The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 45 The Heir Apparent of the Prince of Yan
As the setting sun pierced the eaves of the Fengtian Hall, its blood-red afterglow spread across the palace walls and willows. The mournful tolling of bells rose from the imperial city and echoed throughout the streets and households of the capital.

The nine-layered palace gates were wide open on all four sides, and the Imperial Guards, carrying embroidered spring knives, rushed out in all directions with lightning speed. The people of the capital scattered to the side of the road, and even the merchants passing by on the road watched and then went away.

On the tenth day of the intercalary fifth month of the thirty-first year of the Hongwu reign, white mourning clothes blanketed the vast capital city. The young grandson of the emperor, standing high in the Fengtian Hall, proclaimed to the entire world: "The emperor has passed away!"

All the imperial relatives, ministers and high-ranking officials entered the palace, both to pay homage to the new emperor and to hold a funeral for the late emperor.

The funeral of an emperor is naturally a grand affair, and the selection should have been made for a person of high moral standing among the imperial clan. However, since Zhu Yuanzhang was already of the highest generation, and because of the edict that the princes were not allowed to return to the capital, Li Qi, the husband of the Grand Princess, was the person of the highest generation and status among the imperial clan. Moreover, because Li Qi was renowned throughout the country, he fully met the criteria of being of high moral standing and prestige. Therefore, Zhu Yunwen appointed Li Qi as the person in charge of the funeral committee for the late emperor.

The emperor's funeral was naturally grand and magnificent, but these were all empty formalities. No matter how powerful and domineering you were in life, who would care after you died?
Li Qi naturally didn't care much.

After offering sacrifices before the coffin, he delegated most of the affairs to the Ministry of Rites and the Court of State Ceremonial, and his only responsibility was to inspect the results and collect the emperor's reward after the task was completed.

The sons of all the princes came to Yingtian to fulfill their filial duties in place of the princes. After these princes and dukes paid their respects to Emperor Zhu Yunwen, they came before him. During this process, he naturally saw the fat Zhu Gaochi and the brave but reckless Zhu Gaoxu.

However, he did not pay much attention to them. Circumstances create heroes, and without the subsequent Jingnan Rebellion, these two would have been just ordinary princes.

Zhu Gaoxu naturally did not take Li Qi, a mere scholar, seriously.

Zhu Gaochi bowed to Li Qi with great respect, addressing him as "uncle," showing his close relationship with him.

After the grand funeral, the court officials and princes once again participated in the emperor's formal enthronement ceremony, as well as the ceremonies for bestowing titles upon the empress dowager and empress. The entire month of June and July of the thirty-first year of Hongwu's reign was spent in various ceremonies.

As the current head of the imperial clan in Beijing, Li Qi served as an official in charge of various ceremonies. The series of procedures left him mentally and physically exhausted, and the joy and ease he felt when Zhu Yuanzhang passed away had long since vanished.

……

In the main hall of Princess Lin'an's residence, sat a plump man with a kind and benevolent face.

It was Zhu Gaochi, the heir apparent of the Prince of Yan.

After the three brothers arrived in the capital, they did different things. Zhu Gaochi, who loved literature, went to the mansion to visit him.

Being able to build a good relationship with the future Emperor Renzong was naturally a pleasant surprise, since the exoneration of the Li family would probably fall on this fat man.

As for Zhu Di...

After taking over the throne from his father in the thirty-fifth year of Hongwu, he was extremely grateful and became his father's most filial eldest son. Even though Li Qi had a trump card that could move Zhu Di, he was only 60% confident that he could get Zhu Di to remove Li Shanchang from the list of traitors.

Note that this is merely removing him from the list, making Li Shanchang a completely innocent commoner.

As for posthumously granting him a title, restoring his title as a duke of Korea, or even posthumously granting him the title of king like other founding heroes, or even allowing him to be enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple, that is absolutely impossible.

As for whether his close relationship with Zhu Gaochi would lead to difficulties for Emperor Jianwen during the Jingnan Rebellion, that was not something Li Qi was considering.

Would Emperor Jianwen really kill him for this?

At most, he'll just be unemployed.

Li Qi never intended to have a deep involvement in the Jianwen reign. To him, the Jianwen reign was just a means to build his reputation and gain favor with Zhu Di.

Li Qi is still in the palace and has not yet left court. Li Fang and Li Mao are both at the Imperial Academy and have not returned home.

Therefore, only Princess Lin'an and Li Xianmu received Zhu Gaochi in the main hall.

"Aunt, these are some little trinkets that your nephew brought for his three cousins."

I have heard that my cousin Xianmu is quite gifted in his studies. As his elder brother, I am far away in Beiping and unable to take care of him, which I feel deeply guilty about. I am sending this set of writing implements to my cousin as a special gift. Although it is not very valuable, it represents my sincere feelings. I hope my cousin will accept it.

Although it was said to be not particularly precious, Princess Lin'an came from an imperial family and had extremely high standards. It was clearly a tribute sent to the palace from Jiangnan, a gift bestowed by the late emperor upon the Prince of Yan.

She was hesitant about whether to accept the gift, as making connections with a vassal king was no small matter. Then she suddenly remembered Li Qi's instructions and felt relieved. She said to Li Xianmu, "Mu'er, I dare not refuse a gift from an elder. Since your cousin has given you a precious gift, you should accept it. Go to the study and fetch something to give back to your cousin."

Just as Zhu Gaochi was about to say it wasn't necessary, Li Qi walked in from the outer room. Upon entering, he saw the rather large Zhu Gaochi and immediately smiled and said, "Thank you for waiting, Your Highness."

Zhu Gaochi quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "Uncle is an important official of the court and an elder. Such a greeting is too much for your nephew."

Li Qi laughed nonchalantly, "What important minister? I'm just a scholar who pushes the inkstone and twirls the ink. The court has its own Nine Ministers and Five Offices. What does it have to do with me?"

Zhu Gaochi said solemnly, "Confucius was also trapped between Chen and Cai the next day. My uncle, Shengzi, is a renowned scholar of the clan and bears the heavy responsibility of inheriting the lost learning of the sages. Even the most powerful officials and nobles cannot compare to my uncle's status!"

His words were sincere, which made people feel good about him. Li Qi invited him to sit down and started chatting about everyday things, "How is His Highness the Prince of Yan doing these days?"

"My father is in good health, but he couldn't hold back his tears after hearing the news of my grandfather's passing. With my mother taking care of him, he should be fine."

Li Qi then recounted his past with Zhu Di in the capital, his words tinged with nostalgia.

Zhu Gaochi was truly moved.

After Zhu Yuanzhang's death, the most heartbroken were naturally the princes, not because they had lost their father, but because the new emperor would most likely reduce their power.

This is no longer the early feudal period, but the Ming Dynasty with its mature systems. Everyone knows that the new emperor cannot leave his uncles, who hold heavy military power, to guard the border.

Reducing the power of regional military governors is imperative!
Before Zhu Yunwen summoned the sons of the princes to the capital, some princes were worried that Zhu Yunwen would detain the princes.

At such a time, the vassal king is no longer a person of noble status, but rather a source that could cause great trouble and bring disaster.

At such a moment, how could Zhu Gaochi not be moved by Li Qi's non-rejecting and even affectionate attitude?
The two then talked for a long time.

Before leaving, Li Qi personally escorted Zhu Gaochi to the door. After they reached the door, he suddenly said, "The weather is about to turn cold, and the journey north will become increasingly difficult. Your Highness should prepare warm clothes as soon as possible and return to Beiping as soon as possible. Be careful not to catch a cold."

Zhu Gaochi was stunned upon hearing this. His gaze fell on Li Qi's face, his eyes deep and unfathomable. He was so shocked that his back tingled and he broke out in a cold sweat.

The carriage drove away.

"Does the Prince Consort value his nephew, me, so much?"

"A person with profound knowledge and a noble destiny."

(End of this chapter)