After a busy day of political affairs, Zhu Yunying calmly headed to the Eastern Palace. This wasn't a case of forgetting one's mother after marrying a wife; there was truly no need for Zhu Yunying to go to the old Zhu's side. Little Zhu had certainly told the old Zhu everything in detail, so there was no need for Zhu Yunying to say anything more.
Old Zhu is a man of exceptional talent; what hasn't he experienced? Even if Little Zhu only vaguely describes the general situation, Old Zhu can basically guess the whole story. This naturally means that Zhu Yunying doesn't need to say anything himself.
Moreover, Zhu Yunying was well aware that in order to maintain his authority, he rarely went to court after his abdication.
However, if Zhu Yunying wanted to, he could obviously know almost everything, a fact that Zhu Yunying had no doubt about.
Back in Chunhe Palace, Zhu Yunying looked around and asked, "Where is our Kun'er?"
Xu Miaoqing replied with a smile, "Kun'er is asleep. He sleeps during the day and makes a fuss at night."
Zhu Yunying didn't know what to say about this third son. Perhaps it was best to say nothing at all. This wasn't a genetic issue; it was just that many babies were like this—they were all incredibly resilient, and staying up all night was nothing unusual for them.
"Yin'er's performance today has pleased us greatly." As Xu Miaoqing helped Zhu Yunying take off his everyday clothes, Zhu Yunying said with a smile, "He is indeed our son, kind-hearted. Just wait and see, in the next few days, I estimate that many noblewomen will request an audience. Speaking of our Crown Prince Renshan, this child's performance has satisfied us."
Hearing Zhu Yunying say this, Xu Miaoqing was genuinely happy. "It's all thanks to the good teachings of my grandfather and His Majesty. Yin'er is still somewhat unruly. If it weren't for the teachings of my grandfather and His Majesty, Yin'er wouldn't be so accomplished."
Zhu Yunying laughed heartily, also very proud, "On this point, I'm not being modest. Our Crown Prince is indeed benevolent. Putting aside other things, our Crown Prince truly embodies the characteristics of our Zhu family; he truly loves the people like his own children and has the world in his heart."
Xu Miaoqing was even happier. Although her eldest son's position was secure, he was still the Crown Prince. With such an outstanding Crown Prince, inheriting the throne was only a matter of course. Moreover, as a mother, she naturally hoped her child would be successful and make progress.
To put it more realistically, although she was the empress, in such an era, it was quite normal for a mother to gain status through her son.
Even empresses are not immune to the common occurrences of such things.
“Zhang Fu has been appointed commander of the Imperial Guards, and he will be serving in the Eastern Palace from now on.” Zhu Yunying sighed and said with some helplessness, “Our Crown Prince is just suffering some injustice. Back when our father was alive, his staff was unprecedented. There was no such thing as Eastern Palace officials; they were all important ministers of our Great Ming.”
Xu Miaoqing remained silent. Even though she was young, she knew that the Crown Prince's inner circle consisted entirely of important court officials. To be able to enter the Crown Prince's palace meant one was a key figure in the Ming Dynasty.
This wasn't just about Zhu Yuanzhang's cultivation and trust in Zhu Yuanzhang; it was also because Zhu Yuanzhang had experienced some warfare in his time. Leaving important ministers in Zhu Yuanzhang's stead naturally meant that he hoped Zhu Yuanzhang would be more capable when he oversaw the country.
Zhu Yunying also said with a smile, "When we were the Crown Prince, our Crown Prince's Mansion had many important officials. Not to mention, the Third Master and the Third Young Master were all important officials. But when it comes to our Yin'er, he has to suffer a lot."
Xu Miaoqing disagreed, saying, "Your Majesty, Yin'er's Crown Prince's residence is also a gathering place for talented people and important officials. Not to mention the Duke of Ying, the Duke of Liang, the Duke of Zhongshan, and the Duke of Kaiguo, the Duke of Cao, the Duke of Ying, and the Duke of Qian are all family members."
Look, Xu Miaoqing has placed herself in the most respectable position. Her elder brother, Xu Huizu, is the "Duke of Zhongshan," and her maternal uncle, Chang Mao, is the "Duke of the Founding State." As for Li Jinglong, Feng Cheng, and Mu Chun, they are undoubtedly family.
Even if he considered Xu Huizu and Chang Mao as family, in Lao Zhu's eyes, those people were just 'outsiders'.
Zhu Yunying smiled and said, "Although Yin'er's Eastern Palace does have some influence, it is still not as important as Father Emperor and us. You can probably tell from here that there are many people here who will probably not be needed when Yin'er ascends the throne."
Fu Youde and Lan Yu are not young. If things go 'smoothly', Xu Huizu might not even live to see the young Zhu ascend the throne. After all, Xu Huizu is more than ten years older than Zhu Yunying, and he is nearly forty years old.
“Yin’er is still young, and we are not old either,” Zhu Yunying said to Xu Miaoqing. “So we are not in a hurry to arrange some young talents for Yin’er’s Eastern Palace. We should wait until he is fifteen before arranging some people for him, just like we had Ru Chang and Zhuo Jing in our early years.”
That's pretty much the truth. There's no need to appoint any young talents to Zhu Yuanzhang's existing team.
Xu Miaoqing listened patiently. Although she was the Empress, she knew certain taboos and generally wouldn't actively inquire about or deliberately seek out information about matters of the previous dynasty. She would only listen if Zhu Yunying was willing to talk.
Having been Zhu's daughter-in-law for nearly ten years, Xu Miaoqing was well aware of many things. Interference in politics by the empress dowager was absolutely unacceptable. Otherwise, given the Emperor Emeritus's personality, while he might not depose the crown prince, he would have no qualms about killing the mother to save the son.
It wasn't just for her own sake, but also for her son's. Xu Miaoqing knew that some bottom lines couldn't be crossed.
Remembering something, Xu Miaoqing said, "Your Majesty, quite a few imperial aunts have requested an audience these past few days. I have also met with a few of them, and most of them are concerned about the matter of being enfeoffed outside the capital."
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