In front of all the relatives and friends present, Jia Mu's face darkened: "Zhen'er, calm down!"
Don't lose the decorum of our Rongning family!
Decorum? My wife…my daughter-in-law is gone, what decorum do I need?!
However, Jia Mu's seniority was undeniable.
If Jia Zhen dared to retort, he wouldn't have to wait until tomorrow. Someone present would dare to call him unfilial and demand the removal of his title and a sentence.
After all, the current dynasty governs by benevolence and filial piety.
Filial piety is paramount.
But he was the head of the family after all.
He may not be good at practical matters, but dealing with people all the time has sharpened his mind.
His eyes rolled, and a plan formed in his mind.
Putting on an indignant expression, he shouted to everyone:
“You are all either relatives or friends, so I won't be polite. I'll just speak plainly.”
“These two gangs of thieves, or rather, their enemies behind the scenes, are not only targeting my Jia family, but all of us, the founding nobles!”
“Today, they dared to kidnap my Jia family's daughter-in-law in broad daylight.”
“Tomorrow, they might just brazenly break into all your mansions, burn, kill, and plunder.”
“They are testing our strength to see if we still have any capability, before deciding whether to wipe us out completely!”
“In my opinion, we must not condone this.”
“We should mobilize all our forces, rescue those who have been kidnapped, uphold everyone's decorum, and retaliate with full force!”
Although his words were all flowery and fancy.
He couldn't change the central idea, which was to drag everyone onto the same boat.
But everyone was already in the same boat, sharing the same fate, and supporting each other was only right.
Moreover, Jia Zhen was right.
What if today's Rongning two mansions become tomorrow's fate for each of them?
So after a brief commotion, everyone quickly reached an agreement.
One said: "I'll contact the Wucheng Garrison and Shuntian Prefecture, search the entire city!"
Another said: "Leave the Imperial Guard to me."
One said: "I'll take care of those Censorate squawkers' houses."
Another said: "I'll coordinate with the Jinyiwei, the Secret Guards, and the Imperial Secret Service."
Someone else sneered: "Didn't Lian'er capture a lot of tongues? Torture them and see who dared to pull the beard of the founding military heroes!"
When these founding nobles united, even the current Emperor would have to give them three points of deference.
Only a sage could truly subdue them.
While they were still talking, Jia She, with dozens of newly-recruited personal soldiers, strode out.
"Inquire? What's the point? They're only a few sworn enemies, we can just beat them all up!"
Since my persona is a roughneck, I, the Duke of Mercy, Jia Enhou, roamed most of the Imperial City under the Emperor's favor back in the day.
Even that stingy old Fourth, who now sits on the throne, I have fought before!
Now that these three brats have forced us out of hiding, why bother keeping a low profile anymore?
Didn't the Emperor say I don't have to hide anymore?
Hmph, then let my name echo throughout the entire Imperial City.
I, General Jia She, Duke of Mercy, granted by the Emperor!
Seeing Jia She's momentum, everyone was stunned for a moment.
This?
The Duke of Mercy, who had stayed reclusive for ten years, was he going to come out of retirement again today?
Jia Lian, looking at his spirited father, a figure only remembered from his childhood, felt a surge of warmth in his heart.
Sure enough, despite enjoying my life of debauchery, my blood still hasn't cooled!
He straightened his clothes, removing any decorations that would hinder his movement, and strode towards Jia She's side.
Jia She frowned: "Lian'er, go back!"
Taking the sword from the soldier's hand, Jia Lian gave a cold smile: "I was trained as a young general since I was eight years old!"
Even though the old Prince Yi Zhong messed things up, I secretly continued my training as a young general, until the third year of Chongping, when my good aunt swapped my medicine and harmed me...
I was forced to live a debauched life.
Now that you're not putting on an act anymore, why should I?
He asked back: "They want to ruin Feng'er's big day, how can I not retaliate?"
Jia She looked at him for a while, then nodded, before turning and walking out.
Jia Lian turned back to Li Xuan, bowed: "Xuan'er, some people will be sent out from the manor, I'll leave the house to you."
“As you wish, don't worry.”
Rongning two mansions didn't have any real fighting force, they were all from the personal soldiers sent from the estates outside the city.
The manor itself didn't need protection.
If they really attacked the manor, it would be a complete violation of the rules of the game, and neither the Emperor nor the Sage would let them off.
What Jia Lian meant was to keep Li Xuan from joining them.
They were going to do something that would offend people, and Li Xuan shouldn't be involved.
Li Xuan understood his intentions, so he didn't insist.
When everyone else had left, the remaining women, the few young ladies of the mansion, were sent out by Jia Mu.
Before Li Xuan could look questioningly at Lin Daiyu, Tanchun smiled and said proactively:
“The Old Ancestor said that the Li family and the Jia family are in-laws, with close ties. You could even say we are close friends.”
“She feels at ease having Xuan'er with the young ladies.”
They hadn't said this before, they probably assumed he was close to the Emperor because he had been promoted to Deputy Thousand Household in only half a year.
He pondered it for a moment, but Li Xuan wouldn't be so foolish as to say it aloud.
His eyes swept across the group, and when he saw Da Lian Bao, he suddenly smiled and was about to say something.
At that moment, Lin Meiyu suddenly said:
“Fourth Brother Xuan, if you're going to say something about a certain Phoenix Egg, don't bother. We already heard it from Second Sister-in-law Lian's mouth.”
“You're stealing my thunder,” Li Xuan's lips twitched, “But luckily, the most embarrassing one isn't me, but a certain Phoenix Egg.”
“Don't you agree, Phoenix Egg?”
He said, looking at Jia Baoyu with a hint of amusement.
Not only Li Xuan, but even Lin Daiyu and the three sisters looked at him.
Jia Baoyu, unfazed by the nickname, instead, was quite smug.
He smiled and said: “I should thank Fourth Brother Xuan for giving me such a lovely nickname.”
“The Phoenix, is the divine beast of five virtues.”
“Egg, the beginning of all things.”
“Phoenix Egg, five virtues begin with me, symbolizes all good omens.”
“Not just you, but sisters and brothers call me that, I feel divine and pure, relaxed all over, and naturally overjoyed.”
Li Xuan:：“……”
You can really stretch things, can't you?
He turned a joking phrase into something so grandiose.
Tanchun stepped in to mediate: "Alright, alright, my Second Brother Bao, everyone's joking, but you're here to kill the mood.”
“Second Sister-in-law Lian mentioned encountering bandits on the road, tell us about the magnificent spectacle of the hundred and twenty-eight sedan chairs.”
Li Xuan followed suit: "Yes, Baoyu."
“Didn't you say you wanted to have one hundred and twenty-eight sedan chairs as well?"
“Then with so many chairs, what kind of treasures would you put in each?”
Hearing certain words, Jia Baoyu's eyes lit up, and with a cunning look, he said: "Speaking of treasures, we have to mention my Golden Rope, the Pure Jade Net Bottle..."
Li Xuan was speechless: "Cut it out, you think we haven't read Journey to the West?"