After discussing important matters with the Three Yangs in the Wenhua Hall, Zhu Yunwen returned to the Eastern Palace.

There were also some subordinate officials appointed by Zhu Yuanzhang for Zhu Yunwen in the Eastern Palace. They belonged to the Zhan Shi Mansion and assisted Zhu Yunwen in handling various matters on a daily basis.

Upon arriving at the Eastern Palace, an official immediately stepped forward and said to Zhu Yunwen:

"Your Highness, now that the court is settled and many of the policies you previously issued are being implemented normally, would you consider taking a tour of the country?"

Zhu Yunwen pondered for a moment before speaking:

"Now that the world is at peace and all is well, it is indeed customary for me to make an inspection tour of various regions, especially the places where the various vassal kings are stationed."

"Alright then, following the rules, you draft a plan and route, and when I have some free time, I'll visit some places."

The officials below immediately took action.

Then Zhu Yunwen found Zhao Qingzhu. The two of them had some rare time alone together, so they sat down to drink tea, chat, and read books, which was quite comfortable.

After eating a piece of pastry, Zhao Qingzhu said to Zhu Yunwen:

"Now the industries of floral water and bicycles have been promoted nationwide, and the daily silver provided to the national treasury has even exceeded the tax revenue of a month in the past."

These revenues filled the Ming Dynasty's treasury, more than enough to support the establishment of official schools throughout the country.

This alone is enough to support your large-scale provision of books to these official schools. There aren't really many concerns.

Zhu Yunwen nodded slightly, and then said:

“I understand the principles, but some things can only be done well if you plan ahead. Otherwise, it’s easy for things to fail.”

Hearing Zhu Yuntong say this, Zhao Qingzhu also felt that it made sense.

So Zhao Qingzhu asked Zhu Yunwen if there was anything else he needed to do next.

Zhu Yunwen replied:

"I have already given the orders for these matters, and my subordinates are handling them. I don't have anything to worry about. Hmm, I may have to go out for a while. As the Crown Prince, I should frequently tour the country to understand the people's hardships and also supervise the vassal kings in various regions."

Zhao Qingzhu immediately said:

"In that case, I'll go with you then."

Zhu Yunzhu smiled. Zhao Qingzhu usually accompanied him on these outings. Although she didn't say it outright, it was clear that Zhao Qingzhu was indeed thinking about Zhu Yunzhu's safety and worried that he might encounter something that threatened his personal safety when he went out.

With Zhao Qingzhu around, such risks are indeed almost non-existent.

Zhu Yunwen nodded and said, "Alright, this time when I go to various places, I will also pay special attention to the local vassal kings."

Find out if they oppressed the people in their localities like the previous Qin King Zhu Shuang.

"While we're at it, we should also take a good look at the power these feudal lords wield in their respective regions, in order to prepare for weakening them later."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Qingzhu frowned and said to Zhu Yunwen:

"Weaken the vassal kings? Your Highness, these vassal kings are, after all, members of the royal family, the emperor's sons and grandsons."

If we weaken them now, won't something else go wrong? And will Grandfather oppose this?

Zhu Yunwen said with a smile:

"It will only weaken the power of the vassal kings, and will not harm them. There is no need to worry too much about that."

Hearing Zhu Yuntong say this, Zhao Qingzhu was still somewhat uneasy.

Zhu Yunwen then said:

"Weakening the vassal kings is a necessary thing to do. First, it is to consolidate the power in my hands and make the power of the world more concentrated."

Secondly, it was to prevent the local warlords from becoming too powerful, and also to prevent them from harming the local people.

There are some things I can always see, more than you can. That's beyond question.

Zhao Qingzhu nodded, then gave a self-deprecating smile and said:

"It's ridiculous that I'm teaching you here."

Zhu Yunwen smiled and said:

"It's already quite impressive that you've come this far."

Zhao Qingzhu immediately revealed a smug smile.

Then Zhao Qingzhu continued:

"I've also heard that the Eastern Island Nation and the Korean Nation seem to be making some moves. Should we be on guard? After all, these two countries have always harbored treacherous ambitions, so we must be wary of them."

Zhu Yunwen said with a smile:

"I also know that these two countries harbor malicious intentions and will cause some harm to the Ming Dynasty sooner or later. So this time, it is actually an opportunity for our Ming Dynasty."

If Gao Liguo and Dongdaoguo are truly courting death and intend to do something to the Ming Dynasty, then this month's opportunity will be perfect for them to deal with Jiangdong Island and Gao Liguo directly.

So even though we know they're making moves, we have to play dumb to lure them into a trap. Otherwise, if we take countermeasures too early, wouldn't they stop causing trouble?

They didn't cause any trouble, so I wasn't able to wipe them out in one fell swoop.

Upon hearing Zhu Yunwen's words, Zhao Qingzhu suddenly realized that Zhu Yunwen also wanted to settle things once and for all.

Zhao Qingzhu thought for a moment and said:

"Given the current strength of the Ming Dynasty, there is indeed no need to take the Eastern Island Kingdom and the Goryeo Kingdom seriously."

Zhu Yunwen smiled and nodded, then picked up his teacup and said:

"Alright, let's put these things aside for now. Today, let's relax and not discuss these important matters."

Zhao Qingzhu smiled and nodded, and the two of them drank tea and chatted about other things.

Zhu Yunwen, on a whim, began to recall the methods of making some items he remembered from later generations.

For example, soap making, glass making, and steel forging techniques, etc.

These things can all be applied to people's lives, and can be considered as a way to continue to improve people's quality of life.

After their conversation, Zhao Qingzhu felt that Zhu Yuntong really knew too much.

It seems there is nothing in this world that Zhu Yunwen cannot understand, and nothing that he cannot do.

A few days later, Zhu Yuanzhang found Zhu Yunwen and asked him:

"I heard you are planning to travel the world, but nowadays, it seems that Goryeo and Dongdao are ready to offend the northern part of my Great Ming at any time."

If you leave now, won't that give them an opportunity to attack?

Zhu Yunwen smiled and said to Zhu Yuanzhang:

"Grandfather, isn't this the situation I wanted to see? If I stay in the capital, they will definitely make their move eventually, but I never know when they will."

But if I leave the capital, they'll definitely think they've found an opportunity. Then they can immediately start making their move, right?

They think everything is under their control, so why don't I take some action and take control of them instead?

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang immediately understood Zhu Yunwen's meaning and said:

"You're deliberately creating an opportunity for them to cause trouble, aren't you?"

Zhu Yunwen nodded slightly and said:

"Yes, only in this way can we quickly resolve the problem."