He had once suspected that his close association with Prince Xu might have displeased His Majesty, but now he maintained his distance from the prince, yet still saw no sign of His Majesty giving him an important position. Like the great Confucian scholar Fang Xiaoru, he could only remain a noble and aloof figure, joining other scholars in questioning the court's mistreatment of intellectuals.

These are not just Huang Zicheng's feelings; there are quite a few scholars who share similar thoughts, because that's exactly how the imperial court operates.

Jiang Huan's mind was racing. As the head of the secret service, he naturally knew that His Majesty didn't like Huang Zicheng, and that Huang Zicheng had harbored some resentment in private. But that didn't seem to matter much; His Majesty seemed completely indifferent to those pedantic scholars who only knew how to complain.

But now we have to think more about it. Although His Majesty may not care about the private complaints of some pedantic scholars, their constant private complaints are indeed somewhat disgusting and annoying. It's only natural that His Majesty doesn't like them.

They might really be planning something. After all, they are the emperor's henchmen, so they naturally need to do their duty as henchmen. That's how some people define the Eastern Depot – as its lackeys!

Zhu Yunying ignored Jiang Huan's thoughts and continued to ask, "The capital inspection plan has been launched. My Minister of Personnel must be busy these days, right?"

Jiang Huan immediately replied, "Your Majesty, indeed many officials have requested an audience with Minister Ru, but Minister Ru has mostly refused to see them. Only a very few have been granted an audience under the pretext of official business."

Jiang Huan didn't dare to raise his head, and simply continued to report the situation truthfully, "Lord Ru only met with the ministers at the yamen, and there were other officials in the hall as well. After returning to his residence, he mostly stayed indoors. Apart from the Imperial Son-in-Law, the other two young masters in the mansion also stayed at home and declined invitations from colleagues and classmates."

Hearing Jiang Huan say this, Zhu Yunying seemed slightly satisfied. "So, it seems my study companion is indeed cautious and self-disciplined, isn't that right?"

Jiang Huan naturally dared not answer, for he was merely the emperor's henchman, only required to report what he had seen and heard to His Majesty. As for how to judge it, that was His Majesty's business, especially since matters concerning important court officials required even greater caution in speech and action.

It wasn't that he was worried about offending Ru Chang, or that he had any intention of currying favor with her. It was simply because he had no evidence, and therefore couldn't afford to be disrespectful to a high-ranking official and a confidant of the Emperor.

Jiang Huan was well aware that serving the emperor was like walking on thin ice. Even for a trusted minister like Ru Chang, the emperor did not always have unlimited trust, and there was never any relaxation in the necessary surveillance. This was not only true for Ru Chang, but also for other ministers.

Having witnessed the glory days of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Jiang Huan understood all too well that when the Embroidered Uniform Guard appeared, officials of the Ming Dynasty lived in constant fear and trembling with dread. In reality, although the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot seemed to have lost their former power, at most the Emperor had taken back their interrogation powers, these secret service agencies had never relaxed their surveillance of civil and military officials, imperial relatives, and nobles.

The emperor's mind is unfathomable, and this is clearly not just a saying. Jiang Huan, who knows many secrets, actually understands the emperor's personality even better.

Zhu Yunying had a fairly good understanding of Ru Chang's personality. However, even with such a good understanding, he could not be careless in such matters, as they concerned the administration of officials and could not be taken lightly.

This is also because sitting on the dragon throne, it's difficult to trust anyone. A degree of suspicion is necessary; if the emperor trusted someone without limit, it could lead to great chaos, which would obviously be disastrous.

Hearing Jiang Huan report some things, Zhu Yunying felt a little more at ease.

So far, things seem to be going well; Ru Chang has been quite cautious. He hasn't met with any colleagues privately and has been strictly disciplining his family, which is clearly what a Minister of Personnel should be like. Especially at this critical juncture, he absolutely cannot reveal any flaws or give anyone any opportunity to exploit the situation.

This is the right thing to do, because if Ru Chang reveals even the slightest flaw, many people with ulterior motives will immediately try to curry favor with her. Just a small flaw could be exploited by those people to create a huge opening, potentially ruining the entire Imperial Examination.

When it comes to winning people over or corrupting them, there are always some people with shrewd methods. Even some people who were originally upright and honest can unknowingly become more and more deeply involved and find it difficult to extricate themselves.

Zhu Yunying was naturally aware of these things, but he didn't have many options, as these matters were essentially reflections of human nature. A competent official also needs to learn to resist temptations; otherwise, they would have too many opportunities to make mistakes.

The grand plan of the capital inspection had just begun, and Zhu Yunying naturally did not want all the previous efforts to be in vain. At this time, it was necessary to implement it more strictly and to closely monitor the progress of these matters.

Zhu Yunying would absolutely not allow anything to fall apart at the last minute, and he would demand even stricter standards from certain individuals to ensure that these tasks were completed properly.

As Jiang Huan left the Wuying Hall, he saw his rival, Song Zhong, and immediately snorted disdainfully. He had never thought much of Song Zhong. The thought of his former subordinate becoming the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard filled him with resentment.

But even if he felt resentful, there was nothing he could do. After all, Song Zhong had served under the current emperor from a very young age. Meanwhile, the widely respected Emperor Xiaokang, to whom Jiang Huan had served, had only been posthumously honored. Where was the justice in that?

This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!