Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

Chapter 57 Selecting Soldiers

After returning from the celebration banquet, Jia Cong ordered the girl to hand over all the gifts received today to Qingwen, and he took out the purse given by Baochai and looked at it under the lamp.

Although this pouch with a plain white cloud brocade background and an ink landscape is only available in black and white, the embroidery work is smart and delicate, and the landscape artistic conception is grand and refreshing, which is pleasing to the eye. It is obvious that a lot of effort has been put into it.

Jia Cong opened his purse and pulled out a stack of paper. It turned out to be ten Datong banknotes worth one hundred taels. He secretly said that it was indeed silver. Sister Bao understood me.

I unfolded the banknote and saw a note inside, with two lines of Li Taibai's poem written on it:
  On the same day, Dapeng rose from the wind and lifted up to 90,000 miles.

The handwriting is delicate and elegant, obviously written by Baochai.

Jia Cong felt happy, and suddenly found some childishness in his student days when he was passing notes to the teacher on his back. After thinking about it, he picked up his pen and wrote two sentences at the back:
  It is better not to meet each other than to be close to each other.

The love has been deep since we met each other, and we can know our hearts without saying a word.

It was also a poem by Li Bai, but he only remembered these two sentences. Thinking of Baochai's look when he saw these two poems, he felt a little hopeful.

"Qingwen, please give this note to Miss Bao tomorrow. Don't let others see it."

Qingwen took it and said curiously: "Master, what is this written about?"

Jia Cong pinched her cheek gently and said, "Want to know? Then go read and learn to read."

Qingwen said coquettishly: "I'm just a girl, what kind of characters do you know? Grandma Lian Er doesn't know how to read, and she doesn't care about it, and no one in the whole family is dissatisfied?"

Jia Cong shook his head and laughed. What kind of illiterate logic is this? After thinking about it, he thought for a moment and said: "In the future, when I'm not here, you can go to Sister Bao and ask her to teach you how to read and write. Just say it's me who said it, and she will teach you, you know?" ?”

"Ah, why should I learn this? I don't want to learn. Besides, Miss Bao and I are not familiar with each other, so I don't want to trouble others." Qingwen pouted her little mouth and said coquettishly.

Jia Cong feigned anger: "Are you not listening to me? If I tell you to go, just go. Don't shirk, otherwise the family law will serve you."

"Master, don't be angry, I'll just go." Qingwen hurriedly covered her buttocks to beg for mercy.

"That's pretty much it." Jia Cong smiled proudly, little girl, I can't cure you yet.

The next day, Jia Cong got up early in the morning, ordered someone to go to Wang Jin to apply for leave, took the money and went out. Today he was going to choose his own soldiers.

I saw Lin Zhixiao outside the second door and hurriedly called him.

"I would like to say hello to the third master. Congratulations to the third master for being promoted to a noble position. What are your instructions for the third master?" Lin Zhixiao is usually taciturn and honest. Knowing that Jia Cong is not what he used to be, he did not dare to neglect and hurriedly came to greet him. Respectfully say hello.

Jia Cong nodded and said, "Steward Lin, let me ask you something. Where are the two soldiers of Lord Rong Guo now?"

Lin Zhixiao said: "Returning to the third master, after the two princes removed their armor, most of these soldiers were concentrated in Zhuangzi outside the city, except that they were willing to receive money and return to their places of origin. They were given land and their property was confiscated. Rent, and there will be some rewards every year."

Jia Cong asked: "How many soldiers are there in total?"

"There were about a thousand people back then, but now they have multiplied and the number of men, women, old and children is at least several thousand, maybe tens of thousands."

Jia Cong nodded. He planned to select soldiers from the descendants of these soldiers. The oily boys in the mansion were not useful.

"Find someone who knows the way and take me there."

"Yes." Lin Zhixiao hurriedly made arrangements without asking the reason.

After a while, Lin Zhixiao led a middle-aged steward over.

"Third Master, this is Laifu, who is responsible for collecting rent from Zhuangzi outside the city under the steward Zhou Rui. He knows the roads best."

"Greetings to Third Master." Laifu hurriedly stepped forward and made a thousand greetings.

"Let's go." Without any nonsense, Jia Cong led Laifu and Wangcai and rode out of the city.

"Third Master, our family and Dongfu's village are both twenty miles away from the south of the city. Several villages belong to our family. Those soldiers are placed on the two villages of Teal and Baihe, with a total of more than 10,000 acres. land."

Along the way, Jia Cong listened to Laifu's introduction and got some initial impressions. It is said that life in Rongguo Mansion should be pretty good. There are several farms outside the city, nearly 100,000 acres of land, and there are many leading door shop industries in the city. There are also some in Liaodong Many land estates.

The foundation left behind by our ancestors is not bad. How come we can't even get out the last two or three hundred taels of silver, and we still have to live by pawns?

"Laifu, you are also the steward of the house. Let me ask you, your family has so much property? Why can't you make ends meet now?" Jia Cong said.

Laifu's face stiffened. He naturally knew the details, but he didn't dare to say it outright. This was a fatal matter. He could only laugh dryly and said: "Master Cong doesn't know something. Nowadays, the population of the mansion is prosperous, and the nobles and clan members in the capital are... There are many favors, and the land depends on the weather. In recent years, the weather has often been unfavorable, so the income has been less and the expenses have been higher."

"I see." Jia Cong sneered. My master is incompetent and has raised such a group of rats. If I don't tell you now, you will vomit blood.

Not long after, we arrived at the place, Baihe Village. Suddenly, a young man jumped down from the big tree in front, opened his arms, and stopped several people.

"Who are you? What are you doing here? We in Zhuangzi have never had outsiders come to us."

Call! Jia Cong hurriedly reined in his horse and saw the underground young man, about seventeen or eighteen years old, with a slender figure, strong and strong, a short sword in his waist, a brave look and keen eyesight. He was overjoyed and said, "Who are you?"

"Who are you?" the young man asked.

"Brother Ying, I've blinded you!" Laifu scolded.

The young man turned around and saw Laifu and said with a smile: "It turns out to be Uncle Laifu. He has gained a lot of weight after a long time. I didn't recognize him."

Laifu ignored him and said to Jia Cong: "Third Master, this is the head thorn of the younger generation in Zhuangzi. His name is Yan Shuangying. His grandfather served as the commander of the late Duke's personal army."

Jia Cong smiled and nodded.

"Brother Ying, this is the son of the eldest master in the mansion, Third Master Cong! Why don't you meet me yet?"

Yan Shuangying hurriedly turned over and prostrated: "Greetings to Third Master Cong. I don't know that Third Master is in person. I offended you so much. Please forgive me."

"Get up, are there any strong men in the village now?"

Yan Shuangying held the reins of Jia Cong's horse and led the way. He said with a smile, "I'm joking. Except for women and suckers, there are all strong men in this village."

Jia Cong smiled and said: "How many young people are there in their twenties?"

"Well, about a few hundred people."

"Grandpa, Grandpa Zhou, Grandpa Li, come out quickly." Yan Shuangying led Jia Cong and the others to the open field dam in the village, shouted loudly, and then ran to the old locust tree on the roadside to pull the bell rope. Suddenly the loud ringing of the bell was heard throughout the village.

The whole village, young and old, heard the bell and came out together.

"You bastard, why are you ringing the bell for nothing? Let's see if I can't beat you to death." An old man wielded a cane and quickly stepped forward to hit Yan Shuangying.

Yan Shuangying hurriedly ran away with his head in his arms and said, "Grandpa, Third Master Cong is here."

"Which Mr. Cong?"

"Old man Yan, why don't you come and meet Mr. Cong, the third son of the eldest master in the mansion?" Laifu hurriedly raised his hand to greet him.

Everyone looked surprised and hurriedly came forward to meet him and greeted him warmly. There had been no master in Zhuangzi for many years.

Jia Cong got off his horse, helped the old men in front of him up, and said with a smile, "How are you, old men? I have some free time today to come out and see the big guys."

The old men were so moved that tears filled their eyes. They held Jia Cong's hand and were speechless. After a long time, they said: "The master in the mansion has not been here for a long time. I thought the nobles in the mansion had forgotten us." An old loser."

Jia Cong and Laifu hurriedly offered words of comfort.

After a long time of persuasion, Jia Cong said: "Now I am lucky enough to be rewarded by the Holy Emperor and be granted the title of Enqi Lieutenant..."

"Really?" Everyone was overjoyed when they heard this. They were even happier than they were when they picked up the ingot. These old soldiers had spent their entire lives in the military and respected the military nobles the most. Their children were influenced by them and were all proud to serve in the army. They hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed in congratulations.

It was a lot of fuss again.

Jia Cong helped everyone up and said, "I came down today just to select a few soldiers. I wonder if anyone is willing to go with me?"

"Me, me, me!"

"Third Master, I am willing to go!"

"I, Third Master, I am not afraid of death!"

Hundreds of men around him raised their hands and shouted. More men from a distance ran over. Before they could figure out what was going on, they also raised their hands and shouted, for fear of missing something good.

Several old men laughed and said: "Master Cong, look at this situation, do you still need to ask?"

Jia Cong was overjoyed and said with a smile: "But now my title is low, and I can only have ten places. There are many good men, so how to choose them is very particular."

Everyone nodded.

(End of this chapter)