Chapter 580: The Situation of Baima Town
Wang Ziteng didn't even look at his brother-in-law. His brother-in-law was certainly clear-headed and upright, but he was not good at court struggles.
Lin Ruhai stroked his short beard and said, "If we suppress this matter, will it attract the attention of His Majesty?"
Wang Ziteng gave a bitter laugh. "Although it seems like a trivial matter, how could it be hidden from the eyes and ears of the Imperial Guard? I even doubt that His Majesty has already known about it."
"If His Majesty knew, then it would be inappropriate for us to suppress it," Lin Ruhai frowned. "Now that there are rumors like this, what we're most afraid of is His Majesty's suspicion. We are related to the Jia family by marriage, and if we say too much now, His Majesty might think too much, and we're afraid that even if there's nothing wrong, it will cause trouble."
"What do you think Champion Hou cares about most?" Fang Yao suddenly asked.
Hearing this, Lin Ruhai couldn't help but snort coldly, "The Marquis naturally cares most about his beautiful wives and concubines. He would offend the Third Prince to death just for a girl from the Yu family. Who could do such a foolish thing?"
Wang Ziteng laughed and said, "Ru Hai's words are a bit biased. Back then, for Bao Chai and your girl, the Marquis surrounded the Second Prince's palace. However, it is not wrong to say that he cares."
Fang Yao smiled and said, "That's it. Ru Hai, Zi Teng, Cun Zhou, please have the family of the Marquis of Guanjun pay more respects to the Empress in the next few days."
Wang Ziteng's eyes lit up, "Master Fang's method is the best!"
Jia Zheng looked at the few people and said with some confusion, "Should they go to the palace to plead with the Empress? But that's true. The Empress has always been fond of Cong-ge'er. With the Empress's help, His Majesty will be less suspicious."
Lin Ruhai smiled and said, "Second uncle, that's not the case. It's better for them not to mention this matter when they enter the palace."
Seeing his brother-in-law's confused expression, Wang Ziteng sighed softly and then explained, "Everyone in the entire Shenjing City knows that the Marquis cares most about the women in his family. Letting them enter the palace is indirectly telling the royal family that these women can be controlled by the royal family at any time. If the Marquis really has a plan now, how could he let the royal family control these people he cares about most?"
Hearing this, Jia Zheng finally understood. Wasn't this just indirectly allowing the royal family to control Jia Cong's weaknesses and handles? To put it bluntly, it was just sending some hostages to the royal family.
"We're more likely to make mistakes than to do this kind of thing. If we have a chance to meet the emperor alone these next two days, we could hint at some things, but putting in the effort to manipulate them wouldn't be a good idea," Fang Yao said. "However, we can't just turn a blind eye. Zi Teng, tomorrow you'll have someone investigate the whereabouts of those people. If they can be found, report them directly to the authorities! We'll use the excuse of a conflict with the Xue family members."
"By then, at most we'll just have the Xue family's brother and those people taken to the government office. Then we'll try to track them down."
Xue Da Nao naturally didn't know that he was being sold...
It was not until Lin Ruhai returned home that he learned that his daughter and the girl from the Xue family had already entered the palace. He then sent a message to Jia Zheng. The next morning, Yuanyang, Muring, and Xiuyan, who had received the message from Jia Zheng, changed into their imperial attire and entered the palace to pay their respects to the empress.
Although she didn't know whether Lin Ruhai and others were willing, the queen was extremely happy. After all, now all her daughters-in-law, big and small, would come to the palace to accompany her, which could ease her longing for her son.
When Emperor Longxing learned about this, he immediately understood the purpose of these people's visit.
"That kid does have a good master and a good father-in-law!" Emperor Longxing said to himself. With the people in the Jia family, they naturally could not think of such a solution. However, with the help of Lin Ruhai, Fang Yao and others, not to mention that Jia Cong was his own son, even if he was not, it could ease a lot.
…
Jia Cong's troops rested in Longtai Town for three days, and then after leaving behind the troops of Guo Wei and Lei Zhao, they broke camp again and headed back towards Longzhou.
After passing Rong Defu, Jia Cong led his troops to continue forward and headed straight for Longzhou Jingyan, while Jiang Zining and Xie Jing led their troops south towards Yingling.
After another three days of marching, the army arrived at Jingyan. Jia Cong then stationed his troops there and sent men to contact Hou Jing and his men, surveying the surrounding terrain and enemy forces. After all, Jingyan was only about fifty or sixty miles from Shima Town, and with the situation ahead unclear, it was naturally inappropriate to continue advancing.
Two days later, Hou Jing received a message from a scout.
"Marshal!"
Looking at Hou Jing in front of him, he had to admit that the former playboy had become capable of standing on his own after being polished over the past few years.
When they went to Lanzhou to guard the border together, people like Hou Jing and Ma Chuang could only play a supporting role and at most help to boost morale when a battle was favorable.
However, after returning to Shenjing and joining the Military Department, as the soldiers under his command were rapidly improved, these people were also improved.
Later, after the rebellion of Prince Beijing, they were awarded titles for their merits. This time, they were able to go to the army because of Jia Cong's achievements and status. Otherwise, they would definitely be rare talents among the younger generation.
"What's the current situation in Baima Town?" Jia Cong asked after Hou Jing sat down.
"General, this Southern Border army is a complete wretch!" Hou Jing downed his tea in one gulp. "My brothers and I, following your orders, are heading to Baima Town to harass and relieve the pressure on General Meng Hua. Since our arrival, their attacks on General Meng Hua's camp have indeed decreased, but our harassment hasn't had much of an effect."
"We divided our troops into several thousand-man teams. Each time, two thousand-man teams would cooperate, one openly and one covertly, launching feints or surprise attacks. The first two times , the enemy fought back, and we managed to gain a slight advantage. But after that, they simply retreated into their shells. No matter how we provoked them, they remained motionless."
"Even though I led my troops to within a few dozen feet of their camp, they remained calm. It was like they were watching a joke."
"Their camp is extremely strong, and it's impossible to attack it by force..." Hou Jing felt helpless and aggrieved. Are these bastards so timid?
Jia Cong raised an eyebrow. "The commander of the troops here is a cautious man. Moreover, they have obviously figured out your purpose and even the number of your troops. So, there is naturally no need for them to fight you."
"General, what should we do? I've learned from previous investigations that General Meng Hua's troops have charged out twice, but were each repelled. General Meng Hua brought his troops here before, but he only brought with him the food and fodder. Even if they haven't consumed all of it, they won't be able to hold out for a few more days."
