After a while, Lu De stepped into Zhanyuan's study room.
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 viciousness 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 avoid me, then
I will personally go to the Lu Family Courtyard 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. His Highness has always valued students
, trust the students, and treat them 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 Highness..."
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 students have not been avoiding His Highness, but they really have no shame in meeting 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 is the public opinion of the world.
On the one hand, there is the ardent expectation of the father. No matter what choice is made, it is wrong. It can be said that it is a dilemma, 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 anger, 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 to many wealthy families in the country and has a long-term relationship. 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 and compromise on the issue of the imperial village. If you continue to assist me,
You will definitely stand on the opposite side of your family, family friends, and in-laws. You couldn't make up your mind, 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! How can I not be like this during this period of time? On the one hand, I want to meet the expectations of the wealthy gentry, on the other hand, I want to maintain the dignity of my father.
, I obviously want to please everyone, but in the end I am stuck in the middle and can’t move, I am no longer human inside and out... It’s so frustrating, it’s so frustrating!”
Speaking of 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 was a big mistake, I naturally have to make amends and change my course!"
After hearing this, Lu De's body was shocked 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? Should you 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 and shook his head: "No! I will not support the wealthy gentry family. I will fully support the eunuchs of the Huangzhuang in Southern Zhili!"
"Why?" Lu De was greatly disappointed and couldn't help but ask: "As enemies of the wealthy gentry, doesn't His Highness worry about the damage to his reputation and popularity? Or do you not 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!
Your Majesty just wants to maintain the status quo. As long as the vested interests of the imperial estates in Southern Zhili are guaranteed, everything else is easy to talk about. However, it is different for the noble gentry. At first, they just wanted His Majesty to punish a few people who have committed many evil deeds and have the greatest public grievances.
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 Highness, you can fully meet His Majesty’s expectations, but you cannot satisfy the requirements of the gentry and wealthy families in any case... In this case, it is natural to 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 satisfying my father's expectations, 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 not compromise on any means! 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 straight-to-the-point 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, but on the surface he was still sensible and moved by emotion: "Mr. Lu, with your knowledge and family background, in the future,
Sooner or later, you will be an official in the court. It is easy to 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, that is, the Song family, a prominent family in Jiangnan! The Song family is also a prominent family in Jiangnan, and its status is much stronger than the Lu family. Song Qiwen, the official minister, is also from the Song family, but when
After the Central Committee of the Imperial Court decided to take over power from the Six Ministries of Nanjing, Song Qiwen and the Song family expressed their full support for the Central Committee of the Imperial Court's plan to take over power without any hesitation...
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 center of the imperial court! Although the Song family did not publicly express such an attitude, nor did they directly
Participated in it, but has been secretly cooperating with the central government's plan to take over power. I think the Song family has long been psychologically prepared for the truth to be exposed, and they also know very well that after the truth is exposed, they will definitely be criticized by the wealthy Jin gentry family in their hometown, but
They still have no hesitation! 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 at the center of the imperial court is an inevitable trend since ancient times. When the central government of the imperial court 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 don’t know how to commend yourself!
From today on, the student will definitely do his best to serve His Highness without any reservation or hesitation, and 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 has changed his mind."
, 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 lead to 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 is eager 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 made up his mind 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 unstable. 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.
However, 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 friend, 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 any reservations! The student believes that what His Highness said is not correct! The so-called good people are always
The idea that bad guys always take advantage of others is considered truth by many people, but it 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 'bad guys' tend to be more diligent in thinking.
, and are better at taking action! 'Bad people' are always thinking about how to scheme against others, and will act quickly after having an idea, while so-called 'good people' tend to be content with the status quo and neglect to think and act.
It's natural to suffer losses! So it's not the 'bad guys' who take advantage of it, but the people who think hard and act diligently! It's only natural!
But as long as we are diligent in thinking and courageous in action, the ‘good guys’ can also take advantage of it and manipulate the ‘bad guys’! There are also some things that the ‘good guys’ can do the same, or even do more easily!”
After a pause, Lu De lowered his voice and added: "So, Your Highness, you don't have to directly conflict with the gentry and wealthy families, 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, it is up to the students to 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.