Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 409: Farewell to the Inner Courtyard

Jia Cong said, "Brother Liu, Liu Ao's men attacked Songjiang Guard, and Songjiang Guard soldiers were there to deal with the attack. Why would Jinyiwei set up a checkpoint in Jinling City to conduct an investigation?"

Liu Yong said: "Master Jia, you don't know that this morning, Jinyiwei's spies found the trace of Liu Ao's leader Shui Luosha on Honglin Street in the city.

The appearance of this person in Jinling City poses an unpredictable risk, so Captain Ge has drawn personnel from the three 100-household offices to set up checkpoints at key points in the city.

He also notified the prefect of Yingtian, Jia Yucun, and asked him to dispatch three squads of yamen runners to cooperate with the Jinyiwei to patrol the city, hoping to find any trace of the water Rakshasas.

Although Jia Cong knew Liu Ao, this was the first time he heard of his subordinate leader Shui Luosha.

He asked, "Brother Liu, who is this Water Rakshasa that deserves such a big show from the Jinyiwei."

Liu Yong said: "Master Jia, you don't know that this Shui Luosha is a capable female bandit leader under Liu Ao.

She is a mixed race of Zhou people and Japanese people. She learned ninjutsu in Japan since she was a child. She is highly skilled in martial arts and is best at hidden assassinations.

The city of Jinling is densely populated with wealthy families and high-ranking officials in the government.

If such a person sneaks into the city and a bloody massacre occurs, the Jinyiwei will be held responsible.

Besides, the Japanese pirates under Liu Ao are harassing Songjiang, and the Water Rakshasa sneaked into Jinling City at this time. The purpose is unclear, so we have to be on guard. "

After hearing this, Jia Cong finally understood why the Jinyiwei had deployed in this formation.

All the prefectures and cities eastward along the river from Nanjing have garrisons on high alert. Even if the Japanese pirates attack, they can just fight back with soldiers and block the water with earth.

However, it is easy to dodge an open attack but difficult to guard against an arrow from the dark.

If pirates and bandits were allowed to penetrate into Nanjing, the hub of Jiangnan, while we were fighting the enemy at the front, and cause trouble, it would be difficult to deal with.

Two years ago, Japanese ronin at Longtan Port massacred the dock and entered the city, killing dozens of civilians. The bloody incident that year shocked the world and is still shocking today.

Feng Fengnian, the former chief of the Jinling Jinyiwei, was dismissed from his post because of this.

Now that there is a sign of such disaster, the current Jinyiwei Captain Ge Zhi naturally feels like he is facing a formidable enemy.

The Jinyiwei had only nine hundred-household units in the city of Jinling, but in order to hunt down a female bandit, they had to mobilize troops from three hundred-household units at once.

Although Liu Yong was an old acquaintance of Jia Cong, he was very diligent and careful in his work. He looked at Jia Cong with a look of embarrassment on his face.

"Master Jia, Captain Ge has ordered that all passing carriages and horses be checked, especially those with female relatives. I wonder who else is in your carriage."

Jia Cong smiled slightly, lifted a corner of the curtain, stayed for only a moment, and then closed the curtain.

Liu Yong's eyes were sharp and he took a quick glance.

I saw a little girl of about twelve or thirteen sitting in the car. She was very pretty and had a look of surprise on her face. There was no one else.

Liu Yong knew that Jia Cong was a noble son of an aristocratic family, and it was common for him to have maids with him, so he smiled and said, "Don't mind it, Master Jia, it's just a routine matter.

Please get in the car, Master Jia. I will treat you to a drink some other day. I hope you will do me the honor."

When Jia Cong's carriage passed the checkpoint, through the window, he saw Liu Yong checking all passing vehicles and pedestrians without omission.

The Jinyiwei even set up curtains and had female servants search suspicious women, which was extremely cautious and strict.

Since the Jinyiwei had just received the news, the team he and Zou Miner sent to Songjiang would definitely receive similar information, and it would probably be sent to Nanjing within the next two days.

……

August 28th, the 14th year of Jiazhao.

Jinling, Rongyufang, Zhen’s House.

Today is the 68th birthday of the old lady of the Zhen family. As the saying goes, it is rare for a person to live to be 70 years old. In this era, living to 68 years old is already considered a long life.

Early in the morning of that day, the doors of the Zhen Mansion were wide open, and lights and decorations were hung everywhere. The male and female servants in the mansion all changed into new clothes and were busy inside and outside the mansion.

The wives, young ladies and young masters of each room in the Zhen mansion all changed into their best attire and went to different places in the inner and outer courtyards, bringing their servants to receive the guests.

Several old maids from the side rooms also came into Yuhe Hall early in the morning to chat with the old lady and help receive the women from the noble families who came into the inner courtyard.

Just after the hour of Chen, more and more people came to celebrate the birthday and attend the birthday banquet, and the side halls in the outer courtyard of the Zhen mansion were almost full of guests.

The female relatives who came with the family were led into the second gate in batches by the maids and old women waiting outside the second gate, and went to Yuhe Hall to pay their respects to the old lady.

The whole house was filled with a joyous atmosphere, and the scene of a prosperous family with flowers and brocade made every guest who came to celebrate the birthday envious.

……

Jia Cong accepted Zhen Fangqing's invitation that day and brought Lingguan to Zhen's house to celebrate the birthday.

The reason why Lingguan was brought along was that when Liu Xian sent the invitation that day, he specifically included Zhen Qingfang's words, saying that she liked Lingguan very much and asked Jia Cong to bring her to the mansion to meet her today.

As soon as Jia Cong's carriage arrived at the gate of Zhen's mansion, Jiang Liu handed over the invitation. The servant in charge of welcoming guests read the invitation and seemed to have received instructions in advance, so he ran into the mansion to report the news.

After a while, Jia Cong saw Liu Xian coming out with a smile on his face.

He said, "Master Jia, I have received instructions from the Third Miss. When you arrive at the mansion, please meet me in the inner courtyard of the second gate. I will lead the way for you."

Jia Cong was a little surprised when he heard this and asked, "Manager Liu, is it rude for a man from outside to enter the inner courtyard?"

Liu Xian smiled and said, "Mr. Jia, you are worrying too much. The Zhen and Jia families are close friends who have known each other for generations. Besides, you are young, the same age as our Second Master Bao, so you don't have to worry about suspicion from the inner court."

When Jia Cong heard the name "Master Bao", he was slightly stunned and thought of Baoyu from the Rongguo Mansion in the capital.

But he quickly realized that Liu Xian was talking about Zhen Baoyu from the Zhen family in Jinling.

Jia Cong had long known that Zhen Baoyu of the Zhen family was not only the same age as Jia Baoyu, but also looked very similar to him. Even the same things were true of them, such as hanging out in the inner chamber, liking women, and being spoiled by his grandmother.

If I could see the real person, I wonder if it would be really like what is described in the legend.

Almost all the guests who came to celebrate the birthday were of noble status. Many of them were from prominent families in Jinling, or were colleagues and officials in the government who were on good terms with Zhen Yingjia.

When they saw Jia Cong's outstanding appearance, they were all very impressed.

He was even more surprised when he saw Liu Xian, the chief steward of the Zhen family, come out in person to greet Jia Cong with a very respectful and polite attitude.

Liu Xian, the chief steward of the Zhen family, is quite famous in the entire Jinling City.

Most of the guests present knew that he was a capable subordinate of the second master of the Zhen family in the past, and now he is the right-hand man of the third Miss Zhen, who is in charge of the Zhen family's business.

Although Miss Zhen San is outstanding and has made many amazing achievements in the business world, she is a girl after all, and it is not good for her to do everything by herself or show up in public for everything.

Therefore, many matters concerning the Zhen family's business were handled by the steward Liu Xian.

In the business world of Jinling, this Manager Liu was a very influential figure. But now he was so low-key and amiable as to personally receive a handsome young man who was not yet twenty years old.

But among these guests, there were a few officials who had official dealings with the Ministry of Works of the Temporary Capital.

Some people have elegant tastes and often go to Qingyin Pavilion to listen to music.

Therefore, most of them recognized that this young man with outstanding demeanor was Jia Cong, the director of the Firearms Department of the Ministry of Industry in the temporary capital, who had been very popular in Jinling recently, and the young man Weiyuanbo, who had a long-standing reputation as a writer in Jiangnan.

There were some guests who were more observant and sharp-eyed than others. They heard Liu Xian say that he had come specially to greet Jia Cong on the orders of Miss Zhen San.

Many people know that the Zhen and Jia families are both old-established families in Jinling, and the two families are old relatives with good friends for generations.

Jia Cong and Miss Zhen San are both the most outstanding young people in the Jia and Zhen families, and it seems that they are of similar age...

Now, Miss Zhen San, who has always had a broad vision, asked her trusted steward to come out to greet her in person. The guests who knew some of the background came up with some pleasing guesses.

……

Jia Cong followed Liu Xian through the hall and through the gate. Although the Zhen Mansion was not as prestigious as the Rongguo Mansion, it was still quite impressive among the aristocratic mansions. It took them half a cup of tea to reach the entrance to the second inner courtyard.

A smiling old woman had been waiting at the door. When she saw Liu Xian coming, she asked, "Master, is this Master Cong from the Jia Mansion?"

Liu Xian smiled and said to Jia Cong: "Master Jia, I can only send you here. My family will take you to the inner courtyard."

Jia Cong thanked Liu Xian, then took Lingguan and followed the old woman into the inner courtyard gate, passing many pavilions and houses along the way.

The old woman kept looking back at Jia Cong with an expression of surprise and admiration on her face.

The old woman who led the way was from Liu Xian's family. Her husband was the business manager of the second house, and she was the manager of the inner courtyard of the second house.

The second wife of the Zhen family had fallen seriously ill after Zhen Yingquan's accident, and since then she has lived as a widow in the inner courtyard and rarely appears in public.

Liu Xian's daughter was once a maid of Zhen Fangqing's mother, and she has always been loyal to Zhen Fangqing and her daughter.

The news had spread in the mansion a few days ago that the first wife and the second young lady of Shenjing were both optimistic about the young man Weiyuan Bo from the Jia family in Shenjing, and believed that he would be a good match for the third young lady from a noble family.

Later, it was heard that this young man had saved the third master of the first house. Even the old lady began to love this young man from the Jia family. The eldest master even wrote a letter to the Jia family in the capital to discuss marriage.

Originally, it was the eldest wife's family who was behind this matter. Liu Xian's family had lived in the mansion all their lives, so they knew all the tricks and schemes of the eldest wife's family.

So she was a little skeptical about this young master of the Jia family at first, but later she heard from her own head that the third young lady and the young master of the Jia family had met and they were indeed a perfect match.

This made Liu Xianjia change his mind and he became curious about this matter. After all, it was related to Miss Zhen San's life.

Today, when she saw Jia Cong for the first time, she was surprised by his outstanding appearance and demeanor. It was unexpected that there was such a proud man in this world, not to mention that he was conferred the title of earl at such a young age.

She was happy for the third girl and her steps became lighter. After walking for a while, the three of them arrived at Yuhe Hall.

Liu Xianjia came in to report the news, and came out after a moment, smiling and lifting the door curtain, saying, "Master Jia, the old lady wants to see you."

At that moment, Jia Cong had an inexplicable sense of déjà vu as he entered Rongqing Hall, because the Zhen and Jia families had so many similarities in their mansions, family style, and behavior.

When Jia Cong brought Lingguan into Yuhe Hall, the first thing they saw was an old woman with gray hair, a kind face, and dressed in silk.

I think this person must be the old lady of the Zhen family. The others sitting there are several women in luxurious clothes, of different ages. They must be the female members of the Zhen family's inner chambers.

Behind the old lady stood a beautiful girl as pretty as a rose. She had a graceful figure and a pair of eyes that looked at him with a smile on her lips.

Jia Cong was slightly stunned, then he recognized that it was Zhen Fangqing who had changed into women's clothes.

Compared to the handsome and elegant man in men's clothes that day, Zhen Fangqing in women's clothes was radiant, with the pretty and gentle beauty of a girl, and extremely bright and beautiful, which was very moving.

Jia Cong's eyes turned inadvertently, and suddenly he saw an old man with silver hair sitting on the seat to the right of Old Madam Zhen, and he was slightly surprised.

Logically speaking, the main hall of the Zhen family's inner courtyard is currently occupied by female family members, and the probability of an adult male appearing is extremely low.

Even if it was Zhen Yingjia, the head of the Zhen family, he would probably not show up at this time if there was nothing important.

That is to say, a young man like Jia Cong would not appear too abrupt when appearing in the inner hall at this time.

He looked at him intently and saw that the old man had a gentle face, fair skin, and light movements, without any sign of old age.

When he saw the other person's appearance clearly, Jia Cong was surprised and delighted. This person was Zhang Youpeng, the elder brother of Zhang Youshi, a famous doctor in Shenjing.

When Jia Cong left Beijing for the south of the Yangtze River, Daiyu had just received a letter from Lin Ruhai, saying that Lin Ruhai had been ill for a year and was not in better health than in previous years.

Seeing that Daiyu was very worried, Jia Cong wanted to invite Zhang Youpeng, who was an extraordinary medical skill, to go south to Yangzhou to treat Lin Ruhai.

Before leaving Beijing, he went to Huaxi Village in the northern suburbs of Shenjing to visit this miracle doctor, but the Zhang family's medicine boy said that Zhang Youpeng had gone south to visit a friend and would not return to Shenjing for two months.

Jia Cong never expected to see him in the Zhen family in Jinling. It was really a pleasant surprise. He had already planned how to invite him to go to Yangzhou to treat Lin Ruhai.

Zhang Youpeng also recognized Jia Cong and did not seem surprised by his appearance at the Zhen family. He smiled and nodded to him.

……

Just now, Liu Xian's family came into the hall to report. Everyone present in the hall knew that the young man who came into the hall was the young man Weiyuanbo, who was now famous in the Jia family of Shenjing.

During the past two years, there have been many rumors about Jia Cong in Jinling, and everything he did was outstanding, which attracted a lot of attention.

Therefore, as soon as he entered the hall, he attracted everyone's attention.

Everyone saw that he was wearing a moon-white thin brocade robe, a nine-rhinoceros jade belt around his waist, and had long, shiny black hair combed neatly into a bun, with a smooth and white jade hairpin pinned on his head.

Her eyebrows are thick and straight, her eyes are like autumn pools, and the lines of the nose and mouth are straight and smooth, like clear streams in the mountains, with an indescribable beauty.

His demeanor and bearing were like a jade tree in the wind, and he seemed as if he had walked out of a painting. He was truly a first-class person.

All those present were wives of the Zhen family's main descendants and concubines. They had all seen a lot of the world, but it was the first time they saw a young man with such outstanding appearance and demeanor, and they were surprised.

Next to the eldest wife of the Zhen family, there was a beautiful middle-aged woman sitting. She looked similar to Zhen Fangqing, but she was thinner and her face was a little pale.

When she saw Jia Cong, her slightly worried brows relaxed slightly. She glanced at her daughter standing next to the old lady, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.

She is Zhen Fangqing's biological mother, Zhen Yingquan's wife, and the second wife of the Zhen family.

Originally, the wife of the first wife had said many good things about the young man from the Jia family in front of the old lady, and she was eager to arrange a marriage for her daughter as soon as possible. Naturally, she knew what the wife of the first wife was planning.

Therefore, the second wife has always been somewhat resistant to this arranged matchmaking.

Although she knew that the eldest wife had ulterior motives in arranging marriages.

But now that I have met a man like Jia Cong, I also feel that this man, regardless of his family background or character and appearance, is a rare and ideal match.

(End of this chapter)