Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Even after Xie Jun arrived with the officers and soldiers of the Military Command, Prince Duan and his entourage had not left, so the arrest operation proceeded smoothly.

But the commotion was also quite significant.

After all, there were many members of the imperial clan, and after they were arrested, they kept shouting and cursing, attracting a large crowd of onlookers and people discussing the matter.

"My dear parents, what kind of people have they arrested...?"

Hearing the members of the imperial clan announce their identities and threaten him, Xie Jun's face paled. He had received orders from Jia Lian that a group was insulting the emperor and that he should bring more men to arrest them. He had assumed they were just ordinary noblemen, but who would have thought that they were all, without exception, members of the imperial clan? Moreover, the two leaders were the heir of Prince Duan and the young master of Prince Zhongshun's mansion!

Jie Jun felt that he trusted his master too much, and if he continued to do this, he might not be able to keep his official position.

"What, are you scared?"

Jia Lian glanced ahead at the road ahead and looked at Xie Jun with amusement.

Jie Jun's face turned bitter. "My lord, of course you're not afraid. You're a marquis, and you have the Imperial Concubine backing you up, so naturally you're not afraid of them. But if they set their sights on me, dealing with me would be as easy as raising a hand..."

The fourth prince, who was beside Jia Lian, looked down on his appearance and cursed, "You spineless coward! A few spoiled brats have scared you like this. You're supposed to be a military commander, but you're a disgrace to the military officers of our Great Wei!"

Upon hearing this, Xie Jun flew into a rage: "Where did this arrogant pretty boy come from? I'm speaking to my master, how dare you interrupt?"

The Fourth Prince's fair face froze instantly, his mouth slightly agape, unable to utter a single word after being scolded. The others, including Jia Lian and the Zhang brothers, Shuo and Tao, were also stunned, staring blankly at Xie Jun, utterly impressed.

Well, I won't wait for these spoiled brats to deal with you.

However, Xie Jun cannot be entirely blamed. He was already in a bad mood because he had caused trouble, and he dared not vent his anger on Jia Lian. At this time, the Fourth Prince came to mock him, so he naturally became the punching bag for him.

After all, the fourth prince, who had just come from a brothel, was dressed like a young master and at first glance, he was indeed no different from a pretty boy.

Seeing the Fourth Prince's expression change repeatedly and that he was about to lose his temper, Jia Lian, being his subordinate, quickly smoothed things over, saying, "Ignorance is no excuse. He didn't know Your Highness's identity. I hope Your Highness will be magnanimous and forgive his disrespectful words."

This left Xie Jun speechless.

Without even asking, he could guess that the person who could make Jia Lian bow and apologize, and address him as "Your Highness" must be an extraordinary figure.

He trembled violently, disregarding everything else, and hurriedly dismounted, kneeling on one knee in a flustered manner to beg for forgiveness, saying, "This humble servant deserves death. I was unaware that Your Highness had spoken so offensively to my face. Please forgive me, Your Highness..."

The Fourth Prince's face was gloomy. In all his life, this was the first time someone had ever pointed their finger at him and cursed him. Even if it was Wei Xian, that brat, he would at most call him by name. To call him a pretty boy or a brat like this, Wei Xian wouldn't dare to do it even if he had ten lives.

She wanted to get angry, but then she thought that Jie Jun was, after all, Jia Lian's subordinate and held a low-ranking official position. To argue with him would seem... not very classy.

Seeing Jie Jun's fearful and trembling appearance, he was certain that this guy really didn't recognize him. So he glared at him angrily for a few seconds, and finally waved his hand and snorted, "You blind fool, I'll let you off this time for the sake of your superiors. If you dare to curse me again, I'll make you regret it."

After saying that, he spurred his horse and rode directly in front of Jia Lian. He figured it must be because he had been following behind Jia Lian that the warrior had looked down on him. Now that he was in front of Jia Lian, he was sure no one would dare to underestimate him.

Upon hearing the Fourth Prince refer to himself as "this king," he, who was clearly in trouble, felt like he wanted to die. He didn't hear anything else the Fourth Prince said and could only nod like a chicken pecking at rice.

Get up.

Jia Lian was also speechless. Seeing him stand up shakily, still wiping sweat from his forehead, clearly frightened, he laughed and scolded, "Alright, the Fourth Prince is the most generous and righteous person, and he keeps his word. Since he said he would spare you, he certainly won't make things difficult for you anymore."

"Yes, yes, thank you so much for pleading for me, sir. I have no way to repay you. From this day forward, my life belongs to you. If you tell me to go east, I will never go west. If you tell me to catch a dog, I will never chase a chicken..."

"Sycophant." The fourth prince cursed under his breath, but his nose was held high as he reined in his horse and galloped off lightly. Clearly, Jia Lian's "objective evaluation" pleased and satisfied him greatly.

At the very front, the officers and soldiers of the Military Command, who were pressing down on the group of imperial clansmen as they marched forward, were also feeling uneasy.

Only when they realized that their commander was personally overseeing the battle were they able to barely maintain their formation and head towards the main camp.

Suddenly, a troop of soldiers appeared and formed a battle formation to block their path, causing everyone to stop.

"Who goes there?"

"Let Jia Lian come out and see me."

Jia Lian had long known that the journey back would not be smooth; otherwise, he would not have gone directly to the palace to meet the emperor with the Fourth Prince to personally oversee the journey.

Riding up to the front lines, Jia Lian saw the people who had come to obstruct him and cupped his hands, saying, "Jia Lian greets Uncle Qiu. May I ask what brings Uncle Qiu to my territory with his troops?"

Qiu Liang, the commander of the Central City Garrison, was the grandson of the Marquis of Jingtian. He had a long-standing relationship with the Jia family, and Jia Lian was also familiar with him.

Qiu Liang glanced at the imperial nobles being held captive by soldiers on the ground, his eyelids twitching. He couldn't help but look at Jia Lian: "Nephew, what is the meaning of this?"

"Are you referring to these people, Uncle Qiu? These people held a secret meeting at the Golden Pavilion, not only making irresponsible remarks about state affairs, but also daring to slander His Majesty. Their crimes are heinous and they deserve to be executed. Therefore, I plan to first escort these audacious madmen back to the yamen and deal with them after consulting with His Majesty."

Qiu Liang looked surprised. "Nephew, do you know who these people are...?"

"I don't know, is that important? Anyone who dares to defile His Majesty should be punished with the death penalty according to the law."

Qiu Liang: "..."

The imperial clansmen, who were already tired of cursing the soldiers and Jia Lian, immediately started shouting again when they saw that Qiu Liang had come to rescue them.

"Lord Qiu, please help us! We've all been framed!"

"Indeed, we beg Lord Qiu to save us. Jia Lian has a grudge against us, so he deliberately framed us. Even if we had the greatest courage, we would not dare to slander His Majesty. We beg Lord Qiu to help us. In the future, we and the entire Prince Duan's Mansion will definitely repay you with generous gifts."

Qiu Liang looked in the direction of the voice and found it was the heir of Prince Duan. He admired Jia Lian even more.

After glancing at the curious onlookers outside, Qiu Liang rode forward and whispered to Jia Lian, "Nephew, why be so stubborn? We are both subjects; why should we concern ourselves with the affairs of the imperial family?"

These members of the imperial family are used to being arrogant and domineering. To us, His Majesty is our sovereign, and we should naturally respect him. But to them, His Majesty is not only the emperor, but also their elder. What does it matter if they complain a few times about their elder?

I trust my nephew's character and believe he wouldn't make a mistake without reason. However, we really don't need to do it. Think about it, nephew. If you arrest someone first, and then their elders plead with His Majesty, His Majesty might soften his heart and not do anything to them. In that case, you'd be caught in the middle, offending people for no reason and getting no credit. Why bother?

"Take my advice, Uncle, and let them go. It'll be better for both of us..."

Jia Lian smiled and said, "Uncle, you must have come on someone's behalf, right?"

From the time he arrested the man until now, only about fifteen minutes have passed, and Qiu Liang has already arrived with his troops. Needless to say, someone must have gone to inform him.

Qiu Liang narrowed his eyes, seeing that Jia Lian seemed a bit stubborn, but he didn't hide it and still said in a low voice, "Since my nephew has seen through it, I won't hide it from you either. I came here on orders from the Prince of Zhongshun's mansion."

Nephew, you may not know this, but one of these people is the son of Prince Zhongshun! Nephew, you also come from a noble family, so you should know that we noble families cannot afford to offend Prince Zhongshun's mansion no matter what.

Why should my dear nephew gamble the fate and future of the family over such a trivial matter...

What's more, you've also arrested the heir apparent of Prince Duan. Haven't you offended the Prince Duan's family enough already?

"Uncle is right."

Jia Lian understood Qiu Liang's meaning. Prince Zhongshun was not only Emperor Ningkang's younger brother from the same mother, but also controlled the lifeline of the imperial clan and their relatives—the Imperial Clan Court.

Although Prince Zhongshun was not yet the head of the Imperial Clan Court, after Prince Su grew old and stopped managing affairs, Prince Zhongshun became the de facto head of the Imperial Clan Court.

It can be said that, regardless of whether they were members of the imperial clan or relatives of the emperor, if they wanted to live a smooth life, they should not offend the Imperial Clan Court or Prince Zhongshun.

Therefore, if the Fourth Prince hadn't been there today, and he had simply run into these people, he probably wouldn't have paid them any attention.

"but……"

"Lord Qiu, please return. I am afraid I cannot comply."

Jia Lian spurred his horse back a step and clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.

Seeing Jia Lian suddenly distance himself from him, Qiu Liang was puzzled as to what had gotten into Jia Lian. Just as he was about to try to persuade him again, he heard a young voice behind Jia Lian: "Qiu Liang, is that right? You brought your troops here to protect these unfilial sons who insulted my father, the Emperor?"

Qiu Liang opened his eyes and looked around. As the commander of the Central City Garrison, Qiu Liang's status was higher than that of the other four commanders, because the area under his jurisdiction was the outer perimeter of the imperial city, and he had the most dealings with the royal family on a daily basis.

He certainly recognized the Fourth Prince, so he quickly stepped forward to pay his respects.

"I ask you, is it you who intends to protect these unfilial sons?"

"Uh, Your Highness misunderstands. This humble servant did not mean that."

"Since you don't mean it that way, then get out of here. Otherwise, I'll arrest you too!"

Hearing the Fourth Prince's arrogant and direct words, Qiu Liang finally understood why Jia Lian dared to arrest these members of the imperial clan.

He calculated in his mind that his official rank and title were low, and even if the Fourth Prince had no real power, he was not someone the Fourth Prince could afford to offend. Moreover, today's matter also involved Emperor Ningkang. He was willing to help, but it would be too much of a loss to get himself involved.

Since the Fourth Prince was there, and he had already given his due in front of the Prince of Zhongshun's residence, he turned around and waved to the soldiers he had brought with him.

Seeing the person blocking his way leave, the Fourth Prince was finally satisfied. He said, "You know what's good for you," and then ignored Qiu Liang, going to argue with the incessantly chattering Wei Xian.

Seeing this, Qiu Liang shook his head at Jia Lian and said, "Nephew, you should take care of yourself."

"Thank you for the reminder, Uncle."

So Qiu Liang didn't say anything more, and made way for Jia Lian and the others to leave.

……

In the South Study of Daming Palace, Emperor Ningkang was summoning Prince Zhongshun.

"Are you really not going?"

Emperor Ningkang looked at Prince Zhongshun, who was kneeling on the ground and crying incessantly, and felt both angry and disappointed.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, I really can't do this. Your Majesty knows all too well how difficult it is to deal with any of those members of the Imperial Clan. I am of lower seniority and not respected by the masses. Over the years, I don't know how much effort I have put in and how many smiles I have had to put in to help Your Majesty manage the Imperial Clan Court."

Now, out of the blue, I have to make them pay taxes again, and I have to send people to clear out the farmland and land under their names. Those people will eat me alive!

Putting everything else aside, if my father's brothers and my uncles knew I was leaving, they would probably beat me up.

So, if Your Majesty really wants me to persuade them, you might as well just remove me from my position as Vice Clan Chief...

King Chungshun cried and complained, "I'm not going."

Emperor Ningkang was well aware of his thoughts. First, persuading members of the imperial clan to consolidate their land according to the tax law and voluntarily pay taxes in the future was inherently an act that would offend people. Second, if one were to ask which princely estate among the imperial clan owned the most land, it would undoubtedly be the Prince Zhongshun's estate.

Emperor Ningkang wanted Prince Zhongshun to act as the envoy partly so that he could set an example. Little did he know, the prince completely misunderstood his good intentions.

I'm too lazy to force him. This matter is already exhausting enough; if he's unwilling, forcing him won't get him anywhere. It seems I'll have to choose someone else from among the princes.

Seeing Dai Quan approaching with a strange expression, clearly having something to report, he waved his hand and said, "Alright, I know. Get out of here, you good-for-nothing."

Although he could tell from Emperor Ningkang's tone that his elder brother was dissatisfied with him, he was used to being scolded as long as he could extricate himself from such a serious matter.

So he stood up with a forced smile, bent over, and was about to leave.

"slow."

"I wonder if Your Majesty has any further instructions?"

"You'd better kneel down first."

……

As Jia Lian had predicted, the roads in the western part of the city were not smooth.

Qiu Liangcai hadn't walked for half a quarter of an hour when another obstacle appeared in his path.

This time, they really went all out.

"I am the Left Commander of the Imperial Clan Court. I received a report that a member of the Imperial Clan had made irresponsible remarks about state affairs, so I have come to arrest, interrogate, and investigate him. Commander Jia, hand him over."

This "General Who Guards the Nation" from the imperial clan looked at Jia Lian with an arrogant air, his words clearly condescending.

When he heard about this, he found it unbelievable. When did these lowly soldiers from the Military Affairs Bureau, who did all the dirty work, dare to arrest members of the imperial family?

Jia Lian didn't even bother with this kind of person and directly took out the Fourth Prince.

"What's with this talk of being a good person on the left and a good person on the right? The Imperial Clan Court has Prince Su and Prince Zhongshun. Where did you come from, you piece of trash?"

The repeated setbacks confirmed Jia Lian's words, which greatly displeased the Fourth Prince. Although he knew the man was a member of the imperial family, his title had been reduced to General of the State, suggesting that their blood relation was very distant, so he could scold him without any pressure.

"Fourth Prince, don't go too far. By seniority, I'm your uncle. How dare you speak to me like that? If I complain about you to His Majesty, you'll be punished by kneeling again. Don't blame me for not warning you."

"Go ahead and sue me. My father only forbids me from cursing other people's parents. Did I curse your parents just now? Besides, I think my father only forbids me from cursing good people. Someone like you, who looks like a cunning and wicked person, I can curse however I want. What can you do to me?"

"If you know what's good for you, get out of here right now, or I'll arrest you too!"

The Fourth Prince thought that this was how Qiu Liang was scared away, and that these people must be afraid of being caught.

However, this Zuo Zongren and Qiu Liangke were different: "I'm afraid the Fourth Prince can't arrest me. I am a member of the imperial clan, and apart from the Imperial Clan Court, the Emperor Emeritus, and His Majesty, no one has the right to arrest me, not even the Fourth Prince."

As he spoke, this Zuo Zongren seemed to know that dealing with a scoundrel like the Fourth Prince would not bring him any benefit, so he turned to Jia Lian: "The Fourth Prince is young, does Commander Jia not know the laws of the court?"

These people are all members of my imperial clan. Even if they are guilty, it is the Imperial Clan Court that should punish them, not the Military Command. How can the Military Command arrest them without authorization? Commander Jia, you have already violated the law. If you don't hand them over, I will arrest you as well.”

"You can give it a try."

Jia Lian grinned and waved his hand. The two or three hundred soldiers from the military garrison immediately became solemn. These common soldiers knew nothing of the law. Before they saw the Fourth Prince, they were somewhat worried, but now that they saw their master had the Fourth Prince backing him up, they had no fear whatsoever.

This official from the Imperial Clan Court had only a few dozen soldiers with him, and they didn't even have any decent weapons. With just a command from the magistrate, they could take him down in an instant.

"Jia Lian, you! How dare you!"

'

Seeing the soldiers and officers of the Military Affairs Bureau surrounding them, ready to attack them, Zuo Dazong was furious. He couldn't understand how Jia Lian, an official of the imperial court, dared to be as reckless as the Fourth Prince.

"You want to take us down? Then hurry up and do it! If you're too scared, get out of my way. I don't have time to waste on your nonsense!"

The term "rap" was something the Fourth Prince had just heard while listening to opera. He found it very interesting and now he felt great using it, as it made him seem very cultured.

Ignoring the Fourth Prince, Zuo Dazongren glared at Jia Lian and said, "Jia Lian, I am acting in accordance with the laws of the land. If you have any guts, arrest me too!"

Anyway, he won't allow it.

If Jia Lian were to capture the son of Prince Zhongshun, his position as a member of the imperial clan would be over.

"Jia Lian, arrest him immediately! He's just a General Who Guards the State, what are you afraid of him for!"

Jia Lian shook his head and smiled, "He's right. He hasn't broken any laws, so I really can't arrest him. Or, Your Highness, could you provoke him a bit more and get him to curse you a few times? That way, I could arrest him for insubordination as well."

The Fourth Prince didn't know, but Jia Lian did. Being a member of the Imperial Clan Court was a menial job, but in terms of rank, it was equivalent to a second-rank official in the Great Wei Dynasty. That was much higher than his own fourth-rank position as a commander.

Of course, this is not the most important thing. What is important is that Jia Lian felt that it was better and more advantageous for things to remain at this stalemate than for him to make a swift arrest.

Sometimes, even when you're in the right, you have to show some weakness so that the big boss knows the difficulties of being a loyal subject. It also lets the emperor see how these members of the imperial family don't respect him, daring to even protect their unfilial sons who insult him.

Judging by the time, the palace should have heard the news by now.

The Fourth Prince, unaware of Jia Lian's thoughts, even thought Jia Lian's words made sense. He rolled up his sleeves, stepped forward, and began his tirade.