Zhu Xiong Ying was naturally aware of the report sent from Yingtian Prefecture; this was information that Old Zhu had intentionally let Zhu Xiong Ying know.

For example, his two younger sisters are displaying their power in the Eastern Palace, and Lady Lü is currently praying for the Crown Prince in the Fengxian Hall. This also includes Zhu Yunwen, who has returned to Fengyang and is unlikely to be able to return to Yingtian Prefecture anytime soon.

As for Crown Prince Zhu Biao's health, it's just due to overwork, so he needs to rest well during this period.

Zhu Xiong Ying, stationed in Tianjin, issued an edict: autumn and winter were approaching, the peak season for nomadic tribes from the north to raid the borders. The Crown Prince strictly ordered the border troops to prepare for battle and to closely monitor the movements of the nomadic tribes. The major vassal kings were also required to be prepared, as they might need to lead their troops to provide reinforcements at any time.

At this time, Zhu Xiong Ying also ordered the Beiping Prefecture and other places to send the memorials to the Beiping Prefecture first, instead of sending them directly to the Yingtian Prefecture.

In other dynasties, or if a different emperor were sitting on the throne, let alone the crown prince daring to interfere in military and local affairs, even if the crown prince did so, it would likely create discord and could even lead to his deposition.

But Old Zhu wouldn't be angry; he'd be happy to see his descendants so promising. He'd be delighted to see them take on these responsibilities early on, and he'd offer careful guidance and encouragement. He might even help them deal with mistakes first, before dealing with those who were holding them back.

In Zhu's eyes, his descendants were infallible; it was all because the civil and military officials had failed to serve him wholeheartedly, and his descendants were the most outstanding.

Zhu Xiong Ying has now ordered all military and political affairs in the north to be transferred to his side, so there's naturally no need to worry about anyone disobeying the imperial decree. Ultimately, whatever Zhu Xiong Ying is doing is permitted by Old Zhu, so there's nothing wrong with it.

Li Shanchang hurried to Tianjin. He was indeed not as energetic or as thoughtful as he had been in his youth. However, he had experienced many things, had a solid foundation, and with years of experience, he naturally had nothing to worry about.

The former Left Chancellor and Grand Tutor are now merely advisors to the Crown Prince, not even reaching the rank of Prefect.

Zhu Xiong Ying's seemingly youthful face was full of authority. "Lord Li, these are turbulent times, and I hope you can provide as much assistance as possible. Tianjin and Beiping are even more important, and I hope you can stay here and coordinate the supply of materials to the front."

Li Shanchang immediately nodded, accepting his fate, "This sinner obeys."

Zhu Xiong Ying smiled and said calmly, "With the Imperial Son-in-Law appointed as the Prefect of Tianjin, it's good that Lord Li's family is reunited."

Li Qi, the Imperial Son-in-Law and Commandant, was appointed as the first Prefect of Tianjin, a high-ranking official of the fourth rank. This was because, in the plans of Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Xiong Ying, except for the Prefects of the two capitals, whose heads were called Prefects, all other prefectures were headed by Prefects, making the Prefect a mid-level administrative official below the province and above the prefectures and counties.

Li Shanchang immediately realized that the Crown Prince was indeed the Emperor's grandson; they were all the same!

Those deemed useful were immediately exploited to the point of exhaustion. They were constantly fearing these people wouldn't work diligently, so they sought every possible way to exert pressure. However, Li Shanchang dared not say much at this point; he still hoped to turn his fortunes around.

He no longer cared about his own future, nor did he covet the title of Duke. But for the sake of his children and grandchildren, it was something he could consider. He felt that by serving them with his life and doing his utmost, his children and grandchildren might have some opportunities in the future.

After all, although the Crown Prince resembles His Majesty the Emperor, he is more lenient and less harsh than the Emperor.

It seems that Li Shanchang has no other choice but to accept his fate. Zhu Xiong Ying, on the other hand, doesn't have such grand ambitions. He simply wants to make the best use of everyone's talents—it's that simple. He also needs to take care of things in the north.

Handling affairs in the north is not only about relieving the burden on Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Yuanzhang, but also about implementing one's own governing philosophy on a small scale.

After transferring Li Shanchang to Tianjin, Zhu Xiong Ying was able to head towards Beiping at this time. Beiping was also a crucial location, and Zhu Xiong Ying hadn't forgotten some important matters.

Before leaving Tianjin, Zhu Xiong Ying assigned his third uncle to escort prisoners of war, as the Ming Dynasty was currently lacking in labor reform.

There were many criminals in the prison, and the men also had to perform corvée labor every year. But they were, after all, subjects of the Ming Dynasty, and Zhu Xiong Ying certainly couldn't use them to the point of exhaustion. However, the prisoners captured from the north, or those captured in Korea and Japan, were a different story.

Although some pedantic scholars might have objections, Zhu Xiong Ying had no intention of changing his mind; it had to be done this way. The main reason was that in this era, there were indeed some unavoidable circumstances. Technological productivity was insufficient, so they could only rely on manpower, and some labor costs could be kept lower.

Since we're going to start infrastructure construction, let's just get started directly. There's no room for leniency at this point.

Let alone now, even hundreds of years from now, it will still be the same. Many things will still rely on human labor, or even human lives, and there's simply no way around it. Wanting 'fully automated' or mechanized processes is just unrealistic.

Zhu Xiong Ying continued to be stationed in Beiping, issuing imperial edicts from Fulong Palace, which left many border troops in the nine border regions, as well as court officials in Yingtian Prefecture, somewhat bewildered and confused.

It used to be said that the Ming Dynasty had two suns and two masters. But looking at it now, we realize we underestimated it. The Ming Dynasty didn't have two masters at all; it had three.

Even though many people know that the Crown Prince is stationed in Beiping and undertaking large-scale construction of Beiping Prefecture in preparation for moving the capital, Beiping Prefecture is not even in its initial stages yet, but it already has some obvious characteristics of a 'political center'.

Fortunately, the civil and military officials in these areas don't need to worry too much, because the imperial decree from Beiping is also recognized by Yingtian Prefecture, and it is the most supreme decree from Yingtian Prefecture. Moreover, the imperial decree from Beiping Prefecture does not deviate significantly from the direction of the court, and the Crown Prince has no intention of 'establishing a kingdom'.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!