Prince of Yan
The Hongwu Emperor was long-lived and survived his first heir, Zhu Biao, the Crown Prince. He worried about his succession and issued a series of dynastic instructions for his family, the "Huang Ming Zu Xun". These instructions made it clear that the rule would pass only to children from the Emperor's primary consort, excluding the Prince of Yan in favour of Zhu Yunwen, Zhu Biao's son. When the Hongwu Emperor died on 24 June 1398, Zhu Yunwen succeeded his grandfather as the Jianwen Emperor. In direct violation of the dynastic instructions, the Prince of Yan attempted to mourn his father in Nanjing, bringing a large armed guard with him. The imperial army was able to block him at Huai'an and, given that three of his sons were serving as hostages in the capital, the prince withdrew in disgrace.