Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 296 Ningguo discusses succession

Jia Zheng was surprised to hear that Jia Cong had been promoted twice, from the sixth rank to the fifth rank, which was a rare honor in the officialdom.

He is so young, but his official position is higher than mine. However, this is the result of Cong'er fighting for his life on the battlefield. He deserves the honor and has a bright future!

When Guo Lin saw Jia Zheng's face full of joy after hearing the imperial edict, a hint of pity flashed in his eyes.

As a trusted eunuch of Emperor Jiazhao, he naturally knew many secrets that were unknown to outsiders.

That day, officials from the Ministry of Clan Affairs came to the Jia Mansion to discuss changing the crown prince, and returned unsuccessful. After the news reached the palace, the imperial edict to reward Jia Cong was drafted.

His Majesty is just waiting for the right time to announce his decree.

If the Jia family really makes Jia Cong the heir apparent this time, the emperor will look at him differently. Given the emperor's high regard for Jia Cong, the Jia family might be able to gain more benefits.

It's a pity that apart from Jia Cong, there is no other sensible person in the Jia family. What is there to be happy about about a fifth-rank military general? He might even exchange for decades of wealth and prosperity for the Jia family.

……

When the news of Jia Cong's promotion to the fifth-rank official position reached back to Rongqing Hall, everyone in the hall had different expressions.

Grandmother Jia just felt that Jia Cong had given up the title of Crown Prince, and there seemed to be some resentment in the letter, which made her feel quite complicated.

But after all, I was the one who put things right, and as long as the family tradition is not disrupted, I can feel at ease.

But unexpectedly, just as Jia Cong's hope of inheriting the title was cut off, he was immediately promoted in the palace, and was promoted twice in a row. It was as if the royal family had chosen this time to slap her in the face.

At the rate this kid is being promoted, I'm afraid in a few years his official position will be higher than the inherited title. By that time, when people talk about what happened today, the Jia family will be laughed at to death.

But what can he do? He is the only one in the Jia family who is capable of making trouble. If other children want to become officials, they can only rely on buying the position with money, except inheriting the hereditary title.

Those are just one-time deals, and they can hold an official title for a lifetime. It's not as convenient as this kid who can get promoted in a few days.

If it looks like this, the title of nobility that I regard as a treasure seems to be nothing to this kid. No wonder he refused so straightforwardly.

When Grandmother Jia thought of this, she felt a tightness in her chest...

……

Mrs. Wang had become somewhat numb to Jia Cong's continuous success. This man's hopes of inheriting the hereditary title had been cut off, and she had thought that this would be the way things would be from now on.

Unexpectedly, she was promoted again by the royal family in the blink of an eye. When will this end? Although Mrs. Wang was unwilling and dissatisfied, what else could she do?

Wang Xifeng didn't care about this matter. As long as the hereditary title was still her man's, she would not be able to escape from her imperial throne. Whether the third son of Cong was promoted or not had nothing to do with her.

Wang Xifeng even felt fortunate in her heart. If this kid really seized the throne of the crown prince and the two sides became enemies, given his evil nature, she would really be no match for him.

Daiyu, Tanchun, Yingchun and others had never expected that as soon as Jia Cong sent his letter of resignation, the royal family would reward him with an official position.

There is even a vague connection between the two. It seems that they actually did something when they wrote a letter to Jia Cong to persuade him to resign his title.

The three of them were all filled with joy and smiled at each other, which created a somewhat incongruous scene amid the indifference and helplessness in Rongqing Hall.

……

In the next few days, as the news spread that Jia Cong was promoted for his military achievements, the Rongguo Mansion began to become lively, and the nobles and old friends who were on good terms with the Jia family came to congratulate them one after another.

Because Jia Cong was still in Liaodong, although few heads of each family came to visit, they all sent their close sons and nephews to express their congratulations. At the very least, they sent their trusted stewards with a list of gifts.

In fact, this kind of thing is not the first time in recent years. Jia Cong passed the imperial examination twice and was promoted several times for his merits, which made the Jia family prosperous.

Grandmother Jia was a person who loved to be respectable, so she was naturally in a good mood when encountering such a thing. However, this time she felt a little uneasy and had mixed feelings.

This time, the clan house staged a drama of exchanging sons to inherit the title, which forced Lady Jia to disrupt her original plan, which made her very angry.

How could Grandmother Jia not notice the indifference and alienation in Jia Cong's letter of granting him the title? After she knew about this, a huge gap had been created between Jia Cong and the family.

In the past, I had thought about winning over this grandson so that he would protect Baoyu and the family more in the future. Now all these tricks have become hypocritical and ridiculous.

Grandmother Jia vaguely felt that although she had saved the family title, the benefits she had lost seemed to be even greater.

……

Just as Grandmother Jia was feeling depressed, she suddenly saw Jia Zheng bringing two people to visit her.

One was Jia Xiao, a descendant of the Ningguo branch of the literary family, and the other, to the surprise of Lady Jia, was actually Jia Jing, who had been practicing in Xuanzhen Temple.

Ever since Jia Zhen’s accidental death last time, Jia Jing fell seriously ill. After all, he was an elderly man and his illness was severe.

At that time, the Jia family could not afford to have another child get into trouble, so Grandmother Jia specially invited the imperial physician to the Xuanzhen Temple for diagnosis, and sent several capable servants to serve, and also sent a lot of precious medicinal materials.

It was not easy to stabilize Jia Jing's condition and pull him back from the brink of death, otherwise the Jia family would have to hold another funeral.

Jia Jing had just recovered from his illness after half a year of treatment. He had stayed at Xuanzhen Temple all year round, so why did he suddenly go to Rongguo Mansion? Moreover, Jia Jing and Jia Xiao looked a little strange, as if they were hesitant to speak, which made Jia's mother feel strange.

Finally, it was Jia Xiao who spoke:

"Grandfather, my elder brother and I came here this time first to congratulate Brother Cong. The child has a promising future. Not only is he good at studying, but he can also make military achievements. This is really amazing!

These are all due to the good teachings of our ancestors, but it is a pity that this child is only born out of wedlock in Rong State..."

At first, Grandmother Jia was quite pleased with what she heard, and the person being praised was her own grandson.

It's just that Jia Xiao kept repeating a lot of things, and suddenly he said that it was a pity that Jia Cong was a bastard's son. After that, he started to hesitate and didn't know how to continue.

After hearing this, Jia's mother frowned and said, "Xiao'er, what on earth do you want to say? I don't understand what you are saying."

……

Seeing Jia Jing looking at him with an urging look, Jia Xiao decided not to beat around the bush any more. This matter was originally initiated by him and Jia Jing, so naturally he had to step in to mediate.

"Grandfather, ever since Ningguo's family was confiscated and his title was stripped, the descendants of Ningguo have been living a hard life. Now Rong'er has been exiled to Qiongzhou for thirty years, and there's no telling whether he can come back.

My eldest brother's direct line is about to die out, and I feel ashamed of our ancestors, so my eldest brother and I have discussed a solution and have come here to ask for our ancestors' advice."

Grandmother Jia was surprised to hear this. The direct descendant of Ningguo was only Rong'er left, and given his condition, he would definitely not be able to leave any bloodline. What else could be done?

"Grandfather, we heard that this time Cong Ge'er made great military achievements in Liaodong and became very famous. Even the clan office came to discuss letting him inherit the title. Unfortunately, this child is born out of wedlock and cannot inherit the title.

I have discussed with my eldest brother and want to have Cong'er be adopted as his heir. This way, the legitimate bloodline of Ningguo will have someone to continue the family, and Cong'er will also become the legitimate son of the legitimate bloodline. Isn't this the best of both worlds?"

When Jia's mother heard this, her face darkened and she sneered, "You guys are good at thinking of good things."

But in his heart, he was cursing at those prodigal sons and daughters in the Dong Mansion for ruining the family business passed down by his ancestors.

Now that the Rongguo Mansion has a prominent young man, they immediately think of coming over to reap the benefits. How shameless!
Grandmother Jia frowned and said, "Now that the Ningguo Mansion has been confiscated, it won't help if you let Congge'er be adopted by him."

Although Grandmother Jia had never been close to Jia Cong, it would be a different matter if she wanted to adopt him to another family.

After all, he is his own grandson, and a capable one at that, so he is naturally reluctant.

Even if you don't like it, it's yours. There's no reason to give it to others for free. It's just human nature.

……

Jia Jing, who had been silent, could no longer hold back and said, "Old lady, as long as Cong can be adopted into the direct lineage of the Ning Kingdom, he will certainly be able to do the job!
When the property was seized, an imperial decree was issued. The emperor showed pity for Ningguo's ancestors for their contributions to the country. After Ningguo was stripped of his title, he was given a title for three years. If the descendants of Ningguo made military achievements, they could be restored to the title.

Now, Cong'er has made great contributions in Liaodong. As long as he is adopted by my nephew, he will be the eldest son of Ningguo. My nephew will immediately petition the emperor to restore his title.

People outside say that the emperor thinks highly of Congge'er. When Congge'er was still a scholar, the emperor granted him an eighth-rank official title. As long as he is adopted by Ningguo, the emperor will definitely let him inherit the title!"

When Grandmother Jia heard this, she felt that there was some truth in it, but she felt uncomfortable in her heart.

It seems that our Rong country has raised a capable young man, who has earned a title for your Ning country, and it has nothing to do with our Rong country...

Jia Xiao, who was standing by, immediately chimed in, "Grandfather, my elder brother and I have thought about this carefully. This is the best of both worlds. There is nothing better than this.

As long as Congge is adopted as the heir of Ningguo, it won’t take long for the Jia family’s glory of having two nobles to return. Besides, even if Congge is adopted, he is still your grandson.”

Jia Xiao's last sentence touched the heart of Lady Jia. Even if Cong was adopted, he still had the blood of Duke Rong, and I was still his biological grandmother.

He has no way to inherit the title in Rongguo Mansion, so letting him be adopted into Ningguo Mansion to inherit the title will bring honor to me and will be considered as doing my best for him. How could he be unwilling?
Grandmother Jia glanced at Jia Xiao and thought to herself that Xiao was a smart man. Why didn't she see that before?

Jia Xiao is a member of a branch of the Ningguo clan. When he was young, he relied on the influence of the Ningguo Mansion and was a dandy who indulged in horse riding and cockfighting. After he was over 40, he had achieved nothing and was idle.

In fact, there are many descendants like him in the Ningguo lineage.

When the Ningguo Mansion was still in existence, gifts were distributed every year during festivals, and there were also many jobs in the mansion's farms and shops that could earn money.

These dissolute young men could also live a life of adequate food and clothing relying on the influence of their Ningguo ancestors.

However, as the Ningguo Mansion was stripped of its title and its property was confiscated, the fields, estates and shops accumulated over several lifetimes were also confiscated by the court, leaving these Ningguo children without their means of livelihood.

Jia Xiao has been a dissolute man for half his life and has no ability to make a living. In recent months, he has been relying on pawning his belongings to make a living. If this continues, he will have to go hungry one day.

Although he is a playboy, he is quite smart.

In the past few days, the news that Jia Cong had made military achievements, the clan government had discussed his title, and the court had issued an edict to promote him had spread to all the houses in Ningrong Street and Shenjing within two days.

When Jia Xiao heard the news, he suddenly came up with this idea, because he had worked as Jia Jing's companion for a period of time when he was young, and the brothers were very familiar with each other.

He went to Xuanzhen Temple eagerly and lobbyist Jia Jing. Jia Jing had almost died of shame and anger since Ningguo was stripped of his title. After hearing his ideas, of course he agreed with them.

(End of this chapter)