Little Zhu immediately retorted, "Our father said that we should govern the people's livelihood in the future. The people of our Great Ming are simple and honest. As long as they can eat their fill and stay warm, they will not rebel."

While Little Zhu's answer was somewhat naive, Old Zhu knew that unless it was a few restless individuals, the common people generally wouldn't rebel.

In reality, even if there are some schemers, there is no need to worry. As long as the people are not suffering, even if someone plots to cause trouble, it can be suppressed quickly.

In a good mood, Old Zhu continued, "Although our people are generally good, ensuring they have enough to eat and wear is not an easy task. Tell me, what would you do?"

Little Zhu, looking distressed, started scratching his head. He had actually heard plenty of道理 (principles/reasoning) before. But when it came to making a decision directly or giving a specific answer, this was something that really stumped him.

Seeing Little Zhu's helpless expression, Old Zhu couldn't help but laugh. It doesn't matter that he doesn't know now, after all, Little Zhu is too young.

In truth, Old Zhu was still very proud, even though his beloved great-grandson seemed to have no idea how to care for his people. However, the fact that the boy now understood some principles was, in Old Zhu's eyes, a considerable achievement. Some things could be learned gradually; there was no need to rush.

"Our father also said that we not only need to govern the people's livelihood, but also to clean up the officialdom." Little Zhu couldn't resist adding, "These officials are either in the imperial court or governing a prefecture or county. If these people are incompetent, the people of our Great Ming will not have a good life."

These words struck a chord with Old Zhu. He was extremely satisfied with his beloved eldest grandson, who was practically a perfect and virtuous ruler.

The reason I say "basically" is that Old Zhu felt his great-grandson was too kind-hearted and too merciful to many civil and military officials.

According to Lao Zhu's idea, as long as he saw corrupt officials or those who embezzled and broke the law, he would just be beheaded. This was the best way to clean up the bureaucracy.

While Old Zhu was still thinking, Little Zhu said again, "Our father also said that the emperor of our Great Ming should be martial! We must control a large army so that we can secure our rule, whether it is internal or external."

These words struck a chord with Lao Zhu once again. These were naturally the things that Lao Zhu felt most deeply about, and in fact, Lao Zhu did exactly that, which is beyond doubt.

Zhu Yuanzhang was a military emperor who, while punishing the tyrannical Yuan dynasty, also annihilated the various separatist forces that had previously controlled different regions. Without a powerful army, how could he have ruled the empire?

Furthermore, over the years, Zhu Yuanzhang repeatedly used various pretexts to purge military officials, which was naturally aimed at consolidating imperial power and better controlling the military. Throughout history, many founding emperors have purged meritorious officials, especially in unified dynasties like this.

Little Zhu put his hands on his hips, tilted his head back, and said, "My father said that as long as we can ensure that the people have enough to eat and wear, as long as the overall administration of the court is clean and efficient, and as long as the military of our Great Ming is strong, then I am a good emperor!"

“That makes sense. As long as our Yin’er can do these things, he will be a sage ruler.” Old Zhu hurriedly affirmed, even though he knew that none of these three things were easy. But now was the time to coax and encourage little Zhu. “Our Yin’er can definitely do these things!”

Little Zhu suddenly felt wronged, as if she was sad. "But we can't do it. Our dad says he's just good at causing trouble, but he can't conquer the world. He also says we don't have his broad vision and it's hard for us to surpass him."

"Nonsense!" Old Zhu glared and turned to settle scores with Little Zhu. "Your father isn't as ambitious as you. He only relies on his intelligence. He doesn't have the same ambition as our Yin'er. I'm not saying this to criticize him, but if you were given a few more years, you could lead troops. Your father's life is pretty much over; he can only manage generals."

Little Zhu felt even more aggrieved and said, "But our father is the emperor! He doesn't need to fight wars. As long as he knows how to recognize and use people, he'll be fine!"

Old Zhu was speechless, but he genuinely believed that what Xiao Zhu said made a lot of sense.

If an emperor is skilled in both civil and military affairs, that would be ideal. For example, Zhu Yuanzhang (the Hongwu Emperor) considered himself an emperor who could fight on horseback and govern the people on foot, excelling in every aspect.

Even the proud Zhu Yuanzhang understood that, throughout history, very few emperors could rival him. Therefore, despite his hopes for his sons to succeed, Zhu Yuanzhang believed that surpassing him would be an extremely difficult task.

There was no other reason; it was simply that Zhu Yuanzhang was incredibly capable. Even though Zhu Yuanzhang was always proud of his eldest son and grandson, he never believed that his descendants were capable of competing with him for the throne.

Just as Old Zhu and Little Zhu were chatting, a tall, handsome young man suddenly walked into the hotel.

Little Zhu was naturally very happy, and didn't even care about the duck blood vermicelli soup.

Old Zhu, his beard bristling and eyes wide, said irritably, "I remember today isn't a day off, is it? There are so many matters in the court that require your approval, what are you doing out here?"

Zhu Yunying didn't mind, and just said with a smile, "It's because things have been dealt with more or less that I came out for a stroll. Our Crown Prince needs to understand the people's livelihood, and I, as the emperor, can't just rely on memorials to understand the world."

"Have you eaten yet?" Despite his complaints, Old Zhu still felt sorry for his grandson. "Yin'er and I have eaten enough. If you haven't eaten, we'll wait for you."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!