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

Chapter 862 Extremely ill
"Has anything happened in Jinling City these days?" Xu Hongji asked his son.

Xu Wenjue was stunned, not quite understanding what his father meant by asking this question. There were so many things happening in Nanjing every day, what exactly did his father want to ask?
Looking at his son's confused expression, Xu Hongji smiled bitterly in his heart. His son was really a fool. The heir to the Duke of Wei had no political sensitivity at all. If he died one day and he succeeded to the throne of the Duke of Wei, would this huge family business be passed down in his hands?

"I am asking about the affairs of the various departments in Nanjing, as well as the eunuch's mansion." Xu Hongji reminded.

Xu Wenjue finally understood his father's intention. After thinking for a while, he replied, "Nothing happened in the six ministries in Nanjing. Everything is the same as usual. As for the eunuchs guarding the palace, it seems to be the same. I don't think I heard anything happened..."

"Fool!" Xu Hongji cursed in his heart. How could he have such a stupid son in his wise life? If Xu Wenjue didn't look exactly like him when he was young, he would even doubt whether he was his own son.

Just as he was about to speak, his throat felt itchy and Xu Hongji started coughing violently again. Xu Wenjue hurried forward to pat his chest and back, and fed his father a few sips of honey water. After a lot of tossing and turning, Xu Hongji finally calmed down.

Seeing his son busying around, Xu Hongji's anger gradually subsided. Although his son was a little stupid, his filial piety was genuine. He had been taking care of him wholeheartedly when he was sick over the years. Such filial piety was rarely seen even in ordinary families, let alone a high-ranking family like the Duke of Wei.

"You, don't drink and have fun with your bad friends in Qinhuai River anymore. Read more books and pay attention to the political situation. You don't have to wait for rumors to spread everywhere before you know about many things. There are already some clues. If you don't know and prepare, you won't know when you become the head of the Duke of Wei's mansion and get sold out."

Facing his father's words, Xu Wenjue nodded repeatedly and pretended to listen attentively. As the father knows the son, Xu Hongji could tell at a glance that his son did not understand what he said at all. His reaction was just a habitual answer, and he did not understand his reminder at all.

Sighing inwardly, Xu Hongji had no choice but to explain more clearly and ask directly.

"Let me ask you, have officials from the six ministries at all levels in Nanjing met frequently in private recently? Also, what's going on in the eunuch's mansion? What has the new eunuch Du Xun been doing these days? Where has he been? Who has he met? And Lord Zhang Xijun, who was ordered to go south, is said to have set off from Zhongdu and is heading towards Nanjing. What is the reaction of the people in Nanjing now? Or have those officials made any arrangements?"

"I understand now that you put it that way. If you want to ask something, just ask directly. As a father, you are beating around the bush when talking to your son. I thought you wanted to ask something else." Xu Wenjue suddenly realized and laughed. Looking at his smiling face, Xu Hongji was helpless. If he was not Xu Wenjue's father and he had only this one son, Xu Hongji really wanted to slap him.

Although his brain was not working well, Xu Wenjue still took his father's words to heart. He thought about it carefully and answered Xu Hongji's question.

He told Xu Hongji that the six ministries in Nanjing, including officials at all levels, had indeed been interacting frequently these days, especially the Donglin Party, Zhejiang Party, Chu Party and others, which held many more cocktail parties than usual. However, he did not know what they were talking about. After all, the Duke of Wei's Mansion was a noble family, and they were not the same kind of people as these civil servants, and it was impossible for Xu Wenjue to participate in their contacts.

As for the eunuchs' mansion, Du Xun, who had just taken office, had no unusual behavior except for normal socializing and visiting a few places. However, it was heard that the people who guarded the eunuchs' mansion had been replaced frequently recently. Many people who originally belonged to Cao Huachun were replaced, and the new ones were all brought by Du Xun from the capital. Moreover, these people have been busy in recent days, and Xu Wenjue didn't know what they were doing. Maybe it was a normal handover and familiarization process after the replacement.

As for the rest, Xu Wenjue didn't know. Although he knew that Zhang Xijun had gone to Nanjing after the sacrifice in Fengyang, he didn't pay attention to it. Anyway, he was just an ordinary imperial envoy, which had nothing to do with the Duke of Wei's Mansion. If his father needed to know, he could go out and ask someone.

"Forget it, no need to ask. You stay in the mansion these days and try not to go out." Xu Hongji waved his hand after listening. Seeing Xu Wenjue's smile froze, as if he wanted to say something, Xu Hongji glared at him before he could finish his words: "There are some things you don't need to know too much. Even if you know, you won't understand. I am your father, I can't hurt you. These days, stay in the mansion and don't go anywhere. If I find out that you sneak out to fool around again, don't blame me for being cruel and breaking your dog legs!"

"Yes... yes... the child knows..." Xu Wenjue nodded bitterly, but he blamed his father in his heart. Isn't this equivalent to confining himself? What's the fun of staying in the house every day? It's boring! He wanted to object in his heart, but he was afraid that his father was really cruel. He knew his father too well. Don't look at Xu Hongji's smiling Maitreya Buddha in front of others, but in fact he is very cruel. He has experienced his father's methods many times since he was a child. After carefully instructing Xu Wenjue a few words, Xu Hongji waved his hand and let him leave. After Xu Wenjue left, Xu Hongji concentrated on thinking about it. The more he thought about it, the tighter his brows frowned, and he felt even more uneasy.

The Ming Dynasty has been changing over the years, and although he is in Nanjing, he has also felt many changes. Moreover, as an old noble, the contemporary Duke of Wei, if Xu Hongji does not have some skills, how can he support such a large family business as the Duke of Wei?

Although Xu Hongji is a Nanjing garrison commander who doesn't care about practical matters, he is not a fool, but a very smart person. His hiding his incompetence is just an appearance. After all, as a top noble of the Ming Dynasty, it would not be a good thing for Xu Hongji to pretend to be very capable.

Moreover, Nanjing is different from the capital. Compared with the capital, there are only a few noble families in Nanjing, and the Duke of Wei's Mansion is the most important one among them. There are many people watching the every move of the Duke of Wei's Mansion. If he is too smart and capable, then not only in Nanjing City, but also in the capital, people will be restless. This is not a blessing but a disaster!

Xu Hongji's strategy was to keep a low profile, and he had been doing so for all these years. He originally planned to resign from his post as the garrison commander of Nanjing early, spend the last few years of his life in peace, and pass the title to his son Xu Wenjue.

But when his resignation was rejected by Emperor Yongming, Zhu Shencui not only disagreed with his resignation but also issued an edict to appease Xu Hongji. Xu Hongji became a little uneasy. He did not understand Zhu Shencui's intention at first, and only felt uneasy out of his political acumen. But as time went by, Xu Hongji completely understood it, especially when Du Xun replaced Cao Huachun as the garrison eunuch and sent Zhang Xijun south. Only then did Xu Hongji figure out what Zhu Shencui was trying to do.

If Xu Hongji guessed correctly, Zhu Shenzhu was planning to attack the south. After all, Zhu Shenzhu had been on the throne for some time, and the south of the Ming Dynasty had always been different from the north. Although it was still the territory of the Ming Dynasty in name, it was actually insincerely obeying the central government. In addition, the power of the civil service group and gentry in the south was strong, and the central government of the Ming Dynasty could not completely control the south, which was not a good thing for the country.

If I were Emperor Yongming, I would not sit idly by and watch the South continue to be like this, especially now that the throne is in my hands and the North and the Central Plains have been basically pacified. How could the Southern court, as a tax-intensive area of ​​the Ming Dynasty, just let it go? Naturally, I have to take action to solve it.

Replacing Cao Huachun with Du Xun was the first step, and now letting Zhang Xijun go south to inspect Southern Zhili and Zhejiang as an imperial envoy was the second step. Although Xu Hongji had not figured out what Zhu Shenzhui was going to do, he had already sensed the coming storm. In this situation, the Duke of Wei's Mansion must not get involved. Preserving itself was the most important thing. As for the others, what did they have to do with the Duke of Wei's Mansion?

Just like that, Xu Hongji once again closed the door to visitors and refused to see anyone, saying that he was seriously ill. Even the young master Xu Wenjue was confined to his house. However, he advertised to the outside world that Xu Wenjue was filial and served him at his bedside because of his serious illness. But privately, Xu Hongji did not relax at all and asked his men to secretly inquire about the news in Nanjing City in order to make full preparations.

But the more you fear something, the more likely it will come. A few days later, Zhang Xijun and his party who came from Fengyang finally arrived in Nanjing City. After arriving in Nanjing, Zhang Xijun did not go to see the six ministers of Nanjing, nor did he go to see the new eunuch Du Xun who was in charge of Nanjing. Instead, he went straight to visit the Duke of Wei's Mansion.

If someone else came to visit Xu Hongji, Xu Hongji could have found an excuse not to see him and continued to act like an ostrich behind closed doors. But the person who came was Zhang Xijun. What was Zhang Xijun's identity? He was not only an imperial envoy sent by the court, but also a senior official of the court. His rank was equivalent to that of a minister. He also held the positions of Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, the Censorate and the Supervisory Department. He was also a popular figure around the current emperor. How could he not see such a person behind closed doors?
In desperation, Xu Hongji could only ask Xu Wenjue to bring Zhang Xijun in on his behalf, but he hid in the house on the pretext of illness, lying on the bed covered with a quilt, and "reluctantly" met him.

"Sir, I am here to visit you on the orders of His Majesty. How are you?" Zhang Xijun did not take it seriously. After meeting Xu Wenjue, he asked to visit Xu Hongji. Xu Wenjue took Zhang Xijun to Xu Hongji's bedroom as his father had instructed. When they entered, they saw Xu Hongji half lying on the bed. Hearing his voice, he seemed to be struggling to sit up, so he hurried forward to support him and greeted him warmly.

“Cough cough cough... Old... I’d like to meet Lord Zhang... My health... cough cough... I’m really not in good condition. Lord Zhang was ordered by the emperor to visit me, and I... I should have... cough cough cough...” Xu Hongji’s face was pale gold and he looked weak. He coughed from time to time, as if he was terminally ill and was about to die.

(End of this chapter)