My father, Zhu Di, was granted a second life by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Chapter 16 What is Power?

The one who shared the same fate as Zhu Gaoxi was none other than the imperial grandson Zhu Yunwen.

Since becoming the crown prince, Zhu Yunwen either stayed overnight in the Qianqing Palace or in the Donghua Hall to listen to famous scholars discuss classics and history, and rarely returned to the Eastern Palace.

However, it was noon, and Zhu Yunwen, looking dejected, pulled Zhu Gaoxi toward the East Palace, clearly in a very low mood.

Zhu Yunwen followed behind him sensibly, knowing how much his brother was suffering.

He was just as disoriented when his father passed away.

Lady Lü seemed to sense the Emperor's dissatisfaction with her, so she rarely appeared in the Qianqing Palace and obediently stayed in the East Palace to take care of the children.

She is a self-aware woman who can endure loneliness and does not envy the glory that does not belong to her.

"For a woman to cultivate to this level, she can be considered to have become a spirit," Zhu Gaoxi sighed.

No one knows a son better than his mother. The moment she saw her son, Lady Lü understood what had happened.

"Mother, what are you busy with?" Zhu Yunwen asked, trying to make conversation. He just wanted to find some sense of security with his mother.

"Prince Ning is going to his fiefdom. Consort Yang is reluctant to part with her son and is quite anxious and upset. She is not feeling well, and the imperial physician just took her to see him," Lady Lü replied gently.

In the imperial harem, concubines needed the Empress's permission to consult the imperial physician.

After Empress Ma's death, Zhu Yuanzhang never appointed another empress, and Consort Guo Ning now manages the affairs of the six palaces.

However, Consort Yang had offended Consort Guo in her early years of vying for the emperor's favor, and was reluctant to say this to Consort Guo.

Seizing the opportunity, Lady Lü, taking advantage of her status as the mistress of the Eastern Palace, quickly went over to curry favor.

She has been doing this for many years and has gained considerable experience from it.

For her, power is tangible benefits that she can see and touch.

Whether you can help others or make things difficult for them, it's all a right.

In contrast, she prefers to help others and build good relationships. This is something she learned from her father, Lü Benben, from a young age: never turn against someone unless it involves fundamental interests, and even if it does involve interests, try to find the most amicable solution.

The most subtle and effective way to influence people.

In the imperial harem, only a minority of concubines are ever favored; the vast majority live lives of being out of favor or having fallen out of favor.

Consort Yang's situation wasn't the worst; she might see the Emperor twice a month. Consort Han, Zhu Zhi's birth mother, Consort Yu, Zhu Zhan's birth mother, and Consort Zhou, Zhu Pian's birth mother, hadn't seen the Emperor for more than half a year, but life still had to go on as usual.

"Your mother plans to visit Consort Han, Consort Yu, and Consort Zhou again to see if there's anything she can help with. You should also take good care of your younger brother, especially Yunwen, who is your own brother. Also, if your grandfather mentions your sister's marriage, remember to put in a good word for her and arrange a good match for her," Lady Lü said, making Zhu Yunwen understand everything in just a few words.

Princess Jiangdu, Zhu Yunwen's elder sister, was the daughter of Zhu Biao's first wife, Crown Princess Chang.

Now, Lady Lü is using her power to secure a good future for Lady Chang's children. In the future, they will all become Zhu Yunwen's helpers, or at least not obstacles.

In this world, there are very few people with exceptional abilities like Zhu Youdun. Most people with average abilities need the protection of power, and Zhu Yunwen just happens to have power.

Second only to the emperor's power.

Zhu Yunwen suddenly felt incredibly confident. His grandfather was getting old, and he wanted to see how long Zhu Youdun could maintain his glory.

The Crown Prince regained his usual confident demeanor.

Zhu Gaoxi was genuinely happy for him, as protecting Xu Miaojin from being taken away by Zhu Youdun still required the help of the Crown Prince.

Zhu Yuanzhang also sensed the change in Zhu Yunwen's mindset.

He was quite pleased that the Crown Prince had such composure and calmness.

Despite Zhu Youdun's low profile, Zhu Yunwen still felt like he had a thorn in his side whenever he saw him.

However, his icy expression provided Zhu Yunwen with excellent cover.

Zhu Gaochi secretly restrained Zhu Gaoxi, preventing him from getting too close to Zhu Youdun.

Whenever Zhu Gaoxi called Zhu Youdun "brother" in a sickeningly sweet manner, Zhu Gaochi would try every means to pull him away from there.

Zhu Shangbing, however, only cared about food.

No matter how capable Zhu Youdun is, it has nothing to do with him.

Zhu Yunwen used his power to secure numerous books and rewards for Zhu Quan, Zhu Zhi, Zhu Zhan, and Zhu Pian.

However, it seems the four princes are not interested.

When Zhu Yunwen saw them off outside the city, they were all very polite and not particularly close.

Zhu Yunwen was deeply troubled, as he was far from being adept at wielding power.

Zhu Gaoxi chuckled to himself, "If simply being kind to people is power, then there would be no such thing as weakness or being bullied in this world."

You have to show your fangs properly.

A combination of kindness and severity.

The reason why Lady Lü's method worked was that those concubines had been neglected by the emperor for a long time and had no hope of winning his favor.

Zhu Yunwen needed someone to help him come up with ideas and solutions. This time, he didn't ask Lady Lü, but instead went to his study companion, Huang Zicheng.

Huang Zicheng was the third-ranked scholar in the imperial examination of the eighteenth year of the Hongwu reign, and was well-versed in classics and history.

Zhu Yunwen had heard his grandfather tell the story of the Rebellion of the Seven States during the Han Dynasty.

My grandfather believed that the seven kingdoms did not intend to rebel, and that a ruler should pay attention to harmony among his relatives.

In other words, Zhu Yuanzhang had full confidence in his enfeoffment system and his princes.

Huang Zicheng brought up this history to remind Zhu Yunwen that the power of the vassal kings was given by the monarch, and that power could be given and taken away.

In fact, Huang Zicheng intentionally or unintentionally included Zhu Youdun as well.

Even a prince of such high rank is still a subject.

If the king wants the minister to die, the minister has to die.

Huang Zicheng then cited the story of the talented scholar Xie Jin as an example.

Xie Jin, confident in his talent, acted recklessly. The emperor sent him home, saying he would be reinstated in ten years.

Whether or not to use it, and how to use it, is entirely up to the Emperor.

No matter how outstanding one's abilities are, one must be willing to be valued by the emperor in order to have a chance to shine.

These words made Zhu Yunwen feel extremely comfortable.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Gaoxi couldn't help but wonder: Where does the emperor's power come from?

How can we explain the soldiers' heartfelt admiration and recognition of Zhu Youdun?

What does the soldiers' inner desires mean to those in power?

Zhu Yuanzhang did not have a father or grandfather who became emperor. He was able to become emperor entirely because of the loyal and courageous followers of his meritorious officials.

Upon careful consideration, Zhu Gaoxi suddenly realized that Huang Zicheng's concept of power was like a castle in the air, impractical and unrealistic.

At this moment, Zhu Gaoxi was most concerned about whether Xu Miaojin had truly fallen for Zhu Youdun.

As long as Zhu Youdun doesn't try to take Xu Miaojin from him, he will never join forces with Zhu Yunwen to deal with Zhu Youdun.

Such an outstanding person would be a good mentor in the future; it would be a great pity to ruin him.

Zhu Yunwen is now determined to destroy Zhu Youdun.

Just like Zhu Gaoxi seeing a caterpillar, he was both afraid and eager to get rid of it.

If it weren't for Zhu Youdun, Zhu Yunwen would never have known how biased his grandfather could be, or how unfair Heaven was in giving Zhu Youdun such great talent.

If it weren't for Zhu Youdun, Zhu Gaoxi thought Zhu Yunwen could keep up the pretense forever.

If Zhu Youdun hadn't appeared, Zhu Gaoxi wouldn't have realized how flustered and insecure Zhu Yunwen was, like a woman who had lost the battle for favor in the harem, cruel and ruthless without even realizing it.

Zhu Yunwen could clearly sense that his grandfather was making arrangements quietly, but did not want him to know.

He had to try to stay calm and not disappoint his grandfather.

He knew perfectly well that if he lost his composure, his grandfather could replace him.