Zhu Yunwen stormed towards the Prince of Jin's residence. His third uncle was still stationed in Beiping. His uncle's fiefdom of Taiyuan was now just an empty shell, and his uncle's descendants were mostly in Yingtian Prefecture.
Besides the fact that Zhu Yunying is not currently granting princely titles, it's also because of this rule established by the late Zhu. Most of the princes' offspring still need to grow up and study in Yingtian Prefecture, especially the eldest sons, who basically all grow up there.
Zhu Yunwen, full of imposing manner, jumped off his horse and headed straight for the main hall without waiting for the gatekeeper to announce his arrival.
Upon hearing the news, Zhu Jixi, the heir apparent of the Prince of Jin, rushed over. He was only one year younger than Zhu Yunying and three years older than Zhu Yuntong. This man also held a high position, being the second grandson of the late Zhu Yuanzhang and the designated heir apparent of the Prince of Jin from the outset.
Upon seeing Zhu Yunwen, Zhu Jixi chuckled and teased, "What's going on? Who dares to offend our Prince Wu?"
Although they are cousins, Zhu Jixi is currently only the heir apparent of a prince, while Zhu Yunwen is a legitimate prince. Furthermore, Zhu Yunwen's special status is well-known within the imperial clan. Even if his father, Zhu Gang, were to come, he would still have to show Zhu Yunwen some respect.
Zhu Yunwen didn't give his cousin a hard time either. In fact, Zhu Yunwen was not much older than his second uncle's son Zhu Shangbing, his third uncle's son Zhu Jixi, his fourth uncle's son Zhu Gaochi, and his fifth uncle's son Zhu Youdun. They all studied at the same school.
At most, some of his older and younger cousins were studious, while Zhu Yunwen was not and loved to play. But overall, they were still quite familiar with each other.
“Brother, you should do something about Ji Ye and Ji Huang.” Zhu Yunwen didn’t hide anything and said directly, “Where are they? Let’s tie them up and send them directly to the Imperial Clan Court.”
Zhu Jixi's expression changed, and he quickly said, "Yunyi, that's your brother! Are you really going to tie him up and send him to the Imperial Clan Court? What crime could he have committed to warrant such a thing!"
Zhu Jixi had this confidence partly because he was the heir apparent of the Prince of Jin, and partly because of his father's special status. Of course, it was also because, as the older brother, it was only natural for him to take care of his younger brother. Although the third son, Zhu Jihuang, was always resentful of Zhu Jixi, they were, after all, brothers.
Zhu Yunwen said irritably, "You can handle Ji Ye's affairs; after all, he's your younger brother. But that Ji Huang needs to be dealt with. These illegitimate sons are the most unruly, always thinking about seizing the family business. If you ask me, he's just like his mother!"
Zhu Jixi was somewhat embarrassed. He and his second brother, Zhu Jiye, were both born to Zhu Gang's principal wife, Lady Xie, the eldest daughter of Marquis Yongping, Xie Cheng—they were of impeccable lineage. However, Zhu Jihuang was born out of wedlock.
Zhu Gang's favoritism towards his eldest son was quite obvious, which made Zhu Jihuang resentful. Perhaps influenced by his birth mother, he was treacherous and cruel, with a bit of the nouveau riche attitude, becoming arrogant and conceited after suddenly becoming wealthy.
"They were riding wildly in Yingtian Prefecture and bumped into people," Zhu Yunwen said irritably. "I knew he was unruly before, and everyone said he was just as bad as me. But I'm not as good as him. I'm just playful, but I would never dare to ride wildly in Yingtian Prefecture."
Zhu Jixi's expression froze for a moment, then he quickly said, "Let's have him come over and apologize right away. His royal residence will naturally compensate for any offense done to pedestrians and vendors. Let's ask Mother Consort to step in and punish him!"
"You still don't know, the Emperor himself gave the order, and the Crown Prince saw it too." Zhu Yunwen looked at his cousin with great sympathy and said, "We'll tie him up and send him to the Imperial Clan Court right now. You also need to quickly submit a memorial to apologize. Your brother will definitely not punish you. To be honest, among us brothers, your brother likes you quite a bit. It's just that we can't help you with this matter of disciplining your brother!"
How dare you say that?
If it were anyone else, that would be one thing, but who exactly raised this notorious playboy of Yingtian Prefecture?!
Zhu Jixi looked worried. No one dared to say anything if the emperor hadn't taught Zhu Yunwen well. But if he, Zhu Jixi, hadn't taught his younger brothers well, then it would be a matter of submitting a memorial to apologize.
What's more, even the Emperor's grandfather felt his legs go weak just thinking about seeing all this!
"We both have offspring now, so cousin, you'd better step up your game," Zhu Yunwen said smugly with a smile. "You only need to know about these things. We still need to go and kidnap people from other places. I'll give you two hours. You should go to your brother and apologize. I'll keep things quiet for you. After that time, it won't be easy for us to help you anymore."
Zhu Jixi breathed a slight sigh of relief. Seeing Zhu Yunwen stand up, he quickly said, "Have some tea. We've acquired a new piece of rock."
"Send him to my residence and let me admire him for a few days," Zhu Yunwen said with a grin. "Let me tell you something else. Your Majesty has been in a good mood these past few days. When you apologize, Ji Ye will be fine. As for Ji Huang, just tell the truth. Don't suppress it or protect him. Your Majesty will naturally have a better understanding of the situation."
Although the price paid was considerable, Zhu Jixi still breathed a slight sigh of relief, as the stones he sent had served their purpose.
Thinking of this, Zhu Jixi quickly turned around and went to the backyard. "Mother, Jiye and Jihuang have caused trouble. They were riding their horses in the city when the Emperor saw them. Yunhu came and kidnapped them, and is going to send them to the Imperial Clan Court for questioning."
Madam Xie looked flustered and hurriedly asked, "What should we do? The emperor is the most harsh on the imperial family. This is no longer the reign of the retired emperor!"
"It shouldn't be a big problem, but Ji Huang is likely to suffer." Zhu Jixi looked at Xie Shi and said meaningfully, "This time it wasn't just Ji Ye who caused trouble, Ji Huang was also involved. But now that Father is not here, if I deal with Ji Huang, I'm afraid it will be difficult to explain to Father."
Having come from a military family, what kind of storms hadn't Xie Shi weathered? Moreover, being from a military family, she was well aware of the infighting and power struggles within her own household. Now, married to Zhu Gang, she had seen even more of these things.
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