The Military Governor in Dream of the Red Chamber

Jia Zheng paused for a moment.

He understood what his older brother meant.

Sending Yuan-chun into the palace was naturally intended to demonstrate loyalty to the current emperor.

But they were originally on the side of the retired emperor, and also had connections with Prince Yizhong.

Prince Bei Jing's purpose in having a member of the Jia family marry Qin Keqing was clear: to prevent the Jia family from severing ties with Prince Yizhong.

reject?

Definitely not.

The four kings and eight dukes are of the same blood and are closely related.

Although everyone has had their own thoughts over the years due to Prince Yizhong's crime and the abdication of the Emperor Emeritus, this relationship is not so easy to completely sever.

"Although the prince didn't say it explicitly, he has clearly taken a liking to Rong'er," Jia She said, glancing at Jia Zhen.

Jia Rong is Jia Zhen's son.

"This one? Rong'er is the right age~~" Jia Zheng said, then immediately shut up.

Qin Keqing is a hot potato; it's not easy to handle.

If they were to actually enter the Jia family, how would the Emperor view them in the future?

Jia Zheng suddenly felt a headache coming on; he was caught in a dilemma, unable to offend either side.

"If all else fails, then we can only let Rong'er marry him and then treat him well and take good care of him," Jia Zhen said.

"Even if we treat her well, to outsiders, she'll just be seen as someone who married into the Jia family. What will the Emperor think?" Jia Zheng didn't think it was a good idea.

"This is a method we came up with after thinking about it for a long time. It's a last resort," Jia She said, shaking his head.

He knew perfectly well that this was a self-deceptive method, but there was no better solution.

Jia Zhen's face turned ugly.

His son was directly involved, so if things come to light, wouldn't he, as the father, be the first to be implicated?

The problem is that Jia Rong is indeed the only suitable man for the Jia family.

Jia Lian was originally quite good, but he had just married the daughter of the Wang family.

Thinking of this, Jia Zhen couldn't help but sigh that Jia She was lucky, while he himself was so unlucky.

Of course, if something really happens, neither he, Jia She, nor anyone in the entire Jia family can escape it.

Jia Zheng understood the reasoning behind it, but this method only addressed the symptoms, not the root cause.

"It's a pity that my Jia family doesn't have a suitable, slightly outstanding son, otherwise we wouldn't need Rong'er to take over," Jia She sighed.

Jia She's words stirred something in the steward's heart: "Brother, has the Prince designated Rong'er?"

"No, probably any member of the Jia family would be fine. But apart from Rong'er, our Jia family has no other eligible men. Who else could it be?" Jia She replied. "After all, she is a noble lady. We can't just find any Jia family member to fool her. We wouldn't be able to pass the Prince's approval."

Jia Zhen nodded and said, "I had thought of choosing someone from the Jia family before, but I found that there was no one suitable, and none of them were of any use."

Jia Zheng took a deep breath and said slowly, "If Your Highness has not specified someone, I do have someone in mind."

"Who?" Jia She and Jia Zhen immediately stared at Jia Zheng.

They went through all the members of the Jia clan who were of suitable age, but couldn't find a suitable candidate.

"Jia Chen," Jia Zheng said.

"Who?" Jia Zhen was stunned; he didn't have much of an impression.

"Why does this name sound familiar? I feel like I've heard it somewhere before?" Jia She asked Jia Zheng with some confusion.

"Jia Gan's second son," Jia Zheng replied.

Upon hearing this, both of them remembered.

They all knew about Jia Gan.

This is not only because Jia Gan was the only captain of the Jia family in the Beijing garrison.

More than 20 years ago, Jia Zheng encountered robbers when he returned to his hometown of Jinling, but fortunately he was rescued by Jia Gan.

Seeing that Jia Gan was quite skilled in martial arts, especially among the Jia clan, Jia Zheng brought him from his hometown to the capital.

Even the old lady knew Jia Gan's name.

It was precisely because of this that Jia Chen's family was able to live in three main rooms.

After all, how could you possibly get such a nice house without connections?

"Jia Gan is quite good, but what about his son?" Jia She frowned and said, "What exactly is his situation? I heard he just went to the Beijing Garrison, right? Even if he inherited the position, he'll only be a captain. With that kind of status, it might be difficult to explain to the Prince."

In Jia She's view, the rank of "General Flag Officer" was still too low.

"Brother, your news is outdated. In early July, Jia Chen went to Datong Town to guard the border with the Imperial Guard," Jia Zheng said.

"Whether in the capital or Datong, Jia Chen is probably not suitable," Jia She said, shaking his head.

Jia She had only heard of Jia Chen; how could he possibly know what his subordinates were doing?

"That's definitely not appropriate, he's only a captain." Jia Zhen shook his head as well.

"No, Jia Chen is a centurion. He made great contributions during the Chahar tribe's raid on Datong and was just promoted to centurion," Jia Zheng said.

"Really?" Jia She and Jia Zhen's eyes lit up.

In their eyes, a captain was not much different from a common soldier.

If it's a centurion, then the nature of the position is different; it can be considered a military officer, although it's still the lowest rank.

The status of officers and soldiers is worlds apart.

"Second brother, how did you know? Did the Ministry of War get the information?" Jia She asked again.

This question made Jia Zheng blush.

He wouldn't pay attention to things at the Ministry of War. Over the years, the Jia family hasn't really focused on military matters.

"I happened to run into Jia Chen when I returned. He came back with Liu Tianwang, the military commander of the Beijing Garrison—no, now it's Liu Tianwang, the military commander of the Datong Garrison's North East Road—to select a group of men from the Beijing Garrison to go to Datong," Jia Zheng quickly regained his composure and explained calmly.

"I told you our Jia family's sons aren't so incompetent. Look, they've made great contributions as soon as they entered the Beijing Garrison. If this were in the Beijing Garrison, I'm not saying anything, but that Prince Teng..." Jia She couldn't help but complain about Prince Teng.

Jia Zheng looked embarrassed; his wife was Wang Ziteng's sister, and he didn't know how to respond.

How could he not know how Wang Ziteng treated the Jia family members in the Beijing garrison?

Jia Gan is the best example.

Jia She only complained a few times, and didn't go too far.

After all, Jia Zheng is still here.

"My lord, this matter needs to be carefully considered." Jia Zhen was a little excited, and also wanted to change the subject Jia She had just mentioned. "Jia Chen is, after all, a member of the Jia family, so I believe the prince can't say anything. Besides, Jia Chen's relationship with our two households is rather distant. If His Majesty really investigates in the future, it won't have much to do with our two households."

Jia She began to ponder this as well.

It has to be said that Jia Chen's identity is indeed very suitable.

We're not close, but you could say we're not close at all, yet we're connected.

Just right.

Although both Prince Bei Jing and the Emperor will eventually see through their intentions, it's still better than letting Jia Rong marry Qin Keqing.

This involves some factional issues in officialdom, so it must be handled with utmost care.

If Jia Chen marries Qin Keqing, even if something goes wrong in the future and people find out about Qin Keqing's background, their two families will still have some room to maneuver.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's get things settled quickly," Jia She said. "Second brother, you and Qin Ye are both in the Ministry of Works. Go talk to him first. With your status, I believe he won't refuse if you go to act as a matchmaker."

"Leave this matter to me," Jia Zheng nodded.