A’Lei said to Zhu Zhanhe, “Why don’t you let go quickly!”
Zhu Zhanhe released his grip and crawled back to his pillow looking aggrieved. “I was only hugging his waist, I didn’t touch his arm.”
A’Lei looked at Zhu Zhanji with questioning eyes.
Zhu Zhanji said shamelessly, “He didn’t touch the wound. I accidentally bumped it while struggling. Don’t blame him.”
What a flourishing white lotus flower—so white and fragrant that everyone curses it.
“Sit still and don’t move. I’ll unwrap the gauze to see if the stitches really came loose.” A’Lei carefully removed the gauze and saw the sutures made by the imperial physicians wrapped around his arm like centipede legs.
“Fortunately.” A’Lei wrapped the gauze back up. “Otherwise you’d have to suffer through that again.”
Zhu Zhanji felt his arm tingling where A’Lei had touched it, and he gripped the wooden ox even tighter, not wanting to return it to his younger brother.
How could Zhu Zhanhe allow his cousin to swindle him like this? “Give me the wooden ox.”
Zhu Zhanji refused to let go, saying childishly to A’Lei, “I want one too.”
A’Lei became unhappy and snatched the wooden ox back to give to Zhu Zhanhe. “Am I a craftsman who specializes in making clocks for your Zhu family? There’s only one of these.”
Zhu Zhanji was rebuffed. If he continued, they would argue again and create an unpleasant atmosphere, so he had to cut his losses and shut up.
Zhu Zhanhe proudly held up the wooden ox to show off. “Every hour on the hour, the wooden ox automatically walks, the mechanism on its back opens and closes, and a little shepherd boy playing a flute pops out. This gift is one of a kind—I didn’t get injured for nothing this time.”
A’Lei said, “You must be careful in the future. You were lucky this time. If you get injured again, I won’t give you anything.”
Zhu Zhanji had nothing and was quite disappointed. However, Zhu Zhanhe’s injury was entirely caused by himself and was to protect him, so he couldn’t be angry at Zhu Zhanhe. All his pent-up frustration and resentment remained bottled up in his heart.
The two stayed to keep the immobilized Zhu Zhanhe company. They even had dinner brought here to eat together, chatting and laughing as if returning to their childhood days. After the meal, seeing that it was getting late and Zhu Zhanhe was somewhat lacking in energy due to his injury, A’Lei took her leave.
The palace gates were already closed, so she would sleep with Hu Shanwei tonight.
Zhu Zhanji said, “It’s sleeting outside and very cold. The jacket you’re wearing probably won’t keep out the wind. Put on my fur cloak.”
Without allowing A’Lei to refuse, Zhu Zhanji placed the cloak on her shoulders. Zhu Zhanhe pointed at the brazier, “Take a hand warmer too.”
Just as Zhu Zhanji was thinking of what excuse to use to personally escort her partway, a palace servant entered and said, “The road surface outside is starting to freeze. Palace Superintendent Hu has ordered this servant to bring Miss Hu a bright red wool felt cloak, a hand warmer, and wooden clogs, and commanded this servant to escort Miss Hu back.”
The inner palace was complex, so how could Hu Shanwei feel at ease about A’Lei? She had made preparations early to avoid any accidents—she didn’t want A’Lei to become entangled with the inner palace.
Upon hearing this, A’Lei removed the cloak. “My sister has sent someone to fetch me. There’s no need to trouble Your Highness the Crown Prince’s Grandson.”
A’Lei put on the bright red wool felt cloak, wore a Guanyin hood, and held the hand warmer, revealing only her small face. “Rest early, both of you. I’m leaving.”
Zhu Zhanhe called out while lying on his pillow, “Come see me early tomorrow!”
“I know.” A’Lei put on her tortoiseshell-framed glasses—her vision was poor at night, barely manageable during the day.
Just as A’Lei stepped out of the palace hall, she saw rows of lanterns ahead escorting Emperor Yongle’s imperial carriage. She quickly moved aside and paid her respects.
Emperor Yongle felt vexed whenever he looked at his sons now and didn’t want to hear Prince Han’s excuses. He had been busy all day and came through the wind and snow to see his two grandsons.
Though A’Lei was bundled up tightly, her distinctive glasses allowed Emperor Yongle to recognize her immediately.
Seeing that she had grown into a young lady, Emperor Yongle, to avoid impropriety, couldn’t tease her as he had when she was small. He granted her a carriage to send her back. “The night is dark and the roads are slippery. Don’t let Miss Hu fall. Take the carriage back.”
A’Lei thanked him.
Emperor Yongle entered the room just as the hour struck. The large clock chimed, and the wooden ox on the table began to walk. A shepherd boy popped out from its back. The two grandsons watched in fascination, not noticing the commotion at the door.
After a day full of vexing matters, this wooden ox was a pleasant surprise. Emperor Yongle found it interesting and didn’t make a sound, so as not to disturb this moment of joy. After a minute passed, the wooden ox stopped and the shepherd boy retracted. Zhu Zhanji couldn’t put it down, scheming how to trick the wooden ox away from his younger cousin.
Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind and took the wooden ox away. Zhu Zhanji wondered who dared to be so bold. When he turned around, he saw, “Your… Grandfather.”
Emperor Yongle warmly consoled his two injured grandsons, and when he left, he “conveniently” took the wooden ox with him. Zhu Zhanhe dared to be angry but not speak. He had guarded against fire, theft, and his older cousin, but never expected his imperial grandfather to emerge from nowhere.
Our Zhu family really does have three generations of hereditary shamelessness.
Prince Han’s Residence
The sleet made the already gloomy atmosphere even more desolate. Ji Gang slapped a stack of confessions onto the desk. “The officials of your Prince Han’s residence are no less loyal than those of the Eastern Palace. Not one person in the imperial prison blamed Your Highness to escape punishment. They all said Your Highness was innocent and had nothing to do with this morning’s cannon explosion.”
Prince Han had expected this. He wasn’t concerned about the life and death of these officials, but asked, “How is my son?”
He still worried most about his eldest son. Prince Han now had eight sons, and though he always scolded his eldest for being worthless, he actually favored Zhu Zhanhe the most.
Ji Gang thought to himself that his choice to remain unmarried and childless was correct. Prince Han was a hero of his generation with great ambitions, but in the end, he still couldn’t escape the bonds of father-son affection.
Ji Gang said, “No new news has come from the palace. No news is good news—the heir apparent should be fine.”
Upon hearing this, Prince Han visibly relaxed and said, “His Majesty still refuses to see me, but without evidence, no one can frame me.”
Ji Gang shook his head repeatedly. “Your Highness, you still don’t realize the severity of the situation. If this matter isn’t handled properly, Your Highness will never have a chance to rise again.”
Prince Han was like a trapped beast. “I’m confined to the residence and can’t even leave the gates. Besides persisting and firmly denying everything, what else can I do? Should I pour dirty water on myself? My son was also present at the time. Even a vicious tiger doesn’t eat its cubs—could I drag my own son into this too? If Zhanhe misunderstands me, won’t he hate me for life? Losing my son and my troops would be foolish—I won’t do it.”
Ji Gang advised, “It’s not about forcing Your Highness to confess, but given reality, you must bow your head. Today His Majesty has already ordered me to release all the Eastern Palace officials from the imperial prison and restore them to their positions. What does this mean? Even when Xie Jin froze to death, the Crown Prince didn’t say a word. His Majesty sees that the Crown Prince submits to all his decisions, that the Eastern Palace is controllable, so he released these people. The Eastern Palace is about to make a comeback and become unstoppable. Prince Han must avoid its sharp edge, retreat to advance, and plan for the future.”
The nearly desperate Prince Han, upon hearing this, saw it like finding a savior. “How should I retreat? How should I advance? Please enlighten me, Director Ji.”
Ji Gang was wholeheartedly intent on inciting the Zhu family members to fight among themselves. He was eager to muddy the waters and said, “Your humble servant is unworthy, but having served three reigns and worked in the Embroidered Uniform Guard for half a lifetime, I’ve witnessed many imperial secrets. Let me tell Your Highness two secret matters, and you’ll understand my meaning.”
“The first matter concerns Prince Qin in the Hongwu reign, who killed thirty-seven Embroidered Uniform Guards and even cut out the tongue of female official Liu Siyan, tricked Princess Qin into eating it, and drove the princess mad.”
Prince Han found this hard to believe. “Second Imperial Uncle was indeed dissolute, colluding with concubine Deng and harming the people. When he died, Great Ancestor listed over twenty crimes, but this was never among them.”
Ji Gang said, “History books only show what those in power want others to see. What’s recorded in history is just the tip of the iceberg—the truth is terrifying. History records that Concubine Deng committed suicide out of fear of punishment, but the truth is that Director Mao and I, following Great Ancestor’s verbal order, personally strangled Concubine Deng and made it look like hanging.”
“What I want to tell Your Highness isn’t how cruel Prince Qin was, but why Prince Qin’s misdeeds weren’t exposed until Director Mao and Palace Superintendent Hu went to Xi’an?”
“When the emperor is far away, far from the capital, vassal princes have surprisingly great power in their domains, allowing them to cover the sky with one hand and maintain armies and assassins loyal only to themselves.”
Prince Han listened thoughtfully.
Ji Gang raised a second finger. “This second secret is even more bloody than the first. Does Your Highness know that Xiaoling once suffered a fire that destroyed all above-ground buildings except the underground palace?”
Prince Han nodded. “I’ve heard of it. Later Great Ancestor rebuilt Xiaoling and reinforced and heightened all the towers.”
Ji Gang smiled. “Actually, Xiaoling wasn’t destroyed by natural disaster but by human malice. On the surface, Consort Dading was a concubine Great Ancestor snatched from Prince Han Chen Youliang, but actually Consort Dading had an affair with Prince Chen Li, Chen Youliang’s heir. After becoming pregnant, she deliberately seduced Great Ancestor and became his favored consort. Prince Qi should actually be surnamed Chen—he’s a bastard. Prince Qi had already gone to Qingzhou for his fiefdom, and being far from the emperor, he secretly gathered Chen Youliang’s old forces, acquired private troops, and planned to eventually kill all the princes so he could become emperor and avenge Chen Youliang.”
“It was Palace Superintendent Hu who exposed this matter. Great Ancestor poisoned Consort Dading and, using her serious illness as pretext, summoned Prince Qi back to the capital to attend to his mother. To save his mother, Prince Qi convinced his brother Prince Tan, and the two brought Prince Qi’s private army to attack Xiaoling, intending to hold hostage Prince Lu and Empress Xiaoci’s remains to force His Majesty to hand over Consort Dading and let them escape far away.”
This was absolutely unheard of!
Prince Han was shocked.
Ji Gang chuckled. “His Majesty doesn’t even know the details of this affair—I’m only telling Your Highness. At the time, Duke Qianguo Mu Chun happened to be at Xiaoling and successfully prevented the conspiracy of Prince Qi and Prince Xiang. When the two princes saw their situation was hopeless and they were surrounded on all sides, they joined hands and jumped from the tower, saying before death, ‘Better to see the King of Hell than the bandit king.’ They died instantly with their heads smashed.”
Prince Han listened and remained silent for a long time, then sighed. “My fiefdom is in the same place as Prince Qi’s—Qingzhou in Shandong. Prince Han’s residence was also renovated and repaired from Prince Qi’s residence. I never imagined there was such a backstory.”
Ji Gang said, “Same place, different fate. Prince Han is a legitimate son; Prince Qi was just a bastard.”
Prince Han said, “I understand your meaning now. Both Prince Qin and Prince Qi could secretly build up their forces away from the emperor’s spies because the emperor was far away. Given the current situation, I should retreat to advance, request to go to my fiefdom in Qingzhou, leave the capital, then secretly recruit soldiers and horses in Qingzhou, build an absolutely loyal army, and wait for the opportunity to achieve great things.”
Ji Gang nodded. “Your Highness must learn from this lesson with the Tiancel Guard. An army you don’t raise yourself won’t be loyal to you—His Majesty could take it away with a word. The Tiancel Guard only served His Majesty and could turn traitor at any time. Also, Your Highness must never forget that I stand on your side. I’ve killed too many Eastern Palace officials and froze Xie Jin to death—I’m already a thorn in the Crown Prince’s eye. If the Crown Prince ascends the throne, the first person he’ll settle accounts with is me.”
“After Your Highness goes to your fiefdom, His Majesty will certainly order me to send Embroidered Uniform Guard spies to monitor Qingzhou. I’ll send trusted subordinates who will turn a blind eye and select some minor intelligence about oppressing the people, seizing good farmland, and other trivial matters to send to His Majesty. Your Highness can focus on recruiting soldiers and forging weapons and firearms. His Majesty is aging, the Crown Prince is a cripple, and the Crown Prince’s grandson hasn’t even grown all his hair yet. When the time comes, I’ll coordinate with Your Highness to attack the imperial city and support Your Highness’s ascension to the throne.”
Prince Han was fired up after hearing this, though he still had some concerns. “Would this… really work? Wouldn’t it leave an infamous name for all eternity?”
Ji Gang said, “In the Tang Dynasty’s Xuanwu Gate Incident, Prince Qin Li Shimin, also a legitimate second son, killed the Crown Prince and his brother, forced Tang Gaozu to abdicate and become Grand Emperor, and ascended as Emperor Taizong, who became a model of wise rulers for all generations. As long as you’re a good emperor who benefits the people, who cares how you got the throne? Those who steal a hook are executed; those who steal a kingdom become lords. At the gates of lords, benevolence and righteousness still exist. Once Your Highness becomes emperor, you’ll decide how history is written.”
Ji Gang pointed toward the imperial palace. “His Majesty still claims he’s the legitimate son of Empress Xiaoci and had the ‘Veritable Records of Gaozhu’ and other historical works revised for this. Initially, some opposed and mocked this, but now? Who dares say otherwise?”
Prince Han was moved and slammed the table. “Tomorrow I’ll submit a memorial requesting to go to my fiefdom in Qingzhou.”