Chapter 10: Thoughts
The two of them walked out of the palace together. The palace servants were all doing their duties, and there were not many people in the courtyard. After mid-spring, the palace was already full of spring scenery. Occasionally, the sound of birds singing could be heard, making people feel quiet and elegant.
Zhu Yuhuan and Wu Miaosu stood together under the eaves. Zhu Yuhuan tilted his head slightly to look at her and said, "Don't worry, your brother is doing well recently, and the King of Han doesn't seem to have noticed."
Wu Miaosu looked at the flowers in the distance, her eyes misting unconsciously. She murmured, "That's good..." After she finished speaking, she realized her mistake and rubbed her eyes. "Ever since the old lady dealt with Huang Yan, the palace has been much quieter, and no one has come to see me anymore. I guess they are worried that if I go too deep into the harem, the old lady will notice me."
Zhu Yuhuan thought for a moment and then said, "You should know the King of Han better than I do. Does he have other plans?"
Wu Miaosu lowered her eyes and thought carefully before saying, "I haven't seen the Prince of Han very often, but I do occasionally hear stories about him from his wife. He has a violent temper and acts rashly. The late wife was murdered by the Prince of Han himself, which led to discord between father and son and the dethronement of the Crown Prince."
Zhu Yuhuan had heard of this matter. At that time, Zhu Gaochi was in power. He adopted a conciliatory attitude towards the King of Han and the King of Zhao and gave them many rewards. However, during the period of Zhu Di's death, the Prince of Han, Zhu Zhanqi, had repeatedly sent letters to the King of Han and instigated him to rebel, hoping to take revenge through Zhu Gaochi. Unexpectedly, Zhu Gaoxu was smart and exposed Zhu Zhanqi's unfilial behavior in front of his brother.
Zhu Gaochi also gave face to the Prince of Han. He scolded the Prince of Han, demoted him to a commoner, and sent him back to his hometown to guard the imperial tomb. The matter was thus left unresolved.
Zhu Yuhuan's behavior was understandable. Zhu Gaochi was probably also eager to get some evidence, but in the end, it turned out to be a palace intrigue between the father and son, which was a pure waste of his time.
Zhu Yuhuan asked curiously, "Have the Prince of Han and the Princess of Han ever told you what they think of my father?"
Wu Miaosu thought about it carefully, then hesitantly said, "I did mention it once when I met the King of Han... The King of Han does look down on Your Majesty. I guess it's because Your Majesty is still young. Although I participated in the Northern Expedition with Your Majesty, I have no military achievements, so..."
Her words were euphemistic; the truth was probably that the Prince of Han had delivered a speech analyzing Zhu Zhanji before her arrival in Beijing, which contained a seemingly disdainful and mocking treatment of Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Zhanji. However, from another perspective, the Prince of Han's reluctance to act against the father and son he so despised revealed his weakness, a facade of strength.
Zhu Yuhuan nodded in understanding and said, "He has made great achievements on the battlefield, so naturally he looks down on everyone."
Wu Miaosu took a deep breath and said cautiously, "When the Prince of Han failed to kill Your Majesty earlier, he must have been furious and embarrassed. I'm afraid he will lose control sooner or later..."
Zhu Yuhuan raised his eyebrows slightly and asked curiously, "You mean..."
Wu Miaosu glanced around and finally said, "Your Majesty has only been on the throne for less than a year. If he takes action now, he might still have a chance. If he delays too long, I'm afraid he'll have no chance... Given the Prince of Han's character, his ambitions are high, and he certainly doesn't want to be just a vassal king." Seeing that Zhu Yuhuan was listening attentively, she added, "Aside from the loyal followers of the Prince of Han's palace, most of the people around him are simply forced to submit to his power. I believe they are nothing to be feared."
Zhu Yuhuan was somewhat surprised by her conclusion and asked, "Although the Prince of Han's character isn't enough to accomplish great things, he is a formidable general. He made numerous contributions during the Jingnan Campaign. He and his connections within the army were enough to intimidate officials into joining the movement, yet you say he's nothing to be feared?"
Mentioning this, Wu Miaosu's expression became much more relaxed, and her tone was even more playful: "Even a woman like me, whose wealth is controlled by him, is unwilling to be loyal to him, let alone those officials who are more shrewd than the other?"
Zhu Yuhuan thought about the other party's glorious deeds of surrendering without a fight, and indeed agreed with Wu Miaosu's statement.
Anyway, she couldn't think of any situation that would allow her to immediately abandon the city and flee, and secretly surrender after a glorious declaration of war.
Seeing Zhu Yuhuan looking thoughtful, Wu Miaosu asked tentatively, "Could it be that the princess has received some news?"
Zhu Yuhuan came back to her senses, shook her head honestly and said, "Please tell me about other things, but the Prince of Han has very strict control over the internal affairs of the palace. In addition, he has bribed local officials with a large sum of money. No matter how hard you try, you can only get a rough idea." She noticed Wu Miaosu's vague expectation and immediately understood that Wu Miaosu's idea was probably to betray the Prince of Han in exchange for Zhu Zhanji's trust. After all, if Zhu Gaoxu accidentally revealed something in the future, neither Wu Miaosu nor the Wu family would have a good ending.
Thinking of this, Zhu Yuhuan reminded: "On the surface, you entered the palace like an ordinary palace maid. Your ancestral home is Dantu. If Daddy asks you in detail, you will definitely reveal the truth."
Given Zhu Zhanji's keenness and the relationship between Wu Miaosu and the Hu sisters, it was clear that a single move would trigger a whole chain of events, and who knew how much trouble it would cause. Zhu Gaoxu couldn't cause any major trouble anyway, so there was no need for her to worry too much about Zhu Zhanji.
Wu Miaosu lowered her eyes and whispered, "I understand..." She clenched her hands and vowed, "The mourning period will soon be over. When the time comes, I will not let your Majesty and the Princess down and will conceive a heir as soon as possible."
In any case, Long Si is also an insurance policy, and maybe he can save her and her family's lives at a critical moment.
Zhu Yuhuan couldn't help but sigh and said comfortingly: "There's no need to rush into this kind of thing. The more anxious you are, the less likely it is to come true."
As concubines, Sun Mengqiu was far more favored than Wu Miaosu, and the odds were already in her favor, not to mention that everything was predetermined. Although Zhu Yuhuan was looking forward to seeing how Zhu Zhanji would pave the way for Sun Mengqiu after Wu Miaosu gave birth to the eldest son, the thought that Ming Yingzong Zhu Qizhen would be Wu Miaosu's son and would have a closer relationship with her gave her goosebumps.
Seeing that she seemed unconcerned with his words, Zhu Yuhuan took her hand and warned her, "Besides, giving birth is bad for your health. My mother's health never improved after giving birth to Tongtong. It's most important to protect your body. Only by living well can there be hope."
Wu Miaosu saw her serious expression and her brows were full of concern for her. She couldn't help but feel warm in her heart and replied, "Miaosu understands."
Zhu Yuhuan didn't want to talk about these things anymore, so he stretched and said, "I'm leaving the palace tomorrow. Is there anything you want to take with you? I'll bring it back for you."
Wu Miaosu was slightly taken aback, then thought for a moment before saying, "If there are people selling calligraphy and paintings outside the palace, Princess, please bring some back. Although folk calligraphy and paintings are simple, they also have a rustic charm. I'm sure Your Majesty will like them very much. Miaosu will send money over later."
Zhu Yuhuan saw that she was trying to figure out Zhu Zhanji's preferences, so he nodded and said, "I'll bring it back for you. You don't need to pay for it."
Wu Miaosu hurriedly said, "Miaosu has something else to ask of you, Princess. Of course I have to give you the money."
Zhu Yuhuan was a little surprised and asked curiously, "What's the matter?"
Wu Miaosu blushed and whispered, "I've been studying with the Empress lately, and I've received a lot of guidance from her. Seeing that her birthday is just around the corner, I wanted to prepare a birthday gift for her to express my gratitude."
Zhu Yuhuan didn't expect Wu Miaosu's request to be this. She couldn't help but laugh and said, "Okay, what do you want? I'll go get it for you."
Wu Miaosu immediately took out a piece of paper she had prepared long ago from her sleeve, raised her hand and handed it to Zhu Yuhuan, saying, "Miaosu thanks the princess."
Zhu Yuhuan was a little amused and said, "So you've been prepared for a long time, just waiting for me to ask you."
Wu Miaosu just smiled, her eyes revealing the cunningness she had when she was a female official.
The next morning, Zhu Yuhuan changed his clothes and, together with four palace maids who had changed into simple civilian clothes, left the Forbidden City through Donghua Gate.
Beyond Xihua Gate was the Western Garden, a long detour that would have drawn too much attention. Zhu Di had previously visited the Western Garden for simple hunting trips, but the capital had been relocated so recently that the garden wasn't fully renovated, and Zhu Di's banquets for court officials were held in the Eastern Garden. Furthermore, Zhu Yuhuan's entire family had previously resided in the Eastern Palace, and with Zhu Di's special permission to roam the outer court, she was incredibly familiar with the area surrounding the Eastern Palace. Since she was leaving the palace incognito, she naturally chose a familiar route.
There is still some distance from the Forbidden City to the Imperial City, where the various government offices serving the palace are located, such as the Guanglu Temple and the Bitoufang, are all near the Donghua Gate. There are also horse-drawn carriages traveling back and forth on weekdays, not to mention that since Zhu Yuhuan forced the craftsmen in the palace to research various instruments, people have to transport materials from outside the Forbidden City into the palace from time to time, and the frequency of carriages has increased.
In addition, Zhu Yuhuan had the ivory plaque given by Zhu Zhanji, so the journey was smooth and the carriage quickly left the palace from Dong'an Gate.
About a moment later, Zhu Yuhuan heard Huai En's voice coming from outside, saying, "Don't worry, young master, he has left the palace."
Because he was going to leave the palace, Zhu Yuhuan also discussed with Huai En and others in advance what to address them after leaving. Naturally, they could no longer use the title of "princess" outside, so they naturally followed the example of the wealthy families outside and changed to "little master".
Although Zhu Yuhuan left the palace in disguise, it was impossible for him to be alone. Once he was followed by someone, he could no longer regard himself as an ordinary citizen, so they had to slightly elevate his status with his fake identity.
The carriage drove slowly along the way. After leaving the solemn palace gate, the surrounding sounds gradually became richer, and it was no longer as silent as inside the Forbidden City.
Zhu Yuhuan vaguely heard the sound outside, then raised his hand to lift the curtain and looked at the outside world curiously.
There are three blocks near Dong'anmen, namely Nanxun Block, Chengqing Block and Dashiyong Block. Due to the prosperous area, there are peddlers all over the place. However, after walking halfway through the street, Zhu Yuhuan saw several peddlers selling all kinds of small gadgets, and there were also a few children surrounding them. It looked quite lively.
Even though Zhu Yuhuan had seen tall buildings and bustling traffic in later life, she couldn't help but feel moved by the scene before her. Compared to life in the Forbidden City, the life outside the palace made her feel more like a time traveler. Although Zhu Yuhuan had long been accustomed to the atmosphere inside the Forbidden City, she still felt a sense of longing and attachment after experiencing the bustle outside the palace.
She was almost forgetting her free and easy life.
Huai En saw her holding her chin with one hand, lost in thought as she stared at the scene that kept changing in front of her, and thought she was thinking about bringing something back to Zhu Youtong, so he quickly walked to a peddler, gave him money in exchange for some pottery whistles, gourds and other things, and handed them to Zhu Yuhuan like a treasure.
Zhu Yuhuan came back to his senses and couldn't help laughing: "I just left the palace, and you helped me remember what to bring back for Tongtong."
Seeing that she didn't seem to be very curious, Huai En unconsciously started playing with it. He tried hard to suppress the smile on his lips and said respectfully, "The young master has to go to several places today. Huai En is afraid that you will forget. It's better to prepare in advance, so as not to rush back and forget the appointment."
Zhu Yuhuan smiled and said, "That makes sense." She put away a few small things and said, "Let's go to Uncle Wu's house first to say hello."
By the way, she also went to check the accounts to see whether the account book Zhu Zhanji showed her was genuine.
"yes."
The carriage that Zhu Yuhuan found was not very conspicuous, especially near the bustling Huangchengfang. There were countless people who were more high-profile than Zhu Yuhuan, so naturally no one cared.
When the carriage stopped at the gate of Prince Xiang's mansion, Huai'en had someone hand over Zhu Yuhuan's ivory token. When the guard at the gate saw that it was something from the palace, he hurried in to report. After a while, Zhu Zhanji came out in a hurry.
Zhu Yuhuan smiled and lifted the curtain, saying, "Fifth uncle, my niece has left the palace to play with you."
When Zhu Zhanji saw that it was her who showed up, he was startled. He glanced around suspiciously and asked, "Are you alone?"
Zhu Yuhuan asked innocently, "What else? Do you think Daddy will need to borrow the Jinyiwei Guard?"
Zhu Zhanji sighed and said, "This ivory plaque of yours is much more valuable than the ordinary ones. It even has the word 'Xun' written on it. I thought it was my eldest brother who came in person. I wonder when he conferred the title of Duke on himself."
Zhu Yuhuan couldn't help but chuckle when he heard this and said, "Who knows, there might be one in the future."
Zhu Zhanji's grandson's grandson gave himself the title of Duke of Zhenguo and General. It is estimated that this person's title cannot be written on the ivory plate.
Zhu Zhanji was somewhat confused and frowned as he asked, "What do you mean by 'later'? These ivory plates were used by ministers of the previous dynasty. If you want to enter the palace after you get married, it's just a matter of asking."
Zhu Yuhuan waved her hand and said, "Forget it." After that, she jumped off the carriage and followed Zhu Zhanji with a smile.
Zhu Zhanji waved to the servant, signaling him to take the carriage away, and then led Zhu Yuhuan into his mansion.
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