Zhu Di: My fourth son is a great emperor of all time?

Chapter 9 The Brotherhood That Long Gone (Please Read On)

"The second son is dead too?"

"Zhu Zhanji is your second uncle! How dare you be so ruthless! Cough cough cough!"

Upon hearing Tianmu's words, Zhu Di nearly choked on his breath.

After coughing a few times, disbelief flickered in his cloudy eyes.

He had just sworn an oath with his sons, promising that they would not harm each other.

Why can't we escape this fate?

Zhu Di could not accept this; his feelings for his second son were different.

Zhu Di actually felt guilty.

Even if the second son really rebelled, the eldest grandson didn't need to punish him in such a way.

They were roasted alive.

What a painful way to die.

Although he hadn't experienced it firsthand, Zhu Di felt as if he could smell the burning odor permeating the air.

That was the smell of burnt human flesh.

Stomach acid churned, and Zhu Di kept gagging. When he finally managed to control his emotions, his eyes were already red.

The ruthless and merciless Yongle Emperor slumped back in his chair, muttering to himself:
"I'm sorry, second son, it's all my fault, it's all my fault!"

"Father, all of this is for the sake of the Ming Dynasty. Please don't blame me."

Zhu Di never imagined that Zhu Zhanji's methods would be so ruthless.

That's his own second uncle.

Why are things like this?

Zhu Zhanji was clearly not such a heartless person.

Could it be that ascending the throne will truly change people's hearts?

But what he said next made Zhu Di even more vulnerable.

[Of Zhu Gaoxu's several hundred family members, not a single one survived.]

"The Prince of Han, Zhu Gaoxu, later known as Jin Douzi, was a soldier who lived in the dream woven for him by his father, Zhu Di. Even when Zhu Di died and Zhu Gaochi succeeded to the throne, Zhu Gaoxu still did not believe that his father had not passed the throne to him."

Since Zhu Di ascended the throne, he has followed his father in numerous battles. In his heart, the throne was very important, but his father was equally important.

If you had to describe Zhu Gaoxu in one sentence, what would it be?
"As a son, Zhu Gaoxu did not fail Emperor Yongle (Zhu Di). He was willing to go to the most dangerous battlefields and to shield Zhu Di from the coldest rain of arrows."

"Perhaps in his heart, being able to die on the battlefield alongside his father was the greatest honor for a son?"

"I was wrong, I was really wrong!"

Upon hearing those last words, Zhu Di regretted his actions; he hadn't realized how important he was to his second son.

It was even more unexpected.

Zhu Zhanji was so ruthless that he not only killed his second son, but also left no one alive.

Blood is thicker than water; we're all family. Why be so cruel?

At this moment, for the first time, his heart truly wavered, and perhaps passing the throne to Zhu Zhanji was not a good choice.

The grief in my heart is unstoppable.

He knew very well that he was responsible for his second son's death.

If it weren't for that remark about the crown prince being ill, perhaps the second prince wouldn't have been so eager to become emperor.

Zhu Di hesitated, ultimately unsure of what to say.

East Palace!

The chubby, round boy was secretly eating roast duck while listening to what was being said in the sky.

Hearing that his son had ascended the throne as he had wished, Zhu Gaochi nodded in satisfaction.

He also knew that Zhu Di had made Zhu Gaoshuo swear an oath yesterday, also for the sake of his son.

The fourth prince could not possibly rebel again. Zhu Zhanji would remain on the throne forever until his death.

Thinking of this, Zhu Gaochi was in a great mood and grabbed a roasted duck leg, taking a big bite.

Zhu Zhanji, standing nearby, advised, "Father, you should eat less and take care of your health."

"Oh dear, you think you're so great just because you'll become emperor in the future? You dare to try and control your father?"

"Besides, according to the Heavenly Curtain's words, I have at least eight years left to live. In these eight years, I must eat to my heart's content and leave no regrets!"

Fatty looked at Zhu Zhanji with slight dissatisfaction.

But actually, I was quite satisfied with Zhu Zhanji.

To be honest, if it weren't for this son's good fortune, the throne would probably have gone to the second son.

Zhu Gaochi wanted to say something more, but suddenly he heard Tianmu's words: the second son was going to be roasted to death by Zhu Zhanji.

He was completely stunned and speechless.

Zhu Zhanji naturally heard it too, and noticing Zhu Gaochi's reaction, he tentatively asked, "Father, do you think I did something wrong?"

"My second uncle wants to rebel, why can't I kill him?"

Zhu Gaochi frowned slightly, and the delicious food in his hand suddenly lost its appeal. He looked at his son seriously and said:

"Whether to kill or not is another matter; whether it's right or wrong is not up for discussion."

“When we were young, before your grandfather rebelled, your second uncle always protected me whenever I encountered difficulties outside.”

Back then, we didn't want to be princes. If the old man hadn't fought the Jingnan Campaign, we would have been such good brothers!

Zhu Gaochi gripped Zhu Zhanji's hand tightly, his eyes involuntarily reddening.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhanji's expression changed drastically, and he nodded, "I understand, Father!"

"You know nothing!" Zhu Gaochi shouted. "The day we entered Nanjing, we both knew that one of us would die here sooner or later."

"From the moment the old man rode his horse into the palace, I knew that I could never be brothers with the second brother."

The Prince of Han's Mansion.

At this moment, Zhu Gaochi was drunk and looked at the sky, laughing loudly:

"Well said, well said!"

"If that brat Zhu Zhanji were to become emperor one day, I would rather die with the old man on the Northern Expedition than submit to him!"

"Hahaha!"

These words seemed to have exhausted all of Han Wang's strength, and he collapsed onto the table, snoring.

After the servants carried his burly body back to the room, tears slowly streamed down Zhu Gaoxu's face.

This concludes the story of Zhu Gaochi, the Prince of Han. What are your thoughts on Zhu Zhanji killing his second uncle?

Inside his bedchamber, Zhu Di, suppressing his grief, was momentarily stunned upon hearing the words from the heavens.

I didn't understand who the other person was asking.

Immediately afterwards, a string of words flashed across the sky.

[To be honest, I think Zhu Zhanji was right. The Prince of Han had to die. How could the country be pacified if he didn't? All the princes would rebel. So not only did the Prince of Han have to die, but his entire family had to die.]
[I also believe that if the Prince of Han had seized the throne, it would have been the same; he wouldn't have left any of the Crown Prince's family alive. That's just how the imperial family is.]
[Emperors were driven by the desire to expand their territories and consolidate their power through conquest. Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han—were they not merciful rulers?]
Seeing what appeared on the sky afterwards, Zhu Di's anger completely disappeared.

He was deeply moved at that moment.

"Perhaps it really isn't the fault of the good grandson. If I were in his position, I wouldn't have shown any mercy either. The second son is the same. Everyone is the same. This is the fate of the imperial family."

Zhu Di sighed.

"There's no definitive answer to this question, but we can look at how our ancestors did it."

[Some audience members just used Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han as examples. Now, I have a question: who do you think contributed more to Chinese civilization—Qin Shi Huang, Emperor Wu of Han, or Emperor Wen and Emperor Taizong of Han?]

"Alright, let's continue the story. After the death of the Prince of Han, the conflict between Zhu Zhanji and Emperor Zhongzu of Ming also erupted."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Di immediately perked up.

(End of this chapter)