The Red Mansion: From a Small Pawn to a Leader

Chapter 19 Find a Rich Father-in-Law

Imperial city, Yuqing Palace.

Several huge candles were burning brightly. Li Hu was sitting on a low stool. Not far away was the curtain hanging between the bedroom and the main hall.

The prince started coughing inside the tent, and then said, "I am very relieved that you can report everything to me and then execute it. But my body can't stand such torment! Coughing in the middle of the night."

At this time, Zhao Tong, the eunuch in charge of Yuqing Palace, came in from the door holding medicine, lifted the curtain, and rushed in.

There was a sound of footsteps and Dai Quan appeared outside the door.

Dai Quan knelt down outside the door and said, "This old servant kowtows to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

"Come in." The prince's weak voice came from behind the curtain again, "Zhao Tong, please take a seat."

"Yes." Dai Quan bowed, stood up and walked in.

Li Hu also stood up and clasped his hands.

Dai Quan smiled and nodded.

Zhao Tong quickly moved a low stool and placed it on the left side of the curtain. Dai Quan kowtowed again in front of the curtain and then sat down next to the edge of the stool.

Zhao Tong personally brought another bowl of hot tea.

Dai Quan took it with both hands, took a sip, and handed it to Zhao Tong, then stood up and spoke: "Great news! With the cooperation of the Imperial Guards, the Imperial Household Department destroyed the intelligence network of the Jurchen Tartars in the capital. They are interrogating them overnight, and they should be able to make a breakthrough before other Tartar spies react. Even if they can't catch them all, they can still severely damage the Tartars' intelligence network."

Li Hu was stunned and looked at Dai Quan.

Dai Quan: "The Tatars' intelligence network has a clear division of labor. This group is responsible for bribing court officials and providing the Jurchens with information about the court's internal affairs."

Li Hu nodded, no wonder he was so rich.

Dai Quan was silent for a moment, then continued, "Your Highness, Commander Qiu is here, kneeling outside Yuqing Palace."

The prince snorted and said, "Kneel until midday and then go back."

Zhao Tong: "I will go tell him now." After saying that, he walked out quickly.

The prince: "It's been less than two years, and the Jinyiwei is already in a mess. It looks like we have to arrest a few people this time."

Dai Quan: "I understand."

The Crown Prince: "It is cold in the last days of winter. Please take good care of your father."

Dai Quan knelt down and kowtowed, saying "Yes." He stood up and slowly walked out.

Li Hu was listening to Dai Quan's footsteps and the sound of the outer hall door closing, then he spoke: "Your Highness, Captain Qiu is your Majesty's confidant after all, isn't he?"

The prince sneered, "His father knew in his heart before he died that no matter how many people respected and feared him, he would always be a slave of the royal family! You are my person, and if he makes trouble for you, he is just slapping me in the face. My position as the crown prince has not been abolished yet, cough cough cough."

"Your Highness." The voice of the Crown Princess.

The prince panted for a while, and then said, "I am still the crown prince, and he is just calculating this cloud or that cloud in the sky. Even if I am deposed, I am still a prince, and I can strip him clean with just one sentence!"

Li Hu was stunned. The more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong with these words. Was he criticizing him?

Zhao Tong came back and was busy with his work as usual.

The Crown Princess spoke: "I just took the medicine, Your Highness, please don't be angry."

The prince's voice softened: "You have made great contributions to Dashun. Logically, it is not excessive to reward you with a noble title. However, your military rank cannot be promoted. Military power is the most important. Only a lieutenant general is considered a senior military officer and can command military affairs. Do you understand?"

Li Hu: “Yes.”

The prince went on to say, "Don't worry, I will speak for you to the emperor. A baron can't get away." There was silence.

Li Hu sat there in a daze, not moving at all.

Zhao Tong was surprised and quickly reminded him in a low voice: "General Li, thank you."

Prince: "What's wrong?"

Li Hu came back to his senses and said, "Yes." Then he stood up quickly and said, "Your Highness, I want to lead the troops in the Beijing camp."

The prince seemed to be at a loss for words, so Zhao Tong took over the conversation: "General Li, the Beijing Camp is different from the Southern Camp." At this point, he lowered his voice: "Military power is a big taboo!"

The prince spoke up: "That's nothing. It's just that according to military rules, when a city defense officer enters the field army, his rank will be reduced by two levels."

Li Hu was stunned. Is this the legendary chain of contempt?

The prince: "Since you mentioned it, I will speak directly. The emperor has plans to reorganize the Beijing camp, but the time is not yet ripe. You are a 'brave warrior' favored by the emperor, and you are good at training soldiers. Everyone can see the changes in the Southern Camp. When the time comes, I will transfer you to the Beijing camp on the grounds of assisting in training soldiers. After you have made achievements, I will speak for you. If the people in the Beijing camp turn a blind eye, the emperor can reward you for 'leading troops and governing the army well' and let you stay in the Beijing camp as a lieutenant general."

Li Hu was shocked when he heard this, as the amount of information contained in it was too huge.

Wang Ziteng was ready to run away. According to the original description, many things would happen during this period. Jia Min died, Jia Yucun escorted Lin Daiyu to Beijing, and then Jia Zheng found a job for Jia Yucun in Jinling.

Officials who were sent to other places were only allowed to receive their certificates within five days. According to the standard itinerary, it would take two or three months to travel from the capital to Nanjing along the canal. As soon as he arrived, Jia Yucun encountered the case of Xue Pan who killed someone for robbing Xiangling. At this time, the old servant of Feng Yuan who was beaten to death had been filing a complaint for a year.

When Lin Daiyu had just entered the Jia Mansion, her grandmother said, "It's the end of winter," which should be the twelfth lunar month.

By this calculation, Xue Pan will kill Feng Yuan in one or two months. The curtain will be raised soon!
Hey, why did the Xue family go away for more than a year? Did they hide? They will only show up after the lawsuit is settled.

Seeing Li Hu in a daze, Zhao Tong coughed lightly.

Li Hu finally came to his senses and said, "I was distracted by your Highness's words."

The prince: "It's okay, go back and think about it. I'm tired too."

Li Hu: “Yes.”

After seeing Li Hu off, Zhao Tong returned to the bedroom and saw that the lights were still on inside the gauze curtain, so he said softly, "Your Highness, it's almost Yin hour, you should rest."

The prince spoke: "Go and find out what happened in the South Camp."

Zhao Tong: “Yes.”

Li Hu had returned home by then and was sitting on the kang under the south window. He didn't turn on the lights and was staring at the hazy moonlight outside the window in a daze. After a while, he got up, walked into the bedroom, and lay down on the bed.

What happened today made him see clearly the difference between the city defense army and the field army, and also made him understand that the soldiers in the South Camp might truly support him, but they would not risk their lives for him.

If the prince was healthy, Li Hu could stay in the South Camp for the rest of his life. So he had to make plans early and master enough military power to protect himself before the prince died.

The plan of the emperor and the prince was good, but it took too long. Who knew if there would be any accidents along the way? It was even possible that the prince would die.

On the way back, Li Hu told Zhang Cheng what he was thinking.

Zhang Cheng only said one sentence: Military power and financial power are equally important.

What does the emperor think when he holds military power in one hand and financial power in the other?
Li Hu now relies entirely on the trust and reuse of the emperor and his son. Once he loses this trust, he will be unable to move forward.

At this moment, Li Hu envied those children from aristocratic families. With the support of their families, they didn't have to worry about anything and could enjoy the shade under the big tree!
Having money but no power means saving money for others, which is a super gift package.

Thinking of this, Li Hu sighed and thought that maybe he should find a rich father-in-law.

(End of this chapter)