If one were to make an evaluation of the emperors of the Ming Dynasty, Ru Chang felt that no one was more qualified than him.
He was selected to enter the Imperial Academy at the age of sixteen and subsequently became a tutor to the Crown Prince. His starting point was very high; by the time he entered officialdom, the Ming Dynasty had already been established for nearly twenty years. Although he was only a minor official at that time, he was still, at least, in the officialdom.
With the elimination of figures like Li Shanchang and Hu Weiyong, Emperor Hongwu's suppression of civil officials seemed to have reached its peak. In Ru Chang's view, Emperor Hongwu was very much like the First Emperor, who swept across the land, domineering and unparalleled in his power.
Zhu Biao, who was posthumously honored as Emperor Xiaokang, did indeed have a gentle and refined side. However, Ru Chang knew that Emperor Xiaokang was actually a ruthless emperor. Many civil and military officials were executed by imperial edicts issued by Emperor Xiaokang, and countless people were forced to leave their homes and be driven away because of his brushstrokes.
As for the current Emperor Ying Shi, Ru Chang, who was once the emperor's study companion, knows that the emperor does not like some of the Four Books and Five Classics. He also knows that the emperor has been intelligent and has a very upright mind since childhood.
If the emperors of the Han Dynasty were inherently harsh, then the emperors of the Ming Dynasty, as we see it today, were all incredibly wise and caring towards their people. Their only drawback was their consistently unfriendly attitude towards scholars.
Although the current Crown Prince looks very young and is at an innocent and carefree age, Ru Chang is very worried that, considering the retired Emperor and the current Emperor, the Crown Prince will likely become an emperor who is not very friendly to civil officials in the future.
Old Zhu didn't care about any of that. He was very satisfied with his great-grandson's first meeting with the court officials. His great-grandson indeed had the potential to become a great ruler!
After the civil and military officials took their leave, Old Zhu immediately came out from behind the hall, "Yin'er, you performed very well today, worthy of being the Crown Prince!"
Little Zhu was very happy, but also very curious, "Great-grandfather, I didn't see you."
"We're watching you, we're right behind the curtain." Old Zhu picked up little Zhu who had rushed towards him and said proudly, "Our Yin'er is so composed, he can sit still even in this situation! Ordinary children would have been terrified and crying long ago!"
What Old Zhu said was something Zhu Yunying was quite proud of. His son was indeed not shy, although the child was somewhat spoiled and a bit unruly, but that was just a child's nature, and it was perfectly normal.
Moreover, given Zhu's special status, it's perfectly normal for him to be spoiled. After all, he is the Crown Prince, already officially in the Eastern Palace—the heir apparent of the Ming Dynasty!
Little Zhu is being spoiled a bit, and Zhu Yunying is well aware of this, but he doesn't intend to say much. He'll just let things take their natural course.
Zhu Yunying didn't intend to raise the young Zhu into a perfect crown prince; he knew that was unrealistic. He hoped the young Zhu would have his own opinions and principles. As long as the young Zhu kept the country and the people in his heart, that would be enough.
If little Zhu could have more of these qualities, then Zhu Yunying would be even happier, and that was Zhu Yunying's true thought.
Old Zhu was in a good mood, but seeing Zhu Yunwen grinning foolishly beside him, he seemed a bit old-fashioned. "Yunwen, you should learn from your elder brother. You should learn some things now so you can help your elder brother."
Zhu Yunwen clearly remained noncommittal, and now he was becoming somewhat bolder, saying, "Grandfather, my ambitions lie elsewhere. Helping the Crown Prince today is nothing more than a matter of my elder brother's orders; I'll just follow them..."
"How dare you say that?!" Old Zhu was even angrier, pointing at Zhu Yunwen and saying, "You just brazenly pulled out the brilliant plan your elder brother gave you?!"
Zhu Yunwen was a little embarrassed, but he was like a dead pig that doesn't fear boiling water. It was just that his grandfather was nagging a bit, and he only needed to let it go in one ear and out the other. Naturally, nothing else mattered.
Seeing his grandson's seemingly obedient and well-behaved demeanor, Old Zhu didn't bother to say anything more. He had no expectations for this grandson who only cared about eating, drinking, and having fun; but that was fine too.
Although Yun Tong wasn't very ambitious, he was at least of decent character and didn't do anything heinous, which was good enough. Besides, there wasn't anything wrong with a prince who was content with pleasure, especially considering that Zhu Yun Tong was Zhu Yun Ying's younger brother, which naturally made things even more sensitive.
Let the child eat, drink, and have fun. He worked hard to build this empire, so naturally he hopes that his children and grandchildren will have no worries about food and clothing.
There's nothing wrong with things as they are now. If they want to eat, drink, and have fun, they can. As for governing the country, we'll leave it to our promising eldest grandson, and that's enough.
Whether Zhu Yunwen was truly disappointed in his son is no longer important. Many people probably just hoped that Zhu Yunwen would continue to eat, drink, and have fun, and live a peaceful and uneventful life.
Although Zhu Yunwen was playful, there were still some things he hadn't forgotten. "Grandfather, my offspring is about to be born. I don't know if it will be a boy or a girl, so please help me give it a name."
"Go find your imperial brother!" Old Zhu was a little jealous. He knew a lot about the situation. "You always go to your imperial brother for everything. Now you're thinking of your imperial grandfather?"
Old Zhu had become much more lenient, probably due to his age. But more so because Zhu Yunwen was Zhu Biao's legitimate son and Zhu Yunying's younger brother.
Zhu Yunwen didn't mind, and simply said, "Now that Grandfather is here, it's natural for Grandfather to name it. If Grandfather is no longer here, then I'll ask my elder brother."
"Good, our Yuntong is promising!" Old Zhu, with a hint of disappointment, said, "Your father and your elder brother are both useless! They wouldn't even agree to the imperial selection, and look at how few offspring they have! Your father only has five sons, and your elder brother is still just one! They should have more children, more offspring would be better!"
Zhu Yunying didn't know what to say, because Old Zhu had nagged about this matter countless times. In Old Zhu's eyes, having many offspring was the most desirable thing. He also hoped that his descendants would follow his example and ideally have more than twenty sons and more than ten daughters—that would be truly wonderful!
Whether it's a good thing or not is hard to say, but Zhu Yunying genuinely didn't want that many children. More than ten would be far too many. In Zhu Yunying's view, five or six children would be about right.
He only thought about such things in his heart; if he said them out loud, Old Zhu would definitely criticize him.
Old Zhu didn't forget the important matter and said to Zhu Yunwen, "If you have a son, name him Wengeng. Your elder brother's son, born to the Empress, is Wenkun. Remember, Wenyin is the Crown Prince!"
Okay, I understand. Following the generational naming conventions isn't just about letting people know this is Zhu Biao's lineage. It also requires the names to indicate the closeness or distance from the future emperor. Even brothers and cousins have different names!
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