Ming Dynasty: The Crocodile King of Han Prince Zhu Gaoxu's Family

Chapter 326 Princess Wei: Xia, come, summon someone.
"Xia, this is your father-in-law, the Prince of Han from my Han Prince's Mansion. Come and greet him." Princess Wei felt a surge of dissatisfaction as her husband ignored her and stared longingly at his grandson in his arms. However, Princess Wei had not forgotten her daughter-in-law, who was still kneeling on the ground. Even though she was dissatisfied with her husband, she still made her daughter-in-law recognize him first.

"Daughter-in-law Xia greets father-in-law."

"Daughter-in-law, I'm kowtowing to my father-in-law." After her mother-in-law took the child, Princess Xia remained kneeling respectfully, listening quietly to her mother-in-law's words. When her mother-in-law asked her to address him, Princess Xia did not hesitate and respectfully kowtowed three times to Zhu Gaoxu, making up for the time she hadn't kowtowed to her father-in-law during their wedding.

"You've done an indispensable job by giving birth to my Prince of Han's eldest grandson. Please get up." Zhu Gaoxu looked longingly at the grandson in his wife's arms, wanting to hold him himself, but seeing the ill-intentioned look in his wife's eyes, he hesitated. However, although this was his first time meeting his daughter-in-law, Zhu Gaoxu was still quite satisfied with her; at least she was sensible and obedient, and most importantly, she had given him his eldest grandson!
"Thank you, Eunuch!" After hearing her husband's words, Princess Xia kowtowed to Zhu Gaochi again before slowly rising. Then, she tiptoed behind her husband. She didn't know the full situation, but her husband's presence gave her a strong sense of security.

"I came back from Beijing this time incognito, and I will continue to do so for a long time to come," Zhu Gaoxu explained softly to his wife, then stealthily moved a few steps closer to her to see his grandson. Looking at his grandson's chubby little face, Zhu Gaoxu felt boundless joy in his heart.

"What?!" Princess Wei looked puzzled upon hearing her husband's nonsensical words. What was he talking about? She didn't understand at all. Princess Wei looked at her husband with a puzzled expression.

"The Prince of Han in Beijing is dead."

I was ordered to be burned to death in the Prince of Han's mansion by the current Xuande Emperor, but I was secretly rescued by He'er and the third brother.

From now on, there will be no more Prince Zhu Gaoxu of Han in this world, only the Iron-Faced Gentleman of the Prince of Han's Mansion. Seeing the deep frown and puzzled look on his wife's beautiful face, Zhu Gaoxu gently stroked the black mask on his face and whispered an explanation to her, his tone utterly calm, as if he were telling someone else's story, completely unrelated to himself.

"Your Highness~" Upon hearing her husband's explanation, Princess Wei's expression changed instantly, her voice trembling, and even her body shaking involuntarily. Holding the child, she slowly approached her husband, her eyes fixed on the black iron mask on his face, and then looking him over, as if checking through his robe to see if he had been injured.

At this moment, Zhu Gaoxu's gaze was entirely on his grandson. When he saw his wife coming over, he couldn't help but reach out and hug his eldest grandson from her arms. He looked at him with warm eyes, his gaze so loving and kind. Even the scars on his face from the battle seemed to be smiling.

"Waaaaah~" Zhu Qiyu, held in Zhu Gaoxu's arms, suddenly burst into tears without warning, his cries loud and clear. Seeing this, Zhu Gaoxu, holding his grandson for the first time, was somewhat at a loss, his body stiffening slightly. The Crown Princess Xia instinctively wanted to go forward to see the child, but Zhu Zhanhe grabbed her little hand, holding it tightly, stopping her from reaching out. Obediently, the Crown Princess Xia stopped her husband's advance.

"Your mask frightened the child." Princess Wei stared at her husband for a moment, immediately noticing his unease, and complained to him somewhat irritably. Before Zhu Gaochi could react, Princess Wei reached out and removed the black mask from his face. Seeing his face, now streaked with gray, she felt a pang of heartache, almost bringing tears to her eyes. But at the same time, she breathed a long sigh of relief; at least, her husband was unharmed! As long as he was safe and sound, everything else was insignificant!
"Hehehe~" Surprisingly, when Princess Wei removed Zhu Gaoxu's iron mask, the young Zhu Qiyu actually giggled when he saw Zhu Gaoxu's face with a slightly gray beard, and even reached out to grab Zhu Gaoxu's long beard.

"Haha~ Haha~. He likes my beard! Yu'er likes my beard!" His grandson's laughter clearly infected Zhu Gaoxu, and seeing his grandson trying to grab his beard, Zhu Gaoxu seemed to have discovered a new continent, looking at his wife with delighted surprise. As he spoke, Zhu Gaoxu lowered his proud head, making sure his beard was within reach of his grandson. "Ouch~, good lad! You've got some strength~!" When his grandson grabbed Zhu Gaoxu's beard, a slight pain shot through him, causing Zhu Gaoxu to involuntarily gasp. But he wasn't angry; instead, he happily praised his grandson's strength!
Zhu Gaoxu held the child and played with him for a long time before sitting down in a chair in the study, holding the child across his lap, and began to talk about serious matters with his son and daughter-in-law.

"Although I faked my death this time, from that moment on, I can no longer, and do not intend to, appear as the Prince of Han again. At the same time, I will no longer vie for the throne." Zhu Gaoxu first looked at his wife and calmly told her, "From now on, I will behave myself, and you don't need to worry anymore."

"Your Highness~" Upon hearing her husband's words, Princess Wei's eyes immediately welled up with tears of emotion.

"Also, as I just said, Prince Zhu Gaoxu of Han is now dead. The world will only have Mr. Iron Face." Having calmed his excitement at seeing his grandson, Zhu Gaoxu looked down at his grandson lying quietly in his arms. At the same time, Zhu Gaoxu declared that he would no longer be Prince Zhu Gaoxu, but an ordinary, unknown person.

"Your Highness~" Princess Wei listened to her husband's words with a look of astonishment, and couldn't help but feel a little nervous. But before Princess Wei could finish speaking, Zhu Gaoxu raised his hand to interrupt her. He gestured for his wife not to interrupt, and immediately, Princess Wei had no choice but to silently shut her mouth.

"As for the succession to the throne, as long as the court isn't stupid, it will definitely let He'er inherit the throne."

Next, it remains to be seen how much He'er can gain in negotiations with the court. Zhu Gaochi clearly identified his heir to the throne, and he explicitly told his son to use his apparent death to extract more benefits from the court!
"Father, please rest assured." For some reason, Zhu Zhanhe felt a sense of unreality when he heard his father tell him to use his faked death to benefit the court. However, Zhu Zhanhe did not interrupt his father.

"From now on, I will stay at the forefront of the Prince's expansion." Zhu Gaoxu then clearly told his son and daughter-in-law that he would no longer remain in the Prince's residence, but would personally dedicate himself to the front lines of the Prince's expansion. He, the stern-faced Zhu Gaoxu, would henceforth live for his family!

"Father, the Embroidered Uniform Guard has sent word that Yang Shiqi, Yu Qian, and Fan Zhong are on their way and are expected to arrive in Yunnan in a few days."

My son wants to take them to Annam after he finishes his business at the Prince's Palace, so they can see the territory that my Han Prince's Palace has expanded.

"At the same time, I also want to show them the true strength of my Han Prince's Mansion." Zhu Zhanhe postponed his trip to Annam not only because of the apparent death of the Han Prince, but also because he wanted to let the court envoys, including Yang Shiqi, and other key officials see the true strength of his Han Prince's Mansion. This would also keep the court officials in line and prevent them from causing trouble all the time!

(End of this chapter)