In the seventh year of Hongwu, the legitimate eldest grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang, the great ancestor of the Ming Dynasty, was born.
He who resides as the legitimate heir will surely ascend to t...
Zhu Yunying's birthday was naturally a very important event, but Zhu Yunying also felt that he was still young and did not plan to make a big fuss about it.
As for what happens next, it's an extremely important matter, attracting a lot of attention. After all, it concerns their own interests. The so-called princes, imperial brothers, or heirs of princes are not considered official titles; a true royal title is essential.
Zhu Yunying was also very busy at this time. Looking at the completed imperial robes, gilded silver book, and silver seal, Zhu Yunying smiled with satisfaction.
Zhu Yunying revised many of the ancestral precepts written by Zhu Yuanzhang.
The Crown Prince has a golden seal and book, while a Prince of the First Rank has a gilded silver book and a silver seal. A Prince of the Second Rank has a silver book and a silver seal. As for the various heirs, they certainly don't have a book or seal, since they don't hold an official title.
Old Zhu and Little Zhu arrived at Fengxian Hall, which was also the ceremony for conferring the title of Prince, and they needed to inform the ancestor first.
Zhu Yunying remained calm in the face of the excitement and anticipation of his uncles, brothers, and princes. He simply got up, washed, and then walked unhurriedly toward the Fengtian Hall.
Little Zhu woke up early again, and he's in high spirits now. This little guy is taking on an important task once again.
Little Zhu, dressed in court attire, stood at the very front of the procession, waiting outside the east gate of the Fengtian Hall. His grandfathers and uncles also waited obediently behind him.
Of course, there are exceptions. For example, Little Zhu is currently having a lively chat with his "second uncle" about the big, clumsy elephant in the elephant house.
Shuangquan walked over in small steps and said softly, "Your Highness, it's time to ascend the throne."
"The throne has been raised?" Little Zhu asked curiously, "We didn't hear the whips being cracked."
Zhu Yunwen actually wanted to complain. The whip had indeed been cracked, but the Crown Prince and the Prince of Wu were imitating elephants and hadn't heard it. As for the usually serious and courteous censors, they were collectively blind and deaf. They might occasionally dare to poke at the Prince of Wu, but they wouldn't dare to offend the Crown Prince at all.
It's not necessarily because the Crown Prince is particularly authoritative; even if they were simply fulfilling their duties and found something amiss with him, and even if the Emperor approved their impeachment, the retired Emperor would likely arrive in a huff in no time. Execution was possible, but more likely, they would be demoted and their entire families exiled.
What could Shuangquan say at this moment? He could only quickly say, "Your Highness, the whip has just been cracked. His Majesty is about to ascend the throne."
Little Zhu understood immediately. Zhu Yunwen knew he might have gotten into trouble again, so he quickly helped Little Zhu straighten his imperial robes. Little Zhu then turned around and laboriously climbed over the high and wide threshold of the Fengtian Hall, with the princes and members of the imperial clan following behind him.
Little Zhu entered through the east gate of Fengtian Hall and, guided by Shuangquan, went directly to the Emperor's presence, standing to his side.
The other civil and military officials had also lined up by then, and only then did Old Zhu and Young Zhu appear.
Once again, Xiao Xiaozhu chanted hymns and performed the prayers. After the ceremony, Wang Chengen knelt before Xiao Xiaozhu, holding a large tray.
Although he barely knew any characters, Little Zhu wasn't intimidated, mainly because under Old Zhu's tutelage, he had long since memorized the imperial edicts. However, it was clear that Little Zhu couldn't step forward at this point; they had to wait.
Zhu Yunying stepped forward, expressionless, and picked up the imperial edict.
Zhu Yunying's three uncles were the Prince of Tang, the Prince of Ying, and the Prince of Yi, who were not high-ranking princes and could not be considered particularly distinguished.
Despite having the title "King of Tang," this title is relatively insignificant. It first appeared in historical records during the Sui Dynasty when someone declared himself King of Tang. Li Yuan, on the other hand, supported Yang Guang's grandson, Prince Dai Yang You, as emperor and was subsequently enfeoffed as King of Tang.
Zhu Yunying's two younger brothers were granted the titles of Prince Lu and Prince Heng, which were neither particularly good nor bad. As for his cousins, they had all inherited their princely titles, so it was necessary to create special princely titles for them.
"Grandpa Emperor, let's go." After the investiture ceremony, Zhu Yunying laughed. "With the two of us here, they can't cause any trouble."
Old Zhu nodded with a smile. After the investiture of the princely title, the imperial family would have their own celebrations. It wouldn't be very convenient for the emperor to be present. Moreover, according to etiquette, although it seemed like the investiture of a princely title was complete, the ceremony wasn't over yet.
After the departure of the old Zhu and the young Zhu, the members of the imperial clan still needed to pay their respects to each other. This included the young Zhu, accompanied by Wang Chengen and Shuangquan, visiting the Imperial Ancestral Temple with the newly appointed prince.
This naturally included officials presenting memorials to congratulate the emperor and empress. Women of noble birth, both inside and outside the court, were also required to go to court to offer their congratulations, especially the wives of newly appointed princes, who had to express their gratitude to the empress.
"It's so much quieter here. These past few days have been chaotic." Old Zhu complained as soon as he returned to the Qianqing Palace. "We can't stand noise these days. Only Yin'er likes the chaos. We're afraid of these kinds of occasions."
Zhu Yunying gloated and said to Old Zhu, "We still have to express our gratitude tomorrow. Why don't we save ourselves the trouble and just stay in the Qianqing Palace?"
Old Zhu glared at Zhu Yunying and said, "Propriety must not be disregarded!"
Tomorrow, the princes will come to express their gratitude, naturally going to different places in turn. They will express their gratitude to Old Zhu and the Emperor. As for Little Zhu, he will also have to wait for his grandfathers and uncles to come and express their gratitude.
Zhu Yunying was in a good mood and said to Old Zhu, "My second and third uncles' illegitimate sons are getting restless. These past few days they've been pestering my fifth uncle, trying to get a job."
Old Zhu became serious and said, "Your second and third uncles' illegitimate sons also have status. You'd better think it over carefully. If the imperial clan takes power, things might get chaotic."
“We won’t allow them to command troops either, otherwise we wouldn’t have been so focused on abolishing the fiefdoms in the first place.” Zhu Yunying laughed and said, “As for the central positions in the court, the imperial family shouldn’t think too much about them. They’re all high-ranking officials, and their positions are all minor ones that are easily forgotten.”
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