Jiapingguan Chronicle

Chapter 2877 Master Qingsong 95.0
After hearing Song Yaojia's words, the faces of the group all showed expressions that were hard to describe.

Song Yaojia held his teacup, looked at this and then at that, and smiled helplessly. To be honest, if he were Gongsun Yue, he would probably have lost his temper on the spot after hearing Gong Sheng's words.

"Doesn't this seem a bit outrageous?"

“Outrageous?” Shen Cha shook her head slightly. “It was not unexpected that he would say such a thing.”

"As expected? Why?"

“It’s just in line with his foolish style; it’s something he would say.” Jin Miaomiao thought for a moment. “Gong Sheng is the most capable one among them, but he’s just the best of a bad bunch. After all, the others aren’t even close, right?”

"That's true."

“Then it’s understandable that he’s not very skilled and could say such things.” Jin Miaomiao spread her hands. “I just feel a little powerless in the face of someone who is stupid without realizing it and is even smug about it.”

"Stupid without realizing it?" Shen Cha held up a finger and waved it at Jin Miaomiao to express her disapproval. "He's not stupid, he's just ignorant."

"ignorance?"

"The special circumstances of Jinyang Lane are common knowledge to us because our elders told us about it, but for outsiders, it's completely unfamiliar and unknown, right?" Shen Cha smiled at Jin Miaomiao and said, "Now, there are probably not many people who still know the origin of Jinyang Lane. People from families like the Gong and Ma, let alone Gong Sheng, even their patriarchs probably don't know. After all, when those two Princesses of Jinyang were enjoying their moment of glory, they were probably eating dirt in some grave, right?"

"This..." Jin Miaomiao looked at Shen Cha and nodded at her, "It really is true. His Highness said the same thing before."

“That’s something Ganggang overlooked; Xiaocha is right,” Song Yaojia yawned. “Only a few aristocratic families from the previous dynasty who lived in the capital for many years know about the past of Jinyang Lane. Although it’s not nice to say it like that, it’s true that people forget about you once they’re gone. Whether it was the first princess or the later one, once they left this world, they gradually lost their stories, and people slowly forgot about them. It’s understandable that the Gong and Ma families didn’t know about them when they were in power, since they hadn’t yet risen to prominence.”

“It’s understandable that they didn’t know, but,” Jin Miaomiao frowned slightly, “the Yun family, as a prominent family of the previous dynasty, should have known, right? It seems that even those members of the Yun family were unaware.”

"It's normal that those few people from the Yun family don't know because they're quite far removed from the main family. These kinds of stories about the former royal family are usually only passed down by the main family's lineage. After all, there are some minor families in the south who are descendants of the princess's former lovers. If you unfortunately run into them, you have to give them some face, right?"

"That's true."

“I understand what you mean, Xiao Cha.” Song Yaojia looked at Shen Cha, smiled, and said, “We know that Jinyang Lane is a complete princess's residence, but in the eyes of outsiders, it’s just the home of those rich and powerful people, a dozen or so mansions, no different from those high-ranking families. When we look at feng shui, we look at the feng shui of Jinyang Lane as a whole, while they only look at the feng shui of one house, right?” “Yes, that’s what I mean.”

“According to what you said,” Jin Miaomiao stroked her chin, looked at Shen Cha, then at Song Yaojia, and said, “then everything makes sense. Your Highness, have you been to Gongsun Yue’s residence?”

“I’ve been there a few times,” Song Yaojia recalled. “However, each time I went, I didn’t pay much attention. In my eyes, this was just the Princess’s residence, only in different courtyards. But now that I think about it, what Gong Sheng said seems to make sense. Gongsun Yue’s house is the largest in this alley and occupies the most central position. After all, this is the main courtyard of the Princess’s residence. The main hall and the sleeping quarters are in this main courtyard, and it is very luxurious and imposing, which makes it look very different from the other courtyards.”

"But it shouldn't be top-heavy, right?"

“I have a slight feeling about it.” Song Yaojia held up two fingers to indicate. “Actually, it’s not very obvious unless you look closely. But you know, Gong Sheng came here this time to find fault and to show off his so-called abilities, so he will exaggerate a bit.”

"That's more than just a little!" Jin Miaomiao snorted. "What was Gongsun Yue's reaction?"

"On the surface, she was very calm and flattering, agreeing with everything Gong Sheng said, but inside she was cursing him like crazy."

"It's really hard on him, the Director of the Imperial Observatory, to have to listen to a layman spouting nonsense." Shen Cha shook her head helplessly. "He also has to hold back his temper and not lose it." She looked at Shen Haolin, "He has a much better temper than me."

“If it were you, I’d probably give him a good whipping.” Shen Haolin touched her hand, feeling it was a little cold, and then held it in his own palm. “The reason Gongsun Yue was able to do so well in the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Imperial Observatory is because of his forbearance.”

“That’s right.” Song Yaojia nodded. “My father and uncle valued this quality in him, which is why they befriended him, and Master Qingsong did the same.” He chuckled. “The reason he tolerated Gong Sheng’s outrageous remarks in front of him is because he had seen and dealt with too many people like that in his life. Whether he was the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review or the Director of the Imperial Observatory, there were always plenty of ignorant people who would come up to him and point fingers. And the final fate of these people…” He smiled faintly at Shen Haolin and Shen Cha, “was not good. They reaped what they sowed.”

"I've heard that Lord Gongsun's methods are quite formidable, and in the end, none of those people had a good ending." Shen Cha raised an eyebrow slightly. "Gong Sheng was arrogant in front of him, which means he kicked a hornet's nest. Of course, Lord Gongsun was going to deal with them anyway."

“Indeed.” Song Yaojia nodded. “After Gong Sheng finished pointing out the overall layout, he started pointing out the furnishings in the mansion. Although he was amazed by the exquisite and luxurious furnishings of Gongsun Yue, his attention was not on them. But these furnishings did give him some confidence.”

"Confidence? What confidence?" Jin Miaomiao asked curiously, "The confidence to take advantage of someone's misfortune?"

“That’s right.” Song Yaojia snapped his fingers. “The furnishings are so luxurious, which shows how wealthy the family is. If he asks for more gold and silver, it won’t hurt him in the slightest.” He sighed softly and said, “I have to say, it’s not without reason that neither the Gong family nor the Yun family wants these good-for-nothing juniors to go out and make their way in the world. These people are just too ignorant of their own limitations.”