Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Xinglongfang, the old residence of the Jia family.

Jia Cong looked at the rice paper on the desk, which was covered with words dripping with ink, most of which were the common words he had taught last time.

There were also many words of Lingguan's own name written on the rice paper, because when Jia Cong taught her to read, he specifically taught Lingguan to write her own name first.

She was born in a poor family and her family randomly gave her the nickname Xiaofu, which she was called for more than ten years. It was not easy to raise a little girl, and she never had a proper name.

Ever since she was sold to the opera troupe by her family, she could only make a living by washing clothes and cooking for the troupe every day. She couldn't help but feel disappointed and resentful towards her family.

Xiaofu, the nickname given to her by her parents, has long been dispensable to her.

It was not until Jia Cong and Zou Min'er bought her that the master of the opera troupe gave her the stage name Lingguan. Although it was just a stage name, it was much more meaningful than her original nickname.

Naturally, she took it as her real name, but the stroke structure of this name was not simple, and she found it quite difficult to write when she first learned it.

When Lingguan saw Jia Cong staring at her name, her face turned red, she covered the word with her hand and said, "My handwriting is too ugly, please don't read it, young master."

Jia Cong laughed and said, "How can it be ugly? You have only practiced for a few days. It is not easy to write like this. You are really smart."

After hearing his praise, Lingguan blushed and moved her hand away, pointing to one of the characters and saying, "The character ling in Lingguan's name has too many strokes, so it's always hard to write it well. Look how ugly it is."

Jia Cong saw the word "age" on the rice paper. It had many strokes, an unbalanced structure, and was a little crooked, which looked a bit like a child's cute doodle.

And Lingguan's beautiful eyebrows were tightly furrowed, her lips slightly raised, and she looked at the word "ling" she had written, as if she was somewhat disgusted with herself, and she couldn't help but feel a little amused.

He picked up the brush and wrote the two words "Lingguan" neatly in elegant and correct regular script on a blank space on the rice paper, which made Lingguan's eyes light up.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "There is no shortcut to writing. Just write more and practice more." Then he handed her the brush with comfort and encouragement in his eyes.

Lingguan took the brush and copied the two words written by Jia Cong exactly.

She is gifted and intelligent. After just copying a few times, her writing has improved a bit compared to before, but there are still some shortcomings. After all, this is not something that can be achieved overnight.

Jia Cong smiled and took a new piece of rice paper, walked behind her, stretched out his right hand to hold her small hand holding the pen, guided her, and wrote her name on the rice paper four or five times.

Every time he wrote a stroke, he would remind her in her ear the tips of how to turn the brush, how much force should be applied, how to go slowly and quickly return, and so on.

Lingguan's hands are very delicate, with soft and thin palms, slender fingers, and a beautiful and charming hand shape when holding a pen.

But when Jia Cong held her little hand in his palm, he found it a little rough. He thought that it was because she did laundry and cooked every day in the opera troupe, which had roughened her hand skin. He couldn't help but feel a little pity for her.

Lingguan only felt that Jia Cong's palm was gentle and comfortable, and she felt a strange sense of security and joy when his hand was held.

Originally, when she was copying the calligraphy, she was fully focused and her arms were always tense.

Now that he was holding my little hand, I felt inexplicably relaxed.

With a smile on her lips, she followed Jia Cong's guidance, drawing strokes one by one, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, with an indescribable smoothness and pleasure.

As the brush strokes rise and fall, sometimes like reaching a peak, sometimes like a waterfall, the palms are together, the skin is in contact, the arm strength is generated together, and one can faintly feel the mysterious meaning of calligraphy.

Lingguan had never thought that writing could bring such exciting pleasure. She hoped that Jia Cong would hold her hand like this and continue writing like this...

From outside the window came Douguan Shuangcui's sonorous singing: "The huge fireworks don't let go of sorrow, the courtyard locust tree blows the late autumn..."

The music is melodious and lingering...

The magnolia tree that Douguan practiced singing in front of was tall and graceful. Although it had not yet reached its flowering season, it was lush and leafy under the bright sunshine, and each leaf was filled with a charming new green.

……

Jinling, Chengxian Street, Haiyun Pavilion.

Everyone in Jinling City knows that ten years ago, the Zhen family in Jinling produced a business genius, Zhen Yingquan, the second son of the Zhen family.

He had a unique vision and saw the huge potential of maritime trade early on, before the imperial court established the three local customs offices and announced maritime policy measures.

He then rejected all objections in the clan, sold part of the Zhen family's ancestral property, raised a large sum of gold and silver, established the Zhen family fleet in advance, and purchased shops in a prosperous area in the city.

When Emperor Jiazhao resolutely implemented the policy of foreign maritime policy, the Zhen family of Nanjing was one step ahead of everyone else and competed to grab the first pot of gold from the maritime policy of the Great Zhou.

Although Zhen Yingquan disappeared at sea five years ago, the naval political foundation he created for the Zhen family has become the greatest guarantee of the Zhen family's wealth.

What's more, he also had an outstanding daughter who had the same keen vision and tenacity as him, and was even more intelligent than him.

This Haiyun Pavilion is located in a prime location in Jinling. It is the largest of the five Zhen family shops founded by Zhen Yingquan.

Ever since Zhen Yingquan got into trouble five years ago, although his only daughter, Zhen San Niang, took over her father's business, she is still a woman after all.

After a period of internal strife and tug-of-war within the Zhen family, the third son of the eldest branch of the Zhen family began to get involved in the family business.

Perhaps because he did not want to show weakness to his exceptionally capable cousin in front of others, the Third Master Zhen also paid attention to the family business.

Because Haiyun Pavilion is the Zhen family's largest maritime trade store, he often comes to the store to take a look around, see how popular the store is, and check the day's cash flow.

This morning he went to inspect Haiyun Pavilion as usual, but he encountered a very annoying thing.

The second wife's chief steward suddenly came to the shop and wanted to transfer the second wife's current year's dividends and surplus silver from previous years, totaling 180,000 taels.

Even with the wealth of the Zhen family, 180,000 taels is definitely not a small amount.

Zhen Shiwen suppressed his anger and asked, "Uncle Xian, why did you suddenly take away so much money?"

Liu Xian said respectfully, "Third Master, these are the dividends from the second branch of the store, as well as the surplus money accumulated in the account in previous years. According to the rules, it is reasonable for the second branch to take them away."

Zhen Shiwen saw that he looked respectful and spoke gently, but his words were soft yet firm, leaving no room for negotiation.

Although Liu Xian was a servant of the Zhen family, Zhen Shiwen did not dare to break up with him easily, and they had to maintain some decency between them.

The servants born in aristocratic families serve their masters for several lifetimes and have very close relationships with the elders in the family.

Liu Xian's grandparents were both dowry servants of Old Lady Zhen and were the old lady's most trusted confidants.

Liu Xian's grandfather had passed away long ago, but his grandmother was still very strong and often went into the inner house to chat with the old lady. The old lady had always been very close to the Liu family's children.

Besides, Liu Xian was his second uncle's confidant, the head of the second house's business, and the right-hand man of his third sister. No matter what his identity was, Master Zhen San had to be cautious.

Zhen Shiwen patiently asked, "Did Third Sister ask you to come and withdraw the silver?

Now is the peak business season. Whether the store is purchasing goods or buying on credit from old customers, it needs to keep a certain amount of cash in a safe.

How can the shop continue to do business if the third sister takes away so much money at once?"

Liu Xian said, "The third lady and I have checked the store's accounts. Even if the money is taken away, the store's cash flow is enough to support daily business transactions. The third master doesn't have to worry."

Zhen Shiwen was speechless after hearing this. He had just shouted that the money could not be withdrawn, otherwise the store would not be able to do business, but he was looking for a reason to stop it.

After all, the incident happened suddenly, so he would never think of calculating the details of the bank's cash flow in advance. However, he knew that his cousin was a business genius, extremely intelligent, and very clear about the accounts. Liu Xian was also a person who had been in the business world for half his life.

Since they came to the store to withdraw so much money, they must have checked the accounts beforehand, and they are confident that it will not affect the normal business support of the store, which must be correct.

But no matter what, Zhen Shiwen didn't want them to mention the hundreds of thousands of taels of silver easily, even though the silver should have belonged to the second house.

Zhen Shiwen asked, "Why did the third sister take so much money at once? Isn't the money from the second house enough for her to spend?"

Liu Xian smiled and replied, "The third lady opened a Xiuwen Pavilion on Fenghe Street, and she negotiated a deal with the shopkeeper Qu of Xinchunhao and signed a contract.

He planned to open a trade route with Xiuwen Pavilion and Xinchun Hao. In addition to running the maritime trade business, he would also engage in the incense business of Xinchun Hao.

Third Master, you also know that Xinchunhao is a prestigious merchant and has done huge business in Jiangnan in the past two years.

The third girl valued the prospects of the incense business and spent a lot of effort to establish a relationship with Xinchunhao.

If we want to do business with such a big imperial merchant, we naturally need to accumulate a lot of capital, so we have to extract the idle silver from the old shop."

……

Zhen Shiwen was moved when he heard this. Xinchunhao was a royal merchant that had risen rapidly in Jiangnan in the past two years. Its incense business was booming day by day, and it had become a new elite among the wealthy merchants in Jinling.

He had also thought about establishing a relationship with Xinchunhao and sharing some of the benefits of the incense business. However, Qu Hongxiu, the head manager of Xinchunhao, was very shrewd and capable and never cooperated with foreign businessmen.

I asked people to speak for me several times, but they ignored me completely. I didn't even get to see the real face of Miss Qu.

After all, his cousin is a powerful person. She can even establish a relationship with the unyielding Xinchunhao. Zhen Shiwen couldn't help feeling jealous and dissatisfied.

But then he thought again that the last time his wife came back from the capital, she had lobbied the old lady many times.

It is said that Jia Cong, the Weiyuan Marquis of Rongguo Mansion, is a man of outstanding character and talent, and even his second brother-in-law values ​​him very much. The Zhen and Jia families are old friends, so Jia Cong and the third sister are a good match.

Even though the old lady lived deep in the inner house, she had heard of Jia Cong's reputation. After all, he had made such great military achievements at such a young age and was granted the hereditary title of Earl, which was a unique feat in the Great Zhou.

It is widely rumored that the boss behind Xinchunhao is Jia Cong.

Could it be that the third sister took the lady's words to heart and developed feelings for Jia Cong, which is why she joined the Xinchun?

……

Liu Xian continued: "The third lady said that in addition to withdrawing the interest and deposits from Haiyun Pavilion.

If we expand the business with Xinchunhao, we will have to pay the interest and deposits of the year in advance in the other four stores."

Zhen Shiwen's heart skipped a beat when he heard this, and he blurted out, "That means he has to take away four or five hundred thousand taels in total!"

Four or five hundred thousand taels of silver are withdrawn every year. If this amount of silver is withdrawn every year in the future, how much silver will be taken away by my cousin!

Originally, Zhen Shiwen was somewhat excited at the thought of doing business with Xinchunhao.

Now that he heard that his cousin not only joined the Xinchun business, but also wanted to expand the business to such a large scale, he felt extremely unwilling.

The Xiuwen Pavilion that her cousin had just opened was a new store opened with the private money of her second wife. The first wife did not have a single ounce of silver to invest in it, so naturally she had no control over this new store at all.

Because my cousin was doing business with Xinchunhao, she transferred all the dividends and surplus money from the second wife's old shop to the new shop. It was obvious that the money would be hard to get back.

It would be extremely difficult for the first wife to get this huge sum of money back.

If this cousin gets married in the future, this private shop she opened will definitely be given as a dowry, and the money from the new shop will rightfully go into her pocket.

My cousin really has good intentions and good methods!
……

There is a reason why Zhen Shiwen thinks this way.

Historically, aristocratic families have had a family law that states that each branch is not allowed to accumulate private property before it separates from the family.

But the situation of the Zhen family in Jinling is very special. The eldest wife, Zhen Yingjia, only cares about hereditary official position. He is aloof by nature and does not understand anything about business or economics.

The second son, Zhen Yingquan, was a business genius. All of the Zhen family's business was planned and built by him. All of the Zhen family's wealth and gold came from Zhen Yingquan.

So even though Zhen Yingquan was the second son, he was not the head of the Zhen family. Even after he got into trouble and only left behind an only daughter, the second branch still had a great say in the Zhen family's business.

There is nothing that can be done about it, since the Zhen family's business was built by Zhen Yingquan alone, and many members of the Zhen family rely on Zhen Yingquan to live a good life.

The hard work of the second branch cannot be erased in any way.

Not to mention his cousin, who was born extraordinary. Although she was a girl, she had completely inherited her father's talent for business.

When his cousin entered the palace to accompany the old empress dowager, it was his second uncle who made the effort to facilitate it and found a scary backer for his cousin.

From this point of view, the shrewdness and foresight of my second uncle are really scary.

It is precisely because of these reasons that my cousin, despite her youth and beauty, has been able to firmly occupy the position of the head of the Zhen family business.

Even if she used her own private money to open her own shop, no one except the old lady of the Zhen family would say anything unacceptable.

This is also the reason why Zhen Shiwen is so wary and cautious towards this cousin.

Thinking of this, Zhen Shiwen naturally would not let Liu Xian take the money easily.

He said, "Uncle Xian, the amount of silver is too large. Let me go back home and discuss this with my third sister. You don't have to rush in a day or two."

Before Liu Xian came to withdraw the silver, he knew that as long as Mr. Zhen San was in the shop, it would not be easy for him to withdraw 180,000 taels of silver.

He and Miss Zhen San had anticipated this matter, so it was not surprising.

He knew that Zhen Shiwen's words about going back to discuss it with the girl were just an excuse, and his eloquence was no match for the third girl.

Most of the time, he would go back home and talk to the old lady and the wife, and use the old lady's influence to save the situation.

Little did he know that the Third Miss had already anticipated that the Third Master would use this trick.

Zhen Shiwen and Liu Xian were both lost in their own thoughts when they suddenly heard a flurry of footsteps outside the store, as if a lot of people were coming towards the store.

At this time, the shop assistant ran in in a panic.

Panting, he said to Zhen Shiwen, "Third Master, the Jinyiwei brought many people to surround the store, and the front door and the back are blocked.

Jinyiwei said that the Third Master had smuggled firearms. Now Jinling City has severe punishments for the private possession of firearms. The Third Master is a suspicious person, and they want to search the store!"

When Zhen Shiwen heard this, his face changed drastically.

When Liu Xian heard this, his eyes lit up! (End of this chapter)