Zhu Yunying considered himself a diligent emperor, and he cared deeply about many things. For example, the conferment of titles upon princes was an extremely important matter, and the entire court had to be cautious about it.
In fact, the Ming Dynasty had not conferred the title of prince for some years. Although Emperor Zhu had stipulated that princes should be conferred the title at the age of ten, in practice, many princes were conferred the title before the age of ten, or even at the age of thirteen or fourteen.
This is quite normal, because often it's not necessary to specifically confer the title of Prince on a single prince; usually, several are conferred the title together. In such cases, those of similar age can be conferred the title around the same time.
On the 27th day of the tenth month of the second year of Ying Shi, Zhu Yunying got up early, washed up, and immediately headed towards Jinshen Hall.
"Dad, you're the slowest!" Little Zhu immediately complained as soon as he saw Zhu Yunying, "We've been waiting for a quarter of an hour!"
Zhu Yunying was both amused and annoyed, and said, "Put on your court robes properly, and don't embarrass us today."
“You may lose face, but Yin’er won’t.” Old Zhu, protective of his own, immediately said, “You can handle these things yourself! You’re the emperor now, and you still drag us into everything, big or small. What kind of talk is that!”
Zhu Yunying smiled, then remembered something, "By the way, did Yin'er go to the elephant house?"
It's not that places like the Leopard House only appeared in the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty; elephant houses actually existed during the Ming Dynasty. These were elephants that were presented as tribute by envoys from Southeast Asian countries and officials from the south fifteen years earlier. Most of them were concentrated in the area outside Jubao Gate and Tongji Gate, which was the elephant house.
Old Zhu immediately fell silent, embarrassed. He was also at his wit's end with Little Zhu's persistence. Seeing his great-grandson about to cry and beg, Old Zhu couldn't bring himself to be harsh. Besides, it's normal for children to be playful, and it's perfectly normal for his great-grandson to like watching elephants. It would be abnormal for a young child like his own grandson to be uninterested in things that other children enjoy.
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Zhu Yunying sat sullenly to one side, because the elephant house was not in the palace.
In fact, Zhu Yunying was used to his son, Xiao Zhu, leaving the palace. He encouraged Xiao Zhu to go out and see the world. But this time was different; he simply took Xiao Zhu with him, which was quite spontaneous.
This is also why Old Zhu lacks confidence. Despite his domineering nature and the fact that he now raises Little Zhu himself, he is ultimately Little Zhu's father, and Old Zhu's actions are indeed not very ethical.
"Let's not delay any longer." Old Zhu was not going to admit his mistake; he still had important business to attend to. "We shouldn't keep everyone waiting; it wouldn't be good if we missed the auspicious time."
Well, Zhu Yunying has no choice but to accept this situation cleanly and decisively. If Zhu had started to act unreasonably, Zhu Yunying would have had no recourse.
Although the current emperor of the Ming Dynasty is Zhu Yunying, as long as Zhu Yunying is alive, he is the most influential person in the Ming Dynasty. Moreover, Zhu Yunying is the grandfather of Zhu Yuanzhang, so he doesn't have much confidence to say anything.
Therefore, it's better not to humiliate oneself. Zhu Yunying can be considered to have a good sense of self-awareness, and he can be considered to know that those who are aware of the times are wise.
Old Zhu was in a good mood and went to court with his grandson and great-grandson. This time, he was going to confer the title of prince upon his son and grandson, which was naturally a joyous occasion for Old Zhu.
Seeing Old Zhu's enthusiastic expression, Zhu Yunying didn't say anything more. Sometimes it's good to play dumb; it's normal for children to be playful. Little Zhu just wanted to see the tamed elephants, which is perfectly normal and nothing to be ashamed of.
At this moment, civil and military officials were lined up outside the Meridian Gate. The imperial family of the Ming Dynasty was also queuing up.
"If you ask me, it's a good thing that the fourth and fifth brothers were conferred titles this time." Zhu Yunwen said casually, running around in the group. "Fifth Uncle, they've both been conferred titles this time. Let's have someone prepare a banquet and celebrate together."
Zhu Su was both amused and exasperated. He said irritably, "Today they are being conferred titles, so His Majesty will naturally hold a banquet to celebrate. You're making the arrangements here; are you trying to steal the spotlight?"
Zhu Yunwen didn't care about any of that, and simply said, "The banquets in the palace are really boring. They're all so rigid and formal, it's really not enjoyable. The words spoken, the etiquette performed, even the music played, all follow a set procedure. We should just go and celebrate by ourselves; that's what's truly enjoyable."
Zhu Su laughed as well. He didn't say much, even though he was also the head of the Imperial Clan Court of the Ming Dynasty, a special position. But it wouldn't be good to let him run rampant.
After all, although the current emperor treats the imperial clan well, he is not particularly lenient when members of the imperial clan make mistakes.
In other words, Zhu Yunwen, who had always been favored, acted lawlessly simply because he was the emperor's younger brother. Not only was the Imperial Clan Court powerless to control him, but even the censors and other officials responsible for overseeing the order of the procession could only glare helplessly at this moment.
Of course, Zhu Yunwen was also like a dead pig that doesn't fear boiling water; even after the censor reminded him, he still went his own way. At worst, he would be scolded by his elder brother, but that was all; Zhu Yunwen didn't care about such things at all.
After chatting with his fifth uncle for a few minutes, Zhu Yunwen turned around, his eyes lighting up. His princely court robes were quite eye-catching, especially as he 'rushed around' in the orderly procession, which attracted the attention of countless civil and military officials and members of the imperial family.
“Brother, it is a joyous occasion that you have inherited the title of Prince of Qin.” Zhu Yunwen said with a smile as he approached the twenty-year-old Zhu Shangbing. “After the banquet at court today, let’s go to our residence, where we will arrange a song and dance performance and a banquet.”
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