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

Chapter 697 Opportunity
To be honest, it was a lie that Xu Jingqiu didn't want to go to Beijing. She had been separated from her husband for so many days, and now Zhu Shenzhui had no one to take care of him in the capital. Xu Jingqiu, who missed her husband for so long, wished she could grow wings and fly to her husband immediately.

But reason told Xu Jingqiu that the capital was not peaceful at the moment. If she went to the capital, she would not be able to help Zhu Shenzhui, but might even cause trouble for him. When she was not there, Zhu Shenzhui could focus on all the problems and handle them with ease. If she went, he would have to devote some of his energy to take care of himself and the children.

So after careful consideration, Xu Jingqiu decided to stay in Yangtou Mountain and wait for Zhu Shenzui to gain a firm foothold in the capital. He would then set off for the capital after everything was settled.

As the saying goes, if love lasts forever, why should we be together day and night? This is the reason. Xu Jingqiu is not an ordinary woman. She understands the importance of herself and her children. Now is not the time to hinder her husband.

After talking with Li Hu for a while, Xu Jingqiu put the letter away carefully after Li Hu said goodbye and then greeted Zhang as usual, and the two continued to work.

When Xu Jingqiu received Zhu Shenzhu's letter, Kang Youfu also returned to Pingyang.

The first thing he did after arriving in Pingyang was to call together the subordinates of Hengtong General Merchants to make a series of arrangements, including preparing to hand over the work of Shanxi Hengtong General Merchants. In addition, he also prepared to notify Zhu Minfeng, Zhu Minyu and Zhu Qiuqi to come to Beijing as soon as possible.

The internal handover process of Hengtong was not complicated. The person selected by Kang Youfu was one of his shopkeepers and his most capable assistant. When the court targeted Hengtong and Kang Youfu, and Kang Youfu "hidden" under Zhu Shenzhu's arrangement to remotely control the company, this person was in charge of the company's open operations.

This person's ability and reliability have been proven. Now that Hengtong is about to be split, in the future Hengtong's head office in Shanxi will only be responsible for the ordinary business part and will no longer have contact with the bill bank (Ming Royal Bank) and foreign trade. These two parts will be under the charge of the new Ministry of Internal Affairs, which is relatively simple from this point of view.

Not to mention Zhu Minfeng, Zhu Minwei and Zhu Qiuqi, especially Zhu Qiuqi who was extremely excited when he heard the news that they were allowed to go to Beijing. They were all ordinary royal family members and should have spent their entire lives in Pingyang, no different from other royal family members.

But they never expected that, because of Zhu Shencui, the three of them not only escaped their original difficult life, but also that Zhu Shencui still did not forget them even though he had become the Prince of Jiaocheng and was promoted to Regent. This really moved them deeply.

In the evening of that day, brothers Zhu Minfeng and Zhu Minyu came to Zhu Qiuqi's house together. Compared with the two of them, Zhu Qiuqi's house was bigger, and there was only his wife and two children at home and no one else, so it was much more convenient to talk there.

Zhu Qiuqi asked a nearby restaurant to send over a table and sent his wife and children away. The three of them sat down and started chatting while eating and drinking.

"Eighteen, you followed Uncle closely before, do you know what Uncle asked us to do in Beijing this time?" After two glasses of wine, Zhu Minfeng couldn't help asking. Although the three of them had followed Zhu Shenzhu for a long time, it was actually Zhu Qiuqi who really helped Zhu Shenzhu. Zhu Minfeng and Zhu Minqi, apart from some business dealings with Hengtong and visiting Zhu Shenzhu during festivals, knew nothing about what Zhu Shenzhu did privately on weekdays.

Just like the previous attack on the Fan family, the two brothers did not get involved, but Zhu Qiuqi made great efforts in it. And later, Zhu Shenzhui raised an army to purge the court and pacify the country, and he knew nothing about it beforehand. Until the news came, the two were stunned by this huge change and became even more uneasy.

The two brothers were really scared when they knew that Zhu Shenzhui had done such a big thing. This was tantamount to rebellion! Apart from Zhu Di, the only other royal family member who rebelled was Prince Ning during the Zhengde period. What was the final fate of Prince Ning? As royal family members, how could they not know? If Zhu Shenzhui failed, how could they, who had always been close to Zhu Shenzhui, have a good ending?
But it was of no use being afraid, because Zhu Shencui had already led his troops to attack the capital. During those days, the two brothers stayed at home and worried for many days. They were not completely relieved until they heard the news that Zhu Shencui had taken the capital, turned himself into the King of Jiaocheng, and was ordered to regent.

Originally, they thought that the matter was over, but who would have thought that a few months later, Kang Youfu suddenly brought an imperial decree, and Zhu Shenzhu asked the three of them to go to Beijing as soon as possible. As for what to do in Beijing and why they had to go to Beijing, the brothers Zhu Minfeng and Zhu Minyu still didn't understand it until now.

Zhu Qiuqi smiled and picked up the food with chopsticks and put it into his mouth. After chewing for a few times, he said, "Uncle asked us to come to the capital because he wants us to be of great use. The three of us have followed him since the Wanli Emperor. If it weren't for his help, how could we have such a good life today?" "Now that uncle is a prince and the regent, he controls the government and is in need of people. He asked us to come to the capital because he wants us to do something."

"But Eighteen, we are members of the royal family!" Zhu Minfeng did not look excited, but rather worried.

"Royal family? So what?" Zhu Qiuqi rolled his eyes and said, "What was the case in the past does not mean that it is still the same as it is now. Besides, when Taizu was in power, the royal family was not what it was later. Now that uncle is in control of the government, his power is no different from that of the emperor. In my opinion, it is only a matter of time before our Zhu family changes the head of the Ming Dynasty. The emperor changes his ministers in this dynasty, and it is time to change some rules. Otherwise, uncle can ask Kang Youfu to give us a message?"

"This..." Zhu Minfeng didn't know what to say for a moment. Although Zhu Qiuqi's words made sense, the problem was that the rules of the Ming Dynasty towards the royal family had completely changed since Zhu Di. When Zhu Yuanzhang was in power at the beginning of the founding of the country, the royal family had considerable power, especially the princes who actually held military power on the border.

If this was not the case, why did Emperor Jianwen fear the royal family so much after Zhu Yuanzhang's death, and even began to reduce the power of the vassal states? This eventually led to the Prince of Yan, Zhu Di, raising an army to quell the rebellion and eventually taking over the world?
Now Zhu Shenzhui followed the same pattern and took the capital in the same way. Although he did not directly sit on the throne like Zhu Di, as the regent, the power in his hands was actually no different from that of the emperor. Logically speaking, after ascending the throne in this way, in order to prevent others from following suit, Zhu Shenzhui should have continued to suppress the royal family like Zhu Di did back then. However, Zhu Shenzhui did not do so. Instead, he remembered the three of them and asked Kang Youfu to come to Shanxi to let them enter the capital. What on earth was this operation?
Zhu Minfeng didn't quite understand Zhu Shenzhu's intention, and couldn't tell whether it was a blessing or a curse to let them enter the capital. Staring blankly at the wine cup in front of him, Zhu Minfeng didn't know how to decide.

"I'll settle my family in the next few days and prepare to set off. Eighteen, when are you planning to leave? Tell me in advance so that we can find a companion and travel together." Zhu Minyu, who had been silent all this time, suddenly said this, which surprised Zhu Minfeng. He looked at him as if he didn't recognize his brother.

"Old Fifth, don't you know the rules of the Ming royal family? Aren't you worried that after you go to the capital..."

"What are you worried about?" Zhu Minyu said calmly, "If it weren't for Sixth Uncle, my family would have starved to death. How could we be sitting here drinking and talking about things now? Sixth Uncle has been very kind to us. It's not an exaggeration to say that he has been a great benefactor to us. Besides, don't you and I know what kind of person Sixth Uncle is?"

"I am a stupid person. I am neither as smart as Eighteen nor as cautious as Fourth Brother. I only know that Sixth Uncle has been very kind to me and I must repay him sincerely. Now that Sixth Uncle has summoned me, he must be able to use me, so I will go. Why should I think too much?"

Zhu Minfeng was stunned by Zhu Minyu's words. He had never thought that his brother, who was usually honest and even a little timid, would say such a thing. But after thinking about it carefully, Zhu Minfeng couldn't help but feel ashamed. Zhu Minyu was right. Zhu Shenzhu had never treated them, his brothers, uncles and nephews unfairly over the years. If it weren't for Zhu Shenzhu's help, how could they have such a good life today?
Zhu Minfeng knew very well how the two brothers lived. Zhu Minwei had many children and an old mother. The imperial clan salary was never paid to the family, and they could only rely on the clan relief to get by. If Zhu Shencui had not helped them later, they might have starved to death.

Not to mention Zhu Minyu, even Zhu Minfeng himself was not much better off, especially in the past few years when the severe drought in Shanxi led to poor harvests in various places. Pingyang Prefecture was relatively better off, but in other prefectures, there were families of royal families who starved to death. If it weren't for Zhu Shencui, the fate of these families can be imagined. How could they be where they are today?

Although Zhu Minyu was a bit dull, he knew how to repay his gratitude. His mind was simple. Since Zhu Shenzhui had given him everything, he should just do whatever Zhu Shenzhui asked him to do. Why should he think so much? The worst thing that could happen was nothing more than a life. Besides, this life was given by Zhu Shenzhui. Even if he died now, the good life he had lived for so many years was enough.

"Fifth brother, what you said is very good! As an elder brother, I was thinking wrongly. Since Sixth Uncle has summoned me, I will naturally go. So, you and Eighteen-do will wait for me for two days. After I have settled the family, I will set off with you to the capital. How about that?"

As soon as these words came out, Zhu Qiuqi immediately laughed. Although his uncle was a little cunning, he was a loyal man after all. And who in the whole Pingyang City didn't know the relationship between the three families and Zhu Shenzhu? From this point of view, they had been tied to Zhu Shenzhu for a long time. Since Zhu Shenzhu came to Beijing, it was impossible for them to put aside their relationship. Instead of being an ungrateful villain, it would be better to follow Zhu Shenzhu. Based on his understanding of Zhu Shenzhu, since summoning them to Beijing would definitely not be a bad thing, maybe this is still an opportunity for them.

(End of this chapter)