Jia Yujing of Red Mansion

Chapter 299 Family letters and rebels

Due to continuous heavy rain, water accumulation occurred in many places in Chang'an City.

If it were in previous years, Qinglongfang would have been flooded, and the water would have been enough to cover the thighs.

However, after the renovation, Qinglongfang no longer has this hidden danger. The erosion of rainwater has made the streets here neater and cleaner.

A gorgeous carriage drove past the clean granite slabs and directly entered the side gate of Chengmingyuan.

In the back flower hall, Wang Yuyan, Qin Keqing, Xu Weirui and Xue Baochai were sitting around playing cards and passing the boring time.

In the room next to her, Xinning was sleeping soundly amidst the patter of rain, with a smile on her lips and two shallow dimples on her face. She didn't know what kind of sweet dream she had.

Several maids, including Xing'er, Ruizhu, Xiangling, and Ying'er, were watching at the side. Some were reading and some were playing chess without making any sound.

At this time, a maid outside the hall reported: "Madam, Princess Mingyue is here."

As soon as she finished speaking, Mingyue had already arrived at the door.

She asked two maids to help her take off her raincoat and bamboo hat, and then entered the flower hall with a smile on her face.

She has been visiting Chengming Garden every now and then for the past six months, and she has become very friendly with Wang Yuyan and others, so everyone is not as formal as before.

"Princess, hello, sister-in-law..."

"Sister Wang, Sister Qin, Sister Xue, hello, Wei Rui, you're here too."

Xu Weirui smiled and said, "Yes, it rains every day. I was afraid that my sisters-in-law would be too bored at home, so I came over to stay with them."

Wang Yuyan and others looked at this quirky little girl impatiently. It was obvious that she was staying at home alone and ran over to play, but instead she said she was here to accompany them.

Wang Yuyan asked Mingyue: "It's raining so hard. How can you come here without fear of getting sick from the rain?"

Mingyue said nonchalantly: "It's okay, I'm wearing a raincoat."

Wang Yuyan, the four of them stood up and said hello to her, then sat down again and continued playing cards.

They all knew that Princess Mingyue must go to see Xin Ning first, because she always did so every time she came.

Sure enough, after saying hello, Mingyue's first question was: "Where is Xin Ning?"

Qin Keqing smiled and said: "She is taking a nap in the house. She has just fallen asleep after being noisy all morning. Don't wake her up."

Mingyue took out two letters from her sleeves, put them on the table and said: "This is from the military newspaper, one is written by my husband, and the other is written by my cousin from the Xu family.

The Ministry of War sent it to me, but I haven't opened it yet.

You guys are watching first, I'm going to check on Xin Ning, I haven't missed her in a few days. "

Wang Yuyan and others looked at the two letters on the table with surprise. This was the first letter they received after Jia Qiong went to sea.

The cover of Jia Qiong's letter says that all ladies have jointly opened it.

Xu Weirui was quick. She picked up Jia Qiong's letter, opened it and read it. Then she put the letter on the table, shook her head and said in disappointment, "Hey, this letter written by second brother is so boring."

Wang Yuyan reached out and tapped her forehead and said: "This is what your brother wrote to us. How can you read it? What if there is something written that you shouldn't read?"

Xu Weirui held her head and said, "Didn't it say on the envelope that my sisters-in-law should read it together? Is there anything I shouldn't read?"

Xue Baochai said: "My husband said that in order to keep confidentiality, the letters home written by generals and officials during the war must be checked before being sent out, and they should not be too long to prevent the news from being communicated in secret words."

Xu Weirui suddenly said: "Oh, so that's it. I wonder why the letter written by the second brother is so boring."

Wang Yuyan rolled her eyes helplessly, picked up the letter and read it.

As Xue Baochai said, the content of Jia Qiong's letter was very simple. It was only a page of just a few dozen words. It was just to report that the family was safe.

But "the war rages for three months, and a letter from home is worth ten thousand gold."

Such a simple letter was very precious to Wang Yuyan and the others. She read it three times before handing it to Qin Keqing.

Qin Keqing took the letter and read it twice and handed it to Xue Baochai. She clasped her hands to the sky and said, "Bodhisattva bless you, I hope your husband is safe." Xue Baochai read the letter, and Princess Mingyue came back from reading Xinning.

She also took the letter and read it again, and said with a smile: "The old concubine has passed away, the emperor is sick, the father is sick, and the Yellow River is flooded again. Nothing has gone well. This time, there is finally good news. ”

Qin Keqing asked: "How are the health of the Supreme Emperor and the Emperor?"

Mingyue said with some seriousness: "Father just caught the wind and cold occasionally, the imperial doctor said that he should just rest for a few days.

It's just that my father is worried about state affairs, but fortunately with his mother watching over him, there should be no problem.

The Emperor's old illness has relapsed, and he is getting older, so he may not recover so quickly. "

Qin Keqing said: "I want to go to Chonghua Palace to visit the Supreme Emperor, but I don't know if it is possible."

Mingyue said: "What's wrong? I'll go with you tomorrow."

Haozhou Mansion, a manor on the outskirts of Dingyuan County.

The local wealthy businessman Guo Zixing is having a secret conversation with Han Shantong in his study.

At that time, Han Shantong was implicated because his grandfather participated in the White Lotus missionary activities and was exiled to the Haozhou area.

Han Shantong was familiar with the methods of the White Lotus Sect, and he was not willing to be mediocre, so soon after arriving in Haozhou, he began to secretly preach the religion.

Guo Zixing was oppressed by the magistrate of Dingyuan County and resented the imperial court. After meeting Han Shantong by chance, he began to strongly support his missionary activities.

Under the guidance of Han Shantong, he recruited people, forged weapons, and formed a secret force.

In just over a year, there are already hundreds of warriors capable of fighting.

This time the Yellow River floods broke out in Xuzhou, upstream of Haozhou Prefecture, and a large number of people fled to Haozhou. Many people who fled gathered outside Dingyuan County.

Han Shantong felt that this was an excellent opportunity to increase his strength, so he came specially to discuss with Guo Zixing to recruit believers among the victims and expand his strength.

Han Shantong is young, only in his early thirties, but he is dressed in shabby monk robes and has a solemn face, giving people the feeling of an eminent monk.

He usually preached secretly in the name of burning incense and worshiping Buddha, in order to confuse the government's attention.

Han Shantong said: “This year is another year of disaster, which is a good opportunity for us to enhance our strength.

I will leave you with three evangelists to preach among the victims.

Brother Guo, you select available people from among the believers, step up training, and wait for the right time to raise the army. "

Guo Zixing looks tall and thick, and speaks in a rough voice, but his character is rough and fine, and he is quite sophisticated.

He asked: "Prince Xiao Ming, are you planning to leave Haozhou?"

Han Shantong nodded and said: "I heard that the imperial court is recruiting [-] civilians to reopen the old Yellow River course in Yingzhou to divert the floods.

Two hundred thousand civilians, as long as they are used properly, can raise an army and raise an army. I plan to go there myself. "

Guo Zixing frowned and said, "Isn't it too hasty to start an incident now?

If we put this little bit of strength in our face to confront the imperial court, we will probably end up hitting a stone with an egg. "

Han Shantong smiled and said: "Brother Guo, don't worry, I won't do anything that has no chance of winning.

To be honest, I received a letter from the White Lotus Sect’s Zuo Dharma Protector some time ago.

He told me that after autumn comes, the Walas and Jurchens will send troops to go south together.

By then, the imperial court will be overwhelmed just to deal with the war in the north, and there will be no energy left to take care of us. This is the perfect opportunity to start an uprising.

Furthermore, Zuohu Dharma Association will contact the White Lotus sect members from all over the country to start a joint uprising. By then, rebels will be everywhere and the world will be in chaos. They will surely be able to overthrow the puppet dynasty in one fell swoop and restore our Song Dynasty. "

When Guo Zixing heard this, he said excitedly: "Okay, such a big thing can be accomplished!"

(End of this chapter)