Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 241: Removal and Renouncing of Titles

When Grandmother Jia heard this, she felt dizzy. Jia Zheng, Wang Fu-ren and the others were frightened half to death. They hurried forward to comfort her and asked the maid to fetch a doctor immediately.

But Jia Jing no longer had the demeanor of an immortal. He beat his chest and stamped his feet, crying loudly.

At this time, even Jia Zheng, who was always generous, frowned at him. He was the ruler of Ningguo and a Jinshi, but he abandoned his family and career.

Leaving Ningguo's huge family business to an incompetent son has led to the disaster today.

Now that the incident has happened, there is nothing I can do, I am at a loss as to what to do. I can only cry like a woman, even worse than a teenager.

Mrs. Wang, Wang Xifeng and others looked at Jia Cong with horror in their eyes.

Thinking about what he had just said in the hall, it was exactly the same, as if he could predict the future.

Jia Cong said to Jia Zheng, "Master, if there are only women in the East Mansion, when the angel announces the decree, there must be a man to receive it and make plans, otherwise the people in the mansion will probably be in chaos!"

Grandmother Jia also recovered by this time, and asked tremblingly: "The East Mansion has been searched, will the West Mansion...?"

Jia Cong replied: "Don't worry, old lady. The West Mansion is not guilty. The East Mansion's search and seizure has nothing to do with the West Mansion."

Grandmother Jia heaved a sigh of relief and said, "Zheng'er, you should go over and take a look. There are women over there. You can't just stand there and do nothing."

Then he said to Jia Cong, "You should come with us. The master has treated you well. Remember to protect him."

Jia Cong found it funny when he heard this.

There are only female members in the East Palace now. Jia Zheng and I were just helping to receive the imperial edict and take care of everything. It's not like we were going to the execution ground, so there's no need to remind us.

Originally, Wang Xifeng was going to the East Palace to remind Youshi and her mother-in-law to pack up their belongings, but now, when she heard that the soldiers had arrived to search the house, she was so frightened that her face turned pale and she could no longer move.

Although she was fierce, she was a woman after all. How could she not be afraid when she heard about the house being confiscated?

I don’t know how chaotic the East Palace is now, so I don’t dare to get involved now.

Mrs. Wang finally came to her senses and said, "Now that the troops have arrived from the East Palace, it is indeed inconvenient for a woman like Fengjie to go there.

"The master will go and help receive the imperial edict, and let Cong-ge'er take care of the women of the East Palace. Although he is a foreign man, Cong-ge'er is still young and there is no need for him to worry about these things."

Wang Xifeng breathed a sigh of relief and said quickly, "Madam is right. Third brother is now on duty in the government office and has seen a lot of the world. He is the most reliable person.

I will go and prepare a place for them to stay so that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law can take them over and settle them down."

……

Jia Cong and Jia Zheng went out of the west corner gate of Rongguo Mansion. At this time, they did not dare to take the risk of riding in a carriage, and walked all the way to the main gate of the east mansion.

There were soldiers and horses standing in front of the mansion gate. Hundreds of Jinyiwei had surrounded Ningguo Mansion tightly, with swords and spears shining brightly and their power was terrifying.

Three officials stood at the main gate.

One of them was in his twenties, wearing a royal hat with a white tassel and silver wings, and a white python robe with a four-clawed dragon on it. Judging from his attire, he was obviously a prince.

Jia Cong also knew another person, Guo Youchang, who was his teacher in the academy examination and had now been promoted to the position of Grand Master of the Ministry of Rites.

The third official is also an old acquaintance of Jia Cong. He once joined forces with Jia Cong in Jinling to eliminate the Japanese ronin. He is now the left chief of the Dali Temple, Yang Hongbin.

Jia Cong did not expect that the officials who came to Ningguo Mansion today to announce the imperial decree for the confiscation would be of such high status. One was a prince, and the other was one of the leaders of the six ministries.

It seems that Emperor Jiazhao wanted to strip the title and confiscate the Ningguo Mansion openly and openly, to show the strictness of the law and the great power of the emperor in an irrefutable manner.

Jia Cong could not help but narrow his eyes slightly when he saw several men in brocade robes setting up a ladder and taking down the large plaque with black background and golden characters that had once symbolized unparalleled honor and wealth and was built for the Ningguo Mansion.

When Jia Zheng saw this scene, his face turned pale, his eyes filled with tears, and he was on the verge of collapse.

He murmured to himself with infinite sorrow: "My descendants are immoral and unfilial. They have disgraced our ancestors' family business, which they fought so hard to gain!"

Jia Cong hurried forward to support him: "Master, things have come to this point. It is helpless to be sad. You should accept the imperial edict first and sort out the problems as soon as possible so that the old lady can rest assured."

Jia Zheng came to his senses and realized that now was not the time to be sad, so he took Jia Cong to the two officials who delivered the imperial edict.

He bowed to the young man in the white dragon robe and said, "Prince Beijing has arrived. Jia Zheng is honored to meet you." Prince Beijing Shui Rong smiled and said, "Please be polite. Our two families are old friends and should not be told to outsiders. Today, Lord Guo and I are here to announce the emperor's visit.

Although Ningguo has fallen into sin, his ancestors have made contributions to the country. I know that there are only women in the mansion now. Before the male members of your clan come to receive the imperial decree, I have ordered the soldiers not to enter the mansion to avoid blasphemy. "

Jia Zheng was filled with gratitude when he heard this, and said, "Your Majesty is so kind that you have restored the dignity of the Jia family. Jia Zheng is deeply grateful."

After hearing what Prince Beijing said, Jia Cong heaved a sigh of relief and went over to meet Guo Youchang with the courtesy of a teacher.

When Guo Youchang selected Jia Cong as the top candidate for the Yongzhou Academy Examination, it caused quite a stir in the court, and there was some dissatisfaction within and outside the court afterwards.

But ever since Jia Cong, despite copying the papers under a cover, still managed to win the first place in the Yongzhou provincial examination, all those criticisms suddenly disappeared without a trace.

Everyone said that he, Guo Youchang, had a keen eye for talent and an extremely accurate vision. The top candidate in the imperial examination he selected actually won two first places in the imperial examination, which was a great story in the imperial examination.

Therefore, Minister Guo was very fond of this outstanding disciple and had long forgotten the embarrassing incident in which he was controlled and squeezed by Emperor Jia Zhao because of him.

Since all the male officials of the Jia family were present, it was urgent to convey the imperial edict. Jia Zheng led Prince Beijing and Guo Youchang into Cong Lu Hall in Ningguo Mansion.

He also ordered his servants to set up a table and burn incense, and had the Minister of Rites Guo Youchang read the imperial edict.

The gist of the imperial edict was that Jia Zhen and his son, as nobles of the country, did not appreciate the emperor's grace and favor, disregarded the country's laws, were violent and immoral, killed innocent people, and their crimes were obvious, so they were stripped of their Ningguo titles.

The imperial edict of conferring the title by Taizu was withdrawn, the imperial edict for building the Ningguo Palace was seized, all the public property in the palace was confiscated, and the family members and servants were released on their own.

His Majesty remembered that Ningguo’s ancestors had made great contributions in defending the borders and protecting the country, but the titles of titles for his descendants should not be taken lightly and must be obtained through military merit.

After the Ningguo title was abolished, it would be conferred for three years. If the Ningguo descendants had outstanding military merits, they could be re-conferred. If there were no offspring for three years, the Ningguo title and salary would be revoked and he would never be employed again.

……

After hearing the imperial edict, Jia Zheng and Jia Cong were both somewhat confused, as they had expected Ning Guo to be stripped of his title.

Confiscating property, sealing off mansions, and revoking Taizu's edicts were thorough enough to strip him of his title. Although it was shocking and sad, it was not a sudden move.

However, the last item in the imperial edict is a bit confusing.

That is to say, the emperor took into account the merits of Ningguo's ancestors and bestowed grace. Ningguo had a three-year revival period after being stripped of his title. Within three years, if the children of Ningguo made outstanding military merits, they could be reinstated as nobles.

This may seem like an extraordinary favor, but Jia Zheng knows his family background very well. This is just the emperor's nice talk and there is no chance of it being fulfilled.

Since the passing of Duke Daihua of Ningguo and Duke Daishan of Rongguo, the Ning and Rong Jia families have been declining in popularity.

Especially after Jia Zhen inherited the title, as the head of the clan, he was licentious and immoral, and brought about a decadent and extravagant atmosphere in Ningguo.

Jia Zheng knew this very well, as Rongguo Mansion had produced a figure like Cong Ge'er.

As for the Ningguo lineage, there is not even a single decent son or daughter. Instead, they are all frivolous and dissolute people. Not to mention anyone who can join the army and win honors, it is simply a pipe dream.

It is estimated that His Majesty, mindful of Ningguo's more than seventy-year heritage, was afraid that stripping the title would cause controversy, so he added this ambiguous decree to slightly ease the cold and harsh atmosphere of stripping the title.

What they didn't know was that on that day in the Qianyang Palace, both the civil and military groups had their own ulterior motives and were arguing endlessly about the removal of Ning Guo's title.

Emperor Jia Zhao watched from the sidelines and understood the situation very well. For him, stripping him of his title was like making a warning to others and it was a must.

But the Four Kings and Eight Dukes had deep roots, and he did not want to act too hastily to avoid exacerbating the situation, so he issued an edict to remove their titles and keep them in the same title for three years.

Emperor Jia Zhao was in control of the Imperial Chariot Department and had spies everywhere. Naturally, he was well aware of the conduct of the Ningguo clan's descendants and there was absolutely no possibility of their titles being restored.

But this move shut up the nobles headed by Prince Beijing. The title of lord cannot be taken lightly and must be obtained through military merit. This is natural and irrefutable.

The divine grace has been bestowed, and if you don’t have the ability to receive it, who can you blame?

Prince Beijing Shui Rong was also considered an outstanding figure among the nobles. Whether it was out of friendship or to protect the nobles' status from falling, he had done his best.

However, when faced with a cunning man like Emperor Jia Zhao, who was able to seize the key points, cut off the flow of troops, and do things with ease, Prince Beijing Shui Rong could only fumble around.

(End of this chapter)