The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 194 Dissatisfaction with the Crown Prince's Actions

No one in the world is perfect; even a prince makes mistakes.

As long as you correct your mistakes in time and learn from them, it's not a big deal.

Especially since the Crown Prince is still young, he has plenty of time to correct his mistakes.

However, the current situation is that the crown prince has no idea what mistake he has made.

This made him want to make up for the mistake, but he didn't know where to start.

Seeing the Crown Prince sitting at his desk with a worried look on his face, no longer as calm and composed as before.

Tu Chengyu couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking that the position of Crown Prince was simply not fit for a human.

A perfectly good person, in less than half a year, transformed from a spirited and gentle young master.

To become so insecure and anxious is truly agonizing.

Although he was very unhappy with the Crown Prince's current gloomy appearance, Tu Chengyu couldn't bear to see him suffer after so many years of brotherhood.

So he asked, "Brother, do you remember when Father became dissatisfied with you?"

The Crown Prince thought for a moment and said, "I don't know when it started. It was only after Father fell ill, and with the Second Prince frequently taking on tasks, that I began to notice."

It seems that the Crown Prince had no idea when the Emperor's attitude had changed.

Therefore, it was impossible to deduce what had displeased the emperor.

However, according to what the Crown Prince said, he only realized that the Emperor's attitude had changed after the Emperor fell ill.

Could it be that something unexpected happened while the Emperor was ill?
Thinking of this, Tu Chengyu asked, "Brother, did you do anything out of line when Father was ill?"

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince shook his head and said, "I am so worried about my father's illness that I have no mind to do anything else."

Furthermore, afterward, I discussed the matter with the officials in the household, and we found no evidence that we had done anything to anger the Emperor.

So this means it has nothing to do with the Emperor's illness, which is good news.

If the Crown Prince really did have inappropriate thoughts and did bad things while the Emperor was ill.

In the Emperor's mind, this would be an unforgivable mistake.

If this situation hasn't occurred yet, then there's still room for redemption.

As for how to salvage the relationship, Tu Chengyu has no clue at the moment.

He thought for a moment, then considered another angle and asked:
"Brother, after you noticed that Father's attitude was different, did you talk to him about this?"

"I don't even know what I did wrong, how dare I ask my father? What if he asks me what I did wrong, how am I supposed to answer?"

Tu Chengyu frowned upon hearing the Crown Prince's words.

Back when I was in the Prince An's mansion, no matter what mistakes I made, no matter how my father punished me.

The brothers would all go to their father to apologize, and then their father would use the opportunity to teach them a lesson, and then the matter would be over.

Although their father has become the emperor and their elder brother has become the crown prince, their status as father and son remains unchanged.

Tu Chengyu believed that as long as the Crown Prince went to inquire, he would definitely point out the Crown Prince's mistake and teach him how to correct it.

However, the eldest brother now seems to value his status as the crown prince too much and doesn't dare to apologize to the emperor.

So much so that even Tu Chengyu, who had just returned to court, could sense the change in the emperor's attitude.

No wonder the second son dared to come out so openly, making his stance clear and challenging the crown prince for the throne.

This is the opportunity that the Crown Prince is giving to others.

Thinking about these upsetting things, Tu Chengyu's mood also became terrible.

He asked again, "Brother, during this period, did Father Emperor mention anything about your mistakes, or give you any hints?"

Tu Chengyu believes that even if the emperor has some issues with the crown prince now, they are probably minor and not enough to warrant replacing him.

Today in court, the Emperor's attitude towards the Crown Prince was also quite subtle, showing no intention of completely embarrassing the Crown Prince.

Even the last sentence, which Tu Chengyu saw as a warning, seemed to be an encouragement to the Crown Prince.

Moreover, to save face for the Crown Prince, the task of settling the refugees has also been given to him.

This shows that the Crown Prince's position was still very important to the Emperor.

Therefore, when the emperor had a problem with the crown prince, even if he didn't point it out to him directly, he would make subtle gestures to let the prince correct his behavior.

That's why Tu Chengyu asked this question.

But the crown prince shook his head after hearing this.

"After noticing my father's attitude, I have been paying close attention to his words and actions. Up until now, I have not noticed any hints from my father."

That's why I'm trying to do as much as possible so that my father can see my efforts.

Tu Chengyu really wanted to tell the Crown Prince that if you don't put in the effort in the right direction, you might make more mistakes the harder you try.

Rather than struggling for a long time only to end up with nothing going your way, it's better to just do nothing at all.

But given the Crown Prince's current state, talking about these grand principles is probably useless. Let's think about it now and see if we can find out why the Crown Prince made a mistake.

However, this happened a long time ago, and the crown prince himself couldn't remember what mistake he had made.

So much so that the two brothers sat in the study for a long time, frowning and looking worried, without coming up with a single clue.

Finally, unable to think of anything else, Tu Chengyu looked at the two books on the table, sighed, and said:

"Brother, let's take a look at these two books that Father sent. Maybe they are a hint from Father to you."

It's been so long, the Crown Prince has long since given up on expecting the Emperor to give him any hints.

However, he still picked up the two books, tossed one to Tu Chengyu, and picked up the other for himself.

The two brothers sat on either side of the table, engrossed in their books.

The prince had already read these two books several times, so he was able to read them much faster.

Tu Chengyu learned the material only once, and he wasn't very attentive when he learned it, so he was slower at reading it.

So just as Tu Chengyu had read a few pages, the Crown Prince suddenly shouted:

"Xiao Wu, come and take a look here."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu looked up at the Crown Prince, only to see the Crown Prince open the copy of Mencius in his hand and point to a page.

Tu Chengyu got up and went over, following the Crown Prince's hand to look over, and immediately noticed something strange.

The book was otherwise in good condition, except for one corner on the bottom right of this page, which was folded up.

It seems someone saw this, discovered something interesting, and deliberately folded it.

Considering that this book was specially given to the Crown Prince by the Emperor, the crease might have a special meaning. With this in mind, Tu Chengyu quickly picked up his copy of "Xunzi" and, without bothering to examine it closely, began flipping through it rapidly.

Sure enough, before Tu Chengyu had searched for long, he found the same crease on the book.

The fact that two brand-new books have identical folds is no coincidence.

It seems this book really was a hint from the Emperor.

The Crown Prince probably also considered this possibility. He picked up the book in his hand and carefully read its contents, while also reminding Tu Chengyu.

"Xiao Wu, take a close look at your book. What's written on this page?"

In fact, Tu Chengyu would have done the same thing even without the Crown Prince's reminder.

These two books are not very large on each page, and due to the typesetting and printing, there is not much to write on each page.

Tu Chengyu quickly glanced at the contents of the page, but after reading it, he was completely bewildered and had no idea what the Emperor wanted to express through this book.

Perhaps the Crown Prince should know what it means, so Tu Chengyu raised his head, wanting to ask the Crown Prince.

However, when they looked at the Crown Prince, they found that he had already put down his book, sat in a chair, and stared blankly into space.

Tu Chengyu asked, puzzled, "Big brother, what did you write on that page of the book? Why are you spacing out?"

Upon hearing Tu Chengyu's words, the Crown Prince snapped out of his reverie and said blankly:

"Xiao Wu, I made a mistake."

Judging from his expression, he must have thought of something from the contents of the book.

Tu Chengyu was still completely confused and could only ask, "Big brother, what did you do wrong?"

The crown prince didn't speak, but simply handed the book in his hand to Tu Chengyu. He wanted Tu Chengyu to take a look at the contents of the book.

Tu Chengyu quickly took the book, turned to the folded page, and quickly read through the contents.

After reading the book, Tu Chengyu still didn't know what mistake the Crown Prince had made.

However, he saw two very famous quotes in these two books, and both quotes had the same meaning.

The Mencius said, "The people are the most important, the state is next, and the ruler is the least important!"

The Xunzi says, "The ruler is the boat, and the common people are the water. Water can carry the boat, but it can also capsize it."

To be honest, these two famous quotes were known to everyone, even women and children, in Tu Chengyu's previous life.

In this era where Confucianism reigns supreme, it is something that all scholars must learn.

It was also an important classic text for royal education, and someone of the status of the crown prince would certainly have to be familiar with it.

Therefore, the Emperor's emphasis on these two sentences in this way was definitely intended to convey something to the Crown Prince.

Tu Chengyu guessed that the Crown Prince's mistake must be related to these two sentences.

Based on the Crown Prince's current behavior, Tu Chengyu's guess was pretty accurate.

Although he had figured out the direction, Tu Chengyu still didn't know the mistake he had made, so he asked:
"Big brother, what exactly happened?"

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince said, "Little Fifth, this matter is related to your trip to Jiangnan."

Since it concerned him, Tu Chengyu didn't know what to say.

He could only ask, "Brother, have I done something wrong that has implicated you?"

Tu Chengyu knew that he had caused a lot of trouble because he had acted too boldly in Jiangnan.

So even before he returned to the capital, a group of censors were already impeaching Tu Chengyu for what he had done.

To protect Tu Chengyu, the Crown Prince even argued with these censors in the court.

Could it be that these arguments have caused the Emperor to become dissatisfied with the Crown Prince?
The Crown Prince shook his head and said, "It has nothing to do with you. What you did in Jiangnan was just a prelude. My answer at the time displeased Father."

Tu Chengyu asked curiously, "Brother, what is it that displeased Father Emperor with your answer?"

The Crown Prince replied, "It concerns the salt workers of Jianghuai. Didn't you submit a memorial to the Emperor back then? After receiving the memorial, the Emperor asked me how to handle it. My answer at the time may not have satisfied the Emperor."

Tu Chengyu recalled that he wrote this memorial on the ship on his way back to Yangzhou after suppressing the salt workers' rebellion.

At that time, Tu Chengyu learned of the hardships of the salt workers' lives and thought about whether he could help improve their lives, which is why he wrote a memorial to the emperor.

However, Tu Chengyu waited in Jiangnan for so long without receiving a reply from the Emperor, and finally couldn't wait any longer and returned to the capital.

At that time, Tu Chengyu also had a plan in mind. After returning to the capital, he planned to personally report the matter of the salt workers to the emperor and see what the emperor's attitude was.

However, even after being back in Beijing for so many days, Tu Chengyu has yet to find an opportunity to report.

Tu Chengyu did not expect that this matter would cause trouble for the Crown Prince.

Tu Chengyu asked, "What question did Father ask that you didn't answer correctly, elder brother?"

The Crown Prince said, "Father showed me your memorial and asked me how to deal with the salt workers. As you know, I know nothing about the salt workers in the Jianghuai region."

When suddenly asked a question by his father, the first thing that came to mind was the late Emperor Taizu's edict. So he followed the meaning of the edict and said that he did not agree with pardoning the salt workers.

Moreover, what I was thinking at the time was that it was precisely because of the existence of these salt workers that the imperial court was able to collect so much salt tax in Jiangnan.

If the salt workers were pardoned, paying them their wages would increase the cost of salt production, inevitably leading to a decrease in salt taxes, which would be detrimental to the imperial court.

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu realized that the Crown Prince and he had completely opposite attitudes toward the salt workers.

However, from the perspective of a ruler, the crown prince's words are not entirely wrong.

But then I thought of the two books the Emperor sent today, and the two passages he specifically picked out.

This proves that the Crown Prince's answer did not meet the Emperor's requirements.

Perhaps in the emperor's mind, he was a successor to the throne.

We should keep the common people in our hearts, rather than worrying about the gains and losses of some taxes.

If that was the Emperor's intention, then the Crown Prince's response at the time was unsatisfactory.

However, in Tu Chengyu's view, this was just the Crown Prince's temporary answer and not a very serious mistake.

If the Emperor is dissatisfied, he should have disciplined him on the spot. Why wait until today?

With this question in mind, Tu Chengyu asked again, "Brother, is it really that little thing? Father wouldn't be this dissatisfied with you, would he? Is there something else you haven't thought of?"

Tu Chengyu didn't want to dig up the Crown Prince's past mistakes, but rather to get the Crown Prince to recall as many wrongdoings as possible so that he could correct them.

Otherwise, if you spend a lot of time making changes and there are still omissions, wouldn't it be a waste of effort, or even have the opposite effect?

Upon hearing this, the crown prince seemed to be thinking about something, his eyes darting around, and after a long while he said:
"That's only one thing. What makes Father Emperor most dissatisfied with me is the selection of this imperial envoy."

(End of this chapter)