Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 245: Eliminating Evil Words (Happy New Year)
Ningguo Mansion.

As Lai Da and his gang were taken away, the confiscation of Ningguo Mansion's assets was nearing completion.

Jia Cong went to the backyard again and took Youshi and Keqing away. The mansion was in a mess now, so it was always better to be cautious.

More than a dozen vermilion and gold-painted boxes were carried out from the west corner gate of Ningguo Mansion. These were the dowries of the two ladies of Ning Mansion.

The Jinyi captain guarding the gate had received orders from his superiors long ago, so he did a quick check and let them pass.

Prince Beijing Shui Rong, Minister of Rites Guo Youchang and others said goodbye to Jia Zheng and left because the matter of the imperial edict for confiscation was basically settled.

At this time, two sedan chairs were carried out from the sedan room next to the west corner gate.

Prince Beijing Shui Rong saw from afar a tall and handsome young man coming out from the west corner gate. It was Jia Cong.

Behind him followed two beautiful women. One of them was younger and as pretty as a rose, with graceful and elegant figure and unrivaled beauty.

Shui Rong was born into a hereditary royal family with a noble status. He had seen countless beauties in his life, but he had never seen one so stunningly beautiful. He was stunned for a moment.

She saw Jia Cong helping two women onto the sedan chair. It seemed that they were the women of Ningguo. Since Jia Cong could take care of them personally, they must be the two ladies of Ningguo.

……

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

As the saying goes, good things do not go out, but bad things spread thousands of miles away.

Over there, Lai Da and other servants who were in charge of the Rong State were escorted out of the Ningguo Mansion by the Jinyiwei in a dignified manner.

Not long after, the news spread from outside the second gate of Rongguo Mansion to Rongqing Hall.

When Grandmother Jia heard the news, her face turned pale. Most of these old servants who were captured by the Embroidered Uniform Guards were servants born in the family, and many of them were raised by Grandmother Jia.

He is now in charge of all the family businesses of the Rongguo Mansion, and many of the people among them are almost no different from family members in Jia's grandmother's eyes.

How come all of them have been captured by the Jinyiwei now?

The Ningguo Mansion had just been stripped of its title and its property was confiscated, which had already dealt a heavy blow to Lady Jia. Now all of Rongguo's trusted old servants had met with trouble. Would Rongguo also suffer the same disaster as Ningguo?

Grandmother Jia anxiously asked the maid who delivered the message what had happened.

The old woman was somewhat related to Wu Xindeng, and she saw with her own eyes that Jia Cong took the person out of the house.

He hurriedly replied, "I saw that it was Third Master Cong who led them out of the mansion, and then news came from outside that Steward Lai and his men were arrested by the Royal Guards in the East Mansion."

Mrs. Wang was standing aside, her face looking very unhappy. Her chambermaid Zhou Rui was just summoned to the East Palace by the master, and must have fallen into the hands of the Embroidered Uniform Guards.

Over the years, Zhou Ruijia had helped her do several shady things. Thinking of this, Mrs. Wang felt very nervous. What if...

"It's this evil creature who caused this trouble again. Send someone to call him over immediately. I want to ask this beast if he wants to tear down this house!"

The old woman was about to go out to call for help. As she stepped out of the main hall door, she saw Jia Cong turning around the marble screen with a rosewood frame and walking towards Rongqing Hall.

And he was not the only one who stood up, the second master in the mansion also stood up.

When Jia's mother saw Jia Zheng and Jia Cong coming in, she subconsciously ignored her son and was furious. Her old face was shaking with anger and she yelled at Jia Cong:
"You are a beast who stirs up trouble all day long. How did these old servants in the mansion offend you that you tricked them out and let the Jinyiwei abuse and arrest them at will.

You! You are really lawless!"

Mrs. Wang looked at Jia Cong with a gloomy face. Zhou Rui and his wife were her dowry slaves, and yet they were sent to the Jinyiwei prison by this brat. Not only was it a slap in her face, but she didn't know what other troubles would arise.

Yuanyang, who was standing by, also changed her expression and looked at Jia Cong with worry in her eyes. She had been with Grandmother Jia for so many years, and the old lady had always been kind, although she would get angry sometimes.

But she had never been as furious as she was today. Even she, who had followed Lady Jia for so many years, was frightened for a moment.

Yuanyang was Lady Jia's personal maid, and she knew old servants like Lai Da, Wu Xindeng, and Dai Liang.

The old lady had personally nurtured and promoted this family member for many years, and now all of a sudden, they were destroyed by the Third Master. How could the old lady not be angry? No matter how outstanding Third Master Cong was, the old lady was his grandmother, and she punished him in anger. Filial piety was above everything else, and no one else could say anything.

Jia Zheng, who was standing by, quickly explained, "Madam, you can't blame Cong'er for this. It was Lai Er from the East Palace who exposed the evil deeds of these servants in the Dali Temple.

My son never dreamed that these servants, who usually appear respectful and filial, actually committed such heinous crimes behind the scenes. They deserve death!"

Jia Zheng then recounted in court what Yang Hongbin had said about the various evil deeds done by Lai Da and other servants during the interrogation at the Dali Temple, with his expression filled with indignation.

Jia Mu and others were also shocked when they heard this, although they usually heard some gossip, which was nothing more than saying that the servants were corrupt.

But every few days, Feng Ji and Mrs. Wang would talk about some of the accounts in the mansion, but they didn't find any major loopholes, so Grandmother Jia didn't take it to heart.

She had been the mistress of the house for half her life, and she knew that there were no fish in clear water. It was worth it to let the servants take away a little bit of profit in exchange for their loyalty.

However, she never expected that these servants who were so respectful and filial to her on a daily basis could be so bold and their actions were completely beyond her control.

Not only did he eat away at the Jia family's property, he also did many unscrupulous and shameful things outside, and was even involved in a murder case.

And since these things were said by her own son himself, she couldn't help but believe them.

When he found out that it was Jia Cong who was responsible, he was so angry that he wanted to call that guy over and have a good scolding on him.

But unexpectedly, things were not what she thought at all.

The anger that was originally stuck in my heart, and I couldn't vent it out, and my whole body was aching from holding it in.

……

Grandmother Jia was furious and said, "Even if that's the case, why didn't you report it in advance and just did it so rashly? Do you still have me as your grandmother in your eyes?
Don't try to quibble. Your master couldn't have thought of such a cunning trick. It must have been your idea."

Jia Cong replied calmly: "Old lady, the evil deeds committed by Lai Da and others were confessed by Lai Er himself in the Dali Temple, and the three judicial departments of the Dali Temple, the Ministry of Justice, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate participated in the joint trial.

This matter can no longer be covered up. In less than two days, it will be known to everyone in the government and the country. It can also be said that Lai Da and his people are already dead!
Moreover, this matter is related to the case of Ningguo's stripping of title and confiscation of property. In order to protect the safety of Rongguo, these slaves who have no morals and betray their masters cannot be kept.

Since they will die sooner or later, why bother the old lady to worry and embarrass her? Wouldn't it be more convenient for the younger generation to help her get rid of them?"

These words made Lady Jia, Mrs. Wang and others feel uneasy.

Grandmother Jia thought that after her scolding, Jia Cong would say something soft and conciliatory to explain, but she didn't expect that he didn't show any weakness and his words became colder and colder.

He said that those old servants would die sooner or later, but he treated these lives as nothing. Even at such a young age, he was really too cruel.

Then Jia Cong continued, "Besides, the news leaked out in advance, and these cunning servants relied on the old lady's kindness and caused some trouble again.

If the three judges thought that Rongguo was lawless and sheltered the evil slave, it would bring disaster to the family. This would cut the Gordian knot and clean up Rongguo's family.

It also lets the three judicial officials know that our Rongguo Mansion is an upright family, completely different from the Ningguo Mansion.

The Rongguo Mansion uses the national law as a barrier to deal with any behavior that exceeds the rules among the family members, and will never tolerate or indulge them.

Only by doing so can you have a long-lasting and peaceful home."

Jia Cong's words made Jia Zheng, who was standing beside him, dizzy. He never expected that Cong could explain such truth about such a thing.

Mrs. Wang was originally waiting for the old lady to punish Jia Cong so that she could vent her anger.

I didn't expect this kid to say such nonsense, leaving everyone present speechless.

Grandmother Jia looked at Jia Cong with resentment, her blood boiling and her heart beating wildly.

What the hell is this kid's mouth like? He can confuse right and wrong and talk about life and death like this. Why doesn't he just make a hole in the sky?

Just like that, more than a dozen old slaves were killed at once, but he acted as if he had made a great contribution and could not find any fault with himself.

(End of this chapter)