Chapter 117: The Ming Dynasty’s Grand Palace-Intrigue Succession Drama Premieres!

So, the collusion between the inner court and the outside world during the Chenghua era has reached such a severe state.

"This..."

Emperor Chenghua, Zhu Jianshen, wore a complex expression. He stroked the head of the young Zhu Jianshen, not knowing what to say. He could not deny it; although he didn't know the specifics, the facts spoke for themselves—otherwise, there was no other logical explanation.

Zhu Youjian remained silent. He had his own agenda. Everything he said and did, while appearing unrelated on the surface, was actually part of executing his main objective: to build sixteen peak eras for the Great Ming!

The pattern of Ming emperors dying unexpectedly had started with the "Fortress Emperor" (Zhu Qizhen). The standard process involved the Cabinet sending women into the palace; if one could be crowned Empress, that was ideal, but if not, a consort position would suffice. If the Empress was not a puppet of the Cabinet, she would be unable to bear a son, or if she did, the child would die. Conversely, if a Cabinet-backed woman bore a son, she could rise to the rank of Empress through her child.

Classic examples include Sun and Hu Shanxiang; Hu could not bear a son because she was not a Cabinet ally. Empress Qian remained childless for the same reason. Consort Wan was even more extreme—any son she bore was destined to die unexpectedly, such as the prince Zhu Youji, who died at age three. If the Emperor was stubborn, like the Fortress Emperor, and refused to elevate them, the Cabinet had another way: just designate an heir. Once a Crown Prince was named, the Emperor could be sent to his grave.

The most tragic of all was perhaps Emperor Wuzong, Zhu Houzhao. He had no sons precisely because the women in his inner court were strictly vetted, and there were simply no Cabinet lackeys among them.

Why did the Han Dynasty perish solely due to its strength? It was because of an unwritten rule: upon an emperor's ascension, his mother must die. Therefore, to build the sixteen peak dynasties, after the era of the English Emperor (Zhu Qizhen), those emperors who had mothers would first have to sacrifice them to the heavens to attain true omnipotence. Just killing the father was not enough.

Seeing all the ancestors and predecessors casting their eyes toward him, Emperor Chenghua lowered his head and whispered, "I will obey everything the Founding Emperor says."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and snorted coldly, "Grandson, give them a show!"

"You got it!"

Zhu Youjian couldn't do a backflip, but he was full of wicked ideas. With a bright smile, he said, "Release the news about young Prince Jianshen, and let the Empress Dowager fight for the succession..."

"Young Prince Jianshen?"

The various emperors and crown princes turned their gazes to the sulking young Zhu Jianshen.

"What? What's going on?" The young Zhu Jianshen blinked, still busy monitoring whether the older Zhu Jianshen was checking out his "Auntie Wan."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded repeatedly; it was confirmed, this kid was a troublemaker. He turned and said sternly, "Boy Jianshen, did you hear that!?"

"I shall go handle it at once."

Emperor Chenghua nodded. He gave a few instructions to Consort Wan, and the moment he turned to carry the young Zhu Jianshen, his gaze lingered for a moment on the timid Wan Zhen'er standing nearby.

"Why are you still peeking!" The young Zhu Jianshen was furious and covered his eyes.

*This child! Why does he always have to make things difficult for me!*

Emperor Chenghua pushed his hands away, took another look, and surrendered helplessly: "Fine, fine, fine... Father won't look anymore!"

Wan Zhen'er blushed and quietly moved to Consort Wan's side.

"I'm so annoyed!" Even from a distance, the sounds of the young Zhu Jianshen’s indignation could be heard.

"Grandson, shall we go watch that, what was it, the 'palace exam'?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked, uncertain.

Zhu Laosi (Zhu Di) leaned in and asked, "Where to, Father? We are all together at this moment. Who is taking the palace exam? That kid Qiyu from the Zhengtong era?"

*Hiss!* That thing was called a television!

Zhu Youjian scratched his head, leaving the two Wan Zhen'ers in the Zhaode Palace to whisper. He brought the ancestors back to the small world and, using the anchor point on young Zhu Jianshen, projected a large light screen from his perspective.

*Tsk tsk!* Zhu Yuanzhang was instantly mesmerized, continuously praising the miracle. Old Zhu Di and Zhu Laosi were the same; the group of burly Ming emperors huddled together, immersed in watching a palace drama.

In the back, the "Fatty" Yongle Emperor tucked his hands into his sleeves and muttered, "Don't shake the camera, kid, it's making me dizzy."

"That's 3D motion sickness, Your Majesty." Hearing this, Zhu Youjian thoughtfully switched to a panoramic, god's-eye view.

Every time a new space-time was opened, the small world would evolve. Now, they had the space of the Chongzhen and Hongwu eras, the illusory items of the Jianwen era, and since the Yongle and Hongxi eras, they could manifest food. They could turn food into real, edible delicacies, provided the small world first consumed a large quantity of raw materials. After the Xuande and Zhengtong eras, the small world gained the ability to regulate the flow of time. After the Jingtai, Tianshun, and Chenghua eras, it could even regulate the flow of a specific time-space.

For instance, the emperors could now watch several months of development in the Chenghua era within just a few hours.

...

In the Renshou Palace, Empress Dowager Zhou looked elegant and noble. She held the edge of her cup, took a sip of white fungus and lotus seed soup, and asked calmly, "I heard the prince the Emperor found was sent to the Zhaode Palace?"

"Reporting to the Empress Dowager, this servant clearly saw the Emperor holding the prince, followed by the prince's young attendant, enter Zhaode Palace," a eunuch replied respectfully.

"Has word reached the outside?" Empress Dowager Zhou's tone remained unhurried.

"Yes." The young eunuch was tense and nodded slightly.

Emperor Chenghua's policy was to "settle internal affairs before resisting external threats." He was harsh on collusion between the inner and outer courts; being caught meant certain death. Although Empress Dowager Zhou was reckless, the eunuchs were very sensitive to this.

"I see. You may withdraw." Empress Dowager Zhou waved her hand. The eunuch retreated respectfully.

Not long after, Empress Wang entered, bowed, and called out respectfully, "Mother."

"Hmm. Do not be anxious. It was unexpected that the prince fell into the hands of that Wan woman, but if she has the ability to seize him, she must also have the ability to keep him," Empress Dowager Zhou sneered.

Empress Wang let out a sigh of relief, "Mother is right."

Under the intentional manipulation of Zhu Jianshen, the news of the imperial heir spread quickly throughout the court and the country.

Three days later, Cabinet Grand Secretary Shang Lu submitted a memorial to the Directorate of Ceremonial, which was then forwarded to Emperor Chenghua.

"The Ji family misses the prince and wants him to be closer?"

"Shang Lu, a Cabinet minister, doesn't study state affairs but spends his days staring at my family business. It seems the collusion between the inner and outer courts is more than just serious!" Emperor Chenghua sneered and crushed the memorial.

What Shang Lu did was wrong, but his reasoning was sound. Since ancient times, the royal family has ruled the world through benevolence and filial piety. Keeping the prince with Consort Wan and preventing mother and son from meeting was indeed indefensible. But if the child were to be moved closer, he would have to leave Zhaode Palace. This was a naked attempt to force Consort Wan to give up custody of the prince.

"Your Majesty, do not worry, I have already made arrangements," Consort Wan said with a gentle smile.

Emperor Chenghua nodded, and the two looked back at the young Zhu Jianshen and Wan Zhen'er. The four of them smiled at each other; who could withstand two "royal flushes"?

That evening, the news spread: little Zhu Youtang's biological mother, Lady Ji, had died suddenly.

The news traveled fast.

"Fine, fine, that's how you want to play?" Shang Lu’s face darkened. The Cabinet was never afraid of playing dirty!

Two days later, Consort Wan’s father, Wan Gui, died suddenly for no reason!

According to palace rules, a consort whose family member had died was not permitted to raise an imperial prince. "Little Zhu Youtang" was taken by Empress Dowager Zhou to the Renshou Palace. A grandmother raising her grandson was only natural; no one could say anything.

The moment the scene shifted to Empress Dowager Zhou, inside the small world:

"Poisonous woman! This poisonous woman! Get my sword! Get my sword! I want to kill her!"

Zhu Qizhen roared like thunder, his anger soaring to the heavens. It took two fathers and two grandfather "fatties" working together to barely hold him down. Especially after learning that Empress Qian had died in the fourth year of Chenghua at the age of forty-two, the "Fortress Emperor" was heartbroken.

"That old hag Zhou lived to be seventy-four and didn't die until the seventeenth year of the Hongzhi era. Why did my Empress Qian have to go so early?"

In his rage, Zhu Qizhen grabbed the young Zhu Youtang, placed him on his lap, and began spanking him wildly, cursing, "You little brat, you actually buried this poisonous woman with me? You won't even let me rest in peace after I die!"

Young Zhu Youtang wailed. The other emperors and crown princes said nothing. The child had been beaten by his ancestors so many times; there was no reason an ancestor couldn't beat a descendant.

"He deserves the beating!" Zhu Yuanzhang glanced over but did not intervene. After all, the grandson from the Hongzhi era had already mentioned that the Hongzhi Emperor had no military power, no financial power, and even no power to appoint officials—a total waste. At least the Fortress Emperor was incompetent but still liked to play. This kid, on the other hand, just handed everything over to the Cabinet; if I don't beat you, who should I beat!