The Second Master of the Red Chamber

The state banquet, which should have been a pleasant occasion, ended in a tense and mysterious atmosphere due to the interference of members of the royal family.

"Lord Rong, please wait. His Majesty summons you."

A chief eunuch of the Daming Palace bowed and walked up to Jia Lian.

Jia Lian glanced at him, said goodbye to the people around him who had come forward to talk to him, and then, amidst their envious gazes, followed the eunuch into the inner palace.

Upon arriving at the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Emperor Ningkang was changing into his everyday clothes, attended by several palace maids.

Seeing Jia Lian bow as he entered, he instructed, "Today is New Year's Eve. Go to Chonghua Palace and visit the Emperor Emeritus."

"Yes."

Emperor Ningkang's order did not surprise Jia Lian.

Perhaps it was because of what he said at the banquet that Emperor Ningkang genuinely wanted him to be a role model for others to see.

Perhaps Emperor Ningkang still cherished some father-son bond and couldn't bear to see the retired emperor alone in the deep palace, cold and desolate, with no one to visit him.

Seeing that Emperor Ningkang had only given a brief instruction and then remained silent, Jia Lian stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, tomorrow is my sister's birthday."

I think that tomorrow is New Year's Day, and there are many affairs in the palace, so it is not appropriate to bother you too much.

"I would like to request Your Majesty's permission to visit her today."

Emperor Ningkang was taken aback for a moment before realizing that the sister Jia Lian was referring to was Yuan Chun.

Thinking that Jia Lian was clearly of imperial blood, yet under pressure from him, he dared not claim to be a member of the imperial clan.

Even today, they have offended those old stubborn members of the royal family.

Now that he still considers the Jia family as relatives, there is no reason for him not to agree.

"Yes, but don't linger too long in the inner court."

After noon, wait at the Meridian Gate and accompany me to the Imperial Ancestral Temple to offer sacrifices to our ancestors.

Jia Lian was truly baffled. After hesitating for a moment, he said awkwardly, "Your Majesty, perhaps this is not a good idea..."

Emperor Ningkang glanced at him and sneered, "What, do you think I'm bluffing you? Or do you think that if you don't go, the people of the world and all the civil and military officials won't know your identity?"

Emperor Ningkang was somewhat displeased.

He didn't publicly acknowledge Jia Lian's bloodline at the time simply because it was, after all, a scandal within the imperial family, and it was inconvenient to discuss in detail.

Another reason is that he wanted to use Jia Lian, but it would be more effective for him to simply act as a subject.

However, today, those princes and nobles of the imperial clan have practically made Jia Lian's identity public, which is tantamount to making it public.

Now, after more than half a year of cleansing and reshuffling, he has completely taken control of both the court and the palace.

Therefore, he is no longer too worried that anyone will use Jia Lian's identity to make a fuss.

Allowing him to accompany the ancestral worship ceremony was both to reassure Jia Lian and a tacit acknowledgment of Jia Lian's status.

Although the emperor's tone was not very pleasant, Jia Lian could still tell that the emperor's intention in having him accompany him to the Imperial Ancestral Temple was good.

Therefore, he immediately expressed his gratitude and, led by two eunuchs from the Daming Palace, went to Chonghua Hall to visit the retired emperor.

……

After leaving the palace, Grandmother Jia and the others went straight to the Ningguo Mansion.

After waiting for a long time, Jia Lian still hadn't returned, and the eight sons of the Jia family started to make a fuss.

It should be noted that Jia Lian is still the acting patriarch of the Jia family, and the ancestral worship ceremony still needs him to preside over it.

Just then, Jia Zheng ran back and reported to Grandmother Jia: "Grandmother, Lian'er has sent word that His Majesty has ordered him to accompany the Emperor to the Imperial Ancestral Temple and he cannot return for the time being."

The son was asked to preside over the ancestral worship ceremony.

Grandmother Jia and the others were taken aback, and then their expressions became somewhat complicated.

Clearly, they all knew what it meant when the emperor sent Jia Lian to accompany him to the Imperial Ancestral Temple.

Jia Lian had originally intended to leave the mansion and live separately, but they persuaded him with great difficulty, even going so far as to divide the Rongguo Mansion in two, to keep him temporarily.

If Jia Lian's true identity is no longer hidden beneath the surface, the day when this dragon will fly away from the pond of the Jia family will likely be even closer.

Jia Zheng was the same; he didn't even know whether he should be worried or happy.

After this, he might not only preside over the ancestral worship ceremony today, but Jia Lian will probably have to gradually hand over many important matters of the clan to him in the future.

They even moved out of the mansion and returned to the imperial clan.

But he felt uneasy. He even began to doubt whether he, Jia Cunzhou, could really support the huge Jia clan on his own.
The eldest brother died, and the Jia family, three generations of their descendants, all perished next door.

He hadn't really thought about it before, since he could discuss many things with Jia Lian anyway.

If Jia Lian leaves again, who will he be able to consult with about family matters in the future?
Seeing the murmurs around her, Grandmother Jia stood up and said, "Alright, since he asked you to preside over the ceremony, let's begin. It's getting late."

……

The imperial ancestral worship ceremony was naturally much grander than that of the Jia family, with more participants and more elaborate rules and rituals.

Although Jia Lian was involved, he mostly acted as an observer.

After all, the person presiding over the ceremony wasn't sure what Jia Lian's identity was, so naturally they wouldn't assign him any tasks.

Moreover, Jia Lian also had to endure the strange looks from many members of the royal family.

Fortunately, Jia Lian had experienced many grand occasions and went with the flow from beginning to end, showing no discomfort because of other people's opinions.

The ancestral worship ceremony didn't end until dusk.

Even a young and strong man like Jia Lian felt his legs were sore from standing, let alone others?
Most of them are just gritting their teeth and persevering.

Seeing Emperor Ningkang ascend the imperial carriage with Princess Zhaoyang's help, Jia Lian also prepared to slip away.

So he stepped forward to resign.

Emperor Ningkang seemed to only then notice him, and said coldly from his dragon carriage, "What are you panicking about? Come back to the palace with me, and we'll talk after dinner."

"This……"

If it were a regular dinner party, Jia Lian certainly wouldn't have thought anything of it.

But what day is tonight?
It's the end of the year, it's Lunar New Year's Eve.

That night, every family would have a reunion dinner, and the emperor was no exception.

Although he wondered what Emperor Ningkang's intentions were, seeing the emperor's unquestionable gaze, Jia Lian could only obediently reply, "Yes."

His hesitant and reluctant demeanor infuriated the royal princes who wanted to approach but dared not.

They were jealous and resentful, thinking that even if Jia Lian was the bloodline of the retired emperor, he was still just an illegitimate child. Why did he receive such favor from Emperor Ningkang?
They have already received the news.

The emperor canceled the royal family banquet for the evening, citing poor health.

In previous years, on New Year's Eve, the emperor would also summon his close relatives to the Daming Palace for a family banquet to celebrate the New Year together.

However, Emperor Ningkang suddenly canceled the family banquet today, telling them to go home and reunite with their families.

Saying you're feeling unwell or overworked is just a polite way of putting it.

After all, if the emperor felt tired, he could simply not show up himself and let someone else take charge.

It was clearly just Emperor Ningkang's retaliation for the imperial clan members not giving him face at the state banquet today.

Let them retaliate; there's nothing wrong with everyone going back to their own homes to reunite.

But why is Jia Lian allowed to dine with the emperor?

Are they really not as good as a bastard?
Perhaps Jia Lian himself didn't realize that because of such a small matter, he had already incurred the hostility of many members of the imperial clan who had no conflict of interest with him.

It truly proves the saying, "The tallest tree in the forest is bound to be felled by the wind."

If you don't make people jealous, you are mediocre.

This was not the first time Jia Lian had dined with Emperor Ningkang.

This time, it was also in a side hall of the Yangxin Hall in the Daming Palace.

When Jia Lian was led in by the eunuch, he found that there was only one seat in the hall.

Only a few of Emperor Ningkang's children were present.

The Third Prince, the Fourth Prince, the Fifth Prince, Princess Zhaoyang, and the Fourth Princess Wei Qingning.

Meeting in this kind of setting still makes us feel a little awkward.

Even the Fourth Prince was somewhat embarrassed to face Jia Lian directly because of the "conflict" between him and Jia Lian a few days ago.

Jia Lian had already prepared himself mentally and greeted each of the princes and princesses.

The Third Prince laughed and said, "I originally thought that there would only be a few of us brothers and sisters at the banquet tonight, but I didn't expect that the Duke of Rong would also come."

It seems that in Father Emperor's heart, the Duke of Rongguo's status is probably higher than that of us princes and princesses.

Perhaps only my fourth brother can be compared to the Duke of Rong.

In the past, the Fourth Prince would have respected his elder brother, the Third Prince.

But now, no matter how he looked at that smiling face, he found it hypocritical and disgusting. Hearing him point at him, he sneered, "Sycophant."

The Third Prince paused for a moment, but still managed a forced smile, saying pointedly, "It seems that Fourth Brother has been in a bad mood lately. Is it because Father Emperor has asked the tutors to teach you the ways of governing the country, and Fourth Brother thinks he has learned everything and no longer respects his elder brother?"

The fourth prince ignored him completely and turned to the fifth prince, saying, "Fifth brother, the most important thing for us as people is to be upright and honest, and to dare to take responsibility for our actions."

Never be like some people who smile on the surface but are full of schemes and plots in their hearts.

I have the utmost contempt for people like that.

The eunuchs and palace maids nearby lowered their heads when they saw the two princes fighting.

Jia Lian and Princess Zhaoyang exchanged a glance but remained silent.

The two younger princes, the Fifth Prince and the Fourth Princess, dared not say anything. The Fifth Prince, whose hand was being held by the Fourth Prince, quickly pulled his hand back and glanced at the Third Prince with some fear.

He still remembered his mother repeatedly warning him that he could offend anyone but his third brother.

He asked why, but his mother wouldn't tell him.

But he knew that many people said that the eldest prince had died at the hands of the third prince.

Time passed quietly and awkwardly, until footsteps sounded outside the hall.

"His Majesty and the Empress have arrived."

All the princes and princesses, including Jia Lian, rose to greet them.

Soon, Emperor Ningkang, with a cold expression on his face, and the Empress, with a loving look on her face, walked in together.

"All sit down."

The emperor and empress walked to the head of the long table and sat down together.

There were only six chairs on either side of the long table, with the three princes sitting on one side.

Jia Lian had no choice but to sit on the other side with the two princesses.

He originally wanted to sit at the end of the table, next to the Fourth Princess, Wei Qingning.

The little girl is not even ten years old yet, she's so cute and adorable, I thought sitting next to her would probably increase my appetite.

Before he could even sit down, Emperor Ningkang, who was at the head of the table, spoke up, saying, "There is an order of seniority; you shall sit at the front."

"Uh... yes."

So Jia Lian stepped forward, and Princess Zhaoyang readily gave up her position as "eldest princess".

Seeing that his children were somewhat silent, Emperor Ningkang assumed it was because of Jia Lian, so he said, "Jia Lian is your imperial grandfather's bloodline who was lost abroad, so he can be considered your elder brother."

His parents died early, which is why I allowed him to stay in the palace and have the reunion feast with us.

All the princes and princesses nodded in agreement, but they knew in their hearts that the fact that their parents had died young and that they were related to the retired emperor was not the point.

With so many descendants of the Emperor, Jia Lian is not the only one who has lost his parents. Why don't you summon those people, Father Emperor?
Ultimately, it's just that you like Jia Lian.

Jia Lian immediately kowtowed to thank Emperor Ningkang for his kindness.

After Jia Lian sat down again, the Empress smiled at him and said, "I heard that at today's state banquet, the old princes of the imperial clan took the opportunity to vent their dissatisfaction, embarrassing His Majesty in front of foreign guests. It was you who remained calm and saved His Majesty from the predicament?"

"I dare not offer any assistance; it is merely that I cannot tolerate those people making unfounded accusations against Your Majesty, so I am simply speaking the truth."

"Hehe, he is indeed a good child. Your Majesty and I have not misjudged him."

"Your Majesty the Empress is too kind..."

Emperor Ningkang was not keen on listening to such sentimental and affected words, so he interrupted unhappily, saying, "Alright, enough of this small talk, let's eat."

As soon as Emperor Ningkang gave the order, eight beautiful palace maids who had been waiting quietly stepped forward to serve the eight people dishes.

The so-called serving of food means placing the food you want to eat into your own bowl and plate according to your master's instructions, so as to avoid your master making impolite behavior such as "reaching out too far".

In the Jia family, Jia Lian was practically the rule.

He doesn't care about rules like "not speaking while eating or sleeping"; he'll do whatever pleases him.

But here, Emperor Ningkang's rules are the only rules.

Therefore, before Emperor Ningkang spoke, Jia Lian basically followed suit.

He did exactly what Princess Zhaoyang and the others did.

Just like when Daiyu first entered the Jia family mansion, she secretly learned the rules and etiquette of Yingchun, Tanchun and others.

To be honest, this feeling isn't pleasant.

Fortunately, it didn't take long. As the Emperor and Empress put down their chopsticks, everyone else followed suit.

Then palace maids brought hot water, towels, and rinsing basins for rinsing the mouth and washing hands.

These procedures are not much different from those of Grandmother Jia's side, which shows that Grandmother Jia really knows how to enjoy life, and everything is done according to royal standards.

The leftover food was removed and replaced with teacups.

At this moment, it seemed that she could finally speak. Princess Zhaoyang said, "Father, I have something to report."

"Ah."

"Your Majesty, I visited her today. She is all alone in the deep palace, feeling cold and lonely. I would like to move back for a while to spend the New Year with her."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Ningkang finally remembered his young stepmother.

To be honest, his biological mother was indeed put to death because of the Empress Dowager.

However, he found that even if he wanted to challenge him, he couldn't find a reason that could completely convince him.

First of all, this young empress dowager was too indifferent to worldly affairs.

For so many years, apart from taking care of Princess Zhaoyang and serving the retired emperor, he has not cared about any external affairs.

He neither interfered with the Empress's handling of palace affairs nor sought to benefit his family.

He seemed quite Zen-like.

Even though the death of his own birth mother, the Dowager Consort, was indeed her own fault, Emperor Ningkang knew it was her own doing.

Therefore, Emperor Ningkang himself did not know how to deal with the Empress Dowager.

Moreover, the Empress Dowager seemed to know when to advance and when to retreat.

Ever since someone used her name to send messages outside the palace, she hasn't even gone to Chonghua Palace anymore, spending all her time in Weiyang Palace planting flowers and playing the zither.

Seeing Emperor Ningkang remain silent, the Empress quickly said, "Your Majesty, I also think that what Zhaoyang said is correct."

"It is indeed rather lonely for the Empress Dowager to live alone in Weiyang Palace. Since Zhaoyang is so inclined, let her move back there for a while."

Emperor Ningkang nodded and then asked, "And what about matters in your own household, and..."

Princess Zhaoyang knew what Emperor Ningkang was talking about, so she smiled and said, "Father, rest assured, I will arrange everything in my residence and the Imperial Guard Camp. There will definitely be no mistakes."

"In that case, you should move back."

"My dear father, thank you very much."

After Princess Zhaoyang expressed her gratitude, she noticed Jia Lian's somewhat surprised look, so she winked at him and gave him a sweet smile.

Jia Lian couldn't help but smile.

Although he hadn't personally told her about his plans to marry Baochai and Daiyu, given her intelligence and the fact that he had legitimately placed spies like Hu Yuanyao by his side, it wouldn't be difficult for her to find out his whereabouts.

Jia Lian had originally thought that if news of his upcoming wedding spread, it would upset Princess Zhaoyang, and he would probably have to visit the princess's residence more often to comfort her.

Unexpectedly, she moved into the palace right away.

It's easy to tell from her playful expression that she did this on purpose, perhaps because she didn't want to distract herself.

The feelings in my heart are beyond words.

Just as he had moved Daiyu countless times, this girl had also moved him countless times.

Perhaps in relationships, the one who cares more gives more, while the one who is cared for becomes more emboldened.

Since Emperor Ningkang was already talking to Princess Zhaoyang, he naturally noticed the interaction between Princess Zhaoyang and Jia Lian.

His face immediately darkened.

She glanced at her beloved daughter, then at Jia Lian beside her.

It has to be said that, setting aside their social status, the two are actually quite well-matched.

Especially in terms of personality, they seem to be compatible...

There was no intention to reprimand the two on such a joyous occasion, but the desire to keep Jia Lian behind had also diminished.

So he said to Jia Lian, "Alright, the Jia family must be waiting for you to go back for the New Year. You should leave the palace now."

"Yes."

Jia Lian stood up, bowed to the Emperor and Empress, then gestured to the princes and princesses before turning and following the eunuch leading the way out of the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

...(End of chapter)