As an emperor, he can sometimes do whatever he wants, but his rules are the ultimate authority.

For example, this time, Zhu Yunying simply turned and left. Meals could wait, even though many people were already prepared. But in reality, they were just waiting; the maids and eunuchs had to remain on duty.

As for Zhu Yunying, he walked towards Fengxian Hall with a sullen face, and those who were serving Zhu Yunying quickly followed him one by one.

Upon arriving at Fengxian Hall, even Wang Chengen could only obediently stand outside the hall and wait. To enter a place like Fengxian Hall, not only was Wang Chengen unqualified, but even some of the concubines of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang and Emperor Xuanzong were not. Even some of the imperial sons-in-law were not normally allowed to enter Fengxian Hall.

Old Zhu had a stern face and held a bamboo stick in his hand. Zhu Gui could only kneel obediently, but he didn't seem to care much about anything, and could be considered somewhat fearless.

Zhu Yunying didn't say much, but silently took some incense and first offered it to Empress Ma's memorial tablet, then to the tablet of the Great Zhu. As for Zhu Yunying's great-great-grandfather and other ancestors, they were relatively later in the line of ancestor worship.

Old Zhu pointed at Zhu Yunying and said irritably, "Don't you have any manners? Your great-grandfather is watching!"

Zhu Yunying's great-grandfather, Zhu Chuyi, was posthumously honored as Emperor Xizu of Ming after Zhu Yunying became emperor, with the posthumous title of Emperor Yu. Zhu Chuyi's tomb is located at the Ming Ancestral Mausoleum in Hongze Lake, Xuyi, not at the Ming Imperial Mausoleum in Fengyang, the hometown of Zhu Yunying's great-great-grandparents.

Zhu Yunying didn't care much, and simply said, "I don't think my great-grandfather or great-great-grandfather would say anything to us. To put it bluntly, even if my grandfather was exceptionally talented, it's hard to say whether he could have won the throne without my grandmother. Even if he had, our family wouldn't have had such a smooth life."

Old Zhu nodded in deep agreement, acknowledging this point. "That makes sense. If our parents saw your grandmother, they would be overjoyed. They would be happy to have such a daughter-in-law and granddaughter-in-law. Her virtue will bring prosperity to our Zhu family."

Zhu Yunying nodded solemnly, clearly agreeing with his father's opinion. This wasn't about flattering Zhu Yunying; it was his genuine feeling. In Zhu Yunying's eyes, his grandmother was undoubtedly the most virtuous empress, the foremost virtuous empress.

At this moment, Zhu Gui simply knelt quietly; he had no right to express his feelings. Moreover, Zhu Gui was well aware that the punishment he had just received from Old Zhu was essentially a minor reprimand, and that was basically it; there was nothing to worry about.

But what happened next was more straightforward, because Joo Yoon-young arrived, which might change things a bit.

After chatting for a bit, Old Zhu pointed at Zhu Gui and said, "You've heard about his situation, haven't you?"

"Grandpa, we knew you must have some men under your command." Zhu Yunying couldn't help but complain, "Speaking of which, we should have been the ones to know about these things first. But now, it's all because Uncle Thirteen has been summoned to Yingtian Prefecture that we only found out now."

Old Zhu said irritably, "It's good that you know what's going on. If we don't die, we'll keep these people in our hands. We didn't give them to your father, and we won't give them to you now."

Zhu Yunying smiled, seemingly unconcerned. He was well aware that Zhu Yunying still had a considerable force under his command. There was no need to delve into these matters, and Zhu Yunying had no intention of immediately taking over all of Zhu Yunying's troops.

Old Zhu didn't stand on ceremony and simply asked, "Tell me, what are you planning to do with your thirteenth uncle?"

Zhu Yunying looked at Zhu Gui, who was kneeling to the side, and asked seriously, "Thirteenth Uncle, there are some things you should talk to your nephew about."

Zhu Gui glanced at Zhu Yunying, his expression immediately turning awkward. His stammering manner clearly indicated his unwillingness to speak. He was, of course, aware of his own mistakes. He could listen to what others said; there was no need for him to explain himself.

Old Zhu snorted coldly and looked at Zhu Yunying, asking, "And you? What did you hear over there?"

Zhu Yunying said, "I only heard about it from Wang Chengen, and I guess it was at the behest of the Emperor. He said that the Thirteenth Uncle was committing murder and plundering in Datong Prefecture, and that's probably what happened."

"Are we still trying to cover for him at a time like this?" Old Zhu scolded impatiently. "Don't we know what kind of messages we've been given? This bastard, is he really just committing murder for profit?"

Zhu Yunying smiled and argued, "Grandfather, if it is Uncle Thirteen who has been using the military and civilians without authorization, it is not a big deal."

Zhu Gui's eyes lit up; he felt his opportunity had arrived. In fact, what he was most worried about now was the unauthorized use of military and civilian resources. He naturally knew that Zhu Yunying was dissatisfied with princes commanding troops and deeply resented the interference of vassal kings in local military and political affairs.

If the emperor didn't care about these things, Zhu Gui felt he could easily extricate himself from the situation.

Zhu Gui truly felt as if things had taken a turn for the better, and he felt that he no longer needed to worry so much. He believed that of all the things he had done, the most serious crime was the unauthorized use of military and civilian resources; the others were trivial matters.

Old Zhu glanced at Zhu Yunying again and then said, "What are your thoughts? Your father doesn't like the idea of ​​conscripting soldiers and civilians, and you dislike it even more."

“We really don’t like these things, otherwise we wouldn’t have withdrawn the guard posts of our uncles all these years.” Zhu Yunying said quite frankly, “If the thirteenth uncle uses the military and civilians without authorization, we think it would be fine to confine him to his residence for a period of time.”

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