Dream of the Red Chamber: From a Border Ruffian to a Capital Tyrant

Night fell as dark as ink, pressing down heavily. In the stillness of the night, only the howling of the cold wind could be heard. Under the cold moonlight, Jia Lang's secluded courtyard appeared particularly lonely and desolate.

Before dinner, Jia Lang specially ordered his personal guards to prepare several jars of strong liquor.

According to military law, drinking alcohol is strictly prohibited when facing a formidable enemy. However, Jia Lang was filled with resentment and wanted to use the strong liquor to quell the anger in his heart.

This ancient cloudy wine, though not as potent as modern spirits, still has a lingering aftertaste, and its taste is sharp as a knife. The turbid liquid sloshes in the jar, reflecting the dim yellow light.

After the meal, Jia Lang picked up a wine jar with one hand, broke the mud seal, and strode towards the courtyard gate.

Just as his hand was about to touch the mottled, old wooden door, a series of hurried and heavy footsteps came from behind him, accompanied by that distinctive, gruff voice:

"General, it's so late, are you still going out?"

Jia Lang paused slightly and turned around to see Li Tiedan, his bodyguard with a simple and honest face.

A barely perceptible wry smile appeared on his face, then he said calmly:

"I feel so stifled, I'm going to the city wall to get some fresh air."

Li Tiedan's thick eyebrows furrowed tightly as his gaze swept back and forth between the wine jar in Jia Lang's hand and that slightly weathered face. In the end, he couldn't help himself:

"General, are you... still grieving over the loss of those ten brothers?"

In fact, Li Tiedan sensed something was wrong the moment Jia Lang ordered the wine to be prepared.

Our general has always been as resolute as iron; when have we ever seen him drown his sorrows in alcohol?

Seeing him walking alone late at night, I could no longer suppress my worry.

Upon hearing this, Jia Lang stiffened almost imperceptibly, then shook his head nonchalantly and laughed loudly:

"Haha, life and death are nothing to me, I've long since taken them lightly, why would I be sad!"

"I'm going to meet the General. You're not allowed to come along; stay here and keep watch!"

Before he finished speaking, Jia Lang reached out and pushed open the courtyard gate with a creak. His back was stretched extremely long in the moonlight, exuding an indescribable sense of lonely courage and desolation.

Li Tiedan stood in the center of the courtyard, watching the figure gradually disappear into the darkness, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked, his eyes slightly red.

These past two days, the general appeared to be no different from usual, and even smiled to appease everyone. But as a fellow guard who had crawled out of piles of dead bodies, how could Li Tiedan not know?

The deaths of those ten guards were like a dull knife, slowly cutting into the general's heart!

After leaving the courtyard, Jia Lang did not hesitate and walked straight towards the city tower that resembled a giant beast.

He was certain that Jia Ren would not be sleeping soundly in the warm tent at a time like this.

A moment later, the majestic city gate came into view. The sentry on duty, seeing the newcomer dressed in civilian clothes yet exuding an air of authority, quickly raised his rifle in salute and lowered his voice to say:

"This humble general pays his respects to General Jia!"

Jia Lang nodded slightly, his gaze sharp as torches, fixed on the towering city wall:

"Is the General up there?"

The soldier looked up at the figure standing as upright as a pine tree and solemnly replied:

"Reporting to the General, the lord has been on the city walls since the afternoon and hasn't taken a single step, not even having dinner!"

Upon hearing this, Jia Lang was startled and said in a deep voice:

"Alright, thanks for your hard work, brothers."

Having said that, he lifted his battle robe and strode up the cold bluestone steps.

Upon reaching the city tower, the biting wind felt like a knife cutting into my face.

Jia Lang immediately spotted the cloak fluttering in the wind, and the towering figure beneath it.

Jia Ren was all alone, staring intently at the flickering lights of the Xiongnu camp outside the pass.

Jia Lang took a deep breath, strode forward, knelt on one knee, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said loudly:

"This humble general, Jia Lang, greets Your Excellency, Commander-in-Chief!"

Hearing the voice, Jia Ren turned around and saw Jia Lang. A hearty smile immediately appeared on his weathered face.

"Hehe, who do we have here? It's that rascal Lang-ge'er."

Jia Lang grinned, raised the wine jar in his hand high, and shook it in the air:

"Uncle, it's freezing cold. Would you like some food to warm yourself up?"

Jia Ren was taken aback for a moment, then burst into a deafening burst of maniacal laughter:

"Hahaha! You little rascal!"

"Drinking alcohol while on duty in the army will result in being flogged!"

Although he was scolding, his calloused hand shot out like lightning and snatched the wine jar.

Which soldier doesn't drink alcohol like water?

Which one of them wasn't raised in alcohol?

Jia Ren tilted his head back, not caring about the filthy rim of the jar, and gulped down several large mouthfuls of strong liquor. Then he slammed the jar against the parapet and roared:

"That feels great! That's fucking great!"

"General..."

Just as Jia Lang was about to speak, Jia Ren waved his hand, interrupting him, and stared intently at him:

"There are no outsiders here, and no superiors or subordinates. Call me Uncle."

Upon hearing this, Jia Lang felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

He took the wine jar, remained silent for a moment, and then took a big gulp. The spicy wine burned down his throat and into his stomach, stirring up a surge of heroic spirit within him.

He turned to look at Jia Ren, grinned, and revealed a set of white teeth:

"Uncle!"

Looking at Jia Lang's carefree yet somewhat affectionate demeanor, Jia Ren couldn't help but laugh and scold:

"You little monkey!"

"You're really not going to be polite with me!!"

"Ha ha ha ha..."

Laughter echoed across the empty city tower, dispelling some of the deathly silence.

Then, Jia Ren snatched back the wine jar and took another big gulp.

"Uncle, could you tell me about what happened at the Ningguo Mansion back then?"

Jia Lang leaned against the wall, facing the cold wind, and asked with a smile.

Jia Ren's hand holding the wine jar suddenly stopped, as if he had been instantly pulled back to the bustling capital city, his eyes becoming distant and complex.

"My lord..."

"He was a truly good person."

"If my master hadn't pulled me out of the pile of dead bodies back then, my bones would have turned to ashes long ago."

Mentioning Jia Daihua, Jia Ren sighed deeply, a hint of reverence flashing in his eyes, then took another sip of wine and continued:

"The patriarch is a master of martial arts; none of us guards could last more than three moves against him."

"But... as you know, this is the status of us warriors in the capital."

"Although the master is a first-class general, he also comes from a military background and dislikes those pretentious and pedantic articles."

At this point, Jia Ren turned and looked Jia Lang up and down, his eyes gleaming:

"Speaking of which, you've certainly inherited the master's true skills!"

"Whether it's his physique and frame, his decisive and ruthless personality, or even his quick wit, he's practically a carbon copy of the master in his youth! Even... surpassing his master!"

Upon hearing this, Jia Lang scratched his head sheepishly and chuckled.

"but..."

Jia Ren looked at Jia Lang, hesitated, and frowned slightly.

"Uncle, but what is it?"

Jia Lang pressed for an answer.

Jia Ren shook his head and sighed:

"When I was still working at the East Mansion, I often heard the master scolding the second young master."

"Sometimes they even had to resort to family discipline, and that was real beatings!"

"The Second Young Master?"

"Is Uncle referring to Second Uncle Jing?"

Jia Lang's heart stirred, and he tentatively asked.

"Um."

Jia Ren nodded, his expression wistful:

"Actually, the second young master is also a person with a tragic fate."

"If it weren't for the pressure from his master back then, forcing him to take the imperial examination route, how could the second young master have become so disheartened after his master's death that he resigned from his official post and went to a Taoist temple to become a Taoist priest?"

At this point, Jia Ren let out another long sigh and drank deeply from the jar.

"Uncle, are you saying that back then, Grandpa forced Uncle Jing to study, and would beat and scold him arbitrarily if he didn't do well in his studies?"

Jia Lang frowned; this seemed to contradict the history he knew.

"It's more than just beatings and verbal abuse!"

Jia Ren, his eyes blurry with drunkenness, lowered his voice:

"Sometimes we guards even wonder if the Second Young Master is really the master's biological son... His ruthlessness is like he's disciplining a servant..."

"Enough! Let's not dwell on things from the past!"

Jia Ren shook his head sharply, seemingly unwilling to say anything more, and Jia Lang wisely shut his mouth as well.

The two stood side by side, their gazes fixed on the dark pass beyond, letting the cold wind whip their faces.

........