Chapter 143 Education
"Brother, you are the crown prince. I understand that you are exposed to civil and military officials every day, and you see a lot of their ways of doing things. Over time, you are influenced by them, and I understand that. But you are the crown prince after all, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty!"
Zhu Chong smiled playfully, "From the day you took the throne of Crown Prince, there was a fundamental difference between you and those officials. Even if they became your teachers, or were both your mentor and your friend, you were fundamentally different."
"They either followed our father through thick and thin, rolling among the dead to reach their current positions, or they studied diligently for ten years, hoping to one day rise to prominence and become a noble or prime minister."
"So no matter what kind of people they are, each of them has the ambition to be the best among all officials. The position of prime minister has become the goal of their lifelong efforts."
"But there's only one Prime Minister after all. If everyone wants to sit in that position, things will definitely go wrong over time. And sometimes, too much concentration of power is definitely not a good thing. What if there's a rebellion?"
"So it's a wise move for our father to take back power, but I can't guess how he will do it, and neither can you. So let's just not guess and wait and see. Anyway, with our father's character of making plans before taking action, he will definitely not let the Ming Dynasty suffer a serious blow!"
After hearing what Zhu Chong said, Zhu Biao was shocked more than ever before. His cognition was once again overturned by Zhu Chong's views.
Zhu Chong saw that Zhu Biao looked like he couldn't accept it, and he felt a little sorry for him. "Brother, I don't understand why you want to be like our father. Why don't you learn from Emperor Gaozu of Han and Emperor Taizu of Jin?"
"What?" Zhu Biao had just come to his senses, but was stunned again by Zhu Chong's words.
"No way, big brother, you must not learn from our father. You will really tire yourself to death. I am counting on you as my backer so that I can do whatever I want for decades more!" Zhu Chong couldn't help but complain to Zhu Biao.
"You, you kid, you really are..." Zhu Biao was neither angry nor not angry at Zhu Chong's words, but he couldn't help but be curious about Zhu Chong. "Second brother, why do you want me to learn from Emperor Gaozu of Han and Emperor Taizu of Jin?"
"Because they are all famous masters of thick-skinned and cunning tactics. As long as you can learn 30% of their skills, even if our father is about to die, you will be able to sit on this throne as stable as Mount Tai!" Zhu Chong said something else that Zhu Biao considered to be "treasonous".
However, Zhu Biao did not care, because all his attention was attracted by the word "famous thick-skinned person" said by Zhu Chong, so he immediately asked Zhu Chong, what is a famous thick-skinned person?
"Those who are thick-skinned and black-hearted have thick faces and black hearts." Zhu Chong picked up a cup of tea, drank it in one gulp, and then continued, "Take Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Han Dynasty. Although he lived during the chaos of the late Qin Dynasty, there were many heroes in the world at that time."
"Xiang Yu, Zhang Han and others were all heroes of their time, but they were not as good as Liu Bang. Why?"
"Because Liu Bang was truly thick-skinned and ruthless. He started out as a mere village headman in the State of Qin, but he fought his way through the eighteen princes and ultimately achieved unparalleled greatness. If he wasn't thick-skinned and ruthless enough, how could he have become emperor?"
"During the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period, the world was in turmoil, with many warlords fighting for power. Cao Cao was not the strongest among the princes at the time, but like Liu Bang, he was thick-skinned and cruel."
"He really does kill anyone he catches. No matter who they are, the outcome is the same. Be it the Queen, the Prince, or even his own men, not to mention the common people."
"It was precisely because he was so ruthless that Cao Wei was able to become the strongest among the Three Kingdoms at the time. On the other hand, the likes of Liu Bei and Sun Quan, although they were also capable of being thick-skinned and ruthless, were far inferior to Cao Cao."
"Liu Bei's biggest mistake was leaving Guan Yu to guard Jingzhou. Sun Quan was more than capable of defending the status quo, but his lack of initiative was a fatal flaw. That's why they were both ultimately destroyed by Cao Wei..."
Zhu Chong was talking while Zhu Biao was listening, and the two of them talked for more than half an hour over a pot of tea.
Zhu Biao sat quietly in front of Zhu Chong, his eyes fixed on him. Whenever Zhu Biao talked about the key points, he would immediately write down the key points. It was obvious that he was touched by what Zhu Chong said.
Originally, Zhu Biao wanted to ask Zhu Chong to come to the Eastern Palace to give him a good education so that he would have some scruples.
As a result, the situation turned around. Zhu Biao was taught a lesson by Zhu Chong, and he had to admit that Zhu Chong's approach was right.
After all, when everyone is targeting him, right and wrong no longer matters.
If Zhu Chong was an ordinary person, he might have been plotted against, but he happened to be a prince, the first among all the princes after the crown prince.
So, as Zhu Chong said, at that point, what he is right is right, and what he is wrong is also right. Anyone who dares to say anything will be chopped off!
Zhu Chong was taking classes with Zhu Biao, and in the inner palace of Yingtianfu, Zhu was talking with Empress Ma in Kunning Palace.
"Your Majesty seems to be in better shape today than ever before, but is there any good news?"
When Old Zhu came to Empress Ma today, he was obviously in much higher spirits than usual, which made Empress Ma curious.
"Haha, you figured it out." Old Zhu did not hide anything in front of Queen Ma.
"What is it that makes the emperor so happy? Tell me about it and I will be happy too!" Queen Ma became even more curious.
"It's like this..." Then Old Zhu told Empress Ma everything Zhu Chong had done recently.
After hearing what Zhu Yuanzhang said, Empress Ma thought about it for a moment and immediately understood what Zhu Yuanzhang was so happy about. She couldn't help but scold him.
"That child is our own flesh and blood. The Emperor has schemed against him, making him a target of public criticism. Has he ever considered what would happen if he quit?"
"That kid won't do that." Zhu Yuanzhang was full of confidence. "The prince lent him so much money, and he hasn't paid it back yet. Besides, those blind people bullied him. With that kid's temper, if he doesn't pay it back, I'm afraid he won't even be able to sleep well."
"So, Your Majesty is deliberately fanning the flames." Empress Ma dismissed her attendants and then continued, "It seems that the Emperor has made up his mind and is ready to take action?"
When Old Zhu heard what Empress Ma said, the smile on his face disappeared instantly. "He asked for death himself, so you can't blame us for being ruthless and ungrateful."
"The Imperial Guards have confirmed that Liu Ji's death is indeed related to him."
"In addition, he colluded with Li Shanchang, was corrupt and perverted the law, and committed almost every kind of evil. He had the final say on matters of life and death in the court, and even bought and sold official positions. If we don't take action now, I'm afraid the whole world will soon be under his control."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
