Zhu Di: My fourth son is a great emperor of all time?

Chapter 50 Zhu Gaoshuo Becomes Emperor

Zhu Di was extremely worried.

He previously believed that Zhu Qizhen's capture was solely due to personal reasons.

But now it seems that Esen was indeed very capable.

But soon, Zhu Di relaxed.

This time, he chose his fourth son as the heir to the throne.

He would have some reservations if it were his eldest son and grandson.

As for the fourth prince, there's not much to worry about. Even if he were capable, he would still be far inferior to Zhu Gaoshuo, the greatest emperor of all time.

"After Zhu Gaosui killed Tuohuan, he did not escape the pursuit of the Mongols and was soon captured by Esen."

However, Esen did not kill Zhu Gaosui like Tuohuan. Esen knew very well that killing Zhu Gaosui would be meaningless. On the contrary, he could use Zhu Gaosui to trade with the Ming Dynasty, and even use Zhu Gaosui as a slogan to attack the Ming Dynasty when necessary.

"Esen was a blatant schemer. After capturing Zhu Gaosui, he simply imprisoned him and even treated him with courtesy, hoping to arrange for Zhu Gaosui to marry a woman from the Oirat tribe and have children!"

"Absolutely not!"

Zhu Di panicked completely; he knew exactly what Esen's conspiracy was.

The third son is not only his son, but also his legitimate son.

In terms of the legitimacy of the throne alone, the third son is currently the one with the purest bloodline.

If Zhu Gaosui had actually married a Mongol and had a son, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

At that time, Mongolia will become the legitimate ruler of the world.

This is no less important than sending Zhu Zhanji to Mongolia for a marriage alliance right now.

The third brother shouldn't make any mistakes, right?
Zhu Di was also uncertain.

"Zhu Gaosui was, after all, Zhu Di's son, so he naturally saw through Esen's scheme. Since he killed Toghon, he was prepared to die and it was impossible for him to marry a Mongol girl!"

"Zhu Gaosui was unwilling, but Esen did not make things difficult for him. Instead, he continued to imprison him, seemingly waiting for an opportunity."

"At the same time, the Ming Dynasty also underwent earth-shaking changes."

"Zhu Di's death could not be concealed at all. Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi was the first choice to ascend the throne, and the ministers in the court all supported him. However, Zhu Gaochi had been overseeing the country day and night for Zhu Di's war, and his health had already collapsed. In addition, with his two younger brothers, father, and son all dying on the battlefield, he was so angry that he suddenly fell into a coma and died a few days later!"

"The boss is dead?"

Zhu Di's eyes turned red with anger because his stubbornness had led to the deaths of everyone.

He had previously blamed his elder brother's death on his health, but now he realized that his elder brother had worked tirelessly to oversee the country for him all these years, never daring to rest for a moment.

Perhaps that's what took a toll on his health.

Despite his sadness, Zhu Di did not forget the most important thing.

Since the boss is dead too.

Who will ascend to the throne?
The third child?
But isn't the third brother still under Esen's confinement?

"The crown prince, who was about to ascend the throne, suddenly died. The Ming Dynasty could not be without a ruler for a day, and the selection of an emperor has become a problem that must be faced now."

“The Crown Prince’s faction felt that Zhu Gaochi’s son, Zhu Zhanxian, should ascend the throne. Although Zhu Zhanxian’s abilities were weaker than Zhu Zhanji’s, his talents were recognized by the court officials. But at this time, another voice emerged in the court.”

"After all, Zhu Gaochi was only the crown prince, not the emperor. Emperor Yongle did have other sons. Prince Qi, Zhu Gaoshuo, was also in the capital. Zhu Gaoshuo could also be made crown prince."

"Here's a strange phenomenon: before the fourteenth year of the Yongle reign, Prince Qi, Zhu Gaoshuo, was a man without prestige, yet after Zhu Di's death, many people surprisingly supported him becoming emperor."

Listening to the incomprehension of the person in the sky.

At this moment, everyone understood perfectly.

Zhu Gaoshuo has definitely gained prestige because of the Tianmu incident.

Furthermore, everyone understands that he is the future emperor of all time. It's not surprising that he has supporters.

The happiest person at this moment was Zhu Di.

"It seems the fourth prince is going to become emperor!"

Zhu Di, who had been worried about the fate of the Ming Dynasty, immediately calmed down upon thinking of this.
Immediately afterwards, Zhu Di suddenly remembered what Tianmu had said earlier.

The third emperor of the Ming Dynasty should be the third son.

So that means the fourth prince didn't become emperor?
Zhu Di was somewhat nervous.

"Because Zhu Zhanxian himself did not have much desire to become emperor, and the civil and military officials and the people of the country seemed to trust Prince Qi, Zhu Gaoshuo, Zhu Gaoshuo became the crown prince at the time and would ascend the throne as emperor after Zhu Di's burial."

"But at this time, Esen, who was far away on the grasslands, also heard the news. In order to keep the Ming Dynasty in turmoil, he chose to send Zhu Gaosui back to the Ming Dynasty."

"Zhu Gaosui was furious when he heard that the fourth prince was about to ascend the throne as the emperor of the Ming Dynasty. He was the rightful heir, and he had risked his life alone to kill Tuohuan, venturing deep into the grasslands and making unparalleled contributions. The emperor should rightfully be his."

"The fourth prince is really going to become emperor!"

Zhu Di was overjoyed to hear that Zhu Gaoshuo had been recognized by the court officials.

He knew that the fourth brother wouldn't let him down.

With the fourth brother around, someone will be there to clean up the mess he left behind.

Zhu Di was quite happy.

Although the Ming Dynasty is now in dire straits, the situation that the fourth prince faced in the previous Heavenly Curtain events was obviously much worse than this.

Even so, the fourth prince ultimately turned the tide and became one of the greatest emperors in history.

Therefore, Zhu Di is now more worried about Zhu Gaosui.

That fool of a third son is still dreaming of becoming emperor.

Don't you have any idea what your own abilities are?
Foolish thing.

This was clearly a scheme by Esen, who released Zhu Qizhen back when Zhu Qiyu was about to ascend the throne.

Now that the fourth prince is about to ascend the throne, he has released the third prince to disrupt the Ming Dynasty.

"Third brother, you might as well just die on the road!"

Zhu Di prayed in secret, but he also knew that his third son would eventually become emperor.

What about the fourth brother?
The third prince had no power in the court, no prestige in the army, and unlike Zhu Qizhen, he did not have a powerful empress to support him.

What did the third brother use to steal the emperor from the fourth brother?

Zhu Di's heart tightened. What if, like before, he had to give up the throne to the third son because of some nonsense about brotherhood?

Then the fourth emperor, who was supposed to be a great emperor throughout history, was nothing more than that.

"Although Esen wanted to release Zhu Gaosui and cause internal strife in the Ming Dynasty, he still wanted to benefit from it. Therefore, when Zhu Gaoshuo was about to ascend the throne, Esen sent people to negotiate, demanding that the Ming Dynasty exchange Zhu Gaosui for tribute such as silk, porcelain, gold and silver."

"The Ming Dynasty was furious, feeling that the Oirat Mongols had gone too far. Many ministers had also begun to fear the Oirat Mongols, after all, even the powerful Yongle Emperor had been defeated."

"However, Zhu Gaoshuo chose not to ascend the throne for the time being, and let Zhu Zhanxian oversee the country. He personally led 100,000 Japanese soldiers to rescue Zhu Gaosui. Although they achieved a great victory over the Oirat Mongols, Zhu Gaosui died at the hands of Esen."

"Of course, according to Mongolian records, Esen always claimed that he never killed Zhu Gaosui, but instead released him and he died on the way back. However, because of Zhu Gaoxu's death, no one in the Ming Dynasty believed this."

"However, no one in the Ming Dynasty cared about Zhu Gaosui's life or death at the time. Everyone was celebrating Zhu Gaoshuo's great victory, capturing Esen alive and bringing the Oirat Mongols to complete submission."

Meanwhile, Zhu Gaosui flew into a rage while on the march.

"Damn it, they said I was the third emperor, how could I die like this?"

(End of this chapter)