Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

Before the hour of Si, Jia's mother, holding Baoyu in her arms, was talking to Lady Wang and Wang Xifeng.

Yingchun's maid Xiu Ju walked into Rongqing Hall and said that Third Master Cong had entered the city early this morning and brought his uncle's family with him. The second lady asked her to tell the old lady the news.

Grandmother Jia was also surprised when she heard this. This boy returned to the capital without sending anyone a message in advance. He just came back as soon as he said he would.

I was a little puzzled as to why he brought my uncle's family with him.

After a long while, Jia's mother saw Yingchun, Daiyu, Tanchun and other sisters enter the hall, all with happy expressions on their faces.

He quickly asked, "Second girl, has your brother returned?"

Yingchun smiled and said, "Brother Cong's personal soldiers came to report to the government, saying that Brother Cong entered the city at 2:30 am, and brought cousin Xing's family with him.

I was just in the East Mansion, cleaning the yard, arranging clothes, food and hot soup, and letting Brother Cong settle down and rest when he came back, so I came a little late, so I asked Xiu Ju to report to the old lady first."

When Lady Jia heard Yingchun talk about cousin Xing's family, she realized that the uncle Xiu Ju was talking about was Madam Xing's brothers and their family. She just didn't understand why they came to the capital with Jia Cong.

Grandmother Jia frowned and asked, "He has returned home, why doesn't he come to see me?"

Tanchun said, "My third brother's personal guards sent a message saying that my third brother had sent a fast horse to the palace yesterday. After entering the city today, you should not go home first, but go to the palace to submit the imperial edict and see the emperor first."

At this time, outside Rongqing Hall, there were sudden voices and footsteps. Mrs. Xing, accompanied by a girl of thirteen or fourteen years old and a middle-aged couple, walked quickly into Rongqing Hall.

Mrs. Xing was dressed in silk and satin, with her hair covered with pearls and jade, looking noble and dazzling. The girl she was holding her hand, however, was wearing a plain dress and hairpins, and her clothes and shoes were shabby and old. The two formed a sharp contrast.

But as soon as the girl entered Rongqing Hall, she attracted a lot of attention.

In fact, when Mrs. Xing proposed to Xing Xiuyun that day, Grandmother Jia declined on the spot.

The maids and servants were somewhat cautious about matters like this involving marriage within the imperial palace, so the story was not spread throughout the mansion.

However, Yingchun and other sisters still heard the news, so they were somewhat curious about the newly arrived Miss Xing.

Daiyu and Baochai paid even more attention to Miss Xing because she was the eldest lady's niece, and they almost proposed her to Jia Cong.

Although the old lady rejected this matter, she still had the option of taking her in as a concubine. In any case, she would have something to do with Jia Cong in the future.

Daiyu and Baochai both came from wealthy families. They had been accustomed to seeing their fathers, brothers, and their wives and concubines since childhood. Since the old lady had spoken, they did not care about the matter.

But when Miss Xing came before them, they all looked at her with some scrutiny.

Although she was wearing a cloth dress, she was spotless, had an elegant and beautiful complexion, fair skin, and was very charming.

Although she has a slim and graceful figure, she is also graceful and charming. Her demeanor is calm and peaceful, and her temperament is restrained and peaceful. She seems to be indifferent to the world, making people feel close to her.

……

Mrs. Xing originally wanted to betroth Xing Xiuyun to Jia Cong so that she could gain some benefits in the future, but she didn't expect that not only would she be rejected by Lady Jia, but she was also tricked into changing from a wife to a concubine.

Today, her brother and his wife came to Beijing, and she really didn't know how to start the conversation. When Xing Zhong asked her about this, Mrs. Xing had to avoid the question and try to get away with it.

But after what Rong Qingtang said that day, Xing Xiuyun had to be brought to meet Lady Jia when she arrived at the Jia Mansion. There was no way to avoid it.

So she entered the hall and brought Xing Xiuyan to Jia's mother and said, "Madam, this is my niece Xiuyan. I brought her here to see you."

As she said this, she asked the maid to bring a cushion and asked Xing Xiuyan to kowtow to Lady Jia.

Grandmother Jia was originally disgusted with Lady Xing for using her niece to take the position of the Earl's wife and disrupting her own plans.

Therefore, he didn't have a good impression of Mrs. Xing's niece, but he was a little surprised to meet a person like Xing Xiuyan.

She liked daughters who were born proud, so she called Xing Xiuyan forward, held her hand, and looked closely at her appearance and behavior.

He asked her some common questions and saw that Xing Xiuyan was calm and composed, and answered appropriately. Although she was a girl of common people, she had a unique charm. He couldn't help but like her a little.

If Xing Xiuyan was not Mrs. Xing's niece, Grandmother Jia would have wanted to keep her by her side.

……

Jia Baoyu, who was beside his grandmother, met such an outstanding girl like Xing Xiuyan.

I originally thought that my sisters at home were already outstanding, but I didn't expect that there would be someone who was just as outstanding. I immediately became crazy again and stared at the other person intently.

He also whispered in Lady Jia's ear, asking her to keep Xing Xiuyun. Lady Jia naturally knew what Baoyu was thinking.

Grandmother Jia smiled at Xing Zhong and his wife and said, "Your daughter doesn't need to go home anymore. She can stay in the garden for a while and have a good stroll."

Mr. and Mrs. Xing Zhong thought that the good things mentioned in Mrs. Xing's letter should be done right away, so they were naturally very grateful to Lady Jia.

Mrs. Xing felt helpless when she saw this. The situation was out of her control, so she had no choice but to let it go. She just found another excuse to fool her brother and let the matter be.

She brought Xing Xiuyan to Wang Xifeng and said, "I will hand her over to you and arrange a proper place for her."

Wang Xifeng pulled Xing Xiuyun to take a closer look. She saw that she was beautiful and had a gentle face, and she felt that she got along well with her.

Then she said to Grandmother Jia, "Madam, after sister Yingchun moved to the East Palace, her room has been empty. I want to place Xiuyan there first."

In Wang Xifeng's view, the old lady had already made the decision in Rongqing Hall that day that Xing Xiuyun would marry into Cong Lao San's house sooner or later, so it was just right to place her in Yingchun's old house.

Grandmother Jia thought for a moment and said, "This is just right."

Baoyu listened to this and said to Xing Xiuyan in a familiar way, "Second sister's old house is very nice. It's very close to where I live. It's convenient for me to talk to her when I have time."

After hearing this, Mrs. Wang, who was standing next to her, glanced at Xing Xiuyan, who was wearing shabby clothes, and frowned slightly.

After hearing what Baoyu said, Daiyu and other sisters realized that he had returned to his old ways. Didn't he know what the old lady said in Rongqing Hall a few days ago?

However, Yingchun felt that the old lady and the first wife had already said that the girl would be married to Cong in the future, and whether she would be a wife or a concubine, she had to be carefully considered about her status.

She had just arrived and didn't know the ins and outs of this house, so she couldn't let anything go wrong.

She glanced at Baoyu, feeling a little helpless, and felt that it was somewhat inappropriate to leave Xing Xiuyun in the West Mansion like this.

So she said to Jia's mother, "Madam, sister Xiuyan has come from afar, and as her cousin, I have to take better care of her. Otherwise, if I let her live in my yard, it will be convenient for the sisters to visit each other on a daily basis."

Wang Xifeng was extremely shrewd. She had just heard Baoyu's words of trying to get close to Xiuyan, and then she also heard Yingchun suddenly propose to let someone live in her courtyard.

She couldn't help but marvel in her heart, this wooden guy is now too smart. As soon as Baoyu opened his mouth, she realized something was wrong. She was too protective of the third brother Cong.

……

However, now that Jia Cong has been granted a title and established his own mansion, he is the person with the strongest foundation and future in the Jia family. He is also Wang Xifeng's brother from the first wife's side. She has long understood the power of this.

Compared to Baoyu, Wang Xifeng naturally preferred Jia Cong, so she said, "Madam, Sister Yingchun's idea is better. Her yard is new and big, and it will be spacious enough for more people to live in it."

In fact, Grandmother Jia was too lazy to care about such trivial matters. Just now, when she heard Baoyu muttering, she just casually let Xing Xiuyun live in the mansion. When she saw Yingchun suggested that they could live there, she naturally didn't mind.

Grandmother Jia never thought that Baoyu would keep Xing Xiuyun just because he liked pretty maids, because she knew Mrs. Wang's temper and knew that she would definitely look down on such a poor girl.

Besides, a few days ago in Rongqing Hall, they had already cut off Mrs. Xing's reputation and let Xing Xiuyun move into Jia Cong's room. Now, isn't it just right for her to live in his East Palace?

But when Baoyu heard this, his face fell immediately. The threshold of the East Palace was so high, and he had never been in there many times.

His sisters at home played in the East Palace every day, leaving him with nothing but to grind teeth with the maids in the room. After a good-looking relative finally came, he ended up going to the East Palace.

This was the case when Jia Cong was not at home. Now that he is back home, his sisters at home have lost sight of him. How come he has become their demon star?

……

The palace city of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Qianyang Palace.

The bronze crane-wing tripod of longevity and happiness on the main hall flashed a heavy, dark yellow light, and milky white smoke emanated from its sharp beak, refreshing the heart and lingering faintly.

It was approaching early autumn and a hint of chill could already be felt in the spacious and empty hall. Emperor Jiazhao was wearing a round-necked jacket with a bright yellow dragon pattern.

He looked at the pile of memorials from court officials on the imperial desk with a headache, as well as several impeachment edicts from the censors of the Censorate.

Ever since Guo Lin sent the report of a major case investigation victory from Nanjing, the news spread and caused a stir in the court.

Many officials then realized that the sending of Weiyuan Earl Jia Cong by the emperor to Nanjing to set up the Firearms Bureau of the secondary capital was just a cover, and the actual purpose was to investigate the Zhou Zhengyang case for the emperor.

Moreover, at the end of the incident, not only was Zhou Zhengyang arrested by Jia Cong, but he also took the opportunity to clear up all the remnants of the Water Conservancy case.

Moreover, the mastermind behind the Jinling series of major cases was actually the second-rank Jinling commander Du Hengxin, who was one of the most powerful officials in Southern Zhili.

And the story did not end there. The case eventually led to the arrest of more than 150 people, most of whom were officials from the temporary capital.

There were only a few officials in the Jinling officialdom, but more than a hundred of them were implicated at once. The entire Jinling officialdom system was in such a state of decline!
Except for a few officials, Jia Cong was praised for his contribution in solving major cases.

Most officials severely criticized the corrupt administration in the secondary capital, and the heads of the Ministry of Personnel and other departments had failed to perform their duties and must be held accountable.

Many officials from both the old and new parties, dissatisfied with the court's policy of opening the sea and violating the ancestral system, began to criticize the Nanjing naval administration. These officials believed that the reason why Nanjing had been repeatedly involved in major cases was that the officialdom was corrupt and everyone was greedy, even the second-rank official of the Southern Zhili Guard was so unbearable.

It is because Nanjing has opened up extensive maritime trade, and foreigners have spread their influence to the south of the Yangtze River. The huge profits from the overseas seas have corrupted people's hearts, which has led to the corruption in Nanjing's officialdom. We should close the maritime trade as soon as possible and return to the ancestral system.

As a result, similar memorials and imperial edicts evaluating the maritime administration and impeaching officials would appear on Emperor Jiazhao’s desk every day.

Although it was impossible for the emperor to suspend the national maritime policy because of these criticisms, it was still a headache to face these officials who only talked about policy on paper every day.

The court cannot be convicted for speech, which is also the consensus of emperors of all dynasties. Emperor Jiazhao cannot easily punish officials or even kill them just because they made rebuttal remarks.

At that time, the five old party officials opposed the new policies such as reducing tax exemptions for officials and gentry and distributing the land tax.

In order to make an example of them and implement the New Deal, Emperor Jiazhao asked the Imperial Chariot Department to collect evidence of their abuse of power and took the opportunity to demote them, rather than punishing them for opposing the New Deal.

Now, we cannot easily overstep the line, so as not to cause turmoil in the court. We can only proceed slowly, wait for the storm in the Nanjing case to subside, and then find an opportunity to eliminate these biased voices.

……

Guo Lin, the deputy chief eunuch of the inner court, stood serving beside the imperial desk. He and Jia Cong left Jinling on the same day, but arrived in the capital two days earlier than Jia Cong.

Emperor Jia Zhao asked, "Will Jia Cong return to the capital today?"

Guo Lin replied, "Your Majesty, yesterday Jia Cong's personal guards delivered the message to the palace. They will be able to enter the capital this morning. It should be about time for them to report to the palace."

Soon after Guo Lin finished speaking, a eunuch entered the palace to report that Weiyuan Earl Jia Cong had returned to the capital to report and was waiting outside the palace for an audience with the emperor.

Emperor Jia Zhao was in high spirits and said, "Call him into the palace!"

When Jia Cong heard the eunuch's message, he strode into the Qianyang Palace, bowed to Emperor Jia Zhao and reported: "Your Highness, I, Jia Cong, have been ordered by His Majesty to go to Nanjing to investigate the important case. The case has now been filed, and I am reporting to Your Majesty!"

Emperor Jia Zhao smiled and said, "This time when you went to Nanjing, it took you less than two months to thoroughly investigate the Nanjing case and catch all the criminals involved.

This is extremely rare, and the contribution is great. I am very pleased! "

Jia Cong replied, "Your Majesty, I am too kind to praise you. I am an official appointed by the court. Fortunately, I have the trust of Your Majesty. I will do my best to carry out my duties according to Your Majesty's order. This is my duty as a minister."

Emperor Jiazhao sighed, "I have read the report. You acted meticulously and personally went down the river to arrest the main culprit Du Hengxin. This can be considered a complete success.

This man is truly a heinous criminal. I originally wanted to escort him back to the capital and open a special case for trial. I did not expect that the Jinling Jinyiwei neglected their duties and allowed this man to be assassinated in a downtown area. It is truly despicable!
Let me ask you, after you captured Du Hengxin, did you interrogate him on the way back to Nanjing by boat?"

Emperor Jia Zhao's previous words were full of praise for Jia Cong, but when he came to the last sentence, Jia Cong vaguely sensed the chilling meaning in it, and couldn't help feeling a little awed in his heart.

……

During his investigation of a major case, he learned from various channels that Du Hengxin, in order to pursue a prosperous official career, betrayed his relatives, the Jinling Du family, to Emperor Jia Zhao, who was still in the residence of Prince Qi.

The demise of the Jinling Du family all had obscure connections with the Wu King's rebellion, the abdication of the Supreme Emperor, and the extraordinary ascension of Emperor Jiazhao to the throne.

All this made Jia Cong wary of Du Hengxin, and he deduced that he might know some secrets about the succession of imperial power in Shenjing.

So after he captured Du Hengxin, he became defensive. Facing a ship full of musketeers from the Five Armies, he kept a close watch on Du Hengxin, not allowing anyone else to approach him, and he himself did not ask him a single question.

He did this because he didn't want to get involved in certain royal secrets that he shouldn't know, which would bring himself untold harm.

Moreover, there were 350 musketeers on board the ship, many of whom were strangers to him. Jia Cong would not be naive enough to think that there were no spies from the Imperial Chariot Department or the emperor's eyes and ears among them.

Afterwards, Guo Lin, armed with the emperor's secret decree, ordered Yang Hongbing of the Dali Temple not to interrogate Du Hengxin, and had him escorted to Shenjing by the Embroidered Uniform Guard for a special trial.

This is enough to prove how wise and correct Jia Cong's worries and precautions were at the time.

Jia Cong had thought about this matter countless times before Du Hengxin was assassinated in the downtown area of ​​Jinling.

……

When Emperor Jiazhao suddenly asked this question just now, all of this flashed through Jia Cong's mind like lightning.

He said without hesitation: "Your Majesty, after I captured Du Hengxin, I ordered the musketeers to keep a close watch on him. No one was allowed to approach him, and I did not interrogate him.

My duty is to investigate the case and arrest the criminals. It is the duty of the Dali Temple to interrogate the criminals. I do not want to overstep the boundaries. "

After hearing what Jia Cong said, Emperor Jia Zhao looked at Jia Cong for a moment with scrutiny and caution, and the hall fell into a brief calm.

After a while, Emperor Jia Zhao said, "Very good. You have done a great job this time. You have worked hard and made great contributions. Now you can go back home and have a good rest..."

Emperor Jiazhao was about to continue speaking when a eunuch suddenly came in to report that Eunuch Ouyang from Chonghua Palace had arrived outside the palace to request a meeting.

Emperor Jia Zhao's eyes flickered slightly, and he said with almost no hesitation, "Let him enter the palace to talk."

Chonghua Palace was the sleeping palace of the retired emperor. Ouyang Bin was the retired emperor's close eunuch, holding the rank of chief steward of the palace, and his position was higher than that of Guo Lin.

Although Ouyang Bin followed the retired emperor to Chonghua Palace more than ten years ago and handed over all the power of eunuchs to Guo Lin, according to his job rank, Ouyang Bin is still the number one eunuch in the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Ouyang Bin's sudden request to see Emperor Jiazhao had not happened for many years, and his purpose must be related to the retired emperor.

Following the eunuch's message, Jia Cong saw Ouyang Bin enter the hall. It was also the first time he saw this person.

This former chief eunuch was now over sixty years old, with grey hair, but his complexion was ruddy, his posture was upright, his eyes were calm, and he looked not old at all.

After he entered the palace, he kowtowed to Emperor Jiazhao respectfully and said, "Your Majesty, the Supreme Emperor has ordered that Earl Weiyuan should report the order and immediately go to Qinghe Palace to pay his respects."

Emperor Jia Zhao's expression stiffened slightly. If the emperor wanted to see Jia Cong, it should be in Chonghua Palace and not in Qinghe Palace, because Qinghe Palace was the bedroom of Concubine Zhen.

Emperor Jiazhao asked, "Is the Grand Emperor visiting the old concubine in Qinghe Palace at this moment?"

Ouyang Bin replied concisely: "That's right."

Emperor Jia Zhao suddenly realized that the person meeting Jia Cong was probably not the retired emperor, but the old Concubine Zhen.

At present, the old Concubine Zhen is terminally ill. According to the report from the imperial physician, her condition is quite serious. Her desire to see Jia Cong at this time is probably related to the marriage between Jia Cong and Zhen Fangqing.

Emperor Jia Zhao's eyes shrank, and he exhaled slightly, saying to Jia Cong, "The emperor has always admired your calligraphy, and it can be considered a fate. You should go to the court.

You have performed great service here, and I will reward you. Wait for the imperial edict after you return home."

Jia Cong bowed to express his gratitude and left the Qianyang Palace, but he felt uneasy and confused.

I just heard from Ouyang Bin that Qinghe Palace is the bedroom of the old Concubine Zhen. Why would the emperor summon her there?

……

Although Ouyang Bin's hair was already gray, his eyes were focused and he did not show any signs of old age or weariness. He briefly examined Jia Cong before saying, "This old servant will lead the way. Please follow me, Earl Weiyuan."

Jia Cong followed Ouyang Bin through the palace and walked for a long time before arriving at Qinghe Palace where the old Concubine Zhen lived.

Although Qinghe Palace is not as grand and majestic as Qianyang Palace, it is spacious and exquisite, with carved railings and painted buildings, curtains and orchid pavilions, exuding a peaceful and quiet charm.

There were many guards with swords patrolling outside the palace. Inside the palace, there were often palace maids and eunuchs busying back and forth, but they all kept their heads down and were completely silent. The atmosphere was a little depressing.

Jia Cong followed Ouyang Bin into an inner palace, and saw a veil in front of him. Behind the veil, he could vaguely see a couch with an old woman with snow-white hair lying on it, and two palace maids standing beside her.

On the embroidered cushion in front of the couch sat an old man wearing a green nine-dragon robe. There were only two people in the palace who could wear the nine-dragon robe, besides Emperor Jiazhao, the other was Emperor Yong'an who had retired to the deep palace.

But because of the veil, Jia Cong could not see their faces clearly.

Jia Cong was led by Ouyang Bin to the gauze curtain, and after receiving Ouyang Bin's hint, he realized that the person he was going to meet was not only the former Emperor Yong'an, but also the old Concubine Zhen in the palace.

He thought of the peaceful and tranquil atmosphere of Qinghe Palace, which was so different from the imperial power and nobility of Qianyang Palace, so he guessed that Qinghe Palace was not the palace of the retired emperor, but the bedroom of the old Concubine Zhen.

But he had never had any contact with the old Concubine Zhen, so why would she summon him here to pay a visit?

Jia Cong's mind flashed with thoughts. The only connection he could think of was that Yingchun had mentioned in the letter that the old Concubine Zhen had advised the Emperor to grant a marriage between him and Zhen Fangqing.

Thinking of this, his heart sank slightly!
After Ouyang Bin entered the veil and reported, a palace maid came forward and lifted the veil, allowing Jia Cong to come forward and pay his respects.

Jia Cong stepped forward and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty, I, Jia Cong, pay my respects to the old Concubine Zhen."

I only heard the voice of Emperor Yong'an at the top, which was low and seemed unusually calm and kind, saying, "Raise your head."

Jia Cong looked up and his eyes met those of Emperor Yong'an.

He was the top scorer in the Yongzhou special examination in the 13th year of Jiazhao. The reason why the imperial court held the special examination that year was to celebrate the 65th birthday of Emperor Yong'an.

Moreover, Emperor Yong'an seemed to be very fond of his own calligraphy. First, there was the Heart Sutra that was presented to him by Prince Jiashun, and then there was the one he wrote himself.

Afterwards, when he returned from his great victory in Liaodong, the eunuchs in the palace came to Rongguo Mansion to convey his order, asking him to write a copy of Linjiangxian and present it to the emperor.

Jia Cong pondered over it and suddenly realized that he and the retired emperor actually had some kind of vague connection a long time ago.

He saw this long-famous emperor, whose hair had turned gray, but whose face was gaunt and whose spirit was vigorous, without any obvious signs of aging. His demeanor was calm and dignified, and he exuded a hidden aura of majesty.

Jia Cong saw that his eyes were very different and bright, and he was quietly examining himself. That look seemed to penetrate his heart at once! (End of this chapter)