Chapter 1103
Life and Death Tribulation
It was June of the tenth year of the Jingtai reign. The two young princes had already begun their education, could recognize the most basic characters, and could answer questions fluently, which showed their intelligence. Zhu Jianji was already eight years old.
He led his two younger brothers to Pan Yun and bowed respectfully to her.
The crown prince is the next heir to the throne, and his position is crucial to the nation's survival.
Pan Yun stared intently at the three brothers, her vital energy surging and her talent activating. The emperor looked up and saw that her eyes had changed color.
Seeing the light in her eyes, the emperor sat up straight, his face full of anticipation.
Pan Yun looked back and forth among the three, finally fixing her gaze on Zhu Jianji.
Zhu Jianji also tensed up, his face showing nervousness.
Pan Yun remained expressionless and said to Zhu Qiyu, "Your Majesty, the year after next, when the new year begins, will be an auspicious day. Let's decide on the heir apparent then."
Zhu Qiyu was slightly taken aback: "The year after next?"
Pan Yun nodded slightly, then glanced at Zhu Jianji: "He will face a calamity next October. If he can overcome it, everything will be fine."
Zhu Qiyu's fingers tightened with tension, his voice trembling: "What calamity?"
Pan Yun: "A life-or-death ordeal."
Zhu Qiyu tensed up: "Is there any way for the Imperial Advisor to avoid this?"
Pan Yun shook his head slightly, thought for a moment, took out a peace talisman and gave it to Zhu Jianji. He looked at him seriously and said, "Your Highness, not all calamities in this world can be avoided. If you can't avoid a calamity, then step over it. Even if you have to crawl over nails, you will get through it. Once you get over the hurdle, you will be on the road to stardom."
Zhu Jianji took the amulet, stared blankly up, and looked straight into Pan Yun's eyes. He seemed to be standing in the middle of the universe, with nothingness in sight...
In the blink of an eye, Zhu Jianji felt a jolt of fear, and the scene before him vanished instantly. When he came to his senses, all he saw was Pan Yun's gentle smile.
Even after walking a long way, Zhu Jianji kept looking back at the Imperial Observatory.
Zhu Qiyu turned around and saw Pan Yun standing on the high platform of the Imperial Observatory, staring intently at them.
Zhu Qiyu knew that if Zhu Jianji could survive the calamity in October of the following year, he would become the crown prince.
Zhu Qiyu reached out and patted Zhu Jianji's head, saying softly, "Take good care of yourself and don't do anything dangerous."
Zhu Jianji obediently agreed.
Pan Xiaohei jumped onto Pan Jun's shoulder in a few quick movements and watched the father and his three sons walk away with her.
"Human destiny is truly strange; a single choice can lead to vastly different circumstances, and a single turning point can be so important."
Pan Yun stretched out his hand, and a ball of golden merit surged in his palm: "Don't you think it's amazing? Because one person's fate changes, the fate of the entire country also changes, and then affects the situation of the whole world."
Pan Xiaohei said irritably, "That's because the person you chose to change is the ruler of a country."
“Therefore, the emperor is very important. Just because the cabinet makes decisions doesn’t mean that the selection of the emperor can be done carelessly.” Pan Yun’s gaze was deep.
Pan Xiaohei tilted his head to look at her: "What exactly did you see? Is Zhu Jianji really suitable to be emperor?"
Pan Yun: "The Ming Dynasty will reach its peak under his leadership."
Pan Xiaohei's perspective on the issue differed from that of ordinary people. Instead of getting excited, he gloated: "Extreme prosperity inevitably leads to decline."
Pan Yun glanced at it and said, "The laws of history are unavoidable, but we can extend the peak and flatten the summit."
Pan Xiaohei asked with great interest, "How do we do it?"
Pan Jun remained silent, focusing solely on her cultivation.
Because of Zhu Jianji's life-or-death ordeal, Pan Yun stopped going out after June of the following year and stayed in the capital to cultivate herself.
Zhu Qiyu assigned a team of guards to Zhu Jianji, personally inquired about his diet, and also ordered him to visit Pan Yun at the Imperial Observatory every day, ostensibly to convey the emperor's father's greetings to the national advisor.
The court officials were all very clever; seeing how much the emperor doted on the eldest prince, they tried to figure out his intentions.
The current empress has only two daughters and no legitimate sons. According to the law, the eldest prince is the first choice for crown prince.
Some ministers began to secretly support Zhu Jianji, but unfortunately, Zhu Jianji was only nine years old and had not participated in court affairs, so they could only contact his maternal family, the Hang family. In order to expedite the matter and to gain a foothold in the Crown Prince's camp, in August, some ministers submitted a memorial to the emperor to establish a Crown Prince.
They didn't say who to appoint, they just kept urging the emperor to appoint a crown prince.
If he were to agree to the position, someone would naturally suggest the eldest prince.
All three princes were born out of wedlock, so the eldest prince had a natural advantage.
This move sparked discontent among the Wang family, a powerful clan.
However, Empress Wang's father was a recipient of a stipend but held no real power, and he rarely even attended the morning court sessions.
The Wang family was dissatisfied, but they could only express their discontent by sending family members to the palace to meet with the Empress.
If the Empress intends to, they will contact court officials outside and will certainly not allow the Hang family to rise above them.
In this timeline, Empress Wang and the Emperor had a good relationship. Empress Wang was upright, and the couple was free from the two troublesome figures of Zhu Qizhen and the unborn Zhu Jianshen. Zhu Qiyu was never sensitive enough to think about the brothers fighting and changing the crown prince, and Empress Wang never witnessed her husband's dark side, nor did she despise his character.
In this timeline, Empress Wang remains upright, yet she speaks highly of the Emperor, believing him to have turned the tide and toiled tirelessly for the country, thus showing him great consideration in every way.
As for Zhu Qiyu, although the Empress was not his type, she was virtuous and kind. The two were his first wife and had supported each other through the most difficult times. He not only had feelings for the Empress, but also respected her very much.
Therefore, Zhu Qiyu never hid anything from the Empress.
He adheres to the Zhu family tradition of discussing matters with his wife.
Therefore, the Empress knew that the Emperor wanted to make Zhu Jianji the Crown Prince, that he had taken Zhu Jianji to see the Imperial Preceptor, and that Zhu Jianji would face a calamity in October of this year.
Like the emperor, since she was destined to be childless, Zhu Jianji was the best choice, both for the sake of the law and for the stability of the empire.
Therefore, she was also paving the way for Zhu Jianji.
Seeing her father and brother were anxious about this matter, Empress Wang specially met with the Wang family and told them to close their doors to guests and act cautiously.
The selection of an heir is a major event for the court and also a family matter for the emperor. It is a matter for the emperor and his officials to decide. The Wang family should not interfere in this matter and should remain silent.
Upon hearing this, the Wang family father and brothers obediently went home and stayed there.
Upon seeing this, the Emperor said to Consort Hang, "The Empress is virtuous and kind. My beloved consort should serve the Empress with the utmost respect."
Consort Hang and Empress Dowager Wu, the birth mother of Zhu Qiyu, were similar in that they were both people who lacked decisiveness.
Rumors were circulating that her eldest son was going to become the crown prince, which naturally pleased her. However, Empress Wang held immense power, so she could only secretly rejoice in her own palace and dared not show it, much less dance in front of the empress.
Upon hearing the emperor's words, Consort Hang's heart sank immediately, and the next day she began to respectfully pay her respects to the empress morning and evening.
This time, Empress Wang no longer refused and readily accepted the daily morning and evening greetings.
The emperor also gave the Hang family a warning.
The excited Hang family members, after a brief moment of excitement, instantly cooled down and, like the Wang family, closed their doors to visitors and stayed put.
Pan Yun chuckled to herself and gossiped with Pan Xiaohei, "They're not entirely stupid, but the Hang family is still not as cautious as the Wang family."
Pan Xiaohei: "But Empress Wang had no children."
Pan Yun: "A steady, persistent flow may not be as effective as a raging fire."
Zhu Qiyu also suppressed the memorial requesting the establishment of a crown prince.
Amidst the restlessness, Zhu Jianji attended a martial arts class on the third day of the tenth month. After a set of punches and kicks, he felt too hot, so he took off his outer garment and followed his martial arts master to practice horseback riding.
When he returned to the palace excitedly after school, he developed a high fever that very night, and his whole body was chilled, he had convulsions and fainted.
The entire palace was alarmed. Seeing the emperor in a panic, the empress quickly took over command, sending people to fetch the imperial physician and the imperial astronomer to invite the national advisor.
"Take the plaque from Kunning Palace and immediately go to fetch Dr. Miaohe and Dr. Tao Yanbai from the Medical School. Be quick!" (End of Chapter)