As emperor, Zhu Yunying had many responsibilities, which was part of his duties. Especially given his own ambitions, this naturally meant he needed to be even more diligent in his duties.

Whether it was Dongri or Fuyue, these two vassal states held extraordinary significance for the Ming Dynasty. However, these two vassal states were merely 'role models'; the Ming Dynasty would certainly have many more vassal states in the future, and this was just the beginning.

As for which members of the royal family would be the vassal states established in Goryeo, that is obviously a separate matter, and this matter cannot be taken lightly.

It is clear that Zhu Yunying would not act on emotion. After all, the vassal states were a matter of strategic importance to the Ming Dynasty, so this matter could not be taken lightly.

Whether it was his imperial uncle, his brothers, or even Zhu Yunying's descendants, it was all the same.

In particular, the vassal states of the Ming Dynasty at this stage also need to consider long-term stability, which means that in addition to the support of the powerful suzerain state of the Ming Dynasty, they also need the ability of the imperial family members. Conquering a country is difficult, but governing it is even more difficult.

Song Zhong arrived in a hurry, but judging from his joyful expression, it meant some good news.

It wasn't just Zhu Yunying who could see these things; Wang Chengen could as well. Especially now that Song Zhong was the commander of the Ming Dynasty's Embroidered Uniform Guard, the information brought by the Embroidered Uniform Guard was even more important during this phase of foreign war.

Song Zhong raised his memorial and reported, "Your Majesty, a Goryeo scout has reported that on the seventh day of the ninth month, the army captured Shegu County. Immediately afterwards, the Duke of Kaiping led his troops, and the army captured Tongchuan. The eastern army has besieged the Huaiyang Protectorate. It seems that the news of victory will arrive in the next few days."

Zhu Yunying nodded. Actually, he hadn't received Xu Huizu's report yet. But there was no need to worry, as the Embroidered Uniform Guard still had many spies in Goryeo. Whether they remained in Goryeo or were in the military, they could all bring back intelligence.

Wang Chengen immediately took the report and handed it to Zhu Yunying.

It seems there's no need to worry about Gangwon Province anymore. If nothing unexpected happens, the Ming army can continue its advance. The next step is to prepare to attack Gyeonggi Province, which will directly threaten the capital of Goryeo.

As Zhu Yunying was reading the report, Song Zhong continued, "Your Majesty, the Duke of Ying captured Huangzhou on the eighth day of the ninth month, killing more than 30,000 in battle."

Upon hearing this good news, Zhu Yunying couldn't help but smile. The main reason was that Goryeo had amassed a large army in Huangzhou, their main force. But now that Huangzhou had fallen to the Ming Dynasty, it naturally meant that Goryeo had suffered heavy losses.

Goryeo might be able to organize an army of hundreds of thousands, but the loss of 30,000 men would be unbearable for them.

Moreover, Goryeo had already suffered significant losses in previous wars. These lost soldiers were veterans, the elite of Goryeo. This meant that Lee Bang-won's strength was steadily declining.

The Ming army's advance is heading straight for Gyeonggi Province, and now it has threatened the Goryeo capital, Kaesong. This is an extremely serious matter.

Goryeo's war potential was already relatively weak, and it was now being rapidly diminished. With continuous losses of troops and territory, Goryeo was becoming increasingly chaotic, and calls for peace were growing stronger.

Even if Goryeo could have been arrogant at the beginning and expanded continuously by taking advantage of the weakness of the Central Plains dynasty.

However, once the Ming Dynasty recovered its strength, Goryeo should behave itself. It seems they have forgotten how many times in history they were defeated and routed by the Central Plains dynasties, and even had their dynasties overthrown. Only when they are hurt will these people behave themselves.

It's quite clear that even if the current Goryeo monarch wanted to be compliant and sue for peace, it was too late. It's a classic case of "how can one sleep soundly with another sleeping soundly beside one's bed?" The Ming Dynasty needed Goryeo as a springboard, to protect the Ishimi silver mine, and to control Japan.

As for establishing vassal states and settling the imperial family members, that's a separate matter. Even though many people seem to think that attacking some countries around the Ming Dynasty is equivalent to establishing vassal states for the Ming imperial family.

In a good mood, Zhu Yunying listened to these reports and felt quite satisfied. The war was progressing smoothly, which was good news.

After reading the report, Zhu Yunying said to Wang Chengen, "Send these to the Qianqing Palace for the Emperor Emeritus to review. Tell the Emperor Emeritus that we will have dinner at the Qianqing Palace, and the Crown Prince should also go there."

Let little Zhu receive more exposure to culture, even if some of his opinions are naive now, it doesn't matter. The main thing is to let him learn slowly. With the teachings and examples of two generations of emperors, little Zhu can also make progress.

This was the treatment that young Zhu Yunying received; others obviously didn't have such treatment. As for Zhu Yunying's other sons, let alone listening to such important military and national affairs, even ordinary court matters were not something that the imperial clan members were allowed to inquire about much.

There's no way around it; they're all descendants of the dragon, but some things require this kind of differential treatment. It may seem unfair to some, but this is, after all, the imperial family, and absolute fairness is clearly not a good thing.

Continuing to review the memorials, Zhu Yunying only needed to do what an emperor should do.

Ru Chang arrived at this time and said politely, "Your Majesty, the Ministry of Personnel has already established procedures for verifying and sealing documents. We hope Your Majesty will review them."

Zhu Yunying smiled and nodded; this was also the Ministry of Personnel's job. It was perfectly normal for Ru Chang to be doing this.

Ru Chang knew that Zhu Yunying was also giving him a warning, but he still said, "Your Majesty, in the upcoming selection and evaluation of officials after this verification of their titles, the Ministry of Personnel should prioritize moral character. The Ministry of Personnel should be the first to establish a clean and honest administration."

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