Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

After Jia Cong and Pang Chao finished their discussion, they returned to the inner house. Thinking of how Feng Jieer had been "frugal and thrifty" behind his back, he became furious.

In the upper room, the girls were holding four children and talking and amusing them. Baochai, Fengjie, Ping'er and others, who were already over the period of menstruation, were also watching and laughing. The girls' maternal love was so strong that they loved their mothers even more than their biological mothers.

"My Lord is back."

Suddenly, they heard a maid at the door come with a report, and the girls hurriedly stood up to greet him. They saw Jia Cong walking in without saying a word and with a gloomy expression, and they all felt shocked.

"What's wrong? What happened?" Ruyi asked.

Jia Cong did not answer, but waved his hand and said, "Take the child down."

The girls hurriedly handed the child to the wet nurse and looked at Jia Cong with worried expressions.

Jia Cong sat down and looked up at Sister Feng, which made her feel uncomfortable. She laughed dryly and said, "Cong'er, why are you looking at me? It's so creepy."

Jia Cong said: "You manage the Shenxian Wine Shop very well and make a lot of money."

Sister Feng laughed and said, "Hey, I don't care about it. It's nothing. It's only one or two hundred thousand silver coins a year."

Jia Cong sneered and said, "The grain used to make wine must be purchased at a very low price, otherwise how could you make so much money?"

Feng Jieer thought to herself that this was not a good thing, and hurriedly said, "We bought a large amount of goods, so the grain merchants will naturally give us a profit. We are doing an upright business, exchanging money for goods, what's wrong with that?"

Jia Cong sneered, "If you buy in large quantities, people will have to sell to you at a loss. Do you know how much the local grain costs when it is harvested from the fields? How much is the price of grain shipped from other places?

"You dare to buy a stone of high-quality grain with just a few coins! Why don't you go into the grain business?"

Feng Jieer was so embarrassed by his retort that she was speechless. Her pretty face flushed red and she shouted, "Why should I care about him? In business, it's like Zhou Yu fighting Huang Gai. I didn't force him to sell. How can I not accept the high-quality and low-priced goods that are delivered to my door?"

Jia Cong was furious and shouted, "How dare you quibble! Do you know where the grain you collected came from?

That was grain for the imperial court! It was the blood and sweat of the people! It was the military grain and official grain that was transported from the south to the capital with countless efforts! You bought it with just a few coins and a stone of silver. If someone finds out, what crime will you be charged with? ! "

The girls were horrified and covered their mouths.

Feng Jieer was also frightened and broke out in a cold sweat, her plump lips trembled, tears welled up in her eyes, her face was pale, and she protested, "I'm not the chief of police investigating the case, how would I know?

Do I have to check the source of grain merchants when I buy some grain? Is there such a way to do business in this world? I was so focused on my family, but in the end, I still got nothing good.

What on earth am I doing this for…” After saying this, he leaned over the chair and burst into tears.

The girls tried to comfort her, and Ping'er went over to hug her.

Ruyi glared at Jia Cong and said, "As the ancients said, ignorance is not a crime. Sister Feng was not aware of the matter and did not commit the crime intentionally, so it is understandable. Why are you so fierce?
Sister Feng was also motivated by public interest. When doing business, one must be careful with one's money. How could one have known that one would buy stolen goods?"

Seeing Ruyi speak, all the women nodded in agreement.

Feng Jieer cried a little softer, for fear of missing someone.

Baochai also apologized, "Cong'er, I have also seen the account books of the wine shop. At that time, I was also surprised why the grain prices were so low. I just thought that the big grain merchants had their own ways and means.

We are not people in this business, so it is normal that we do not understand the ins and outs of it. Others cannot sell to us at a loss, so there is no argument. The responsibility for this matter is mainly mine, and it has nothing to do with Feng girl."

Daiyu also advised, "Brother Cong, no one could have imagined that such good grain would end up in our wine shop.

The sage said, "When a tiger or rhinoceros escapes from its cage, or a tortoise or jade is destroyed in its box, whose fault is it? If we really want to judge, the canal official and the warehouse official should be killed. It is no wonder that Bao-jie and Feng-jie were blamed."

When Feng Jieer heard that the three ladies all supported her, she felt relieved. She secretly glanced at Jia Cong, and when she saw him glaring at her, she quickly buried her head in Ping'er's arms and began to sob again.

Jia Cong glanced at the women, sighed, and said, "From now on, you business owners should be smarter and stop trying to take advantage of others. You are no smarter than other businessmen.

There is no such thing as a free lunch. If there is, it is a bait with evil intentions! This is not only an economic issue, but also a family tradition issue!"

Seeing that he was being stern, the girls all stood up and said, "Yes."

Jia Cong said again: "Why am I so angry? It's not because this matter can threaten me, but because this trend cannot be allowed to continue. I cannot leave a disaster for future generations!

It would be fine while I am still here, but if I am gone, and my descendants continue to do business in this way, or even get worse, wouldn’t they be seen as a thorn in the eyes and a thorn in the side by those in power?

Don’t even mention that the grace of a gentleman will be cut off after five generations. I think it won’t take more than two or three generations for your family to be destroyed!”

The women were shocked and nodded quickly, saying, "Your Majesty is right. We will keep it in mind."

Jia Cong said, "Everyone, please sit down. I would like to take this opportunity to tell you my thoughts. I have always wondered why some families have lasted for thousands of years, while others have been destroyed in a few generations. What do they rely on to pass on their family traditions and protect their families?"
Power? Relationships? Favor from the emperor? Property? These are all castles in the air, which may vanish overnight and are not worth relying on for long. "

Baochai pondered and said, "The noble families that have survived in the past have all spread their branches far and wide, taken root everywhere, and made many bets. No matter how the world changes, even if they cannot become extremely rich and powerful, they can always ensure that their incense will continue to flow."

Jia Cong shook his head and said, "This can only ensure that our family will not be uprooted. What I want is not only the longevity of our family, but also the prosperity of our family and its everlasting prosperity.

If the roots of a family are rotten, even if you split into ten or a hundred branches, they will all rot together and become indistinguishable from the rest of the people, which is not much different from being exterminated by the human race."

Ruyi nodded and asked, "Then what should we do?"

“What the ancients did certainly makes sense, but we must learn its essence.

Many people like to claim that they are from a family of poetry, etiquette, and nobility, but in fact, they are nothing but sucking blood from their ancestors' graves.

Not only did he ruin himself, but he also completely destroyed the reputation of his ancestors. In the end, the huge family collapsed and ended in misery.

Therefore, I will never allow our home to be destroyed like this. I would rather it be destroyed in another tragic way than to slowly decay, degenerate and collapse.

After much thought, I realized that to support a prosperous family, three things are indispensable.

One is the barrel of a gun. If your fist is not big, no one will listen to you;

The second is the leader. Only a clear-headed head of the family can ensure that the family never goes astray;

The third is to be content. Never touch the benefits that you don't deserve. Naturally, you will provoke less hatred and bury fewer hidden dangers. After all, a thousand-mile dam can be breached by an ant hole. "Jia Cong said slowly.

Ruyi clapped her hands and praised: "Well said! From now on, let's pass these words down from generation to generation as family mottos!"

All the girls nodded in agreement.

Jia Cong said: "As the saying goes, a snake cannot survive without a head. The success or failure of a family depends on whether the head of the family has a clear mind. You don't have to worry about whether you have a son or not. I only promote people based on their talents.

The ancients said, "Are kings, princes, generals and ministers of different species?" Although Yan'er, Baochai and Pin'er are smart and virtuous, it is not necessarily true that their children will be capable. These are two different matters."

The girls smiled awkwardly and didn't dare to speak.

Ruyi and the other three girls rolled their eyes at Jia Cong and asked, "How do you know that our children can't do it?"

Jia Cong said: "I am just giving an example. If you don't talk about others, just talk about me. I have never seen what my mother looks like. I think her family background and knowledge are not as good as yours. But I am not this capable, right?
A hero's origin is not important! Write this sentence and hang it in the ancestral hall so that future generations can see it clearly. Daiyu hurriedly said, "I'll do it when I get down."

"There is another saying, 'Women hold up half the sky!' It is also hung in the ancestral hall."

Jia Cong said: "I don't care about the legitimate or illegitimate children, the elder or the younger, or the gender. I hope that in the future our family can have a wise and brave female head like Wu Zetian."

The girls were shocked, then they covered their mouths and laughed, thinking that Jia Cong was having a crazy idea.

Jia Cong laughed and said, "What are you laughing at? Isn't Shan'er the head of the family? Who says women are inferior to men?"

Wanyan Shan smiled shyly. As the tribe leader, she hadn't seen her tribe members for several years, and all of it depended on Saker Falcon for remote control.

Baochai smiled and said, "Aren't you afraid that when the female head of the clan gets married in the future, she will bring the whole clan as a dowry?"

Jia Cong waved his hand and smiled, "Who can afford to marry the head of our family? Naturally, we have to marry a daughter-in-law, or remain single for life. Since you are the head of the family, you have to make necessary sacrifices. There is nothing to say about this.

Besides, the position of the head of the family does not have to be held until death, can it be rotated? Whoever is capable can take over, and whoever is not capable can step down."

The girls laughed and said, "It's getting more and more outrageous."

Jia Cong shook his head and said, "You don't understand." Then he looked at Feng Jieer and said, "You are getting off topic. How much grain did you buy?"

Sister Feng whispered, "Since the tenth year of Xifeng, we have bought a total of... more than five million shi."

Jia Cong thought about it and concluded that it was probably when Chen came back from Jiangnan to promote the new law that she decided to increase her investment in him.

Suddenly he realized something was wrong and frowned, "So much grain was used to make wine?"

Sister Feng stammered, "The wine shop only used more than 3.6 million dan. I saw that the grain was good and cheap, so I bought more and sold it to other grain shops to make a profit."

"You..." Jia Cong pointed at her, wanting to curse but holding back, and finally let out a long sigh: "You are really a business genius, you even thought of a way to make a profit from the price difference."

Sister Feng said with a hint of pride, "Buy low and sell high, isn't that how business is done?"

All the girls couldn't help but smile.

Seeing Jia Cong's bad face, Baochai glared at Feng Jieer and quickly changed the subject, saying, "Cong'er, there is nothing better than correcting one's mistakes. We made an unintentional mistake and took advantage of the court. We will do what we have to do, and we have no complaints."

Jia Cong sighed and said, "What else can we do? Let Jia Jia be beaten with a stick, and we will pay back the full amount."

Feng Jieer was shocked and asked, "How much compensation do I have to pay?"

Jia Cong said angrily, "How much do you want to compensate? You have to pay as much as you earned! Settle the wine shop's account and your own account, and compensate according to the proportion of the shares held by the Jia, Chen, and Xue families. Prepare the cash at home."

"Yes." Although Baochai felt a little distressed, she nodded quickly.

Feng Jieer was not happy with this and said, "How can our family pay for this? Since the grain was stolen, the grain collectors and the thieves should pay for it. What does this have to do with our family? We should pay several million taels at once."

"You are ignorant of the law! Do you think it is not a crime to buy stolen goods?" Jia Cong cursed.

"It's only because the law is imperfect that you have escaped. If it were corruption, you would be killed a hundred times based on this amount. Stop talking nonsense, settle the accounts, and wait for the subpoena to arrive."

Seeing that Jia Cong was angry, Feng Jieer dared not say anything more and had to agree reluctantly.

Baochai hurriedly advised: "Feng girl, fortunately the matter has not become a big deal and can still be remedied. Why don't you apologize to Cong'er quickly?"

Sister Feng snorted and said, "I have always been dedicated to the public good. I have not received any benefit from it. What's wrong with me?"

"You still say that." Baochai frowned.

Feng Jieer was not afraid of Jia Cong, the pervert, but she still had some respect for Baochai, so she could only turn her head and say, "I apologize to the master."

Seeing this, Jia Cong laughed in anger. It would be easy for him to scold her or spank her, but he really had no good way to deal with her. He could only say, "Miss Feng, cause me more trouble in the future, ah."

Sister Feng sneered and stamped her feet, saying, "Hateful! Got it!"
-
Bao Gangfeng left the yamen, changed into plain clothes, rode on a skinny donkey, and was led slowly home by his servants.

"Master, I'm not being nosy. Madam has advised you many times. You should listen to her and think about how much it costs to buy a sedan chair and hire a few bearers." The long-time attendant muttered.

"Not only does riding this broken donkey make you lose face, but you'll also be exposed to the wind, sun and rain. You should take care of your own body."

Bao Gangfeng laughed and said, "What do you know? Zhang Guolao is still riding a donkey. This is called the air of an immortal."

"The master is right." The long-servant curled his lips and dared not say anything more.

Soon, they arrived at a small courtyard with three entrances in Ganyu Hutong. The family members hurriedly took Bao Gangfeng in and said, "Madam, please come in and talk to the master."

"what's up?"

"It is said that someone sent a letter to the master."

Bao Gangfeng nodded and went into the inner house.

While helping him change his clothes, the lady said, "Master, you are at least an important official in the court. Even if you are an honest official, you are still too poor. Si'er has been making a fuss for several days asking for chicken and melon seeds, and there is no spare money at home."

Bao Si is his eldest grandson. He grew up by his side and is seven years old this year.

Bao Gangfeng shook his head and said, "It's not easy to live in the capital, and the people don't have a good life. Why eat chicken and melon seeds? It's enough to eat meat once in a while. Our family is not one of those rich and luxurious families. How much did Si'er read?"

The lady said angrily, "He can even recite the "Youxue Qionglin", but he doesn't feel sorry for his own grandson."

Bao Gangfeng smiled and said, "I will only take care of his studies and character. As for food and drink, I will trouble Madam."

Mrs. Bao had no choice. Although she often had some complaints, she was very respectful of her husband's character in her heart.

Influenced by his teacher Duan Zhun, Bao Gangfeng did not take a penny other than the salary from the court. He used most of his salary to support poor students in his clan and the capital to study. Even his household expenses were saved as much as possible. As a third-rank official, he rode a donkey to the government office every day and was nicknamed "Donkey Governor" by his colleagues.

"Have Bingzhong and the others sent any letters?" Bao Gangfeng asked. Bingzhong is his eldest son, who is now the magistrate of Shu. His other sons are studying in the academy.

Mrs. Bao said, "I received a letter the other day. Bingzhong said that being an official is not easy, and there are many obstacles in implementing the new law. There is also great pressure from the higher-ups. Please give me some advice.

Bingde, Bingren, and Bingfang are doing well in their studies, and they have also sent me a few contemporary essays for your comments."

Bao Gangfeng said: "Bingzhong is right to know that it is difficult. The lives of ordinary people are so difficult. It is rare that although the current Prince Jing is born into a wealthy family, he is pushing for new laws, suppressing the powerful and ruling for the people. No matter how great the pressure on him is, is it greater than the pressure on the regent who bears the people of the world?"

"How can Bingzhong compare with the Regent?" Mrs. Bao spat.

"The principle is the same. He is small and weak, and only manages a small county; Prince Jing is in a high position, and he has to shoulder the rise and fall of the world. If you want to talk about the solution, I have only one sentence: if a person is upright, he will act without being told; if a person is not upright, he will not obey even if he is told." (End of this chapter)