The Red Mansion: From a Small Pawn to a Leader

Chapter 524 Li Hu: Jia Lian is great!
The rain in the capital stopped, but Shengjing City welcomed the first spring rain of the year.

Unlike the interior of the country, it was raining outside and still very cold sitting in the house. The charcoal fire in a brazier was burning redly.

Jia Lian's little Si Zhao'er was lying on the ground blowing the charcoal fire in another basin. As she blew the fire, she said, "It's already the middle of March and it's still so cold. This is really a bitterly cold place."

"Stop being so nagging."

Jia Lian, who was wearing a tight leather coat, dragged a chair over and sat down by the fire. He said to Zhao Er, "Go and ask Xue Ke if there are any more battle reports from the front. By the way, ask if there is any news from the capital."

The charcoal fire gradually turned red, and Zhao'er got up and walked out.

Jia Lian picked up the tongs beside the brazier, lowered his head and kept fiddling with the fire in the brazier. It was obvious that he was in a very complicated and heavy mood.

Originally they were going to return to the capital, but Jia She proposed at the imperial meeting that they should stay and supervise Li Hu, and then follow Li Hu's army into the pass.

Jia Lian understood Jia She's intention. The fact that Jia She was so cautious showed that the situation in the capital was very serious.

He knew what was about to happen, but there was nothing he could do but wait.

Jia Lian threw away the pliers in his hand, stood up in annoyance, walked to the window, looked at the drizzling rain outside, and sighed: "The slanting wind and drizzle make the spring chill."

Suddenly, applause broke out from outside the door, and then the door curtain was lifted, and Heshen walked in with a big smile on his face, saying, "Second Master Lian is in such a refined mood!"

Jia Lian looked at him and asked, "Any news from the prince?"

He Shen smiled and nodded: "Your Highness has already deployed the force of closing the door and beating the dog. When the time comes, the whole army can attack and wipe out Fu Kang'an and other traitors in one fell swoop!"

Jia Lian understood that the so-called opportunity was the information from inside the country.

He Shen: "Master Lian, I want to borrow something from you."

Jia Lian: "What is it?"

He Shen smiled and looked at him, then said slowly, "The Imperial Envoy's Seal!"

Jia Lian was shocked.

He Shen still looked at him with a smile: "What's wrong? Is there any difficulty?"

Seeing Jia Lian's eyes flickering, obviously thinking about something, He Shen continued, "This is what the prince meant."

The Imperial Envoy's Seal is not an ordinary official seal. It is an identity certificate + a scepter + a pass. It represents the authority granted by the emperor himself and is a symbol of imperial power. It plays a very important role! As long as you have the Imperial Envoy's Seal, you can travel freely in the territory of the Dashun Dynasty!
Jia Lian had already guessed what they were going to do, and used his imperial seal to trick the gates of Shanhaiguan into opening and seize it.

If it was in the past, this strategy might not have succeeded. But now the guards of Shanhaiguan are the imperial guards, a group of old soldiers. As long as they control the city gate, with the combat power of Liaodong's troops, Shanhaiguan will not be able to be defended at all.

Thinking of this, Jia Lian's eyes flashed. Could there be another deeper meaning behind Jia She asking him to stay?

He Shen: "Second Master Lian"

Jia Lian came back to his senses: "Hmm." Then, he lowered his head and thought for a moment, then said to He Shen: "The imperial guards of Shanhaiguan are from the imperial city. It is very likely that someone knows me, and is even familiar with my voice."

He Shen seemed to understand something and asked with a smile, "What do you think, Second Master Lian?"

Jia Lian hesitated for a moment, then said decisively: "I will go with you! But I want to ask the prince for a reward."

He Shen: "Official title?"

Jia Lian shook his head: "The rank of concubine is second only to the noble concubine, the Defei."

He Shen was startled at first, then smiled in appreciation. There was no Imperial Noble Consort in the Dashun Dynasty, and above Consort De were only Empress and Noble Consort, both of whom were of high rank, and would not make people feel that Jia Lian was taking advantage of the opportunity to blackmail her or ask for too much, nor would it make Li Hu feel disgusted or resentful towards Jia Lian's sister.

Jia Lian: "I can give you the imperial seal first."

Heshen raised his hand and said, "The prince said that he would not ask for too much and any conditions can be agreed to. In this matter, I have promised Master Lian on behalf of my master. No, Master the King's Uncle!" At this point, he suddenly laughed.

Jia Lian looked at him in confusion.

He Shen: "My Lord, you are the real Lord from now on."

Jia Lian also laughed. In the capital, officials of all ranks called him "Uncle of the State". It was just the combined effect of a minister entrusted with the care of the orphans and a left assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel. Jia Baoyu was Jia Yuanchun's biological brother. After laughing, Jia Lian asked, "When will we start?"

He Shen said sternly: "Let's set out now and start the work the next morning to avoid any more troubles."

Jia Lian nodded.

"Jia Lian is awesome!"

Li Hu stood up suddenly, strode to the sand table, inserted a small red flag on Shanhaiguan, glanced around the sand table, and nodded with satisfaction.

Li Hu did not expect that Shanhaiguan could be captured so easily.

What he didn't expect was that the imperial guards defending Shanhaiguan not only did not resist, but killed Niu Ben's trusted generals and surrendered to Jia Lian.

In this battle, Shanhaiguan was captured almost without bloodshed, and more than 10,000 imperial troops were captured.

Li Hu read He Shen's letter carefully again, and then said to Liu Quan who was kneeling there: "Go back and tell He Shen to act according to the plan."

Liu Quan answered loudly, "Yes." He kowtowed again, then stood up and walked out.

Wang Daniu came over, looked at the sand table and said, "If we take Shanhaiguan, we will control the entire area outside the pass, and we don't have to worry about the court's spies passing on information to the inside. Your Majesty, we should immediately fight a decisive battle with Fu Kang'an, then go south to Shanhaiguan to rest and wait for the opportunity to enter the pass, so as not to be in a hurry when the time comes."

Li Hu thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

Wang Daniu brought a bowl of tea to Li Hu and said with a smile: "I didn't expect Jia Lian to be so brave! This is not a game. If he is not careful, he may lose his head."

Li Hu took the tea bowl and took a sip. "It's really dangerous. It's hard for him. What do you think I should give him as a reward?"

Wang Daniu blinked his eyes and said, "Give him a few Jurchen women."

Li Hu said angrily: "Do you think everyone is like you? They only care about the trivial things in their crotch."

Wang Daniu curled his lips and muttered in a low voice: "It's easy to talk without feeling any pain in your waist. You are like a full man who doesn't know the hunger of a hungry man. I still don't even have a woman to warm my bed."

Li Hu laughed: "Okay, okay, okay, when I'm done, I'll reward you with ten or eight. I'll tire you to death!"

After hearing this, Wang Daniu had a lewd smile on his face.

Li Hu laughed angrily: "What a useless thing."

At this time, Wang Daniu coughed and said, "I have something to ask of you, Your Majesty."

Li Hu: "What's the matter?"

Wang Daniu: "I promised my godfather that I would take care of him until his death." At this point, he knelt down and said, "Please allow me to take my godfather home to take care of him!"

Li Hu was stunned at first, then he laughed.

Wang Daniu was delighted: "The prince agreed?"

Li Hu looked at him and smiled: "Let's talk about it later."

Wang Daniu stood up listlessly.

At this time, the officer on duty came in, hurriedly saluted Li Hu, then walked over, presented a locked box with both hands, and said, "Your Majesty, the princess sent her personal soldiers to deliver it."

Li Hu took out a key from his purse, opened the box, took out the letter inside and read it. His face suddenly became serious.

After reading the letter, Li Hu raised his head and thought silently. After thinking for a moment, he turned his gaze to the sand table, then pulled out several small yellow flags facing the southwest of Gyeonggi and replaced them with several small black flags.

Wang Daniu was startled and stared at the sand table with his eyes open.

Li Hu spoke: "Send the commanders of each camp to the commander's tent to discuss matters."

(End of this chapter)