The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 342 Bloodshed in Yangzhou City (VI)
Jia Huan was not a bloodthirsty person, but he was definitely not a good man. As the saying goes, "repay evil with kindness, how to repay kindness, a gentleman should repay evil with justice." Since he was involved in the illegal salt case, he and Prince Yi Zhong's mansion were now in a dead end. Ji Jinxiao and Xu Wenhan tried to kill him again and again, not to mention that Xu Wenhan even coveted Lin Daiyu, which was even more damnable. So Jia Huan pulled the trigger without hesitation and sent this guy to get a box lunch.

The princes are scary, but Prince Yi Zhong is not one of them, because he is a grasshopper in autumn and will soon "ruin things". So Jia Huan is not afraid of him. On the contrary, he is very wary of the current crown prince. After all, this prince is the future emperor. Unless one is sure to completely overthrow him from the position of crown prince, it is obviously unwise to provoke him. So when Xu Wenhan tried to reveal that the crown prince was also involved in the case, Jia Huan pulled the trigger without waiting for him to finish speaking.

Because there are some things that are better to be known in one's heart. Once they are made public, there will be no room for maneuver. Xu Wenhan obviously wants to use the prince's tiger skin to make Jia Huan hesitate. However, as smart as Jia Huan is, how could he let him get his wish?

As for the ten personal soldiers, when they saw that Jia Huan really shot Xu Wenhan to death, and then he reloaded the ammunition slowly, they couldn't help but be secretly shocked. Although Xu Wenhan deserved to die, he was the great-grandson of the prince after all, a genuine member of the Jin royal family, and Master Huan Sanye actually killed him without even blinking an eye. How awesome!
At this time, Jia Huan had reloaded the ammunition and said calmly: "This thief attacked the Salt Inspectorate's Office and intended to murder the court official. He was killed on the spot by a random gunfire. He deserved it and brought it upon himself!" After saying that, he bent down and covered Xu Wenhan's face with the black scarf again.

The guards immediately understood what he meant and echoed, "That's right. This thief intended to murder an official of the imperial court and was shot to death. He deserved it and brought this upon himself."

Jia Huan nodded with satisfaction. There are some things that can be done, but they cannot be done blatantly. Xu Wenhan is a member of the royal family after all. Even if he is executed for rebellion, he must die in a dignified way for the royal family. It is extremely inappropriate to execute him privately. Not to mention Emperor Qiansheng himself, other members of the royal family will also feel fear and resentment, and even those censors will take the opportunity to make a fuss. How can he, with his weak arms and legs, withstand the pens of those trolls? He might end up in jail, or even lose his life!

Of course, if Xu Wenhan was accidentally killed in the melee, that would be a different matter!
At this time, figures flashed in the direction of the back garden, and torches lit up as bright as day. It was obvious that more enemies had climbed over the wall and broke in. Jia Huan did not dare to delay and immediately retreated towards the direction of the Buddhist hall with ten personal soldiers.

Since the back garden was lost, there was naturally no point in guarding the back gate any longer. Dai Shilin, Yi Hong and others immediately gave up the gate and retreated to the Buddhist temple.

Two flowers bloom, each with its own beauty. Tiehu led his cavalry and camped in the suburbs more than ten miles west of Yangzhou City. Just after stopping to rest for an hour, he saw three whistling arrows shooting into the sky from the city. This was the signal he and Jia Huan had agreed on for help. He was startled and did not dare to neglect it. He immediately mounted his saddle and led two hundred cavalrymen to gallop outside Tongsi Gate.

Tongsi Gate is the west gate of the old city of Yangzhou. The Sishui River flows through this gate, forming a natural moat, and Tongsi Gate got its name from this.

Tiehu led his cavalry to the outside of Tongsi Gate and found that the drawbridge over the river was raised high. The lights on the top of the city were dark, so he shouted, "I am Tiehu, a centurion of cavalry. I am here to enter the city on the orders of the governor. Brothers on the top of the city, please lower the drawbridge quickly."

However, Tiehu shouted twice, but there was no movement on the top of the city. After a while, a head seemed to pop out from the parapet, glanced down at the city, and immediately retracted.

Tiehu became suspicious and shouted, "Who is that man on the top of the city wall? Why is he so secretive? Hurry up and lower the drawbridge and open the city gate. If you make a mistake, you'll have to watch your head."

However, no matter how Tiehu shouted, the city remained quiet and no one came out to respond.

Tiehu's heart sank rapidly. As far as he knew, all the gates of the old city of Yangzhou were guarded by the salt soldiers under Lin Ruhai, and these salt soldiers only obeyed Lin Ruhai. Now no one opened the door for him. Could something have happened?
Tiehu's mind raced, and he immediately ordered his men to go around the north and south of the city and knock on the gates. However, it was just as quiet on the top of the city wall, and no one answered. Tiehu was sure that something had happened, and he was extremely anxious. However, the drawbridge over the moat was high, and the city gates were closed. Even if his cavalry was powerful, it would be useless unless he grew wings and flew into the city.

Outside the city, Tiehu was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, while in the Salt Transport Office in the new city, the inspector Zhang Yidong and the old eunuch Ji Jinxiao were sitting opposite each other, drinking wine leisurely, with some side dishes on the table.

At this time, a spy flashed in and reported: "Sir, they have already attacked the middle courtyard."

Zhang Yidong and Ji Jinxiao looked at each other in surprise. The former said in amazement: "It's so fast? There must be some trick!"

The spy laughed and said, "It's not a trick. It's just that Yi Hong lost his mind. Just before we were about to launch the attack, he actually sent a group of Jinyiwei to the prefectural government to arrest Lord Hong. In the end, Lord Hong killed them, but several people escaped. Lord Hong had no choice but to launch the attack early."

Zhang Yidong suddenly realized, "No wonder Hong Wenxuan sent the signal in advance. What happened next?"

The spy laughed again and said, "The interesting thing is that Yi Hong actually led a group of Jinyiwei to leave the Salt Inspectorate's Office. As a result, they happened to meet the death squad led by Han Ye and the royal guards near the Great East Gate. They were killed and fled back to the Salt Inspectorate's Office. In order to save his life, Yi Hong opened the East Corner Gate, and our people took the opportunity to attack from behind. They were unstoppable and broke through the front and middle courtyards in one go."

Ji Jinxiao's wrinkles relaxed when he heard this, and he chuckled proudly, "So that's how it is. The warriors we have are very strong and fearless. The Jinyiwei are no match for them. Yi Hong is lucky that he was not hacked to death on the spot."

The spy laughed and said, "Who said it wasn't true? It's a pity that Yi Hong and Lin Ruhai have both fled to the backyard. Our people haven't been able to capture them yet. Even Kang Lingcheng was moved away by them in advance."

Ji Jinxiao sneered and said, "It doesn't matter. We have the city gates under our control. Yi Hong and Lin Ruhai are isolated and helpless. They are just lambs to be slaughtered."

Zhang Yidong waved away the spy and said thankfully, "Yi Hong suddenly arrested people overnight. I guess he got Kang Lingcheng's confession. He appeared near the Great East Gate. He is most likely going to New City to arrest people. His target is probably me and you, Chief Steward Ji."

Ji Jinxiao sneered, "I think it must be so. Fortunately, we took action first, otherwise the consequences would be unpredictable, hehe!" After that, he raised his wine glass and took a sip happily, and then said jokingly, "The life of Lord Lin, the governor of Yingtian, is hanging by a thread. Lord Zhang and Lord Lin are of the same age and are subordinates to each other. When will you send troops to rescue him?"

Zhang Yidong shook his head and said, "The time has not come yet, let's wait for more news."

Ji Jinxiao said with a wry smile: "That's right. It won't be too late for us to clean up the mess after Lin Ruhai and Yi Hong are beheaded. Then we can kill Hong Wenxuan, the scapegoat, and everything will be fine." It turned out that Ji Jinxiao and Zhang Yidong had already discussed it. After the incident, they would put the blame on Yangzhou prefect Hong Wenxuan and others. After all, once this case came out, it would surely cause a sensation across the country. If there was no important figure to take the blame, it would certainly not be covered up. As for the previous statement that the crime would be pushed to the thief leader Li Hongji, it was just a trick to deceive Hong Wenxuan into being a cannon fodder.

There was a gleam of satisfaction in Zhang Yidong's eyes, and he was obviously very satisfied with his clever plan. Only by sacrificing one prefect, Hong, he could save most of the people, which was undoubtedly worth it.

At this moment, Ji Jinxiao suddenly remembered something and said with a gloomy face, "Now the account book has fallen into the hands of Jia Huan. Even if we kill Kang Lingcheng, Lin Ruhai and others, we still can't eradicate the trouble. We must get rid of Jia Huan and destroy the account book."

Zhang Yidong said calmly: "As long as Yi Hong and Lin Ruhai are dead, there is nothing to be afraid of a mere Jia Huan."

Ji Jinxiao thought about it for a moment and said with a smile, "That's true. Although Jia Huan is a difficult guy, he doesn't hold any official position after all. All the power in his hands comes from Lin Ruhai. Without the support of Lin Ruhai and Yi Hong, won't he be at our mercy? It just so happens that this guy is still in Jinling. Let Jia Yucun, the prefect of Jinling, accuse him of a crime and arrest him in prison on the spot, hehe!"

Jia Yucun, the prefect of Jinling Prefecture, was reinstated with the help of Wang Ziteng, and he also had the audacity to worship as a disciple of Prince Yi Zhong. Therefore, Ji Jinxiao was very confident that as long as he gave a greeting, Jia Yucun would happily do as he was told.

At this time, another spy came in hurriedly and reported: "Sir, the cavalry captain Tiehu is knocking at the Tongsi Gate!"

Zhang Yidong and Ji Jinxiao were both surprised when they heard this. Tiehu was now quite famous, a brave general who was the best of the three armies. The cavalry he led was the strongest force under Lin Ruhai. The key point was that Tiehu was originally Jia Huan's follower. In other words, he was Jia Huan's confidant. Why did he suddenly appear outside Tongsi Gate at this time? Since Tiehu was here, would Jia Huan also come back?

Thinking of this, Zhang Yidong and Ji Jinxiao's faces changed. No wonder they were so nervous. Although Jia Huan was young, this kid was no pushover and his luck was abnormally good. He had ruined their plot more than once.

For example, when he poisoned Lin Ruhai before, Jia Huan discovered it!
For example, the previous attack on Lin Ruhai by using pirates was also foiled by Jia Huan who ran to the Yunti Pass Qianhu Suo to borrow reinforcements.

For example, when the Kang Mansion was searched, Ji Jinxiao deliberately set a trap for Jia Huan to fall into, but it was easily resolved by Jia Huan.

The most recent time was at Datong Mountain. First, he sent a sharpshooter to assassinate Jia Huan but failed. Then, Dai Li, the commander of Yangzhou Guard, took the risk and started a war, but was finally killed by Jia Huan.

In short, this kid Jia Huan is not only full of wisdom, but also extremely lucky. Ji Jinxiao and Zhang Yidong have tried almost all their tricks but still failed to do anything to him, so it is no wonder that they are so wary of him. Now that they know that Jia Huan might be outside Tongsi Gate or even has entered Yangzhou City, they suddenly become nervous, fearing that something unexpected will happen again and that their efforts will fail in the end!
"Notify all city gates immediately and never let Tiehu in." Zhang Yidong ordered in a deep voice.

It is said that the people guarding the gates of the old city were originally the salt soldiers under Lin Ruhai, and they only took orders from Lin Ruhai. However, as the saying goes, there is always a loophole in a perfect plan. Those salt soldiers were recruited near Yangzhou. It was not difficult for the Salt Transport Commissioner Zhang Yidong and the prefect Hong Wenxuan and others to place a group of spies in there. And when it gets dark tonight, those spies only need to add some food to their dinner, and the salt soldiers guarding the city will sleep like dead pigs.

At this time, Ji Jinxiao stood up and said with a gloomy face, "Jia Huan is a cunning guy. It is probably not a coincidence that Tiehu appeared outside Tongsi Gate at this time. In order to avoid more trouble, we can't delay any longer. We must immediately seize the rear house of the Salt Inspector and kill Lin Ruhai, Yi Hong and others."

Zhang Yidong originally wanted to clean up the mess at last, but the situation changed and he had to change his strategy. He immediately gathered his men and headed straight for the old city.

As the Yangzhou Salt Transport Commissioner, Zhang Yidong still had an armed force in his hands. Although the number of people was not large, there were more than 500 people assembled. He had planned to wait until Hong Wenxuan killed Lin Ruhai and others before leading the troops to "quell the rebellion" and kill Hong Wenxuan by the way, putting all the blame on him. However, the situation changed at this time, and in order to avoid complications, he had to take action in advance.

After Zhang Yidong gathered his men, he immediately rushed to the Salt Inspectorate's Office in the old city. However, just as he stepped into the backyard, Ji Jinxiao received bad news: the king's great-grandson Xu Wenhan was dead!
It was like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, shocking Ji Jinxiao. Looking at the corpse with its head blasted, the old eunuch's face trembled and cold sweat poured out. After a long while, he shouted with a ferocious look, "Who did this?"

All the guards present in the palace were silent. After a moment, the leading guard said tremblingly: "Master Han's body was found outside the west wing courtyard. We don't know who killed him yet!"

Ji Jinxiao's eyes were as eerie as a ghost, and his voice became sharp and thin: "Are you all dead? Not only did you fail to protect Han Ge'er, but you don't even know who murdered him?"

The leader of the guards choked and said, "I led a group of brothers to climb over the wall at another place. When we climbed in, Master Han had already led another group of brothers to the west wing. It was said that he was going to capture the young lady of the Lin family. I immediately led the brothers to rush over. As a result, when we arrived, we found that Master Han was already dead, and the brothers that Master Han brought with him were all dead. So we have no idea who did this!"

Zhang Yidong glanced at the wound on Xu Wenhan's forehead, which was obviously caused by a musket. He couldn't help but ask, "Since you have already attacked the backyard, have you captured Yi Hong and Lin Ruhai?"

The leader of the guards shook his head and said, "They have all hidden in a building. Prefect Hong is leading his men to surround and attack them!"

Ji Jinxiao's old eyes flashed with ruthlessness, and he said fiercely: "Let's go, no matter who did it, we will make sure he is dead without a burial place!!!"

(End of this chapter)