Jiapingguan Chronicle

Chapter 2834 Master Qingsong 52.0
“This…” Shen Cha hesitated for a moment, then gently shook her head. “Brother Yao Jia, something seems a little off.”

“Something’s not quite right?” Song Yaojia raised an eyebrow. “Tell me, what’s not quite right?”

Shen Cha glanced at him, chuckled, and said, "Brother Yaojia, the way you are right now already shows that nothing is right."

"Hmm!" Jin Miaomiao nodded in agreement, then rolled her eyes at Song Yaojia. "Your Highness, don't you think something's wrong?"

"I know the whole story, so I naturally don't see anything wrong with it."

“Okay, that makes sense.” Jin Miaomiao and Shen Cha exchanged a glance and said, “As the saying goes, the common people can’t fight against the officials. Even if the Gong family and the Ma family have the Ding family behind them, that backing is not enough for them to contend with the Yangzhou garrison.”

“Wait a minute, there’s something wrong with your order.” Song Yaojia interrupted Jin Miaomiao. “The Gong family and the Ma family don’t know that their cousin from the She family asked the Yangzhou Prefecture for help, so they don’t know that the people they are fighting against include soldiers from the Yangzhou Prefecture.”

“Oh, they know nothing, yet they're only thinking about stealing the bronze cauldron. They really are…” Shen Cha thought for a moment and found a slightly more suitable word, “ambitious.”

“Even if they know nothing,” Merlin said, resting his chin on his hand as he looked at Song Yaojia, “what if they really offended someone they shouldn’t have?”

"Raising an army for a thousand days to use it for one day, naturally we need the Ding family to step in." Shen Cha sneered. "The reason the Gong family chose to form a marriage alliance with the Ding family was precisely for this moment, wasn't it?" She took the warm water that Shen Haolin handed her, took a small sip, and said, "If we really offended someone we shouldn't have, then let's see if the Ding family needs to mediate or suppress that person. In any case, it's the Ding family's business. Whether it's handled well or poorly, it's all related to the Ding family. At most, they'll just apologize and back down."

“Although the Ding family is related to the imperial family, they don’t have any real power. They should know that. Not everyone will give them face.” Jin Miaomiao spread her hands. “It’s obvious that the Ding family can’t handle the She family, whether it’s their own background or their status as relatives of the late Empress Dowager. It’s a pity that they didn’t investigate before acting rashly.”

"That's pretty much the gist of it. The reason they're so brazen is because they think they're related to the Ding family by marriage, and that no matter what trouble arises, the Ding family can protect them. Unfortunately, they didn't find out that what they want is an imperial gift. Their coveting of this is no different from treason." Song Yaojia sighed. "Actually, they knew the She family had taken over the manpower, but they didn't think of the Yangzhou garrison, missing their last chance to find out the truth."

"This is the last chance to know the truth before taking action." Shen Cha sighed as well. "Sometimes being too low-key isn't a good thing."

“Xiao Cha is right.” Song Yaojia smiled bitterly. “That night, thugs from the Gong and Ma families sneaked into the She family’s house. They lit sleeping powder, trying to knock everyone unconscious so they could slowly search for things without being disturbed.”

"So, they didn't intend to kill anyone at the beginning?"

"I don't know. This group of people was hired by the Gong and Ma families from outside to do this. Their orders were to find something and try not to kill anyone. If they encountered resistance, or if the resistance was too strong, they could take action, but they would still try not to hurt anyone."

"They were already engaged in murder and robbery, yet they actually had some conscience and warned those desperate criminals beforehand." Jin Miaomiao scoffed, rolling her eyes dramatically. "But in the end, why was the entire She family still slaughtered?"

"When did you say you were massacred?" Song Yaojia looked at Jin Miaomiao curiously. "I didn't say that!"

"Then why did the Empress Dowager..."

“Because my cousin She is indeed gone, and the bronze cauldron is indeed lost.” Song Yaojia sighed and said, “Don’t worry, let me explain slowly. Those thieves thought they had bewitched everyone, but in fact, my cousin She had foreseen this and had everyone take the pills.”

"I understand. The barrier-avoiding pill can protect against both miasma and those sleeping pills." Jin Miaomiao nodded. "And then, they weren't drugged, and just watched those people rummage through?"

“They wanted to trap us like turtles in a jar, so they deliberately placed the cauldron in an easily accessible location, planning to catch them red-handed once they had it,” Song Yaojia sighed. “Although the plan was well-thought-out, we encountered problems in execution.” “Why?”

"Although the Gong and Ma families repeatedly emphasized that no one should be killed, the group of people they hired actually didn't take it seriously. They felt that the powerful families were somewhat hypocritical, but they could only express their dissatisfaction in their hearts. On the surface, they still had to keep up appearances, after all, it was related to whether they could get the agreed-upon payment. So, when they found that the people in this house had surrounded them, they panicked a bit."

"And then they panicked and started attacking without thinking?"

“Yes.” Song Yaojia nodded. “Although the She family has many people and has hired the government guards, they can’t withstand the ruthlessness of the other side.”

“Those are all desperate criminals; they all fight like madmen.” Shen Cha nodded. “With one side trying to keep survivors alive and the other trying to escape, it’s already quite obvious who has the upper hand and who is at a disadvantage.”

"Yes, the She family wanted to capture prisoners alive, and the people of Yangzhou Prefecture also wanted to capture prisoners alive, so they fought more cautiously. As a result, the She family cousin was seriously injured in the melee, and the Yangzhou Prefecture soldiers died on the spot. One was seriously injured, and the rest were slightly injured."

"Where are the rest of the She family?"

“Casualties of varying degrees!” Song Yaojia sighed. “Anyway, the losses were heavy.”

"Where are the bandits?"

"Most of them died, but three escaped, taking the bronze cauldron with them."

"They actually ran away with the cauldron?"

“There’s nothing we can do.” Song Yaojia spread her hands helplessly. “After my cousin She was seriously injured, everyone panicked and had no energy to do anything else. Saving lives was the top priority.”

"That's true," Shen Cha sighed. "But they couldn't save him, could they?"

"My cousin She endured the illness for more than half a month. He sent secret letters by express courier to my uncle Shang and the late Empress Dowager, explaining the whole process, describing in detail the appearance and origin of the people who first haunted their house and then stole from it, and stating that he had asked the prefect of Yangzhou to conduct a full-scale search and arrest."

"Have the merchants and the late Empress Dowager replied?"

"I went back and comforted him, telling him not to worry about it and to focus on recovering. They assured him that everything would be alright. However, my cousin from the She family had another request, which the late Empress Dowager granted."

"What request?"

"Reactivate the old She family forces and take over Yangzhou Prefecture."

(End of this chapter)