The Wu Prince's Mansion is bustling with activity, probably because the current emperor's birthday is just around the corner, which is an extremely important event.

"Uncle Wang." Zhu Yunwen, sitting in the main seat, was very listless and helpless. "I don't know what to say today. I've been playful and lazy since I was a child. My grandfather disliked me, and my father didn't like me. Uncle Wang knows what kind of person my elder brother is. He dislikes my纨绔 (wan ku, a spoiled, dissolute young man) behavior even more."

Although Prince Zhu Gui, who was the same age as Zhu Yunying, had a bad temper, he still held back at this moment, saying, "Yunying, I am your uncle! We know how His Majesty treats you."

Prince Qing, Zhu Zhan, who was the same age as Zhu Yunying, also said, "Yunying, the whole capital knows that His Majesty favors you the most..."

"Sixteenth Uncle, be careful what you say." Zhu Yunwen said with a serious expression, "The capital is just Beiping, and Yingtian Prefecture has been downgraded to a secondary capital. The capital has already been moved, so don't let people think that Sixteenth Uncle harbors resentment. If Grandfather finds out, Sixteenth Uncle will probably be punished."

Zhu Zhan was speechless for a moment. He was the sixteenth son of Zhu Yuanzhang and was granted the title of Prince Qing, which seemed to be enough to qualify him as a member of the imperial family.

When he was enfeoffed seven years ago, he was granted the title of Prince of Qing, but only remotely. In reality, Prince Qing was just a figurehead, basically confined to his hometown of Yingtian Prefecture and Fengyang, unlike his older brothers who could still enjoy a carefree life in their fiefdoms.

It's just that I'm too young; my older brothers still had fiefdoms. Even though the court has stopped granting fiefdoms in recent years, and some fiefdoms have been changed or revoked, at least my older brothers still had fiefdoms and had lived a carefree life for a time.

Seeing that Zhu Zhan remained silent, Zhu Yunwen continued, "Uncle, you should go back. My brother seemed to have said something before, but I can't remember exactly. I think it was something related to the Maritime Trade Office."

As if remembering something, Zhu Yunwen said, "Thirteen years old, you are the same age as my elder brother. I remember when you were in the palace, you also studied in the Great Hall with my elder brother. You should know what it was like for me in the palace."

Zhu Gui wanted to cry. He was the same age as Zhu Yunying, but four months older. He was a prince who was relatively valued in the palace, mainly because his mother was Consort Guo Hui, daughter of Prince Guo Zixing of Chuyang, so they had some lineage connection.

However, compared to the "favored son of heaven," Zhu Yunying, Zhu Gui couldn't feel psychologically balanced in his childhood. The treatment of him as a prince and the grandsons of the emperor at that time was completely different. Especially when Zhu Yunying was immediately named the Crown Prince at the age of ten, Zhu Gui was only the sixteenth prince, not even a prince yet, and could only endure and wait.

Let's not even talk about Zhu Gui. None of Zhu Gui's older brothers or younger brothers could remain calm and collected in front of Zhu Yunying. Even if they wanted to have more contact with Zhu Yunying, their father, the emperor, would be watching closely, and their elder brothers were also reluctant. This was because the Crown Prince at that time was so special; these princes were merely princes.

After seeing Zhu Gui and Zhu Zhan off, Zhu Yunwen was very impatient. "My brother is really something. He promised to let us be rich and leisurely princes. We're not satisfied with just eating, drinking and having fun, but all we do is help him with the affairs of the imperial clan all day long."

With her large pregnant belly, Lady Sang struggled to emerge from behind the screen. "Your Highness, please don't speak nonsense. It wouldn't be good if my brother heard you."

“If my brother hears this, we’ll have to say it too!” Zhu Yunwen said irritably. “I’ve seen through your precocious intelligence, brother. You’ve been fooling me since you were little. I thought I’d be a rich and carefree prince, enjoying an easy life. But look at all these years, when has my brother ever let me have it easy?”

Lady Sang didn't care about any of that. Touching her big belly, she said, "Your Highness, you should also think about the offspring."

Well, although he was playful and unreliable, Zhu Yunwen still had high expectations for his unborn children.

“For the sake of our offspring, we should do something.” Zhu Yunwen seemed to remember something and said, “You have to be careful when you have a child. Make sure it’s not on the same day as your brother’s birthday. If someone asks, they might say it’s happening right after each other.”

Sang was both worried and hopeful. "If it's around the same time as my brother, that would be a good thing. My brother loves His Highness so much, he'll surely dote on His Highness's offspring as well."

Zhu Yunwen rolled his eyes at Madam Sang, feeling that she was dreaming.

He was favored, and he figured his offspring would also receive favor from his elder brother, the emperor. But his brother already had several children, and the number was sure to increase. He couldn't even take care of his own, let alone expect his nephew to!

He didn't consider himself particularly capable, but compared to the petty-minded Lady Sang, Zhu Yunwen believed he had a better understanding of things. During his years in the Eastern Palace, Lady Lü wasn't particularly interested in teaching Zhu Yunwen anything, mostly just letting him eat, drink, and have fun.

However, being a member of the royal family, Zhu Yunwen knew some things. Moreover, over the years, his elder brothers and sisters had taken good care of him. At most, Zhu Yunwen was uneducated and incompetent, and at most, he had developed a temperament that he genuinely disliked and was impatient with.

"Just watch, the princes will be coming over these next few days," Zhu Yunwen said helplessly. "Our nephew is going around bowing and scraping everywhere, and the princes are also coming to gather information. They're asking about the Emperor's preferences and inquiring about the Maritime Trade Office. I guess they want to do something. Our fourth uncle has been granted a fiefdom, and some princes want to go, while others are afraid of being sent away."

Lady Sang was also somewhat worried and asked, "Your Highness, will my brother grant you a fiefdom?"

These are things that many members of the royal family are worried about now.

If they were granted a fiefdom within the territory of the Ming Dynasty, the princes would naturally be overjoyed to go and assume their posts. At that time, they would wield great power and live a carefree life in their fiefdoms. Although they couldn't be said to have any thoughts of rebellion, who among the local officials would dare to control them, or even be able to control them? That was true freedom!

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