Xu Miaoyun is in charge of the second prince's business. Since Zhu Yuanzhang has agreed, how can Liu Song object?
Thinking of this, Liu Song's wife was not angry but happy: "Okay, I will tell Wenfu when I get home. Please take care of his business in the future."

Xu Miaoyun smiled and said, "No problem."

As long as there is no problem, everything is fine.

When Mrs. Lu saw that Xu Miaoyun was so disrespectful to her, her face turned very ugly.

But what’s the point of being ugly?

The business is in Xu Miaoyun's hands. Unless she gives it to him, the Lu family cannot take it.

……

The next day, Liu Song's wife came to see Xu Miaoyun again. This time she came by herself, without Lu accompanying her.

When she saw Xu Miaoyun, she knelt on the ground and kowtowed: "Please save my son."

It turned out that the reason why Liu Wenfu agreed to stay in Yingtian Prefecture was because his business in Jiangsu and Zhejiang was not shameful. Not only did he sell private salt, he also colluded with local officials to make huge profits. Later, he was discovered by Liu Song, and after he explained the pros and cons to him, Liu Wenfu had to give up his business.

There is no way around it. If he doesn't obey, the only outcome will be death.

If you're obedient, you might be able to live two more days.

Liu Wenfu was now in a state of panic, and Liu Song was helpless as he had only one son. Although Liu Song was selfless, he was not upright enough to hand over his only son to uphold the law.

Yesterday, Liu Song's wife went back, and Liu Song found an opportunity to save his son's life. After thinking about it, he asked his wife to continue to beg Xu Miaoyun.

If there was a chance...even if it was only a one in ten thousand chance, Liu Song would save his son.

After hearing what Mrs. Liu Song said, Xu Miaoyun couldn't help but want to refuse, but it was difficult for her to say no.

Although she ignored the affairs of the court, how could she not know what Zhu Yuanzhang hated?
Especially since Liu Song's wife was kneeling in front of him and constantly asking for help, this made Xu Miaoyun even more embarrassed.

Zhu Kai only taught her how to do business, but did not teach her how to handle court affairs.

Xu Miaoyun was extremely certain in her heart that the most correct way was to kill Liu Wenfu. While upholding the law, she would also be able to leave behind a selfless Minister of Personnel in the Ming Dynasty.

Unfortunately, Xu Miaoyun is not yet able to make such a decisive move.

She habitually handed the problems she couldn't solve to Zhu Kai to solve: "Madam Liu, let your son go to the northern border. I will write a letter and ask him to go find my husband. Let my husband decide whether he lives or dies."

"Ah? Going to the North?"

This was not the result that Madam Liu wanted to hear. She wanted Liu Wenfu to stay by her side, but unfortunately... Xu Miaoyun would not give her a second way: "This is the only solution I can think of. If His Majesty knew about it, I'm afraid this solution would be useless."

Yingtian Prefecture is right under Zhu Yuanzhang's nose. What could be hidden from him?
Mrs. Liu Song, who was leaving, felt that the idea proposed by Xu Miaoyun was not a good one, but Xu Miaoyun did not give her the opportunity to use other methods. After hesitating for a while, Mrs. Liu Song could only turn around and leave. However, after she left Fengxian Hall, she did not leave the palace, but turned to the East Palace.

The idea Xu Miaoyun gave her seemed to be just a casual suggestion and not a serious idea. She had no choice but to place her hopes on the prince's concubine, Lu. In her heart, Lu was a very kind-hearted person. If it were her, she should have a better solution, right?
Zhu Biao was busy all day and returned to the Eastern Palace very tired at night.

Mrs. Lu, who had been waiting for Zhu Biao, came over and helped Zhu Biao change his clothes with concern: "Master, you are back? I asked the kitchen to prepare a midnight snack. Do you want to eat something before you rest?"

"No need. I just came back from having dinner with my father in Wuying Palace."

Zhu Biao took off his clothes while being served by Lu, and said in a reproachful tone: "Didn't I tell you that you don't have to wait for me to come back at night? You can just rest at home, and don't have to wait for me."

"My sister has gone to rest, how can I go to rest too? When you come back, there is no one who cares about your health. If the servants find out, they will blame me for not knowing the rules."

What Lu said was very beautiful and heartwarming to hear, but Zhu Biao just felt that... what Lu said was very fake, so fake that he didn't want to listen to her.

After packing up, Lu did not leave in a hurry, but still stood in front of Zhu Biao. Zhu Biao looked at her hesitant look and immediately understood: "Why, what's the matter?"

"Ah."

Lu agreed to help Liu Song's wife and asked Zhu Biao to help solve the problem of her son Liu Wenfu, and she vowed that Zhu Biao would definitely help Liu Song.

In Lu's view, in order to keep Liu Song, she had a hundred reasons to convince Zhu Biao. After all, Zhu Biao was the crown prince, and what he needed was not money but power. Liu Song possessed enough power, which could not only help Zhu Biao control the court, but also help Zhu Biao place his own people in the local area.

Liu Song's importance made Lu believe that she could definitely convince Zhu Biao.

However, when Zhu Biao asked her, Lu became hesitant. She was not sure if she could convince Zhu Biao.

Zhu Biao hesitated and didn't know what to say. He also realized that what Lu Shi had told him was not a simple matter, but he seemed very calm and just told Lu Shi: "We are a family. If you have anything to say, just say it directly. There is no need to worry or hide it."

"Yes."

After listening to Zhu Biao's words, Lu thought about it and told Zhu Biao about Liu Wenfu's case: "It's like this, the son of Liu Song, the Minister of Personnel, violated the laws of the Ming Dynasty when doing business..."

When telling Zhu Biao about this matter, Lu kept staring at Zhu Biao closely. She wanted to judge Zhu Biao's happiness or anger about this matter by observing his expression.

Unfortunately, Zhu Biao remained indifferent and just listened very calmly.

"Liu Song already knew his son's guilt, but he loved his son dearly. Liu Song only had this one son, and his father could not tolerate corruption, so he did not dare to hand Liu Wenfu over easily."

When Lu told Zhu Biao about this, she concealed the fact that Mrs. Liu Song wanted to buy the street from Xu Miaoyun, and instead covered up the matter: "Liu Song's wife came to me and begged me to seek your help. Your Highness, they only have this one son. If he turns over the embezzled money, can he avoid death?"

"No."

Zhu Biao answered very confidently, "But it will not implicate other people. Liu Wenfu violated the laws of the Ming Dynasty. Officials and businessmen colluded. All those who were involved in this matter will be punished."

"..."

Mrs. Lu did not expect Zhu Biao's answer to be so heartless. She hurriedly said, "Your Highness, there are three unfilial acts, and the worst is to have no descendants. If Liu Wenfu is dealt with now, the Liu Song family will have no descendants. The Ming Dynasty ruled the world with filial piety. If..."

"Filial piety? If Liu Wenfu was filial, how could he do something against the law?" He didn't agree with using filial piety to deny Zhu Biao: "I will investigate this matter, you don't need to worry about it."

When Mrs. Lu heard what Zhu Biao said, she immediately panicked.

When she met Mrs. Liu Song, she vowed that she could protect Liu Wenfu and there was no need to go to the northern border at all... But now Zhu Biao is cruel and ruthless, and wants to use Liu Wenfu to maintain the dignity of the law. Lu will end up losing more than she gains. Wouldn't Mrs. Liu Song hate her then?

"Your Highness, you cannot kill without authorization."

Lu didn't want to take the blame, and at the same time didn't want Zhu Biao to offend the powerful Minister of Personnel, so she hurriedly advised: "Your Highness, the reason why Liu Wenfu dared to collude with officials and businessmen to make huge profits is because everyone who did business with him knew that Liu Song was the Minister of Personnel, so who would offend him? Your Highness, if you deal with Liu Wenfu, you will push the Minister of Personnel to the opposite side of you, which is very disadvantageous for your control of the court situation."

Lu explained the seriousness of the relationship to Zhu Biao, who was very surprised when he heard it.

He never expected that Lu would think about the problem in this way. She actually believed that violating the laws of the Ming Dynasty was not serious. What was important was to check and balance the court.

trade off?

Take power?

In Zhu Biao's view, all this is bullshit.

Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Kai told Zhu Biao: The most important thing is the people.

The ancients said that the country is the most important. What is the country? In the final analysis, it depends on the people. If we treat the people well and let them live a good life, they will make the country stable.

As for checks and balances in the court, these means of manipulating power should be avoided if possible. As long as you keep your original intention and stick to your principles, you will be able to live up to your mission.

Zhu Biao understood this simple truth, Chang also understood it, Zhu Kai, Zhu Yuanzhang, Ma Xiuying... they all understood it, but why did a person who wanted to play with power sneak into the family?

Zhu Biao suddenly had a feeling that he seemed a little hasty to marry again, and he didn’t have time to understand some things carefully... Wasn’t it because he was attracted by the other person’s beauty at that time?
Zhu Biao lamented in his heart: Beauty can mislead people!
Seeing that Zhu Biao had not spoken, Lu thought that he was thinking about the pros and cons after hearing what she said, so she hurriedly continued, "Your Highness, Liu Wenfu cannot be killed arbitrarily. No matter what, you can't do it."

Zhu Biao did not continue to argue with Lu about this issue, but just said to Lu: "Go back and rest. It's too late to talk about state affairs."

"Your Highness, you..."

Unfortunately, Zhu Biao did not continue talking to Lu, which made Lu very uneasy.

Zhu Biao, should you kill Liu Wenfu or not?

How would she explain to Liu Song’s wife?
……

On the other side, Xu Miaoyun was also a little anxious because she couldn't find the right person to ask.

Xu Miaoyun didn't want to get involved in the affairs of the court. She just wanted to help Zhu Kai manage his business. But after a night of thinking, Xu Miaoyun realized that some things were not a matter of whether she wanted to or not, but her identity meant that she was destined to be involved in some things.

Zhu Kai was not around, and she couldn't go looking for Zhu Yuanzhang, Ma Xiuying, or Zhu Biao. After thinking about it, Xu Miaoyun thought of Xu Da.

That's her biological father, so it would be more appropriate to ask Xu Da about some things.

He told Ma Xiuying that he was going home to see his father. Ma Xiuying did not stop him. Instead, she brought some gifts and asked Xu Miaoyun to help deliver them to Xu Da.

Xu Da and Zhu Yuanzhang were playmates when they were wearing open-crotch pants. The relationship between the two families has long been as close as one family. Now that Xu Miaoyun is married to Zhu Kai, the relationship between the two families is even closer. On weekdays, when Xu Miaoyun goes home, Ma Xiuying will ask her to bring some gifts, which are not expensive but very thoughtful. Xu Da will occasionally bring some gifts in return.

However, Xu Miaoyun was worried, so she went home to ask her father for help. As for other things, she didn't think about them too much. She thanked Ma Xiuying and left in a hurry.

Ma Xiuying could see that Xu Miaoyun looked very worried today, and it was obvious that she wanted to go home and discuss something with her family. Ma Xiuying did not stop her, nor did she ask any questions. She knew Xu Miaoyun's character, and if there were some things that she could tell them, Xu Miaoyun would definitely tell her directly.

Wait a little longer, Xu Miaoyun will tell her about this.

Xu Da was originally going to the Five Army Protectorate, but the eunuch came to tell him that Xu Miaoyun would go home today. After Xu Da knew this, he also realized that Xu Miaoyun had something to ask him, otherwise she would not have returned home in such a high-profile manner.

After thinking about it, Xu Da took a leave of absence today and waited for Xu Miaoyun's arrival at home.

……

Xu Miaoyun was a person who could not hide her thoughts. When she saw Xu Da, she told him what had happened without even having time to exchange greetings.

After hearing this, Xu Da breathed a sigh of relief.

It turned out to be a trivial matter.

The reason why Xu Miaoyun was so nervous was that she had never encountered such a thing before.

He did not answer Xu Miaoyun immediately, but said to his youngest daughter Xu Miaojin who was accompanying Xu Miaoyun: “Miaojin, pour your sister a cup of tea and let her rest for a while.”

As he said this, Xu Da took the child, held him in his arms and teased him.

Seeing that Xu Da didn't take it seriously, Xu Miaoyun became anxious: "Dad..."

Xu Da raised his hand to stop Xu Miaoyun from speaking: "Daughter, these are trivial matters. Don't be so anxious. Slow down first... Think about it, you are Kai'er's daughter-in-law, and he is the most beloved son of His Majesty and the Queen. There are some things you need to face. This is the first time you have encountered such a thing, right? You will encounter it in the future... So no matter what time it is, you must stabilize yourself first, which is the most important thing."

Hearing Xu Da's words, Xu Miaoyun was helpless but had to obey. However, she could not keep calm now and felt very uncomfortable sitting on the chair. Xu Da left her alone for a while, and seeing that Xu Miaoyun could not feel at ease, he thought about it and smiled. He handed the baby in his arms to Xu Miaojin and asked her to take her little nephew out to play.

Then he picked up the tea on the table, drank two sips slowly, and then said to Xu Miaoyun: "There is nothing wrong with your handling of this matter. Letting Liu Wenfu go to the northern border means handing him over to Zhu Kai. As for how Zhu Kai punishes him, that is Zhu Kai's business and has nothing to do with you. Even if Liu Song hates you, he can't hate you. As for Zhu Kai... do you think he cares about other people's hatred?"

Xu Miaoyun did not speak, but continued to listen to Xu Da's teachings: "Liu Wenfu was doing business outside and actually colluded with officials. This is something that your majesty will never tolerate. The same is true for Zhu Kai, so he will definitely die. Liu Song and his wife doted on their child too much. Liu Wenfu has the bad consequences now, and they are also responsible... And Liu Song knows your majesty. He knows that his son's actions will definitely lead to his death if your majesty knows about it. But their family will be extinct."

Unparalleled!

This was an absolutely unforgivable crime in ancient times. (End of this chapter)