Chapter 125: There Is Something Fishy Here

Jia Cong saw that Jia Yucun spoke with great fluency; having traveled and served in official posts for many years, he was well-traveled and well-informed, and as a Rank Jinshi graduate, his scholarly attainments were indeed notable.

At the banquet, chatting with them, he often made insightful and incisive remarks.

Qin Ye listened with endless praise, and from this, one could infer that in his youth, Jia Yucun had spoken in just such grandiose terms, thereby deceiving Jia Zheng—who adored learned scholars—into willingly securing him an official post.

Jia Yucun, seeing his eloquent words had impressed the old official Qin Ye, noticed that Jia Cong listened without expression, even showing a hint of disdain.

Could it be that this boy, though young, possessed wisdom and insight surpassing his own? It was not entirely implausible.

At thirteen, he had topped the academy examination, and was the favored disciple of the contemporary literary master Liu Jing'an; to possess such extraordinary literary talent was entirely possible—at least, Jia Yucun himself had been far inferior at that age.

With this thought, Jia Yucun felt a flicker of unease and his enthusiasm for conversation gradually waned; after all, Jia Cong was too young and his reputation too dazzling, leaving him unable to gauge the boy's true depth.

It was Jia Cong himself who steered the conversation, reviving the banquet's lively atmosphere, and subtly brought up the burned merchant ship at the docks.

Jia Yucun had no idea this boy possessed a maturity and cunning far beyond his years; he simply assumed the youth had been uninterested in his earlier boasts.

The charred merchant ship at the harbor was indeed striking; perhaps the boy, like many youths, was drawn to strange and thrilling tales—nothing unusual.

Could they possibly have carried ten thousand taels of wealth while fleeing for their lives?

"So Brother Cong also noticed that ship? To be honest, I'm ashamed—such an incident occurred under my jurisdiction."

Qin Ye asked: "Your Excellency Jia, I read in the imperial reports that these Japanese ronin were pursued by garrison troops, fled into Jin Ling, slaughtered civilians, and caused great havoc."

Jia Cong felt a shiver of revulsion at Jia Yucun calling him "Brother Cong."

He was currently trying to cultivate familiarity with this boy; since the boy had raised the topic, he naturally had to explain further.

A single ship could carry goods worth ten thousand taels; two ships meant twenty thousand taels—that was nearly twenty thousand taels of immense wealth.

Due to internal strife among the Japanese, they plundered all ten thousand taels of cargo aboard and burned the expensive vessel, which was truly a pity."

Qin Ye listened with an expression of sudden understanding, but Jia Cong sneered inwardly—could this man really be so obsessed with currying favor with the powerful? He was a court official, yet he failed to sense the odd undertone in the words.

When Wang Wang Xifeng and Jia Lady Lian called him "Brother Cong," it was because they were blood kin.

Jia Yucun, merely because he shared the Jia surname and had no real connection even eight generations back, fabricated a clan bond, draped himself in false prestige, and dared call himself elder brother.

That day, a heavy rain fell, the Yangtze's current ran fierce and visibility was poor; though the garrison's river surveillance troops searched desperately, they ultimately found no trace of the pirates' vessel."

Jia Yucun paused, then said: "Your Excellency Qin, you are unaware—there were two groups of these Japanese ronin: one engaged the imperial troops in battle to distract them, while the other seized the opportunity to plunder the cargo and flee by ship."

Though there were reasons like the heavy rain and turbulent currents, the whole story still sounded far too implausible.

They somehow still had the strength to sail out of the harbor, yet the river surveillance troops failed to catch them—too extraordinary by far.

That ship belonged to the Japanese Asakawa clan, a high-quality merchant vessel purchased at great cost from the Franks; it was extremely valuable."

The explanation was stretched thin and shamelessly contrived, yet his face showed no sign of it.

Some of these ronin fought the imperial troops, while others, in the briefest of moments, managed to load ten thousand taels of cargo.

Yet he remembered Qu Qu Hongxiu's warning not to stir trouble—this had nothing to do with him; he'd simply copy scriptures, enjoy a few peaceful months, then return safely to Shen Jing.

The welcome banquet lasted an hour, when a maid came to ask whether more wine and dishes should be served.

Jia Cong was preoccupied with Wu'er and Qingwen; after all, it was their first time returning to the old Jin Ling estate, so he rose to take his leave.

Jia Yucun personally saw them off to the gate; Jia Cong bid farewell to Qin Ye, and Jia Fu's carriage was already waiting at the door to take him.

…

Back in the inner courtyard, Jia Yucun learned that his wife had sent a maid to ask about more wine and dishes—he knew Lady Jiao Xing must have something to tell him.

Lady Jiao Xing had once been a maid in the household of his old friend Zhen Zhen Shiyin; they had met in poverty, and when he returned to Su Zhou after passing the imperial examination, the Zhen family had fallen into ruin and Zhen Zhen Shiyin had vanished.

He took Jiao Xing as his concubine; after his first wife died, he elevated her to the position of principal wife.

From maid to the principal wife of a fourth-rank official—this was an extraordinary turn of fate.

Though Jiao Xing had risen to fortune, she never forgot her old loyalty, often sending people to Su Zhou to visit her former mistress, Lady Feng.

Jia Yucun entered the room and saw Lady Jiao Xing wiping away tears—surely the messenger he'd sent to Su Zhou had returned with unpleasant news; yet he felt little sympathy.

"Master, the day before yesterday I sent the steward to Su Zhou to visit Lady Feng. He said her illness had grown severe; Master Feng refused to spend money, merely buying random herbs—how could she recover?"

The steward was shrewd—he hired a local physician to treat her, paid the fee on the spot, and took the medicine directly; otherwise, the money would have ended up in Master Feng's hands and never reached her. Lady Feng has always been kind, and has suffered too much."

Jia Yucun comforted her: "Wife, don't grieve. Master Feng is her birth father; even upright officials cannot settle family matters. You've done what you can—others can do nothing more. Try to ease your heart."

Jiao Xing added: "Lady Feng also asked about Miss Zhen Ying Lady Lian. Knowing you are now Prefect of Ying Tian, she hopes you can help search for her somewhere in Jiangning Province."

Though the girl has grown, her appearance may have changed, but the vermilion mole on her brow is rare and unmistakable—should you encounter her, you'll know her at once. Please send more people to investigate; if you find her, it would be a great blessing."

Jia Yucun promised Jiao Xing wholeheartedly, but gave it no real thought—she had been missing for years; she was surely dead by now. Why waste effort on a futile search?

…

When Jia Cong arrived at Xinglong Fang, the steward Jin Cai personally came out to greet him at the gate.

Jia Cong's fame had now spread from Shen Jing to Jin Ling; such a young boy had been personally appointed an eighth-rank official by the Emperor.

This was an unheard-of rarity; moreover, Jia Cong held the title of top scorer in the Yongzhou academy examination—he was clearly a literary star descended from heaven, destined to top the imperial examination list.

A few days ago, Lady Wang Wang Xifeng, the head of Lady Rongguo Mansion in Shen Jing, had specifically sent Xing'er to Jin Ling to prepare the way for this Cong Sanye Jia—further convincing Jin Cai that the main household held this young master in the highest regard.

Remembering Guo Guo Zhigui's reminder, Jia Cong lifted the carriage curtain to greet Jin Cai; seeing this young man's bearing and appearance, Jin Cai felt even greater admiration.

Since Jia Cong had a good relationship with Sister Yuanyang, he treated her father with extra courtesy.

"Uncle Jin, Sister Yuanyang Sister asked me to bring you a package and a letter—have you received them?"

"Thank you, Cong Sanye, I've already received them from Qingwen in your quarters."

"Oh, good you got them. I've just arrived in Jin Ling, spent over ten days on the ship—I'm exhausted. I'll need a good rest for a couple of days once back at the mansion."

Jin Cai replied: "The mansion received Lady Wang's letter some time ago and has already prepared a proper courtyard for Cong Sanye. The bedding and curtains are all new, and your maids have been settled in already."

"Then I'm grateful to Uncle Jin."

Jin Cai smiled: "Cong Sanye, you're too formal. This old mansion has stood empty for years; it's a rare joy to have a main household master stay here—it will surely bring good fortune and vitality to the household."

(End of Chapter)