Red Mansion and Crimson Pearl

Chapter 441: Conflict

As for the origin of our young eunuch Lu, only a handful of people know it. But with his accent now, everyone in the world can tell that he came from the capital.

When he shouted on the deck, there were eighty or ninety heads sticking out of the windows and hatches of all the surrounding ships, looking at him curiously.

Cao Yu also looked at him from the hatch, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Although there is a legitimate excuse, under the current circumstances, we must first act quickly and secondly, take the enemy by surprise.

With all of Lu Changqing's efforts, I'm afraid it would be impossible to catch the enemy by surprise.

Lu Changqing was furious and rolled up his sleeves.

Cao Yu waved to him, and he glared at Cao Yu and yelled, "What are you doing?!"

Okay, I’m addicted.

Cao Yu reluctantly put down his hand, knocked on the side of the boat and cursed: "You little monkey, are you trying to make trouble? Come here!"

Only then did Lu Changqing reluctantly put down his sleeves with a humph, staggered on the board, and stuck his head into the cabin.

The ship was not very big, with only three cabins. Cao Yu and Lu Changqing lived in the bow, the boatman lived in the stern, and the eight guards squeezed into the largest cabin in the middle.

Now, Cao Yu is the only one in this cabin.

So when Lu Changqing poked his head in, his face immediately changed, and he whispered excitedly: "Sir, the family of the newly appointed river governor Yang is on the next boat!

"The one arguing with me is his young master's servant!

"Didn't you say the other day that if we could control the two governors of the river and the grain transport, even if a hundred thousand turtles were sent out together in Jiangnan, they wouldn't be able to cause any trouble?

"What a blessing from heaven, we have met one today! How about I go out and have a fight?!"

Cao Yu was stunned for a moment, then smiled, clapped his hands lightly, and said quietly: "Good little eunuch Lu! If this can be accomplished, I will give you the credit!"

"Look, you're here again! When you're out, don't call me uncle or aunt! Remember to call me Changqing, don't make the same mistake again!"

Lu Changqing was overjoyed and laughed, but his expression changed instantly. He jumped away humming and talking nonsense. Others could only guess that he was cursing but could not hear what he was saying.

The servant on the next boat gloated over the misfortune and shouted from a distance: "Little turtle! Are you scared?

"Don't think you came from Beijing. When you come to Shandong, you'll be as strong as a dragon and as soft as a tiger! Just eat my delicious food and I'll make sure you're full!"

There were also several servants laughing nearby.

This was too much and immediately annoyed the guards on the remaining ships that crashed nearby.

Several big guys were about to crouch down and get out of the cabin.

But a clear young man's voice was heard from the next boat, "Shut up! Sixth Brother hasn't spanked you in three days, and you're itching for it again!

"It's because we were sailing too fast and too close to the people, so the smoke from the cooking stove choked them! Just explain it to them, talk about it with a smile, and the matter will be over!

"Why don't you make a scene? If you disturb my sister and grandmother, I'll see how many lackeys you have to beat you up!"

The servant over there suddenly became timid and stammered, not daring to say a word.

Lu Changqing stood on the deck in amazement, put down his hands from his waist and looked across.

A handsome young boy in his teens stood by the side of the ship and bowed towards him with a smile: "Eleventh son of the Yang family of Jining, I apologize."

Lu Changqing looked somewhat at a loss. He wanted to raise his hand to return the greeting in a panic, but felt it was inappropriate, so he hurriedly ran back to the cabin.

This is when Cao Yu comes on the scene.

In the cabin, Cao Yu restrained his smile, tugged at his Taoist robe, straightened his cap, looked up and saw Lu Changqing's face leaning in and winking at him, joy flashed in his eyes, and he raised his leg to leave the cabin.

Beijing.

Dali Temple.

Countless people were pushed into the prison the day before. Zhitong only picked out the heads of various dukedoms to meet with, and did not meet any of the four surnames.

Wang Ziteng and Shi Ding met each other when they just entered the door. The jailer also took them to two cells diagonally opposite each other, where there were naturally other prisoners.

But before the two of them could try to communicate, a team of guards different from the jailers came in and carefully separated and rearranged everyone.

A team of guards escorted the two of them away from the messy and smelly place, and even apologized politely:

"There are too many people, it's a mess. Our divine monks mean that since you two have not been convicted yet, you should be treated with courtesy. Please come this way."

The two of them were stunned and looked at each other quietly.

A few more people came over on the road, and upon closer inspection, one of them was the Prince of Xining!

Shi Ding's heart trembled, and he frowned. He carefully asked the leading guard in a low voice: "Excuse me, the women of each mansion..."

"Except for those who have killed someone, the women of each mansion are still under house arrest in their own mansions. Once the affairs of the men are clarified, the most they can do is return to their hometowns.

"Little Lord Shi, don't worry." The guard said politely, "For example, in Rongguo Mansion, all the women are at home, and the relatives have helped rent a boat.

"Just wait for our divine monk to make the decision and take Mrs. Shi back to her hometown to live out her retirement. Isn't that great?"

Shi Ding let out a long breath, and with a big smile on his face, he thanked her: "I was worried about my elderly aunt at home. Thank you for telling me, young man."

"You're welcome!" The guard simply laughed and stopped, "You stay in this room."

Then he pointed to the opposite side and said, "Prince Xi Wang, please stay in this room. It's cleaner."

The Prince of the West and Shi Ding glanced at each other out of the corner of their eyes, and then they separated. They pursed their lips and lowered their eyes and sat on their own beds.

Watching the people behind them lead them in, the guard led Wang Ziteng a few steps forward and pointed to an empty cell: "Prosecution Wang, please forgive me for my grievance. Let's go here."

Wang Ziteng nodded, walked in, and looked at both sides of his cell.

In the room on the left, a man of unknown age and height was curled up in the corner, facing the corner.

On the right hand side...

The man just turned around and looked at Wang Ziteng!

Jia Yucun!

Both of them were stunned, and joy flashed in their eyes at the same time! Then they both looked at the guards and jailers who were shouting and yelling beside them, and turned their faces away tacitly, as if nothing had happened.

Jia Yucun changed his direction and continued to meditate and chant with his eyes closed.

Wang Ziteng shook his clothes and lay down on the bed, closing his eyes and pretending to take a nap.

However, the moment their backs faced each other, their expressions simultaneously turned gloomy and cold.

At the end of this cell, Zhitong, with his head bare and wearing a monk's robe, took it all in. He smiled slightly, put his palms together in front of his chest, and chanted the Buddha's name softly.

On the other side of the women's prison, Madam Wang Ziteng, Madam Xiao Shihou, and the Crown Princess of Xining were pushed into a cell, but they unexpectedly found that Aunt Xue had come in one step ahead of them!

The four of them looked at each other, and their faces turned gloomy.

Aunt Xue's eyes were filled with tears. She stood up and walked over tremblingly. She supported Madam Wang Ziteng and cried softly:

"I was counting on you to save me..."