Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 161 The Wang family seeks Wang Xifeng
The morning sun shone over the capital of Zhongzhou, dispelling the haze of many days.

The gloomy gray sky has dispersed, and it seems that the cold weather has warmed up a bit.

In the cold morning, Zhang Jinyu got up early as usual. Lan Yueer took care of her, put on her clothes, and went to the open space in the yard to practice Tai Chi and sword skills.

The saber technique is easy to say, the saber technique in the army is naturally extremely powerful, open and close, and can drop ten times with one force.And the slow Taijiquan also stunned the guards around him, and Duan Hong who was practicing the saber beside him.

"Master Hou, what are you talking about?"

Zhang Jinyu's breath also came out with a puff, secretly cursing you for knowing a fart.

Said angrily,

"What do you know? This is called internal boxing. Once the energy is lost, you can't practice it. If you don't practice, I will go to eat."

Leaving Duan Hong who was still in a daze, Zhang Jinyu simply cleaned up and went back to eat naturally.

There are all kinds of cooks in the capital, and there are all kinds of cooks from all over the country. Mrs. Wang naturally brought the cooks from the Hou Mansion here. This table of Jiangnan-style meals is very suitable for me. Of course, meat is indispensable.

Mrs. Yang wakes up early every day to take care of Mrs. Wang's daily life, which makes Lan Shuer's cheeks bulge with anger.

After several people were eating, Zhang Jinyu said;

"Mother, I won't be back in the next few days. I need to go to the camp outside the city to prepare for the training and participate in the big competition. Of course, if there is anything to do, just send me a letter. I will leave Duan Hong to take care of the safety outside." , Wei Yong is responsible for the security of the mansion."

Mrs. Wang sat there and finished her porridge and then replied,

"Go and do your work, the family doesn't need to ask, I'm watching, this competition is extraordinary, how sure are you that you will be in the top three?"

Zhang Jinyu pretended to be deep and said,

"If you perform well, you will be number one. If you don't perform well, you will still be number one."

After finishing speaking, Yang couldn't help laughing out loud, and the laughter was heard by others.
Lan Shuer resolutely seized the opportunity and said eccentrically,
"What, fox, cough! You still look down on Lang Jun's strength!"

Seeing that the occasion was wrong, Lan Shuer immediately changed her words. Yang Hanyu ignored Lan Shuer's provocation and said charmingly,
"Don't get me wrong, sir, this concubine has absolutely no intention of doing so. I just thought that my husband has such a funny side when he speaks. I thought that my husband has always been dignified and serious."

Zhang Jinyu glanced at Yang Hanyu, the elegance in her bones was pleasing to the eye, she nodded and said nothing, Lan Shuer hummed there.

After eating, put down the bowls and chopsticks, Zhang Jinyu said,

"You eat, I will take people back to the camp."

"Lang Jun, go slowly!"

"Slow down the road."

Mrs. Wang and the three daughters exhorted each other.

Zhang Jinyu didn't delay, took his personal guards, and went straight out of the mansion, heading straight for the capital's camp outside the pass.

And the people who stayed in the house, before they had time to eat another bite, heard the report from the porter,

"Madam, Rongguo Mansion Wang Xifeng came to the mansion to ask for an audience?"

Wang secretly thought that it was her, and said,

"Tell her to wait in the front hall, and I'll be there later."

"Yes, old lady."

The concierge went back to communicate, and Lan Yueer asked in confusion,

"Old lady, why did the people from Rongguo Mansion come here so early?"

"What's the matter, of course it's about the money. I thought the Duke's Mansion was as brilliant as before, but on the contrary, these honorable families may have nothing to show for it. The situation in the Ningguo Mansion is better than that of the Rongguo Mansion."

Mrs. Wang saw the difference from the details yesterday. On the surface, the Rongguo Mansion is extremely luxurious, and even the maids of the servants are dressed in the same clothes as everyone's ladies. But yesterday, she could see the problem in a single detail, and her cheap niece Wang Xifeng knew the stinginess Rongguo Mansion has a big problem.

Either there was an accident in the Duke's mansion, or there was something wrong with Wang Xifeng himself, it seems that we still have to try it out.

"Mother, where did you see it?"

Yang Hanyu is also puzzled, the luxury of Rongguo Mansion is not comparable to that of ordinary Duke's mansions, it can be said that it is only a little worse than the palace, and the food and ostentation are not available in this Marquis Mansion. .

Mrs. Wang put down the bowl and chopsticks, wiped her mouth with brocade cloth, and said in a soft voice,
"Yesterday, I asked Jinyu to return the 1 taels of silver notes to Rongguo Mansion. Wang Xifeng's surprised expression could not be faked, and she looked wrong when she came back from Ningguo Mansion. It can be seen that Ningguo Mansion is better than Rongguo Mansion." There are many, and she has to bring up the matter of running a business, so it must be short of money, so this business route becomes important."

"Hiss! Mother is still amazing!"

Yang Hanyu did not expect Mrs. Wang to be so observant.

It is also a shock, and I will be more careful in doing things in the future.

"Okay, you guys eat first, I'll go to the front hall to have a look."

Wang ignored the three girls, got up and went to the front hall, clearly not wanting the three of them to follow.

When Mrs. Wang arrived at the front hall, she saw a young woman in a red jacket, gorgeous and elegant, followed by a maid in a green skirt, which was particularly eye-catching.

As soon as I came in, before I sat down, I saw Wang Xifeng's surprised voice,
"Oh, Aunt Wang, my niece Wang Xifeng is being polite."

The voice was clear and pleasant, tactful and sweet, looking at the person who was saluting in front of him, the wink was really good.

"Okay, sit down!"

"Thank you, aunt!"

After taking the two of them to sit down, Mrs. Wang praised:

"Sure enough, it's a member of the Wang family who married her. She's smart and intelligent."

"Oh, my good aunt, how could she be as good as you said, by the way, Master Hou? Why didn't I see you!"

Wang Xifeng laughed coquettishly, and asked where Zhang Jinyu was as soon as he changed the subject.

Wang's heart was clear, and she didn't make things difficult for her, and asked,

"Jinyu went to Daying before you came, and she probably won't be back these days, so just tell me if you have anything to do."

Wang Xifeng's face showed embarrassment when he heard the words, thinking about how to speak about this matter.

Seeing the tangled niece in front of her, Wang is also funny, trying to cover up.

"Is the Jia family in Rongguo Mansion getting more and more tight? I see that although you are the housekeeper, you don't understand one thing. Aren't you the eldest granddaughter-in-law in the mansion? Why do I think the second child lives in Rongxi Hall?" , even though I'm an outsider, I know it's not right!"

After hearing this, Wang Xifeng's eyes were also red, and who knows the difficulty in this.

"Auntie, this is a bit complicated and embarrassing, so it's inconvenient for my niece to talk about it!"

"Oh, it's inconvenient to say, it's better not to expose the family scandal."

Wang's sharp words were not ambiguous at all, Wang Xifeng's face was pale, and her heart was depressed, blaming Jia's mother for being unfair, the second wife for making things difficult, or herself for being incompetent.

"Auntie, this matter cannot be explained clearly in a few sentences. Besides, I can be regarded as the daughter-in-law who married into the Jia family, and I am considered a member of the family."

Wang Xifeng, who is usually eloquent, was said to find those far-fetched reasons to prevaricate. Seeing that the heat was about the same, Wang sternly said,

"Who said that the daughters of our royal family should be sacrificed?"

As soon as this sentence was said, Wang Xifeng's tears could no longer be stopped, they flowed out instantly, sobbing endlessly, Ping'er also took out a handkerchief to wipe away the tears continuously.

"Auntie, what kind of housekeeper am I? There is an old lady at the top of the house, and the second wife is holding him down, and there are those old and immortal households below. How can I take care of it? The most important thing is that although Jia Lian is the heir, the property of the Duke's mansion is the second. My lord, my niece has nothing."

The Wang family could tell that the eldest son of the Rongguo Mansion should have inherited the title, but the income from the property was given to the second son. I don't know if it was the old Duke or the old lady.

It would be really interesting if it was the former, and I don't know what the old Duke thinks, if the family is separated, the so-called Rongguo Mansion will fall apart.

"Oh, then I understand. You have been making trouble for a long time, but you haven't got anything, and you still have to send someone to do odd jobs for the second room."

Mrs. Wang directly told Wang Xifeng's current situation in Rongguo Mansion. Wang Xifeng was still taken aback when she heard it, but when she thought about it carefully, it was exactly as what her aunt said. , Can't help crying again.

"Okay, okay, why are you crying? Didn't you come here today to ask about trade routes? Come on, sit down and talk about what you think?"

Wang shi was a little funny comforting her in the main position, she didn't expect such a shrewd woman to be dominated by the second wife, it's not easy.

At this time, Wang Xifeng hadn't used the money from the public account of the Rongguo Mansion to put the unscrupulous money, but kept a little from other sources, which was far less than the money from the few stewards.

"Reply, aunt, what my niece thinks, the Duke's mansion used to have a caravan, but now it has become a comprador of the mansion, I want to install some people to earn some money from the caravan."

Wang Xifeng said the idea she had thought up last night, which was to follow the caravan and stuff some goods to earn some money.

Seeing the cautious daughter, Wang was also amazed, why wasn't she so careful in the past.

"Look at your aggrieved look, why are you so generous, so, I heard that Jia's family has many children who are not going well?"

Wang Xifeng nodded, this is too much, not just a little.

"It's true, there are many children in Jia's Wufu family, and there are also many unsatisfactory ones."

"That's it. My Hou's Mansion also forms a caravan. You recruit some children from the Jia family to help, and then you pay the money to buy shares, and run directly outside the customs. The money you earn will be divided between us, which happens to be collected by Jin Yu." I found a shopkeeper, I think he is very smart, how about it?"

Wang Shi stared into Wang Xifeng's eyes and asked.

Wang Xifeng looked at the elder in front of him in disbelief, this is great, what about the Jia family?
"Thank you, aunt, what about the Jia family?"

Wang snorted coldly and said,
"What does it have to do with you and me, the money we earn is our own, if we have the ability to run away by ourselves."

Wang Xifeng already agreed in his heart, but he was still worried about the interference of the old matriarch and the second wife.

Mrs. Wang naturally saw Wang Xifeng's worry, and said directly,
"This matter is easy to solve. You just say that I agree with you to buy shares. They want to go and run on their own, but the profit is not so big, and the tax outside the customs must be paid."

Although Wang Xifeng didn't understand it, she also knew the importance of tax, but smuggling in the pass was common, and there were no aristocratic nobles who paid it. Yes, smuggling,
"Auntie, what if the caravan is smuggling outside the customs? The possibility of entraining such a large profit is too high."

Wang smiled mysteriously and said coldly,

"Then try it and you'll know!"

Wang Xifeng was a little puzzled, this was not a trivial matter, but Ping'er at the side realized that the person in front of him outside the pass had nothing to say, and lightly tugged Wang Xifeng's arm.

Only then did Wang Xifeng realize that it was not her aunt who had the final say outside the customs.

Just as I was about to ask again, I heard the porter's shout from outside;
"Lady, there is an imperial decree in the palace!"

(End of this chapter)