The video takes us to ancient times; Li Er transforms into the Tongtian Emperor of Shu Han.

When the topic of the crown prince came up, most emperors throughout history couldn't help but glance at their eldest son.

According to the rules of inheritance, the eldest son of the legitimate wife should be chosen, not the eldest son, and the eldest son should be chosen, not the youngest son.

The eldest son is always the first choice for the crown prince!

Ying Zheng glanced at Fusu, who had just been recalled.

Liu Heng looked at Liu Qi, the crown prince who had recently defeated Liu Xian, the heir apparent of the King of Wu, in a game of chess using physical means.

Yang Jian glanced at Yang Yong and Yang Guang in front of him, and he didn't like either of them!

Li Er thought of himself, then of Li Chengqian, who had just turned against him, and then of Qingque, who was about to be enfeoffed. He let out a heavy sigh.

Zhao Kuangyin's fate was even more tragic.

He had always intended for Zhao Guangyi to inherit his throne, so he didn't focus on grooming a crown prince at all.

This forced, unprepared approach left him feeling quite uncertain.

……

Zhu Di, in the past, only wanted to be the general who led the northern expedition against his elder brother Zhu Biao.

But God did not fulfill people's wishes.

Not long after, Zhu Biao passed away.

After the deaths of his eldest grandson Zhu Xiong Ying, his wife Empress Ma, and his son Zhu Biao, Zhu Yuanzhang's sword was left without a sheath.

In order to ensure that Zhu Biao's son, Zhu Yunwen, could smoothly succeed to the throne, Zhu Yuanzhang began to purge various important civil and military officials in the court for a long period of time.

Anything he felt Zhu Yunwen was difficult to control or restrain, he would directly eliminate for him.

By the time he died and Zhu Yunwen ascended the throne, there were very few capable generals left in the court.

In addition, Zhu Yunwen himself was deeply immersed in Confucianism, and on the advice of a group of pedantic scholars, he decided to reduce the power of the princes!

There was nothing wrong with what he did, but he was wrong in doing it too hastily and using too crude methods.

Many of his uncles were demoted to commoners and all their property was confiscated.

Some of them, having been wrongly accused, chose to immolate themselves to prove their innocence.

Faced with Zhu Yunwen's policy of reducing the power of the princes, Zhu Di, who was confined to his residence, had no confidence in rebelling and could only follow Zhu Yunwen's wishes.

Moreover, his three sons were still in the capital as hostages, so even though he had a lot of plans, he could only endure it.

In order to get Zhu Yunwen to release the three of them, he chose to feign madness.

After reading this series of texts, Zhu Di's eyes were filled with sighs.

If Zhu Yunwen hadn't used such crude methods to weaken the power of the princes, causing the other princes to feel insecure...

Even with a good-for-nothing like Li Jinglong around, it probably won't be easy for him to enter the capital!

If he had been a little more lenient, he might have actually secured his throne!

Unfortunately, fate intervened, and in the end, the empire fell into the hands of Zhu Di.

"Father, are we going to talk about that matter next?"

Seeing that Zhu Di was still recalling, Zhu Gaochi gently reminded him.

Next?

Which thing?

That matter!?

What the hell!

Immortal, you can't say!

Zhu Di instantly realized what was happening.

He knew which matter Zhu Gaochi was referring to!

To deceive Zhu Yunwen, he even...

Finally, after the people sent to investigate witnessed him eating pig manure in the pigsty, Zhu Yunwen finally believed that his fourth uncle had truly gone mad.

Therefore, he issued an imperial edict ordering the three Zhu brothers to return to Shuntian to treat Zhu Di's illness, while simultaneously reducing the power of the princes.

After Zhu Gaochi and others returned to Shuntian, Zhu Di had already discussed a feasible plan with his strategist Yao Guangxiao.

He deliberately sent someone to leak the news of his rebellion.

When Zhu Yunwen learned that Zhu Di was only pretending to be insane and had actually been plotting a rebellion, he was furious.

He immediately dispatched the generals stationed in Shuntian to surround Zhu Di's residence.

But no one expected that this was exactly the moment Zhu Di had been waiting for.

After Zhu Di feigned inviting the two generals into his residence, they never came out again.

With no leader in sight, Zhu Di swiftly and decisively wiped out the imperial army surrounding Shuntian.

At this point, the entire Shuntian region was under his control!

"...What does pig manure smell like?"

Although Li Er also felt that Zhu Di did the right thing, and that it was almost the only solution in that situation.

But what he was more curious about was this matter.

What does pig manure actually smell like?

That stuff smells so nauseating, is it really okay to eat it?

Zhu Di: “…”

Do you really have to ask this?

"Did you experience any discomfort after eating it?"

Old Zhu followed closely behind.

From the celestial survey of the immortals, he could see how much suffering his sons had endured under Zhu Yunwen's rule.

It can be said that after Zhu Yunwen came to power, he overturned all of Zhu Yunwen's plans.

The more Zhu Di looked at this Jingnan campaign, the more pleasing he became!

But what surprised him even more was that the fourth brother had such courage!

To rescue his three sons from the capital, he actually did such a thing!

I found a secluded spot and vomited it out. I didn't feel any discomfort, but as for the taste, I don't want to think about it again.

Zhu Di could ignore Li Er's words, but he couldn't ignore his own father's.

"Those who achieve great things do not concern themselves with trifles. If I were in your position, I might do even more extravagant things."

"You did nothing wrong, and it is only right that you ascend the throne!"

"How naive Zhu Yunwen is! He's not only incompetent and foolish, but also stupid!"

Liu Bang directly expressed his support for Zhu Di.

The reduction of the power of the regional military governors must be done.

But one must pay attention to the method and timing.

At the time of Tianmu's review, Zhu Yuanzhang had just passed away, and various tribes in the northern part of the Ming Dynasty were restless.

Those feudal lords who were enfeoffed were all there to defend the borders against foreign enemies!

Most of them had not yet had time to properly establish themselves, and most of their power was still in the hands of the imperial court.

In this situation, the vassal kings did not become too powerful to control.

Not to mention that most of the capable and important officials in the court were eliminated by Zhu Yuanzhang.

The power of the vassal kings has been reduced, and there are no reliable senior officials in the court to replace them in guarding the border.

When the remnants of the Yuan dynasty in the north recover and return, do you, Zhu Yunwen, intend to use those pedantic Confucian scholars to reason with them and persuade them to withdraw their troops voluntarily?

It's not impossible for a family to perish after only two generations!

Even at this point, Zhu Yunwen still did not take Zhu Di seriously.

In his view, Zhu Di's army numbered only tens of thousands.

The only problem in the court right now is that there are no capable generals.

So, choosing the best among the worst, he selected Geng Bingwen, an experienced general skilled in defense but not in offense, and ordered him to lead 130,000 troops on a northern expedition against Shuntian!

Upon seeing the name Geng Bingwen, Old Zhu nearly crushed his teacup.

If his memory serves him correctly, Geng Bingwen should be a veteran nearing seventy at this time!

At his age, with most of his body nearing the grave, you're dragging him out to fight against Zhu Di, who was at the peak of his life. Aren't you just forcing him to his death?

Along with that, they also handed over their 130,000 troops!