The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 52 A Small Temple in the Mountains, a Powerful Demonic Wind

Su Xuanbao, a junior officer from the Imperial Horse Administration, hadn't returned from searching for someone when a commotion suddenly erupted from the east courtyard. A junior officer from the Imperial Horse Administration came running from the east courtyard, breathless, saying:
"Your Highness, over there, in that courtyard, there's a cellar where many children are imprisoned."

Tu Chengyu had long anticipated these scumbags who liked to cause trouble in the shadows, so he wasn't surprised at all when he heard that they were imprisoning children in the cellar.

But since he was just a child, he felt he deserved more care, so he said, "Then let's get him out of there quickly."

The soldier replied, "Your Highness, the squad leader is already on the rescue, but there are other matters that he cannot make the decision on his own, so he sent me to ask Your Highness for instructions."

Tu Chengyu asked, "Is there anything you can't decide?"

The soldier replied, "Your Highness, the squad leader discovered during the inspection that two of these children have been castrated. The squad leader would like to ask Your Highness what to do."

"What? He was castrated?" Tu Chengyu was so shocked by the news that he stood up abruptly.

The soldier replied, "Yes, Your Highness."

Logically speaking, it's normal for someone who has secretly declared himself emperor to have a few eunuchs at his beck and call, so why is Tu Chengyu so surprised?

This brings us to the regulations governing eunuchs in the Qing Dynasty. Starting from the reign of Emperor Taizu, the imperial family had rules that the palace would not accept people from outside who had undergone castration without authorization, and it was also forbidden for ordinary people to undergo castration without authorization. Once discovered, both the person who performed the castration and the person who underwent it would be severely punished.

From then on, the practice of castration in private among the common people basically disappeared, and the art of castration gradually vanished from the common people, becoming unique to the imperial palace.

Therefore, once it is discovered that a castration has occurred outside the palace, it usually involves the palace itself.

Now, castrated children have been found here, and this place is so close to the capital, it's hard not to suspect that palace eunuchs were involved in this matter.

If that's the case, who knows what other problems might arise.

Tu Chengyu knew the seriousness of the matter, so he quickly ordered the people next to him: "Everyone stop what you are doing, everyone go out and check all the men here to see if there are any castrated people here."

After the order was relayed, Tu Chengyu said to the soldiers of the Imperial Horse Administration, "Lead the way, I'm going to see these children."

The soldier bowed in response, then stepped aside and led the way.

Tu Chengyu led Lao Yao and the others to the east courtyard. As soon as they entered the courtyard, they saw a dozen or so children standing in the middle of the courtyard, both boys and girls, who all looked younger than Tu Chengyu.

Such a young child must have been abducted from somewhere else.

The Imperial Horse Stable crew saw Tu Chengyu approaching and immediately came forward to pay their respects.

"This humble servant, Jin Liu, commander of the outer camp of the Imperial Horse Guard, greets Your Highness."

Tu Chengyu waved for him to stand up and asked, "Have all the children in the cellar been rescued?"

Kim Liu replied, "There are still four or five who haven't been saved."

Tu Chengyu asked in a low voice, "Which two children were castrated?"

Kim Liu replied, "The two standing alone to the side."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu looked over and immediately noticed. The two children seemed to be isolated, keeping a few steps away from all the other children, and their expressions were also completely different.

Although the other children looked frightened, they would still steal glances at the people around them from time to time. Only the two isolated children kept their heads down and did not care about the situation around them at all.

Tu Chengyu couldn't help but sigh and said, "Jin Liu, send someone to deliver those two children to your inner camp and have them keep a close eye on them."

The Imperial Horse Stable was divided into two camps: the outer camp consisted of soldiers who were conscripted through normal means, while the inner camp was composed of eunuchs from the palace.

If Tu Chengyu had sent the two children to the eunuchs in the inner camp, at least they wouldn't be left feeling so lost and helpless.

Jin Liu accepted the order and withdrew to make arrangements.

Not long after, both of Tu Chengyu's previous instructions received a response.

First, Su Xuanbao, a junior officer from the Imperial Horse Administration, came with a middle-aged scholar and a rather pretty girl.

After exchanging greetings, Su Xuanbao said, "Your Highness, this is the rebel's confidant, who is said to have been appointed by the rebels as the Grand Chancellor and Father-in-Law of the Emperor."

Tu Chengyu wanted to roll his eyes when he heard it; what a terrible name.

Upon hearing that the child before him was a prince, the scholar opposite him was so frightened that he knelt down and cried out, "This humble subject, Quan Wenwei, pays his respects to Your Highness."

The girl next to the middle-aged scholar also quickly knelt down to pay her respects.

Since he was a confidant of the rebels, he must know some things. Tu Chengyu was about to ask the middle-aged scholar a few questions when he saw several more people from the Imperial Horse Administration walking over, carrying a corpse behind them.

The leader of the group was a eunuch. Upon seeing Tu Chengyu, he bowed and said, "This servant is Wu Chun, the steward of the Imperial Horse Stables, greetings, Your Highness." After Wu Chun finished his greetings, Tu Chengyu pointed to the corpse behind him and asked, "Who is this?"

Wu Chun replied, "Your Highness, this is the person you instructed me to find who has undergone castration."

"There really is such a person, and now he's a corpse," Tu Chengyu asked. "Is it possible to identify him?"

Wu Chun said, "Your Highness, this person's face is disfigured, making it difficult for me to ascertain their identity. Perhaps the coroner will be able to discern something upon arrival."

Given the situation, Tu Chengyu had nothing more to ask. He said to Wu Chun, "Then carry it away and wait for the coroner to come and examine it."

Wu Chun accepted the order and left. Tu Chengyu then turned his gaze back to the middle-aged scholar and asked, "Are you a confidant of the rebel Gao Chonghe?"

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged scholar Quan Wenwei quickly shook his head and said, "I am not a confidant of the rebels. I was captured by them and brought here. I have no choice but to obey them."

Tu Chengyu remained noncommittal about his words and asked, "I don't care whether you were captured or did it voluntarily. I only ask you how much you know about what's going on here."

Quan Wenwei replied, "Your Highness, this humble subject knows a little."

Tu Chengyu said, "Good to know. I ask you, are you aware that someone came up from the foot of the mountain to deliver a message early this morning?"

Quan Wenwei replied, "This humble subject knows. When the messenger arrived, the rebel's sons summoned me to discuss how to deal with the situation."

Tu Chengyu asked, "Did you see what the messenger looked like?"

Quan Wenwei said, "Your Highness, I did not see him. By the time I arrived, he had already disappeared. Then, the rebels had some infighting, and I hid elsewhere. Later, Your Highness's men found me."

This guy managed to distance himself from everything in just a few words, refusing to get involved in anything.

Tu Chengyu simply couldn't believe that someone who had been appointed prime minister by the rebels would know nothing.
He asked, "Do you know why the rebel's sons are fighting amongst themselves at this time?"

Quan Wenwei opened his mouth to answer without even thinking, but Tu Chengyu snorted and said, "You'd better think carefully before you answer."

Upon hearing this, Quan Wenwei quietly lowered his head, pondering how to respond. He had initially thought he could fool the prince in charge, who was just a child, but now it seemed this prince was not so easily fooled.

He thought for a moment and said, "Your Highness, the infighting among them was instigated by me."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu couldn't help but scrutinize the man for a few moments. To be able to incite brothers to turn against each other at that time, this guy was no ordinary person.

Tu Chengyu asked him, "Why did you instigate them to fight amongst themselves?"

Quan Wenwei replied: "The second son of the rebel wanted to take me away and help him join the outlaws in the mountains. I was unwilling, so in order to escape, I had to sow discord between them and try to take advantage of the chaos to flee from here."

Tu Chengyu asked, "How did you instigate their infighting?"

Quan Wenwei replied, "Your Highness, I merely told the second son of the rebel that the rebel possessed a seal containing a key, and that this key was the key to a treasure hidden outside the mountains; whoever obtained the key would gain endless wealth. Then, I told him that the seal had been stolen by the eldest son. After that, I didn't have to do anything; they would naturally start fighting."

Tu Chengyu felt that this Quan Wenwei was yet another fake scholar who didn't properly study Confucian classics or follow the path of sages. He wondered where he had read some miscellaneous books and become a strategist like Jia Jing, who enjoyed manipulating people's hearts.

Tu Chengyu now feels somewhat resistant to such people.

Despite some resistance, the question persisted. Tu Chengyu said, "I suspect you said the same thing to the other sons of the rebel."

Quan Wenwei said awkwardly, "Your Highness is wise and saw through my tricks at a glance."

Tu Chengyu said, "What's so brilliant about it? You're just using these same tricks to exploit people's greed and achieve your goal of manipulating them."

Quan Wenwei didn't know why the prince's tone had suddenly become unfriendly, and he dared not speak, trembling with fear.

Tu Chengyu asked, "Since this seal can make them believe your lies, it must be something extraordinary."

Quan Wenwei replied, “Your Highness is wise. This seal is indeed extraordinary. It is a token used by the rebel Gao Chonghe to communicate with nobles in the capital. There are two copies of this seal, each engraved with a pattern that matches the other. Every time a noble from the capital sends someone to contact the rebels, the messenger will carry a piece of paper stamped with the seal's pattern. Upon arrival, the rebels will verify the seal's pattern. Only if it matches perfectly will the rebels believe the messenger.”

It turns out it was used to contact people behind the scenes in the capital, so this seal has become important evidence. Who knows, we might meet its other half someday.

Tu Chengyu asked, "Do you know the whereabouts of this seal?"

Quan Wenwei replied, "Your Highness, this humble subject is unaware. This item is usually kept by the rebel himself, and it is difficult for others to know its whereabouts."

Another clueless lead; Tu Chengyu felt this place was eerie. Just as they discovered a possible palace eunuch's involvement, they found that the eunuch was dead and disfigured.

I just learned that there is a seal that can contact the people behind the scenes in the capital, but I don't know where it is.

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(End of this chapter)