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

Chapter 342

Zhou Chu did not stay in Datong for long, mainly because he did not want to be associated with military achievements in Datong anymore.

For others, military merits are a great thing, but for Zhou Chu, they are a hot potato, and he tries to avoid them as much as possible.

In Datong, Zhou Chu has already formulated a strategic plan, everything is in place, and with the Tiger Legion in hand, anyone who isn't too foolish can gradually annihilate the Mongols.

Of course, it's impossible to completely wipe them out. After all, if a portion of the Mongols were eliminated, it's impossible for the other Mongol tribes to remain completely unaware of the situation.

Even so, Lin Lu could completely wipe out most of the Mongol forces and make outstanding military contributions to the Ming Dynasty, at least ensuring that the Mongols would not dare to invade the Ming border for ten years.

If the salt and iron smuggling problem is completely eradicated within these ten years, the Mongols will become a toothless tiger and will no longer pose a threat to the Ming Dynasty.

All of this takes time, and the Tiger Legion stationed in Datong can also help train the garrison soldiers. However, the training intensity of the garrison soldiers is limited, since their diet is not on the same level as that of the Tiger Legion. Too much training intensity without enough meat is not enough.

In the palace, Jiajing looked at Zhou Chu's memorial with a helpless expression.

"Why can't this weighing instrument stay in Datong?"

"Your Majesty, it's good that Lord Zhou is like this. If Lord Zhou continues to stay in Datong, he will surely make outstanding military achievements again. At that time, the entire Tiger Legion and even the Datong garrison will obey Lord Zhou's orders. Since Lord Zhou has already formulated the major strategy, it doesn't matter who executes it."

Huang Jinwen said gently.

When Jiajing heard this, he sighed.

"It's difficult for Hengqi. He has to consider everything so carefully. He wants to do things but is afraid of being too successful and overshadowing his superiors."

Jiajing did not refute Huang Jin's words, which clearly showed that Zhou Chu's matter had pleased him.

Now that the strategy for Datong has been planned, it is most appropriate to entrust it to Lin Lu, who is also a close relative of the royal family and Jiajing's cousin.

In terms of character, he is beyond reproach; in terms of temperament, he is mature and prudent; in terms of ability, although he is far inferior to Zhou Chu, he is more than capable of executing the strategies formulated by Zhou Chu.

Moreover, with the Tiger Legion at their disposal, Jiajing couldn't even imagine who could rival them given their current fighting strength.

If such an army were to remain under Zhou Chu's control, even if it consisted of only two thousand men, Jiajing would not feel entirely at ease. After all, guarding Datong and eliminating the Mongols was not something that could be accomplished in a short time; it would take at least three or four years.

This was a long and continuous process, and for Jiajing, he did not want Zhou Chu to waste his life in Datong.

Zhou Hengqi was so useful that, looking at the many famous ministers throughout history, Jiajing believed that there were very few who could compare to Zhou Hengqi.

Lu Bing, who was standing to the side, kept his mouth shut and did not express any opinion on the matter.

Is it inappropriate to place this academy in Yuyao?

Emperor Jiajing looked at the memorial and said.

Yuyao belongs to Zhejiang Province, and is separated from Shanghai County by the sea. It is only about 400 li away from Suzhou Prefecture.

Emperor Jiajing could even foresee that the first batch of students at this academy would become pillars of the Ming Dynasty in the future. If this academy were located in the south, Emperor Jiajing would always feel uneasy.

In his opinion, the academy should ideally be located in the capital.

"Your Majesty need not worry. Didn't Lord Zhou say before that the academy can be moved to the capital after Lord Wang finishes his mourning period? Moreover, Lord Zhou said that a martial arts academy will be established in the future to train a group of soldiers who can fight for the Ming Dynasty, and Your Majesty will be the dean of the academy."

Huang Jin always spoke on behalf of Jiajing. Many times, Huang Jin would speak for Jiajing, saying what he wanted to say but could not.

These words were partly intended for Jiajing and partly for Lu Bing, who then relayed them to Zhou Chu.