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

Chapter 335 The Calm Crown Prince of Han
"You're surprised?"

"You'll be even more surprised later!" Yang Shiqi, who had also been stunned, was startled awake by Yu Qian's voice, and his eye twitched involuntarily. However, when he remembered that the Crown Prince of Han possessed a dragon, he was no longer surprised by the scene before him. He even found it perfectly reasonable! After all, the Crown Prince of Han did have a dragon!

"Is there something even more surprising?"
"This Han prince is so brave! He truly deserves to be called a peerless general!" Yu Qian watched as the Han prince carried the coffin into the Han Prince's mansion with both hands, and while he was in awe, he couldn't help but praise him. At the same time, Yu Qian also thought of the dashing scene on the grasslands when the Han prince rode his horse and wielded his sword to kill countless enemies.

Could this be the secret hidden within the Prince of Han's residence? Yu Qian couldn't help but wonder. But he quickly dismissed the thought. He knew things couldn't be that simple! However, the thought of his future brother-in-law possessing such martial prowess and power made Yu Qian's legs tremble slightly!

"The Crown Prince of Han is a prodigy in both literature and martial arts!" Yang Shiqi elaborated on Yu Qian's words after hearing them. At the same time, Yang Shiqi was also telling Yu Qian that the Crown Prince of Han was not only skilled in martial arts, but also possessed exceptionally high literary talent!
"Grand Secretary Yang, His Highness the Crown Prince of Han isn't wearing his glasses!" Fan Zhong didn't respond to Yang Shiqi's praise of the Crown Prince. Because at that moment, Fan Zhong noticed another crucial issue: the Crown Prince wasn't wearing those strange glasses! Upon discovering this, Fan Zhong immediately informed Yang Shiqi of this astonishing finding.

"What?!" Yang Shiqi, who was still immersed in the great power of the Han prince lifting the coffin, was stunned when he heard Fan Zhong's words. He was completely dumbfounded.

In fact, Yang Shiqi certainly knew what Fan Zhong meant by the fact that the Crown Prince of Han was not wearing glasses!
The fact that the Crown Prince of Han was not wearing glasses meant that he did not have a crocodile inside him at this moment!

And yet, without the alligator dragon within his body, the Han prince was able to lift a golden nanmu coffin weighing over a thousand jin with his own strength?!
Thinking of this, Yang Shiqi felt a sudden sense of disorientation! After all, in this era dominated by cold weapons, an individual's strength often represented their level of martial prowess! The fact that the Crown Prince of Han could lift a coffin weighing a thousand catties meant that his personal martial prowess was unmatched!

After all, in ancient times, the shock effect of a peerless warrior was no less than that of a modern nuclear bomb exploding in Hiroshima!
"Glasses? What glasses?"
"What does His Highness the Crown Prince's ability to lift the coffin of the King of Han have to do with wearing glasses?" Clearly, Yu Qian had no idea what wearing glasses meant to the Crown Prince. Therefore, at this moment, Yu Qian was completely bewildered by Yang Shiqi and Fan Zhong's sudden seriousness.

At this moment, Yu Qian was utterly devastated. He really wanted to say to Yang Shiqi and Fan Zhong in front of him: What are you two doing? We agreed to play together as a group of three! What are you two saying that I can't understand? Can't the three of us play together anymore? Yu Qian looked at his two unreliable colleagues in front of him with a look of disdain, filled with sorrow.

"Yu Qian, now that you're in Yunnan, you'll know the answers to these questions later."

"Just remember this: the difference between the Han Crown Prince wearing glasses and the Han Crown Prince not wearing glasses is like heaven and earth!" Now that everyone had arrived in Yunnan, Yang Shiqi spoke much more freely. He told Yu Qian that whether or not the Han Crown Prince wore glasses was a very important criterion for judging him! On a deeper level, he was telling Yu Qian that the Han Crown Prince with glasses would be even more terrifying than he was now!
Although it remained unclear what riddles and cryptic talk Yang Shiqi and Fan Zhong were spouting, Yu Qian now had a vague idea: the question of whether the Han crown prince wore glasses was definitely key to the major secret to come!
When Yang Shiqi and his entourage followed the officials of the Prince's residence into the main hall of the Chengyun Hall, they found that the hall had been completely prepared as a mourning hall. Even the coffin and other necessary supplies were ready. Furthermore, Taoist priests had been invited and were performing rituals to pray for the soul of the Prince of Han.

At the very front of the mourning hall, the royal family members, led by the Crown Prince of Han, were kneeling neatly on prayer mats, keeping vigil for the Prince of Han.

"Father-in-law, please write a eulogy for the Prince." Zhu Zhanhe looked at the coffin placed in the main hall, took a few steps, and knelt directly before his father-in-law, Xia Yuanji, asking him to write a eulogy for the Prince of Han to commemorate the Prince's achievements. After all, regardless of the circumstances, now that the Prince of Han was dead, his merits and demerits during his lifetime should be judged to comfort his departed soul.

“Your Highness, please rise; it is only right.” Xia Yuanji did not refuse the request to write a eulogy for the Prince of Han; on the contrary, he readily agreed. After all, Xia Yuanji was not only the highest-ranking official in Yunnan but also a relative by marriage to the Prince of Han. Therefore, Xia Yuanji was the most suitable person to write the eulogy.

"The Ministry of Rites issued a notice of death, announcing to the entire Yunnan province: Prince Han has passed away. The Prince was a magnanimous man who did not concern himself with trivial matters. For the sake of the people, and in accordance with the Prince's last wishes, the people of the entire Yunnan province will observe a three-day mourning period for the Prince."

Three days later, everything returned to normal, and the people were not to be disturbed again. Zhu Zhanhe remained kneeling before the mourning hall, calmly arranging for the people of Yunnan to observe mourning for the Prince of Han.

"Your Highness is kind-hearted, I will take care of it immediately." The Vice Minister of Rites from Yunnan respectfully stepped out from the crowd, received Zhu Zhanhe's summons, and then turned and left.

For a moment, the Chengyun Hall fell silent, with only the sounds of the Taoist priests praying echoing in the air.

At this moment, everyone's attention was focused on the Crown Prince of Han, because he had only mentioned that the common people should observe three days of mourning, but had not said what would happen to the officials. Since His Highness the Crown Prince hadn't addressed this issue, it meant that the officials would need to observe twenty-seven months of mourning according to the rules!
Watching Zhu Zhanhe calmly arrange everything, Yang Shiqi felt a chill run down his spine. He found the Crown Prince of Han far too calm! Calm, like a volcano about to erupt! It sent a shiver down his spine!

Even as he grew more uneasy, Yang Shiqi became increasingly determined to discuss compensation and subsidies with the Crown Prince of Han as soon as possible. Finally, gritting his teeth, Yang Shiqi decided to step forward and speak with Zhu Zhanhe.

"Your Highness, the Emperor's decree has been issued." Yang Shiqi took a deep breath, slowly moved to Zhu Zhanhe's side, and said softly. However, although Yang Shiqi said there was an imperial decree, strangely, he showed no intention of producing it at this moment. It was as if he was just saying it casually.

After hearing Yang Shiqi's words, Zhu Zhanhe merely glanced back at him before continuing his vigil with lowered eyes and bowed brows. He showed no intention of paying any attention to Yang Shiqi, as if what Yang Shiqi had said was utterly unimportant.

"Your Highness, besides the imperial edict, there are other important matters to discuss."

"May I ask Your Highness to move to the side hall?" Seeing that the Crown Prince of Han had no intention of acknowledging him, Yang Shiqi was not discouraged at all, but instead shamelessly continued to speak to Zhu Zhanhe.

"..." Zhu Zhanhe ignored Yang Shiqi, but on the other side, some people couldn't stand it anymore. Seeing that Yang Shiqi was still bothering his elder brother who was keeping vigil, the younger brothers kneeling behind Zhu Zhanhe were immediately displeased. They glared angrily, and some even stood up abruptly, ready to teach this murderer from the imperial court who had killed their father a lesson!

"Hmm~" Hearing the commotion behind him, Zhu Zhanhe slowly turned around and glanced at his many younger brothers. Instantly, the brothers, who had been so excited, turned into quails. After exchanging glances, they obediently knelt down on the prayer mats on the ground, heads bowed, and began to keep vigil obediently, as if nothing had happened.

(End of this chapter)