“Our Crown Prince is more filial than us.” Zhu Yunying said to Xu Miaoqing with some amusement, “I heard that he and his great-grandfather spent the whole day catching cicadas, which exhausted his great-grandfather so much that he went back to rest.”

Xu Miaoqing didn't know what to say. She was naturally overjoyed that her precious son was so favored and had such a secure position.

But when she thought about what her precious son did every day, and how he usually behaved, Xu Miaoqing was actually a little worried.

"Your Majesty, I don't expect the Crown Prince to be as precocious as you," Xu Miaoqing said cautiously, looking at Zhu Yunying's expression. "It's just that children from ordinary families should have some maturity by the time they're six months old."

Xu Miaoqing's reason for saying this is very simple: in ordinary families, children are expected to become sensible at a young age and not just fool around all day.

Children from wealthy families, even if they are not very mature, are at an age when they are five or six years old and should be gradually becoming sensible, and should at least have learned a lot of rules.

But even in the royal family, that precious crown prince is still like a child, spending all his time playing. He does have a lot of classes, but he's really not dedicated to them and is extremely playful.

"It's all because his great-grandfather spoiled him!" Zhu Yunying said irritably. "Whenever we think of disciplining the Crown Prince, our imperial grandfather will definitely stop us. We can't even say a word!"

Old Zhu still became the biggest stumbling block on Zhu Yunying's path to educating the Crown Prince, and Old Zhu was completely unaware of this. He even felt that protecting his great-grandson was a matter of course, and no one could stop him from spoiling little Zhu.

Xu Miaoqing said with some worry, "Yin'er is the Crown Prince after all. It's not a good thing for him to be so playful. He still doesn't understand basic education."

“If it doesn’t make sense, it doesn’t make sense. I’m not exactly an expert either,” Zhu Yunying said irritably. “The words of a sage have been interpreted in countless ways by various people. A single sentence can have two completely different meanings if you pause even slightly.”

In the days before punctuation, the profound and complex Chinese characters could indeed be 'puzzling'. A single pause could completely transform the same sentence into entirely different meanings.

Zhu Yunying thought for a moment and then said, "Yin'er is the Crown Prince after all, and we don't need him to take the imperial examinations. He doesn't need to study too deeply. For now, let him play around a bit. This child is actually quite sensible and reasonable, just like us."

Hearing Zhu Yunying say this, Xu Miaoqing naturally breathed a sigh of relief and felt somewhat happy.

Although the young Zhu's position is unusually stable, comparable to that of the first and second Zhu, the crown prince is arguably the most difficult role in the world. They are not only sons but also subjects, and a single misstep can create a rift with the emperor.

Zhu Yunying embraced Xu Miaoqing and continued, "Now Yin'er knows the hardships of the common people and is also considerate of his servants, which is very good. We hope that he will be virtuous and kind, so that he will surely become a wise ruler."

Xu Miaoqing mustered her courage and said to Zhu Yunying, "But Yin'er is surrounded by sycophants, and he is becoming irritable. He can't help but lose his temper when things don't go his way."

This left Zhu Yunying at a loss, because he knew that what Xu Miaoqing said was true, which was also a characteristic of little Zhu.

Think about it, children are naturally immature, and besides, Little Zhu's status is extremely special. Not to mention the palace servants around him, even the Emperor Emeritus would coax him. It would be strange if this child didn't have a temper.

The young couple looked at each other in bewilderment; given the current situation, it seemed they really didn't have many options left.

The main reason is that Little Zhu's backing is simply too strong. Even the Emperor and Empress combined don't carry the weight of the Retired Emperor. Moreover, this Retired Emperor inexplicably favors Little Zhu.

Zhu Yunying couldn't help but sigh, how did Old Zhu become the biggest obstacle to cultivating a wise ruler?

There's really no way to reason with this. We can't reason with Lao Zhu either. It seems we can only try to find other solutions, which is the only option we have left.

However, now we don't just need to think about Little Zhu's affairs. The Emperor Emeritus's birthday banquet is the real big deal, and it's something that must be done well!