The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 222 Impeached Every Few Days

When Jia Lian saw that all the constables' eyes were on him and his companion, he knew that his years-long plan had worked.

However, in order for Xiao Er to escape successfully, he decided to add fuel to the fire.

So he also shouted along with Geng Chunchen:
"Where did I slander you? We were just at the old courtyard in the south of the city. We haven't even searched the last courtyard yet, and you're already saying someone died inside?"

"If you didn't know the situation, how could you be so sure those two petty thieves were dead?"

Hearing this, Geng Chunchen became even more anxious, and he quickly said:

"I was just saying it casually at the time. How could I have ordered someone to do it? Besides, you were there at the time. It's hard to say who killed them."

The original plan was for the two of them to act out a play, but who could have predicted that Jia Lian would immediately label someone, forcing Geng Chunchen to make up stories as well.

However, Jia Lian completely ignored what Geng Chunchen was saying; his attention remained focused on Xiao Er.

When he realized he had attracted the attention of the constables, Xiao Er quietly left.

He then said to Geng Chunchen with satisfaction, "There's no point in us arguing about these things. Let's just leave it to the people of Shuntian Prefecture to investigate."

Geng Chunchen was just about to have a serious talk with Jia Lian when he didn't expect the other party to stop talking so quickly, which almost hurt his back.

Fortunately, the men he was about to send out had already slipped away, so he didn't bother arguing with Jia Lian and strolled leisurely to the front to join his own group.

Their inexplicable argument left those who didn't know the situation completely bewildered.

The escorting constables, in particular, thought the two men were going to cause trouble.

Later, seeing that they had stopped arguing on their own, he didn't pay too much attention and continued leading his people toward Shuntian Prefecture.

Jia Lian and his group's antics quickly attracted the attention of various families in the capital.

However, it had no impact on Tu Chengyu's return to the palace.

He still followed his habit of going to bed early and waking up early, and slept soundly.

When he returned to the palace yesterday afternoon, he had originally planned to follow Quan Wenwei's suggestion and go to the Emperor to complain.

However, as time went by and it got a bit late, he couldn't wander around the palace. In addition, the emperor had criticized him for instructing the Shuntian Prefecture officials to look for things during the day.

If he were to step forward at that moment, he would surely get a good scolding.

So in the end, he didn't go to the emperor, but planned to wait a few more days until the emperor calmed down before going.

He planned to stay quietly in the palace for the next few days, except to draw attention to Lin Daiyu's jewelry.

But fate wouldn't let him stay put. After he had breakfast, before he could even send someone to inquire about the jewelry, Xiao Xuanzi brought Tu Chengyu some bad news.

As Tu Chengyu's personal eunuch, Xiao Xuanzi followed Tu Chengyu after Tu Chengyu came to the palace.

He naturally knew that Tu Chengyu paid close attention to news outside the palace, so he had gotten into the habit of sending people to inquire about news outside the palace every day.

By now, he can find out almost any news from outside the palace.

Sure enough, this morning someone sent Tu Chengyu something that would ruin his mood.

"Your Highness, I heard that yesterday evening, Young Master Jia Lian led a group of people to the South City to help Miss Lin find her jewelry. They were taken to the yamen by the Shuntian Prefecture officials and have not been released yet."

Upon hearing this news, Tu Chengyu was stunned. He could barely understand why the Jia family would send people to help Lin Daiyu find her jewelry, but to have it captured by the Shuntian Prefecture was simply unacceptable.

So he asked in confusion, "Why are the people from Shuntian Prefecture arresting the Jia family?"

Xiao Xuanzi said, "I've also found out about this. It seems that the two petty thieves who stole Miss Lin's jewelry died when Young Master Jia went to search. Since a murder case occurred, the people of Shuntian Prefecture detained Young Master Jia and the servants of the Jia family."

So that's what happened. Then it's not entirely unjust that Jia Lian was taken away, since he was there at the time.

However, none of this concerned Tu Chengyu; he only wanted to know the whereabouts of the jewelry.

"Now that the thief has been found, can Miss Lin's jewelry be found as well?"

Xiao Xuanzi said, "The two petty thieves did have a package with them, but a judge from Shuntian Prefecture said that these were all evidence and could not be shown to just anyone, so no one knows whether the jewelry was inside or not."

"Not letting people see?" The Shuntian Prefecture is quite particular about how it does things.

However, this makes it impossible to confirm whether the jewelry has been found, nor can it remove the people searching for the jewelry.

What if the jewelry isn't in the package, and everyone has withdrawn their personnel? Wouldn't that be creating an opportunity for the person who ends up with the jewelry to escape?

Tu Chengyu believed that the people of Shuntian Prefecture wouldn't be so foolish, unless they didn't care about the consequences of deceiving their prince.

Thinking of this, Tu Chengyu suddenly asked Xiao Xuanzi, "Have you found out if Shuntian Prefecture sent people out to look for jewelry today?"

Xiao Xuanzi immediately replied, "I have indeed inquired about this matter. Since returning last night, Shuntian Prefecture has not sent out any more people. Not only have they not sent anyone, they have also not released the constables from Daxing County."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu couldn't help but laugh.

The Shuntian Prefecture really does things in a very particular way.

They prevented people from seeing the contents of the packages, while simultaneously recalling all those looking for the jewelry.

Isn't this blatantly telling Tu Chengyu that the jewelry is with them?

Now Tu Chengyu can finally relax. He said to Xiao Xuanzi:

"Send someone out to the Jia family in a moment and tell Miss Lin that the item has been found and that it will be delivered to her in a few days. Tell her not to worry."

“Yes, Your Highness,” Xiao Xuanzi bowed and replied. Then he said, “Your Highness, there are other things involved in what happened last night that I would like to report.”

It's just finding a piece of jewelry, why is there so much entanglement? However, Tu Chengyu also knows that Xiao Xuanzi is a person who knows what's important. Since he wants to report, then there is a need to report.

So Tu Chengyu said, "What is it? Just say it."

Xiao Xuanzi said, "Last night, when Young Master Jia led his men over, they got into a fight. The other leader was Geng Chunchen from the Marquis of Ce Changping's mansion. According to him, he was sent by the Crown Prince to help the Prince find something."

"The Crown Prince sent people to help me find something? Was it Geng Chunchen leading the team? And they even ended up fighting with Jia Lian?" This series of events left Tu Chengyu speechless.

Tu Chengyu never expected that a simple matter of finding jewelry would lead to so many troubles.

However, since the deed had already been done, Tu Chengyu could do nothing about it. He could only think about going to the Crown Prince later and bringing the matter up.

Tu Chengyu said, "Alright, I understand. Is there anything else you want to say?"

Xiao Xuanzi said, "Your Highness, there is one more thing. The Jia family sent someone to report that if the Shuntian Prefecture makes things difficult for Jia Lian, the Jia family would like to ask Your Highness to help Jia Lian."

Tu Chengyu was speechless after hearing this. Given the Jia family's influence in the capital, as long as Jia Lian didn't commit a major mistake, the Shuntian Prefecture couldn't do anything about him.

If Jia Lian makes a serious mistake, Tu Chengyu's intervention will be of no use.

Therefore, the Jia family's request was completely unnecessary.

But now they've done just that, which isn't because the Jia family is stupid.

On the contrary, this is their cleverness. They asked Tu Chengyu to do something that would be easy for them. It seemed like they were asking Tu Chengyu for help, but in reality, they were trying to get closer to each other.

So Tu Chengyu said to Xiao Xuanzi, "Okay, send someone to tell the Jia family that I will go to Shuntian Prefecture to make arrangements."

Once this was finished, Xiao Xuanzi's report was complete, and he was just about to take his leave when he heard Tu Chengyu suddenly ask again:
"How did you know about the Jia family's request?"

Xiao Xuanzi, like Tu Chengyu, has been in the palace since last night. He inquires about information from those who entered the palace this morning. So how did he get the information about the Jia family?

Upon hearing Tu Chengyu's question, Xiao Xuanzi quickly replied:
"Your Highness, this was brought in by someone specially sent by the Jia family. Even the previous news was obtained by the Jia family and sent in."

Tu Chengyu remarked on how well-informed Xiao Xuanzi was today, explaining that it was thanks to the Jia family. With Jia Lian having personally experienced it, it was no wonder he was so well-informed.

Having learned of the situation, Tu Chengyu waved his hand, instructing Xiao Xuanzi to go and handle the matter.

After Xiao Xuanzi left, Tu Chengyu returned to his study and began to work on his own affairs.

But he hadn't been fiddling with it for long when he heard that Xiao Xuanzi had returned and was requesting an audience outside the study.

After he came in, Tu Chengyu asked:
"Why are you back so early? Have you finished what I asked you to do?"

Xiao Xuanzi said, "Your Highness, I just arranged for someone to do what you asked me to do. I came back to tell you that His Majesty has summoned you for an audience."

"Father summoned me?" Tu Chengyu quickly stood up and said, "Where did Father send someone?"

Xiao Xuanzi said, "The people His Majesty sent are waiting outside the courtyard. Your Highness, please change your clothes quickly, we cannot keep His Majesty waiting."

This was usually the time when the emperor held court or dealt with state affairs.

During this period, the emperor summoned Tu Chengyu, which was mainly related to court affairs, so Tu Chengyu had to deal with it carefully.

So, after hearing what Xiao Xuanzi said, Tu Chengyu quickly left the study and went to the back to change his clothes.

During the walk, Tu Chengyu asked Xiao Xuanzi, "Have you asked why Father Emperor suddenly summoned me?"

Xiao Xuanzi shook her head and said, "This servant tried, but he didn't say anything, only that the Emperor summoned him and that the Prince should hurry up."

It seems the person who came here is tight-lipped.

Tu Chengyu always handles situations where he is unaware of the facts with caution.

So he dared not delay any longer, ran back to the backyard in a few steps, changed into his court clothes, and then ran out of the courtyard to find the eunuch who was delivering the imperial edict.

The person who came to Tu Chengyu this time was a young eunuch. Tu Chengyu had only seen him a few times in front of the emperor, but they had never spoken or interacted. No wonder the eunuch did not reveal any information.

When the young eunuch saw Tu Chengyu come out, he quickly came over to convey the emperor's decree, then turned around and walked to the side of the road to lead the way for Tu Chengyu.

After leaving the West Palace, Tu Chengyu saw that the little eunuch was heading towards Fengtian Gate, and knew that the Emperor had summoned him in the court.

So this matter is most likely related to the imperial court, and it might even be related to the matter of me asking Shuntian Prefecture to send people to look for something yesterday.

As Tu Chengyu detoured around the area, he saw the dense crowd of ministers and the emperor sitting upright on the golden platform, and knew that his guess was correct.

When Tu Chengyu arrived, the Emperor naturally saw him. So, before the young eunuch leading the way could even announce his arrival, the Emperor beckoned Tu Chengyu to come closer and then said:

"Today in court, an imperial censor impeached you, accusing you of abusing your status as a prince, using public office for private gain, and coercing the officials of Shuntian Prefecture to find things for yourself. What do you have to say about this?"

Sure enough, it was this matter, and it was done by those well-fed censors again.

"Your Majesty, there may be a misunderstanding in this matter." Tu Chengyu replied to the Emperor while secretly glancing around to see who had reported him.

Before Tu Chengyu could finish his sentence, he saw a figure standing outside the ranks of court officials.

When Tu Chengyu saw his face clearly, he realized that this person was actually Shen Weiyan, the head of the censors.

Tu Chengyu couldn't help but feel a little angry. Such a trivial matter could have been handled by a mere imperial censor reporting it, so why did Shen Weiyan have to be involved? No wonder the emperor summoned him during court.

Moreover, isn't Shen Weiyan known as the least strict among the censors? Why is he being strict with himself, a prince, now?

Perhaps it was because Tu Chengyu's gaze was too intense, or perhaps Shen Weiyan noticed Tu Chengyu's resentment.

Shen Weiyan, who was originally standing facing the emperor, suddenly turned his head to look at Tu Chengyu.

The two locked eyes. Tu Chengyu's eyes were filled with anger, while Shen Weiyan felt somewhat guilty.

When he saw Tu Chengyu staring at him, his old face turned red, and he immediately avoided Tu Chengyu's gaze and turned his head back.

The emperor, sitting on the high platform, naturally saw everything that was happening below.

He disliked seeing his son and ministers arguing in court, so he asked:

"You say there's a misunderstanding, then tell all the ministers what kind of misunderstanding it is."

Upon hearing the Emperor's words, Tu Chengyu turned his gaze away from Shen Weiyan and replied:
"Your Majesty, yesterday I was ordered by Your Majesty to go to Shuntian Prefecture to escort General Chengen back to his residence. On the way to Shuntian Prefecture, one of my belongings was stolen by two petty thieves on the street."

After arriving at Shuntian Prefecture, all the officials reported the matter to Lord Zhu of Shuntian Prefecture, who then sent men to the streets to arrest the two petty thieves.

"I was merely filing a normal report and did not request anything from the Shuntian Prefecture. Later, Lord Zhu sent his constables to the streets, and others may have misunderstood that I forced the Shuntian Prefecture constables to help me find my belongings."

Tu Chengyu explained the matter in a few words, but he reversed the order of events.

Tu Chengyu was not afraid of these censors, who could sense that he had reversed the order of events.

Because the Emperor personally arranged to send his second uncle home, as long as the Emperor and the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture did not say anything, no one else would know.

Sure enough, as soon as Tu Chengyu finished speaking, the emperor said something in favor of Tu Chengyu.

"I did send Prince Su to escort General Cheng'en home yesterday, but I don't know what happened in Shuntian Prefecture afterwards. Fortunately, Minister Zhu is also in court today, so let him come out and tell me what happened then."

When Shen Weiyan began impeaching him, Zhu Shiguo, the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, knew that he would inevitably have to answer this question today. So, before Tu Chengyu arrived, he had already thought about how to answer.

Now, upon hearing the Emperor's culture, he spoke from within:

"Your Majesty, what Prince Su said is true."

(End of this chapter)