Chapter 295

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao has made so many moves, but in reality, he is merely digging a pit for himself.

By sowing discord between himself and the family, he touches upon the noble title, which is the lifeblood of a great noble clan and the thing most valued and guarded.

The laws of succession for the eldest son and the legitimate heir are strictly enforced by clan rules; just as Jia Mu said, even if Jia She was absurd and dissolute back then, he was still allowed to inherit the hereditary title simply because he was the eldest legitimate son.

Now, however, Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao is using the mouth of the Imperial Clan Court to make the Jia family abandon the legitimate heir in favor of a concubine-born son; Jia Cong cannot think of anything that could touch the bottom line of the Rongguo Jia family more than this.

This will inevitably cause Jia Mu and the others of the Rongguo Prefecture to harbor even more resentment and suspicion toward him, making him increasingly unwelcome in the family.

In fact, the logic behind this is not complicated at all upon careful thought.

Jia Cong knows that the talent he has displayed could not possibly fail to attract Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's attention; if he were a son of a humble family, Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao would have no qualms about using him heavily.

Yet, he happens to be born into the Rongguo Jia family, a legitimate descendant of the Duke of Rongguo, and bears the brand of the Four Kings and Eight Dukes from birth.

With an identity like his, once he achieves success and his power and influence grow, the entanglements behind him would be too complex, and which side he would ultimately stand on becomes a question.

He thinks much more deeply about this issue than sisters like Lin Daiyu.

This is also Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's greatest suspicion and precaution regarding someone of his background.

Perhaps in Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's mind, he simply hopes that he will become a solitary official like Shi Ding, which would best serve the Emperor's own interests.

If he truly inherited the hereditary title of Rongguo, he would never be able to sever his ties with the Rongguo Jia family.

From beginning to end, he has always felt that the hereditary title of the Rongguo Prefecture is a muddy swamp that is difficult to pull out of, and he has never had even the slightest ridiculous ambition for it.

He was destined to be a solitary official from the start, so why must the Emperor play so many tricks? Thinking of this, he cannot hide a cold sneer in his heart.

It is not that he is afraid of obtaining the Jia family's hereditary title and thus becoming estranged from Jia Mu and the others, making it difficult to gain a foothold in the Jia family.

However, he is in agreement with sisters like Lin Daiyu regarding not accepting the Jia family's hereditary title.

Because he was reborn, he does not belong to this world in the first place, and his ties to this world are much fewer than those of an ordinary person.

……

Let him be abandoned by the family, so that the brand of the Four Kings and Eight Dukes on him will fade, and he can become a solitary official with a clean background who can be used by him.

As for the so-called Four Kings and Eight Dukes group, in his heart, it has nothing to do with him at all.

Even Tan Chun thinks the Emperor is quite good to the Third Brother and is even thinking of letting the Third Brother inherit the title.

Shi Ding was born into the direct line of the Shi family among the Four Kings and Eight Dukes, but he used his merit of following the Emperor to the throne as a pledge of allegiance, completely detaching himself from the old camp.

Jia Zheng believes that both the palace and the court officials esteem Jia Cong, which is why he proposed letting him become the heir to the title.

He was granted a title at the beginning of Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's reign and became a pillar of the state whom he trusted extremely.

In fact, among the Four Kings and Eight Dukes, there was once such a solitary official who turned against them, and that was Marquis Zhongjing, Shi Ding.

Jia Cong sighs in his heart; the Emperor has gone to such great lengths and racked his brains to achieve his goal, but in Jia Cong's view, it is all in vain.

Back then in the warm pavilion of the Qianyang Palace, Duke of Qi Chen Yi only felt that Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao was stingy with titles.

Even though he is known as a young master of the Rongguo Prefecture, apart from those sisters in the family who have shown him kindness and affection, he has no sense of belonging or consciousness toward the Ning and Rong Jia family, and in his heart, they are like strangers.

Only Jia Cong himself understands that Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao is doing these things just to increase the rift between him and the family and to make the greatest possible severance.

This hereditary title is meant to make him spend his whole life shielding those high-spirited women and dissolute young masters in the inner chambers from the wind and rain and cleaning up their messes.

It is to let people like Jia Mu use the name of gratitude and filial piety to put endless pressure on him so that they can enjoy wealth and honor with peace of mind.

How stupid would Jia Cong have to be to covet this hereditary title?

With his ability and achievements, he can fully obtain high official positions and noble titles on his own; why should he pick up the leftovers of the Jia family's ancestors and instead give others a handle against him?

Thus, he can only write a memorial to decline the title, express his attitude early, and get rid of this trouble as soon as possible.

The hereditary title, which Jia Mu views as a precious treasure, is something she feels a concubine-born son like Jia Cong could never dream of obtaining in his lifetime.

In reality, however, Jia Cong views it as garbage that even a dog wouldn't pick up; one wonders if Jia Mu would die of shame and anger if she knew.

……

Just as Jia Cong's strategy for governing the Jurchens was decided upon by Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao and several ministers in the warm pavilion of the back hall of the Qianyang Palace.

And after the initial decree was drafted by the Secretariat and discussed at the court meeting the next day, it was re-copied, stamped, and sent urgently to the Liaodong Garrison.

Ten days later, the Liaodong Garrison received the imperial decree from the court, and the entire Liaodong Garrison began to operate at high speed once again like a huge war machine.

Almost at the same time, Jia Cong's memorial declining the change of heir to the title arrived on Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's imperial desk from the distant Liaodong.

And another letter with almost the same content was also sent from Liaodong to Jia Zheng of the Rongguo Prefecture.

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao saw that Jia Cong firmly declined to inherit the position of heir to the title in the memorial.

The memorial also stated: The Rongguo Jia family is a family of poetry and ritual, with a strict and harmonious family style, always valuing clan laws and rituals, with order between the old and young, and a distinction between the legitimate and the concubine-born, which has been passed down for generations and has become a fixed law.

As a concubine-born son of the eldest branch, I will not be a person who turns his back on his family, hurts the feelings of relatives, or creates resentment between brothers; I was fourteen years old when I received the Emperor's favor and was promoted to an eighth-grade official position, which is an extraordinary grace.

With a heart full of gratitude, I only wish to dedicate myself to the country.

As a son of a commoner, I will not occupy the remaining shade of my ancestors, but only seek to obtain achievements on my own to repay the Emperor's great kindness…….

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao was still somewhat moved when he saw this memorial.

He took advantage of the fact that Duke of Qi Chen Yi proposed that Jia Cong had the honor of inheriting the title to let the Imperial Clan Court go to the Jia Prefecture to negotiate, knowing that Jia Cong could not become the heir to the Rongguo title.

He did these things just to polish off the brand of the Four Kings and Eight Dukes on him before using Jia Cong heavily, so that he could be used without suspicion.

In his eyes, Jia Cong is both cultured and martial, brilliant and dazzling, and worthy of great use!

The more talented such a person is, the more cautious one must be in using him; only by severing ties and obstacles and first becoming a solitary official can he become a loyal official, and only by becoming a direct official can he become a sharp blade for him to cut through thorns and thistles!

And this memorial from Jia Cong declining the title shows that his goal has been achieved; in this wording, Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao deeply feels Jia Cong's estrangement and alienation from the Rongguo Jia family.

In fact, this is not surprising; according to the secret files of the Zhongche Office, Jia Cong was born into a humble background and was abandoned by his biological father and legitimate mother since childhood, growing up amidst scolding and abuse; how could such a person be close to his family?

And the fact that Jia Cong sent this memorial declining the title from thousands of miles away in Liaodong must have been caused by the pressure from the Jia family's letter sent over thousands of miles; although Jia Cong said he declined the title, how could he not have resentment toward the Jia family in his heart!

And these are exactly what Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao hopes to see; to forge a sharp blade, one must first endure the scorching fire and poison, and then go through the hammering of steel, only then can it reveal its edge and cut away all falsehoods!

This is his art of being a monarch and his method of using people.

……

Rongguo Prefecture, Rongqing Hall.

Jia Zheng felt quite heavy after reading the letter sent by Jia Cong; although the wording in the letter was earnest, the coldness and alienation implied could be read between the lines.

He read the content of the letter to Jia Mu; Jia Mu also breathed a sigh of relief knowing that Jia Cong had voluntarily declined the position of heir to the title, and finally, she did not have to go out and offend that person in the palace.

If that wicked obstacle had really become the heir to the title, the family would have been in chaos; however, hearing those words Jia Cong said in the letter, Jia Mu felt uncomfortable in her heart again.

This kid is angry in his heart; saying things like hurting the feelings of relatives and creating resentment between brothers, that is saying the family hurt his feelings and created resentment with him.

And saying things like not occupying the remaining shade of the ancestors and only seeking to obtain achievements on his own, that is not taking the achievements left by the Duke to heart, and not taking this family seriously either!

Originally, Jia Cong had become more and more outstanding in the past few years, and Jia Mu had changed her mind and had the intention of winning him over.

Otherwise, she would not have treated Zhi Shao and Ying Lian in Jia Cong's room differently.

It's just that after this incident of declining the title, the relationship that had just eased a little is now afraid to be pushed even further away.

But there is no other way; the inheritance of the hereditary title is the most important thing for the Jia family, and as the ancestor of the Jia family, she absolutely will not allow any mistakes.

In fact, in the final analysis, after more than ten years of estrangement, even if Jia Cong is outstanding, his weight in her heart is still far less than that of direct descendants like Baoyu and Jia Lian.

Hearing the news of Jia Cong declining the title, Lady Wang, Wang Xifeng, and others all felt relieved.

Lady Wang does not have to worry about Jia Cong snatching the title and suppressing Baoyu in the future.

As for the honor of the title that Wang Xifeng was thinking about, it can be considered preserved.

And Jia Cong, this troublemaker who is naturally fond of tossing and turning, has forever withdrawn from the competition for the Jia family's hereditary title, which is truly a happy event for them.

Only sisters like Daiyu, Yingchun, and Seeing Tan Chun breathed a sigh of relief in their hearts at the same time.

And Daiyu felt a burst of sadness in her heart when she saw the coldness revealed by her grandmother, second aunt, and Feng Jie in front of the position of the hereditary title.

It is no wonder that the Third Brother is estranged from the family; being treated like this, how could it not chill his heart.

Jia Zheng felt a bit lost in his heart; although he is naturally pedantic, he is not a completely dull person; he can see from this letter of Jia Cong that he has become increasingly estranged from the family from now on.

……

Just when everyone in Rongqing Hall had different moods.

A woman outside Rongqing Hall came to report that an inner official from the palace had come again to pass an imperial decree to reward the Third Master Cong, and asked the Master to go to Rongxi Hall to receive the decree.

Hearing this, the whole hall was shocked!

Jia Cong's letter declining the title had just arrived, and the palace immediately issued a decree to reward him!

Last time, the palace came to the prefecture to give Jia Cong gifts and rewards, and Jia Zheng and others were actually a bit strange; according to common sense, Jia Cong made the first merit in a great victory, not only gifts but also official rewards.

It seems like the palace deliberately left the tail until today.

In Rongxi Hall, Jia Zheng saw his old acquaintance Guo Lin, but this time Guo Lin did not pass an oral decree, but a proper imperial decree made of yellow satin and gold weave.

By the order of the Emperor:

Jia Cong, Supervisor of the Firearms Office of the Ministry of Works, son of a noble family, does not admire luxury, has a simple and honest nature, is loyal and brave, diligent in imperial affairs, loyal and brave, and has outstanding military achievements.

His military strategy is spread throughout the three armies, and he beheaded the chieftain to deter the enemy camp; in the great victory at Yafu Pass in Liaodong Garrison, he won the first merit and was promoted to the fifth-grade General of Martial Virtue, with civil service rank equivalent to promotion.

On the day of receiving the decree, it has been decreed to Liaodong to command an army to enter the old land of the Jurchens to clear out the remaining enemies.

Respect this.

(End of chapter)