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

Chapter 365 Counterattack
Xu Xiancheng stayed at Zhu Shenzui's house that night, and left early the next morning.

The repair work of the three main halls is still going on. Xu Xiancheng is a very serious person and he will naturally not be absent from work because of Zhu Shenzhui's arrival. What's more, the real supervisor of the three main halls is Emperor Tianqi. Xu Xiancheng goes to the site early every day. Emperor Tianqi may come to inspect when he is in the mood. It will be bad if Xu Xiancheng is not there.

After Xu Xiancheng left, Zhu Shenzui also got up, practiced boxing in the yard, and had breakfast. After resting for a while, he asked someone to look for Zhang Xijun. Since he had come to the capital, it was impossible not to see Zhang Xijun, and he hadn't seen him for a long time.

More than half an hour later, Zhang Xijun hurried over, walked in and went quickly towards the main house. When he arrived at the main house, he saw Zhu Shenzhui standing at the door, looking at him with a smile on his face. Zhang Xijun hurriedly took a few steps forward and bowed deeply.

"Greetings, my lord..."

"Haha, no need to be so polite." Without waiting for Zhang Xijun to bow, Zhu Shenzhui reached out to support him. But even so, Zhang Xijun still bowed to Zhu Shenzhui respectfully.

Holding Zhang Xijun's hand, Zhu Shenzhu warmly welcomed him into the main room. After serving tea, he waved his hand and asked them to leave. Then he looked at Zhang Xijun carefully.

It's been a long time since we last met. Zhang Xijun looked the same as I remembered except that he was a little fatter than before. But his demeanor was much calmer than before. Although he was only wearing an ordinary Taoist robe, he looked like a superior sitting there.

He nodded slightly in his heart. Zhang Xijun was pretty much what he had imagined. Although Zhang Xijun was just an ordinary businessman in the capital, in reality, no one dared to mess with him.

Those who knew naturally knew that Zhang Xijun and Wei Liangqing were close friends, and it was common for him to go in and out of the Wei Mansion. Even Zhang Xijun was on the same page as the popular eunuch Wei.

Moreover, although Zhang Xijun had close contacts with Wei Liangqing, he did not belong to the eunuch party. Not only that, Zhang Xijun was kind and generous, and he made friends widely. He made friends regardless of your party or faction. Even in the Donglin Party, Zhang Xijun had several good friends.

At a time when the Donglin Party and the Eunuch Party were fighting fiercely and each side was "fighting" in the court, Zhang Xijun stayed out of it and was at ease. Not only that, Zhang Xijun would sometimes mediate between the two parties, of course, on the premise that he never got involved in important fights, but only in some minor matters, or when it did not affect the overall situation, Zhang Xijun would say a few good words for the sake of friendship and try to mediate.

In this way, both sides would give Zhang Xijun some face, allowing him to have the best of both worlds. Moreover, thanks to Zhang Xijun's favor, whether it was the Donglin Party or the Eunuch Party, or those ordinary officials who were not high-ranking officials but were involved in the struggle between the two parties, they could avoid risks and escape from danger under Zhang Xijun's mediation.

For a time, Zhang Xijun was quite famous in the capital, which was somewhat similar to Tian Ergeng's joke that he was similar to Wang Wenyan. However, the biggest difference between Zhang Xijun and Wang Wenyan was that he would not directly stand in a line like Wang Wenyan, and was extremely enthusiastic about official positions. What Zhang Xijun did was just for his friends, which made the parties admire Zhang Xijun privately. Anyone who Zhang Xijun wanted to protect would not be too embarrassed for Zhang Xijun's sake. Anyway, everyone knew that Zhang Xijun was very smart, and the people he protected were basically inconspicuous little people who were not the backbone of the two parties. Why not sell them face?

In this way, Zhang Xijun used this move to consolidate his position in the capital and also won over a lot of useful people. Although most of these people did not hold high positions, they were only middle and lower-level officials in the court, but their potential was not small. In the future, if these people united, they would also be a force that should not be underestimated.

After the two men sat down, Zhu Shenzhui asked about Zhang Xijun's situation in the capital. Although they had been exchanging letters, the last time they had a face-to-face conversation was before Zhang Xijun came to the capital.

Zhang Xijun told Zhu Shencui everything he knew, and he immediately talked about what he had done in the capital, including his efforts to mediate between the two parties, etc. After hearing this, Zhu Shencui seemed to be thinking about something and did not speak much for a while.

Looking at Zhu Shenzui's calm expression, Zhang Xijun didn't know for a moment what Zhu Shenzui's attitude was towards his actions. After waiting for a while and seeing that Zhu Shenzui still didn't speak, he couldn't help but ask.

"It's not wrong to say this, but people's hearts are complicated, especially those scholars who are officials. They may be grateful to you today, but no one knows what their attitude will be tomorrow. As the saying goes, those who are loyal are mostly butchers, and those who are unfaithful are mostly scholars."

Shocked, Zhang Xijun didn't know how to answer for a moment. After thinking carefully, he stood up and bowed deeply to Zhu Shenzhui solemnly.

"My lord, you are right. I was thinking the wrong thing. People's minds are indeed unpredictable. I thought too simply. If my lord hadn't reminded me, I would still be in a dream."

Waving his hands, Zhu Shenzhui said with a smile: "You can't say that. Your plan is actually not bad. It's profitable no matter who wins or loses in the end."

Zhang Xijun sighed, "I did think so, but I didn't expect what the lord just said. After careful consideration, I almost broke out in a cold sweat. Although I have not entered the officialdom, I have seen a lot of things in the officialdom of the capital in the past few years. The filthiness of it is simply unspeakable. There are all kinds of people and it is impossible to generalize. If I really help a villain by mistake, I will end up hurting myself." "My mistake is just my own fault, but if I make a mistake for the lord, I, Zhang Xijun, will be blamed for it!"

Seeing that Zhang Xijun understood, Zhu Shencui said no more and comforted him with a few kind words. It was not that serious at the moment, as long as Zhang Xijun knew it, how to make up for it and what to do next, Zhang Xijun was smart and could handle it, so Zhu Shencui didn't need to say more.

Then, Zhu Shenzhui asked Zhang Xijun about the situation in the court. Compared with Xu Xiancheng, Zhang Xijun knew more and was more clear about it.

Zhang Xijun carefully explained the current situation to Zhu Shenzhui, not only in the court but also in other aspects, and explained it in detail and clearly.

"The Donglin Party has been hit hard, and the eunuch party is extremely arrogant. The Donglin Party has been severely damaged in the court and has no power to fight back. But then again, the Donglin Party has been in control of the government for many years. It is not easy for the eunuch party to completely destroy the Donglin Party. Recently, many Donglin Party members have secretly colluded with each other and intend to counterattack."

"How to fight back?"

"Liaodong!" Zhang Xijun pointed to the northeast and said sternly, "After Sun Chengzong left office, Gao Di was appointed as the governor of Liaodong. The post of governor of Liaodong is temporarily vacant."

"Gao Di was appointed as the governor of Liaodong by the emperor. He was not a member of the eunuch party, nor was he a member of the Donglin Party. Moreover, Gao Di's reinstatement was ordered by the emperor. There must be a hidden meaning behind replacing Sun Chengzong with him."

Nodding slightly, Zhu Shenzhui agreed with Zhang Xijun's words. Zhang Xijun had written to Gao Di before about his situation, and Zhu Shenzhui also learned about Gao Di's situation later. Although Gao Di was an old minister and a capable minister, he was not a suitable candidate for the governor of Liaodong. In terms of ability, he could not be compared with Sun Chengzong at all. There was indeed a deep meaning in Emperor Tianqi putting Gao Di in this position. He was probably using Gao Di as a tool to temporarily replace Sun Chengzong.

Zhang Xijun continued, "After Sun Chengzong left office, the court no longer established the post of governor of Ji and Liao. Gao Di's title of governor of Liaodong was not worthy of the title. Wei Zhongxian now intends to let Yuan Chonghuan take over the post of governor of Liaodong. However, the Jiannu in Liaodong have made some changes, and Gao Di has just taken office, so this matter has not been done yet."

"Yuan Chonghuan?" This name is so famous that Zhu Shenzhui was slightly surprised.

In later generations, who doesn't know Yuan Dudu? He was praised by many as "the last pillar of the Ming Dynasty", but I didn't expect to hear this name from Zhang Xijun today.

"Are you saying that Yuan Chonghuan is Wei Zhongxian's man?" Zhu Shenzhui asked with a little surprise.

Zhang Xijun nodded and said, "More than a year ago, Yuan Chonghuan secretly surrendered to Wei Zhongxian. Last year, Yuan Chonghuan was supposed to return home for mourning, but it was Wei Zhongxian who helped him get his position back. Therefore, when Yuan Chonghuan returned to Liaodong, he passed through the capital to pay homage to the emperor and also met Wei Zhongxian alone..."

Zhang Xijun's information could naturally not be wrong. Wei Zhongxian's every move could not be hidden from Zhang Xijun. Moreover, Zhang Xijun had close relations with many members of the eunuch party and knew many secrets unknown to outsiders.

After listening to what Zhang Xijun said about Yuan Chonghuan and Wei Zhongxian, Zhu Shenzhui couldn't help but continue to ask about the Donglin Party's counterattack plan mentioned by Zhang Xijun just now, what does this have to do with these things?
Zhang Xijun told Zhu Shenzhui that it looked like two different things, but in fact, they were one thing. Since Sun Chengzong left office, the Donglin Party had lost its core figure. The former leader Ye Xianggao also retired and returned to his hometown. The Prime Minister of the Cabinet was already Wei Zhongxian's man. In addition, Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou and others had a miserable end. Now the Donglin Party was seriously injured and its strength was greatly damaged. It no longer had the power to directly compete with the eunuch party.

But even so, the Donglin Party still gritted its teeth and tried to counterattack. The best opportunity at the moment was the Liaodong war. After Sun Chengzong left office, Gao Di became the governor of Liaodong, but in fact the military power on the front line was in the hands of Yuan Chonghuan, who was also Wei Zhongxian's man. Many people knew that Wei Zhongxian intended to let Yuan Chonghuan take over as the governor of Liaodong. Once Yuan Chonghuan took over as the governor of Liaodong, the entire Liaodong military and political power would be in Wei Zhongxian's hands, and the eunuch party would inevitably increase its strength further.

The Donglin Party did not want to see such a consequence, so they decided to start with Gao Di, intending to take advantage of the opportunity of the renewed war in Liaodong to force Yuan Chonghuan to withdraw his troops from Ningyuan. On the surface, it was to preserve strength and use the Shanhaiguan defense line as a guarantee to stabilize the situation in Liaodong. In fact, they wanted to use the withdrawal of troops to make Yuan Chonghuan voluntarily give up the Ning and Jin lines and cut off the possibility of him succeeding the Governor of Liaodong.

In addition, the Donglin Party also made some adjustments to the logistics in an attempt to weaken the defense of Liaodong. If Yuan Chonghuan refused to withdraw his troops and insisted on defending Ningyuan, there would be a problem in this regard. Ningyuan would not have the support of logistical food and military supplies, and it would not be able to defend the isolated city for long. Yuan Chonghuan would inevitably be defeated.

Once Yuan Chonghuan was defeated, the Donglin Party could attack him collectively, and then use this as an excuse to counterattack the eunuch party and regain the military and political power of Liaodong from the eunuch party. As long as this plan succeeds, the Donglin Party will have the confidence to continue fighting the eunuch party. As for the other Donglin Party members, who cares so much?
(End of this chapter)