I'm in the Red Mansion

Chapter 157 The old man is still in trouble, but he has great ambitions.

It would be fine if he just had achievements, but he also has a bad temper.

If there was something he didn't like, he couldn't help but glare and curse.

In the seventh chapter of Dream of the Red Chamber:
Jiao Da also took advantage of Jia Zhen's absence and could not do anything even if he was at home, so he could live as he pleased.

Because he was drunk, he first scolded the chief steward Lai Er, saying that he was unfair, bullied the weak and feared the strong.

"If there's a good job, send someone else. But for something like this, why send me? You're such a heartless bastard! You're just pretending to be a housekeeper!"

"Don't you think about it? When Master Jiao lifts one of his feet, it's higher than your head. Who does Master Jiao have eyes for in the past 20 years? Not to mention you bunch of bastards!"

Seeing that he was too wild and unbearable, the servants came up, grabbed him, tied him up, and dragged him to the stable.

Jiao Da even mentioned Jia Zhen, shouting and yelling, "I wanted to go to the ancestral hall to cry for my grandfather. I never expected that I would give birth to such beasts!"

"Every day, they steal dogs and play with chickens, they have affairs with other women, and they keep their uncles. I know everything. Let's 'hide our broken arms in our sleeves'!"

When the servants heard him utter such outrageous words, they were so frightened that they didn't care about anything else. They tied him up and stuffed his mouth full of dirt and horse manure.

Jia Cong couldn't figure out why this lawless troublemaker came to see him.

Jia Cong then asked someone to invite Jiao Da in.

Not long after, Jiao Da came in.

When Jia Cong raised his eyes, he saw that Jiao Da was tall. Although his hair and beard were all white, he was still strong and powerful.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Old man, please sit down and talk."

Jiao Da couldn't help but clasp his fists and said, "This old slave is not worthy of the three words of old man, please just call me by my name, Third Master."

Jia Cong knew that this person had a rather strange personality, so he nodded and said, "Well, Jiao Da, why did you come to see me?"

Jiao Da couldn't help but say: "This old servant has been deeply blessed by the master, and I regard this Duke's Mansion as my own home."

"When Master Zhen was here, he made this Duke's Mansion a mess. I didn't like it. I tried to persuade him several times, but it was useless. Instead, I became disgusted."

"Later, the Emperor appointed the Third Master to be the head of Ningguo Mansion. I was really happy in my heart."

"What kind of person is the Third Master? He was able to defeat the Qing Dynasty's best archer in a competition. His prowess is no less than that of the Great Master."

"I feel that with the Third Master's arrival, the Duke's Mansion will finally be clear and bright."

"Unexpectedly, after the Third Master came, he actually didn't care about the petty things in the mansion."

"This really disappoints me, so I came to ask you, Master San."

"If Third Master thinks I am too nagging, just send me to the farm to farm. I won't be bothered by it if I don't see it."

Hearing Jiao Da's words, Jia Cong's heart was moved.

He suddenly remembered Mr. Lu Xun's evaluation of Jiao Da:

In fact, Jiao Da’s scolding was not to overthrow the Jia family, but to make the Jia family better. However, if the master and servant were like this, the Jia family would not be able to continue.

However, the reward he got was horse manure. So Jiao Da was really the Qu Yuan of the Jia family. If he could write, I think he would have written something like "Li Sao".

Jiao Da felt sorry for the Ningguo Mansion's misfortune and was angry at their lack of fighting spirit.

Since Jiao Da has made such great contributions, why didn't Jia Zhen use him?

The main reason was that Jia Zhen did not dare to use him.

Because Jia Zhen himself was not upright and behaved improperly, if he used Jiao Da, he would be constantly contradicted by Jiao Da and would be very annoyed. But if it was me, there would be no problem at all, after all, I was not Jia Zhen.

Thinking of this, Jia Cong couldn't help but ask: "Jiao Da, I just arrived at Ningguo Mansion, and I don't have any staff to use. I am completely in the dark about the situation in Ningguo Mansion."

"I wonder what kind of dirty things are going on in Ningguo Mansion? I want to hear what you have to say."

Hearing Jia Cong say this, Jiao Da couldn't help but show a look of relief on his face.

He said, "Third Master, if we talk about the dirty things in Ningguo Mansion, housekeeper Lai Er should be the first one."

After saying this, Jiao Da couldn't help but look at Jia Cong.

Seeing that Jia Cong's expression did not change, he continued, "This Lai Er, relying on the fact that his mother was a maid who came with the West Mansion's ancestor as a dowry, manipulates the mansion, cultivates his clique, and suppresses the virtuous."

"He has made the entire Ningguo Mansion a mess. He is the main culprit for the chaos in Ningguo Mansion!"

Good fellow, it's just a matter of one prefecture, but you turned it into a court dispute!
But there is some truth in what he said.

Jia Cong asked again: "What about the people below? You might as well continue talking."

Jiao Da nodded and said, "The people below are just a bunch of mustard ringworms."

"For example, some servants were dishonest and stole valuables from the mansion."

"There are also maids who secretly take things from the master's room, and there are also some shameless people who are obscene and absurd in private, doing many despicable things, which have ruined the reputation of the mansion."

After hearing what Jiao Da said, Jia Cong also began to take it seriously.

The reputation of Ningguo Mansion is indeed terrible.

In the book "Dream of Red Mansions", Liu Xianglian once said: In your East Mansion, except for the two stone lions outside the door, even the cats and dogs are unclean.

This shows what Ningguo Mansion looks like in the eyes of outsiders.

There is also a passage in the 19th chapter of Dream of the Red Chamber:
Baoyu thought about it and went to the study. As soon as he reached the window, he heard a groan in the room. Baoyu was startled: Could it be that the beauty is alive?

He mustered up his courage, licked the window paper and looked inside. The beautiful woman was not alive, but Mingyan was holding a girl, doing what Jinghuan had taught him.

Look, Jia Baoyu's servant in Ningguo Mansion can force a maid to do this kind of thing.

If this girl is unwilling, would Mingyan dare to do such a thing?

He definitely wouldn't dare to do that. If that girl started shouting and the matter was exposed, Mingyan would probably be beaten to death.

Therefore, it can be seen that the people in Ningguo Mansion are indeed rotten to the core.

It really needs some rectification. Otherwise, even my reputation will be ruined.

Thinking of this, Jia Cong couldn't help but say, "Jiao Da, if what you said is true, then the Ningguo Mansion is indeed rotten to the core and has reached the point where it must be rectified."

"I intend to thoroughly clean up Ningguo Mansion, but I don't have any available manpower. Are you willing to help me?"

Hearing this, Jiao Da stood up suddenly, clasped his hands together and said happily: "Your servant Jiao Da is willing to die for the Third Master!"

Jia Cong waved his hand and said, "It's not that serious. You have been in the mansion for many years, so you should know which people in the mansion are loyal and useful."

"I will appoint you as the commander of the palace guards and form a guard team."

"You can select the staff in the mansion at will. It is better to be short of staff than to hire too many people."

"I'll give you five days to use it. Can you do it?"

(End of this chapter)