The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 109 Another village has a bright future

While Ma Yizhen and Shi Yi were waiting anxiously at the dock, Tu Chengyu was asking Su Xuanbao about the situation.

"How many of those people shouting about the Jining Garrison Battalion actually came?"

Su Xuanbao said, "Your Highness, only a dozen or so rushed to the dock. None of those who were shouting and cheering from afar came over."

Tu Chengyu thought to himself, if these people were all from the Jining Garrison, there was no reason why they would only send a dozen or so people to help at such an urgent moment.

Therefore, those waving flags and shouting in the distance are very likely not from the garrison battalion.

Thinking of this, Tu Chengyu asked Quan Wenwei beside him, "Mr. Quan, do you remember if anyone was in the place where the shouts were the loudest just now during the day?"

Without a second thought, Quan Wenwei replied, “Your Highness, during the day, that is where the boatmen rest.”

After saying that, he immediately realized his mistake and quickly added:

"With Your Highness's reminder, I understand now that those waving flags and shouting are not soldiers from the garrison, but boatmen resting by the river."

Tu Chengyu nodded and said, "That's what I think too. So I'm very curious, who came up with the idea of ​​using boatmen to bolster their own power?"

Quan Wenwei continued, "Prefect Ma already knew about tonight's operation. I believe it's impossible for him to suddenly back out and send people to cause trouble."

"Furthermore, General Su just said that only a dozen or so people came to the rescue, so I believe that they must have disobeyed Prefect Ma's orders and set out on their own."

After listening, Tu Chengyu said, "So, our plan wasn't seen through?"

Quan Wenwei shook his head and said, "I believe that these people who rashly intervened are definitely not those who have seen through the Prince's arrangements, but more likely those who know the Prince is here and want to gain merit by rescuing him."

Tu Chengyu nodded, agreeing with Quan Wenwei's analysis, and said:

"Judging from this, this guy is quite bold and also quite clever, knowing how to use others to create momentum for himself."

After saying that, Tu Chengyu asked Su Xuanbao, "You just met this person, what did you think of him?"

Su Xuanbao said, "Your Highness, because it was too dark, I couldn't see his face clearly. I only heard that he was a squad leader in the Jining Garrison and his name was Shi Yi."

When Tu Chengyu heard that the person doing all this was just a lowly squad leader, he immediately became even more interested in Shi Yi.

He thought for a moment and said to Su Xuanbao, "I have a task for you now, and you must do it immediately."

Su Xuanbao said, "Your Highness, please give your orders."

Tu Chengyu said, "Go back to the dock immediately and convey my orders to Ma Yizhen and Shi Yi."

"Don't give Ma Yizhen a nice look, and don't say anything more. Just say that I, the king, asked him to leave."

"As for Shi Yi, have him return to the post station and wait. Tell him that I will reward him tomorrow."

Su Xuanbao hurriedly returned to the dock after receiving the order, and waited to complete Tu Chengyu's instructions without any deviation.

Upon hearing this, Shi Yi and his companions were overjoyed, feeling that they had made the right bet this time, and happily returned the way they came.

In contrast to them, after hearing the orders conveyed by Su Xuanbao, Ma Yizhen judged that Tu Chengyu's side was still proceeding according to the original plan.

So, in front of everyone, he put on a worried expression.

He returned to the post station, looking back every few steps, but he didn't stay there. Instead, he immediately led his men back to Jining Prefecture.

Seeing that everything was proceeding according to plan, Tu Chengyu felt much relieved.

He left the rest of the work to Quan Wenwei and returned to his room in the back warehouse.

After returning to his room, he didn't rest. He sent someone to summon Jia Lian and Jia Rong.

The reason Tu Chengyu summoned these two people was because of Lai Shangrong's matter.

He remembered that Lai Shangrong's family held considerable power within the Jia family; it seemed that the head stewards of both the east and west mansions of the Jia family were from the Lai family.

In other words, the Lai family and the Jia family are quite entangled.

Now that Lai Shangrong has abandoned his post and fled, his family members will certainly not escape unscathed.

The Jia family might be implicated at that time.

Although Tu Chengyu had always wanted to suppress the Jia family and prevent them from causing trouble.

But now that this has happened, Tu Chengyu still doesn't want the Jia family to be involved.

Therefore, he summoned Jia Lian and the other man at this time because he wanted to give the Jia family a chance.

When the two men arrived, Tu Chengyu told them about Lai Shangrong's escape.

The two of them were quite frightened after hearing this.

Although they were spoiled brats, they could still distinguish right from wrong and benefit from harm. They understood that Lai Shangrong's escape would bring great trouble to the Jia family.

Especially after the Jia family pledged allegiance to the emperor, those nobles who had been punished by the emperor would definitely keep an eye on the Jia family, waiting for them to make a mistake.

Now that Lai Shangrong has fled, the Jia family, as those who recommended him, will inevitably suffer the consequences.

Thinking of this, Jia Lian quickly bowed deeply to Tu Chengyu and then said:
"I beg Your Highness to save the Jia family."

Tu Chengyu said, "I called you here to give you a chance."

Upon hearing Tu Chengyu's words, Jia Lian said gratefully, "This humble servant thanks Your Highness on behalf of my family. May I ask what Your Highness requires of us?"

Tu Chengyu did not answer his question, but instead asked:
"I want to take advantage of the fact that news of Lai Shangrong's escape has not yet reached the capital, and send people back to take control of Lai Shangrong's family. Which of you two dares to go back and do this for me?"

Jia Lian and his companion exchanged a glance. Although they were both members of the Jia family, their missions on this trip were different.

Jia Rong was accompanying Tu Chengyu on business as a guard in Tu Chengyu's palace.

Jia Lian, on the other hand, was sent by the Jia family to Yangzhou to visit Lin Daiyu, and they only ended up traveling together because it was on the same route.

In other words, Jia Lian had a task to complete, while Jia Rong didn't have anything specific to do.

So, after exchanging a glance, Jia Rong took the initiative to step forward and said to Tu Chengyu:

"Your Highness, I am willing."

Seeing that it was the young and timid Jia Rong who came out, Tu Chengyu was a little worried about him and said:

"When you go back, you'll have to bring Lai Shangrong's family members back to the capital. There might be dangers on the way, so you should think it through."

Jia Rong was still a little scared when he heard that there was danger on the road.

But this time, he did not back down. Because at this moment, he couldn't help but recall what his grandfather had said to him before he left the capital.

He clearly remembered what the old man said that day:

“Now that Prince Su and our Jia family are on the same boat, he will no longer suppress our Jia family as before.”

"On the contrary, for this reason, they will give important positions to people from our Jia family."

“However, based on my understanding of Prince Su, he would never give important positions to the elders of our two households. He would definitely choose capable people from among you younger people.”

"This time, before Prince Su left the capital, he specifically asked you to join his guards in his palace, just to test you." "So, on the way, if Prince Su assigns you any tasks, try your best to accept them and do your best to complete them."

"If you continue to act as you do at home, shirking responsibility and avoiding problems, when you come back, I will send you to the outskirts of the city to cultivate Taoism for the rest of your life."

Jia Jing spoke with unusual conviction, and Jia Rong could sense the old master's seriousness, so he has kept those words firmly in his heart ever since.

When Tu Chengyu told him there was danger, he was afraid, but what he was thinking was that this mission might be a test from Prince Su.

So he said firmly, "Your Highness, I am not afraid of danger, and I will definitely do a good job on this mission."

Hearing Jia Rong's resolute attitude, Tu Chengyu glanced at him a few more times and said:
"Since you dare to go, I will let you handle this matter. However, I must remind you that this matter concerns the safety of your Jia family, so you must be extremely careful."

Jia Rong clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will be extremely careful."

Tu Chengyu said, "In that case, go and make preparations, and try to leave for Beijing first thing tomorrow morning."

After seeing Jia Lian and his companion off, Tu Chengyu felt that today's events had finally come to an end.

I just wanted to go back to my room and start resting early.

But tonight, it seems the old man isn't letting Tu Chengyu get a proper rest.

He had barely sat down on the recliner when Jia Tanchun brought him a cup of tea. Before he could even take a sip, he heard Xiao Xuanzi's voice from outside the door.

"Your Highness, Jia Lian requests an audience."

Tu Chengyu thought he was hallucinating, and asked, "Who?"

Xiao Xuanzi immediately replied, "Your Highness, it is Jia Lian."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu was filled with questions. Jia Lian had just been standing in front of him. If he had something to say, why didn't he say so earlier? Why is he coming to see him now?

Although he couldn't figure out what was going on, Tu Chengyu had no intention of refusing to see her. He said to Xiao Xuanzi:
"Take him to the outer room."

Xiao Xuanzi ran out to fetch people, and Tu Chengyu, with the help of Xiao Xing'er and Jia Tanchun, put on his robes for meeting outsiders again, tidying himself up neatly before going to the outer room.

Upon entering the outer room, before Jia Lian could even perform his rites, Tu Chengyu asked:

"Why have you returned?"

Jia Lian said, "Your Highness, an old friend of ours just came to the dock. He said he knows Lai Shangrong's whereabouts."

Tu Chengyu was secretly delighted. He had just dozed off when someone brought him a pillow – what a stroke of luck! Suppressing his joy, he asked:

"You haven't deceived me, have you?"

Jia Lian replied, "This humble servant dares not."

Tu Chengyu then asked, "Where is he?"

Jia Lian replied, "It's right at the dock; I've already sent people to keep an eye on it."

Tu Chengyu said, "You did a good job. Now go and bring him to me."

After sending Jia Lian to fetch the men, Tu Chengyu asked Xiao Xuanzi, "Has Mr. Quan finished his work outside?"

Xiao Xuanzi replied, "Your Highness, Mr. Quan just sent men to fetch General Quan Xu, and they should be finished by now."

Tu Chengyu said, "Go and see if Mr. Quan is done with his work. Have him come to me."

Xiao Xuanzi also received the order and went out.

Tu Chengyu sat alone in the outer room and waited for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before the two groups of people arrived together.

As soon as they entered, the first person Tu Chengyu noticed was the one Jia Lian had brought.

This was a middle-aged man dressed in a dark blue cotton robe, wearing a rich man's hat, slightly overweight, and with a fairly calm expression.

As soon as he entered, he bowed and said, "This humble subject, Lin Xiqiao, greets Your Highness."

After he finished bowing and stood aside, Tu Chengyu did not ask any questions immediately. He first asked Quan Wenwei to sit next to him, and then asked Jia Lian and Xiao Xuanzi to go out and stand guard outside the door.

Then he asked, "I heard from Jia Lian that you know Lai Shangrong's whereabouts."

Upon hearing the question, the man bowed and said, "Your Highness, I do not know Lai Shangrong's whereabouts. I am delivering a letter to Young Master Jia on behalf of Lai Shangrong."

Upon hearing the first part of the sentence, Tu Chengyu thought this guy was incredibly audacious and had come here specifically to die.

However, upon hearing the second half of the sentence, Tu Chengyu temporarily suppressed his anger and asked:
"Since you don't know Lai Shangrong's whereabouts, then where did this letter come from?"

Lin Xiqiao didn't understand why the prince's tone had suddenly changed, but he still answered the question honestly.

"Your Highness, the letter was sent to me by Lai Shangrong. He asked me to pass it on to Jia Lian, the young master of the Jia family."

Tu Chengyu said, "You've got some nerve, daring to secretly pass on a message for Lai Shangrong."

Hearing Prince Su say this, Lin Xiqiao was even more puzzled. He didn't understand how delivering a message for Lai Shangrong was considered audacious.

In his mind, given his relationship with the Jia family, it was only a normal thing to do to deliver a letter to the Jia family's son on behalf of Lai Shangrong.

However, he was, after all, a businessman, and he was good at reading people.

He sensed something was amiss from the sudden change in the Prince Su's tone and the questions he asked.

So he cautiously said, "Your Highness, I have been staying at the estate outside the city recently and am unaware of what has happened in the city. May I ask if Lai Shangrong has committed any crime?"

Seeing that he didn't seem to be lying, Tu Chengyu said directly:
"Lai Shangrong has abandoned his post and fled, didn't you know?"

Lin Xiqiao guessed that Lai Shangrong might have committed a crime, but he never expected that the guy would abandon his post and run away.

He ran away without telling me the truth, and even asked me to secretly pass on messages for him. This was practically dragging me into a quagmire.

Thinking of this, Lin Xiqiao's legs went weak with fear, and she stammered:

"Your Highness, I truly, truly did not know that Lai Shangrong had escaped. If I had known, I would never have dared to deliver the message for him, even if you killed me."

Tu Chengyu asked, "When was this letter delivered to you?"

Lin Xiqiao quickly replied, "Your Highness, it was just as dusk was falling."

Tu Chengyu then asked, "Where is the messenger that Lai Shangrong sent?"

Lin Xiqiao replied, "The man left after delivering the letter. I didn't know about this beforehand, so I didn't keep him here."

After asking those questions, Tu Chengyu couldn't think of anything else to ask, so he said:

"Bring out the letter."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiqiao quickly took out the letter he was carrying and handed it to Quan Wenwei, who was not far away.

Quan Wenwei took the letter and, at Tu Chengyu's prompting, opened it and began to read.

(End of this chapter)