As the Hongwu Emperor's favorite great-grandson, Zhu Yuanzhang (the young Zhu) could be said to be fearless and also had some special characteristics.

It is only right to discipline one's younger brother. Not to mention Little Zhu, both Big Zhu and Little Zhu, before they went to the court to observe politics, the first 'management' they learned was to take good care of their younger siblings.

Little Zhu is a bit special; he doesn't have many younger brothers, but he has many cousins. Big Zhu, on the other hand, has quite a few younger brothers and sisters. In his early years, when Old Zhu was conquering the country, Empress Ma managed the inner palace, and Big Zhu was the one who disciplined his many younger brothers and sisters.

Now that Xiao Zhu is old enough, she can try to take care of her younger siblings.

Old Zhu looked at little Zhu with affection and said, "Your grandfather wasn't as good as you. When he was young, he had to study, and he was worried that things would get messy and we would fail. When your father was young, the country was newly established, and we also had to clean up the court, so he couldn't have a peaceful time either. You're the best. My idea is that you can go to court to observe politics when you're fifteen."

Xiao Zhu chimed in, "Fifteen is about right. By then, your temperament will be more settled. After two or three years of experience, you'll be eighteen. Then we'll assign you some tasks, and you can practice your skills. Who knows, you might even be able to help us."

Little Zhu looked distressed and said, “Great-grandfather, we’re not afraid of doing things. Our father can handle government affairs as an emperor. We don’t want to observe politics now; we want to fight. If we’re really going to observe politics, we’d rather go to the Martial Arts Academy or manage the Five Armies Commandery.”

Zhu Yunying blushed instantly, his neck turning red, utterly at a loss for words. He had nothing to say about his eldest son. This kid seemed to know a few things, but he was really just a half-baked amateur.

Seeing Zhu Yunying's expression, Old Zhu laughed heartily and said, "Now you know what we were thinking back then? You were always talking to me without any respect, and I was still quite strong back then. You and your father were always eyeing the dragon throne. If it weren't for the fact that you are my descendants, I would have dealt with you long ago!"

Zhu Yunying was embarrassed and argued, "That was what my father did, it has little to do with me. Besides, it was my grandfather who gave me the power. I have always been very cautious and have never asked my grandfather for military power. It was all given to me by you that I accepted it."

"You took it and then didn't give it back?" Old Zhu laughed. "You want to set up the Maritime Trade Office, so we gave you a few sailors to practice with. When are you going to think about giving them back? Just like your father, you take whatever we give you and don't even know that we should give it back."

Zhu Yunying couldn't help but chuckle and said, "To be honest, our Great Ming Dynasty has made a good start. The emperor is not afraid of the crown prince seizing power. As long as there are one or two more generations, the kind of thing where fathers and sons distrust each other will not happen in our Great Ming Dynasty."

Zhu Yunying's statement was quite gratifying to Zhu Yunying, as it was a scenario he had been hoping for.

From the very beginning, Zhu Biao was given great importance, and there were indeed some personal motives behind this. Even after the death of the eldest Zhu, it was as if the previously childless Zhu suddenly unlocked a talent for procreation, and his offspring did increase rapidly and continuously in a short period of time.

However, Zhu Yuanzhang's feelings for his eldest son, Zhu Da, were indeed different from those for his other sons. This was partly due to Zhu Da's success and Zhu Yuanzhang's desire to set a good example for future generations.

The numerous instances of fathers and sons turning against each other and brothers killing each other throughout history served as a reminder to Zhu Yuanzhang that the supreme position was too alluring and could cause many to lose their minds and neglect their family ties.

Don't say things like this is unfair to the other offspring. It's not just the imperial family now; it's the same in ordinary families. The eldest son's line always has an absolute advantage and resources. That's the undeniable fact.

Making this decision was not difficult for Zhu Yuanzhang at all. He knew it might not be the most perfect solution, but it was the safest way to ensure the succession of imperial power.

Old Zhu said with a hint of pride, "Our Great Ming Dynasty doesn't need that. The position of the crown prince was decided long ago, which saved a lot of trouble."

Zhu Yunying had a lot to say on this, and said with a smile, "That makes sense. Although it doesn't necessarily mean that the smartest and most capable one sat on the throne, it did reduce a lot of turmoil. I understood some of this when I was a child. It was only those few crazy relatives of the Lü family who had some crooked thoughts."

Old Zhu smiled and nodded, agreeing with these points. "Years ago, Lady Lü must have had her own thoughts, thinking that your father doted on her. That woman was just an ignorant fool. Let's not even talk about whether we're here or not. Even if we were gone, if we really wanted to pass the throne to Yunwen, we'd probably have to arrange for Yunwen to marry wives from the Xu and Feng families first, and then kill off Old Chang's lineage."

"That's not all. There were also some of the naval forces I commanded in my early years, and the crew I had during my northern tours." Zhu Yunying found it funny as he spoke. "Now that I think about it, I had quite a bit of military power when I was the Crown Prince, and I didn't feel any resentment about it, nor did my father. In fact, a lot of that military power was given to me by my father."

Not wanting to be left out, Little Zhu quickly said, "Father, we still have the Crown Prince's Three Guards under our control, which are managed by our second and third uncles in turns. A few days ago, Great-Grandfather also said that he would prepare some positions for our orphans of the Imperial Guards and send a few out to the outside world."

"Your great-grandfather is just fooling you. The Imperial Guard orphans were only sent out when they reached the appropriate age," Zhu Yunying laughed, deliberately playing a trick on him. "Only when you're fifteen or sixteen will those Imperial Guard orphans be able to help you. Remember, you need people at home, in court, and outside as well. You must always hold onto this military power!"

Old Zhu also said menacingly, "Yin'er should remember these things. Your father is good in this respect. Although he is always hypocritical, he is very good to our Ming soldiers. With military power in hand, the world will not be in chaos. No matter how noisy those scholars are, they are not as sharp as a knife."

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