"Your Majesty, I am familiar with this poem," the Prince of Lu said quickly. "It is the Poem of Pity for the Peasants by the Tang Dynasty poet Li Shen."

Zhu Youxiao nodded and said with a smile, "Prince Lu is truly a learned man."

After hearing this, King Lu didn't know what to say.

Anyone with even a modicum of knowledge should know this poem. But the Prince of Lu also understood that His Majesty was not asking him to read any poem.

"Prince Lu, what do you think of this poem in our Ming Dynasty?" Zhu Youxiao looked at Prince Lu and asked directly.

Upon hearing this, Prince Lu's heart trembled, and cold sweat instantly flowed down his forehead. He quickly said, "Your Majesty, our Ming Dynasty is rich and powerful. Although the people live in hardship, it has not reached this level."

"Although Shandong suffered this disaster, it was merely a natural disaster, not a man-made calamity. Now that Your Majesty has arrived in Shandong, bringing with him countless money and grain, the people will naturally be able to survive."

"This is all due to your majesty's grace, and it also contributes to the prosperity of our Ming Dynasty. With your majesty, the Ming Dynasty has hope for a revival!"

Ignoring Prince Lu's flattering words, Zhu Youxiao said in a deep voice, "Prince Lu just said that this incident was a natural disaster, not a man-made disaster. I don't think that's the case."

"Since I arrived in Shandong, I've heard some things. The land in Shandong is basically not in the hands of the common people. The Lu Wangfu occupies 40% of the land in Shandong. In other words, 40% of the land in Shandong belongs to the Lu Wangfu. After operating in Shandong for so many years, the Lu Wangfu can be considered to be well managed."

"I remember that Prince Lu's manor didn't seem to have so many farmlands, right?"

"These fields seem to have been annexed by the Prince of Lu's Palace, right?"

"Shandong suffered a devastating disaster this time, and the people have lost their livelihoods and are now forced to sell their land. I'm sure the Prince of Lu's Palace has collected a lot of it, right?"

After hearing these three soul-torturing questions, Prince Lu fell to his knees and said hastily, "Your Majesty, I would never dare to have such thoughts."

Zhu Youxiao sat on the dragon throne and did not ask Prince Lu to stand up. He simply reached out, picked up the teacup, took a sip, and said, "There's no need for us, the emperor and his subjects, to beat around the bush. Since I've found out, I naturally have evidence."

"The princes of the Ming Dynasty were originally supposed to govern their own regions, but that's no longer the case. They've annexed land, embezzled disaster relief funds, and seemingly done anything they dare not do. Is the Prince of Lu's Mansion trying to force the people to rebel? Or is it that the Prince of Lu is planning to lead the people in a rebellion?"

After hearing this, King Lu was so frightened that he sat down on the ground.

I knew that nothing good would happen this time I came here, and I'm afraid I can't go back!

There's really no going back this time!

Zhu Youxiao sat on the dragon throne, looking at the dazed Prince Lu. He was a little confused for a moment and his expression was very strange.

What happened to King Lu?

I just wanted to scare him and make him give me some money and food, so how did it turn out like this?

I can't even speak, don't be scared.

Zhu Youxiao had just finished his outburst and said such words, so it was impossible for him to run down to comfort Prince Lu. So he winked at Chen Hong next to him.

Having been with Zhu Youxiao for so many years, Chen Hong naturally understood the emperor's every move. He hurried to Prince Lu's side, gently extended his hand to nudge him, and asked softly, "Prince? Are you feeling unwell? His Majesty is asking you a question."

After hearing Chen Hong's cry, the King of Lu seemed to come to his senses. He quickly got up, knelt on the ground and said, "Your Majesty, I absolutely do not have such thoughts. Please understand!"

As Prince Lu spoke, he was crying and trembling, looking extremely frightened.

Zhu Youxiao felt helpless when he saw this scene. He didn't know whether this was Prince Lu's pretense or his true reaction.

If this is an act, the acting is really amazing; if it is a real reaction, isn't this too timid?

In fact, the King of Lu was not very courageous to begin with, and he had been worried since he received the imperial edict. He had been thinking about his various fates all the way, and it can be said that he was scaring himself all the way.

When I heard what Zhu Youxiao said just now, I was really scared.

Prince Lu himself was a playboy. He was the fourth son of the previous Prince Lu. No one in his family thought that he would inherit the throne, so no one thought about how to train him. He was a person who only ate, drank and had fun since he was a child. He liked calligraphy and painting, and he had not experienced much.

Later, the eldest brother died of illness, and the second and third brothers also played themselves to death at a young age. As for the King of Lu, although he also married forty-eight wives and concubines, he was still relatively restrained.

However, the Prince of Lu was not someone who could handle important responsibilities. He had a poor mental state and was very timid. He enjoyed his current life very much. Thinking that he was going to die and that his 48 wives and concubines would be exiled, the Prince of Lu was terrified.

"Why has it come to this?" Zhu Youxiao said with a wry smile.

No matter whether Prince Lu was pretending or really did it, he couldn't let him go on like this.

Winking at Chen Hong, Zhu Youxiao said, "Help Prince Lu to sit down!"