Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 394: Thinking of Descendants Before Death

Ying'er was always a good messenger, so she left in a hurry after giving instructions. When she reached the gate of the Grand View Garden, she saw from a distance Lin Zhixiao's wife Ping'er arguing with Aunt Zhao and Jia Huan.

Ying'er hid in the corner and listened for a while, and finally heard it all.

It was Feng Jieer who told Ping Er to deal with the old woman at the west corner gate and the doorman at the back gate. Those two were not good men to begin with. They were pissing and shitting under the three wooden beams. They told everything they were asked. It was the old woman at the gate who coveted Miao Yu's string of Buddhist beads yesterday, so she concealed the truth.

After a fierce interrogation by Feng Jieer, the old woman not only confessed to having an affair with Miaoyu, but also to the theft by the servant in the house.

Feng Jieer was immediately amused: "No wonder we couldn't find the old lady's belongings before. They were all stolen to the upper room. Where can we put them?"

He immediately ordered Ping'er to lead Lin Zhixiao's wife to the second gate to arrest the three dishonest servants. After questioning them about the situation, he first beat them with forty boards, confiscated their gains, and then drove them out of the house.

This matter was made public, and Jia Huan saw it. Jia Huan went to Tiekan Temple every day to hang out with those young monks. He was young, and he was persuaded by them to spend money on wine and meat. He only had a few monthly allowances, and Aunt Zhao would deduct half of it. Seeing that the monthly allowance was not enough, and Aunt Zhao was unwilling to give more, Jia Huan had evil thoughts, and he and Qian Huai encouraged the servants around him to steal from various rooms in the house.

Today he stole a bottle, tomorrow he stole a hairpin, and in a few months he stole hundreds of taels of valuables. Now that the crime was about to be discovered, Jia Huan was afraid of being beaten by Jia Zheng, so he went to find Aunt Zhao and told her that Sister Feng disliked them and wanted to punish the servant next to her.

Aunt Zhao was not a considerate person. She became furious upon hearing this and brought people over to make a fuss.

Lin Zhixiao's wife was pushed twice by Aunt Zhao, and she frowned and said, "Aunt, are you trying to disrupt the family rules? This is really reckless!"

Jia Huan said unreasonably, "How can you say it's reckless? You can't do it recklessly if you catch the wrong person?"

Aunt Zhao got so excited that she made up a story, "They were all playing dice in Huan'er's room yesterday. How could they go out to steal things?"

Ping Erh said, "Don't deny it. We have found out clearly today that even if the three of them stole something, they can't deny it even if they want to!"

Aunt Zhao shouted, "We are not all thieves, but we don't know what to do with those who withhold the monthly salary. We are not convinced and want to ask the master. You have done enough, lending at high interest rates and stealing the master's money. You also withheld a lot of money when building the garden. Why are you pretending to be good people now?"

Ping Erh retorted: "If you want to ask, just go ahead. Our grandmother has done nothing wrong and is not afraid of ghosts knocking on the door!"

"You——" Aunt Zhao thought about it and it was true. The deduction of monthly wages was all done when Mrs. Wang was in charge of the household. The garden repair and usury were also closely related to Mrs. Wang.

Lin Zhixiao's wife also said: "Auntie is the master after all, we won't argue with you, just stand aside and don't get in the way!"

Unexpectedly, Aunt Zhao couldn't win the argument, so she instigated the people around her to make trouble. For a while, they pushed each other. Aunt Zhao took the opportunity to sit on the ground and shouted "beat people".

Ping Er and Lin Zhixiao's wife had no choice but to send someone to invite Sister Feng. But just as the person left, they saw Lady Wang leading a few maids coming out of Rongqing Hall.

Seeing that Aunt Zhao was making such a fuss, Mrs. Wang remembered that Aunt Zhao had been so agitated during the two years she had been in seclusion. She immediately took the opportunity to get angry and said, "You blind woman, you can't tell right from wrong. You are so noisy all day long, aren't you ashamed? Why don't you go back home now!"

Mrs. Wang still had the power to overthrow her, and Aunt Zhao was immediately frightened and speechless. Mrs. Wang asked about the situation again and immediately ordered: "Anyone who dares to stop or block us will be punished. There is no law anymore. Are you going to rebel?"

Ping'er hurriedly ordered the beating to start, and the three men were hit on the buttocks with sticks. The three men cried for mercy and called for their parents.

When Mrs. Wang saw blood on the backs of the three people, she chanted "Amitabha" and hurried to find Jia Zheng. When Jia Zheng heard about this, he was furious and said, "This woman is really a jerk. Is she trying to rebel? Recently, I have become more and more difficult to manage. How can this be tolerated?"

He scolded Jia Huan again, picked up his stick and went to Aunt Zhao's courtyard to look for Jia Huan.

Aunt Zhao had been fighting with Madam Wang for half her life, and had suffered a lot of losses. After returning home, she knew that Madam Wang would definitely tell Jia Zheng about this matter. With Jia Zheng's temper, Jia Huan would probably be beaten. Aunt Zhao immediately told Jia Huan to hide outside, and she painted her eyebrows and eyes, waiting for Jia Zheng's wrath.

Not to mention that Aunt Zhao used some tricks to turn the steel into something soft as silk. Ying'er watched the fun and then went back to report it to Baochai with a feeling of unsatisfied satisfaction.

Baochai thought for a moment and said, "The Book of Rites says: When a country is about to fall into chaos, there will be evil spirits. The current situation in Rong Mansion is not a good sign."

Ying'er was surprised and said, "Now that the imperial concubine is still in the palace, no matter how chaotic things get, it won't affect the master."

Baochai shook her head and said, "That's not what I meant—"

Just as she was about to say something else, a maid suddenly replied, "Miss, Master Bao is here."

Baochai hurriedly stopped talking and stood up to greet him, but saw the curtains were raised and Baoyu walked in, looking like someone at a funeral.

"Brother Bao, you——"

Before Sister Bao could finish, Baoyu said, "Miaoyu has also left me now... I think about it and think that she must have heard that nonsense. I didn't expect that a person as unworldly as her is not immune to worldly affairs. As long as they are sincere, it doesn't matter who is the leader and who is the deputy."

Sister Bao's face flushed immediately, half because of embarrassment and half because of anger! Baoyu in front of her was the same as he was a few years ago, he really hadn't made any progress at all.

Sister Bao was so embarrassed and angry that she couldn't help but spit inwardly, "Do I really have to marry you? Do you really think you are so popular?"
His expression immediately changed and he shouted, "Brother Bao, please shut up. I don't understand what you are talking about. I am not feeling well. Brother Bao, please go back!"

Baoyu was stunned and said hurriedly: "But did I say the wrong thing? Sister Bao is the master——"

"Stop talking!" Baochai pushed Baoyu out and quickly sent Ying'er away to close the door and say goodbye to the guests. Baoyu stood in front of the door for a long time, feeling lost, and then went back in despair.

Sister Bao took a few deep breaths to calm herself down, and thought to herself that it was better not to think too much about other things, and now the most important thing was to just focus on keeping Tongxi and the baby safe.

............................................................

In the blink of an eye, it was October, and there were two happy events in Jinglingbo's mansion.

Li Caishen married his sister with a grand ceremony. As Nanjing was thousands of miles away, Li Weijian had only sent a letter. Considering his uncle's declining health, he did not think of sending someone back home. But someone did come anyway, and it was his eldest brother Li Xinchong.

Li Weijian knew that Li Xinchong was restrained by his uncle and had nowhere to go. He could only hang out with a group of scholars in Jinling every day, which made him feel a little depressed. He thought about having a good talk with his elder brother Li Xinchong when the marriage was over. After all, Li Weijian had a lot of things to do, so he could just find a suitable place to settle him.

Who knew that just after Li Wen's wedding, Li Weijian came home from office and asked about his elder brother Li Xinchong. Hongyu said, "The master had just gone to office when the eldest brother left. He said he was visiting a friend and didn't say when he would be back."

Li Weijian nodded, not taking it seriously. It was not until the evening that the eldest brother Li Xinchong came back in high spirits. Li Weijian found the small courtyard at the back and saw Li Xinchong, who was in high spirits. He smiled from a distance and said, "Fourth brother is here? Come and sit down."

Li Weijian bowed and sat down with a smile.

Li Xinchong stroked his beard and said, "Mother was a little worried before, fearing that my fourth brother was too young to judge people. But father said that my fourth brother is now far superior to ordinary people and must have a different way of judging people. This time I saw that it was true. My two brothers-in-law are down-to-earth people and will surely achieve great things in the future."

Li Weijian smiled and said, "Big brother is also optimistic, so this time it won't be considered a betrayal to my two sisters."

Li Xinchong nodded and said, "But since Fourth Brother is so good at judging people, why can't he see clearly about himself?"

"Oh? Please give me some advice, big brother."

Li Xinchong bowed to the east and said, "Now the Crown Prince is virtuous and virtuous, and everyone in the world knows it. Why do you reject the Crown Prince's kindness time and time again?"

Li Weijian's face turned pale and he asked, "Brother, did you go to Changle Palace today?" Li Xinchong shook his head and before Li Weijian could breathe a sigh of relief, he heard him say, "I am only a scholar now, how can I enter Changle Palace? But the prince is respectful to the wise and humble, and he specially met me in Juxian Tower today."

Li Weijian's mind raced, and he instantly figured out what the person in Changle Palace was thinking... Since he couldn't convince himself, should he just save the country in a roundabout way?
Li Weijian said, "Brother has been dormant for a long time, but has the prince recognized his talent at first sight?"

Li Xinchong smiled proudly and said, "My talent is far inferior to that of my fourth brother, but I am better at reading a lot of books, so the prince invited me to work as a proofreader in the Zhanshi Mansion."

Seeing his smug look, Li Weijian remained calm but was in deep pain. Li Weijian knew that his elder brother Li Xinchong had been fooled by the prince, and if he tried to persuade him now, the two brothers might turn against each other. His uncle's family had been very kind to him, so how could he turn against them?

My eldest brother is a pedantic person and won't listen to any advice at this moment. I'm afraid we have to think of a comprehensive way to persuade him to leave.

After thinking about it, he could only use filial piety to pressure Li Xinchong. After making up his mind, Li Weijian chatted with him for a while, then said goodbye and left. He went straight to Zhijue Zhai, where Xing Xiuyan was doing needlework. When she saw him coming, she was immediately surprised.

He came up to her and asked, "Why is the master here? Isn't he in Sister Qin's room today?"

Li Weijian said: "I need to write a letter."

Xing Xiuyan didn't say much, and quickly asked the maid to prepare the pen and ink, and she personally served beside him. Li Weijian picked up the pen and wrote down the reason clearly. He was afraid that his uncle Li Shouzhong would rebel, so he simply wrote a letter to his aunt Liang, in which he explained the pros and cons, and finally said, "If it really doesn't work out, it may affect the family."

After writing the letter, Li Weijian put down his pen and thought to himself, how unwise it is to surrender to the crown prince at this time? Not to mention that the sage is now in his prime, the crown prince is surrounded by people from the old party, and most of them are stubborn old party members. In the future, the crown prince's position will be difficult to maintain.

Not to mention the Prime Minister Chen Hongmou, even his mentor Yan Xiyao would never allow those stubborn old party members to counterattack. After thinking about it and talking to Xing Xiuyan for a while, Li Weijian took the letter and told Wu Haiping to send it to Nanjing by express delivery tomorrow, 600 miles away.

The next day, it was the day when Li Wen returned home. Li Weijian was entertaining Tao Juntan in front, while his aunt Liu, Daiyu, Baoqin and others surrounded Li Wen and chattered with questions non-stop, making the place very lively for a while.

After dinner at 3 p.m., Li Weijian and Daiyu saw the young couple out of the second gate. From a distance, they saw them leaving in a carriage. Daiyu smiled and said, "I didn't realize that my two sisters have also married. Now, am I not an old wife?"

Li Weijian laughed loudly, took Daiyu's hand and walked back, saying: "How can I be old? No, I wish I could be older, so that I can -"

Daiyu quickly covered Li Weijian's mouth and said angrily, "Fourth brother is not doing his job properly again!"

After a few words of laughter, Daiyu suddenly said worriedly, "The old lady has been ill again these days. She is still not feeling better this morning. I must go and see her later. Otherwise, I will be uneasy."

Li Weijian didn't know what to say, so Daiyu squeezed his hand and said, "I know that Fourth Brother was trying to comfort me before, so why would I care about it now? After all, Fourth Brother had good intentions before."

Li Weijian nodded and said, "The nitroglycerin I used earlier seemed to be effective. I don't know why the old lady has developed another problem."

Just as they returned to the main room in the east courtyard, Ping'er came in hastily and said, "The old lady is not well. Our grandmother saw that something was wrong, so she sent me to ask the fourth master to go and have a look."

Daiyu suddenly stood up with a cry of surprise, but she stood up so hastily that the world spun around for a moment. Fortunately, Li Weijian supported her and she did not fall to the ground. When she came to her senses, Daiyu's eyes were red, and the couple hurried to Rongguo Mansion.

After all, Jia's mother was old, and although she took nitroglycerin every day, this medicine only slightly relieved her heart failure and had no real effect. In addition, she caught a cold a few days ago, and her body was hot after returning home. After struggling for a day or two, she finally lay down. Her face was burning day and night, she could not eat or drink, and her face was dry and scorched.

Everyone in the Jia family was worried. Jia Zheng was in a panic and searched for famous doctors in the capital, spending a lot of money. However, Grandmother Jia's condition became more serious. The sons and grandchildren of the Jia family came to visit her one after another, and they all shed tears secretly.

Jia's mother also knew that her life was coming to an end, so she wanted to see her descendants again before she died. Suddenly she thought of Xiangyun, so she sent her maid Yuanyang to invite her.

When Li Weijian and Daiyu arrived at Rongqing Hall, they saw Yuanyang coming out wiping her tears. She bowed slightly to the two of them and hurried ahead to get on a carriage to go to the Mansion of Marquis Zhongjing.

After turning around the screen, Jia Lian was seen wandering around like a headless fly, while the rest of the Jia family members were talking and giving random advice. Jia Zheng led the imperial physician Zhang in for a consultation. After a while, the imperial physician Zhang came out without saying a word, but just shook his head at the Jia family members.

The imperial physician left in silence, leaving Jia Zheng stunned on the spot.

No one dared to ask questions for a while. Li Weijian thought for a while, then stepped forward and asked, "Uncle, do you want to prepare some ginseng soup for the old lady?"

The ginseng soup we are talking about now is the single ginseng soup, which has the effect of restoring yang and consolidating deficiency.

Jia Zheng came to his senses, nodded, and quickly told Jia Lian, "Hurry up and prepare the ginseng soup, and call all the young men in the family."

Jia Lian agreed at first, then said with embarrassment: "Uncle, we don't have enough ginseng at home."

Jia Zheng stared: "What's the problem?"

Jia Lian was embarrassed and said nothing.

Li Weijian continued, "Uncle, I have a lot of supplies at home. I will send someone to get them now."

Li Weijian then told Zijuan, who was accompanying him, to go home and fetch ginseng. In a moment, Zijuan came back with a piece of top-quality ginseng, and Ping'er took it and watched the kitchen cook ginseng soup.

After a while, the ginseng soup was ready, and Sister Feng took it and personally served it to Lady Jia. The ginseng soup was indeed very effective, and after a while Lady Jia suddenly became ruddy and sober.

Grandmother Jia looked around and whispered to the maid Amber to come over and whisper something. Amber came out wiping her tears and said, "Master, the old lady wants to see the young man in the family."

Jia Zheng went out to look for people. After a while, Jia Chi, Jia Xiao, Jia Dun, Jia Yan, Jia Gao, Jia Ying, Jia Chen, Jia Lin, Jia Chang, Jia Ling, Jia Zhen, Jia Ping, Jia Zao, Jia Heng, Jia Fen, Jia Fang, Jia Jun, Jia Zhi, Jia Qiang, Jia Xing, Jia Zhi, and Jia Huan all came, and the courtyard was full of people. Youshi, Fengjie, Li Wan, Baoyu, Yingchun, Tanchun, and Xichun also came. Jia Mu asked them to come in one by one to take a look, and then she struggled to talk to Jia Zheng and Jia Lian, saying that she wanted to use her own money to hold the funeral.

Grandmother Jia whispered, "As the family grows in number, the expenses are running low. We had quite a few losses from repairing the garden a few years ago. The family finances are in a tight spot, so we can no longer spend lavishly and lavishly as usual. I have saved a lot of money, and I will give 10,000 yuan each to the three maids Yingchun, Tanchun, and Xichun as dowries. The rest will be just right for the funeral."

Sister Feng was already crying like a tearful person. She wanted to take on the responsibility when she heard the words, but she remembered Jia Lian's embarrassment just now. So she forced herself not to say anything...

Jia Zheng was so ashamed that he burst into tears and cried, "Mother still wants to pay for it. How can I not feel ashamed as a son?"

Grandmother Jia sighed, called over Mrs. Wang, Mrs. Xing and Sister Feng, and told them to go to the room, open the boxes and cages, and take out all the things she had accumulated since she became a daughter-in-law. The three of them agreed but remained standing.

Grandmother Jia did not urge him, and continued, "Has Brother Lang arrived? Where are his uncle and aunt?"

Madam Xing said hurriedly, "Yes, they are all waiting outside."

The message was passed on immediately, and soon Li Wan led Jia Lan, Li Weijian led Daiyu, and the four of them entered together. Daiyu saw that Grandmother Jia looked haggard and burst into tears.

Grandmother Jia tugged at Daiyu's hand and said, "Don't cry, Yu'er. I'll have something to discuss with you after I see Brother Lang."

Daiyu nodded in agreement, then stood aside with her hands hanging, not daring to utter a word.

Jia Lan stepped forward to pay his respects, and Grandmother Jia's face immediately became more joyful. She pulled Jia Lan over to look at him carefully, then leaned close to his ear and whispered a few words.

Jia Lan agreed repeatedly and shed tears. Jia's mother looked at Li Weijian and said, "You have your uncle to take care of you, so your future is not a problem. I think that only Brother Lan can bring glory to the family in the future. No matter what, Brother Lan must remember that you cannot write two Jia characters with one stroke."

Jia Lan knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "My great-grandson will remember this!"

(End of this chapter)