Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

Chapter 32 The Power of Honor
  The next day, Wang Xifeng personally packed up Jia Cong and the two of them, and sent more than a dozen servants to follow them and escort them to the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion for a banquet.

Jia Cong originally wanted to send Wangcai to Wang Jin's house to ask for leave, but he heard that Wangcai and Qian Huai were severely beaten yesterday because they lost their master. They were expected to be in bed for more than half a month, so he had to write a letter in his own hand. Send someone else to deliver it.

Riding on the horse, thinking of Qingwen's pitiful appearance last night when she hugged her crying pear blossoms and brought rain to her, Jia Cong regretted that he was too upright at that time and should have taken the opportunity to mop up some oil, but he made a mistake.

After walking less than two miles, he arrived at the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion. Jia Cong looked up and saw that the layout was similar to that of Jia's family. There were three animal-headed doors in the middle, and in front of the door sat a dozen people in gorgeous clothes. There is a plaque above the main entrance, with the five characters "Edict to Build the Government of the State" written on it.

Seeing the arrival of Jia Cong and others, the servants of the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion hurriedly went in to inform them, and then came up diligently to greet them, lead their horses, and opened the middle door wide to receive them with the highest standards.

Outside the Yimen, I saw the first-class uncle Niu Jizong waiting with Niu Dabao and several housekeepers. Jia Cong hurriedly walked forward with Jia Huan and bowed: "Jia Cong (Jia Huan) wishes Shi Bo's peace."

"Get up quickly, why are you two good nephews so polite?" Niu Jizong smiled and helped the two of them up. He just looked at Jia Cong up and down. He saw his sharp eyebrows and starry eyes, his tall posture and his calm spirit. He secretly praised in his heart that the Jia family is so beautiful. A generation finally has a character.

Jia Cong saw that Niu Jizong was in his thirties, tall and burly, with a rugged face, but a glint flashed across his eyes from time to time, knowing that he must be a man of honest appearance and finesse, so he did not dare to ignore it at the moment, and was busy preparing for what he was going to do today. I went over what I said several times in my mind to avoid being unintentionally rude and causing people to look down on the Jia family.

I took Jia Huan to visit the first-class Mrs. Zhenguo and the first-class Mrs. Niu Dabao in Zhenxintang, and also met Niu Dabao's sisters.

Everyone was deeply grateful to Jia Cong for his righteous deeds. They asked him about what happened yesterday in detail and praised him to the sky. For the first time, Jia Cong experienced the sweet talk skills of a woman in the inner house, and secretly exclaimed that it was amazing.

Jia Cong was casually modest and looked at the young sisters in the hall secretly. Seeing that they were mediocre in appearance, he was not interested in staying for a long time. After dinner, he wanted to take the time to leave. Now his eyes have been baptized by beauties such as Baochai, Daiyu, Feng Jieer, Qin Keqing, Qingwen and yesterday's Yang Siniang. In his eyes, ordinary beauties can only be described as "mediocre".

"Brother Cong and Brother Huan, we have a little naughty thing in our first meeting today. You can take it with you. Don't forget to bring a good son for your old lady for me later, and say that I, the Zhenguo Mansion, have a love for her. ." Mrs. Zhenguo smiled slightly, and a girl next to her brought up two plates, one for Jia Cong and the other.

Jia Cong and his wife hurriedly said they didn't dare. They saw two exquisite jade articles placed on the tray.

In front of Jia Cong is a jasper lion, the size of a fist, with a shiny body and warm tentacles. It is obviously the best jade. The carving is meticulous and the mane can be distinguished.

Jia Huan is much worse, just an ordinary jade pen. It also made him happy. He had never received such an expensive gift before, and it was probably worth a lot of money.

"Okay, you brothers and sisters, go and have fun. I'm a little tired, so I won't accompany you." Mrs. Zhenguo smiled and left with a group of ladies.

"Dabao, you take brother Huan and the sisters to play while I talk to brother Cong." Niu Jizong said, taking Jia Cong to the inner study to talk, and ordered his confidants to guard everywhere and not allow anyone to approach.

Niu Jizong also heard about Jia Cong's situation, and he wanted to give him some advice in order to repay him for saving his son, so he said: "Brother Cong, I heard that you are studying martial arts with a famous teacher recently?"

"Hui Shibo, this is indeed the case."

Niu Jizong nodded, "Young martial arts disciples, it is very good if you are willing to learn some martial arts. Back then, I also practiced some martial arts since I was a child, and then I had the opportunity to perform meritorious service on the border. I finally became a first-class uncle. It's a pity that now my family has a generation of Not as good as the previous generation. There is no one as talented and beautiful as you."

Jia Cong hurriedly thanked him and said, "How can this young man compare with Shi Bo with his meager skills? I see that yesterday Brother Bao's intelligence became sharper and his mind was flexible. It is extraordinary. He will become a great person in the future. Why should Shi Bo be too modest?"

Niu Jizong shook his head and said with a smile: "Instead of placing my hope in him, I might as well hope that you will achieve great things and then support him. The chances of success are greater."

"Cong comes from a humble background. He is lucky enough to live in peace and quiet. How dare he hope to become something great?" Jia Cong said.

"No! Brother Cong, please don't have this idea. Don't you think heroes don't ask where they come from? In terms of origin, let me say something disrespectful, what was the origin of the Duke of our old town? He was just a butcher who killed pigs and sold meat. What is the origin of your old Mr. Ning Rong? He is just a ranger in Jinling City. But did they not rely on their own ability to make achievements and follow Taizu's actions to conquer this thousands of miles of country? It can be seen that the word "originality" is the most unreliable." Niu Jizong said solemnly.

"Cong is taught." Jia Cong bowed hurriedly.

"I know what you mean. The difficulties faced by concubines are the same all over the world, but you are different from others. I have asked Wang Jin, and he said that you will be an unparalleled general in the future, and you should be on par with the evil spirits and tiger idiots of ancient times. , so your future does not lie in Rongfu, but in the world."

Jia Cong's heart was shocked. He didn't expect that his master, who had always been serious about speaking and talking, spoke so highly of him, and he couldn't help but feel a little excited. "Moreover, the talents of the Duke's line are withering now. From the Eight Dukes who founded the country, almost no one is in power in the army. If you rise, you will surely gain the support of the other six Dukes and continue the legacy left by the three Dukes. Favor." Niu Jizong threw out a shocking bait.

"Why is this? It's just that the Ningrong and Rong mansions are in decline. Why are the other six princely mansions like this? Why don't the noble families such as the marquis and uncles who were granted the title at the founding of the country decline?" Jia Cong was puzzled.

Niu Jizong sighed: "After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Taizu was a man of great talent and strategy. According to his merits, he awarded four kings, eight princes, thirty-two marquises, several titles such as uncle, son, and male, and also set the rank of descendants and descendants. The rules of knighthood based on merit and transfer to knighthood based on meritless merit.”

"Taizu was also afraid that the four kings and eight princes would become more and more prestige, support their own troops, and lose their big tail, so he thought of a strategy to check and balance each other with real titles and false power."

"It means that the four kings of the southeast, northwest and eight princes only have titles, wealth and honor, but no military power. The military power of the world is entirely in the hands of the princes and uncles. The imperial court uses the power of the princes and princes to control the weight of the princes, and uses the majesty of the princes to control the power of the princes. So. If the top and bottom are in stalemate, the army will be stable, and the court will have no worries."

Jia Cong thought for a while and said, "In this case, how can Cong rise?"

Niu Jizong chuckled, with a shrewdness in his eyes that was incompatible with his appearance, and said: "At this time and that time, how can there be a good method that will last forever? Although Taizu's method is good, it has been nearly a hundred years since he opened the king's line in the army. The incense and favor that remain in the family have long since dissipated, and the talents of subsequent generations have withered. However, the Hou Bo lineage has been prosperous for a long time, and its authority is increasing day by day. Many people no longer take their former bosses seriously, and they have experienced During the reign of Emperor Taizong and Emperor Taishang, there were several major changes, and more than ten families were replaced in the Marquis Mansion alone, and there were countless others below the count."

"Now the army has long been out of balance, and the line of princes and princes is in vain. The power of Hou Bo's line is in great difficulty, and it has become a serious concern for the imperial court. Today, the wise and powerful warriors are not inferior to Taizu, and they have long been determined to check and balance. However, the time of imperial control is still short, and the line of princes and princes is in trouble. There is no one available..."

Niu Jizong's voice lowered: "So now I have come up with an ingenious way to use the power of the princes to control the nobles with the common people, from the bottom up."

"What does that mean?"

"It means to re-activate the line of princes, select civilian warriors to serve as middle and lower-level military positions, and work together with the nobles of the princes and the strong men of Kusano to contain the Hou Bo Group."

Jia Cong nodded, finally understanding the current situation of the honorable nobles, and asked doubtfully: "What Shibo said are all the major policies of the imperial court, what does it have to do with Cong?"

Niu Jizong smiled and said: "This is what I want to tell you. The imperial court uses martial arts examinations to select folk warriors, and the emperor even wants the top three Jinshi in the martial arts examinations to be selected by Zhubi. Once named on the gold list, they will be the emperor's disciples, although they are not as good as Wen. It’s not bad, but it’s not bad. This year is the year of the martial arts competition, why don’t you also compete?”

Jia Cong's eyes lit up, and he immediately shook his head with a wry smile: "Shibo, I have never taken the martial arts examination. I think it is the same as the civil examination. It requires layers of screening. How can I be qualified to take the college entrance examination? Secondly, if it happens in a few years, , I am somewhat sure, but I am still young in martial arts, how can I compare with the world's elites?"

Niu Jizong laughed and said: "You are a descendant of the Duke of the country. You don't have to go through the provincial martial arts examination. You can directly participate in the general examination. How can we, nobles and fellow countrymen, pass the examinations like mud legs? This is one of them. Second, I asked your master, and he also thinks that you can participate in the martial arts examination. Besides, there are still several months until the college entrance examination, so with your talent and ability, it shouldn’t be a big problem. Third, if you miss this subject, you may be in trouble for three years. There will never be such a good opportunity again.”

Jia Cong was stunned for a moment and said hurriedly: "Uncle Shi, please give me an explanation?"

"I just said that I will restart the lineage of princes today. For example, your uncle Wang Ziteng will be appointed as the governor of the Beijing Camp, your uncle Lin Ruhai will be appointed as the Lianghuai Salt Academy, and Shibo I will be appointed as the current Kewu Let's take the exam." Niu Jizong said with a smile.

It turns out that's the case. Jia Cong breathed a sigh of relief. In this way, wouldn't it be easy for him to participate in martial arts? For the sake of saving Niu Dabao, I didn't dare to say that I was a first-class Jinshi, but at least I was a second- or third-class martial arts Jinshi.

"Inheriting Shibo's teachings, Cong must take part in the modern martial arts examination." Jia Cong stood up and bowed.

Niu Jizong nodded: "As long as you understand. The martial arts examination is different from the civil examination. The civil examination attracts the world's attention, and all aspects of the proposition, examination room, record, seal, and marking are all flawless. The martial arts examination, in addition to the examination of martial arts and art of war, In addition, you will also have to test riding, archery, and infantry combat, etc., and you will have a lot to do during this period."

"For example, in riding and archery, the quality of war horses and bows and arrows directly affects the performance, and whether you are familiar with the environment of the examination room also has a significant relationship; for example, in infantry fighting, hundreds of military elites from all over the country come to Beijing, and there is a lot of knowledge in how to fight in groups." Niu Jizong smiled.

Jia Cong understood. This is just like the sports competitions of later generations. If you are familiar with the venue and have the home court advantage and the referee advantage, you will take advantage. What is even more powerful is the grouping. If you are divided into a belly group, you can easily qualify. The group of death is just cool.

　Streaking next week, I ask book friends who love this book to help promote it. The seedlings of the new book need the care of all the big guys. Updates and quality will remain stable as always. Thanks.

　　
  　
  (End of this chapter)