The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 247 If you don't give it to me, take it yourself
Tu Chengyu had already planned to escalate the situation as much as possible, and seeing Ding Ke's defiant attitude, he directly said:
"What if we forcibly take them away!"

Although Ding Ke couldn't quite figure out Tu Chengyu's identity yet, he figured that anyone who came with Jia Lian was just a noble young master like Jia Lian, maybe just of a higher status.

He never even considered the possibility that it was a prince or nobleman, but because he didn't think of it, no one would have imagined that a prince of the current dynasty would come to a brothel, and so openly at that.

So he said, "Young master, although Chunfeng Pavilion is just a place for serving people, it is not a place where people can be bullied."

Our purchase of that girl was entirely legal and compliant; no matter what you try to retain, you can't take her away.

Upon hearing his words, Tu Chengyu couldn't help but smile.

“I like you very much, and I hope you can keep it up. However, the decision not to sell the children of disaster victims to brothels is a decision made by the court out of compassion for the people, and I hope you will abide by it.”

Ding Ke said, "We do business, so naturally we must abide by the regulations of the court. However, we have never heard of such a regulation. We hope that this young master will not speak recklessly in the name of the court."

This rule was just made by Tu Chengyu, so naturally they wouldn't know it.

Moreover, those like Ding Ke who were capable of running brothels would be informed of any relevant regulations issued by the court, not only after their promulgation but also before they were even issued.

Therefore, the fact that they haven't heard it means that the imperial court doesn't have such a regulation, which is why Ding might be so confident.

Regardless of his thoughts, Tu Chengyu said directly:

"It doesn't matter if you haven't heard of it, I'll tell you again now. The Crown Prince has ordered that refugees fleeing to the capital..."
Anyone involved in hiring or selling people must report to the imperial court and obtain permission before proceeding. Children of disaster victims must not be sold into brothels or other places of entertainment.

Did you hear me clearly now?

Tu Chengyu's tone was even more arrogant than when Jia Lian had spoken earlier.

Moreover, he deliberately brought up the title of the Crown Prince when he spoke.

This wasn't Tu Chengyu trying to make the Crown Prince take the blame; rather, he wanted to pin the credit on the Crown Prince.

Just imagine, when the officials in the court and the people in the capital heard that the Crown Prince was thinking of the disaster victims in this way, they would surely praise him.

Upon hearing the name of the Crown Prince, Ding Ke felt a surge of nervousness and quickly asked:
"Did the Crown Prince give this order?"

Tu Chengyu nodded: "It was indeed what the Crown Prince said."

Although the Crown Prince's words were not a direct order from the imperial court, they should not be taken lightly.

Thinking about this, Ding Ke felt a little hesitant.

He said cautiously, "But we only just heard the Crown Prince's order. We are unaware of what was happening, so we hope this young master will not take offense."

Tu Chengyu said, "As Young Master Jia just said, we are not here to blame anyone, but to take people away. As long as you release them, everything will be fine."

Having said that, Ding Ke stopped hesitating and directly ordered the people behind him to bring the person over.

Seeing this, Tu Chengyu felt a little regretful that he hadn't made a big fuss. However, as long as he rescued the person and then inadvertently revealed his identity while leaving, it would have the same effect.

So Tu Chengyu patiently sat in the pavilion and waited.

While waiting, Tu Chengyu did not forget to carefully observe the situation of Chunfeng Pavilion.

To be honest, ever since he came into this world, he has been curious about the brothels of ancient times.

Previously, due to his age and status, he had been in this world for more than ten years but had never come here once.

Now that he's finally got a chance, he's going to take a good look.

Unfortunately, I'm currently outside and can't see what's inside the building, which is quite a pity.

Just as Tu Chengyu was watching with great interest, the pimp who had been sent away earlier returned in a hurry.

However, he returned alone, without bringing anyone with him. Tu Chengyu was puzzled; could something have happened?
As soon as the man returned, he ran to Ding Ke's side, stood on tiptoe, and whispered a lot of things to Ding Ke.

Tu Chengyu clearly saw that as the whispers continued, Ding Ke's expression changed.

After the two of them finished speaking, Ding Ke said with a helpless expression:

"Young master and young master Jia, I may have to break my promise."

Something unexpected really did happen. Tu Chengyu didn't react, but Jia Lian was furious and pointed at the man, cursing:

"Kid, you're going to refuse a toast only to suffer the consequences, aren't you?"

Faced with Jia Lian's words, Ding Ke remained calm and said:
"It's not that I broke my promise on purpose, but the woman I just bought has already been taken by someone else. Our Chunfeng Pavilion is a business, and we can't just break our promise."

Those who run brothels, though they are in the business of selling smiles, rely on the women in their establishments as their pillars of support.

But if someone takes a fancy to a girl in the building and wants to redeem her, they won't stop them, unless she's the top courtesan.

They are even more willing to make several times their initial investment if they can buy something without investing a single penny.

This is exactly the situation Ding Ke is describing.

But Jia Lian didn't believe it and cursed:
"This person has only been here for less than half a day, and someone has already taken a liking to them? You're trying to fool a child."

“Young Master Jia, it is indeed such a coincidence that things happened. It’s not that I was unwilling.”

Hearing the two of them arguing back and forth, Tu Chengyu became a little impatient.

He didn't care whether Chunfeng Pavilion was just making excuses to avoid handing over the person or whether such a coincidence had really happened.

He went straight to the point: "Is the person still at your Chunfeng Pavilion?"

"The person is still alive, but they will be handed over to someone else today."

"It's good that the person is still alive. Go and bring him to me in perfect condition, and I might not hold you accountable."

Hearing such forceful and unreasonable words, Ding Ke suddenly felt a little uncertain.

He tried his best to explain, "Young master, Chunfeng Pavilion is a business, and there's no reason for us to do business at a loss."

Tu Chengyu replied, "Who cares whether you lose money or not? I am just following orders."

Ding Ke protested, "But we only just learned of the Crown Prince's order, and this matter was already discussed yesterday. Today's order cannot be related to what happened yesterday."

That makes sense, but if Tu Chengyu wanted to reason with them, he wouldn't have come here in person.

He said with a sneer, "I don't care whether it's today's order or yesterday's order. As long as it's the Crown Prince's order, it must be carried out without any ambiguity."

This looks like they're preparing to be unreasonable and just snatch people away.

Ding Ke suddenly became curious. Was this young master in front of him, whose face looked as tender as a teenager, fearless or simply ignorant of his own limitations?

However, thinking about what the servant had just said, Ding Ke felt more confident.

He bowed and said, "Young master, please forgive Chunfeng Pavilion for not being able to hand over the person."

Tu Chengyu was very satisfied with this situation, as it perfectly suited his desire to escalate the matter.

So he laughed and said, "Okay, very good, excellent. I like your guts. Since you don't want to hand over the person, then we'll do it ourselves."

After speaking, Tu Chengyu said to Jia Lian, "Call all our men in, let's prepare to make our move." Upon hearing this, Jia Lian didn't hesitate and immediately turned to go outside to call for reinforcements.

Upon seeing this, Ding Ke's expression turned panicked again.

He quickly said, "Young master, what are you trying to do? This is the capital city, how dare you act recklessly?"

Tu Chengyu: "Look carefully, I am acting under orders, not recklessly."

Ding Ke: "The imperial court's orders must be based on reason. I see that what you are doing is clearly using the imperial court's name to satisfy your own selfish desires. I will definitely go to Shuntian Prefecture to report you later."

Just then, Jia Lian came in with the dozen or so men who had been outside.

After they walked up behind Tu Chengyu, Tu Chengyu said to Ding Ke again:
"I'm giving you one last chance. Hand over the person now, or it will be too late to regret it once things get serious."

Ding Ke felt a little intimidated when she saw the group of burly men behind Tu Chengyu.

However, having come this far, he had no choice but to back down and grit his teeth and fight on.

Seeing his attitude, Tu Chengyu stopped talking and said to Jia Lian:
"Take your men and go inside to bring the person out for me. Anyone who dares to obstruct you will be killed without exception."

They might not necessarily kill him, but with Tu Chengyu's words, his men had fewer reservations.

While Tu Chengyu was mobilizing his subordinates, the people at Chunfeng Pavilion were also busy.

From the moment Jia Lian went out to bring people, the other people's men gradually refused to come over.

By this time, a considerable number of people had gathered behind Ding Ke.

Among these people, besides the pimps who served others, there were also some who looked like tough guards and thugs, and their numbers were definitely greater than Tu Chengyu's.

However, Tu Chengyu wasn't worried at all. When it comes to fighting, you can't just win because you have more people.

Tu Chengyu believed that his people were far superior to those thugs.

Although, due to the Emperor's decree, Quan Xu and Su Xuanbao's soldiers could not enter the city, some of those who came with them were servants of the Jia family.

However, the core of Tu Chengyu's forces consisted of his personal guards, including Lao Yao.

You should know that Lao Yao and his men came from the imperial palace; they were the emperor's personal guards. Beating up a few thugs and hooligans was a piece of cake for them.

Besides, everyone on Lao Yao's side is armed, unlike the other side, who at most carry a wooden stick.

Therefore, looking at the person opposite him, Tu Chengyu remained expressionless and said to Jia Lian:
"Let's do it."

After saying that, he also sent Lao Yao away, leaving only Xiao Xuanzi to keep him company.

At this point, Jia Lian and Lao Yao knew they had no choice but to take action.

Without saying a word, the two drew their swords and charged straight ahead.

The people on the other side were dumbfounded when they saw that a fight was really going to break out, and that the fight would start with knives.

This is quite different from what they usually encounter.

Isn't it normal to test each other first before a fight breaks out, and only go all out when provoked? How can you start by using a knife right away?

Therefore, the thugs and servants did not dare to make any rash moves and all kept their eyes on Ding Ke to see what to do next.

Seeing this situation, Ding Ke didn't know what to do. He could only stand there with a pale face, not daring to say a word.

Such a commotion in the courtyard naturally alerted the people inside the building.

As Tu Chengyu stood in the pavilion, he looked up and saw that the windows facing him were filled with onlookers.

Some of the bolder ones ran out of the building, wanting to see up close what was happening.

Just at this critical moment, a figure rushed out from the backyard of Chunfeng Pavilion.

The man ran while shouting, "Wait! Don't make a move!"

His shout caused both sides, who were about to take over, to hesitate.

Upon seeing this, the man shouted even louder.

After shouting three or four times, he ran to where Ding Ke was.

This is a person dressed the same as Ding Ke, and he looks like the manager of Chunfeng Pavilion.

The man ran up to him, panting, and said:

"We were blind and did not recognize Prince Su in person. Please forgive us, Your Highness. Please wait a moment, Your Highness. We will have someone bring the girl over immediately."

I don't know if this guy was still catching his breath or if he was doing it on purpose.

He shouted loudly when he revealed Tu Chengyu's identity.

This allowed the thugs around him, as well as the onlookers, to hear what he said.

The leaders all changed their expressions when they realized that the young man in front of them was Prince Su of the current dynasty.

The officials and scholars who had come out to watch the commotion covered their faces and turned to run back, fearing that Tu Chengyu, the Prince of Su, would see their faces. Those standing at the windows disappeared without a trace in an instant.

Those thugs who were about to stop Jia Lian turned pale upon hearing this and quickly threw away their sticks.

The most interesting one was Ding Ke, whose expression changed several times after hearing this.

It turned white for a while, then red, and finally so black it looked like it was dripping water.

He glared fiercely at the newly arrived manager, then said in a very fearful manner:

"I was blind and disrespectful to Your Highness. Please punish me."

Tu Chengyu looked thoughtfully at the newly arrived manager.

It's a bit suspicious that this guy is so loudly revealing his identity.

If Tu Chengyu hadn't had no intention of hiding his identity, it would have been quite troublesome if his identity had been exposed in front of everyone at the Chunfeng Pavilion, a brothel.

Now that he'd been exposed, Tu Chengyu stopped pretending and asked curiously:

How did you know my identity?

The newly arrived steward bowed and said, "I had the honor of meeting Your Highness once, which is why I recognized Your Highness's identity."

Tu Chengyu didn't believe a word he said.

If he knew me, why didn't he step forward sooner? Why did he wait until we were about to make a move to speak up?

This behavior basically confirms that this guy is up to no good.

(End of this chapter)