"Do you have any different opinions on our arrangement?"

In the Fengtian Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang walked down from the golden platform. Even though his hair was gray and he looked a little depressed, his aura was still as strong as a tiger.

In front of the hall were many princes, including the prince who had reached adulthood and was named King of Qin.

Behind them were a group of civil and military ministers.

Just now, Zhu Yuanzhang announced that Zhu Yunwen would be made the Crown Prince, and the date of the enthronement would be determined by the Imperial Astronomical Observatory.

As soon as these words were spoken, the court officials were immediately excited, and the princes in front had even more gloomy faces.

Since ancient times, the issue of succession to the throne has been highly valued by the court and the public.

Because it concerns the rise and fall of an empire.

The system of primogeniture is the core principle of the feudal empire.

The so-called "the eldest son is chosen based on age rather than virtue, and the son is chosen based on nobility rather than age" is the system of primogeniture.

The implementation of monogamy is the basis of the system of primogeniture.

This system originated in the late Shang Dynasty and was established in the early Zhou Dynasty. For thousands of years, it has been the core of many nobles and royal families.

This includes some gentry, landlords, and wealthy families, and this is also the standard.

As for the subsequent succession, if there is a legitimate heir, the heir will be the heir; if there is no legitimate heir, the eldest son will be the heir; after the elder brother dies, the younger brother will inherit the throne.

The sons born to the wife are considered legitimate sons. If all the other sons die, the next in line will be chosen from among the eldest sons of concubines.

If there are no descendants, the heir will be chosen from among the brothers.

From a legal perspective, the most qualified contenders at present are the second oldest prince of Qin, Zhu Chong, and his grandson, Zhu Yunwen.

Now Zhu Yunwen is standing next to the Golden Platform, wearing a royal robe, and it is obvious that he has been recognized by Zhu Yuanzhang.

At this moment, many princes had different expressions.

Prince of Qin Zhu Chong had a normal expression on his face. He knew what he had done. If it weren't for his elder brother Zhu Biao's mediation, his father might have abolished his status as a vassal king.

Although he also dreamed of becoming emperor, reason told him that his father would only pass the throne to him if he was crazy.

As for the third son Zhu (Mugang), he looked a little unhappy. He believed that he still had a good chance of becoming emperor.

Zhu Gang had long eyes and a beautiful beard, a dignified look, and was wise but cruel.

After he was enfeoffed in Taiyuan, Shanxi in the 11th year of Hongwu, he had a conflict with his father Zhu Yuanzhang over a cook issue and was almost deposed as a king. He was spared thanks to the intervention of his eldest brother Zhu Biao.

However, Zhu Gang believed that this incident happened so many years ago and he had made many contributions.

It is possible to become emperor now.

After seeing Zhu Yunwen and hesitating slightly, Zhu Gang did not say anything in the end.

"Your Majesty, I think my nephew Yunwen is still young and has not yet come of age."

"Now our Great Ming seems stable, but in fact there are remnants of the Mongols in the north, Japanese pirates harassing the coast, and the countries in the Western Regions are ready to make a move."

"At my age, how can I take on such a big responsibility? I beg you to think twice before acting."

Seeing Zhu Yuanzhang coming over, Zhu Di could no longer hold back and took a step forward, bowed and said.

Although he had guessed his father's intention a long time ago, when he actually heard it, Zhu Di still felt that he could not accept it.

Counting from the legitimate sons, the second elder brother Zhu Chong and the third elder brother Zhu Gang were almost deprived of their royal titles by their father, which showed that they had lost their moral character and were not worthy of inheriting the throne.

The eldest brother passed away, and the second and third brothers were unable to succeed, so he, the fourth brother, had the legitimate right of inheritance.

Moreover, over the years, he has never disappointed his father in terms of virtue and other aspects.

The year before last, that is, in the 23rd year of Hongwu, he persuaded Nairbuhua to surrender without spending a single soldier, which caused a sensation in the Ming Dynasty and established an unprecedented feat.

My nephew Zhu Yunwen was just a young boy who had lived in the deep palace for a long time and had never even left Nanjing.

He has never participated in the affairs of the court and the country, and has only read some Confucian books. What ability does he have? How can he become the ruler of the world in the future of the Ming Dynasty?

Zhu Yunwen, who was sitting on the golden stage, had his eyes fixed on his fourth uncle Zhu Di.

All the princes and civil and military ministers had no objection, except this fourth uncle.

This made Zhu Yunwen, who already disliked his fourth uncle Zhu Di, hate him all of a sudden.

At the same time, he was a little nervous. After all, what his fourth uncle Zhu Di said sounded very reasonable.

Some ministers also nodded slightly, agreeing with Zhu Di's remarks.

However, when Zhu Yunwen saw his grandfather the emperor who remained silent, the tension in his heart suddenly dissipated.

After accompanying him for many years, Zhu Yunwen knew the Emperor's character very well. It was obvious from his look that the Emperor was going to be angry.

Sure enough, just when Zhu Di looked pleased.

Zhu Yuanzhang's faint voice came over:

"Old Four, what you mean is that as an uncle, you can't help your nephew deal with the remnants of the Mongols in the north."

"Or are you the kings guarding the borders unable to resist those greedy jackals for your nephews and for the Ming Dynasty?"

When he said the second sentence, Zhu Yuanzhang was almost roaring and scolding the princes.

The sound echoed throughout the hall. The nine great kings were the first to bear the brunt of it. They were so frightened that they trembled all over and bowed quickly, saying, "Your sons dare not."

Many ministers, surrounding palace maids, eunuchs, and guards on duty immediately knelt down and prostrated themselves on the ground.

The emperor was furious. If they still stood, it would be a contempt for the emperor's majesty.

Zhu Di was shocked by these words. Feeling the oppressive gaze of his father, he dared not look him in the eye. He took a step back and said unwillingly:

"As your son, I will serve my nephew and guard the border forever, protecting the country for the Ming Dynasty."

At this time, Zhu Di was extremely regretful for what he had just said. In anger, he had already become the first to speak out.

Now he no longer thinks about the throne. If something goes wrong, his father might strip him of his royal title, take away his fiefdom, and call him back to the capital to retire.

If that's the case, then it's over.

No one knows a son better than his father. Zhu Yuanzhang looked at the fourth son, Zhu Di, and was indeed thinking in his heart whether to take back the fourth son's fiefdom.

Because he had already felt the unwillingness in the fourth brother's heart.

The fourth son was very good at fighting, and Zhu Yuanzhang was very clear about this. Among his many sons, the one who was most like him in character was the fourth son, Zhu Di.

Zhu Yuanzhang loved the fourth prince very much when he grew up. Except for the eldest prince Zhu Biao, the fourth prince Zhu Di performed the best among the other princes.

In fact, Zhu Yuanzhang had thought about giving the throne to the fourth son, but he quickly rejected this idea.

If one wants the fourth son to succeed to the throne, the first thing to do is to abolish the titles of the second and third sons on the grounds of their lack of virtue.

Only then can the fourth brother ascend the throne legitimately.

Only in this way can the succession of the throne of the entire Ming Dynasty be guaranteed to be a smooth transition.

But this would be too unfair to the second and third sons, and would also create hidden dangers, which Zhu Yuanzhang did not want to see.

Furthermore, the current Ming Dynasty does not need a warlike emperor. Even if his talent is mediocre, it will be enough as long as he can protect the foundation he left behind.

Zhu Yunwen was filial and always by his side, and had a very good relationship with many civil officials.

To govern the world, we can only rely on these civil officials who hold pens.

This is why Zhu Yuanzhang chose Zhu Yunwen after much consideration.

After much hesitation, Zhu Yuanzhang finally did not take back Zhu Di's fiefdom.

This is because he saw the third brother Zhu Gang, who was sitting next to him with a slightly raised mouth and looking gloating.

Of course Zhu Yuanzhang was well aware of the conflict between the third and fourth sons.

When Zhu Yuanzhang saw Zhu Di surrender, he snorted coldly and turned back to the golden platform.

But at the same time, I was thinking.

The third brother Zhu Gang was afraid that he could not suppress the fourth brother Zhu Di.

Even last year, the sixteenth prince Zhu Quan was conferred the title of Prince of Ning, and his fiefdom was named Daning, so he should have been given more soldiers and horses.

Moreover, the princes only controlled a part of the troops and could not interfere in local administration. Money and food were all provided by local governments. It can be said that they were subject to strict restrictions.

After Zhu Yuanzhang thought about it, he let Zhu Di go.

At this moment, Zhu Di breathed a sigh of relief, and his entire back was soaked with cold sweat.