The struggle for the throne during the Jiajing reign

Chapter 151 Shih Lin

"Yes—" Prince Yu didn't know how to explain it for a moment, and he didn't know whether he should tell his younger brother about this, but he really wanted to say it.

Because finally there's someone who only has eyes for him, and finally there's something that surpasses Zaizhen.

Zhu Zaizhen found a place to sit down and said, "This hairpin is Consort Kang's darling. How could she bear to give it to her?"

""

Caiyun lowered her head, her heart pounding. Prince Yu unconsciously raised his voice a little: "Yes, Caiyun served well. This is a special reward from Mother."

Zhu Zaizhen raised an eyebrow at Caiyun: "How well did you serve her that Consort Kang rewarded you so handsomely?"

Caiyun's face flushed red, and her legs went weak as she knelt down: "Your Majesty is kind and Your Highness is generous, this servant—this servant dares not take credit."

For over a decade, this is the first time I've heard a palace servant say that Consort Kang was kind. It's true that living a long time allows you to see all sorts of things.

Seeing Caiyun kneel down, Prince Yu felt a pang of heartache, but he couldn't say anything.

"Why are you kneeling? Isn't this a good thing?" Zhu Zaizhen smiled and said, "Serve your brother well, and I will reward you later."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Prince Yu breathed a sigh of relief: "Caiyun, go and make some tea."

"Yes."

After Caiyun left, Zhu Zaizhen immediately called out to Prince Yu, "Alright, I understand!"

This time, it was Prince Yu's turn to blush. He stood awkwardly in front of Zhu Zaizhen.

"You—you mustn't tell Father."

"Huh?" Zhu Zaizhen was somewhat taken aback, forgetting to continue teasing him: "Do you think Father Emperor wouldn't know?"

"Ah! Father Emperor knows!"

The two brothers looked at each other in bewilderment. Zhu Zaizhen felt that Prince Yu's mind was really a bit mediocre, taking after Consort Kang rather than his father.

The only two words in Prince Yu's mind were "it's over," but he didn't actually know exactly where the end was.

After a moment, she said anxiously, "Father—Father won't do anything to Caiyun, will he?"

Zhu Zaizhen shook his head and comforted her, "Even without colorful clouds, there are still white clouds. Father won't do anything to her."

The root of the problem lies not in any particular palace maid, but in Consort Kang's haste and Prince Yu's lack of self-control.

After a moment, seeing that Prince Yu was truly panicked, Zhu Zaizhen could only pull him down to sit: "Alright, Father has already punished him."

Prince Yu shuddered, but when he saw Caiyun bringing tea over and everything was alright, he calmed down.

"When my mother was promoted, the melody 'Tianxiang Fengshao' was used."

"That's it?" Prince Yu straightened his back again. He remembered that his attendant had told him earlier, but he was only thinking about whether his mother would scold Caiyun, so he didn't pay attention.

When Caiyun returned, she had already taken off her hairpin and was only carrying a simple copper hairpin. She did not understand what "Tianxiang Fengshao" meant. As for Prince Yu, he certainly knew, but he did not think it was anything special.

He dismissed everyone else and solemnly said to Zhu Zaizhen, "I've thought it through, I'm not going to argue anymore!"

If Father is angry and sends me to a remote and impoverished place, you must find me a wealthy fiefdom in the future.

Once the thought in his heart was resolved, he suddenly felt that the world was vast and boundless. Prince Yu now only thought about going to his fiefdom as soon as possible. At that time, no one could control him in the palace, and he could be with Caiyun day and night, doing whatever he wanted.

As for becoming the crown prince or the emperor, he realized from this disaster relief effort that it was too troublesome and too difficult. If he didn't do it well, many, many people would die, many people who could have lived.

It's better to be a prince; you don't have to worry about anything except the affairs of your own palace.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zaizhen nearly dropped his teacup. He never expected that he, who had only come to visit and watch the excitement, would hear Prince Yu say such a thing. He decided it was better not to come at all.

After saying this, Prince Yu felt a sense of relief. "Zaizhen, do you know what the first thing I do when I wake up these past few days?"

Zhu Zaizhen probably guessed it, but still shook his head, wanting Prince Yu to say what he was holding back.

Prince Yu smiled and said, "I'm glad I'm sick. I don't have to go to the Wenhua Hall to see the teachers, I don't have to go to the West Garden to see my father with trepidation, I don't have to go to see my mother with guilt, and I don't have to worry about whether I've said or done anything wrong again today—"

Zhu Zaizhen sighed, stood up, and patted his shoulder: "Brother Wang, do you care about Caiyun?"

"certainly."

Zhu Zaizhen leaned down and looked into Prince Yu's eyes, instructing him word by word: "Then don't say such things to anyone again. You told me that, and I've remembered it. That's enough."

Prince Yu's face froze instantly. "You mean, if I give up, Caiyun will be in danger?"

"She's useless now, so she's in danger. Not to mention Father, your mother won't let her off either." Zhu Zaizhen quickly calmed Prince Yu down when he saw him about to break down again: "You can stop arguing, but you can't say it out loud. If you don't say it, nothing will happen."

Prince Yu lowered his head: "If only my elder brother were still alive, or if only you were the elder brother."

"Being born into an imperial family is both a blessing and a curse, but the blessing outweighs the curse. As you have seen, it is normal for poor people to freeze and starve to death in winter, while you and I at least live in luxury."

It took Zhu Zaizhen a long time to appease Prince Yu and get him out of the predicament. Prince Yu could choose not to fight, but not now.

After Prince Jing left, Caiyun went inside and saw Prince Yu sitting there blankly. Anxious, she went up to him and asked with concern, "Your Highness, what's wrong? Did you quarrel with Prince Jing?"

She had siblings before entering the palace, and her family lacked food and clothing, so bickering and fighting were common occurrences. But what could the two princes lack? Why did they have to quarrel?

Prince Yu's heart softened when he saw her concerned and worried expression. He wanted to tell her that he would give up his ambition and go to her residence to live happily ever after, but Zaizhen had just solemnly instructed him.

"I'm the older brother, how could I possibly argue with my younger brother?"

Prince Yu did not want Caiyun to see him looking depressed.

But girls mature early, and besides, she was several years older than Prince Yu, so she squatted down and pressed her face against his knee: "Is it because of the Heavenly Fragrance and Phoenix Melody you mentioned earlier? What is that?"

Prince Yu paused for a moment: "That is the music of the inner palace. In principle, it is only played by the Empress or the Empress Dowager on New Year's Day, Winter Solstice, and birthday celebrations."

Caiyun's voice trembled slightly: "Is it because of me?"

Having experienced disaster relief, Prince Yu had come to understand many things. He touched the cheek of his beloved and said, "No, it's just because I'm not good enough."

He can make mistakes, and no matter how big the mistake, his father and mother will not really do anything to him. But Caiyun cannot make mistakes; if she does, she will die.

"It seems that Your Highness means that I should get pregnant with His Highness's child as soon as possible. Your Highness, that hairpin is very beautiful. I never dreamed that I would be able to wear such a treasure one day."

But now I'm thinking, I'd rather have nothing at all, as long as Your Highness is well.

"I'm fine," Prince Yu said with a forced smile.

"Your Highness, let's go. I'll make you happy."

In the afternoon, Zhu Zaizhen met with Zhang Juzheng in the warm pavilion of Wenhua Hall.

"Your Highness," Zhang Juzheng said with a beaming smile, "Since Her Majesty has been promoted, we are unable to offer our congratulations in person and can only pay our respects from afar."

Zhu Zaizhen accepted with a smile, then asked him to sit down: "How are the arrangements for repairing the border fortifications going?"

When the topic turned to business, Zhang Juzheng's expression became serious: "First, we selected three thousand experienced soldiers and young men, led by Zhu Shitai and Shen Lian. In accordance with His Highness's instructions, Grand Secretary Yan transferred that Imperial Censor Hu to Jizhou."

Furthermore, under the urging of the Cabinet, the Ministry of War also issued an order, instructing the military commander of Gubeikou to fully cooperate.

After listening, Zhu Zaizhen nodded and said, "In that case, if the loopholes at Gubeikou cannot be patched up, then it will be more than just the heads of a few petty officials that can be held accountable."

"With the attention of both the government and the public, everyone should exercise restraint."

Ma Dezhao served Zhang Juzheng fresh tea. After thanking him, Zhang Juzheng asked, "Is that Imperial Censor Hu the same kind of person as Shen Lian?"

He was somewhat curious about Hu Zongxian, as far as he knew, His Highness and Hu Zongxian should never have met.

"In the matter of Gubeikou, having another Shen Lian won't make much difference. Hu Zongxian is the kind of person who will stop at nothing to get things done."

Zhang Juzheng smiled: "Then Your Highness's arrangement is indeed prudent."

He likes people like that. If an honest official can't get things done, what's the use of being honest? If a corrupt official can get things done, taking a little more isn't a big deal. The key is whether the problem can be solved.

"By the way, on my way here I met a fellow student from the Ministry of Rites. He said that the auspicious days for the two princes to leave the palace and take up their residences have been chosen for the third and fourth days of the second month and the eleventh day. They have already been sent to the West Garden, awaiting Your Majesty's imperial approval."

I had been looking forward to it every day, but now that the date has suddenly been set, I feel a little reluctant to let it go.

However, this disaster relief effort also revealed that he still has too few people he can trust, and only after leaving the palace can he cultivate some confidants.

Otherwise, apart from those from the Hanlin Academy, everyone else would have to sacrifice a chicken to gain entry to the palace for an audience.

"It's not far off, how are Xu Wei and Qi Jiguang doing out there?"

He hasn't had time to deal with things outside the palace these past few days, but fortunately Zhang Juzheng is there to handle things.

"Qi Yuanjing was very well-behaved, practicing his studies day and night."

Zhu Zaizhen knew immediately that Xu Wei had definitely gotten into trouble.

Zhang Juzheng sighed helplessly: "He had a conflict with Li Panlong, Wang Shizhen and others, and cursed them to their faces. He had no true self, no personality, used his official power to oppress ordinary people, and used archaic writing to cover up his shallowness. His poems are like birds mimicking human speech, and his writing is like a corpse wearing ancient clothes. He spent his whole life picking up the leftovers of the ancients. He was extremely despicable."

"Those insults are really harsh, but interesting." Zhu Zaizhen laughed as soon as he heard this. He liked this kind of thing and wished he could witness it with his own eyes: "Are they the kind of people who advocate that prose must be from the Qin and Han dynasties and poetry must be from the Tang dynasty?"

"Yes."

"No wonder."

"Your Highness!" Zhang Juzheng said with a headache, "Yang Shen has retired, and Li Panlong's reputation in Zhili is growing day by day. Although his official position is not high, his literary fame is known throughout the world. He seems to be planning to take control of the literary world."

Xie Zhen, Zong Chen, Wang Shizhen, and others all enjoy extremely high prestige among scholars. Xu Wei, after all, is His Highness's man, which is common knowledge. To make an enemy of him in this way would be truly unwise.

Zhu Zaizhen's eyes lit up: "So that means these people will incite the literary world to unequivocally support Prince Yu?"

Actually, there was no such thing. They also supported Prince Yu, but they weren't so open about it. Zhang Juzheng nodded and said, "There have been such rumors in the past two days."

"This is a timely help! Wen Chang has done a great service; I will reward him handsomely!"