Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Jinling, Fenglefang.

That ordinary three-courtyard house was actually extremely uneasy inside. People were frequently coming in and out over the past two days, and huge undercurrents were brewing all the time.

In the study, the middle-aged man seemed to be sitting calmly, but his expression could not hide his fatigue.

The young man, who was well-mannered and respectful as usual, said to him, "Sir, after we received the message from Xuanhe Gate, the people you arranged in advance have been deployed.

We must stop Jia Cong before he enters the yamen!
It’s just that my subordinates don’t understand. Isn’t it a little late to take action now?

Zhou Zhengyang has been in Jia Cong's hands for a few days. He may have confessed, and Jia Cong already knows all the inside stories."

The middle-aged man sneered and said, "Zhou Zhengyang is also a character. He can be the commander of Jinling Guards. He is not stupid, nor is he a coward.

If he was not such a person, and had left a trick to protect himself, he would not be alive today after being reported.

He knew very well that if he confessed everything, he would be dead.

On the contrary, if he holds back, he will think that I have reservations and may be able to save his life at the last moment.

Now that he fell into Jia Cong's hands, this was the only hope left in his heart, so he would not easily give away his trump card unless it was absolutely necessary.

According to intelligence from Gusu, Jia Cong kidnapped Zhou Zhengyang at night and smuggled him out of the city at dawn. He was then pursued by Luo Xiong and his troops and was eager to escape.

He had already arrived outside the Xuanhe Gate in Nanjing this morning. He had been traveling non-stop without any breaks, so he probably didn't have enough time to interrogate Zhou Zhengyang.

So it is not too late to act now, there is still time for everything…”

……

Jinling, Xingqian Street.

No one expected that the fire armor team who were fighting the fire suddenly sprayed the musketeers with water-spraying bamboo guns.

People like Qu Hongxiu who don't know much about muskets might even be puzzled by this strange behavior.

Only Jia Cong knew clearly that the other party had a clear plan and was fully prepared.

The improved Rummey gun used by musketeers still uses a matchlock ignition mode.

This kind of matchlock gun will become unusable once it gets wet and will become a fire stick.

The other side was afraid of his ten musket guards, who had a strong firearm deterrent, so he first destroyed the muskets and got rid of his most reliable force.

Jia Cong's mind flashed with fire, and he suddenly thought that Zhang Kangnian's reply to the official document, asking him to station his 300 musketeers outside the city, might be for the same purpose.

At this time, the fire armor team members drew out the hidden weapons from the water dragon cart and rushed towards the carriage.

The doors and windows of several nearby houses were broken, and many burly men wearing black scarves and masks rushed out, holding sharp blades that gleamed brightly, and also rushed towards Jia Cong's team.

When Jia Cong entered the city, he had more or less expected that the first wave of news about his capture of Zhou Zhengyang in Gusu had probably reached Jinling.

But the next day, when they surrounded Luo Xiong fifty miles west of Gusu, most of his five hundred guards were killed or wounded, leaving them leaderless.

The news that Luo Xiong was under his control must not have reached Jinling yet.

But even so, the news that Zhou Zhengyang was captured by him would cause him to encounter certain accidents and unexpected events when he returned to Jinling.

Before entering the city, the 300 firearmsmen he led were stranded outside the city, which was a dangerous signal.

Whether he encountered a blocked intersection or a fire-fighting team by chance, he would be alert.

However, he had just entered the city and had not even had time to return to the government office when he was ambushed on the way. Such a hasty action still caught him off guard.

It is conceivable that the man behind the scenes is extremely cruel and crazy.

Jia Cong shouted loudly: "Fight the enemy! Protect the important criminal in the carriage!"

These words were like sparks thrown on kerosene, and the assassins rushed towards the carriage like moths to a flame.

The ten musket guards under Jia Cong had followed him in the fierce battles in Liaodong, and they were all brave soldiers who had experienced the blood and fire of the battlefield.

But they usually focus on firearms training, and their skill and accuracy in using muskets are their strengths.

The muskets they carried had been soaked by water hoses beforehand, making them lose their most powerful weapon.

Although the ordinary soldiers were proficient in the art of attacking with swords and guns, their skills were obviously inferior to those of the assassins.

The assassins were all agile, brave, and well-mannered, with a military vibe. They also had an absolute advantage in numbers.

In just a moment, two of the ten musketeer guards were stabbed, and another was seriously injured, his life or death unknown.

Jia Cong and Qu Hongxiu each drew their scimitars and joined the battle. Both of them had superb swordsmanship and had a very good understanding of each other after years of teaching and practicing.

Whenever the musketeer was in danger, he would swing his sword to save the situation, and finally he managed to resist the assassin's attack. In the alley, the shadows of swords were dazzling, and shouts of killing continued. The two sides were temporarily evenly matched.

But because Jia Cong and others were tied up, no one had the time to guard the carriage.

This was also the effect the assassins wanted. One of them immediately withdrew from the battle, jumped onto the shaft of the carriage, lifted the curtain and slashed straight in.

A man in the car with his hands and feet tied and wearing a hood was stabbed through the heart by the swift and brutal knife, and he let out a miserable and piercing scream.

Jia Cong killed an assassin in front of him with a single blow, then jumped onto the shaft of the cart and swung his knife at the assassin, stopping him from pulling off the dead man's hood.

The two fought for two moves. Seeing Jia Cong's sharp swordsmanship, the assassin lost interest in the fight. He made a feint and jumped off the shaft of the cart, shouting, "I've succeeded. Back off!"

The assassins who were still fighting, upon hearing the instructions from their companions, quickly jumped out of the battle group and advanced and retreated in a planned manner, obviously having undergone long-term training.

In just a moment, all the assassins fled quickly and disappeared into Xingqian Street.

Jia Cong quickly asked his personal guards to call a doctor to give first aid to the injured.

He walked to the front of the carriage and lifted the curtain. The person inside had been stabbed through the heart and was already dead.

Qu Hongxiu said, "It was really dangerous. If Brother Cong hadn't sent Zhou Zhengyang away earlier, he would have died today, and all our efforts would have been in vain."

Jia Cong pulled off the hood of the man in the carriage. This man was not Zhou Zhengyang at all, but Chen Kuishan, a spy from the Royal Chariot Company who had turned against the emperor.

Although he had died, his eyes were still open, filled with fear and disbelief.

Jia Cong put the hood on him again.

Qu Hongxiu asked, "Brother Cong, you put this guy in the carriage and covered his face. Did you already guess that he would be assassinated when he entered the city?"

Jia Cong said: "Zhou Zhengyang is one of the people behind the Water Conservancy Bureau case. Once he is captured, some people in Jinling City will definitely pay close attention to him in order to protect themselves.

I used Chen Kuishan as a substitute to enter the city. I originally wanted to set up a trap to lure out the person behind the scenes, but I didn't expect that this person would attack us so brazenly as soon as we entered the city.

In fact, before I went to Suzhou, I read the secret reports about the Wei army generals collected by Xu Qiniang, and I roughly guessed who was the mastermind behind the scenes.

Now he thinks Zhou Zhengyang is dead, which is exactly what I want. This will prevent him from taking risks. Otherwise, he will cause chaos in Jinling City, and the consequences will be disastrous. "

Jia Cong left two personal guards to take care of the wounded, and he and others escorted the blood-stained carriage straight to the Dali Temple's temporary office in Jinling.

An assassination had taken place on Xingqian Street, and soon people from Yingtian Prefecture or Jinyi Uniform would rush over after hearing the news, but Jia Cong did not want anyone to touch the carriage.

In today's Jinling officialdom, the person Jia Cong trusts most is Yang Hongbin, the Chief of the Dali Temple who is stationed in Jinling under imperial order.

Drive the carriage into the Dali Temple's office, and Yang Hongbin will help him keep the secret, and it only takes two days.

……

Jinling, Fenglefang.

In the afternoon, the middle-aged man who had been waiting for news saw a strong man walking into the study.

"Sir, we have fulfilled our mission and have killed Zhou Zhengyang in Xingqian Street!"

The middle-aged man's eyes flashed with surprise, and he asked, "Are you sure you have killed him?"

The man said, "I personally did it. I stabbed him in the vitals. He is dead as hell. There is no doubt about it."

At this moment, the man suddenly remembered that Zhou Zhengyang in the carriage was wearing a hood. After killing the man, he wanted to take off the hood, but at this time Jia Cong happened to arrive.

Thinking of this, he felt a little doubtful, but he immediately denied it.

At that time, Jia Cong and his personal guards were defending the people in the carriage extremely tightly. If it weren't for Zhou Zhengyang, they wouldn't have to fight so hard.

Even Jia Cong's three musket guards were seriously injured by their own people in their attempt to protect the carriage.

Therefore, this man would never be stupid enough to tell his master about this vague and uncertain doubt.

Otherwise, if unexpected complications arise, you will be the one who suffers in the end, and you may even lose your life.

The middle-aged man in front of him was able to reach such a high position because of his sinister and ruthless means. As his subordinate for many years, he knew it very well...

After hearing this, the middle-aged man heaved a sigh of relief and said, "Go down and rest first. Bring your people with you and set off with me tomorrow. I won't treat you unfairly."

Seeing the young man standing beside him, he finally showed a trace of relief on his face and said, "Liu Xuan, you have to know that the most powerful thing in this world is not high position and power.

But you know secrets that others don’t know, and these secrets will affect the future and life and death of many people.

After Zhou Zhengyang's death, no matter the Water Supervision Department's affairs or other disputes, many clues were broken, and no one knew the location of the Water Supervision Department's secret vault. In fact, in the eyes of the big shots, Jinling's affairs were nothing.

The old affairs of the king, the reversal of imperial power, and the coveting of the country are the private matters that shake the world.

Whoever possesses these secrets will have power and wealth within his grasp.

Even if there is no future in official career, what does it matter? The unattainable figures in the past, in the face of these private matters, can be ruined by a single word or overthrown by a single incident.

In life, whether you are trapped in hardships or in a low position, you struggle to survive and hold on, all for the sake of being able to control the world...!"

Liu Xuan's eyes flickered slightly, and he bowed his head and said, "I am grateful for your advice. I have arranged a merchant ship of 500 tons in the Zhen family fleet.

All formalities have been completed secretly and we are ready to set sail at any time... "

……

Jia Cong, with the remaining personal soldiers, drove the carriage into Yang Hongbin's Dali Temple, and the gate of the government office was closed.

Not long after, upon hearing that Weiyuan Bo had been assassinated on Xingqian Street in the city, the Yingtian Prefecture and the Embroidered Uniform Guard sent people to inquire and find out the details.

But they were all rejected by Yang Hongbin, on the grounds that Weiyuan Bo was safe and sound in the assassination on Xingqian Street, but Zhou Zhengyang, who he accidentally captured in Suzhou, was assassinated.

The Dali Temple, in compliance with the imperial decree, went to Nanjing to investigate the case of Zhou Zhengyang. Zhou Zhengyang's body has been examined and collected by the coroner of the Dali Temple. The Dali Temple refuses outsiders to interfere in its official affairs.

Jia Cong was a nobleman of the imperial court and a fifth-rank official. He was ordered to go to Nanjing on business, but was assassinated in the city.

Yingtian Prefecture and Jinyiwei, as the administrative offices of Jinling and Jing'an, had to intervene and show their official status.

But since Yang Hongbin brought up the imperial edict, they naturally would not be bored anymore. Zhou Zhengyang's case was very difficult, and they would rather not be allowed to touch this hornet's nest.

However, after such a turmoil, the news that Zhou Zhengyang, a wanted criminal of the imperial court, was assassinated spread in the officialdom of Jinling at an alarming speed.

By sunset that day, almost the entire Jinling officialdom had heard the news.

Some people watched coldly, some sighed and lamented, some felt relieved and secretly rejoiced, and the reactions varied.

Some people also noticed that Zhou Zhengyang had been on the run for several months, and the Jinling Jinyiwei and the Duzhihuishisi Yamen had searched several states but were unable to capture him.

It was too much of a coincidence that the young earl arrested this man after only one trip to Suzhou.

September 8th is destined to be an extraordinary day. Many key changes will happen on this day and their future directions will be determined.

In this matter, rumors about the emperor sending an imperial angel to Nanjing to convey his imperial decree and involving drastic changes in the officialdom were becoming more and more rampant.

There were even well-informed people who said that the emperor's imperial envoy had arrived at Gantang Posthouse, 50 miles away from Jinling.

According to the time calculation, we will probably arrive in Jinling tomorrow...

……

Just when everyone in Jinling City believed that Zhou Zhengyang had been assassinated.

An inconspicuous passenger ship set out from Gusu and, after more than two days of sailing, passed through Changzhou and Zhenjiang.

Early this morning, the passenger ship left Zhenjiang waters and sailed to a place only five miles away from Jinling.

The cabin of the passenger ship was packed with more than twenty people, five of whom were prisoners with their hands and feet tied.

Zhang Wu and Jiang Xiaoliu stood at the bow of the boat, looking at the surging river ahead.

Zheng Xiaohai, a boatman nearby, said, "Gentlemen, if the boat moves forward for another cup of tea, we will be able to see Jinling Longtan Port."

Zhang Wu said, "Brother Zheng, the boat does not need to go any further. Let's find a secluded river bay nearby to stop and rest. We will go into the city tomorrow."

That day, Jia Cong captured Zhou Zhengyang from Geng Dafu's mansion overnight, and asked Zhang Wu and Jiang Xiaoliu to escort the prisoner and leave Gusu overnight on Zheng Xiaohai's boat.

Jia Cong himself led hundreds of men and left from the West Gate of Gusu one after another. He used Chen Kuishan to send messages to attract all the attention of Luo Xiong, the commander of Suzhou Guard.

As they traveled by water all the way, Zhang Wu and Jiang Xiaoliu were greatly impressed by Zheng Xiaohai's sailing skills.

Although they escorted Zhou Zhengyang out of Gusu smoothly, they had to pass through the waterway inspection of warships from Suzhou, Changzhou and Zhenjiang along the way.

Before the imperial edict was issued to Nanjing, their identities were still not made public. If the guards along the way discovered that they were escorting five prisoners, they would have no way of justifying themselves.

Moreover, once the news leaked, all Jia Cong's previous plans might be wasted, and the consequences would be unimaginable.

However, Zheng Xiaohai, a plain-looking boatman, was surprisingly familiar with the waterways. He could use the terrain and time of the waterways along the way to easily avoid the inspections of all warships.

This kind of unique sailing skills was tailor-made for them. Originally, transporting Zhou Zhengyang safely to Jinling by water would have been somewhat risky and troublesome.

But once on Zheng Xiaohai's boat, everything became easy.

Zhang Wu is an old man in the Jinling Zhongchesi. He is meticulous and capable, knowledgeable, and quite calculating. One has to admire Jia Cong's ability to take the initiative in everything.

He had been in the south of the Yangtze River for less than two months. How did he manage to gather a figure like Zheng Xiaohai, who happened to be in Gusu?

It seemed as if Jia Cong had known about what was going to happen today for a long time, which was why he was able to keep his promise and use Zheng Xiaohai's skills to accomplish the task.

Jiang Xiaoliu asked, "Brother Zhang Wu, we are almost in Jinling, why don't we go into the city today?"

Zhang Wu said, "Before we set out, my uncle and I told you that the situation in the city would be dangerous and unpredictable until the imperial envoy from the capital arrives in Nanjing.

Zhou Zhengyang was implicated in a serious incident, and countless people in Jinling City wanted him dead.

According to the itinerary, the imperial envoy will definitely not arrive in Nanjing today, and the situation in the city is uncertain.

If we bring Zhou Zhengyang into the city at this time, and someone were to take a risk, I'm afraid we, with more than 20 people, wouldn't be able to stop them.

So we should wait for the imperial envoy to arrive before we escort the prisoner into the city. Please send your brother into the city first and report to Lord Bo that we need to send more people to escort him, just to be on the safe side. "

……

September 8th, Jinling, Yuminfang.

After Jia Cong came out of the Dali Temple, he and Qu Hongxiu returned to Yuminfang.

As soon as I entered the house, Baozhu came to greet me.

He smiled and said, "Brother Cong, you are back. I have done a great thing for you. I asked Miss Zhen San to help you get the storage file."

Jia Cong was delighted when he heard this and said, "Quickly bring the things over for me to see."

Baozhu ran back to her room and took the storage box.

Jia Cong saw that the wax seal on the box was intact, so he opened it on the spot and took out several letters and a blue-covered booklet.

Jia Cong only flipped through more than ten pages and was surprised and delighted. The blue booklet was the secret account left by Zou Huaiyi.

It records more than 20 offshore vessels, as well as the amount of foreign goods on each ship, the transportation and dumping routes, the silver and goods obtained, and the people who participated in the profit sharing.

Some of the names involved in the case were caught in the storm two years ago, but many more have remained at large.

These fatal contents almost revealed all the missing clues and answers to the major case of the Water Supervision Bureau two years ago.

Zou Huaiyi kept this secret account in secret as a means of protecting himself, but unfortunately the incident happened suddenly and his crime was already exposed, so he had no chance to use this thing.

……

When Jia Cong captured Zhou Zhengyang in Gusu, he obtained the most crucial witness, and this blue booklet was the important physical evidence.

Now, with all the evidence and witnesses, the undercurrents and filth left over from the Water Supervision Bureau case will surely be wiped out.

Because the hidden disaster and haze that shrouded half of the southern part of the Great Zhou Dynasty will also be dispelled...

……

Jia Cong looked at the next few pages of the blue booklet, which contained some anecdotes collected and recorded by Zou Huaiyi.

Jia Cong already knew about Du Hengxin's background, but the record here was more detailed.

He had heard from Zou Miner about the extermination of the Du family, the rebellion of King Wu in Shenjing, the abdication of the emperor, and the ascension of Jia Zhao to the throne.

The contents recorded in this booklet are basically the same as what Zou Miner said that day.

But in Jia Cong's opinion, whether it is the records in this booklet or what Zou Min'er knows, they are actually just rough descriptions of the old events, and it is impossible to trace the connection and basis between them.

These records and statements all show that the fall of the Du family and the rebellion of the King of Wu were close in time, but no connection was found between the two.

The rebellion of King Wu that occurred in Shenjing back then must have been a major event that shocked the imperial capital.

But no one has ever mentioned Jia Cong in the Jia family of Rongguo. In fact, it is not surprising if you think about it carefully.

This kind of bloody matter involving the struggle for imperial power is a royal secret. In order to avoid suspicion, the nobles of the country would never discuss or publicize such matters in private.

His teacher, Liu Jing'an, was a veteran of two dynasties and served as the Minister of Rites. He was less than sixty years old when he retired.

He must have known about this old incident, but he never mentioned it to me, probably because of the taboo.

Jia Cong saw the last two pages of the blue booklet and found that the contents were somewhat incoherent, as if a page was missing in the middle... (End of this chapter)