The seventh year of the Apocalypse, the sixth day of October.
Zhou Zheng was neatly dressed and stood outside the Daming Gate.
Li Shi came out of the palace, stood in front of Zhou Zheng, and whispered: "What do you promise me?"
Li Shi has been in the palace for decades, and the new imperial palace has been in the palace for more than half a month, but he has never had a chance to get close!
The new emperor was very wary of the people in the previous palace. He was very cautious about meals, clothes, and every move. He never let distrustful people approach. What's more, the trace of Li Shi was prominent, and he played the ginseng to Yingtian and governor Zhou Qiyuan and forced to death. Gao Panlong's castrate iron.
Zhou Zheng looked at him and said: "I have my own way, you have to be cautious, don't you need me to teach you?"
Li Shi is used to meeting the windshield and said: "I have tried my best to leave Eunuch Wei aside, and I am ready to give the emperor's name to the emperor."
Zhou Zheng's brows moved slightly, he glanced at Li Shi deeply, and said calmly: "Okay."
Li Shi only breathed a sigh of relief. The Zhou family is now the emperor’s close minister. Zhou Qingli is trusted. If he can become a cronies of the new emperor who has not yet established himself through the Zhou family, then his position in the palace can be preserved, even Go further!
"Let's go." Li Shi turned around and led Zhou Zheng into the palace.
Today is the day when the new emperor Zhu Youjian summoned Zhou Zheng.
Zhou Zheng stepped into the Daming Gate, looked at the majestic and prominent Forbidden City, and took a deep breath.
After passing through an unknown number of gates and undergoing stricter inspections than before, he came to the Palace of the Qing Dynasty.
Qianqing Palace, Dongnuan Pavilion.
Before Zhou Zheng walked in, Zhu Youjian had already greeted him.
He is dressed in regular clothes, with a dear smile, looking at Zhou Zhengdao: "Zhou Aiqing, come, I will wait for you for a while."
Zhu Youjian was only sixteen years old, two years younger than Liu Liuzhe.
There was still a tender color on his face, and he was very kind in every move. A courteous corporal, he did not have the air of an emperor.
Zhou Zheng gave him a calm look, then raised his hand and said: "Chen Zhou Zhengyun, see the emperor..."
Before Zhou Zheng had finished speaking, Zhu Youjian waved his hand and said, "No need for these pompous courtesies, come, I have something to do with you."
Zhou Zheng watched that Zhu Youjian had turned around and said'Xie Huangshang' before he walked in.
Zhu Youzhen sat down on the chair in the desk, looked at Zhou Zheng who came in, and said with interest: "I heard that you have built a library and opened it for people to read?"
Zhou Zheng could not understand Zhu Youjian’s thoughts. He was a little jealous of Emperor Chongzhen, who would kill the minister in the future, and said unmovingly: "Return to your Majesty, there are countless poor people in the Ming Dynasty. They suffer from no books to read and cannot accept the saints. For enlightenment, the minister will do his best, hoping to help one or two."
Zhou Zheng's words were concise and concise, setting aside words that might arouse taboos.
Zhu Youzhen applauded and said: "As expected of Mr. Zhou's son, I am very pleased that you have such a heart. If there are more people like you, I don't know how many more scholars will be recruited, Juren..."
"Your Majesty has been praised." Zhou Zhengdao.
Seeing that Zhou Zheng was neither humble nor overbearing, Zhu Youjian said with more smiles on his face, "I heard that your collection of books is more than 100,000? There is also a reading certificate? Give me one. I have time. Go and see if there is any in the palace. book of."
Zhou Zheng was still trying to figure out Zhu Youjian's purpose for finding him. He raised his hand and said, "Yes, after the minister returns, he will do it and send it to the palace to his majesty.
Zhu Youjian smiled and took the memo in front of him, saying: "By the way, you impeached Wei Zhongxian last time and listed the eunuchs. Do you think they are all eunuchs?"
Zhou Zheng's eyes moved, then he nodded slightly, and said: "Returning to your majesty, the minister thinks that there will only be less, not more."
Zhu Youjian looked at the memorial and said, "I know that Qingliu has always abhorred the right of castration. Are there any personal hatred in you?"
Zhou Zheng's thoughts turned, and he said more cautiously: "Weichen only has state affairs in his mind, and he has never had personal enmity."
"Do you think that the ministers of the Manchuria are all eunuchs?" Zhu Youjian still did not look up, as if he was looking at Zouben seriously, and said casually.
Zhou Zheng guessed that he could not understand Zhu Youjian's current thoughts, pretending to think for a while, and said: "In the eyes of Weichen, it is all."
"Where in the palace?" Zhu Youjian asked again.
Zhou Zheng deliberated his words and said: "The inner prison in the palace is loyal to the emperor, and so is the eunuch Wei."
Zhu Youjian was a little surprised at this answer. He paused with the memorial, and then said: "What do you think of Li Shi's participation in Zhou Qiyuan?"
Li Shi's participation gave the Donglin Party the last blow, which caused the Donglin Party to be hit hard and completely withdrew from the court.
Zhou Zheng didn't expect that Zhu Youjian would directly ask Li Shi, he pondered for a while, and said: "The minister had learned about this in the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and there was a reason for it.
Zhu Youzhen was silent for a while, then suddenly raised his head and said, "Do you think who can take care of the affairs of Liaodong?"
Zhu Youzhen changed the topic very quickly. Zhou Zheng didn't know whether Li Shi's answer satisfied Zhu Youzhen. He thought for a while and said: "Your Majesty, the minister thinks that Sun Laoge will not let him go."
Zhou Zheng said that Sun Chengzong, the governor of Ji Liao in the fifth year of the Apocalypse, was resigned because of the castration of the party. He was angry and refused to serve.
Zhu Youzhen was a little surprised. After a while, he said: "What do you think is Daming's top priority?"
"Money and food." Zhou Zheng blurted out.
In fact, there were many problems in the Ming Dynasty. The key lies in the management of officials. Do a group of corrupt and incompetent officials expect them to rejuvenate the Ming Dynasty
However, Zhou Zheng could not say that the Ming system was already the closest to the descendants. Zhu Youjian would not change it. It was the ancestral system, and it couldn't be changed. According to Zhu Youjian's personality, he had to subdue the country early.
Zhu Youzhen didn’t know that Zhou Zheng hadn’t finished his words, and a smile appeared on his face again, saying: "Well, you are still very accurate in looking at the problem. Some opinions on the court and Liaodong affairs are very predictable. It is worthy of being cultivated by Mr. Zhou. from."
Zhou Zheng was standing and did not speak. The three questions that Zhu Youzhen asked seemed to be the test for him, but they were actually what Zhu Youzhen cared about the most.
Zhu Youjian sat in a chair and looked at Zhou Zheng as if he was thinking about something. After a while, he suddenly woke up and said: "Oh, right, you don't have an official position yet? Where do you want to go?"
Zhou Zheng opened his mouth and wanted to say that he was going to Yongping Mansion, but what he said was: "Where the emperor needs the ministers to go, the ministers will go wherever they go."
Zhu Youjian seemed very satisfied with Zhou Zheng's answer. He smiled and said, "Mr. Zhou said that you are upright, jealous, lack of tolerance, do not know how to advance and retreat, and cannot stand in court. I don't think so."
Zhou Zheng raised his hand and said: "Weichen really made my father worry about his heart, and Weichen was ashamed."
When Zhu Youjian saw Zhou Zhengshen speak less, thinking about his impassioned impeachment several times in the court, he dared to impeach an eunuch like Wei Zhongxian, guessing that he was told by Zhou Qingli, the more he smiled, the more he smiled, and he didn't wait for him to speak. An internal prison station. Going to the door, said: "Long live master, the first assistant is here."
Zhu Youzhen looked at Zhou Zheng with some regret, and said, "I wanted to chat with you more, but it seems I can only wait for the next time."
Zhou Zheng raised his hand knowingly, and said, "Weichen retire."
Zhu Youjian looked at Zhou Zheng and nodded gently.
Zhou Zheng left the Dongnuan Pavilion, and the first assistant Huang Liji was oncoming.
Huang Liji was thinner than ever, his expression became more awkward and majestic, a bit more fierce than it was in the days of the Apocalypse.
Huang Liji looked at Zhou Zheng, frowned slightly, did not speak, and went straight into the Dongnuan Pavilion.
Zhou Zheng and Huang Liji passed by, curious, what is Huang Liji's current position
He is also an eunuch, Wei Zhongxian was attacked, and Zhu Youjian's attitude was unpredictable. How would he deal with himself
For these long-standing old bureaucrats, Zhou Zheng could hardly guess their true thoughts, so he walked out of the palace without thinking too much.
Li Zhong happened to come in a hurry from not far away. He looked slightly surprised when he saw Zhou Zheng, then bowed his head quickly and walked towards Dongnuan Pavilion.
Zhou Zheng also didn't seem to know him, and continued to leave the Palace of the Qing Dynasty. (End of this chapter)