Red Mansion Taoist

Chapter 97 New Year
  What Lin Ruhai said was his own perception. As long as there is no major war in Daqian, civilian officials will have more and more say, and military attachés will be increasingly marginalized.

"Thank you for the tip, teacher!" Jia Qiang knew that Lin Ruhai would not have been able to say such words if she were not one of her own. She was too sensitive.

"Your academic status has been completed. You can take the provincial examination next year to feel the atmosphere of the provincial examination and lay a solid foundation for your future examinations!" Lin Ruhai added.

He did not hope that Jia Qiang would pass the provincial examination next year. The literary style in Yangzhou, or in other words, the entire Jiangnan area was at its peak, far from being comparable to that in the north.

Jia Qiang had no mentor in the Imperial College before. Even if she became a disciple of Lin Ruhai, it would not be long until next year's provincial examination. For years of study, the time was really too short.

"I will be prepared to spend more time studying in the future!" Jia Qiang replied gratefully.

This is what Lin Ruhai hopes for. Whenever he thinks of Jia Qiang killing more than 3,200 members of the Salt Gang, he wants Jia Qiang to read more sage books to remove the influence of the killing.

After he proposed to let Lin Daiyu and Jia Qiang get engaged, he paid more attention to Jia Qiang and did not want anything to happen to Jia Qiang.

Unknowingly, Lin Ruhai and Jia Qiang returned to Lin Daiyu's boudoir.

Jia Qiang heard Lin Daiyu's sobs and Jia Min's comforting voice, which actually made him feel relieved.

Being able to cry once can relieve the depression in your heart.

Lin Daiyu is still too young, and experiencing life and death is too cruel for her.

"Yu'er, let's go have a reunion dinner together!" Lin Ruhai gently knocked on the door and said.

"Okay, Daddy!" Lin Daiyu said with a crisp voice after shedding her tears.

When Jia Min came out with Lin Daiyu, Jia Qiang found that Lin Daiyu had changed her clothes. Lin Daiyu saw Jia Qiang with a hint of a little daughter in her eyes.

Although Jia Qiang lived in Lin Mansion before, except for eating together, they rarely got along with each other.

After what happened today, Lin Daiyu became closer to Jia Qiang, and she also had an indescribable emotion.

If a lame Taoist or a scabby monk were here, they would find that the original fate line of Lin Daiyu has deviated greatly. The connection with the northern capital has disappeared, replaced by the one with Jia Qiang who is very close at hand. connect.

There were no servants accompanying them, so the four of them walked together on the path, and the atmosphere was very warm.

Today's reunion dinner was held in the hall of the main house, which was decorated with lights and colorful decorations and filled with a festive atmosphere.

Lin Daiyu's eyes couldn't help but light up when she saw the layout of the hall, and for a moment she seemed to have forgotten her previous encounter.

Jia Qiang saw Yun Fei and Zhu Jun standing waiting. In the past, he was very calm when seeing these two beauties.

But seeing Yun Fei and Zhu Jun at this moment, it was extremely unnatural.

What Lin Ruhai said just now made him respect Lin Ruhai not only for his teacher, but also for his father-in-law.

Facing his future father-in-law, he had two more concubines before getting engaged. This kind of thing is extremely outrageous for his future soul.

"Sister Yun, Sister Zhu!" Lin Daiyu ran over quickly after seeing Yun Fei and Zhu Jun.

After this period of getting along, with Yun Fei and Zhu Jun deliberately catering to each other, the three of them have long since become best friends.

Soon, the three of them started chatting. Lin Ruhai and Jia Min were very happy to see Lin Daiyu like this. It seemed that the previous incident did not leave much shadow on Lin Daiyu.

"Brother Qiang, come with me to worship our ancestors!" Lin Ruhai looked at the time and ordered Jia Qiang.

When Jia Min heard Lin Ruhai say such words, she was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized it with a smile on her face.

Yun Fei and Zhu Jun were both smart people, and they looked at Lin Daiyu with more flattering intentions. If nothing else happened, Lin Daiyu would be the future mistress, and they all had to listen to Lin Daiyu's orders.

When worshiping ancestors during the New Year, no outsiders will be allowed to interfere, except family members.

Even his own disciples would not participate. Lin Ruhai's arrangement clearly explained Jia Qiang's status in the mansion to everyone.

The process of worshiping ancestors is not complicated. Lin Ruhai took Jia Qiang to the ancestor's tablet, lit incense and prayed, explained what he had done this year, and introduced Jia Qiang to his ancestors.

Lin Ruhai only has a daughter, and the one she is engaged to is her own disciple. The disciple is considered the half-son, and the son-in-law is also the half-son. Now Lin Ruhai treats Jia Qiang like his own son.

Until dinner, Lin Daiyu was the only one at the table who was confused, and everyone else knew about Jia Qiang and Lin Daiyu.

"Brother Qiang, let's set a date for next year. Recently, I have been chatting with Yu'er. Since Yu'er is still young, there shouldn't be too many taboos!" Lin Ruhai said with a smile.

He asked Jia Qiang to spend more time with Lin Daiyu because he was worried about the impact of the previous incident on Lin Daiyu. However, he could see the intimacy in Lin Daiyu's eyes when she looked at Jia Qiang. The two of them spending more time together could reduce the impact of the previous incident on Lin Daiyu.

"You have no other relatives, so Lin Mansion will be your home from now on!" Jia Min also said.

Jia Min looked at Jia Qiang, as if she suddenly saw her son who died young growing up, and his eyes towards Jia Qiang were full of doting.

Even if Jia Qiang has a good psychological quality, she still can't stand the enthusiasm of her master mother Jia Min after a reunion dinner.

After dinner, Lin Ruhai and Jia Qiang went to the other side to drink tea. Jia Min winked at Yun Fei and Zhu Jun, and the two women consciously gave way.

"Yu'er, would you like Brother Qiang to accompany you often?" Jia Min hugged Lin Daiyu and asked softly.

Lin Daiyu didn't know the meaning of Jia Min's words. She thought about it if Jia Qiang often talked to her, and she couldn't help but smile. In her heart, she longed for Jia Qiang's sense of security. She felt comfortable spending more time with Jia Qiang. willing.

"Dad just said, let Brother Qiang come and talk to me more!" Lin Daiyu did not answer directly, she answered the question smartly in her own way.

On the first day of the new year, Jia Qiang turned fifteen.

His plan this year is to take part in the provincial examination, not for ranking, but just to gain experience.

Of course, his strong spirit allowed him to make rapid progress in reading.

Especially with a large number of books, he brought together the classics published by the Imperial Academy, the collection of Jia Jing of Ningguo Mansion, the collection of Lin Ruhai's Lin family, and the collection of books of the Xue family.

What he has to do now is to memorize the books in his hands and turn them into his own knowledge.

In addition, you have to learn articles from Lin Ruhai. This is an important aspect that distinguishes you from ordinary scholars and scholars with heritage.

While thinking about her own affairs, Jia Qiang changed into new clothes under Siyu's service.

The new clothes he was wearing were given to him by his wife, Jia Min, and she told him to change into them. "Siyu, go and get some silver. Yun Fei and Zhujun each have twenty taels, and their maids have two taels each. You can get five taels for yourself!" Jia Qiang waited for the change of clothes and patted her head. Thinking of something, he quickly ordered.

Not only in Yangzhou, but also in the capital, he has not made arrangements. Fortunately, with Jade here, that girl has good management skills and should be able to handle it well.

In fact, he should have called Jade and Qin'er over a long time ago, but considering that Lin Mansion was not safe, he did not call Jade and Qin'er over.

Even with his protection, who knows when someone in the Lin family will be bribed or threatened. He has many enemies. If he can't do anything to him, he may attack the people around him.

It's different in the capital. Even there, not many people know about his house in Jinyu Hutong.

"Thank you, Master!" Siyu responded with a smile after hearing Jia Qiang's instructions.

She didn't expect to get a New Year's reward from Jia Qiang. Jia Qiang was too young, and the Lin family also had New Year's customs.

Five taels of silver can buy a lot of things, and you can also send some home to make your family's life easier.

Jia Qiang smiled and waved her hand, and walked out of the room.

"New Year's greetings to Teacher and Master!" Jia Qiang came to the main room, saw Lin Ruhai and Jia Min, knelt down and kowtowed.

"It's cold underground, get up quickly!" Jia Min was so precious that she hurriedly stepped forward to help Jia Qiang up and said.

At the same time, Jia Min put a red envelope in Jia Qiang's hand, which was a red envelope for New Year greetings.

"Sister Lin, happy New Year!" Jia Qiang greeted Lin Daiyu on the side with a smile.

Lin Daiyu, who used to be generous, had a rare blush on her face, and she seemed a little afraid to look at Jia Qiang.

Jia Qiang was a little surprised. Could it be for the engagement?
  His guess was right. Mother and daughter talked a lot last night.

Lin Daiyu read a lot of books, and since she was a daughter, neither Lin Ruhai nor Jia Min wanted her to take the exam, so the type of reading was not restricted at all.

Her favorite thing to read is books about talented people and beautiful women, and since she comes from such a family, she still has a very clear idea of ​​what it means to be engaged.

"Happy New Year, Brother Qiang!" Lin Daiyu's good cultivation made it impossible not to respond to Jia Qiang, she replied softly.

"Brother Qiang, take Yu'er to the back to play with Miss Yun and the others. There will be many guests in the house today, and we don't have much free time!" Jia Min said with a smile.

Jia Qiang saluted Lin Ruhai and Jia Min again, and signaled to Lin Daiyu. Of course Lin Daiyu was willing to play, and she said goodbye to her parents with a smile.

When she came to Yunfei's house, Jia Qiang came here for the first time and found that the Lin Mansion treated Yunfei well. All the furnishings in the house were complete, including two stoves, which made the temperature in the house pleasant.

Mr. Zhu and his maid Jin Tao are also here, so there is no need for Jia Qiang to be called.

"Miss Yun, Happy New Year to Miss Zhu!" Jia Qiang smiled and wished her new year.

"Master Jia, congratulations on the New Year!" Yun Fei and Zhu Jun walked together and replied with a wish.

At this moment, the two girls were very happy. Jia Qiang's maid Siyu had just sent money. They didn't care about the twenty taels of silver. What they cared about was Jia Qiang's attitude.

Lin Daiyu stayed with Jia Qiang for a while, and she forgot her previous shyness. She saw the two sisters again, and she talked happily with them.

Jia Qiang smiled and sat aside, listening to the three people talking. The four maids serving them beside her made the room very lively.

Jia Qiang admired the three of them, not to mention Yunfei and Zhujun. Yunfei was the number one prostitute in Jiangnan and Zhujun was the famous prostitute in Yangzhou. They were both top beauties.

Although Lin Daiyu is just eight years old, her face is extremely delicate, especially her pair of slender and lively eyes, which makes her even more inferior to Yun Fei and Zhu Jun.

I think when Lin Daiyu grows up, she will definitely surpass Yun Fei and Zhu Jun.

"Sister Lin, are teachers and mistresses so busy on this day every year?" Jia Qiang participated in the conversation and asked.

"Yes, there are so many people coming to visit that my mother doesn't have time to accompany me. I used to have the New Year's lunch all by myself!" Lin Daiyu looked very dissatisfied when she said this.

Jia Qiang was a little surprised that any guests would come to visit on the first day of the new year.

How did he know that Lin Ruhai's ancestral home was in Suzhou and she had no relatives in Yangzhou. In addition, Lin Ruhai was usually busy with official duties and had little private time.

On the first day of the new year, many big salt merchants would come to visit, and Jia Min needed to accompany the big salt merchant's wife.

On the first day of the new year, even Lin Ruhai would politely receive the big salt merchants. The big salt merchants would take this opportunity to strengthen their relationship with Lin Ruhai, hoping to get preferential treatment from the salt industry in the coming year.

Even those big salt merchants who had conflicts would not miss this opportunity and want to have some contact with Lin Ruhai.

"Where's the kitchen? Today I'm going to cook two dishes for Sister Lin!" Jia Qiang said with a smile.

"Brother Qiang, the book says that a gentleman stays far away from the kitchen!" Lin Daiyu looked at Jia Qiang. She couldn't say she didn't believe him, so she could only say in a roundabout way.

"There is no injury. This is the art of benevolence. When you see the cow, you don't see the sheep. A gentleman is like an animal. When he sees it alive, he can't bear to see it die; when he hears its sound, he can't bear to eat its meat. This is why a gentleman is far away from the kitchen. This is This does not mean that a gentleman should stop cooking, but that a gentleman should have a kind heart!
  Besides, I have three restaurants in the capital, and they are always packed with guests every day! "Jia Qiang replied with a smile.

"There are really three restaurants and they are full of guests?" Lin Daiyu didn't believe it even more.

She knew about Jia Qiang's situation. She was born in Ningguo Mansion. She was expelled from Ningguo Mansion at the age of twelve and lived alone.

In her opinion, it was already an extraordinary thing that Jia Qiang could become a student of the Imperial College and come to Yangzhou to study under her father Lin Ruhai. How could she still have the energy to open a restaurant?

"When you arrive in the capital, I'll treat you to a feast at Qingfeng Tower!" Jia Qiang replied proudly.

Although he has more than eight million taels of silver in his hands, what he is most proud of is that he expanded the Qingfeng Tower to three buildings when he was in the capital.

"Qingfeng Tower in the capital is Mr. Jia's property?" Yun Fei asked in surprise.

Even Zhu Jun on the side was full of disbelief. The two of them came into contact with many people, including people from the capital.

I’ve heard people in the capital brag about the dishes at Qingfeng Restaurant. Originally, the dishes in Beijing and Jiangnan have their own characteristics, but the taste of the dishes at Qingfeng Restaurant is beyond that of all restaurants. People who have tried it always feel that there is a difference when they eat the dishes from other restaurants. taste.

This makes Qingfeng Tower's reputation grow unknowingly, and the world's eyes will turn to the capital. The most outstanding restaurant in the capital will naturally become famous throughout Daqian.

(End of this chapter)