The First Prince of the Ming Dynasty

Upon hearing this, Gongsun Jin became somewhat uneasy.

So, in this kid's "General History of the Ming Dynasty," the Ning Prince's Mansion has absolutely nothing to do with anything? Then what are we doing all this fussing about? Are we just going to end up with nothing?

Liu Yangzheng, standing to the side, glanced at Gongsun Jin with a mocking look, as if he were laughing at him.

Gongsun Jin, weren't you trying to send a signal through this young prince that "Prince Ning's uprising will surely succeed"? But this young prince is unpredictable; let's see how you handle this!

Gongsun Jin said, "Brother Zhu, may I ask you a question? You say that Emperor Wuzong had no sons or brothers, so why didn't he adopt a prince into his own family before his death? After all, there were precedents in the Song Dynasty, such as Emperor Yingzong and Emperor Xiaozong, who had no sons for more than ten years. Even if the emperor had no plans, wouldn't the ministers have suggested it?"

Gongsun Jin asked this question because before the Prince of Ning rebelled, he had been working to have Zhu Yi's second elder brother, Zhu Gonggui, adopted into Zhu Houzhao's family. With the assistance of Qian Ning and Zang Xian, he attempted to have Zhu Gonggui preside over the royal family's sacrificial activities in order to gradually establish legitimacy.

"This problem..."

After a moment's thought, Zhu Yi replied, "History has no hypotheticals, but it's easy to understand. Emperor Wuzong was Emperor Xianzong's eldest grandson, and he himself didn't have a son. His uncle, Prince Xing's son, was not yet of marriageable age. Even if he were adopted, the relationship wouldn't be very close. Moreover, he died in his prime from an illness contracted by falling into the water, so it's normal that he didn't make any preparations beforehand."

Gongsun Jin nodded thoughtfully and said, "That makes sense. In that case, Mr. Wen, let's talk to Brother Zhu for now and come back later."

Liu Yangzheng did not expect Gongsun Jin to leave so suddenly.

Is this to go back and report to Prince Ning?

Zhu Yi said, "Have you finished asking your questions? May I leave now?"

"Brother Zhu, please be patient. We'll come again after lunch. Good things come to those who wait," Gongsun Jin said with a smile. "We also need to go back and discuss what you've said, since some things... are a bit too absurd."

Zhu Yi said angrily, "Of course you think it's absurd that I'm telling you things that didn't happen. But a person must keep their word."

Gongsun Jin, with an attitude of "I'm not afraid of anything," laughed and said, "I'll come later, please wait a little longer, Brother Zhu."

……

……

"Mr. Gongsun, what exactly do you mean?"

When Liu Yangzheng and Gongsun Jin left the alley of the academy and were still a few steps away from the carriage, Liu Yangzheng couldn't help but question them.

Gongsun Jin asked, "Didn't Mr. Liu glean anything from the Third Young Master's words?"

Liu Yangzheng, his face full of displeasure, said, "This child's nonsense is not worth taking seriously, and there's certainly no need to report it to His Highness Prince Ning."

Gongsun Jin smiled and said, "Mr. Liu, let me ask you this: if His Majesty were to meet with some unforeseen event, and has not yet designated an heir, who would be the successor to the throne?"

After pondering for a moment, Liu Yangzheng said, "Passing the throne to the Prince of Xing is in accordance with the law, but why not to the Prince of Xing's son, but to the Prince of Xing himself?"

Prince Xing, Zhu Youyuan, passed away in the fourteenth year of the Zhengde reign. In the tenth year of the Zhengde reign, no one would have expected that his lineage would inherit the throne.

It's like they have absolutely no connection.

Gongsun Jin said solemnly, "The Third Young Master casually mentioned 'the younger brother succeeds the elder brother,' which is in line with the 'Imperial Ancestral Instructions of the Ming Dynasty.' I ask you, since ancient times, when has there ever been a precedent of a nephew passing the throne to his uncle? When the emperors of the Song Dynasty had no heirs, adoption was the first choice."

Even Liu Yangzheng, who usually looked down on Gongsun Jin, fell silent upon hearing this.

Because on this point, he had no way to refute it.

……

……

Prince Ning's Mansion.

Prince Zhu Chenhao of Ning sat in the main seat, Liu Yangzheng sat at the head of the guest seats, and Gongsun Jin acted as the messenger, relaying Zhu Yi's words.

"According to what Mr. Gongsun said, my son may indeed have traveled to several hundred years in the future and is familiar with the history of the Ming Dynasty? Xingfu... Xingfu..." As Prince Ning spoke, he seemed very concerned about the throne falling into the hands of the Xingfu family. He clenched his fist and slammed it heavily on the armrest of the chair.

No one had analyzed it for him in detail before, so he didn't think much about it.

Only now did he realize that if everything proceeded as planned, and Zhu Houzhao died, the throne would only be passed on in the way most in accordance with the law.

No one expected that the Xingwang Mansion, which had never been taken seriously and had always kept a low profile, would come up with such a huge advantage.

Prince Ning coldly scrutinized Liu Yangzheng and asked, "Mr. Liu, have you noticed anything unusual about my son?"

After careful consideration, Liu Yangzheng shook his head.

Gongsun Jin said, "Your Highness, the current situation is that the Third Young Master seems to have no memory of what happened at the Ning Prince's Mansion, and he has never mentioned it from beginning to end. If we continue to ask, it will inevitably involve many... secrets that cannot be told to outsiders, which will easily alert him."

Prince Ning said, "Ask what you should ask. What's there to be afraid of about things that haven't happened?"

Gongsun Jinxin said that she was afraid of asking about bad details.

The original intention was to use Zhu Yi's words to strengthen the Prince of Ning's confidence in his rebellion, but the kid didn't expect to play by the rules.

If we continue to press Zhu Yi about the situation at the Prince Ning's residence, he will most likely say that things have failed.

If the great undertaking succeeds, then the Prince Ning's Mansion will not be buried by the major historical events of the next few decades.

Liu Yangzheng suddenly said, "Your Highness, in my humble opinion, this young prince must have a mastermind behind him. His disappearance these past few days may have been due to manipulation, and his words are not credible. After all, there has been constant criticism of Your Highness in Jiangxi, and even the local censors have opposed Your Highness on many occasions."

Prince Ning asked, "What is the intention of the person behind this, who instructed my son to say these things? Is it to make me submit?"

"I don't know." Liu Yangzheng realized that this was a matter of favoritism.

Although I was hired by Prince Ning at great expense, I have not yet rendered any concrete service to Prince Ning, except for some matters of strategy.

If the Prince of Ning's mansion had any shady dealings, it was entrusted to Gongsun Jin to handle them.

Besides, Zhu Yi is the son of Prince Ning. How could he not trust his son but trust an outsider?

"Keep asking," said Prince Ning. "It doesn't matter what you find out. I also want to know what those treacherous people want me to learn from my son. If my son has truly traveled hundreds of years into the future... where a day in heaven is a thousand years on earth, perhaps he really was sent by heaven to assist me?"

Liu Yangzheng looked at Gongsun Jin as if to say, "Your prince only heard you relay a few words from his son, and his heart began to waver. Is he always this superstitious?"

Gongsun Jin said, "Your Highness, what about the Xing Mansion matter? Should we send someone to... intervene?"

In Gongsun Jin's view, the emperor is firmly entrenched in the deep palace, and there is nothing we can do.

But the Prince of Xing's residence is located in Anlu, Huguang, which is not far from Jiangxi. If everyone suspects that the Prince of Xing's only son may inherit the throne, then why not try to get rid of him?

Prince Ning said, "Even if it doesn't happen in Xing Prefecture, it won't happen in my Ning Prefecture. Let things be as they are. I'll have you keep an eye on Tang Yin's movements these next two days, how about that?"

Gongsun Jin said, "His hysteria has worsened. He often runs out in a madcap manner and disappears for a day or two, sometimes even..."

"How is it?" Prince Ning asked, frowning.

"Tang Yin once suffered a hysterical episode and attempted to drown in South Lake, nearly drowning. He also rambled on day and night." Gongsun Jin was speechless about this.

Tang Yin has perfectly portrayed the mad scholar, and he himself does not want Prince Ning to keep such a person, after all, for him, the normal Tang Yin is a strong competitor.

The cause of rebellion is inherently fraught with peril and fraught with danger. And yet, after achieving great things, one must ultimately be relegated to a subordinate position? Why? Just because Tang Yin had a good relationship with the princess? Did he rise to power through a woman's connections?

Prince Ning said, "Fortunately, I haven't said too much to him. Such an arrogant scholar is not cut out for great things. Perhaps he should just spend his time with poetry and painting. Have someone keep an eye on him, and then send him away!"