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

Chapter 117 The Crown Prince's New Accomplice

Youdun returned from the Qianqing Palace and went to the backyard to find Zhu Gaoxi.

"Princess Jiangdu is crying and sobbing. The Crown Prince said it was because of you. He went to complain to his grandfather, saying that you are arrogant and have bad manners. Grandfather asked me to persuade you," Youdun walked to Zhu Gaoxi's side, bent down to examine the newly produced charcoal pencils, "Princess Jiangdu is also helpless. For the sake of the Geng family's future, just ignore them and there is no need to get so angry."

"It's a trap they set," Zhu Gaoxi sighed, taking out two sharpened charcoal pencils. "Brother, try them out. Aren't they easier to use than the previous ones?"

Youdun took the pen and wrote a few words on the blank paper: "It is indeed much stronger and not easy to break."

"The idea is to resolve the hidden dangers once and for all. Although it's a bit risky, it should be effective. No one will pretend to be clever and come to advise us anymore. Otherwise, we don't know how many people we would offend. The connections of the Lü family in the harem are not to be underestimated," Zhu Gaoxi explained to Youdun.

"I understand what you're thinking. I've already told Grandpa it was a misunderstanding. There really aren't any sweet potatoes left in the garden. It's not that we didn't want to give them to Princess Jiangdu. When Grandpa asked her if that was the case, she cried and kept nodding without saying anything else," Youdun said with a smile.

Zhu Gaoxi was deeply moved and said self-deprecatingly, "I only got angry because I knew she wouldn't hurt me. I wouldn't dare to do that to anyone else."

After delivering the newly made charcoal pencils to the Qianqing Palace, where the old emperor praised them highly, Zhu Gaoxi returned to the vegetable garden to begin planning the cotton cloth business and looked up relevant information about water-powered spinning wheels.

The following morning, Prince Zhu Su and his second son Zhu Youxun arrived in the capital.

Zhu Gaoxi specially asked the old emperor for leave and went to greet him with Youdun. Unexpectedly, the imperial grandson Zhu Yunwen arrived even earlier than them.

Something unusual must be going on. Zhu Gaoxi and Zhu Youdun exchanged glances, both completely baffled and unable to figure out what was going on.

Did Zhu Yunwen want to win over the Prince of Zhou?

When a young man of similar age and appearance to Prince Zhu Su appeared with Prince Zhou, Zhu Gaoxi instantly realized that the Crown Prince wanted to take in someone else.

"That's my second brother," You Dun whispered in Zhu Gaoxi's ear.

Zhu Gaoxi nodded thoughtfully. He remembered clearly that Zhu Su's second son, Zhu Youxun, had accused his biological father of treason to Emperor Jianwen in order to seize the right to inherit the throne.

Just when Emperor Jianwen was looking for an excuse to take action against Prince Zhou, Zhu Youxun conveniently handed him the knife. Emperor Jianwen immediately dispatched Li Jinglong to lead troops to Henan under the pretext of border defense. When they passed through Kaifeng, they suddenly surrounded Prince Zhou's residence and escorted Zhu Su's wives, concubines, and other sons to the capital.

After Zhu Di ascended the throne, he enfeoffed Zhu Youxun as the Prince of Runan, with his fief in Dali, Yunnan.

Zhu Youxun's first attempt to seize the position of heir apparent failed, but he was not resigned to his fate. After Emperor Xuanzong of Ming, Zhu Qizhen, ascended the throne, Zhu Youxun repeatedly submitted memorials to frame Zhu Youxun.

Perhaps the Crown Prince had long intended to win over Zhu Youxun in order to suppress Youdun, Zhu Gaoxi secretly guessed in his heart. He greeted his fifth uncle with a smile and called Zhu Youxun "brother" in a sickeningly sweet voice.

Facing the child prodigy Zhu Gaoxi, who was highly regarded by his grandfather, Zhu Youxun, even though he was unhappy, did not dare to show it too obviously. He forced a smile and responded, then went straight to the Crown Prince.

Just as Zhu Youxun was about to bow, the Crown Prince reached out with a beaming smile to help him up. The two exchanged a smile, looking just like longtime friends who hadn't seen each other in ages.

These two are in cahoots, and who knows how many bad things they're going to do? Zhu Gaoxi gave Youdun a worried look that said, "Be careful."

Judging from his stewing expression, it seemed as if he already knew exactly what was going on.

Zhu Gaoxi thought about it again and realized that it made sense. Even if his younger brother was well concealed, his desire to compete for the throne would inevitably leave some clues. How could You Dun not have noticed?

The Prince of Zhou and his son entered the palace to pay their respects to the old emperor. Zhu Gaoxi was dragged back to the Prince of Wu's residence by his adoptive father. The incident happened suddenly, so he had to call Youdun for help.

The old emperor's decree cannot be revealed privately, but if we know the truth and don't report it, it will undoubtedly greatly reduce our credibility in front of our cheap father. We are caught in a dilemma. The best course of action is to run away. We should slip away if we can, and hope that some stewed breakfast will come to our rescue.

Zhu Gaoxi was taken directly to a secret room by his adoptive father. Following him into the secret room were a familiar-looking young general and a tall, thin eunuch.

"Xi'er, this is General Chen Xuan. Among the naval commanders, he is the rising star that your grandfather values ​​most," the father said with high praise.

Zhu Gaoxi suddenly remembered that Chen Xuan had accompanied Youdun to train the fleet in the near sea. He had met Chen Xuan once when he saw Youdun off with the old emperor, but he was too young at the time and had gradually forgotten about him.

Historically, in the fourth year of the Jianwen reign, Zhu Yunwen promoted Chen Xuan to the position of Vice Commander-in-Chief of the Right Army Commandery and entrusted him with the responsibility of guarding the capital's river defenses.

When the Yan army reached Pukou, Zhu Di was at a loss facing the natural barrier of the Yangtze River. Just when he was desperate for boats, Chen Xuan took the initiative to surrender, relieving his immediate crisis.

After Zhu Di ascended the throne, he was grateful for Chen Xuan's contributions and enfeoffed him as the Earl of Pingjiang, and appointed him as the Commander-in-Chief, in charge of maritime transport.

Chen Xuan played a key role in the Jingnan Campaign, and Zhu Gaoxi was deeply impressed by him.

The Yan army's greatest advantage lay in its battle-hardened elite cavalry, while it was at a natural disadvantage in naval warfare. Without Chen Xuan's voluntary surrender, Zhu Di might not have won so easily.

"This is Wang Jinghong," Zhu Di's voice rang out again, pulling Zhu Gaoxi's thoughts back to reality. "Jinghong is training with ten eunuchs under General Chen Xuan's command. If you go south on business in the future, you will most likely be escorted by General Chen, and Jinghong and the other ten will provide close protection."

"My cheap dad is so good. He's thought of everything for me." Zhu Gaoxi almost burst into tears on the spot. He nodded with moist eyes, indicating that he had kept everything in mind.

But the more this happened, the more Zhu Gaoxi wanted to escape. He was worried that under the emotional pressure from his adoptive father, he might accidentally let something slip.

There's stew, where are you? Show yourself quickly!

Zhu Gaoxi waited anxiously.

After Chen Xuan left, seeing that the Prince of Yan had something to say to his son, Wang Jinghong also sensibly withdrew.

Zhu Gaoxi's adoptive father enthusiastically sent someone to summon Zhang Wu and Tan Yuan. Zhu Gaoxi listened absentmindedly to his adoptive father's instructions, inwardly groaning and wishing he could escape as soon as possible.

Just as Zhu Gaoxi was getting impatient, Youdun finally appeared in a hurry, falsely claiming that the old emperor wanted to see the Prince of Wu.

Finally, her savior arrived. Zhu Gaoxi quickly took her leave, her reluctant and apologetic eyes deeply moving him. Zhu Gaoxi ultimately escaped successfully thanks to her superb acting skills.

Once seated in the carriage, Zhu Gaoxi silently said "Thank you" to Youdun.

Seeing his younger brother's comical embarrassment, Zhu Youdun couldn't help but chuckle.

If Father had the formidable fighting prowess of Fourth Uncle, perhaps he too could have tried to contend for the throne.

Looking at his younger brother, who was surrounded by his father's love and lived a life of luxury, Zhu Youdun couldn't help but feel envious and lost.

However, there's nothing wrong with helping your younger brother. Youdun held the chubby little hand that reached out to him tightly and smiled with relief.