Chapter 118 Empress Dowager Zhou: Have I been speaking a bit too loudly lately?

When the news of Wan Gui’s sudden death reached the inner palace, there was not the slightest ripple on Lady Wan’s face.

The word "father" had lost all meaning to her after she was sent into the palace at the age of four; his features had long since been wiped clean from her memory. She did not care at all—let him die or live, it made no difference.

She wore a look of slight worry. "Will the little prince be brainwashed?"

"Don't you worry, Auntie Wan." Little Zhu Jianshen chuckled, covering the eyes of the Chenghua Emperor with one hand. The little boy refused to let him look at Wan Zhen'er.

The Chenghua Emperor, Zhu Jianshen, felt utterly helpless, silently grumbling to himself: Was I this greedy when I was a child, always with one eye on the bowl and the other on the pot?

He said irritably, "You brat, watch yourself. The brainwashing skills of that group are beyond your imagination. Back in the day, the Jianwen Emperor was so confused by them that he couldn't even find north."

"Hee hee."

Little Zhu Jianshen just smiled without saying a word. If he didn't manage to swindle them out of their very underwear, it would only be because they weren't wearing any to begin with.

In the small world:

"The Jianwen Emperor?"

The two Zhu Dis coughed with a sense of self-satisfaction.

"What?" Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at them, huffing, "You little brat rebelled, and you expect me to give you an award?"

"How could I dare, Father? I was just wondering if you could look back and write me an imperial decree of succession in your own hand." The elder Zhu Di quickly piled on the smiles, pushing his luck.

"You're rebelling against me now!" Zhu Yuanzhang glared, scolding him fiercely.

"How would your son dare!" The elder Zhu Di replied cheerfully. After spending so much time with his old man, he had become somewhat immune to his temper.

*Cough!*

"It's not impossible." Zhu Yuanzhang gave a light cough, calmly extending two fingers, and muttered indistinctly, "It’s going to cost you."

"Two million taels of silver? No problem at all, Father! As soon as your son returns, I'll have it prepared for you!" The elder Zhu Di was giddy with excitement.

"Father, I want one too!" Zhu the Fourth was incredibly excited. With something like this, when passed down to later generations and compared against others, ho! A genuine relic from the Taizu Emperor! Who would dare to fart about his legitimacy again?

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded calmly. He actually didn't want to do it, but the Fourth gave too much. The Old Zhu had only asked for two million Ming silver coins, but the Fourth had offered two million taels of silver—enough to mint eighteen million Ming silver coins. Even then, the Old Zhu was secretly grumbling: *Did I ask for too little?*

The Hongxi Emperor, the "Big Fatty," and the Xuande Emperor, Zhu Zhanji, stood with their hands tucked away, the father and son pair chuckling incessantly. *Heh, without spending a cent, the legitimacy is secured!*

The two men's lewd laughter successfully caught the attention of the elder Zhu Di.

The elder Zhu Di said coolly, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, later on, reimburse this expense. Hongxi, Xuande, you two will each cough up 2.5 million taels."

"???" *How are you turning a profit on this?*

The Big Fatty Hongxi wore a bitter face. "I have no money, Father!"

"I have no money either, Grandfather!" The Xuande Emperor, Zhu Zhanji, was on the verge of tears; he had just sent Zheng He off on another voyage, and the principal capital hadn't even returned yet.

"That's none of my concern, Grandfather," the elder Zhu Di said with a shrug, acting like a rogue.

"Quiet! You're ruining our view of the palace examination!" Zhu Yuanzhang scolded impatiently. The emperors fell silent in an instant.

...

In the Chenghua era.

The sky had not yet brightened. The civil officials yawned, standing numbly in the morning office, waiting for five o'clock in the morning to stand at the Fengtian Gate for a glimpse of the Emperor. They went through all this daily effort for just a fleeting moment.

In the Renshou Palace, Empress Dowager Zhou sat with a touch of arrogance, waiting quietly for the prince to be brought to her.

Before long, a young eunuch, looking dazed, murmured, "Reporting to the Empress Dowager, His Majesty has arrived with the prince."

"What is the matter with you? You look as if you didn't sleep well last night," the Empress Dowager Zhou said, frowning and lecturing him with dissatisfaction.

The young eunuch's lips moved, but he couldn't utter a word, his face full of bewilderment.

At this moment, "Mother," the Chenghua Emperor, Zhu Jianshen, walked into the bedchamber with the "little Zhu Youtang," calling out softly.

"Eh?" The Empress Dowager Zhou blinked, rubbing her forehead with deep confusion. "Why am I seeing things? Did I not sleep well last night?"

"Grandmother!" Little Zhu Jianshen rushed over and looked up, calling out sweetly.

"Eh, eh? This child... the change is... *cough*, he truly looks like the Emperor," the Empress Dowager Zhou stammered in a flurry.

"Well, I am off to court then." The Chenghua Emperor, Zhu Jianshen, exchanged a look with the little Zhu Jianshen. Just like the morning court, he retreated immediately upon seeing his mother. There was little affection between mother and son.

Empress Dowager Zhou was busy fussing over the little Zhu Jianshen in surprise, muttering to herself, "You child, how have you changed so much? You look exactly like the Emperor did when he was young."

*Heh, how could I not?* The recipe was the same. Little Zhu Jianshen made a mental jab and said earnestly, "Father said that from now on, I must listen to you."

"Really?" The Empress Dowager Zhou was half-incredulous; her son rarely spoke a few sentences to her all year round.

"Really, really! Father has a stutter, so he doesn't like to talk much in front of you, afraid that you would blame yourself," little Zhu Jianshen nodded firmly.

The Empress Dowager Zhou's body trembled; a flicker of maternal love was stirred within her. She said rather unnaturally, "You child, you just talk nonsense."

"Children shouldn't lie!" little Zhu Jianshen insisted with a serious expression, looking innocent and cute.

The Empress Dowager Zhou smiled but said nothing.

"Grandmother doesn't believe me!"

"I believe you, I believe you. I am the Empress Dowager, you should call me Imperial Grandmother." The Empress Dowager Zhou helplessly patted his little head.

"Ah, Grand... is the Imperial Grandmother the same as the Empress Dowager?"

"Hmm?" The Empress Dowager Zhou asked, confused, "Why do you say that?"

Little Zhu Jianshen leaned against her lap, nuzzling affectionately, and whispered, "I also heard a grand official in red robes speaking ill of the Empress Dowager."

*Red robes?* A Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Pavilion?

Empress Dowager Zhou's face stiffened. She said softly, "Good grandson, tell Grandmother, where did this official in red robes say that?"

"When Father took me to the Wenyuan Pavilion, while he went to the latrine, I heard the official in red robes say he wanted to poison the Empress Dowager," little Zhu Jianshen said with a solemn air.

Empress Dowager Zhou's face tightened. She looked at him with a scrutinizing gaze and said calmly, "My good grandson knows so much, telling Grandmother everything."

"Father lied! It was Father who said I should talk to Grandmother more!" Little Zhu Jianshen pouted and went to the corner to draw circles.

*Huh?* A somewhat disheveled Empress Dowager Zhou began to doubt herself. *Children shouldn't lie, right? But why? Where did I offend them? I might have spoken a bit loudly recently, but surely not enough to be poisoned!*

In the small world:

"Look, everyone look! The fish has taken the bait!" the Yongle Emperor, the "Big Fatty," commented with great interest.

Zhu Yuanzhang leaned back on his dragon throne, occasionally popping a piece of popcorn into his mouth, watching with rapt attention. The other Ming emperors and heirs pointed and critiqued, chatting from the situation in the Chenghua harem to the court and the border.

Only Zhu Youjian was miserably "editing" the video, trying hard to keep his ancestors entertained.

"Vile woman! I want to cut her down!" Every time the screen cut to Lady Zhou, the "Fortress Emperor" would shout indignantly.

(Please use your "love" to power this and keep it alive...)