Chapter 176: The struggle for the court begins again

July of the 31st year of Hongwu.

The third son of the King of Yan came to the capital and mourned and cried in front of Xiaoling Mausoleum to worship Zhu Yuanzhang. His feelings were heartbroken. After the worship, the third son of the King of Yan officially put on the dynasty robes of the county prince and entered the palace to meet the emperor Zhu Yunwen.

Zhu Yunwen was very enthusiastic when summoning the three cousins. Compared with the honest Zhu Gaochi, Zhu Yunwen's performance was simpler. He clearly distinguished family affection and grudges. Although everyone in the world knew that King Yan had a great ambition and seriously threatened the imperial power, Zhu Yunwen did not show any unpleasantness to these three cousins.

In Wenhua Hall, Zhu Yunwen welcomed the three cousins ​​and gave him a banquet. He did not mention political affairs during the banquet, but only discussed family affection. Xiao Fan also followed the imperial edict to accompany him at the last seat.

During the meal, the three of them obeyed Zhu Yunwen and repeatedly said that the King of Yan was ordered by the late emperor to guard the border. The King of Yan was seriously ill in Beiping and still did not dare to slack off. He trained troops every day and waited for an opportunity to attack the remnants of the Yuan Dynasty. He also solemnly said that the King of Yan was absolutely loyal to the emperor and was the emperor. This time, the King of Yan was in a state of tragedy and did not travel far. Despite this, he sent all his sons to the capital to worship the late emperor. This proved that the King of Yan was open-minded and had no other intentions. However, there were rumors in the court that the King of Yan had an indiscriminate heart and was full of loyalty and righteousness, but was misunderstood by the world. Whenever he thought about this, he sighed and felt sad all night long.

When the three of them talked about their emotions, they couldn't help but burst into tears and cried bitterly, as if the King of Yan had suffered a huge grievance and had nowhere to complain.

Zhu Yunwen's eyes turned red as he listened to the three of them complaining and explaining, and even two lines of tears filled with family affection fell.

Xiao Fan remained motionless and watched the three of them perform their acting skills in front of Zhu Yunwen coldly, and couldn't help but sneer in his heart.

It seems that the three of them must have been instructed by Zhu Di. Even the honest Zhu Gaochi had to obey his father's order and pretend to act a play for Zhu Yunwen to show it.

As for Zhu Yunwen... did this guy follow suit and make trouble, or did he believe the nonsense of the three of them? He isn't that idiotic, right?

"I have ascended the throne for only two months. I am young and have little understanding of everything in the court. Fortunately, I have received help from all the emperors. I guard the border of the Ming Dynasty day and night in the bitter and cold barbaric land to protect the country without any loss. Among them, the fourth emperor's uncle, King Yan, worked hard and made great contributions. I really comforted him. Although I am the emperor, I have to rely on the emperor's uncles. I and all the emperor's uncles are descendants of the heavenly family and relatives who are connected with blood. How could I doubt the loyalty of my family? Those who have good troubles in the court and the people spread rumors, saying that I have the intention to reduce the vassals. This is nonsense! I will not leave it to the emperor's uncles to guard the border of the Ming Dynasty. Do I still give it to those foreign generals who are ignorant of the roots? Those who spread rumors want to interfere with the flesh and blood of our heavenly family, and their hearts are very vicious! Xiao Aiqing!" Zhu Yunwen wiped his tears and shouted with gritted teeth.

Xiao Fan was furious and hurriedly stood up and bowed, "I'm here."

Zhu Yunwen's handsome face was covered with a shadow, and his tender face gradually revealed the emperor's majesty.

"I ordered you to send all the Jinyiwei cavalry to visit the court and see who spread rumors that I wanted to cut off the vassals and put him in the imperial prison, and punish him severely!" Zhu Yunwen shouted viciously.

"My memory... obey the order!"

The three brothers Zhu Gaochi looked at each other quickly and found that each other's eyes were full of confusion.

Today, *** is testing the emperor's attitude towards the vassal kings, but the emperor's performance does not seem to be trying to reduce the vassal kings at all. Instead, he is vigorously and firmly supporting the vassal king's policies. This... is different from the statements in the court and the people.

Without thinking too much, the three of them hurriedly knelt down in tears, thanked their father for their kindness, and sweared to heaven that the King of Yan would never dare to have two hearts and wished that the emperor would guard the border Beiping for generations.

Zhu Yunwen was very happy when he heard this. He immediately gave three people the imperial court to walk and rewarded the three brothers with some gold silk.

At the imperial banquet, the guests and hosts all enjoyed each other.

After the banquet, the three of them respectfully knelt respectfully and gave the emperor a banquet, then bowed and left the palace.

Xiao Fan was still sitting in Wenhua Hall. Seeing the three of them withdraw, he gestured to Yuan Zhong, a thousand households of Jinyiwei guards outside the hall. Yuan Zhong nodded slightly, waved his hand and led more than a dozen people to leave the palace.

From now on, the three brothers Zhu Gaochi will be monitored by the secret spies of the Jinyiwei day and night, and will never allow them to leave the capital.

Zhu Yunwen stood outside the hall gate, looking at the backs of the three brothers who were leaving, with tears still on his face, and sighed: "Good man! The King of Yan is so loyal, he is such a good man... I sincerely comfort him. With such a loyal emperor guarding the border for me, that feeling is like a spring breeze blowing through my heart, blooming beautiful flowers..."

Xiao Fan, who was standing beside him, couldn't listen anymore, gently pulled Zhu Yunwen's sleeve and said, "Your Majesty... Your Majesty..."

"...It's like the dry soil that has been drought for a long time, the soil is wet, and I am wet..."

"Your Majesty!...cut! Stop! Let's go!" Xiao Fan said loudly.

Zhu Yunwen finally came back to his senses: "...Huh? What's wrong?"

"Your Majesty, they have gone far away. Please put away this hypocritical expression. It's so creepy!" Xiao Fan said helplessly.

Zhu Yunwen's touched expression disappeared without a trace, and he smiled excitedly: "How is it? Xiao Shidu, how did I act just now?"

Xiao Fan gave a thumbs up: "Strong people, absolute standard for actors!"

Zhu Yunwen blinked his eyes sly and said with a smile: "Stop talking about you, I almost believed it myself just now, haha..."

Xiao Fan hesitated: "Your Majesty,...you shouldn't really believe what those three people said, right?"

Zhu Yunwen curled his lips: "I believe it! I'm fooling me! There is no war on the border. Within a year, the Beiping Prefecture has expanded to 150,000 troops for no reason, but without the consent of the court, the wolf's ambition is obvious, and he is still embarrassed to say that he has no other intentions! Humph! Can I bully me when I am young?"

Xiao Fan said seriously: "Your Majesty, in order to block the people of the world, the King of Yan had to send his three sons to the capital to mourn. The prince of Yan was in the capital. These three people must not let them go back. They must hold them in their hands. The King of Yan would be more cautious and dare not act rashly in a short period of time. This also left more preparation time for the court."

Zhu Yunwen nodded in agreement, then hesitated again: "But... Mr. Huang and his ministers would not agree. Xiao Shilu, you know, Mr. Huang has always taught me to be a dignified king. If you have a righteous heart, you will do the right way. If you do it correctly, you will follow the world. In this way, you will be done by a wise king. If you seize the son of the King of Yan, you may..."

Xiao Fan frowned: "Your Majesty, you are the Emperor of Ming Dynasty. You should have the final say in the world! If those three people are allowed to return to Peking, the King of Yan will no longer be afraid. How serious the consequences are, you should know better than me..."

Zhu Yunwen stuttered a few times and said quietly: "Although I am the emperor, Mr. Huang is the imperial teacher. There are so many ministers in the court who follow their orders. If I insist on doing it alone, the court will oppose it. Now that I have just ascended the throne, there are vassal kings outside who are looking at Dandan, and their status is still unstable. How can I have a quarrel with the ministers?"

Xiao Fan was stunned for a while, then sighed with a bleak look.

Zhu Yunwen said guiltily: "Xiao Shilu... The world is so big, the emperor cannot manage it alone. He also needs the help of civil and military officials in the court. Sometimes, the emperor is involuntarily in his actions. Being an emperor is not as glorious as outsiders, and the emperor has to compromise with his ministers..."

Xiao Fan looked at him and said deeply: "It seems that the emperor also has something worthy of sympathy..."

Zhu Yunwen sighed helplessly: "Yes, since ancient times, the emperor has been called a lonely man, and it is not unreasonable..."

Xiao Fan smiled relievedly and said, "Forget it, leave this matter to the court and discuss it..."

Zhu Yunwen nodded helplessly.

So Xiao Fan bowed and said, and when he walked to the gate of the hall, Xiao Fan suddenly remembered something and turned around and said, "Your Majesty..."

"What's wrong?"

Xiao Fan said with a confused look on his face: "If the emperor is a man, should the three thousand beauties in the harem be called a widow?"

Zhu Yunwen was silent and wiped his sweat: "…………”

The next day, there was a quarrel in Wenhua Palace.

Huang Zicheng, Huang Guan, Bao Zhao, Xiao Fan, Ru Wei, Qi Tai and other ministers in the court who were aware of the reduction of the vassals gathered in Wenhua Hall.

Zhu Yunwen just tried to start and revealed his idea of ​​leaving the three sons of King Yan in the capital, but was fiercely opposed by Huang Zicheng, Huang Guan and others in the Qingliu faction.

"The Master said: 'If you do not have the virtue, the ultimate truth will not be consolidated!', a gentleman should be respected with virtue. The wise king will become more and more arrogant. The King of Yan is inappropriate and has hidden evil intentions. This is a despicable minister! Your Majesty must attack him and have a good attitude. Now, if you use the emperor's respect to him and privately detain the son of the King of Yan, such a humble trick will be what the wise king does? I will never agree with it!" Huang Zicheng said fiercely.

Huang Guan stood up and agreed, "If Your Majesty seizes the son of King Yan, this move has lost its morality, and it also provides the King of Yan with a legitimate excuse for rebellion. Your Majesty's move is actually a despicable act. What is the difference between the King of Yan who wants to usurp the throne? Both sides are unrighteous. If there is a war in the future, what will the people in the world follow? I think this move is absolutely impossible!"

Zhu Yunwen was so angry that he was overwhelmed by the two of them. They were important officials in the court, and Huang Zicheng was still his imperial teacher. Zhu Yunwen was full of anger and looked a little unpleasant.

"Two Mr. Huang, this is a bad statement!" Xiao Fan could no longer help but step forward and refuted: "Dharmony? What is morality? Saving one person's life is a small righteousness. Saving the lives of thousands of living beings is a great righteousness. Detaining the son of the King of Yan may not be very authentic, but this move is likely to eliminate a war that affects tens of thousands of people. I dare to ask the two Mr. Huang, how do you choose to save three people or tens of millions of people?"

Huang Zicheng looked ashen, took a step forward, staring at Xiao Fan and said gloomyly: "Ignorance child! Do you think the detention of the son of the King of Yan can eliminate his desire for rebellion? It's simply a delusion! The King of Yan is a tiger and wolf. This person is a hero in the world and has a long history of disagreement. How could he give up the rebellion just because his son fell into the hands of the court? If you detain them, the result will only be to force him to break with the court. At that time, everyone in the world knew that the court was unrighteous, and the King of Yan had to rebel. At that time, the people were reluctant to do so, and the court lost its power and had few supporters. Xiao Fan, can you bear such consequences?"

Xiao Fan said tit-for-tat: "These three sons of the King of Yan are all trapped in the capital. The court only needs to declare to the outside world that the three princes voluntarily stay in the capital to guard the tombs for the last emperor for three years. Will the King of Yan dare to object? Do he dare to say half of the word? The King of Yan has no heirs, and all three sons are in the hands of the court. So what if the heroes in the world are? Would he not have any scruples?"

Huang Zicheng said angrily: "A hero is a heartless and righteous person! How could he be concerned about his son's life?"

Xiao Fan was so angry that he stamped his feet: "Why are you not caring about it? Your son was kidnapped, are you not in a hurry?"

Everyone in the hall gasped: "Hiss--"

Zhu Yunwen said with a strange expression: "Tie...Kidnap?"

Huang Zicheng's face twitched rapidly, and his face became bluer and bluer: "Xiao Fan, you guys! What do you think of the court as? Do you have a bandit who occupy the mountain and become the king? Do you have the ruler and father in your eyes?"

Xiao Fan knew that he had made a mistake and hurriedly said, "Sorry, I said the wrong thing. Let me put it another way. If your son is taken down by someone, will you be scruples? Especially when all your descendants are controlled by the court, if you are the King of Yan and your son is in the hands of the enemy, even if you succeed in rebellion, who will you pass the throne to the future?"

Zhu Yunwen glanced at Huang Zicheng's face and said, "Mr. Huang, I think Xiao Aiqing's words are not without reason..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Huang Zicheng knelt down with a pounce, and the turbid tears flowed out. He choked and said, "Your Majesty! This is absolutely not allowed! The King of Yan sent his son to the capital to block the mouths of the world and to show the world a clear and upright look. If the court detained the son of the King of Yan, he would definitely trap the court in an unjust place. If the king was unjust, who would be willing to follow? The two countries had not yet been killed, let alone the brothers of flesh and blood connected by Your Majesty? The old minister advised him and asked His Majesty to take back the order and let the three princes return to Peking. If Your Majesty refused to agree, the old minister... The old minister would be killed under the jade stairs today, so as to avoid the future history books to leave an eternal infamy to the old minister..."

Xiao Fan kindly reminded: "Mr. Huang, the erotic photos of you and the fairy girl have been recorded in the history books. Even if you hit me and die, I'm afraid you won't be clean..."

"Shut up! Traitor! Misfortune the country and the king, and the disasters in the court are all caused by you!"

Immediately afterwards, Huang Guan, Bao Zhao and others all knelt down and said, "I will discuss what Lord Huang said..."

Seeing that half of the ministers knelt down to object, Zhu Yunwen couldn't help but feel helpless and said, "Mr. Huang, I think... Xiao Aiqing's words are not wrong. Is it..."

Huang Zicheng interrupted roughly: "Your Majesty is still young, how can you tell the truth clearly? Is it the only one who is the hundreds of civil and military ministers in the court who are knowledgeable? What he said is right. Are we, those of us who have read the books of sages for decades wrong?"

Zhu Yunwen frowned. For the first time in his life, he had a disgust towards the imperial teacher who had taught him since he was a child. This disgust came from Huang Zicheng's disrespect for imperial power and his decadent and rigid and old-fashioned nature.

Taking a deep breath, Zhu Yunwen endured his unhappiness and looked at Xiao Fan helplessly.

Xiao Fan's face became ugly. He never knew that a minister would dare to act so strongly in front of the emperor. What did he rely on? It was nothing more than the identity of the emperor's teacher, and he had taught the emperor's academic performance. If Zhu Yuanzhang was replaced, would Huang Zicheng dare to speak so loudly? Do you dare to contradict the emperor so rudely?

Xiao Fan raised his eyes and happened to face Zhu Yunwen's eyes. He saw helplessness and anger in Zhu Yunwen's eyes.

Xiao Fan was also very angry. Without saying a word, he turned his head and walked out of the hall.

Zhu Yunwen was anxious: "Xiao Aiqing, where are you going?"

Xiao Fan said without looking back: "Go home to accompany your wife! A bunch of stubborn old bastards, I have no interest in kowtowing them!"

When the sound comes, the person is far away.

The hall was silent for a moment, and then it was furious.

"It's too much! Who is that guy calling that bastard? He is the bastard! The emperor's number one big bastard!"

"So arrogant and domineering, and he looks like a powerful minister!"

“…………”

“…………”

Zhu Yunwen looked at the indignant ministers, and somehow suddenly felt a sense of irritability in his heart.

"Shut up!" Zhu Yunwen shouted angrily.

When the ministers saw that Zhu Yunwen, who had always been gentle and elegant, they all got stunned.

Zhu Yunwen looked at Huang Zicheng's angry face, his eyes turned around, and suddenly smiled at Huang Zicheng kindly: "Mr. Huang, I have an important task. I have never found a suitable candidate. I wonder if Mr.
To be continued...