The Second Master of the Red Chamber

Chapter 581 Slandering the Holy Bow
Leading the Fourth Prince and the others around the Shenji Camp for half a circle, it was already noon.

"I'm dazzled by these things, I'm hungry, let's go, let's go eat."

The fourth prince proposed to go out to eat together, Jia Lian wanted to decline politely, but the fourth prince squinted at him, "Why, we came all the way from the imperial city to look for you, you don't give me any face?"

Jia Lian had no choice but to explain what was in hand, and only brought a few personal guards out with the fourth prince.

I thought I could just find a random place, but who knows...

"It won't work here, the place is too small and the house is too dilapidated."

"Here? Not here either, the decoration is too bright and has no mood at all."

"here……"

Riding around from the north city to the west city, the fourth prince rejected five or six places to eat proposed by Zhang Su and Jia Lian, but he didn't know what kind of place he wanted to find for this meal.

Suddenly, at the end of the road in front of you, a three-story building with a magnificent gold and jade splendor pops into view.

It is exquisitely decorated and elegant in style, and there are three big characters "Jinpin Pavilion" written on the gate tower.

"Hey, it's not bad here, let's just go here..."

Zhang Tao didn't say much along the way, he just followed Jia Lian and the other three as a follower, feeling bored, he was touching the short musket case he had placed behind the horse's buttocks with his backhand, imagining where he should practice after taking it back As for marksmanship, after the ammunition and medicine are exhausted, how should I ask Jia Lian for supplements and so on.

Hearing the fourth prince's voice suddenly, he looked up, his face was filled with embarrassment, and his emotions were inexplicable.

His grandfather had issued an order since they were ten years old that his brothers were not allowed to go shopping in brothels, because the old man wanted them to practice martial arts, so naturally they had to build up their bodies, and they couldn't be allowed to indulge in wine and sex.

Now that the eldest cousin has taken the post with the uncle, and the second elder brother Zhang Su has also made a name for himself, the grandfather doesn't care about the second elder brother, and puts all the pressure on him.

Before, I heard those brothers brag about how seductive the women in the brothel are, they are so different from the good ones... He really wanted to go in and have a look!

Zhang Su naturally saw the place in front of him at a glance, and said with some embarrassment: "Your Highness, this place is not suitable..."

Although grandpa doesn't care much about him now, but as the fourth prince's companion, if the emperor knew that he led the fourth prince to the brothel, he would feel creepy just thinking about it.

"What's wrong? Can't you eat here?"

"Uh, you can eat if you eat..."

"That's right, the environment here is so good, it's here!"

It seems that the fourth prince has made up his mind to take a fancy to this place, and has no intention of listening to opinions at all.

In order not to mobilize the crowd, he ordered the guards who had fallen behind to not allow them to approach and reveal their identities, and then took the lead and rushed to the Jinpin Pavilion.

"Hey, how many grandpas, you should listen to the music while eating..."

Seeing that the fourth prince had been welcomed into the building by the kiln sister with extremely high eyesight, Zhang Su and Jia Lian looked at each other, but they could only shake their heads helplessly, and led the secretly excited Zhang Tao inside.

As far as Zhang Tao is concerned, there is the cover of the fourth prince, and Jia Lian and the second brother are standing in the middle. Even if his grandfather finds out in the end, these people above will resist. The stick will not fall on him, the subordinate, right?

"Of course, what you said is correct, sir, I have a lot of money! Hurry up and get the good wine and food here, and serve the masters well, and you will be rewarded."

"Oh, sir, I really only want good wine and good food, so good girl, do you want it?"

"Uh……"

As soon as he entered the hall, he saw the fourth prince who was in a hurry at the beginning and looked embarrassed and at a loss under the attack of the two kiln sisters.

Jia Lian asked Zhang Su with a smile, "Is this the first time he's been to this kind of place?"

Zhang Su thought about it, and explained: "At least since I became His Highness's companion, this is the first time I saw His Highness come to this kind of place with my own eyes."

Jia Lian believed what Zhang Su said, because the appearance of the fourth prince pretending to be an old prostitute was full of flaws, which was seen through by the ladies of the Yingbin Kiln at a glance.

Thinking about the strict discipline of the royal family's children, now that the fourth prince has a big heart, it is not uncommon for him to want to come to this kind of place for recreation.It's just that maybe because of his relationship with his sister, he always has the urge to discipline this kid.

After all, Jia Lian didn't really do that.

There were also some women who saw that Jia Lian and Zhang Su were both good-looking talents and wanted to come forward to strike up a conversation, but Zhang Su and Jia Lian took a look at them, and then retreated tactfully.

"Hey, what are you doing standing there stupidly? What do you want to eat and drink today, just open your mouth, Ben...Young Master treats you!"

The fourth prince, who had finally gotten rid of the girl's entanglement, rushed to Jia Lian and the other three, pretending to be calm.

At this moment, the bustard finally saw these big clients, and ran forward to greet them.Seeing that the matter has come to this point, Zhang Su just wanted to finish his meal as soon as possible and take the fourth prince away, so he waved his hand and said to the old bustard: "I want the best private room, serve the best food and drinks, as soon as possible."

"Okay sir... There is one in the private room of Tianzihao on the third floor~~"

After the bustard got his order, he was going to make arrangements. Zhang Su and others also escorted the fourth prince to go upstairs.But he didn't know what the fourth prince was thinking, and suddenly turned around and called out to the old bustard: "Don't forget the girl you arranged, ask for more, there are four of us!"

In a word, the three of Jia Lian had a meal together, and Zhang Su almost slipped on the stairs, and then hurriedly covered his face for fear of being recognized.

Other people upstairs and downstairs, no matter the client or the kiln sister, looked over with strange eyes as Zhang Su and others expected.

In the end, it was the old bustard who reacted quickly, and immediately smiled and said, "Master Dele, I promise to give you the most and best girls, hehehe."

The fourth prince entered the private room covering his face, he felt that the boy leading the way was laughing at him.

"Grandfathers, have a sip of tea first, the food and drinks, and the girls, will be here soon..."

After the little boy bowed to others, he bowed and closed the door to go out. The fourth prince felt less embarrassed, looked up at Jia Lian and the three, laughed and said, "Well, you can do whatever you want today, don't be polite to me."

Zhang Suxin said, why should we be polite to you? With your voice, the whole building knows what the four of us are here for.

If his former classmates and teachers knew about this, he would almost lose face in Shilin.

Seeing that Jia Lian and others were silent, the fourth prince stroked his beardless chin, feeling a little embarrassed, but didn't say anything else, and sat down to drink tea by himself.

There was nothing to say for a while, and after the silence fell, I suddenly heard faint voices coming from the next door.

Jia Lian and the others didn't think anything of it at first. In this kind of place, there are other people drinking and having fun, and it's normal to talk loudly after drinking.

But the Fourth Prince's ears were sharp, and he could hear the voice of one of them with one ear. He was stunned, and then he slapped the table and stood up, "Okay, it's really a narrow road to Yuanjia, and a bedbug came out of eating, and you can meet it here He is so unlucky!"

Jia Lian and Zhang Su could also hear it. The loudest and clearest voice was clearly that Prince Duan's son who was almost beaten to death by Jia Lian, Wei Xian'er in the fourth prince's mouth.

The fourth prince didn't know if he had any new grievances with him. In short, the fourth prince seemed to want to look for trouble in the past.

Jia Lian didn't care much, as long as Prince Duan didn't come to provoke him, he didn't want to antagonize the clan.But their side was very quiet, and their voices didn't seem to be restrained, so as more and more voices came, Jia Lian's brows became more and more frowned.

……

Jinpin Pavilion Tianzi No. [-] box welcomes a group of distinguished guests today.

More than ten clan disciples gathered here to drink and sit and talk, and among them was the son of Prince Duan who the fourth prince disliked very much.

Of course, the dignified prince does not seem to be the main character here.The real protagonist, it seems, should be another white-faced young master sitting with Wei Xian.

"Brother Yan, you can't just sit idly by and ignore this important matter that concerns our entire clan."

"Ah, what can I do about this... such a big event..."

"You can't help it. You are the son of Prince Zhongshun! Prince Zhongshun has been in charge of the clan's mansion for so many years. He has won many benefits for the people of our clan and is loved by all of us. Everyone says that old Prince Su is getting old. , Ignore the matter, and when the old man retires, won't Prince Zhongshun have the final say on the entire clan mansion?
As his parent-child, you will definitely be the eldest son in the future, and then inherit the throne and the position of the clan's order.At that time, you will also be like your father, shouldering the burden of our entire clan.At this critical moment, how can you shrink back and ignore the fact that someone is plotting against my clan? "

It turned out that the person invited by Wei Xian and others today is Wei Yan, the second son of the Zhongshun Palace.

As the younger brother of the current emperor's mother and compatriots, King Zhongshun is deeply trusted by the emperor. He has been serving as the deputy head of the clan's mansion, taking care of everything about the clan and honors for Emperor Ningkang.Some people even said that if Prince Su was not the emperor's uncle with high morals, or Emperor Ningkang was very respectful and could not bear to be persecuted, then King Zhongshun would have long been a veritable clan mansion.

The Zong Ling of the Clan Mansion is one of the few real first-class ones, comparable to the elders of the cabinet, and is usually held by the famous prince of the clan!

"Everyone, don't talk nonsense, the son of the palace has always been my eldest brother, and I am just a nobody..."

"Fart, what qualifications does your elder brother who has no talent, no virtue and looks like a sick child have the qualifications to be the son of the Zhongshun Palace? Anyone with a discerning eye would not know that the position of the son in the future will definitely belong to you, Brother Yan, our brother... no , not only our brothers, but also the elders of our families, all support you to be the heir. After all, the Zhongshun Palace is different from other families. We will not allow a sick person to manage the affairs of the clan in the future...

However, although we support you because you are superior and capable than your eldest brother, you must let all of us see that your determination to contribute to the entire clan will make us all believe and trust you more is. "

After a brief silence, Wei Yan asked, "What do you want me to do?"

"It's very simple, you go back and persuade your father more, let him speak to His Majesty, and abolish the new tax law of the court.

Brother An, you don’t know how much the new tax law targets and insults our clan!It is said that each mansion will be exempted from a certain amount of land tax according to the rank of the title. If each family exceeds it, it will all be taxed according to the unified tax law, and it will be taxed like ordinary people and aristocratic families!
Think about it, each of our royal residences, if it is normal, which one does not have a farm and land of hundreds of thousands of mu under its name?What is the amount that the imperial court agreed to exempt?
What is even more infuriating is that a prince's mansion can only exempt 20 mu of land tax, and the county king only has 15 mu of land tax.However, as a courtier, the residence of a mere Duke of the State, whose salary is ten times lower than that of my clan's prince, can follow the example of my clan's Duke of Zhenguo, exempting land tax of [-] mu, which is only twice the difference from my clan's prince's residence. This is not for my clan's prince. What is the contempt for?
According to me, His Majesty is really stupid to agree to such a ridiculous tax law. "

"You can't blame His Majesty entirely, this is all a conspiracy by those ministers, the purpose is to break up and suppress my clan..."

"However, I heard that the new tax law is exactly what His Majesty strongly advocates, so those ministers with foresight and foresight dare not come out to oppose it.

In my opinion, if things go on like this, the world will be chaotic sooner or later.Your Majesty doesn't even think about it, let the meritorious officials of the clan and relatives, everyone feel in danger, everyone is dissatisfied, wouldn't the country and society be in danger?

Alas, at this time, it would be great if the Supreme Emperor could come out and say something, this court situation will definitely not be as chaotic as it is now..."

……

"It's unreasonable, these Zhuzi are so brave, they dare to arrange my father like this!"

In the elegant room where Jia Lian and the others lived, the fourth prince was already furious, and he was about to go over to have a friendly exchange with these unfilial children.

"Your Highness can't, these people are drunk, and His Highness may go there alone, maybe they will suffer."

"So what, do you just sit here and listen to them talking and slandering my father?"

Seeing that Zhang Su had nothing to say, the Fourth Prince was going to call his bodyguards to arrest these people and bring them to the Daming Palace for punishment.

"Your Highness, please calm down. Your Highness didn't bring many people with him on this trip. When they come out, they must bring more people than His Highness. If there is a conflict, His Highness may be hurt."

"Fart, they dare to touch a hair on me!"

The fourth prince was really angry, and pointed at Zhang Su's nose and cursed in a rare way.Zhang Su was not angry either, and winked with the fourth prince.

Only then did the fourth prince come to his senses, and looked at Jia Lian who was sitting beside him drinking tea.

How could Jia Lian not understand the meaning of the two of them, and smiled bitterly in his heart, yes, it was another hard job to offend others.

However, if the fourth prince really asked, he really couldn't refuse.

First, as a courtier, if you hear someone slandering your father and remain indifferent, it is disloyal.

Second, as the commander of the Xicheng Army and Horse Division, his duty is to maintain law and order in Xicheng.If these people were allowed to engage in this kind of "illegal assembly" under his jurisdiction, he, the law enforcer, would not have to do it at all, and Emperor Ningkang would probably be disappointed.

Thirdly, from a reasonable point of view, he also felt that these people were a little out of touch, not to mention that the fourth prince was so angry. If he didn't do anything, the fourth prince might think of him too.

The fourth prince didn't know Jia Lian's thoughts, seeing Jia Lian being stared at by them, he didn't express his opinion, and asked with some dissatisfaction: "Jia Lian, father trusts you so much, tell me, what should we do about this matter?!"

Jia Lian finally put down his teacup, waved his sleeves and stood up, and replied: "Your Highness, you want me to send troops to arrest these dudes, and wait for His Majesty to deal with you?"

"That's natural! They slandered my father and slandered me like this, can't they be punished?"

"Punishment is definitely possible, and I can promise His Royal Highness to arrest them all. However, I also need a verbal promise from His Royal Highness."

"What time is it, you still...then tell me!"

Jia Lian cupped his hands and explained in a calm manner: "Although I am the commander of the army and horses, I have the responsibility of arresting robbers and criminals. But at most, I am no more than an ordinary child of a prince or minister's family.

As long as there is a title on the body, the minister has no right to arrest, let alone the children of the clan.These people are all under the jurisdiction of the Clan Mansion, if they are arrested without the consent of His Majesty and the Clan Mansion, the humble minister will not be able to escape the responsibility. "

Jia Lian said, seeing that the fourth prince was a little anxious, he laughed again: "However, these people are bold and reckless, slandering the Holy Father, everyone can punish them.

Naturally, Weichen would not let them go.However, in order to prevent them from biting me back in the future, I want His Highness to agree that if His Majesty asks about it, His Highness will testify for me.After all, I can't get any other evidence against them, so I can only rely on His Highness's testimony. "

Jia Lian was also in a dilemma. Once this matter was done, he would naturally be able to create a good impression of his loyal guardian in front of Emperor Ningkang.But the disadvantages are also obvious, that is to offend the clan all at once again!
After hearing Jia Lian's words, the fourth prince gradually realized that compared with Jia Lian, he was really inferior.

The so-called false hearing means that they have no other evidence of crime. As long as the other party refuses to admit it afterwards, what can Jia Lian do with them?If it's not done well, they might be bitten back by them and the forces behind them, as Jia Lian feared.

"Okay, I promise you. Don't worry, although I usually make many mistakes, I never lie. My father still trusts my words. As long as I testify for you, they promise that they will not be able to escape the crime, let alone turn black and white! "

Jia Lian bowed his hands and saluted, then summoned his entourage to dispatch troops to the army.

(End of this chapter)