The disgraced official I took care of was actually Zhu Houcong's childhood friend.

Chapter 329

Zhou Chu had always had some doubts about Zhu Junzhang. Although Zhu Junzhang had acted very licentiously during their last meeting, Zhou Chu could tell from his words and actions that this Prince of Dai was not a very absurd person.

This seemed to contradict the rumors, and Zhou Chu couldn't help but recall the historical records about Prince Zhu Congmo, who was said to have been dissolute during his mourning period, which led to Zhu Junzhang being demoted to a commoner as well.

The Prince Dai's Mansion was managed by Zhu Junzhang's third uncle, Zhu Congjuan. In the end, Zhu Junzhang's grandmother, Wang, together with the people of the Prince Dai's Mansion and the generals of Datong at the time, jointly submitted a memorial to the court, stating that although Zhu Congmo was guilty, the child was innocent. Only then was Zhu Junzhang allowed to return to Datong to live, but he was still not allowed to enter the Prince's Mansion.

The following year, the Wang family once again recommended Zhu Junzhang on behalf of the imperial clan. Emperor Xiaozong eventually softened his heart and restored Zhu Congmo's status from commoner to Prince of Wuyi. Zhu Congmo lived in seclusion in Taiyuan, while Zhu Junzhang, as the eldest son of Prince of Wuyi, took charge of the Prince of Dai's residence.

In the eleventh year of the Hongzhi reign, Zhu Congmo passed away, and Zhu Junzhang succeeded him as the Prince of Dai.

This is the history that Zhou Chu knows. Could it be that Zhu Junzhang took the blame for his father's bad reputation?

However, Zhou Chu was not interested in any of that. What interested him was the location of the hideout of Zhang the Blind's band of horse bandits.

Zhou Chu led Shen Lian and Yu Hai to the main gate of the Prince of Dai's mansion.

In theory, the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) in Datong was under the jurisdiction of the Prince of Dai's residence, since this was the Prince of Dai's fiefdom, and the Prince of Dai was the king here. But this was only in theory.

The Prince of Dai's Mansion originally had some control over the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but since Yu Hai replaced the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Yu Hai was nominally under the command of the Prince of Dai's Mansion, but in reality, he was directly responsible to Zhou Chu and the Emperor.

Therefore, when Zhou Chu came to the Prince's Mansion, he naturally brought Yu Hai with him.

"Lord Zhou, you've finally arrived."

The steward of the Prince Dai's mansion, who was also the chief eunuch, had been waiting at the entrance of the mansion on Zhu Junzhang's orders. Upon seeing Zhou Chu and his party arrive, he hurriedly stepped forward to pay his respects.

Zhou Chu dismounted and handed the reins of his black horse to the eunuch beside him.

"Thank you for waiting so long, sir."

Zhou Chu smiled.

"Lord Zhou, you flatter me. Lord Zhou is of such high status that I should be waiting for you."

The head eunuch said with a broad smile.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chu smiled and, without further formalities, strolled into the Prince of Dai's residence.

The Prince of Dai's mansion was very large, much larger than the princess's mansion that Zhou Chu had visited before.

This is normal. The entire royal family of Daifan lives here, numbering in the thousands. Moreover, this is Datong, and Daifan is the king here. The Daiwang Mansion is equivalent to a royal palace, so it can't be small.

Zhou Chu followed the eunuch to the main hall of the Prince of Dai's mansion, where he met Zhu Junzhang.

"Your humble servant Zhou Chu pays his respects to Your Majesty."

Zhou Chu bowed and said.

"Lord Zhou, there's no need for such formality. Please have a seat."

Zhu Junzhang hurriedly waved his hand and said.

Zhou Chu then sat down, with Shen Lian and Yu Hai standing on either side of him behind him.

"I summoned Lord Zhou here today because my daughter has long admired you. She reads stories about you every day and has always wanted to meet you. I had no choice but to resort to this tactic."

Zhu Junzhang said with a hint of helplessness.

Zhou Chu was somewhat taken aback when he heard this. He did know a little about his storybooks; Yun Jin had even bought some to read after returning to the capital.

Zhou Chu just didn't expect that these stories would also be circulating in Datong.

But thinking about it, it makes sense, since Datong isn't too far from the capital.

"What about the blind man Zhang that Your Majesty mentioned?"

Zhou Chu asked somewhat uncertainly.

He was genuinely afraid of Zhu Junzhang, but that was just a joke. Zhou Chu really needed Zhang the Blind's hiding place right now.

"This is true. One of Zhang the Blind's men slept with his woman and was almost killed by Zhang the Blind. I thought he would be useful, so I imprisoned him in my palace and he is under special guard."

Zhu Junzhang said.

Zhou Chu nodded upon hearing this.

"Your Majesty's foresight is admirable."

"Lord Zhou, you probably haven't been eating anything good these days, have you? There aren't many decent chefs in Datong or even the whole of Shanxi. The chef in my household was specially invited from the capital. His dishes are absolutely superb. Lord Zhou, you must do me the honor."

Zhu Junzhang laughed.

"Then it's better to be respectful than to obey."

Zhou Chu said.

"father."

Zhu Siying had been listening in the side hall for a long time and was itching to see what Zhou Chu looked like. Seeing that Zhu Junzhang still hadn't called her, she got anxious and came out on her own.

“Look at you, still so impulsive. Lord Zhou is right here, he's not going to run away.”

Zhu Junzhang said with a hint of reproach.

"Lord Zhou, please don't take offense. I am a bit eccentric, so I won't restrict my daughter too much. I just hope she can be happy. Whatever she wants to do or desire, I, as her father, will try my best to satisfy her."

Zhu Junzhang looked at Zhou Chu with a slightly guilty expression.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chu felt a certain admiration for Zhu Junzhang. In this era, very few people would have such thoughts. Of course, this was partly due to Zhu Junzhang's childhood as a commoner and his lack of formal training in etiquette, as well as his status as the Prince of Dai.

As the Prince of Dai, Zhu Junzhang had everything he could want in terms of food, drink, and entertainment, so his daughter naturally didn't need to follow too many rules of etiquette.

Zhu Siying grew up in this relatively relaxed environment, but she never did anything out of line. She was actually very clear about her father’s situation and difficulties, and she knew even more that her father’s lust was just a deliberate act.

Aside from her somewhat tactless handling of the Zhou Chu matter, Zhu Siying has always handled other matters very well.

At this moment, when Zhu Siying saw Zhou Chu's handsome face and the aura of authority emanating from him, coupled with the layers of filters she had built up from reading those stories about him, Zhou Chu seemed absolutely perfect to her, making her feel somewhat ashamed of herself.

"I've met the princess."

Zhou Chu bowed and said.

"Lord Zhou, there's no need for such formalities."

Zhu Siying blushed and said.

"Lord Zhou and my daughter need not be so polite. I have had some of the finest dishes prepared. Lord Zhou, please have a drink with me."

Zhu Junzhang laughed when he saw Zhu Siying's appearance.

In the Fengzhoutan area at the foot of the Daqingshan Mountains on the grassland, a Mongolian tribe stands.

The messenger sent by Wang Changshan traveled at breakneck speed for nearly three days and finally arrived here.

He rode his horse all the way to a yurt.

"The royal messenger requests an audience with the chief."

The messenger spoke in Mongolian outside the yurt.

As soon as these words were spoken, the curtain of the yurt was lifted.

"come in."

The messenger then entered the yurt. The grassland was bitterly cold, but the yurt was unusually warm, allowing the messenger to catch his breath.

"Wang Changshan sent you?"

Inside the yurt, sitting in the very center was none other than Anda.

Although Altan Khan was only fourteen years old at the time, he was exceptionally robust, and his height was already comparable to that of an adult Mongol.

"Chief, a commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard has arrived in Datong and has taken over the military camp. My master has devised a plan to send him out of the city to suppress the bandits in a few days. At that time, my master hopes that you can work with the bandits to kill the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

The messenger dared not beat around the bush and stated his purpose directly.

"Oh? The Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard? Taking over the military camp?"

Upon hearing this, Anda immediately became interested.