In the Rongguo Mansion, Jia Lian left the banquet early and there was no show in the courtyard.
Simply eating wine would inevitably be less interesting, so the members of the clan soon dispersed.
On the other hand, the women inside knew that Jia Mu liked to be lively. After the meal, most of them went back to Jia Mu's Rongqing Hall to chat about their parents.
Suddenly, everyone came in happily and said loudly: "Old lady, Second Grandma Lian, I'm very happy.
The Queen Mother and our mother-in-law have all given us rewards! "
Jia Mu and others were startled for a moment, and then became happy.
After a while, I saw a group of palace eunuchs walking on the corridor outside carrying various red goods.
The two leaders were both wearing bright red eunuch robes.
One of them is Xia Shouzhong, the eunuch of the Sixth Palace. After this person was granted the title of imperial concubine in Yuanchun, he often came to Jia's house to convey orders and request gifts, and Jia's mother and Mrs. Wang were all familiar with him.
It's just another person whom they don't know.
The other women in the hall had already made room for the eunuchs so that they could carry all the things in.
"Old lady, ladies and gentlemen, please be polite."
Xia Shouzhong stepped forward, bowed, and said with a smile.
Jia Mu and others also stood up to greet him and responded, their eyes falling on the old eunuch beside Xia Shouzhong.
Seeing this, Xia Shouzhong introduced with a smile: "This is the eunuch general consul of Weiyang Palace, Eunuch Zhou."
Although Jia Mu and others come to the palace every year for banquets and the like, they mostly meet the Queen and rarely the Queen Mother, so they don't know the manager of Weiyang Palace.
Hearing this, he looked busy and respectful.
The eunuch surnamed Zhou was not arrogant at all, he just smiled and said a few polite words, and then said: "I sent these things to your residence in accordance with the order of the Queen Mother. I would like to express my congratulations to the Marquis of Zhenyuan on the way."
Jia Mu and others were about to kneel down to thank the Holy Grace. After being called up, they looked at the valuable goods laid out on the floor. They were secretly shocked and couldn't help but ask: "May I ask my husband, why did the Queen Mother lower her to such a high rank?" reward?"
During every festival in Yuanchun, Jia Mu and others would not find it strange that she would give some valuable things to her home.
But what Yuanchun gave today was obviously a foil, and they could all see that it was mainly a reward from the Queen Mother.
Eunuch Zhou smiled and said: "This time, the Marquis of Zhenyuan escorted the princess back to the capital safely, and the escort was well done. The Queen Mother was very happy and specially sent down this kind of reward."
Sure enough, Jia Mu and others thanked him hurriedly, and asked people to invite Jia Lian over.
However, when Eunuch Zhou heard that Jia Lian was not in the palace, he had no intention of meeting Jia Lian. He said there was no need to bother and returned to the palace with Xia Shouzhong.
As for Rongqing Hall, the women in other rooms saw the gifts from the Queen Mother and the noble concubines piled up in the hall. They were all envious and said congratulations one after another.
Even Aunt Xue couldn't help but feel envious when she looked at the wealth in the house.
The Xue family has no shortage of these goods, but the wealth and honor rewarded by the Tian family are always different from what the family earns from business.
Knowing that Rongguo Mansion would be busy counting these things, she got up, said goodbye to Jia Mu and others, and left with her daughter Baochai.
And when she left, it was inconvenient for others to stay, and they all left one after another.
Soon, only the family members in the mansion were left in Rongqing Hall.
Mrs. Wang looked at Wang Xifeng, who was leading several maids and servants to happily count their belongings in the hall. She tilted her head and said to Jia Mu: "Old lady, although the garden behind is basically completed now, I still want to welcome my empress back home to visit her relatives. There are also a lot of expenses.
Now the remaining money in the library has basically gone somewhere. After the New Year's Day, there are still several gifts that need to be given that have not yet been received. Now that there are rewards from the palace, maybe they can handle it. "
When Jia Mu heard this, she immediately understood what Mrs. Wang meant.
She looked a little unhappy.
First, she was unhappy that Mrs. Wang bothered her with such matters. She had long since stopped caring about her family affairs.
The second is dissatisfaction with the fact that the family has such a huge family property, but it is still being squeezed, and now they are plotting against these people.
But then Jia Mu's expression softened again.
She also understood that her family spent too much money on the garden in the future.
Almost all available places at home and outside were used.
Even she paid tens of thousands of private disciples for this!
She also understands Mrs. Wang's difficulties.
And she also knew that ever since the east courtyard was opened and the two houses were combined into one, this kind of thing was inevitable.
Logically speaking, since we are a family, our income and expenses should be unified.
But with so many people in the family, can’t they really ignore each other?
For example, if others honor Jia Mu with some good things, she must also give them out and share them with everyone, right?
This is unrealistic.
Therefore, according to the family's previous practice, the goods received by individuals are naturally distributed among individuals.
As for the farms and shops in the mansion, as well as the courtesy exchanges between various families, they are all recorded and paid out uniformly by the officials.
In the past, it was totally fine for Jia She and Jia Zheng to separate their accounts. Both sides discuss their own issues.
But now, the family is one again. However, both Jia Zheng and Jia Lian can make things happen outside, so it is inevitable that there will be disagreements.
For example, in the past, Jia Zheng was in charge of the house alone, and other people could keep the things they received for themselves or send them to the official treasury for the sake of him or Mrs. Wang.
For another example, Yuanchun's rewards, if they are not designated to Jia Mu or anyone else, will go directly to the official treasury.
But things are different now.
The money in the official treasury needs to be used jointly by Jia Lian and Jia Zheng.
If a colleague or friend of Jia Zheng brings a gift to the house, will Mrs. Wang allow him to become an official?
Obviously not.
Mrs. Wang has done the same thing this year.
Wang Xifeng did this even more.
In the past few years, Jia Lian has received various rewards one after another. Others gave Jia Lian gifts. Wang Xifeng basically received them quickly and kept them at home for his own use.
As a result, everyone has their own plans. The official income is too much and the income is too little, so it is natural to make ends meet.
The shortcomings have not shown up before. After all, it is supported by the foundation of the government for a century. Nowadays, the construction of a Grand View Garden has made Guanzhong bear a burden that it cannot bear.
The prosperity fades away, revealing its true appearance.
Now, Mrs. Wang was in trouble.
Wang Xifeng didn't care. No matter how difficult it was in the officialdom, her private treasury would still be fertile, so there was no need to worry at all.
It's no wonder that Mrs. Wang is interested in these things awarded by the Queen Mother, and wants to ask Jia Mu to see if they can be used in the officialdom.
In Mrs. Wang's view, as long as Jia Mu agrees, Wang Xifeng will not disagree.
Mrs. Wang even secretly resented that Wang Xifeng had obeyed her in the past, but since Jia Lian became powerful, Wang Xifeng had become more obedient and submissive to her. But Wang Xifeng is very smart and smooth, so she can't hold back the pain.
How did Mrs. Wang know that the reason why Wang Xifeng no longer listened to her was because Jia Lian blew the wind next to her pillow day and night.
Under Jia Lian's repeated reminders, Wang Xifeng also realized that the former Mrs. Wang was indeed suspected of taking advantage of her.
Taking advantage of her jealousy, she prevented Jia Lian from taking concubines, and since she could not give birth to a son herself, Jia Lian's title would most likely go to the second wife in the future.
In addition, when he was ordered to be convicted by the Queen Mother and almost expelled from the Jia family, Mrs. Wang, the aunt, did not help her. On the contrary, it was Jia Lian who never left her. Comparing the two, she naturally knew who to rely on.
"Old lady, we've sorted it out. Take a look. If there's anything you like, just take it."
Wang Xifeng was a good person. Knowing that everyone was jealous of her, she turned around and wanted to bribe Jia Mu.
Jia Mu took the list and took a look at it, but she really didn't want to speak.
In fact, there seemed to be a lot of things, but when added up, they were only worth two to three thousand taels of silver. In the past, this small amount of money was really beyond her reach.
"Girl Feng, you are in charge of the house now, and you know the situation at home.
Just now, your wife said that after the New Year, there are still several mansions that have not prepared all the gifts.
Nowadays, my home is not as good as in previous years, and there is no other place to collect money.
These things are all fresh. It would be a pity if you take them home and leave them for nothing. Why not just keep them in the official office for your disposal? "
If the eunuch hadn't said that the Queen Mother made a special trip to reward Jia Lian that week, Jia's mother wouldn't have been so embarrassed.
Even if everyone knows that it is because of Jia Lian, as long as the Queen Mother does not say anything, it can be regarded as a reward from the Queen Mother to the Jia family. It is natural for such things to be sent to the officials.
Wang Xifeng was stunned for a moment, but she reacted quickly and immediately said with a smile: "My wife is right, I naturally know the situation at home.
Let's do this. All the things our mother-in-law gave us will be sent to the officials. I think it will be enough to prepare gifts for several families. "
Wang Xifeng and others judged the situation almost instantly and gave up the car to save the commander.
After all, Jia Mu has spoken, so it won't work if she doesn't give in.
