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

Chapter 732

Zhou Chu naturally knew that Wang Hong had been away from the academy for so long. As for where Wang Hong went and what he did, that was not within Zhou Chu's jurisdiction, so Zhou Chu naturally wouldn't ask any further questions.

"That Wang Hong is courting death. He came to His Majesty to complain about Lord Zhou's cunning, specifically about Lord Zhou's appointment of Commander Yu as an instructor at the academy. This man is adept at currying favor and is extremely despicable."

Huang Jin said angrily.

Zhou Chu was somewhat surprised to hear this. He hadn't expected that the eunuch who was so subservient to him in the academy would harbor such thoughts.

"Isn't Lord Zhou curious about His Majesty's reaction when he finds out?"

Huang Jin looked at Zhou Chu and asked.

Zhou Chu shook his head.

“This matter was an overstepping of my authority, and I will have no complaints as Your Majesty decides how to deal with me.”

Huang Jin sighed upon hearing this.

"Lord Zhou is truly devoted to the country and considers His Majesty's interests. His Majesty was very angry when he heard Wang Hong say that, and directly ordered that Wang Hong be flogged thirty times. This servant couldn't stand it, so I asked the executioner to use more force and beat Wang Hong to death."

Zhou Chu was somewhat surprised to hear this.

"Eunuch Wang was simply telling His Majesty the truth, which I suppose was out of loyalty to His Majesty. I appreciate Eunuch Huang's intentions."

As Zhou Chu spoke, he subtly took out a silver note and handed it to Huang Jin.

Huang Jin didn't refuse and happily accepted it.

"Your Majesty has been exceptionally kind to me, and I am deeply grateful. Thank you for informing me, Eunuch Huang. I still have many matters to attend to at the academy, so I will not linger any longer."

Zhou Chu bowed and said.

"You are right, sir. Today is the day for the academy's admissions, so it must be a very busy day. Please make yourself at home, sir."

Huang Jin gestured for him to enter.

Zhou Chu then turned around and left the palace with Yu Dayou.

After Huang Jin returned to the Imperial Study, Jiajing looked at him with some reproach.

"Why are you being so nosy?"

“My lady, I don’t want your good intentions to be in vain. I thought that since you have done it, you should let Lord Zhou know. If it is inconvenient for you to say it, it is convenient for me. Only when Lord Zhou knows will he appreciate your kindness.”

Huang Jin didn't take Jiajing's blame seriously and smiled broadly.

This is the difference between Huang Jin and Wang Hong. Although Huang Jin acted on his own initiative, his words and actions were all based on Jiajing's perspective and position. Although Jiajing scolded Huang Jin, he was secretly very happy.

Wang Hong was different. His words and actions were entirely for his own future. He treated Jiajing and everyone else as fools. Naturally, Jiajing would not tolerate such a person.

When Zhou Chu brought Yu Dayou back to the military academy, it was already getting dark. The military academy had prepared dormitories for the students, but there were too many students to fill them all. Even if there were, Zhou Chu did not plan to let them stay in the dormitories for the time being.

“Zhixin, incorporate them into the army, and they all sleep in tents at night.”

Zhou Chu looked at Lin Lu and said.

"Yes, my lord."

Upon hearing this, Lin Lu turned around and looked at the students behind her.

"Follow me and maintain formation and discipline as we just practiced."

As Lin Lu spoke, he led the way, with the students following behind him. In the afternoon, Zhou Chu had Lin Lu give these people some simple training, and now they had a basic formation. Although it wasn't very neat, it wasn't chaotic either.

Lin Lu quickly made arrangements for the students.

Lin Lu knew very well that many people were destined to be sleepless tonight. After all, many of these students who came to study, if not all of them, were sons of gentry or high-ranking officials who had never suffered any hardship since childhood.

Soldiers in the barracks snored, ground their teeth, and had smelly feet—things they had never experienced before.

However, Lin Lu believed that in a couple of days, these trainees would adapt, or they would be so exhausted from training that they would fall asleep immediately and wouldn't have time to worry about anything else.