As expected of the heir apparent to the Prince of Zhou, the Prince of Zhou's residence was once the imperial city of the Northern Song Dynasty. The artistic atmosphere still has an influence after hundreds of years.

Zhu Yunying laughed and said, "Although Fifth Uncle is currently compiling medical texts, he has always been honest and diligent. He is the most qualified person to be the Imperial Clan Minister."

Old Zhu remained noncommittal, only asking, "What about that brat Yunhu?"

Zhu Yunying said with a smile, "We have quite a few imperial uncles, it's not that kid's turn to step forward. The Imperial Clan Court Minister is my fifth uncle, the Left Imperial Clan Court Minister is my sixth uncle, and the Right Imperial Clan Court Minister is my seventh uncle."

Old Zhu interrupted, saying directly, "Seventh Brother won't do. He's single-mindedly focused on establishing a kingdom. We think you should give him a place. We also need to settle someone in your fourth uncle's household. We can't let your fourth uncle become too powerful."

Zhu Yuanzhang's imperial ambitions were quite clear. Although he looked down on Japan, or felt that Japan had nothing of value besides its silver mines, he did not want his fourth son to become too powerful there.

Looking at Old Zhu, Zhu Yunying asked, "Was sending Seventh Uncle over also out of fear that Fourth Uncle would seize the silver mine after stabilizing the situation?"

Old Zhu nodded slightly and said very seriously, "That's what we're thinking. We're strong now, and you can keep things under control, so your fourth uncle won't have any ulterior motives. But it's hard to say what will happen in the future. Your fourth uncle is a skilled soldier. If he manages to stabilize Japan, his descendants might start to have designs on him."

That makes sense. Aside from the fact that the Ming Dynasty's troops are always stationed there, the most important thing is the seemingly inexhaustible silver mine, which is enough to tempt many people. If they were to truly unify Japan in the future, they might very well set their sights on the silver mine.

King Zhu Fu of Qi was proud of his military prowess, but he was also violent and committed many illegal acts.

Zhu Yunying nodded and said to Old Zhu, "That's right. We originally planned to establish more fiefdoms and buildings outside, and we really can't let Fourth Uncle's family become too powerful."

Old Zhu laughed and pointed at Zhu Yunying, saying, "We knew you had this in mind. We originally thought the wilderness wasn't a big deal. But now that we think about it, we can't let them get too powerful. We know about your fourth uncle's little tricks."

"Grandfather, you're wronging our fourth uncle." Zhu Yunying laughed and said to the old Zhu, "Fourth Uncle has been busy fighting, while Gao Chi has been busy with the rear matters. Fourth Uncle led Gao Xu to fight and conquer cities and territories at the front, while Gao Chi stayed behind to oversee things. We also know that he has poached a lot of craftsmen over the years."

Japan now has very little access to good ironware, and it does indeed need the support of the Ming Dynasty for many things.

However, one should not underestimate those places; they are inhabited by people with a fierce and unyielding spirit, including a strong loyalty to the Emperor. Zhu Di and his son faced great difficulties in establishing their dynasty there, but now they are steadily and surely expanding their territory while also carefully managing their affairs.

Since Seventh Uncle was to be sent to Japan, the next in line should have been Eighth Uncle, Prince Tan, Zhu Zi. However, Zhu Zi was implicated in the Hu Weiyong case ten years ago and was so frightened that he and his wife committed suicide by burning themselves to death in the palace. Tenth Uncle is also gone, and Prince Lu, Zhu Tan, also died ten years ago from an overdose of mineral drugs. This was the infamous Prince Lu Huang.

Recalling these things, Zhu Yunying said, "Speaking of these imperial uncles, I've remembered them too. It's not that I'm heartless, but my third uncle's mausoleum can no longer have a Minglou (a type of ancient Chinese tower) built."

Old Zhu was somewhat embarrassed, because only imperial tombs could have a Minglou (a type of ceremonial tower). Although royal tombs were similar in status to imperial tombs, and Old Zhu had improved some funeral systems over the years, there were no relevant systems to regulate and standardize the Lu Huang royal tombs before.

"No building the Ming Tower, no building the Ming Tower." Old Zhu waved his hand and said hurriedly, "If it really doesn't work, we'll tear down your tenth uncle's Ming Tower."

Zhu Yunying said irritably, "If that's really the case, when we see our father in the future, he'll punish us. It's not like my tenth uncle built the Ming Tower without permission; it's just that our court didn't have any regulations back then. We can just leave it as is, as long as no one here builds the Ming Tower in the future. What I'm afraid of is that if we're still around, Yunying might do something."

Old Zhu said, both amused and annoyed, "That scoundrel Zhu Yunwen is really hard to say! He's obsessed with appearances. If you were still alive back then, he would probably be arrogant and might actually build a Minglou."

Xu Miaoqing, who was just serving nearby, couldn't help but interject, "Your Majesty, please don't make such a fuss about Yunhuo. He knows what's going on. If he finds out about these things, he'll probably cause trouble again."

Old Zhu was stunned for a moment, then looked at Xu Miaoqing and said, "What's wrong? Are we afraid of him causing trouble?! He wouldn't dare to cause trouble in front of us, he would only do so in front of the emperor."

“Grandfather, he probably wouldn’t dare to cause trouble in front of you, but he certainly would in front of His Majesty. At that time, I reckon he’ll send Sang to cause trouble in front of me again.” Xu Miaoqing wasn’t intimidated at all, and simply said, “Now that there’s Geng’er, I’m in for a headache.”

Old Zhu couldn't help but laugh and said, "It really is like that. Now we can see that the son is just like the father! Fifth Brother is unreliable, and his son is unreliable. Yun Tong is so lazy, so we don't expect his offspring to be any better. You'll have a lot of headaches in the future."

The family chatted and laughed, and briefly mentioned the arrangements made by the Imperial Clan Court.

It seems that not only is the "prestige" of the Five Military Commands declining, but the Imperial Clan Court is also undergoing significant changes. It's worth noting that in the past, the Imperial Clan Court, from the Imperial Clan Chief to the Left and Right Imperial Clan Directors and Imperial Clan Members, held positions that were among the most favored by Zhu Yuanzhang (the Hongwu Emperor) among his sons, second only to Zhu Biao.

There's nothing we can do about it, not even if we dare not. Just as new talents emerge in every generation, the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death is unavoidable.

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!