No matter how much Zhu Youxiao despised him, he still had to pretend to be close to him at this time.
"It's such a hot day. Why did the prince run out of the palace instead of taking refuge in the palace? Could it be that he has a confidante?"
On the surface, Zhu Youxiao was asking about his welfare, but in fact, he was inquiring about his whereabouts.
Before Zhu Shenxuan could answer, Zhu Qiugui, who was standing aside, spoke on his behalf:
"Your Majesty, the prince has gone out to inspect the rice fields of the palace in accordance with the king's order. The autumn harvest is coming soon, and harvesting food is a top priority!"
This excuse is so bad that Zhu Youxiao doesn't even bother to expose him. Does he really think he is a fool?
Since I want to play, I will have fun with you.
Zhu Youxiao said in surprise:
"Oh, this really surprises me. I didn't expect the prince to be so hands-on with such a trivial matter!"
"Your Majesty is joking, food is the most important thing for the people, how can this be considered a trivial matter? This is the national and people's livelihood plan of our Ming Dynasty!"
Zhu Youxiao was unlucky and did not expect that Prince Jin, who only enjoyed wealth and honor, would have such awareness, which could be said to have refreshed his knowledge.
It seems that these vassal kings are not as unbearable as the records say, and they probably understand many things in their hearts.
But it is clear that this does not affect their short-sighted ambitions at all.
Just like King Fu, when Li Zicheng attacked Luoyang, King Fu generously donated money from the palace to recruit warriors to defend the city.
But except for Luoyang, he is like an iron rooster, never plucking a hair. Let alone the words of a minister, even if you come with the emperor's imperial edict, he will still refuse.
Why are they like this? Because their ideological consciousness is too low. As descendants of the Zhu family and the clan kings of the Ming Dynasty, they only care about sucking blood.
In their view, the emperor's seat is not occupied by him. As long as they are not threatened, even if the sky falls, it has nothing to do with them. They all count on the emperor to save the common people.
Many people know the truth about the coldness of lips and teeth, and many people don't know it. Some people know it clearly but still choose to go in the opposite direction.
Just like the Three Kingdoms, Liu Han was about to perish, but Sun Wu still wanted to take advantage of the situation to gain some benefits. History will always repeat the same tragedy.
Objectively speaking, based on the background and situation of the Ming Dynasty at that time and a comprehensive view of all aspects, it is not wrong for these clan kings to stand aside and watch. What is wrong is that the decadent Ming Dynasty has been struggling to its death for too long.
"What King Jin said is that besides the kings of heaven and earth, this is the most important place to eat. The harvesting of this food is really careless!"
"It just so happens that I am also very interested in this kind of farming. Since the prince has just returned from the rice fields, why not tell me about the rice and wheat in Taiyuan City and see how it is different from that in the capital."
Zhu Youxiao said jokingly:
"When I was in the capital, I often went to the fields to experience the simplicity of the people. I even specially formed a field army of five thousand people!"
This stumped Zhu Shenxuan. He had never even seen what rice seeds looked like. How could he tell him?
Zhu Qiugui naturally knew that his son would definitely not be able to explain why he was here, so he quickly winked at the middle-aged eunuch, hoping that he would come out and speak out to save the situation.
But the guards who had just left with them did not give them this chance.
"Your Majesty, I and Eunuch Liu found the crown prince in a house on the outskirts of the city. The crown prince was in his bedroom having fun with two women at the time!"
The awkward and tense atmosphere began to envelope, and Zhu Shenxuan fell to his knees with a pop. Now he only felt that his mouth was extremely dry. This was a serious crime for bullying the king in person and being exposed.
Zhu Youxiao was still extremely calm. He had already guessed this result. For a waste like Zhu Shenxuan who was just waiting to die, he had already contributed to the Ming Dynasty without doing any evil.
"It's perfectly normal for a man to love a woman. I'm just wondering why King Jin would rather deceive the king than repay him truthfully."
"I am guilty. Your Majesty is playful by nature and has learned nothing since he was a child. I did not intend to deceive you. I thought it was your majesty's first visit to the Jin Palace and I did not want to leave a bad impression on him!"
Zhu Youxiao sneered, saying that these vassal kings were stupid, but they also understood some truths, and if they were to be said to be smart, sometimes they were not even as good as an illiterate and stupid farmer.
Zhu Youxiao said with a hint of ridicule:
"Does King Jin think that I am easy to bully at a young age, or does he think that I am blind and deaf?"
"I don't dare!"
Zhu Qiugui gritted his teeth and quickly knelt down to plead guilty, regardless of his fat body.
"I just said that King Jin and I are brothers of the same ancestor and clan. Don't kneel down at every turn!"
Zhu Qiugui finally felt relieved. As long as the emperor was not angry, it would not be a big problem and there was still room for redemption.
But he didn't expect that the emperor's next words would almost make his body, which had just gotten up, collapse to the ground with fear.
"As the saying goes, brothers settle accounts clearly, King Jin, this crime of deceiving the emperor will still be punished according to law!"
"Your Majesty, I forgive you. I was just confused for a moment. I am willing to take the punishment on behalf of the prince!"
Zhu Youxiao did not respond, but said to himself:
"I just mentioned farming in the rice fields, and I remembered the disaster in Shaanxi. Hundreds of thousands of people were unable to return home in order to make a living. Now that so much time has passed, I don't know how many people are in exile just for a little food."
"However, the national treasury is empty and there is no money or food allocated. I am deeply worried!"
This time, he happened to catch the King of Jin. How could Zhu Youxiao let go of such a great opportunity so easily? If he didn't blackmail him, he would not be able to afford the savings of the King of Jin's palace for more than two hundred years.
I don’t know if Zhu Qiugui heard the emperor’s hint, but he replied:
"Your Majesty, please rest assured. Natural disasters are inevitable. When the spring breeze blows next year, everything will be fine!"
Zhu Youxiao looked distressed and said in a low voice:
"Spring will start next year? Does the King of Jin know that by then, the disaster-stricken areas in Shaanxi will already be thousands of miles away from people and there will be starvation everywhere?"
"They are all subjects of the Ming Dynasty. As their king and father, do I have to watch my people starve to death?"
No matter how stupid Zhu Qiugui was, he now understood that the emperor was openly asking for a bribe. It seemed that he was the fat sheep today.
"Although I have never been to Shaanxi and have never seen the disaster, I feel the same way. In order to support your majesty's great cause of bringing peace to the people, I am willing to contribute money and food to support your majesty's disaster relief!"
"Does the King of Jin know that hundreds of thousands of people were affected in Shaanxi? The area covers dozens of prefectures and counties? These are not a small sum of money!"
In order to prevent Zhu Qiugui from fooling him at will, Zhu Youxiao took a preemptive strike and set the minimum limit for you. He would not be able to get down this level without getting hundreds of thousands of stone grains and millions of taels of silver.