Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

Bai Qiuwei's body stiffened, and her long eyelashes fluttered slightly like two small fans. In the end, she did not resist. She just sighed softly and let Jia Cong break down her last line of defense.

"Now that you have succeeded, are you satisfied?" Bai Qiuwei bit her lip, with a hint of resentment in her eyes.

Jia Cong was now used to being a girl, so he hugged her and said softly, "We have come this far, so what is the difference between us?"

Bai Qiuwei's heart trembled, and she gave him a cold look, but she couldn't hide the hint of joy in her eyes.

Chu Chan pouted behind him and whispered to Miaoyu, "This bastard, he wishes all the beauties in the world were equal to him."

Miaoyu nodded in agreement.

Jia Cong held Bai Qiuwei in his left hand and took Yang Si Niang in his right hand and sat back next to Chu Chan.

The four girls looked at each other in silence. Except for Chu Chan who was calm and confident, the other three girls looked at each other shyly and just sat there in silence with their heads down.

Seeing this, Jia Cong gritted his teeth and laughed dryly, "Why don't you say anything?"

Miaoyu hid behind Chu Chan. Bai Qiuwei and Yang Siniang were not familiar with the two women. What could they say in this situation?

Chu Chan smiled and said, "It must be because you are not familiar with each other yet, and you are shy and embarrassed. If it were you, there would be no need to do that.

Yang, Bai and Cong'er are in love and have already decided to spend their lives together. It wouldn't hurt to get closer to them a few days earlier."

"I... I didn't..." Bai Qiuwei hurriedly explained weakly, but when she saw everyone looking at her, she froze for a moment, blushing and not daring to say anything more.

"I can testify that Master Miaoyu has indeed no connection with Cong'er. They just happened to meet. However, she is well versed in Buddhism, so naturally she would not have any superficial prejudice against men and women." Chu Chan continued.

All the girls laughed.

Miaoyu almost buried her head in the water, her whole body burning with shame, she couldn't say anything, she just relied on Chu Chan to perform, and at this critical moment she didn't dare to get up and run away first, wouldn't she be seen naked by others? She had to endure it.

"If you ask me, sitting there is boring. It's better to play some drinking games to avoid having to stare blankly." Chu Chan said with a smile.

Jia Cong hurriedly cooperated and said, "What order? I don't know how to do something too difficult."

Chu Chan smiled and said, "Of course it has to be something that appeals to both the elite and the masses. Now that we are in the water, how about using water as the subject and telling a story or a joke?"

Jia Cong pondered and asked, "What is the punishment?"

Chu Chan said, "If her talk is boring, I'll punish her to bring us tea and cakes. We're hungry after all this time. What do you think?"

The girls thought to themselves, won’t they be seen completely by this bastard?
Miaoyu blushed and waved her hands, saying, "No, no, I don't like that. I can't tell jokes or stories. If you want to talk about water, you can write a poem or recite a poem."

Yang Si Niang objected: "I don't know any poetry or songs, but I'm good at telling jokes."

Bai Qiuwei was somewhat disdainful of Miaoyu's behavior of being a fairy from the Jade Pool who was inviolable on weekdays, but secretly having sex with Jia Cong at night. She sneered and said, "I agree with Fourth Lady. What you said just now about the minority obeying the majority, does it still count?"

"Ah?" Jia Cong didn't expect that someone else would learn it so quickly. He looked at Miaoyu and felt a little embarrassed.

He didn't want to punish Miaoyu. It wasn't because he was partial, but because he felt Miaoyu was really wronged today, and he couldn't bear to embarrass her again.

Of course, if there were no one else around, he would still be happy to secretly admire Miaoyu's graceful body. No, how could a scholar's doing be called stealing?

It should be "Flowers bloom in the dark, and their colors disappear after dawn", which is an elegant taste.

But Miaoyu said calmly: "Okay, let's follow the previous discussion."

She had read thousands of books and had seen all kinds of jokes. However, because she looked down on the common people and prided herself on being noble, she was unwilling to tell jokes to please others like a prostitute. Bai Qiuwei's sarcasm aroused her competitive spirit, so she agreed immediately.

Jia Cong could tell that she was unhappy and resentful, so he smiled at her apologetically, but he only saw the back of her head, so he smiled awkwardly and said, "Then I'll throw out some ideas first."

Chu Chan smiled and said, "If it's not good, you will be punished."

"I'll accept the punishment. I'm not afraid of being seen by you." Jia Cong said nonchalantly.

Scoundrel! Miaoyu and Bai Qiuwei cursed inwardly at the same time.

Jia Cong hesitated for a moment and said, "I am a farmer, illiterate, rushing to the city on a hot day.

I was so thirsty from walking that I wanted to find a place to buy water. Suddenly, I saw a plaque hanging in front of a shop that read: Qingshuichi, which is a bathhouse.

But he only recognized the word "water" in the middle, so he decided that it was a place selling water and insisted on asking the waiter to bring him some water.

The shopkeeper couldn't persuade him, so he asked someone to bring out a pea of ​​bath water. But the man didn't care about the taste, and drank it in a few gulps..."

"It's not disgusting..." The girls were both angry and amused, and all showed a look of disgust.

Jia Cong laughed and said, "That depends on whose bath water it is. If it's from a guy who picks his feet, it'll be disgusting. But if it's yours, I'm afraid people will line up to drink it." After saying that, he scooped up a handful of water and pretended to drink it.

"Oh! Shame on you!"

"do what!"

"Disgusting!" The three women except Chu Chan said in unison.

Bai Qiuwei was quick-witted and raised her hand to knock over the water he was holding.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Isn't this an analogy? The farmer wanted to pay for the water he drank, but the shopkeeper refused to accept it. The farmer was very grateful and whispered to him, 'Shopkeeper, you'd better sell your tea quickly, it's already a bit rotten.'"

The girls couldn't help but burst into laughter, and the atmosphere immediately eased.

"I bet the water in this pool is not only not rotten, but also very sweet." Jia Cong said with a smile.

The girls spat and ignored him.

Chu Chan smiled and said, "Then I'll tell you one too. Two friends are planning to jointly make wine. A says to B: You provide the rice, and I provide the water.

B said: I can provide the rice, how do we share the profits after the wine is brewed? A said: I will never let you suffer a loss, after the wine is brewed, I only want the water, and the rest is yours. "

Everyone laughed.

Jia Cong laughed and said, "Sister Chan is too calculating. We can't do business with her."

Seeing everyone looking at her, Miaoyu suppressed her shyness and was about to speak when she suddenly saw someone flash in from the door. It was Cheng Lingsu, a woman dressed as a man with a long sword on her back. She quickly hid behind Chu Chan.

"Master, urgent news from the Western Regions."

Jia Cong's expression froze. He walked to the edge of the pond, took the bamboo tube that contained the message and looked at it.

Cheng Lingsu seemed to be oblivious to the women in the pool. She turned around and took down a lantern from the wall to illuminate Jia Cong.

Jia Cong wiped his hands, unscrewed the bamboo tube, took out the information and read it carefully. His heart sank. Even though he was in the warm spring, he still shivered involuntarily.

Yang Si Niang asked, "What's wrong?"

Jia Cong sighed and said, "Si Niang, Wei'er, this is a serious matter. You should go back first. I will come to discuss it with you later."

"Yeah." The two nodded. Seeing his serious expression, they didn't care about being shy and jumped out of the pool and went behind the screen to change clothes.

Jia Cong waved his hand and sent the other girls away, leaving Miaoyu alone in the pool. "You..."

"you……"

Jia Cong asked the girls to leave first because he was afraid that Miaoyu would be embarrassed. Now there were only two of them left, and the question was who should go out first.

"How about you go first? I promise not to peek." Jia Cong said.

Miaoyu spat at him, leaned against the corner of the pool wall, and said, "No one would believe you."

"Okay, okay, I'll go up first. Do you want to take a look?"

"The devil is looking at you."

Jia Cong smiled. Seeing that all the girls were changing clothes behind the screen, he could not help but move closer and whispered, "Miaoyu, can I..."

"No." Miaoyu said angrily.

"Huh? I haven't said anything yet."

"Can anything good happen to you?" Miaoyu asked, hugging her shoulders tightly.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Okay, actually I just want to ask you for some Buddhist teachings."

"What is Buddhism?"

"It's about the question of discrimination. For example, when I went up just now, what was the difference between seeing my body and seeing your own body?" Jia Cong said with a smile.

Miaoyu was speechless. This question was quite difficult to answer. If she answered that there was no difference, this idiot would definitely make a fuss and find out the "difference".
If the answer is different, it will be inappropriate, and he will laugh at the falseness of Buddhism; if the answer is that you have not seen it, he will definitely ask you, since you have no discrimination, why don’t you dare to see it?
Yin said: "I have already let go of the situation just now, why are you still holding on to it?"

Jia Cong shook his head and said, "I don't believe it. If you can't even let go of your hands, how can you let go of your heart?"

"You...rascal!" Miaoyu cursed with her face flushed.

Jia Cong laughed and stopped teasing her. He put his hands on the edge of the platform and jumped out of the pool.

Miaoyu quickly closed her eyes and turned her head away, but the scene of Jia Cong shaking his head and wagging his tail while fighting with Bai Qiuwei had already been deeply engraved in her mind and she could not forget it.
-
In the study, Jia Cong read the information twice under the light and pondered for a long time.

The intelligence was so detailed that he could fully imagine in his mind the tragic battle that took place in the Western Region a few days ago:
March 20th, Western Regions, Dihua City
It was late at night. Although it was late spring, the evening breeze from the Western Regions still carried a chill, blowing up yellow sand all over the sky, dry, cold and rough.

The Dihua General's Mansion was requisitioned by the Western Expedition Army as the central military camp, and it is still brightly lit. Prince Nannan is reading the battle reports sent in by lamplight at night, secretly calculating whether there are any loopholes in his own tactics.

Two Vanguard Armies:
The 50,000-strong Western Army, led by Shi Ding, marched westward through thousands of miles of grassland at the northern foot of the Tianshan Mountains, successively conquered Manas, Kulkala Usu, Jinghe and other cities, crossed the Koguchin Mountain trail, and went around to the back of Ili City, which was like sticking a sharp knife into the heart of the Ili River Valley.

The 30,000-strong southern army, led by Taihe Earl Li Gang, traveled light and went south through the Yilianhabierga Mountain Trail, then turned west. After passing through the mountainous area, they advanced along the Ili River Valley and captured dozens of small cities including Nalati, Ajeletobe, and Zeketai.

If all goes well, we should be able to meet up with the Western Route Army at the city of Yili in mid-April.

The main force of the central army held the line of Changji, Dihua, Dabashancheng and Turpan, waiting for the opportunity to move.

"His Royal Highness has arrived."

"See Your Highness."

When the guards at the door saw Sun Qiu coming, they hurriedly opened the curtain for him.

Prince Nannan came back to his senses from his thoughts and hurriedly stood up to greet him.

Sun Qiu was dressed in military uniform, cupped his hands and smiled, "It's so late, Your Majesty is still busy?"

Prince Nan'an said with a smile, "Your Highness, haven't you slept either? Please take a seat."

Sun Qiu did not sit down, but walked to the huge sand table in the room, looked at the situation, and asked: "Is the war going well?"

King Nan'an came over and gave instructions while saying, "So far, everything has been as expected.

Several gangs of bandits in the south were suppressed by our army in Karashar, Aksu, Kashgar, Hotan and other places south of Nalati Mountain and Telsk Mountain. They were just trapped in a jar.

"We should take advantage of the current situation to capture Yili first, occupy this fertile land, and then advance southwards, where we will be unstoppable."

Sun Qiu looked at the sand table, made some gestures, and said, "Your Highness, Qiu is a little confused. Yili is remote, blocked by mountains, and has long been occupied by the Russians. It has nothing to do with this rebellion. Why make trouble?
Why not go directly south and retake this large area, so that a great success can be achieved.”

Prince Nan'an smiled, and naturally would not tell him that the four princes intended to divide the land and establish borders, so he said: "Your Highness, you don't know that the Ili River Valley is a place that must be fought for by military strategists.

There is a saying here: If you have not been to the Western Regions, you do not know how big China is; if you have not been to Yili, you do not know the beauty of the Western Regions.

There are high mountains and steep cliffs as natural barriers, forming a "three mountains and two valleys" situation, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack.

The land is fertile, the climate is humid, the rainfall is abundant, and there are nearly 8000 million acres of natural grassland, forests, and arable land.

It is also rich in high-quality war horses, which are extremely advantageous for farming and grazing, and is truly the Jiangnan region outside the Great Wall.

It is also the key point of the northern route of the ancient trade route, a place that merchants from the east and the west must pass through. Moreover, the Russians there are thousands of miles away from their homeland, with few soldiers and generals. How can we sit back and watch the barbarians occupy this place?"

Sun Qiu was so excited by what he said that he asked, "Your Highness, if we take this place, it would be better than taking the whole of Jiangnan?"

"That's right! If we take this place, even if we don't do anything else, it will be a great contribution to the country, a pleasant surprise."

Prince Nan'an said with a smile: "Besides, how can our 200,000-man army stop here?

Your Highness, please look, this area in the south may seem vast, but it is actually useless. Most of the area is yellow sand desert with no grass growing. Only this area at the foot of the mountain is habitable.

There is only one road, and we have blocked it. Are we still afraid that the cooked duck will fly away?

"The temporary suspension of the attack is only to relax their defenses. Once we have conquered Yili, we will march southward with all our might, and we can easily defeat these bandits with a single blow."

Sun Qiu was stunned by the ideal blueprint he described. He nodded repeatedly, cupped his hands and smiled, "Your Highness is indeed far-sighted. I admire you."

The Prince of Nan'an returned the greeting with a smile and said, "Your Highness, you are too kind. My brothers and I can only charge into battle. The victory of this battle is entirely due to your powerful planning. You have conquered the Western Regions and recovered Yili in one fell swoop. You have cleared the thousands of miles of territory. This is truly a feat that has not been seen in the Celestial Empire for decades!

When the good news comes back, your highness's prestige will be so great that it will shake the world and surpass your peers. I hope your highness will support me in the future."

These words made Sun Qiu very happy. Although he had already reached a tacit understanding with the four princes, this was the first time he had said it so clearly.

I didn't expect that King Nan'an would be so sensible as to give me such a great achievement. It's obvious that he wanted to exchange it for the credit of following the emperor, which is understandable.

Yin smiled and said, "Your Majesty, you are really too kind. I came here just to follow you to gain experience. How could I have such a strategy?"

Prince Nan'an said in a serious tone, "Your Highness, please do not be too modest. These simple plans of mine are all learned from daily consultations with Your Highness. In the final analysis, it is all due to Your Highness's advice.

The saint said, "It is my duty to take responsibility. For the sake of the vast territory and billions of people of the Holy Dynasty, please put the country first and do not refuse again."

Sun Qiu was so excited by his blatant "hint" that he felt as if he had been honored and was about to ascend to the throne. He was so excited that he imitated the emperor and held the hands of the King of Nan'an. He said "touched" and said, "Your Majesty is so loyal and kind. How can I bear to let you down? I will repay you in the future."

Prince Nan'an said with a smile: "Your Highness is wise and brave, respectful to the wise and humble, and highly respected by the court and the people. I, the prince, have been blessed by the emperor for generations, so I should obey the will of heaven and swear to help Your Highness soar into the sky."

Sun Qiu was overjoyed and tried hard to look serious, but the muscles on his face didn't obey his will and he couldn't stop smiling. Just as he was about to say something modest, he suddenly heard a terrified cry from outside the door: "There's a fire! The granary has a fire!" (End of this chapter)