Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 586 Pursuit
It was very hot in June, but the pavilion behind the Mantou Temple in the mountains was very comfortable.

There are trees all around, blocking the sunlight, and the breeze dispels the heat.

The recliner was in a mess, his feet soaked in cold water, and after a nap, Jia Lian really had no intention of moving at all.

A numb brain can make you forget everything in the world. If possible, the world will be destroyed at this moment!
It was impossible to destroy him, especially when a towel soaked in sweat was placed on his face. Jia Lian became much more sober, sat up lazily and complained: "Let me lie there for a while longer!"

Daiyu continued to torture that face with a smile. If Miaoyu hadn't sent someone to inform her, no one in the family would have known that she had gone to the nunnery to seek quietness.

"How did you find them? It must be the traitor Miaoyu!" Jia Lian complained. Daiyu put away the towel and gently touched her forehead with her green onion-like fingers. She said crisply, "You make it sound so easy. This is a nunnery, and all the women live there. How dare you, a man, come in and take over the mountain and act like a king without informing your family?"

"Yes, you are right. I was not careful enough. It's all the fault of those bastards who wanted to build the railway. If they hadn't been chasing me like a pack of mad dogs all day, I wouldn't have resorted to such a desperate measure." Jia Lian said this, feeling very proud in his heart. In fact, Jia Lian didn't like to manipulate people's hearts. He couldn't resist the temptation of people.

It's like, the country has been promoting the dangers of online fraud, but there are still people willing to be fooled.

"This mountain is not high. There is a spring in front of it. There are willow trees beside the spring. It is indeed a good place to cool off. If I hadn't been forced to come here this time, I wouldn't have known about it."

Jia Lian changed the subject and focused on Miaoyu. The relationship between them was rather subtle and it really felt a bit like Platonic.

If you must point out where there is a spiritual connection, it is probably that Jia Lian actually has a bad heart, which matches Miaoyu's tranquility and inaction.

"You've been out for three days, it's time to go home." Daiyu advised softly. Jia Lian smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Okay, go back. Save your family from worrying."

"My family members are not worried, but the people in the yamen are all panicked. They have come to ask about it several times." Daiyu reminded him that you, the master, still have to go to work.

The emperor can go to escape the summer heat, but ordinary people in the capital cannot. Every day of rest costs a day's money.

Jia Niuma Lian obediently returned to the yamen to take up his post. Many things were waiting for his decision.

The factories below are even more busy day and night. When the weather is hot, they prepare measures to avoid the heat, such as Rendan herbal tea combination sets and watermelons from Panggezhuang. Some positions with harsh environments have shift changes every two hours.

Despite such strict precautions, there are still cases of heat stroke every day.

At this time, Jia Lian missed the electric motor particularly. Although he knew the principle of this thing, it was very difficult to realize it. First of all, you need electricity.

When did batteries appear?

Another day passed, and when it was time to get off work, Jia Lian couldn't wait to leave. On the way, he met a manual sprinkler truck. Two strong men with bare chests were pumping water and spraying it.

The changes in the capital are visible to the naked eye. Although there are no tall buildings, the roads are cleaner, the markets are more prosperous, and people have more smiles on their faces.

When he got home, he changed his clothes first. Yuanyang, Xiren and Qingwen came up to him, some taking his clothes, some handing him clothes, and some taking off his shoes. In short, Jia Lian just had to act as a puppet.

This kind of enjoyment is entirely created by human effort. I used to feel guilty about it, but now it’s all gone.

Xiangling came in with a copper basin and wiped her face with a cool towel, saying, "Sit still and don't move! You'll get your hands dirty with sweat."

"Okay, I won't move!" Jia Lian raised his hands to prove his innocence.

Xiren brought a bowl of iced sour plum soup over and put it to her mouth, saying, "Master, please open your mouth and take a sip!"

"What you said is much sourer than sour plum soup. It makes my teeth fall out." Jia Lian retorted, took the bowl and took a big sip. It was so refreshing!
In fact, it would be more pleasant to pour a bucket of cold water over yourself to cool down, but if you do this at home, the women will stop you from doing so because it is too undignified.

Baochai arrived first, and then Daiyu came. Just as they sat down, Wang Xifeng brought Ping'er back, and the two of them stood up again to greet them.

Wang Xifeng, in a hurry, took the bowl of iced sour plum soup and drank it. After putting it down, she sat opposite and said, "Second Uncle Zheng is going back to Beijing."

Jia Lian actually knew about this matter a long time ago and had already informed Lin Ruhai about it.

Jia Zheng had been working outside for many years and was promoted to the position of Provincial Surveillance Commissioner. His promotion speed was quite fast. He was promoted one level every three years, which was very rare.

Anyone with a discerning eye knows what Jia Zheng has gained. When Zhang Tingen was the Prime Minister, Jia Zheng's evaluation was either excellent or good.

When Lin Ruhai came up, he saw that Jia Zheng had become the Censor, so he stopped pretending and directly transferred him back to the capital to be the Deputy Censor-in-Chief.

The transfer order had just been issued. Jia Lian had heard about it from Lin Ruhai ten days ago, but he did not have any attitude towards it.

"Well, it's a good thing to be back." Jia Lian was lazy and continued to lie there without moving. The main reason was that he felt too comfortable and really didn't want to move.

Qingwen also brought a basin of well water for Jia Lian to soak his feet.

Jia Lian quickly turned it down: "No more soaking, I've been soaking in the government office all day!"

Qingwen took it to the yard and spread it on the ground. It's not that women don't want to soak their feet, but women's feet can't be exposed in this era. Unless it's in your own yard, it's okay to close the door.

"I met the eldest master this morning, and he was complaining about the faults of the second wife again." Wang Xifeng tested him cautiously, but Daiyu and Baochai pretended not to hear.

Jia Lian was still in a slump, and said weakly, "Don't pay attention to it. He is holding a grudge and wants to move back to the central courtyard. The old lady, don't mention this as long as you are here."

Wang Xifeng understood, and Daiyu and Baochai also understood. No matter what they said, they could not escape the fact that they were all "filial" sons. The matter was decided by the old lady in the beginning.

No one can mention this unless the old lady opens her mouth.

Wang Xifeng changed the subject again: "It is said that Tanchun's marriage is settled this time. Uncle Zheng got married when he was the provincial governor of Henan. The husband's father is the provincial education commissioner. Now Xichun is the only one left!"

Jia Lian got a clue and sat up straight: "Just say it if you have something to say, don't beat around the bush."

Wang Xifeng then smiled and said, "Master, you should pay more attention to Qiaojie's marriage."

Jia Lian... I'm not even 30 yet, and I'm going to be a father-in-law? In a few years, will I be a grandfather?
"Okay, I'll remember that. When I meet the right person later, I'll go and ask." Jia Lian replied. Don't refute such things, otherwise there will be a lot of words waiting for you.

The weather was too hot, so Jia Lian just ate a bowl of porridge in the evening and put down his chopsticks: "No more, no appetite."

Daiyu came over and touched his forehead with her hand: "Isn't it heat stroke?"

Baochai smiled and said, "That can't be possible. I just ate a lot of watermelon."

Several little ones lined up neatly and came to the study to greet everyone. Qiaojie had grown into a big girl, and Jia Quan had also grown a lot taller.

Qiaojie was not afraid of the heat either. She hugged Jia Lian's shoulders and asked in a low voice, "Father, mother said you wanted to tell me about my husband's family?"

Jia Lian had no resistance to Qiaojie. As he was the first daughter, he was indeed a little too fond of her and was quite partial to her.

"What's wrong? Are you unhappy?" Jia Lian joked. Qiaojie gently pushed her father and whispered, "I heard that the old lady wants to marry into the Shi family."

What? Jia Lian's eyebrows immediately stood up, and his tone changed: "What did your mother say?"

Qiaojie understood the seriousness of the situation immediately and lowered her voice and said, "Mother looks down on the Shi family." Jia Lian then nodded, stood up, walked to Jia Quan, patted his head, and said it was impossible for him to hug him, but the two little girls did reach out to hug him.

When facing Jia Quan again, Jia Lian told him seriously: "Quan! These are all your sisters. You must study hard and become a talent as soon as possible. In the future, you must protect them from being harmed."

Jia Quan instantly felt a sense of mission and patted his chest: "Don't worry, father. I guarantee that no one will dare to bully my sisters."

Qiaojie took her younger brothers and sisters out, and Jia Lian was alone in the study, fanning himself and leaning back in a recliner, lost in thought.

Xiren, dressed coolly, came over, snatched the fan and fanned him, but Jia Lian did not react and continued to be distracted.

The historians fell into decline, or rather, that group of old nobles, as long as they remained in the capital, fell into decline.

The Niu family, which had been improving slightly, fell into decline again when Niu Jizong fell ill.

The descendants of the nobles, despite the legacy of their ancestors, live worse and worse every year.

On the contrary, the King of Dongping and the King of Xining who dared to venture out have now established their own territories. Even the Wang family has occupied Annan.

Whether a family is successful or not depends a lot on the people. If the people are not good, no matter how powerful the family is, it will still decline.

It even got to the point where the woman had to become a mistress!

I really don’t know how the elders in her family can hold their heads up when they walk outside.

Jia Lian had heard that young people from the Liu and Feng families had gone out to explore the world and traveled very far, some to the Western Regions and some to Southeast Asia.

Xiren, who was on duty, rubbed it a few times, giving enough hints, and Jia Lian signaled her to be self-reliant.

Fortunately, there was an ice basin in the room, otherwise I would not be afraid of heatstroke after such strenuous exercise.

Xiren was not really afraid. What she was more afraid of was that she would not have a child and would have difficulty gaining a foothold in the Jia family in the future.

Xiren cared a lot about her face. Every time she went back to her parents' home, she would wear gold and silver jewelry to show off her aunt's face.

This was not a big deal, it was human nature and understandable. Jia Lian did not find fault with her, but gave her several expensive jewels.

In comparison, Qingwen and Xiangling are really indifferent, Yuanyang is too smart to see the clues. As for Siqi, she is carefree and has become a bit of a silly girl.

Xiren was sweating all over and asked Siqi to fetch some water. Well, ordinary maids were not allowed to enter the yard, so only these few were allowed to enter.

Jia Lian didn't know where this rule came from.

He will be thirty years old next year. Although Jia Lian is still full of energy, he is a bit like a tiger that cannot stand up to a pack of wolves.

After wiping his body, he lay down to rest. Xiren brought some ice cubes and added one last squeeze before she lay down as well.

Amid the expectation of people all over the world, a five-year plan for railway construction was finally put forward.

It is planned to build three railways within five years.

One leads to Liaodong, one leads to Wuhan (Hankou), and one leads to Jinling (Pukou).

The last two are naturally the Jinghan Line and the Jinpu Line, which are the real arteries that must be built.

As for how to repair it, there must be a first come first served principle, which is clearly stated in the plan.

The imperial court had limited funds, and building three roads within five years was too much pressure, so private investment was encouraged. The investment method was to purchase stocks issued by the railway-exclusive agency, the Railway Affairs Bureau.

Well, the Railway Affairs Bureau is a new idea created by Jia Lian. Why did he set up this bureau? The reason is very simple. The original post station system, how to accommodate so many people, this is a problem.

Therefore, wherever the railway was built, most of the people in the original post station system were directly incorporated into the bureau, and after training, they returned to their posts.

Never underestimate these people. Chongzhen did so, and the consequences were serious.

So, there are several types of people in the world who should never be underestimated. The postman is one, the failed art student is another, the private salt dealer is another, and the one who should never be underestimated is the librarian.

After Jia Lian reported the matter to the emperor, he quickly received a reply, and a special Railway Affairs Bureau was set up to take charge of railway construction and operation affairs.

The yamen was at the vice-minister level, and when Jia Lian submitted a memorial, he mentioned that the yamen should be merged with the post station system to form a Ministry of Posts and Communications. Neither the Cabinet nor the Emperor responded, but only approved the memorial from the Affairs Bureau.

Jia Lian had a rough guess as to why there was no unification. They were probably worried that the merger of two departments would not be a big deal, but they were afraid that the power would be too great and cut off the transmission of information between the inside and the outside.

This is not to guard against Jia Lian, but to guard against others. Therefore, the postal system must be independent. However, the status of this system has never been high.

Now that it has been hit again by the Ministry of Railway Affairs, it will be even weaker in the future and its presence will be even lower.

Jia Lian was not in a hurry. He just had to wait. He was young and could afford to wait. When he took charge of the government, what six ministries? That was just the beginning. He would need at least six more.

As soon as the news about railway stocks was released, the newly established Ministry of Railway Affairs was blocked.

Countless merchants flocked to the scene, waving the silver bills in their hands, all wanting to buy stocks.

Jia Lian was horrified by what he saw, and quickly asked someone to notify everyone that the book had not yet been officially released, but the official release date would be announced in the newspaper later.

If there are too many people, you have to draw lots. Only those who win the lottery can buy a certain number of stocks. In short, stocks are not something you can buy whenever you want.

Faced with such popularity, Jia Lian, who was familiar with history, recalled the incident of profiting from the rubber stock craze.

I became secretly alert in my heart. I must be on high alert in the future and set up a mechanism to prevent fools.

To be honest, Jia Lian really has a psychological trauma when it comes to stocks. Once people use all their intelligence on them, the bombs they get are bigger than the last, and each one explodes louder than the last.

In today's Great Zhou, the financial system has begun to take shape, and there will be many subsequent problems that will be exposed sooner or later.

But anyway, we can’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Laws and regulations, as well as preventive measures, all have a certain lag, so there is really no way around it.

People only realize they have been cheated after they have been cheated. Some people accept the bad luck after being cheated, while others think about cheating back.

People are really different.

(End of this chapter)