usatvline Chapter 24 Zhu Youdun was unable to turn the tide.
Chapter 24 Zhu Youdun was unable to turn the tide.
Zhu Gaoxi was extremely frustrated and hid in the vegetable garden, refusing to come out.
Zhu Yuanzhang dispatched a large number of guards to protect the vegetable garden, and no one was allowed to enter or leave.
"I wrote a letter to my father, asking you to come back with me next year," Zhu Gaochi said, handing over a packet of candied fruit.
Zhu Gaoxi waved his hand, "Next year?"
He thought Zhu Youdun would be back soon.
Fu Zhong was his staunch brother, and he wouldn't abandon him.
If Zhu Youdun comes back, there is still a chance to salvage the situation.
"He's training troops on the island, and he'll be back no earlier than the first month of the lunar calendar," Zhu Gaochi said, picking up a bayberry and putting it in his mouth. He chewed for a long time but couldn't taste any sweetness anymore.
My mouth tastes bitter, and everything I eat tastes strange.
He never expected this to happen.
He had a feeling that Zhu Yunwen would eventually take action against the Prince of Yan's residence.
I wonder how my father will respond.
"Go find Miaojin," Zhu Gaoxi said, holding a jade hairpin. "Take me out of the palace to find Miaojin."
Zhu Gaochi was stunned. "Brother, you can speak... fluently now?!"
Zhu Gaoxi was suddenly stunned, finding it unbelievable that he could suddenly string words together into sentences.
"Go find Miaojin," Zhu Gaoxi repeated.
Zhu Gaochi snapped out of his shock and shook his head, saying, "It's no use looking for her."
"Take her with you. If she stays here, she'll be bullied," Zhu Gaoxi said slowly, enunciating each word clearly.
From then on, he was able to have normal conversations!
Zhu Yunwen will not let Xu Miaojin off the hook.
That cunning and ruthless villain with the painted face will surely be looking for an opportunity to strike at any moment.
"She won't come with us; her home is here," Zhu Gaochi denied without hesitation.
He didn't want the Prince of Yan's mansion to get involved in these messy affairs.
"The nail that sticks out gets hammered down," so let's let Uncle Three draw the Crown Prince's fire.
The Duke of Ying was forced to commit suicide, which directly weakened the power of the Prince of Jin. Without the support of his father-in-law, how much trouble can the Prince of Jin's heir cause?
This was probably the true purpose of the grandfather and the crown prince; Zhu Yunwen's revenge against Zhu Youdun was just a side effect.
Whether Fu Zhong truly harbored malicious intent is unimportant; the key is that he gave the Crown Prince a sufficient pretext to take action.
How can I allow others to sleep soundly beside my bed?
The Prince of Jin's heir was too arrogant recently.
The Crown Prince bared his fangs and personally attacked, forcing his grandfather to protect the Crown Prince's dignity.
Zhu Gaochi could be indifferent to Miao Jin, but Zhu Gaoxi could not.
He couldn't ignore Miaojin's life or death.
If Zhu Yunwen were ruthless enough, he would have plenty of ways to deal with Miao Jin.
The capital city is within Zhu Yunwen's sphere of influence, so we must take Miaojin away from this dangerous place.
Zhu Gaochi was unwilling to help, so he had to find another way.
To ensure the safety of his princes and grandsons, Zhu Yuanzhang assigned each of them a skilled eunuch.
The eunuch who was assigned to Zhu Gaoxi was Ma Sanbao, the same eunuch who had practiced martial arts with Zhu Yunxi some time ago.
Based on the historical knowledge he still had, Zhu Gaoxi vaguely remembered that the famous Zheng He's original name was Ma Sanbao.
This shows that Ma Sanbao's loyalty was trustworthy, and he could be entrusted with important responsibilities. He was not someone Zhu Yunwen had placed by his side.
Zhu Gaoxi secretly waited for the right opportunity to make his move.
Zhu Yunwen still came to the vegetable garden every day to sit for a while, looking calm and carefree, as if the matter of Fu Zhong had never happened.
Zhu Gaoxi was astonished by the speed at which Zhu Yunwen turned to the dark side; it was shocking and unbearable to watch.
"You said that Sixth Uncle claimed to be ill last time, is that true?" Zhu Yunwen put down his book and turned to ask Zhu Gaoxi.
"Sixth Uncle?" Zhu Gaoxi had no recollection of him.
Zhu Zhen, the sixth son of Zhu Yuanzhang and the Prince of Chu, never returned to the capital after Zhu Biao's death.
Last year, when asked to bring his eldest son to the capital, he declined, saying he was infected with an epidemic and dared not return to the capital.
Why did Zhu Yunwen suddenly bring him up? What was he up to?
Zhu Yunwen quickly solved the mystery for him: "The Embroidered Uniform Guard reported that Marquis Dingyuan, Wang Bi, recently voiced his grievances, speaking out on behalf of Fu Youde."
It was done lightly, as if taking a leisurely stroll.
What is Zhu Yunwen going to do?
Zhu Gaoxi felt a chill run down his spine and became extremely alert.
"Wang Bi is Sixth Uncle's father-in-law. Do you think Sixth Uncle also harbors resentment?" Zhu Yunwen pretended to be deep in thought.
"No way, Sixth Uncle is far away in Wuchang," Zhu Gaoxi said slowly.
"You can speak in complete sentences now, that's really great. At first I couldn't believe it, but it's true," Zhu Yunwen said with a fake smile.
Zhu Gaoxi quickly searched his mind for information: Wang Bi was an ancestor of Wang Yangming.
He didn't remember what happened to Wang Bi, but perhaps the emergence of a great talent like Wang Yangming among his descendants would allow him to safely weather Zhu Yunwen's suspicions.
Zhu Gaoxi remained coldly silent.
Zhu Yunwen remained unaffected and continued to speak eloquently. "I suggested to my grandfather that Wang Bi be brought into the palace to comfort him properly," Zhu Yunwen said, seemingly touching Zhu Gaoxi's head with emotion. "Your brother was frightened by Fu Zhong's matter. Don't worry, your brother will not let anyone hurt you."
Zhu Gaoxi didn't want to listen anymore, so he stood up in disgust, walked away, lifted his clothes, and urinated.
"Little brother, this is keeping the good stuff in the family," Zhu Yunwen chuckled. "If you keep watering it every day, the vegetables you plant will definitely grow well next spring."
I heard that Zhu Yunwen recently took a new palace maid as his concubine. She is beautiful and charming, and he is very pleased with himself.
Zhu Gaoxi didn't want to hear any dirty jokes, so he went back to his room and took a nap.
Several days later, news arrived that Marquis Dingyuan, Wang Bi, had committed suicide, which startled Zhu Gaoxi.
Zhu Yunwen truly kept his word.
By using Zhu Yuanzhang's executioner's blade, the princes and generals were weakened, thus ensuring a more stable imperial throne.
Zhu Gaoxi clearly felt that a knife was hanging over his head, and when it would fall depended entirely on Zhu Yunwen's mood.
He began to eagerly await Zhu Youdun's return so that he could deliver a decisive blow to Zhu Yunwen.
After much anticipation, on the eighteenth day of the first lunar month, Zhu Youdun finally returned to the capital.
Zhu Yuanzhang was overcome with tears and held Zhu Youdun's hand tightly.
Zhu Youdun had become darker and thinner, his eyes were melancholy yet sharp, and his handsome face was as rugged as if carved by a knife and axe.
Zhu Gaoxi suddenly felt reassured and wanted to tell Zhu Youdun everything that had happened over the past few months.
Zhu Youdun must have a way to restrain Zhu Yunwen and stop him from doing whatever he wants.
Xu Miaojin sat in an extremely low-key carriage and leaned out to look in this direction.
Although he was disguised as a man, Zhu Gaoxi recognized him at a glance, and Zhu Yunwen also glanced back several times, his face so cold it was almost icy.
While Zhu Yuanzhang was taking a nap, Zhu Gaoxi pulled Zhu Youdun to the vegetable garden and recounted the whole story.
"It's my fault that Fu Zhong was harmed," Zhu Youdun said, filled with remorse.
"What will we do in the future?" Zhu Gaoxi asked.
What else can be done? Who can stand against the power of the Crown Prince?
Since his grandfather was entrusting the empire to Zhu Yunwen, he would not allow anyone to challenge the authority of the Crown Prince.
The only course of action now is to endure.
"You should marry Miao Jin," Zhu Gaoxi announced, withdrawing his vote.
Zhu Youdun shook his head and said in a low voice, "My marriage to Madam Lü is already arranged."
"What about Miaojin? She can't stay here," Zhu Gaoxi said anxiously. "No, we have to go to Beiping."
Zhu Youdun pondered for a moment, then said with a guilty look, "That's fine too. The Princess Consort of Yan is her elder sister, so it's reasonable for her to stay at her elder sister's house for a while."
Xu Miaojin's second sister and Prince Zhu Gui were not on good terms, so the only place she could legitimately go was Beiping.
"Go talk to her, she'll listen to you," Zhu Gaoxi said, feeling utterly helpless.
Unexpectedly, even Zhu Youdun was unable to turn the tide.
It seems that the only way to turn things around in the future is through my cheap dad.