Old Zhu was in a good mood, mainly because his grandson was a person with his own opinions. Even though Old Zhu believed that he had considered things quite comprehensively, and that his plans for the Ming Dynasty were quite good.
However, his grandson didn't just blindly follow the established rules; he had his own ideas. Although there were some things that displeased Old Zhu, he knew that his grandson wasn't just making trouble; he had his own thoughts on many things.
Seeing that it was almost time, Old Zhu strolled leisurely toward the Wuying Hall.
"Great-grandfather!" Little Zhu, with his good eyesight, immediately ran over happily. "Great-grandfather, where are you going?"
Seeing his great-grandson running over, Old Zhu said, "Let's go find your father. You go to school and be a good boy. After school, we'll take you to play."
Little Zhu immediately became happy and said proudly, "Dad said, no studying today, just playing! Great-grandfather, I want to ride a horse too, and I want to shoot arrows!"
Old Zhu was slightly taken aback, but then he realized that this was also a 'change' in his grandson.
According to Zhu Yuanzhang's idea, his children and grandchildren all needed to study diligently. Of course, the education of these children and grandchildren was somewhat different. For example, the education of his eldest son Zhu Biao and eldest grandson Zhu Yunying was different from that of others, but in general, they needed to study diligently, and they rarely had time off.
Now that Zhu Yunying has set the rules, he can no longer control his uncles, but he can control some of his cousins.
They get one day off every ten days, plus one day off for their birthday and their parents' birthdays. They can also have holidays during the Lunar New Year and other festivals. However, generally speaking, these members of the imperial clan face immense academic pressure and must study diligently.
As the Crown Prince, young Zhu was entitled to a five-day rest period. His duties included studying, practicing horsemanship, archery, swordsmanship, and other skills. This was a privilege not enjoyed by other members of the imperial family; young Zhu was unique in this regard.
Naturally, he placed his little hand into Old Zhu's palm and asked excitedly, "Great-grandfather, I want to go see Father too."
Old Zhu readily agreed. Although his great-grandson was currently unable to handle official business or understand memorials, Old Zhu didn't mind his great-grandson getting exposed to these things early on. Most importantly, his great-grandson's ability to be affectionate was innate, and Old Zhu couldn't resist him.
Zhu Yunying, who was reviewing memorials, looked up and immediately smiled, "Grandpa Emperor is here."
Old Zhu said with a smile, "Our Yin'er came along too. We saw him making a fuss, so we brought him along."
Zhu Yunying quickly flipped through the memorials and said to Old Zhu, "This is a matter concerning the people's livelihood. A county government has submitted a memorial reporting auspicious omens. Your Majesty must have a good talk with Yin'er about this. The people below love doing these kinds of things."
Old Zhu was also not very happy and said irritably, "Auspicious omens, auspicious omens, even before I ascended the throne, auspicious omens appeared everywhere. How many of them are real auspicious omens! Alright, let's tell you slowly."
Zhu Yunying said to Wang Chengen, "Send someone to the Hanlin Academy to have those scholars and lecturers prepare to speak to the Emperor Emeritus and the Crown Prince."
Old Zhu was quite pleased that his grandson was very thoughtful. He wasn't afraid of his subordinates getting tired. Old Zhu felt that his grandson was the same way; it didn't matter if his subordinates were a little tired, since they were receiving a salary from Old Zhu's family, so naturally they needed to do more work.
These are unscrupulous bosses; that's exactly what Lao Zhu and Xiao Zhu are doing. Following their example, Xiao Zhu is very likely to be influenced as well, becoming a typical example of relentlessly exploiting his "employees." There's no room for sympathy or understanding.
Educating little Zhu is of utmost importance. Old Zhu doesn't plan to discuss things like taxes anymore; he's holding little Zhu and telling him stories. Zhu Yunying occasionally interjects, offering her additions.
This can be considered edutainment, after all, Little Zhu is quite young and doesn't understand many things.
As for the Hanlin Academy and the Crown Prince's study companions, they were all very excited. A decree had just arrived from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs: the Emperor Emeritus and His Majesty the Emperor were personally instructing the Crown Prince, and instructing those below to prepare for any auspicious omens.
This excited the people of the Hanlin Academy. Some consulted ancient texts, preparing to express their views. Some agreed with the auspicious omen, while others wanted to question it. And, of course, some planned to craft a magnificent essay, hoping to satisfy the retired emperor and the current emperor.
This is perfectly normal. Once the emperor issues an edict, it's not a problem for the officials to search through ancient texts; they would also be expected to immediately prepare essays and poems—it's simply their duty.
Old Zhu was enthusiastically telling young Zhu about Emperor Wu of Han, a well-known superstitious emperor in history. Zhu Yunying also added his own insights, saying that there were quite a few feudal superstitious emperors in history, and Emperor Wu of Han was just one of them, not even the most extreme.
"Grandfather, why don't you tell him about the Yellow River's clear waters?" Zhu Yunying put down his brush and said to the old Zhu, "Zhao Ji, he had quite a few auspicious omens."
"The Yellow River running clear" is an auspicious omen and is regarded as a "great auspicious omen," its status being equal to that of the Qilin, Phoenix, Divine Turtle, Dragon Horse, White Elephant, Black Jade, Vermilion Grass, and Divine Cauldron.
One of the things Emperor Huizong of Song could be particularly proud of during his reign was that he recorded more instances of the Yellow River flowing clear than any previous emperor. Furthermore, during Emperor Huizong's reign, cranes were considered auspicious omens.
The result was that this man orchestrated the Jingkang Incident, and when the city was besieged by the Jin army, he actually believed a sorcerer's words about "turning beans into soldiers." It's not just that this man became a disgrace to history, but more importantly, he caused countless members of the imperial family and ordinary people to become prisoners of war.
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