Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

"Everyone get out of the way! The Jinyiwei are investigating the case!" Jing Can, the captain of the Southern Division, led a team of imperial cavalry and reined in their horses at the gate of the Censorate. They dismounted with great momentum and rushed inside.

Menzi and others were startled and hid aside in a hurry.

"Sir, you have come to the wrong place. This is the Censorate." An imperial censor stopped him and frowned.

Jing Can smiled coldly: "What? Officials of the Censorate don't break the law? Or can they get away with it if they break the law?"

As he spoke, he raised his hand and pushed him aside, then rushed in with his men and went straight to the duty room of the Henan Provincial Censor.

The official was pushed aside and hurriedly called out, "Go and report to the Chief Justice."

A minor official had already run away.

Fu Shi was in a meeting in the room to arrange official business when he suddenly heard a bang. The door was pushed open and seven or eight fierce-looking Ti cavalry rushed in.

"You are so brave! What are you doing?!" Fu Shi was furious. The imperial examinations had been going smoothly these days, and he was rewarding and punishing people as he pleased. His temper had also deteriorated, and he even looked down upon the imperial guards.

Jing Can walked in, glanced around, and waved slightly. The captain beside him hurriedly presented a letter and sneered, "This is a warrant. Sir Fu, please come with us."

The imperial censors hurriedly stepped aside, fearing that they would be brought into bad luck. The Jinyiwei's warrant was like a letter from the King of Hell, and no one dared to touch it.

Fu Shi shouted, "I am a law-abiding official, and I have a clean government. How dare you arrest people at random? Who gave you the power? I will report this to His Majesty, so that he can properly reorganize the emperor's personal army."

Jing Can sneered and said, "Master Fu conspired with others, secretly designed a plan, and instigated Shuntian Prefecture Governor Li Chao to rob a decent woman in the street and attempt to rape her. I wonder if this is considered law-abiding?
Now that Li Chao has come to the police station and made a clear confession, what else do you have to say, Your Excellency?"

"You... are talking nonsense. How could I have ever done such a thing?" Fu Shi's face turned pale and he tried to deny it.

The imperial censors nearby saw his evasive expression and knew that what Jing Shen said was true. They all sneered inwardly, what a thing!
As an imperial censor who is responsible for investigating corruption and evil, he actually did such a heartless thing, which tarnished the reputation of our Censorate.

Jing Shen waved his hand and said, "We will know who is right and who is wrong after checking. Take him away!"

"You! I am an official appointed by the imperial court. If you want to arrest me, you have to go through the three judicial departments. How dare you arrest people without authorization?" Fu Shi was totally confused and at a loss. He just struggled and shouted.

Jing Can snorted coldly and said sarcastically, "Master Fu, why are you talking nonsense? Don't you know whether I have the right to arrest people?" After that, he bowed to everyone and said, "Excuse me, gentlemen."

"Your Excellency is too kind. Since it is our duty, we naturally understand it."

"Goodbye." Jing Can bowed, said hello, turned around and left with his men.

Fu Shi wanted to shout again, but his jaw was dislocated and he was dragged out with his hands and feet tied.

"Goodbye, sir." Several imperial censors smiled awkwardly. I'll see you again soon.

All the censors passing by in the yamen came out to watch the fun, and were secretly pleased to see Fu Shi being arrested. The Censorate had always been dominated by the Neutral Party, but now the New Party had suddenly driven in a wedge and was in charge of the Beijing inspection affairs, making everyone from top to bottom uncomfortable.

"Old Li, what happened?"

"I heard that Fu Shi and Li Fuyin conspired to abduct a woman, and the incident happened."

"Hmm? Do we need to rob Li Fuyin? Which girl?"

"I don't know. The Royal Guards didn't tell me."

"Hey, you don't know this, can the Jinyiwei be mobilized if an ordinary woman is kidnapped?"

"Old Wang, why are you keeping me in suspense? Tell me now."

"I just saw a complaint in the Experience Hall. It was against Fu Shi and Li Chao. Guess who filed the complaint? I guarantee you won't be able to guess it no matter how hard you try."

"Oh, you're making me anxious. Tell me quickly."

"It's Jia Shaobao. Hehe... Do you understand now?"

Everyone slowly came to their senses and wondered why the Jinyiwei acted so quickly.

"Could it be that these two people were so bold as to rob Shao Bao's men?"

"Almost. Rong Mansion originally hired a female host. I heard she was beautiful and pure. But today, she was robbed by someone sent by Li Chao when she went out. This angered Shao Bao, who personally mobilized troops to rescue her. Everyone outside the West Gate saw it."

"Oh, that's not right. Jia Shaobao is Lin Butang's son-in-law, Lord Fu and Lin Butang are uncles, and Lord Li is Lin Butang's nephew-in-law. In this case, how will Jia Shaobao explain to Lin Butang?"

"That's wrong. Shao Bao is the Duke of Dingguo. Why should he explain his actions to others?"

"Hehe, even if you don't give face to Old Taishan, aren't you afraid of a fire in the backyard? I heard that Madam Lin is quite favored by the young guard."

"That's absurd. Young Master Bao is the most romantic man in the world. Is he like you, Old Chen, who kneels on the washboard and writes a letter of repentance when he takes action?"

"Bah! My words are as heavy as the mountain at home. I always keep my word and do what I say. Don't slander me and ruin my reputation." Old Chen was so anxious that he blew his beard and glared.

Everyone laughed.

At this time, Jia Cong had already sent Miaoyu back to the Rongcui Temple, and was comforting her with warm words and tenderness.

Seeing that it was getting late, Miaoyu was afraid that Baochai, Daiyu and the others would worry, so she hurriedly urged him to go.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Pin'er's cousin who weighs more than 200 pounds is holding her and crying. I'm too lazy to see her. I'd rather look at you."

Miaoyu couldn't help laughing when she heard this, and then rolled her eyes at him, saying angrily: "You are not kind-hearted, judging people by their appearance, and you are not afraid of Daiyu getting angry, because she is her cousin."

Jia Cong sneered, "Miao'er, you may have got it wrong. They should be afraid that I will be angry.

I have said before that I will kill Li Chao. Now that he doesn't know how to live or die and has broken into hell, should I still be polite to him?
Even if Miao'er, you forgive him, will the other girls in Jiangnan who were victimized also forgive him?"

Miaoyu sighed, chanted the Buddha's name, and whispered: "This is also karma. You will suffer for your own sins."

"So there is no need to worry too much about this matter. Let's just talk about our private matters." Jia Cong said with a smile.

Miaoyu said, "Just talk, don't be clumsy."

"Ah?" Jia Cong asked curiously, "You promised me that before in Li Chao's villa. Now that we're back home, why... do you want to go back on your word? Don't bully an honest person."

Miaoyu blushed and spat, "I was confused before, so you took advantage of me. How can I allow you to be so presumptuous now? Humph, if you don't respect me, I... I will leave this garden and never see you again."

Seeing her solemn expression, Jia Cong could only smile bitterly and surrender: "If I had known that you would be so fickle, I should have struck while the iron was hot and made a fait accompli so that you wouldn't change your mind again."

Miaoyu asked angrily, "Do you think I am such a frivolous person?"

Jia Cong was surprised: "Is this considered frivolous? I didn't even take off your clothes."

"You still say that!" Miaoyu's face was full of shame and anger. She stamped her feet and stood up to leave, but was hugged by Jia Cong.

"Great! Let's both take a step back. I promise not to do anything stupid, but you have to give me some benefits, right? Don't be so stingy and disappoint others." Jia Cong said with a smile.

Miaoyu was so ashamed that she covered her face and spat, "You scoundrel, you only know how to bully others. Let me up first."

"No, just say that."

Miaoyu was helpless, knowing that she couldn't get over him, so she asked, "What do you want to say?"

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Just chat casually. We have plenty of time anyway. You can choose poetry, songs, calligraphy, painting, or philosophy of life."

Miaoyu said, "You just talk nonsense. I don't want to talk to you. You are so shameless to talk about your lousy chess."

Jia Cong said proudly: "Although I lost the game, I won against you, a wonderful person. This is the highest level of chess skills, winning outside the chessboard." Miaoyu saw his smug look and sneered, saying: "How shameless."

The two chatted casually, and Jia Cong found that Miaoyu was indeed worthy of the title of talented woman. She had read every book in the world, including classics, history, and literature. She could even quote military books and strategies at will, and she could talk about them eloquently, which often left Jia Cong speechless and made him admire her even more.

"Miao'er, I only thought you were proficient in Buddhist scriptures and at most learned some poetry. I didn't expect that you have read so many books. You are not much worse than Sister Bao. Compared with you, I am like an illiterate." Jia Cong said with a smile.

Miaoyu glanced at him tenderly and said with a smile, "A real man is upright and upright. As long as he has great integrity and righteousness in his heart, what does it matter whether he reads books or not? The ancients said that half of the Analects can rule the world. This is the truth. Reading is about understanding principles, not about how much."

Jia Cong held her soft little hand and said lovingly, "My dear wife, I feel so comfortable listening to you. Why did you always look at me coldly before?"

Miaoyu spat shyly: "Who told you to always do bad things and be annoying?"

Jia Cong laughed and said, "Don't you want to see what it looks like when the Bodhisattva descends to the earth?"

"You dirty thing, it's almost dark and you still haven't left. I only have vegetarian food here." Miaoyu spat.

"It's okay to eat vegetarian food, as long as you eat meat." Jia Cong said with a smile.

Although Miaoyu didn't understand what he meant, she knew it was not a good thing to say, so her face immediately became serious and she stood up to see the guest off.

Seeing that it was almost time, Jia Cong had to say goodbye and leave.

Miaoyu watched his tall figure disappear around the corner of the building. She could no longer hold back her anger. Her pretty face turned red and her body softened as she sat down on the kang.

Today's events had great ups and downs, twists and turns, and finally they had formed a lifelong alliance. She didn't even know where all the Buddhist scriptures she had recited over the years had gone, and she felt that the whole world had become colorful.

Jia Cong walked into the flower hall and saw all the ladies there, waiting for him to eat, so he smiled and said, "Are you hungry? Bring us the food." Qingwen, Xixue, Jin Chuan'er and others hurried to prepare the meal.

Ruyi rolled her eyes at him and said, "I thought you were going to have your vegetarian meal."

All the girls smiled secretly.

Jia Cong laughed and said, "As everyone knows, I love meat. Why should I eat vegetarian food when there are so many meat dishes?" He pointed his finger at everyone.

"Not serious."

"Dirty."

"You're talking nonsense. Why don't you sit down?" The girls laughed and scolded in unison.

Jia Cong saw Baochai winking at him, and seeing Daiyu looking depressed, he asked, "What's wrong with Pin'er?"

Daiyu hesitated for a moment, and then shook her head and said, "It's okay."

Jia Cong thought it would be difficult for her to speak in front of everyone, so he smiled and said, "If you have anything to say, let's talk after dinner. I'm hungry too. Eh? Where are Sister Yuan and the others?"

Baochai said hurriedly, "Miss San and the others heard that we had something to do, so they sat for a while and then left, saying they would visit again another day."

Jia Cong nodded and said, "Sister Bao, please send me an invitation to invite her to come and play again when it is convenient for her."

Baochai smiled and nodded.

All the girls knew about Miaoyu. Seeing that Daiyu was in a bad mood, no one was chatting or laughing at the table. After the meal, Jia Cong took Daiyu back to her room.

"Anything on your mind?"

Daiyu's eyes, as cold as autumn water, flashed with shame. She glanced at Jia Cong cautiously and said, "This afternoon, my cousin came to me and cried for a long time. I hope you can show mercy and let my cousin's husband go."

"Sit down and talk." Jia Cong looked calm, helped Daiyu sit down, and said, "Pin'er, your cousin-in-law deserves to die!

It's not because he kidnapped Miaoyu today, but because he committed many evil deeds when he was an official in Jiangnan. It's just like what you taught me in the Spring and Autumn Annals: Those who do too much evil will eventually perish!"

Daiyu was shocked to see the murderous intent in Jia Cong's words, and asked hurriedly, "What did he do? To be like this."

"Him?" Jia Cong snorted coldly, and told the story of Li Chao again, sneering: "To be honest with you, I was determined to kill him when I was in Jiangnan. The reason I didn't do it was just because of the New Party and my father-in-law's reputation.

Now that the New Party and I have different ideas and have no common interests, he has come to me again to seek death. Do you think I will let him go? If I let him go, how can I save my reputation as Duke Dingguo?"

Daiyu sighed softly and said softly, "Brother Cong, I understand what you mean, but...is there no other way?
If you deal with him fairly, the New Party will definitely retaliate against you, and I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

Jia Cong held her cold little hand and said, "Don't worry, Pin'er. The New Party may seem to have great power, but I regard it as nothing.

As for your cousin's husband, it would be unjust if I didn't kill him. I hope you won't blame me."

Daiyu rolled her eyes at him and said, "You and I are husband and wife, and you are fighting against violence and defending the people. How can I blame you? If I have to blame anyone, I should blame Li Chao for his evil deeds and his own destruction. Then Fu Shi..."

Jia Cong pinched his chin and thought for a while, then said, "Let's not talk about today's incident. Now that he has joined the New Party, he has become a knife in their hands to eliminate dissidents through the Beijing Inspection. I'm afraid many people don't want him to live."

Daiyu asked hurriedly, "My father is in charge of the imperial examination, isn't he?"

Jia Cong nodded.

"Now that Aunt Fu is pregnant again, can't you turn a blind eye? Spare Fu for once? My father will also accept your kindness." Daiyu pleaded.

Jia Cong frowned and said, "Aunt Fu is not a good person either. She deliberately tricked Miaoyu into going out to murder her. She is as vicious as a snake. If it weren't for the fact that she was pregnant with my father-in-law's child, I would have sent someone to kill her immediately. As for Fu Shi..."

Daiyu pleaded softly, "Brother Cong, let's wait until Aunt Fu has a safe birth before we deal with it."

"Well, I'll do as you say." Jia Cong said.

Daiyu said happily, "I thank you on behalf of my father."

Jia Cong sighed, "I'm afraid my father-in-law may not thank me."

Daiyu's expression darkened, and she said, "My father said that he would ask to be sent out after the imperial examination. Since you are in mourning at home, you should not argue with him. He doesn't want to do this, but he can't disobey the emperor's order."

Jia Cong said in a deep voice: "I naturally understand my father-in-law's difficulties, but there are some things I have to do.

Because I am the helmsman of the Jia family, I have many old friends and nobles around me who rely on me for food, and I have to support tens of thousands of people under me.

Therefore, I will never allow anyone to threaten my core interests. Sometimes I may not be able to take into account the relationship between father-in-law and son-in-law. I hope you can understand. "

Daiyu was startled and said in a trembling voice: "Brother Cong, you mean... you and my father..."

Seeing her shocked expression, Jia Cong hurriedly comforted her, "What are you thinking about? It's just that we have different political views. I have always respected my father-in-law. The sage said that a gentleman should be harmonious but different."

Daiyu felt relieved and said, "My father is a gentleman, but what kind of gentleman are you?"

Jia Cong smiled and said, "A gentleman loves a beautiful lady. Since you are a lady, I am naturally a gentleman."

"Bah, I am throwing away a pearl in the dark." Daiyu said shyly.

The two were joking when they heard Lingguaner come and report that "Mr. Lin is here to visit."

"I know, I'll be out right away."

Daiyu hurriedly urged, "Talk to my father nicely."

"Don't worry, I promise not to make my father-in-law angry." Jia Cong left with a smile. (End of this chapter)