The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 213 Shuntian Prefecture Office, Second Uncle Si

Since it wasn't someone he had personally hired, Tu Chengyu didn't bother dealing with them personally and gave Lao Yao a wink.

Seeing this, Old Yao stepped forward and said:

"I was shopping here when I encountered thieves and lost some things."

Old Yao only mentioned it briefly and did not explain in detail.

As the two constables approached, it was clear from their clothing that the group in front of them was not ordinary people.

So, even his tone softened, and he said very gently:
"What is missing?"

Old Yao replied, "I lost a box of jewelry."

Hearing that it was jewelry, and considering the noble status of the people here, the jewelry must not be cheap.

The constable quickly asked, "Have you seen the thief?"

Old Yao said, "I saw two people, but I couldn't see their faces clearly."

The constable asked again, "I've sent someone to inquire and see which government office is in charge here."

Upon hearing this answer, the two constables remained silent for a while before one of them finally spoke:

"Distinguished guests, if this jewelry is valuable and you are in a hurry to get it back, it may not be enough to just go to the yamen in charge. If you have connections, it would be best to go to the Shuntian Prefecture yamen."

It's rather strange that a constable patrolling the streets would say in front of others that his own office is useless.

Having a question in mind, Tu Chengyu bypassed Lao Yao and asked directly:
"Why is it better to go to the Shuntian Prefecture government? Can't you even handle two petty thieves here?"

These two constables patrolled the streets every day and had seen many noblemen from the capital.

Seeing that the person asking the question, though young, possessed an extraordinary air, they knew he must be a noble scion from a prominent family in the capital, and thus spoke even more cautiously:

"Young master, it's not that we haven't been diligent, but the capital region is governed by two county governments. If you only report to this one county government, we won't be able to search in other areas."

However, petty thieves in the capital could roam freely, so simply reporting to one government office was unlikely to recover the valuables' belongings.

The Shuntian Prefecture manages all affairs, large and small, in the capital. If the young master reports a case to the Shuntian Prefecture, they can search the entire capital and find the suspect more quickly.

That makes a lot of sense.

In order to find the jewelry as soon as possible, Tu Chengyu did not intend to waste time here and prepared to go and talk to the Shuntian Prefecture.

Before leaving, Tu Chengyu said to the two constables:

"After we leave, you all must not be idle. Continue searching here. If you can find any jewelry, there will be a generous reward."

These constables are all local bullies in the streets. Even if they don't know all the petty thieves, they must have heard of them to some extent.

Let them go and search; it might be much more efficient.

Upon hearing this, the two constables were delighted. Being able to run errands for a nobleman and receive a reward was a rare and desirable job.

One of the cleaners asked, "May I ask which household this young master belongs to? If we find anything, where should we send it?"

Tu Chengyu's identity could not be revealed so easily, and since Lin Daiyu and the others were women, it was not appropriate to tell outsiders. So, after thinking for a moment, he said:
"If you find the item, take it to the Rongguo Mansion and find Jia Lian."

Jia Lian, the second master of Rongguo Mansion, is a name known to almost everyone in the capital.

These two constables happened to know Jia Lian, and had even had the honor of meeting him.

Therefore, they knew that the person in front of them was definitely not Jia Lian. However, when they heard that this young master could address Jia Lian by his full name, they knew that the person in front of them was of a higher status than Jia Lian.

As the son of a Duke, Jia Lian's status was already incredibly high, yet this person was even more noble than Jia Lian.

Thinking of this, the two constables dared not look directly at Tu Chengyu's face and lowered their heads, saying:
"We obey your orders and will do our utmost to help you find your things, young master."

Seeing their sincere attitude, Tu Chengyu nodded in satisfaction and led Lin Daiyu and the others away.

As soon as they left, the two constables went into the alley where the thieves had escaped.

They also looked at the traces left behind.

Then the younger of the two said:
"Brother Zhang, have you figured out who did this?"

The middle-aged constable, Zhang Erge, said, "We can't tell anything yet. It seems we'll have to ask around."

The younger man asked again, "What if we can't find it? These people seem to be people of considerable importance. If we don't find it, will we brothers be punished?"

Zhang Erge said, "No one can predict what nobles will do. However, if we don't find the item in the end, the nobles will complain, and the Prefect will definitely cause trouble for us. So we should do our best to find the item."

The young constable said with a bitter face, "What kind of trouble is this? Why did this have to happen in our territory? If I find out which bastard did this reckless thing, I'll make sure he knows what I, Ma Si, am capable of."

Zhang Erge waved his hand and said, "Now is not the time to talk about these things. You should quickly find your men and tell them to find out who is working here today."

Meanwhile, spread the word that whoever gets the stolen jewelry today and returns it before nightfall will be forgiven and compensated at its original price. Anyone who fails to return it by today should prepare to return in eighteen years to play the hero.

Upon hearing this, Ma Si knew that Zhang Erge was afraid of getting into trouble and was willing to use all available means.

At this moment, Ma Si knew what he had to do.

After whispering a few more words to each other, the two emerged from the alley and split up to find their respective henchmen.

On the other hand, after Tu Chengyu left with Lin Daiyu and the others, he did not go to the Shuntian Prefecture government office immediately.

He planned to first send Lin Daiyu and the others back to the Jia family mansion, and then go to the Shuntian Prefecture government office to take a look.

With what has happened, shopping today is definitely out of the question.

He couldn't take Lin Daiyu to the Shuntian Prefecture to file a complaint, so he wanted to send them away.

However, Lin Daiyu was preoccupied with finding the jewelry and did not want to delay Tu Chengyu's journey to Shuntian Prefecture by sending her back to the Jia Mansion, so she refused Tu Chengyu's offer to see her off.

Seeing his expression, Tu Chengyu knew that if he insisted on seeing him off, it would be counterproductive.

After comforting Lin Daiyu for a few moments, he took Zijuan, the person involved, to Shuntian Prefecture.

Tu Chengyu was very familiar with Shuntian Prefecture. He remembered that before leaving the capital, he had even asked someone here to catch some thugs from the capital.

Moreover, he also remembered that in order to prevent his second uncle from doing anything wrong, he had imprisoned his second uncle in the Shuntian Prefecture government office.

Shuntian Prefecture was not far from here, and Tu Chengyu arrived quickly.

Upon arriving at the main gate of the government office, Tu Chengyu sent someone inside to deliver a message while dismounting and waiting at the gate.

Just as Tu Chengyu alighted from the carriage, he suddenly saw a familiar figure walking from the back street of the government office.

As the figure rounded the corner and walked towards them, Tu Chengyu recognized him. It was his second maternal uncle's eldest son, one of his cousins, though the two hadn't seen each other properly for several years.

However, this cousin's face resembled his mother's, so Tu Chengyu remembered him clearly.

So even from a distance, I recognized it at a glance.

Now that he had seen his cousin, Tu Chengyu couldn't pretend not to know him. Besides, he had a good relationship with his cousins ​​from his uncle's family when he was little.

So, as he got closer, Tu Chengyu called out, "Third cousin, what are you doing here?"

Although he is the eldest son of the second maternal uncle, he is the third son according to the eldest maternal uncle's family.

My third cousin was holding a food box, his head down, seemingly lost in thought.

He suddenly heard someone shouting, but at first he didn't think it was calling him.

So he just stared blankly at the ground, then looked up and around.

He then realized that he was the only one on the road, along with the group of people in front of the Shuntian Prefecture government office.

Only then did I belatedly realize that I might be the one being called.

However, he couldn't understand why someone would call him "cousin" here.
He looked at Tu Chengyu with a puzzled expression, and immediately recognized Tu Chengyu standing in the crowd.

Tu Chengyu thought that his cousin would be just as happy as he was when he saw him.

But to his surprise, his cousin not only didn't show any joy, but instead revealed a very complicated expression.

He seemed a little angry, a little sad, and also worried and afraid.

Moreover, he remained standing in the same spot, without taking another step towards me.

Tu Chengyu didn't understand what was wrong with his third cousin. Could it be that he was dissatisfied with him because he had someone imprison his second uncle in the Shuntian Prefecture's yamen?

However, those who knew the situation were aware that Second Uncle had been deceived and had become entangled with local thugs in the capital, which violated the laws of the dynasty.

When I put my second uncle in the prison of Shuntian Prefecture, it was partly to protect him.

Third cousin should be able to figure this out, and even if he doesn't, his eldest uncle will explain it to him.

So why did he react this way when he saw himself? Could there be some other reason?

Tu Chengyu's mind raced, but he showed no sign of anything amiss on his face.

He kept shouting in that direction, "Cousin, don't you recognize your younger brother?"

My third cousin is older than the crown prince and has reached an age where he can keep things hidden.

When he first saw Tu Chengyu, he was so excited that he probably couldn't control his expression.

Now, quite some time has passed, and he has long since concealed all his emotions.

With a smile on his face, he walked briskly towards them, and upon reaching them, he bowed respectfully before speaking:

"I never expected to see Your Highness here. I couldn't believe it for a moment, and that's why I was stunned. I hope Your Highness will forgive me."

When cousins ​​meet, it should be a lively and warm occasion.

But my third cousin kept saying "please forgive me" and "Your Highness," which made him seem much more distant.

Tu Chengyu assumed that it was because the two hadn't seen each other for many years, and that his identity was different now than before, so he didn't pay much attention to it.

He simply asked, "What are you doing here, cousin? Why are you carrying a lunchbox?"

Third cousin probably didn't expect Tu Chengyu to ask such a question. His face stiffened at first, and then he quickly glanced at Tu Chengyu.

Then he answered in a serious tone: "Your Highness, I came here to deliver some food, nothing else."

Tu Chengyu was a little confused. This was the Shuntian Prefecture government office. Why would his third cousin be here to deliver food? Could it be that someone in his uncle's family worked in the Shuntian Prefecture?

Just as Tu Chengyu was about to ask for clarification, the messenger arrived, accompanied by Zhu Shiguo, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture.

Upon seeing this, Tu Chengyu said to his third cousin:
"I have business to attend to in Shuntian Prefecture today, so I can't chat with my cousin for long. I'll visit my two uncles in a few days when I'm free, and then I can talk to my cousin again."

Third cousin's expression was already stern when Tu Chengyu spoke, and now, upon hearing Tu Chengyu's words, it darkened even more.

However, Tu Chengyu had already turned his gaze to Zhu Shiguo's side at this moment, so he did not see his third cousin's expression clearly.

Zhu Shiguo and Tu Chengyu had dealt with each other before, so he walked over and bowed, saying:

"Your Highness, I, Zhu Shiguo, the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, have just met you. I apologize for keeping you waiting."

Tu Chengyu said with a smile, "Lord Zhu, I'm here to trouble you again."

Zhu Shiguo said, "Your Highness, please feel free to give any instructions."

"This isn't the place to talk," Tu Chengyu said. "It's not convenient here. Let's go to the yamen to talk."

After saying that, he turned around and waved to his third cousin before following Zhu Shiguo into the Shuntian Prefecture government office.

After entering, Zhu Shiguo first had tea served, then dismissed his attendants before asking:
"Your Highness, has something happened to you?"

Tu Chengyu nodded and said, "I have indeed encountered some minor troubles and would like your help to resolve them."

Then, he told Zhu Shiguo everything about the theft of his jewelry that day, and finally asked Zijuan, the person involved, to tell him some details.

Only then did Zhu Shiguo realize that a prince of the imperial family had been robbed by petty thieves right in the capital.

Theft by petty thieves is not a big deal and is not enough to warrant the intervention of the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture.

But because of Tu Chengyu's special status, this petty theft is about to become a major case.

Moreover, as the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, Zhu Shiguo was nominally in charge of the capital. Now that a prince's belongings had been stolen in his territory, it was not a good thing for him either.

So as soon as Tu Chengyu finished speaking, he immediately said, "Your Highness, rest assured, I will dispatch all my men and we will definitely help Your Highness find the jewelry."

Tu Chengyu knew that given his status and the circumstances surrounding this incident, the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture could not possibly ignore it.

Tu Chengyu then said, "I trust Lord Zhu to handle things properly. However, this piece of jewelry is of great importance, so I would like to ask Lord Zhu to have his men in the underworld take extra care of it."

Zhu Shiguo immediately said, "Please rest assured, Your Highness. This incident is a slap in the face to Shuntian Prefecture. Without Your Highness's orders, all the dentists and constables will do their best."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu said, "That's good. I will wait here for Lord Zhu's good news."

(End of this chapter)