He subsequently diversified into such industries as banking, insurance, milling, mining, and ironworking, later serving three terms as the president of the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce.

In his philanthropy, Zhu promoted education, healthcare, and disaster relief, serving for a time as the director of the Red Cross Society of China.

[7] In 1919, during the May Fourth Movement, he sent a telegram on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce supporting Premier Duan Qirui; this was condemned by contemporary Shanghai society.

During the 1911 Revolution, Zhu acted as an accountant with the Red Cross Society of China, in which capacity he helped bring food and medicine to affected areas.

Already a prominent member of the Siming Gongsuo, another Ningbo-oriented association, in 1911 Zhu renamed the group the Ningbo Lü Hu Tongxianghui and erected new edifices on Fuzhou Road.

He raised funds to help disaster victims, both in China and abroad; this included in Java in 1919 and in Japan following the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake.

[12] The North-China Herald wrote that, because of the extent of his philanthropic activities, Zhu's friends believed that his assets were greatly depleted and he left only a "small fortune".

The house was decorated in white and blue, with scrolls bearing the condolences of such figures as former president Li Yuanhong, General Lu Yongxiang, Marshal Sun Chuanfang, and Premier Wellington Koo; thousands of Shanghai residents attended.

[13] A procession, described by The North-China Herald as likely the largest in Shanghai history, was planned for 7 November; it was to include hundreds of armed guards, with Zhu's casket in a hearse pulled by eight horses.

[15] He also told the Shanghai Mixed Court that he had been receiving libelous letters, which he blamed on Lianying's family, as a result of the investigation,[16] and was rumoured to have spent 3,000 yuan (equivalent to ¥291,856 in 2019) to silence the press.