Chapter 420: The Crown Prince Entrusts the Young Princess

Early April in the capital was originally one of the few pleasant seasons of the year. Yet now, wealthy families imposed increasingly strict restrictions on their daughters. These noble ladies could at most gather with their acquaintances from prominent families, and even when going out, they were always accompanied by a group of maids. Since a new batch of scholars had passed the imperial examinations this year, wealthy families with eligible daughters sent people to inquire about their appearance, character, and so on. As a result, both official and unofficial matchmakers were extremely busy, while the fire at the three main palaces became a secondary concern among the people.

Although the salaries in the Ming Dynasty were not high, marrying a scholar guaranteed a title from the emperor. Wouldn’t wearing an imperial crown be better than marrying an ordinary commoner? Thus, though Xiao Wu was no longer an orphan without parents, she had been nagged by the Qiu family these past few days until her head ached. Eventually, she had to make an excuse to escape at Zhu Ning’s invitation. Only once she was in Zhu Ning’s carriage did she sigh in relief.

“I never realized before that Mother could be so persistent… Those scholars are all rigid scholars who have studied the Four Books and Five Classics. If I married one of them, there would be so many rules—I couldn’t stand it! Princess, now I understand your suffering. If this continues, I’ll go crazy. I don’t even want an imperial title. If I must marry, why not marry an ordinary person?”

Zhu Ning lightly tapped Xiao Wu’s forehead with her finger and said with a smile, “You don’t appreciate your good fortune. Having parents like Lord Du and Lady Du is a blessing you’ve earned over many lifetimes! You’re already sixteen, which is quite old. If you don’t marry soon, who will want you? But although those scholars may come from good families, they might not be the right match for you. You deserve better.”

Xiao Wu had initially seemed indifferent, but hearing that she deserved better made her face turn red. She quickly changed the subject, “Princess, don’t keep talking about me… By the way, has Prince Zhou recovered from his illness?”

“He’s still pretending to be sick!” Zhu Ning sighed wearily and casually added, “If he weren’t so ‘ill,’ he would have returned to Kaifeng long ago. With the fire at the three main palaces, no one has time for him. As a result, I have to listen to his nagging every day—just as troublesome as yours. Because of this, I haven’t been to the palace for almost half a month. At least now I don’t have to watch the emperor get angry.”

Nomally, they had agreed to go offer incense, but neither Xiao Wu, who grew up by Dao Yan’s side, nor Zhu Ning, who was raised by King Zhou Zhu Zhuo—someone who believed in everything yet believed in nothing—had any interest in Buddhist temples. Today, they were actually planning to leave the city to visit the Meng family; they just needed an excuse for others. As the carriage moved slowly along Xuanwu Gate Street, Zhu Ning simply lifted the curtain a little, and the two, with similar temperaments, enjoyed a very pleasant conversation.

“Princess, it’s very difficult to get to the West Market!”

Hearing this from the guard, Zhu Ning stopped talking and asked in surprise, “Why can’t we get there normally?”

“Princess, according to passersby, there have been killings at the West Fourth Archway again, so all the roads leading there are blocked!”

“Killings? It’s not the time for executions in autumn…”

She stopped speaking halfway through when she suddenly realized what was going on. Her previously cheerful expression darkened instantly. Death sentences were always carried out after autumn, and aside from serious crimes like treason, there was only one possible reason for executions at this time—there were quite a few people from the King Zhou family stationed in the capital. Since she hadn’t received any news in advance, this must be an imperial order. Sensing Xiao Wu suddenly gripping her hand tightly, she knew the girl was scared. Before ordering them to take a detour, she hesitated for a moment before finally ordering the carriage to stop temporarily and sending a guard to gather information.

Soon, the guard who went to gather information rushed back on horseback, panting as he stepped down from the saddle. “Princess, today’s executions were ordered by the emperor himself. Xiao Yi, an official from the Ministry of Rites, was executed for slander! I heard that Li Shimian, a court reader, and Luo Rujing, a court lecturer, were also imprisoned by the Jinyiwei at the same time. All the government offices are in chaos now!”

Issuing edicts calling for honest advice while executing officials who spoke out frankly!

Although Zhu Ning had vaguely guessed this might be the case, confirming it still made her gasp. After pondering for a long time, she lifted the curtain in front of her and ordered them to head back to the King Zhou family’s residence first. Then she turned to Xiao Wu and said, “Xiao Wu, something serious has happened. Let’s not go to the Meng family and cause trouble. I’ll send someone to take you home later!”

Although she didn’t understand how the murder at Xisi Pailou was related to her, Xiao Wu knew Zhu Ning was right, so she nodded. When they arrived at Prince Zhou’s mansion, Zhu Ning instructed the coachman to take Xiao Wu back. As soon as the carriage disappeared from sight, she heard the sound of hurried horse hooves approaching. Soon after, a group of people stopped in front of the door. The eunuch in charge, in his early thirties, was Hai Shou, the deputy head of the Imperial Horse Supervision Department. He jumped down from his horse in one swift motion and rushed forward to pay his respects.

“Princess, the Emperor has summoned you and Prince Zhou to the palace.” Seeing Zhu Ning’s puzzled expression, Hai Shou quickly explained, “The Emperor issued an edict seeking honest advice. Some ministers reported that Prince Zhou has been in the capital for two months, which is unusual. They implied that he was summoned to the capital with ulterior motives and should be severely punished. Although the Emperor is furious, considering that Prince Zhou is currently outside, rumors may spread. Therefore, the Emperor asks Prince Zhou to stay in the palace temporarily until things calm down, to avoid further trouble.”

Though there seemed to be no flaw in his words, having just heard about the murder at Xisi Pailou and now being summoned to the palace by Hai Shou and his group, Zhu Ning couldn’t help but feel uneasy. She forced a smile and nodded, then hurried inside, straight to Zhu Tu’s bedroom. After briefly explaining the situation, she saw Zhu Tu, who had been bedridden for days, suddenly jump up.

“Someone, get me changed!”

Zhu Ning watched in shock as several palace servants busied themselves changing her father’s clothes. After Zhu Tu was dressed, they brought her brocade robe with embroidered phoenix patterns and a crown with phoenixes. Only then did she realize what was happening. As they helped Zhu Tu out of the room, she couldn’t help but whisper, “Father, you’ve been ill for days. If you go to the palace so quickly, people will accuse you of faking illness. Why not let me go and talk to Hai Shou for now, and you enter the palace later?”

“The Emperor hasn’t punished me for the past incidents. If I go back now, I won’t have an excuse to return the three guards. The matter of faking illness was only known to you, me, and the Emperor. But now that the three main halls have burned down, it’s better to let people criticize me thoroughly this time. I’ll confess my fault in a memorial, and then I’ll be free from worries.”

It was not until she and Zhu Tu got off the elephant carriage at the palace gate and saw the various looks cast at them by passersby that Zhu Ning gradually understood the deeper meaning behind Zhu Tu’s words and actions. Thinking that everyone else said her father was foolish and absurd, she couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. With all of the emperor’s clever, ambitious, and restless brothers having fallen, how could her father otherwise enjoy his fiefdom in Kaifeng so comfortably if he weren’t “foolish and absurd”?

A sedan chair had already been prepared at the Meridian Gate, so Zhu Tu got into it and only got out at the Qianqing Gate. After the guards reported inside, Emperor Zhu Di summoned only Zhu Tu and ordered Zhu Ning to go see the crown princess. At that moment, Zhu Ning felt her mind was completely overwhelmed, so she simply didn’t bring any guards either and, gritting her teeth, headed straight for the Duanjing Hall. However, just after passing the Jiemen, she happened to run into Zhu Zhanji, the crown prince, who was returning from outside.

After they met, upon learning that Zhu Ning had come by imperial order to see his mother, Zhu Zhanji raised an eyebrow. “Aunt Ning has come at an unfortunate time. Mother has gone to pay respects at the shrine of Consort Zhao Shunxian. How about you come and sit with me?”

Seeing Zhu Ning nod, Zhu Zhanji took her straight to the study in the western side hall. After sending Huang Run to guard outside, he spoke bluntly, “Ever since Grandfather the Emperor ordered people to submit honest opinions, many officials have submitted memorials, but almost all of them criticize the move of the capital and the lifting of the sea ban. Yesterday, Xiao Yi was imprisoned, along with Li Shimian and Luo Rujing. Anyone who further criticized these two issues was charged with slander. Early this morning, Grandfather the Emperor ordered Xiao Yi to be executed, temporarily suppressing this trend. Now, he is summoning Prince Zhou because those officials in charge of examinations and governance submitted another pile of memorials this afternoon. Grandfather the Emperor has ordered a debate among all officials at the Meridian Gate tomorrow.”

Zhu Ning didn’t ask what the memorials were about, but her palms were already sweaty. If the ministers didn’t dare criticize the emperor or current policies, then, since Zhu Zhanji said so—and since Hai Shou had just mentioned that someone was accusing Prince Zhou of staying in the capital for too long—the rest of the memorials must be criticizing the ministers. Thinking of Zhu Di’s temper, which could flare up at any moment, she couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

The emperor was never afraid of killing people. If this continued, how many heads would fall?

“That’s why I have a request to ask Aunt Ning.”

Seeing Zhu Ning show a thoughtful expression, Zhu Zhanji explained, “Since both father and mother are now in the capital, it’s possible to offer some advice to Grandfather the Emperor. But Grandfather is extremely impatient, and with such a big uproar, he might not be able to hold back. To resolve this issue, it depends less on him and more on those officials. It’s impossible to expect the censors to withdraw their accusations, so the ministers who have been impeached are the key. I heard that a few days ago, Zhang Yue in the Qianqing Palace dissuaded the Emperor from punishing all those who submitted petitions—this was a good move. Although the censors may not be grateful to him, both father and mother have praised him for his sense of propriety. It would be best if you took the opportunity to visit Lady Du to meet with Zhang Yue and ask him to try to find a way to ease things during the debate tomorrow.” Hearing this, Zhu Ning finally breathed a sigh of relief and agreed readily. As she got up to leave, Zhu Zhanji suddenly called out to her again, “Aunt Ning, I know you’re still hesitating about choosing the attendants. Although as a younger generation, I shouldn’t interfere, I still want to say that Prince Zhou can’t stay in the capital for too long, otherwise, some officials will surely impeach him. I know you’re looking for attendants who are neither the spoiled sons of nobles nor ambitious scholars from humble backgrounds. If that’s the case, I do have a candidate in mind.”