Chapter 287: The Emperor’s Change of Heart Is as Sudden as a Weather Shift
From being appointed King of Yan and guarding Beiping, where he fought back several invasions by the Mongols, to enduring years of restraint before rising in arms to quell rebellion and sweep across the land, and then leading three northern expeditions after Qiu Fu’s army was utterly destroyed—Zhu Di’s greatest pride throughout his life was his remarkable military achievements. At this moment, he held his precious sword firmly in hand, its tip gleaming brightly under the sunlight.
After staring at Zhang Yue for a while, he finally lowered his sword and said indifferently, “You truly have boldness—remaining calm even with a blade right before your face. You once told me your martial skills were mediocre. Remember, where there’s a will, there’s a way. If you had put in the effort to train, with such courage as yours, why worry about not improving your skills? Why envy your elder brother?”
Though he was 70% sure the emperor was merely testing him on a whim, Zhang Yue still felt the chilling presence when the sword’s edge passed by, and now he was drenched in sweat. Hearing Zhu Di’s words, he immediately regained his composure, stepping back hastily and bowing in respect.
“Your Majesty, it’s not that I’m reckless. It was simply that I couldn’t move in that instant.”
Although Zhang Yue didn’t say it was fear that froze him in place, he understood that since the emperor demanded obedience, he had no choice but to stay still. This answer satisfied Zhu Di at least. If Zhang Yue had stubbornly claimed he had seen through the sword’s movement or said the emperor was just testing him casually, Zhu Di would have wanted nothing more to do with him and thrown him out immediately.
“Come with me.”
Seeing the emperor toss his sword to a attendant and turn to leave, Zhang Yue breathed a sigh of relief, knowing he had passed the first test for the day. Hearing the command carried by the wind, he quickly stood up and followed Zhu Di. Though he should have followed closely in his position, he kept glancing around.
The Renshou Hall was located in the northeast corner of the Western Palace, surrounded by many willow trees. The distance between the trees was large, and their branches were carefully pruned, creating a sparse yet orderly appearance that couldn’t hide a person. In front of the Renshou Palace gate stood two stone lions, with a blue plaque bordered in gold bearing the characters “Renshou.” Inside, there was a yellow glazed tile screen. The first courtyard didn’t seem luxurious at first, but when he saw several eunuchs bowing as they came out of several rooms, he realized they must be the eunuchs’ living quarters.
The door right in the center of the north side was also a gate covered with yellow glazed tiles. Upon entering, there was a large red sandalwood screen wall. Around the screen wall, a grand main hall came into view, even more magnificent than the cool palace. In the corridors on both sides, guards with plane knives at their waists stood every few steps, staring straight ahead, while eunuchs knelt beneath the corridors. In such a solemn atmosphere, an air of imperial authority permeated the place.
It was not until he stepped into the main hall that the prickling sensation on his back disappeared. The hall was extremely spacious, with a plaque hanging high above the throne in the center. The words on it were not some grand or lofty phrases; there were simply two characters—Wenwu. At first glance, the bold handwriting seemed as if it had been written just recently, exuding an indescribable presence.
When Zhu Di turned around, he happened to see Zhang Yue looking up at the plaque above the throne. Noticing his surprise, Zhu Di raised an eyebrow and then asked meaningfully, “You have copied the calligraphy of the Shen Du and Shen Can brothers, so your skills in calligraphy are quite good. Why, do you think the characters on this plaque are not well written?”
“Your servant has only copied the regular script of the two scholars Shen, and has little knowledge of calligraphy. I wasn’t looking at the characters but rather pondering their meaning,” Zhang Yue said with a deep bow, speaking honestly. “Your servant has also seen the inscriptions in many main halls of residences and has been in the Emperor’s cool palace before, but has never seen such a straightforward inscription. ‘Wenwu’ can refer to the Emperor’s achievements in governance and military affairs, or to the civil and military officials of the state, or even to the concept of ‘balance between tension and relaxation’ as mentioned in The Book of Rites, referring to King Wen and King Wu. Since I couldn’t understand its meaning at first glance, I took a closer look.”
As Zhang Yue had guessed, the weather was unpredictable—alternating between autumn rain and cool spells—so Zhu Di had decided to move out of the cool palace. Although there were many palaces in the Western Palace and he could have chosen anywhere to live, he specifically selected the remote Renshou Palace, planning to move there. This plaque had been written just three days ago. He was always decisive and innovative, even refusing to follow convention on this plaque by simply writing the two characters “Wenwu” plainly. Hearing Zhang Yue say he couldn’t understand its meaning, Zhu Di couldn’t help but smile.
“You’re still so young; there’s much you don’t understand yet!” He strode over to the throne and sat down. Glancing at that isolated seat with no support on any side, he casually said, “But you do seem popular. The Crown Prince has arrived in Nanjing, and somehow he heard about the trouble you caused in Shandong with Du Yishan. He even wrote to me specifically to plead for you, wanting you to serve as his tutor. I replied that you had already gone to Shandong to kill people, and only then did he reluctantly give up.”
Upon learning that Zhu Zhanji was so “loyal and kind,” Zhang Yue was utterly astonished. Although Zhu Zhanji was only two years older than him, he had held the position of Crown Prince since childhood and was later appointed as the Heir Apparent—far more prominent than the Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi. Such a plea, whether for public or personal reasons, was extremely rare. Noticing Zhu Di’s half-smile, he felt the emperor’s intentions were utterly unfathomable. So, he resolved to be bold and knelt down, lifting the hem of his robe.
“Since Your Majesty has mentioned Shandong, I must speak boldly. I first went to Shandong under imperial orders to execute over four hundred White Lotus cultists. On my return, we were attacked, and our soldiers killed dozens more. With those four hundred heads laid bare, most people in Qingzhou Prefecture were intimidated by imperial power. Yet some still dared to attack an imperial envoy, showing how deeply rooted the White Lotus cult was there. If it weren’t for Lord Du’s earlier efforts to destroy several of their hideouts, the situation could have gotten out of control. I implore Your Majesty to consider Lord Du’s selfless efforts…”
“You haven’t even married your teacher’s daughter yet, and you’re already speaking up for him? Have you forgotten what I said before?”
Zhu Di cut Zhang Yue off abruptly. Seeing him lying motionless on the ground, he angrily slammed the table and sneered, “Du Yishan has indeed raised a good student—just as bold as he is, and knows how to exploit loopholes! Right now, Du Yishan is still in the Jinyiwei prison awaiting punishment, yet your family has gone so far as for your grandmother to propose marriage herself and your teacher’s wife to agree immediately. Who are you showing this to? Is it for me? A real man should establish himself first before starting a family—how worthless!”
As he scolded him fiercely, he completely forgot that he too had married Lady Xu at the age of seventeen in the ninth year of the Hongwu era before heading north to govern Beiping. Half of his great achievements were thanks to Lady Xu. After shouting angrily, in his fury, he even threw a inkstone off the table. Only when he saw the inkstone roll about a foot away from Zhang Yue’s left side did his anger subside slightly, and he took a deep breath.
“As the governor of a province, responsible for civil affairs and the people there, one naturally needs a person who takes responsibility. In this regard, Du Yishan has done fairly well, though he is too stubborn. I granted him the authority to report directly to me—why didn’t he do so at a critical moment? Acting first and reporting later… If all high-ranking officials were as straightforward as him, the whole country would be in chaos. I would rather those religious rebels rise up; it would be easy enough to suppress them with an army later. Matters involving princes require caution and discretion, but instead, he simply ordered the military to send troops in to arrest people! Looking at his unchanging cold face, one might think he’s cautious, but in reality, he turns out to be reckless and impulsive!”
After scolding Zhang Yue, he also harshly criticized Du Zhen, who was not even there. Finally, Zhu Di vented his anger. Noticing a stack of jade-paper documents on the left side of the imperial desk, he picked one up and, after reading the words and content, was stunned. Having been busy planning to move here these past few days, he hadn’t realized that the writings by Du Zhen while in prison had already arrived. The handwriting was still the same as when he drafted the edicts—though not as elegant as Shen Du’s, it had its own distinct style.
After reading the neatly copied copies of The Book of Rites, he didn’t look at Zhang Yue and asked loudly, “Who brought anything here today?”
Although the eunuchs serving at the time were outside and dared not enter, they were always observant. As soon as his words faded, someone outside the hall knelt at the threshold and kowtowed, speaking in a loud, clear voice, “Your Majesty, Yuan Fang, the commander of the Jinyiwei, came here as ordered by Your Majesty to transfer confidential documents. He was the only one who brought people today, claiming he was delivering items for the prisoners in the prison according to Your Majesty’s command.”
Zhu Di wasn’t surprised by such coincidence. After his outburst, upon seeing The Book of Rites, Chapter 5: Royal Governance, and Chapter 6: Monthly Commands, he gradually remembered Du Zhen’s merits. Of course, he refused to admit it was because of Zhang Yue’s earlier words. Seeing that the man on the ground was still in the same position, he snorted coldly, “The crown prince even praised you as gentle as jade and flawlessly meticulous. If he saw you just now… Hmph! Go back and copy The Analects neatly again. We’ll discuss the marriage documents after Du Yishan returns!”
Hearing this last sentence, Zhang Yue, who had been waiting until he was dizzy, was overjoyed and quickly agreed respectfully. As he stood to leave, he heard another voice from above.
“This is The Book of Rites written by Du Yishan. Take it back and read it carefully!” Seeing Zhang Yue bow forward, Zhu Di handed him the stack of jade-paper scrolls. Recalling the reports from the Jinyiwei about Zhang Yue’s experiences in Shandong, he softened his tone and said, “Although you are a civil official, the Zhang family has been military for generations; you should also read military books when you have time.”
After saying that, he loudly ordered, “Record it: grant Zhang Yue ten bolts of gold-threaded silk from all regions in the Jiangnan area.”
Even though Zhang Yue was quick-witted, he still found today’s events truly miraculous—first being threatened with a sword, then hearing Zhu Zhanji intercede for him, followed by being scolded mercilessly, and finally not only receiving good news that Du Zhen would be released soon but also being granted ten bolts of gold-threaded silk—Was this what it meant to say that an emperor’s mood could change as suddenly as the weather?