The grandson was handling government affairs, and the great-grandson had gone to school. The Qianqing Palace looked very quiet now, but the palace maids and eunuchs serving there dared not even breathe loudly.
If His Majesty the Emperor and His Highness the Crown Prince are in the Qianqing Palace, His Majesty the Retired Emperor is certainly in a good mood. However, whenever His Majesty the Emperor and His Highness the Crown Prince are not in the Qianqing Palace, His Majesty the Retired Emperor becomes very strict, and everyone understands this.
Seeing the retired emperor dozing in the sun, everyone became even more careful, as waking His Majesty the Retired Emperor would be disastrous.
Just then, Shuangquan tiptoed to the side of the recliner. "Your Majesty, Wang Chengen is requesting an audience outside the palace."
Old Zhu slowly opened his eyes and said, "See you there."
Wang Chengen took small, quick steps to Old Zhu, knelt down, and said, "Your Majesty the Retired Emperor, His Majesty the Emperor intends to have His Highness the Crown Prince preside over this military merit assessment. We hope Your Majesty the Retired Emperor will make the decision."
Old Zhu smiled slightly and said, "In our opinion, the emperor just wants to slack off. Although the crown prince has a talent for martial arts, he is still a child. Go back and tell the emperor that we agree to this. Let Xu Da's second son help the crown prince, and make sure these things are done well."
Wang Chengen boldly said, "Your Majesty the Retired Emperor, His Majesty the Emperor intends to bring the nobles of Huaixi into the palace. Those who have not inherited their titles must all make an appearance before His Highness the Crown Prince."
Old Zhu got excited and stood up, saying, "This is a good thing. The Emperor and the Crown Prince are both considered nobles of Huaixi, and they should make good use of these people. How about this, after the Emperor finishes court, have him come over, and we'll discuss it with him. As for the Crown Prince, after he finishes his studies, have him go to the Eastern Palace first; he should also see his younger brother."
Wang Chengen knew how to please Emperor Zhu, so he quickly told an amusing story: "Last night, Your Majesty intended to take the Third Prince to rest, and the Third Prince peed on Your Majesty."
Old Zhu grinned and said, "He's the Crown Prince's younger brother after all, just as troublesome. I've heard that the Third Prince likes to sleep on his wet nurse when he's asleep?"
“Your Majesty, the Third Prince has a particular fondness for sleeping face down.” Wang Chengen, of course, knew this and hurriedly replied, “Not only does he sleep face down, but he also requires a cloth bestowed by His Highness the Crown Prince to be placed in front of him.”
Old Zhu nodded with a smile and said, "We know about that piece of cloth. The Crown Prince used to be like that too. He couldn't sleep soundly without that cloth draped over his body. This kid is quite generous, giving such a treasure to his younger brother. No wonder we haven't seen it these past few days. Alright, go to the Imperial Treasury and get ten bolts of Suzhou brocade and Sichuan brocade to give to the Empress."
Wang Chengen backed up to the palace gate before turning around and walking quickly toward the Wuying Hall. He had many responsibilities, and there were some things he needed to inform His Majesty about immediately.
After hearing Wang Chengen's report, Zhu Yunying simply nodded, indicating that he understood. Of course, what he still needed to do was make good use of his time; he had many other matters to attend to.
While Wang Chengen rushed to the Eastern Palace to deliver the imperial decree, Zhu Yue arrived there at a leisurely pace. Among Zhu's daughters and granddaughters, Zhu Yue held a distinguished position, being the current emperor's younger sister.
Despite always having to take care of her troublesome younger brother, she is still a very pampered younger sister in Joo Yoon-young's eyes.
Having just received a reward from Emperor Zhu, Xu Miaoqing smiled and said to him, "It's probably because Yin'er spoke well of us to the Emperor that he gave us this reward."
“We’re used to it.” Zhu Yue looked around and said in a low voice, “In the old days, everything my brother did was good. When he ran around the palace, my grandfather would say that he was innocent and carefree, and might even reward him. But if other people ran around, they would be considered impolite and would be reprimanded. That would be a minor matter, and their mother might even be punished.”
Old Zhu's extremely flexible standards were no secret. As Old Zhu's granddaughter, Zhu Yue was used to these things. But there was nothing to be jealous of; Old Zhu himself favored sons over daughters, and that's just how things were in this era.
"His Majesty summoned you to the palace today, presumably because of the Second Prince's matter." Xu Miaoqing said with a smile, holding Zhu Yue's hand. "The Second Prince is probably going to get scolded when he comes. He might blame his sister-in-law for being nosy. I just mentioned it to His Majesty last night."
Zhu Yue said matter-of-factly, "Although Grandfather is still alive, the eldest brother is like a father and the eldest sister-in-law is like a mother. It is only right that the eldest sister-in-law should manage the second son. That kid is just being reckless, and he has dragged the Wang family into being reckless as well."
Xu Miaoqing nodded. Being the sister-in-law was really too difficult for her. If she went to manage Zhu Yunwen, some people might think she was being nosy, since Zhu Yunwen not only had his own residence now, but also had his own children.
But ignoring it was definitely not an option. Firstly, Zhu Yunwen was the emperor's younger brother and had always been highly favored. There were also court laws and social norms at play; it truly was a case of the elder sister-in-law acting as a mother.
With her parents gone and the emperor busy with state affairs, it's natural that she, as the sister-in-law, needs to pay more attention to things at home.
“In a few days, Yin’er will be presiding over the military merit assessment. Let His Majesty’s Qilin go with him as well,” Xu Miaoqing said with a smile. “Speaking of which, Qi’er should also make some preparations. It’s time to confer the title of heir to him.”
Who could blame him when the imperial son-in-law, Feng Cheng, was the Duke of Ying? According to the rules established by Emperor Zhu in his early years, not only were members of the imperial clan granted titles at the age of ten, but meritorious officials were also granted titles at the age of ten.
As if remembering something, Xu Miaoqing sighed and said, "Tang Wenyu is also gone from the Dong'ou Prince's side. This will be a headache for His Majesty, as there is no one to fill the Dong'ou Prince's title now."
The King of Dong'ou naturally refers to Tang He, who was also one of Zhu Yuanzhang's closest friends. However, unlike others, Tang He's title of Duke of Xin was never passed down, which was a thorny issue.
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