Red House Shoufu

Chapter 7 Friends
Although the regulations on the mourning system in "Chu Law Shuyi" are more aimed at court officials, as officials, they are often more restrained than the children of ordinary people.

Just like Daiyu, because of her young age, the Rongguo Mansion deliberately did not mourn for her mother Jia Min.In the same year Lin Ruhai was in the capital, he even wrote a letter back, reprimanding the Lin family for being a sage and enlightening, unworthy of being called a scholarly family.

It wasn't until Lin Ruhai wrote back to explain that the censor in the Procuratorate didn't continue to file a letter of impeachment, and the palace only gave a warning of a salary penalty, without any substantive punishment.

Seeing Daiyu lying on the table crying out of breath, Wang Nanny had no choice but to ask Xueyan to invite Lin Shu.

……

When Lin Shu came to the room, Daiyu had already suppressed her tears, but stared blankly at the letter on the table without speaking.

"Are you crying because of these outsiders again?" Lin Shu folded his hands, leaning against the door frame and said, "After crying, go to dinner with brother."

Daiyu pouted and replied, "It's not an outsider, it's my grandmother!"

"That's an outsider too. Their surname is Jia and your surname is Lin. It's fine to leave as ordinary relatives. Don't you still want to go back and live under the fence?"

Lin Shu has been thinking for the past few days how to let Daiyu understand the real situation of Jia Lin's family. It happened that the letter from Rongguo Mansion came. write something.

It was nothing more than anger that Daiyu did not follow her wishes and returned to Beijing immediately after burying Lin Ruhai.

He also sort of figured out Jia Shishi's temper, probably because he was used to being pampered, if someone violated her will, he would find a way to reprimand him angrily.

Just look at Jia Lian. The Rongguo Mansion sent two letters, one for Daiyu and the other for Jia Lian.

At that time, he and Jia Lian were talking in the front hall. After Jia Lian opened the letter, he could tell from his bitter expression that the letter contained no good words.This is the attitude towards his own grandchildren, let alone Daiyu's granddaughter.

Daiyu snorted softly, turned her head away and did not want to talk to Lin Shu.Lin Shu walked to the desk with a funny face, pretending to pick up the letter on the table.

"This is mine!" Daiyu quickly forgot her anger and reached out to protect the letter.

Lin Shu didn't intend to go to see it at first, leaning on the table and said with a smile: "Okay, okay, I don't want to watch it. Put these troubles aside for now, let's go have dinner. There will be guests coming in the afternoon, and brother will take you to meet him at that time." .”

"What kind of guest? Could it be the same year as Daddy?"

Since returning to the Suzhou Mansion, Lin Ruhai's former examination halls have come to the mansion to express condolences in the same year, and the Lin Shu brothers and sisters have often paid respects to these elders.

But the people who came today were different. Lin Shu shook his head and replied, "It's not the same year as my father, but my brother's friend. Suzhou Tongzhi Wang's son, Wang Huan, Wang Weizhong, and his younger sister. The Wang family girl is just like you." Big and small, just right to play with you."

Lin Shu traveled to Yangzhou with Lin Ruhai as an official since he was a child, and he met Wang Huan when he returned to Suzhou Prefecture to participate in the Tongsheng Examination.From the county examination to the government examination, Lin Shu was always the top of the case in the Nanzhili court examination. Three battles and three victories led to the success of the small three yuan.

Wang Huan was amazed at Lin Shu's talent and learning at the time, and later met at several literary conferences, and gradually developed a good friendship.After several years of communication, the two are congenial.

But Wang Huan's father, Wang Qi, is the fifth grade Tongzhi of Yangzhou Prefecture. When he learned that his son had a good relationship with Lin Ruhai's nephew, he immediately threw Wang Huan to Yangzhou Prefecture to study with Lin Shu.

On the day of Lin Ruhai's burial, Wang Qi personally brought his son to offer condolences.Because there were too many people who came to express their condolences that day, and Lin Shu was not free, the two of them didn't speak a few words at all.So today Wang Huan was ready to come to the house again, and he brought his younger sister Wang Yuan with him.

Daiyu was a little nervous when she heard that her brother's friend would bring her sister here.She has lived in Rongguo Mansion since she was six years old. Apart from a few cousins, she has no other friends.

After returning, when Lin Shu asked her if she had handed over a few handkerchiefs in the capital, except for Sanchun and Xiangyun, she couldn't even name them.

When Lin Shu asked if there were any elders in Rongguo Mansion who took her out to banquets, polo clubs, etc., and saw Daiyu shaking her head in confusion, Lin Shu was really angry.

Rongguo Mansion really locked Daiyu in a cage like a canary, for fear that others would know that Lin Ruhai's daughter was being raised in Rongguo Mansion, for fear that others would know about Daiyu's situation.

Mrs. Jia said she was raising Daiyu on behalf of the deceased Jia Min, rather than keeping a cat and dog by her side, teasing her when she was happy, and throwing it aside when she was unhappy.

Except for Jia Yuanchun who entered the palace, the rest of the grandsons and nieces were like this. They didn't teach any knowledge that a daughter of a family should learn, let alone Daiyu, the granddaughter.

Seeing that Daiyu was a little uneasy, Lin Shu comforted her: "Although my elder brother has never met this girl from the Wang family, his elder brother has been with me for many years. He also said a few words on weekdays, like you like poetry and books, I should be able to talk with you."

Uh-huh!

Daiyu nodded and replied, "Then I'll go clean up. When Miss Wang comes, I'll play with her in the study."

After all, Daiyu was still a child, and after Lin Shu's persuasion, Daiyu's heart began to be filled with anticipation. No, she didn't even want to eat, so she took Wang Momo to pack up the study.

Lin Shu had no choice but to ask the servant girl to bring the food to Daiyu's room. The siblings had a hasty lunch and waited quietly for the arrival of the siblings from the Wang family.

……

As soon as Wang Huan entered the gate of the Lin Mansion, the first thing he did was ask Lin Shu to take him to the ancestral hall to offer incense to Lin Ruhai.

After offering incense and offering sacrifices, Lin Shu and Wang Huan sat in the front hall and talked.And Wang Huan's younger sister, Wang Yuan, has been taken by Wang Momo to Daiyu in the backyard.

The servants brought tea and snacks. After the two sat down, Wang Huan said, "Brother Jinyu, I just got the news that the new Yangzhou inspector censor has arrived."

Lin Shu hesitated for a moment while drinking tea, and then put down the teacup: "Brother Wei Zhong, do you know who is this inspector?"

"Yang Xueli is in charge of the original household division." Wang Huan replied with a sigh: "He is from the Jin Party. This time, we people in the south of the Yangtze River may suffer disaster."

Why did Wang Huan say that?
The reason is actually very simple, two words - interest!
Behind the Jin Party are Shanxi merchants, and the Jiangnan Salt Administration has always been out of the hands of Shanxi merchants.

Now that Lin Ruhai, who was born in the south of the Yangtze River, died of illness, the central government actually appointed Yang Xueli, who was born in the Jin Party, as the censor of Yangzhou salt inspection. Isn't this giving the fat to the jackals?

Lin Ruhai tried his best to suppress those salt merchants and stabilize the salt price. In just a few years, he was replaced by an official supported by merchants. Not to mention Wang Huan, even Lin Shu wanted to scold her now.

Lin Ruhai once told Lin Shu about Yang Xueli.In his early years, his family was poor, and he was funded by the Fan family, a wealthy businessman in Datong.

After the disbandment of the Hanlin Academy, it took only two years to sit in the very noble household department and became an important pillar of Shanxi merchants in the court.

He had negotiated with Lin Ruhai many times, wanting Shanxi merchants to intervene in the official salt business, but Lin Ruhai refused on the spot.

It is estimated that the Shanxi merchants worked hard behind the scenes this time, and they actually let Yang Xueli leapfrog promotion and took the position of Yangzhou patrol salt censor.

(End of this chapter)