Red Mansion Beijingwang

Capital, Duke Ning's Mansion.

"Crack!"

Jia Zhen's face was gloomy. She looked at Jia Rong who was trembling in the hall. A cold light flashed in her eyes. She threw the tea cup on the table and angrily shouted: "You bastard, Hua'er has a body, and you still... You are living and drinking outside, and the Duke's mansion has been completely disgraced by you."

The news of Zhen Hua's pregnancy has spread in the Duke's mansion, and the entire mansion is filled with joy, except for a few people.

Jia Rong was oppressed by Jia Zhen's momentum. Even if she was hit by the tea cup, she didn't dare to say a word. She just listened to Jia Zhen's words and felt a little aggrieved.

So what if his daughter-in-law is pregnant? It's not his. Besides, when did my father care about this matter? When it comes to bringing shame to the Duke's government, he's still far from it.

It's just that he didn't dare to say this. The former was in the Beijing Prince's Palace, and the latter was really going to be beaten to death, so he said cowardly: "Master, Hua'er said that she is pregnant and it is inconvenient to take care of me. Let me go outside to find some." Delightful."

Jia Rong was right. She was allowed to live a debauched and debauched life, and all the money she spent belonged to her. If it weren't for his seed in her belly, she would really be a "good wife and mother".

Upon hearing this, Jia Zhen became even more annoyed. Is he the one who cares about such trivial things?

For Zhen Hua, Jia Zhen is bound to win. The more Zhen Hua twists and turns, the more interested Jia Zhen becomes. She secretly makes up her mind to tame this little wild cat from the south of the Yangtze River.

How could anyone not be angry if he thought that he had been chosen first before he even made a move?

The purpose of recruiting Jia Rong this time is to discourage him. He had already told Jia Rong that his daughter-in-law should be filial to him first, but Jia Rong was so unfilial. And Zhen Hua, who was true to her father-in-law, was nothing short of filial to her husband. Being obedient makes people feel unwilling.

Thinking of this, Jia Zhen's eyes burst out with overwhelming anger, she stared at Jia Rong, stood up, raised her hand and slapped her face, angrily scolding: "You are an unfilial person, how dare you talk back."

The more she thought about Jia Zhen, the angrier she became. She slapped her several times before she regained her composure, waved her hand and said, "Go away, if you do these embarrassing things again, I'll beat you to death."

At this moment, Jia Rong was about to cry but no one knew the sadness in her heart. She covered her swollen face and walked out helplessly.

Oh my God, the child in my wife's belly is not my own, and I treat him harshly. It's really because my father doesn't care and my wife doesn't love him, but he can't afford to offend both of them. He's miserable.

Jia Zhen looked at Jia Rong's leaving figure and snorted coldly. After sitting down, she took a sip with the teacup in her hand, played with the tureen, her eyes revealed a glint, and said secretly: "It's good to have a body, my child, forever." It's the mother's weakness, and when the time comes, the good daughter-in-law will not let him be filial in every possible way."

Thinking of this, Jia Zhen felt a surge of anger in her heart and shouted: "Let Peifeng come over, sir, I want to listen to the music."

In the fragrant boudoir, Zhen Hua was covering her mouth with an embroidered handkerchief, lying on the couch and vomiting. Her usually delicate jade face was covered with haggardness.

After a while, Zhen Hua regained his composure and whispered resentfully: "It's really going to kill me."

It's all her cousin's fault. If it weren't for her cousin, how could she have suffered like this? She wouldn't let her make it up to herself when she came back.

You Shiyan, who was on one side, approached Yan Yan with a smile and said with a smile: "A woman has to go through this when she gets pregnant. It will be fine once she gets through this period of time."

Hearing this, Zhen Hua raised her eyes and looked at Youshi, feeling strange in her heart. She remembered that the cheap mother in front of her had never given birth to a child, so she seemed to be someone who had come from before.

Pursing her pink lips, Zhen Huaqiang cheered up, smiled, and said, "Don't worry, mother, my daughter-in-law knows."

Hearing this, Youshi's gorgeous face was full of smiles, her beautiful eyes stared at Zhen Hua's still flat belly, and she said with a smile: "Hua'er, what's in your belly is the future of the Duke's Palace, so you have to be more careful. "

Compared with Zhen Hua, Youshi attaches no less importance to this child than she does. It should be noted that Youshi does not have children by her side. Currently, her daughter-in-law has a good relationship with her, and this child is her grandson. They are naturally close to her in the future. It was her foundation in the Duke's Mansion, so how could she not care.

When Zhen Hua heard the words, she nodded her head, stroking her belly with her bare hands, her eyebrows full of warmth. This was her cousin's eldest son, so he had to endure it no matter how uncomfortable it was. Previously, he just complained a little, but after all, he was here The eldest son here is suffering for his cousin, but his cousin is not around to comfort him, how can it not be heartbreaking.

And what Youshi said was right, what was in her belly was the future of the Duke's mansion, and the future of her and her cousin.

Yangzhou, Yanyuan Yamen, study room.

Shui Rong sat behind the large yellow rosewood table, staring at the people in the hall with a bit of amusement in his expression. The person in the hall was Wen Zhixing, the salt transport envoy of the Huaihe River and Huaihe River. The salt transport envoy was in charge of salt transportation, sales and tax collection. He is the chief officer of the Lianghuai Salt Administration, including the settlement of money and grain payments, salt smuggling cases in various places, and anti-smuggling assessments.

As for Lin Ruhai's salt inspection censor, he only has the duty of inspection, that is, to monitor and correct the words and deeds of officials. It is equivalent to the Discipline Inspection Commission and does not involve salt politics.

Yangzhou salt merchants are the most lavish in the world, and those with less than one million are called small merchants. This time they go south to raise funds, they will definitely not be able to bypass the salt road. This is also a common practice of the imperial court. Salt merchants often donate money and repay their benefits. This was the emperor at that time. Although he was received by the Zhen family during several tours to the south, there were also salt merchants among them.

None of the eight major salt merchants made their fortunes by relying on the court's salt policy. Since they benefited from this, they had to express their interests. They originally thought that they would wait for officials from various places to raise funds before meeting with the Salt Road. Wen Zhixing never asked Wen Zhixing to take the initiative to ask for a meeting. They couldn't sit still. After all, they knew in their hearts that they couldn't avoid this. They cut off the flesh first to ensure safety, thinking of taking the initiative.

Shui Rongyi pointed out: "Why does the Warm Salt Transport Envoy want to see this king?"

Wen Zhixing raised his eyes and looked at the noble young man on the case, with a somewhat unnatural look on his face. Could it be that the reason why he asked to see him was not known by the prince in front of him, and he must not forget the purpose of going to Jiangnan.

After hesitating for a while, Wen Zhixing said respectfully: "Your Majesty, I will call the merchants to donate after receiving the imperial envoy's ticket. Now the salt merchants have relented and are willing to donate one million taels for disaster relief and emergency repair of the river embankment. "

Shui Rong raised his eyebrows when he heard the words, and his heart couldn't help but a strange color flashed in his eyes. It was inevitable that the salt merchant would donate, but he never expected that he would be so smart and volunteer to coordinate one million taels. You need to know that this time The fundraising amount was about 1.5 million taels, and two-thirds of it was solved in one go. It was a big deal.

It's just that Shui Rong knew in his heart that the salt dealer couldn't obediently donate money so easily. There must be gains for every loss, especially when such a big pie is smashed on the head. There must be a reason, or to be precise, a requirement.

Holding the tea cup on the desk and sipping it, Shui Rong said calmly: "Oh, yes, the salt merchants are righteous. I thank them on behalf of the people who were affected by the disaster. When I return to Beijing in the future, I will express my gratitude to the salt merchants in front of the Holy Emperor. Please take credit.”

Not to mention the requirements, this righteousness should be attached first.

Wen Zhixing looked at the young man in front of him carefully. He was not happy because of Shui Rong's words of appreciation. Instead, he felt a little uneasy about the young man's calmness. He turned his eyes slightly with a confused look on his face: "Your Majesty, it's just the salt merchants. It’s hard to donate so much. I hope we can understand their difficulty and allow the price of salt to float by 10% to reduce the loss. It’s difficult for the lower officials to make the final decision on this matter, so I’m asking the prince for instructions.”

Shui Rong sneered in his heart when he heard the words. It was just as he thought. There is no free lunch in the world. The salt merchants are so generous, so naturally they have something to ask for. Although the salt transport envoy is the chief official of the salt road, the price of salt is set by the imperial court. Wen Zhixing As a salt transport envoy, you cannot make any arbitrary decisions.

To put it bluntly, this is a transaction. If you want to raise one million taels, you must agree to this condition. After all, Shui Rong is the emperor's errand. If the errand fails, even if he is a prince, he will have to accept it. implicated.

Although the words were respectful, the implications were clear.

Shui Rong looked at Wen Zhixing with a stern look, his face was calm, and he said coldly: "Take it from the people and use it for the people. The salt merchants have a good calculation. If I don't respond, will they not donate? You lose?" Is this salt transporter just for a living?"

Salt is a necessity of life. Daily cooking is inseparable from salt. Salt tax accounts for a large proportion of the court's taxes. Don't underestimate the floating price of 10%. Quantitative changes lead to qualitative changes, which are astronomical figures.

If this was done, the salt merchants would be able to make a lot of money and make back the donated money, and in the end they would be unscathed. In short, that would be to pass on the donated money to the people, and the people would still suffer. Common people.

Trading time for space, you don’t have to pay even half a penny, and you might even make a small fortune. Is this a loss reduction? Do you think this abacus is crackling?
Of course, it is good for water dissolution, because with the one million taels of silver donated by the salt merchant, the remaining five hundred thousand taels can be easily operated, which is equivalent to successfully completing the emperor's mission.

Wen Zhixing felt two sharp eyes and was startled. If he were an ordinary imperial envoy, he would be able to get around with his official position as Salt Transport Envoy, so there was no need to be frightened. However, the young man in front of him was not only an imperial envoy, but also an extremely noble prince. It is the prince who is in power and cannot afford to offend. Thinking of this, Wen Zhixing hurriedly knelt down and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, my subordinates also feel that this is very inappropriate and have doubts in their hearts. However, salt merchants also have their own difficulties. Not to mention the annual fixed donation, but the imperial court When there was a shortage of money, they were the ones who contributed money and effort, but they were really unable to do so, but the officials convinced them that they could first raise 500,000 taels as a donation."

Shui Rong stared at the trembling Wen Zhixing and sneered, the so-called "officials supervise business sales", if salt merchants don't have the protection of salt road officials, do you think they can sell salt with peace of mind? It's normal for officials and merchants to collude.

However, Wen Zhixing was also smart. If he couldn't do anything about it, he would take a step back, donate 500,000 taels to give an explanation, and stay out of the matter.

After groaning, Shui Rong said: "Forget it, let them donate 500,000 taels first, and you can get this done as soon as possible."

Five hundred thousand taels, this is not a small sum. Let the salt merchants donate it first to provide disaster relief and build embankments, which can solve the immediate urgent need. The shortcomings will be made up slowly.

Wen Zhixing felt relieved when he heard this and hurriedly responded.

After sitting down, Wen Zhixing raised his eyes and glanced at Shuirong, and said with a smile: "It's rare for Your Majesty to come to Yangzhou. The salt merchants prepared some thin wine in the Qinhuai River and asked my subordinates to invite Your Majesty to come. I wonder if Your Majesty can appreciate it?"

Shui Rong's heart moved when he heard the words. He stared at Wen Zhixing with an inexplicable color in his eyes and said softly: "Well, I have long heard that the Qinhuai River has unique scenery. It is rare to come to Yangzhou, so I want to see it."

The banquet hosted by the salt merchants probably had a follow-up, and Shui Xiong happened to go to meet these salt merchants. It was definitely not because of the "gold powder of the Six Dynasties and the water-washed grease" of the Qinhuai River.

Wen Zhixing smiled knowingly and said nothing immediately.

It was getting late, and a high moon hung alone in the night sky. The soft moonlight shrouded the earth, adding a hazy beauty.

In the wing room where Tanchun was temporarily staying, the lights were bright, and two figures were sitting opposite each other across a small table. On the small table was a chessboard, and it was Tanchun and Daiyu who were playing chess.

At this moment, Daiyu held a cloud in her hand, and as soon as she dropped it, she saw the girl sitting opposite her look through the window at the sky outside, her bright eyes seemed a little dazed, her willow eyes sparkled, and she teased: "Look You are so distracted, but are you thinking about your brother?"

When Tanchun heard the words, his pink face felt slightly warm, and it was fleeting. After all, Tanchun had a cheerful temperament and was not a "whispering" person. He stood up with his handsome eyebrows and said loudly: "It's not getting late, my brother-in-law is still here." Since he didn’t come back, I was a little worried.”

You are your brother-in-law's bed partner. Are you worried about what's wrong with your man?
After saying that, Tan Chun dropped his head and looked at the girl with a white face. There was a bit of playfulness in his eyes, and he smiled and said, "Isn't Sister Lin worried about my brother?"

This pair of sworn brothers and sworn sisters had a deep relationship, so she didn't believe Daiyu and wasn't worried. If not, why would she be looking for her to play chess in the middle of the night? She just couldn't let go and took the opportunity to investigate.

She laughs at fifty steps, but Daiyu dares to tease her with words.

Daiyu's face paused slightly when she heard the words. There was a hint of pink at the base of her crystal ears, and there was a hint of shyness in her eyebrows. Her beautiful eyes flickered, and she raised her eyes to look at the sky outside. Her two curved eyebrows revealed a hint of darkness. color.

It's natural to worry about my brother, but...
Daiyu fell down, raised her eyebrows slightly, and hummed with a bit of dissatisfaction and resentment in her voice: "We are worried about our brother here, but our brother over there is enjoying himself on the Qinhuai River and has long forgotten about us."

How could they not know what kind of place the Qinhuai River is? There are brothels and pavilions, and there are many boats. Her good brother is probably wearing soft jade in his arms at the moment, and his red sleeves are fragrant.

Thinking of this, Daiyu felt unhappy.

Although Tanchun didn't know the scenery of the Qinhuai River, he also knew that it was not a serious place, especially at night. It was a paradise for men, and he felt a little uncomfortable.

Yangzhou thin horse or something, isn’t it a man’s favorite?
But as a man, it's normal to act when the occasion arises.

Pursing her pink lips, Tanchun coughed slightly and said, "Brother-in-law, he went to do business."

Daiyu pursed her lips, obviously unhappy, and acted like a little girl, saying angrily: "We can't talk about serious matters in the yamen, we have to go to the Qinhuai River. In my opinion, that's because my brother has evil intentions. Third girl, you can't Be more careful."

Tanchun raised his eyes and looked at Daiyu. There was a bit of unnaturalness in her handsome face. As her brother-in-law's pillow partner, it was reasonable for her to look like this. But the strange thing was how Daiyu could be more beautiful than her pillow partner. To be annoyed, there seemed to be a sour taste in his words, something inexplicable.

I guess I miss my brother too much.

At this time, the maid's voice came from outside, saying that the prince was coming, which made the two of them happy and looked at the door with bright eyes.

After a while, Shui Rong walked in, stared at the two people playing chess, felt slightly startled, and said gently: "Why are you still up so late?"

When Daiyu heard this, her eyebrows furrowed slightly, with a look of dissatisfaction on her fair face, and she said in a charming voice: "Brother, I'm not asleep either."

Water soluble: "."

He was out to socialize, and Daiyu was in a leisurely mood. How could this be compared?
Tan Chunying glanced at Daiyu and felt funny in her heart. Sometimes she admired Daiyu's mouth. She dared to say anything. She seemed to be her brother-in-law's nemesis.

Covering his mouth and smiling, Tanchun stared at the young man with crooked eyebrows and said, "Brother-in-law, Miss Lin couldn't sleep, so she asked me to play chess to kill some time."

Tanchun would not expose her worries about her brother-in-law. Otherwise, Daiyu would be embarrassed and annoyed.

Shui Rong nodded slightly when he heard the words, but didn't say anything. In the dead of night, most of his thoughts were random, especially for Daiyu, who was sensitive. The silent atmosphere would only arouse the sadness in her heart. There was nothing to do at the moment. I won’t think too much about it.

This is called diversion.

Thinking of this, Shui Rong looked at Daiyu with a smile and said in a gentle tone: "So it's me who disturbed Yan'er's elegance. How about my brother playing a game of chess with you?"

Daiyu's heart moved when she heard this, and she became interested in playing chess with her brother. If she went back, it would be silent and she wouldn't be able to sleep.

Staring at Shui Rong, Daiyu saw the rosy look on the young man's handsome face, her eyes moved with a hint of worry, and she said softly: "No, it's getting late, and I'm a little tired, so I'll go back and rest first."

With that said, Daiyu stood up and walked away, walking towards Shui Rong. There was a bit of worry in her beautiful eyes, and she said softly: "Brother, please rest early."

Shui Rong felt quite surprised when he heard this. He saw Daiyu's intention, but he was worried about drinking some wine so he took care of him. They rushed in both directions. He could only say that this sister's pain was not in vain.

Smiling, Shui Rong stared at Daiyu's fair face and said gently: "Then sister, rest early and don't think wildly."

When Daiyu heard this, her heart felt even warmer. Her bright eyes were shining with an indescribable brilliance. She softly said "hmm" and left with light steps.

At this time, Tanchun came over with a cup of tea, handed it to the young man, and said softly: "Brother-in-law, drink some tea to moisten your throat."

Shui Rong lowered his eyes and looked at the girl in front of him. She was gentle and well-behaved. She felt a little like a young daughter-in-law. Her heart moved slightly. After taking the tea cup and taking a sip, she said: "You're right, it's getting late. Let’s take a rest early.”

When Tanchun heard this, he didn't realize he was there. He immediately and generously ordered the maids to prepare warm water for washing. After a while, he served Shuirong and took off his clothes, and the two of them got on the bed together. (End of chapter)