Joo Yoon-young wasn't surprised at all by Old Joo's elusive nature; in fact, she was quite used to it. Of course, there were also some things about Old Joo's behavior that left Joo Yoon-young both amused and exasperated.
For example, Zhu Yuanzhang seems to have gone a bit 'obsessed' with his studies. He is always trying to maintain the dignity of Zhu Yunying, so he basically never speaks out on important matters, and he is unwilling to have more contact with his ministers, or even his sons and grandsons. Zhu Yuanzhang tries to see them as little as possible, and it is best if he does not see them at all.
But Joo Yoon-young understood all of this. He was definitely moved, but he wasn't really that sensitive.
Old Zhu was just a worrier by nature. Even though he appeared to be working behind the scenes, leaving most of the big and small matters to Zhu Yunying, Old Zhu's personality meant he cared deeply about and was concerned about many things.
Even if he doesn't interfere, he still wants to know. There are some things he's not happy about, and although he won't interfere with Joo Yoon-young, he will still have a good talk with Joo Yoon-young in private.
Looking at Old Zhu and Little Zhu, Zhu Yunying said, "Grandpa Emperor, we saw our uncles today. They left the palace. I think the other uncles should know by now. I guess they won't be able to stay idle for a while."
Old Zhu understood Zhu Yunying's meaning and said with a smile, "You just need to focus on your work. If your good-for-nothing uncles dare to make a fuss, we'll just call them into the palace and give them a good scolding. They won't dare to say anything more, much less cause trouble."
Zhu Yunying had no doubt about what Old Zhu said; the concepts of paternal love and filial piety were not applicable to Old Zhu.
Old Zhu was a typical feudal patriarch, and he was extremely strict and authoritative in front of his children.
Which of Zhu Yunying's uncles and aunts would dare to lose their temper in front of the old Zhu? Even the eldest Zhu, who was the old Zhu's favorite, seemed to be unafraid of the old Zhu, but in reality, he was still a little uneasy if the old Zhu really got angry.
In other words, Zhu Yunying was disrespectful to elders, so he could maintain a "calm mindset" in front of Zhu. But to be honest, if Zhu really got angry, Zhu Yunying was often a little afraid.
It's probably because Little Zhu was raised by Zhu Yuanzhang from a young age that he wasn't afraid of him. If anyone in the Ming Dynasty thought Zhu Yuanzhang had a good temper, it was Little Zhu.
“Not at all. The royal uncles are generally sensible,” Zhu Yunying said with a smile, and quickly added, “It’s just that Goryeo is too special, and also because my fourth uncle and his men founded the country, the other royal uncles saw some benefits and were thinking about it.”
At this moment, Xiao Zhu took the initiative to speak, saying, "Last time in Yingtian Prefecture, we saw ordinary families dividing their property, and they even had to distinguish between bowls and chopsticks. I remember it was the third branch, right? They took an extra set of bowls and chopsticks, and their older brother was unhappy and gave them a good beating and scolding."
This is perfectly normal; such things happened not only in the Ming Dynasty, but also hundreds of years later.
Even when brothers divide their family property, they each calculate everything very clearly. However, in a feudal dynasty like this, the eldest son's branch of the family definitely has an absolute advantage, as well as advantages in terms of secular morality and official recognition.
Old Zhu laughed upon hearing this, saying, "In ordinary families, with just a bowl and chopsticks and a plot of land, it's common for brothers to quarrel. But we are the imperial family, and what we divide is the dragon throne..."
"That won't do! The dragon throne belongs to our father, it belongs to us. In the future, our eldest son will also be able to sit on the dragon throne, but no one else can!" Little Zhu jumped out and said to Old Zhu anxiously and seriously, "Great-grandfather, what you said makes no sense. How can the dragon throne be divided up!"
Zhu Yunying was taken aback. It seemed that his precious son had gradually developed some ideas over the years.
However, such things are quite normal and nothing to be surprised about. Don't assume that children don't have thoughts and ideas, especially little Zhu, who is at an age where she's developing her wits.
Old Zhu wasn't upset by Little Zhu's self-righteous attitude. He chuckled and said, "Yes, we misspoke. This dragon throne should belong to your father, it should belong to you, and your descendants can sit on it in the future. No one else can."
Little Zhu immediately smiled and said happily, "Great-grandfather, we all know that we are the crown prince. We can sit on the dragon throne, but no one else can. In the future, we will also follow the rules. Only the first son born to our crown princess can become the crown prince and sit on the dragon throne. Our parents have said that our great-grandfather established these rules early on."
Old Zhu was very happy, it seems that the idea that "the eldest son of the legitimate wife must be the rightful heir" has taken deep root in people's hearts.
This is something that Zhu Yuanzhang can be proud of, and it is the result of his long-term efforts. This is not a rule that only came into being after the founding of the Ming Dynasty; it can be said that Zhu Yuanzhang began to try to establish rules and consensus after his son was born.
Now, thanks to four generations of this family, this concept has finally taken root in people's hearts, which is undoubtedly a good thing. It's good that the emperor has this concept; it will make the succession of the Ming Dynasty's throne more stable and reduce many twists and turns.
Old Zhu looked at Zhu Yunying and said with a smile, "He is indeed your son, just like you. He's a bit better, at seven or eight years old he only just learned this principle. You, on the other hand, are so young yet already know these things. Who would you be willing to give the bib your grandmother gave you years ago to?!"
Zhu Yunying chuckled and said without any shame, "Grandmother is thrifty, and so are we. We've kept it as a family heirloom. We've kept it all, and the Empress keeps it for us. Yin'er only wore it for a while when he was little. We can't bear to let anyone else wear it, not even Wenkun."
Old Zhu chuckled and said with a smile, "Your grandmother is frugal and reluctant to spend money on food and clothing, but she's willing to prepare quite a few things for you. You yourself always say you should be frugal and wear new clothes. You say you can't wear them anymore and want to give them to your younger brother, but you've kept all of these for your son."
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