Zhu Di was still unaware of Yao Guangxiao's transformation.

However, he could no longer take care of Yao Guangxiao, because tomorrow morning, he would set out to the coast as the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Route to pacify the Japanese.

In the 23rd year of Hongwu, when Zhu Di and Zhu Gang divided their troops into two routes to attack the remnants of the Mongols, he was also the commander-in-chief of the eastern route.

Everything now seems like history repeating itself, and Zhu Di certainly understands the meaning of it.

The last time he won a big victory, he completely overshadowed his third brother Zhu Gang. No one knows how he will perform this time.

Everyone in the Prince of Yan's Mansion has already started packing their bags, waiting to set off at dawn tomorrow.

"Chi'er, you should stay in the capital and study hard."

Zhu Di said to Zhu Gaochi.

After he finished speaking, he hesitated for a moment and then said, "If possible, getting closer to your elder brother shouldn't be a bad thing."

Zhu Gaochi rarely heard such gentle words from his father and was a little overwhelmed.

Normally, his father didn't like him and often scolded him, and was dissatisfied with everything about him.

After a short period of adaptation, Zhu Gaochi also understood his father's thoughts and replied: "I will definitely remember your instructions."

Zhu Di nodded, waved his hand and let Zhu Gaochi go. Being able to say a few more words was already very good.

Zhu Gaochi did not disturb his father and left the hall.

He just paused slightly when turning, as if hesitating, but finally chose to leave without turning back to speak.

Although Zhu Gaochi was a little fat, he was also considered smart.

Even if he didn't deliberately eavesdrop on anything, since he lived under the same roof every day, he would of course make some guesses about his father and Yao Guangxiao's plans.

"Father, why do you have to covet that position? Why don't we just be vassal kings? Peking is like an ant on a tree, or a firefly competing with the bright moon."

"And if it goes wrong, there will be no way out, and it will be a road to total failure."

"Even if the vassal state is reduced, given Yun Wen's personality, our family can handle it properly and it won't come to this."

Zhu Gaochi was much smarter than Zhu Di imagined.

Perhaps because he was too fat, his two younger brothers and his father were not very friendly to him. Zhu Gaochi was more sensitive than the average person.

Zhu Gaochi and several other princes, including Zhu Yunwen, grew up together and had a good relationship.

But some time ago, Crown Prince Zhu Biao passed away and Zhu Yunwen was designated as the Crown Prince.

Zhu Gaochi discovered that Zhu Yunwen deliberately kept his distance from several princes.

At first he just thought that this change was due to a change in identity and status. After all, Zhu Yunwen would be the emperor of the Ming Dynasty in the future, and the relationship between them was first and foremost that of a monarch and his subject.

But Zhu Gaochi soon discovered that, apart from a few princes, Zhu Yunwen had not changed much in his interactions with other people.

This made Zhu Gaochi a little confused, and he later accidentally heard about some of Huang Zicheng's opinions, especially those about the vassal kings.

Zhu Gaochi immediately understood Zhu Yunwen's choice.

In fact, the practice of reducing the power of the feudal lords has existed in every dynasty. Zhu Gaochi has read history books and understands the reason behind it.

But my father was obviously unwilling to miss out on the throne.

With a soft sigh, Zhu Gaochi could not intervene in such a situation.

As the eldest son of King Yan, he would definitely support his father no matter what the situation was.

Not long after, Li Jinglong arrived at the Prince of Yan's Mansion.

"Jinglong, how come you have time to come here today?" Zhu Di asked with a smile.

"Your Highness will be setting out to defeat the Japanese invaders tomorrow. I have come specially to congratulate you," Li Jinglong replied.

Zhu Di looked at the guards and servants around him and led Li Jinglong to the study to discuss matters.

"Uncle, what happened to Master Daoyan?"

As soon as he entered the study, Li Jinglong frowned and asked.

Yesterday he looked for Daoyan, but found that he could not find him, so he went to his house to ask in person.

"Master Daoyan has been imprisoned in the Sutra Library of Tianjie Temple." Zhu Di said in a deep voice.

Li Jinglong was shocked when he heard this and said hurriedly, "How is this possible?"

Yao Guangxiao was responsible for the overall arrangement. Li Jinglong was aware of these things. After all, he had already defected to Zhu Di a long time ago.

In other words, he has always been on Zhu Di's side.

"It was that kid Zhu Ying who did it." Zhu Di replied with a frown.

"Zhu Ying?"

Hearing this name, Li Jinglong was a little confused.

When Zhu Di heard this, he realized that Yao Guangxiao had not told Li Jinglong about Zhu Ying's existence.

So he explained Zhu Ying to Li Jinglong.

After listening to this, Li Jinglong suddenly realized: "So this is the person Yunwen was talking about."

Seeing that Zhu Di was a little confused, Li Jinglong explained to Zhu Di that he had just come out of the Chunhe Hall of the Imperial Palace.

Then he said: "Yun Wen is trying to win over the ministers and try to stabilize the position of the crown prince."

Zhu Di sneered, "My nephew, Yunwen, is really ridiculous. With my father here, what's the point of winning over more ministers? Do those ministers dare to oppose my father's edict?"

"Besides, my nephew's identity is the legitimate one. Who knows, once my father announces his identity, those Confucian officials will support him faster than anyone else."

When Li Jinglong heard Zhu Di say this, he couldn't help but ask, "Uncle, could it be that Zhu Ying is really His Royal Highness Prince Yu? This doesn't seem possible. Is there someone behind this?"

Zhu Di glanced at Li Jinglong, hesitated for a moment, and said: "Although it is a little unbelievable, but as far as I can see now, Zhu Ying is indeed my nephew."

"It's unlikely that he was manipulated. Zhu Ying is no ordinary man. Don't underestimate him. You were in charge of the tea-horse trade in Xifan before, so you must have heard of the Qunying Chamber of Commerce."

Upon hearing this, Li Jinglong said, "Of course I know. The name of the Qunying Chamber of Commerce is very famous in Xifan, and I have dealt with many of their people."

"To put it bluntly, after crossing the border of the Ming Dynasty, the tea-horse trade is basically controlled by the Qunying Chamber of Commerce. Among the various tribes, this chamber of commerce has a very high reputation, and many native tribes are very supportive of it."

"Especially the Snowflake Salt from the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce. It is a best seller in Xifan. With the way they control the quota, almost no one dares to offend them."

At this point, Li Jinglong couldn't help but ask, "Cousin, do you mean that Zhu Ying is related to the Qunying Chamber of Commerce?"

Zhu Di snorted coldly and said, "What do you mean it's related to the Qunying Chamber of Commerce? The boss behind this Chamber of Commerce is Zhu Ying himself."

"How is this possible? I have also inquired about the owner of the Heroes Chamber of Commerce. It is said that this person is elusive and appears and disappears in the Western Regions, the desert, and the grasslands. It is difficult to find his trace."

"If Zhu Ying is His Royal Highness Prince Yu, he would only be eighteen this year. The Heroes Chamber of Commerce was established five years ago. How old was he then? Thirteen? How... is this possible?"

Li Jinglong exclaimed.

The Qunying Chamber of Commerce is not very famous in the Ming Dynasty, but it is well-known in the border areas of the Ming Dynasty, especially in the trade of snowflake salt, tea, horses, silk, etc.

You can’t avoid the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce.

It is not only because the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce has a large amount of precious goods in its hands, but the more important reason is that the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce also has a very powerful cavalry team on the border of the Ming Dynasty.

If some black businessmen set their sights on the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce, they will surely not see the next day's sunrise.

The Heroes Chamber of Commerce itself has many large tribes affiliated with it.

The various Mongolian Khanates, leaders of larger forces on the grassland, and even generals, nobles, and even kings of some small countries all share considerable profits in the Heroes Chamber of Commerce.

Such a huge complex of interests does not participate in the struggle or attack the Ming Dynasty.

It is fundamentally difficult to shake and has a wide-ranging impact.

"What's impossible about this? You are well aware of the background of the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce. How can his boss be controlled by others?" Zhu Di said.

Zhu Di said it lightly, but Li Jinglong was still in shock.

In fact, in terms of the level of understanding, Zhu Di did not understand it as deeply as Li Jinglong.

After all, their positions were different. For Zhu Di, although he knew that the Qunying Chamber of Commerce was very large, he only thought of it as a chamber of commerce that controlled a lot of money, nothing more.

Li Jinglong was different. He was in charge of the tea-horse trade in Xifan, and he had to deal with the people there in person. Naturally, he could understand the terrifying influence of the Qunying Chamber of Commerce in this matter.

To what extent has it been affected?

In other words, even if the tea-horse trade between the Ming Dynasty and the Western Regions was not opened, the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce could provide a large amount of tea to the nomadic peoples.

The situation of exchanging inferior tea for good horses is being continuously leveled by the Qunying Chamber of Commerce.

Not only did the transaction volume of the tea-horse trade decrease, but more nobles no longer bought tea from the Ming Dynasty.

This is also the reason why Li Jinglong was transferred to Xifan to be in charge of the tea-horse trade.

The main purpose is to investigate the specific situation of the tea-horse trade.

"No wonder, I submitted a memorial to His Majesty on the situation of the tea-horse trade, but His Majesty has not issued any decree until today."

Li Jinglong said with sudden enlightenment.

I think Your Majesty has long known that the Qun Ying Chamber of Commerce is controlled by Zhu Ying. This is completely his own business and even more so his eldest grandson's.

Naturally no action will be taken.

Zhu Di said again: "Father now attaches great importance to my nephew, especially after the Xiaoling Mausoleum, he has completely believed in Zhu Ying's life experience, and even many memorials are sent to my nephew for review."

Hearing this, Li Jinglong asked in confusion: "Then why doesn't Your Majesty summon His Royal Highness Changsun directly into the palace?"

Hearing the title of "Your Highness Changsun", Zhu Di looked at Li Jinglong deeply, and then said: "You are serving in the Left Army Commander's Office, so I think you know about the recent transfers."

"Duke Liang, Duke Song, Duke Ying and others have been summoned back to the capital. Father is planning to let my nephew take full control of the military power before he enters the palace to announce his identity."

"By that time, who can shake the position of the eldest nephew? As for Yun Wen, he is still dreaming of the position of the crown prince."

Li Jinglong quickly understood Zhu Di's meaning.

There was silence for a moment.

The current situation can be said to be quite clear. With Your Majesty guarding the place, no one in the Ming Dynasty can cause any trouble.

Then the position of Zhu Ying Taisun would be unstoppable.

The most crucial reason is that Zhu Ying is also the owner of the Qunying Chamber of Commerce.

A ruthless man who founded a huge chamber of commerce at the age of thirteen, and he is also the eldest grandson of the Ming Dynasty.

Adding the two together, Li Jinglong suddenly felt a chill down his spine.