We haven't seen her for half a year. Lin Daiyu's figure has become slimmer and taller, and her expression has become more dignified. But when Brother Rong saw the look in her brows, the joy in it was really obvious.
Jia Rong sighed secretly, fortunately today, both Qin Keqing and Wang Xifeng stopped in the inner room to talk hand in hand because they were pregnant. He quickly invited Lin Daiyu in and asked, "Have you been to the old lady's place?"
"I just came back from the old lady. There are several ladies over there. I thought Sister Feng and Sister Bao are here today, so I might as well come and take a look." Lin Daiyu said calmly, "Brother Rong has returned to Beijing. , I didn’t even walk around to each house.”
Everyone?
It's probably because I didn't go to Lin's house.
Brother Rong scratched his head and said with an embarrassed smile: "Aunt Lin, please go into the room quickly. It's cold outside, so don't freeze yourself. I'll go to the West Mansion first and discuss anything with the masters of each house. Negotiate.”
After finishing her words, Jia Rong hurriedly left the yard. Lin Daiyu, who was leading the two maids Zijuan and Xueyan behind her, wanted to stop him to talk, but she could only look at the back of Brother Rong as he left in a hurry. The joy on Xiao Daiyu's face suddenly dissipated a lot, and she snorted coldly. He led the two maids into the main room.
When Wang Xifeng saw Daiyu coming over, she couldn't help but joke: "Who is celebrating the Chinese New Year and offended our sister Lin."
Lin Daiyu sat down leisurely. Thinking about how happy I am today, I finally met Brother Rong, but I didn't say a word to him. His eyebrows were slightly raised, and he said nonchalantly: "There is nothing uncomfortable about the first month of the year. I just came all the way and didn't look at the cat I knew back then. I don't know where it went to be lazy."
Wang Xifeng chuckled and said: "So that's what happened. I haven't seen these cats and dogs in the house for a long time, and they are indeed very interesting. Does my sister know the temperament of those cats and dogs? Are they not causing fights under the eaves? Just stealing food in the corner."
Xue Baochai secretly glanced at Feng Yatou, but the smile on his face became even brighter. Said: "Cats and dogs are like this. If you kiss them for a while, they will pester you. If you leave them for a while, the cats and dogs will go to others to seek warmth."
Wang Xifeng nodded in agreement: "Sisters see it most clearly, and they also see its roots clearly. Now that Rong's wife and I are pregnant with a child, it's a good thing that the cats and dogs don't come to have fun."
Baochai's face gradually turned red, and he looked at the bellies of Keqing and Xifeng. Qian Qian raised the corners of his mouth, showing a mechanical smile. No longer talking about cats and dogs with them, I went to find Lin Daiyu and whispered about the Jinling Garment Factory.
Keqing and others in the room really didn't understand the meaning of the cats and dogs. After talking for a while, Grandma Rong lay down to rest and invited Youshi to entertain the girls with Ruizhu and Baozhu.
Besides, Jia Rong went to Xifu, met with all the gentlemen, and then went to the old lady's yard to say hello.
Yuanyang opened the curtain for Uncle Xiao Rong, and he quickly entered the room.
On the old lady's side, Mrs. Xing, Mrs. Wang, and Aunt Xue are in charge of the master's room. Aunt Zhou and Aunt Zhao, as well as Aunt Zhu, Li Wan, Jia Lan, Baoyu, Jia Huan, etc., are also in charge of Yingchun, Tanchun, and Xichun. Miss Shijia was present.
The room was very lively.
Jia Rong first greeted the old lady, and then asked the elders in turn their year. During the first month of the year, although some people in the room did not like Jia Rong, they did not show any signs of disgust. Even Mrs. Wang said a few words of encouragement to Jia Rong.
Brother Rong is a thick-skinned person who listens to everything he says and laughs cheerfully. The several young aunts didn't have any ill feelings toward him, and Yingchun was not very talkative, but Tanchun asked about the whereabouts of Daiyu and Baochai.
Brother Rong replied: "The two aunts are busy in Dongfu, and the second aunt is also there."
Tan Chunyuan was most familiar with Daiyu, and they had not seen each other many times since Daiyu came back from Yangzhou. After hearing the news, I felt longing for it. I couldn't help but ask the girls around me: "Let's go to Dongfu too. The plum blossoms are in full bloom there. It's fun to look for them in the snow."
Yingchun has no opinion. Xichun and Dongfu were originally estranged from each other, but they were able to talk things through a bit, and now they are no longer as repulsive as before. The two looked at Baoyu and Xiangyun.
Jia Baoyu wanted to go there. He might as well see Sister Lin and Sister Bao there. I just thought about Baochai coming back from Jinling a few days ago. Although she was kind to him, she always felt like she was thousands of miles away. Lin Daiyu even refused to pay attention to him. Even if she saw him, she would always talk about Brother Rong's majesty in Yangzhou.
Baoyu glanced at Jia Rong with resentment, feeling that everything that belonged to him had been robbed by Brother Rong. Said: "I won't go to that excitement."
Baoyu didn't want to go. Xiangyun had been close to Baoyu since childhood and was not familiar with Dongfu, so he didn't want to go.
Tanchun asked Grandma Zhu Li Wan again, but Li Wan shook her head and refused. He looked at his younger brother Jia Huan again, and when he spoke, he was afraid that brother Huan would go to Dongfu and make trouble, so he stopped asking.
The matter fell into Aunt Zhao's eyes, and she glanced at Tanchun with resentment. But there was no room for Aunt Zhao to speak. Watching Tanchun lead the other two springs away, Baoyu and Xiangyun left the room again, and Jia Huan was the only one standing there alone. Aunt Zhao felt even worse.
Jia Rong has said hello and it's time to leave. However, the old lady stopped him and said, "Your uncle from the Lin family is strolling in the garden behind. Brother Rong, please come over and keep us company."
After hearing this, Brother Rong also wanted to see what the legendary Grand View Garden looked like.
The maid led him out of the old lady's yard, through a ceremonial gate, and to the edge of Sister Feng's yard. They saw that the passage behind Li Wan's room had been built into a wall. A door opened between the courtyards of Sister Feng and Li Wan. Jia Rong passed through the door and entered the other courtyard built for Yuanchun's relatives.
When we got inside, we changed to a boy to lead the way. Brother Rong looked around and saw that although the courtyard had its initial appearance, it was not yet completed. There are still bricks and tiles parked in many places, and the roads in the courtyard are quite complete.
As the young man approached Lin Ruhai and others, it turned out that Jia Zheng, an idler in the mansion, was leading a group of cleaning guests to take Lin Ruhai to visit the unfinished courtyard. Jia Rong went over and Jia Zheng gave a lecture based on seniority.
It gave Brother Rong a headache.
After swimming around with a group of older men, he also made a calculation in his mind. It is estimated that the provincial hospital's other courtyard will not be fully repaired until spring and summer. Calculating it this way, the time in this world is very different from his fragmented memory of the Red Mansions story.
Not right at all.
At nightfall, Jia Rong returned from Xifu.
Manager Lai Sheng came over again and said, "Wuzhuangtou is making a lot of noise and wants to see the uncle."
Jia Rong asked in confusion: "Why is General Manager Lai so concerned about this matter? Could it be that he has received benefits from the Wu family?"
Lai Sheng trembled, fearing that Uncle Rong would misunderstand, and said anxiously: "Uncle, I know it well. Wuzhuangtou did intercede with the old servant, but the old servant really thought about the house. Wuzhuangtou said that he was willing to take care of everything. I’ve told you, I’m afraid I’ll be delayed later.”
"Delay, what can be delayed?" Jia Rong laughed coldly and said dissatisfied: "Can't he still dream of returning to Heishan Village to reunite with his wives?"
Lai Sheng replied in a low voice: "From what Wuzhuangtou said, most of the Wu family's greedy money has been used to run businesses in recent years. Now that the Wu family has no one in charge, if they don't come back, I'm afraid all the business will be delayed." Let’s go.”
"Oh, I'm still thinking about business." Brother Rong snorted and couldn't help but smile in his heart. He sneered: "Since he's not used to staying there, just bring him here. I'd like to hear about him." Something to say.”
Lai Sheng was ordered to go out.
Jia Rong turned around and went to the study. After sitting around for a while, Lai Sheng came over with Wu Jinxiao.
"Wish you all the best, sir."
Wu Jinxiao bowed his body and sang an auspicious line respectfully. When I looked up and saw Uncle Rong's stern face, my heart inevitably sank. Secretly thinking, this is the fate of the Wu family, a fate that cannot be escaped.
He couldn't understand why such a person would suddenly appear in Ningguo Mansion and raid someone's home.
well
Uncle Rong said: "Tell me what you have to explain."
Wu Jinxiao also knew that he and his son were now under house arrest in Shenjing, and the Heishan Village Estate was also under surveillance. How could they resist as servants? As long as the household registration status remains unchanged, the Wu family will become the slaves of the Jia family.
A master can take ownership of a domestic slave.
Wu Jinxiao was afraid. Heishan Village is far away from Shenjing. If something happens to the Wu family's female family members in Heishan Village, they in Shenjing will not know. The longer time passed, the more afraid he became. There is also business outside. If the businessman takes the money and runs away if the delay is too long, he will not even have the money to accompany Ningguo Mansion.
He slowly knelt down and kowtowed: "I beg you to give me a way out for the Wu family. I am willing to explain everything."
A way out?
Jia Rong never wanted Wu Jinxiao to die, or anyone in the Wu family to die. Even if the Wu family embezzled a huge amount of money, Jia Rong would not let them die. This is not to say that he has a holy mother's heart and would let such people go, but that he knows that it is better to let the Wu family die than to let the young and old of the Wu family work hard at Shenjing Village.
Jia Rong was not in a hurry at all and said calmly: "Wuzhuangtou lives in Ningguo Mansion. Although the conditions are not as good as in Heishan Village, the mansion does not make things difficult for him. The Jia family is a good family and cannot do harm to others." A matter of life.”
Although Wu Jinxiao did not make things difficult, Wu Jinxiao lived with the Jia family's slaves and was inevitably isolated, abused and blackmailed by other slaves. A domestic slave who made a heinous mistake was still the leader of the once glorious Black Mountain Village. There were always slaves in the Ningguo Mansion who wanted to step on this master Zhuangtou who fell from above.
If someone from the Lai family went to the village, other people would still consider it for the sake of Grandma Lai and Lai Sheng and not be too harsh on the Lai family.
But the Wu family and even Wu Jinxiao were suppressed, so where could they find other backers. Those who were once envious and jealous of the Wu family took advantage of this opportunity to bully the Wu family as much as they wanted.
Wu Jinxiao felt bitter in his heart. At the beginning, he watched with his own eyes as the Ningguo Mansion allowed Heishan Village to take control step by step, and then he began to think about deducting rent and secretly selling forest trees, medicinal materials, and wild animals.
How could a nosy person like Jia Rong appear in the defeated Ningguo Mansion?
I really can’t understand it.
It is not the responsibility of a brother from a wealthy family to take care of such mundane affairs.
Wu Jinxiao said: "My uncle is kind-hearted, so he won't harm people's lives. It's just..."
"Don't waste my time with other gossip. If you don't want to explain, just go back to the room."
Brother Rong waved his hand, he really didn't like the hesitation in speaking. He had made up his mind that regardless of whether Wu Jinxiao would give an account or not, he would let Lai Sheng lead a large team of people to raid the Wu family in the spring of next year. From then on, every few years, he would change people to Heishan Village to take turns as the head of the village. Then push everyone in the Wu family back to Shenjing and send them all to the village in Shenjing, and the matter will be over.
"Uncle, my old servant explains." Wu Jinxiao saw that Jia Rong didn't give him a chance to intercede, so he kowtowed again and said hurriedly: "Over the years, the old servant has deducted tens of thousands of taels of rent from Tianmu Villa and secretly sold trees in the mountains. , ginseng, deer antlers, deer penis, bear paws, mink skins and other items, totaling more than 100,000 taels of silver."
Jia Rong was not satisfied after hearing this. Tuan Tuan said: "Could it be that after hearing the amount from Manager Lai, he started making nonsense. The rent was ten thousand taels, and the medicinal materials and wild beasts were more than one hundred thousand taels. Are you still thinking of fooling me now?"
"I don't dare to tell you the truth."
"Hey, tell the truth? Don't say I'm a bad person, Mr. Wuzhuang. Your behavior in the court is at least a crime of confiscating your home and being exiled. We don't want to embarrass you. Since you don't want to explain, there is no need to say anything. I wanted to return the favor. Bring it to your female family members, but now it seems that there is no need, so I might as well just sell it all for money at the border of Bei Liao to make up for the losses of Ningguo Mansion."
"Ah?" Wu Jinxiao was stunned. Selling the women of the Wu family? Wu Jinxiao was shocked when he was treated like this. He murmured: "I hope the uncle will show mercy for the generations of Wu family who have worked hard for the house."
Jia Rong took a sip of hot tea and asked slowly: "If I show mercy, what benefits will Ningguo Mansion get?"
This is what Jia Rong has always cared about. Even in his eyes, the Wu Jinxiao in front of him can be regarded as a talented person with a flexible mind. In just a few years, he can accumulate more than 100,000 taels of wealth, which is much more profitable than cement.
Wu Jinxiao said eagerly: "In these years in Northern Liao, my old servant often did business with the overseas island countries of Dabazhou, Li Chao in the east, and Eros in the northwest. Dayan's medicinal materials, porcelain, silk, and tea were in Dabazhou and Li Chao. , Eros and the Three Kingdoms are selling well, and Heishan Village’s medicinal materials are mostly sold to these places. If I increase my business, Heishan Village will definitely have a steady stream of copper and silver in the future.”
Jia Rong said: "The Northern Liao Dynasty is separated from the Li Dynasty by the Changbai Mountain, and it is separated from the Great Eight Continents by the Li Dynasty Peninsula. Is it necessary to transport it from the Bohai Sea? It seems that Wuzhuangtou is quite capable."
Wu Jinxiao replied: "The Northern Liao area can go to the sea from Vladivostok, go south to the Li Dynasty, and east to the Great Eight Continents."
Jia Rong just suddenly realized that she almost forgot about Vladivostok. What a great place, he suddenly became interested. Asked: "How far is Black Mountain Village from Vladivostok?"
Wu Jinxiao replied: "It's not far. Ninggu Pagoda and Vladivostok are both south of Heishan Village."
Jia Rong had an idea. Now, he no longer cares much about Tan Mo, and instead asks about Wu Jinxiao's trade with Dabazhou, Li Dynasty, and Eros.
Wu Jinxiao replied: "Heishan Village is far away and the east is barren. Although the imperial court set up a customs in Vladivostok, it did not have much control. Nowadays, businessmen from various countries often stay in Heishan Village. Although the number of people is not large, there are many transactions. A lot of money."
