After the New Year, in the palace of Prince Anluxing, Princess Jiang came to Yuan Zonggao and Zhang Zuo and asked about her son's situation in the capital.
"...The Chief Secretary of History has submitted a memorial in advance, asking the court to let the crown prince return to the palace as soon as possible on the grounds that there is no owner of Anlu Xing's palace and many things cannot be carried out. However, when the memorial was submitted, it was as if it was sinking into the deep sea. No approval was received, or no response was received.
Report it to His Majesty, or leave it unpublished..."
Yuan Zonggao means that I have worked hard and done everything I should do, but the court refuses to release him, and there is nothing I can do.
Zhang Zuodao: "Yuan Changshi, can you urge me a few more times? I heard that Your Majesty has gone to Nanjing. If you don't return to the capital, will the matter of being granted the title be delayed forever?"
Yuan Zonggao looked at Zhang Zuo, with a profound meaning in his eyes, which seemed to be conveying a thought... You have already answered the answer to this question, why are you asking me?
Princess Jiang sighed: "Don't embarrass Yuan Changshi. This is the decision of the imperial court. If the imperial court intends to embarrass my palace, it will definitely delay the matter indefinitely... I just don't know how the prince can do in the capital?"
Zhang Zuodao: "Princess, please relax, the prince has someone to protect him in the capital, and Mr. Tang and the young master of the Zhu family usually teach him. Except that he is not in Anlu, the rest are just like in the palace... With Mr. Tang's great talent and strategy
, I will definitely live up to the late king’s entrustment.”
These words were clearly meant to offend Yuan Zonggao.
Yuan Zonggao felt very awkward after hearing this.
You said Tang Yin was a man of great talent and strategy, so what have I become?
Did the deceased King Xing entrust his son to me or to Tang Yin?
Princess Jiang's face was full of sorrow: "As long as my son is not made trouble by others and can study with peace of mind, I am afraid that he will be away from home for a long time, not adapt to life in a foreign land, and there will be no one to take care of him when he gets sick... Is there anyone in the palace who can be sent?
Those who are taken care of by the capital can be sent as well."
Yuan Zonggao said: "There is no clear order from the imperial court, so I'm afraid it's inappropriate."
Zhang Zuodao: "Yuan Changshi, even if we are all court officials, we should be more considerate of the prince at this time. Even if the court lets the prince wait in the capital to wait for the title, it doesn't mean that he must be locked up and not allowed to see guests, right?
? Is it illegal to send a few people to take personal care of you? "
Yuan Zonggao said in his heart that Eunuch Zhang was clearly going against me.
Today is like taking a shot of gunpowder. You are against me every step of the way. If something goes wrong in your relationship, you will be blamed by the court. When the time comes, you will issue an edict to scold the supervisor for his incompetence. You are not the one who obeys the Secretary, are you?
Will I, a long history member, be severely criticized by the imperial court?
But Yuan Zonggao didn't want to chatter endlessly in front of Princess Jiang, so he could only bow and salute: "The princess decides everything."
…
…
Prince Xing's Mansion wanted to send the third group of people to the capital to take care of Zhu Si's daily life, but he didn't know that the news sent back from the capital was not just to comfort Princess Jiang. Zhu Si's life in the capital was indeed good.
Personal freedom is not restricted, and schoolwork is not delayed. In addition to the previous teaching of the Four Books and Five Classics, the teaching of the art of emperors has been added. Zhu Hao's teachings can be said to be close to reality and to the point...Zhu Si will also be exposed to all kinds of interesting things.
East and west, his presence is left in all parts of the capital...
It is not unfair to say that Zhu Sile did not want to return home at this time.
However, for Tang Yin and other palace staff and officials, they became more and more anxious as the year approached.
"...Years ago, Jiang Mengzai took people to the Prince of Jianchang's Mansion to give gifts, and the gifts were accepted. I don't know if the Prince of Jianchang came to the palace to speak for the Crown Prince. There are rumors that His Majesty is completely unaware of the Crown Prince's visit to Beijing. But it is
The Queen Mother conspired with her Majesty’s close ministers Jiang Bin and others. No one knew about the crown prince’s succession, and your Majesty couldn’t even remember such a thing..."
On the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, Tang Yin summarized the situation he learned and reported it to Zhu Hao.
It's all true.
How could Zhu Houzhao care about his cousin? It was all caused by Empress Dowager Zhang and Jiang Bin... Of course, Zhu Hao and Zhu Wanhong were also behind it.
Zhu Hao said: "I think there is nothing wrong with the prince staying in the capital."
Tang Yin sighed: "It's easy to be controlled by you, isn't it?"
"It can't be called control, it should be called learning from each other. During the time when the prince was in the capital, he grew up very quickly. He learned to meet outsiders alone. He knew a lot about the things in the market and had a clear understanding of the people's livelihood. I really can't figure it out. He replied What a good thing it is for him to go to Anlu and return to the prison in Prince Xing's Mansion. After inheriting the position of Prince Xing, if he wants to leave Anlu Prefecture City even one step, he will be stared at and impeached. What's the point of that?"
In Zhu Hao's opinion, even though Zhu Si is like a caged bird now, he has a high degree of freedom. If he returns to Anlu, he will really become a caged bird, and a flashy canary.
When King Xing Zhu Youqi left Anluzhou City and went to the river embankment to offer condolences, he was joined by Zhang Yezheng, the magistrate of the state at that time. The vassal kings of the Ming Dynasty could not leave the territorial city at will, and the court always guarded the local vassal kings like thieves.
"Then when do you think it is appropriate for the Crown Prince to return to Anlu?"
Tang Yin tried to ask.
Even Tang Yin himself felt that Anlu was good, at least he had a sense of belonging to his family in the past few years.
Zhu Hao said: "It's hard to say. Maybe His Majesty suddenly remembered this and decreed the canonization, and the crown prince can go back. Otherwise, at the end of next year... whether he needs to go back then is another matter."
"Where do you start talking about this?" Tang Yin was puzzled.
Zhu Hao thought to himself, should I tell you that the fooling emperor fell into the water and contracted an illness on his way back to the capital in history, and died soon after arriving in the capital?
If that were the case, Yang Tinghe would probably have reported to the court and asked Prince Xing to stay in the capital temporarily. This would have eliminated the need to prepare for the arrival of the new emperor, and he could have been stuffed into the palace on the spot and become the emperor.
But this is not the effect Zhu Hao is pursuing.
Temporarily controlling Zhu Si was one of Zhu Hao's plans, but it was also necessary to allow Zhu Si to return to Anlu smoothly before Zhu Houzhao died.
Only in this way can the initiative to inherit the throne be firmly in the hands of Zhu Si. If he stays in the capital and waits to be pushed into the Jinluan Palace by civil servants, the result will probably be that Zhu Si continues to be a puppet... The dispute over the great ceremony We need a reason to show Zhu Si's toughness at the right time.
…
…
During the Spring Festival of the fifteenth year of Zhengde's reign, other people gathered their families happily, but the people in the Xing Palace in Beijing were far away from their families and felt homesick.
New Year's Day.
Everywhere in the capital is lively.
Zhu Si did not have to go to class and asked to take him out for fun. Jiang Lun was originally going to see Zhang Yanling, the Marquis of Jianchang, on the same day, but was told that Zhang Yanling would be closed to guests for the past two days.
"It's obvious that I received the money and didn't want to do anything."
Jiang Lun mentioned this matter when he paid New Year's greetings to Tang Yin.
Only then did he realize that the friend he had made, Zhang Yanling, was of no use at all.
Tang Yin looked at the cars on the road absentmindedly, then suddenly turned around and asked, "Where is Zhu Hao?"
"Um?"
Jiang Lun disagreed, "If Mr. Zhu is not on your side, then it will be on your deceased son's side..."
"No, how could he not call me when his son died? I didn't see him when I woke up this morning. Could it be that he had some plan that I don't know about?"
Tang Yin felt uneasy because he couldn't see Zhu Hao on the first day of the new year. He felt that Zhu Hao had some conspiracy behind his back.
But in fact, Tang Yin was really overthinking.
Because Zhu Hao was busy preparing for his laboratory in the capital that day...
When he came back at noon, Tang Yin was already blocking people in the yard where Zhu Hao stayed. Zhu Hao asked dissatisfiedly: "Didn't we agree that you should come here less often? Aren't you afraid of being stared at?"
Tang Yin said directly: "Why did you go?"
When Zhu Hao explained his itinerary, Tang Yin felt strange and looked over in confusion.
"The general examination is coming soon... Now that His Majesty is not in the capital, there is no hope for the palace examination after the general examination. I may have to stay in the capital for another year and a half. Things in Anlu cannot be left behind. We need to update science and technology at all times. Then
After all, it concerns my net worth."
What Zhu Hao means is that even if I am in the capital, I cannot delay making money.
Zhu Hao added: "At the beginning of the year, the number of candidates coming to Beijing to take the exam will further increase. I am going to go out to meet with them and discuss knowledge, but I was asked about my teacher..."
Tang Yin frowned: "Am I embarrassing you?"
"That's not true."
Zhu Hao smiled and said, "I don't want to embarrass you, sir. At this time, you have a big responsibility on your shoulders. It's better to be invisible for the time being... By the way, sir, you'd better go see Mrs. Zhu more recently. She is here
The capital is very lonely, and I want to find someone to talk to about many things, but lately... you seem to have left people out in the cold."
The person Zhu Hao mentioned was naturally Lou Suzhen.
Since Lou Suzhen and Zhu Hao arrived in the capital, a small courtyard was arranged for her to live in, where she cultivated flowers and grass. She usually did embroidery and painting. She was free but her mind was restless.
Tang Yinze couldn't "take action" because Prince Ning was still alive, so he sometimes got upset and didn't dare to face Lou Suzhen alone.
Zhu Hao could only understand that Tang Yin, a middle-aged and elderly man, was a little afraid of women and did not dare to face his heart because of emotional setbacks.
Tang Yin looked unhappy when he heard Zhu Hao mention Lou Suzhen.
But he was dragged by Zhu Hao to see Zhu Si.
…
…
The afternoon of the first day of the first lunar month.
The imperial court sent people to deliver the edict, but it was not the emperor's edict, but the empress dowager's edict.
In her edict, Empress Dowager Zhang praised Zhu Si's filial piety and eagerness to learn, and urged him to study hard... She sent two palace maids to wait on him, which almost frightened Zhu Si's legs to the point of weakness.
Everyone would guess that the Queen Mother's purpose was to place an informant around Zhu Si and inform the palace of Zhu Si's every move. Also, if she wanted to attack Zhu Si, someone could act as an internal agent at any time.
"Zhu Hao, what do you think we should do? They are in the backyard, and they said they would stay outside my room at night. They won't... assassinate me, right?"
Zhu Si was panicked, thinking that Tang Yin was being transparent and only asked Zhu Hao for his opinion.
Zhu Hao smiled and said: "Don't worry. If the Queen Mother really wants to attack you, she doesn't have to wait until now. This is the capital..."
Tang Yin also echoed: "Be a minister, be upright and upright, and don't need to worry about whether you will be harmed by those in power. There is really no need."
From Tang Yin's point of view, if the Queen Mother wants to crush you to death, it is as easy as crushing an ant to death, so why use some unconventional means?
Zhu Si still didn't believe it: "If he was punished without teaching, people in the world would definitely criticize him, so he wanted to murder him secretly."
Tang Yin frowned.
Zhu Si usually looks carefree and cheerful, but his sense of crisis is far stronger than ordinary people.
But isn't it...a bit too timid?
Zhu Hao said: "The Queen Mother is just setting up spies around you... Maybe she is dissatisfied with the information reported daily by Dongchang and Jinyiwei. But have you heard of the counterintuitive plan? This is an opportunity for us."