Red Mansion, Ningfu Scholarly Family

Chapter 259 Entering the Brothel

……

Big sister, look who's here."

Everyone went into the house together.

Yuanchun's eyes lit up and she said happily, "Is it Sister Lin? She is such a beautiful girl."

Yingchun smiled and said, "She is Lin's niece's wife now. Sister Lin has been engaged to Rong'er from the East Palace."

"Oh."

Yuanchun nodded with a half-smile.

When it comes to marriages between big families, these things don’t really matter.

After all, seniority and the like mean nothing in family interests.

"Auntie."

Lin Daiyu stepped forward shyly and bowed.

"Good girl."

Yuanchun pulled Lin Daiyu to the bed and said with a smile: "Lord Lin, you are going to stay here permanently this time, right? You might as well stay here. It will be more lively when we are all together."

"Ah."

Lin Daiyu responded in a low voice.

She was still a little reserved towards Jia Yuanchun, perhaps because she had rarely seen her.

As they were talking about this, someone from Grandmother Jia's side came to urge them, saying that today was the day for the family reunion, so a banquet was prepared and everyone was drinking and having fun together.

When everyone arrived, Aunt Xue and the sisters Baochai and Baoqin also came. When they met, there was a burst of shouting of "sister, younger sister, and niece", and they went into Lady Jia's courtyard laughing and noisy.

Yuanchun looked at Xue Baoqin and Lin Daiyu, and couldn't help but sigh in her heart: Rong brother is really a blessed man.

I have to say that Jia Rong is indeed worthy of both of them.

Family background, family background, and literary talent.

Now he is going to take the imperial examination again.

Once you pass, you will become a Jinshi!
Rong Ge'er is only eighteen years old this year!

Wenquxing has come down to earth!
"By the way, today is the day he turns eighteen, Rong'er should have finished his exams!" Jia Tanchun suddenly said.

Yingchun asked, "Is it today? How can I remember tomorrow?"

Baochai smiled and said, "It's today, that's right. Although the last exam is scheduled to last three days, it's actually only two days."

"what!"

Xichun said happily: "Doesn't that mean Rong'er is going home?"

"Don't worry." Tanchun said, "I definitely can't come back now. I won't be able to leave the examination room until the afternoon at least, and I won't be home until the evening."

"When the time comes, we, as his aunt, will invite him to be the host."

"Yeah!"

"Sister Lin, come with me."

Lin Daiyu said, "If you invite me, I won't go."

Tanchun smiled and said, "It's okay. You live in our house now. You are his aunt. What are you afraid of?"

Baochai smiled and said, "Yes, this is called each having his own opinion."

Lin Daiyu: "..."

……

After several days of exams, they finally ended today.

The moment he walked out of the examination room, Jia Rong suddenly felt extremely relaxed, and an unknown sense of confidence arose in his heart.

You will definitely win!
There were a lot of people crowding around the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall. Some were discussing the test questions, some were discussing who would pass the exam, and some were even gambling.

Who will win the first prize in this year's imperial examination?

Jia Rong went to take a look. There were ten candidates for the top prize. They were either the top scorers in the current year's exam or the top scorers in previous exams in their respective provinces. Most of them were candidates from southern provinces, and there was only one candidate from the north.

Jia Shunzhi, the top scorer in the Shuntian Prefecture's provincial examination, and the leader of the Qing Society.

The odds are very low, ten to one.

After all, in the great war between the North and the South, the northern scholars did not have much advantage, and if Jia Rong was not so famous, he would not even be on the list.

By the way, Jia Rong bought himself a hundred taels of silver.

"This gentleman has a good eye. Although Jia Shunzhi is not as famous as those Jiangnan scholars, he is still considered the best talent in our capital. He has a great chance of winning the first prize... How about you bet a little more?" "Then I'll bet another hundred."

Jia Rong dropped another bill of exchange.

"Okay, sir, please keep the receipt. We recognize the words but not the person."

At this time, another person came over and slapped five 100-liang bills on the table: "I bet 500 liang, Jia Shunzhi."

The banker was overjoyed and quickly collected the bill of exchange.

I just adjusted the odds a little higher.

Nine to one...

Jia Rong looked at Xie Jiwen and said, "You're here to join in the fun too? Aren't you afraid of losing everything?"

Xie Jiwen said helplessly: "There is no other way. I need five thousand taels of silver to redeem Mei Niang. The odds of others are not as high as yours. Even if I win, I can't make up the money. So I'll just bet on you."

"Shunzhi, the happiness of Mei Niang and I depends on you!"

Jia Rong asked, "Have you told your family?"

Xie Jiwen shook his head: "Not yet, I don't dare, but I have come up with a foolproof plan and I need your help."

Jia Rong was suspicious: "How can I help?"

Xie Jiwen said seriously: "Just say she is your distant cousin, my family will definitely agree."

Jia Rong: “…”

Xie Jiwen continued, "I don't need to thank you for your kindness. Now that this matter is done, I am yours from now on. You can do whatever you want."

Jia Rong asked, "What if I don't want to?"

Xie Jiwen said: "That's not so good."

"Come on, I'll take you to see her first." As he said that, he was about to pull Jia Rong to see her.

"Hey, wait a minute." Jia Rong shook his hand away and said, "Let's talk about this in a few days. I want to go home and rest."

Xie Jiwen pulled Jia Rong and said, "Let's meet her first and give her some peace of mind. Otherwise, I'm worried that she will ignore me again."

"It's you who never look down on prostitutes. I wouldn't dare to say that if it were someone else."

"Hey! Let's go then."

Jia Rong was helpless.

After all, this person is his brother.

Jia Rong also realized that Xie Jiwen probably really liked that girl, and if he didn't help, it might end in tragedy.

Jia Rong has always been willing to go through thick and thin for his brothers, so there is naturally nothing wrong with just recognizing a cousin.

As for the body of the brothel girl...

Buddha said: All beings are equal.

In Jia Rong's eyes, they are the same as the high and mighty young ladies.

"But let me make this clear first. If your family finds out and gets angry, I won't be responsible. You have to figure it out on your own."

"Don't worry, I definitely won't!"

"Even if she does find out, as long as you acknowledge her as your cousin, there will be no problem."

……

Chuyue Tower.

One of the finest brothels in Kyoto.

It was just after the imperial examination, and there were many candidates who came to get drunk and have fun. There was no room left in the huge hall.

"Oh, it's Mr. Xie. Please come in. Mei Niang is waiting for you. She won't accept other guests." A beautiful woman came up with a smile. Suddenly she saw Jia Rong and her eyes lit up: "Oh, where did this handsome young man come from? He is full of literary talent and romantic energy. I'm afraid he is Xie Yuanlang from some province?"

Xie Jiwen stopped the beautiful woman and said with a smile: "Don't tease my brother. He never touches these things. Besides, don't bring out the vulgar women here to embarrass yourself in front of my brother."

"hehe!"

The beautiful woman smiled and whispered, "To be honest with you, Master Xie, I have many common ladies here, but there are also some top-notch ones. Yesterday, a 15-year-old girl came. She was so pretty that even a fairy would have to give her some respect."

"Even gods are useless. Take us to see Mei Niang quickly." Xie Jiwen said seriously.

"Okay, okay, please go upstairs."

Seeing that she failed to persuade the two, the beautiful woman stopped talking and led them to the private room on the second floor. She knocked on the door and said, "Mian, Master Xie is here. Why don't you open the door quickly?"

……

(End of this chapter)