The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 512: Tanchun's Advice
When Lin Xue and his party arrived outside Yuewei Residence, they happened to meet the eldest wife, Madam Xing, and the maid Wang Shanbao, who came out from inside. Madam Xing's old face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and the maid Wang Shanbao also had a long donkey face, and seemed to be cursing something in a low voice.

"Greetings, Madam!" The ladies hurriedly bowed and greeted her.

Mrs. Xing just nodded, then walked away with a gloomy face. Housekeeper Wang Shanbao followed behind her without saying a word, looking bitter and resentful, and did not even greet the women.

The girls looked at each other in bewilderment. At this moment, Ping'er came out from Yueweiju and said with a smile, "So it's the girls. Come in quickly."

As Ping'er welcomed the girls into the courtyard, she called out to the house, "Mandalin, the girls are here. Prepare some tea."

Jia Tanchun held Ping'er and asked in a low voice, "Sister Ping'er, why did the eldest lady come here just now?"

Ping Er forced a smile and said, "It's nothing serious!"

Jia Tanchun raised her eyebrows and asked, "Is it for the three thousand taels of silver?"

Ping Er could only nod her head and said, "That's exactly why. He came here once in the middle of the night before last. The Third Master told me to close the door and pretend to be asleep, but he managed to get away with it. Who knew he would come again today?"

Lin Daiyu frowned slightly and asked, "Did you give it to Brother Huan?"

Ping Er smiled bitterly and said, "Of course I didn't give it to you. The Third Master just announced in public that he would stop paying the monthly salary. If I gave the First Madam three thousand taels at this time, how could I convince everyone?"

"How did Brother Huan get rid of that guy?" Jia Tanchun asked curiously.

Not only Jia Tanchun, everyone was very curious, because the eldest wife, Mrs. Xing, was notoriously greedy and stingy. She threw a tantrum in public for three thousand taels of silver and forced the master to agree to her. She was even more of an elder in front of Jia Huan. If she threw a tantrum, how would Huandi cope with it?
Ping Er sighed and said, "Third Master tried to persuade her for a long time with all his heart, and finally paid two hundred taels out of his own pocket to send the man away. If Third Master had not been so resolute, I'm afraid there would have been more trouble!"

Xue Baoqin stuck out her tongue and said, "It's really not easy to clean up this mess. I feel bad for Brother Huan."

Ping Er smiled and said, "It is indeed difficult, but as our master said, winter is almost over, so how far can spring be? Let's not talk about this anymore, let's go inside and talk."

Upon hearing this, all the girls smiled and went into the house. Instantly, the girls were all talking and chatting. Jia Huan came out from the inner room and said with a smile, "Today is not the day for the poetry club. The beautiful lady and talented women are here. I wonder what they are doing?"

The eyes of all the girls immediately fell on Jia Huan. She didn't know if it was an illusion, but after the New Year, Xue Baochai found that Jia Huan seemed to have grown a little taller, and his every move was more confident and calm. Of course, he was also more handsome, with sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes, a bright look, red lips and white teeth, which made her happy to see him.

Lin Daiyu glanced at Jia Huan, then turned around and asked, "Mandalin, your master had cured duck head for lunch?"

Mandalin was stunned for a moment, then shrugged and said, "No, why did Miss Lin say that?"

Everyone was puzzled, and Lin Daiyu said with a smile: "Since you didn't eat it, why is Brother Huan acting like an upside-down cured duck today - so slick!"

All the girls burst into laughter. Jia Huan himself laughed in silence and said, "I am not a smooth talker. Look, if Sister Lin was not a talented woman, she would not be able to slander others in this way."

Everyone started laughing again.

Jia Tanchun said, "Speaking of the poetry club, I suddenly realized that we had agreed to hold two clubs every month, on the second and sixteenth day of the lunar month. Unexpectedly, this year, things didn't go well and we missed both the second and sixteenth day. We didn't get to hold the club, so we have to pick a date to make up for it."

Xue Baochai shook her head and said, "In the beginning, we started the poetry club just for fun. Seriously speaking, needlework is the duty of us women. It's okay to join a few clubs in our spare time, but now the situation in the mansion is not suitable for such pretentious things. Besides, Brother Huan will take part in the competition soon. If he has the time, he might as well read more books or write more articles. Why waste his energy on such trivial things?"

Jia Tanchun looked slightly embarrassed and said hurriedly, "Sister Bao is right. I was not thoughtful enough and stopped paying the monthly salary and reduced the number of servants. If we open a club to have fun, it would be inappropriate."

Lin Daiyu chuckled and said, "Look, she always thinks the most about others. If Huan-di doesn't pass the imperial examination this time, he should really go to Sister Bao and ask for a ruler."

Jia Huan couldn't help sweating. Where did this jealousy come from?
Xue Baochai laughed and said, "Then I'd rather give you two spankings with the ruler first."

"What does it have to do with me?"

Xue Baochai glanced at Jia Huan and said with a smile: "Because the beating on your body hurts me in my heart!"

Lin Daiyu was stunned for a moment before she came to her senses. Her cheeks immediately flushed and she rolled her eyes at Jia Huan who was "smiling foolishly". Jia Huan laughed dryly and said, "It's a bit difficult to be the top scholar, but I just try my best to get a place on the list of successful candidates."

Jia Tanchun looked at Lin Daiyu, then at Xue Baochai, as if thinking about something. She smiled and said, "My brother is a top scholar, so it's not surprising that he won the top prize. It would be best if he could win both the first prize and the second prize."

Xue Baoqin clapped her hands and said, "That's incredible! This way, Brother Huan will have won both the small and big top three prizes. He is truly one of a kind in the history." Xue Baochai smiled and said, "As the saying goes, water overflows when it is full, and the moon wanes when it is full. It is not good for anything to be too perfect. In my opinion, one of the first place and the top place will suffice."

Jia Xichun said: "It's okay if you don't get the top prize, but you have to be at least in the top three."

Jia Huan smiled bitterly and said, "It sounds like you are taking something out of your bag. I feel a lot of pressure."

Everyone burst into laughter, and for a moment, the whole house was filled with a happy atmosphere. Since the New Year, bad things had happened one after another to the Jia family, and they had spent this year in fear, so it was rare to be so happy.

At this time, Jia Tanchun changed the subject and asked, "Brother Huan, do you really intend to stop the monthly salary? Are you only going to stop the monthly salary for the servants, or for both the master and the servants?"

After these words were spoken, everyone fell silent, especially the maids, who all looked at Jia Huan with some resentment. Although the mansion provided food and lodging, as a girl, she still had to occasionally buy some cosmetics, hair oil, small accessories, snacks, etc.

Jia Huan said seriously, "Of course, we treat everyone equally. Well, we'll stop doing this for this month."

The maids were greatly disappointed. Xue Baoqin rolled her eyes, obviously understanding what Jia Huan meant. She smiled and said, "What about next month?"

"Let's talk about it next month!" Jia Huan said vaguely.

The maids couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope when they heard this.

Xue Baoqin leaned close to Jia Huan's ear and whispered, "Brother Huan, you stopped paying the monthly salary in order to force those disloyal servants to leave. When most of them have left, you will announce the restoration of the monthly salary so that everyone will be grateful to you. Is that right? Brother Huan, you are too cunning."

Jia Huan coughed lightly, and the breath of the little girl tickled his ears. Xue Baoqin covered her mouth and giggled, and Lin Daiyu's eyes flashed with suspicion.

Xue Baochai laughed and said, "Sister Qin is sneaking around. Why are you pretending to be a spy?"

Xue Baoqin said with a smile: "Nothing, just a joke with Brother Huan."

Xue Baoqin was the youngest person present. Not only was she outstanding in appearance, but she also had a lively and lovely personality. Everyone loved her playfulness and cuteness, so they were particularly tolerant of her.

At this time, Xue Baochai said, "Reducing the number of servants and stopping the monthly salary is only a temporary measure. Saving expenses is important, but we must seriously find ways to increase income. This is the long-term solution."

Jia Tanchun nodded and said, "Sister Bao is right. Speaking of this, I remember something. Two years ago, when the Lai family's garden was completed and occupied, they invited the old lady and the ladies to have a drink and watch a play. Except for Brother Huan and Ping'er who were far away in Jinling, everyone went. What do you think of the Lai family's garden compared to ours?"

Jia Yingchun replied: "It is not even half as big as ours, and there are far fewer flowers, plants and trees. It is far from being as big as ours!"

Jia Tanchun said, "That day I was sitting at the same table with Lai Da's daughter and we started chatting. Who knew that in addition to the flowers that the women in the back house wore and the bamboo shoots, vegetables, fish and shrimp that they ate, their garden was also taken over by someone else for the whole year. At the end of the year, there were two hundred taels of silver left. From that day on, I realized that a torn lotus leaf or a dry grass root is valuable."

Xue Baochai smiled and said, "You have just realized that there is nothing in this world that is not useful. If it is useful, it is valuable. It is a pity that you are a smart person, but you have never experienced these important things. It's a pity that it's too late."

Jia Huan's heart moved, and he said with a smile: "It's not too late to take advantage of it now."

Jia Tanchun sighed, "Even if our garden is only half as much as Lai's, if we double it, we can earn four hundred taels of silver a year in interest. It's a pity that we didn't know how to manage it before, so it was wasted. Now that Huan'er is the old lady's manager, why don't you make use of this garden? It can at least increase your income."

To be honest, Jia Huan really didn't care about a few hundred taels of silver a year. The coal workshop could make that in ten days or half a month. However, it was rare for Jia Tanchun to come up with such a way to make money, so it was not good to dampen her enthusiasm. Besides, even a small amount of money is still meat, so she gave him a thumbs up and said, "Okay, I'll arrange it later. You are worthy of being my good sister, with a good financial mind. Whether we can pay the monthly salary in the future depends on you, Third Sister."

"Don't flatter me and scheme against your own sister. Even if we cut down half of the servants in the mansion, the monthly salary would have to be at least two or three thousand taels a year. How can a mere few hundred taels be enough?" Jia Tanchun scolded, but she was smiling very happily.

Jia Huan said solemnly, "I am not flattering you, Third Sister. I am serious. Why don't you take care of the garden from now on? I don't have time to take care of it anyway. Sister Bao and Sister Qin can help you and carefully explore the things that can generate income. Who knows, you can make 1,800 taels a year."

Jia Tanchun had a generous and straightforward personality, and was a woman who was as brave as a man. After being encouraged by Jia Huan, she immediately agreed. She first thought of the bamboos in Xiaoxiang Pavilion. Spring was coming, and it was the season for eating spring bamboo shoots. Such a large bamboo forest should naturally be put to good use.

Then came the flowers, fruit trees, lotus flowers, lotus roots, the exotic flowers and herbs and spices of Hengwu Garden, etc. He really knew them all, and it was obvious that he had planned it in advance.

Lin Daiyu couldn't help but joked, "Good! There will be no famine in the next three years! It would be a pity for Tan's daughter not to go into business with Bao-jie."

(End of this chapter)