Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 314: Grandmother Jia's Plan

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

Since the sixth day of the first lunar month, a grand ceremony of presenting captives from Liaodong was held at the Wumen Gate, with thousands of soldiers guarding and hundreds of officials bowing in worship, creating a grand scene.

After all the officials returned, the news naturally spread among the people, and it quickly became a hot topic in the streets and alleys of the capital city.

The scene of Jia Cong leading the troops to offer captives that day was seen by all the officials and envoys from various countries present, and Jia Cong of Rongguo Mansion became famous in the capital again.

Ever since the Empress Dowager sent gifts and Jia Cong returned to the capital, the elderly relatives from the aristocratic families who were on good terms with the Jia family would visit the house every now and then.

A few days ago, Shi Xiangyun was taken to the Jia Mansion for a short stay, and Mrs. Chen, the wife of Marquis Baoling, and Mrs. Li, the wife of Marquis Zhongjing, came together.

The reason was naturally to visit Lady Jia, the aunt of the Shi family, and also to visit the eldest niece who was staying at the Jia family for a short time.

In addition, several wives of the Jia family's concubines in Shenjing were also present.

Grandmother Jia also called Daiyu, Tanchun, Xiangyun and other granddaughters who were proud of their answers to the questions to come into the hall to keep her company.

At this moment, Rongqing Hall was filled with pearls and jades, and the fragrance was overwhelming.

Since the visitors today were all the close female relatives of the Jia family, Grandmother Jia did not restrict herself.

At the head was a couch, complete with pillows, backrest and footrest. The old lady was half leaning on it, talking to the women in the hall.

Although Grandmother Jia is old, she is not completely senile.

His two nephews' wives only came to see him for the sake of convenience, and seeing Yun girl was even an excuse. They were all sent by Chen himself, so what was there to see?

They were moving around so diligently, mostly for that boy. I heard that he made a big splash again when he presented prisoners at the Meridian Gate a few days ago.

After the ceremony of presenting prisoners in the palace, imperial decrees of reward and honor to the meritorious generals in Liaodong were issued one after another.

In the past few days, Jia's grandmother has been receiving visits from old relatives, and has heard all these things, so much so that her ears are almost callused.

And his grandson had made the first contribution in pacifying the Jurchens. Coupled with his origins in the Jia family of Rong State, his reward was even more eye-catching.

In the past few days, the wives and daughters-in-law of the four kings and eight dukes have almost all appeared in Rongqing Hall, which has made quite a big splash.

Grandmother Jia still knew what this meant to some extent. After the current emperor ascended the throne, the four kings and eight dukes and other old nobles all sat aside.

Yesterday she heard from her son Jia Zheng that whether Congge'er could be granted a title and given an important position this time could to some extent reveal the emperor's attitude towards this group of noble and elderly relatives.

Of course, Jia Zheng also heard these things from outsiders. After all, his own knowledge in this area is limited. But because it was related to Cong'er, Jia Zheng paid special attention to it.

……

What these noble wives cared about most were titles and imperial decrees, because all their wealth and glory in life came from these two things.

Even Lady Li, the wife of Marquis Zhongjing, who had always been kind-hearted, was no exception in this regard.

"Madam, at the Wumen Prisoner Presentation Ceremony a few days ago, your Cong brother made a big splash again. Now, there is no one in the court, including civil and military officials and foreign envoys, who doesn't know him.

A few years ago I said this child was good, but I didn’t expect it to be this good. The old lady has done a great job of educating her children and grandchildren. "

After hearing these nice words, Daiyu and Tanchun smiled at each other, but they had no idea what the surrender of captives was all about, and felt somewhat regretful.

Xiangyun on the side was just thinking, she had heard her uncle talk about offering captives before, could it be more rare than the pomp of Third Brother Cong entering the city?
In the past few days, Grandmother Jia has heard more than once that people praised her for raising a young hero like Jia Cong. Every time she heard it, her face turned red, and she always felt that these words were somewhat untrue.

If they praised Baoyu, whom they had brought up, for his excellence, it would be more like it, but when they praised Baoyu as a young hero, even she herself did not believe it. At most, she would say that Baoyu was filial and good-looking.

Li said, "I heard from our master that Cong's contribution this time was the first to wipe out the Jurchens, so he must be awarded the title of first-class viscount.

Maybe His Majesty will show extra favor and grant him three generations of rank without any downgrade. He is still so young, it is really incredible. "

……

When Lady Jia heard this, her heart trembled. She had been the wife of a superior duke for half her life, so she knew the system of honors of the court very well.

The system of nobles of different surnames in the Great Zhou Dynasty inherited the system of the previous Song Dynasty, and was divided into five ranks: duke, marquis, earl, viscount, and baron, and each rank was further divided into three levels.

Although in recent years, the emperor felt that the system of titles was cumbersome and wanted to cut it down and only set up three ranks of titles: duke, marquis and earl, but it has never been finalized.

Among all the titles in the imperial dynasty, only those with military merit can be conferred. This is why Ningguo’s title could not be restored if no one of his sons and daughters served in the army and made meritorious contributions.

Duke and Marquis are the most valuable, and are usually only conferred at the beginning of a country's establishment, or for saving the country and quelling rebellion, or for fighting evil and destroying a country.

There was no precedent for conferring the title of Duke during the reign of Emperor Jiazong, and even conferring the title of Marquis was very rare. In the past ten years of the Jiazong and Zhaozong dynasties, only one person was conferred the title of Marquis, and that was Liang Chengzong, the current commander-in-chief of Liaodong Town and the governor of Liaodong, a true frontier official.

Liang Chengzong guarded the border for more than 20 years. He led the troops alone and defeated the Mongolian barbarian tribe five times, making the Mongolian forces trapped outside the nine borders and unable to go beyond the boundary.

When the retired emperor was in power, this man had already been conferred the title of earl for his merits, and was later conferred the title of Marquis Pingyuan for his merits.

In a peaceful era, having such military strategy and being able to achieve such military exploits is a rare opportunity.

……

It was said that her grandson had made the greatest contribution to the pacification of the Jurchens, but Grandmother Jia had no idea exactly how powerful he was.

But this kid is so young and has been in the army for less than a year, so his experience is really too shallow.

Forget about the title of Marquis. Earl doesn't sound like it either. Viscount is more appropriate.

However, for a superior duke's wife like Lady Jia, a first-class viscount is nothing.

But if His Majesty grants the grace of hereditary succession for three generations without any downgrade, then the weight of this viscount will be completely different!

Although Rongguo Mansion was initially conferred the title of Duke, it was a hereditary title of a lower grade. In fact, it was a royal grace that Jia Daishan could inherit the title of Duke. When Jia She inherited it, he was demoted to a first-class general.

If the title of Rongguo Mansion is passed down for another three generations, it will only be of the fifth rank. By then, the property and worth will be greatly reduced, and only an empty title will remain.

If that kid is really granted the title of first-class viscount, and his rank is passed down through three generations without being demoted, and his three generations of descendants are still first-class viscounts, then it would be better than the hereditary title of Rongguo Lord which is demoted.

And according to convention, as long as the family is not guilty and abides by the rules, and after three generations without being demoted, there will most likely be another generation of grace, that is, four generations without being demoted...

For a family of hereditary heroes, it is better to have long-lasting wealth and honor than to become rich suddenly. This is the truth.

Thinking of this, even though Lady Jia had seen the world, her heart was still burning with anger...

……

He immediately asked Li: "Your master has always been highly regarded by the emperor, but he never asked what title he would give to Cong?"

Li was stunned when she heard this, and said with some embarrassment: "Although the master is valued by the emperor, everyone knows that the Jia and Shi families are close relatives, so it is not appropriate to ask too much to avoid suspicion.

I heard from the master that only the officials of the Cabinet, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Rites know the list of honors and awards."

Mrs. Chen, the wife of Marquis Baoling, was listening with her eyes shining. If the rank of viscount was not reduced to the first class for three generations, then there would be more than a hundred years of wealth and honor. How could this be possible?

More importantly, Cong Ge'er is only a few years older than Yun Yatou. With his abilities, it is impossible for him to remain unshakable for his entire life. I am afraid that he may even become an earl or a marquis in the future!

Chen felt regretful that she didn't have a daughter.

Ever since Jia Cong won the first place in the imperial examination that year, Chen had seen him in Rongqing Hall and felt that among the aunt's descendants, this one was the most promising, with impeccable looks and knowledge.

Unexpectedly, in just two years, such progress had been so impressive. In the past two years, whenever Xiangyun wanted to stay at the Jia Mansion for a while, Chen would send her out without saying a word.

Now, after hearing this news, she felt that the niece she had raised should really stay in the Jia family for a longer time. Besides, her aunt loved Xiangyun so much.

Chen asked, "Xiangyun went out the other day and went to Xiande Gate to watch Congge'er enter the city. Why didn't she see Congge'er today?"

When Grandmother Jia heard Chen mention Xiangyun, her expression became a little indifferent. How could she hide Chen's little thoughts from her?

In Grandmother Jia's heart, Shi Xiangyun is the eldest daughter of the Shi family's eldest branch. Her status is as precious as when she was unmarried or when her own daughter Jia Min was still waiting to be married.

How can you marry a bastard's son? Even if he is your own grandson, it is not appropriate...

In Grandmother Jia's opinion, Baochai from the Xue family is a better match for the boy, and it also saves her second daughter-in-law and her sister from having to mess around with the so-called golden match.

It is said that this boy and Bao Yatou knew each other in Jinling. His famous poem was originally written for Bao Yatou. It sounds like there is some story behind it.

Grandmother Jia even wondered if she could bring this matter together. Although this grandson was not related to her, his abilities were obvious and he was more than qualified to be the match for the daughter of the Xue family.

Let my two daughters have smoother life in the future...

In Grandmother Jia's heart, only her granddaughter Daiyu is the best in the world in terms of family background and appearance, and only such a child is worthy of her Baoyu.

So he said, "He is also a horse without a bridle. He has been in Liaodong for half a year and cannot stay at home. He runs out every day. Yun'er is a guest at his door, but he, as a cousin, has not treated her well."

At this time, Jia Mu's maid Amber hurried into Rongqing Hall.

(End of this chapter)