Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 352: Third Sister's Methods

As soon as Li Weijian said this, Mrs. Xing felt something was wrong and quickly apologized with a smile, "Brother Jian, you are wrong. I just wanted to talk to Yu'er, how did I cause trouble?"

Jia's mother, who was sitting on the couch, suddenly looked downcast and asked, "What did you say to Yu'er this afternoon?"

"This..." Madam Xing laughed awkwardly, "--Didn't the wife of the Duke of Shanguo come here and talk to my daughter-in-law? Being an official requires harmony and harmony. Jian'er is so stubborn and forcibly demolished the Heyifeng. Won't he be hated by others later?"

Li Weijian said sarcastically, "I just don't understand what the Madam said... Is it the Madam who knows how to be an official, or is it the Madam who knows better?"

Jia's mother had always known that her daughter-in-law was greedy and stupid. This time, she might have been instigated by the lady from the Shanguo Mansion. She immediately said with a cold face, "I was wondering why the lady from the Shanguo Mansion suddenly came to our house. It turns out that she came to instigate us! How can you criticize how this man outside is doing as an official? Stay at home and don't get involved in the outside world."

Mrs. Xing immediately said aggrievedly: "Old lady, I also have good intentions."

Li Weijian had already taken his seat and said with a smile, "The eldest lady had good intentions, but she frightened Miss Lin so much that she couldn't sleep or eat for the whole afternoon... The old lady also knew that Miss Lin was weak and easily distracted. Fortunately, I just comforted her, otherwise she might have been frightened."

Seeing that Lady Jia's face was getting uglier, Li Weijian said again: "It's strange, how come I remember that Rongguo Mansion and Shanguogong Mansion were not on good terms? Madam, don't you think that the wife of the Duke of Shanguo Mansion would be kind enough to give some advice?"

Grandmother Jia snorted coldly and looked at Madam Xing again. Madam Xing became more and more flustered, fearing that she would end up like Madam Wang, who was imprisoned due to illness. She quickly argued, "Madam, I was on guard from the beginning. But what the lady from the Shanguo Mansion said was also true. How can you make enemies everywhere when you are an official outside?"

Without Li Weijian saying anything, Grandmother Jia said, "Don't be so nosy in the future! If you really have that ability, why didn't you teach She'er how to be an official when he was still alive?"

Mrs. Xing was immediately embarrassed and silent. She felt her face flushed with shame after being exposed in front of the younger generation. She could no longer sit still and stood up and said she was annoyed. She said she had other chores to do in the east wing and hurriedly led her maids and old women away in disgrace.

As soon as he left, Jia's mother hurriedly asked, "Brother Jian, is Yu'er okay?"

Li Weijian said, "I was troubled after listening to what the eldest wife said this afternoon. I just tried to calm myself down for a long time, and now I feel better."

Grandmother Jia said, "You also know what the eldest wife's situation is like. I'm afraid she is being used as a pawn without even realizing it. Don't worry, Jian'er. I won't let her go to the next door in the future."

Li Weijian smiled bitterly and said, "I thought about it for a while and felt that the eldest wife might have good intentions."

This is very helpless. It is a good thing to have a stupid teammate next to the enemy, but it will be uncomfortable if this stupid teammate runs next to you.

Jia Mu and Li Weijian sighed to each other, and the matter was temporarily forgotten. Tanchun, who was sitting beside them, was very curious and asked a few questions. Li Weijian smiled and gave a brief explanation.

After hearing what Li Weijian said, the little girl began to ponder inwardly: what would she do if she were in Fourth Brother Jian's position?

After much deliberation, if he didn't do it, the matter would be exposed and he would offend the sage; if he did it, he might offend the prince. The fourth brother Pianjian took an unconventional approach and simply seized on the fact that the house was in disrepair as recorded in the register and demolished it to rebuild it.

Then, the unlucky chicken was killed to scare the monkeys. The owners of the shops that were about to expire were afraid that it would affect their own livelihoods, so they pinched their noses and re-signed the lease. In this way, both the saint and the prince were taken care of.

Tanchun thought about this and looked at Li Weijian with admiration. No wonder Fourth Brother Jian was able to hold a high position at such a young age, whether it was for practical learning or for being an official. With such talent, how could he stay under someone else for long?

At this time, Jia's mother and Li Weijian were talking about family matters. Li Weijian suddenly said, "Old lady, it's not that the younger generation is nosy. Now that the madam is 'sick', the next in line in the inner house is the eldest madam. It's no problem for the second sister-in-law to be the head of the household, but the eldest madam has no restraint. If she interacts with outsiders and does something stupid again in the future... I'm afraid it will cause trouble."

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia frowned. Wasn't she thinking the same thing in her heart?
In the past, Lady Wang was in charge of the household, and Lady Xing always had a hard time dealing with Lady Wang. Now that Lady Wang was "sick", Sister Feng, who was twice as short as her, could not overpower Lady Xing. After all, she was Sister Feng's nominal mother-in-law. Also, because Lady Jia was old, Lady Xing went to visit Concubine Xian De several times in the palace.

After all this back and forth, with one side gaining while the other side losing, Mrs. Xing couldn't help but lose her mind.

But if Mrs. Xing is not allowed to move around, who else can go?
As if he knew what Grandmother Jia was thinking, Li Weijian said, "Madam, I think the elder sister is a thoughtful and cautious person. It will only take a few months, so why not let the elder sister go back and forth first?"

Tanchun came back to her senses, looked at Li Weijian and asked, "Sister-in-law?"

Grandmother Jia was also very surprised. She looked at Tanchun, then at Li Weijian and said, "Brother Zhu's daughter-in-law? This..." The old lady hesitated.

Li Weijian said, "Big sister has not been involved in affairs these years, but the maids and old women around her are the most simple. Later, she was very considerate when she went to the palace. It's just a matter of communication, I think big sister can do it." He paused and said, "It's all Jia family affairs. I just said it casually. If I'm wrong, you don't have to worry about it. It's getting late, I'll leave first and come to see you another day."

Grandmother Jia hurriedly said, "That's good. Next time, Jian'er should bring Yu'er with him. It's only a few steps away. Third girl, go and see Jian'er off."

Tanchun agreed, stood up and led Li Weijian out.

However, Lady Jia in the inner room was thinking to herself, would it be possible to let Li Wan socialize?
Rongguo Mansion has countless relatives and friends. Just talking about the four princes and eight dukes, there are countless weddings, funerals, births and birthdays every year. Every month, people come to the mansion to give gifts and exchange. Mrs. Xing's temper is indeed not appropriate. Who knows, if someone gives her a little favor one day, Mrs. Xing will sell out the Jia family.

Unfortunately, Feng Jie was pregnant, and Jia Mu was too tall to work easily. After thinking about it, Jia Mu couldn't make up her mind, so she looked at Yuanyang, the big maid beside her, and said, "Do you think what Jian Ge said is reliable?"

Yuanyang pursed her lips, still remembering how Madam Xing had forced her to be the eldest master's concubine, and said, "I can't say for sure... but the eldest lady seems to be more suitable than the eldest wife. Besides, we can't let the third young lady show up in public, right?"

Grandmother Jia frowned and thought for a long time, and finally made up her mind and said, "Let Zhuge's daughter-in-law go to the harem, and let Zhuge's daughter-in-law go with the first wife to deal with people outside. We must always keep an eye on the first wife, and we must not let her do whatever she wants and bring trouble to the family."

Although Li Wan was the teacher of the royal palace, she had no imperial decree after all, and she seemed to be weak on her own.

Yuanyang smiled and said, "This old lady's method is ingenious."

Grandmother Jia laughed heartily, but she didn't take it seriously in her heart - how could Mrs. Xing, that fool, be compared to Monkey King?
Tanchun and Li Weijian walked into the Grand View Garden together. Tanchun felt that Li Weijian's method of handling the matter was extremely ingenious and could not help but exclaimed, "How did Fourth Brother Jian come up with such an idea?"

Li Weijian laughed and said, "Since we are in a dilemma, let's just overturn the table."

Tanchun immediately laughed and said, "In this case, Fourth Brother Jian will not be in trouble, but those nobles who took advantage will be in trouble."

Li Weijian said, "I am saving them. Who knows, they may be grateful to me in the future."

The emperor is not magnanimous. Li Wei has known this for a long time, and Tanchun has also heard about it. It seems that because of Mrs. Wang's matter, the emperor has neglected the eldest sister Yuanchun for a while, and only turned over the eldest sister's card today.

After passing Qinfang Pavilion and heading towards the East Corner Gate, not far away, I saw Yingchun, who was dressed in a Taoist robe, standing at a loss beside a flower stand, seemingly picking branches, but in fact her eyes kept glancing over here.

Li Weijian was stunned for a moment, then looked at Tanchun, seeming to want to say something but stopping himself.

Tanchun was a smart person. Although she wanted to talk to Li Weijian, she also knew that it was not easy for Fourth Brother Jian to get along with Second Sister. She said, "I suddenly remembered that I forgot to tell Sister Feng about something. Fourth Brother Jian, please go by yourself. I will not accompany you for long."

Li Weijian agreed, watched Tanchun turn around and walk for a while, then looked back, and then walked towards Yingchun.

Arriving at the flower stand, Li Weijian looked around. There were many maids and old women coming and going in the Grand View Garden at that time. He knew it was not a good idea for him to stay, so he reached out and took a flower from Yingchun's hand, lowering his voice and saying, "It's because of Baoyu's trouble that I can't come to see Second Sister these few days... Let's go tonight. I'll come when I'm free."

Yingchun's face flushed immediately, and she whispered, "Don't bother, just take a look at Brother Jian."

Li Weijian smiled and said, "Just take a look? But I want to know more."

Yingchun was so embarrassed that she turned away. Li Weijian turned his head to look at her. When no one was looking at her, he reached out and inserted the flower branch into Yingchun's temples, saying with a smile, "This flower branch is a perfect match for Second Sister. I'm leaving now. We'll talk to you tonight."

"Yes." Yingchun agreed, and stopped at a distance to watch Li Weijian looking back repeatedly until he finally passed the East Corner Gate. Then she secretly breathed a sigh of relief, her heart leaping with joy. She stood up and returned to the Jade Emperor Temple, and saw Miaoyu standing not far away, watching from a distance.

Yingchun was slightly startled, then nodded to Miaoyu and hurried into the Jade Emperor Temple. But Miaoyu just snorted coldly, turned around and went to Longcui Temple.

Li Weijian returned home and told Daiyu about what had happened during dinner. Although Daiyu said nothing, she felt very relieved. It happened that the evening was just over, so Daiyu thought that she would serve Li Weijian at night.

Unexpectedly, that night, Li Weijian seemed to be restless as if something had grown in his heart. When it was about 12:00 pm, he suddenly said that he had to go to the study to deal with chores.

Daiyu was puzzled, and when he left, she winked at Zijuan. After a long while, Zijuan came back and said to Daiyu with a strange look on her face: "Madam, the master... seems to have passed the East Corner Gate."

Daiyu snorted twice, and immediately became unhappy. She let the two maids help her wash up, and then she lay on the bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. When it was almost midnight, there was a noise outside, and Daiyu covered herself with the brocade quilt and pretended to sleep.

I could vaguely hear the murmurings between Li Weijian and Zijuan. After a long while, he finally came in and lifted the quilt and crawled in.

Daiyu suddenly opened her eyes, turned her head and sniffed carefully. Strangely, there was only the smell of bathing on Li Weijian's body.

Li Weijian smiled awkwardly: "Sister, haven't you fallen asleep yet?"

Daiyu looked at Li Weijian, then suddenly smiled and said, "How can I sleep if Fourth Brother doesn't come back? Have you dealt with the chores?"

"Yes, Xue Ke is going to Le Ting to set up a chemical factory recently, and I need to write down some instructions in detail so that he won't forget them by then."

Li Weijian responded randomly and turned over to lie down. Just now, he had just scratched his itch, and Li Weijian was not interested at the moment, but Daiyu beside him took the initiative.

Li Weijian was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. Things had come to this point and it was rare for Lin Daiyu to take the initiative. He couldn't spoil her fun, right?

There was no conversation that night. When Li Weijian woke up the next day, he felt that his body was hollow. When he woke up, he saw Daiyu's playful eyes. How could Li Weijian not understand that Daiyu did it on purpose yesterday? Li Weijian was startled and thought to himself that he had to avoid the days when he went to look for his second sister and Siqi in the future, so that Daiyu would not say anything on the surface but would be worried in her heart... As the saying goes, one drop of semen is worth ten drops of blood. Even a body made of iron can't withstand repeated scratching?

That day, Li Weijian went to the inner government office with sleepy eyes, while Baoqin took the carriage of the Bofu to Haidian in the morning. The round trip was only a few dozen miles, leaving early in the morning and returning by carriage before nightfall.

Li Weijian had gone to Yan's house that day and had not yet returned. Baoqin washed herself briefly, changed her clothes and went to look for Daiyu.

In the main room of the east courtyard, Qingwen, Xiangling and others were all there. Baoqin smiled and bowed, then said to Daiyu, "Madam, I went to take a look today. The garden is about three hundred acres. A stream is brought in from the lake nearby. There are pavilions and towers scattered around, and there is a lot of open space left. There are three main rooms, and two guest courtyards with room for six people. It's enough for us to move in."

Daiyu asked, "How much do you want?"

"Three hundred acres of land alone would cost seven thousand five hundred taels. Including the garden, the price would be thirty-eight thousand taels."

Hongyu was familiar with the land prices in the capital and couldn't help but say, "That's not cheap at all."

Baoqin said, "It's because it's far from Yuchun Garden. If it were closer, even 50,000 taels would be enough. And this garden was just renovated last year, and there are people sweeping it every day. If we move there in a while, we just need to send some people to take care of it in advance."

Daiyu smiled and said, "Since Sister Qin said so, it seems very good. I think it would be better to settle it. The emperor may move to Yuchun Garden in a few days. We can't let Fourth Brother travel dozens of miles back and forth every day under the scorching sun."

All the concubines cheered, but Qingwen said, "It's a pity for Yu Garden."

There was no other way. If Li Weijian was just an ordinary official in the inner court, he would not have to follow the emperor and could go anywhere, whether it was to escape the heat or the cold. But now that he had been appointed as the assistant minister, it was natural that Li Weijian would follow the emperor wherever he went.

When Li Weijian returned at night, the matter was settled. The next day, Baoqin came forward to complete the transfer of ownership with the seller, and Jingyuan became the property of the Bo family from then on.

A few days later, Xue Ke came and met Bao Qin, and then he led his men to Le Ting in the afternoon. On the third day of June, the emperor moved to Yuchun Garden to escape the summer heat, and the ministers who accompanied him went to Haidian.

Because of his busy work, Li Weijian went to Haidian first. A day later, Daiyu brought Qingwen, Xiangling and Xiuying to Haidian.

Fu Qiufang, Baoqin and Hongyu stayed at the Bo's house. Fu Qiufang had just finished her confinement and her bones had not yet closed, so she could not stand the cold, so she had to stay at home to take care of the baby; Hongyu had to take care of the Bo's house affairs, and Baoqin had to look after the business outside the Bo's house.

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Small flower branch lane.

It is said that ever since Li Weijian left in anger that day, Third Sister You tried to commit suicide. However, she was stopped by Second Sister You and Jia Lian. Since then, Third Sister You's personality has changed. She no longer goes out to call friends or look for men to play with.

Third Sister You was stunned for a while at first, but then she half-heartedly gave in and, while Old Lady You was out, she and Second Sister You finally started hanging out with Jia Lian.

Afterwards, Jia Lian was considerate and caring, asking about her well-being from time to time, and also thinking about giving Third Sister You five taels of silver every month.

However, Third Sister You sneered and refused, saying that she was not willing to be an unknown mistress for five taels of silver.

After Jia Lian went to Ping'an Prefecture, You Erjie stayed at home every day, playing dominoes with the maids or doing some needlework. She was as virtuous as an ordinary lady.

You Sanjie saw it all, but she didn't agree with it. That day, You Erjie was doing needlework again, and Sanjie came in and sat beside her. She squinted her eyes and said, "Sister, do you want to spend your whole life with him in this unclear and muddled way?"

You Erjie paused her needlework and said, "Your brother-in-law said that he would welcome me into Rongguo Mansion sooner or later."

Third Sister You sneered, "Brother-in-law? Who is my brother-in-law? Even mother doesn't believe his lies, but you took them seriously."

You Erjie looked up with puzzled eyes, and You Sanjie said, "Now he has inherited the title, so the title is fine, but the money he handles is not just 60 taels a year. It's a pity that your sister is so beautiful and in her prime, but she has to become someone's concubine for 60 taels of silver."

You Erjie sighed, but she had other ideas in her mind. Old Lady You had planned before, saying that Feng Jieer had only given birth to a daughter in all these years, and no sons. If she gave birth to a daughter this time, and then the second sister gave birth to a boy, then they could plan to enter Rongguo Mansion, and the second sister's position would naturally be different.

It is said that there are three types of unfilial behavior, and the worst is to have no descendants. Now that the eldest wife has an heir, even if Feng Jieer is annoyed, she will have to accept it.

What if she refuses to acknowledge him? That would be even better! Maybe Sister Feng would make a scene, Jia Lian would be completely pissed off by Sister Feng, and then Second Sister would still have a chance to become the stepmother.

Seeing that the second sister was indifferent, You Sanjie couldn't help but ask, "Sister, have you ever thought about what would happen if the second wife gave birth to a boy this time?"

You Erjie was finally moved and sighed, "What else can I do? Even if I marry you in the future, I'm afraid I can only be a concubine."

Third Sister You said, "If that's the case, why don't you move into Rongguo Mansion sooner? Then your food, clothing and daily expenses will be much better than now."

You Erjie hesitated after hearing this and said, "I still need to discuss this with your brother-in-law..."

"Oh," before the words fell, Third Sister You sneered, "If he wants to, he can force Second Madam to marry Sister. Even the old lady of the Jia family can't say anything."

You Erjie was finally persuaded and asked, "What are you going to do, sister?"

Third Sister You said confidently, "Don't worry about it, sister. I will use a little trick to make sure your wish comes true."

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Rongguo Mansion.

But the secretary had just finished the errand that Tanchun had assigned her, and when she returned to Qiu Shuang Zhai, she said, "Just now I went to the Second Madam's place, and saw that she looked very angry. When I sent something out, I quietly asked Feng Er, saying that the Second Madam came back from the old lady's room just now, and she was not as happy as usual. She called Ping Er over, and she was mumbling something. It seemed like something big had happened. Didn't you hear what happened to the old lady over there?"

Tanchun stopped calculating and wondered, "Could it be because of the incident at Black Mountain Manor? I must go ask Sister Feng."

He immediately stood up and left Qiu Shuang Zhai, heading straight for Yi Hong Courtyard.

It was early summer, and the lotus roots in the pond were newly sprouting, red and green. Tanchun went all the way to Yihong Courtyard, and in the courtyard she heard Sister Feng scolding, "God knows, I've become more and more like a thief by staying in this room!"

Tanchun was smart and knew what was going on as soon as she heard it. The fact that Jia Lian had a mistress outside had already spread like wildfire, and everyone in the family knew about it, except for Sister Feng. But she didn't know it after all.

Tanchun was neither in a position to advance nor to retreat, so she could only call out from a distance, "Is Sister Ping at home?"

Ping'er hurriedly drew the curtain to welcome her out. Tanchun smiled and said, "Sister Feng is in her advanced period. Are you all right today? I've asked the kitchen to prepare some Tremella and Lotus Seed Soup. I'll have someone bring it over later."

Ping Er smiled and said, "Our grandmother is fine, but she can't stand the heat."

At this time, Sister Feng inside said, "Why didn't the scout come in to see me?"

Tanchun then smiled and went inside with Ping'er, chatting with Fengjie. At this time, a little maid came in from outside and whispered to Ping'er, "Laiwang is here. He is waiting at the second gate."

Tanchun hurriedly stood up to say goodbye, and Fengjie said, "Tan girl, please come to my place more often when you have time. I can't move around much now, so I would rather talk to you more."

Tanchun smiled and replied, "I also like talking to Sister Feng."

Sister Feng ordered Ping Er again: "Go and see the Third Miss off."

Ping Erh agreed and sent Tan Chun out of Yi Hong Courtyard. She turned around and said to Feng Jieh, "Wang Erh just came. Because the third lady was here, I asked him to wait outside. Should I call him now or wait? Please give me your advice, Madam."

"Tell him to come in."

Ping'er hurriedly told the little maid to pass on the message.

Sister Feng was breathing heavily inside, and Ping'er couldn't help but say, "Madam is pregnant now. Even if you don't think about yourself, you have to think about the young master."

Sister Feng frowned and sneered, asking, "How did you hear that?"

Ping'er knew she couldn't hide it anymore, so she said, "It was the words of the little maid in front. She said that she heard two servants outside say from the second gate: 'This new second mistress is prettier than our old second mistress, and has a better temper.' I don't know who it was, Wang'er, but he yelled at the two of them, saying, 'What new mistress or old mistress? Hurry up and be quiet. If anyone inside finds out, we'll cut off your tongue.'"

As Ping'er was speaking, a little maid came in and said, "Wang'er is waiting outside."

After hearing this, Sister Feng sneered and said, "Ask him in."

The little girl came out and said, "Grandma is calling you."

Lai Wang immediately entered tremblingly.

(End of this chapter)