“Well, as the eldest brother, why can’t we say anything to him?” Zhu Yunying said matter-of-factly. “When he was little, we told him not to study by rote, but the kid always thought we were trying to harm him! Even if our Seventh Imperial Uncle is a scholar, he’s not just someone who knows how to study by rote; he can still govern a region. That kid Yunwen, he’s all talk and no action.”
Old Zhu looked at Zhu Yunying and said, "If he hadn't been so bookish, you wouldn't have had such a comfortable childhood. Do you really think your father and I couldn't see it? We know all about his and his mother's little schemes. We let Prince Xu study and let your good-for-nothing younger brother run wild all day long, as long as he doesn't interfere with you."
Zhu Yunying thought for a moment and said, "It seems that we are the same. Our good-for-nothing second son is always causing trouble. Even if we urge him to improve, it's just talk. We're too lazy to really care. But Yin'er is different. No matter how busy we are, we still have to pay attention to his studies."
The education of princes and grandsons has always been unfair. Whether it's the eldest or youngest Zhu, the education they receive is different from that of their younger brothers. They always have the strongest teaching staff around them, and they never lack the emperor's personal instruction and guidance. This is clearly imperial education.
Just as Old Zhu and Young Zhu were chatting, a small commotion suddenly arose outside the Qianqing Palace. Without a doubt, in this place where authority was paramount, and where many felt suffocated, only two or three people in the entire world felt truly at ease.
Little Zhu, there's no need to even think about it, it's definitely Little Zhu who's here. He truly doesn't know fear. Many rules and regulations are nothing to Little Zhu; he genuinely doesn't care.
Little Zhu ran happily to the Qianqing Palace and immediately boasted, "Great-grandfather, our chubby little brother can talk now!"
Xu Miaoqing, holding Zhu Wenkun, bowed somewhat reservedly to the old Zhu, saying, "Your subject greets Your Majesty, my imperial grandfather."
Xu Miaoqing felt that Old Zhu must be in a bad mood right now, because he didn't even dare to call himself 'granddaughter-in-law' anymore, and could only refer to himself as 'your subject'. But there was nothing she could do. Although she was Little Zhu's mother, Xu Miaoqing knew that she couldn't just educate Little Zhu haphazardly.
If she were to teach Little Zhu without Old Zhu's or Little Zhu's permission, she might get scolded. Even though she's Little Zhu's mother, if she speaks too harshly and upsets Little Zhu, Old Zhu might give Xu Miaoqing a dressing down.
Xu Miaoqing knew, of course, that Xiao Xiao Zhu had been sent back to Chunhe Palace because Old Zhu and Xiao Zhu had something to discuss and had deliberately sent Xiao Xiao Zhu away. But what could she do? Xiao Xiao Zhu was determined to bring his younger brother to Qianqing Palace to show off, and Xu Miaoqing couldn't stop him.
Xu Miaoqing couldn't stop him, and Shuangquan dared not. As for the guards, if they had stopped Little Zhu a moment ago, they would have been punished by Emperor Hongwu on some pretext the next moment, without even needing to find a reason.
Fairness? That doesn't exist. There's no need to reason with the emperor most of the time, and there's no reason to reason with him!
Little Zhu was happy, seemingly unaware of anything, "Wen Kun, hurry up and call me!"
Hearing Xu Miaoqing holding him in her arms, Zhu Wenkun immediately said happily, "Royal brother, royal brother."
Little Zhu was even happier. Although his younger brother couldn't speak clearly yet, at least he had finally learned to talk instead of just crawling around all day. That was something for Little Zhu to be happy about.
Zhu Yunying glanced at Xu Miaoqing and said with a smile, "Put our little toad on the ground and let him put on a good show for Grandpa Emperor."
Old Zhu smiled as he looked at Zhu Yunying, then at the chubby Zhu Wenkun, and said, "Don't bother the child. What can he possibly know at such a young age? This little thing still can't call us."
"He could only call me 'father' and 'mother' before, and now he's gotten a bit better and can call me 'elder brother'," Zhu Yunying explained with a smile. "This kid is also timid. He can stand up now, but he's too scared to walk and just crawls around all day."
Old Zhu looked at Zhu Wenkun; this was what a normal child should be like. Unlike his own precious great-grandson, who, even before he could speak, had his big eyes darting around all day, as if he could understand what adults were saying from a very young age.
Although Emperor Zhu and Empress Ma had heard that some children learn to speak early, able to call out simple names around ten months old, their own precious eldest grandson spoke very clearly and could say many words at ten months old.
While Old Zhu was still sighing, Zhu Wenkun, who had been placed on the ground, lay prone, his chubby, round belly supporting him. He even had to lift his head, hands, and feet, using his belly to maintain his balance.
Zhu Wenkun, laughing in a childish voice, suddenly pushed off the ground with both hands and his two chubby little legs, really looking like a little toad.
With a series of leaps, the little toad started moving and immediately crawled towards Little Zhu, wanting to play with its brother.
Old Zhu found it amusing; he had many sons and daughters, and even more grandchildren and great-grandchildren. However, the number of children Old Zhu actually had was very limited. Even with his eldest son, Old Zhu, who was busy conquering the world at the time, didn't get to see much of his early childhood.
That is, Xiao Zhu and Xiao Xiao Zhu. Old Zhu watched them grow from swaddling clothes into toddlers, then into children, and finally into families and careers.
Zhu Yunying looked at Xu Miaoqing and said, "Have someone prepare the meal. It's been quite a while since our family has eaten together."
“We eat with our great-grandfather every day, and we eat more and more while our great-grandfather eats less and less.” Little Zhu picked up Zhu Wenkun and said, “This is not good. I recently listened to the popular novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Zhuge Liang ate little but did a lot, and then he died.”
Xu Miaoqing dared not speak at this moment, her heart pounding with fear at Xiao Zhu's words. This wasn't just innocent childish talk; it was practically a curse upon the emperor—a grave disrespect and a great act of filial impiety.
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