The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 687 The Golden Seal of the King of Hami

Jia Huan glanced thoughtfully at Ayina, who was being trampled on the ground by Dong Dao, and asked, "You say you are Amulang, the former chief clerk of the Hami Royal Palace, what evidence do you have?"

The white-bearded old man hurriedly replied, "Yes, yes." He then took out a gold seal and a jade plaque from his robes and respectfully handed them to Jia Huan, continuing, "This is the gold seal bestowed upon the King of Hami by the Upper Kingdom. When I escaped from the palace with Princess Ayina, I took the King's gold seal with me, and it did not fall into the hands of the rebel Baiwa. In addition, this jade plaque was also an official token bestowed upon me by the Upper Kingdom back then."

Jia Huan took the gold seal and jade token, and after verifying that they were correct, he believed them to be mostly true. He then gave Dong Dao a wink, and the latter put away his knife and released the girl named Ayina.

Ayina stood up, glared angrily at Dong Dao, and asked in an unfriendly tone, "Dare to tell me your name?"

Dong Dao chuckled dismissively, "What's there to be afraid of? Do you think I'm afraid of a little brat like you? My name is Dong Dao, so just call me Master Dong!"

Jia Huan coughed lightly and said, "Little Dong, don't be rude, step back!"

Dong Dao retreated behind Jia Huan as instructed. Ayina looked Jia Huan up and down curiously, frowning as she asked, "Who are you? He's so good at fighting, why does he listen to you?"

The girl's eyes were clear and bright, and coupled with her slightly childish face, she gave off a very innocent feeling, so it seemed quite normal for her to ask such a question.

Mu Ye chuckled and said, "Our Third Master doesn't practice martial arts, but rather the art of military strategy and commanding people. It's even more powerful than the art of killing a thousand men or defeating ten thousand men."

“What a load of bull!” Ayina sneered. “He doesn’t look much older than me.”

Mu Ye curled his lip and said, "Bragging? Baiwa and Turpan Taiji Amahei just lost to our Third Master, along with nearly two thousand cavalrymen."

Amurang and Ayina's expressions changed drastically. The former asked with disbelief, "You... really captured Baiwa and Amahei?"

Mu Ye said proudly, "How could it be false? Ah Mahei is still imprisoned in our camp. I'll take you to see for yourselves later if you don't believe me."

Amurang asked sternly, "May I ask what the name of this esteemed lord of the superior nation is?"

Jia Huan said calmly, "Jia Huan is just an unknown nobody. I was originally sent as an envoy to escort Princess Kangle to Hami for a marriage alliance. However, Baiwa secretly colluded with Turpan Taiji Amahei to plot against us. Fortunately, I saw through their scheme and thwarted it in time."

Upon hearing this, Amu Lang was both surprised and delighted, but he racked his brains but could not recall the name Jia Huan. When did the Great Jin Dynasty produce such a young talent?
It's not entirely Amu Lang's fault. Although Jia Huan was very famous in the Great Jin Dynasty, he had only risen to prominence in recent years. Amu Lang had been in exile for many years, and being located in the remote western border region, it was normal that he had never heard of Jia Huan.

"So it's Lord Jia!" Without thinking twice, Amu Lang knelt down and bowed deeply.

Jia Huan was slightly taken aback and asked in surprise, "What does Your Excellency, Chief Secretary, mean by this?"

With tears streaming down his face, Amulang said, "The traitor Baiwa usurped the throne, and my family, the ruler of Hami, was brutally slaughtered. For so many years, I have been running around pleading and petitioning, and have repeatedly written to the superior country to send troops to kill the traitor and uphold justice. But I have never received a reply from the superior country. I can only take Princess Ayina and wander around to avoid Baiwa's pursuit."

Fortunately, Heaven has smiled upon us, and now this traitor Baiwa has fallen into Lord Jia's hands. We implore Lord Jia Huan to report to the Emperor of the Supreme Kingdom, to execute Baiwa, restore order to the cause, and reclaim the legitimate throne of Hami.

"Your Excellency, please rise quickly." Jia Huan calmly helped Amulang up and said, "Baiwa, that traitor, was a wolf in sheep's clothing. He secretly colluded with Turpan to commit treason, but he has already been killed on the spot by this envoy."

"Really?" Ayina blurted out, her expression excited.

Dong Dao crossed his arms and said smugly, "I cut off Baiwa's head myself, how could it be fake?"

Ayina's chest heaved rapidly, tears welling up in her eyes. She gritted her teeth and said, "This traitor killed my whole family! I wish I could kill this scoundrel with my own hands!" At the same time, she clasped her hands in a fist and asked Jia Huan, "Lord Jia, may I see Baiwa's head with my own eyes?"

Jia Huan nodded and said, "Of course, but why are Your Highness the Princess and His Excellency the Chief Secretary here?"

“This…” Ayina’s eyes flickered slightly.

Amu Lang hurriedly said, "Last night we captured a group of defeated soldiers from Hami. After interrogation, we learned that they had fought with the army of the Upper Kingdom. So we followed the hoofprints all the way here. We just wanted to find out what was going on, but we didn't expect to be discovered by this Master Dong, which led to the misunderstanding. Actually, we had no ill intentions."

Jia Huan's gaze turned cold, and he said indifferently, "Is that really so?"

Amu Lang's heart skipped a beat. This boy had such a sharp gaze. He answered cautiously, "Of course, I have not uttered a single falsehood."

Jia Huan sneered, "Since you are not telling the truth, then I will not entertain you any longer. You may leave."

Amurang panicked immediately. Jia Huan was now his hope for restoring his kingdom, so he quickly said, "Your Excellency, please calm down. I will tell you the truth. I recently heard that your country is preparing to make peace with Hami through a marriage alliance, sending a princess to marry you. Moreover, the marriage procession will be traveling from Jiayuguan to Hami soon, so..." Jia Huan said with a half-smile, "So you plan to ambush them halfway and sabotage the marriage alliance?"

Amurang knelt down with a thud and begged for forgiveness, saying, "Your Excellency, please forgive me. I did have such intentions, but I only wanted to stop the Upper Kingdom from marrying its princess to the traitor Baiwa. I would never harm the Upper Kingdom's princess in the slightest."

It turns out that during the years that Amulang and Ayina were in exile, they had been accumulating strength and trying to retake Hami City. He had petitioned the Great Jin Dynasty several times to send troops to help quell the rebellion. However, the Great Jin Dynasty had powerful enemies in Liaodong, and Hami was insignificant to the Great Jin Dynasty. It was not worth the trouble of sending troops to quell a rebellion for a small vassal state. Therefore, Emperor Qiansheng ignored Amulang. On the contrary, for the sake of stability on the frontier, he recognized the new Hami King Baiwa.

Amulang had no choice. Since he couldn't rely on Dajin, he could only rely on himself. Over the years, he had recruited his old subordinates and accumulated strength, eventually building up a force of over a hundred men. Recently, upon hearing that Dajin and Baiwa had made a marriage alliance, he secretly plotted to attack the marriage procession and sabotage the relationship between the two countries.

However, Amu Lang soon discovered that the marriage procession from the Great Jin Dynasty was escorted by a large number of border soldiers, and his small force was simply no match for them. Even a sneak attack would be like throwing an egg against a rock, so he had no choice but to abandon his original plan.

However, Amulang's luck seemed to have turned. Last night, he suddenly encountered a large number of defeated Hami cavalrymen. Upon questioning them, he learned that it was the Baiwa people who had fought against the Jin army. There must be a reason for this, so he came to investigate in person.

Amu Lang and his companions were experienced travelers in the desert and were masters of concealment. They observed Jia Huan's camp for a long time without being discovered. However, Dong Dao and Fan Silang were having a contest when Dong Dao suddenly climbed to a high place. Dong Dao, with his sharp eyesight, looked down and spotted Ayina and the others hiding in the shadows, which led to what happened next.

Getting back to the main point, Amu Lang saw Jia Huan's somber expression and felt uneasy. However, Ayina, who was beside him, was unhappy and pulled him to his feet, saying, "Teacher, get up quickly. He is just a marriage envoy. You are the chief secretary of the Hami royal family. Why should you kneel to him? Besides, the Jin Kingdom wronged us first. Even if we really attacked the marriage procession and killed the princess, it is not our fault."

Jia Huan raised his eyebrows, his gaze instantly sharp as a drawn sword, the invisible killing intent almost tangible, startling Ayina so much that her face turned pale instantly.

Amulang's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly said, "Ayina, stop talking nonsense! We never intended to harm the princess of the Upper Kingdom. Please calm down, Your Excellency!"

Jia Huan said coldly, "Considering your youth, I will not hold it against you. But if you speak disrespectfully again, don't blame me for being ruthless. You should know that the princess of Great Jin is not to be trifled with!"

Although Ayina was somewhat resentful, she couldn't help but lower her head and not dare to look him in the eye under Jia Huan's fierce aura. Amu Lang even apologized repeatedly.

Jia Huan said calmly, "I will report your matter to the Emperor of Great Jin as it is. As for whether or not I will help you restore your country, the Emperor will make his own decision."

Amu Lang quickly thanked her, and Ayina reluctantly curtsied in return, showing that she had learned the etiquette of the Great Jin Dynasty in her daily life, as her Chinese was very fluent.

Jia Huan nodded and asked, "How many men do you have? Where are you currently stationed?"

Amu Lang no longer dared to be negligent because Jia Huan was young, and answered truthfully: "There are more than a hundred cavalrymen stationed about thirty miles south of here."

Dong Dao laughed and said, "You think you can ambush us with such a small force?"

Amu Lang quickly replied, "No, no!"

Jia Huan waved his hand and said, "Go and bring your men here. Please invite Princess Ayina to come to the camp with me for a while."

“Your Highness is still young…” Amu Lang looked troubled.

Ayina raised her chin and stared at Jia Huan defiantly, saying, "Teacher, you go ahead, he won't dare do anything to me!"

Amulang could only bow with his hand on his chest, then turned and rode away with his men. Although the little girl appeared stubborn, she was still a little uneasy when she watched Amulang and the others go far away and she was left alone. She secretly glanced at Jia Huan and saw that he was stuffing the Hami King's golden seal into his bosom. She said urgently, "Please give me back the golden seal."

Jia Huan had already put the gold seal away. He casually brushed his chest and asked, "What gold seal?"

Ayina's pretty face turned red with anger, her almond-shaped eyes widened, and she shouted, "That's my father's golden seal! Give it back to me!"

Jia Huan corrected, "That was the golden seal bestowed upon your father by our Great Jin. Now that your father is dead and the throne of Hami is vacant, what is wrong with me temporarily taking back this golden seal?"

“You…” Ayina was speechless.

Jia Huan smiled and said, "Don't worry, if a new king ascends the throne in the future, the Emperor of Great Jin will still bestow this golden seal upon you. Princess Ayina, please follow me." After saying that, he turned his horse around and headed back to the camp.

The guards immediately surrounded her, ostensibly to protect her, but in reality to keep Ayina under control. The latter gritted her teeth in resentment and could only follow Jia Huan angrily.

(End of this chapter)