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

Chapter 9 Born a dragon!
"No, I followed my father the whole time during this expedition, and I only met my grandfather twice, and we didn't say anything. Besides, teacher, my grandfather is usually accompanied by my brother Emperor Zhanji. Although he didn't go this time, there's no point for me, a prince of the Han Dynasty, to go? I'll only annoy others." Zhu Zhanhe said frankly, playing with an exquisite ruyi made of peach wood in his hand.

He got this peach wood Ruyi from the old Taoist priest Zhang Zhengheng when he first became his apprentice. He has kept it with him ever since, even taking it to the battlefield. He has been playing with it for six years now. The wood has become a little jade-like, and the red color reveals the quality of red jade. It is one of his favorite things.

Regarding the question asked by his teacher Zhang Zhengheng, Zhu Zhanhe actually guessed the meaning behind his teacher's question. In fact, what his teacher wanted to ask was whether he had in-depth contact with his grandfather Zhu Di!

"It's good to follow Prince Han all the time. At least your safety is guaranteed." The expression on the face of the old Taoist Zhang Zhengheng did not change, but his tone was a little lost. Perhaps he felt that his tone was a little inappropriate, so he awkwardly picked up the half-cup of tea he had spilled and continued to drink it.

"Teacher, you know, I don't have any other thoughts." Zhu Zhanhe shook his head helplessly, with a calm face, and spoke softly to his teacher.

After hearing what Zhu Zhanhe said, the old Taoist Zhang Zhengheng was stunned for a moment, and put down the teacup he was holding. Then he shook his head in surprise, with a vicissitudes of life expression on his face, staring at his cheap student.

"Yanhe, Tao follows nature, everything has its destiny. Confucianism says: Time flies like an arrow, never ceasing day or night; Taoism says: The reverse is the movement of Tao; everything is constantly changing. Just because you are not moved now, does not mean you will not be moved in the future." The old Taoist priest looked unconvinced and stared at Zhu Zhanhe's face, secretly complaining in his heart: I don't believe you, you are full of dragon energy and look like a dragon, you are almost ascending the throne to become an emperor! You say you have no ideas, go and fool a ghost, I am almost eighty years old, and I can still be fooled by a little kid like you, go home and take a shower and go to bed!

"Teacher: Heaven moves with vigor and a gentleman should constantly strive for self-improvement. Looking through the history of ancient and modern times, from Nuwa mending the sky to Dayu controlling floods, to Shennong tasting hundreds of herbs and so on, I have only got one sentence: if you follow the will, you will become a human being, if you go against it, you will become an immortal! My destiny is in my own hands, not in the hands of Heaven! What does Heaven have to do with things I don't want!" Zhu Zhanhe looked at his teacher looking at him with disdain, and suddenly felt inexplicably angry, so he put on a stern face and directly retorted his teacher's words!

The old Taoist Zhang Zhengheng was startled after hearing what Zhu Zhanhe said to him. He looked up at his student and saw Zhu Zhanhe standing proudly with a frown on his face, one hand behind his back, holding a wooden ruyi. His face was expressionless, and his awe-inspiring look made the old Taoist a little frightened.

Of course, it was not Zhu Zhanhe's appearance that frightened the old Taoist priest, but after Zhu Zhanhe frowned, the old Taoist priest felt an inexplicable pressure in the whole room in an instant. Even the air seemed to be a little condensed, and breathing was a little difficult. Even if he looked to the other side and didn't look at his student's expression, the old Taoist priest could feel his student's unhappy mood with a frown.

Dragon Qi! Definitely dragon Qi! The old Taoist kept cursing in his heart: This pressure like a mountain pressing down on my head is definitely dragon Qi! Damn Zhu Di, you unreliable guy, why do you let your dragon seed go? Can't you take it back and train it to be your successor? It's your business who you choose as the heir, why do you have to let him out to harm people! You yourself are a disaster, and you create another disaster! I, the old Taoist, don't want to die. I haven't lived enough. I don't want to see the Taoist Ancestor yet! Or even taking the ten clans of Longhu Mountain to see the Taoist Ancestor together is not allowed!

And you, damned old monk Daoyan, have you become stupid from studying Buddhist scriptures? You can't see such a huge dragon seed? You let it go around causing trouble for people. I'm so old, why can't I just live a peaceful life? The old Taoist kept complaining in his heart about Emperor Yongle and his top strategist Yao Guangxiao.

However, although the old Taoist priest was in turmoil, he appeared very calm on the surface and even took two sips of the dry teacup!

After a moment, Zhu Zhanhe also felt that what he said was a bit pretentious, and felt a little embarrassed. He glanced around secretly to see if there was anyone around, and then secretly glanced at the teacher who was drinking tea with an expressionless face. He sighed in his heart that he was worthy of being a master who had practiced Taoism for many years, and he was so calm!

"Ahem, ahem, teacher, please don't mind me. I was just talking nonsense. In my situation, I will just go home and get ready to be a parasite prince, and then take over my father's position as Prince Han. Then I can be a parasite prince again!" Zhu Zhanhe reached out and poured his teacher a refill of tea with a smile on his face, looking very attentive.

Zhu Zhanhe's expression made the old Taoist sigh even more deeply. He silently recited Cao Cao's dragon transformations: a dragon can grow large or small, rise or hide: when large, it can create clouds and mist; when small, it can hide; when it rises, it soars through the universe; when it hides, it lurks within the waves.

"Forget it, I won't talk about you anymore. You just know it in your heart. You just came back from the battlefield and you are full of evil spirit. Go to the Zen room next door and sit in meditation for an hour before coming to see me." The old Taoist priest looked at the student who had turned into a shameless face and felt very tired, so he quickly opened his mouth to drive him away.

"That's what the teacher ordered. I'll be there right away." Zhu Zhanhe was still very obedient to the old Taoist's words. However, although it was said to be a meditation, it actually meant reading a few scriptures and practicing health-preserving breathing exercises. So Zhu Zhanhe obediently went to the meditation room next door. Watching Zhu Zhanhe's back as he left, the old Taoist Zhang Zhengheng couldn't help but recall the time when they first met him.

That was the first year of the Yongle reign, when Emperor Yongle Zhu Di had just ascended the throne. As the leader of Taoism appointed by Emperor Taizu Gao, the Longhu Mountain Tianshi Mansion, led by the contemporary Tianshi Zhang Zhengchang, came to pay homage to the new emperor.

This was the third time Zhang Zhengheng met the emperor of the Ming Dynasty. The first was Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang, the second was Emperor Jianwen Zhu Yunwen, and the third was Emperor Yongle Zhu Di.

At that time, they stayed overnight in Chaotian Palace in Yingtian Prefecture. Originally, after the audience with the emperor, except for a few people who stayed in Shuntian Prefecture to pray for the new emperor, the rest of them were going to follow the Heavenly Master back to Longhu Mountain.

Just the day before they were about to leave, they received a summons from Emperor Yongle Zhu Di's favorite son, Prince of Han Zhu Gaoxu.

The reason was very simple. The eldest son of Prince Han, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Han, was interested in Taoist culture and wanted to find a Taoist teacher. Due to Prince Han's status, they could not refuse and could only agree. In order to show their importance, Tianshi Zhang Zhengchang personally took several Taoist masters of the same generation to the Prince Han's Mansion to pay a visit to Prince Han.

After entering the Prince of Han's Mansion, the four old guys including the Heavenly Master were stunned as soon as they saw each other. They almost suffocated to death in the Prince of Han's Mansion.

This was because they saw that the Crown Prince of Han was so astonishing. The Crown Prince of Han was less than ten years old at the time. At first glance, he looked nothing special, but upon closer inspection, he was filled with dragon aura that was so overwhelming that it could not be concealed.

They were all experienced veterans. They had seen the Hongwu Emperor in his prime who dominated the world with his military force, the Jianwen Emperor who roared like a young dragon, and the Yongle Emperor who had just ascended the throne and was tyrannical and cunning but had a great army in his heart. However, none of these three emperors combined had as strong aura of dragon as the Han prince who was not even ten years old in front of them.

Seeing the young Prince of Han slowly approaching and bowing to them, the four old men were so frightened that they jumped and ran away. In response to the surprise and questions of the people on the scene, the four old Taoists simply shut up on the spot, with a myriad of thoughts in their minds, but they dared not say a word.

When they heard that the Prince of Han wanted to find a Taoist teacher, their heads were buzzing.

Finally, the old Taoist priest Zhang Zhengchang directly named this unlucky guy to be the Taoist teacher of Zhu Zhanhe, the prince of the Han Dynasty!

In the end, he had no choice but to go ahead and sit on the chair, accepting the cup of tea handed to him by Zhu Zhanhe. As for kneeling and kowtowing, the four old Taoists agreed that it was not necessary to be so cumbersome, as we Taoists do not care about ostentation!

At the time, they all thought that Zhu Zhanhe was a potential dragon secretly cultivated by Yongle Emperor Zhu Di. However, through his observations over the past six years, he discovered that this kid had no one to cultivate him at all. He was purely self-taught and had an extraordinary talent. So, in other words, Zhu Zhanhe was a born dragon!
　The peach wood Ruyi is a prop and will be used later.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)