Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 563: Managing the Family and the Country
Is it wrong to emphasize agriculture and suppress commerce?

That’s right, at least when this policy was introduced, it was correct for many years to come.

However, everything has its limits, and too much is as bad as too little.

Another point is the gameplay.

For a long time, Yishang became a profitable business that only I could do.

Who am I? I am a gentry! Therefore, emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce has become "I want everything", annexing land while controlling commerce.

A large amount of taxes that should have belonged to the state went into private pockets and became capital for continued land annexation and expenses for personal luxurious life.

Building water conservancy projects is the government's responsibility, and developing productivity and scientific and technological progress do not exist.

The landlords and gentry colluded with the government to chew up the flesh and blood of this nation and swallow it! All state affairs are ultimately a matter of personal gain.

When they were big, they were called clans, and when they were small, they were called landlords. These people formed a huge network, cutting off the upper and lower channels, and lying on the land to suck blood. In order to maintain it for a longer time, leaving a capillary, it was called the system of recommendation and selection of filial and honest people in the early days, and later it was called the imperial examination!

The cabinet is the leader of the civil service group, and the civil service is the representative of the landlords and gentry in the world. There is another group of landlords called nobles, who support the emperor, the largest landlord.

On the surface, Jia Lian's choice is beyond reproach. Although I am also a member of the imperial examination system, I am a nobleman.

So, of course, I do whatever the emperor tells me to do, because my wealth is earned by my ancestors and the emperor. Civil servants, to put it bluntly, are wage earners.

However, this group of migrant workers are numerous and powerful, and they make up the majority of the landlord group.

In recent years, the number of times the main door of the Jia Mansion has been opened has caught up with and even exceeded that of the previous two generations of ancestors.

Mother Jia led the female family members to greet him. After some formalities, Mother Jia tactfully asked Jia Lian to go back and rest.

Steam was rising in the pool. Jia Lian, leaning against a human cushion, squinted his eyes and soaked in the hot water comfortably, occasionally opening his mouth to take a bite of pear or drink a sip of tea.

Wang Xifeng took the rough towel, raised her arm and wiped it carefully, talking non-stop.

"At the beginning of the month, the aunt of the Lin family came and stayed for three days. When she was chatting with my grandmother, she mentioned the matter of sister Daiyu."

Jia Lian didn't say anything, but just moved his neck. Ping'er behind him hurriedly continued washing his hair.

Wang Xifeng did not wait for an answer and continued, "It is said that His Majesty is compassionate to the cabinet minister and wants to grant him a marriage, and a co-wife."

"What's the matter? Do you want to go to His Majesty to reason?" Jia Lian finally spoke, but was immediately blocked by Wang Xifeng and was speechless.

"There is no more reward to be given. Jia is asking Your Majesty to grant him a concubine under the pretext of having few children. Giving Your Majesty a way out is better than being too meritorious and shocking the emperor. Why did you persuade Wang Taiwei to go to the south? Wasn't it because after pacifying the Western Regions, Wang Taiwei was destined to take control of the Beijing camp, and Your Majesty was destined to sideline him. If he knows what's good for him, it's fine. If he doesn't, the Wang family will fall. I haven't told you about the things in the court because I'm afraid you'll worry. The Jia family looks so prosperous and wealthy, but I don't know how many people outside hate me. The Jia family is a noble family, so you should know what's good for you! You can listen to the words of sharing the same fate with the country, but don't take them seriously."

Perhaps it was the first time that Jia Lian said this to Wang Xifeng and Ping'er, the master and servant both stiffened their bodies and stopped what they were doing.

"That's enough. If you soak it any longer, the skin will peel off." Jia Lian said as he stood up. Ping'er quickly took a dry towel to wipe it.

Wang Xifeng came to her senses from her shock and hurried over to get clean clothes.

"I'm tired. I'm going to take a nap first. Don't wake me up unless the sky falls."

Jia Lian slept soundly and it was dark when he woke up. He turned his head and saw that there was no one around. Not wanting to disturb others, he went to the bathroom.

The master and servant in the compartment didn't sleep well the whole night, so they slept lightly and got up at the slightest noise.

Jia Lian looked at the worry on Wang Xifeng's face and couldn't help but hug her: "It's still early, let's sleep together for a while."

The hot, soft and fragrant body, she subconsciously took a deep breath, Wang Xifeng moaned and her body fell apart.

Jia Lian sat down alone for breakfast. Seeing Yuanyang, Xiren, Qingwen, and Siqi all there, he asked in surprise, "Why are you all up? Why don't you rest a little longer?"

"How can we rest while the master is up?" Yuanyang could still speak. Jia Lian remembered that she had a classic line: Song Huizong's eagle and Zhao Mengfu's horse are both good paintings (words).

"It's up to you. Tell them to prepare gifts for our visit to the Lin family tomorrow."

As they were talking, Ping'er came out and said, "Master, why didn't you say anything when you got up? People will say you have no manners later."

"Bullshit, in this house the master's words are the rules!" Jia Lian continued eating while talking. There were eight dishes on the table in front of him. It seemed that Wang Xifeng usually ate well.

"Change the rules from now on. Just have four dishes for breakfast." Jia Lian ordered calmly. Ping'er whispered, "It doesn't matter if you change it. Most people below you probably won't change it, and you won't save any money."

Jia Lian paused his chopsticks and thought, this is not Ping'er's style. Who is she targeting?
"I happen to be on vacation recently and have nothing to do, so I decided to practice my skills by managing the household. I don't believe that I can't manage this family." Jia Lian put down his chopsticks and his tone gradually became cold.

The air in the house suddenly dropped!

There is one thing, doesn't the emperor know about the problems of the Imperial Household Department and the Imperial Clan Bureau? If he knows, why doesn't he change it?
How can I put it? It's okay to change someone, but they will still be the same as before, or even less loyal than the previous one.

If you don't let your subordinates make enough money, who will be willing to work for you? It's just that simple.

Jia Lian also knew that he had not taken any action and had endured until now, simply because he had the same idea as the emperor.

So why is it happening now? The reason is simple: the people below have gone too far, making too much money, and the atmosphere must be rectified.

As the saying goes, a peck of rice may turn into a grudge. If I give you a peck of rice, you can take it boldly. But if you take a liter of rice without my permission, you will be my enemy.

Ping'er stopped talking, and the others also lowered their heads and remained silent, as frightened as a mouse.

Jia Lian stood up slowly and said, "Go, call Lin Zhixiao over."

In terms of loyalty to Jia Lian, the first choice is Lin Zhixiao. In the original novel, this is the steward who secretly gave Jia Lian 200 taels of silver.

As for Wang'er and Zhao'er, these former trusted servants were also sent out to work as managers.

Lin Zhixiao arrived quickly, and seeing that the atmosphere was not right, he immediately stepped forward and saluted: "Greetings, Second Master."

Jia Lian waved his hand and said, "That's enough. We are one family. Just show your respect. Let me ask you, what is the rule for managing things outside now?"

Lin Zhixiao told the truth without hesitation: "Butler Lai is still in charge outside, and Zhou Rui from the second room is in charge of the kitchen. Lai Wang is also in charge of the kitchen."

"Have you all forgotten about Leng Zixing's matter? Why is Zhou Rui still in charge?" Jia Lian suddenly raised his voice.

Lin Zhixiao didn't know how to answer, so he lowered his head and remained silent.

Jia Lian was actually very clear that Lin Zhixiao could not decide these things, so he turned to Ping'er and said, "See if the Second Madam has gotten up?"

Before Ping'er could say anything, Wang Xifeng came out and sat down next to Jia Lian, looking around at everyone in the room with dignity. When she turned around again, she put on a charming smile and said, "Is there something wrong, Master?"

Jia Lian said calmly, "Ask Ping'er, I'll go see the children."

When it comes to matters in the rear house, Wang Xifeng must be fully respected, especially at critical moments concerning Daiyu's affairs.

It is definitely not a good thing if the family is not peaceful. Jia Zheng never asks about the family in the backyard, but if Baoyu does not study hard, he will beat him.

Wang Xifeng got up and sent Jia Lian home. The children were now in Guixiang's yard, being taken care of by her.

After Jia Lian left, Wang Xifeng turned around again, her expression instantly turned cold: "You all heard it, it was not my intention, Wang Xifeng, but the Second Master's." "I heard it!" Everyone answered like this, and Wang Xifeng sat back and continued: "The Second Master asked me to clean up the backyard, so I will do it according to his wishes."

Jia Lian would definitely not ask what Wang Xifeng did, he just wanted to see the results.

In Guixiang's yard, the children were very well behaved in front of Guixiang, especially Qiaojie, who acted like an older sister.

After spending a whole morning playing with the children, Lai Wang came over to ask for a meeting.

"Second Master, regarding Zhou Rui's matter, it was the woman from the Second House who begged for mercy, and the old lady agreed, so Second Madam nodded. Just now, Second Madam went to see the old lady and told her what Second Master meant. The old lady wanted Zhou Rui to go to Liaodong to be the manager. If you agree, just nod your head. I'll go and give Second Madam a reply."

Jia Lian looked at Lai Wang, who was leaning on his waist, and said calmly, "Zhou Rui went to the manor outside the capital. It's easier to keep an eye on him because he's under our noses. Clean up the mess in the kitchen. Tell the Second Madam that I mean that the backyard can't be stagnant. We need to change a few people from time to time to let the people below know not to go too far in the future. Lai Da is not young anymore, forget it, let's wait for his matter."

"I've remembered, but it's just about the East Palace?" Lai Wang asked again. Jia Lian immediately frowned, stood up and walked forward, with his hands behind his back and slightly bent over: "How dare you care about the East Palace's affairs?"

Lai Wang knelt down in fear, and kowtowed repeatedly: "This little one deserves death, this little one deserves death."

Jia Lian then straightened up and sneered, "For the last time. Get out!"

He had lunch with the children at Guixiang's place. After that, Jia Lian left the Jia Mansion directly and asked Zhuzi to prepare a car to go to the Xue family.

Yesterday, Jia Lian entered the palace, and Baochai chose to return to the old house of the Xue family and did not go to the Jia Mansion. Jia Lian came to take a look and found that the third sister had also returned to her home in the south of the city.

After staying at Baochai's place for an afternoon and expressing his concern, Jia Lian returned home at a leisurely pace.

I spent the night at Guixiang's place. When I woke up the next morning, I heard hurried footsteps outside. Yuanyang came in and said, "Second Master, someone is coming from the palace."

He quickly changed his clothes and went to the front. The person who came to convey the order was Qiu Shian.

Jia Lian stepped forward and said, "How can I trouble Mr. Qiu to take such a hard trip?" He used to be called Gonggong, but now there is only one Gong. The difference is huge, ignoring the status of a eunuch, and the respect is full.

That is to say, Qiu Shian has no name, otherwise it would all be XX Gong.

"I specifically asked the Saint for this job. If you want to announce the decree to someone else, I don't want to come. But if you want to announce the decree to Lord Buqi, I must come to share in the good fortune."

Qiu Shian is also good at saying nice things, and what he says sounds nice.

The incense table was set up, Qiu Shi'an announced the decree, and Jia Lian and everyone in the Jia family knelt to receive the order.

The general meaning is to read out Jia Lian's hard work and great achievements, and then change the subject. Since Jia's legitimate offspring are few, he is specially granted to marry Miss Lin Daiyu as his co-wife, and Baochai from the Xue family is promoted to Teng. Wang Xifeng is promoted to the second rank. A cart of utensils is rewarded.

I have to say here that Teng was the noble concubine.

The Xue family is still different. They have some relationship with the royal family. Emperor Chenghui takes special care of them because he is afraid that Wang Xifeng will not be convinced, so he suppresses her first and then grants her an imperial edict.

After Qiu Shi'an announced the decree, he immediately said goodbye. Jia Lian did not try to keep him and personally escorted him out of the mansion. When he put him in the carriage, he stuffed a roll of silver bills into his hand.

Qiu Shian accepted the money with a smile, not being polite at all. If he didn't accept the money, it would mean that he looked down on Jia Lian and wanted to go against him.

The Jia Mansion was filled with joy, and Wang Xifeng even raised her chin like a hen that had just laid an egg.

Jia Lian then went to the Lin Mansion. Lin Ruhai had specially asked for leave to stay at home. When Jia Lian arrived, he found out that the eunuch who announced the decree had just left.

The reason why I didn’t see Daiyu this time was not because he didn’t want to come out, but because Jia Min held him back and wouldn’t let him come out to meet her.

Lin Ruhai took Jia Lian to the study to talk. Just as they sat down, Daiyu came in with a teacup. Well, he couldn't keep her, he couldn't keep her at all.

Jia Min glared angrily, but Daiyu didn't care at all.

"Your Majesty has tasted the sweetness of success in industry and commerce. The next step is to vigorously promote industry and commerce." After Lin Ruhai spoke, he explained the dispute between the cabinet and His Majesty in one sentence.

"If I'm not mistaken, your majesty wants the Ministry of Clan Affairs and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to intervene in industry and commerce on a large scale." Jia Lian was naturally well aware of this and pointed it out.

Lin Ruhai nodded: "The cabinet said that the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Clan Affairs can intervene in industry and commerce, but the Ministry of Revenue should stop allocating funds. Your Majesty has not expressed his opinion."

Jia Lian understood the meaning of Lin Ruhai's message and nodded: "It is a good thing to let the clan members earn their own living. It is reasonable to reduce the annual funding for the clan affairs office. But the saying that the Imperial Household Department is engaged in business, now there are iron factories and coal mines, is it not enough for the Imperial Household Department? Must it extend its hands everywhere? When I see Your Majesty later, I will persuade them that the Imperial Household Department can supervise factories and mines, but should not touch the business."

Lin Ruhai nodded with satisfaction. This attitude was indeed impartial.

Jia Lian continued, "It is the general trend to loosen up the industry and commerce. The government can strengthen supervision, but it cannot suppress too much. For this kind of thing, tightening it up is a death sentence. But it cannot be relaxed too quickly, and it should be done little by little. It will always take a while to pull it back and forth. Whether it is the cabinet or the government, they cannot be afraid of too many things and do a one-size-fits-all approach. Officials are not allowed to kill the New Year pigs for the benefit of merchants. Looking back, any businessman doing business in the market must have a background to rely on in order to do business with peace of mind, so don't blame me for turning the table over."

Jia Lian also has conditions, so they must be made clear first.

Lin Ruhai remained silent, while Daiyu listened quietly. After a while, Lin Ruhai sighed and said, "I will tell you about this."

Jia Lian chuckled, "Uncle, don't play dumb. I will keep my word. Don't think I don't know what the officials below have done. If you walk too much at night, you will always encounter ghosts. If I catch one, I will hold on to it and make a huge fuss. Whether you are a minister or a minister, who doesn't have some business? This business cannot be done by only you and others."

Lin Ruhai replied calmly, "What do you want?"

Jia Lian said calmly, "Fairness, at least on the surface. You are from Suzhou, so let's take Suzhou as an example. All the merchants who trade in raw silk in Suzhou have big families behind them. Without some background and connections, can you do this business? Merchants from other places cannot come to buy raw silk, otherwise they will be squeezed out and even tempted by money and kill people. Take Guangdong as an example. As long as you pay taxes normally, you can go to sea in Nanyang. Fighting and dying on the sea is one thing, but after landing, the government must treat every merchant fairly."

Lin Ruhai was silent for a long time after hearing this. Jia Lian continued, "The annexation of land forces the court to distribute taxes according to the land, and later on, the gentry should pay taxes together. Don't let monopoly business arise in the future. The court will crack down on merchants, and officials will take advantage of the opportunity to profit and swallow up the merchants' wealth. That would be unmanageable."

Lin Ruhai laughed out loud after hearing this: "Isn't it just a matter of time?"

Jia Lian smiled and said, "Yes, that's why we need to rectify the administration of officials. It's not a temporary rectification, but a long-term and unremitting rectification."

Lin Ruhai said: "Won't it turn into a party dispute sooner or later?"

Jia Lian smiled and said, "How can there be no parties in the court? As long as it is a court, there will be parties. Party struggles will always exist. How to grasp this balance is what Your Majesty should worry about."

After Jia Lian pointed out the current situation of the cabinet, Lin Ruhai could only smile bitterly and shake his head.

In fact, Jia Lian was not afraid of the gentry entering industry and commerce, but wanted to turn some of them into capitalists.

Whether or not there will be a GM in the future is a matter of the future, but we must not stop developing industry and commerce now. Whoever stands in our way is an enemy. We must defeat them.

"Your Majesty's treasury is now much richer than the national treasury, but you still have to share all the money. We had a dispute over this matter last month. Prime Minister Zhang, it's not easy. If you want to get things done, you can't do without the support of the officials below. But the appointment of officials above the third rank still requires your Majesty's approval. You have to get things done, and there are still constraints in personnel matters. You have to understand Prime Minister Zhang and don't hold a grudge."

Only a son-in-law, Lin Ruhai, could say such heartfelt words.

"You think too much. With me here, nothing will happen to my teacher." Jia Lian was very confident!

There are not many people in the court who can pose a threat to Zhang Tingen. Li Qing is one of them, and Lin Ruhai is another. Lin Ruhai understood what Jia Lian meant.

Did Lin Ruhai have any idea of ​​going up to the next step? Of course he did. But if Jia Lian didn't support him, he could only stop. Li Qing would make trouble, but it would not have any effect.

The emperor wanted to use Zhang Ting'en to realize his political ambitions, and also wanted to use Li Qing to slightly hinder him. Yue Qi was able to enter the cabinet because the emperor wanted to seize the military power.

The situation at the top level is too complicated, and Jia Lian really doesn't want to get involved, but he is already in it.

The future is destined to be filled with repeated tugs of war. Jia Lian can only try his best to ensure that the general direction is correct, which is not easy.

(End of this chapter)