Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1227 Heirs
The matter was ultimately settled for the time being, but afterwards Zhu Shenzhui found a map and studied it carefully for a long time, especially focusing on the northern and western regions of Mongolia and pondering it deeply.

Zhu Shenzhui understood the potential threat posed by Tsarist Russia better than anyone else, and that Russia had long harbored and was already implementing its eastward expansion plans, as evidenced by the previous southward advance of the Chaoketu Taiji. To curb Russia's eastward advance, the Ming Dynasty had previously sent envoys to Europe to forge alliances with Poland and Sweden. The aim was to unite with Tsarist Russia's rivals in the West to create trouble for Russia and thus slow its eastward expansion.

However, this is far from enough. Not long ago, news came that Tsarist Russia had gone to war with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in Europe, and the fighting was quite fierce. But even under these circumstances, Tsarist Russia has not given up its intention to continue its eastward expansion, as can be confirmed by the intelligence obtained by the Ming Dynasty.

Although the scale of their eastward advance was not large, such actions were quite disgusting. Moreover, their covert efforts to win over various tribes in the northern deserts were also detrimental to the Ming Dynasty, affecting the policies formulated by Zhu Shenzhui for the Mongolian steppe.

However, it is quite difficult for the Ming Dynasty to directly send troops now. It is not that the Ming Dynasty lacks the military strength and financial resources to fight this war, but that there is no need for it.

Firstly, the journey is too long, making it inconvenient to send troops. Secondly, the situation in the northern desert is complex and the territory is vast, making this battle extremely difficult. Furthermore, the enemy's numbers are not large, and fighting this battle would be making a mountain out of a molehill. However, if they don't fight and allow the enemy to continue probing and even nibbling away at their territory, Zhu Shenzhui is also uneasy.

Thinking about these things, Zhu Shenzhui's gaze couldn't help but turn westward, eventually landing on the Western Mongolian region, including areas further west.

"Perhaps we can make use of the Dzungars?" Zhu Shenzhui muttered to himself. The Dzungars originally belonged to a branch of the Oirat Mongol tribe. The so-called Oirat Mongols once had a more famous name, namely the famous Oirat Mongols.

The Oirat Mongols were once powerful, but gradually declined over time and shifted their influence westward, eventually withdrawing from the core region of southern Mongolia and becoming a large tribe among the Mongol tribes in western Mongolia. Later, the Dzungars rose to prominence amidst the fragmentation of the Oirat forces, eventually replacing the Oirat as the most powerful tribe in western Mongolia.

Today, the Dzungar Khanate occupies most of western Mongolia, and its strength is comparable to that of Ligdan Khan in his time, and its momentum continues to rise.

In the previous battle when the Mongols from Outer Mongolia moved south, the Dzungars and Tengger, among other tribes, joined forces to kill Choktu Taiji and won the war. After the war, the Dzungars moved north and occupied a piece of territory in Central Asia. Because their territory was far from Outer Mongolia and even farther than that of the Ming Dynasty, both the Ming Dynasty and Tengger adopted a tacit attitude. As a result, in the past few years, the Dzungars' territory has expanded again and their strength has increased further.

Although the Dzungars have shown signs of resurgence in recent years, they have not yet reached their peak. Currently, there are four major tribes in Western Mongolia, all of which split off from the former Oirat Mongols. Besides the Dzungars, there are the Khoshut, Torgut, and Dörbet.

Gushi Khan, who had joined forces with the Mongols to resist the southward invasion from the northern deserts, was the leader of the Khoshut and one of their tribes that participated in the previous battle against the northern invasion. As the Dzungars grew stronger among the four tribes, the Khoshut avoided direct confrontation and expanded southward, eventually migrating to the Qinghai and Tibet regions. The Torgut migrated to the former Kipchak region of Salai, while the Dörbet were the weakest, now barely able to maintain a small territory.

At the previous alliance meeting in Guihua City, the various tribes of the Western Desert did not attend in person, but instead sent envoys afterward with gifts to express their congratulations and submission. Zhu Shenzhui was quite satisfied with this attitude. In reality, the various tribes of the Western Desert did not pose a threat to the Ming Dynasty, and the strength of the four tribes, including the Dzungars, was far from enough to make the Ming Dynasty wary. In addition, although the Dzungars had risen to power, they were far less powerful than they would have been in later historical periods. Since these tribes had already submitted to the Ming Dynasty, there was no need for the Ming Dynasty to specifically target them.

With this in mind, Zhu Shenzhui gradually formed a plan. He decided to send someone to the Dzungar Khanate to stop Tsarist Russia's eastward expansion. If he could incite the Dzungar Khanate to attack Tsarist Russia and the two sides fight directly, that would be ideal. Once this happened, it would not only stop Tsarist Russia's eastward invasion but also prevent the Dzungar Khanate from growing stronger in the west, which would be extremely beneficial to the Ming Dynasty.

Thinking of this, Zhu Shenzhui couldn't help but smile, having made a decision. At the same time, Zhu Shenzhui also thought of the war between Tsarist Russia and Poland in Europe, wondering how the war was progressing and what the situation was between the two sides.

After all, the Ming Dynasty was too far from Europe. A one-way trip by ship would take nearly a year. The news Zhu Shenzhui received from Europe was all from last year. Even though Ming Dynasty diplomatic officials in Europe kept sending messages through ships traveling to and from the Far East, the problem of distance and time could not be solved.

Thinking about this, Zhu Shenzhui couldn't help but think of Charles II, who had already returned to Europe. Judging from the timeline, the boy should have returned to Europe by now, but he wondered if he had returned to his homeland, England, and whether he could reclaim his crown.

Just as Zhu Shenzhui was thinking this, far away in Lisbon, Europe, Charles II boarded a Portuguese warship. In the port, there were five warships in total, including the one he was on. These five warships were something Charles II had painstakingly obtained from his father-in-law, King João IV of Portugal. The nearly one thousand elite Eight Banner soldiers on these five warships were Charles II's trump card in his attempt to reclaim the throne. Charles II had returned to Europe three months earlier. According to the itinerary, he should have arrived much earlier, but an accident occurred en route. It wasn't due to a storm or pirates, but because his wife, Princess Catalina, gave birth to a son halfway through the journey. The birth of this infant forced Charles II to stop in Mozambique for a period of time, until Princess Catalina recovered and the baby was a little older and healthier, before continuing his journey.

The birth of this son was an accident, something Charles II could never have foreseen. Charles II knew perfectly well that he was not the child's father, but rather that the child was an illegitimate offspring of Princess Catalina with an unknown father.

To be honest, the marriage between Charles II and Princess Catalina was just a political marriage. Since the Kingdom of Portugal had just broken away from Spanish rule, João IV was eager to consolidate his position in the European royal families and confirm his legal rule over Portugal. Therefore, he chose Charles II, who had been driven out of England and was living in exile in Europe, for a marriage alliance.

At that time, Charles II became a king in exile due to domestic changes. He encountered setbacks everywhere in Europe, and no royal family was willing to lend him a helping hand. He and his family went into exile, and at the most difficult time, even food became a problem.

A king, living a life worse than an ordinary person, unable even to return to his homeland. At this time, the Portuguese royal family was the only one to extend a helping hand, willing to take him and his family in, on only one condition: he must marry Princess Catalina.

From this perspective, Charles II had no other choice at the time, and Princess Catalina was a suitable match for him in terms of status. Thus, the two married in Portugal, and after the marriage, Charles II and his family settled in Lisbon. It was because of this marriage that Charles II's situation improved significantly.

Deep down, Charles II was grateful to his father-in-law, João IV. However, gratitude aside, his marriage to Princess Catalina was far from happy. This political marriage was driven by political motives from the outset, and Charles II and Princess Catalina had no emotional connection before their marriage; their union was entirely for political reasons.

Furthermore, the two sides differed in their religious beliefs. England was a Protestant country, and Charles II was a Protestant, while Portugal was a Catholic country, and Princess Catalina was a devout Catholic. The root cause of the previous civil war in England was doctrinal differences. The escalating conflict between Protestants and Catholics led Charles I to make wrong decisions. In addition, Charles I's attempt to use his royal authority and military power to force the clergy and nobles to make concessions ultimately led to his execution.

For this reason, the marriage between Charles II and Princess Catalina could only be described as strained, and the two had little affection for each other. This can be seen from Charles II's initial intention to abandon his wife and travel alone to the Ming Dynasty with Wang Fuzhi and others. If it weren't for Wang Fuzhi's insistence and consideration of diplomatic factors between the Ming Dynasty and Portugal, their marriage might have broken down much earlier.

Although Charles II later took Princess Catalina to the Ming Dynasty, nominally maintaining their marriage, it was in reality a marriage in name only. Furthermore, Charles II was a restless man by nature; he disliked being tied down by a single woman. He had been a womanizer in Europe, and even after arriving in the Ming Dynasty, he was never short of women. As for his wife, Princess Catalina, she was merely a decoration and a mascot to him.

Perhaps due to disappointment in her marriage, loneliness from being alone, and a desire for revenge against Charles II, Princess Catalina was no pushover either. She quickly adapted to life in the Ming Dynasty after arriving, and then, using her special status, became acquainted with some noblewomen in the capital. Through these interactions, Princess Catalina developed her own social circle. The couple lived separate lives, neither interfering in the other's private affairs.

However, Princess Katalina's carelessness led to a "death," and it is unknown which nobleman's son or anyone else she had an affair with, but she became pregnant before leaving the Ming Dynasty.

Princess Katalina probably didn't expect to be pregnant. It wasn't until they had left the Ming Dynasty and traveled some distance, and the ship had already reached the Indian Ocean, that Princess Katalina experienced morning sickness. After being diagnosed by the ship's doctor, it was discovered that the princess was more than two months pregnant.

Faced with this situation, Charles II was speechless. He couldn't very well announce in public that his wife wasn't carrying his child, could he? If he did, wouldn't he, as king, lose all face? Helpless, Charles II could only force a smile amidst the congratulations from the doctors and his men. The ship then continued its journey, and by the time they reached Mozambique, Princess Katharina was nearing her due date and her belly was too big to continue to Europe.

Helpless, Charles II could only land with his wife and rest temporarily in Mozambique. A little over a month later, Princess Catalina gave birth to a "son" for him. Perhaps because of his mixed race, this son was exceptionally beautiful and cute. Moreover, as his face matured, he had the features of a Roman nobleman statue. Looking at this little face, Charles II couldn't help but soften his heart. He announced and recognized this son to the public and named the child George.

(End of this chapter)