PFC Chapter 26 Morning Morning
Chapter 26 Morning Morning
The next day, Li Jinglong got up at dawn and, with the help of Li Er and his maid, dressed in his everyday clothes, took his official tablet, and arrived early at the Hongwu Gate to wait. When the time came, he was led by an attendant to the steps outside the Fengtian Gate to wait for Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao to arrive.
In the past, military meritorious officials like Li Jinglong did not need to attend the morning court every day; they only attended the first and second days of each month.
But Li Jinglong had just returned from his inspection tour and had to go back to report!
At the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao arrived at the gate hall of Fengtian Gate in the imperial carriage.
The morning court session began immediately, and Li Jinglong stood quietly, pondering how to begin.
After waiting for almost an hour, Li Jinglong felt that the time was about right, so he stepped out of the queue and respectfully walked to the door.
"Your subject, Li Jinglong, has returned from his inspection tour of Beiping and Shaanxi and has come to report back!"
"The Duke of Cao is back!" Zhu Yuanzhang said, raising his eyelids slightly. "Your matter can be reported later. Court is adjourned."
Li Jinglong's eyes widened. This wasn't the script! Why had the court session ended so abruptly?
Just as Li Jinglong was about to step forward, he was stopped by Zhu Biao's gaze. Helpless, Li Jinglong had no choice but to suppress his doubts and stand still.
After the court officials dispersed, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao walked out of the hall and headed towards the Jinshen Hall. Seeing this, Li Jinglong had no choice but to follow behind them.
"Second Girl, I heard that you forced Huang Bin to sign and put his fingerprint on a document in Beiping?" Old Zhu glanced at Li Jinglong and said with a smile.
"This... Your Majesty, the Marquis of Yichun's indulgence of his servants is a clear crime, and I am merely acting in accordance with the law!" Li Jinglong replied.
"That's right. Huang Bin is becoming increasingly corrupt. Giving him a warning is a good thing!" Old Zhu nodded, then asked, "Second Girl, what do you think of the situation in Shanzhou?"
Li Jinglong curled his lip. What else could he say? Besides Zhu Shuang, who else would dare to do such a thing? But there was no evidence.
"Your Majesty, as for who sent the assassin, I have no evidence, but I think everyone can see it clearly and guess it!" Li Jinglong said cryptically.
"Heh!" Old Zhu sneered. "Are you afraid to speak up, or do you think we'll side with the second son?"
"I dare not, it's just that I have no evidence!" Li Jinglong continued meaningfully, "However, judging from my itinerary, His Highness Prince Qin is indeed a suspect."
"Hmph!" Old Zhu snorted coldly, stopped in his tracks, and angrily flicked his sleeves. "Eldest brother, send someone to call the second brother back. He'll go guard the ancestral tombs for us!"
"Father, I understand!" Zhu Biao replied expressionlessly.
Normally, Zhu Biao took good care of his younger brothers, but not without principle. Clearly, Zhu Shuang's actions in assassinating the imperial envoy were outrageous and angered Zhu Biao.
"Jiujiang, you went to Xi'an. What was the reputation of the King of Qin there?" Old Zhu frowned and asked again.
"Does Your Majesty want to hear the truth or a lie?" Li Jinglong asked, keeping everyone in suspense.
Old Zhu glared at Li Jinglong: "Nonsense, of course it's the truth!"
"Your Majesty, although I only stayed in Xi'an for two days, I heard quite a bit about the deeds of the Prince of Qin!" Li Jinglong cupped his hands, his tone becoming serious.
"Oppressing the people is the least of his worries; he is extravagant and his palace is extremely luxurious; he is cruel and inhumane, often beating his servants to death. I have even heard that the Prince of Qin often disciplines the Princess Consort!"
Li Jinglong glanced at Old Zhu's face out of the corner of his eye. Although Old Zhu was not angry at this moment, his face was gradually darkening.
Princess Guanyinnu, the wife of Zhu Shuang, was the younger sister of Wang Baobao, and the marriage was personally arranged by Zhu Shuang.
At the beginning of the Hongwu reign, after Xu Da and Chang Yuchun's successful northern expedition, they drove the Northern Yuan forces out of the Central Plains. However, the remnants of the Northern Yuan forces still existed. Although Wang Baobao suffered more defeats than victories, he still had considerable influence in the Northern Yuan.
After capturing Wang Baobao's family, Zhu Yuanzhang treated them well, even arranging for Wang Baobao's sister to marry Prince Qin, Zhu Shuang, all in an effort to win over Wang Baobao.
As for Zhu Shuang's dislike of the princess, Old Zhu knew that, but he did not know that Zhu Shuang would actually dare to hit someone!
"That bastard!" Old Zhu gritted his teeth and growled in a low voice.
"Your Majesty, the policy of relocating the garrisons that I previously advised you to implement must be carried out. The policy of sending vassal kings to guard the borders is Your Majesty's personal decision, but which border to guard still needs to be decided by the court!"
"Your Majesty, the Prince of Qin has long oppressed the people, causing widespread resentment. If this continues, it will be detrimental to the country!" Li Jinglong said emotionally, as if he were telling Zhu Yuanzhang that if Zhu Shuang was not dealt with today, there would be endless troubles in the future.
Li Jinglong didn't have high hopes either. After all, Zhu Yuanzhang was known for protecting his own sons. Although he wouldn't strip Zhu of his title or imprison him, Li Jinglong felt that if he punished Zhu Shuang and added fuel to the fire, that should be enough!
"Your Majesty, the vassal kings are stationed on the borders to ensure the stability of the frontier. If the Prince of Qin acts recklessly, causing disunity and disloyalty within the Qin region, the losses would outweigh the gains!"
"Eldest brother, summon the second brother to the capital. We must teach that brat a lesson before sending him to guard the ancestral tombs!" Old Zhu said angrily, his face ashen.
"Father, I understand!" Zhu Biao readily agreed, his face equally gloomy.
Seeing Zhu Biao's expression, Li Jinglong understood. As a qualified crown prince, he naturally knew that when vassal kings acted recklessly in their fiefdoms, they were undermining the Ming Dynasty.
However, an idea popped into Li Jinglong's mind: should he instill some ideas about weakening the power of the princes in Zhu Biao in advance?
Putting aside everything else, just look at these princes of the Zhu family. Apart from committing all sorts of evil deeds in their fiefdoms and squandering the national treasury, they do absolutely nothing of substance!
Apart from the first generation of vassal kings, such as the King of Yan, the King of Jin, the King of Chu, and the King of Ning, who truly shouldered the heavy responsibility of defending the borders and suppressing rebellions, their descendants, one after another, became nothing more than idlers who did nothing but live off others.
At the end of the Ming Dynasty, after Li Zicheng's army conquered cities and seized territories, the first thing they did was to plunder the wealth of the Zhu family's princes.
However, Li Jinglong glanced at Old Zhu next to Zhu Biao and his heart trembled involuntarily. If Old Zhu found out, he would probably kill him.
"Second Girl, hand those criminals over to the Ministry of Justice later. I'll personally oversee this matter!" Old Zhu instructed again.
"I obey your decree!"
After Zhu Biao returned to Jinshen Hall, he walked up to Li Jinglong and said with a hint of reproach, "You! You know what kind of temper the second brother has. You could have just told me when you got back! If something had happened along the way, how could I explain it to my cousin!"
"Your Highness's concern for me is deeply appreciated!" Li Jinglong bowed in gratitude, his face contorted with worry. "Your Highness, no one expected that Prince Qin would dare to attempt an assassination!"
Li Jinglong was determined not to miss any opportunity to sow discord between Zhu Shuang and Zhu Shuang!
"What the second prince did this time was truly outrageous!" Zhu Biao snorted, then sighed deeply, "Jiujiang, do you think this system of vassal kings guarding the borders can really continue indefinitely?"