The Military Governor in Dream of the Red Chamber

"Jia Mao, what else do you have to say?" The man walked up to Jia Mao, his courage growing considerably. "Kneel down obediently and kowtow three times to the Commander, beg for mercy, and perhaps the Commander will spare your life."

He then burst into laughter.

The same goes for those behind them.

Previously, Wang Shen and Jia Chen were junior officers, so they would have been more discreet.

Things are different now. Wang Shen is a captain, so they don't even take Jia Chen, a junior officer, seriously.

Since we've run into them, we should give them a good humiliation.

With a loud "slap," a heavy slap landed on the man's face.

With a scream, the guy spun around several times before crashing to the ground with a thud.

Jia Mao's strength was considerable. The guy was groaning on the ground, his cheeks swollen and red, blood constantly seeping from his mouth, and he spat out bloody broken teeth.

"Jia Mao, how dare you!" another man shouted, rushing forward. "Brothers, take him down!"

"Huh?" He had barely finished speaking when, before the people behind him could rush up, he suddenly saw Jia Mao take out his waist token and almost shove it into his face.

"Open your dog eyes and see what your grandfather is holding!" Jia Mao shouted.

"What the hell? Wait a minute... Jia Mao, the commander of Qianshan Fort, Beidong Road, Datong Town... Commander?!" the man muttered, pausing at the end before realizing what he meant.

"Commander-in-Chief? Impossible! Jia Mao, you deserve to die for forging your identity badge!" the man shouted.

People gathered around, and those who could read immediately understood the words on the waist tag.

Wang Shen frowned; he didn't believe Jia Mao would dare to forge an identity token.

Even if Jia Mao was reckless, he didn't think Jia Chen was that kind of person. There was no way Jia Chen would let Jia Mao do that.

"Is it really the head of the regiment?" Wang Shen was a little confused for a moment.

What exactly is going on?

"Jia Mao, let's go." Jia Chen was too lazy to pay attention to these guys.

Jia Mao snorted and put away his waist token: "From now on, avoid Grandpa whenever you see him, and get as far away from me as possible!"

After saying that, he turned around and left with Jia Chen.

The people behind him were still shouting, saying that he had committed a serious crime, such as forging waist tokens and falsifying his identity.

"A bunch of bastards, what's so great about a mere squad leader? How dare they show off? Second Uncle, you're a centurion." Jia Mao's face was full of disdain when he mentioned Wang Shen and his men.

"Let's go, there's no need to get angry over something like this, it's not worth it," Jia Chen said with a smile.

In fact, Jia Chen understood that it was normal for Wang Shen and others to disbelieve and have doubts.

When Jia Mao went to Datong, he was just a lowly soldier, not even a small flag bearer.

In just over two months, he became the commander-in-chief. Who can believe it?

Wang Shen and his group couldn't possibly have much inside information. They had only heard that Datong Town had been plundered by the Northern Barbarians, and at most they knew the names of the new governor and general of Datong, which was about the same as what ordinary people in the capital knew. They knew very little else.

How could they possibly know about the promotions of low-ranking soldiers like the centurion?

Wang Shen is ultimately a member of the Wang family, and with Wang Ziteng's protection, Jia Chen is not someone to be trifled with.

Next, I'll go to Datong. I won't have much to do with them, so there's no need to cause any trouble at this time.

Making a scene would only bring trouble upon oneself, and it would be bad if it affected Liu Tianwang's affairs.

He vaguely sensed that Liu Tianwang was very dissatisfied with, or even hostile towards, Wang Ziteng.

If Wang Ziteng uses this as an excuse to tamper with Liu Tianwang's affairs, then it is his own fault.

A man can bend and stretch.

Even if you want revenge, you have to find an opportunity.

Currently, Jia Chen doesn't have that ability.

"Yes, yes, we need to hurry back so my mother knows that her son has made something of himself and is now a flag officer." Jia Mao patted his waist badge and laughed heartily.

However, his walking posture was a bit awkward; he walked with his legs apart, swaying from side to side, like a big fat goose.

The two quickly arrived at the west end of Ningrong Street.

Because they came from the west, they entered the city through the western gate.

Ningrong Street runs east-west and is about two miles long. It is lined with houses and shops on both sides, many of which belong to the two Jia families.

Most of the collateral relatives and servants of the Jia family lived nearby.

Jia Chen and Jia Mao lived in a gathering place for Jia family servants and collateral relatives on the westernmost side of Ningrong Street.

"Quickly, quickly, step aside, don't block the prince's way~~" Several servants dressed as servants of the Jia family came from the east side of the street.

They drove the people on the street to the sides.

"Which prince is it?" Jia Mao asked curiously.

Jia Chen and Jia Mao also stepped aside, clearly indicating that an important figure had visited the Jia family and they were preparing to return home.

"Why do you care so much?" Jia Chen chuckled.

Jia Mao chuckled: "I'm just a little curious."

Jia Chen was also curious, as the four princes were the ones who had a good relationship with the Jia family, though it could also be any other prince.

Soon, Jia Chen saw a large sedan chair approaching, escorted by several armed guards.

He also saw Jia She and Jia Zhen following beside the sedan chair.

Jia Chen knew these two people; he had seen them a few times from afar before.

The sedan chair stopped at the west end of the street. The curtain was half-lifted, and a voice came from inside: "Sir, please return. I apologize for disturbing you."

"No, no, Your Highness, please take your time," Jia She hurriedly said.

From Jia Chen's position, he could see the person inside, a handsome young man of about seventeen or eighteen years old with a beautiful face and bright eyes.

He wore a white hat with silver wings and tassels, a white python robe with five-clawed dragons riding on the waves, and a jade belt with red leather straps.

Jia Chen naturally did not recognize this person.

However, when asked about this person's age, Jia Chen immediately thought of a name: Prince Bei Jing, Shui Rong.

Prince Bei Jing was one of the four princes among the four kings and eight dukes.

According to the description in the novel *Dream of the Red Chamber*, Shui Rong's current age matches that of the man in front of her.

The two whispered a few more words, and then the Prince of Beijing's sedan chair left Ningrong Street.

Jia She and Jia Zhen stood respectfully there for a while, until the sedan chair was out of sight, before they relaxed.

After exchanging a glance, the two looked preoccupied.

They both quickly turned and left.

With the departure of Prince Bei Jing, Jia She, and Jia Zhen, Ningrong Street returned to peace.

Everyone went about their business as usual.

Jia Chen noticed that after Prince Bei Jing left, Jia She and Jia Zhen's expressions immediately fell, and they seemed quite unhappy.

"Second Uncle, I heard from someone that it's the Prince of Bei Jing," Jia Mao said.

Jia Mao just went in another direction to ask around.

Most of the people around were connected to the Jia family. Most of them might not have met Prince Bei Jing before, but quite a few knew that the person who came this time was Prince Bei Jing.

"Oh, oh~~" Jia Chen responded.

He smiled inwardly, wondering why he was making such a fuss about Jia She and Jia Zhen's feelings.

It has absolutely nothing to do with him.

Even if it were true, it would be a matter for the Jia family; it would be pointless for a nobody like him to think about it too much.

"Let's go back." Jia Chen realized he had been daydreaming and added.

"Second Uncle, I'll head back now and come find you later," Jia Mao said, without giving it much thought.

"No rush, it's fine to come back tomorrow," Jia Chen said with a smile.

The two separated, even though they lived in the same area, but in opposite directions, about a few hundred meters apart.