Chapter 372: A Nest of Snakes and Rats

Fengcheng Hutong was located in the western part of Beijing. It was originally just an ordinary alley, but since Zhu Di granted a large plot of land here to Li Bin, the Marquis of Fengcheng, the alley naturally came to be called Fengcheng Hutong, just as there were Xu’s Mansion Street and Deng’s Mansion Alley in Nanjing. By the time Princess Yongping built her residence there, it was already too late to change the name of Fengcheng Hutong to Yongping Hutong or Fuyang Hutong.

The common people had already started calling it by that name. Could the emperor really issue an order over such a trivial matter? Fortunately, Princess Yongping’s palace was always more magnificent than those of marquises—from the main gate to the interior, it was exquisitely built, far surpassing the Marquis of Fengcheng’s residence. Moreover, since the Marquis of Fengcheng, Li Bin, was away on military campaigns, no one dared to challenge her, which relieved her somewhat.

Although she was not the legitimate daughter and her husband had died early, Princess Yongping was the eldest among the four princesses now, as Princess Yongan had passed away two years earlier. Her only son had also been granted the marquis title at a young age, so her status was no less than that of the other princesses. During festivals, out of pity for her losing her husband at a young age, Zhu Di would grant her more generous rewards than others. Yet, despite these generous gifts, she couldn’t keep up with her son Li Maofang’s extravagant spending, earning her a reputation for greed despite her noble status.

The seven-room, five-bay palace gate with its green copper rings was usually tightly closed, with access only through the side gates. That evening, Li Maofang arrived in the alley with dozens of attendants, stopping firmly in front of the west side gate. Hearing the noise, two gatekeepers quickly came out. One rushed forward to take care of the horses, while the other knelt down to prop up Li Maofang’s feet. Only after Li Maofang dismounted did the man stand up, ignoring the dark footprints on his shoulder as he hurried after him.

“My lord, you’re finally back! The princess has been asking repeatedly…”

“Haven’t I just returned?”

Since it wasn’t a national mourning period, Li Maofang only slightly moderated his attire, avoiding overly bright colors, but he still wore a gold crown with pearls, a brocade robe embroidered with peonies in gold thread, and a jade belt, refusing to lose his status. He hurried through the corridor to the second gate, where he saw a maid rushing inside to report his arrival. Frowning, he remembered some joking remarks he had heard while drinking with others that day, which made him even more annoyed. He then hurried straight to the main hall.

Seeing her son step forward to bow, Princess Yongping hurriedly pulled him up. Noticing his attire, she frowned and said, “Although it’s not a national mourning period now, there are still taboos to observe. You should be more careful with your clothes. What if your enemies use this against you? The emperor often loses his temper and acts impulsively. Your uncle, who has been a marquis for years, had his salary cut off at will and was punished without reason. Do you really want to experience the same fate?”
Li Maofang had been pampered by his parents since birth. He had no other siblings except for an older half-sister who was already married. He grew up spoiled and willful. It wasn’t until a few years ago, when his uncle, King Han Zhu Gaoxu, who had always doted on him, almost lost his title and was sent to Le’an that he began to restrain himself. Though he wasn’t convinced now, he still bowed his head in agreement.
Princess Yongping had only this one son, so she wouldn’t scold him harshly. With a glance, she sent all the maids out of the room. She pulled Li Maofang aside and sat him down, then personally removed the golden crown from his hair before reproaching him, “If it weren’t for this funeral, you’d be getting married soon. You should focus. Whether it’s studying or seeking a military position, it’s better than being a idle marquis at home. You could also help your second uncle with other matters.”
At the mention of marriage, Li Maofang became angry. He stood up abruptly and glared at his mother. “Since Mother mentions marriage, I must ask—You are a princess of noble birth, and I am a hereditary marquis. With so many marquises and dukes in the capital, why do I have to marry the daughter of a mere commander of the Shence Wei? Given our status, if we were to marry, it should be to the legitimate daughter of a duke. Everyone else is mocking me now!”
“Who dares mock you?” Princess Yongping’s expression darkened instantly. She said slowly, “What’s the use of noble status? Even I, as a princess, can be scolded or beaten by my father at will. All that dignity is just for show! You were made Marquis of Fuyang at the age of three in the second year of Yongle’s reign, but what proper position do you have now? You don’t even hold a position like commander of the Shence Wei! It’s only because I’m here. If I die, do you think you’ll end up like your uncle?”
Thinking of his once arrogant uncle Yuan Rong, who now behaved with extreme caution, Li Maofang was left speechless. Yet he still felt dissatisfied and chose to remain silent under his mother’s stern gaze.

“If it weren’t for the fact that Zhang Fu’s legitimate daughter is still under two years old, do you think I wouldn’t want to arrange that marriage for you?” Princess Yongping glared at her son in frustration, then sighed deeply. “I know it’s because that person who offended you last time now has an opportunity, but I failed even then—can’t you just endure it for now?”
“But Zhang Fu is clearly very close to my third uncle…”
“I hate your third uncle too, but that’s exactly what I want—them being close!”
At that moment, Princess Yongping stood up as well and led Li Maofang into the inner room. It was her study where she would write and paint in her free time. Several tasteful landscape paintings hung on the walls, with only the one in the center being poorly painted. Yet, compared to the others, this one was exquisitely framed—with a purple bamboo rod, silk edges, and an ivory handle—each of which was worth a fortune. Moreover, there were two very prominent large seals on the painting.
Pointing at the painting on the wall, Princess Yongping said solemnly to Li Maofang, “Look. This was painted by your second uncle, with inscriptions by your third uncle. Those two large seals are their princely seals. It’s because none of them alone can shake the position of the Eastern Palace that they often team up. Do you think I don’t know about Zhang Fu’s closeness to your third uncle? But don’t forget—your second uncle still holds a crucial weakness over Zhang Fu! In truth, who cares about those two? Everyone’s eyes are on Zhang Fu!”
Li Maofang naturally understood what the name Zhang Fu meant in the court. The dukes of the Hongwu era were already relics of the past. Of the three dukes appointed during the Yongle era, Duke Qi Qiu Fu was long forgotten, and Duke Cheng Zhu Yong only held his position thanks to his father Zhu Neng’s merits. Only Zhang Fu had both noble lineage and military achievements. Such a person, even if not holding a position in the Military Commission, could speak on behalf of more than half of the nobles!
“Besides, I personally had someone check out that girl. She’s beautiful and graceful—she won’t bring shame to you. And since you like women, just take more concubines in the future. How dare she say anything? To put it bluntly, if she dies in ten or eight years, by then everything will be settled, and it won’t be hard for you to marry another young, beautiful woman from a good family. Why make things difficult now?”
“As for that, didn’t you promise to give Yuqing to me back then? But instead, you sent her to live with the Fan family, costing her her life. I never even had a chance to touch her!”

Hearing this, Princess Yongping glared fiercely at her son and said, “Never mention that surname again! I thought that girl could read and write, so I had high hopes for her, but in the end, she was killed by that fool Fan Tong. Stop obsessing over women—don’t you already have enough of them around you? Tomorrow, I’ll give you Fuyue—will that satisfy you?”

Li Maofang had hardly seen his father since he was old enough to understand things, so he was used to obeying his mother. With such an offer, he immediately forgot the words he had spoken in his haste and nodded in agreement, his anger long gone. Thinking of the green gates outside his home and the gilded gates of noble residences, the corners of his mouth slowly curled upward.

Under the Ming dynasty’s system, only those from wealthy families held the highest status. Only when a gate was painted red could one truly feel proud!

After coming out of the inner room, Princess Yongping sent Li Maofang back to his room to bathe and change, then sat back down on the kang. However, the dinner from the kitchen hadn’t arrived yet when a maid came in to report that the messenger she had sent to Le’an had returned with news. Hearing this, she set aside everything else and ordered that the man be brought to the outer study. She quickly changed into a coat and rushed over.

Since neither the mother nor the son was fond of reading, the outer study was merely a formality in the princess’s residence, usually used to receive important guests who couldn’t be seen openly. After ordering two trusted maids to wait outside, Princess Yongle pushed the door open and saw a middle-aged man in gray-brown clothes standing by the desk inside.

“I pay my respects to the princess,” he said.

Princess Yongping ignored the man kneeling before her and went straight to the back of the desk, sitting down in the rosewood chair before asking, “What did the King of Han say?”

“The King of Han was furious upon hearing about this. He said he didn’t have anyone named Yue Changtian under his command and that someone had used his name to deceive the princess.” Though he knelt with his head bowed, as soon as he spoke, the middle-aged man felt a deep chill. He hurriedly explained, “Fearing I might be wrong, I tried to meet the crown prince again. After a moment of hesitation, the crown prince told me that the man had nothing to do with the King of Han but had once worked for him in the past.”

Realizing she had trusted the wrong person, Princess Yongping was both shocked and angry. She regretted believing him just because he had the King of Han’s official seal. Moreover, since the route from Le’an to Beijing was under constant surveillance by the Jinyiwei, she had never sent anyone to verify the situation—only to find out it was a fraud.

“Zhu Zhan Tan is actually so bold as to plot things behind his father’s back?”
“Your Highness, the Crown Prince is gravely ill. I heard it’s been like this for several months now,” the middle-aged man kowtowed again before softly explaining, “The Crown Prince also asked me to convey that man is extremely daring and might come after Your Highness again. Please seize the opportunity to kill him without mercy. He is highly skilled in martial arts and full of schemes; he cannot be kept alive.”
“He does all the bad deeds, yet I have to clean up the mess!”
Princess Yongping slammed her hand hard on the table in fury. Though she thought of Zhu Zhan Tan, who was half-dead, she couldn’t take revenge on him. If Zhu Zhan Tan died and Zhu Zhan Qi was imprisoned, would the position of Crown Prince of Han fall into the hands of mere concubine-born sons?