The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 418 Living in Grand View Garden

Grandmother Jia originally wanted to use the matter of dealing with the Lin family inheritance to give Jia Huan a warning, but unexpectedly Lin Daiyu said that she was in charge of the accounts. Naturally, she couldn't say anything more. However, some people were still not reconciled, such as the first wife, Mrs. Xing.

She smiled and said, "Ms. Lin is a boudoir lady. She has never been involved in financial affairs, let alone accounting. Although she has the account book, she may not be able to sort it out. I heard that some people with bad intentions are very good at making false accounts. Not to mention laymen, even experts may not be able to see through it. Miss Lin, why don't you give the account book to the accountant in our house to sort it out!"

Jia Huan frowned slightly. It was obvious that Mrs. Xing was hinting at him. This woman changed her attitude very quickly. She was simply resentful that he did not bring back the huge inheritance of the Lin family. The old woman was still as greedy as ever. Just as described in the original book, once money matters passed through her hands, she became extremely stingy.

Mrs. Wang said nothing, but sneered in her heart. She had long expected that with Mrs. Xing's greedy and stingy character, she would definitely attack Jia Huan. Sure enough, she just let the two of them fight each other while she just watched from the sidelines.

Although Grandmother Jia disliked Lady Xing, she also suspected that Jia Huan was too shrewd and was playing with the naive Lin Daiyu, so she said, "What the eldest lady said is not without reason. Nowadays, there are some servants who are treacherous but loyal. They appear loyal on the surface, but they are evil inside. For example, what was the name of the housekeeper who drugged your father..."

"I do remember vaguely that his name seemed to be Diao Sheng!" Mrs. Wang interrupted.

Grandmother Jia nodded and said, "Yes, it was Diao Sheng, who was so vicious that he secretly drugged your father. How can one not be afraid of such a traitor? It is really hard to guard against. So Yu'er, you should follow what your aunt said and give the account book to the accountant in our mansion to help check it. Otherwise, you may be deceived without knowing it."

Although Lin Daiyu was not happy, she could not disobey her grandmother, so she nodded and agreed. She was secretly glad that she listened to Ping'er's advice and managed the account book herself. She also clearly distinguished the difference between Huandi and the account. Otherwise, Huandi would have been harmed. Alas! It is true that money can move people's hearts. Once money is involved, people's hearts will really become terrible. The huge fortune left by her father has made many people jealous, including these so-called relatives.

Lin Daiyu had never cared much about money, but now she realized that Jia Huan's arrangement couldn't be more thorough. If Huan brought all of his father's inheritance back to the Jia family, it would not be long before nothing would be left. Now that all of it had been exchanged for farmland, she could generate rent every year for her own use. In this way, she would have no worries about food and clothing for the rest of her life. Moreover, as long as she had the land deed in her hand, she would not have to worry about someone else taking away the land.

As the saying goes, parents love their children and plan for them in the long run. This move by Huandi is for my long-term benefit. It shows that Huandi loves me!
When Lin Daiyu thought of this, she felt sweet and warm in her heart, and her feelings could not help but show on her face. Her tender eyes and charming smile on the corners of her mouth immediately made the big-faced Baoshen who had been staring at her feel uneasy, thinking that he probably misunderstood that Lin Daiyu was smiling at him.

Back to the point, Wang Furen and Xing Furen were delighted when they heard that Lin Daiyu agreed to show the account book to the accountant in the mansion. Jia Huan was calm because he knew that there was nothing wrong with all the accounts. As the saying goes, a person with a clear conscience fears no slant of shadow. Even the 10,000 taels of silver he borrowed from Sister Lin were recorded in the account book, with interest and repayment period set.

Seeing Jia Huan so calm, Grandmother Jia could not help but nod in satisfaction. It seemed that Huan did not take advantage of the opportunity of helping the Lin family with the funeral to enrich himself, otherwise he would not be so calm. She coughed lightly and said, "Huan, you won the first place in the Nanzhili provincial examination this time, which brought honor to our family. The whole family is proud of it. Let's do this, Grandmother will not be partial to one over the other. From now on, you will also move to the garden to live."

When these words were spoken, Lin Daiyu and Jia Tanchun were naturally the happiest. Yingchun also looked happy, but Xichun didn't care. She usually didn't play with her sisters much, and preferred to talk about Buddhist scriptures with Miaoyu in the Rongcui Temple.

Jia Baoyu is the most unhappy one, because once Huan Lao San moves into the garden, he will definitely steal all his limelight. His sisters will revolve around him all day long, which is really unlucky!

Jia Huan did not expect that Grandmother Jia would allow him to live in the Grand View Garden. Hehe, it was such a pleasant surprise. He had originally planned to move to and rent a house outside the Jia Mansion under the pretext of studying in seclusion. Now that he could live in the Grand View Garden, he naturally wanted it more than he wanted. After all, this was the stage for all the girls in the Red Mansion to bloom in their youth and display their talents, and all the beautiful splendor was performed here.

Although Grandmother Jia was old, she was still very shrewd. When she saw the joy on Jia Huan's face, she knew that he was the right one. After all, he was a boy in his teens, so how could he not like the lively atmosphere? The environment in the garden was good, and it was also the villa where Concubine Jia had visited her relatives. Not to mention Huan'er, even adults would want to live in it.

It is obvious that Grandmother Jia was giving Jia Huan a beating and then giving him a sweet treat to prevent him from feeling resentful. It must be said that the old lady is still the most experienced and is quite good at controlling people.

Of course, Jia Huan also understood Grandmother Jia's intention, but even though he understood it, he was still very happy to be able to live in the garden, and his favorability towards this biased grandmother increased by +1.

This may be the so-called open conspiracy, there is no solution!

"Go see your father first. The master is in the mansion today. Go back to the garden to choose a residence, tell the servants to clean it up, and then move in." Grandmother Jia waved her hand.

Jia Huan said goodbye to his grandmother and left the house, going straight to Jia Zheng's study, Mengpo Zhai.

Jia Huan knew without asking that Jia Zheng must be here, because although this old man Zheng had mediocre political skills and average talents, and had little presence in the court, he loved to pretend. As long as he didn't go out to rest at home, he would definitely spend most of his time in the study, chatting with a bunch of idle guests, discussing the country's affairs, or discussing literature.

Sure enough, when Jia Huan arrived outside Mengpo Zhai, he heard someone reciting loudly inside. The voice sounded familiar. It should be Zhan Guang, one of the Qingke. And the poem he was reciting was the "Song of Drinking and Facing the Moon" that he had "composed" at the Luming Banquet. At this moment, it was Li Shier who was guarding outside Mengpo Zhai. When he saw Jia Huan, he looked embarrassed and complicated. He saluted awkwardly and said, "Your servant greets Master Huan San!"

In the past, Li Shier was quite arrogant in front of Jia Huan, and even called Jia Huan "The Third Brother Huan". Now, of course, he didn't dare to do it again. After all, Jia Huan's identity as a juren was there, and even the old lady had changed her attitude. How could a small character like him dare to show his teeth again?

"The master is here. Go in and report it!" Jia Huan ordered calmly. This Li Shi'er was an out-and-out bad servant. Naturally, he was too lazy to give him a good face. If he had the chance, he would even kick this guy out of the Jia family.

Li Shier nodded and bowed, saying, "Yes, I'll inform the Third Master right away." After that, he turned around and quickly slipped into Mengpo Zhai.

After a while, Li Shier came out trotting, smiling flatteringly, "The master asked Master Huan San to come in, please!"

Jia Huan nodded and walked into Mengpo Zhai calmly. He saw Jia Zheng sitting in the middle. There was a big stove in the middle with red charcoal fire. The room was warm like spring. A group of guests were sitting on both sides, making it look like they were attending court. The guests were: Zhan Guang, Cheng Rixing, Shan Pinren, Hu Silai, and Bu Guxiu.

"Huan'er pays his respects to the master!" Jia Huan walked to Jia Zheng's seat and knelt down to pay his respects. He was returning home after three years away, and whether he was willing or not, he still had to perform this ceremony, even if it was just a formality.

Jia Zheng stroked his beard sanctimoniously and scolded: "Rebellious son, do you still remember to go home? Do you still remember that there is an old man like me?"

"Master Zheng, please calm down. Master Huan San has not returned home for many years because he is mourning for his biological mother. Even the emperor has issued an edict to commend him. This is a great honor. Why scold him?"

"Indeed, Master Huan San is very filial. Moreover, Master Huan San won the first place in the Nanzhili and Guilin exams this time. Since the founding of our dynasty, Master Huan San is the only one who has won the third place in the boy's exam and the first place in the provincial exam. This shows that Master Zheng taught him well!"

"That's right, Master Huan San is a natural genius, but it's also inseparable from the old man's good management of the family. The family tradition is good, so naturally there are many talented people. We, the guests, are also proud of it!"

A group of courtiers tried to dissuade him, but in fact they were flattering Jia Huan and Jia Zheng. Jia Zheng's face flashed with satisfaction, but he said modestly: "You are too kind. Don't flatter this rebellious son. He is in this position today because of luck. In fact, he has very little knowledge. Rebellious son, get up. Considering that you still have some achievements, I will spare you this time!"

"What a hypocrite and phony!" Jia Huan rolled his eyes secretly and stood up.

Shan Pinren stroked his beard and smiled, "I haven't seen you for a few years. Third Master Huan has grown so tall. He is really handsome and has a great appearance. He is as good as the old master when he was young. They are exactly the same!"

The other hangers-on also echoed the praises. After all, these guys made a living by their mouths, and they were best at reading people's expressions and flattering them.

Jia Zheng was flattered by the flattery and he liked Jia Huan even more. He coughed and said, "Have you seen the old lady?"

Jia Huan nodded and said, "Huan'er just came from the old lady, and the old lady also allowed Huan'er to live in the garden."

Jia Zheng frowned immediately, obviously dissatisfied with this arrangement. Baoyu was already a headache for him. He finally had a scholar like Jia Huan. If he lived in the garden and got Baoyu's bad habit of only liking to hang out in the inner court, wouldn't that ruin his academic ambition?
However, Jia Zheng was a man of filial piety. Although he felt that this was inappropriate, he would not go against Grandmother Jia's wishes. He just snorted and said, "Since this is what the old lady wants, then you can move to the garden. But don't blame me for warning you in advance. If you just play around in the garden and neglect your studies, you'd better watch out for yourself. You will definitely not be allowed to enter the garden again!"

"Yes, Huan'er understands!" Jia Huan lowered his head and said calmly
Jia Zheng waved his hand and shouted, "Go and settle down first. I don't have time to take care of you now. I will ask you something later."

Jia Zheng looked a little unfriendly. It was just about the relocation of the grave. Jia Huan had already prepared an excuse, so he was not afraid at all and left Mengpo Zhai leisurely.

(End of this chapter)