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

Chapter 693

A day later, Shen Lian returned from the former capital of the Dongyu Dynasty, bringing back the letter that Wang Mingyue had mentioned.

Zhou Chu read the contents of the letter and found that it was all advice to Wang Mingyue not to continue attacking Champa and not to act recklessly. Although it could prove that Xia Yan was colluding with the Toungoo Dynasty, it did not prove anything more, since Xia Yan did not mention anything detrimental to the Ming Dynasty in this letter.

Zhou Chu knew that this letter could only serve as corroborating evidence, a final straw that could break Xia Yan's back at the crucial moment, but it could not be used as primary evidence.

However, Zhou Chu was not in a hurry. Now that the Dongyu Dynasty had been completely destroyed, all of Xia Yan's previous plans had come to naught. Xia Yan now had almost no say in the cabinet. In the current cabinet, Yang Yiqing, Yang Shen, and Zhang Cong, while not all of them were on the same side, generally shared the same opinion on major issues.

At this time, Zhou Chu had already taken over Champa and the entire Southeast Asian region outside of Annam, and had established the Java Provincial Administration Commission. He was just waiting for the Java Provincial Administration Commissioner appointed by the court to take office, and then Zhou Chu could leave.

Bo Jie, the former ruler of Champa and now the Duke, was extremely hospitable to Zhou Chu. He hosted a lavish banquet and even brought out beauties from his former harem to entertain Zhou Chu, Wen Zhengming, Hu Zongxian, and others.

Bo Jie was quite open-minded. Now that he had become a duke, he couldn't keep all the women in his harem. So, he might as well use them to entertain Zhou Chu and his men.

Although Wen Zhengming was an upright man, he was not a hypocrite. After all, in his youth, he was known as one of the Four Great Talents of Jiangnan, along with Tang Bohu, and was famous for his romantic reputation. Although he was getting old and rarely went to brothels, he would not refuse Bo Jie's offer of beautiful women to them.

Looking at the beauties in Bo Jie's harem, Zhou Chu couldn't help but sigh. Champa was located south of Annam, and the locals were mostly dark-skinned. Bo Jie had only one standard for beauty: white and soft. The beauties in Bo Jie's harem all looked delicate and weak, and spoke softly, as if they were coquettish.

This allowed Zhou Chu to experience a different kind of charm compared to the beauties of the Central Plains.

As for Hu Zongxian and Zhao Zhenji, they are both virgins. Although they have reached the age of marriage over the years, they have been following Zhou Chu in his campaigns and have spent their free time studying for exams. Naturally, they have no time for romance and are not in a hurry to get married.

Faced with such a delicate and boneless beauty, the two men blushed instantly, unsure of how to react.

"You two, take your favorite beauties and go back to your rooms to rest."

Zhou Chu naturally noticed their embarrassment. Hu Zongxian and Zhao Zhenji's embarrassment was largely due to their teacher, Zhou Chu. They were naturally reserved in front of their teacher, and as novices, they also found it difficult to be open in front of others. However, once they were alone in the private room with these beauties, it was a different story.

Upon hearing this, Hu Zongxian and his companion felt a great sense of relief and left with their beauties.

"Lord Zhou, I have heard that the people of Ü-Tsang have enshrined portraits of His Majesty the Ming Emperor and Lord Zhou, and worship them daily?"

Bo Jie looked at Zhou Chu and couldn't help but ask.

As luck would have it, about half a year ago, Bo Jie sent people to Tibet in search of a treasure. When his subordinates told Bo Jie what they had seen and heard in Tibet, Bo Jie was deeply shocked.

Bo Jie knew about the news of the Ming Dynasty's reconquest of Tibet. However, before this, Bo Jie had always thought that the Ming Dynasty's rule over Tibet would be relatively weak. After all, the Tibetan local lamas and landlords were in cahoots, working together to oppress the common people.