Chapter 20 Gentle Rabbit There were informants in the palace who reported the interactions between Jiang Qingzhi and Zhu Zaigui to the relevant people. Upon hearing the news, the prince simply smiled calmly, "I see." Upon hearing the news, Prince Jing Zhu Zaizhen sneered, "Yesterday someone told me that my cousin was a very good scholar, but Zhu Zaizhen, that idiot, also went to get close to him. A very good scholar? I think he is also an idiot!" Emperor Jiajing, who was practicing Taoism, also got the news. He was silent for a long time and said something in Anlu dialect. The gist of it was that the third brother was a fool and had always been weak, and no one cared about him. This was... interesting. Huang Jin couldn't guess what Emperor Jiajing was thinking, so he smiled and said, "Mr. Jiang has just arrived in the capital, and he doesn't have many friends to associate with." No one paid any attention to Prince Yu Zhu Zaigui either, so the two cold stoves were put together. Emperor Jiajing's expression gradually became cold. "The third child..." Then the sound gradually became inaudible. The Crown Prince's position is now stable, Prince Jing is deeply favored by Emperor Jiajing, and Prince Yu is just a nobody... Huang Jin lowered his eyes, thinking of Emperor Jiajing's indifference when he thought of Prince Yu's last request for an audience, and sneered in his heart.
The master's attitude is our attitude. Next time, be more indifferent to Prince Yu. …… Jiang Qingzhi had only been in the capital for a few days, but those who were well-informed had already learned that His Majesty had a new cousin. As a result, there were more people in the alley near Jiang’s house. "Your Majesty's cousin, this is a new noble!" "That's right. This is Mingyufang's house. Don't you see anything?" "what?" A man said proudly: "This Mr. Jiang, His Majesty thinks highly of him!" Someone sneered, "If your uncle had a poor cousin who came to seek refuge, wouldn't he give him a house?" The man was startled. "Your Majesty is rich, so a house is nothing to you." There was a lot of chatter here, and Fu Cheng heard the news and ordered, "Don't worry about it, wait until the young master comes back." Jiang Qingzhi can't come back for the time being. At noon, Zhu Zaigui forced him to stay for lunch. After lunch, he did not take a nap but continued to ask questions. "What's beyond the sea?" Zhu Zaigui's eyes were full of longing. Who hasn’t been a curious baby before? Jiang Qingzhi said: "Beyond the sea!" Outside the door, Yang Xi personally acted as the gatekeeper, staring sharply at the servants passing by. Whenever someone might get close, he would point at them, then point at the distance. Get away!
Then Yang Xi listened to the sounds coming from the study behind him with a happy look on his face. Your Highness, you finally have a mentor and friend. “…There are many countries overseas.” “Are they all islands?” "Your Highness, the sea is vast. In the south of the Yangtze River, especially in the southeastern Fujian area, there are many mountains and little land. In order to survive, the people risk their lives to go to sea..." "Pitiful." "I have inquired about it. There are many islands overseas. The largest island is not inferior to the territory of Ming Dynasty. There are countless minerals and fields..." "There is such a precious place?" "Don't sit in a well and look at the world." "Yes." "There are so many resource-rich islands overseas. If they were occupied and allowed to recuperate for more than a hundred years, Your Highness, tell me, what kind of powerful force would be born there?" Zhu Zaigui was silent for a moment. "But... after recuperating, shouldn't we continue to enjoy peace?" "Who taught you this, Your Highness?" "Gentlemen all say so." Zhu Zaigui said: "Raising troops without any reason is violent and cruel!" "I will teach you a lesson today, Your Highness. You may listen or not." Jiang Qingzhi frowned. "Uncle, please speak." Zhu Zaigui sat up straight, as solemn as a student. "This world..." Jiang Qingzhi drew a circle with his right hand, "It's a huge jungle. In the jungle there are gentle rabbits, bloodthirsty wolves, brutal lions and tigers..." He looked at Zhu Zaigui, "What does your Highness think the Ming Dynasty is?" "Hmm..." Zhu Zaigui said subconsciously: "The gentle rabbit! It has been said in every dynasty that a country, no matter how big it is, will perish if it is warlike." Outside the door, Yang Xi nodded and thought to himself: His Highness is indeed kind, but it's a pity that he is not the crown prince, alas! Inside, Jiang Qingzhi asked: "Then let me ask your Highness, the gentle rabbits live their own lives behind closed doors, so why are there always foreign invasions? Your Highness must have read a lot of history books. After the Han Dynasty, there were the Five Barbarians who invaded China and killed nine out of ten households in the Central Plains. In the pre-Tang Dynasty, the Turks and Tubo were a disaster for many years. Needless to say, the former Song Dynasty was always bullied by foreign races. " Jiang Qingzhi's voice suddenly became gentle, but what he said startled Zhu Zaigui. "Why have foreign races frequently invaded the peaceful Central Plains for thousands of years?" Zhu Zaigui subconsciously asked, "Zhongyuan has money?" "That's right." Jiang Qingzhi looked teachable, "He's innocent..."
"It is a crime to possess a treasure!" said Zhu Zaigui. "In this world, the only country that can be so gentle to the outside world is the Central Plains. Do you understand?" Zhu Zaigui was silent for a long time. "The people of the Central Plains are hardworking and smart. They can always quickly rise from the ruins and create brilliant culture and rich material wealth time and time again. But what about the outside world?" Jiang Qingzhi's words had a huge impact on Zhu Zaigui, who had been receiving traditional education. At this moment, his mind was full of confused thoughts. This kid is so pitiful... Jiang Qingzhi suppressed his sympathy and continued, "Those foreign races are barbaric. In their perception, looting is justice. Do you understand?" Zhu Zaigui's worldview was greatly impacted, and he said in disbelief: "Robbery is justice?" "Of course." From then on, the monarch of the Angusa people, the master of the four seas, shared the spoils with the pirates openly. The kid looked dumbfounded... Jiang Qingzhi stood up and patted Zhu Zaiqi on the shoulder, "Why did Tubo invade the former Tang Dynasty? Why did the Turks invade the former Tang Dynasty? Why did Northern Liao and Western Xia invade the former Song Dynasty? Why did the Jin Dynasty and the Mongols invade the former Song Dynasty..." he's gone. After seeing Jiang Qing off, Yang Xi came back and saw his own prince sitting in the study room in a daze, like a fool. "Your Highness!" "My Lord! Wake up, don't scare me!" Yang Xi was extremely anxious. "Hey!" Zhu Zaiqi's eyes moved. Yang Xi said angrily, "Mr. Jiang's first words were fine, but the latter part is a bit unorthodox. I also think it's inappropriate. If those gentlemen hear it, they will definitely turn hostile." Zhu Zaigui looked at Yang Xi steadily, "Tell me, why did the Northern Liao, Jin Dynasty and Mongols invade the Former Song Dynasty?" Yang Xi smiled apologetically, "How dare I discuss state affairs?" "Speak!" Zhu Zaigui was a little anxious, as if he had lost something. He wanted to get it back, but he felt that it was not worth it. Yang Xi stole a glance at his master, "Those foreigners want to occupy the Central Plains, burn, kill and plunder." "Yes!" Zhu Zaigui stood up and walked out with some difficulty. Walking out the door, he looked up at the blue sky in the afternoon and said, "It's good to be a gentle rabbit, but when the neighbors are all ferocious wolves, being gentle is courting death." Yang Xi: "Your Highness, be careful that the gentlemen know." As he spoke, he glanced fiercely at the waiting maids, "What your Highness said today, if we hear a word outside, it's not just that there is a dry well in the palace." Several maids bowed their heads and responded in trembling voices. “They don’t understand.” Zhu Zaigui shook his head but still lowered his voice.
Yang Xi vaguely heard something... "... Gentlemen... are not as good as the scholars... My cousin is very talented, but he is willing to be close to me..." Zhu Zaiyi stopped and said, "Yang Xi." "I'm here, slave." Yang Xi stood with his hands behind his back. "From now on, when we send festival gifts to our family, my cousin will get the first share." "Yes." "Besides, I don't want to hear anyone in the mansion being disrespectful to my cousin." Yesterday, someone was muttering about the son of a concubine, and His Highness was actually willing to date him. "I have failed in my duty." Yang Xi felt awe in his heart. He followed Zhu Zaigui to the backyard. Zhu Zaigui stopped and looked at a big tree. He patted his head, turned around suddenly, and said with a sharp gaze: "What do you think, if I become my cousin's apprentice... is it okay?" Yang Xi was dumbfounded. "This……" (End of this chapter)