Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 319: Idle Man
Just because Wei Liangqing couldn't understand this principle doesn't mean Zhang Xijun couldn't figure it out.

Zhang Xijun was a very smart man, with the ability to see through people's hearts. Although he had not been well-known in the capital during the past two years, he had secretly woven a big network in the capital, recruiting a lot of people from all walks of life. In addition, with his relationship with Wei Zhongxian and Wei Liangqing, every move of the capital could not escape his eyes and ears.

On the surface, Zhang Xijun was aloof and natural, and he was on good terms with Wei Liangqing in private, and also had a good relationship with several of Wei Zhongxian's godsons. Moreover, he had no interest in a career in government, and he repeatedly declined Wei Liangqing's suggestions to help him find an official position. To the outside world, he was just the owner of an ordinary business, and he rarely showed up in public, so not many people knew of his existence.

Tian Ergeng once joked with Zhang Xijun, saying that he was a bit like Wang Wenyan. In fact, this analogy is not wrong. Zhang Xijun is indeed similar to Wang Wenyan in many ways, but Zhang Xijun and Wang Wenyan are also very different. The most important difference is that Zhang Xijun has always been hiding in the dark and has never been as high-profile as Wang Wenyan.

Zhang Xijun not only had a good relationship with the eunuch party, but also had some friendship with other party members in the court, and even some people from the Donglin Party. However, Zhang Xijun was very cautious in his contacts, never expressing his political stance, and never interfering in political affairs at will, because his actions made these people trust Zhang Xijun. In addition, Zhang Xijun was not short of money, and from time to time he helped a few low-level officials in Beijing, or used his connections to help them when they were in trouble, which made him more detached.

Zhang Xijun saw clearly that the Tianqi Emperor was playing a big game of chess. Wei Zhongxian was the chess piece in the hands of the Tianqi Emperor, and the chessboard was the court of the Ming Dynasty.

The people who were playing games with Emperor Tianqi were none other than the Donglin Party, which controlled the court. In the early days of Emperor Tianqi's accession to the throne, the power of the Donglin Party reached its peak, and even Emperor Tianqi was nominally supported by the Donglin Party.

But what about now? In just over three years, the Tianqi Emperor used Wei Zhongxian to gain some power in the court, and even had the ability to confront the Donglin Party head-on.

Although all these were achieved through Wei Zhongxian, Zhang Xijun, as a bystander, saw it clearly and had to admit that Emperor Tianqi was sophisticated and had far-reaching plans.

Zhang Xijun was well-read. If he had not been involved in the White Lotus Rebellion, he might have been admitted to the imperial examination by now.

Using history as a mirror, we can understand the rise and fall of nations; using people as a mirror, we can understand gains and losses.

Zhang Xijun certainly understood the principle that when the birds are all gone, the bows are put away; when the rabbits are dead, the running dogs are cooked. If nothing unexpected happened, when the Tianqi Emperor used Wei Zhongxian to completely defeat the Donglin Party and monopolized power for one day, it would be time for Wei Zhongxian, the running dog, to be cooked.

History has proven that powerful officials (eunuchs) will never have a good ending. No matter how loyal Wei Zhongxian was to Emperor Tianqi, it was useless.

What's more, it was even more so when working under Emperor Zhu. Not to mention Zhu Yuanzhang, who was able to make things happen at the touch of a button, and killed countless people just to consolidate his throne. Almost all the founding heroes were killed by him, and as for the officials, there were even more of them.

Zhu Di, also known as Zhu Laosi, was not an easy person to deal with. The knife in his hand was no duller than his father's, and he killed people without blinking an eye.

The same was true for the missing Emperor Jianwen. Zhu Yunwen not only killed others, but even his own uncle. Otherwise, he would not have forced Zhu Laosi to raise an army to quell the rebellion.

The same is true for the other Zhu emperors who came after him. Were there not a few innocent people who died in that dynasty? Were there not some favored ministers and important officials who were thrown away like rags after being used?

Not to mention the Emperor Tianqi, even Zhang Xijun's master Zhu Shenzhui was not a good man. How did Zhang Xijun join Zhu Shenzhui? How did he come to the capital? If Zhang Xijun had not been smart and understood Zhu Shenzhui's intentions and ideas, maybe Zhu Shenzhui would have killed him quietly with his character, how could he have kept him alive until now?
To be honest, Zhang Xijun was not optimistic about Zhu Shenzhu's plan. In his opinion, the Ming Dynasty was still as stable as Mount Tai. Wei Zhongxian's eunuch party seemed to be a disaster to the country and the people in the eyes of the Donglin Party, but in fact, Wei Zhongxian and his gang did a lot of practical things. At least in terms of governance ability, they were much better than the boastful Donglin Party.

With the rise of Wei Zhongxian's eunuch party, the Ming court's administration was more stable than during the Wanli period amid the struggle between the two parties. This stability was not reflected in the court, but mainly in the local areas. The political atmosphere and governance in the local areas were much better than before, and even the lives of ordinary people were much better. Because of the suppression of the eunuch party, the Donglin Party and their representative groups in the local areas also restrained themselves a bit, which naturally led to the clean governance of local affairs and benefited the people.

These are all real things, and with the presence of an wise ruler like the Emperor Tianqi, Zhang Xijun believed that Zhu Shenzhui's plan would be in vain in the end and there would be no chance at all.

Zhang Xijun had tactfully reminded Zhu Shenzhui about this, but Zhu Shenzhui's reply made Zhang Xijun break out in a cold sweat. He knew that he, like Wei Zhongxian, had no way back, and he was also a pawn in Zhu Shenzhui's hands. If he had any intention of betraying Zhu Shenzhui, he would probably die earlier and more miserably than Wei Zhongxian.

Having given up the idea of ​​persuading Zhu Shenzhui, Zhang Xijun could only continue to work and plan for Zhu Shenzhui. This time, helping Wei Zhongxian find his daughter was something Zhang Xijun thought of by accident. Originally, he wanted to make use of this matter, but he didn't expect Wei Zhongxian to have such an attitude. Wei Zhongxian's attitude and reaction also proved that Wei Zhongxian himself understood the situation he was facing.

With a light sigh, Zhang Xijun shook his head and couldn't help but smile bitterly.

Who would have thought that the powerful eunuch Wei Zhongxian would have such concerns and such worries and anxieties in his heart? But it was okay. Although the previous plan could not be implemented, it was possible to clearly judge Wei Zhongxian's thoughts from this incident and figure out the real position of Wei Zhongxian's daughter in his heart. Since Wei Zhongxian cared about his daughter and his family and descendants, Zhang Xijun could adjust the plan and start from another angle. Now that Wei Liangqing had entrusted this matter to him, Zhang Xijun decided to take this opportunity to make arrangements.

Thinking of this, Zhang Xijun couldn't help but smile, and an idea came to his mind. He stood up, took a piece of paper, ground ink, and wrote a secret letter to Zhu Shenzhui, reporting the matter in detail in the letter, and then told Zhu Shenzhui his thoughts and plans.

After writing, he put the letter into an envelope and sealed it with sealing wax. Then he stood up and called someone. When the person saw the letter, he didn't say anything and took the letter directly. The next morning, the letter would be sent out through reliable channels as quickly as possible and would soon fall into Zhu Shenzhui's hands.

Half a month had passed when the letter reached Zhu Shenzhui. It shouldn't have taken so long. The reason it took so long to arrive was that Zhu Shenzhui was still in the grassland and had not returned to Ming Dynasty. The letter was delivered via Ming Dynasty.

After reading the letter, Zhu Shenzhui was a little dazed. He never expected that such a thing would happen.

The famous Wei Zhongxian, the 9,000-year-old, actually had a daughter among the common people? If it weren't for Zhang Xijun's letter and the content of the letter, Zhu Shenzhu would have thought it was a joke.

Zhu Shenzhui was absent-minded for a moment, and it took him a long time to come back to normal. He read the contents of the letter carefully again. After finishing reading it this time, a smile appeared on Zhu Shenzhui's lips, and he was very satisfied with Zhang Xijun.

It seems that Zhang Xijun had remembered his previous reminder, and now this matter is exactly what Zhu Shenzhu wanted. Although it is not certain what use this daughter and her child will be in the future, it is more advantageous to control them in his own hands.

No matter what the future holds, or what happens to Wei Zhongxian, this woman is an important figure after all. Even if she is not used in the end, it doesn't matter. She is just a daughter, and it won't take much energy and money to take care of her. If she can really be used, the investment and return will be very considerable.

What if a spare piece is placed there and it works? This situation is not uncommon in history. The great man who was famous in China in later history was the best at placing spare pieces. Facts have also proved that these spare pieces seem useless on weekdays, but they often play an amazing role at critical moments.

He wrote a letter back to Zhang Xijun, in which he approved of his arrangements and plans, and reminded Zhang Xijun to be careful and not to reveal his purpose.

After the letter was written, it was sent out. As soon as the messenger left, Wang Hai came to ask for a meeting with Zhu Shenzhui.

"master!"

When meeting Zhu Shenzhui, Wang Hai bowed to him respectfully as usual and called him "Master".

In fact, Zhu Shencui had told Wang Hai that this was not necessary. Although Wang Hai was a slave that Zhu Shencui had obtained from the Mongols, after following Zhu Shencui for so many years, Wang Hai had long been Zhu Shencui's most trusted person.

Now Wang Hai is no longer a slave. Zhu Shencui not only gave him the status of a free man, but also gave Wang Hai the official position of a centurion of the tribe. Even when Zhu Shencui is not in the tribe, Wang Hai will take over the power of a thousand households in place of Zhu Shencui to assist Tana and her son.

But no matter in the past or now, Wang Hai still regarded himself as a servant, respectfully calling Zhu Shenzhui the master, and calling Tana and Tengger the mistress and the young master. After a long time, Zhu Shenzhui was too lazy to persuade him, anyway, he was happy, it was just a title.

"What's the matter?"

"People from Elbegji Taiji's tribe are here." Wang Hai replied.

Zhu Shenzhui was slightly stunned. Ever since Elbegji Taiji accompanied Master Sangge to the tribe and took the initiative to contact Zhu Shenzhui to propose a trade cooperation request, Zhu Shenzhui agreed to the other party's request. The two sides have cooperated twice in the past two months. Elbegji Taiji's tribe has exchanged a lot of materials such as cattle, sheep, horses, furs, and precious gold, silver, and jewelry through the trade between the Tenger tribe and the Ming Dynasty, and the trade has progressed very smoothly.

Moreover, during the trade between the two tribes, Shunyi King Bu Shitu did not raise any objection, let alone obstruction, as if he turned a blind eye to the matter. It seems that when Elbeg Ji Taiji told Zhu Shenzhui that he would go to Bu Shitu to explain, it was not a lie. Perhaps it was because of his explanation that Bu Shitu turned a blind eye to the matter.

(End of this chapter)