The Red Mansions

Chapter 476 2

Chapter 476: The Lesser of Two Evils

next day

There was a spring rain last night, and the eaves, corridors, and tiles above the pavilion were all covered with a layer of fine rainwater, which was green and lush, and the sky surrounded by tall green walls was still drizzled with fine rain.

There was movement in Ning Rong Second Mansion at the exact hour of the morning.

Today is the day when Jia She, Jia Lian and his son were exiled. Although Jia She and his son were ashamed of Rong Guo, Jia's mother, Jia Zheng and Mrs. Xing Wang sent them off for the last time.

Jia Heng set off from Ningfu, while Jia Zheng, Jia Mu, Mrs. Xing, Mrs. Wang, Sister Feng, Yingchun, Yuanchun, and even Aunt Xue led Baochai, got into a carriage together, and drove towards Shili Pavilion outside the city.

Yingchun, as the daughter of Jia She, was exiled by Jia She, and Yingchun was bound to come to see her off. As for Baochai, she came with Aunt Xue.

At this moment, outside the Shili Pavilion, the willows planted by the roadside have new buds, and the thin branches and leaves are shaking in the wind in the steep spring breeze, accompanied by bursts of coolness.

Many servants and nuns of Jia's family gathered around Shiliping, thinking that they should avoid female relatives.

At this moment, in the gazebo, Jia She and Jia Lian both wore heavy shackles on their heads, and behind them were several inner factory servants in coir raincoats and bamboo hats.

Without him, the big man has laws, and for these prisoners who have been deprived of their titles and exiled to remote places, they have to trek all the way to the place of exile to show the meaning of punishment.

In fact, prisoners are usually captured and sent to Yousi Tuiju. At that time, the government will give them the treatment of riding in a prison car before they have been convicted and sentenced.

Therefore, exile is not without fear of life.

As for Jia She and Jia Lian who were exiled in Guizhou, the mountain road was rugged and long, and it took more than half a year just to travel.

Although all the accommodation along the road is provided by the government, don't think about the treatment.

The accompanying fan servants have to follow the whole process and protect the safety of the prisoner. The mood can be imagined.

At this moment, although Jia Amnesty had not been in the prison for a long time, he was disheveled, his prison uniform was torn, his cheeks were sunken, and his eyes were dull. He saw Jia Zheng and Jia Mu who was helping Yuanyang and Hu Po from afar. Weeping: "Mother, second brother."

"Old ancestor, second uncle."

Jia Lian also waved his hands from a distance, his eyes were moist, and he called heart-piercingly. His formerly handsome and affectionate look had long since disappeared, only fear and helplessness.

Although he was in a panic yesterday, he didn't feel any real pain. Now that he was about to go on the road, Jia Lian was completely panicked. Especially with the heavy shackles on his neck, he felt a heavy burden and his whole body ached.

Jia Mu was already in tears at the moment, and supported by Mrs. Wang and Yuanyang beside her, she approached and called, "Solve my son!"

Speaking of which, when Jia Zhen was exiled in Lingnan, Jia's mother did not send her off.

But now Jia She is different from Jia Lian, after all, Jia She is the flesh that fell from his body, and Jia Lian was also watched by Jia Mu to grow up, now that the two of them have ended up like this, how can Jia Mu not be sad for it.

Fortunately, after a few days of "diluted" emotions, although Jia's mother was in tears at the moment, she was not yet distraught.

Jia Zheng, Lin Zhixiao and a few servants set up a couple, prepared food and wine, and saw off Jia She and his son.

Mrs. Xing, accompanied by Wang Shanbao's family, approached with a sad face and looked at Jia She with tears in her eyes.

As for the other young girls, such as Baochai, Yuanchun, and Yingchun, they still stayed in the carriage, talking to the maids beside them, or looking at them through the bamboo curtain of the carriage window, with various expressions.

The four or five people sent by the Neiji Factory to escort them were talking to Jia Heng, and they cupped their hands and said, "Master Jia, you can leave later."

Jia Heng nodded, and said: "People should be escorted safely, and reach Guizhou safely."

Fanzi smiled and said, "Don't worry, my lord, it will be delivered in good condition."

Jia Heng didn't say anything else.

In the gazebo, all kinds of dishes on the stone table, together with wine jugs, are placed in a dazzling array of colors, fragrances and tastes.

Jia Zheng sighed softly, sat down on the stone bench, and said with a sad face, "Brother, I'm going to Guizhou, and I hope you take care of yourself all the way. These wines and dishes are better eaten raw, and you can leave later."

Jia She's complexion was pale, and he suddenly looked at Jia Heng, who was talking with Fanzi not far from the pavilion, and said angrily: "Mother, second brother, Brother Heng kept saying that Ningrong and Rongfu are the same, now that I am exiled, he But he stood by and watched, and his second younger brother dismissed him from office, and he just sat and watched! Now you see, now he is the only one who is the official and the butcher, and he is enshrined in the title and enjoys the salary. , the second brother should be on guard against him in the future."

It can be said that before Jia Amnesty left, he still did not forget to apply eye drops to "Jia Heng".

When Jia Mu heard this, her complexion changed slightly, and she said annoyedly, "Why are you still so confused now?"

Mrs. Xing's complexion changed, her mind was uncertain.

Mrs. Wang looked indifferent, pinched the Buddhist beads hidden in her sleeve.

She had already discovered this point.

In the current Jia family, everyone in the West Mansion is unlucky. Her eldest daughter failed to become a concubine, her son was bedridden, brother Lian and his son were exiled, but the East Mansion of Uncle Heng is thriving, and his power in the court is getting bigger and bigger. There must be something strange here!

Jia Lian, who was not far away, was much more honest. He yelled for a while, but seeing that no one was paying attention, he stopped shouting, looked up at Sister Feng who was setting meals for him, lowered his voice, and said: "Feng'er, But don't forget..."

The bowls and chopsticks in Sister Feng's hands suddenly stopped, Guazi's face was filled with anger, and Dan Feng gouged out Jia Lian's eyes.

Jia Lian looked sullen and didn't dare to say any more.

Yuan Chun and Ying Chun shared a carriage. In the carriage, Yuan Chun sighed softly, took Ying Chun's hand, and said comfortingly, "Second Sister, when you see her off later, you also go down to see her off."

After all, Yingchun still has to get off the car to deliver the meal after all.

Seeing a little paleness on Yingchun's cheeks and Xinli's face, she nodded lightly to Yuanchun, and Siqi who was sitting in front of the chariot opened the curtain and responded on her behalf, saying: "Miss, I will help you in a while." Let our girls go down."

In another carriage, Baochai sat with Yinger, opened the curtain, her moist almond eyes seemed to pass through the space shrouded in dark clouds, and landed on the people who were talking, from time to time, she cast her watery eyes under the oil-paper umbrella , on the tall and straight boy in the python suit.

While Jia Amnesty and Jia Lian were drinking and talking, they suddenly hit the gate of Shenjing City, and several luxuriously dressed followers surrounded the carriage and drove quickly.

Approaching the gazebo, the beautifully decorated carriage with a tall shaft stopped, and the accompanying retinue lined up on the left and right, shouting in front and hugging behind.

Zhou Changshi beside the carriage looked gloomy and overcast, looking coldly at the members of the Jia family around the gazebo.

Jia Heng winked at Liu Jixian, an official of thousands of households who was dispatched by Jinyi Mansion to guard him, and he immediately led a group of Jinyi Mansion guards to surround him.

King Zhongshun got out of the carriage, and the servant beside him hurriedly held up a big umbrella, looked at the people in the gazebo, and said with a smile, "Who does this king think this is? Why is there such a big scene, it turns out that it is Ning Rong The Jia family? Isn’t this Jia Ziyu, the Minister of Military Aircraft? Why is it mobilizing so many troops?”

As he spoke, he looked at Jia Yucun, who was watching with a gloomy face, and asked, "Mr. Yucun, do you know this person?"

Although Jia Yucun secretly frowned at King Zhongshun's "disrespectful" behavior, but he was a forbearing person, but he just bit the bullet and cupped his hands and said: "Return to the lord, it is Jia She, the former first-class supernatural general."

King Zhongshun chuckled lightly, and said, "It turns out that Jia Ziyu is here to see off the clansmen."

Others think that he will take revenge for his grievances, but if he has not suffered from others, don't persuade others to be kind. Only in this way can he avenge the humiliation of the two brothers Jia Daihua and Daishan!

Right now, it's just collecting some interest!

As soon as this remark came out, not only Jia Mu and Jia Zheng, but also looked at the old prince with a white beard, and their expressions were not very good-looking.

It's all over the top!

Then, Mother Jia, Aunt Xue, and Mrs. Wang all looked at the boy in the python suit standing with his sword in unison.

Mother Jia frowned, but stopped talking.

In the carriage, Baochai had a look of worry on his brows, looked at the few people who were talking in the distance, and pursed his pink lips.

"Girl, this loyal and obedient prince is so annoying." Ying'er pinched a corner of her handkerchief, her lips were pursed, and anger welled up in her eyes.

Baochai let out a "hmm", and there was a bit of sullenness on her face, which was as beautiful as Lirui.

At this moment, I feel empathy, more because of the boy in the python suit.

Now that he is the head of the Jia family, he would not turn a blind eye to it, and if there was a conflict, he would not know...

Jia Heng looked at King Zhongshun and frowned, but he was thinking about a question, what exactly did Jia Daishan and Jia Daihua do to make King Zhongshun hate the Jia family so much.

Of course, this kind of "disciplinary reflection" after being beaten is meaningless.

In other words, it was expected that King Zhongshun would come to see the jokes of Jia She and his son.

With this thought in mind, Jia Heng pressed the sword with his palm under the cloak, and walked towards King Zhongshun.

At the same time, while everyone was watching Jia Heng's response, a carved treasure-carved carriage also drove up to the entrance of Shenjing City, surrounded by the same guards and retinues, holding a guard of honor, mighty and mighty.

The carriage stopped suddenly, and waited by a willow tree beside the road, guarding the left and right.

Holding an umbrella, Dou Rong, the chief historian of Prince Qi's residence, walked up to the car, bowed slightly, and said in a cang voice, "My lord, the carriage of the loyal lord is blocking the way."

Chen Cheng, King of Qi County, stretched out a big fat hand from the carriage at this time, and opened the beautifully embroidered silk and satin curtains, and a fat body like "Xin" squeezed out at once, with a hint of amused smile on his face, Said: "It's a coincidence that my uncle is here."

As he spoke, he opened the curtain, and at this moment, several servants put the footstool in front of the carriage, and on the other side, Li Shi held up a big green oil-paper umbrella, covering the sparsely populated area for King Qi. Rain.

King Qi fell to the ground, and he was dressed in the robes of the king of python, and he went towards King Zhongshun.

King Zhongshun in front of him also heard his subordinates tell Duke Qi to come over, and he turned his eyes to see that there was a smile on his old face, and he greeted, "Nephew Qi, you are here too."

Accompanied by Xu Shaozhen, a pianist in the mansion, King Qi Jun led a group of followers, and came to the front quickly, laughed a few times, and greeted: "The weather is good today, and my nephew is going out for a walk. Why is uncle also here?" ?”

King Zhongshun twirled his beard with his hands, remembering Jia Yucun's proposal earlier, he couldn't help but smile eagerly on his face, and said: "This king also came out to take a look around. Didn't this happen to see Jia's family? I don't know if the Jia family is so mobilized like this. One person was exiled, but all were exiled."

These words, almost "sound like a bell", penetrated the rain curtain, and the purpose was naturally for Jia Mu and others to hear.

Mother Jia's complexion changed slightly, and she looked at the old prince in surprise.

Jia Zheng frowned and was speechless for a while.

As for Mrs. Xing, Mrs. Wang, Sister Feng and others, their faces were not good-looking, and they glared angrily.

Yuanchun, Yingchun, Baochai and the others in the carriage opened the bamboo curtains and looked at King Zhongshun and his party. Nothing could more intuitively understand the dangers of the court and the ups and downs of the officialdom than today.

In fact, even though the members of the Jia family were very annoyed by this level of blatant ridicule, there was nothing they could do.

Not everyone has the guts to argue with a prince of a country. Mother Jia is fine, but Mother Jia is old. If King Zhongshun refuses to say something like "Madam is independent and lives alone, the two of them are unhappy, there is nothing to do." I'm in danger." Words like that, just one or two harsh words, would completely embarrass the Jia family.

Jia Heng's face was indifferent and his eyes were gloomy. This pair of vassal kings worked hand in hand.

Thinking of this, under the guards of Jinyi Mansion, Jia Heng asked with a cold face, "Lord Zhongshun, Duke Duqi is not at the mansion, why are you here?"

"Jia Ziyu, I can go wherever I want, can you control me?" King Zhongshun smiled and said sarcastically.

Jia Heng's face was indifferent, and he said in a deep voice: "Did the lord forget that Bai Lian rebelled against the party and plotted to assassinate the lord a few years ago, and I don't know if the injury on the lord's butt has healed?"

King Zhongshun: "..."

King Qi Jun listened to him, the fat on his face twitched, he smiled without saying a word, he just secretly glanced at King Zhongshun's butt, just now he looked at Uncle Wang and seemed to be inconvenient to move.

"As for where do you want to go? Don't you know that my lord doesn't know the law of my great man, the country's vassal, and there is no decree from the sage, and he is not allowed to leave Beijing half a step. Where exactly does the lord Zhongshun want to go?" Jia Heng said.

"You..." King Zhongshun snorted coldly, and said with a sneer, "Sharp teeth, sharp mouth, yellow-mouthed child!"

"Where are the guards in brocade clothes?" Jia Heng's expression darkened, and he shouted coldly.

"exist!"

The newly promoted Qianhu Liu Jixian from Beizhen Fusi, with a burly figure of seven feet, jumped out, cupped his hands and said, a group of guards from the Jinyi Mansion rushed behind him.

King Zhongshun's expression changed suddenly, and he sternly shouted: "You...presumptuous!"

Is this person still going to take him?

It just doesn't make sense!

Jia Heng looked at the group of guards in brocade clothes, and said slowly: "Bai Lian rebelled against the party to assassinate the national vassal. Prince Zhongshun was victimized by it before, and his injuries have not healed yet. The murderer is still being hunted down. There is danger of accidents at any time. Please escort me immediately." Lord Zhongshun returns to the mansion, there must be no mistakes!"

Looking at the guards in brocade clothes who came over, King Zhongshun's face was gloomy, he gritted his teeth and said, "Jia Ziyu, do you want me to go back?"

Jia Heng said: "My lord, Bai Lian's murderer has not been arrested yet, please cooperate with the wing guards of the Jinyi Mansion, come and send Prince Zhongshun back to the mansion."

Jia Yucun, who was beside King Zhongshun, had a twinkle in his eyes, and said to himself, this Jia Ziyu really would rather bend than bend, and would not take any losses.

Zhou Changshi's face was also not good-looking, and he tried to persuade him, saying: "My lord, I have seen it, why don't I just go back."

Although watching jokes relieves anger, it is extremely unwise to directly conflict with Jia Heng's children.

When the lawsuit comes to the imperial court, apart from each hitting [-] boards, it is difficult to gain the upper hand.

Seeing the brocade-clothed guards surrounded by embroidered spring knives, King Zhongshun's complexion changed, he flicked his sleeves, and shouted: "Jia Heng, you are acting recklessly with the power of the commander-in-chief of brocade clothes, holding chicken feathers as arrows, this king will not I have the same knowledge as your yellow-mouthed child, but I just advise you that being arrogant and domineering cannot last long!"

It's just a dog of his old Chen's family, how dare he bark his teeth at him repeatedly!

Sooner or later, he will smash the dog's head and skin the dog!

As he said that, King Zhongshun walked away in a huff, mainly because when he came out, he brought a few people with him, and if there was a conflict later, he might suffer a disadvantage.

Jia Heng waved his hand, and said in a deep voice: "Liu Qianhu, send someone to protect you, don't let the bad guys hurt the prince."

Liu Jixian hurriedly bowed his hands in response.

Jia Heng turned to look at King Qi Jun who was eating melons, and greeted: "My lord, are you here all right?"

King Qi Jun's fat face, with a smile on his face, said: "Jia Ziyu, this king is not afraid of Bailian rebelling against the party, even if this king comes out to get some air, don't fool me with some vassal king not to leave Beijing, or Are you going to the Daming Palace to impeach Ben Wang now? Saying that Ben Wang wanted to see your Jia family’s jokes, and then you kicked him back? You Jia Ziyu, you really have a lot of authority.”

Compared with King Zhongshun, the King of Qi County is not stingy at the moment, and has no fear of Jia Heng.

"My lord, is the foot restraint of the saints lifted now?" Jia Heng asked indifferently.

Duke Qi's gaze was somewhat dodged, and he sneered, "What does it have to do with you?"

At the beginning, Emperor Chongping asked King Qi Jun to study hard at the mansion and think about his mistakes behind closed doors, but at the beginning of New Year's Eve and Shangyuan Festival, he still asked him to go to the palace to pay his respects. Later, he didn't make it clear that he didn't understand, but the inner guards gradually withdrew.

Jia Heng was too lazy to talk to King Qi, and said to the group of guards in brocade: "Young King, now Bai Lian is lurking against the party in Beijing, attacking and killing the country's vassals, and staying outside the city is not good for personal safety. Where is it, escort Qi Junwang back to the mansion."

Ordinarily, it seems nothing to let these people watch the jokes, he can choose to endure it, but the problem is that if people lose their hearts, it will be difficult to lead the team.

As for whether it is a bit too strong?

His current relationship with King Zhongshun and King Qi Jun is icy, and the emperor will not know it. If he considers the emperor's check and balance technique, he may be more happy to see it succeed.

Because, from the present point of view, the emperor has never saved even a game, such as letting King Zhongshun and Yang Guochang sit at the same table with him, focusing on the overall situation and helping each other, so... some things are really unrefined.

As for inviting the second king back, will it be considered domineering?

In fact, in the eyes of the emperor, more people would laugh it off.

Somewhat childish.

I really have to bear it, when I finally plotted against the second king, I was a bit scheming, cunning and treacherous.

"One generation after another, the emperor's tolerance for me is on the rise. It can be said that he is still in the... passionate love period. Before Donglu was peaceful, he was arrogant and domineering. In fact, he was not worthy."

When do you need to keep a low profile?

Pacifying the Eastern Captives, returning with a great victory, and sealing nothing. At this time, any immodest move will stimulate the emperor's sensitive nerves.

King Qi County twitched when he saw Tianzijian. He seemed to be reminded of the embarrassing memory of a young man cutting his servant's ear with a sword in the past. king?"

Jia Heng didn't want to talk nonsense at all, and said: "You escort the prince back."

Duke Qi's eyes were gloomy, and he said sharply, "You're cruel! I don't need to be escorted, I'm going on my own, you're so reckless, I'm waiting to see the day you are exiled!"

With that said, he returned to the carriage again, and returned to Shenjing City under the retinue of the servants of the palace.

Jia Heng watched the second king drive away, his face was gloomy, like the sky above his head, with dense clouds and no rain.

Seeing King Zhongshun and King Qijun at this time, the two kings came and left in a hurry, she couldn't help sighing.

Back then, when her husband Daishan was around, he was so resigned and no one dared to humiliate him.

Jia Zheng's face turned pale, and he murmured in a low voice: "Yu Village, he actually took refuge in Prince Zhongshun's Mansion?"

Clearly, he just saw Jia Yucun serving in front of King Zhongshun, and he felt a little uncomfortable. He admired him so much at the beginning.

Jia She's face was pale, and he said in a low voice: "Mother, he is showing off his prestige now, but he even hates our Jia family and offended the two lords. I'm afraid life in the family will be even more difficult in the future."

Jia's mother was upset by what she said, and said angrily, "Eat your food and drink, and set off soon."

Jia Amnesty: "???"

Jia Zheng looked up at the sky and sighed, "Brother, it's going to rain later, so don't miss Sutou."

Even Mrs. Wang glanced at Jia She lightly, and thought to herself, the lesser of two evils, it's just a pity to lose the title...

(End of this chapter)