Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 354 Youthful and Slim

Rongguo Mansion, East Courtyard.

Jia She was sitting in front of the mercury mirror while Qiu Tong was combing his hair. He also took a small ox horn comb and carefully combed his sparse beard.

He is over fifty years old, his hair and beard are gradually graying, but his heart is young and he pays great attention to his appearance.

But no matter how you trim the donkey dung bullet, it is still full of wrinkles. It is useless and unsightly.

Qiu Tong, who was dressing him up, was youthful and charming. The pair of white hair and red face in the mirror were quite eye-catching.

A lot of concubines have been married into the East Courtyard, and Jia She has been biting off more than he can chew in recent years.

I don't know why, but my lustful desire is getting stronger and stronger.

These days, I have been thinking about the sixteen charming singing girls in Xingxiang Tower.

Seeing Madam Xing coming in, he asked, "Can you still withdraw two thousand taels of silver from the account?"

When Mrs. Xing heard what her master said, she knew what he meant, because the housekeeper Qin Xian followed Jia She in and out every day.

Qin Xian was the uncle of Yingchun's maid Siqi. Because Yingchun was taken to the second house of the West Mansion to be raised since she was a child, Qin Xian and his family followed her to the West Mansion. He originally worked as a clerk under Mrs. Wang.

Therefore, their family belongs to the eldest branch of the East Courtyard at its root.

Later, Yingchun listened to Jia Cong's advice and let Siqi leave the house to get married. Yingchun was then taken to the East Palace by Jia Cong to be the eldest lady.

Qin Xian's family has lost their foundation in the West Mansion. Mrs. Wang appears to be kind and benevolent, but she is actually full of calculations for the inner house. Yingchun is no longer in the West Mansion, so how could she still keep a thorn from the first house around her?

So he found a random excuse and sent Qin Xian back to the East Courtyard.

Qin Xian had suffered such a miserable life that he naturally felt resentful towards the West Mansion and the Second House. This was exactly what Mrs. Xing wanted, so she made him the steward of the East Courtyard and made him her confidant.

Therefore, Mrs. Xing had already known about her master's recent affair with the singing girl through Qin Xian.

Mrs. Xing came from a humble family, and by chance she became Jia She's wife, and was also granted an imperial decree, which was a great fortune.

In addition, she had been unable to give birth, so she was still somewhat wise. In order to maintain her status, she gave up her natural jealousy.

She was devoted to helping her man find a concubine in order to consolidate her own position, and nothing had happened to her for all these years. Even after the incident with Wang Shanbao a few years ago, Jia She did not divorce him.

It’s not that they are a loving couple.

However, these concubines under Jia She were all playthings bought with money. None of them came from a decent family background. They were all useless and could never become the principal wife...

Now she saw that Jia She, who was over fifty years old, still wanted to buy a teenage slut for his sexual pleasure. This slutty vixen was actually worth two thousand taels. Did he really think that the money came from the wind?
Although Mrs. Xing felt disgusted, she did not dare to show any sign of it.

With a face full of crying poverty, he said, "Master, the old lady listened to the nonsense of that beast in the East Palace and paid half a year's summer tax. There is so much silver missing from the account. How can our courtyard still have a vacant balance of 2,000 taels?"

Jia She looked unhappy and said, "How can you be so tight on money? I heard that the Zhongyuan Festival ancestor worship costs three thousand taels of silver, and Lian'er's wife easily paid the bill.

It shows that there is still money in the family. If you hold on to it, I won’t let you go!”

Jia She naturally knew that his wife was a person who only cared about taking in money and not spending it, and she guarded money more than her life.

Mrs. Xing became anxious when she heard this. Ever since the incident at Wang Shanbao's house, the old lady had become increasingly unfriendly to her over the years. If she made her master dislike her again, she would have no future.

In order to maintain her position, she gave up her jealous thoughts and focused all her attention on greed for money. Therefore, she paid close attention to the money transactions in the mansion and knew a lot of details about them.

Wang Xifeng and Yuanyang used Lady Jia's jewelry to make ends meet. Although the matter was not publicized, Lady Xing still heard about it.

Now that Jia She was trying to stop her with words, how could she not bring this up?

He hurriedly explained, "Master, you don't know the truth. The three thousand li of silver that Lian'er's wife has is not from the public treasury at all. There is no such idle money in the public treasury now.

This is Lian'er's wife asking Yuanyang to steal things from the old lady's treasure chest, pawn them for money, and redeem them after the famine is over, without anyone noticing."

When Jia She heard this, he said angrily, "How dare they steal the old lady's things."

Mrs. Xing's eyes turned and she said in a veiled tone, "Master, why are you so confused? Lian'er's wife is the niece of the Second Mistress and she is in charge of the West Mansion. She is short of money.

The old lady would never ignore it. Even though Yuanyang stole it by buying favors, as long as she redeems it, the old lady will turn a blind eye to it. After all, she loves her youngest son."

When Jia She heard this, he felt that it hit him right in the heart: "Who asked her to love her youngest son?"

Back then, he brought an oiran into the family. The old man was so angry that he was bedridden. He held a grudge against him until his death, and before he died, he gave the title of survivor to the retired emperor. The retired emperor therefore approved the request and issued an edict to split the title of Rong into two.

The first wife inherits the title, and the second wife inherits the mansion and property.

This incident caused him to suffer a lifetime loss, and now he only has an empty title, and he has to look to the West Palace for the face before he can spend a few taels of silver.

Mrs. Xing continued, "Besides, Yuanyang is very loyal to the old lady. Although he lent things to others, he probably knew what the old lady was thinking. You don't know how much trust the old lady has in Yuanyang. She gave the treasure box she had accumulated for a lifetime to Yuanyang to take care of. It is worth more than decades of silver in the palace. Yuanyang is the old lady's golden key."

When Jia She heard this, his eyes gradually brightened. If he could win over Yuanyang, wouldn't he be able to get hold of the treasure chest that the old lady had accumulated all her life? This would be a mountain of gold and silver.

He recalled the Ghost Festival banquet when he looked into the flower hall from the porch and saw Yuanyang giving a back massage to the old lady.

Although her appearance is not as pretty as Zhishao who was beside that beast, her figure is also very charming. If I could give her...

……

When Mrs. Xing saw the evil look in her master's eyes, she knew what dirty thoughts he was thinking, but she was happy to see it.

She talked a lot to Jia She, all of which was to arouse her master's thoughts. After being husband and wife for half their lives, she still didn't know what was in her man's mind.

Mrs. Xing had long set her eyes on the treasure chest carried by the old lady on Yuanyang. She could take the old lady's things at will and she had the final say on the amount. This little girl was the Jia family's gold mine and silver treasury!

Mrs. Xing values ​​money more than anything else, so a gold nugget like Yuanyang would surely make her jealous.

Her family background was not good, and she herself had no children to support herself. She lived only for money and wealth.

Is there anything else in the Rongguo Mansion that is more valuable than the treasure chest that the old lady has accumulated for her entire life?

I heard that when the old lady married into the Jia family, the dowry from the Shi family stretched for more than a mile. The previous thirty years were the richest and most glorious period for the Rongguo Mansion. How terrifying must the private belongings in the old lady's treasure chest be.

According to a will from the old man, her family lost the right to inherit the title. But if she could get Yuanyang, it would be like having a back door into the West Mansion, and she would have access to the things in the old lady's treasure chest.

She was the first wife who was granted an imperial title. Even though the old lady despised her so much, for the sake of her reputation outside, she would not easily touch him, let alone a yellow-haired girl.

Even if the master really gets her one day, she will just be a concubine after she enters the house. She has to serve him tea and water and follow the rules. She is still under his control.

Therefore, if her master were to go get that Yuanyang, she would be 100% willing. This would be a hundred times more worthwhile than for him to buy those sluts outside.

……

Jinling City, Dazaimen, Xinchunhao Jiangnan Head Office.

The shop on the first floor is filled with Xinchunhao’s exquisite perfumes, newly developed perfume pans, wenge bristle brushes and other rare items.

There are not many customers in the store, because the head office is generally only responsible for distributing supplies to the lower-level stores and purchasing various manufacturing raw materials.

Today, Xinchunhao has opened four branches in the prosperous areas of Jinling City. Ordinary customers usually go to those places to buy things.

However, as the first store opened by Xinchunhao in Jinling, the main store still has a small number of old and familiar customers visiting.

In the shop on the first floor, a teenage girl, wearing a lavender satin cross-collared vest, a white cross-collared gauze dress, and a white long skirt, looked extremely lively and cute.

The little girl was explaining the new items in the store to a woman. Her little mouth was sweet and eloquent, which made the woman very happy. Not only did she buy a lot of things, but she also chatted a lot with the little girl.

When Xinchunhao first settled in Jinling, Jia Cong wrote a letter to Liu Hai, a captain of the Jinling Jinling Jinyiwei, asking him to use his connections in the Jinyiwei to take good care of Xinchunhao.

Liu Hai is the confidant of Ge Zhicheng, the chief officer of the Jinling Jinyiwei, and has a lot of say in the Jinling Jinyiwei. In addition, Ge Zhicheng attaches great importance to Jia Cong's identity.

Therefore, each centurion of the Jinling Jinyiwei took great care of Xinchunhao, and the women of these centurions often went to the store to buy things.

Qu Hongxiu was a man who had traveled the world before and was well versed in the world and human nature. Qin Keqing was also a wife with a crystal heart, so naturally she could win over these women very well.

Today the girl is receiving the wife of the centurion of Xinglongfang.

After the girl saw the centurion's wife out, she turned and went up the stairs.

She was active by nature and was not used to wearing long skirts. When she went up the stairs, she lifted her skirt a little high, revealing a piece of white silk trousers and a pair of gray-green shoes embroidered with plum blossoms.

The footsteps going up the stairs were very hurried, making the stair treads make a loud clatter.

A moment ago, she was a well-behaved and agile little beauty serving customers in the store, but as soon as she climbed a flight of stairs, her tomboy nature was revealed.

She entered an inner room on the second floor, where two young women were sitting. One of them was bent over a desk, concentrating on reading an account book. She was graceful, delicate, charming and stunning.

Seeing the wild look of the little girl, he smiled, but there was a hint of pampering in his expression, and said with a smile: "Baozhu, put down your skirt."

Baozhu was in a hurry to go up the stairs just now, and she forgot to put down her skirt. After hearing this, she looked a little embarrassed, and quickly put down her skirt and tidied it up obediently.

Another woman in the room was sitting and drinking tea. She had a slender and graceful figure, was extremely beautiful, and had a heroic face, making her unforgettable at first sight.

The little girl said to the tea-drinking girl, "Sister Xiu, just now the wife of the centurion of Xinglongfang came to buy something, and I got the news according to your instructions.

The soldiers and horses moving around in the city yesterday were because the Jinyiwei received an imperial decree and arrested Zhou Zhengyang, the commander of the Jinling Guard, in Linqing Street in the east of the city, saying that he was the mastermind behind the big case of the Water Supervision Bureau back then!
It’s just that the imperial envoy failed and let Zhou Zhengyang escape, and now they are searching the whole city for him.”

(End of this chapter)