Chapter 142: The Conflict Between Civil and Military

At this moment, Zhu Di, who was reading in the Study, saw Zhu Gaoxu push the door open and enter, and immediately placed the book in his hand onto the desk.

"You're back?"

Zhu Gaoxu nodded, then sat down on a chair in the Study with a look of exhaustion.

Seeing his son in this state, Zhu Di frowned slightly and asked with some concern: "You spent the better part of the day tossing about in the Imperial Palace; you must be exhausted. I'll have the servants prepare something good for you."

Zhu Gaoxu did not refuse this, as he had indeed not eaten or drunk much in the Imperial Palace.

Nodding, Zhu Gaoxu stood up and went before his father, then picked up the teacup on his father's desk and drank it dry in one gulp.

Seeing this, Zhu Di did not say much more; he first went out to instruct someone to prepare some good food, then turned back and asked: "What did your Imperial Grandfather say while you were in the palace?"

Zhu Gaoxu first set down the teacup, then said: "Nothing much, mostly just reading memorials for half the day; it wore me out."

As he spoke, he gave Zhu Di a brief account of what had happened in the palace.

Upon hearing that Zhu Yuanzhang had let his son sit on the Dragon Throne, Zhu Di's breathing noticeably hitched.

It looked as if he were dying to ask Zhu Gaoxu what it actually felt like to sit on that Dragon Throne.

Although Zhu Gaoxu noticed that Zhu Di was acting a bit strange, he paid his father no mind.

He finished telling him about his time in the palace directly.

By this time, Zhu Di had also steadied his emotions.

Nodding, Zhu Di said to Zhu Gaoxu: "It seems your Imperial Grandfather truly dotes on you. Being transferred to deal with the envoys at this time is not bad; it keeps you in Jingcheng without letting you get dragged into the fray. The civil officials are becoming increasingly arrogant; with Hu Weiyong dead, his power as Chief Councilor has been divided, and as you predicted, the various ministries have seen their power surge. The vacancies in the newly established offices have basically all been filled by the people of these great clans."

"I fear that from now on, this Jingcheng will be entirely under the control of this bunch of civil officials."

When Zhu Gaoxu heard this, it was clear he had anticipated it long ago.

There was nothing to be done about it; if Zhu Di made even the slightest move now,

Zhu Gaoxu could be certain that without Lao Zhu needing to lift a finger, the civil officials of the Crown Prince Faction would find every possible way to get Zhu Di killed.

Even if they couldn't kill him, they would have to force him back to Yan.

Although Zhu Di was currently staying in Jingcheng by being thick-skinned, and it was said that Lao Zhu had his own reasons for this,

the imperial court was not lacking in clear-headed people, or rather, it was not lacking in imaginary enemies.

For a Feudatory Prince like Zhu Di to stay in the capital every day already seriously affected the status of the Crown Prince, Zhu Biao.

Even if those civil officials weren't thinking for Zhu Biao, they had to consider themselves.

Now, whether through marriage alliances, the scholar-official clans, or other reasons, a host of ministers had already tied themselves to Zhu Biao's war chariot.

Therefore, even without Zhu Biao speaking up, they would have to find a way to uncover Zhu Di's flaws.

At the very least, they would have to find a reason to send him back.

They just hadn't had the chance yet; previously, Hu Weiyong was still keeping things in check, mainly to further his own interests. Now that Hu Weiyong was dead, they would likely make their move once the storm settled down a little.

Therefore, doing nothing at all was better than doing the wrong thing.

But watching helplessly without fighting back was clearly not Zhu Gaoxu's style.

If it were just Zhu Di, given his temperament, he would certainly have endured it, or at the very least, voluntarily returned to Yan to wait for a final opportunity.

While one had to admit that was a method, for Zhu Gaoxu, it could not be called a poor strategy, but it was definitely not the best one.

Thinking this, Zhu Gaoxu said to his father: "Why doesn't Father make a move from the side of the military generals?"

Military generals?

Zhu Di was stunned after hearing this, then heard Zhu Gaoxu say: "Child remembers that many of Grandfather's former subordinates have considerable influence in the court and hold military power, and quite a few of them have a good relationship with you, Father."

Hearing this from Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Di's eyes lit up.

And Zhu Gaoxu took the opportunity to say: "Not to mention others, by seniority, you should call the Marquis of Changxing, Geng Bingwen, 'Uncle.' Furthermore, the Marquis of Changxing previously fought alongside Grandfather in Datong, Shaanxi, and other places, repeatedly establishing military merit. If you were to go visit and chat with him when you have nothing to do, I imagine that would be acceptable."

Zhu Di nodded upon hearing this; Geng Bingwen was the first person he had thought of as well.

But Zhu Gaoxu did not stop there and continued to suggest people to his father: "The Guo family has two marquises; both men have deep ties with Grandfather, and the relationship between the Marquis of Wuding, Guo Ying, and Grandfather is even stronger."

"And among them, the Duke of Cao, Li Wenzhong, currently manages the Chief Military Commission and oversees the empire's troops, while also supervising the Imperial Academy, our Great Ming's highest institution of learning. His power is second only to the current Crown Prince!"

"And his son, Li Jinglong, is likewise extraordinary."

After saying all this, Zhu Gaoxu stopped speaking.

He had already said enough; although Zhu Di had long since begun to look at his son with new eyes, only now did he find him truly astonishing.

This little brat must have planned this out long ago, otherwise how could he explain it so clearly?

He must have been pondering these things whenever he had nothing to do.

How could Zhu Di know that all these people Zhu Gaoxu mentioned were the very ones who had helped him with all their might after he rebelled in his previous life?

It could be said that they were the ones who pushed Zhu Di all the way from Beiping to Nanjing.

It is estimated that without these people, the Zhu Di of the previous life would have struggled even to get out of Beiping.

The most important point is that these people do not get along with the civil officials!

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