The head of the Red Mansion

After swaying in the carriage for most of the day, Shen Ning didn't know how many times she dozed off, but she inevitably suffered from insomnia that night.

How to do?
She could only pick up her pen and miserably try to write about "The Return of the Condor Heroes".

Wen Peilan, who was accompanying her, took a short nap and discovered that her wife had been revising and rewriting for almost seven pages. She quickly tried to breathe more quietly.

She loves "The Legend of the Condor Heroes," and every character in it seems to come alive.

Wen, a former镖师 (bodyguard/escort) who had traveled all over the country, knew how formidable some of the extraordinary and eccentric figures in the martial arts world were.

Fortunately, the wife mainly promoted the word "chivalry" in the book.

As the saying goes, "The greatest heroes are those who serve their country and its people."

Although it may not please some people, the word "chivalrous" alone is enough to make those people back down in front of their wives.

Wen Peilan yawned softly, turned over in her blanket, and fell into a deep sleep again.

Shen Ning kept writing until the sky began to lighten and there was a commotion outside. Only then did she rub her aching arms.

Ugh, writing a book is so hard.

Why would she give up being a perfectly good housewife and write a book?

Both The Legend of the Condor Heroes and The Return of the Condor Heroes have been adapted countless times. The plot is probably already in my mind, but why is it still so difficult to write it?
Shen Ning looked haggard.

When Jia Zhen and Rong Ge'er, who came to pay their respects early in the morning, saw that she had only eaten a bowl of green rice porridge, they couldn't help but feel worried.

My father (grandfather) passed away. My mother (grandmother) almost followed him at first, but she recovered quite well afterward. How come she's like this again...?

Is it because you're afraid of the final farewell?
Although there is still a long way from the capital to Nanjing, every day shortens the distance until we are completely separated.

Isn't that cruel to the mother (grandmother)?

The father and son were on the same wavelength for once.

"Rong-ge'er, ride in your grandmother's carriage today and talk to her as much as you can."

"Eh~"

How could Rong-ge'er not respond?
"Need not!"

Shen Ning, who was going downstairs to get into the car, happened to hear, "With Pei Lan accompanying you, you can just do your own thing."

She also had four maids by her side, one in each of the four cardinal directions.

"Have you offered incense to the master yet? It's time to set off."

"It's already been done."

Jia Zhen never dared to be careless about the incense offered morning and evening.

"Let's go then!"

The weather is still cold, and the waterways are impassable. They have to travel from Baoding Prefecture all the way to Handan, Kaifeng, Xuzhou, and other places.

After getting on and off the bus every day, Shen Ning wondered if she should adjust her schedule.

Staying at an inn at night, practicing some boxing, or writing an article is better than staying awake until dawn.

The caravan set off again, unaware that several fast horses were urgently heading towards the capital a hundred miles away.

Wu Xincong, the steward of Jia Wen, the second aunt of Rongguo Mansion in Shenyang, was covered up and followed at the back of the procession.

He didn't even know what kind of work he was doing.

If I had known, I wouldn't have bothered to investigate so thoroughly.

Unfortunately, the hardest thing to buy in the world is a medicine for regret.

It's too late for him to regret it now.

This second aunt...

Hey~
Wu Xincong is now extremely worried that he will be silenced when he returns.

But if he doesn't go back with them, he might not see the sun rise tomorrow.

As the horse galloped at full speed, Jia Wen, whose face was also covered, turned around and glanced at him.

Her father was Jia Daishan, the Duke of Rongguo.

She reported her death to the capital back then, which was something she fought for with her life.

Now that she's going back, Jia Wen doesn't know what her future holds, but she knows that if her identity is exposed, the future of all the daughters in the Jia family might be ruined.

But I won't reply...

Her three children will also lose their lives.

"hurry up!"

The man glanced back at Jia Wen, the threat in his eyes clearly visible.

Jia Wen's heart skipped a beat, and she sharply cracked the whip on the horse's rump, yelling, "Giddy up!"

The chestnut horse quickly darted forward a long distance.

But no matter how fast she ran, she and Wu Xincong were always in the middle of the seven-person team.

As they approached the capital, Jia Wen's anxiety intensified.

Over the years, she has deliberately forgotten the capital city and her former identity.

But when the Russians arrived, she, the daughter of a noble family of the Great Zhao, was remembered.

She really didn't want to be remembered.

In this world, it's hard to live, and it's not so easy to die either.

The seven fast horses kicked up dust all the way down the road, only stopping when they were near the last post station in the capital.

"Bring out whatever good wine and food you have."

Wu Xincong was glanced at by the leading man, who then loudly called for wine and food to be served.

"I'm coming."

The post station belonged to the imperial court. Although it mainly served imperial officials, it never prohibited outside business, since that was the source of extra income.

"Please have a seat, sir. The food and wine will be served shortly."

Although the table was already clean, the waiter wiped it again, put down the hot water he had brought from the stove, and poured a cup for each of them.

What delicious dishes are served today?

"A freshly slaughtered sheep."

The waiter chuckled, "How about some mutton stew with radish, two plates of salted meats, and a stir-fried cabbage?"

"Very good!"

Upon receiving the signal, Wu Xincong reluctantly took out two taels of silver. "Waiter, could you tell me if there's anything interesting happening in the capital lately?"

"There are some."

There's money to be made.

The waiter was overjoyed. “You all come from the north, so you should know that the Russians have reached the Black River, right? I heard that the Jurchens have asked our Great Zhao for help.”

Everyone loves to hear this news.

"Oh?" The leading man lowered his head and took a sip of hot water. "So, do you think Da Zhao should help or not?"

"Of course we can't help!"

The waiter spoke with an air of self-righteousness, "The Rakshasa people are no good, those golden men..."

"cough~"

Wu Xincong coughed loudly. "Whether or not we help them is not something we common folk can discuss. May I ask, brother, do you know the Jia family on Ning and Rong Streets? Has anything happened to them lately?"

"Jia's family?"

The waiter glanced at them.

“Our master has some kinship with the Jia family.”

"Oh, you're late."

The waiter said with a hint of regret, "The Jia family has had a lot of trouble lately. Jia Jing of the Ningguo Mansion was killed by a group of Japanese pirates. Although he was granted an official position by the emperor, he is dead!"

"When did this happen?"

Jia Wen was terrified.

“During the twelfth lunar month last year.”

"What official position was bestowed upon him?"

Fearing that Jia Wen would lose her composure, the man gripped her hand with some force.

Jia Wen quickly lowered her head.

Her eyes were already red.

With Brother Jing gone, who else in the Jia family can hold them up?
"He was granted the rank of second-grade official."

The waiter, recognizing Jia Wen as a woman, lowered his voice, "I heard that before the New Year, her son, who inherited the title, was promoted several ranks again."

There were too many nobles in the capital. Jia Jing was so famous that he remembered his name, but he didn't know his son's.

"That's...good too."

In fact, it was precisely because Jia Zhen was promoted and the Jia family was favored by the Emperor of Da Zhao that he was ordered by his uncle and others to bring Jia Wen to request Da Zhao's assistance. "I heard that Jia Lian of Rongguo Mansion is also a secretary in the Military Treasury?"

They desperately need a large number of arrows, and it would be even better if the Great Zhao were willing to provide them with muskets and cannons.

These things are said to be under the jurisdiction of the Arsenal.

"Yes Yes!"

Jia Lian held the lowest rank, but he was the one that the officials and soldiers who came and went mentioned the most.

The waiter said, "He is the heir of the Rongguo Mansion."

"The previous Duke of Rongguo had two sons; this Jia Lian is from the first branch, and the second branch..."

"I don't know much about that, I only heard they split up." Split up?

The elder brother who separated from the family wouldn't care about his half-sister, with whom he had never been close before, would he?
Jia Wen lowered her head, doubting that the Jia family would ever acknowledge her.

"is it?"

The man who spoke held Jia Wen's hand the whole time, asking, "Is their old lady still alive?"

"Yes, yes."

The waiter hurriedly said, "I heard that Jia Jing was assassinated, and the old lady Jia went to the palace to cry to the Emperor Emeritus. Later, the Prince of Jin was found to be unfilial, and the Emperor Emeritus suffered a stroke after being provoked several times."

Therefore, the emperor felt a special affinity for the Jia family.

"……I see!"

The man's eyes flickered. "Thank you for clarifying things!"

As they were talking, the kitchen staff started serving the dishes.

"Then how can you say we're late?"

"Didn't Jia Jing of Ningguo Mansion pass away? I heard that the Ningguo Mansion lineage is going to escort his coffin back to their hometown."

"……Yeah?"

A hint of a smile appeared in the man's eyes.

The message they received said that the recent changes in the Jia family were closely related to that Madam Shen. She wasn't home... which was even better.

"reward!"

In his delight, he gave the order to reward him!

This time, Wu Xincong didn't need to give him any money; instead, his guard threw out a small silver ingot weighing five taels.

The Qing Dynasty was not short of silver.

Not to mention what they plundered from the Central Plains back then, they've also made a fortune from ginseng, pearls, and other commodities in recent years.

Unfortunately, Lu Caishen, who did the most business with them last year, went to Beijing and became very prominent, but he suddenly went bankrupt. Last winter, they still had some goods left unsold.

His purpose in coming to the capital this time was twofold: first, to request military assistance from the Great Zhao; and second, to establish trade relations with the Great Zhao.

"Thank you very much!"

The waiter thanked her profusely and left. Jia Wen felt sad. The men ate meat and drank wine heartily, while she only picked up some radishes to eat, as a small token of her remembrance for her deceased elder brother.

Now I just hope that my stepmother will remain the same as before, not be tempted by money or interests, and still look down on me.

……

In the palace, the emperor held a copy of the Manchu letter written by Mr. Liu and a letter of appeal for help delivered by a courier, signed by the Eighth Prince of the Qing Dynasty.

Unlike the horizontal strokes, left-falling strokes, vertical strokes, and hooks of Chinese characters, which have a very defined framework, Manchu script is composed of lines, radicals, teeth, dots, circles, etc. They may look similar, but in fact, they are not the same at all.

The emperor's words were compared one by one.

The more I look at it, the more satisfied I become.

"Your Majesty~"

Dong Xiaoquan was getting impatient. "This handwriting has already been examined by Lord Wu and others from the Hanlin Academy, and the characters are absolutely similar."

"Hmm, well done!"

The emperor smiled and said, "You can change his name later, or have him choose another name. As long as it's not Liu Yuan, anything else is fine. Shuntian Prefecture can register him in a separate household, and the memorial tablets of his family members can also be taken back."

Royal sacrifices are offered to the royal bloodline.

His family will definitely get very little incense offerings.

"In addition, I will grant two people this year's special imperial examination... If they want to participate, they can participate; if they don't want to... I will grant them other positions."

They talked all day yesterday until the court session, and the emperor's dark circles were still very heavy. "Tell him that I will give him ten days off to settle his private matters."

"Yes!"

Dong Xiaoquan left, completely satisfied.

When Liu Yuan went to the capital to take the imperial examination, he was arrested by the Prince of Jin and taken to the Prince of Jin's residence not long after arriving in the capital, so not many people knew him.

Over the past ten years, he has long since transformed from a young scholar into a weathered middle-aged man.

Even if his teachers and classmates from his hometown came to Beijing, they probably wouldn't dare to recognize him now.

Changing one's household registration and name is indeed a good solution.

"Then... I'll change my name to Liu Zhi!"

The path we took was wrong.

He wants to walk a straight path from now on...

"Okay, let's call him Liu Zhi!"

Dong Xiaoquan was very pleased that the emperor was willing to use him.

Jia Jing, who was once a classmate in the imperial examination, was very talented, but unfortunately, he did not live long enough for the emperor to have access to his talents.

"This word..."

"Please, Your Excellency, bestow upon me a title!"

Liu Zhi bowed deeply.

He trusted Dong Xiaoquan first, and then he trusted the emperor.

The night he was arrested, he genuinely considered suicide.

He had mistreated the Prince of Jin and knew what it meant to be worse than dead.

He feared he would end up like the Prince of Jin, living a life worse than death.

It was Lord Dong's open and honest words that dispelled his resolve to die.

"How about we call it... 'Unwavering'?"

Dong Xiaoquan did not want the emperor to doubt him any longer.

Liu Buyi, who also hopes to restart his life, will always be reminded by this name that he should not write what he should not write and should never seek the limelight.

"Thank you, sir!"

Tears welled in Liu Zhi's eyes. "Please accept my deepest homage, Your Excellency!"

From then on, the calligraphy he wrote for others could only be mediocre.

His true abilities are only for the Emperor's use.

Liu Buyi knelt down and respectfully kowtowed to Dong Xiaoquan.

"Get up, get up, get up quickly."

Being able to recommend talented individuals for the country is truly the greatest achievement in life.

Dong Xiaoquan quickly pulled him up.

Just then, Chief Constable Lu hurriedly knocked on the door.

"What's the matter?"

"grown ups!"

Chief Constable Lu hesitated for a moment, "General Feng Tang's son, Feng Ziying, has filed a complaint against Commandant Qiu and his son Qiu Feng with the Shuntian Prefecture."

what?
Dong Xiaoquan suddenly felt a headache coming on.

Feng Tang is considered to be one of the Emperor's men, but he is also considered to be one of the men of the Prince of Beijing's mansion.

Among the many noble families, the Prince of Beijing's mansion was a special case.

The Dowager Consort was Emperor Taizu's cousin. The military power of the Prince of Beijing's mansion could be said to be in the hands of the Prince of Beijing, or it could be said to be in the hands of the royal family.

That Commandant Qiu...

"Because of what?"

"It's because of the right to tell the story of a book."

Chief Constable Lu was also quite surprised, "Feng Ziying has an exclusive storytelling authorization issued by our Shuntian Prefecture, and the restaurant owned by Commandant Qiu is also telling this story..."

"Then what else is there to say?"

With an exclusive authorization letter, what right does Commander Qiu have to interfere?
Dong Xiaoquan regained his composure. "Let's go take a look!"

In recent years, Commander Qiu has become increasingly arrogant and spoiled because of the favor shown to him by the retired emperor and the emperor. His son, Qiu Feng, has been killing people everywhere.

It's time to do something about it.

"By the way, what book did they want? Let me take a look."

If it weren't a good book, the two companies wouldn't be arguing like this.

"It seems to be called 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes'."

Chief Constable Lu said, "This book has been selling exceptionally well lately."

He had heard of him before, but unfortunately he hadn't been selected.

"Especially in the military, it's absolutely outrageous."

"is it?"

Dong Xiaoquan smiled and said, "Don't hesitate, I'll be right back."

He strode off to settle the lawsuits between the two families.

At this moment, both Qiu Feng and Feng Ziying had bruises on their faces.

"You wait, once I find Master Jin, I will not let you off."

Upon arriving at Shuntian Prefecture and seeing the documents Feng Ziying produced, Qiu Feng knew he was destined to lose.

But he was so indignant that he vowed to find Master Jin. (End of Chapter)