The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 582: On Duty
When the court was dismissed, the sun had already risen to the rooftops, and the dazzling sunlight drove away the slight chill of the late autumn morning. The officials began to leave in an orderly manner. Jia Zheng glanced at Jia Huan, hesitating to speak, and finally frowned and walked away as if he was worried.

Sun Chengzong walked up to Jia Huan, stroked his beard and said, "Ziming, go back and make some preparations. We can set off in three days, okay?"

"That's enough!" Jia Huan nodded.

Emperor Qiansheng is becoming more and more unpredictable. In the end, he not only appointed Sun Chengzong as the imperial envoy, but also designated Jia Huan as the deputy imperial envoy. So the master and apprentice will work together this time to go to Shanhaiguan to inspect the front line and investigate whether Xiong Tingbai has neglected his duty and abandoned the land.

The cabinet acted very quickly. The imperial edict was drafted quickly and sent to the Qianqing Palace for seal. Before noon, Jia Huan and Sun Chengzong received the imperial edict and officially became imperial envoys. Emperor Qiansheng also gave Sun Chengzong the imperial sword, giving him the power to act at his own discretion. Guerrilla generals and below could execute first and report later.

Sun Chengzong did not delay. After receiving the imperial edict, he immediately went to the Ministry of War to ask the Minister of War Zhang Heming for troop deployment. The latter dithered and finally agreed to Sun Chengzong's request. He mobilized 100 cavalrymen from the Shenji Camp as guards for this trip, and refused to give any more.

Sun Chengzong had no choice but to hand over the transfer order to Jia Huan and instructed him, "Ziming has led troops to suppress bandits and is familiar with military affairs. Please take a moment to go to the Shenji Camp this afternoon to select a hundred cavalry guards. You and I are going to Shanhaiguan on business this time, and there is a high probability that we will have to go out of the pass for reconnaissance and inspection, so safety cannot be ignored."

Jia Huan naturally did not dare to neglect it, and after lunch he left the city and headed straight for the camp of the Shenji Camp. Coincidentally, the current commander of the Shenji Camp was Feng Ziying. In other words, Feng Ziying was not implicated by his father Feng Tang because of his meritorious service in suppressing the rebellion, and he was promoted. Now he is the commander of the Shenji Camp, which shows that Emperor Qiansheng trusts him very much.

When Feng Ziying heard that Jia Huan was coming, he immediately went out to greet him in person. After learning the purpose of Jia Huan's visit, he readily took him to select a hundred elite cavalrymen, all of whom were young men who were skilled in riding and shooting.

After that, the two returned to the tent. Feng Ziying ordered his servants to serve tea and said with a smile, "We have selected all the soldiers, but we still need a brave general. How about I personally accompany Brother Huan?"

Jia Huan smiled and said, "That would be great, but Brother Feng is now the commander of the Shenji Camp, so I'm afraid he can't leave. Besides, I can't order him around. You should recommend a general to me, or I can choose one myself."

Feng Ziying's heart moved, and he said with a smile: "Brother Huan has already chosen a candidate. Tell me, who is it?"

"Wu Sangui!" Jia Huan spat out three words.

Feng Ziying looked at Jia Huan in surprise and said, "So it's Wu Youji. This guy's riding and archery skills are really amazing. How did Brother Huan know him?"

Jia Huan smiled and said, "At the beginning, it was Wu Youji who was in charge of the search and seizure of our Jia family, so we are considered acquaintances."

Feng Ziying was stunned for a moment, then he put his hand on Jia Huan's shoulder and said, "Okay, I'll transfer the person to you, but I hope Brother Huan will give me some face and not embarrass that guy too much. After all, he is also following orders."

It is obvious that Feng Ziying thought that Jia Huan was preparing to take revenge, so he deliberately transferred Wu Sangui to obey his orders so that he could take the opportunity to deal with him.

Jia Huan smiled and said, "Brother Feng, you have misunderstood. I, Jia Huan, am not that stingy. I do have some tolerance."

Feng Ziying smiled and said, "That's good. By the way, I have to remind Brother Huan that this mission is not easy to handle. Xiong Tingbai is famous for his bad temper. He once scolded the Minister of War Zhang in front of the emperor. Brother Huan had better not confront him. If you have any problems, just report them to the emperor directly."

Jia Huan's heart was moved, and he said in surprise: "This is the first time I've heard of this. Xiong Tingbai and Zhang Heming are not on good terms?"

Feng Ziying smiled and said, "Brother Huan has only been in office for a short time. This is not your fault. In fact, Xiong Tingbai and Zhang Heming have been at odds for a long time."

"Why?"

Feng Ziying smiled and said, "Because Wang Huazhen, the governor of Liaodong, is a student of Zhang Heming, and Xiong Tingbai has conflicts with Wang Huazhen, and it has reached an irreconcilable level. This is well known to everyone.

Xiong Tingbai advocated defense, while Wang Huazhen advocated offense. Originally, Xiong Tingbai was the governor of Liaodong and Wang Huazhen's superior, but Wang Huazhen relied on the support of Zhang Heming, the Minister of War, and always opposed Xiong Tingbai. Moreover, Wang Huazhen had more soldiers than Xiong Tingbai..."

"Wait, why does Wang Huazhen have more soldiers than the top leader Xiong Tingbai?" Jia Huan asked curiously.

Feng Ziying smiled and said, "It's very simple. As the governor of Liaodong, Wang Huazhen has been stationed in Guangning City, the front line, with heavy troops deployed. He has 100,000 men under his command. Although Xiong Tingbai is the governor of Liaodong, he is stationed in Shanhaiguan in the rear, with only tens of thousands of men under his command. In addition, Wang Huazhen has Zhang Heming's support and sufficient food and military pay. He doesn't need to look at Xiong Tingbai's face at all, and the soldiers under his command will not listen to Xiong Tingbai's orders."

Jia Huan suddenly realized, "So that's how it is. Everyone thought Xiong Tingbai was the boss, but Wang Huazhen was actually the boss. No wonder they had conflicts."

Feng Ziying nodded and said, "That's understandable. Wang Huazhen has a large army and is on the front line, so he naturally wants to make achievements and establish his career, so he has always advocated fighting, while Xiong Tingbai advocates defense. The two disagree and often quarrel. The last time the emperor led the army in person, Zhang Heming happened to be accompanying him. That day the emperor summoned Xiong Tingbai, and the hot-tempered old man scolded Zhang Heming in front of the emperor and almost started a fight."

So that's how it is. No wonder Zhang Heming said at the morning court today that Xiong Tingbai's crime was even greater than Wang Huazhen's. It turned out that the two of them had already fallen out, and Zhang Heming was clearly protecting his disciple Wang Huazhen.

Jia Huan pondered for a moment, then asked, "By the way, Brother Feng, did you fight with the Jurchens during this expedition?"

Feng Ziying shook his head regretfully and said, "No, the army had just arrived in Jinzhou and had no time to attack when they received news that the emperor had rebelled, so they hurried back to quell the rebellion."

Jia Huan nodded and clasped his fists, saying, "Thank you, Brother Feng, for the reminder."

Feng Ziying laughed and said, "With Brother Huan's ability, there's actually no need for me to remind him. I just mentioned it. Let's go into the city for a drink. It just so happens that we haven't been together for a long time, so let's treat it as a farewell party for Brother Huan."

"Okay, but I have to treat you to this meal." Jia Huan said with a smile.

Feng Ziying laughed and said, "It doesn't matter who treats us, as long as we enjoy drinking."

So the two of them left the barracks, went into the city and found a restaurant to drink, and did not leave until almost evening.

When Jia Huan returned to the mansion, the doorman opened the door and welcomed him in. While bowing respectfully, he said, "The master is in the study and specifically told me to invite the Third Master to the study whenever I see him return home."

"Got it!" Jia Huan nodded and went straight to Jia Zheng's study, Mengpo Zhai. As he walked, he thought to himself that old man Zheng obviously did not agree with his business trip, and now he asked him to go to the study, so he would inevitably scold him again.

When Jia Huan entered Mengpozhai, Jia Zheng, with a stern face, scolded him severely, saying that he was ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth, did not understand the doctrine of the mean, showed his edge as soon as he entered the official career, sang against the mainstream, and offended the all-powerful Donglin Party. He was simply tired of living. Jia Huan wanted to refute that you have been mediocre all your life, and you will still be a fifth-rank official when you retire in a few years, but he swallowed the words back when they came to his lips. Considering the performance of his father Zheng in the court today, he did not poke his lungs.

Jia Zheng reprimanded Jia Huan, but was surprised to see that this rebellious son was listening attentively to his lecture. He snorted coldly and said, "Now that the emperor has issued an imperial decree, it is too late for you to regret. Fortunately, you are only a deputy envoy, and you have Sun Chengzong in front of you. Sun Chengzong is a capable official and is also your teacher. When you arrive at Shanhaiguan, you must listen to him in everything. Don't be so smart as to act on your own."

"The child understands." Jia Huan replied patiently.

"Go ahead. If the old lady asks..."

Jia Huan immediately interrupted: "I said we were just going to Shanhaiguan for a walk, there's no danger, it's very safe!"

"Hmph!" Jia Zheng snorted coldly and waved his hand to signal him to get out.

Jia Huan turned and ran away. Jia Zheng was stunned for a moment, then he shouted in a low voice: "Evil creature!"

Jia Huan left Mengpo Zhai and went to the back house to pay his respects to Grandmother Jia. As expected, the latter asked about his mission to Shanhaiguan, which showed that the news had already spread in the mansion.

"Huan'er, although I am a woman and don't know anything about military affairs, I have lived for more than seventy years and have seen pigs run away. In my opinion, this task is not easy to do. You'd better be careful." Jia's mother said in a serious tone.

In the past, little Jia Huan was just a nobody in Grandmother Jia's eyes, but things are different now. Jia Huan is now the pillar of the family and the hope for the revival of the Jia family. Naturally, he cannot be lost. Besides, he has not yet married and has no children. Therefore, Grandmother Jia does not quite agree with him going to the front line to perform duties. However, the emperor's order is difficult to disobey, so he has to go.

Jia Huan calmly replied, "Huan'er will be careful, and please rest assured, old lady. It's just a trip to Shanhaiguan, and we will be back in ten days or half a month."

Hearing this, Jia's mother felt relieved and nodded, "That's good. Go ahead and prepare well in the next two days."

Just as Jia Huan was about to leave, Grandmother Jia called out to him, "I almost forgot. Yuanyang, bring that thing back to Huan."

Yuanyang turned and went into the inner room. After a while, she came out holding a box. Jia Huan couldn't help but be secretly curious and asked, "Sister Yuanyang, what treasure is this?"

"Master San, you'll know if you take a look for yourself." Yuanyang opened the box with a smile. Inside was a set of soft armor. No one knew what material it was made of. It was very soft, almost like ordinary clothes, but quite heavy, probably nearly ten kilograms.

"This treasure is called a soft armor. It was passed down from our ancestors. Your great-great-grandfather also wore it on the battlefield. Wearing it close to your body can protect you from arrows and swords." Grandmother Jia said, "Put it on when you go on a business trip, just in case!"

Jia Huan reached out and touched it, and found that the surface of the soft helmet was very soft silk fabric, which was probably mixed with very fine metal wires. It had a certain degree of defensive power, but it should not be too strong, and certainly could not compare with the bulletproof vests of later generations. However, there was a hard object on the chest of the soft helmet, which was equivalent to a heart guard.

Jia Huan hurriedly thanked Lady Jia and left with the soft helmet. Fortunately, this thing was not too heavy. If it was a chain mail weighing dozens of kilograms, he would never wear it even if he was beaten to death. This thing weighed only about ten kilograms, so it didn't have much impact if he wore it inside.

When Jia Huan returned to Yueweiju, he found that Chai and Dai, as well as Tanchun, were all there. When they saw him, they all looked at him with worry, obviously knowing that he was going to the front line on mission.

Jia Huan felt warm in his heart and said with a smile: "Sister Bao, Sister Lin, Third Sister, you are all here, are you here to have dinner?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he was given a few eye rolls.

…………

On the tenth day of the tenth month of the eighth year of Qiansheng, Jia Huan and Sun Chengzong met in front of Zuoye Gate, and then left the city from Chaoyang Gate.

Wu Sangui had already been waiting outside the city with a hundred elite cavalrymen. When he saw Jia Huan and Sun Chengzong leaving the city, he immediately stepped forward to greet them: "Your Highness Wu Sangui, I pay my respects to Lord Sun and Lord Jia."

Sun Chengzong looked at Wu Sangui and nodded, saying, "Wu Youji has been waiting for a long time. Let's go!"

Wu Sangui immediately jumped on his horse and ordered his 100 cavalrymen to mount their horses and escort the two imperial envoys, Jia Huan and Sun Chengzong, to gallop towards Shanhaiguan.

Sun Chengzong only brought four household slaves on this trip, and Jia Huan also brought four people, namely Shitou, Tieniu, Muye and Jinbao. Mandarin originally insisted on going with them, but was rejected by Jia Huan.

Jia Huan and his party rode fast and finally arrived at Shanhaiguan on the afternoon of the second day. All they saw along the way were refugees who had migrated in from outside the pass. These refugees had no place to live, were hungry, and wandered around, which brought great security risks. It was also a very difficult task to properly resettle these hundreds of thousands of refugees.

Jia Huan and others held the imperial flag and arrived outside the gate of Shanhaiguan. However, the Liaodong governor Xiong Tingbai did not go out of the city to greet them. Instead, he sent the military supervisor Dao Xing Shen Yan to go out to greet them.

The military supervisor was a censor of the Ministry of Personnel, and his rank was the fourth grade, which was lower than Sun Chengzong's original rank. In addition, Sun Chengzong was now an imperial envoy, and he was three levels higher than the official he met. Therefore, when Xing Shenyan met them, he bowed and said, "Your humble servant greets the two imperial envoys."

Sun Chengzong frowned and asked, "Where is Xiong Jinglie?"

Xing Shenyan accompanied him carefully and said, "Master Xiong went out for inspection early this morning. I'm afraid he won't be back until the evening."

Jia Huan frowned imperceptibly. Xiong Tingbai knew that the imperial envoy would arrive today, but he deliberately went out to inspect. It was clearly a show of power to himself and Sun Chengzong, but it was also in line with the bad temper of this hot-tempered old man.

At that moment, Sun Chengzong and Jia Huan entered the city gate accompanied by Xing Shenyan. The latter had already prepared a welcoming banquet, but Sun Chengzong did not buy it and immediately interrogated Wang Huazhen.

Wang Huazhen was originally the governor of Liaodong, but now he has become a prisoner. He was locked up in the jail with a dejected look on his face. He probably knew that he was going to die, so when he saw the two imperial envoys, Sun Chengzong and Jia Huan, he didn't care at all and told them the whole story of his defeat.

Habitual lag when changing volumes. Today's 4K update.

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(End of this chapter)