The Second Master of the Red Chamber

But it was said that after Jia Lian left Weiyang Palace, with a calm expression, his mood finally became gloomy.

How could he not see that the reason why Princess Zhaoyang acted so rationally and calmly was because she had no choice but to make a choice.

As a man, as a man who is extremely confident and has rarely encountered setbacks since time travel, Jia Lian naturally cannot be satisfied with the situation where he cannot protect his wife and children.

"Master Marquis, Your Majesty has a decree to declare your presence at Yangxin Palace."

A group of eunuchs who seemed to have been waiting outside the west gate of Chonghua Palace saw Jia Lian approaching and hurriedly stepped forward and said.

Jia Lian nodded and glanced at the eunuchs.

Jia Lian has always maintained a habit of being cautious deep inside the palace. He has always felt it was very necessary.

As these eunuchs walked towards Daming Palace, when they were approaching Kunning Palace, they suddenly saw Yuan Chun coming from the other side.

Seeing his appearance heading straight towards him, Jia Lian stood there and waited.

"Sister."

Jia Lian bowed slightly and took the lead in greetings.

Such an informal and intimate address made Yuanchun, who was walking in a hurry, feel like he had returned to the boudoir era, when the younger brothers and sisters in the house were chasing after him and calling him.

Seeing that Jia Lian's mood was stable, she also put aside her anxious mood, glanced at the eunuchs behind Jia Lian, and asked: "I heard that my second brother just knelt down in front of the Chonghua Palace to see the Supreme Emperor. I don't know what happened?"

"A little private matter is not worth worrying about, eldest sister."

Yuan Chun's beautiful eyes moved slightly, knowing that Jia Lian didn't want to break up with her.

However, today, the news that Jia Lian and Princess Zhaoyang were kneeling in front of Chonghua Palace to ask for an audience with the Supreme Emperor has spread throughout the palace. Correspondingly, the story about Jia Lian and Princess Zhaoyang also spread.

Yuanchun has no reason not to know.

Taking a closer look at Jia Lian, Yuan Chun sighed: "The eldest princess Zhaoyang is beautiful, intelligent and open-minded. She is the best princess in our dynasty. If she can form a good relationship with her second brother, she will be favored by the gods.

However, the second brother should also know that good things come to an end. In everything you do, you should assess the situation and do not push too hard or be impatient.

It should be noted that second brother, you no longer only represent yourself, but are responsible for the rise and fall of the family, and the expectations of the elders. I hope that second brother will put the family and future first, and the rest will take care of it. "

When Yuanchun was talking, he kept looking at Jia Lian, and Jia Lian looked at her.

Seeing that her bright and flawless face was full of concern and consolation, Jia Lian smiled and replied: "Thank you, eldest sister, for your teaching, I understand.

The younger brother understands what the eldest sister means. Don't worry, in all these years, when has my little brother ever disappointed me? "

Yuan Chun was originally worried because he knew that Jia Lian was punished by the Supreme Emperor's decree, and he was also worried that Jia Lian would continue to anger the Supreme Emperor because of his stubbornness. Therefore, she inquired about Jia Lian's whereabouts and came to see the situation. If she found that Jia Lian was in something wrong, she would try her best to comfort and relieve him.

Now that I heard what Jia Lian said, when the stone fell in my heart, I couldn't help but feel a little sorry for my cousin.

She knew that Princess Zhaoyang was pregnant with Jia Lian's heir, and the current situation was probably unsafe.

Yuanchun knew how big a blow such a thing would be to a man. In particular, she also knew that Jia Lian had only one daughter so far and no son to carry on the family line.

"In this case, I have nothing more to say. I just want to say one thing. If my second brother feels bored, he might as well think more about his elders and relatives in the family, and think more about Feng Yatou and Lin Yatou. They are all immortals with first-class character. I love you so much..."

Yuanchun didn't seem to be good at comforting people, and he seemed to be speechless.

Jia Lian didn't care and said with a smile: "Thank you, eldest sister, for your comfort. I know it. I have to go to see His Majesty. I can't delay, so I'm going to leave first. I'll go to Fengzao Palace to see you another day."

Yuan Chun nodded and watched Jia Lian salute and turn around, with his tall and elegant figure walking away. Only then did Yuan Chun retract his gaze, sighed secretly, and walked towards Kunning Palace.

The concubines in the harem are mostly lonely and boring on weekdays. So it is a comforting thing to have sisters who come to visit us often, even if they just talk to us briefly.

Moving around frequently is also the simplest and most effective behavior for concubines to cultivate feelings and friendship.

……

In the Yangxin Hall, Emperor Ningkang took his feet out of the steaming golden basin, placed them on a low stool with a handkerchief next to him, and allowed the eunuchs to wipe him and put on his shoes and socks.

"I already know about the Chonghua Palace matter. Since the Supreme Emperor does not allow you two to get married, let this matter be dropped.

Humph, you don’t have to put on that sad face.

This matter was originally your fault, but now that the Supreme Emperor has made such a decision, it cannot be considered as wronging you. "

As Jia Lian and others expected, Emperor Ning Kang had no intention of opposing the Supreme Emperor on this "little matter", and as soon as he saw Jia Lian, he set the tone of the argument and gave Jia Lian no room to speak.

Moreover, when he saw Jia Lian being depressed, he scolded him mercilessly.

"I have warned you a long time ago that a man should not be limited to the love of his children. Don't forget the Haikou you once boasted in front of me.

Apart from anything else, half a year has passed. I wonder how your firearms camp is doing. When will you dare to pull it out and let me see the results? "

When Emperor Ningkang was reprimanding him, Jia Lian kept his face gloomy and stood with his head bowed in bitterness and hatred.

It wasn't that he was dissatisfied with Emperor Ning Kang's reprimand, but that his personality in front of Emperor Ning Kang had always been based on courage and bloodiness.

If this happened, his expression would be too calm and inconsistent with his previous persona in front of Emperor Ning Kang.

He didn't want Emperor Ning Kang to think that he was too thoughtful.

As for Emperor Ning Kang's attitude, it was within his expectations. The most taboo thing for a king is not having a city.

Jia Lian did not believe that Emperor Ningkang was really on the side of the Supreme Emperor. As an emperor, whether he can keep his word can be said to be the most important thing.

He had just agreed to the marriage between himself and his daughter, but then he had his father deny it. It is impossible not to be slapped in the face.

Maybe, when he scolded himself with a straight face at this time, he felt that he had lost face in front of him and wanted to establish his authority by scolding him. Moreover, he didn't know why Emperor Ning Kang wanted to soak his feet so early in the morning. However, a king should respect his dignity, especially in front of his ministers.

But now Emperor Ningkang broadcast such a private matter as soaking his feet to him live, which shows that he really treats him as a confidant.

Ordinary ministers would definitely not be treated like this!
Although Jia Lian didn't like to see an old man soaking his feet, the world was like this and this was a grace.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured that with the support of Your Majesty and the imperial court, the musketeers and artillery corps under the Chen Firearms Battalion have long been established, and all members have completed qualified training.

Although some equipment is not yet perfect, such as the three types of artillery that Chen selected to equip, the gap is still not small.

But I dare to guarantee that although there are only more than [-] people, as long as they are used properly, they can defeat the tens of thousands of troops in the Beijing camp!

Moreover, I have already planned to lead all the musketeers to conduct a month-long special training in a few days, and then the artillery troops will do the same.

Therefore, if the plan goes well, in three months, Your Majesty will be able to see a brand new army that is completely different from, and even more powerful than, all the arms of our Wei Dynasty! "

Jia Lian said with full confidence, but Emperor Ning Kang frowned slightly.

"Are you telling the truth?"

You must know that although the Beijing camp is not the strongest combat force in the capital, because among the troops in the capital, the ones with the best equipment and the best treatment can always only be the imperial guards in the imperial city.

This is the army directly controlled by the emperor. No, or it should be said to be the army controlled by the Supreme Emperor.

But despite this, the combat power of the Beijing camp cannot be underestimated. After all, the name hangs there.

Jia Lian said that a mere few thousand troops in the Huoqi Camp could defeat tens of thousands of troops in the Beijing camp, which made him think that Jia Lian was bragging.

But is Jia Lian bragging?
maybe.

But anyone who knows the history of hundreds of British soldiers holding immature muskets, beating tens of thousands of Qing soldiers back and running away, will not think that Jia Lian is bragging.

Moreover, with the birth of firearms such as Zhenyuan cannons and flintlock guns that were far more powerful and efficient than before, Jia Lian truly felt that in the face of such hot weapons, flesh and blood had no courage or possibility to resist.

To put it ten thousand steps back, even the currently short-formed firearms battalion cannot face the most elite army of the Wei Dynasty, one against ten.

But Emperor Ning Kang couldn't really use the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers to verify it, so even if he boasted, he wouldn't be slapped in the face.

As for martial artists, whoever is more powerful in peacetime depends on who can boast better.

It is real to deceive attention and resources into your hands and make yourself stronger. There is no shame in bragging.

"I don't dare to deceive Your Majesty. If Your Majesty doesn't believe it, you can let me try it out with the Beijing camp. Then you will know that what I said is true."

Emperor Ningkang was speechless.

He had seen the power of the Zhenyuan Cannon, and that guy had no intention of trying it. One hit from the cannon would definitely kill a lot of people.

Even if he is the emperor, he will not joke with the lives of the soldiers in the Beijing camp.

But seeing Jia Lian so confident, his mind became active. He understood the principle of having more soldiers than having too many troops. Otherwise, he would not have placed the firearms camp in the imperial city specifically in the first place.

Because, it can be said that Jia Lian's firearms camp was established one by one with his support, and it belongs entirely to his power.

"In that case, I'm waiting to see your results."

"By the way, you said there are still some shortcomings in artillery?"

"Your Majesty, the main reason is that the firearms battalion was newly established. Even if I recruit skilled craftsmen, the productivity will not be able to meet the needs of the entire army for a while. In the past few months, only various new artillery including Zhenyuan artillery have been manufactured. A total of Nearly a hundred gates. Three hundred gates away, still missing more than half."

Emperor Ningkang said: "In this case, there are many craftsmen who know firearms in the Shenji Camp. I have authorized you to recruit them temporarily. If it is not enough, the Ministry of Industry can also participate."

The Ministry of Industry is the department with the strongest manufacturing capabilities in the entire Wei Dynasty.

There are all kinds of craftsmen recorded in the book. Naturally, there are not a few craftsmen and arsenals who can make ordnance.

Emperor Ningkang said this, which shows that he also wanted to see the appearance of a fully-organized firearms camp.

Faced with Emperor Ningkang's kindness, Jia Lian said: "It's just Shenji Camp. If it is the Ministry of Works, even if it wants to participate, Wei Chen secretly thinks that there should be a plan.

Your Majesty, although these new firearms are not yet mature, they are after all carefully developed by the skilled craftsmen of our country, Wei, and they are sharp weapons for our country.

The Ministry of Industry has a complex staff, and among them there may be insiders from other countries.

Just like the Tatars and Oaras, although they are not good at using heavy weapons, they will not be able to learn that we, the Wei Dynasty, have powerful weapons and will imitate them. If the two armies confront each other, it will be troublesome.

Therefore, I feel that it is feasible to ask the Ministry of Industry to help forge some fine steel, or to separately manufacture some parts of the Zhenyuan Cannon. It is not appropriate to report all the secrets to the Ministry of Industry.

At least I feel that heavy weapons such as the Zhenyuan Cannon should remain mysterious for now, so that they can deal the heaviest blow to the enemy at the critical moment. "

In fact, Jia Lian didn't really think confidentiality was so important. In this era, the contempt for firearms is too serious.

And there is no way anyone can create such a thing if they want to. Therefore, even if it is made public, it will have little impact on Wei. After all, in terms of military strength, the Wei Dynasty, which does not rely on firearms, is unmatched by dozens of small countries around it.

Jia Lian just didn't want the things he worked so hard to create to be known to everyone so quickly.

After the incident involving the Supreme Emperor, Jia Lian understood more and more that no one could have smooth sailing all the time, and accidents could happen at any time.

In this era when the firearms revolution initiated by him was just emerging, his importance has not yet reached the point of being irreplaceable.

If everyone in the Wei Dynasty could make or use the Zhenyuan Cannon, then he, the Marquis of Zhenyuan, might not be so important in Emperor Ningkang's heart.

Emperor Ning Kang did not doubt that Jia Lian had such a plan. He felt that what Jia Lian said was very reasonable, so he nodded and let Jia Lian come up with a suitable plan and finally report it to him.

... (end of this chapter)