Little Zhu ran happily ahead, but he was still a bit too young. After running around aimlessly for a while, he ran out of energy and fell on his bottom.
"Dad is holding your hand," Zhu Xiong Ying said to little Zhu with a smile. "Stand up quickly, we'll go eat some fruit later."
Little Zhu is unhappy. Now he not only wants to eat fruit, but he also wants to cry, "Daddy, hug me!"
Before Xiao Xiao Zhu was born, Zhu Xiong Ying had made countless private plans and talked about things like not spoiling the child and cultivating a strong and independent character. After Xiao Xiao Zhu was born, Zhu Xiong Ying did sometimes appear to be a rather strict father, with high expectations for Xiao Xiao Zhu.
However, Zhu Xiong Ying also often felt sorry for her chubby son. The so-called doting, the insistence on strength and independence—these are things that are simply impossible to achieve, and Zhu Xiong Ying wasn't that much of a 'dogmatist'.
He picked up his chubby son, and little Zhu immediately wrapped his chubby little arms around Zhu Xiong Ying's neck, affectionately pressing his chubby little face against Zhu Xiong Ying's face.
This made Zhu Xiong Ying beam with joy. He knew little Zhu wouldn't understand, "I used to do this too, even when I was younger than you. I never expected you'd follow in your footsteps, learning this trick as well. You've got me figured out, haven't you?!"
Little Zhu doesn't have such complicated thoughts. He's not 'coveting the throne'. The little guy's mind is simple. He's just simply relying on his father.
Upon arriving at the Qianqing Palace, Little Zhu immediately changed his mind, exclaiming, "Great-grandfather, great-grandfather!"
This was a shout even before the person arrived. This was a place very familiar to Little Zhu; he knew his great-grandfather lived here. As for Little Zhu's "grandfathers," they were going to cry. As princes, it wasn't easy for them to even see their father, the emperor.
Seeing Zhu Xiong Ying arrive carrying his great-grandson, Old Zhu beamed, "Why did you come at this hour? Yin'er, let your great-grandfather give you a hug!"
"Bring some fruit over," Zhu Xiong Ying said to Wang Cheng En. "Have someone prepare dinner; it's right here."
Sitting on Old Zhu's lap, Little Zhu seemed to have learned to be cute, tilting his head back and raising his chubby face, constantly wanting kisses. Not content with just his great-great-grandfather, he also pressed his face against his great-grandfather's.
Old Zhu happily pressed his old face against his great-grandson's soft, tender face, "He's definitely your son, just like you were when you were a child! Of all our children, only you and Yin'er behave like this. The father is like this, and the son is just as lazy!"
"Grandpa, if you really say that, then I won't be able to be like Yin'er in the future." Zhu Xiong Ying laughed, directly contradicting him, "At that time, Grandpa, please don't blame me!"
Old Zhu immediately glared at Little Zhu, displeased with his uncaring grandson. He should have been comforting him, not undermining him; he shouldn't have seen through him and then directly exposed him!
Holding his chubby great-grandson, Old Zhu was quite pleased. "Tell me, what brings you here all this time?"
"It's the same thing we discussed yesterday. I think that in the future, when princes are conferred titles, their fiefdoms will be nominal, not substantively granted," Zhu Xiong Ying said without hiding anything. "What does Grandfather think?"
Old Zhu remained noncommittal, then said to Zhu Xiong Ying, "We've known what you're thinking for a long time. Just look at how your imperial uncle is in the capital now, and we'll understand. If you want to grant him a distant title, so be it. We'll go along with your wishes. But Ying'er, you should treat your imperial uncle better in the future and not mistreat the imperial family."
That's really the case. In recent years, Zhu Yuanzhang has slowed down the process of bestowing titles upon princes. Or rather, although some princes have had their investiture ceremonies held, these princes are now mostly in Yingtian Prefecture or their hometown of Fengyang, and are rarely sent to their fiefdoms.
In Zhu Xiong Ying's view, this was a huge "progress". It seems that Zhu also realized that he had too many sons. If all of them were granted fiefdoms, the territory of the Ming Dynasty would be greatly reduced.
Since that's the case, Zhu Xiong Ying continued to speak freely, "Grandfather, I am already a nephew, and Yin'er is already a grand-nephew. In the future, when princes come to court, it is customary for the princes' uncles to kowtow three times without bowing. At that time, we and Yin'er will perform the family etiquette, and the princes' uncles will be able to accept it without complaint."
This is no exaggeration; it was the ancestral precept of the Ming Dynasty that required this. In other words, if any princes came to the court in the future, they would be received with the courtesy due to family members when not attending court. At that time, Zhu Xiong Ying and Zhu Wen Yin would need to indicate their status as juniors and offer their greetings.
Old Zhu was displeased and said to Zhu Xiong Ying, "As we have said, although we may observe the family etiquette, we must not be careless about the distinction between ruler and subject. At that time, you and Yin'er will both hold the jade tablet, and your imperial uncle will wear the imperial robes and perform the etiquette between ruler and subject, bowing five times and kowtowing three times."
This was indeed one of the requirements set forth in the Ming Dynasty's ancestral precepts by Emperor Zhu: the distinction between ruler and subject must still be maintained. Although he valued his family, Emperor Zhu was also very concerned about the difference between ruler and subject.
Zhu Xiong Ying wasn't being argumentative; he simply felt some things needed to be clarified. "Grandfather, it's not that I think there's anything wrong with this. The Imperial Family, after all, is still a family. It's just that the treatment of the princes is a bit too generous, isn't it?"
Old Zhu was unhappy, but he still pressed his face close to his great-grandson's chubby cheek. He could be unhappy, but his chubby great-grandson was hugging him. For his great-grandson's sake, Old Zhu didn't bother to say anything more.
"All the civil and military officials and generals of the court must kowtow to a prince," Zhu Xiong Ying said. "Grandfather, once the imperial uncles are officially enfeoffed, they will become princes. For civil and military officials and generals to have to kowtow to a prince seems a bit excessive, doesn't it?"
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