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

Chapter 342 Arrival at Weiyuan
Zhu Qiuqi told Zhu Shenzhui with shame that the news from Hei Yunlong indicated that there was indeed pressure from above, and he simply could not bear the pressure.

The direct pressure came from the upper echelons of Xuanfu. Hei Yunlong had also inquired about it. Not only Xuanfu, but also Ji and Liao, plus there seemed to be the shadow of the eunuch party behind them. Under the pressure from these aspects, not to mention that Hei Yunlong was just a lieutenant general, even if he was a general, he would be powerless.

"Xuanfu? Jiliao? Eunuch Party?"

When Zhu Shenzhui heard this from Zhu Qiuqi, he was secretly shocked. He really didn't expect that the Fan family would have such a background. This background was not simple. Xuanfu and Jiliao both belonged to the Nine Frontiers. Not to mention the Governor of Xuanda, the Governor of Jiliao was Sun Chengzong, who was the teacher of Emperor Tianqi. Even if Ye Xianggao retired now, Wei Zhongxian could not do anything to him. He held enormous power.

As for the eunuch party, they directly represented Wei Zhongxian, and behind Wei Zhongxian was the Emperor Tianqi. Now they were extremely powerful. Under pressure from all these aspects, Hei Yunlong, a lieutenant general, could not withstand it.

But at the same time, Zhu Shenzui was also puzzled. In his previous understanding of the Fan family, he did not hear that the Fan family had such a profound foundation. If the Fan family had such a background, then the Fan family would have become the number one merchant in Shanxi long ago.

You have to know that the Zhang and Wang families have always been the Chu Qiao of Shanxi merchants, but it is not easy for the Zhang and Wang families to use these three forces for their own benefit at once, let alone the Fan family? Before the Fan family became rich, they had always been the younger brothers of the Zhang and Wang families. Even now, they are not as good as the Zhang and Wang families. But the facts are here, and the Fan family did it. Not long after Hei Yunlong cut off the trade route, they forced Hei Yunlong to reopen the trade route. It is really outrageous.

"Do you know who is behind this?" Zhu Shenzhui asked in confusion.

Zhu Qiuqi shook his head. He felt ashamed that the matter had turned out like this. He immediately explained to Zhu Shenzhui, "Uncle, I am also puzzled by this matter. I am planning to go to Zhangjiakou to inquire about the news myself. I will always feel uncomfortable if I don't get the information. Besides, who is behind this and whose influence is the Fan family relying on? We must get it clear."

Nodding slightly, Zhu Shenzhui felt that what he said made sense, and he should go there in person to find out the situation. However, Zhu Shenzhui carefully told Zhu Qiuqi that he could go to Zhangjiakou, but he had to be well prepared before going. After all, he was also a member of the royal family, and according to the rules, he could not leave Pingyang without permission. He could only go there under a pseudonym, and he must not let anyone know his identity along the way to avoid trouble.

In addition, how to contact Hei Yunlong in Zhangjiakou and what identity to use to contact and investigate also need to be thought out in advance. Until now, Hei Yunlong does not know the identity of Zhu Shenzhui and others, and these must be kept secret. Zhu Shenzhui does not want to accidentally expose himself.

Zhu Shenzhu thought about it for a long time after sending Zhu Qiuqi away, but he still couldn't figure out how the Fan family did it. It was not uncommon for Shanxi merchants who engaged in smuggling to have official backgrounds, but it was a bit rare for the background to be so big, and Zhu Shenzhu was even more puzzled by the faction struggle involving the eunuchs.

Whether Zhu Qiuqi can find out the truth when he goes to Zhangjiakou in person is not the point. Zhu Shenzhui also needs to investigate. He will start with the Jinyiwei and let Zhou Anmin inquire through the Jinyiwei's channels. In addition, because of border trade, Zhou Anmin now has a good relationship with the East Factory, which is the department directly controlled by Wei Zhongxian. Since this matter is said to be related to the eunuch party, starting from the East Factory is also a solution.

In addition to Zhou Anmin, he also wanted to ask Zhang Xijun in the capital. Zhu Shenzhui would never feel at ease if he didn't find out the background of the Fan family. That night, Zhu Shenzhui wrote a letter to Zhang Xijun and had someone send it out the next morning. As for Zhou Anmin, he didn't need to write a letter. He would go to Weiyuanwei in the next few days, and he could just tell him directly when he got there.

A few days later, Zhu Shenzui once again bid farewell to his family and children and set off for the grassland.

This time Zhu Shenzhui didn't bring many people with him, only a few old friends from Wangjia Village who had been following him. It was much safer to go to the grassland now than before. Nothing would happen in the Ming territory. When he arrived at Weiyuanwei, it would be Zhou Anmin's territory.

After leaving Weiyuanwei and going out of the Great Wall, all the way to Zhenlubao are with our own people. Not to mention when we get to Zhenlubao, which is Zhu Shenzhui's territory. There is no need to worry about safety when we continue to head north to reach the tribe.

Before setting off, Zhu Shenzhui had already sent a message to Zhao Wuling, asking Lu Yisheng to split up the new army and meet him at Zhenlu Fort, and then go to the tribe together.

The training of the first battalion of the new army has been completed. Zhao Da and others in the workshop have built ten new revolvers in recent days. This batch of revolvers has been equipped to the new army. Although the number is insufficient and they cannot completely replace the bird guns originally held by the new army, this batch of revolvers can greatly enhance the firepower of the new army and further improve its combat effectiveness.

Lu Yishen left Zhaowuling and led his troops north. It would have been best if Zhaowuling was handed over to Wang Jinwu, but considering that Wang Jinwu had just gotten married not long ago, his uncle Wang Rong forced him not to run around, otherwise he could not make his wife pregnant. He could not even think about leaving the garrison. Wang Jinwu had no choice but to be a "mule", with no place to use his strength. He "fought" with his wife at home every day, hoping that she would get pregnant as soon as possible so that he could "escape from the sea of ​​suffering".

As soon as Lu Yisheng left, Zhu Shenzhui transferred Hu Lin over. Although Hu Lin had been running back and forth with the merchant company for the past two years, he was quite familiar with the situation of the Hundred Households Office. Moreover, after returning to Daming last time, because of border trade, Hu Lin made new arrangements for him and put him under Lu Yisheng's wing. He had also been trained in the past year, so there would be no problem for him to temporarily replace Lu Yisheng.

The journey was uneventful, and they arrived at Weiyuanwei smoothly. Zhu Shenzhui disguised himself and met his brother-in-law Zhou Anmin, who was in charge of Weiyuanwei. It had been a long time since he last saw Zhu Shenzhui, and Zhou Anmin was very happy to see him. He quickly asked someone to send a table over, and the two brothers drank and talked.

After talking about family matters for a while, they talked about Wang Jinwu's marriage. Listening to Wang Jinwu's helplessness, Zhou Anmin couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"This bastard deserves it!" After taking a sip of wine, Zhou Anmin couldn't stop laughing: "It's good for him to get married and calm down. If he continues to live wild on the grassland, he might not want to return to Ming Dynasty one day."

"Brother-in-law is right. Uncle thinks the same way. Otherwise, why is he in such a hurry to let him go back and get married?" Zhu Shenzhui also laughed and echoed this.

Nodding, Zhou Anmin continued, "This marriage is pretty good, and it can be considered a good match. Don't let this kid down. He doesn't know how to appreciate his blessings. When he comes to his senses later, he will understand his uncle's painstaking efforts."

Zhu Shenzhu agreed. To be honest, although he had never met his brother and sister-in-law, he knew some information from his sister and uncle. Miss Sun was indeed a good match for Wang Jinwu. If Wang Rong had not become a commander a few years ago, the Wang family would have been considered marrying up considering the Sun family's situation. Even now, Miss Sun's father and brother both had honors, and her eldest brother was an official appointed by the court. He was a civil servant who was a genuine Jinshi graduate, and his status was much more noble than that of a military household in the Wang family's garrison.

The two men chatted and laughed for a while. Zhu Shenzhui picked up the wine jug and filled Zhou Anmin's cup with wine, and asked about the border trade situation in recent days.

Zhou Anmin smiled and told him that border trade was going smoothly, and it did not even stop in the winter. Except for the New Year period, transactions between the two sides had been continuing, and everyone made a lot of money through border trade.

Speaking of this, Zhou Anmin couldn't help but praise Kang Youfu, saying that if Zhu Shenzhui hadn't sent Kang Youfu to assist him, they would not be able to handle such a big thing as border trade.

Although Kang Youfu is just a businessman, his role in border trade is irreplaceable. Whether it is the Ming Dynasty or the Mongolian side, Kang Youfu is the one who plans and arranges everything. This guy is really a talent.

"Of course, he is my chief shopkeeper. How could I let him manage such a big industry without some ability?" Zhu Shenzhui said with a little pride. Kang Youfu was discovered and reused by Zhu Shenzhui. He really helped him a lot in the past few years and was Zhu Shenzhui's right-hand man in business. To put it bluntly, Kang Youfu was a business genius and was far more capable than Zhu Shenzhui, the boss, in many business matters. Kang Youfu contributed greatly to the scale of Hengtong today and the current achievements of the border trade between the two sides.

The most important thing is not only Kang Youfu's ability, but also his loyalty. Zhu Shenzhu has been secretly monitoring Kang Youfu and placing people around him. At first it was Zhang Xijun, and later it was others. These people were ordinary people, and no one knew about their situation around Kang Youfu, but they secretly monitored Kang Youfu under Zhu Shenzhu's instruction.

This is not because he does not trust Kang Youfu. Zhu Shenzhui is doing this to prepare for a rainy day, in case Kang Youfu does something that would let him down. However, from the beginning to the end of the surveillance until now, Kang Youfu has never let Zhu Shenzhui down. Feedback from all aspects can prove Kang Youfu's loyalty to him, which makes Zhu Shenzhui value him more.

Following the story of Kang Youfu, they naturally talked about the Shanxi merchants, and Zhu Shenzhui then mentioned the situation of the Fan family in Jiexiu.

When Zhou Anmin was told what happened in Zhangjiakou, he immediately frowned and became serious for a moment.

"Little brother, what are you going to do?" Zhou Anmin knew that Zhu Shenzhui would not mention this matter casually, and since he mentioned it, he probably had some ideas.

"Brother-in-law, my idea is to find out who is behind the Fan family from the Jinyiwei or the Dongchang. Who has such great power?"

"I understand." Zhou Anmin agreed readily. This was a trivial matter and it was also within his ability. He immediately said that he would ask someone to find out about the Fan family. Since the Fan family had the shadows of Xuanfu, Ji Liao and even the eunuch party behind them, it should not be difficult to investigate this matter.

To put it bluntly, Zhou Anmin can now be considered a eunuch party member, just wandering on the edge of the political vortex of the capital. Although his position as a thousand households is not high, he is a local powerful figure within the Jinyiwei. In addition, he is now in charge of border trade and has close cooperation with the East Factory. With the profits from border trade, Zhou Anmin has made many allies within the Jinyiwei, including the East Factory, over the past year, so this matter seems very easy to him.

(End of this chapter)