Little Zhu was undoubtedly carefree. Perhaps the little guy was very curious and confused at first. For example, he could not see his father when he woke up, but he could not see his mother either. This made him feel uncomfortable and he cried.

I've gotten used to it now. It's okay if I can't see my parents; I can still play around. Anyway, my parents will appear soon.

Consort Guo Ning smiled as she served the dishes. If it weren't for this chubby little fellow in front of her, she wouldn't have stayed in the Qianqing Palace for so long. Acting as the regent for the inner palace sounds easy, but it's really difficult in practice, after all, Consort Guo Ning's position was not entirely legitimate.

Everyone knows that the current emperor has absolutely no intention of establishing a new empress.

Zhu Xiong Ying appeared; he and Xu Miao Qing arrived at the Qianqing Palace. Seeing Old Zhu was secondary; seeing their son was the primary concern.

"Mom!" Little Zhu, happily munching on a sesame seed cake, beamed with joy. "Cake!"

Xu Miaoqing was very well-mannered. She first bowed to Emperor Zhu and said, "This humble subject greets Your Majesty."

Old Zhu waved his hand dismissively and said, "We're not in the imperial court. There's no need for formalities among family members here."

“Yin’er, your great-grandfather hasn’t eaten yet, how can you eat first?” Xu Miaoqing spoke gently, not daring to criticize her son harshly in front of Old Zhu. “That’s not good, that’s very unruly.”

Old Zhu was displeased. He put down the memorial in his hand and said, "It was we who let Yin'er eat first. Children get hungry quickly. You're just overthinking things. Why are you arguing with a child?"

Xu Miaoqing's face paled; she could sense that Old Zhu was truly angry. Although she was a daughter-in-law of the Zhu family, in Old Zhu's heart, while she was important, she clearly couldn't compare to Zhu Wenyin, the upright and loyal young master Zhu. He could criticize young master Zhu, but no one else could!

Zhu Xiong Ying was also somewhat helpless, and said to Old Zhu, "Grandpa, this is not good for Yin'er. He is still young and it is time for him to learn manners. If you spoil him like this, I am afraid that Yin'er will develop a bad temper in the future..."

"So what if we spoil him?!" Old Zhu, who was a relative of his grandparents, was furious. He pointed at Zhu Xiong Ying and said, "You were even more unruly when you were a child, but you're still doing fine now, aren't you?! If we're talking about the most unruly person in our family, it's you! Let me tell you, we're just farmers, so don't give us any of those high-class rules!"

Looking at little Zhu who was still hugging and munching on a sesame seed cake, Zhu Xiong Ying was speechless and choked with emotion. "Grandpa, I'm not like Yin'er!"

Old Zhu looked at Zhu Xiong Ying with some pride and said, "When your father was alive, we taught him. We also raised you, so you're quite sensible. We're skilled at raising children, so don't get any wild ideas. With Yin'er by our side for a few years, he'll be a good emperor in the future!"

Old Zhu has become arrogant. In fact, Zhu Xiong Ying really wanted to have a little discussion with Old Zhu about the topic of educating children.

Zhu Xiong Ying himself didn't say it, but he was a 'monster'. And if you really think about it, Zhu Xiong Ying felt that he spent more time with his grandmother and was taught more by her. As for his father, including several of his more successful uncles, they all grew up under his grandmother's care.

Back then, Zhu Yuanzhang was busy conquering the country; he had no time to educate his children. But now, Zhu Yuanzhang has waved his hand and claimed all the credit for the success, and the key point is that he firmly believes it.

Looking at Consort Guo, Zhu Xiong Ying remembered some things that he had almost forgotten during his confinement.

Consort Guo had a son, Zhu Tan, the tenth son of Emperor Zhu. However, Zhu Tan passed away six years ago, and Zhu Zhaohui, the heir apparent of Prince Lu, who was less than five years old at the time, became Prince Lu's 'successor'.

The current Prince of Lu has not yet succeeded to the throne. Zhu Zhaohui is currently only the heir apparent to the Prince of Lu and has not yet reached the age to formally succeed to the throne.

"Grandfather, it's time for Zhaohui to succeed Prince Lu." Zhu Xiong Ying poured himself a pot of wine and said, "Speaking of which, the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Clan Court are doing nothing. I don't know what Ren Hengtai of the Ministry of Rites has been thinking these days. As for our Imperial Clan Court, I can't say anything, but this won't do."

Consort Guo's eyes lit up. Her only son had died at the age of twenty; it would be a lie to say she wasn't heartbroken. But over the years, all Consort Guo had hoped for was for her grandson to inherit the throne. Even though she had seen very little of this grandson.

Old Zhu glanced at Zhu Xiong Ying, then at Consort Guo Ning, "You should also keep an eye on this matter. Your third uncle isn't in the mood to manage the Imperial Clan Court right now. You should also take care of Zhao Hui's side; after all, he's your brother!"

Zhu Xiong Ying nodded. Although he was a cousin, he was still a younger brother. As the eldest brother of the third generation of the imperial family, Zhu Xiong Ying really needed to shoulder his responsibilities. As the next patriarch of the Zhu family, Zhu Xiong Ying should also take good care of his relatives.

"Why don't you let Consort Ning go to Yanzhou?" Zhu Xiong Ying suggested to Old Zhu. "Zhao Hui is still too young, and we can't handle the affairs of the vassal state right now. I don't trust outsiders with this either, so it's better to let Consort Ning look after Zhao Hui."

Old Zhu glared at Zhu Xiong Ying and said irritably, "Is it your place to meddle in our affairs?"

“There’s nothing we can do about it. If Zhao Hui inherits the throne, he should be in charge of the affairs of the vassal state.” Zhu Xiong Ying was not afraid and continued, “My tenth uncle’s wife is the daughter of Tang He, the Prince of Dong’ou, and she has no children. Although Lady Ge gave birth to Zhao Hui, she is still a concubine. Household affairs are the most difficult to manage, so it would be best if Consort Ning went there.”

Old Zhu thought about it and realized that made sense. He looked at Consort Ning and asked, "What our grandson said makes sense. What do you think?"

Although Consort Guo was deeply moved, she dared not show it, saying, "I will obey Your Majesty's orders."

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