Chapter 57: Is this going to change?
In fact, even if Zhu hadn't said anything, Qi Tai had decided to give Zhu Yunhuan more homework. For a teacher like him, it was also a very embarrassing thing to assign homework that was too easy for students to complete.
"I obey your order!"
"Tomorrow I will ask His Royal Highness the Third Grandson to recite Wei Zheng and Ba Yi. The two pieces together have a total of 1,268 words..."
When Qi Tai said this, a bitter smile suddenly appeared on his face.
"Your Majesty, although I have doubled my efforts, I still cannot guarantee that I can keep His Royal Highness the Third Grandson for too long."
When Old Zhu heard this, he couldn't help but look surprised.
"Oh, what do you mean?"
"Your Majesty, I have discovered that the Third Grandson is too cunning. He clearly memorized the article long ago, but he denied it when I asked him. It was not until he saw that he could finish school early by memorizing the lesson in advance that he revealed his true intentions..."
"ah?"
When Old Zhu heard this, he was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
"That's something that grandson would do, hahahaha..."
After laughing, Lao Zhu spoke earnestly.
"Qi Tai, you will have to take care of me more in the future. My grandson is smart, but he is too lazy..."
"Your Majesty, rest assured. I will teach you strictly and will never show favoritism!"
When Old Zhu heard this, he patted Qi Tai's arm and smiled.
"We just like dealing with smart people!"
“Transparent!”
"Your Majesty, you are too kind ... By the way, Your Majesty, it will be time for the afternoon homework inspection soon. If you have time, you may stay and observe to understand the progress of the royal heirs' homework."
Originally, when Zhu Yunhuan was not there, Zhu wanted to go back to the palace to take a rest after telling Qi Tai a few words. But after hearing what Qi Tai said, Zhu had not cared about their homework for a while and immediately agreed to Qi Tai's suggestion.
"In that case, let's stay and take a look!"
Just like children from ordinary families, even royal nobles are afraid of their parents checking their homework.
Upon learning that their father would personally check their homework, all the princes in the main hall wailed in their hearts.
Only the brothers Zhu Yunwen and Zhu Yunhuan were secretly happy and even eager to try.
The two of them were given special lessons by Mrs. Lu every day, and their academic performance was much better than that of other princes, so they very much wanted to show up in front of the Emperor.
After Lao Zhu entered the Great Hall, the discipline of the entire Great Hall improved unprecedentedly.
Every prince and grandson of the emperor sat up straight and stood up respectfully to greet the emperor.
Old Zhu waved at them, then sat down in Qi Tai's seat, signaling Qi Tai that he could start.
In order to make a good start, Qi Tai immediately named the palace test-taker.
Zhu Yunwen did not disappoint everyone's expectations and memorized the lessons by heart.
But Zhu Yuanzhang was not very satisfied after hearing it, because compared with Zhu Yunhuan's homework, Zhu Yunwen's was too short, only a mere hundred words.
"Is that all?"
When Qi Tai heard this, he knew that the emperor was dissatisfied with the fact that he had not assigned enough homework to Zhu Yunwen.
But Zhu Yunwen was different from Zhu Yunhun. Zhu Yunhun's talent of having a photographic memory was rare among millions of people outside the palace.
Although Zhu Yunwen was not bad, he was only more self-disciplined and more studious than other princes and grandchildren. There was not much difference in intelligence between them, and he could be considered average at best.
This is also one of the reasons why the civil officials in the court collectively praised Zhu Yunwen.
For the officials of the Ming Dynasty, they had served Zhu Yuanzhang, a difficult master, long enough, and they hoped that the new emperor would be dumber and listen to their orders.
"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness Zhu Yunwen is learning something different from the other heirs. He is currently studying at a university and should not study too much every day. Too much will make him bite off more than he can chew."
Upon hearing this, Old Zhu said "Oh" lightly, and the displeasure on his face subsided a little. Just when he was about to ask Zhu Yunwen for something as a reward, he suddenly heard Zhu Yunwen say.
"Grandpa Emperor, although Mr. Qi did not assign more homework to my grandson, I study on my own every day when I return to the palace, and I have already finished the last few chapters in advance!"
As soon as Zhu Yunwen finished speaking, Zhu Zhi, who was sitting below, curled his lips in disdain.
He finally understood what Zhu Yunhuan meant by the court test-taker. Isn't this grandson too cocky?
Old Zhu was quite interested and urged immediately.
"Recite it for us!"
Upon hearing this, Zhu Yunwen immediately began to recite , and even memorized the contents of the next few chapters.
Old Zhu was also familiar with the Four Books, but he could not reach the level of Qi Tai and others who could recite them by heart.
Therefore, after Zhu Yunwen finished reciting, he immediately looked at Qi Tai who was standing beside him.
"What do you think, Mr. Qi?"
"Reporting to your majesty, His Highness Yunwen recited every word correctly."
When Old Zhu heard Qi Tai say this, a smile immediately appeared on his face.
"good!"
"It's very rare to be able to take the initiative to learn on your own and learn so well!"
"Come here, give the emperor's grandson a box of fragrant ink and a piece of Korean paper!"
When Zhu Yunwen heard this, his heart sank immediately, and there was no trace of joy on his face.
Because in the past, when the emperor gave him this kind of formal award, he would call him the eldest grandson.
Now deliberately calling him the second grandson of the emperor could not be a mistake by the emperor's grandfather, it must be intentional.
But why did the Emperor do this? Did he know what happened at lunch yesterday?
correct!
Erhu was also present at the time. He must have been the one who reported the incident, causing the Emperor to misunderstand him!
When Qi Tai heard the words "the emperor's second grandson", he felt very uncomfortable.
After all, he had been teaching the princes and grandchildren for a long time and had certain feelings for Zhu Yunwen.
Seeing this child go from being the eldest grandson of the emperor, who was the focus of everyone's attention, to being an ordinary second grandson of the emperor, he felt very sorry for the child.
The princes sitting below were also shocked when they heard this.
They heard rumors in the morning that their father had ordered people to hold memorial services for his late nephew Zhu Xiongying and to send people to repair his mausoleum.
Now hearing their father address Zhu Yunwen like this, every prince couldn't help but feel puzzled. Is this going to change the world?
Qi Tai saw Zhu Yunwen standing there in a daze, and hurriedly reminded him.
"Your Highness Yunwen, why don't you quickly thank His Majesty for his grace?"
When Zhu Yunwen heard this, he suddenly woke up from his dream. He quickly forced a smile on his face and thanked the emperor for his reward.
Old Zhu pretended not to notice his reluctance, just smiled and encouraged him a few words, then turned to look at Qi Tai.
"Mr. Qi, since Yunwen is so smart, why not give him some extra homework tomorrow?"
"this……"
Upon hearing this, Qi Tai looked at Zhu Yunwen hesitantly, fearing that Zhu Yunwen could not bear it. However, unexpectedly, Zhu Yunwen did not even look at him, but instead looked at Old Zhu with burning eyes.
"Grandpa Emperor, if my third brother can do it, I can do it too!"
After Zhu Yunwen said this, he thought secretly in his heart.
It’s just a 500-word article every day. How can I memorize it by sleeping two hours less at night?
However, as soon as he finished speaking, Qi Tai poured cold water on him.
"Your Majesty, the Emperor's Second Grandson, His Majesty has just been outside the door and has adjusted the Third Grandson's homework to 1,200 words a day. Are you sure you want to do the same?"
When Zhu Yunwen heard this, he was so angry that he almost slapped himself in the face .
If it was a 500-word article every day, he could stay up late at night to finish it, but what could he use to finish an article of 1,200 words? Would he use his life to finish it?
When Zhu Yunwen was so eager to learn, Old Zhu immediately gave him high praise.
“Good job!”
"As expected, he is our favorite grandson!"
When Zhu Yunwen heard what his grandfather the emperor said, he could no longer refuse and could only agree.
"Please rest assured, Grandpa Emperor. I will definitely... definitely work hard!"
Zhu Yunwen returned to his seat in a daze, thinking about how he would have to stay up late at night to memorize his lessons, while others took turns to recite their lessons.
After listening to a few, Zhu Yuanzhang didn't want to listen anymore. Except for the brothers Zhu Yunwen and Zhu Yunhuan who recited well, the homework of other princes was really terrible.
After rewarding each of them with twenty lashes of the cane, Old Zhu left the hall angrily.
"Erhu, how is the investigation into our eldest grandson's poisoning going?"
Although no evidence was found the day before yesterday, Old Zhu is not the kind of person who would let it go.
Considering that the Crown Prince's Mansion was still holding a funeral, he changed his open inspection to a secret visit, trying not to disturb the prince's peace.
"Reporting to His Majesty, we have found that Lü Fengyu from the Imperial Hospital had private contact with the maid of the Crown Princess through the medicine boy..."
"I have already sent someone to keep an eye on it. Report immediately if anything happens!"
Old Zhu nodded to indicate that he understood.
"By the way, send a few people out of the palace to keep an eye on him, don't let that rebellious grandson get into trouble!"
"Also, when he comes back, bring him to see us!"
"promise!"
