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

Chapter 662

On the day of Zhou Chu's engagement, Sun Jiaojiao and Han Yuan'er came to the gate of Zhou's mansion together to watch. The two women had long lost their youthful naiveté and had gained a touch of elegance and nobility on their faces. After all, they were both among the original shareholders of Zuixianlou.

As Zhou Chu's partner in opening Zuixianlou, and the one who initially supported Zhou Chu, Zhou Chu never thought of taking back the shares of both companies.

However, both Sun Jiaojiao's father, Sun Hong, and Han Yuan'er's father, Han Jie, benefited greatly from their daughters, and their careers have soared in recent years. As a result, Sun Hong and Han Jie had their daughters take the initiative to propose to Zhou Chu that they significantly reduce their shares in Zuixianlou, in order to indirectly show their goodwill to Zhou Chu.

Zhou Chu didn't object to the actions of these two companies. He didn't care much about how much money Zuixianlou made, but since Zuixianlou was under Yun Jin's name at the time, reducing the shares of these two companies meant that Yun Jin would earn more.

Whether it was the Sun family or the Han family, Zhou Chu believed he had done right by them. Because of Zhou Chu, Sun Hong had been noticed by Jiajing, even though Zhou Chu had never mentioned it. With intentional or unintentional promotion, he was now the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, a third-rank official, and worked under Han Jie.

As for Han Jie, he had worked diligently in the Ministry of Personnel for many years and achieved remarkable results. He and Zhang Cong were both candidates for the position of prime minister in Jiajing's mind. Once the positions in the cabinet were filled, it would be a natural thing for the two of them to enter the cabinet.

Yan Song is now the true governor of Jiangnan Province and is eagerly waiting for an opportunity to be transferred back to the capital. Yan Song knows very well that although he holds great power in Jiangnan, he has reached the top. If he wants to advance further, or even enter the cabinet, the only possibility is to go to the capital.

Sun Jiaojiao brought her eldest son with her; he is now ten years old. Han Yuan'er also brought her son. Han Yuan'er got married much later than Sun Jiaojiao, and her eldest son is only eight years old.

"Lord Zhou is finally engaged. I heard that the county princess has been waiting for him for many years, and now her good fortune has come to an end."

Inside Sun Jiaojiao's sedan chair, Han Yuan'er and Sun Jiaojiao lifted the curtain beside them to look out while talking.

Han Jie was the Minister of Personnel, a second-rank official, and according to regulations, he could ride in an eight-bearer sedan chair. Han Yuan'er, as Han Jie's daughter, was already married, so riding in an eight-bearer sedan chair was somewhat against regulations. However, the regulations regarding sedan chairs were stricter during the Hongwu and Yongle periods, and gradually became more relaxed afterward.

Many merchants travel in sedan chairs carried by eight bearers to make a good impression. Unless it's a sedan chair carried by sixteen or thirty-two bearers, it won't attract much attention.

A sedan chair carried by sixteen or thirty-two men would be too conspicuous in the capital, easily attracting attention if it appeared. However, a sedan chair carried by eight men would be much smaller, and eight-man sedan chairs were extremely common in the capital.

The sedan chair carried by eight men wasn't small; at least Sun Jiaojiao and Han Yuan'er, with their child, didn't feel cramped at all.

"What a pity for Ruoxi."

Sun Jiaojiao sighed.

Ruoxi is Chu Li's courtesy name. As their best friend, Chu Li would always get together with them whenever she returned to the capital.

"What's a pity? She got what she wanted, you just don't know..."

Han Yuan'er whispered something in Sun Jiaojiao's ear, making Sun Jiaojiao blush.

"She's so bold?"

Sun Jiaojiao was somewhat incredulous.

"Of course! Who is she? A legendary businesswoman from the Ming Dynasty, she's seen it all, unlike us who stay in the inner quarters all day."

Han Yuan'er smiled.

Hearing this, Sun Jiaojiao sighed. The reason she liked Zhou Chu and listened to him so readily was not only because of his appearance and abilities, but also because Zhou Chu would occasionally say some refreshing opinions.