The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 297 Rescue of Disaster Victims
Tu Chengyu didn't respond immediately after hearing his uncle's words. After thinking for a while, he said:

"Uncle, I don't want to go to the Western Hills Palace."

Chen Chongli was arranging for someone to take over Wanhe and the others when he heard this, he turned to Tu Chengyu and said:
"Then where do you want to go?"

Tu Chengyu said, "Uncle, I want to go with you to suppress the rebels."

"Suppress the rebels?" Chen Chongli looked surprised. "Suppressing the rebels is so dangerous, why would you want to go?"

Tu Chengyu said, "Uncle, I just want to see what a battlefield is like."

“That won’t do,” Chen Chongli shook his head and said, “What’s so interesting about the battlefield? You should hurry back to the palace, or His Majesty will be angry if he finds out.”

After several battles today, Tu Chengyu's desire for the battlefield grew stronger and stronger; he had no intention of hiding on the sidelines and watching.

So he kept pestering Chen Chongli, saying:
"Uncle, I'm in a hurry to go and see. If you don't take me with you, I'll go and see by myself after you leave."

Hearing Tu Chengyu's words, Chen Chongli looked helpless. He frowned as he looked at his nephew and said:

"Brother Yu, you can't be reckless on the battlefield. You should go back obediently."

Tu Chengyu had finally seized such an opportunity, so how could he let it go?

So he stood there without saying a word, just quietly watching his uncle Chen Chongli.

When Chen Chongli saw Tu Chengyu's expression, he knew that his nephew was trying to cling to him.

He wanted to ignore him and just leave.

But then I thought, what if I just left like this?

Knowing my nephew's personality, he might sneak over there himself after I leave.

If that's really the case, then it's even more dangerous.

So Chen Chongli thought it over and decided to bring him to his side, so that at least he could be guaranteed not to run around.

So he shouted at Tu Chengyu:
"Brother Yu, since you want to see what the battlefield is like, then come with me."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu immediately became happy.

However, he did not go after him immediately, but instead prepared to send Lao Yao away first.

Old Yao was injured while saving Tu Chengyu. Although it was not life-threatening, it was not suitable for him to travel long distances.

Therefore, Tu Chengyu wanted to send him to the imperial palace for recuperation.

Upon hearing this, Lao Yao immediately became anxious.

As Tu Chengyu's most capable bodyguard, he has followed Tu Chengyu since Tu Chengyu first left the palace and has never left him.

He was naturally unwilling to leave now that he was being asked to.

Seeing him like this, Tu Chengyu was naturally very happy, but he couldn't let it delay Lao Yao's treatment.

So, after much persuasion and pleading, he finally forced Lao Yao to stay, and only then did he reluctantly take a few people to the Xishan Palace.

After he left, Lao Song temporarily took over Tu Chengyu's security duties.

Old Song is older than Old Yao and is very reliable, so Tu Chengyu is quite at ease with him temporarily taking over Old Yao's work.

After making the arrangements here, Tu Chengyu led his men to catch up with his uncle.

As for the prisoners, they were naturally taken in by the men brought by my uncle.

As one of the two main generals in the encirclement of the rebels, the eldest uncle was naturally very busy.

So after Tu Chengyu arrived with his men, he gave them a few instructions and then led them back.

On the way back, the eldest uncle kept Tu Chengyu by his side at all times, reminding Tu Chengyu of things to be careful about as they walked.

Although Tu Chengyu was eager to experience the atmosphere of the battlefield immediately, he knew very well that the battlefield was not a place for recklessness.

So he listened obediently to his uncle's repeated instructions.

They hadn't gone far when the scout that the eldest uncle had sent ahead returned and reported a situation.
"General, there is a group of disaster victims on the main road ahead, heading this way."

Upon hearing about the large group of disaster victims, Chen Chongli became cautious and quickly asked:
"Did you see clearly how many disaster victims there were, and what weapons they had?"

The scout replied, "General, the number of disaster victims is unclear at the moment, but there are probably one or two thousand. Most of them are unarmed, with only a few carrying wooden sticks or iron bars."

Upon hearing that there were no weapons, Chen Chongli immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

He said, "Let's go see what's going on."

Although Chen Chongli's side had less than two hundred people in total.

However, his men were all fully armed cavalry.

Therefore, he was not afraid of these unarmed disaster victims at all.

They weren't too far from the disaster victims, so they quickly reached them.

When Chen Chongli arrived with his men, he spotted the refugees in the distance. He found a relatively high slope nearby and led all his cavalry to stand on it, looking down at the approaching refugees. The refugees could also see the cavalry on the slope, so they didn't get too close and stopped at a distance.

After both sides stopped, they were both on guard, and for a moment neither side made a move.

During this process, Tu Chengyu kept looking at one of the disaster victims, and the more he looked at him, the more he felt that he looked like Jia Lian.

Jia Lian was sent by Tu Chengyu to lead people to burn bricks and dig soil, and he had so many disaster victims under his command.

However, what Tu Chengyu couldn't understand was, if he really was Jia Lian, then why would he bring the disaster victims here?

The distance was a bit far, and there were people blocking the way, so Tu Chengyu couldn't determine Jia Lian's identity for the time being.

He thought about it and decided to send someone over to ask.

So he said to his eldest uncle beside him:
“Uncle, I saw what appears to be one of my men in the group of disaster victims across the way, so I’d like to send someone to confirm it.”

Upon hearing this, the eldest uncle asked, puzzled:

"How did your men end up among the disaster victims?"

Tu Chengyu explained, "This person was sent by me to lead the disaster victims to work, so it's normal that he has so many disaster victims around him."

After listening to Tu Chengyu's words, Chen Chongli frowned and thought for a moment before saying:
"Yu-ge'er, the person you're talking about, could it be Jia Lian from the Rongguo Mansion?"

Upon hearing Chen Chongli's words, Tu Chengyu immediately nodded and said:
"Uncle, is this really him? You know him too?"

Chen Chongli said, "Since we're dealing with the rebels in the west, how could your uncle not know the situation here, especially the brick factory where so many disaster victims live? But why did Jia Lian bring the disaster victims here?"

Tu Chengyu shook his head and said, "I don't know either. Let's ask first."

Chen Chongli nodded and said, "We'll do it your way."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu said to Old Song:

"Go to the disaster victims now and see if that person in front is Jia Lian. If he is, bring him here."

Old Song responded and spurred his horse to gallop away.

Tu Chengyu stood on the high ground and watched as Lao Song walked to the front of the disaster victims, then watched him talk to one of the victims, and finally, a person walked out from the middle in front of the disaster victims.

Tu Chengyu squinted and realized that it was Jia Lian.

Jia Lian emerged from among the disaster victims, exchanged a few more words with Lao Song, and then followed Lao Song over.

When he reached the slope, he saw Tu Chengyu riding on horseback.

He bowed with a happy expression, and then asked with concern:

"My lord, are you okay?"

Tu Chengyu also said with a smile:
"I am fine. But you, why didn't you let the disaster victims stay at the brick factory? Why did you bring them here?"

Jia Lian explained, "Your Highness, this is a long story."

"Tell me slowly." The story of the disaster victims from a few days ago needs to be explained clearly.

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian pondered for a moment and said:

"Your Highness, this is what happened. Just over an hour ago, someone from Eunuch Xuan's side came to convey your orders, instructing me to secure the brickyard and prevent any trouble. I was about to gather the disaster victims together for easier monitoring when, unexpectedly, several people suddenly started causing trouble among them. Remembering Your Highness's instructions, I immediately sent men to detain them. After questioning them briefly, I learned from them that they were planning to assassinate Your Highness down the mountain. I am very worried about Your Highness, which is why I brought men here to investigate."

These words made Tu Chengyu feel very comfortable, but he pointed to the disaster victims not far away, with a wry smile, and said:

"You came, so why did you bring so many disaster victims?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian said with a helpless expression:

"Upon hearing this, I actually didn't want to bring them along, but the news of my interrogation of those people reached the ears of the disaster victims. They were furious when they heard that someone was planning an assassination and insisted on coming with me to protect the prince. These people are usually very obedient, but they are completely disobedient in this matter. In the end, I had no choice but to bring them along."

These words greatly pleased Tu Chengyu.

The disaster victims were so worried about Tu Chengyu's safety that they came to protect him in person.

They must be very clear about what Tu Chengyu did for them and how Tu Chengyu helped them.

So when they heard that Tu Chengyu was in danger, they all rushed over with a heart full of gratitude.

Thinking about all this, Tu Chengyu said with a smile:
“They are thoughtful. But as you can see, I am not in danger. You should take them back.”

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian looked at Tu Chengyu with a troubled expression and said:
"Your Highness, given the current situation, they probably won't believe what I'm about to say."

After listening and thinking about it, Tu Chengyu realized that Jia Lian's words made sense.

These disaster victims came here to save me, but now that they haven't seen me in person, they're probably unwilling to turn back just because Jia Lian said something.

In the current situation, the most effective way to get them to obey and return is to send troops to drive them back, but Tu Chengyu will not do that.

Besides this, the best way would naturally be for Tu Chengyu to show himself in front of them and let them see that Prince Su is safe, only then would they allow him to go back.

(End of this chapter)