Ming Dynasty: I, Zhu Yunwen, started by resurrecting my grandmother.

morning.

Beiping.

The sun rose early, the sky was clear and cloudless, and there was a slight breeze.

Military training ground.

There were thousands of cavalry in the front row and thousands of infantry in the back row.

The soldiers, fully armed, stood tall and proud, their spirits high.

The cavalrymen in the front row, riding tall horses, their helmets and armor gleaming in the sunlight, looked majestic and imposing.

The infantrymen in the back row stood in neat rows, chests out and bellies tucked in, full of fighting spirit.

Their eyes were fixed on Zhu Di.

Zhu Di is inspecting the newly recruited soldiers.

A tall monk followed behind Zhu Di.

The monk appeared to be in his sixties, thin, with a long beard and piercing triangular eyes.

This man was none other than Yao Guangxiao, Zhu Di's chief strategist, and the monk Daoyan.

After inspecting the troops, Zhu Di sat down under a large yellow umbrella, with someone attending to him.

"Sidao, you've been in charge of recruiting soldiers during this time, you've worked hard."

"Your Majesty, this humble monk has not suffered any hardship," Yao Guangxiao bowed.

How many new recruits were recruited this time?

"Five thousand infantrymen and five thousand cavalrymen."

"Very good, but if the court finds out about this, it might cause some trouble. Unauthorized recruitment of soldiers is a capital offense." Zhu Di said with a worried expression.

Yao Guangxiao coughed lightly: "Your Majesty, there is no need to worry."

A few days ago, I had my fortune told, and it was extremely auspicious.

"Is that so?" Zhu Di's expression softened slightly, because he knew that Yao Guangxiao never spoke carelessly, and all his predictions came true.

Yao Guangxiao stroked his beard and said slowly, "Now, no matter what, the three brothers Zhu Gaochi, Zhu Gaoxu, and Zhu Gaosui have successfully returned to Beiping, which is our greatest victory."

Zhu Di nodded slightly: "Those three brothers almost didn't even make it out of the capital."

Now, I feel much more at ease.

We owe this all to Xu Zengshou, but it's hateful that Xu Huizu didn't help us.

Yao Guangxiao wiped the sweat from his brow: "Your Majesty, this is not surprising. It was within our expectations. Xu Huizu is a very stubborn man, loyal to the court."

Xu Zengshou, however, valued family ties; although they were brothers, they were quite different.

"I will settle this score with Xu Huizu sooner or later," Zhu Di said, picking up the teacup on the table and taking a sip. He glanced around to make sure no one was watching. "However, I think Zhu Gaochi is too fat and has difficulty walking; he doesn't have the bearing of an emperor."

Zhu Gaoxu, however, is very much like me, brave and fierce. I intend to change the heir apparent. What do you think?

Upon hearing this, Yao Guangxiao was greatly alarmed and quickly stopped him: "Your Majesty is mistaken. Since ancient times, deposing the eldest son in favor of the youngest has been a path to chaos."

Duke Xian of Jin favored Li Ji and wanted to make Xi Qi, the son born to Li Ji, the crown prince.

Li Ji killed Crown Prince Shen Sheng, and the other two princes fled into exile. The brothers fought each other, which led to the fragmentation of the State of Jin.

There are countless examples like this throughout history.

Although Zhu Gaochi was somewhat obese, he was benevolent, filial, intelligent, and had exceptional strategic skills. Being a crown prince doesn't necessarily mean you have to be good at charging into battle.

Back then, when Cao Cao asked his son Cao Zhang about his ambitions,

Cao Zhang said that he should be fully armed and ready to fight on the battlefield, and become a great general.

Cao Zhang was also extremely brave, so why didn't Cao Cao appoint him as his heir, but instead appointed Cao Pi as his successor?

Zhu Di thought Yao Guangxiao's words made sense.

Yao Guangxiao continued, "Although the Northern Yuan has weakened considerably compared to its former strength, even a centipede with a hundred legs will not die easily."

They might also collude with the kingdoms of the Western Regions and could move south at any time.

Therefore, we must further strengthen our defenses, reinforce the city's defenses, and send out scouts further away to closely monitor their movements.

Zhu Di gazed at the military training ground: "Si Dao, you've thought things through very well."

We already have hundreds of thousands of soldiers at our disposal, so what do we have to fear from them?

But the imperial court is vigorously reducing the power of the regional military governors; how should we respond?

Upon hearing his question, Yao Guangxiao frowned deeply: "This is exactly what I was worried about. A few days ago, I opposed your decision to send troops to the capital, but you wouldn't listen."

"If Chang Yuchun hadn't suddenly appeared, how could we have suffered such a crushing defeat? It was an accident." Zhu Di was unwilling to admit that there was anything wrong with his military strategy.

"Before the late emperor passed away, he had already issued an edict forbidding all the vassal kings from coming to the capital to mourn. You insist on doing the opposite. How can this be allowed?"

Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng were both shrewd strategists, and they had a variety of ways to deal with people.

"If I'm not mistaken, the imperial court will take action against us soon," Yao Guangxiao said, squinting his eyes.

Zhu Di looked slightly nervous: "Do you have a good plan to deal with this?"

Yao Guangxiao pondered for a moment: "In my opinion, the court is unlikely to take direct action against us for the time being, but it is very likely that they will target Prince Zhou."

Because King Zhou is different from others; he is your younger brother.

Moreover, he is arrogant and has committed many illegal acts. Your Majesty, please inform him to restrain himself.

Zhu Di stood up and paced back and forth: "Yes, I have repeatedly advised him, but he won't listen. What can I do?"

"At such a special time, he should keep a low profile and be careful." Yao Guangxiao held a string of Buddhist prayer beads in his hand, playing with them constantly.

Zhu Di had to worry a lot about this younger brother, but the Prince of Zhou continued to do as he pleased.

He's done far too many illegal things.

For example, he recruited prisoners to stay in his mansion and served them, and without the emperor's permission, he took his wives and concubines to live in Fengyang.

They used imperial processions when traveling, and incidents of kidnapping men and seizing women were common.

Zhu Di once warned him that if he continued like this, trouble would inevitably follow sooner or later.

King Zhou said, "You are in charge of Beiping, and I am in charge of the Central Plains. What can the Emperor do to us brothers?"

He relied on the late emperor's favor and showed no restraint whatsoever.

Just then, a person walked in from under the umbrella, covered in sweat.

He walked straight to Zhu Di's table, picked up the teacup, drank it all in one gulp, and then wiped his mouth with his hand.

Zhu Di glanced at the newcomer and recognized him as none other than Zhu Gaoxu.

Zhu Di glanced at him and scolded, "What's the matter, you in such a panic?"

Zhu Di felt that he was not composed enough, and therefore reprimanded him many times.

Zhu Gaoxu was scolded and dared not argue back: "Father, a scout has reported that Zhu Yunwen, by order of the court, is leading several court officials to take up their posts here."

"What? This is outrageous!" Zhu Di was furious when he heard this. He thought to himself, "Isn't the court clearly trying to take away my power?"

He stood up abruptly, saying, "In the Beiping area, the appointment of officials is entirely up to me. How can I allow others to interfere?"

Get rid of them all!

"promise!"

Zhu Gaoxu agreed and turned to stride out.