I'm in the Red Mansion

Chapter 305: Yuanchun dies, Wang Xifeng is involved in a lawsuit, you are so cruel, old man
However, he does not need to personally rub the rifling of every gun barrel. It is enough for him to be able to make just one.

Next, Jia Cong spent a whole day carving the rifling on a gun barrel.

Next, Jia Cong went to the church again and found Johann Adam Schall von Bell.

Seeing Jia Cong, Tang Ruowang smiled and spread his hands and said, "My Lord, this rifling is something that only exists in theory. It is perfectly normal that it cannot be produced."

Jia Cong handed over the gun barrel and said, "I have carved it out, but I don't know if it can be used. You can take it and test it first."

Tang Ruowang took the gun barrel from Jia Cong and looked at it carefully.

I couldn't help but say, "It looks perfect. Let's test it out to see if it can be used."

Actually, Johann Adam Schall von Bell didn't have any expectations.

Many experienced craftsmen from the Firearms Battalion and the Artisans Battalion had tried it, but none of them were usable.

Tang Ruowang didn't believe that Jia Cong, a marquis, could produce perfect rifling.

Next, Johann Adam Schall von Bell took a gun and started experimenting.

The experimental results were far beyond Johann Adam Schall von Bell's expectations.

Because the barrel is rifled, it really greatly improves accuracy and range.

It’s hard to quantify the accuracy at the moment, but there is no doubt that it has been greatly improved.

And the range has been increased by a full double!
This is nothing short of a miracle!
After the experiment, Johann Adam Schall ...

"My Lord, this rifling is absolutely a new beginning, bringing firearms into a brand new era! With this rifling, it won't be long before firearms replace cold weapons!"

Johann Adam Schall ...

If you ignore the differences in skin color, hair, eyes, etc., he is truly the most Han Chinese that can be.

He could even write articles and memorials, and was better than many scholars in Daxia.

But at this moment, he was so shocked that his defense broke down as soon as he opened his mouth, and he brought out the flavor of his hometown.

Jia Cong added: "I think we can lengthen the barrel appropriately. This will not only further improve the accuracy, but also further increase the range."

Yes, the barrels of heavy weapons and firearms in later generations are very long, which is a proven experience.

Tang Ruowang still hesitated and said, "My Lord, this will greatly increase the difficulty."

"Now, the only one who can carve the rifling perfectly is the Marquis. We can't let the Marquis carve the rifling himself in the future."

Jia Cong said: "I think we can actually make a tool first. This tool can carve rifling in batches and achieve precise control."

The tool that Jia Cong was talking about is called a lathe.

Jia Cong was not sure whether the lathe had been invented in the West.

Tang Ruowang nodded and said, "What you are talking about is called a lathe in the West."

"If we have a lathe, after continuous experiments, we can carve rifling in batches."

"We can definitely make a lathe that will solve the problem perfectly."

In this era, it is difficult to produce a lathe with extremely high precision.

However, it is just making gun barrels, so the accuracy does not need to reach an incredible level.

Therefore, after giving Tang Ruowang a hint, Jia Cong handed the task to Tang Ruowang.

And Johann Adam Schall von Bell excitedly led his students to start making lathes.

Jia Cong attaches great importance to the development of science and technology.

The students he sent to study with Johann Adam Schall von Bell were not only extremely intelligent, but also had clean backgrounds and were highly loyal.

And now it seems that they are making rapid progress.

As long as you study under Master and Apprentice Johann Adam Schall von Bell for 10 to 20 years, you will be able to stand on your own in the future.

And be able to spread this spark.

Jia Cong was also quite pleased with this.

It is not easy to develop a lathe from scratch.

If things go wrong, it will take years to achieve.

Therefore, Jia Cong was not in a hurry for the next step.

Instead, he turned his attention back to the development of Jizhou.

Over the years, Jia Cong's business has always been limited to alcohol and perfume.

Because these two businesses have brought him enough wealth.

Jia Cong's development focus is not business, so he did not continue to launch new products.

But now Jizhou can launch some new products.

It is said that there is no wealth without business.

The only way to make Jizhou, which was in a state of disrepair, develop rapidly was to vigorously develop commerce.

Next, Jia Cong opened several factories in Jizhou.

For example, soap factories, wineries, textile factories, etc.

As for the textile factory, Jia Cong decided to use the purchased steam engine to drive the improved textile machine.

The production capacity of a steam engine is equivalent to that of dozens or even hundreds of workers.

As for the raw materials, silk is no longer made from silk.

Jia Cong prepared to use wool to weave into yarn.

This place is very close to nomadic peoples such as Mongolia, and the Xue family itself has business dealings with them.

Procurement of raw materials is very time-saving and labor-saving.

The steam engine was purchased ready-made.

When we want to expand our scale in the future, we can produce steam engines ourselves.

The first generation of steam engines were very crude, and there were ready-made samples in front of us.

It is not difficult to copy one or even improve it.

Next, Jia Cong plans to develop several more products based on the actual situation in Jizhou.

Jia Cong simply opened up an industrial park outside Jizhou City.

In the future, all factories in Jizhou will be built here.

With these factories, Jizhou will be able to develop rapidly.

And then, Jizhou did enter the fast lane of development just as Jia Cong had expected.

The construction of the factory alone was a huge project in this era without much technology.

From last year to the beginning of this year, construction inside and outside Jizhou City has never stopped.

The infrastructure construction further promoted the development of Jizhou City and even the entire Jizhou.

……

On this day, the Rongguo Mansion was very lively.

It turned out that Baoyu's marriage was finally settled.

The girl is the daughter of the Minister of Works.

Although the girl's family is not a noble family, the Minister of Works is a second-rank official.

Lin Ruhai is now the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and the two are of the same rank.

As for Rongguo Mansion, if it weren’t for the fact that there was an imperial concubine in the palace and she was pregnant.

I'm afraid that the Minister of Works still looks down on the fallen noble family of Rongguo Mansion.

If it was replaced by the Champion Marquis of Ningguo Mansion in the East Palace, it would be about the same.

However, the daughter of the Minister of Works had also called off her engagement once, which delayed her marriage.

Later, with the help of an intermediary, the two parties discussed the matter and were both very satisfied.

Therefore, this marriage was settled.

Now that we have exchanged our birth dates, we only need to go through a few more procedures and I’m afraid it won’t be long before we can marry her.

After all, both of them are not young anymore.

Baoyu's marriage has been settled, which is naturally a good thing for the Rongguo Mansion.

On this day, Grandmother Jia held a banquet and invited the whole family to have fun.

Grandmother Jia was also a person who knew how to enjoy herself. She let the troupe sing songs while they drank and listened to the music, and she was quite happy and carefree.

Suddenly, Lin Zhixiao's wife rushed in and said, "Grandfather, Madam, something bad has happened. Something bad has happened."

"There's a message from outside, saying that our queen has passed away!"

boom!
This news was like a thunderclap, ringing in everyone's ears.

For a moment, they felt their heads buzzing and their minds began to become a little dazed.

Grandmother Jia couldn't help asking again, "Mrs. Lin Zhixiao, what did you just say? I didn't hear it clearly. Can you say it again?"

Lin Zhixiao's wife knelt on the ground and cried, "Grandfather, Madam, there was a message from the emperor just now saying that our queen has passed away!"

After hearing it again, Grandmother Jia felt a black screen before her eyes and fell backwards.

The panicked crowd some were helping, some were lifting, some were pinching the Ren Zhong point.

Just when everyone was in a panic, Mrs. Wang fainted without a word.

Naturally, everyone was in a panic again.

The others, including Wang Xifeng, Li Wan and others, were busy and crying.

As the saying goes, when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter.

The Rongguo Mansion was able to prosper and flourish, all thanks to the Empress in the palace.

Now that the Empress in the palace has passed away, the good days of their Rongguo Mansion are over.

Although the East Palace still had a patriarch, Marquis Guanjun, the two palaces were eventually separated.

Moreover, the Marquis of Guanjun in the East Palace and their Rongguo Palace were not really close.

There are even conflicts between the two sides.

Marquis Guanjun once swore that he would never set foot in Rongguo Mansion again in his life.

After a long while, Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang finally woke up.

They couldn't help but burst into tears, and even Wang Xifeng, Li Wan and others started crying as well.

All the women in the family cried out together, and it was so heartbreaking and moving that anyone who heard it would cry.

It took a long time before she stopped crying.

Grandmother Jia hurriedly asked how the empress died.

Lin Zhixiao's wife hurriedly said, "Just now the eunuch in the palace said that our queen has an acute illness. She fell ill last night and died early this morning."

"Because they were afraid that it was some serious disease and that it might infect others, after the queen died, she was taken away and cremated."

After hearing this, Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang became extremely suspicious.

They went to see the empress last month and she was fine.

How could it be so fast? It's only been a month and he got sick last night and died early this morning?
There must be some hidden story behind this.

However, no matter how suspicious, unwilling, or resentful they were about what was happening in the palace, they dared not reveal a single word about it.

Now they are just grieving. The queen is gone suddenly. From now on, what should they do in Rongguo Mansion?
For a moment, everyone dispersed.

The entire Rongguo Mansion was shrouded in a shadow from top to bottom.

In the afternoon, the family of the Minister of Works sent someone to cancel the engagement.

Everyone in the Rongguo Mansion was very angry.

Inwardly, he cursed the Minister of Works for being so rude. Their queen had just passed away, and they immediately called off the engagement. They were so snobbish.

However, now that the Empress has passed away, they dare not offend the Minister of Works and can only agree with resentment.

A few days later, Wang Ziteng was reported for crimes such as drawing a salary without working, embezzlement and bribery, buying and selling official positions, colluding with foreign countries, and secretly selling Daxia weapons to the Qing Dynasty.

After hearing this, Emperor Yonglong became extremely angry.

After ordering people to investigate, they immediately arrested Wang Ziteng and his family and put them in jail, and confiscated Wang's property.

This action was really too swift.

Before anyone could react, the Wang family's property had already been ransacked.

This made Mrs. Wang and Wang Xifeng even more frightened.

The Wang family is their maternal family. They are in the Jia family and they are able to have their current status thanks to the support of their maternal families.

When Wang Xifeng and Jia Lian were confiscating the family property, she mentioned it many times: What is the difference between our Wang family and your Jia family?
Don't make me sick. Just sweeping the floor for our Wang family is enough for your Jia family to live on for a lifetime.

But now, their parents' homes have been ransacked, and they are filled with grief and fear.

They wanted to save the Wang family, but were afraid of being implicated by the Wang family. They were also afraid that without the support of their natal family, their lives in the Jia family would be difficult in the future.

What’s even more ironic is that when the Wang family’s property was searched, as much as 1.6 million taels of silver were seized.

The Wang family has not yet repaid the 400,000 taels of silver that they secretly borrowed from the Jia family.

Now they have only repaid a few hundred thousand taels, and the Wang family has been crying poor, saying that they have no money.

If I had the money, I would have paid it off long ago.

But when their house was searched, they found out that they actually had 1.6 million taels of silver in cash.

I have to say, this is really a great irony.

Even Mrs. Wang was so ashamed when she learned about this that she dared not see anyone.

Three days later, Jia Cong also received the news and couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

Although he had this variable, he not only became the Marquis of Guanjun, but also guarded Jizhou.

But Yuanchun still died in the palace.

It seems that someone doesn't want the baby in Yuanchun's belly to be born.

After Yuanchun's death, the Wang family was unsurprisingly immediately raided and imprisoned.

Will it be Rongguo Mansion’s turn next?
For a moment, Jia Cong couldn't guess whether it was the retired emperor in the palace who took action, or the conservatives such as Prime Minister Qin.

Well, they were originally on the same side.

Jia Cong began to guess their intentions.

The four major families of Jia, Wang, Shi and Xue should have been liquidated.

Even if I showed up, I couldn't change their fate.

Of course, there will be some changes.

For example, even if Rongguo Mansion was liquidated, Ningguo Mansion would definitely be safe and sound.

For example, the Xue family may not necessarily be liquidated.

The Xue family was liquidated, probably because of Xue Pan's murder lawsuit.

And now, Xue Pan’s murder lawsuit has been resolved by himself.

As for whether the Rongguo Mansion would be liquidated, Jia Cong could not guess for the moment.

Jia Cong didn't know whether Emperor Yonglong would secretly protect Rongguo Mansion because of his existence.

After all, he was the governor guarding the border.

However, it was also well known that he was not on good terms with the Rongguo Mansion.

Whether to protect Rongguo Mansion is really another matter.

Next, Jia Cong began to think about how he should respond if the Rongguo Mansion was liquidated.
It is absolutely impossible to plead for them.

Let’s first take a look at how far the Rongguo Mansion would be liquidated if it were to be liquidated.

If I am to be confiscated and exiled, I will have to protect a few people.

At least my third sister, eldest sister-in-law and others must be saved.

However, if he were in Jizhou City, it would be too far away and it would not be easy to protect them.

In this case, it would be a good idea to go back soon.

Well, Sister Lin has been pregnant for several months now. I wonder how she is doing now?

It's good to go home once.

Thinking of this, Jia Cong called the officials and generals in the city and gave them some instructions.

Then, he began to write memorials, and he made a plan to start taking over the remaining fifteen of the Sixteen States of Yanyun within a few years.

Start with the three neighboring continents and gradually recover them.

However, this plan was too important, so Jia Cong prepared to return to the capital to report to the emperor in person.

Well, it is true that Jia Cong wants to recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun.

But why do we need to go back and report to the emperor?
However, as the governor of Jizhou, he could not leave Jizhou City without permission.

Going back at the end of last year was already an exception.

It is even more difficult to leave casually now.

That's why he made this excuse.

However, Jia Cong believed that as long as Emperor Yonglong wanted to recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun, he would definitely not refuse his request.

Soon, the memorial was delivered by carrier pigeon, and Jia Cong began to wait.

……

In the capital, some censors have begun to submit memorials to impeach the Rongguo Mansion in recent days.

These censors impeached Wang Xifeng, the wife of the eldest son of the Rongguo Mansion, for taking on lawsuits to make money and forcing two people to death.

He lent money at high interest rates, causing three families to sell their children and two families to be ruined.

These are all based on real evidence, and there are also some other trumped-up charges.

For example, there is no need to mention crimes such as jealousy.

These imperial officials, like sharks smelling blood, immediately pounced on him in groups and bit him.

Emperor Yonglong was also furious when he heard this, and immediately ordered the Jingzhao Prefecture to thoroughly investigate the matter.

When Wang Xifeng does things, she is clever but lacks great wisdom.

As the saying goes, being too clever and scheming may lead to the loss of your loved ones' lives.

When she relied on the power of the Jia family and the Wang family to do whatever she wanted, did she ever think that there would be a day of reckoning?
Therefore, many things are not confidential and can be easily traced.

There are both witnesses and evidence, and the evidence is conclusive.

The Jingzhao Prefecture immediately ordered people to go and arrest the person.

In Rongguo Mansion, Jia Mu and others were shocked and angry when they learned about this.

What made people angry was that Wang Xifeng was so bold and presumptuous as to do such a shameless thing.

What’s shocking is that the queen has passed away and the Wang family has just been ransacked.

Now the censor is probably targeting their Rongguo Mansion again.

What should we do?

In Rongguo Mansion, the messenger from Jingzhao Prefecture came to ask for someone and was drinking tea in the front hall.

After all, the Jia family is a noble family with two dukes. Even if it is an official from Jingzhao Prefecture, it is not easy for them to go to the inner house to arrest someone.

A little maid ran to tell Wang Xifeng the news.

After hearing this, Wang Xifeng was so frightened that her face turned pale and she almost fainted.

Jia Lian happened to be at home at that moment. She was so panicked that she knelt down in front of Jia Lian, hugged Jia Lian's legs and cried, "Second Master, save me!"

At this time, Jia Lian was also shocked and angry.

He couldn't help but slap Wang Xifeng in the face and kicked her away.

"You bitch, it's ok for you to be strong at home, but why do you dare to act so recklessly outside?"

"It would be fine if you were courting death yourself, but you are dragging my Jia family into the mire as well!"

"I am so unlucky. How could I marry a bitch like you?"

"They say that a virtuous wife will keep misfortune away from the family, but marrying a vicious woman like you is the root of misfortune!"

Wang Xifeng felt a burning pain on her face, and her ribs were numb from being kicked. She didn't know whether her ribs were broken or not.

Her mouth was filled with the taste of blood, but she couldn't care less about the pain.

After all, she was still somewhat smart and knew that Jia Lian could not be relied upon.

She didn't care about her face or etiquette, she stood up and ran out, heading straight for Rongqing Hall.

The old women, maids and servants outside saw the Second Mistress in a miserable state with disheveled hair, tear marks on her face, a palm print on one cheek and a big footprint on her chest.

They were all shocked and tried to avoid it.

Wang Xifeng didn't care about all this, and rushed into Rongqing Hall. After entering the door, she ran a few steps to Jia's mother, knelt on the ground, hugged Jia's mother's legs, and cried bitterly:

"Ancestor, save me!"

At this moment, the wrinkles on Grandmother Jia's face were three times more numerous than before.

His face showed signs of aging.

At this time, Jia's mother's face was also covered with tears. She patted Wang Xifeng's shoulder and said:

"Feng girl, you are so confused! How dare you do so many bold and reckless things outside without telling me and your mother-in-law?"

"If it was any other minor matter, I would have protected you even if it cost me my reputation. But now that you have done something so serious, how can I, an old woman, protect you?"

Wang Xifeng burst into tears and said, "Grandfather, I know I was wrong and I won't do it again. I will respect you and my parents-in-law in the future."

"I hope that the old ancestor will save my grandson's wife's life for the sake of serving you."

Wang Xifeng naturally knew that her crime was extremely serious.

But this crime can actually be big or small. Which noble family has not done something out of line?
If Lady Jia really wanted to protect her, she could just go to the palace in person and beg for mercy. Rongguo Mansion would just have to pay some money and the matter would be over.

Now it depends on whether the ancestor wants to save her.

After hearing what Wang Xifeng said, Jia's mother cried:

"Feng girl, I do want to protect you, but how many censors are impeaching my Jia family, and how many eyes are staring at my Rongguo Mansion? How can I protect you?"

Hearing this, Wang Xifeng fell into complete despair.

She knew that even if the ancestors wanted to protect her, it would cost her favors.

As for favors, they become less each time they are used.

The ancestor obviously didn't want to waste a favor by protecting her.

Thinking of this, Wang Xifeng couldn't help crying, "Grandfather, you are so cruel! Are you just going to watch your granddaughter-in-law go to Jingzhao Mansion and suffer humiliation?"

Grandmother Jia lamented, "Feng girl, if you don't think about yourself, you should think more about Qiaojie."

"If you show up in public and are taken to Jingzhao Prefecture for trial, Qiaojie will become the daughter of a criminal. How will she get married in the future?"

After hearing these words, Wang Xifeng suddenly felt cold all over.

It turned out that the old ancestor not only refused to protect her, but also wanted her to end her life herself to avoid being taken to Jingzhao Prefecture and bringing shame to the Jia family.

She never expected that her ancestor could be so cruel!
It turned out that the love that the ancestors had shown her was all fake.

(End of this chapter)