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

Chapter 401 The Meeting of True Dragons (7)
Although the Prince of Han's words were all correct, they were too insulting! Yu Qian listened blankly to the Prince of Han's angry rant against the Xuande Emperor. Although he felt somewhat relieved, he felt that the Prince of Han's words were too humiliating!

"Can't you see? The Emperor's face is as black as the bottom of a pot!" Yu Qian muttered to himself.

Strangely, when faced with Zhu Zhanhe's almost humiliating outburst, Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, merely changed his expression and silently endured it without retaliating at all!

In fact, after Zhu Zhanhe's outburst, Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, was indeed very angry, even furious! But at the same time, he also realized the seriousness of the matter!
Unfortunately, by the time the Xuande Emperor realized what was happening, it was already too late! Because the Xuande Emperor, Zhu Zhanji, didn't have much time left, and he was powerless to reverse the situation regarding the problems in the court!

Seeing the grim faces of Emperor Xuande and Yu Qian, Zhu Zhanhe realized he might have been too harsh. Although he knew he was right, out of consideration for their feelings, he offered some positive points.

"However, to be honest, cousin, there is one thing you do very well."

That is, you have always firmly grasped the power of the military in your own hands!

You did a great job on that!
After all, since ancient times, the one with the strongest army is king! An emperor without military power is nothing more than a puppet!
Grandpa and Uncle left you enough military strength and personnel!

I hope that you, my cousin, can also leave your son a military commander who is capable of stabilizing any situation and will never have any disloyal thoughts, just like Grandpa and Uncle!
Otherwise, with both civil and military power at the same time, no one knows what terrible things might happen in the world, the court, the palace, and other aspects! Zhu Zhanhe continued to rant about military power to the Xuande Emperor.

In reality, Zhu Zhanhe was subtly reminding Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, that he must have someone he could trust to command the army! Otherwise, a situation like the one described in the Twelve Discourses would arise, where a civil official commands a military officer, thus threatening imperial power!

Although Zhu Zhanhe's words were simple, Yu Qian, upon careful consideration, indeed discovered the problem! At this moment, Yu Qian was also horrified!

After careful consideration, Yu Qian was astonished to find that everything the Prince of Han said actually made sense! In fact, it was even possible that, at some point in the future, the problems the Prince of Han was raising now would become increasingly serious and uncontrollable over time!

"I know it myself!" Upon hearing Zhu Zhanhe's words, the Xuande Emperor's face changed drastically, alternating between pale and flushed. After a moment, the Xuande Emperor managed to utter a few words with difficulty.

Because from beginning to end, Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, always believed he had done a very good job! But at this moment, if it weren't for the reminder from Prince Han, Zhu Zhanhe, Emperor Xuande would never have imagined that he had been such a failure as emperor! There were still so many unresolved problems in the court!

The most terrifying problem now is that the Xuande Emperor is about to die! The problems he left behind are now being passed on to his young son! Everything has become uncontrollable!

"However, speaking of generals, Fan Zhong is indeed worthy of being the one that my grandfather personally trained and left to you and my uncle, to protect our Ming Dynasty."
Just now, when we first met, even though he knew he was no match for me, Fan Zhong still resolutely tried to draw his sword and kill me!
"Truly commendable spirit!" When talking about the generals, Zhu Zhanhe couldn't help but think of Fan Zhong's desperate stance on the deck earlier. Although Fan Zhong ultimately didn't make a move, Zhu Zhanhe still felt that the other party's courage was commendable.

"Your Highness, General Fan was only acting out of a moment of panic to protect you; he had no other intentions."
Please forgive me, Your Highness!
"Besides, even ten Fan Zhongs wouldn't be a match for Your Highness!" Upon hearing Zhu Zhanhe's words, Yu Qian quickly interjected to explain. Yu Qian was preventing Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, from taking action against General Fan Zhong after hearing the Prince of Han's words! After all, at present, Fan Zhong could be considered the only publicly acknowledged military commander in the court!
"Fan Zhong is a great general left behind by my grandfather, and he will surely continue to protect the Ming Dynasty!" Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, replied earnestly to Zhu Zhanhe's question. It must be said that Emperor Xuande was quite rational. He clearly understood that the generals in the army were mostly the core forces left over from his grandfather, Emperor Yongle's reign! And Fan Zhong was among the youngest and most outstanding. Therefore, as long as Fan Zhong remained loyal to the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Xuande would not take action against him until new military leaders were cultivated.
Moreover, with Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, on the verge of death, he would be even less likely to harm Fan Zhong, the military commander. He needed to leave his son with leverage in the military, even if that leverage wasn't loyal to the emperor but to the entire Ming Dynasty. It was better than nothing.
Seeing that the two had been chatting for quite some time and had said enough, Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, perhaps no longer wanting to be lectured by his cousin, stopped his conversation with Zhu Zhanhe and prepared to reveal the true purpose of his visit.

"That's enough of the small talk."

"Yu Qian, take out the other item!" Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, raised his hand to signal Yu Qian to take out the other item from the package.

"Yes!" Upon hearing the Xuande Emperor's words, Yu Qian quickly took out a wooden box with dragon carvings from his bundle. Just by looking at the shape of the box, one could tell that it contained the Imperial Seal of the Ming Dynasty!
Sure enough, the box contained the Imperial Seal of the Ming Dynasty!

The Xuande Emperor took the wooden box from Yu Qian's hands and gently placed it on the table beside Zhu Zhanhe. Then, he carefully lifted the wooden box covering the jade seal. Inside was a large jade seal!

If you receive orders from Heaven, you will live a long and prosperous life!
Inlaid with gold and jade! The Imperial Seal of the State!
"Zhanhe, I have also brought the Imperial Seal."

I don't know what the secret you and Grandpa kept was back then;
But I know that when you met my father, Emperor Renzong, he brought this jade seal with him!
Therefore, I have brought this jade seal with me this time.

So, Zhanhe, reveal your secret.

Or, you can just hand over that Golden Dragon Token.

"This way, I can let you leave without any worries." Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, gently stroked the seal that symbolized imperial power and turned to Zhu Zhanhe in a soft voice.

"The Imperial Seal of the State!!" When Zhu Zhanhe saw Yu Qian take out that unusual box from the package, he realized that it might contain the Imperial Seal of the State. However, when Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, personally opened the box and revealed the Imperial Seal of the State inside, Zhu Zhanhe couldn't help but stand up excitedly and exclaim in surprise.

At the same time, Zhu Zhanhe's gaze was fixed on the crystal-clear jade seal, and he couldn't help but be extremely excited. So much so that, in his loss of composure, he actually released his powerful aura!

The sudden, intense pressure caused Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, to stagger back a few steps. Fortunately, Yu Qian reacted quickly and raised his hand to support the emperor; otherwise, the emperor might have fallen to the ground!
Hehehe~
Is this the legendary aura of a king?!
Back then, in that cave, I always thought it was just a hallucination caused by mental confusion!

Over the years, when the Embroidered Uniform Guard sent back messages, I never believed them.
"Now it seems that such terrifying pressure is actually real!" Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, who was being supported by Yu Qian, also recovered from his shock after a moment of disorientation. At this moment, Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji, frowned and stared at Zhu Zhanhe in disbelief, muttering to himself.

(End of this chapter)