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

Chapter 380: Both Sides Are Winning Over
Although Zhou Yingqiu's words sounded high-sounding, Xu Xiancheng knew in his heart that the Donglin Party was nothing, and the Eunuch Party was not a good group of people either.

It is true that the Donglin Party united to fight against dissidents, but didn't the eunuch party also unite to fight against dissidents? As for corruption, it was the eldest brother, not to mention the second brother. Both families were not good people. Xu Xiancheng had seen it clearly and did not want to wade into this muddy water at all.

In addition, Xu Xiancheng was a little puzzled. Why did Zhou Yingqiu come to him? He was not the only newly-appointed Jinshi in the Ministry of Works, and he was only a deputy minister of the Ministry of Works, which could barely be considered a mid-level official.

Even with the extraordinary promotion of Emperor Tianqi, Xu Xiancheng was not the best candidate. He was not a censor. More importantly, he was very low-key after entering the Ministry of Works and rarely interacted with his colleagues on weekdays. But Zhou Yingqiu found him.

Xu Xiancheng expressed his gratitude for Zhou Yingqiu's "reminder", but said that he was young and had just taken office in the Ministry of Industry, and did not understand many situations. However, as a scholar and court official, it was natural for him to work for the country, oppose corruption, and be an honest official.

This is also the foundation of his life. No matter who it is, as long as they dare to take action, it would be fine if Xu Xiancheng doesn't know about it. Once he knows, he will definitely impeach and expose it. He hopes that Zhou Yingqiu, as a senior, will give him more support at that time. More importantly, Zhou Yingqiu is still the Left Censor-in-Chief, and as the highest supervisory agency of the court, this is also Zhou Yingqiu's job.

When Zhou Yingqiu heard Xu Xiancheng's answer, a slightly embarrassed expression appeared on his face, but this expression quickly disappeared and was replaced by relief.

Zhou Yingqiu nodded with a smile and said that of course it was necessary for a young and promising official to do so. Being a good official and an honest official was an essential quality for every official, and it was also his encouragement to the younger generations.

Zhou Yingqiu laughed it off and put the matter aside. Seeing that it was almost time, he stood up and asked Xu Xiancheng to sit for a while. He said that the pig's trotters he had stewed should be ready, so he would go and take a look first. He was very happy to meet a young talent like Xu Xiancheng today, so he asked him to stay and taste his pig's trotters and have a couple of drinks.

Without waiting for Xu Xiancheng to be polite, Zhou Yingqiu hurried to the side room. A moment later, Zhou Yingqiu came back smiling, carrying a casserole. Then the servants brought the wine and food that had been prepared long ago and invited Xu Xiancheng to take a seat.

At this point, Xu Xiancheng had no choice but to accept the invitation and drink.

The dishes were delicious, the wine was good, and especially Zhou Yingqiu did not brag at all. The pig's trotters he stewed himself were indeed unique, unusually soft and crispy, and full of freshness and fragrance. Xu Xiancheng had never eaten such delicious pig's trotters in his life. Zhou Yingqiu was really capable. With such a skill, he could easily become an imperial chef, let alone the Left Censor-in-Chief.

We ate pig's trotters, drank wine and continued chatting.

Xu Xiancheng made the best of it, and used Tai Chi to lightly block Zhou Yingqiu's jokes at the table. On the surface, the two of them seemed to be chatting happily, but in fact, Xu Xiancheng stuck to his bottom line and did not really promise Zhou Yingqiu anything.

After three rounds of drinks, Zhou Yingqiu suddenly laughed. He stopped talking about other things and mentioned the things in Nanjing. He asked whether Xu Xiancheng had stayed in Nanjing for some time during his study tour and whether he had formed a society called Yingshe with his friends?
Xu Xiancheng was slightly stunned by this. He did not expect Zhou Yingqiu to know this. Although not many people knew about this, and most of them were in Nanjing, few people in the capital knew that Xu Xiancheng was one of the founders of Yingshe.

The Yingshe Society no longer exists. It merged with other academic societies to form the Fushe Society. When the Fushe Society was founded, Xu Xiancheng had already returned to Shanxi to prepare for the exam. He never attended any activities of the Fushe Society until the news of his success in the imperial examination in Beijing reached Nanjing. Only then did Xu Xiancheng's name begin to be heard in the Fushe Society. Some people even called Xu Xiancheng one of the Seven Sons of the Fushe Society.

Even so, the so-called Seven Sons of Fushe was only a name used within Fushe. Outsiders did not know about it except for the members of Fushe. How did Zhou Yingqiu know my background? And how did he point out that he was the founder of Yingshe at the beginning? This was a bit strange.

Seeing Xu Xiancheng's surprise, Zhou Yingqiu smiled and said to Xu Xiancheng, "Don't forget, when Yingshe was founded, he, Zhou Yingqiu, was serving as an official in Nanjing. At that time, he was the left vice minister of the Nanjing Ministry of Justice. Although the officials in Nanjing were not as good as those in the capital, they could also be regarded as high-ranking officials of the court. Moreover, Zhou Yingqiu himself was from Zhenjiang, Nanzhili, and Nanjing could be regarded as his hometown. Naturally, he had a lot of knowledge about the students in Jiangnan.

In addition, Zhou Yingqiu asked Xu Xiancheng if he knew Zhou Biao. When Xu Xiancheng heard the name, he was stunned.

Of course he knew Zhou Biao, not only did he know him, but they also had a good relationship. He made many friends during his study tour in Nanjing, including Zhou Biao.

Seeing Xu Xiancheng's surprised expression, Zhou Yingqiu laughed, stroking his long beard and saying that Zhou Biao was his nephew and he was Zhou Biao's uncle. When Zhou Yingqiu directly said this relationship, how could Xu Xiancheng still sit still? He immediately stood up and bowed, and changed his words to call Zhou Yingqiu uncle. As a scholar, etiquette is very important. No matter what party Zhou Yingqiu belongs to, he is Zhou Biao's uncle. As Zhou Biao's good friend and junior, he must be polite.

Amidst the laughter, Zhou Yingqiu helped Xu Xiancheng up and stopped calling him "my dear brother" and instead called him "my dear nephew". He also told Xu Xiancheng that it was because of his nephew's letter that he knew about Xu Xiancheng's situation, and after getting to know Xu Xiancheng over the past few days, he admired this younger generation very much, so he specially invited him to his house to meet him.

With this kind of relationship, the distance between the two seemed to be shortened all of a sudden, and they became more intimate with each other.

In the following time, Xu Xiancheng called Zhou Yingqiu "uncle" all the time, and Zhou Yingqiu called Xu Xiancheng "nephew" all the time, and they were very close to each other.

Taking advantage of this relationship, Zhou Yingqiu talked a lot about the situation of the Fushe in Nanjing. At the same time, as an elder, he hoped to write to the Fushe members through Xu Xiancheng to tell them that as students they should not be too ambitious and talk about state affairs in vain. He hoped that they would study hard with their feet on the ground. Although they should understand political affairs, they should not follow them blindly. They should have their own opinions and know how to look at problems from a higher perspective. It is not good to follow the crowd. Many things are not as simple as they seem. Means are just means, and the real purpose is the fundamental.

Xu Xiancheng agreed with Zhou Yingqiu's words. Many students like to talk big. There were many people like this in the Ying Society back then. As for the Fushe Society now, it is probably the same. There are not many people who can really keep their feet on the ground and have a clear mind.

To be honest, when he was in Nanjing, Xu Xiancheng saw many students who always talked about the common people and the people, but in their daily lives, they sang and danced every night, spent money lavishly, and didn't care about anything else. The so-called benevolence was just lip service, but in reality it was completely the opposite of what they said. This was also why Xu Xiancheng looked down on these people, and he left Nanjing shortly after the establishment of Yingshe. Until now, Xu Xiancheng, who is known as the Seven Sons of Fushe, has never publicized his background identity.

Although the eunuch party brought disaster to the country and the people, and most of them were villains, it had to be admitted that compared to the Donglin party, which was good at talking, Wei Zhongxian's eunuch party had done some real things in the court in recent years. This was an undeniable fact. Even Zhou Yingqiu in front of him, a member of the eunuch party who was known as the leader of the ten dogs under Wei Zhongxian, was not bad in terms of ability, otherwise he would not have said such words.

The drinking session lasted until dark, and Xu Xiancheng, who was a little drunk, took the initiative to say goodbye. Seeing that he was a little tipsy, Zhou Yingqiu took the initiative to suggest that he take his sedan chair back home. He knew that Xu Xiancheng lived quite far away and it would take some distance for him to walk home from Zhou's house.

Xu Xiancheng smiled and refused Zhou Yingqiu's kindness, saying that he was young and this little bit of wine was nothing. Zhou Yingqiu, who was concerned, saw that although Xu Xiancheng was drunk, he could still stand steadily, and his speech was a little lisp, but he was sober. In addition, Xu Xiancheng refused to sit in his sedan chair, so he agreed to let him go back by himself.

He personally escorted Xu Xiancheng out of the mansion. When leaving, Zhou Yingqiu even held Xu Xiancheng's hand and said a lot of things, all of which were to ask Xu Xiancheng to do his job well, not to disappoint the court's expectations, to be careful as an official, and to be wary of attacks from both sides.

In addition, Zhou Yingqiu also told Xu Xiancheng that if there were any problems that could not be handled or if he needed help, the door of his mansion would always be open to Xu Xiancheng, and he was welcome to visit anytime and anywhere. Since Xu Xiancheng called him uncle, they were all family members, and there was no need to be polite. This place was his, and he could come whenever he wanted. If he was craving for pig's trotters, just let him know, and Uncle Zhou would cook for him personally.

After chattering for a while, seeing that Xu Xiancheng might not be able to get home before curfew if he didn't go back, Zhou Yingqiu let go of Xu Xiancheng's hand and watched him leave.

Xu Xiancheng said goodbye to Zhou Yingqiu with a shaky step, then turned and walked towards his home. After leaving the alley and walking a distance, Xu Xiancheng took a rest against the wall, and he seemed to be a little drunk, so he secretly looked back. After making sure that no one was following him, he breathed a sigh of relief.

In a flash, Xu Xiancheng's eyes regained their former brightness. Although he was still drunk, he no longer looked drunk. His steps were no longer as frivolous as before. He quickened his pace and continued to rush home. After half an hour, he finally arrived home before curfew. After entering the yard and closing the door, Xu Xiancheng went into the house, lit a candle, reached out and picked up the teapot on the table, which was filled with cold water. He didn't use a teacup and drank a few mouthfuls of water from the mouth of the pot.

After taking a few sips of cold water, the remaining drunkenness completely dissipated. Xu Xiancheng concentrated and thought carefully. Now he finally understood why Zhou Yingqiu invited him today and tried to win him over. It turned out that it was because of his special status that spanned Donglin and the Eunuch Party, and was specially promoted by Emperor Tianqi, that this happened.

It seems that Zhou Yingqiu's appearance is just the beginning, not the end. I am afraid that Xu Xiancheng will meet other people who will try to win him over. As for who else will try to win him over, Xu Xiancheng knows that the eunuch party has come, will the Donglin party let him go? Thinking of this, Xu Xiancheng couldn't help but feel bitter. He never expected that he, a newly-appointed Jinshi, would be dragged into such a whirlpool. Xu Xiancheng, who had been prepared to be a salted fish, inexplicably became a popular person who was tried by all parties.

(End of this chapter)