The destiny of all heavens begins in the Red Chamber

If the Zhen family of Jinling is severely punished now, the Rong family will definitely be implicated!

Of course, the Rong family doesn't need to worry about this kind of involvement right now!

In the original novel of Dream of the Red Chamber, one of the charges against the Rong family for its downfall was this.

It can only be said that Madam Wang was truly ignorant and fearless, daring to accept any kind of money.

And she doesn't even plan to pay it back. I don't know where she gets the confidence from.

Jia Cong ignored the Zhen family's affairs in Jinling, rested in Jinling for a day, and then led his three thousand infantry and cavalry to continue north.

With the army escorting them, no force dared to act recklessly within the current territory of Daqian.

By the time they arrived in the Central Plains, it was already late spring.

Lin Ruhai warmly received Jia Cong at the Provincial Administration Office.

"Once we get to the capital, just do things at your own pace. No matter what happens, don't act impulsively. We'll talk about other things after Huan-ge returns!"

Lin Ruhai had heard some rumors, and this was a preemptive warning to Jia Cong.

"Don't worry, Uncle, I know what I'm doing!"

Jia Cong said directly, "Before leaving the Southwest, Huan-ge also said that the two of us brothers are too conspicuous and will definitely be attacked by many people in secret!"

In the military, the strong are respected, and it is clear that Jia Huan and Jia Cong are both formidable strongmen.

Their rapid rise has certainly impacted the status and interests of those so-called veteran military officers.

These guys are no good!

They may not be good at commanding operations, but they are certainly adept at using underhanded tactics.

In the present era of the Great Qian Dynasty, there are no more major battles to fight, so there is no need for the brothers Jia Huan and Jia Cong to continue to shine. There are definitely quite a few people who want to suppress the brothers.

It's possible that many members within the founding noble group harbor such thoughts.

"It seems I was worrying too much!"

Lin Ruhai nodded in satisfaction and chuckled, "But you don't need to worry too much. The emperor and the court will not be stingy with the respect due!"

"After all, military commanders as capable as you and Huan-ge are extremely rare!"

"No matter what, just in case, we have to praise you two brothers highly!"

"A first-class baron title is more than satisfactory to me!"

Jia Huan said cheerfully, "Once I'm back in the capital, it doesn't matter whether I stay in the Beijing Garrison or go to the Five Armies Commandery. I do need some time to rest!"

Given his age and physical condition at this time, his martial arts skills were at a point where they were improving by leaps and bounds.

Having experienced the baptism of war, his own accumulation is even more substantial, and his strength will only increase more rapidly.

According to Jia Huan, this trip back to Beijing is also a good opportunity for reflection and a chance to shine!

Even if they wanted to curb the momentum of the two brothers, they couldn't let Jia Cong sit on the sidelines, although his position might not be ideal.

Jia Huan's advice was to ignore the outside noise and take the opportunity to improve one's own strength.

As long as you are strong enough, you will have a greater advantage no matter what happens in the future.

There's no need to tell Lin Ruhai these words and thoughts, as he doesn't know much about martial arts.

"Did Huan-ge mention the cooperation with Prince Zhongshun?"

Lin Ruhai changed the subject, and said with a wry smile, "I won't hide it from you, Prince Zhongshun has come after me!"

"What, does he dare to threaten you, Uncle?"

Jia Cong's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and his tone turned colder: "Aren't you getting a little too cocky?"

Lin Ruhai narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression remaining calm, but his heart was in turmoil.

Judging from Jia Cong's tone, this kid doesn't really care about Prince Zhongshun.

Was he influenced by Jia Huan, or did he really have such confidence?

He didn't know, and he didn't want to know.

"Prince Zhongshun did not make any excessive demands!"

"They wrote to me hoping that I could lend a hand during the large-scale transportation of supplies and the transfer of personnel, if possible!"

At this point, Lin Ruhai asked curiously, "It seems that Huan-ge'er's overseas trade with him is developing quite well; it's almost out in the open!"

"Ha, now that things have come to this, there's no need to hide anything!"

Jia Cong chuckled and said, "Uncle, there's no need for riddles. Huan-ge'er's intention in instigating Prince Zhongshun was to seize territory and establish a kingdom overseas!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Ruhai and his trusted advisor Ma Wencai both showed expressions of being moved.

Although I had suspected it for a while, the confirmation still stirred my emotions.

That was about establishing feudal states and creating kingdoms; such ambition was quite astonishing for the Great Qian Dynasty at that time.

Since the Song Dynasty, the imperial family members of Han Chinese dynasties have been subject to increasingly strict constraints.

In short, it is almost impossible to possess power equal to one's royal status.

Especially after the example of the former Yongle Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, the Qianlong Emperor was exceptionally strict in his guard against princes of the imperial clan.

Prince Zhongshun was doing quite well, while those princes who were doing only so-so were practically invisible.

If it weren't for the existence of such a living person, even officials in the imperial court would easily overlook them.

But this time, because of the matter of the overseas territories, the royal princes have gone crazy, each of them taking out their entire fortunes and wanting to board the ship and make a big gamble.

Even the current emperor wouldn't be able to stop this!

The royal princes don't have much power in the Great Qian Dynasty, so let them go out to the outer seas and find their own territories to develop their own enterprises. If even something like this is obstructed, it could lead to major chaos.

"I've heard about these things occasionally before!"

After the initial shock, Lin Ruhai said in a deep voice, "After all, developing offshore territories involves a significant amount of personnel and resources, and it can't be kept secret!"

"I just hadn't thought about it that way before, so naturally I didn't know the intricacies!"

At this point, he changed the subject and asked, "But this matter shouldn't have anything to do with me, right?"

"I haven't had any contact with Prince Zhongshun before, so why did he suddenly write to me?"

"This is so abnormal, it's been making me quite uneasy lately!"

"I really don't want to get involved in royal affairs; it's too dangerous and there's no need for it!"

Lin Ruhai also had his own troubles, and this kind of thing was also a headache for him.

Unfortunately, aside from talking to his trusted advisors, he could only keep his frustration to himself.

Before Jia Cong rose to prominence, Lin Ruhai would never have said these things to him.

But now Jia Cong has not only risen to prominence, but also holds official positions and titles, so he naturally has the confidence to discuss such important matters. Otherwise, there would be no point in saying these things.

Since Jia Cong was a junior, Lin Ruhai couldn't help but say a few more words to relieve his frustration.

It's not a good thing if Prince Zhongshun suddenly writes a letter to him.

He was hesitant to report to the current leader, as if he lacked any sense of responsibility.

However, if the emperor were to discover this on his own initiative, the situation would only worsen. Being suspected and held against by the emperor is no laughing matter.

Jia Cong listened attentively to Lin Ruhai's complaints and said helplessly, "Huan-ge'er has always been a strong supporter of Prince Zhongshun's business overseas, and has put in a great deal of effort!"

"It wasn't just Huan-ge'er; the Xue family also contributed greatly. Otherwise, Prince Zhongshun's business overseas wouldn't have progressed so smoothly!"

"However, Huan-ge'er has recently focused all his attention on the southwest, and his support for overseas businesses has inevitably been somewhat insufficient, leading to a decline in his attitude!"

"Those are businesses built with real money; if the support decreases, we'll react immediately!"

"Right now, Huan-ge'er is far away in the southwest, so even if Prince Zhongshun is unhappy, there's no way he can say anything to Huan-ge'er!"

"Look, Uncle Lin will soon become Huan-ge'er's father-in-law, and Prince Zhongshun has come knocking on our door. He doesn't want Huan-ge'er to continue to slack off!"

Lin Ruhai and his trusted advisors were stunned, but then they suddenly understood.

I don't know how I feel. So I've been implicated?

"What exactly does Huan-ge'er want to do?"

This was Lin Ruhai's biggest question at that moment. He asked directly, "Did Huan-ge'er tell you that he's stretching his arms out so far? Isn't he afraid of hurting himself?"

"Uncle guessed right, Huan-ge'er really did tell me about this!"

Jia Cong put down his chopsticks and said seriously, "Huan-ge said that with his ability and strength, he will eventually make a name for himself; it's just a matter of time!"

"If we cause trouble within the Great Qian Dynasty, we'll easily clash with the current emperor and those conservative interest groups. In the end, it'll be a fight to the death!"

"Your uncle has also witnessed Huan-ge'er's military command abilities. With just ten or twenty thousand troops at his disposal, he is truly confident that he can crush the hundreds of thousands of troops in the capital garrison. At that time, it will surely be a scene of devastation!"

"Although Huan-ge'er is not exactly a good person, he still has his principles. He doesn't want to harm the people within the Great Qian territory, nor does he have any intention of disrupting the current power structure of the Great Qian!"

"Having no other choice, we have to turn our attention to the outer realms!"

At this point, Jia Cong said with great enthusiasm, "Such actions can be considered a unique form of territorial expansion!"

"Furthermore, given how quickly Huan-ge'er accumulates military merits, the current emperor will probably have to be wary of him becoming too powerful before he's even twenty!"

"It's better to find a way out sooner rather than later when things get unpleasant and we end up fighting each other!"