Chapter 30 Leaving the City Gate
Zhu Yuhuan said that everything was decided by Zhu Zhanji, but he was almost certain in his heart that Zhu Zhanji would agree soon.
After Zhu Zhanji ascended the throne, he began promoting some officials of lower ranks to patrol various regions to monitor officials, in order to prevent deception. However, border defense was a matter of great importance, and security was often ensured by provincial governors or eunuchs. These people were experienced and trusted confidants of the emperor, and were more reliable than other officials.
But even his confidants could not be fully trusted, so Zhu Zhanji chose to patrol the border in person, after all, seeing is believing.
However, it is impossible for the emperor to stay in the local area all day long, so naturally he cannot monitor officials in various places at all times.
At first glance, it might seem absurd that Zhu Yuhuan was going to the north, but in fact, he could replace the emperor in monitoring and inspecting local officials. The Jinyiwei and local officials would report back at the same time, and with Zhu Yuhuan's own feedback, Zhu Zhanji could monitor the border situation even if he did not leave the capital.
Therefore, although Zhu Zhanji was a little hesitant at first, he quickly agreed to Zhu Yuhuan's proposal.
The only troublesome thing was the criticism from the ministers, but compared with the benefits of this matter, this discussion was nothing.
Of course, Zhu Yuhuan's trip to the border could not be as high-profile as a border patrol, but it also couldn't be kept secret. After all, all the way north needed to be verified, and a large amount of cloth and other goods had to be escorted to replace the goods originally used for trade. It was impossible for the officials to know nothing about it.
However, these were things that Zhu Zhanji needed to consider, and Zhu Yuhuan began to prepare for his journey north after receiving Zhu Zhanji's affirmative answer.
It’s not easy to go north. It will take at least several months, spanning spring, summer and autumn, so you naturally need to prepare more thick clothes.
Seeing her sister leave for a long time, Zhu Youtong felt reluctant to leave. She watched the palace servants around Hu Shanxiang coming in and out of the study, and said, "It would be great if I could go with them..."
Zhu Yuhuan, who was originally counting how many things she needed to bring, found it a little funny. She looked up at her sister and said comfortingly, "There will always be opportunities in the future."
Zhu Youtong sighed like a little adult, put his chin on his hand, and stared into the distance in a daze.
Seeing this, Zhu Yuhuan put down the pen in his hand, stood up, walked over to his sister and sat down, and said, "What's wrong?"
"I just feel like I can't help my sister at all..." Zhu Youtong revealed a bit of sadness, which was rare for him. "I don't know anything about horse riding, archery, or classics..."
Zhu Yuhuan patted her head with amusement and said, "Sister likes you to be yourself. Your pipa and paintings are both very good. No one in the family doesn't praise them."
Zhu Youtong muttered anxiously, "But these aren't the right path... Shouldn't I also study hard like my sister and Xiaoyu?"
Zhu Yuhuan understood her underlying anxiety and said, "Now it seems that playing the pipa and painting may not be the so-called 'right path,' but a hundred years from now, or even five hundred years from now, people may still view it that way. Besides, who says women have to live a certain way? Whether it's brave or cowardly, since it exists, it naturally has its reasons. As for whether it's good or bad, it's not up to others to judge; only you can decide."
Zhu Youtong's almond-shaped eyes sparkled as she stared at Zhu Yuhuan for a long time. Finally, she nodded and said, "I understand!"
Zhu Yuhuan pinched her soft cheeks and continued, "Don't think like that anymore. When the border is peaceful in the future, I will take you to the north to play."
"Okay! It's a deal!"
The excuses Zhu Zhanji arranged for Zhu Yuhuan were, first, to transport cloth to the trade location, and second, to reward border soldiers on behalf of the royal family. Anyone could do the former, but the latter was different.
The crown prince was still young and could not perform some functions on behalf of the royal family. Now the only vassal kings left in Beijing were the King of Yue and the King of Wei. Both of them were scholars and were not in good health. They could not withstand the fatigue of the journey. After much selection, only Princess Shunde was left.
This statement is a bit forced, but it is not completely unreasonable. However, in this way, Zhu Zhanji will inevitably be suspected of violating the "Imperial Ming Ancestor Instructions".
However, Zhu Zhanji also explained that the princess did not hold any position in the team, and all matters along the way were handled by Xu Gong of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Therefore, Princess Shunde was only a representative of the royal family, commonly known as a mascot, and could not be considered to be interfering in politics.
That being said, Xu Gong's mission was to protect Princess Shunde. The princess was the ruler and Xu Gong was the minister. Everyone knew who would be obeyed. However, since Zhu Zhanji had said so, the ministers could not directly expose the emperor. In the end, they could only follow Zhu Zhanji's words to smooth things over.
Fortunately, Zhu Yuanzhang did not prolong his life, otherwise the loopholes in "Huang Ming Zu Xun" would probably not be so easy to exploit.
There were quite a few people in this convoy. In addition to the palace maids accompanying Zhu Yuhuan and the guard team that already reached a hundred people, there were also a group of court officials, carriages transporting goods, and a sufficient number of troops. It was truly a "spectacular" event.
Not only that, Zhu Zhanji also sent Yang Pu to personally see Zhu Yuhuan off. After all, Yang Pu was Zhu Yuhuan's teacher, and his identity was enough to show Zhu Zhanji's attention to this matter.
On the day Zhu Yuhuan left the city, many people were watching the excitement on the roadside. The number of people was no less than when Zhu Zhanji returned from his expedition against Zhu Gaoxu.
There was no way around it. It was not uncommon for the emperor to travel, but the princess, who was supposed to "never leave the palace", not only left the palace, but even went north on behalf of His Majesty. How could people not be curious? They all wanted to see the legendary Princess Shunde with their own eyes.
Apart from anything else, there were many favors and rumors about this princess, and there were also true stories about her building charity halls and establishing industries. The folk image of Princess Shunde can be described as "rich", and it would be strange if the people were not curious.
If I don’t watch it this time, I don’t know if I will have the chance to see such excitement in the future.
It was a pity that Zhu Yuhuan left the palace in a carriage, so the people could not see the princess's true appearance. However, many people followed the motorcade to see her off, and the scene was quite lively. It was not until they left the capital that it gradually quieted down.
As for Yang Pu and others who were seeing him off, they were waiting outside the suburbs.
Yang Pu understood the deep meaning of Zhu Zhanji sending Zhu Yuhuan north, so he naturally would not be careless and waited outside the city early.
When the carriage stopped, Zhu Yuhuan got out and saw Yang Pu bowing to him. He immediately offered his hand to help him up and said, "Sir, you are being too polite."
When Yang Pu looked up, he saw Zhu Yuhuan in a royal blue robe, neatly dressed, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.
Zhu Yuhuan smiled and said, "This is also for the convenience of movement. After all, we have soldiers accompanying us. It's not like being in the deep palace. We have to consider the princess's dress and appearance. Please don't mind, sir."
Yang Pu was not in a position to say anything. After all, Zhu Yuhuan's outfit must have been approved by Zhu Zhanji. How could a minister like him criticize the princess? Moreover, Zhu Yuhuan himself had the experience of following his father Zhu Zhanji on border patrols, so his dress and appearance naturally had some meaning.
There was naturally a process for seeing someone off. After the two of them had completed the process, Zhu Yuhuan smiled and said, "I'm going to the north now. I'll have to trouble Mr. Dan'an to take care of the book editing. But don't worry, Mr. Dan'an. Before I left, I assigned the progress to Wu Ning and Yu Ying. You can just review it occasionally."
Yang Pu had anticipated Zhu Yuhuan's thoughtful arrangements and agreed with a smile, saying, "Don't worry, Your Highness. This is also my responsibility."
After all, he had read all of this prince's articles, and he could witness in another way the growth of this prince who was becoming more and more thoughtful in his dealings with others.
Seeing that the time was almost up, Yang Pu personally saw Zhu Yuhuan to the car and said, "Your Highness, have a safe journey."
Zhu Yuhuan opened the curtains, nodded slightly at Yang Pu, and said, "Take care of yourself, sir."
The carriage moved slowly forward, but the curtains were not lowered. Yang Pu was slightly stunned when he saw Zhu Yuhuan still looking back at him. He subconsciously turned his head to look at the capital city in the distance, but he didn't see anything, and he couldn't help feeling puzzled.
Seeing that Zhu Yuhuan had not lowered the curtain, Huai En asked, "Your Highness, are you feeling unwell?"
Zhu Yuhuan shook her head and smiled, "Nothing, I just want to look back at the capital." She looked at the gradually shrinking city gate, and her heart felt more at ease.
She knew that one day she would be able to walk out of the palace with honor.
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