Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 124 There is something fishy going on

Jia Cong saw that Jia Yucun was quite eloquent, probably because he had been traveling for many years and was knowledgeable. He was also a Jinshi and had considerable talent and learning.

When chatting with them at a banquet, they often have unique and insightful remarks.

Qin Ye was even more amazed after hearing this. From this, we can know that Jia Yucun also used such boasting to deceive Jia Zheng, who loved talented scholars the most, and made him willing to seek an official position for him.

Jia Yucun saw that his brilliant words and arguments had impressed the old official Qin Ye, but he saw that Jia Cong remained calm and even looked a little disapproving.

Could it be that this kid is young and intelligent, and his knowledge is even more extraordinary than mine? Thinking about it, it is possible.

He was able to get the first place in the imperial examination at the age of thirteen, and was also the last disciple of the contemporary literary master Liu Jing'an. It was true that he had extraordinary ambitions in his mind, but at least when I was his age, I was far less capable than him.

Thinking of this, Jia Yucun felt a little timid and cautious, and his conversation became a little dull. After all, Jia Cong was too young and his reputation was too famous, so he was a little confused about his background.
It was Jia Cong himself who brought up some topics to liven up the atmosphere of the banquet, and he also subtly mentioned the burned merchant ship at the dock.

Jia Yucun never imagined that this boy was so meticulous and scheming that didn't match his age. He just thought that he was just boasting and the boy was not interested.

The charred merchant ship in the port was indeed very eye-catching. I guess it was normal for young people to be curious about strange and thrilling things.

He was just about to get acquainted with the young man and win him over, so when he mentioned it, naturally he had to talk it over.

"It turns out that Brother Cong also noticed the boat. I am ashamed to say that such a thing happened under my rule.

That ship was a merchant ship of the Asakawa family of Japan. It was a high-quality merchant ship that the Asakawa family bought from France at a high price. It was worth a lot of money.

Due to internal strife among the Japanese, not only were all the 100,000 strings of foreign goods on board looted, but this expensive treasure ship was also burned, which is quite a pity."

When Jia Cong saw Jia Yucun calling him Brother Cong, he couldn't help but get goosebumps.

Wang Xifeng and Jia Lian call themselves brothers Cong, which means they are blood relatives.

Just because his surname is Jia, Jia Yucun, who is not related to anyone in his entire life, created a clan relationship and used it as a pretext to claim to be a cousin.

This is so far-fetched and shameless, but it doesn't show on his face.

Qin Ye asked: "Master Jia, I saw the record of this case in the court newspaper. Those wanderers were chased by the officers and soldiers of the garrison and fled into Jinling City, slaughtering the people and causing great harm.

Could it be possible that they were able to carry a hundred thousand strings of valuables with them while fleeing?"

Jia Yucun was stunned and said, "Master Qin, you don't know that there are two groups of Japanese wanderers who are causing trouble. One group fights with the government troops and the other group takes the opportunity to plunder property and escape by boat.

It was raining heavily that day, and the Yangtze River was flowing fast, making it difficult to see anything. Although the officers and soldiers of the Water Supervision Department of the Guards tried their best to search, they were ultimately unable to find any trace of the pirate ship.

Qin Ye looked as if he had suddenly understood something, but Jia Cong sneered in his heart. Could it be that Qin Ye only knew how to curry favor with the powerful? He was a palace attendant, but he couldn't even tell there was something strange in the tone of the voice.

One ship could carry foreign goods worth 100,000 strings of cash, and two ships could carry 200,000 strings of cash, which was a huge sum of money of nearly 200,000 taels.

Some of these ronin fought with the government troops, while the others were able to transport hundreds of thousands of strings of goods when there was no time to spare.

He even had enough energy to sail away from the port, and the Water Inspector was unable to catch up with him. He was too powerful.

Although there were reasons such as heavy rain and fast-flowing water, it still sounded too bizarre.

However, he did remember Qu Hongxiu's words telling him not to cause trouble. It had nothing to do with him anyway, so he should just copy the scriptures well, live a comfortable life for half a year, and then return to Shenjing safely.

The welcoming banquet lasted for an hour, and a maid happened to say that the mistress wanted more wine and food.

Jia Cong was thinking about Wu Er and Qing Wen. After all, it was their first time back to the old house in Jinling, so he stood up to say goodbye. Jia Yucun accompanied them to the gate of the mansion. Jia Cong said goodbye to Qin Ye, and a carriage from the Jia Mansion had already stopped at the gate to pick him up.

……

Here, Jia Yucun returned to the backyard. Just now, his wife asked the maid to ask if he wanted more wine and food. He knew that his wife Jiao Xing must have something to talk to him about.

Madam Jiao Xing was a maid in the house of his old friend Zhen Shiyin. He and Jiao Xing met when they were young. Later, when he passed the imperial examination and returned to Suzhou, the Zhen family fell into decline and Zhen Shiyin disappeared without a trace.

He then married Jiao Xing as his second wife. Later, when his first wife died, he made Jiao Xing his first wife.

It was a rare fate that Jiao Xing went from being a maid to the wife of a fourth-rank official.

Although Jiao Xing was very proud of her success, she did not forget her old love and often sent people to Gusu to visit her former master, Madam Feng.

When Jia Yucun entered the room, he saw Madam Jiao Xing wiping her tears. It must be that the person she sent to Suzhou today had returned and told her some unpleasant news, which she felt a little dissatisfied about.

"Master, the other day I sent the housekeeper to Gusu to visit Madam, who was told that she had been very ill recently, and that Master Feng was afraid of wasting money, so he just randomly found some herbs for her to eat, which was not likely to cure her.

The housekeeper was quite smart. He invited a good local doctor to treat the lady, and paid the consultation fee and took the medicine on the spot. Otherwise, the money would have gone to Master Feng and nothing would have happened. The lady had been a kind person all her life, and she had lived a very hard life. "

Jia Yucun comforted her, "Madam, don't be sad. After all, Old Man Feng is her biological father. It's hard for an official to judge family affairs. It's good that you can help a little. We outsiders can't do much, but just relax."

Jiao Xing continued, "Madam asked about Miss Yinglian again. Knowing that Master is now the prefect of Yingtian Prefecture, she wanted to ask Master to help look for her in Jinling Province.

Although the young lady has grown up and her appearance may have changed, the rouge mole between her eyebrows is rare and very easy to identify. The master is requested to send more people to investigate. If they find it, it will be a great blessing. "

After hearing this, Jia Yucun readily agreed to Jiao Xing's request, but he did not take it to heart. She had been missing for so many years and most likely she was no longer alive, so why bother with such useless efforts?

……

When Jia Cong arrived at Xinglongfang, the housekeeper Jin Cai received the letter and came out of the gate to meet him in person.

Jia Cong's fame had now spread from the capital to Jinling. Although he was just a young boy, he was personally conferred an eighth-rank official title by the emperor.

This was truly an unheard of rare event. Moreover, Jia Cong had the title of first place in the Yongzhou Academy Examination. This was the incarnation of the God of Literature. It was very likely that he would be on the list of successful candidates in the imperial examination.

A few days ago, Mrs. Lian, the head of the Rongguo Mansion in Shenjing, specially sent Xing'er to Jinling to act as a scout for the Third Master Cong, which made Jin Cai feel that the mansion valued this young man very much.

After hearing Guo Zhigui's reminder, Jia Cong lifted the curtain and greeted Jin Cai. When Jin Cai saw his character and appearance, she was even more impressed and amazed.

Because Jia Cong had a good relationship with Yuanyang, he was more polite to her father.

"Uncle Jin, when I came here, Sister Yuanyang asked me to bring you a package and a letter. Did you get them?"

"Thank you, Third Master, for still caring about me. Miss Qingwen in your room has been given to me."

"Oh, I'm glad I got it. I just arrived in Jinling today. I've been on the boat for more than ten days. I'm tired. I really need to rest for two days when I get home."

Jin Cai replied, "The mansion received a letter from the Second Madam a few days ago, and has already prepared a suitable courtyard for the Third Master. The bed and curtains inside are all new, and the Third Master's maids have been settled in."

"Then I'll have to trouble Uncle Jin."

Jin Cai smiled and said, "Third Master, you are too polite. This old house is usually empty. It's rare for the master to come and stay for a while. It's really a happy event. It will also boost the popularity of the family."

(End of this chapter)