Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 747 Peace talks with many monsters

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

When Jia Cong heard Yuan Jing's story on the way, he had already been thinking about the outline in his mind and could probably guess the emperor's intention.

He now holds the position of Hanlin, a noble status, and is a regular civil servant in the court. His duties have no direct connection with the war situation in the nine borders.

However, he had led troops to fight in the Nine Frontiers, so he must have some insights into the war situation in the Nine Frontiers. He had also been to Nanjing several times and solved many important cases, so he had the talent for investigation.

Emperor Jia Zhao summoned him into the palace at this time, just to ask for advice and give suggestions.

Therefore, during the few minutes Jia Cong was on the road, he had already sorted out the general ideas in his mind.

When Emperor Jiazhao spoke and asked him a question, he thought for a moment and replied, "Your Majesty, I have also heard that the remaining Mongolian envoys of 800 people have entered the city, and not only is the Tongwenguan already full.

The Honglu Temple also booked several large inns nearby, cleared out the guests, and accommodated the rest of the delegation.

Although this move makes it easier to monitor and control, the number of envoys entering the city is huge, and they must have been in and out of the residence very frequently every day for shopping, errands, sightseeing, banquets, etc.

It is impossible for every member of the delegation to conduct secret spying as they come and go on a daily basis. Since the Dali Temple and the Jinyiwei cannot be sure, they will probably have to pay attention to everything.

Even if the two government offices have more staff, they cannot afford such consumption. Not only will they be exhausted, but the results will probably be minimal.

I believe that the key point in this matter is to concentrate our efforts, get to the point and discard the side issues, only in this way can we achieve results.

Your Majesty, you can see that Anda Khan is a tyrant on the grassland. Relaxing the border trade standards will not satisfy his ambitions. There will definitely be a war between the Great Zhou and the remnant Mongols!"

……

When Emperor Jia Zhao heard this, although he did not say anything, his eyes lit up. Wei Guanyao, who was standing by, saw it clearly and knew that Jia Cong's words hit the mark of the emperor's heart.

Jia Cong continued: "This time, the remnant Mongolian delegation is composed of three major tribes: Tuman, Yongxielun, and Ordos.

The Tuman tribe is the direct line of Anda Khan and the most powerful of the three tribes. Once the Great Zhou and the remnant Mongols go to war, the Tuman tribe will surely be the main force of the remnant Mongols.

Therefore, among the three major tribes in the delegation, the Tuman tribe must be the leader in committing illegal acts, and its significance must be far higher than that of the Yongxielun tribe and the Ordos tribe.

The Dali Temple and the Embroidered Uniform Guard should deploy personnel to focus on monitoring, and the other two major tribes only need to assist and follow up.

Whenever there was any improper use of spies, the tribal leaders of the delegation would be aware of it, and most of the people used would be trusted and close servants.

I do not know the personnel composition of each tribe in the delegation, but I think the tribal leaders and their personal guards are no more than a few dozen people, and the rest are mostly responsible for official duties or miscellaneous chores.

Therefore, in order to prevent the use of spies for illegal activities, the three major tribes in the delegation need to closely monitor only a few hundred people.

If we focus on the Tuman tribe, a few dozen people will be enough to monitor.

In this way, we can use our best talents at the key points, watch them day and night, and we will definitely gain something..."

When Jia Cong said this, he suddenly thought of Noyan Taiji of the Ordos tribe and Liu Binfang's evaluation of this man.

He couldn't be sure what role this Noyan Taiji played in the remnant Mongolian delegation, but he was a shrewd and scheming man and was not someone to be underestimated.

……

Emperor Jia Zhao listened to what Jia Cong said, which was original, meticulous, and careful. He felt as if the clouds had been cleared away and the sun had come out. He could not help but nod his head slightly.

Wei Guanyao had long witnessed Jia Cong's eloquence and quick wit, so although he was not surprised when he heard him say this, he felt it was refreshing.

A thought suddenly occurred to him: if a thoughtful person like Jia Cong could go to the Dali Temple to judge cases, he would be much more practical than him in the Hanlin Academy...

Jia Cong continued, "In addition, to monitor the mission members, I suggest recruiting personnel from Zhen'an Prefecture and Qinian Prefecture.

Officials in the government office, constables, and yamen runners often go in and out of the streets and are accustomed to dealing with all kinds of people.

Even the local gangs in the city have to be wary of them, as these people are more alert and observant than other officials in the government.

I think we can select experienced and capable people from the two governments to cooperate with the Dali Temple and Jinyiwei, which may achieve twice the result with half the effort."

……

After listening to what Jia Cong said, Emperor Jia Zhao's expression softened and he said, "I was right to summon you to discuss matters.

Your words are thoughtful, pertinent, clear and concise, and thoughtful. No wonder you have been able to solve major cases in Jinling so many times."

Jia Cong said: "Your Majesty, I am overly flattered and I do not deserve it. Due to the limitations of my duties, I do not know the details of the members of the Cangmeng envoys.

What I just said is based on common sense. The Dali Temple and Jinyiwei are both special offices for investigating matters, so they must have made plans long ago. I am just throwing out some ideas to stimulate discussion."

Emperor Jiazhao suddenly asked, "How much of the important tasks on hand have you completed?"

The emperor's question was quite abrupt. Wei Guanyao and Xu Kun who were present were confused and had no idea what the emperor meant.

Jia Cong knew the answer and replied, "Your Majesty, I have inspected and checked this morning and found that more than 90% of the work has been done. It will be completed before the end of the year."

Emperor Jiazhao did not reply, but just nodded with satisfaction. Wei Guanyao and Xu Kun were both confused.

No idea what kind of cryptic riddle this emperor and his minister were talking about, so the emperor naturally didn't dare to ask.

Afterwards, the three of them made comments before the emperor respectively, and each of them discussed several key points, which lasted for half an hour before reaching a conclusion.

The final method roughly continued Jia Cong's idea, except that the Dali Temple and the Jinyiwei made supplementary and perfected it according to their own situations.

After the three of them bid farewell to the emperor and left the palace together to the Meridian Gate, Jia Cong took the palace carriage, as he had no carriage of his own, so he said goodbye to the two of them first.

Before leaving, he thought of something and said, "My Lords, I once encountered Prince Noyan Taiji of the Ordos tribe in the market.

There were some conflicts and frictions between them, but fortunately nothing happened. Although this man is young, he is very shrewd and scheming.

The two adults are conducting a check on the remaining Mongolian envoys. The Tuman tribe must be the first to bear the brunt. Please pay more attention to this person to avoid missing anything. "

Wei Guanyao smiled and said, "This official and Commander Xu would like to thank Earl Weiyuan for reminding us."

For Jia Cong, the emperor only asked him to enter the palace today to give advice and investigate the Mongolian delegation, which still had nothing to do with him, so he could stay out of it.

But that day he encountered Nuoyan Taiji in Hanzheng Street, which caused such a big disturbance that even the judge of Zhen'an Prefecture, Liu Binfang, got involved.

This matter cannot be concealed from anyone. Now that the remnant Mongolian envoys are under the attention of His Majesty, the Imperial Chariot Division must have already reported the matter to the palace.

The Dali Temple Minister Wei Guanyao might not have heard of this, but the Jinyiwei had spies all over the capital, so Xu Kun would most likely know about it.

Having just made a report in the Qianyang Palace, Jia Cong was not in a position to speak too much in front of the emperor, lest it might appear disrespectful.

But afterwards, I had to mention this to Wei Guanyao and Xu Kun, so as to avoid any future gossips...

……

Xu Kun looked at Jia Cong's departing back, his eyes flickering slightly.

He said to Wei Guanyao: "Sir Wei, the Marquis of Weiyuan has solved many important cases in Nanjing. His ability to investigate and investigate is well-known and known to the court and the public.

Today, the emperor summoned him to the palace to discuss matters. He thought that the emperor would let him participate in the inspection work and even let the Earl of Weiyuan assist in this matter.

I didn't expect that His Majesty would only let him into the palace to give advice, which was a bit unexpected."

Wei Guanyao smiled and said, "Your Majesty may have had this intention, but it is unknown. However, Your Majesty values ​​Weiyuan Earl not because of his ability to investigate and investigate.

Naturally, I don't want him to waste his energy and interfere with the important things at hand.

Besides, the imperial court has no special office to investigate the suspected irregularities of the remnant Mongolian envoys, and the Dali Temple and the Jinyiwei are also responsible for it. "After listening to Wei Guanyao's words, Xu Kun naturally understood the implicit meaning of the other party's words.

Jia Cong was highly valued by the emperor, not only because of his wisdom in investigating cases, but also because of his ability to develop firearms.

Emperor Jia Zhao asked Jia Cong to complete the construction of 500 breech-loading muskets before the end of the year. This was a secret order and very few people knew about it.

Although Xu Kun was the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he knew nothing about the matter. Even if he heard rumors, he would never dare to send anyone to investigate.

Although the Jinyiwei has many eyes and ears, the emperor's car division is even more powerful. If they knew that I was too curious, I would probably be in big trouble...

But in the past six months, the imperial guards have been deployed to guard the firearms workshop in the east of the city, and the emperor has also visited the workshop in person, taking the matter very seriously.

For a period of time, carriages from the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue continued to transport personnel and materials to the firearms workshop before the East City Gate was closed.

Even if there was no need to investigate these things, Xu Kun, as the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, knew them clearly.

He thought again of the strange conversation between the emperor and Jia Cong in Qianyang Palace just now, and guessed that it must be related to the manufacture of firearms.

Wei Guanyao glanced at Xu Kun and couldn't help but sneer in his heart. Commander Xu was actually afraid of Jia Cong and seemed to be worried that the other party would control him.

But he didn't think clearly that Jia Cong was an important minister of the emperor, and it was difficult for others to replace him. The commander of the Jinyiwei was just a lackey, and someone else would do the same...

Xu Kun could imagine that Jia Cong would be responsible for the firearms, and Wei Guanyao had naturally thought of it as well.

The reason why he spoke obscurely to Xu Kun and was unwilling to speak clearly was that it was natural for a civil servant to be on guard against the head of the Jinyiwei.

……

Rongguo Mansion, Rongxi Hall.

Because it is near the end of the year, the old places in Xifu Li, such as the backyard of Rongqing Hall and the small main house in the east corridor of Rongxi Hall, have been renovated.

Wang Xifeng thought that during the New Year, there would be a lot of guests coming and going, and Jia Cong would often receive elderly relatives from aristocratic families in Rong Xi Hall.

Because Jia Cong is now an official in the Hanlin Academy, the reputation of Rongguo Mansion is much greater than before, and the external appearance is becoming more and more important.

Wang Xifeng took the opportunity of renovating the small main room in the east corridor and repainted the entire Rong Xi Tang, making it look more magnificent and solemn than before.

When Lady Jia heard Wang Xifeng boasting in front of her, she became interested in going to Rong Xi Tang for a stroll. Coincidentally, Yingchun, Daiyu and others came to pay their respects.

Grandmother Jia was a person who loved lively occasions, so she naturally took her granddaughters with her. As soon as she reached the door, she met Mrs. Wang, and the old woman behind her was carrying two gift boxes.

Seeing Madam Wang's attitude, the old lady thought that she must have something to come, so she took everyone back to the hall to discuss it.

When everyone was seated, Jia's mother smiled and said, "Yesterday, the East Court sent the betrothal gifts, and I didn't have time to ask if everything went smoothly."

Mrs. Wang smiled and said, "I asked Brother Yun from the Fifth Outer Room to deliver it. This boy is smart in speaking and doing things properly, so he got things done very smoothly.

According to him, Mrs. Xia was very happy and satisfied when she received the betrothal gift, and said that our Jia family is worthy of being a duke family and everything is very decent.

Mrs. Xia and Miss Xia both sent gifts in return, especially for the old lady. I hurried over to bring them to you this morning."

Grandmother Jia saw that one of the gift boxes contained several rolls of fine silk, a pair of gold and jade bracelets, and two old wild ginsengs.

The other gift box was slightly smaller. Mrs. Wang said it was from Miss Xia. It contained several boxes of exquisite snacks, two top-quality sachets, and a white jade birthday star offering peaches ornament.

Although the items were not very valuable, they looked very decent and thoughtful, and Grandmother Jia was very happy.

She has been rich and powerful all her life and has seen all kinds of good things. She doesn't care much about what gifts others give her.

It's just that Miss Xia hasn't married yet, but the mother and daughter of the in-laws are so polite and considerate, always thinking of this old woman.

Originally, Grandmother Jia thought that the Xia family was of a lower status, but the manners and behavior of the mother and daughter of the Xia family were really impeccable, so Baoyu was considered lucky.

……

Wang Xifeng listened to Mrs. Wang's tricks and smiled meaningfully. The second wife sent a betrothal gift to Baoyu and picked a good person to do the job.

This Yun Ge'er is not only capable of doing things, but also knows how to behave. Just after the betrothal gifts were delivered yesterday, the fifth sister-in-law came to walk around in the corridor at noon.

At that time, Wang Xifeng was accompanying them to drink tea and chat. Although Jia Yun's family had fallen into decline, they were still within the fifth degree of mourning and were considered blood relatives, so the etiquette could not be neglected.

The two chatted a little, and the fifth sister-in-law mentioned that her son had helped Baoyu to get married, and said a few good things about the Xia family's wealth and luxurious house.

When Wang Xifeng said with a smile that the second wife had given a generous betrothal gift and the lady-in-law would surely be very happy, the fifth sister-in-law's face became a little tense.

Wang Xifeng was very curious about family affairs, so seeing her in such a situation, how could she not ask a few questions?

The fifth sister-in-law then said, "To be honest with you, Second Madam, when Yun'er went to deliver the betrothal gifts, although Mrs. Xia was very polite, she didn't look happy.

As if she had encountered something unpleasant, Yun'er was also wondering in her heart that the lady-in-law should not have such an expression on such a happy day.

Yun'er didn't dare to mention this to the Second Madam, because giving a betrothal gift is a happy event, and it would make people uncomfortable and it would be difficult for relatives to meet each other."

Wang Xifeng realized that she couldn't get to the bottom of the matter, so she didn't ask any more questions. The two of them talked about other gossip, mostly about Baoyu's marriage.

When it was almost time, the fifth sister-in-law said, "I heard that the maid in Baoyu's room is pregnant again. This is a good thing."

Wang Xifeng was surprised to hear this and asked, "How did this matter in the inner chamber reach my sister-in-law's ears?"

The fifth sister-in-law said, "Second Madam, I'm afraid you don't know that good news spreads a thousand miles. Yun'er heard about it from outside and came to tell me. Now it's all over Ningrong Street."

Wang Xifeng felt very strange after hearing this, but after her fifth sister-in-law said a few more words of gossip, she stood up and said goodbye.

……

It was not until the fifth sister-in-law left that Wang Xifeng came to her senses. She thought that it must be Jia Yun who was so shrewd. He went to the Xia family to deliver the betrothal gifts and received an unpleasant look from Mrs. Xia.

He was confused for a moment and naturally did not dare to talk nonsense to the Second Wife. He must have figured out the reason after he came back.

The news that Baoyu's maid was pregnant spread throughout Ningrong Street. Mrs. Xia was in charge of a huge imperial merchant business and was a woman who walked on the stage.

Could it be that she didn't have her own spies and was completely unaware of the good things her brother-in-law had done?

The naughty boy Jia Yun guessed the reason, and this time he asked his mother to come over and take a look, hoping that he could let out the secret.

This mother and son didn't even say everything, just let themselves think about it, not leaving themselves any room for error.

As for why he didn't tell his aunt, but told himself in a roundabout way.

First, this matter is just speculation after all. Ever since the second branch fell into decline, all relatives have heard about my aunt's temper.

Most people won't flatter others after hearing this, but will get angry and embarrassed instead.

That's why Jia Yun asked his mother to give him a hint that selling his second wife would be much more economical than selling the second wife.

As for the reason, it was nothing more than Brother Cong standing behind him...

But how did the news that Baoyu got his maid pregnant get spread to the streets? It's really strange.

Seeing that her aunt and the old lady were talking enthusiastically and their faces were glowing with pride, Wang Xifeng felt a little gloating in her heart.

Suddenly, I heard the maid outside the door say, "Master Bao is here..."

(End of this chapter)