Several days later, before the grand court assembly began.
The Donglin Party members gathered together, exchanged glances, and could see the panic and helplessness on each other's faces.
"What has Lord Qian been doing these past few days? Why hasn't he found Wei Zhongxian's weakness and completely overthrown him yet?"
"Alas, in just a few days, more than ten Donglin scholars have been captured by Wei Zhongxian. This is outrageous!"
"If things continue like this, how much longer can our Donglin Party hold out?"
Many people stomped their feet in frustration.
"Is Qian Qianyi afraid?"
"Hmph, Wei Zhongxian is nothing but a castrated dog. It's no big deal to directly break ties with him."
"Even if Qian Qianyi is also arrested, he will become an idol of scholars all over the world and be remembered in history! Wouldn't that be better?"
The man was about to say something more when he saw the other members of the Donglin Party suddenly shut up.
He turned around abruptly and saw Wei Zhongxian standing not far away, looking at him with a half-smile.
"Sir, what's your name again?"
"I don't recognize you."
That was obviously a joke.
Even if Wei Zhongxian didn't know this person before, he had recently been targeting the Donglin Party.
Behind the scenes, they even sent people to investigate the Donglin Party officials.
How could anyone not recognize this minister?
He said this deliberately to get the minister to reveal his identity.
The Donglin minister's expression changed several times, then he suddenly smiled and said, "So it's His Majesty the Ninth Thousand Years."
"I am but a nobody, how could I possibly be worthy of your attention?"
"You are a busy man, having spent the last few days investigating treacherous officials, so I will not take up any more of your time."
With that, he turned and walked away.
Wei Zhongxian watched his retreating figure, and couldn't help but sneer a few times, deliberately speaking loudly:
"Heh, these Donglin Party members really haven't changed!"
"When they talk big behind my back, they're all indignant, but when they actually meet me, they don't dare to say anything."
After he finished speaking, he glanced at the other members of the Donglin Party and, seeing that they were all silent, burst into laughter again.
After a while, he walked away with his hands behind his back, exuding an arrogant aura.
After Wei Zhongxian left, the Donglin Party was immediately filled with righteous indignation.
"How dare this castrated dog insult us, the ministers of Donglin, like this?"
"That's right. While I was organizing my thoughts, that castrated dog managed to escape, which is how he got away with it!"
"Hmph, if he dares to come back and confront me face to face, I'll give him a good dressing down!"
For some reason, when they spoke, their gazes always involuntarily drifted into the distance.
Look towards the spot where Wei Zhongxian left.
They seemed to be afraid that Wei Zhongxian would suddenly return.
As for Wei Zhongxian, after distancing himself from the Donglin Party, the smile on his face gradually disappeared.
"Hmph, the Donglin Party has long since lost its power."
"Those tough guys from back then have long been crushed by me. Now, most of the ones left are just opportunists, nothing special."
"My current troubles still stem from the young emperor!"
He strode through the palace with a frown on his face.
"These past few days, although my plans have gone very smoothly, I still feel a bit uneasy."
"No, I need to go and find out more!"
Thinking of this, he paused and began to walk in circles around the palace.
Before long, he stopped a few eunuchs and asked with a half-smile, "Hey, Xiao Dezi, Xiao Shunzi, it's been a long time since we last met."
These eunuchs were all Wei Zhongxian's adopted sons.
However, after Wei Zhongxian fell from power last time, they quickly distanced themselves from him.
Even after Wei Zhongxian was released, they actively avoided him and dared not see him again.
At this moment, they were blocked by Wei Zhongxian. They secretly lamented their misfortune, but on the surface, they immediately knelt down and kowtowed.
"So it's our ancestor, the Ninth Emperor, who has arrived. We kowtow to you."
Seeing their actions, Wei Zhongxian breathed a sigh of relief.
His power is not what it used to be, and the young emperor probably also wants to kill the hunting dog after the rabbit is caught.
It's unlikely that they'll back him up.
If these eunuchs stubbornly refuse to back down, he really doesn't have any good solutions.
"But now it seems they are still afraid of me deep down, which makes things easier!"
He gave a few deliberate sneers, then said:
"Alright, stop pretending. If you still care about me, then do a few things for me."
The eunuchs were overjoyed and looked up, saying, "Your Majesty, what business do you have with us?"
"Whatever you ask, we'll definitely do it perfectly!"
Wei Zhongxian naturally knew that he couldn't believe everything he said.
If he were to make any unreasonable demands, these eunuchs would definitely turn around and sell him out without the slightest hesitation.
So he deliberately sighed and said:
"Hey, what else could I possibly need you to do? All I need you to do is gather some information for me."
He walked over in small steps and helped the people up.
When helping someone up, he would take out a few silver notes from his sleeve and hand them over lightly.
Then he continued, "As you all know, although His Majesty has released me, he doesn't trust me as much as the late Emperor did."
"So I plan to get closer to His Majesty's confidants."
Several eunuchs quickly lowered their heads, glanced at the silver notes Wei Zhongxian had just given them, and their eyes lit up with joy.
They quickly and cautiously asked, "So, Your Excellency, what do you intend for us to do?"
Wei Zhongxian chuckled: "That Li Ruolian is really riding high lately."
"He was not only favored by His Majesty, but also made great contributions."
"I plan to take the initiative to befriend him."
"Go and find out for me when this official will return to the capital."
"At that time, I can take the initiative to go out of the city to greet him and leave a good impression on him."
Wei Zhongxian's words were so airtight that none of the eunuchs suspected anything.
"So it was just such a small matter?"
"Your Majesty, rest assured, we will inquire about it for you right away."
Upon hearing these words, Wei Zhongxian was overjoyed.
"Haha, these idiots really fell for my trick!"
"I already had people acting as spies near the capital to keep an eye on Li Ruolian's movements."
"Now that we have these eunuchs as inside agents, there's even less chance of anything going wrong."
"If I know the exact time Li Ruolian will return to Beijing, it will be much easier for me to do something big!"
He struck up a conversation with the eunuchs before happily walking away.
However, after he left, the eunuchs exchanged glances and immediately gathered together.
"Are we really going to investigate this matter with Wei Zhongxian?" a eunuch asked.
The others shook their heads.
"Even in the outer court, there is a saying that a new emperor brings a new court, and this is even more true in our imperial palace."
"The Emperor has Eunuch Wang by his side, and I heard that Eunuch Cao has also recently returned."
"Where is there any place for Wei Zhongxian now? In my opinion, once the Donglin Party is wiped out, Wei Zhongxian should also step aside."
"We can't get on his pirate ship again."
Although the eunuchs didn't understand national affairs, they were masters of opportunism.
"Let's ask around a bit, and then we can fool him a little."
As they were talking, they suddenly felt something wet on their heads and shoulders. When they looked up, they saw snowflakes falling from the sky.
They were overjoyed: "Alright, alright, now we don't even need to fool them."
"It's truly a blessing from heaven."
"Let's tell Wei Zhongxian right now that there's been a heavy snowfall and Li Ruolian will be a few days late, returning to the capital only after the snow stops!"
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