Counterattack of the Cannon Fodder Chambermaid

Untitled Part 89

The capital.

Within the eastern palace, the crown prince heard that the imperial tutor was asking for an audience and bid him enter.

The moment Imperial Tutor Bai entered, he asked in an urgent voice: "Crown prince, you submitted a memorandum to reduce the vassal princes' military authority?" Before the sound of his voice faded, he spoke again: "What a muddleheaded move! How did you come by such a notion?"

The old man appeared aggrieved and bitter.

The crown prince's imperial tutor Bai Zhong Zhu was already sixty-seven this year. He was a virtuous and reputable person, and also extremely knowledgeable. Since he had taught the crown prince from a young age, he never refrained from telling him the truth as he saw it.

Imperial Tutor Bai spoke quite frankly, but Crown Prince Luo Zhao was a young man after all. It was one thing to be scolded by this old man as a child, but now that he was already over thirty years old, being scolded as a child would inevitably make him feel extremely annoyed.

The crown prince's initial smile instantly slid off, and an inexplicable flame rose in his heart. But since this imperial tutor was conferred by his royal father, he wasn't foolish enough to disrespect his teacher. He could only force himself to maintain his smile and say: "Why does imperial tutor say so?"

Although he said this, the crown prince was extremely disapproving in his heart.

The Grand Xi Dynasty's feudal system was extremely lenient towards the vassal princes. But how could the crown prince be willing to let others snore beside him on his narrow bed? It was like having a blade to his back.

The current emperor had five princes who were of age. The eldest son of the principal wife was conferred the crown prince title and remained inside the capital. The other four were sent off to various vassal states. The second prince Luo Jin was conferred the title of Jin Prince and sent to the Jin Province. The third prince Luo Qi was conferred as the Qi Prince and sent to the Qi Province. The fourth prince Luo Huai Yuan was conferred as the Yun Prince and given the Yun Province. The fifth prince Luo Jing was conferred as the Jing Prince and sent to the Jing Province.

Out of the princes, the Jin Prince and the Qi Prince were birthed by Senior Concubine Xu and were brothers by blood. Senior Concubine Xu had been favored for several decades, and her sons were both well regarded. Not only were their vassal states the most fertile, they even repeatedly received various bestowals, making the show of favoritism extremely clear.

While the crown prince's memorandum was in regards to all the vassal princes, it was merely his scheme against the Jin Prince and the Qi Prince.

Imperial Tutor Bai was already old after all, and having hurried over the entire way he had already been huffing and puffing. After catching his breath, he said: "It's taboo, taboo, understand? You've already been the crown prince for around twenty years. You are the eldest and born of the principal wife. Being the crown prince is as expected, and you will become the emperor in the future. Why would you make things difficult for these small vassal princes at this time? I know that crown prince feels restless with the Jin Prince and the Qi Prince watching daily like tigers watching their prey. But the vassal princes can currently only mobilize their honor guard troops without approval from the imperial court, and those number less than ten thousand. The regional militia and the guards appointed by the court are all overseen by the commander. What need is there to worry?"

Without waiting for the crown prince to speak, he continued: "His majesty fainted inside the royal court several days ago. Just as he got better, you submitted this memorandum requesting to reduce the vassal princes' military authority. Have you considered what his majesty would think?"