Chapter 33: Those Adopted Sons Should Never Have Existed

Lan Yu knew he had said the right thing. As long as he remained loyal to Zhu Biao, he could essentially pass this ordeal.

This was not a calculated move to survive; rather, it stemmed from a genuine longing for Zhu Biao. His loyalty to the late Crown Prince was real, and he was now willing to extend that devotion to Zhu Yuntong. The slap he had received from Zhu Yuntong the other day had truly awakened him. After being arrested yesterday and confined within the Zhenfu Division, he had spent the entire night in contemplation. Recalling the warning Feng Sheng had once given him, Lan Yu’s thoughts cleared, and he saw the situation for what it was: with Zhu Biao gone, no one else could protect him. The memory of how Zhu Biao had once cared for him brought a lump to his throat, leaving him choked with emotion.

Given this, Lan Yu decided that his future path was clear: he would look after Zhu Biao’s son and do his utmost to help his own grand-nephew ascend to the throne. As long as it benefited Zhu Yuntong, he would have no regrets, even if Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang were to execute him right now.

"Grandfather Emperor!"

Zhu Yuntong hurried over to comfort him. "Father never really left us, and Grandmother is still here too. They are watching over us from the heavens. At night, when you look up at the starry sky, the brightest stars you see are them."

Such words of comfort were common in his previous life, but in the Ming Dynasty, it was a novel concept. Hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang felt a sense of relief, and the thought of the stars in the sky gave him a newfound glimmer of hope.

"Your Highness!" Qi Tai kept signaling to Zhu Yunwen.

Zhu Yuntong was currently demonstrating his filial piety; how could the supposedly benevolent and filial Zhu Yunwen remain indifferent? Unfortunately, Zhu Yunwen was still paralyzed by terror, his spirit shattered by the events of the day. With Zhu Yuanzhang refusing to back him, he remained dazed and unresponsive despite Qi Tai’s desperate prompts. Qi Tai could not make his gestures too obvious, and seeing Zhu Yunwen still lost in a daze, as if he had forgotten where he was, he sighed inwardly, thinking that this Imperial Grandson was far too timid.

Yet, they were precisely seeking such a timid candidate. If the Imperial Grandson were as assertive as Zhu Yuntong, they, the civil officials, would find him impossible to control. Qi Tai and his faction felt a sense of frustration—at the very moment when they needed to display filial piety, Zhu Yunwen was unable to overcome his fear. What were they to do?

As Zhu Yuntong comforted Zhu Yuanzhang, his eyes also turned red. In times like these, one had to put on a good performance to win favor.

"Yuntong," Zhu Yuanzhang said, gently patting his hand. "Perhaps you are right. They have never truly left us; they are watching from above. Your comfort is heartfelt, and it puts my mind at ease."

However, Lan Yu was still kneeling on the floor, and some matters remained unresolved. "Continue," Zhu Yuanzhang commanded. Then, noticing Zhu Yuntong’s reddened eyes, he added, "Do not cry, child. You still have your grandfather."

Zhu Yuntong nodded slightly. During the time surrounding the late Crown Prince’s illness and passing, it had always been Zhu Yunwen who performed the duties of a filial son. Now, Zhu Yuntong had finally been able to show his own filial heart, successfully regaining some of the lost familial warmth over the past few days. These were no longer Zhu Yunwen’s exclusive advantages. Seeing Zhu Yunwen’s blank expression, he knew this "useless" rival posed little threat; the only real difficulty might come from the civil officials backing him.

*The true threat is the Fourth Uncle,* Zhu Yuntong thought, his mind racing. *I must get the Second and Third Uncles to work together against the Fourth. They cannot die, yet they must also serve to keep the Fourth Uncle in check.* He had planned this during their last meeting.

"Continue?" Zhan Hui hesitated, unsure of how to proceed. It seemed that as soon as the late Crown Prince was brought into the discussion, the Emperor lost his appetite for punishing Lan Yu, and the civil officials’ plans seemed destined to fail. Was there anything left to address in today’s hearing?

Just as Zhan Hui, the chief interrogator, was at a loss, Liu Sanwu spoke up in a clear, resonant voice. "Your Majesty, Lan Yu’s arrogance and lawlessness are known to all—that is the first point. Second, he ignores the distinction between superior and inferior, shows total disregard for the imperial court, and as for the third..."

He cast a cold gaze at Lan Yu and continued, "Lan Yu just said he was loyal to the late Crown Prince and is now loyal to the Third Imperial Grandson. I wish to ask: when the Third Imperial Grandson went to his residence to make an arrest, who was it that obstructed him? And when the order was given to take Lan Yu away, who brought troops to block the path?"

"Furthermore, to whom do those private soldiers belong? Whose orders do they follow?" Liu Sanwu paused, then declared, "I believe Lan Yu harbors treasonous intent."

As soon as Liu Sanwu finished, the other civil officials seized upon this opening, echoing his sentiments. This final point was the most lethal. If they fixated on it, they could still pin a crime on Lan Yu and have him executed.

Zhu Yuanzhang frowned. The mention of the late Crown Prince had distracted him, but now that he had regained his focus, he realized the matter was not so easily resolved. However, his brow soon smoothed out. He would leave this final question to Zhu Yuntong to see how he would handle it. After all, this was a test for the boy; he could not simply solve everything for him.

"This was our own personal action, and it has nothing to do with the Duke of Liang," Tang Da spoke up first.

"Nothing to do with him?" Liu Sanwu sneered. "It has long been rumored that the soldiers in the army know only the Duke of Liang and not the imperial court. You are Lan Yu’s men. Lan Yu just claimed loyalty to the Third Imperial Grandson, yet even with the Third Imperial Grandson standing right before you, you remained indifferent, obeying only Lan Yu’s orders."

"May I interpret this as Lan Yu being more important in your hearts than the Third Imperial Grandson, or even the Emperor himself? The loyalty Lan Yu speaks of is nothing more than empty words. He may not be loyal to the Third Imperial Grandson, but you are undoubtedly loyal to Lan Yu."

"In your eyes, the Third Imperial Grandson is merely a child who can be manipulated. Such a mindset was not formed in a single day; it must have been instilled in you by Lan Yu until it became second nature. As the saying goes, if the beam is not straight, the structure will be crooked. I fear Lan Yu’s claims of loyalty to the late Crown Prince are equally false."

His words struck directly at Lan Yu, proving devastating. Lan Yu had used the late Crown Prince to regain his footing, and now Liu Sanwu was using the same memory to counterattack, especially since Tang Da, Zhang Zhou, and Li Liangping had indeed shown blatant disrespect toward Zhu Yuntong.

Zhu Yuntong felt a headache coming on; Lan Yu really should never have cultivated those foster sons.

"You lie!" Lan Yu shouted. "I was unfailingly loyal to the late Crown Prince!" His devotion to Zhu Biao was genuine. As for Zhu Yuntong, he had neglected the boy in the past, but now he felt a need to make amends, sincerely desiring to support him in taking the throne while ensuring their survival.

"Loyalty to the late Crown Prince does not necessarily mean loyalty to the Third Imperial Grandson," Huang Zicheng immediately chimed in. "Your Majesty, Lan Yu is ambitious and harbors ulterior motives. With his immense prestige in the army, he is a danger to the Ming Dynasty!"