Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

Jia Cong led his men to Duke Yansheng's Mansion, and saw that the gate collapsed. Through the door opening, he saw corpses scattered on the ground, blood flowing in rivers, and a strong fishy smell hitting his face, indicating that he had been robbed.

Dozens of thieves were happily coming out of the door each holding gold and jade utensils. They bumped into Jia Cong and his party. They hurriedly threw their things and ran away. As soon as they turned around, they were shot into hedgehogs by a dense rain of arrows.

"Go in and see if there are any survivors." Jia Cong waved his hand.

Kongxing and Jiehui rushed in with people.

Looking at the tragic situation in the mansion, Jia Cong sighed in his heart. If he hadn't come up with his own plan, the thieves might not come to attack Qufu.

If they are allowed to roam around and cause trouble, no one knows how many tragic things will happen.

Therefore, Jia Cong made a plan to sacrifice Qufu and save Shandong.

At the beginning of the proposal, Jia Cong thought of the outcome that would lead to both death and destruction for Qufu.

Although I had expected it, but being in the scene, I still couldn't help but feel guilty and blame myself. After all, I had sacrificed the people of Qufu.

Jia Cong sighed and then thought, this is war, and a general can only think about how to win and how to win at the minimum cost.

And with my own intelligence, I can only think of this simple and crude method, using Qufu as bait to lure the bandits into taking the bait. If I notify Qufu in advance that someone is coming to empty the city, how can I lure the enemy?

As the saying goes, if you don't want to give up your children, you can't trap the wolf. If you don't sacrifice Qufu, you have to sacrifice Shandong. You can only choose the lesser of two evils. Thinking of this, Jia Cong's heart returned to hardness.

A general must regard human life as nothing but trivial matter. This is a basic quality.

Jia Cong led people into the second door, and saw that there was a screen door covering the courtyard, covered with gray tiles, a painted roof, with four inverted wood carvings and gold buds on the front and back, and hanging on the lintel was a "gift" issued by Emperor Taizong himself. There is a plaque inscribed with "Chongguang", so it is called "Chongguang Gate".

Bypassing the Chongguang Gate is the lobby. Jia Cong sat down in the Liuyun Babao Nuan Pavilion in the lobby. Not long after, his own soldiers came to report and found a living person, a petty official, who escaped by hiding in a bookcase.

Jia Cong looked at the frightened young officials in the hall and said harmoniously: "This commander is Jia Cong, the general appointed by the Holy One to fight the rebellion. The thieves have been defeated by the heavenly soldiers. You don't need to panic."

When the clerk heard this, he burst into tears, covered his face with his hands, trembled slightly, fell to the ground, and sobbed.

Jia Cong said: "Where are the gentlemen and gentlemen in the mansion? Are you safe?"

"I only know that my father-in-law and other masters and young masters are discussing matters in the three halls, and I don't know what is good or bad." The young official cried.

Jia Cong nodded, and suddenly saw Kongxing running over and whispering a few words in his ear. He stood up suddenly and said, "Take me to see it."

A group of people hurried to the third hall, only to see dozens of gorgeously dressed men slaughtered in the hall, lying in a pool of blood.

There was an old man lying next to the desk at the top. His eyes were wide open and his face was full of horror and disbelief. He had been out of breath for a long time.

"This is..." Jia Cong was slightly startled and called the clerk: "Come and see who these people are?"

The little official was so frightened that he peed when he entered the hall. He came over trembling and took a look, and exclaimed: "My lord."

"Is this Duke Yansheng?" Jia Cong asked.

"Yes, yes." The clerk nodded.

"Who are these people?"

"The eldest master, the second master, the third master, the fourth master...the eldest master, the second master...the handsome man are all direct masters and young masters of the Holy Palace."

The little official's teeth were chattering, and the holy palace that had been passed down for thousands of years was actually eaten in one fell swoop.

Jia Cong frowned and said, "Are they all in trouble? Find it for me!"

"Yes!" Everyone hurriedly went in and searched everywhere.

At this time, Jie Hui came out of the back hall and said with red eyes: "Commander, there are hundreds of women in the inner house... all of them, young and old, have been insulted by thieves and bandits. Many of them are beyond imagination... short-sighted."

Jia Cong sighed and said: "Find the wives with orders in the mansion and tell them that this is not the time to seek death.

Since the thieves were defeated, the survivors still need to fulfill their responsibilities. The salary from the court is not for them to eat in vain!

Gather all the women to take care of them and let Mrs. Gaoming properly comfort them.

Also, search carefully for me to see if there is anyone left in the Kong family! "

"Yes!"

It seems that the Kong family and the old Ning Rong have some connections.

At that time, Kong Jizong, the Duke of Yansheng, personally wrote the plaque "Jia's Ancestral Hall" to the Jia family, and a couplet: "The liver and brains are wiped out, and the surname is due to the kindness of the nurse; the fame is throughout the world, and the steaming and tasting is prosperous for hundreds of generations."

Being the only one among the nobles is considered very dignified and honorable.

Thinking of this, Jia Cong shook his head, was he repaying a favor with a grudge? If the Kong family knew that they were the instigators, they would probably eat their own hearts alive.

However, I have heard that Confucius said that he was a benevolent person and Mencius was said to be a righteous person. With the virtues of the descendants of saints, wouldn’t he refuse to sacrifice his life to become a benevolent person?

Jia Cong was comforting himself when he saw a few soldiers guarding five or six people coming over.

"Commander, these people claim to be disciples of the Holy Palace. These two people escaped by hiding in the dry well and toilet in the garden. They were not in the palace when the incident occurred."

Jia Cong glanced at a few people and said: "This commander is Jia Cong, the general appointed by the emperor to fight the rebellion." "Greetings to the commander! Yinsheng Wenxin is the fifth son of Duke Yansheng."

"Yin gave birth to virtue, and it was the six sons of Duke Sheng."

"Yinsheng Xingyun is the third legitimate son of the eldest family, and his father is Wen Zhanggong, wuwu..."

"Yin Sheng Star Chart..."

"Yin Sheng Xing Cheng..."

"Yinsheng Xingli..."

Jia Cong looked at the little official next to him, and when he saw him nodding in recognition, he said in a deep voice: "Uncles and brothers, please come up. Why should we be polite if we are friends from the world?
This catastrophe has hit your residence, and even your husband... sacrificed his life for the country. When Cong heard and witnessed it, he felt heartbroken and inexplicable grief and anger.

If Cong could have arrived a moment earlier, Qufu would not have been like this. It was Cong's fault. "

Everyone cried: "This is the brutality of the bandits, and it is not the fault of the commander-in-chief. We are grateful that the commander-in-chief can lead the troops to quell the chaos in time."

Kong Wende and Kong Wenzhang gradually recovered from their initial panic and grief, and couldn't help but feel a little joyful in their hearts.

Now, only their two sons are left in the Yanshenggong lineage. The brothers who were the direct descendants of the superiors are all dead, and the big position in the mansion is undecided...

Even if the nephew of the eldest family still inherits, as the only two masters in the house, won't they be very popular in the future?

With a "sad" look on his face, Jia Cong led them to see the remains of Duke Yan Sheng and all the descendants of the Confucius family, worshiped them, and then returned to the lobby to sit down.

"Two uncles, there is no one in charge of your mansion now, so Cong can only seek advice from you two."

Kong Wende sobbed: "A sudden catastrophe occurred at home. I am heartbroken. It is really difficult to do anything. I am afraid that the commander-in-chief will inquire about her. I wonder how the old lady at home is doing?
Even though the old lady is gone, she can still make the decision. How dare Yinsheng make his own opinions? "

Um? The old lady... Jia Cong turned his head slightly, and Jie Hui hurriedly came up and whispered: "The old lady is old and was humiliated to death by thieves."

Jia Cong nodded and said: "Two worldly uncles, the old lady of your house has a strong temper. She is unwilling to compromise with the thieves and has sacrificed her life for justice."

"Old lady..." Everyone fell to the ground crying again and kowtowed to the inner chamber.

After a while, Jia Cong asked his soldiers to help a few people up.

"My condolences, everyone," Jia Cong said.

Kong Wende sighed: "Now that the old man, the old lady and all the brothers have died, and the house is in chaos, Yin Sheng and others, although they have little talent and virtue, have no choice but to do their duty. Just ask the commander-in-chief for instructions."

Jia Cong said: "Now the thieves have been completely defeated, and it is a foregone conclusion that they will be captured in one fell swoop.

However, the people in Qufu and other parts of Shandong were severely affected by this disease. Many families were destroyed and many houses were left in ruins. Winter was coming again and they were in urgent need of relief to rebuild their homes. The money and supplies of the imperial court were high in the mountains and the roads were far away, so it was difficult to deliver them for a while.

Cong would like to ask the two gentlemen to make it easier for them to temporarily borrow some money and food to meet their urgent needs. What do you think? "

The Kong family owns more than 90% of the land in Qufu and has rich farms all over Shandong. It has been accumulated for thousands of years. Jia Cong estimates that the grain and silver stored in his family should be more than ten times that of the Jia family.

At that time, Jia Cong casually obtained hundreds of grains in the village of Liaodong. He thought that the Kong family would only have a lot more. If he could get some, this disaster would be over.

Kong Wende and his brother Wenxin looked at each other, pondered for a moment, and said, "Commander, this is a benevolent act that benefits the country and the people. How dare our government be stingy? It's just..."

Just as Jia Cong showed joy, his face suddenly darkened when he heard the word "just".

"It's just that our government has encountered a great disaster, with countless casualties and panic. People are uneasy, and the funeral arrangements are stretched thin. It is really difficult to spare the manpower to deal with this matter.

Secondly, thieves were raging in the city and everything was burned, killed and looted. It was still necessary to check how much food the government could spare. I have never been involved in these secular affairs, and I really don’t know what the financial resources of the house are now.

Third, when it comes to such a big event, Yin Sheng and others have this intention, and they dare not make independent opinions and disrupt the family laws. After all, the name is not right and the words are not in order.

We still have to wait for the imperial court's decree to decide on the candidate for the title, and it will be appropriate for the new Duke Yansheng to make the decision. "Kong Wende said.

Jia Cong sneered in his heart. By the time the court decided on the candidate for the new Yan Shenggong, the day lily was getting cold.

The descendants of Confucius and Sheng were very good at Tai Chi. They spoke beautifully and with high-sounding words, but they didn't pay for it.

However, the Holy Palace was too prominent after all, and Jia Cong did not dare to requisition it like he did with ordinary big households, so he nodded slowly and said: "What Uncle Shi said is reasonable, but Cong has not considered it."

"Don't dare. The commander-in-chief is also dedicated to serving the public and asking for orders for the people. I admire him very much. As long as the family matters are concerned, I will do my best to help the commander-in-chief bring peace to Shandong." Kong Wende said with his hand.

Jia Cong smiled and said: "Thank you to the two uncles. I wonder if there are any uncles or brothers in the house who are not here? Cong Hao sent people to search and rescue." At this moment, he had made a decision in his heart.

Kong Wende sighed: "Apart from me and a few others, my nephew Xinghe, who is only four years old, is studying abroad, so he might be spared."

Jia Cong nodded: "Brother Xinghe and I have a close relationship in Ziyang. Xie Hui, rush to Ziyang yourself and bring Master Xinghe back."

"Yes." Xie Hui handed over his hands and left.

"Thank you, Marshal, for your love." Kong Wende and others said in unison.

Jia Cong smiled lightly and said, "You're welcome. My husband has passed away, and someone has to inherit the title. I think Brother Xinghe is smart, alert, and far-sighted, and he is worthy of this responsibility."

Everyone frowned, Jia Cong stretched his hand too long. (End of chapter)