The destiny of all heavens begins in the Red Chamber

Among them were several high-ranking officials who were impeached and removed from office by him. He was extremely proud and influential for a time, and even gathered a group of young censors around him.

This guy is ruthless and has no bottom line. He seizes any opportunity to take advantage of others and has now become one of the most formidable generals in the Censorate.

Such a fine knife naturally attracted the interest of many big shots who wanted to acquire it.

The problem is that Jia Yucun has something on him that Master Zheng has, so he doesn't dare to easily jump ship.

Since he posed no threat to himself, Master Zheng Er paid little attention to Jia Yucun.

Jia Huan had been paying close attention, and he knew that things couldn't continue like this; something bad was bound to happen.

The attention and court efforts of numerous high-ranking officials meant more and better opportunities for promotion, something the Second Master Zheng couldn't offer. Even with the combined power of the Ning and Rong mansions, it would be difficult to push him to the third rank or higher.

If it doesn't take long, it's fine, but if it goes on for too long, and Jia Yucun can't suppress his ambition, no one can guarantee that he won't develop any vengeful thoughts towards Master Zheng.

If this guy turns against them, Jia Huan doesn't think Master Zheng can withstand it!

As for Jia Yucun himself, as long as the powerful figures who win him over can guarantee that he will be safe, he might actually take the risk.

Don't forget, Jia Yucun in the original Dream of the Red Chamber actually pledged allegiance to the current emperor!

This guy was able to eventually rise to the position of Grand Marshal and Minister of War, which would have been impossible without the protection of the current emperor.

As for whether he was ultimately abandoned by the emperor, Jia Huan was unsure.

After all, the sequels to Dream of the Red Chamber were not written by the original author, so many plot points simply don't match up.

Jia Huan pointed out Jia Yucun's current prestige, his potential ambitions, and his discontent, before finally saying, "It's better not to keep such a fellow in the capital; the position of Salt Commissioner would be just right!"

The Second Master was greatly shocked and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Cough cough, he has not yet experienced the real danger and fierce struggle in the court, nor has he witnessed the shameless side of the court officials, otherwise his worldview would be shattered.

Just hearing Jia Huan casually say it gave me a chill down my spine.

Upon reflection, he did indeed lack understanding of Jia Yucun, mainly because he harbored resentment towards him.

Lin Ruhai, on the other hand, was not so moved; he was well-informed and had a wealth of experience.

He had been wary of Jia Yucun for some time, but he didn't know what Master Zheng was thinking, so he didn't dare to offer any advice or reminders.

If Jia Huan hadn't told him about the Xue Pan case after he arrived in the capital, he would never have realized that the handsome Jia Yucun was actually a despicable person.

“Jia Shifei is also in the capital; he couldn’t possibly be unaware of the risks of the position of Salt Commissioner of Yangzhou!”

He spoke slowly, "Getting him to agree to go to Yangzhou might not be so easy, will it?"

Master Zheng nodded repeatedly, as he shared the same thought.

"Fortune favors the bold!"

Jia Huan calmly said, "As long as we clearly tell her that she must hold on to her position as the Salt Commissioner of Yangzhou for a year and complete the minimum tasks assigned to her, we will recommend her to become the Provincial Treasurer!"

This……

Not to mention Master Zheng, even Lin Ruhai showed surprise; this stakes were far too high.

"What good would it do to let him become the provincial governor of those border provinces?"

Jia Huan scoffed, "Besides, if this fellow successfully changes allegiances, won't he be promoted quickly?"

Then, he said something that made Lord Zheng Er turn pale with shock: "If I were Prince Zhongshun, I would definitely do my best to bring Jia Shifei under my command and promote him to a position in the court of third rank or above!"

"When the time comes, let Jia Shifei target the Ning and Rong families specifically. Even if he can't shake their foundations in a short time, he can still annoy us for a long time!"

"No need to say more, it's Jia Shifei!"

Master Zheng slammed his hand on the table and said coldly, "Huan-ge'er, go and talk to him!"

Jia Huan bowed and accepted the order, acknowledging that it was indeed most appropriate for him to handle the matter himself.

There are some things that even Master Zheng and Lin Ruhai might not be able to say aloud, but Jia Huan, taking advantage of his young age, can speak more freely.

As for the present, as long as Lin Ruhai and the Rong Mansion can guarantee that the Jia Yucun they promote can bring the salt tax revenue to a certain level, then it doesn't matter who goes first.

And that was indeed the case; Jia Huan went to have a serious talk with Jia Yucun that very day.

Instead of engaging in empty talk, he went straight to the point, focusing on the most interesting aspects of Jia Yucun's conversation, which easily kept the man engrossed in listening.

"The salt merchants of Yangzhou are not easy to deal with; one wrong move and you could lose your life!"

This fellow also expressed his concerns: "I don't want to end up dying far from home!"

"You've only been a cruel official for a year, don't you even have that much courage?"

Jia Huan sneered and retorted, "The saying goes that fortune and honor are found in danger. Do you really think it's possible to obtain high office and rank without taking any risks?"

"Just say whether you'll do it or not, so I can go back and report!"

"Done!"

I'll correct the typos later.

Chapter 178 New Developments (Please Subscribe)

After reaching an agreement with Jia Yucun, Lin Ruhai and Master Zheng acted swiftly.

The message was first relayed to the present day through Dai Quan.

He was quite displeased with the current situation and naturally didn't have a good attitude towards his ministers' attempts to bargain with him.

However, the news Dai Quan brought was still satisfactory to him.

Most importantly, there were guarantees from Lin Ruhai and Master Zheng: if Jia Yucun were to serve as the Salt Commissioner of Yangzhou, the salt tax revenue during his term would reach six million taels.

If that fails, Jia Yucun will be held solely responsible, and the Rong Mansion and Lin Family will offer a sum of money as an apology.

This is the right attitude to do things!

Although the annual salt tax of six million taels of silver is not exactly satisfactory to the present day, it is still barely acceptable.

If it were any other official, they would be lucky to even be guaranteed five million taels of silver.

As for the few minor requirements added later, they were not taken seriously at all.

Since Jia Yucun took the initiative to request protection from the Imperial Guard, then let's just give it to him. Is there any possibility that he might be turned against us?

Requesting covert support from the Embroidered Uniform Guard wouldn't be a big problem.

They also had the power to temporarily requisition salt workers, which was one of the powers of the Salt Inspector of Yangzhou.

These few small requests will all be granted today; there is absolutely no fear of Jia Yucun causing trouble.

But when Jia Yucun found out, he was full of confidence, feeling that the emperor was treating him differently.

When Jia Huan was discussing things with him, he didn't explain these things clearly. He thought that the emperor valued his abilities, which was why he received extra favors.

Jia Yucun was, after all, from the south, and had spent a long time in Suzhou and Yangzhou. Although he couldn't see the full extent of the power of the Yangzhou salt merchants, he knew it was quite astonishing.

If he were to take office alone, I'm really worried he might die an unexplained death!

With the protection of the emperor's secret guards, our safety is well guaranteed.

Soon after, Lin Ruhai directly recommended Jia Yucun to serve as the new Salt Commissioner, which quickly gained the emperor's approval, and the cabinet did not object.

Then, in the autumn and winter season, Jia Yucun, who was quite famous in the Censorate, took an official boat to Yangzhou to take up his post.

This fellow was truly adept at navigating officialdom; more than a dozen of his colleagues took the initiative to see him off at the Tongzhou Wharf.

Neither the Rong family nor the Lin family sent anyone over, which could be considered a way of avoiding suspicion.

Of course, Jia Yucun, who had just been appointed, did not take the initiative to visit before leaving, and his arrogant attitude was quite obvious.

Lin Ruhai and Master Zheng pretended not to see it; this fellow was still a very useful knife.

If used properly, it can save a lot of unnecessary trouble in the imperial court in the future.

Of course, if the Rong family and the Lin family join forces and still cannot suppress this guy, that will be the time when he retaliates, and the two families may not be able to withstand it.

That depends on their future development and progress. Master Zheng and Lin Ruhai are not afraid at all.

If you don't even have this much self-confidence, how dare you stand in the imperial court?

With the matter settled, Jia Huan dusted himself off and left, without making any further appearances.

His life quickly returned to normal.

He reads books, studies medicine, exercises, and researches the effects of the "golden finger" technique.

Of course, Jia Huan also received some benefits this time, as he had to run errands and personally negotiate with Jia Yucun. He had even asked for them himself.

The small martial arts school was very lively that afternoon. All the heroes invited by the school had gathered together, a rare occurrence. There seemed to be nearly twenty of them, standing together with an imposing presence.

The mainstream martial arts in the Dream of the Red Chamber world mainly focus on external martial arts and internal strength, but it also includes methods for circulating qi and blood, and even refining qi to cultivate true essence, which are considered so-called secret martial arts.

Ordinary martial artists in the martial arts world, once they have mastered some skills, are mostly burly and imposing.

Just by standing there, he's as solid as a door panel; you can tell he's a formidable hero!

Most of the martial arts practitioners gathered in the small martial arts school were in this situation.

In comparison, Jia Huan, sitting calmly opposite them, looked like a little kid.

They weren't affected much; a single glance was enough to silence the noise in the courtyard.

These江湖汉子 (jianghu men) had all witnessed Jia Huan's sharp skills with hidden weapons, and none of them were able to avoid them.