Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 322: Don't Marry a Pig or Dog

Rongguo Mansion.

An unexpected guest suddenly came to the mansion today. He was Sun Shaozu, who was supposed to come to the mansion to discuss the wedding date two days ago.

But today he came to the mansion not to discuss the wedding date with Yingchun, but to specifically visit Master Cong Sanye and even handed him a visiting card.

Marriage is a matter of etiquette. Two days ago, Sun Shaozu failed to show up for the marriage proposal, which was a great disrespect and humiliation for a prominent family like the Jia family.

Sun Shaozu's sudden visit this time even made the housekeeper Lin Zhixiao look unhappy. However, as a family servant, he could not react too much and just maintained the proper etiquette of hospitality.

Lin Zhixiao asked the servant to take him to Songxuan Hall to serve tea, and at the same time asked someone to go to the inner courtyard to invite Master Cong San to meet the guest, and also hurriedly asked someone to notify the old lady and the eldest master.

The engagement of the second young lady of the mansion is the top priority at the moment. When the prospective son-in-law who broke his promise came to visit, Lin Zhixiao naturally notified the person in charge of the mansion as soon as possible.

As for why the future son-in-law did not come to discuss the wedding date, but instead wanted to meet the Third Master in a serious manner, Lin Zhixiao had no idea what was going on.

……

Ever since that day, when Sun Shaozu heard what Mr. Cai San said in Chunhua Tower, he had already backed off from his marriage with the second young lady of the Jia family.

That's why he delayed arriving on the date for the marriage proposal agreed with the Jia family.

But he still hadn't given up completely and was reluctant to give up the power of the Rongguo Mansion and Jia Cong.

He still held on to a glimmer of hope, hoping that Mr. Cai San was exaggerating.

So when he went to the Jia Mansion today, he did not look for Jia She, because he had realized that he could get the benefits he wanted through this marriage.

The key lies not with Jia She, but with Jia Cong.

The last time Jia She helped him plan for a vacant position in the Ministry of War, he failed in the end. Now he has figured out that although Jia She has a noble title, he is an idle official without real job and is probably useless.

And from what Mr. Cai San said, Jia Cong is not only a newly-appointed earl, but also has close ties with the governors of nine provinces and deep roots with the Ministry of War. This person is the source of power in the Jia family.

He wanted to gain benefits through this marriage, but Jia Cong was an obstacle he could not get around.

He shamelessly came to the door and directly sent a letter requesting to meet Jia Cong. It was a last ditch effort to test the truth in person.

Is Jia Cong's attitude towards this marriage really as hateful and disgusting as Mr. Cai San said?

Sun Shaozu hoped that the shock that happened in Chunhua Tower that day was just the drunken talk of Mr. Cai San.

……

In Qingzhizhai, the sisters are gathering together to kill time.

Yinglian was copying calligraphy at her desk. She had a pretty face, delicate eyebrows and eyes, and was wearing a long jacket embroidered with lavender magnolia flowers, a plain white horse-faced skirt, and a red gold necklace.

Tanchun was standing aside, watching with interest.

Among the maids in Jia Cong's room, Yinglian is the one who pays the most attention to literary affairs.

She was abducted by Dong Laoer and had lived a miserable life since childhood. She relied on the opportunity to clean a private school to supplement her income and learned to read and write by just sitting at the door and listening to the lessons.

Since following Jia Cong, she has been in charge of Jia Cong's study. She is influenced by Jia Cong's reading and writing on a daily basis and becomes more and more obsessed with literary matters.

Every day, Daiyu, Tanchun and other sisters would come to Qingzhizhai to hang out. They would gather together to recite poems and couplets, and Yinglian could also answer fluently, which was quite surprising.

Moreover, she had imitated Jia Cong's calligraphy to about 60% of the standard. Even Tanchun, who was well versed in calligraphy, praised her highly.

Daiyu was talking to Zhishao, and the topic they were talking about was the plum blossoms in Panxiang Temple in Suzhou. Since Daiyu was from Suzhou, she naturally had a favorite preference for the people and scenery there.

Wu'er and Qingwen were putting things in the yard in order. They had been packing up bit by bit over the past few days because they would be moving to the East Mansion soon.

Jia Cong was playing chess with Yingchun. What happened in Chunhua Tower a few days ago had resolved the big stone in Jia Cong's heart. There might still be some things to be cleaned up, but he believed that the overall situation had been decided.

Maybe it was because he was in a good mood. Originally, his chess skills were not as good as Yingchun's, but today he was evenly matched with her.

At this time, a maid from the second gate came to report that someone was coming to the mansion to visit the Third Master and had brought a visiting card. Jia Cong saw that Sun Shaozu's name was written on the visiting card.

His heart was moved slightly. After a little thought, he guessed the intention of Sun Shaozu's sudden visit. This man was cunning and fickle, and indeed extraordinary.
Last time, I designed a plan to let Cai Xiaoyu control and intimidate me with words, but he still didn't give up. I had to give him a heavy blow so that he would never have the slightest thought of doing so again.

So he asked the maid who delivered the message to call his personal servant Jiang Liu to wait for him at the second gate, as he had something to tell him.

He smiled at Yingchun who was thinking about it, "Second sister, if I go to your wedding, you won't blame me for being nosy, right?" Yingchun heard Jia Cong suddenly talking about marriage, glanced at Jia Cong, her face slightly reddened, "I didn't want to get married in the first place, I wanted to stay at home with my sisters for a few more years, it was the eldest master who insisted on this marriage.

Brother Cong has always been the best to us sisters. I am weak and useless, and only Brother Cong can be relied on. If you think this marriage is not good, but there is a way, I will let you make the decision."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Then I will make the decision for once. Second sister, please don't underestimate yourself. You are a smart and kind person. There will definitely be a good result in the future. I will be back soon. You can continue this game of chess when I come back!"

After Jia Cong left, Tanchun heard what had just been said and came over to ask, "Second sister, Third Brother has a lot of ideas, maybe he can really get married.

But after all, the other party has offered a betrothal gift, and the girl will eventually get married, so you don't have any scruples in your heart?"

Yingchun thought for a while and said, "My mother died when I was young, and the master doesn't care much about me. I am also a concubine's daughter, so most people who come to marry me are attracted by the family background of the Jia family.

I am a mediocre person, not as smart and generous as my third sister. I don’t know what my life would be like if I went to someone else’s home. Only by staying at home with my sisters can I live a peaceful life.

Brother Cong is the one who is wholeheartedly planning for me. It is right for me to let him make the decision for me. Even if he doesn't marry and stays in the mansion, I can always take care of my brother."

Tanchun looked at Yingchun. She didn't expect that her usually taciturn sister could actually say such words. She felt a little admiration and envy.

Then she thought of herself, and felt heavy and sad in her heart. Wasn't she also a daughter born out of wedlock? Would she be married off as a decoration in the future by someone who was attracted by the power of the Jia family, regardless of whether he was a legitimate or illegitimate daughter?...

……

In Rongqing Hall, Jia's mother received a message from the housekeeper that Sun Shaozu had come suddenly, not to discuss the wedding date with the Jia family, but to meet Jia Cong.

Grandmother Jia was also a little puzzled, so she sent her trusted maid to Songxuan Hall to find out what was going on. No matter what, her granddaughter's marriage had to be announced today, and it would not be good to delay it any further.

When Jia She from the East Courtyard heard that Sun Shaozu had suddenly come to visit, he became furious. On the day agreed upon for the marriage proposal, this boy did not show up on time, causing the old lady to scold him severely.

She blamed herself for finding such an unreliable son-in-law. She had already given the three letters of betrothal gifts, but he avoided setting a wedding date for no reason and did not even give an explanation. This had ruined the reputation of the daughter of the Jia family.

Now Sun Shaozu did come to visit, but he neither discussed the wedding date nor came to see him. Instead, he sent an invitation to visit that beast, which made Jia She angry and felt ashamed.

So he sent his trusted servant to wait in Songxuan Hall, both to find out what was going on and to let Sun Shaozu come to the East Courtyard to see him after he had met that evil creature.

At this time, Sun Shaozu was waiting anxiously in Songxuan Hall, and he didn't notice the figures and footsteps flashing by the door of Songxuan Hall from time to time.

He had made up his mind that when he met the newly promoted Earl of Weiyuan, he would find out if he was really as disgusted with this marriage as Mr. Cai San said.

Sun Shaozu would give up without hesitation. Since he could not borrow the power of the Jia family, he would not make enemies with the Jia family.

If this is true, then I will lose my only way to stay in the capital.

Perhaps he could follow the path of Mr. Cai San, but he is the son of a civil official, and has never wanted to be proficient in both civil and military affairs...

As for the young lady from the Jia family with whom he had exchanged engagement letters, Sun Shaozu had never taken her seriously. She was just a bargaining chip for him to gain power.

He was almost finishing his cup of tea, but the Songxuan Hall was still empty. Jia Cong did not come to meet him, and seemed to be quite disrespectful, which made him even more uneasy.

At this moment, suddenly a young man of about thirteen or fourteen, with an upright figure and a calm expression, walked into the hall. Although he was wearing the clothes of a servant of the Jia family, his behavior was not at all servile.

He asked, "Sir, you are here to visit our Third Master Cong."

Sun Shaozu stood up. He saw that the boy had good manners and must be someone close to Jia Cong. He replied without hesitation, "I am Sun Shaozu. I am writing to ask to see the Earl of Weiyuan."

The young man looked at him quietly and said, "Our Third Master Cong asked me to tell you a message. A noble lady of the Jia family will not marry a pig, a dog, or a vulgar person. If you dare to come to our house again, Third Master will break your legs with his own hands!"

The young man spoke clearly and with a bright voice, every word he said was as powerful as a spear or a halberd, echoing in the empty Songxuan Hall!

After hearing such arrogant words, Sun Shaozu opened his mouth in surprise. His face turned pale in an instant, then quickly turned red. He was shaking slightly, not knowing whether from fear or anger.

I didn't expect that what Mr. Cai San said was true, and Jia Cong actually hated this marriage so much!
I sent him a visiting card with great courtesy, but he didn't even see me. He just sent a servant to get rid of me and said such harsh and cruel words to threaten and humiliate me.

It's obvious that they don't want to get married, they want to make enemies!
If I still agree on a wedding date with Jia She and dare to marry his elder sister, he will definitely use more violent means to deal with me.

I am unfamiliar with the people and the place in Shenjing, so how can I be a match for him, a noble from a Shenjing family.

Now Sun Shaozu really regretted that he did not listen to the advice of Mr. Cai San, and he went to the house to find out the truth, and suffered humiliation in vain.

After the young man finished speaking, he gave Sun Shaozu another cold look and walked out of Songxuan Hall as if nothing had happened.

Outside Songxuan Hall, there were swaying figures and a few slightly flustered footsteps, coming from near and going far away...

(End of this chapter)