Red Mansion: After being expelled from the family, I was granted the title of Marquis of Mobei

Chapter 50: Furious and nostalgic

The Ningyuan Marquisate is somewhat different from other founding fathers. The founding fathers all relied on military strategies to assist Emperor Taizu in establishing his rule in the Central Plains, and then established their own families.

But most of the descendants of the founding fathers have forgotten their family roots.

Taking the Ning and Rong mansions as an example, when the Jia family was founded, there were two dukes in the family, and there were so many students and old friends in the army.

The second generation of Duke Rong continued to serve in the army and continued the glory of the Rongguo Mansion.

But by the third generation of the Rongguo Mansion, no one was willing to join the army.

Why is this so? Of course it is because practicing martial arts is too hard. Being proficient in archery and horse riding is not just a matter of four simple words. It requires years of hard work and practice to achieve.

Moreover, to be an excellent general, one must be both civil and military. Not only must one be proficient in riding a horse, but one must also be proficient in military tactics and strategies.

However, none of the three generations of Jia She and Jia Zheng in the Rongguo Mansion were of this quality. Jia Zheng was okay, just with poor qualifications, but at least he was willing to work hard.

As for Jia She, he is a playboy who has been immersed in the pleasures of the world and only wants to enjoy himself.

As for the fourth generation of the Rongguo Mansion, what can I say? It’s better not to mention them. They are a bunch of good-for-nothings.

Jia Lian is a lustful man who has no knowledge of either civil or military strategy. However, he has some emotional intelligence in dealing with people, yet he is already the most outstanding person among the four generations of the Rongguo Mansion. This shows the extent of the lack of successors in the Rongguo Mansion.

On the other hand, the Gu family has been serving in the military for generations since the first Ningyuan Marquis. Many of their descendants died on the battlefield, and the military network of relationships has been inherited intact.

However, during the reign of the retired emperor, the previous generation of Ningyuan Marquis was involved in some disputes and was not favored by the retired emperor, so the Ningyuan Marquis's Mansion was somewhat marginalized.

But the Ningyuan Marquisate is still number one among the founding fathers, otherwise Jia Lian and Jia Rong would not have insisted on making trouble and getting Gu Tingwei involved in obstructing the reorganization of the Beijing camp.

The reason why Gu Yankai came to visit Jia Jue this time in such a humble manner was naturally because he wanted to find another way out for his family.

When the retired emperor was in power, the Ningyuan Marquisate was marginalized. Over the years, the Ningyuan Marquisate has been neither up nor down and its status is very embarrassing.

As the head of the Marquis's Mansion, Marquis Ningyuan naturally hopes to revive the family's reputation and lead the family to glory.

In the early days of Emperor Yongping's reign, he was alone in the court and could not support the country. At that time, Ningyuan Hou thought about getting closer to Emperor Yongping directly.

However, the influence of the founding fathers still remained, and many important officials in the court were old officials from the time of the retired emperor.

Ning Yuanhou was worried that if he defected, he would become cannon fodder in the struggle between the old and the new, so he kept watching.

Ever since the great victory of the Great Zhou in Mobei, Ning Yuanhou had made up his mind that he could no longer continue to muddle along with the founding fathers.

But Marquis Ningyuan could never find a good opportunity to express his loyalty to Emperor Yongping.

Now that Gu Tingwei was imprisoned in the imperial prison, Ningyuan Hou accidentally found a perfect reason to get closer to Emperor Yongping and Jia Jue.

Although this move would make Ningyuan Hou offend the Four Kings, Ningyuan Hou also knew that Gu Tingwei's involvement in the Beijing camp's affairs indirectly killed Jia Lian and Jia Rong.

The feud between the Ningyuan Marquis' Mansion and the Ning and Rong Mansions is difficult to resolve.

The Ning and Rong mansions are the vanguards of Prince Beijing. In terms of status, they are definitely higher than the Ningyuan Marquis Mansion in Prince Beijing's heart.

Since he would offend the Four Kings anyway, he might as well offend them thoroughly and directly surrender to Emperor Yongping. He could also win over a group of nobles to join him and weaken the power of the founding fathers.

Gu Yankai knew very well that as Emperor Yongping's prestige grew, it was only a matter of time before he would settle accounts with the founding fathers.

If I continue to wait and see, one day I might end up in trouble along with the Four Kings.

So Gu Yankai decisively went straight to Jia Jue to express his loyalty.

At this time, Jia Jue smiled slightly, glanced at Gu Yankai and said.

"Your Majesty will surely be pleased that Ningyuan Hou is so understanding and righteous."

"In that case, I'll have to trouble Ning Yuanhou to lobby for the nobles on this list who can be won over."

"Don't worry, Marquis Ningyuan. Your son is in prison. I will arrange for someone to take care of him."

"Once this matter is resolved, I will also present a report to Your Majesty."

After hearing this, Gu Yankai bowed deeply and said.

"Thank you for your support, my Lord. I am deeply grateful."

Jia Jue smiled and said.

"We are all loyal to the emperor and patriotic, and this is what we should do."

After the two of them exchanged a few polite words, Gu Yankai breathed a sigh of relief and then said with a smile.

"My Lord, since the matter has been settled, I will not bother you any more."

"After the matter of the child is settled, I will prepare a small banquet at the mansion. I hope Your Majesty will honor you with your presence."

"Easy to say, easy to say."

After ordering someone to send Gu Yankai away, Jia Jue leisurely drank a sip of tea.

At this time, Jia Jue finally understood what it meant that when the time comes, heaven and earth will work together for your benefit.

In the evening, Gu Yankai took the initiative to come to Emperor Yongping's house to help him with the tasks arranged by him in the afternoon.

The next step is probably a fight between the Ning and Rong mansions and the Ningyuan Marquis Mansion.

Jia Jue did not intend to intervene in this matter. If the Ningyuan Marquis Mansion could not even deal with the Ning and Rong Mansions, then they would be too useless and there would be no point in recruiting them.

In the blink of an eye, half a month had passed. During this half month, Jia Jue could be said to have sat back and watched the battle between the Ning and Rong mansions and the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion.

It has to be said that the Ning and Rong mansions were really ruthless this time. Seeing that everyone in the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion stayed indoors, the Ning and Rong mansions actually sent people to sneak into the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion to poison the Ningyuan Marquis's eldest son. If the Ningyuan Marquis's cook had not secretly eaten two bites in the kitchen and was directly poisoned to death, Ningyuan Marquis Gu Yankai would probably have had to see his son off to death.

The crazy actions of the Ning and Rong mansions further strengthened Gu Yankai's determination to turn to Emperor Yongping. If the Ningyuan Marquisate could gain the favor of Emperor Yongping, then even if the Ning and Rong mansions had ten times the courage, they would not dare to resort to such despicable tricks as direct poisoning.

Therefore, Gu Yankai became more concerned about inciting those nobles to turn to Emperor Yongping.

In just half a month, half of these twenty or thirty noble families were persuaded by Ningyuan Hou and directly chose to side with Emperor Yongping.

As for the remaining half, it is difficult for them to extricate themselves because they are too deeply bound to the Four Kings.

However, these dozen noble families could not bear to watch their children continue to stay in the imperial prison, so they all went to the residence of Prince Beijing to ask Prince Beijing to rescue their children.

After finally getting rid of these people, Prince Beijing sat in his study with a distressed look on his face.

During this period, the group of founding fathers suffered a heavy blow. First, the Jiangnan Salt Administration Case led by Jia Jue cut off the founding fathers' source of income.

Then Wang Ziteng stabbed him in the back, which directly led to the Beijing Camp, which had been controlled by the founding fathers for a hundred years, completely breaking away from the control of the Four Kings.

Now, Ningyuan Hou Gu Yankai directly persuaded more than a dozen nobles to break away from the founding fathers group and join Jia Jue's side.

All these things made Prince Beijing and others feel physically and mentally exhausted.

Just as Prince Beijing was feeling depressed, the palace steward Shui An knocked on the door and said something.

"Your Majesty, I have something to ask you."

After hearing Shui An's voice, Prince Beijing said with a slightly tired look.

"come in."

Then Shui An opened the door and walked in.

"I have met the prince."

Prince Beijing waved his hand and said.

"Tell me, what's wrong?"

Shui An hesitated for a moment and then spoke hesitantly.

"Your Highness, the person who went to deliver the invitation to the Marquis of Guanjun's mansion has returned."

Prince Beijing asked immediately.

"Well, what does Champion Hou say?"

Shui An said with a somewhat grim expression.

"Your Highness, the people at the Marquis of Guanjun's residence said that the Marquis of Guanjun is very busy with official duties and has no time to attend the banquet at the Marquis of Guanjun's residence. If Your Highness is in a hurry, you can go to the Marquis of Guanjun's residence to meet him."

"What a big tone he has! He even wants me to go to his house to meet him." The Prince of Beijing's face turned ashen with anger.

No matter what, he is still a prince, one of the four founding kings, and one of the leaders of the founding fathers.

Even though Jia Jue was at the peak of his career, he was only a marquis, far inferior to himself.

But he was so arrogant that he asked me to visit him at the Marquis' Mansion. It was really too much.

Seeing Prince Beijing's rage, Shui An was so scared that he knelt down.

After being annoyed for a while, Prince Beijing said helplessly.

"Well, go to the Marquis of Guanjun's mansion and send him a visiting card, and tell him that I will be visiting him tomorrow for a chat."

Shui An said after a moment of silence.

"Your Majesty, this, this is a bit too condescending."

Prince Beijing cursed angrily.

"Stop talking and get out."

Shui An broke out in a cold sweat after being scolded and hurriedly left the study.

Prince Beijing picked up the teacup on the table and smashed it.

This bastard, do you even need to ask me to lower myself here? I'm showing you off.

Although Prince Beijing felt aggrieved, he also knew that he had to go to the Marquis of Guanjun's Mansion.

Now there is no good way for him to get the title of Champion Marquis, and he must rescue the dozen or so children of noble families in the imperial prison.

Otherwise, once morale is low, it will be even harder to lead the team.

Right now, I am the one asking others to do something, and there is really no better way except to lower my posture.

In the afternoon, in the Qianqing Palace, Jia Jue was leisurely playing chess with Emperor Yongping.

Emperor Yongping said with a chuckle.

"Marquis Guanjun, you did a great job reorganizing the Beijing Camp this time."

"Now that most of the generals in the Beijing camp have been replaced, I can finally sleep peacefully."

"Tell me, what should I reward you with?"

Jia Jue said with a calm smile.

"Your Majesty, just give me a hundred or eighty thousand taels of gold. It's too much for me to spend."

"Ahem, ahem, you dare to say that, you even want a hundred thousand or eighty thousand taels of gold, and you come to me to make a wish."

"Five thousand taels at most, no more."

Jia Jue smiled and said.

"Five thousand taels will do, thank you, Your Majesty."

Emperor Yongping shook his head helplessly and said.

"Why do I feel like I gave you too much?"

Jia Jue smiled cunningly.

There is a skill to asking for things. You have to ask for an astronomical amount of money right away. Even if you cut it down a lot, the amount you get will still be considerable.

Then Jia Jue bowed and said.

"Your Majesty's words are golden, and you cannot deny them."

Emperor Yongping couldn't help but waved his hand and said.

"You bastard, it's just five thousand taels of gold. How can I still blame you for it?"

"But you're going to be married soon, so even if you have money, you should be frugal and manage your household wisely. Don't be like those nobles who only know how to squander their money."

After hearing this, Jia Jue looked at Emperor Yongping and said.

"It's alright, I still have His Majesty."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Yongping glared at Jia Jue and said.

"Good fellow, I asked you to do a job, and you plan to eat me for the rest of your life."

"If you do this, I won't dare to use you next time, otherwise all the things in my inner storehouse will be taken back home by you."

Jia Jue waved his hand and said.

"From what you said, Your Majesty, I am that kind of person."

Emperor Yongping smiled helplessly and said.

"Tell me, kid, who did you learn this shameless personality from?"

Jia Jue spread his hands and said.

"I have no choice. My parents died early, and I originally wanted to keep a low profile and live a life of seclusion, but people still coveted my property, and in the end, I was left with nothing."

"From then on, I understood a truth: in this world, true gentlemen only live in books."

"In the real world, there is no place for a gentleman."

Hearing this, Emperor Yongping seemed to have thought of something and said with emotion.

"It's not easy to live in peace with the world. Even if you are a beggar with nothing, there will always be other beggars coveting the food in your bowl."

"Alas, you must have suffered a lot to be able to say such things."

"Marquis Guanjun, do you know why I started chatting with you in Bailong Yufu when I went north to inspect the Zhenbei Army?"

Jia Jue shook his head and said.

"I don't know, Your Majesty, please tell me."

Emperor Yongping sighed and said.

"More than twenty years ago, when I was in the Qiandi Palace, I was an unappreciated prince."

"At that time, I also wanted to live a life of seclusion, often traveling incognito, wandering the streets."

"It was during that time that I met a woman. As a member of the royal family, I could not marry her at will, so I settled her in a villa on the outskirts of the city."

"That period was the happiest time in my life. I was free and with the one I loved. She was even pregnant with my first child."

"Unfortunately, I was later dragged into the struggle for the throne, and even that innocent woman was murdered."

"When I first saw you in the Zhenbei Army, I was shocked. You really look like her. If her and my child were still alive, they would probably be around your age."

After hearing this, Jia Jue couldn't help but frown.

"Your Majesty, are you making up stories to take advantage of me?"

Emperor Yongping was originally expressing his feelings, but after hearing what Jia Jue said, he was so angry that he glared at Jia Jue and said.

"Bah, you stinky boy, being my son is a blessing you've earned in eight lifetimes, and you're still acting like you've suffered a loss."

"I was also confused for a moment. Why am I telling you all this? It's like talking to a cow. Go away and go back to your house."

Jia Jue bowed and then left the Qianqing Palace.

In fact, according to the duties between the monarch and his subjects, any subject would be extremely grateful to hear Emperor Yongping say this.

But Jia Jue was a modern person who traveled through time. When someone told him that he looked like the other person's son, he felt uncomfortable from the bottom of his heart, so he spoke out to refute it.

Jia Jue could also see that Emperor Yongping was not really angry, but was just a little disappointed after his lyrical atmosphere was interrupted.

(End of this chapter)