The Second Master of the Red Chamber

Just as the grand opera was being performed in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, Jia Lian had already ridden swiftly into the imperial city and arrived at the main camp of the Imperial Guard's firearms battalion, the site he had personally selected and built.

Inside the camp, soldiers and horses stood in rows.

Senior military officers such as Su Keguang, Jia Yu, Feng Ziying, and Liu Xianglian stood in front of the army, clad in armor.

Upon seeing Jia Lian, Su Keguang stepped forward and said, "Reporting to the Duke, apart from the soldiers training and on guard duty outside the city, the firearms battalion should have 3,786 regular soldiers, and 3,786 are present!"

After finishing his report, Su Keguang hesitated, looking at Jia Lian as if he wanted to ask something.

Jia Lian knew what he wanted to ask, so he gestured for him to calm down. Without dismounting, he addressed the more than three thousand firearms battalion soldiers on the training ground:
"Prince Yun rebelled and led his troops into the palace."

His Majesty is now in danger. Do any of you dare to follow me into the palace to rescue him?

"I am willing to obey your orders, Your Excellency, to serve the Emperor and protect him, even at the cost of my life!"

Jia Yu, Feng Ziying, and others had already held a small meeting and knew that Jia Lian would not joke about such a momentous matter.

They were all prepared, too.

Although they did not know the specifics.

However, since Jia Lian dared to give them orders, they dared to follow him in doing great things.

This is the trust they've built up over the years in Jia Lian.

The ordinary officers and soldiers, however, did not have such a direct reaction.

Especially the newly recruited soldiers.

The firearms battalion fought alongside Jia Lian in two official campaigns.

The first time was at Tiewangshan.

Many people died in that battle, and Emperor Ningkang replenished the army after the war.

The second battle was the battle to establish the spirit of the firearms battalion.

On the battlefield in Liaodong, even more of them died.

Now it has been fully staffed again.

The newly recruited officers and soldiers were slightly puzzled.

Wasn't the Duke of Rong no longer the commander of the firearms battalion? Why is it that when he gives an order, everyone in the firearms battalion, from top to bottom, including Commander Su, is willing to obey his commands?

And it looks like it's something serious, like taking someone's head!

Compared to new recruits, veterans generally do not have this kind of doubt.

The firearms battalion was established from scratch under the leadership of the Duke.

They wore the best equipment, received the most pay, and won the most brilliant victories.

In their hearts, the Duke will always be their great general.

By following the general, they would not only be invincible in battle, but also enjoy wealth and honor.

This was especially true for lower- and middle-ranking officers.

Many of them were just promoted to fill vacancies.

Why is a replacement being made?

Because of the Liaodong campaign, the entire army made tremendous contributions.

Many qualified individuals were promoted and transferred because of this tremendous achievement.

Of course, many more are like them, who are promoted within their own camp, or receive rewards of wealth, or even titles.

Therefore, even though Jia Lian had neither an official position nor a military tally, the entire firearms battalion obeyed his orders without question.

Even Su Keguang couldn't stop it.

If he dared to obstruct him, perhaps Jia Lian wouldn't even need to intervene; the other high-ranking generals could easily lock him in a small room and let him calm down.

Of course, Su Keguang did not stop him.

Not only did he not stop them, he also cooperated fully with Jia Yu and the others' actions.

Otherwise, the army wouldn't have been able to assemble so quickly.

Seeing that almost everyone responded, Jia Lian nodded in satisfaction, and then said:
"Of course, I'm not lying to you."

Prince Yun's rebellion was certainly premeditated.

Whether we can succeed in rescuing the emperor is unknown to me.

However, I know that we will definitely be falsely accused of being traitors by the other side.

If we are defeated by Prince Yun, he will surely settle accounts with us.

This is a matter that could cost you your head, so I won't force anyone who's too timid to go.

You will remain here to guard the camp.

The rest of you, follow me.

After saying this, Jia Lian didn't give the soldiers any time to respond. He turned his horse around and led his personal guards out of the camp.

Outside, there were also a thousand soldiers from the West City Military Command.

Fan Jin led the team to follow.

He mobilized the officers and soldiers of the West City Military Command without any official position, troop deployment order, or military tally.

Jia Lian was not complacent about this.

He knew in his heart that Emperor Ningkang had not abandoned him.

Otherwise, given Emperor Ningkang's cunning, he would not have failed to realize that Ningkang had been deeply rooted in these two places for many years and possessed a wealth of influence.

If they were truly wary of him, they should have long ago broken up and reassigned Fan Jin, Jia Yu, and other clearly trusted confidants to other places.

But Emperor Ningkang did not.

Jia Lian wouldn't think that Emperor Ningkang had forgotten.

He was so adept at dismantling the Emperor Emeritus's trusted confidants; how could he possibly forget?

This is the core reason why he was able to easily mobilize troops from these two locations.

After waiting for a short while outside the camp gate, Su Keguang and his men led the majority of their troops in single file.

Jia Lian nodded to Su Keguang and led the nearly five thousand soldiers at breakneck speed toward Xihua Gate.

At this time, a large number of troops had also gathered at Xihua Gate.

Princess Zhaoyang rode her horse here, looked at the general guarding the city wall, frowned and shouted: "I will ask you one more time, will you open this gate or not!"

The guard, with a mournful face, said, "Your Highness, this gate cannot be opened."

Commander Feng had previously given strict orders that, now that His Majesty is seriously ill, there is a fear that rebels might take the opportunity to cause trouble, and he ordered us to guard against them at all costs.

"Since you have neither an imperial edict nor an order of transfer, this humble general truly dares not let you in."

"Nonsense. You think I don't know that your palace gates were already closed when I led my troops here?"

"You call me a rebel? Do you possess the ability of precognition, knowing that I would lead troops in rebellion today, and thus closed the palace gates beforehand?"

The soldiers of the Imperial Guards stationed around the palace gates were also puzzled.

Today's events are strange in every way.

First, the higher-ups ordered the palace gates to be closed tightly, and no one was allowed to enter or leave.

Not long after, the deputy commander, who is now the eldest princess, actually came to the palace with a large number of troops.

It made their hearts skip a beat.

The palace guard said, "Closing the palace gates was Commander Feng's order."

He said he had received word that someone was going to break into the palace today, and ordered us to close the palace gates.

Now, not only here, but the other three palace gates are also closed.

Therefore, unless Your Highness can produce an imperial edict or a dispatch order from the Imperial Guard, I fear I cannot open the door for you.

Princess Zhaoyang's heart sank.

She never expected that Feng Sheng would actually side with that side.

Feng Sheng, as the commander of the Imperial Guard, was a staunch confidant of her father, the Emperor!

He also made great contributions in the Battle of Tiewang Mountain.

It's truly unbelievable that he would dare to help the Third Prince plot a rebellion.

Moreover, judging from the commander's words, not only the Xihua Gate, but also the other palace gates were closed, which was something that Feng Sheng alone could not have done.

How important is the security of the royal palace?
How could several city gates possibly be controlled by a single battalion of soldiers?
To close all four palace gates simultaneously, at least two Grand Secretaries of the Imperial Guard would need to work together.

So, besides Feng Sheng, who else made a move?

Could it be Helian Xiong?

Princess Zhaoyang considered the worst-case scenario.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of a large army approaching from behind. Princess Zhaoyang turned around and felt a sense of relief.

She turned her horse around and came to stand in front of Jia Lian.

"How is it?"

"The situation is very bad. Feng Sheng has betrayed us, and now all four palace gates are tightly closed. We still don't know the specific situation inside the palace."

Jia Lian glanced up at the tightly closed city gate and the heavily guarded imperial guards on the city walls, but ignored them. Instead, he turned to Princess Zhaoyang and asked:
Where is the Fourth Prince?

This is the most important thing. From the moment the Third Prince went to Chonghua Palace, Jia Lian roughly guessed what the Third Prince was going to do.

The Third Prince's attempt to emulate Emperor Ningkang's coup is nothing but wishful thinking.

He doesn't have that ability.

A coup d'état is not simply a matter of killing the emperor.

You need to be able to clean up the mess after the emperor is killed.

Otherwise, it would just be a waste of time and effort for others with more power.

Since the Third Prince couldn't do that, he could only choose to serve a powerful person (the Retired Emperor).

Similarly, Jia Lian and others must also closely follow the banner of the Fourth Prince.

If something happens to the Fourth Prince, then when facing the Third Prince, who has the support of the Retired Emperor, they will truly become rebels.

With the Fourth Prince around, even in the worst-case scenario where Emperor Ningkang gets into trouble, there is still hope.

They could all support the Fourth Prince, acting under the banner of avenging their father and restoring order.

Therefore, even if they were to face the retired emperor head-on, they might still have a fighting chance.

Princess Zhaoyang understood, of course. She turned around and said, "You don't need to worry about Ling'er. I have already arranged a large number of people to protect the Xiao Prince's Mansion."

Furthermore, since Prince Yun only closed the four gates of the palace, cutting off the connection between the palace and the capital, it means they cannot affect the capital, so Ling'er's safety is assured.

Jia Lian nodded.

There are 100,000 Imperial Guards and a large number of Embroidered Uniform Guards stationed inside and outside the capital. If the Third Prince really had the ability to mobilize these people, he would definitely not have chosen to just close the palace gates.

Then it will be easier to handle.

Regardless of the Third Prince's purpose, as long as we break into the palace as soon as possible and, under the pretext of protecting the emperor, kill the Third Prince's followers as traitors, then the matter will be settled.

"Open the door!"

Jia Lian rode his horse to the palace gate and shouted towards the city wall.

When the garrison commander Chen Hua saw Jia Lian, especially the endless army of five thousand soldiers in bright armor behind him, his eyelids trembled violently.

Compared to the elder princess, this one is clearly the truly frightening character.

After all, one was a pampered princess, and the other was a general who had led troops into battle.

If things go wrong today, he might die here.

Just as he was feeling apprehensive, a cold voice suddenly came from behind him: "Jia Lian, you've led troops into the palace; are you planning a rebellion?"

Upon hearing this voice, Zhao Hua was overjoyed and turned around to bow, saying, "Greetings, Commander."

Feng Sheng nodded to him, walked to the parapet, and saw the situation below, which made his eyelids twitch.

"Jia Lian, His Majesty has treated you well, why do you plot a rebellion?"

When Jia Lian saw Feng Sheng, he raised an eyebrow and said coldly, "Feng Sheng, His Majesty regards you as a trusted and beloved general, and appointed you as the commander of the Imperial Guard. Is this how you repay His Majesty?"

"My loyalty to Your Majesty is as clear as day."

"But you, I ask you, with such a large force, do you have His Majesty's decree or the Imperial Guard's order?"

The rotation of troops in the palace can only be effective with the emperor's imperial edict and the dispatch order from the Imperial Guard, which is responsible for the security of the palace.

Other orders, even those from the Ministry of War, were of no use.

"The Third Prince led his troops into the palace, threatening His Majesty's safety. I have led my troops into the palace to protect the Emperor. If you dare to obstruct me, you are conspiring with the traitor who murdered the Emperor."

"What a joke. I am here on the Emperor's orders to guard the palace. You have led your troops into the palace without cause. The fact that I have spared your life is already a great favor."

"Get out of here at once, or don't blame me for being impolite!"

As Feng Sheng spoke, he waved his hand, and the group of archers who were already prepared immediately stood at the gap in the parapet and aimed their arrows at Jia Lian.

Upon seeing this, Jia Lian's personal guards quickly stepped forward to protect him.

Jia Lian watched this scene coldly, without being frightened into retreating hastily.

On the city wall, Feng Sheng did not order the arrows to be fired, and the two sides seemed to be locked in a stalemate.

It wasn't until Jia Yu came to Jia Lian's side and whispered a few words in his ear that things changed.

Jia Lian then dismissed his guards and addressed the city wall, "Feng Sheng, I'm asking you one last time: will you open this palace gate or not?"

Seemingly sensing the confidence in Jia Lian's tone, Feng Sheng's heart skipped a beat.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Duke Rong, you have also rendered meritorious service to the court. You should understand the greater good and be mindful of the bigger picture."

Now that His Majesty is critically ill, the Third Prince, being His Majesty's eldest son, should rightfully succeed to the throne.

Why insist on going against the will of Heaven?

Do you really want the blood on Iron Net Mountain to be spilled again, and for our soldiers to make pointless sacrifices here?
This is an act that threatens the very foundation of the nation; I urge you to reconsider…

Feng Sheng believed that he spoke these words out of public interest and that they were invaluable words of wisdom.

His earlier statement that his loyalty to Emperor Ningkang was as clear as day was not entirely untrue.

Emperor Ningkang is now frequently ill and unable to rise, resulting in a vacuum of imperial power and a corrupt government.

At this point, someone must step forward to take charge.

Compared to the incompetent fourth prince, in his mind, the third prince was clearly a better candidate.

Even though he knew that Emperor Ningkang was dissatisfied with the Third Prince's killing of the former Crown Prince, and therefore had been delaying in making him the Crown Prince.

Feng Sheng felt that Emperor Ningkang was wrong this time, and was acting on emotion.

Moral character has never been the standard for determining whether an emperor is qualified.

That's why he agreed to help the Third Prince.

But he merely agreed to help the Third Prince close the four gates.

Protecting the palace and preventing the invading soldiers was his responsibility.

He felt that what he had done did not count as betraying Emperor Ningkang.

After all, the Third Prince only wanted to rescue the Emperor Emeritus and gain legitimate recognition.

Little did he know that the Third Prince was incredibly audacious, daring to attack Emperor Ningkang.

After Feng Sheng finished speaking, he waited for Jia Lian's response.

However, Jia Lian's voice did not come again. He looked closely and was immediately terrified.

Behind Jia Lian, the army parted to create a wide road, with over a hundred soldiers divided into four rows, each pushing three huge cannons slowly forward.

"Jia Lian, are you crazy? This is the imperial palace!"

Feng Sheng thought that Jia Lian might order an attack on the city, but he did not expect that Jia Lian would bring up the cannons without saying a word.

Is he going to bombard the Forbidden City?
This……

Feng Sheng was speechless, only thinking that Jia Lian had gone mad.

"I'm giving you one last chance. Will you open the palace gates or not?"

"Are you fucking crazy? You dare to bombard the palace! Even if His Majesty wakes up, he will never let you off the hook!"

You will be a sinner for all time.

Jia Lian sneered.

The royal palace is very important; it is a national symbol, a treasure, and an invaluable asset.

However, this is contingent on him winning.

If he doesn't win, he'll dare to bomb not only the palace, but also the ancestral temple.

"fire!"

A solid cannonball rose into the air at Jia Lian's command, striking the heavy palace gate with pinpoint accuracy and producing a deafening roar.

The soldiers standing on the city wall felt a sudden tremor beneath their feet and were filled with horror.

Duke Rong, he really dared to bombard the palace gates!

Feng Sheng yelled, "You're insane! You're fucking insane!"

"I'll ask you one more time, are you going to open it or not!"

Feng Sheng understood that what had just happened was both a test and a warning.

As Emperor Ningkang's trusted general, he naturally knew how powerful the Zhenyuan cannon that Jia Lian had created was.

That was just a solid shot; the enemy also has more destructive explosive rounds.

Once multiple cannons fire simultaneously, his position on the city wall will certainly not be safe.

But opening the door is impossible.

If it really happens, not only will we lose face.

With so many soldiers storming into the palace, things are going to get out of hand.

Thinking that so much time has passed, the Third Prince should have succeeded by now.

So Feng Sheng turned around and headed down from the city wall.

"Commander, where are you going?"

"I will send the message back. You must guard the palace gates and absolutely not open them."

...(End of chapter)