Jiapingguan Chronicle

Chapter 2839 Master Qingsong 57.0
"What happened to the She family back then must have dealt a heavy blow to the Gong and Ma families, especially the Gong family. They had been longing for the bronze cauldron, and after finally seeing it appear in the world, they were about to get their hands on it, but then," Jin Miaomiao spread her hands, "this means they can stop thinking about it now. It will never belong to them, right?"

“That’s for sure.” Merlin looked around, refilling everyone’s teacups with hot tea and snacks, then continued, “We can’t possibly rob the ancestral graves of the late Empress Dowager’s maternal family for something like this, can we?” She sat next to Jin Miaomiao, rolled her eyes, snorted, and said, “No matter what, the late Empress Dowager’s maternal family is still related to the imperial family. If you rob the graves of imperial relatives, it should be a capital offense, right?”

"Of course, their actions of snatching from the She family this time are already capital offenses. The Yangzhou Gong family and all other families involved in this case have had their homes confiscated. The main culprits, accomplices, and adult males have been executed, while underage males and their families have been exiled to the southwest."

"Is this considered a major case in Yangzhou Prefecture?"

“Yes!” Song Yaojia nodded. “It was a huge deal. The prefect of Yangzhou was transferred back to the capital the following year because of his good cooperation.”

"That's really good!" Jin Miaomiao thought for a moment, "What about the She family? This time they've revealed their hand, I'm afraid they won't be able to stay in Yangzhou Prefecture, right?"

"They were ordered to be transferred to the southwest. At that time, there was a battle going on in the southwest. Do you remember?"

"Several tribes in the southwest suddenly rose up in rebellion. If Commander Hou hadn't been on guard against them, the battle would have been extremely fierce. Even with precautions, the losses were still heavy," Shen Haolin sighed. "Commander Hou's 100,000 men suffered casualties that were roughly equal to..."

“There were about twenty or thirty thousand.” Shen Cha continued Shen Haolin’s words with a stern face, “So, after that battle, Marshal Hou went to the capital to apologize immediately because his negligence led to the loss of so many people in that battle.”

“Where in war can you not die?” Jin Miaomiao sighed. “Especially in the southwest, where the miasma is deadly all year round. What does this have to do with Marshal Hou?”

"That's what my imperial uncle said too, so he didn't blame Commander Hou at all. Besides, we suffered more casualties, but the rebellious tribes suffered even more. Two tribes were completely wiped out; they all died on the battlefield." Shen Cha raised an eyebrow. "Isn't this a great achievement?"

"That's true."

"However, this battle wasn't without its benefits." Song Yaojia smiled. "Because of the heavy casualties, Commander Hou urgently needed a group of talented generals. Fortunately, the She family revealed their hand, so they were directly transferred to the southwest, which can be considered as getting what they wanted."

"It's not just about getting what you want; it's about watching your enemy suffer at your hands. That's true revenge." Jin Miaomiao grinned mischievously at Shen Cha. "Right?"

Shen Cha didn't speak, but just smiled faintly. Those people from the Gong family in Yangzhou were used to a life of luxury. Let alone being unable to endure the hardships of the southwestern border, it was a different story whether they could even survive to walk from Yangzhou Prefecture to the southwest.

"Everything is perfect, except for one thing: the main branches of the Gong and Ma families."

“Actually, they were affected quite a bit too.” Song Yaojia held up a finger and wagged it at Jin Miaomiao. “On the surface, it seems like nothing’s happened, but in reality, they’ve been depressed for a long time. At least they’ve lost a lot of money in those ambiguous and unclear businesses.” “Businesses?” Jin Miaomiao was taken aback. “Didn’t they stop doing those businesses a long time ago?”

“They’ve stopped doing it openly, but they’re still doing it behind the scenes, and they make a lot more money doing it than doing it openly.” Song Yaojia sighed. “It’s just that with the She family case, they have to be careful. Although the Gong family in Yangzhou has been brought to justice, our main family has also been put in the spotlight. With so many eyes watching them, they can’t do anything they want.”

"Moreover, they should be well aware that even if the Yangzhou government repeatedly claims that the She family's case was fabricated by the Gong family of Yangzhou and has nothing to do with their own family, they have no idea whether outsiders, especially the nobles in the palace, believe this statement."

“That’s right!” Song Yaojia nodded to Shen Cha. “The head of the Gong family is someone who tends to overthink things, so he will plan for the worst. Even if the palace accuses them of lax family management and incompetence, he is worried that this is just an appetizer and the real feast is yet to come. He is even more worried that if they make any small moves, the palace will immediately find a handle against them.”

"Patriarch Gong's concerns aren't unfounded, are they?"

“Of course, for a long time to come, they will have to keep a low profile, otherwise,” Song Yaojia sneered, “they will be in dire straits.”

Is it that serious?

"It's not a matter of whether it's serious or not. For the palace, keeping a close eye on the Gong and Ma families is a must." Shen Cha shook her head slightly. "After all, the Ding family and the late Empress are involved. In order to ensure that the late Empress has no secret dealings with the Gong and Ma families and will not do anything that endangers the royal family, it is necessary to keep an eye on them. The Gong and Ma families are also worried about this, so they must keep a low profile in order to protect themselves."

“I’ve seen the palace’s secret files. In the year and a half following the She family case, Wuzhou Prefecture and Yangzhou Prefecture received three or four urgent secret letters almost every month. The letters reported on the Gong family, the Ma family, and the aristocratic families that were close to them. They detailed what they did every day, what they were dealing with, and what major events had happened in their households. If they did anything underhanded, the palace would know immediately.”

"Are they being watched by constables from Yangzhou and Wuzhou prefectures?"

“How could a constable possibly keep an eye on his master?” Song Yaojia chuckled. “Naturally, they are my uncle’s men. Although most of the Eagle King’s Army is stationed near Xijing City, there are also many spies in various prefectures and counties in Jiangnan. They are specifically there to keep an eye on the local officials for the palace. These people are very well disguised and are no different from ordinary people. No one will know their true identities unless it is a critical moment.”

"Isn't it a bit of a waste to use someone like that to keep an eye on families like the Gong and Ma families?"

“It concerns the royal family, how could we possibly waste their talents?” Song Yaojia raised an eyebrow. “However, after setting a timeframe of about a year or two and finding that they hadn’t made any unusual moves, we relaxed our vigilance a little.”

"As a result, once we let our guard down, those guys started to make their move, right?"

“That’s right.” Song Yaojia nodded. “The Ma family’s fraud gang has resurfaced.”