Chapter 2 Learning to Fight
Zhu Yuhuan naturally understood that as a member of the royal family, he could not engage in business at will, not to mention that Zhu Zhanji was quite good to his younger brothers. Princes and royal family members with close blood ties like his fifth uncle would not lack clothes to wear. But no one would have too much money, not to mention that one of Zhu Zhanji's life goals was to live comfortably, so the more money the better.
Zhu Yuhuan even wrote a business plan very clearly, and Zhu Zhanji repeatedly assured her that he would do it according to what Zhu Yuhuan wrote, so she could temporarily distract herself to complete her own homework.
After all, Zhu Yuhuan's schedule was full. As soon as the funeral was over, Zhu Yuhuan's life returned to normal. After Empress Dowager Zhang moved out and Hu Shanxiang moved into Kunning Palace, Zhu Yuhuan's journey became longer than before.
The only thing that surprised Zhu Yuhuan was that Zhu Zhanji did not stop her lessons. For Zhu Zhanji, Zhu Yuhuan's greatest historical mission as a daughter was to be lively, cute and law-abiding.
Now that Zhu Di and Zhu Gaochi are gone, Zhu Yuhuan no longer needs to be used as a tool to curry favor, and there is no need to continue learning all these miscellaneous things.
According to Zhu Yuhuan's idea, Zhu Zhanji should "stop classes" for Zhu Yuhuan in two or three months, but it was already autumn and the farmers had started to harvest, but there was still no movement from Zhu Zhanji.
"Princess, the horses are here."
Zhu Yuhuan came back to his senses, met the gaze of Saihazhi next to him, and said politely, "Huanhuan was distracted. Please punish me, Master."
In order to make it easier to ride horses, Hu Shanxiang specially prepared a moon-white yisa for her, which was modified from an old piece of clothing. Her hair was fixed with a net scarf, making her dress simple and neat, without having to worry about being too eye-catching.
From Zhu Gaochi to Zhu Zhanji, the affairs of changing the reign title piled up. Saihazhi had no free time, so naturally he had no time to teach Zhu Yuhuan horsemanship. It was not until some time had passed since the funeral that Saihazhi finally had time to teach Zhu Yuhuan. Fortunately, he had asked someone to prepare a pony in advance, so that Zhu Yuhuan's learning time was not delayed.
Saihazhi had the horse tied up, then asked, "Princess, is there something bothering you? If you can't focus on your horsemanship, you might be in danger once you mount. It's better to think it through before practicing, and not rush and end up hurting yourself."
Zhu Yuhuan raised his hands and patted his cheeks to regain his attention, then said, "It's not really a worry, it's just a little strange."
She had originally prepared a set of arguments similar to the ones she had used to persuade Zhu Gaochi. As long as Zhu Zhanji opened his mouth, Zhu Yuhuan would bring out her own theories and should be able to deal with it. However, Zhu Zhanji did not even give Zhu Yuhuan a chance to speak, which made her feel a little overwhelmed.
It was as if she was ready to take on the ultimate move, but the opponent suddenly became automatically managed, leaving her with a feeling of having nowhere to output.
Saihazhi looked puzzled, but he didn't mean to ask further questions. He just said, "Why don't you wait until you feel better before riding?"
Zhu Yuhuan shook his head and said, "It's okay. Horse racing is good. It can help me forget about my worries for a while."
Seeing that she was fully focused on the riding class, Saihazhi nodded slightly and let Zhu Yuhuan mount the horse. The soldier led him around the field twice, while he stayed by her side to teach Zhu Yuhuan some simple commands and movements so that Zhu Yuhuan could complete some simple horse-controlling movements and avoid falling off the horse.
This dark horse was carefully selected by Saihazhi. It is a foal with a gentle temperament and is perfect for Zhu Yuhuan, a beginner.
Zhu Yuhuan had never ridden a horse in her life. She finally had the opportunity to ride a horse herself. Naturally, she was very serious in learning. She rode around twice and then, under the protection of the surrounding soldiers, she pulled the reins and rode the horse for a walk.
Fortunately, she has some talent. Apart from the soreness in her legs due to some bumps on the horse, Zhu Yuhuan's horse riding process was relatively smooth. In the next few days, as long as she repeats the training, she can complete simple riding on her own. After that, she can speed up on this basis and add in actions such as archery.
When Zhu Yuhuan got off his horse, Saihazhi asked, "Princess, are you worried about the canonization?"
Zhu Yuhuan was slightly taken aback. She hadn't expected Saihazhi to bring this up. She shook her head and said, "It's not because of that. Daddy has only recently ascended the throne and has a lot of affairs to attend to. Of course, he has to prioritize the country and the people. Besides, the reign hasn't changed yet, so why rush?"
Saihazhi heaved a sigh of relief upon hearing this and said, "People in high positions should be even more careful in what they do and say. If someone with ulterior motives learns of this and tries to misinterpret it, it will be a disaster."
Zhu Yuhuan heard that he seemed to be hinting at something, and she responded at first. Then, while rubbing her arms that were stiff from holding the reins tightly, she asked curiously in a low voice: "Master, are there any rumors outside?"
While the female officials could inquire about the goings-on in the harem, their knowledge of the previous dynasty was essentially zero. It was fine when Zhu Gaochi was in power, but when it came to Zhu Zhanji, he kept a tight rein on the female officials, leaving their daily routines to the eunuchs. Even Zhu Yuhuan knew very little, and this was the case even for Zhu Zhanji in the Qianqing Palace, let alone the affairs of the previous dynasty.
"Your Majesty has been extremely generous in rewarding Concubine Sun. Since ancient times, concubines have only had golden books but no golden seals. Golden seals were reserved for the Empress. Not only does Concubine Sun hold the golden seal, but even her family has received rewards, especially her brothers. People have long been coming to make friends with them, and the Sun family is bustling with visitors. People are talking about this, saying that the Empress is truly pitiful, and that the two princesses have yet to be canonized, and that the Empress's position is probably in jeopardy..."
Zhu Yuhuan couldn't help but laugh and said, "None of us three sisters have been canonized yet, so why are you only talking about me and Tongtong?"
Zhu Yuhuan was not surprised by this. There were such gossips in the palace, not to mention among the people. Now was not the time when Emperor Taizu was still alive. People were becoming more and more open-minded, and discussing royal gossip was not a rare thing. At most, it was just discussed quietly in a subtle way.
However, if the story continues like this, it will be detrimental to the reputation of Empress Hu Shanxiang. There is no guarantee that Zhu Zhanji will not think that this is Hu Shanxiang's trick and thus intensify the situation...
"The people don't even know how many princes and princesses Your Majesty has. They're just spreading nonsense." Saihazhi reached out to help Zhu Yuhuan straighten the scarf on her head and said, "But... if we can confer titles on the princesses in advance like the late emperor did, it would help dispel some of the rumors."
At least this can show that Zhu Zhanji also values Hu Shanxiang and shows favor to his children, which can slightly suppress the rumors from outside.
Zhu Yuhuan thought for a moment and asked, "Have you verified where this news came from?"
"There are so many people in the capital, and it may not be easy to trace the cause."
Zhu Yuhuan smiled and said, "That's easy. Huanhuan would like to ask Master for a favor."
If there really was such a big commotion outside, it was impossible for Zhu Zhanji, as the emperor, to be unaware of it. However, he had no intention of expressing his opinion at all. He must be waiting for a suitable opportunity.
Since Zhu Zhanji has already taken action elsewhere, she, as a student, cannot fall behind.
"What's the matter?"
Zhu Yuhuan smiled innocently and said sweetly, "Since everyone likes to spread rumors, I want to spread some truth too, something that everyone would like to hear."
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