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

Chapter 456

But this is also where Zhou Chu's folly lies. The officials below him are all eager for advancement, all wanting to find connections. Anyone who blocks their path is their enemy. Since Zhou Chu doesn't form factions, these people will definitely try to curry favor with others, and the current situation is the best proof of that.

These people, by attaching themselves to him and Mao Ji, will become Zhou Chu's greatest enemies. This is a very large force, arguably the largest force in the court right now. It's only because Mao Ji is not the Grand Secretary that if he were to become the Grand Secretary and Xia Yan were to join the cabinet, they could even challenge the emperor.

Such a force, while not necessarily capable of killing Zhou Chu, would certainly keep him busy and exhausted.

Sometimes Xia Yan couldn't help but sigh that the same thing, the same decision, could bring benefits to a person while also bringing them endless crises.

The same thing that makes you successful now may ruin you in the future.

"Judging from Zhou Hengqi's behavior over the past six months, he has indeed become much more restrained, and Fang Zhen's words are not without reason."

Xia Yan nodded.

Fang Zhen was Yang Lian's courtesy name.

Yang Lian was from Jiangxi, and he, Yan Song, and Xia Yan were all from the same hometown. The two were already quite familiar with each other. Xia Yan did not refute Yang Lian's words at this time, partly because he wanted Yang Lian to lead his men into battle, and partly because he wanted to save face for Yang Lian.

"Master, Chunying from Yichun Pavilion has been taken away by the Northern Garrison Command. They seem to have discovered something."

Just as everyone was feeling smug, the steward of the Mao family came to Mao Ji and whispered something.

Mao Ji was taken aback when he heard this, but he didn't show it, because he knew very well that if he told others about this at this time, it would be a big blow to their morale.

Mao Ji waved his hand nonchalantly, signaling the butler to leave.

After the butler left, Mao Ji felt increasingly uneasy. Chunying from Yichun Pavilion was just a pawn he had arranged. It would be best if she could work, but even if she couldn't, he wouldn't lose anything.

Although his butler was responsible for contacting Chunying, he did so very discreetly, usually visiting late at night when no one was around. Mao Ji never expected that even so, Zhou Chu's men would still find out his secret.

However, Mao Ji was not afraid. After all, even if Chunying admitted that she was one of his people, at most she would be killed by the Northern Garrison. The Northern Garrison could kill a top courtesan without having to explain to anyone or give any reason.

However, if the Northern Garrison Command wanted to use Chunying to implicate them, it would be impossible, because Chunying has not done anything so far, and the Northern Garrison Command has no reason to implicate them.

Thinking of this, Mao Ji breathed a slight sigh of relief. At the same time, he gained a more intuitive understanding of Zhou Chu and the Northern Garrison's ability to investigate cases, and his fear of Zhou Chu deepened.

"Teacher, I think we can give Zhou Chu a try and see if he is still as reckless as he was when he first became the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

Yang Lian said confidently.

"Oh? What's Fang Zhen's plan?"

Mao Ji looked at Yang Lian and feigned surprise.

"The second young master of the Lu family is about to get married. On the wedding day, we can arrange for people to abduct the bride on the way to the wedding. Of course, these people must sever all ties with us. Then we'll know Zhou Chu's true colors by how he reacts."

Yang Lian said.

The other officials' eyes lit up when they heard this. They were all newcomers and didn't have a direct sense of Zhou Chu's power as the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, since Zhou Chu had basically never been in the capital since they arrived.

They didn't have much reverence for Zhou Chu, so Yang Lian's words resonated with them.