Red Mansion, Ningfu Scholarly Family

Chapter 324: When the world changes...

……

Just when he was alone with Lin Daiyu for a while, he heard Zijuan outside shouting, "Sister Yun is here, sit over here."

"No, the master wants you to go to the study. He says he has something to tell you."

"Okay, I'll go in and call the girl."

"Well, then I'll go back first."

"Sister Yun, take care..."

Zijuan watched Yunxi leave the yard, then quietly walked to the door of the house, tiptoed and looked inside.

"What are you looking at? Come in."

The two people in the room had already sat down seriously.

Zijuan walked in with a smile and said, "The master said he has something to tell the young lady. Shall we go over now?"

"Well, go now."

Lin Daiyu stood up and gave Jia Rong a cold look, then raised her chin and said, "Aren't you leaving yet?"

Jia Rong took another sip of tea and said, "You go first, I'll follow behind."

Old Lin probably knew that he was coming here, so he was anxious to find an excuse to call his daughter over, fearing that his daughter would suffer a loss.

In fact, the losses have already been suffered...

"Well, let's go."

Lin Daiyu pulled Zijuan up and walked out with her head lowered.

"Daddy."

After Lin Daiyu entered the room, she saw Lin Ruhai reading a book seriously and called out softly.

Lin Ruhai raised his head and smiled, then put down the book: "Yu'er is here."

"Well, Daddy has something to ask me?"

"There is a little bit. Did Rong Ge tell you?"

"Ah, he... said something." Lin Daiyu's face turned a little red.

Lin Ruhai sighed. His daughter was already someone else's. What else could he say? Moreover, he was counting on his daughter and Jia Rong to have more children to leave a successor for the Lin family.

"Then you should get ready. Later you will follow Rong Ge'er to Rongguo Mansion to say goodbye to your grandmother."

"Yeah, I understand, Dad."

"Then you can stay in Rong Mansion for the next few days. I need to explain some things in the government office, so I may be back very late."

"Oh……"

……

In the evening, the two of them went home in a carriage.

The carriage was a little small. Jia Rong was fanning himself with a serious look. Lin Daiyu was leaning against the carriage, looking at Jia Rong with vigilance.

"Why are you so defensive against me?"

"Hehe, I'm just guarding against you!"

"Am I such an ignorant person?"

"Uh-huh."

Lin Daiyu nodded vigorously.

"You think too much. This is a carriage after all."

"But the book you wrote last time...that was in the carriage!" Lin Daiyu blushed as she said this.

"Haha."

Jia Rong smiled.

Last time, I was in a good mood and wrote something that children shouldn’t read. Actually, it wasn’t very explicit, at most it was a description at the level of Yan Qing in The West Chamber.

"You're still laughing. Next time you write a book, don't write so...well, what if someone reads it?" Lin Daiyu said shyly.

Jia Rong said seriously, "Only you and Baoqin saw it, and no one else."

When Lin Daiyu heard that Baoqin had also seen it, she felt a little worried and frowned, saying, "You also know that Sister Bao is a powerful person. What if she saw it?"

"Just see her. Are you afraid of her?" Jia Rong was not worried at all.

Lin Daiyu pouted her lips: "Of course I'm not afraid of her, I'm just... shy."

"Hehe." Jia Rong smiled softly and whispered, "If she knew, it means she has seen it too. She is the one who should be shy. After all, you are already engaged, so there is no harm in taking a look. She is still unmarried."

Lin Daiyu: "..."

It sounds like it makes sense!
The Lin Mansion was originally not far from the Jia Mansion. While the two were talking, the carriage had already arrived at the Rongguo Mansion and went straight into the second gate.

Jia Rong got off the carriage first. Lin Daiyu came out with her skirt rolled up. When she saw Jia Rong extending his hand, she looked around and saw that there was only Xiao Xiao around and no one else. After a little hesitation, she took Jia Rong's hand and got off the carriage.

"Let's go. It happens that I haven't paid my respects to the old lady for a long time."

Lin Daiyu was naturally embarrassed to be paired with Jia Rong right now, so she gently pushed Jia Rong and said, "Then you go first. I want to go to the garden to see my aunt."

Jia Rong: "Okay..."

"I'll go to Xiaoxiang Pavilion to find you in the evening."

Lin Daiyu: “What?”

Jia Rong: "Of course I write a book."

Lin Daiyu's eyes lit up: "Okay, remember to come early."

Jia Rong nodded: "Okay, let's have a long talk."

"Pah." Lin Daiyu blushed and spat, "Who wants to chat with you? You are writing outside by lamplight while I am sleeping peacefully inside."

"..."

There are guests coming to Lady Jia's courtyard tonight.

"Our master, wuwu..."

"Old lady, please think of a solution..."

Mrs. Shi Nai cried so hard in the hall that she became a lonely person.

Shi Xiangyun stood at the door, silent.

After listening for a while, Jia's mother sighed helplessly, "You should get up first. He is my nephew. How can I not want to save him? But I am an old woman and I have no say in the affairs of the court."

"Old Lord Jia of the East Palace can ask the old lady to help say a few words. Without the old master, the Shi family will be finished."

Of course, Grandmother Jia didn't want the Shi family to be ruined, but would Jia Jing listen to her? Moreover, Jia Jing was not in the capital, so he was afraid that distant water could not quench his immediate thirst.

Just at this moment, Jia Rong came in from outside.

"Brother Rong."

Xiangyun hurried over and asked, "Have you heard about my second uncle's matter?"

"heard."

Captured by the Tatars.

Shi Laoer was so miserable. It was fortunate that his grandfather was not at home, otherwise he might have been scolded.

What a waste! He was captured by the Tartars.

You have brought shame to the historian family!

In fact, Jia Rong guessed correctly.

Although Jia Jing was far away in Jinling, the situation in Kyoto and other places was always in his attention, especially in the northwest.

"The historians are getting worse with each generation. They were actually captured by the Tartars. They are simply useless!" Jia Jing said, slamming the table.

Nangong Lu had a worried look on his face: "The Liao Emperor is quite talented, and his sons are also very outstanding. In recent years, he has annexed many tribes in the north. I am afraid he will become a threat to Daxia!"

Zhuge Lan smiled and said, "Brother Nangong, you worry too much. As the saying goes, 'Born in hardship, die in comfort.' The Liao Emperor is eyeing the court covetously in the north, and there are Japanese pirates in the south. Only then can the court be put under pressure, so that it will not be in strife all day long, or be content to live a life of pleasure and drunkenness."

Nangong Lu smiled bitterly: "Having said that, I'm afraid it will end up like the former Song Dynasty, where we were bullied by the barbarians and had no power to fight back."

"That's not the case." Jia Jing waved his hand. "Although Great Xia has many shortcomings now, its military strength is still good. It is not like the former Song Dynasty, which was completely powerless against the Tartars."

"The question now is whether we should sit back and watch the fight or... take advantage of the opportunity to send a capable person to control the situation in the northwest?"

Zhuge Lan thought for a moment and said, "I think it's better to sit back and watch the fight. First, if you send your trusted people to intervene in the northwest, it may arouse the emperor's suspicion, which is not worth the loss. Second, your efforts in recent years have been mainly on the sea. Your warships and navy are certainly unmatched, but against the cavalry in the northwest... I'm afraid the chances of winning are not great."

"That's true." Jia Jing smiled bitterly.

As the saying goes, if you gain something, you lose something. In the past few years, all the money of Ningguo Mansion has been invested in warships and naval training, and there is no cavalry at all...

Of course, if he dared to develop infantry and cavalry, not to mention the emperor, even the emperor emeritus would be unable to sit still.

"You can't have your cake and eat it too. Under the current circumstances, it is the best choice for you to work hard to develop overseas forces. This will not only keep you out of the eyes and ears of many people, but also allow you to secretly accumulate strength and wait for changes in the world..."

……

Let’s talk about Kyoto.

When Jia Rong came to Rongguo Mansion, he first asked his two aunts Yingchun and Tanchun for their opinions, whether they were willing to follow him south to Jinling.

Of course Tanchun was willing, and Yingchun nodded after a slight hesitation.

Mainly because she thought that once Jia Rong left, the Xue sisters would definitely follow him, and Sister Lin would also follow Lord Lin to Jiangnan. If Tanchun left too, she would be left alone...

Why not go with me to my hometown in Jinling to have a look?

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

"Will the ancestors and the master..." Tanchun asked with some concern.

Jia Rong smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'll go talk to the old lady."

As long as Baoyu is not taken away, I think Grandmother Jia will not care much.

"Then I'll trouble you, Rong."

Jia Rong waved his hand and said with a smile: "Aunt, you are too polite. You should hurry up and prepare in the next two days. You don't need to bring too much clothes and bedding. They may not be suitable for wearing over there. You can buy new ones when the time comes."

Yingchun felt a little embarrassed and blushed as she said, "I'm asking Rong'er to spend money again."

Tanchun knew that the East Mansion was rich enough to rival a country and that they didn't need a little money at all, so she smiled and said, "The aunts don't have any other skills, so we can only make a few clothes for you to show our appreciation."

"Haha, I like the clothes made by my aunts the best."

After a few words, Jia Rong went to Jia's grandmother's courtyard, and met Shi Xiangyun, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, at the door.

"Aunt Yun, long time no see. I heard that you are still waiting to be married. How do you have time to come out and play?" Jia Rong said with a smile.

Xiangyun said, "Stop talking now. Do you know what happened in our family?"

Jia Rong said, "I know a little."

Xiangyun asked, "Do you have any idea?"

Jia Rong was speechless and said, "Your second uncle is with the Tartars. What can I do? But don't worry. Your second uncle is in a high position of power in Daxia. The captives will be treated well and will not suffer. As long as your second uncle holds on and does not surrender, your family will be fine."

Shi Xiangyun: “…”

"What if..."

Jia Rong: "That's... hard to say."

"No, you have no confidence in your second uncle? He is also a veteran. He has old and young people in Kyoto. It is unlikely that he will surrender to the Tartars."

Shi Xiangyun shook her head and said, "Of course my uncle won't do that, but there are smart people among the Tartars. They only need to put my uncle under house arrest and then spread the word that he has surrendered to them. This will not only undermine the morale of our Great Xia, but also make the court lose trust in my uncle... When my uncle finds out that his whole family has been beheaded, he will surrender even if he doesn't want to."

"You..." Jia Rong looked at Shi Xiangyun with wide eyes: "You have such a vicious plan in your head. It's a pity that you don't become a dog-headed military advisor."

Shi Xiangyun curled her lips and said, "It's not that I'm vicious, there are many such schemes in history books, don't you, a top scholar, know about it?"

"I know a little, but not much."

"I mainly read the Book of Rites," Jia Rong said seriously.

Shi Xiangyun: “…”

"You nerd!"

Jia Rong laughed and patted Xiangyun on the shoulder gently: "I was just joking with you. I think what you said is very right, but don't worry too much. The Tartars will use tricks. Our emperor and his officials are not fools. How could they fall into the trap so easily?"

"If you are really worried, you can follow me to Jinling for a while and wait and see what happens."

"Really?"

Xiangyun clapped her hands happily: "Sorry to bother you, Sister Lin, are you going?"

"Go, not only she will go, Aunt Yingchun, Aunt Tanchun, and the little aunt will also go to appreciate the beautiful scenery of Jinling."

Xiangyun was furious when she heard this: "How could you not tell me about such a good thing in advance? If I hadn't come today, I would hate you forever!"

"Aunt, you are still unmarried, how can you run around?"

Xiangyun waved her hand: "No need to stay any longer."

Jia Rong was puzzled: "What's going on?"

Xiangyun sighed: "It was only two days after the news of my second uncle's capture was reported back to Beijing that the engagement was cancelled... I, ah!"

Jia Rong immediately gave her a sympathetic look and consoled her: "Don't worry, I'll find you a better one in the future, someone who looks like Pan An and is as handsome as me."

Xiangyun was so angry that she kicked Jia Rong.

"If you keep talking nonsense, I'll kick you!"

"Even though you are the third place, I can still play!"

"Who's talking outside?"

Grandmother Jia inside suddenly shouted.

"Let's go, the ancestor is calling you."

Xiangyun pulled Jia Rong into the house.

Not only was there Grandmother Jia, but also the worried-looking Jia Zheng and Madam Shi, who was crying ruefully on the ground.

Jia Rong bowed and said, "Greetings to the old lady, the second master, and Madam Shi."

"Rong'er, I just happened to need to talk to you about something." Seeing Jia Rong coming in, Jia's mother's eyes suddenly lit up: "You know about the Shi family's affairs, right? How can you think of a way to get the court to bring them back?"

"This... I really don't know."

"But if the court wins the battle, it should be possible."

Jia Zheng asked, "What if we lose again?"

Jia Rong: “…”

If we defeat the Tartars again, they will reach Taiyuan. The emperor will be trembling with fear and no one will care about Shi Nai.

Grandmother Jia glared at her youngest son in dissatisfaction and said, "Don't talk nonsense. How could our Celestial Empire be defeated by a mere Tartar? You saw how powerful our old master was when you were a child. We even have Tartar captives in our stables!"

"Yes, the old lady is right." Jia Zheng bent down and admitted his mistake.

Grandmother Jia waved her hand and said, "Daughter-in-law Nai, you go down and rest first. Wait for news in the mansion. As long as the court wins the battle, I will ask the eldest brother to go to the court to ask."

"Thank you, ma'am."

Shi Nai's wife went downstairs crying.

Grandmother Jia's expression changed: "Rong'er, do you think the court will be defeated again?"

Jia Rong: “…”

"Old lady, didn't you say that the Celestial Empire is invincible?"

Grandmother Jia sighed, her eyes moist as she said, "I was just trying to comfort her. How could you know how difficult it was for the old master back then? Every time he went on an expedition, he risked his life. And the eldest brother from the East Palace always had to crawl out from the pile of dead bodies. He finally beat back the Tartars, but his life was also lost..."

"Woooo..."

Jia Zheng also remembered the tragic scene of that year and started crying.

"Now that the older generation is gone, I don't think many of these young people can hold on. Duke Zhenguo Lao Niu was already the most outstanding, but he died over there..."

"Kyoto may not be safe."

"Madam, what do you mean?" Jia Rong felt that there was something else behind Jia's mother's words.

Grandmother Jia said, "I am old now, and I always want to return to my hometown... to visit Jinling."

The lessons of the former Song Dynasty are still fresh in our minds.

Grandmother Jia also read some history books for a few days!
She doesn’t want to...

Jia Zheng knelt on the ground and said, "Your son will follow me to honor you."

"All right." Grandmother Jia helped Jia Zheng up and said, "Your elder brother is the head of the family and has inherited the title. He can't leave, so you have to follow me and serve him."

"And Baoyu must follow me, too."

"While the imperial court is still in the war, you should spread the news tomorrow that I am seriously ill and will soon die. I will return to my hometown. This way, we can leave more easily and will not attract attention."

Jia Rong: “…”

Grandmother Jia, what a talent!
(End of this chapter)