Dream of the Red Chamber: Madam, please have some self-respect!

This competition caused quite a stir, drawing the attention of everyone around Lan Yue Xuan.

They witnessed Jia Yun wielding the ten-pound iron-wood-clad copper spear with effortless ease, and then saw him fiercely exchange blows with Wu Sangui for over twenty moves without being at a disadvantage. The initial arrogance on their faces had long since been replaced by astonishment.

Those who came up later all whispered and asked whose son this was.

Upon learning that they were from a collateral branch of the Rongguo Mansion's western corridor, they surprisingly did not show any contempt. Instead, they all displayed an expression of "it should be this way," and began whispering among themselves:

"As expected of the descendants of the Rong and Ning Dukes, their family's scholarly tradition is far beyond that of ordinary families."

"Look at his strength, his marksmanship, he definitely seems to have received the true teachings..."

"The Jia family rose to prominence through military achievements, so it seems their foundation remains intact and they haven't been completely ruined."

The richly dressed young man who had previously mocked Jia Yun was now turning red and then pale, feeling a burning sensation on his face and extremely embarrassed.

Seeing that Jia Yun was skilled in martial arts, he knew he would not gain the upper hand in terms of fists, feet, and weapons. So he wanted to find a pretext in the military and national affairs that the other party seemed to be unfamiliar with, so as to regain some face.

This person believed that Jia Yun was nothing more than a brave man, and must be completely ignorant of such important matters of the court.

So he straightened his robes, strolled over, and with a deliberately smug look on his face, interjected, "Brother Jia, your marksmanship is superb, I admire you greatly. But I wonder... what are your thoughts on the current situation in Liaodong? We would like to hear them in detail."

Jia Yun knew this man's intentions; he simply wanted to embarrass him.

But being here today, feeling the disdainful yet astonished gazes around him, and listening to the nonsensical chatter of these pampered rich kids, a surge of resentment welled up in the young man's heart.

He knew that he absolutely could not show weakness in front of these people at this moment.

Therefore, Jia Yun stepped forward and responded loudly:

"I dare not presume to offer such profound insights. However, in my humble opinion, while Liaodong appears to be in a stalemate, it is in fact extremely precarious. The Jianzhou Jurchens have been preparing for war for many years, and their strength is now undeniable—at the earliest, probably this January, and at the latest, by the turn of spring or summer, they will surely launch another major military campaign, and their forces will undoubtedly be directed at important cities like Liaodong and Shenyang!"

Upon hearing this, the entire room fell silent in astonishment, then erupted into an even louder uproar of laughter.

"January? Hahaha! Brother Jia, have you gone mad from practicing martial arts?"

"It's almost the end of the year, and the weather is freezing cold in the first month of the lunar calendar. Don't they celebrate the New Year? How can we wage war then?"

"Our great Han Dynasty has a territory of tens of thousands of miles, and its armored forces number more than a million. Their population is so small, and it's only been a few years since the Battle of Sarhu. Do they really think they can send out their entire army this January? It's utterly delusional!"

Mocking and ridiculing voices rose and fell.

Even Wu Sangui frowned at Jia Yun's certainty, feeling that his words were too confident and alarmist.

Although the Jurchens were fierce, even after the Battle of Sarhu, our Han Dynasty still had a certain defensive force in Liaodong. Why make such alarmist claims?

Wu Sangui couldn't help but ask, "Brother Jia, is there any basis for this statement? The Jurchens are short of food and supplies, and lack armor and weapons. How can they sustain a large army in a prolonged siege?"

It should be understood that in the eyes of the vast majority of Han Dynasty subjects, the Liaodong Jurchens were nothing more than a minor ailment, like the Xiongnu of the previous dynasty, who would retreat after a few raids.

Everyone says that Shanhaiguan is impregnable, but there are always exceptions.

Even if they could break through the pass, how could a mere few hundred thousand men contend with the vast territory and hundreds of millions of people of the Central Plains? Their food supplies and manpower were their Achilles' heel.

With such a vast disparity in numbers, the outcome seemed predetermined.

This is the opinion of most people in the world.

Jia Yun knew that what he was about to say was truly shocking.

He composed himself, and facing the questioning gazes of the crowd, slowly said, "Based on what? The Jurchens have formed alliances and marriage ties with the Khorchin Mongols and other tribes in southern Mongolia, greatly reducing the threat to their flanks and even allowing them to replenish their horses. They have secretly imitated or even improved firearms by utilizing Han Chinese artisans who have submitted to them, and are no longer solely reliant on horseback archery. More importantly, through plunder and border trade, they have stockpiled a considerable amount of grain and fodder. Their ambition is not merely to remain in a corner, but to seize the fertile lands of Liaodong and Shenyang as a base, and then to eye the Central Plains. Their chieftain Nurhaci is a formidable figure of his time; how could he be content to sit idly by and remain in a stalemate?"

These words stunned everyone, and even Wu Sangui's eyes widened in disbelief!

Some of the information Jia Yun mentioned was only hearsay to him, even as a son of a military family who had spent most of his life in Liaodong, while others were completely unheard of!

He abruptly stood up, his gaze fixed intently on Jia Yun, his voice filled with barely concealed astonishment and suspicion: "Brother Jia! How...how did you learn all this?! The marriage alliance with the Khorchin is still just a rumor, and the imitation of firearms is an even bigger secret! You've been in the capital for so long...how do you know more details than I, a man from Liaodong?!"

Jia Yun's heart skipped a beat, and he knew something was wrong. Given his current status, it was impossible for him to know these things; he couldn't very well claim that these were historical records from his previous life.

Faced with Wu Sangui's questioning and the mocking gazes of the crowd, Jia Yun could only bite the bullet and vaguely reply, "The source of the information? There is no definite source... It's just... it's just a bold guess based on fragmented information I overheard from merchants and storytellers in teahouses and taverns..."

His words drew boos and even more unrestrained laughter from the audience.

A storyteller?!

"Oh my! I thought it was some news from the Privy Council, but it turns out I heard it from a storyteller!"

"Brother Jia, you really are... still a child at heart, so innocent and carefree! Hahaha!"

"Matters of national importance, matters of life and death, how can we rely on hearsay and wild speculation? It's child's play, utterly child's play!"

The mockery on the young man's face was almost palpable; he was about to utter another sharp remark to thoroughly ridicule him.

"That's enough!"

A cool, clear voice suddenly came from the direction of the private room on the second floor, instantly silencing all the noise.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw that the bamboo curtain of a private room on the second floor had been lifted.

A handsome young man dressed in a pale white robe, with a cold expression, was slowly walking down the stairs, surrounded by two guards in plain clothes.

His gaze swept indifferently over the restless crowd, and his air of superiority instantly silenced the entire warm pavilion.

Chen Jian had come here incognito to relax, but he happened to catch a glimpse of Jia Yun here and stopped to watch.

When he first saw Jia Yun and Wu Sangui chatting happily, he felt a strange sense of displeasure.

He recalled how Jia Yun had addressed him as "brother" on New Year's Eve, yet now he was chatting and laughing with others. A bitter feeling mixed with anger welled up in his heart—this man, just a moment ago he was almost a friend of this king, and now he was mingling with such纨绔 (wan ku, spoiled brats)!

When he heard Jia Yun refer to Nurhaci as a "hero," he was furious, thinking that the boy was just spouting nonsense and would say anything to please the crowd!

He snorted coldly, and was about to leave, unwilling to listen to this absurd talk any longer.

But for some reason, when he saw people starting to mock him, he couldn't bear it.

The richly dressed young man clearly recognized Prince Xin; his face turned pale instantly, and he hurriedly bowed, saying, "Greetings...Greetings, Your Highness Prince Xin!"

Upon hearing this, the others were even more horrified, and they all lowered their heads and dared not look directly at him. The entire warm pavilion was filled with people kneeling down.

Chen Jian disliked Jia Yun's attention-grabbing demeanor as he argued with others, and he also disliked Jia Yun's deliberate distancing and aloofness from a few days ago. However, seeing this group of privileged young men ganging up on and mocking Jia Yun like this... he still couldn't stand it.

Chen Jian glanced coldly at the richly dressed young man, his tone calm yet each word carrying immense weight: "Major affairs of the court and military matters on the border are to be planned and executed by the high-ranking officials of the Privy Council and the generals of the border garrisons. What kind of decorum is this, with you making wild guesses and causing a ruckus? If you truly have any ambition to serve the country, you should go back and study more military texts, or practice your archery skills on the training ground. That would be a hundred times better than wasting your breath here."

The young man in fine clothes was drenched in cold sweat, his voice trembling uncontrollably: "Your Highness is right! Yes...it was our recklessness and ignorance, our indiscretions. We...we will never again dare to speak recklessly about the affairs of the court! Please forgive us, Your Highness!"

The others also hurriedly followed suit, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness.

Prince Xin then turned his gaze to Jia Yun, but their eyes met only briefly before looking away.

Jia Yun immediately bowed, his tone conveying just the right amount of gratitude and respect: "Thank you, Your Highness."

Seeing his respectful yet distant demeanor, the subtle pleasure that had just arisen in Prince Xin's heart vanished in an instant.

He simply hummed in response, then turned and left the warm pavilion with his guards, leaving behind a group of people with their own thoughts.

After Prince Xin left, the atmosphere in the warm pavilion gradually relaxed after a long time, but the previous unrestrained and noisy energy eventually weakened.

Although everyone sat down to drink again, their eyes kept glancing at Jia Yun, who was standing alone in the corner, as they whispered among themselves.

His words were nothing more than his astonishing strength, his marksmanship which was comparable to Wu Sangui's, and... why His Highness Prince Xin had suddenly appeared to help him out of trouble.

Jia Yun seemed oblivious to the prying eyes and whispers around him.

He handed the heavy, iron-clad, wooden-framed, bronze-inlaid spear back to his attendant and then quietly left this place of trouble.

Jia Yun thought to himself: How can such a group of people stop the Jurchen's iron hooves?