When Zhu Di was at a loss, a eunuch from outside walked in.

"Fifth Prince, it's getting late. The imperial kitchen has prepared dinner. Do you want it served now?"

Looking outside, it was still daytime. The eunuch's words were not meant to urge him to eat dinner quickly, but were a signal to urge him to leave quickly.

Concubine Yi looked at her son and tears welled up in her eyes, but she held them back because she knew she couldn't cry.

The eunuch watched every move of the mother and son, and he told Zhu Yuanzhang everything.

"Empress Xi? The Emperor has instructed that since you are pregnant, you should not work too late. It is better to serve the meal earlier and let the Fifth Prince go back earlier so as not to disturb your rest."

Concubine Yi really couldn't hold back her tears, so she could only turn around and nod.

Zhu Di stepped forward and said to the eunuch.

"Since the imperial kitchen has already prepared everything, let's not waste time and serve dinner now."

"Slave understands."

After watching the eunuch walk out, Zhu Di immediately came to his mother.

"Mother, you really shouldn't be sad in your current physical condition."

"Your Majesty is really worrying too much. My mother and I haven't seen each other for such a long time. Doesn't he allow us to stay together for a while longer?"

"Father has always been like this. In his eyes, there are only His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and my second brother."

"You can only say this to your mother, and don't tell anyone else that the reason Zhu Kai was valued by the emperor was entirely because of his own abilities.

But he was a little too smart, and sometimes he was easily envied by others, such as the prime minister Hu Weiyong, who had a lot of extreme psychological feelings towards Zhu Kai. "

"Hu Weiyong? This is the guy I hate the most. This is the guy I look down upon the most. He is a sinister villain."

"Zhu Di, you must not say that. He is now the head of all civil and military officials, and his status as the prime minister is second to none."

"I'm not afraid of him. My second brother and he don't get along well. If I stand on my second brother's side, even if he has a few more courage, he won't dare to do anything to us."

"By the way, did Wang Baobao and his sister really surrender to the Ming Dynasty wholeheartedly?"

"Really, mother, you may not believe it, but this is the truth."

"Well, mother has nothing to say. It's enough if you think it's the truth."

"I am a little worried about my second brother's situation. Since he came back from the border, my father has not summoned him. I don't know what that means."

"Don't worry about what your father means. These things are not what we should worry about. Why bother about him so much?"

"Mom, you don't know.

I cannot get the attention of my father now. The only person I can rely on is my second brother. If I can establish a close relationship with him, he will definitely speak for me.

No matter whether he can become the crown prince or not, he will never forget me, his younger brother.

I treated him with all my heart, and my second brother is not the kind of ungrateful person. During the more than one year in the border area, we have a very good relationship as brothers. "

"Yes, mother understands, but you still have to take to heart what I told you today.

Since Zhu Kai is so nice to you, it means that he must value you as his younger brother.

In a sense, it's not that he treats you well for no reason, but that you are really excellent and you are useful to Zhu Kai."

Zhu Di knew very well that Zhu Gang and Zhu Chong either had ulterior motives or were useless.

Zhu Kai also looked down on his two younger brothers, but he didn't say it out loud.

If Zhu Kai really valued his two younger brothers, he would never have allowed Wang Baobao's sister to marry Zhu Chong.

"In fact, life in the palace is like this. We have to be useful and willing to be used by others. Only then will we have the opportunity to use others one day."

Concubine Yi was very surprised to see that Zhu Di, at such a young age, could speak so profoundly about this matter.

"Di'er, what have you learned from Zhu Kai in the border area over such a long time?"

"Mother, I've already told you that only by following smart people can you learn useful things. I didn't suffer any loss by following my second brother. I really learned a lot of knowledge that I didn't know before.

Maybe you may not understand what I am saying now, but if I have the chance I will explain it to you clearly. I also believe in my second brother, he is sincerely trying to help me.

No matter what his reasons were, he definitely didn't have any plans against me.

He taught me everything very patiently. If I hadn't been with my second brother, I wouldn't have made such great progress.

In fact, I was also very confused. How did my second brother know this?
These messy and unbelievable things, but think about it, it's nothing, after all, he is a unique person, maybe he is the reincarnation of a god sent by heaven. "

When Concubine Yi heard what Zhu Di said, she smiled and tapped her son's head with her finger.

"You're getting more and more mysterious. Although Zhu Kai is a little smart, he's not the reincarnation of a god."

"Mother, I didn't believe in these weird things before.

But there are some things that you can only believe if you see them with your own eyes. I can’t explain exactly what’s going on, but I just feel like my second brother is a god.

He knows everything and understands everything, and every step is within his calculations.”

"If you put it that way, then Zhu Kai is the reincarnation of Zhuge Kongming, right?"

"But we have only heard about it. No one has ever seen Mr. Kong Ming, so we don't know what kind of talent he is. But now that I see my second brother, everything has become concrete.

Maybe Mr. Zhuge Kongming is just like my second brother. Anyway, I now obey my second brother's orders and even admire him with all my heart."

If Zhu Kai heard Zhu Di's evaluation of him like this, he would have been overjoyed. Zhu Di is Zhu Kai's die-hard fan.

On the other side, Zhu Kai said nothing and prepared to return to his mansion.

Because he had more important things to deal with, he also knew in his heart that it would not be long before Zhu Yuanzhang would secretly summon him to answer the doubts in his heart.

Zhu Kai couldn't wait to return to his mansion, but now he had to take care of many things in person.

Xu Miaoyun was waiting at home at this moment and was very anxious.

The maid next to her saw this and brought over a cup of tea.

"Princess, we just came back from outside. I see that you are very tired. Why don't you go back and have a good rest?"

"No, I have to wait here for the prince to come back. He must be very angry after seeing what Marquis Deqing did today. I'm afraid he will offend someone in his impulse."

"No, the prince will not do that."

Xu Miaoyu turned around and saw the blueprint drawn by Zhu Kai next to her, and fell into deep thought... At this moment, Zhu Kai just came back from outside.

"Your Highness, the prince is back."

"I'm finally back. I feel relieved."

As soon as Zhu Kai came back, he saw Xu Miaoyun waiting for him anxiously at the door.

"Did Chang Sheng send someone to bring you back?"

"Yes, General Chang Sheng is afraid that the streets are unsafe."

"This is the capital, how can it not be safe?"

Xu Miaoyun asked cautiously.

"Are Wang Baobao and Guanyinnu okay in the inn? Nothing went wrong. They just came to the capital from the border, which is really worrying."

"Miaoyun, these are things I should consider. Just be your Princess Sai well, that's enough."

When Xu Miaoyun heard what Zhu Kai said, she was naturally moved. Whether in the border area or in the capital, Zhu Kai took care of Xu Miaoyun in every possible way.

He took on all the hardships by himself and never complained to Xu Miaoyun.
Back then, when Xu Miaoyun was preparing to marry Zhu Kai, Xu Da was very opposed to it. Everyone knew that Zhu Kai was a man with a very strange temper.

Moreover, he often said things that no one else could understand. In the eyes of some conservative people, Zhu Kai's behavior was extremely outrageous.

Zhu Kai quickly walked over and sat down, then picked up a cup of tea and drank it directly.

"puff"

"Your Highness, be careful. This is boiling hot water that was just poured."

The hot tea that Zhu Kai spilled all over himself, and his chest was covered with tea. Zhu Kai quickly stood up, grabbing his clothes and said.

"Hurry, hurry, the heart-protecting flesh on my chest is almost burned."

Xu Miaoyun smiled helplessly and said.

"Your Majesty, even in this situation, you still have the mind to joke. I really admire you."

"Oh, it's so hot outside, and I'm also feeling very hot. And you're giving me such hot water to drink. I can't take it anymore. I'm going to explode."

"I forgot. I was so focused on what happened outside today that I forgot to prepare some ice water for you."

"How can I blame you? These things should be done by the servants. Besides, we just came back from the Mongolian tribe on the border, and many things are not prepared.

By the way, is there no more ice in our mansion's ice storage?"

"Yeah, we were away for over a year, and they forgot to store ice for the winter."

Zhu Kai sighed and said.

"I've said it before, without me, this family will fall apart sooner or later."

"Okay, Your Highness, your clothes are all wet, you should go change into some clothes first."

Xu Miaoyun helped Zhu Kai back into the room.

"How is it? Let me see how it's burned."

"Don't worry, there are so many clothes between us, nothing can happen."

"Your Majesty, I saw that you were angry when we were outside just now, so I didn't ask you directly about what happened to Marquis Deqing today..."

Zhu Kai said angrily, slamming the table.

"It would be better if you didn't mention it. Once you mentioned it, I was really furious. I will not let Liao Yongzhong go. I want to see him live to the end."

"Your Highness, I have been worried about this matter since I came back from the street. Marquis Deqing has followed the emperor step by step to where he is today. The reason why he is like this is entirely because of the emperor's tacit approval and connivance.

The emperor is the Son of Heaven, and the capital is under the feet of the emperor. The emperor must know what he did, and the civil and military officials must also know it, but no one is embarrassed to mention it, and they don't want to offend anyone. Prince, you must not be the first to speak out."

What Xu Miaoyun said was also true. Zhu Kai had offended many people in the court, especially Hu Weiyong. If there was any trouble, the first person to be found would be Zhu Kai.

Zhu Kai walked over, put on his clothes, and spoke as he adjusted his clothes.

"Next year will be the eighth year of Hongwu."

"Yes, time flies so fast. Next year will be the eighth year of Hongwu. By the way, I heard news from the palace today that Concubine Xi seems to be pregnant."

Zhu Kai nodded slightly.

"My Lord, why aren't you surprised at all?"

"What's so surprising about that? Concubine Xi is so young and is deeply loved by our father. It is normal for her to give birth to a few more princes."

"Yes, Concubine Yi only has one son, Zhu Di. If she had another son, Zhu Di would not be neglected."

Zhu Kai thought to himself after hearing this.

How could Zhu Di be left out in the cold? He was the future Yongle Emperor, and this alone was something that many people could never hope to achieve in their lifetimes.

It’s just that Zhu Kai couldn’t explain these words clearly to the other party.

Thinking of this, Zhu Kai suddenly considered a problem, that is, since Zhu Di is the future Yongle Emperor, and he has also snatched Xu Miaoyun away, if he wants to win over Zhu Di, he must be nice to him in normal times.

What's more important is to establish a certain connection with him.

"Miaoyun, after you meet the emperor in a few days, you should go back to your parents' home."

"Now I am waiting for the emperor's order. I dare not act rashly without the emperor's order. Hu Weiyong is not only hostile to you, Your Highness, but also has many complaints about my father."

Zhu Kai knew very well that working for Zhu Yuanzhang was a high-risk job. How many of the twenty-four generals of Huaixi could have a good ending?
"Your Highness, what are you thinking about? Since we have such a good relationship with the fifth brother, we should also send something to Concubine Xi when she is pregnant."

"That's right. Concubine Xi is also from the Mongol tribe. We can't get too close to her."

"Your Majesty, would you think so much?"

"I am the son of the current emperor and I know him best. He is particularly wary of our relationship with the entire Mongol tribe."

"So what is your Majesty going to do next?"

"It's almost the end of the year, let's wait until after the New Year. Many things need to be done slowly, there's no rush!" (End of this chapter)