breached, even if you are a general, you will need to wear armor and charge into the battle with your soldiers.

At this moment, you are the enemy's prey, no one will protect you, and the only thing you can trust is the weapon in your hand! .

In the military camp, even if you are a prince or have any other identity, I will not give you any special treatment.

Do you understand? "

Looking at Zhu Di lying on the ground, Xu Da admonished him harshly, hoping that he could understand his painstaking efforts.

The reason why he was so strict was because Zhu Di was his son-in-law.

His daughter liked this son-in-law very much, and asked him to take special care of Zhu Di and teach him everything he knew.

On weekdays, Xu Da also did what his daughter asked.

But I don't know why, this son-in-law is always distracted today.

Since the battle started an hour ago, Zhu Di was knocked down by him three or four times.

Otherwise, Xu Da would not have used such harsh words to educate Zhu Di.

Facing his father-in-law's harsh rebuke, Zhu Di also knew his own problem and stood up again with one hand on the ground.

"father in law."

"This is in the military camp! Your father-in-law is not here! Call me the general."

"Yes! General, I know I was wrong, but I don't know what happened today. I always felt that something bad was going to happen, so I was confused."

People have a sixth sense, but this feeling changes with the environment.

Zhu Di thought that he was smart since he was a child, and he often relied on his premonition to know some bad things in advance.

For example, in the past he was confident that he would not be discovered if he skipped classes.

One day afterwards, he suddenly felt absent-minded, which meant that his father must be on the way looking for him, and was even talking about the family rules.

Zhu Di was almost always right in these premonitions, but today, just now.

He was originally comparing his long spears with Xu Da normally, but suddenly his heart skipped a beat and an ominous premonition instantly filled Zhu Di's whole body.

This prevented him from concentrating on fighting against Xu Da.

It was as if a voice was reminding him to run quickly, otherwise he would not be able to escape.

He wondered if he had angered his father, who was about to give him a good beating.

But Zhu Di racked his brains for a long time and couldn't figure it out. He was not at school age, so how could he have angered his father?

"Pick up your weapons and come again!"

Xu Da didn't give Zhu Di time to react. He lowered the halberd in his hand and threw it to the ground.

The long spear that Zhu Di had used earlier instantly flew into the air.

Seeing this, Zhu Di had no choice but to go ahead, holding the halberd in one hand and posing as Taigong fishing with a long weapon.

The left hand was in front and facing upward, the right hand was placed behind and facing downward, and the head of the halberd was facing Xu Da's chest.

Seeing that Zhu Di had finally perked up, Xu Da's old face became bright and energetic.

The two were about to engage in a fight, but were interrupted by a voice.

"Report! General! The emperor has issued an order requiring the Prince of Yan to come to the palace to meet the emperor immediately!"

The two men who were about to fight put down their weapons immediately when they heard the voice.

At the same time, look at the person who spoke.

The man who came was walking with the gait of a dragon and a tiger, with a sturdy figure. He was wearing a bright red brocade robe, which made him exude an unstoppable aura.

Even though he knew that the two people in front of him were of noble status, he was able to treat them with a normal attitude.

He was the commander of Zhu Yuanzhang's personal guards, Mao Xiang.

Xu Da thrust his halberd hard into the ground, then looked at Zhu Di and asked:
"You kid, have you made your father angry again recently?"

Zhu Di also put down the halberd in his hand, smiled bitterly, and responded with a bad premonition:

"I don't know either. I haven't seen my father for several days. These days I have been either in the palace or here. Logically speaking, my father has no reason to summon me."

Mao Xiang was the commander of the imperial guard beside Zhu Yuanzhang. This army was not under the jurisdiction of the Grand Marshal's Office and only took orders from Zhu Yuanzhang.

Therefore, many people in the court knew that if Mao Xiang came to them personally or his subordinates came to them, they would be in trouble.

Something important must have happened.

That's it for now.

"Your Highness, please change your clothes quickly and follow me into the palace to meet His Majesty. It's urgent right now. Don't waste time, or else His Majesty will be angry and unhappy."

Seeing that Zhu Di had not taken any action yet, Mao Xiang urged him.

Seeing this, Zhu Di walked forward and tried to get close to him.

"I wonder if my father told you that he wanted to see me for something important?"

Mao Xiang took two steps back, distanced himself from Zhu Di, and said, clasping his hands:

"Replying to Prince Yan, His Majesty did not tell me clearly what the matter was. He only told me to let Prince Yan enter the palace immediately after finding you. He is waiting for you."

hiss!
Zhu Di took a breath and felt something was wrong. Xu Da behind him heard what Mao Xiang said.

He immediately realized that this was not a trivial matter and urged Zhu Di to leave immediately.

"You must have angered your father. Stop talking nonsense, change into clean clothes and ride back to the palace. Otherwise, the longer you wait, the angrier your father will get."

Although he didn't understand what he had done recently to anger his father.

Zhu Di had no intention of escaping. He was very clear about his identity and his father's abilities.

It's so easy to find him.

So he washed himself as quickly as possible in the Governor's Mansion, changed into clean clothes, rode the fast horse that had been prepared long ago, and galloped towards the palace with Mao Xiang.

At this moment, in the imperial study of the palace, Zhu Biao and Yang Chen were sitting in the audience, each of them had their own thoughts in their hearts.

Sitting on the podium, one hand dangled on the table, and from time to time there could be heard the sound of fingers tapping.

Zhu Yuanzhang's face was gloomy and he stared at the screen in front of him with cold eyes, waiting for Zhu Di to arrive.

Down below, Yang Chen felt a little thirsty and poured himself a cup of tea.

Strange to say, the tea in the palace is much better than the so-called "pure tea" in later generations. The taste is refreshing and the fragrance lingers on your teeth after one sip.

No wonder history records that ancient people had the habit of brushing their teeth with tea.

It seems that this tea is also extraordinary.

"Prince, would you like a cup? The tea your father has seems to be of much better quality than the tea in your East Palace.
If you leave later, you won’t be able to drink it. ”

Picking up the teacup, Yang Chen did not forget to ask Zhu Biao politely.

Zhu Biao, who already had many thoughts and worries in his heart, heard Yang Chen's relaxed tone and said with a little reproach on his face:
"You still have the mood to drink tea after all this. My fourth brother will definitely be scolded by my father later, and he will definitely bear a grudge against you.

Please don't take it so lightly, at least think of a way to help my fourth brother get out of this."

Just a while ago, after Yang Chen told Zhu Yuanzhang that Zhu Di's temple name was Chengzu, Zhu Yuanzhang immediately became furious.

He even laughed angrily for a while. He didn't expect that his fourth son had such huge ambitions.

Zhu Yuanzhang was never angry about Zhu Di becoming emperor.

He knew very well that Zhu Yunwen's method of reducing the power of the princes was so rubbish that it actually killed his uncle.

The rest of the people will certainly not sit and wait for death. They will definitely rebel in order to fight for a chance to survive.

If someone could replace Zhu Yunwen and become emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang would definitely not be so angry.

He can understand and even support it.

You know, even if he killed Lan Yu and others, there were still many useful people among the military generals and nobles of the Ming Dynasty.

Even if the ability of Li Wenzhong, Xu Da, Chang Yuchun and other descendants to command troops is not stronger than that of their fathers, at least they can rely on numbers to win.

The princes did have military power in their own territories, but their military strength was at most tens of thousands of men.

How does it compare with the hundreds of thousands or even millions of troops of the central court?
However, even with such a huge disparity in strength, Zhu Yunwen actually lost to his uncles.

Zhu Yuanzhang really couldn't understand how he lost his throne when he had the best time, place and people.

This internal strife was enough to show that Zhu Yunwen did not have the potential to become emperor.

It is his destiny to be a free-range and happy prince.

What really made Zhu Yuanzhang furious was that Zhu Di's temple name was Chengzu.

How could it be impossible for the temple names of later emperors to be as high-ranking as that of the founding emperor?

This once again proves that Zhu Di's ambition has exceeded his expectations.

This made Zhu Yuanzhang very unhappy, and naturally he was quite angry.

Off the stage, facing Zhu Biao's reminder, Yang Chen acted as if he didn't take it seriously and advised the other party not to worry too much.

"Prince, don't worry, I will be fine. As for Yongle, I can't guarantee him, but don't worry, stop your father later, and I will explain the truth.

Knowing the truth, your father will not blame your fourth brother so much."

"The truth? Why don't you tell me now?"

Realizing that things were not as simple as before, Zhu Biao quickly prepared to stand up and speak to Zhu Yuanzhang.

Looking at the other person's actions, Yang Chen quickly grabbed the other person's arm.

He said with embarrassment:
"Hey, hey, hey~ You'd better stop disturbing your father. Have you forgotten what your father said to me just now? He told me to shut up before Zhu Di comes! How dare I continue talking?

If you continue to talk like this, your father will skin me alive!"

Yang Chen felt so bitter inside. It was not that he didn't want to explain the specific origin of Zhu Di's temple name "Chengzu".

But Zhu Yuanzhang was in a state of bad temper. He had just told the other party that Zhu Di's temple name was Chengzu, and before he could speak the next step.

Zhu Yuanzhang ordered him to shut up and then sent someone to find Zhu Di as quickly as possible.

With Yang Chen's dissuasion, Zhu Biao finally gave up what he was about to do.

Sitting down again, he couldn't help but remind Yang Chen to be careful with his words in the future: "I'm talking about you. You are always nervous and say shocking things as soon as you open your mouth. You still don't know how to explain things now. If I wasn't much calmer than my father, you would have died long ago!"

Yang Chen knew very well what the other party said, but he always realized it late, and when he reacted he realized that he had said it fluently.

"By the way, I want to ask you something. After the Fourth Master became emperor, it was a prosperous era. So my descendants, should they be okay?

What happened to Yunhu in the end? Unlike Yunwen, he posed no threat to the fourth brother.

As long as he can survive, he will definitely be a free-range prince."

"I can't remember your descendants for the moment, but I still remember what happened to Zhu Yunhuan. It seems to be the last one."

"Your Majesty! I have brought the King of Yan here according to your order."

"Your Majesty, your son, greets you! Long live your Majesty!"

The two people in the audience were originally whispering to each other, but were interrupted by two loud voices.

Looking up, I found two figures appearing behind the screen.

One is Mao Xiang, and the other is naturally Prince of Yan Zhu Di.

However, at this moment, Zhu Di did not have the same majestic aura as before. Instead, he seemed to sense that he was in danger.

Although he seemed to be standing at the same level as Mao Xiang, he was actually leaning back slightly, feeling somewhat uneasy.

"Mao Xiang, get out."

When people arrived, Zhu Yuanzhang immediately ordered the unimportant people to leave.

"Yes."

After they left, there were only four people left in the study.

Zhu Yuanzhang stood up from his chair and walked from the stage to the audience, as if nothing had happened.

Zhu Di, who was standing, looked up and glanced at the two people beside him out of the corner of his eye.

He noticed that both of them had sympathy for him in their eyes, as if they had seen what was about to happen to him.

Considering the surrounding atmosphere, Zhu Di knew that Yang Chen must be the one causing the problem.

The other party must have said something in front of his father, which caused his father to be so angry with him!

"Fourth Brother, come and raise your head for Father to see."

Suddenly, Zhu Yuanzhang's powerful voice sounded, but there was obvious anger in the tone.

Even though the frightened Zhu Di knew that his father was very unhappy at the moment, he did not dare to disobey his father's orders.

All he could do was slowly put his hands down, raise his head up honestly, and stand upright with his body as straight as a steel plate.

Zhu Di felt uncomfortable when he found his father staring at him with a scrutinizing look. After a moment of silence, he took the initiative to speak: "Father, I wonder if you have summoned me here so hastily. Is there something important going on?"

Zhu Di swore that this was the most torturous time he had ever experienced.

Zhu Yuanzhang was not moved by his son's concern, but it made him feel better.

"Good, really good, why didn't we notice that you have dragon energy around you before?

Your eyebrows look like a dragon. No wonder later generations called you Emperor Yongle.

Come, come, Biaoer, come here, let us, father and son, see this Ming! Chengzu! Emperor together!"

'Excellent! It's really wonderful! This is simply the reverse of Tiangang!'

When the scene appeared in front of him, Yang Chen even wanted to stand up and applaud wildly.

He didn't expect that this guy Lao Zhu could be so humorous.

Fortunately, he controlled his excitement and did not actually stand up and applaud.

Otherwise, Lao Zhu would probably transfer the conflict to himself.

Zhu Yuanzhang's tone was very calm, as if this was a very normal thing, but he didn't know that he instantly ignited the atmosphere in the room to a climax.

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhu Di felt as if there were several bolts of lightning exploding in his head.

At a loss for what to do, he immediately knelt down and kowtowed.

"Father! What are you doing? Kneel down in front of me. This is shortening my life! I won't do it again. Please forgive me! I know I was wrong!"

Zhu Di kowtowed madly in silence, tears and snot flowing at the same time.

The heroic Prince of Yan Zhu Di and the young and strong young general have all disappeared. Now Zhu Di is only thinking about how to survive.

He even doubted for a moment whether he had heard it wrongly.

Emperor Yongle? Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty? These two words, though never heard of before, seemed extremely familiar.

"Father, that's enough. The fourth brother didn't do it on purpose. Besides, he doesn't know anything. Father, you want the two of us to kowtow to him. Isn't this going to shorten the life of the fourth brother?"

It was so confusing that Zhu Biao quickly stepped forward to clear things up.

His father was very angry at the moment, so angry that he even hated Zhu Di.

If he doesn't take action, his younger brother will probably be in real trouble.

"Yes, Your Majesty, you know what happened here. In fact, it's not Yongle's fault. There's no need to kill him like this."

"Shut up! I'm warning you, I really hate you now!
The whole thing is caused by you. When I finish dealing with him, you won't be able to escape!"

As soon as he heard Yang Chen's voice, Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly felt a splitting headache.

The reason why he had become so crazy inside was because of him.

If this guy hadn't appeared, he would never have done this. He had already made plans. Yang Chen must leave the palace.

After this incident, Zhu Yuanzhang didn't want to see Yang Chen for a short time. This guy was simply a jinx.

Make your home a mess.

Being reprimanded, Yang Chen dared not continue and had to sit down obediently, giving Zhu Di a look that said "I'm very sorry".

However, Zhu Di had no time for anything else at this moment and could only keep explaining while crying.

"Father! How can I have any dragon spirit? I am your son, and I am only a prince granted by your grace.

The dragon energy is on my elder brother, not on me. Father, you must have seen it wrong."

"Shut up! You are so ambitious that you will be named Chengzu after your death. Why don't you go to the ancestral temple and take down my spirit tablet and replace it with yours?

Emperor Yongle, the prosperous Yongle era, if I don’t beat you to death today, I won’t be named Zhu! "

After saying that, Zhu Yuanzhang took out a rattan whip that he had prepared from somewhere, raised it high and prepared to whip Zhu Di's shoulder.

This move was so sudden that Zhu Biao and Yang Chen didn't even react.

All I heard was the sound of a whip hitting someone, followed by wailing and the sound of something hitting something.

Old Zhu was merciless. Although he was fifty years old, his strength was amazing.

Perhaps it was because of his anger that he had no intention of showing any mercy.

After two consecutive hits, Zhu Di had gone from kneeling to crawling.

He raised his head with a wronged look, tears streaming down his cheeks. He wanted to say something, but his voice was blocked by the choking sobs.

Seeing this, Yang Chen finally understood that even though Zhu Di became the Yongle Emperor, he would still feel fear for his relatives who had passed away many years ago.

Even in dreams, I was frightened awake.

The image of a strict and harsh father like Lao Zhu will leave a lifelong shadow on anyone who comes along.

"Father! That's enough!"

Zhu Biao gritted his teeth, mustered up his courage, roared, and rushed forward!

He stretched out his hand to protect Zhu Di.

"Biao'er! What are you doing? Get out of our way! We are teaching this rebellious son a lesson!"

Zhu Biao's unexpected appearance forced Zhu Yuanzhang to hold his hands in the air.

The third whip was delayed in falling, and Zhu Biao was reminded in unfriendly words.

"Father! That's enough! My fourth brother knows nothing and nothing has happened yet. Why punish him so severely?"

Zhu Yuanzhang, who was originally furious, finally regained a little rationality after hearing Zhu Biao's words.

A ray of clarity appeared in his cloudy eyes, and the situation was no longer as tense as before.

"Humph!"

Although he was calm, Zhu Yuanzhang's anger had not completely disappeared. He threw the whip to the ground with force.

Just fell in front of Zhu Di.

After lowering his head and taking one last look at Zhu Di, Zhu Yuanzhang walked back to the stage without looking back and sat down again.

Zhu Biao turned around and supported his brother with both hands.

"Old Four, that's enough, get up quickly."

"Thank you, big brother. Hiss! It hurts!"

At this time, Zhu Di was only nineteen years old. He had not experienced much and had little personal experience.

He didn't understand why his father's attitude towards him suddenly changed so drastically.

It was as if he had committed an unforgivable crime.

"Brother, what happened to Father? Who is Emperor Yongle? Who is Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty? How come I have never heard of such a person in the Ming Dynasty before?"

“This matter is very complicated, so I will just speak directly, and I hope you can understand.

Yongle Emperor will be your reign title, Ming Chengzu will be your temple name
Hey, hey! Fourth brother! Fourth brother! Don’t faint, stand up quickly, father is still watching you. "

I originally wanted to tell my brother the truth so that he wouldn't be so confused later.

However, he had just said two things when Zhu Di, who had just stood up with great difficulty, rolled his eyes.

His legs and feet lost support and he fell to the ground and fell asleep.

Zhu Biao was quick-witted and grabbed Zhu Di, who was about to fall, to prevent him from getting hurt.

Sitting on the chair, Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes revealed disappointment: "Huh! You can't even accept such a small thing and fainted. You are simply bringing shame to our family.

You dare to call yourself Emperor Chengzu? What a joke!"

Since ancient times, temple names have represented the contributions of an emperor during his lifetime.

Only the emperor who reunited China could use the word "Zu" in his temple name.

For example, Emperor Gaozu of Han, Emperor Gaozu of Tang, Emperor Taizu of Song, etc., Zhu Yuanzhang also knew clearly what would happen if he passed away in the future.

In the clan ancestral hall, his temple name is definitely called Ming Taizu.

Zhu Di's temple name was Chengzu, which was like an ordinary son standing in front of his biological father and saying, "I am your father."

Faced with this situation, how could Zhu Yuanzhang not be angry to the point of losing his mind?

If Zhu Biao had not tried his best to obstruct it, Zhu Di would probably have ended up like his second brother Zhu Chong.

Yang Chen, who was sitting nearby and observed Zhu Di faint, quickly stood up and walked forward.

Before he could make a move, he found that Zhu Biao had already pressed the opponent's Ren Zhong acupoint.

Under the stimulation of acupoints, the unconscious Zhu Di opened his eyes hazily.

"Brother, where am I?"

Such nonsense made Zhu Biao laugh and cry in an instant.

"Fourth Brother, this is in Father's study. Do you remember what happened just now?"

"What happened?"

With the reminder from his eldest brother, Zhu Di recalled carefully and soon remembered everything.

But he was not happy when he recalled it, instead he couldn't stop crying.

"Wow, big brother, I'm in trouble. I'm going to be beaten to death by my father. I never wanted to be an emperor.

I am not Yongle, nor am I Chengzu. Please explain this to your father."

"Alas, Yongle, I'm sorry. This matter is all caused by me. But don't be too sad. Your future achievements are actually not that low.

Hurry up and wake up, don't lose face."

"Hmm? It's you! I knew my father would punish me for no reason!

Crow Mouth! You are such a jinx, did I provoke you? Why did you frame me when I did nothing wrong? It's all your fault!"

When Yang Chen's face full of apology appeared in Zhu Di's sight.

He immediately realized that the culprit of all this was Yang Chen!

"Alright, alright! Stand still, what are you all doing here?
Yang Chen! I heard everything you and Biaoer were talking about just now. Please explain it to us.

Why is the temple name of this guy Lao Si Chengzu! If you don’t explain clearly, don’t blame me for being rude to you! "

The furious Zhu Yuanzhang scolded the three people in a voice as loud as a bell.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Biao dragged Zhu Di up and helped him stand firm.

After all the tossing and turning, Zhu Di is now covered in wrinkles.

He is nowhere near as elegant and graceful as he was when he first came.

Yang Chen showed Zhu Yuanzhang a truly apologetic expression, and then immediately said:
"Don't be impatient, Your Majesty. Let me explain slowly.

In fact, after Yongle seized the throne from his eldest nephew, he naturally became the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

However, during his tenure, he did not recognize the four years of Zhu Yunwen's reign, so he attributed Zhu Yunwen's reign to your majesty's Hongwu years. "

"Hey, Lao Si, we have to thank you, you made me unable to rest in peace even in my grave."

He knew that the Hongwu period would last for another four years after his death, which meant that the Ming Dynasty would be his for another four years.

Zhu Yuanzhang found it ridiculous.

Zhu Di in the audience was blushing. He had just figured out what had happened.

It was thought that after his elder brother and second brother passed away one after another, his father passed the throne to his eldest nephew Zhu Yunwen. He didn't know what this silly boy did, or whether Zhu Di's ambitions would expand in the future.

In the end, it was he who overthrew Zhu Yunwen's rule and took the throne for himself.

"It seems that the old monk did not lie to me. The great cause he talked about is really a great cause!"

After thinking this, Zhu Di came to his senses and wanted to continue apologizing to his father.

However, he did not expect that as soon as he was about to take the next step, he was stopped by Zhu Yuanzhang.

"Okay, just stand still and let that little bastard talk."

Seeing Zhu Yuanzhang urging him, Yang Chen continued speaking.

"After dealing with Zhu Yunwen's affairs, Yongle considered him the second emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Before his death, he had already arranged for his descendants to give him the temple name 'Taizong'."

After the truth came to light, Zhu Di suddenly felt relaxed all over.

It turns out that the temple name Chengzu was not his own wish at all.

"As for how Yongle's temple name became 'Chengzu', it was because Emperor Jiajing Zhu Houzhao inherited the throne as a foreign vassal.

His biological father, King Xingxian Zhu Youju, was not an emperor.

After Emperor Jiajing ascended the throne, in order to posthumously honor his father, he triggered the "Great Ceremony Debate" which lasted for three and a half years.

Emperor Jiajing also wanted to show the world the legitimacy and orthodoxy of his throne.

So Zhu Di's temple name was changed to Chengzu."

When the truth came to light, everyone fell silent. It was only after a while that Zhu Yuanzhang began to speak.

"Even if he didn't want to be named Chengzu, I'm not happy about him becoming the emperor!"

"Your Majesty, this is wrong. I have already told you about Yongle's achievements after he ascended the throne.

He was able to create the Yongle Era of Prosperity and send the Ming navy to the distant oceans to spread the Ming's national power.

This was an unprecedented feat in history if Yongle had not sent the navy to explore overseas.

I am afraid that there will be fewer powerful countries in the South China Sea in the future, because some of the people who left for the sea stayed in the local area and spread the culture of the Central Plains. "

Yang Chen would definitely not be happy about Zhu Yuanzhang's attempt to belittle Zhu Di.

Although Zhu Di was indeed somewhat militaristic during his reign, that was because he was eager to prove himself.

In order to prove that he was worthy of the throne, he did many things in a hurry.

He compiled the Yongle Encyclopedia and ordered the navy to go to the ocean to intimidate small countries. At the same time, he continued to march northward to drive the Tatar, Oirat and other tribes to the border of the Ming Dynasty.

For this, he was also the first person in history to receive the honor of being crowned as the Wolf and the Lair as an emperor.

The Nurgan Regional Administration was also established on the border with the aim of preventing unrest on the border.

Zhu Yuanzhang thought the achievements listed by Yang Chen were indeed impressive.

But he felt in his heart that his eldest son was the best, and that if Zhu Di could do it, Zhu Biao could do it too, so he was a little arbitrary.

"In that case, let's just forgive him for this reason."

"My dear father, thank you!"

Being forgiven finally made Zhu Di feel relieved.

He was really afraid that he would not see the sun tomorrow.

Zhu Biao beside him also breathed a sigh of relief. He was indeed worried that his father would lose control and beat his brother to death.

If it really came to that, Zhu Biao knew that he would be stopped, so he could only go to find Empress Ma in the harem.

Apart from Empress Ma, who could calm down the extremely angry Zhu Yuanzhang, no one else could control the furious Zhu Yuanzhang.

"Alright, alright, I haven't completely forgiven you. I can understand that you were forced to revolt to protect yourself, but what you did really makes me angry!"

Faced with the reprimand, Zhu Di dared not talk back and could only apologize repeatedly.

"I'm asking you now, tell me the truth.

When the throne is passed to your elder brother in the future, will you compete with him for the throne?"

How could Yang Chen know that the Yongle Era that Zhu Di would create in the future would be very powerful!

Let us ask ourselves, would Zhu Yuanzhang be disappointed if such an honor appeared among later generations?
He wouldn't. Since the founding of the country, Zhu Yuanzhang has always been thinking about killing all the barbarians who always invade the border.

It would be best if we could drive the other party away far away so as not to disturb the Ming Dynasty's rest and recuperation.

However, the current strength of the Ming Dynasty is limited and it cannot devote so much energy.

On the one hand, we need to restore people's livelihood, and on the other hand, we must always be on guard against enemy offenses.

Now, if you want to raise food and supplies for a trip north, you need to prepare for a year in advance.

He felt very distressed about this.

However, no one expected that Zhu Di would be able to go north to fight against the Northern Yuan Dynasty and drive it away from the territory of the Ming Dynasty.

This made the Ming Dynasty's national prestige prominent and prevented the enemy from taking any risks.

How could Zhu Yuanzhang hate such an honor?

However, this shows that Zhu Di is very strong and capable.

He was not sure whether Zhu Biao would be able to achieve such achievements after taking office in the future, and he felt very distressed about this.

The fourth son is better than the eldest son, so to whom should the throne be passed?
Even if he passed the throne to Zhu Biao, what would he do if Zhu Di wanted to rebel in the future?
Zhu Di's strength is already there. Zhu Biao may be able to overwhelm Zhu Di in terms of civil administration, but he seems to be a little behind in leading troops to fight.

The moment Old Zhu finished speaking, Zhu Biao also looked at his younger brother.

He also wanted to know the answer.

Without giving it much thought, Zhu Di answered immediately in panic to avoid his father from having any unnecessary suspicion towards him.

"Father! I don't know what kind of person I will become in the future, but there is only one thing in my heart, and that is to fight on the battlefield for the Ming Dynasty!
Since I was young, I have known that my father works hard day and night outside, fighting hard and bloody battles. All this is for our family and for peace in the world.

The enemy has repeatedly invaded the Ming Dynasty, but as a vassal king on the border, I cannot do anything for the Ming Dynasty, which makes me very distressed.

If there is a chance, I would like to take my troops and leave the fiefdom, kill all the invading enemies, and avenge the people who died because of them!
If my eldest brother comes to power in the future, I will definitely be convinced.

I myself, as well as all my future descendants, will certainly have no objection to your eldest brother being in power.

My lineage will always stay at the border and become the first line of shield to protect the Ming Dynasty.

Father! You know my temper! "

Zhu Di, kneeling on the ground, shouted at the top of his lungs, wanting to prove his loyalty.

Although he didn't know the whole story, it didn't affect his desire to survive.

Listening to his son's explanation, Zhu Yuanzhang sighed deeply and said:
"What a sin! I didn't expect all of you brothers to be so outstanding, and I didn't expect that you, the fourth brother, could accomplish such an achievement.

Alas, I am really worried that after I am gone, there will be a mutiny among you brothers, and finally you will stab your loved ones with swords. What should I do then?
Your father grew up alone and has never experienced what it feels like to have family around.

That’s why I hope you brothers can get along well with each other on a daily basis.

Especially the princes, do your best to assist your elder brother. Isn't the purpose to make the Ming Dynasty a better place?

But I didn't expect that you are so powerful. I underestimated you after all."

Thinking of everything his father said, Zhu Di felt that his life was really tiring, but his heart was somewhat touched.

His father said that he was capable, was that an acknowledgement of him?

"I, Zhu Di, have been recognized by my father! I have been recognized by my father!"

Zhu Di, who was delighted, finally looked less ugly than before.

Instead, I can face myself and am no longer as afraid as before.

"Your Majesty! I know what I really think.

For a son and a minister, sitting on the emperor's chair is really a headache. I cannot do whatever I want and need to be in charge of all the affairs of the world.

He also had to engage in intrigues with people in the court.

Not to mention dealing with government affairs all day long. Ever since the eldest brother became the Crown Prince Regent, he has not had the opportunity to talk to his brothers.

For this reason, I have decided that if I have the opportunity in the future, I will definitely charge into the battlefield on horseback with a sword in hand.

I only like wielding swords and sticks, and I don’t like government affairs.

If I had a choice, I would not only want to be a vassal king outside the Great Wall, but also a real military commander! "

Zhu Di said with a stern look on his face.

His action stunned the three people present.

Zhu Biao didn't expect that his younger brother's dream was so direct. He didn't want to be a vassal king but wanted to be a general.

You have to know that throughout the Ming Dynasty, how many people were trying their best to become a prince.

As long as you can become a prince, you will never have to worry about food and drink in this life and you can die comfortably.

On the other hand, my fourth brother would run to wherever there was danger.

But there are traces of this.

Zhu Di had been naughty since he was a child, and the entire Zhu family knew it.

He didn't study at school, but skipped classes to climb walls and trees. He even ran from the rear to the front line to find his father just after his tenth birthday.

People who are not daring and do not have a certain amount of courage would not dare to run around in times of war and chaos.

"Your Majesty, I can prove that everything Yongle said is true, he really does not like government affairs.

Because during the more than 20 years that Yongle was in power, the time he spent handling government affairs could be counted on one hand.

Most of the court affairs were handled by his son.

Although he disliked his eldest son in the early days, he later discovered that this son was very smart and capable.

Gradually, he was identified as the successor.

Later generations joked that Yongle's prince was the executive vice emperor.

What this means is that there are two emperors in one era, but one is the principal and the other is the deputy.

This created the century-old legend of the Five Dragons ruling under one roof.”

Yang Chen really couldn't bear to see Zhu Di in such a humble situation.

Everything was caused by him, so he must stand up and say a few words for Zhu Di.

"Five dragons at the same time? What is this?"

Zhu Yuanzhang raised his eyebrows and said softly.

If there are any typos, I hope you readers can press and hold to correct them! Thank you very much!

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(End of this chapter)