Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Within the Chonghua Palace complex on the eastern side of the Forbidden City, stands a simple palace.

The secluded palace is perpetually filled with the fragrance of incense.

An elderly woman, dressed in fine clothes and with snow-white hair, sat quietly in meditation beside the incense table.

She is one of the most noble women in the world!

A servant quietly entered through the back door.

"how?"

"Your Majesty, the matter has been completed."

"I asked how the woman is doing."

Upon hearing his master's unfriendly voice, the servant hurriedly knelt down.

"I heard she was rescued by the general on duty, but she must have been quite frightened. The entire forest park is now under martial law."

Hearing that she had only been frightened, the old woman's expression turned somber.

That damn woman always has good luck! But I was only going to teach her a lesson, and the result was barely satisfactory.

"The beginning and end can be handled cleanly."

"Your Majesty, rest assured, the only servant who took action has been dealt with, and they will definitely not trace it back to us."

"I understand, you may leave."

"Here you are."

……

Jia Lian had not expected that the Fourth Prince would personally come to invite him to participate in some literary gathering.

He knew what kind of temperament the Fourth Prince had...

"Go and take a look. Although I know you're a roughneck, as the saying goes, 'A person with a wealth of knowledge has a refined temperament.'"

Going to a social gathering can also cultivate your mind and improve your character.

I know you can't write poetry or prose, but at least you can enjoy the show.

Inside the military tent, the Fourth Prince spoke with Jia Lian while gulping down Jia Lian's tea.

The tea in the military camp tastes sweeter than anywhere else!

Looking at Jia Lian, dressed in the colors of a general, with armor over his body, he appeared extremely heroic and extraordinary, and his eyes were filled with envy and longing.

When will he be able to experience the exhilarating life of flying sand and stones, and galloping across the Gobi Desert on a real battlefield?

Every time Jia Lian looked at the fourth prince, he found him amusing, and his mood naturally improved considerably.

Compared to the Third Prince and the Crown Prince, the Fourth Prince's personality was quite unique, and he was easy to get along with.

Take the time before at the Crown Prince's villa, for example. He and Prince Duan's heir, Wei Xian, clearly disliked each other, but with just one word from the Crown Prince, they had to pretend to be very magnanimous and have reconciled.

He could also tell that the Crown Prince was trying to win him over, but he didn't see any sincerity in him... at least, he didn't immediately make him feel that he would die for someone who understands him!

That's true. Perhaps he's just a fourth-rank official now, not enough to be valued by the Crown Prince.

So in the main hall of the Crown Prince's palace, he only briefly met with the Crown Prince's trusted advisors. In particular, after hearing Wei Xian's sarcastic remarks, he still felt a bit uncomfortable.

He found it strange, actually. He could tolerate the sour remarks of Wang Xifeng and Lin Daiyu, but when it came to Wei Xian, he found it disgusting. As for the literary gathering, although Jia Lian wasn't very interested, the Fourth Prince had sincerely invited him, so he had to accept both out of courtesy and reason.

So when the time came, he briefly instructed his subordinates and then, accompanied by Aqi alone, arrived at Lin Yuan as agreed.

Perhaps because the sky was clear and the air was fresh, the literary gathering was held on the open grassy field in front of the Star Gazing Tower.

The vast lawn on the north side, where many of the competition facilities set up in the morning had been dismantled, had now been transformed into an open-air banquet venue.

Dozens of tables were arranged around the central platform, with tea and snacks on them. There were about two or three people at each table, and at a glance, there were about one or two hundred young people.

On the platform, three graceful dancers, adorned in red, danced swayingly.

Her dance moves were graceful and her figure was beautiful, with a distinct southern flavor.

Overall, the literary gathering looked quite elegant, which showed that the person hosting it was quite skilled in this area; otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to adapt so well to the occasion and make it feel completely natural.

Because Jia Lian did not want to attract attention, he had removed his outer armor when he arrived, wearing only the uniform of a military officer. Therefore, he was not stopped or questioned when he came up to him.

However, the place was open and crowded, and Jia Lian did not see the Fourth Prince at a glance.

"It's here."

But Zhang Tao dragged himself toward him.

Jia Lian never expected that Zhao Tao would be waiting for him on the outside.

This younger cousin had suffered a loss at his hands the first time they met, so he had always been resentful of his older cousin and always acted arrogantly whenever they met.

Perhaps sensing Jia Lian's thoughts, Zhang Tao's expression became slightly unnatural, and he snorted, "My brother thinks you can't find your way, so he told me to wait for you here. Come on, I'll take you there."

Although the boy was unusually nice to him, Jia Lian was still not satisfied.

He deliberately feigned displeasure, "What do you mean by 'you' and 'me'? Can't you even call me 'cousin'?"

Zhang Tao snorted: "I haven't even acknowledged you yet, don't push your luck."

"Oh, really? Looks like I'll have to let Grandpa teach you a lesson next time, so you'll know how powerful I am."

"you!!"

Zhang Tao was so angry that his nose almost twisted out of shape.

Originally, in the Linzi Earl's Mansion, he was the most beloved little darling, and his grandfather doted on him.

But ever since that annoying Jia Lian came, he somehow managed to make his grandfather laugh heartily!

Then he discovered that his status had declined, and several times he was framed by the treacherous Jia Lian, causing him to be disciplined by his father and grandfather.

His father felt that he was not as steady and polite as Jia Lian, so he reprimanded him.

His grandfather felt that he was not as ambitious as Jia Lian, so he trained him very hard.

This was originally a source of deep concern for him, but unexpectedly, Jia Lian not only showed no shame but also dared to use these words to belittle him, making him so angry that he wanted to rush up and punch Jia Lian a few times.

Knowing he couldn't win, he held back.

"Come if you want, don't come if you don't."

After saying that, Zhang Tao turned and left.

Seeing how angry he was, Jia Lian was finally quite satisfied, so he stopped being angry and followed him into the venue.

Finally, in a prominent spot at the northernmost point, they spotted the Fourth Prince, munching on sunflower seeds and humming a tune while admiring the beautiful dancers.

Zhang Su sat at the same table as him.

Besides, at the next table sat Feng Ziying and Chen Yejun, both of whom were acquaintances.

When they saw Jia Lian coming over, they all stood up and greeted him with smiles.

The Fourth Prince was delighted to see Jia Lian arrive as promised and invited him to sit with him.

Jia Lian glanced around and saw that the main venue had small square tables like these, which seated three or four people. Three people were the most suitable, because there was still one side that needed to be reserved to appreciate the beauties on the stage.

After Zhang Tao brought Jia Lian over, he went straight to sit at the table with Feng and Chen.

So Jia Lian didn't stand on ceremony, cupped his hands in apology, and sat down next to the Fourth Prince.

Those invited today are all young people of status and position in Beijing, so everyone was very polite. Apart from occasional movements, there was very little quiet conversation; everyone consciously and quietly enjoyed the music and dance.

Not far from Jia Lian and the others, someone spotted him the moment Jia Lian entered.

"Brother, that's Jia Lian. He's the one who framed me. If Father hadn't condescended to ransom me, I'd probably still be in jail in the military headquarters!"

"Oh, so he is Jia Lian?"

Don't worry, if this were anywhere else, I might not be able to do anything to him, but today...

Anyone who dares to bully my Zhou family will not be let off easily.

"Hmph, a mere dropout from the Imperial Academy dares to participate in His Highness the Crown Prince's literary gathering? He truly doesn't know his place. Today, I will teach him a lesson he won't forget."

"Yes, with my brother's help, we'll definitely catch it easily!!"

……