Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 128 Trip to Jinling

Jia's mother cried with joy. She wanted to say something but couldn't open her mouth. She just wanted to cry. She took Jia Lian's hand and said tremblingly: "Ancestors bless you, master bless you." The master is of course Jia Daishan.

Jia Lian has no memory of what his grandfather was like. Jia Lian, who put filial piety first, sat down next to Jia Mu and cried with her.

There is always a stick of incense. Jia Mu came to her senses, took the hot towel handed over by the maid, wiped her face, and asked, "Why don't you see the boss?" Well, this time Jia Zheng was present, just standing aside. , didn’t speak just now.

Jia Lian quickly explained: "Grandma, my father must have gone to the Wang family to set a date for my marriage."

Jia Mu's face was obviously startled. She wanted to say something urgent, but she still didn't say it. Jia Mu's thoughts were the same as Jia She's. Jia Lian won the first prize and it was not the Jia family's turn to get angry and discuss the wedding date.

Jia Zheng on the side was silently thinking, the boss has such a big heart? I'm afraid it's not to show off.

Because Jia Lian became the number one scholar, the entire East and West mansions were boiling with excitement again, with lanterns and colorful decorations and flowing water mats. It had never been so lively during the New Year.

Jia's mother couldn't leave Jia Lian's eyes for a moment. She held Jia Lian's hand and talked intermittently. They were all about old things. How was your grandfather back then. Jia Baoyu came over to hug Jia Mu's legs several times, but Jia Mu asked her wet nurse to take her away.

Jia Lian didn't ignore Baoyu, after all, he was the protagonist of the original work. He found out that this guy had a habit of pleasing Jia's mother, and he didn't cry when he was taken away.

After reading it, Jia Lian chose the eighth day of August and gave a reasonable explanation: "For new Jinshi, the court has a family leave, the length of which depends on personal circumstances. Tomorrow I will go to the Ministry of Civil Affairs to change my status, and I will set off in three days. Go to the ancestral graves in Jinling to pay homage to your ancestors. The round trip can take as long as half a year, or as short as four months. During this period, your family can prepare in advance and be more relaxed during the wedding."

Let's talk about Jia She going to Wang's house. Wang Zisheng didn't expect that it was almost dark. Jia She was not happy at home, so why did he come to Wang's house? No matter what, I have to go out to greet you and say congratulations.

Running long distances is very important these days, and the importance of the Grand Canal is reflected. Taking a boat all the way south is many times more comfortable than riding a horse and traveling by land. The disadvantage is that it is slow, very slow. The advantage is that in terms of transportation cost-effectiveness, waterway is the best.

Wang Zisheng was dumbfounded when he heard that Jia Lian had won the first prize. I am still preparing gifts and will come to congratulate him later. I was still thinking about whether to agree on the wedding date first. I never thought that Jia Lian would be one step ahead of the Wang family, and Jia She came to discuss the wedding date. How impatient it was.

When the Wang family's back house learned that Jia She had come to the house just to set a wedding date, the whole back house exploded.

In any case, it was a matter of honor for the Wang family to spread the news. Wang Ziteng did not dare to take Qiao's actions, and responded with a smile: "My dear, it might as well be like this. I will go to Qintian Prison tomorrow and choose a few good ones." How about the day being decided by the in-laws?"

It is human nature to return home in rich clothes and pretend to be like the wind. This arrangement shows the wisdom of the ancients.

Jia She was very good at saving face to the outside world. He said with emotion: "Hey, it was Lian'er who asked me to come here. He said that he wanted to set the wedding date quickly. Hey, as a father, he can't live up to his expectations, so he can only run more errands." "

As a result, after learning the secret book, Ping'er had to get up and prepare a hot towel, which made her suffer a lot.

Wang Zisheng still wanted to be reserved and asked if he should be anxious.

Although the relationship between the two was not considered a blind marriage, the little contact time between the two was considered to be played out by Jia Lian. Where have you seen this among women in the boudoir in ancient times? Wang Xifeng's heart was filled to the brim with Jia Lian, and she wished that her wedding date was tomorrow. When she saw her mother, she was thinking about how to order more gifts to bring with her, so as not to let down Jia Lian's deep love and righteousness.

It's really a matter of courtesy and full of sincerity. Jia She was confident and nodded in agreement. After another cup of tea, Jia She stood up to leave. Wang Zisheng walked with him to the door: "My dear family, please go ahead. I'll be here shortly."

Going to ancestral graves to worship ancestors is naturally the most important thing, and other things must give way.

Jia Lian, who had been resting at home and had not gone out to wander, naturally wanted to go out to meet guests. After meeting Taishan, Wang Zisheng took out a piece of paper with the date written on it and asked the father and son to choose one.

After thinking about it, I still didn't say it out loud. If I really had to ask, the girl might be so anxious that she would roll all over the floor at night. These two little guys have such a good relationship.

"Brother Enhou is not at home to welcome guests, why did he come to the humble house?" Wang Zisheng was curious and asked directly.

Originally, when Jia Lian married Wang Xifeng, his actual status was a bit high. I just didn't expect that Jia Lian was still so anxious. He really liked Wang Xifeng so much that he would give in like this.

Ping'er, who knew Wang Xifeng best, was numb. These days, Wang Xifeng often pulled her to sleep with her, and the two of them studied secret books secretly given by the Queen Mother in bed. In the words of the Queen Mother, a lady should be dignified, but not too conservative. Men like novelty, and if they change the secrets from time to time, they will be more interested.

The prince couldn't help but nodded repeatedly: "My worthy son-in-law has thought carefully and decided on this date."

A few days later, when the fever subsided slightly, Wang Ziteng came to visit and brought a few days to ask Jia She to make a decision.

Wang Xifeng, who has always had a strong personality, is now sitting in the boudoir. At this moment, Wang Xifeng only had one thought: I don't need to go out to show off, I can just wait here for people to come and congratulate me.

This trip took at least four months, and the security along the way was pretty good. After all, it was a densely populated area, but there were still some water bandits on certain sections of the road. You can't put your personal safety at risk because bandits don't dare to rob the official ship, so you need to bring enough security forces.

As far as the Jia family is concerned, Jia Lian can't make any mistakes now.

Wang Zisheng was even more considerate. If something went wrong along the way for such a good son-in-law, he would be furious. On the Wang family's side, ten generals and twenty horses, all of whom had been in the army for many years, had already been prepared to escort them along the canal.

The Jia family took it even more seriously. After sending off Wang Zisheng, Jia's mother sat in the Ronxi Hall. Regardless of the east or west mansion, all the generals who usually seldom showed up gathered in front of the Ronxi Hall. Since the elders of the previous generation left, the generals have no place to perform their duties, and their status has become that of nursing home. Regardless of their age, whoever doesn't have a dozen scars on their body is a warrior who dares to fight to the death.

Jia Lian followed Jia Mu and inspected the group of generals, all of whom were around forty years old.

"Brother Lian is going back to Jinling to worship his ancestors. I'll leave it to you for your safety along the way. As for whether you can be selected, it depends on your affinity with Brother Lian." Jia Mu's words are quite meaningful. Jia Lian is now a thing. As the pillar of the second house, Jia Lian has the final say on whether the generals can catch his eye and earn more money for their families.

Jia Lian had been observing and found a bearded man who was not dressed as brightly as others. He seemed to have just woken up from a hangover without even opening his eyes. So he kept an extra thought. After Jia Mu finished speaking and everyone crossed their hands and said "Nuo", Jia Lian stepped forward and took a look at the person and said, "What is your name?"

"Go back to the second master, I call you Jiao Da." The man was stunned for a moment, then quickly reacted.

Jia Lian nodded after hearing this: "I know you have served as a personal soldier for the old man of Dongfu. Now you are the one to go south."

The eyes of the generals showed envy, but they didn't mean to be jealous. Jiao Da's situation is indeed special. He protected the old man of Dongfu from the siege in a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood, and blocked countless arrows. He had nothing to say for being selected.

After ordering the Jiaoda, Jia Lian turned around and asked Jia Mu: "My grandson will order this one. I don't know the details of the other grandchildren, so I ask grandma to make a decision." Jia Lian gave the choice to Jia Mu, which made the old lady feel worried. Warmth. Look, this is my sweet grandson who puts his grandmother first at all times.

Of course, Jia Mu was well prepared. She ordered twenty generals to come forward and said something special: "You all have adult sons, and you have more than one son in your family. This time, you will go south to take your eldest son with you and go into battle." Father and son are soldiers. It is up to Lian'er to decide what will happen in the future. I have something to say, if something goes wrong with Lian'er, you will jump into the river to end your life, and I will treat you and your family well."

All the generals said in unison: "Promise!" Not much nonsense, just one word. The meaning behind it is that everyone is not dead and Jia Lian is fine. Something happened to Jia Lian, and everyone was buried with him.

After Jia Mu finished speaking, she stepped back and gave way to Jia Lian to speak. With this advance and retreat, everyone in the East and West Mansion could clearly see that something had changed in Jia Mansion.

Seeing this, Jia Lian did his part, waved his hand, and his servants carried out three boxes, opened the lids, and revealed the snow-white silver ingots.

"Each family has fifty taels of silver, and they are all good men. If you want the money, you can do it yourself." Jia Lian's style is very popular with the generals, and he seems to have returned to the days when he followed Jia Daishan on the expedition. Every time before going on an expedition, Jia Daishan would first send money to settle down.

How much is fifty taels of silver? A lot, even a huge amount of money. Enough to cover Sister You for ten months.

Jia Lian undoubtedly paid a high price, and did so deliberately, just to let everyone in the Jia family know clearly how much money Jia Lian wanted to use in the Jia family's treasury was just a matter of words.

The generals were not polite and stepped forward to take out the silver. Jia Lian announced that they were dismissed and everyone went home to prepare.

The generals regained their original spirit, called their eldest son, saddled their horses, took their swords and bows, and put on their inner armor.

According to Jia Mu's wishes, Jia Lian, the leader of the general, decided to call him Zhang San. Although he is a bit older, he has rich experience. As Jiao Da was the only candidate from Dongfu, Jia Zhen, who usually didn't care about him, specially made an explanation alone.

Regarding Jia Zhen's explanation, Jiao Da didn't even listen. Jia Lian's importance to the Jia family, does Jia Zhen still need to talk nonsense?

Jia Rong, on the other hand, specially waited for an opportunity to have a private interview, handed Jiao Da a hundred silver dollars and said, "Jiao Da, I know you are a good drinker, so you can keep the money while heading south. Be patient along the way and wait for An Ran." Come back and drink as much as you want."

Jiao Da is a discerning person. When he is not welcome, he will complain that only the stone lion at the door of Jia's house is clean.

Jia Lian had the best reputation among the two houses of the Jia family. Even if the gentlemen did not get married and had few people to sleep with, Jia Lian only had Guixiang.

Jia Rong was influenced by Jia Lian and was also a good gentleman in Jiao Da's mind.

"Young Master Rong, just don't worry, Jiao Da doesn't dare to bring shame on Dongfu." Jiao Da solemnly accepted the silver dollar and made a promise. The implication is that if I die, I will die first.

Jia's mother was still worried and said that Jia Lian must bring two maids to accompany him. Jia Lian said that one person with Guixiang would be enough. It's not convenient to take so many maids with you while sailing along the way.

Unexpectedly, when Jia Lian went to Wang's house to meet Wang Xifeng in person the day before his departure, he learned that Jia Lian only had Guixiang and a maid to serve him. Wang Xifeng looked distressed and said: "How can that be done? Let Ping'er accompany you." .”

Jia Lian quickly comforted him: "It's been hard work along the way, and you can't live without Ping'er, so forget it."

Wang Xifeng didn't persist even after thinking about it. She just hugged Jia Lian and refused to let go for a long time.

After leaving the capital, he boarded the ship in Tongzhou and went all the way south. Jia Lian concentrated on his journey, and there were no extraneous problems along the way. At most, when the ship stopped, he walked ashore to exercise, and there were no other problems.

Although the accompanying Guixiang was hard-working, she was also extremely happy and tried her best. Don't go through the door, find another way, and serve carefully.

With such an accompanying trip, Guixiang's status was completely stable. Even if Wang Xifeng came in the future, she would have to give her three points of noodles.

He is truly the most inseparable person around Jia Lian. With Jia Lian's status in the Jia family, who dares to neglect him?

Naturally, all the generals are trying their best. Even if the official ship is hung with a big flag with the word "Jia", ordinary thieves don't dare to act recklessly, so they can't stand the chance of meeting a few stupid young men, right?
Zhang San, the first general of the family, was an old martial artist. He arranged for ten riders to ride out for thirty miles every day. When they docked for the night, the former monk would prepare everything in advance. Arrange the night shift to ensure nothing goes wrong.

Counting the people from the Wang family, there were a total of more than fifty people skilled in swords and horses escorting Jia Lian on this land and water trip.

With this formation, ordinary bandits would have to hide away when they saw it.

It was a smooth journey. Jia Lian, who was concentrating on his journey, only spent twenty-five days on the road and saw Yangzhou Pier in the distance.

As one of the most important piers on the Grand Canal, Yangzhou Pier is full of masts and bustling with activity.

Naturally, Jia Lian's official ship does not have to crowd the private docks, but the official docks.

Before the official ship could dock, Zhang San, the family general who arrived first, was already standing on the shore waiting.

The generals behind them held their bows and swords on their backs, their heads held high and their chests high, full of momentum.

With Jia Lian's status, many officials naturally approached him along the way. Jia Lian told his generals to concentrate on their journey and refuse to socialize. Otherwise, twenty-five days would definitely not be enough. The reason for rushing on the road was naturally because of Lin Ruhai in Yangzhou.

As he stepped steadily off the boat, Jia Lian looked up and saw a group of people in official uniforms pouring out from under a shed not far ahead.

The leader had a slightly sickly smile and an elegant manner. You could tell by looking at his official uniform that he was Lin Ruhai, the salt patrol censor.

Jia Lian did not dare to neglect, strode forward, and rushed forward to bow and salute: "My nephew Jia Lian, I have seen my uncle, how dare I bother my uncle to come here in person. Forgive me!"

Lin Ruhai laughed loudly, grabbed Jia Lian's hand and said, "How dare you not welcome the Jia family's Qilin'er when she comes to Yangzhou? It won't be easy for your aunt to complain later."

(End of this chapter)