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

"Sir, this is a letter from Wang Zhi."

Shen Lian hurriedly took out a letter and handed it to Zhou Chu, trying to change the subject.

"Look, Wang Zhi is getting married soon, you'd better hurry up."

Zhou Chu took the letter and, before even opening it, already knew why Wang Zhi had written it. Every word and action of Wang Zhi in Shexian was recorded and sent to Zhou Chu. Zhou Chu had received news of Wang Zhi's engagement a couple of days ago and thought he should receive a letter from Wang Zhi in the next couple of days.

Upon hearing this, Shen Lian turned his head away, pretending not to have heard.

Zhou Chu opened the envelope and read the contents of the letter. In the letter, Wang Zhi told him about the arranged marriage. Wang Zhi did not directly invite Zhou Chu to his wedding, after all, Wang Zhi knew that Lord Zhou was now extremely busy with affairs of state and had no time to attend his own wedding.

He wrote this letter hoping that the Zhou family could send someone, and Wang Zhi would be satisfied.

In the capital, Qi Liang and Princess Deqing's residence also received letters from Wang Zhi. Lin Zhi was currently stationed in Japan, but given the friendship between Wang Zhi and Lin Zhi, it was natural to send an invitation to the princess's residence.

"Go and have Chunlan prepare a generous gift; we're going to Shexian County."

After reading the letter, Zhou Chu put it away and said...

Zhou Chu was to attend Wang Zhi's wedding, firstly on behalf of the emperor, and secondly on behalf of himself.

Although Wang Zhi was only a general with a title, not as important as Lin Lu and Yun Jin, his importance was self-evident. Only Wang Zhi could be stationed in Japan. Zhou Chu would not feel at ease if it were anyone else.

If something goes wrong on Honshu Island, it will be a huge mess. It's a natural arsenal with countless silver reserves. If problems arise, it has money, manpower, and can manufacture its own armor and weapons.

Therefore, both Jiajing and Zhou Chu were so concerned about Wang Zhi.

Zhou Chu took Wang Zhi's letter and went directly to the Imperial Palace, to the Imperial Study, where he handed the letter to Jiajing.

Wang Zhi did not write a memorial to the Jiajing Emperor about his marriage, because in Wang Zhi’s view, his marriage was not worth disturbing the emperor. Moreover, Wang Zhi knew very well that the emperor would know about it once he wrote a letter to Lord Zhou.

"Hengqi, go to Shexian for me and give Wang Zhi a warning while you're at it."

Emperor Jiajing was very reserved in his speech, and he didn't elaborate on many things, but Zhou Chu understood what he meant.

As the emperor, Jiajing bestowed such great favor upon a general like Wang Zhi. Most people would probably have become arrogant long ago. Even if Wang Zhi was not too arrogant, what about the Wang family? If they were not put in a good position, the Wang family would become lawless in Shexian County in the future, and no one would dare to do anything to them.

When that time comes, the Wang family will be a ticking time bomb for both Jiajing and Zhou Chu. They will be difficult to deal with. If the Wang family is dealt with, Wang Zhi will explode at any time. If they are not dealt with, they can only watch as the Wang family preys on the people.

Of course, for Jiajing, this was not a difficult choice. Even if the entire Shexian County was brought to ruin by the Wang family, Jiajing would be willing to do so in exchange for stability in Japan.

However, Jiajing knew Zhou Chu's character well. He had seen all the things Zhou Chu had done over the years and knew that Zhou Chu cared a lot about the lives of ordinary people. Therefore, he wanted to avoid such things as much as possible.

The Emperor's grace is indeed boundless, but there's another saying: a combination of kindness and severity.

If there is only kindness but no authority, the people below will not be too grateful. On the contrary, a combination of kindness and authority will make the people below more loyal.

As the saying goes, a combination of sweet dates and a stick always works.

"I accept the decree."

Zhou Chu said respectfully.

After saying this, Jiajing looked at Huang Jin.

“Take a generous gift from my private treasury and have Hengqi take it.”

"Slave, let's do it now."

After Huang Jin finished speaking, he turned and left the Imperial Study.

Not long after Zhou Chu returned home, Huang Jin had boxes of congratulatory gifts delivered to the Zhou residence.

"Lord Zhou, my godfather said that you must check the gifts carefully according to the gift list to prevent your subordinates from tampering with them."

The head eunuch spoke in a soft voice.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chu handed the gift list to Chunlan, who then began to lead the people in counting the valuables.

"Sir, you're right."

After Chunlan finished counting, she came to Zhou Chu and whispered.

"Thank you for your trouble, Father-in-law. There's nothing wrong with it."

Zhou Chu said.

"Lord Zhou, you flatter me. I'll take my leave now."

The eunuch bowed respectfully.

Even Huang Jin referred to himself as a servant in front of Zhou Chu, so these eunuchs naturally dared not refer to themselves as "our family."

Not long after the eunuch left, the chief eunuch of Princess Deqing's residence also arrived at the Zhou residence with boxes of valuables.

"Lord Zhou, the second young master is currently in Japan, and the eldest young master is also unable to leave. Her Highness the princess asked me to ask you to deliver this congratulatory gift to the princess's residence."

The eunuch approached Zhou Chu and said respectfully.

Lin Lu couldn't spare the time; she was at the academy training Zhou Chu's troops.

Zhou Chu had no reason to refuse and nodded.

"It's easy."

This time, Zhou Chu did not plan to ride a horse to Shexian County, but instead planned to take the train. After all, it was about two thousand miles from the capital to Nanjing, and if he rode a horse, plus all these boxes of gifts, he didn't know how long it would take.

But taking the train is different; it only takes three or four days to reach Nanjing.

Once you arrive in Nanjing, you won't have to worry about not having a car.

Clearly, Qi Liang had the same idea. Three days later, Qi Liang and Zhou Chu arrived at the train station platform. The boxes of money were moved into the carriages and guarded by the Imperial Guards.

The Ming Dynasty is currently laying railway tracks at full capacity, preparing to open more routes. The trains that are already in operation are mostly used to transport goods, but even so, it is still not enough.

As for civilian use, that will probably have to wait many years.

"With this train built by the adults, how can the Ming Dynasty not expand its territory?"

Qi Liang sat on the train and couldn't help but sigh.

"Expanding territory ultimately relies on people; trains are merely auxiliary tools. It is all thanks to Your Majesty's wisdom. If it were a foolish ruler, even if I had the greatest abilities, I would not have been able to put them to use."

Zhou Chu took a sip of tea and smiled.

On every train, a carriage was reserved specifically for passengers, in order to facilitate the official business of the imperial court.

There are even dedicated service staff in this carriage, providing tea, food, and everything else you need.

"Yes, it's all thanks to His Majesty's wisdom and might."

Qi Liang couldn't help but sigh.

The two chatted casually as the train continued its journey towards Nanjing.