Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 319: Self-destruction

The Mansion of Marquis Zhongjing.

"You want me to make a suggestion to His Majesty, asking Him to grant Congge'er and Yun'er a marriage?"

Shi Ding looked at his wife in surprise.

Li smiled and said, "Before Cong was given the title, Aunt was not very supportive. Yesterday, my second sister-in-law and I asked Aunt about her opinion, and now she will not object anymore."

Shi Ding glanced at his wife and shook his head. His aunt was a powerful figure in the back house, and there was no way his wife could outsmart her.

"Brother Cong is not yet old enough to dance with elephants, and Yun'er is even younger, neither of them is old enough to get married. Besides, Brother Cong has just been conferred a title, and is now in the spotlight of the public.

I enthusiastically suggested to His Majesty that I grant you the marriage, but it was extremely inappropriate. Although I am a close minister to His Majesty, I still have to be careful with my words and actions, otherwise His Majesty would think that Shi Jiachi was making friends with the upstarts.

That would be very disadvantageous to historians!"

Li was a little disappointed: "Master is right. I oversimplified the matter. But that Cong brother is really a good person."

Shi Ding smiled and said, "You don't need to tell me, everyone in Kyoto knows about this.

Yun'er is the only bloodline left by my eldest brother. Although she is raised in the second house, as her third uncle, I treat her as my own daughter and naturally hope that this child will have a good home in the future.

Actually, there is no need to rush this matter. You can tell your second sister-in-law that your aunt loves Yun'er anyway, so ask her to send Yun'er to the Jia Mansion to stay for a while so that the brother and sister can have the opportunity to get closer.

After a year or two, when Yun'er has grown up and the limelight has passed, it will be natural for me to ask His Majesty for a marriage, and I think His Majesty will be very happy to see it happen."

Li smiled and said, "Master is a good thinker, unlike us women who don't have any calculations."

Shi Ding suddenly said, "I heard that my aunt's granddaughter was also raised at home. She is also an outstanding person. They are also cousins. It is said that Congge is close to the sisters at home..."

When Li heard this, she naturally understood what her master meant.

He said with a smile: "That Miss Lin is quite an outstanding girl. She is the apple of my aunt's eye. She wants to marry her to Baoyu, but she is still young, so she hasn't said it out loud.

We old relatives are all aware of this. Although Cong is outstanding, the phoenix in aunt's heart is Baoyu, so there is no need to worry about this matter anymore."

Shi Ding smiled and said, "That's great."

……

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

When Jia Cong flatly rejected the idea, the faces of Jia's grandmother and other female members of the household changed.

According to common sense, as a junior, Jia Cong should have tactfully explained the reasons why it was not feasible even if he felt that what the ancestor proposed was inappropriate, instead of categorically refusing it.

This is the normal way for elders and younger generations to get along with each other in a wealthy and well-mannered family, and the way to be warm and affectionate.

This was simply killing the conversation before the conversation even started. It was really unconventional and made the proud and scheming women in the back house in the hall feel a little confused for a moment.

But they all knew that Jia Cong was no longer the same as before. He was a hereditary earl and had become a powerful figure in the Jia family. As long as he did not do anything rebellious or out of line, the old lady would be unable to do anything to him.

Moreover, if someone with a title makes any mistake, other elders cannot deal with it arbitrarily. It also depends on the opinions of the palace and the clan affairs office.

Grandmother Jia's face darkened: "Why, now that you have been conferred the title and have acquired the Ningguo Mansion, you are shirking your responsibilities as a family member. Do you still have this family in your heart?"

Jia Cong replied, "Madam, it's not that I'm trying to shirk responsibility, but after Ningguo was stripped of his title and his property was confiscated, there is no Ningguo Mansion anymore in this world. How can I get Ningguo Mansion?"

When Grandmother Jia heard this, she was disgusted to death, but she couldn't seem to find any fault with it. She was holding her breath and was about to make an argument.

Before his mother could begin, Jia Cong continued, "The palace bestowed upon Cong by His Majesty is the Weiyuan Marquis's Mansion. The old lady called it the Ningguo Mansion, but that is inappropriate and would violate a taboo.

Cong was not a direct descendant of the Ning Kingdom, so he naturally had to avoid suspicion. It made no sense for him to support the Ning Kingdom's relatives.

Besides, Sister You is only my cousin’s sister-in-law, not my biological sister-in-law.

Cong is still a young man, and he has raised a sister-in-law at home. If this gets out, others will definitely criticize Rong Guofeng and damage his reputation... "

After hearing this, Lady Jia, Mrs. Wang and others all changed their expressions.

They all found it difficult to accept that Jia Cong had taken over the Ningguo Mansion.

I always wanted to add insult to injury, relying on the status of grandmother and younger generation, so that I could have some influence and control in the future.

Youshi is now rootless in the Jia family. Besides, she was originally the mistress of Ningguo Mansion, which is a good reason to attack her.

They had not thought about what Jia Cong said. After all, Jia Cong was still young, and they didn't feel too averse to it.

As long as such things were not spoken of, others would automatically ignore them. However, once they were spoken of, no one could avoid them, otherwise Jia Mu and Mrs. Wang would be in the wrong, or even violate the code of conduct for women.

There have always been many troubles around widows. Jia Cong is an unmarried man, so it is not suitable for him to live in the same mansion with his sister-in-law.

Not to mention that she is just a distant relative of yours, but you still forced her into her home to be raised. If this gets out, the Jia family's reputation will be ruined.

Wang Xifeng is a hero among women. She is the most clever and capable, and is also the best at using her tongue. Now she is a little impressed by Jia Cong when she sees him.

The third brother Cong's mouth, wow, is as sharp as a knife. He can even bring up women's ways to make a fuss. He is really hitting the old lady's weak spot. No matter how senior the old lady is, she has to retreat.

Fortunately, Youshi escaped just now, otherwise she would have been humiliated to death on the spot by the third brother Cong.

Jia Cong continued, "Besides, Sister You and Brother Rong, one was stripped of his imperial title by the court, and the other was exiled for violating the law.

Cong had just been conferred the title, and he had already made the move to support them, which was really too abnormal and would definitely embarrass the emperor and the court. If others knew that this was the old lady's order.

I'm afraid it will give the old lady and Rongguo Mansion an excuse. Those censors are omnipresent. As long as one impeachment is made, it will cause disaster, so Cong must not do it!"

In fact, Jia Cong said that supporting Youshi in the East Palace would damage her reputation and the ethics of women. Although Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang were somewhat unwilling because their plan failed, they had actually given up in their hearts.

Now, after hearing what Jia Cong said, they were all shocked to know that if this matter got out, even Lady Jia and Rongguo would be guilty.

The women in the back house, such as Jia Mu, only thought of using some methods within the inner house to control Jia Cong, but they did not have enough insight to connect these things with the outside world.

Now that I hear Jia Cong say this, it seems that this is really the case.

The emperor confiscated his property, convicted him, and stripped him of his imperial edict.

Now, people like them want the emperor's newly appointed earl to seriously support Youshi and Rong Ge'er in his mansion. Isn't this an insult to the emperor?

Mrs. Wang couldn't help but say, "Old lady, what Cong said makes sense. Zhen'er's wife lives in our West Mansion, and we women have someone to keep us company.

It’s indeed a little inconvenient for Congge.”

Grandmother Jia said with a depressed look: "You have learned so many truths outside, but when you are asked to take care of your family, you say such cruel words.

Forget it, forget it, I will take care of Zhen'er and her husband by myself, I won't bother you!"

He added, "Now you are going to live in the East Palace. The East Palace is such a big place, but now there is no servant. You are a child of my Rong country. If you want to leave the palace, we, as elders, cannot stop us.

You should discuss with your little girl Feng and ask them to transfer some reliable people from the West Mansion to serve you. They are all family servants, so you can use them with confidence."

Jia Cong thought to himself, as expected, the old lady has been waiting for him here. Alas, the old lady has been following the same old routine for so many years, and she hasn't changed at all. He is not Jia Zhen.

"Old lady, I only need to bring the people in my house with me. There is no need to transfer other people from the West Mansion. I have already bought thirty servants outside, which is enough."

Grandmother Jia was surprised and said, "What are you talking about? You have already hired thirty people from outside. Why waste so much money? There are not enough people at home for you to use.

Besides, thirty people are not enough for such a large Dongfu."

Jia Cong replied: "I am the only one in the Earl's Mansion at the moment, so thirty people are enough.

Besides, Cong is used to a simple life, and the old lady's people have experienced the scenes of the Duke's Mansion, so it would be inappropriate for him to go there."

Mrs. Wang, who was standing by, understood what was going on. This Congge was too careful with his threshold, not even leaving a gap for others.

Suddenly, Jia Cong and Jia's mother said, "I just want someone here, old lady."

Hope showed on the faces of Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang. Lady Jia even decided that even if Jia Cong wanted the older maids such as Yuanyang and Amber, she would give them away.

These were all her trusted maids that she had brought up personally, and she also knew that Jia Cong had the same temperament as her Baoyu and liked pretty maids, as could be seen from the ones he kept in his room.

But Jia Cong continued, "I want Sister Liu from the kitchen to come over and help me manage the kitchen. I've been eating her food for years, so I'm used to it."

Grandmother Jia had no idea which one was Sister Liu, but Wang Xifeng said, "She is Wu'er's mother."

Jia Cong replied: "That's right."

Grandmother Jia and Mrs. Wang looked indifferent. They both knew that Wu'er was Jia Cong's trusted maid, and they didn't have the ability to let her mother be the informant.

Wang Xifeng's pair of phoenix eyes moved between Jia Cong and Jia's mother, watching the two grandfather and grandson fighting silently.

It seems that the third brother Cong had already dug a trap, just waiting for the old lady and the wife to jump into it. It is really foolproof.

Now it's like a kite with a broken string.

(End of this chapter)