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

Chapter 191

As for whether the grain was bought or stolen, Yan Song and Zhang Cong tacitly refrained from asking.

If it was bought with money, where did that money come from?

Both men were intelligent and naturally understood that this involved many secrets, which would not benefit them in knowing.

In any case, as long as the grain could be used to build dikes, it would be a good thing for Yan Song. With the grain, Yan Song's worries were finally put to rest.

Sure enough, clinging to Lord Zhou's coattails was the right choice. Since arriving in Suzhou Prefecture, I've done very little; most of my actions have been opportunistic, and most of the difficult problems have been solved by this Jinyiwei centurion.

He truly deserves the title of a talent for governing the world, as Wang Yangming described him.

Yan Song couldn't help but recall the last time Wang Yangming and Zhou Hengqi met before Wang Yangming left the capital. Wang Yangming looked at Yan Song with a meaningful gaze and said that Zhou Hengqi was a man of great talent for governing the world and would be extraordinary in the future.

At that time, Zhou Chu was just a merchant. He was still hiding his talents. Although Yan Song could see that this young man's speech was extraordinary and his knowledge far surpassed that of his peers, he still had deep doubts about Wang Yangming's words.

In his view, it was simply because Wang Yangming and Zhou Chu had a good relationship that Wang praised him so highly.

He never expected that, just over half a year later, when Yan Song noticed this young man again, he had already risen to the top and become the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Yan Song was completely stunned.

At that time, Yan Song only thought that Zhou Chu was lucky. Perhaps the emperor only appointed him as the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard because of his relationship with the Lu family.

Although Yan Song knew in his heart that this reason was absolutely insufficient for Zhou Chu to reach this position, Yan Song was unwilling to admit it. After all, he had wasted so many years and achieved nothing. Compared with Zhou Chu, he was such a failure.

Later, Zhou Chu dominated the capital, finally making Yan Song see the young man's abilities. However, at that time, Yan Song felt that the young man was too stubborn and easily broken. His reckless actions caused him to lose his position as the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

If it weren't for Yang Shen and the emperor's protection, he probably would have lost his life.

Only then did Yan Song truly see how terrifying Zhou Chu was. This young man seemed reckless, but in reality, he might have planned everything before doing anything.

This reminded him of Yang Shen's personality change and the words the emperor used to berate Yang Shen in court.

The more Yan Song thought about it, the more frightened he felt. Luckily, he hadn't offended Zhou Hengqi, otherwise he probably wouldn't even know how he died.

"With a capable minister like Lord Zhou assisting His Majesty, he will surely become the restorer of our Great Ming Dynasty."

Zhang Cong subtly flattered him.

In fact, Zhang Cong also wanted to assist the emperor and change the status quo of the Ming Dynasty, which coincided with Zhou Chu's thoughts.

Furthermore, since the two do not have any conflict in their positions, they will basically be on the same side for a long time, and may even be in the same trench.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chu smiled noncommittally.

"Have either of you ever witnessed the lives of ordinary people in the Ming Dynasty?"

Zhou Chu looked at Yan Song and Zhang Cong and said.

Whether it was Yan Song or Zhang Cong, their backgrounds determined that they could not see the suffering of the common people. Although the Yan family had declined, they were still far more powerful than ordinary people.

Needless to say, Zhang Cong was fond of classical studies from a young age, was learned and talented, and began to show his talent in the literary world at the age of twelve or thirteen. How could such a person come from an ordinary family?

The biggest problem with Ming Dynasty scholars and officials was that they were completely detached from the common people and could not see their hardships. This was a common problem in most feudal dynasties, not just the Ming Dynasty.

In many dynasties, the candidates for prime minister were directly admitted to the Hanlin Academy, served in the Six Ministries for a few years, and then smoothly transitioned to the position of prime minister or cabinet minister. The entire process had nothing to do with ordinary people.