If not abolished

Qianqing Palace

"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Prince of Han is requesting an audience outside the palace." Zhu Di had just stood up when Wang Jinghong said as he tidied his clothes.

Zhu Di's half-closed eyes suddenly opened, "When did he come? Did he say anything?"

"His Royal Highness the King of Han has been waiting outside the palace for less than half an hour. He didn't say what the matter was, and he didn't look like he had any urgent business."

My son never gets up early unless there is something to do. I don’t know what’s going on?

"Okay, let him in."

"Yes." Wang Jinghong went outside the palace and called, "Your Highness the Prince of Han, His Majesty wants you to come in."

Zhu Gaoxu was originally leaning lazily against a pillar, but when he heard the emperor calling him, he immediately stood up, straightened his clothes, and went in.

"Your Majesty," Zhu Gaoxu bowed his head in salute.

"Get up. I heard that you came here early in the morning and waited for a long time. Is there something wrong?" Zhu Di asked straight to the point.

Zhu Gaoxu stood up and brewed his emotions for a while, then raised his head and forced out a few tears, "I don't have any big deal, I just feel that your father is a little biased, and I can't help but feel a little sad, so I came here to ask your father, is it true that you only have one son, the Crown Prince, and one grandson, Zhanji?"

"What nonsense are you talking about so early in the morning? How can I be partial? If I am partial, I have always been partial to you and the third brother. You have violated regulations in all aspects and I have always turned a blind eye to them. When have I ever said anything about you? Those court officials have submitted countless memorials about this, but I suppressed them all. Except for the position of crown prince, you don't have anything that your eldest brother has."

"When your Majesty mentioned the position of the crown prince, I became even more dissatisfied. When you were conquering the world, you clearly said that my elder brother was in poor health and asked me to work harder. I fought bravely for you, through mountains of swords and seas of fire, but in the end, not only did you not fulfill your promise, you also directly made my elder brother the crown prince. That would have been fine, but now, even that little brat Zhanji is the crown prince, and he is superior to us uncles." Zhu Gaoxu had a lot of grievances to complain about when he talked about this.

Zhu Di knew that this was indeed his fault, which gave his youngest son a bad signal. He touched his nose guiltily and said, "This is the ancestral precept left by your grandfather. I can't do anything about it. I did try hard, but the ministers didn't agree. There's nothing I can do about it. He is my elder brother."

"What your father didn't say later is probably that you favor Zhanji. What about your other grandsons?" Zhu Gaoxu knew that his grandson Zhu Zhanji had to take a back seat compared to his sons.

"I love those in your family too."

"This is what you said, father. I heard that you let Zhanji participate in Cuju on the Dragon Boat Festival, or let He'er and Qi'er participate as well. What do you think?" Zhu Gaoxu suggested.

Zhu Di thought, this kid is waiting for him here? He said that he was biased for no reason, and brought up the matter of the crown prince again. It seems that he wants his two sons to show their faces.

"So you've been talking to me for so long here early in the morning just because of this?"

"Father, your Majesty, won't you agree to such a small request from me? I've always said that your Majesty is partial to me. He doesn't love me at all. Mother, do you see that? Your Majesty doesn't love his son at all..." Zhu Gaoxu said as he began to cry pitifully.

Zhu Di was so angry that he picked up something on the table and threw it over. Zhu Gaoxu dodged nimbly, but stopped crying.

"Father~"

Zhu Di couldn't bear to watch it, "You are such a grown-up, how can you behave like this? It's really embarrassing. Okay, I'll agree to it, but I still need to ask Agui. If he has already decided on the candidate, then there is nothing I can do."

"You have agreed. Zhanji will definitely not refuse you." When Zhu Gaoxu heard that Zhu Di agreed, he immediately wiped away his tears.

"If Agui doesn't agree, you can find a way yourself." Zhu Di didn't guarantee him either.

"Okay, if Zhanji disagrees, I will think of another way."

"Do you have anything else to say?" Zhu Di ordered them to leave.

"I'm leaving now." Zhu Gaoxu achieved his goal and left tactfully.

Zhu Di waved his hand and told him to leave quickly.

"You're being dishonest all day long." Zhu Di complained after everyone left.

"Your Majesty, what you said is true. The nine sons of the dragon are all different. The Crown Prince is upright and honest, the Prince of Han is brave, and the Prince of Zhao is smart. I think all of them are very good."

"Do you think so? The crown prince is indeed honest, caring for his brothers and sisters, and is magnanimous. The court officials below also respect him very much. As for Gao Xu, he is most like me in all aspects. Back then, I really thought about disobeying the will of the late emperor and making him the crown prince. But like he said, if he was really made the crown prince, then Agui would still have a chance. So for Agui, the crown prince has to be Gao Chi. Moreover, Gao Xu is brave but not wise, and he has many small thoughts and even more unreasonable wishes. The third son is a follower and lacks ability, which is not a bad thing. If you don't have ability, you won't have thoughts that you shouldn't have." Zhu Di analyzed his three sons by himself.

"Your Majesty, you worry too much. The princes are still very filial."

"Hmph, filial piety. This is because I am still here, so they dare not act rashly. They can be suppressed for now, but what about after I am gone for a hundred years? The Crown Prince has one bad thing, he is too soft-hearted. I am afraid that if his brothers do something treasonous in the future, he will not kill them all."

Wang Jinghong was silent and didn't dare to speak.

"What else can't you, Wang Jinghong, say?" Zhu Di glanced at him.

"This servant is dumb."

"If you don't want to talk about it, then don't talk about it. The prince still needs to gain experience for a few more years. Those who are in a high position are lonely. Take your time."

"Yes, the prince is still young."

"You old rascal, go and call Agui over quickly. If you're any later, he'll have already picked the person, and the second son will come crying in front of me again." Zhu Di urged, changing the subject.

"Yes, look at my brain. I almost forgot the important thing. I will go now, in person." Wang Jinghong said as he prepared to leave.

"Why should we ask the chief steward to go in person for such a small matter? Those who know will know that I have something to do with Agui, while those who don't will think something has happened. Just let one of the subordinates go."

"This servant is worried about things, it's safer for me to go, but your majesty is still thoughtful. I will tell Xiao Zhouzi to go now."

Qingyun Palace

"Your Highness, the Emperor has summoned you to the Palace of Heavenly Purity for a meeting."

"Would you allow me to prepare?" Zhu Zhanji asked.

Eunuch Zhou continued, "Your Highness, the Emperor said you can go right away." Eunuch Zhou thought to himself that Wang Daban had specifically reminded him several times to let His Highness the Crown Prince go right away and there should be no delay.

"Okay, are you in such a hurry? Okay, I'll be there right away." It's rare that he's in such a hurry, and I don't know if it's something big. I thought about it and it's nothing big. Forget it, I don't want to think about it. I'll know when I go there.