The Red Mansion: From a Small Pawn to a Leader

The grassland is quiet and peaceful in the early morning. The fresh air is mixed with a faint scent of grass, and a red sun is rising in the distance.

In the soft morning light, herders drove their cattle and sheep to start a new day.

Suddenly, the earth-shaking sound of horse hooves came from the end of the prairie, and the herdsmen looked over with attention.

In the distance, a large group of cavalry rushed towards this side, rolling up a yellow dragon several miles long on the prairie, with a loud and mighty sound!
The leader was none other than the gloomy-faced deputy leader of Xilingol League and prince of Xisunite Banner. Behind him were at least 20,000 to 30,000 cavalrymen.

Li Hu guessed half right. The reinforcements from Xilingol League were about to arrive and were less than fifty miles away from the main camp. However, they did not support the main camp, but followed the prince of Xisunite Banner and fled back to the territory of Xilingol League.

This is the territory of Xilingol League, and those herdsmen are the herdsmen under the command of the prince of Xisunite Banner.

The Xilingol League cavalry, who had become frightened birds, finally fled back to their own territory. The breath that had supported them was released, and the horse team gradually stopped. Many people fell off their horses and lay on the ground gasping for breath, feeling lucky to have survived.

The prince of the Western Sunite Banner was lying on the ground without caring about his image. He breathed in the fresh air and thought about what to do next.

These reinforcements from Xilingol League were tricked back by him. He told the confidants of the Xilingol League leader that the camp was attacked by the main Han cavalry, and that the Xilingol League leader and all the nobles were killed in the battle. He also told them that the main Han cavalry had already caught up with them, and he brought them all back by tricking them.

A confidant came over, took out a pot of wine from his arms, and handed it to the prince of Xisunite Banner: "Prince, drink some wine to warm your body."

The prince of the Western Sunite Banner took the wine pot and smiled: "Good servant, I will reward you with a jar of Han Chinese wine when I go back." He sipped from the spout of the pot for a long time, wiped his mouth, and said, "Not bad wine."

The confidant looked around and whispered, "Your Majesty, this is a good opportunity. We can take this opportunity to annex the tribes of the leader and those nobles. You will serve as the leader of the Xilin Gol League and lead us to restore the glory of our ancestors!"

The prince of the Western Sunite Banner's eyes flashed: "The leader's confidants"

The confidant smiled and said, "This is our territory. It's not easy to deal with them. Just nod your head and I'll immediately have someone prepare wine and food and take them down in one fell swoop."

The prince of Xisunite Banner put the wine jug to his lips, gulped down the wine, and winked at his confidant.

The urgent delivery of Li Hu's victory report reached the Meridian Gate three days later in the morning. The report was delivered to the Yuqing Palace while the prince was having breakfast.

The prince stood up suddenly from his chair and shouted: "Well done!"

The national guardian Niu Jizong had a complicated expression on his face.

The prince reported the victory and said, "Let's go to the Yangxin Palace!" Then he walked out quickly.

The news quickly spread from the palace to the Third Prince's residence.

After the butler finished speaking, he glanced at the Third Prince secretly, observing his reaction.

The third prince remained calm and said, "Go on."

Steward: "The leader of Xilin Gol League and the nobles are already on their way to Beijing. According to the rules, prisoners like this have to walk 120 miles a day, and they will be escorted to Beijing in the middle of the month. By the way, Li Hu also sent more than 100,000 cattle and sheep to the capital, just in time for the people to celebrate the New Year."

The third prince's eyes sparkled: "Li Hu is accumulating blessings for the crown prince!"

The housekeeper understood: "The people of the capital will definitely be grateful for the grace of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

The Third Prince nodded and said, "Don't worry, wait until the prisoners of war arrive in Beijing before releasing the news. In addition, Li Hu is the prince's man. Li Hu's victory was naturally the prince's plan. Such a good thing should be promoted vigorously."

The housekeeper smiled. These two pieces of news, one is that Li Hu is trying to win the hearts of the people for the prince, and the other is to show the prince's ability to the people. Even if the emperor is magnanimous, he will still feel apprehensive.

The Third Prince suddenly remembered: "How is the investigation going on with that matter?"

Butler: "Nothing was found. Maybe it was really done by the bandits."

The third prince's face darkened: "How can bandits cross the province to rob the common people of a few pieces of cake! And kill people! Bandits are not so despicable!" Steward: ". But our people have even searched the ruins of Xiangshan"

The third prince's eyes flashed: "There is still one place that has not been searched."

The butler was stunned: "The palace?"

The third prince: "Zhou family."

Zhou family? The housekeeper was surprised. The second prince was hiding in the Zhou family? It was really possible!
The housekeeper thought for a moment and said, "Since the Second Prince's 'death', the Zhou family has kept their doors closed, even stopping socializing and socializing with the outside world. Only a few family members go out to buy things every day. It's hard to check!"

The Third Prince glanced at him and said, "Did I tell you to check it out?"

"Not checking?"

The housekeeper was startled at first, then his eyes widened: "This, setting fire in the capital. No, this is not a good idea."

The third prince glared and said, "The palace is often on fire."

The housekeeper hesitated for a moment and said, "The fire at Xiangshan can be considered an accident, but if the Zhou family catches fire again."

The Third Prince raised his hand and said, "There is no rush for this matter. He is already a 'dead man' anyway, so let him enjoy the life of a living person for a while longer."

The housekeeper felt relieved when he heard this. The capital city is not Xiangshan. There are spies from the Imperial Household Department everywhere, and it would be easy to get into trouble.

The third prince changed the subject: "How is the situation at Yuqing Palace?"

The housekeeper shook his head and said, "It's not easy. Because of Wang's box of snacks, the palace has become more strict in checking the food. As for the prince's soup and medicinal food, there is no way to deal with it."

The third prince was silent for a moment: "We don't have to start with the food. Think about the flowers in the prince's room, the pens, ink, paper and inkstone he uses daily, etc. There are always more solutions than problems."

The butler replied, "Yes." He remained silent on the surface, but was shocked in his heart. This master of his was truly cruel and ruthless!
The Third Prince was silent again: "It's the same in the Yangxin Palace."

The butler shuddered: "Yes."

The Third Prince paused while holding the tea bowl and asked, "Is there any news about that bastard Bai Hongzhi?"

The housekeeper remembered: "I was just about to report to His Highness that there is news about Bai Hongzhi."

The Third Prince: "Oh? Where is he now?"

Housekeeper: "Hanzhong Mansion"

At this moment, there was a sound of hurried footsteps outside, followed by the voice of the captain of the guard: "Your Highness, there is news from the palace that Wang Ziteng was ambushed by the White Lotus rebels in Zhuxian Town. He escaped with only a few hundred cavalrymen, and his entire army was wiped out."

The third prince stood up suddenly and said excitedly: "Wang Ziteng is great!"

The butler's mouth twitched.

Guard Captain: "Kaifeng City fell, Jia Zheng fled to Luoyang."

The Third Prince's smile grew wider. "Now we're going to have a good show! One lost his troops, the other abandoned the city and fled. Especially Jia Zheng, losing the city is a capital crime!"

Guard Captain: "Wang Ziteng said in the military report that he seemed to have seen Beijing Prince Shui Rong among the rebels."

The Third Prince was startled, then he laughed, a laugh that was so comfortable: "Now the capital is even more lively! Let's go and pay our respects to the Emperor's uncle." (End of this chapter)