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After a while, Lu De stepped into Zhanyuan's study.
He was seen walking slowly, lowering his head and not daring to look directly at Zhu Hejian, as if he felt guilty.
At the same time, Zhu Hejian completely suppressed all the sinisterness and cruelty in his expression, and once again put on a mask of gentleness and peace.
After taking a deep look at Lu De, Zhu Hejian sighed softly and said, "Mr. Lu, you are finally willing to come to see me. When I sent someone to summon you, I was still thinking that if you still avoided seeing me, then I'm going to go to the Lu Family Courtyard in person to block the door."
Lu De's body shook slightly, and then he bowed deeply to Zhu Hejian and said in a trembling voice: "Student, I am ashamed! I am ashamed! At the beginning, Grand Master Wang introduced the student to His Highness, and asked the student to fully assist His Highness Zuo. Your Highness has always valued students , trust the students, and treat the students as confidants and confidants. The students deeply feel the kindness of His Highness, and have obviously made up their minds to be loyal to His Highness forever and repay His Majesty..."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Hejian remained silent and seemed to be in a complicated mood, but there was a hint of sarcasm in his eyes.
Lu De's voice became more and more trembling, and he said with shame: "...But when His Highness was in trouble, the student, out of the interests of the family, actually acted on both ends and abandoned His Highness... This is simply disloyal and unjust! Student!" I have betrayed His Highness's trust, violated my oath, and am ashamed of the Confucian teachings I have learned... These days, the student is not avoiding His Highness, but is really shameless to meet His Highness..."
After talking about it, Lu De raised his sleeves and wiped the corners of his eyes, as if he was already crying because of the guilt in his heart.
The sarcasm deep in Zhu Hejian's eyes was even stronger, but on the surface his attitude was frank, and he said slowly: "Yes! During this period of time, I have been caught between the wealthy gentry and the royal eunuchs, and on one side there is the world's public opinion. On the one hand, there is the ardent expectation of the father. No matter what choice he makes, it is wrong. It can be said that he is in a dilemma and is in a dilemma...
At this time, I originally hoped that Mr. Lu would give me advice like before, and at the worst, he could share some of my depression. But you chose to leave me at this time. If I am not disappointed in you, , that is absolutely impossible, there is even a lot of resentment, shame, and sorrow..."
At this point, Zhu Hejian suddenly changed the topic: "However, I also understand your difficulty. The Lu family is a large family in the south of the Yangtze River, and it is also married and has family ties with many wealthy families in the country. When all the wealthy gentry families jointly expressed their stance, Not only can the Lu family not stay out of things, they must also set an example, otherwise they will be criticized and isolated, and the family image will be damaged...
And as a descendant of the Lu family, and even the future head of the Lu family, you are in a dilemma under such circumstances! You know that I dare not go against my father's will and cannot give in or compromise on the issue of the imperial estate. If you continue to assist me, you will definitely stand on the opposite side of your family, family friends, and in-laws. You cannot make this determination. So you chose to escape, right? "
Lu De still lowered his head and did not dare to look at Zhu Hejian, but he did not deny Zhu Hejian's statement.
Zhu Hejian shook his head again and sighed, saying: "I understand! I completely understand your thoughts! Why haven't I been like this during this period of time? On the one hand, I want to meet the expectations of the wealthy gentry, and on the other hand, I want to maintain the dignity of my father. , Obviously you want to please everyone, but in the end, you are stuck in the middle and can't move, and you are no longer human inside and outside... It's so frustrating, it's really frustrating!"
Having said this, Zhu Hejian showed determination again: "But then I thought about it, since everyone is dissatisfied and even I feel aggrieved, then there is no doubt that my approach of playing both sides is completely wrong." Oh! Since it’s a big mistake, I naturally have to make amends and change my course!”
After hearing this, Lu De's body was shaken again, and he finally looked up at Zhu Hejian and asked: "Your Highness, have you made up your mind? Then...which side have you decided to stand on? Are you going to support the wealthy gentry in southern Zhili? Or? ...Support those Huangzhuang eunuchs?"
It seems that Lu De very much hopes that Zhu Hejian will support the wealthy gentry family, so that he does not have to be caught in the middle.
But Zhu Hejian immediately broke Lu De's beautiful fantasy, shook his head and said: "No! I will not support the wealthy gentry family. I will fully support the eunuchs of Huangzhuang in Southern Zhili!"
"Why?" Lu De was greatly disappointed and couldn't help but ask: "As enemies of the gentry and wealthy families, doesn't His Highness worry about the damage to his reputation and popularity? Or do you mean that you don't care about the eunuchs of the Imperial Palace at all? All kinds of evil deeds?”
Zhu Hejian looked calm and shook his head again, saying: "Mr. Lu, you are a truly smart man. You should know very well the reasons for my choice!"
After Lu De was silent for a moment, he smiled bitterly and said: "Yes, compared to the reputation of the noble gentry, Your Highness, of course you pay more attention to His Majesty's opinion! What's more, compared to His Majesty's clear attitude, the attitude of the noble gentry is just Some of them are looking forward to Shu, and they are trying to push their limits!
His Majesty just wants to maintain the status quo. As long as the vested interests of the imperial estates in Nanzhili are guaranteed, other things are easy to talk about. However, it is different for the noble gentry. At first, they just hope that His Majesty will punish a few people who have done many evil things and have the greatest grievances among the people. Huangzhuang eunuch, but after Your Highness meets this request, they want to take the opportunity to reduce the number of Huangzhuang in South Zhili... If Your Highness compromises with them again, they will most likely go one step further, thinking It is necessary to completely abolish all imperial villages in southern Zhili...
Therefore, Your Majesty, you can completely meet His Majesty's expectations, but you cannot satisfy the requirements of the noble gentry and wealthy families in any case... In this case, you must naturally give priority to meeting His Majesty's expectations! "
Zhu Hejian nodded and said: "That's right! Every time when the eunuchs of Huangzhuang are mentioned, the wealthy gentry always regard themselves as victims, but in fact you and I know very well that neither of them is innocent! It's not that I don't know that the emperor Eunuch Zhuang is domineering and reckless, but now is not the right time to take action to eradicate this evil! For me, the only choice at the moment is to completely give up the idea of pleasing everyone, give priority to meeting the expectations of my father, and do not consider other people. It’s something…”
Later, when Lu De stopped talking, Zhu Hejian became more candid: "So, I will definitely have a conflict with the wealthy gentry in southern Zhili next time, and I will definitely stand firm and unswervingly! But I miss my old friendship. , I also admire Mr. Lu’s talent very much, and I really don’t want to be an enemy of Mr. Lu, and I really don’t want to hurt Mr. Lu, so now I just want to know your position, Mr. Lu! Are you also willing to abandon the idea of a head and a rat? Continue to assist me?"
Lu De seemed a little unprepared for Zhu Hejian's straightforward approach. His expression kept changing, but he was still unable to make up his mind.
After seeing Lu De's hesitation, Zhu Hejian became increasingly unhappy and impatient in his heart, but on the surface he was still rational and emotional: "Master Lu, with your knowledge and family background, in the future Sooner or later you will become an official in the court, and you can easily become one of the important ministers of the central government. Even if you are an assistant minister in the cabinet, you may not have no chance, so sooner or later you will have to face this problem head-on and make a decision between the interests of the central government and the interests of the family. There is no way to avoid the choice!
In fact, regarding this problem, you have a ready-made answer that you can refer to, and that is the Song family, a prominent family in the south of the Yangtze River! The Song family is also a prominent family in the south of the Yangtze River, and its status is much stronger than that of the Lu family. Song Qiwen, the official minister, is also from the Song family. However, when the central government decided to take over power from the Six Ministries of Nanjing, Song Qiwen and the Song family expressed their stance without hesitation. Fully support the imperial court center’s plan to take back power...
Why? Don't they know that the continuation of the power of the Six Ministries in Nanjing is beneficial to the wealthy gentry families in the territory? Of course they know! But they still decided to support the imperial center! Although the Song family has not publicly expressed such an attitude, and has not been directly involved in it, it has been secretly cooperating with the imperial center's plan to take over power. I think the Song family has long been mentally prepared for the truth to be revealed. They also knew very well that after the truth was exposed, they would be criticized by the wealthy gentry family in their hometown, but they still did not hesitate! Mr. Lu, why do you think Song Qiwen and the Song family are so firm? "
After Lu De thought for a moment, he shook his head and sighed: "Because the Song family knows better that the continuous centralization of power in the imperial court has been an inevitable trend since ancient times. When the imperial central government makes up its mind, the six departments in Nanjing will definitely lose their power, sooner or later. It’s just a problem. No one can go against this general trend. Instead of trying to control the situation, it is better to follow this general trend to seek more benefits for oneself!”
Zhu Hejian looked at Lu De with bright eyes and asked: "Then... Mr. Lu, can you and your family go against the general trend?"
The word "general trend" mentioned by Lu De before refers to the centralization trend of the imperial court. However, the "general trend" mentioned by Zhu Hejian at this moment obviously has a deeper meaning, implying that sooner or later he will be crowned the great treasure and the emperor. .
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Zhu Hejian's statement seemed frank and forthright, but it also contained a threat.
It is obviously extremely irrational to go against a future emperor.
Compared with having a conflict with Zhu Hejian for a little profit, it is really smart to bet all the fate of the family on Zhu Hejian.
Especially when combined with Zhu Hejian's previous statements about being "unwilling to harm Lu De", this threat becomes even more obvious.
Lu De was a smart man. He quickly discovered this and his face turned a little pale.
Just like that, after a long silence, Lu De took a deep breath and finally made up his mind.
I saw Lu De once again bowed deeply to Zhu Hejian and said loudly: "Since Your Highness values the students so much, not only did you not blame the students for their previous misdeeds, but you also took great pains to persuade the students to return from their lost ways. If the students are still If you refuse to repent, then you are ignorant of praise!
From today on, the student will definitely do his best to serve His Highness without any reservation or hesitation. He is also willing to do his best to convince the elders in the family to let all members of the Lu family serve His Highness together with the student! "
After hearing this, Zhu Hejian couldn't help but smile with joy. He seemed to be very happy that Lu De had found his way back. He immediately walked quickly to Lu De, raised his hand and patted Lu De on the shoulder, and laughed loudly: "Master Lu's change of heart." , to me, it is no different than when Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty met Zhang Liang and Xiao He. He must be like a fish in water and even more powerful than a tiger!
I have made up my mind that I will never be a bad person from now on. I only know how to meet other people's expectations and be timid for the sake of reputation and image, but it will only make others unscrupulous and take advantage of them. I am really fed up with this kind of thing. Got it!
In this world, being a bad person will only result in constant losses, but it is more satisfying to speak your mind directly. Although I will definitely suffer all kinds of criticism, as long as I have Mr. Lu’s help and sharing, I have nothing to fear! "
This attitude seems to have no grudges and a thirst for talents.
But in fact, Zhu Hejian was extremely dissatisfied because of Lu De's repeated hesitations before.
In Zhu Hejian's view, the reason why Lu De decided to be loyal to him was not because he was willing to follow him subjectively, nor because he was rational and emotional, but only because of the threat he hinted at at the last moment. .
Such loyalty is obviously extremely unreliable. If a greater threat appears in the future, Lu De will most likely betray him again.
Therefore, Zhu Hejian completely gave up his intention of taking Lu De as his confidant.
Zhu Hejian's cowardice and deliberate show of goodwill at this time was just to use Lu De and the Lu family to divide and alienate the wealthy gentry families in southern Zhili.
In fact, Zhu Hejian did not hesitate to hint at threats to win Lu De's allegiance. From the beginning, he was eyeing the influence of Lu De and the Lu family.
In the future, Zhu Hejian will still treat Lu De with a smile, and will still force Lu De to do things for him, but he will only regard Lu De as a fringe crony and will never entrust Lu De with real secret tasks. .
As his mind was spinning, Zhu Hejian had already figured out Lu De's future positioning.
However, Lu De's statement at the next moment quickly overturned Zhu Hejian's thoughts.
Lu De looked serious and shook his head repeatedly: "Since I have made up my mind to follow His Highness, the student will speak out without reservation! The student believes that what His Highness said is not correct! The so-called good people are always The view that bad guys always take advantage of others, although it is regarded as truth by many people, is actually a fallacy!
In the eyes of students, the reason why the 'bad guy' always takes advantage is not because he is a 'bad guy', but because compared to the so-called 'good guys', the vast majority of the 'bad guys' tend to be more diligent in thinking. , and also better at taking action! The 'bad guys' are always thinking about how to scheme against others, and will take quick action after having an idea, while the so-called 'good guys' tend to be content with the status quo, neglecting to think and act, and it is natural for them to suffer losses! So it's not the 'bad guys' who take advantage of it, but the people who think hard and act hard! It is a matter of course!
But as long as we think hard and act bravely, the 'good guys' can also take advantage of it and manipulate the 'bad guys'! There are also some things that 'good people' can do just as well, or even do it easier! "
After a pause, Lu De lowered his voice and added: "So, Your Highness, you don't have to directly conflict with the wealthy gentry family, and you don't have to give up your reputation easily. As long as you use clever enough means, you can still resolve the dilemma and control the situation! The students have come up with a plan that will allow you to achieve your goals while still maintaining the virtuous image you have always been... As for the things that attract criticism, the students will do it!"
Hearing what Lu De said, Zhu Hejian was stunned at first, and then he was overjoyed and asked, "What's Mr. Lu's clever plan?"
If there were other choices, Zhu Hejian would certainly not be willing to give up his own image and become an enemy of the "public opinion" represented by the wealthy gentry.
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