Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 63 Another Conjecture

(Note: This chapter is Mrs. Xing's conjecture and does not represent the truth)
Seeing that Mrs. Xing's eyes were full of envy, Chen Siyuan couldn't help but think.

Wang Xifeng's assistant manager of Ningguo Mansion was just greedy for power, and it seemed that there was no benefit at all. Could it be that it was actually a good job?
That's not right. The people who are in charge of expenses and money are all servants of Ningguo Mansion. Even if Fengjie has great ability, it will be difficult for her to do anything with Ping'er and Feng'er in her charge, right?
Since it was Chen Siyuan, he asked, "Cheap? Where did you get that from, aunt?"

"Of course..." Mrs. Xing stopped talking just as she started.

Looking at Chen Siyuan, she thought that he was her cousin's son after all. Whether she could make quick money in the future depended on this nephew, so she could no longer treat him as an outsider.

Mrs. Xing glanced around and said, "Everyone, go down. I have a private conversation with Brother Yuan. You don't have to wait."

The maids and wives all retreated in response, and in a blink of an eye, only Madam Xing and Chen Siyuan were left inside.

Seeing that his cup was empty, Chen Siyuan stood up, grabbed the wine jug, and filled it. After he sat down, he heard Madam Xing say in a low voice, "Usually, Qin took care of that matter, but now that Zhen-er couldn't find anyone suitable, he asked Feng-er to go over. Isn't that a great bargain?"

Chen Siyuan was puzzled and said, "What my aunt said... why am I getting more and more confused the more I listen?"

"Tsk!" Madam Xing glanced at him with disdain, then said with relief: "Never mind, your father was just a juren, which is considered a respectable figure in Yangzhou, but how would he know about the business of this noble family?" She paused, leaned forward slightly, and the pair of soft breasts touched the table through her clothes.

Mrs. Xing lowered her voice further and further and asked, "Brother, do you know what official position the Second House Master holds now?"

Chen Siyuan replied, "I heard he was a deputy minister of the Ministry of Works."

"Which department is that?"

Chen Siyuan pondered for a moment, then said in astonishment, "Could it be... the Construction Department?"

"Yes, it is the Construction Department."

The Yingshansi, whose full name is the Yingshan Qinglisi, is responsible for the construction of palaces, mausoleums, city walls, ancestral temples, warehouses, halls, barracks, and mansions. It supervises craftsmen and laborers, prepares materials, and sorts and stores them in preparation for the start of construction.

There is one Langzhong, one Yuanwailang, and five principals.

Chen Siyuan's mind raced, thinking to himself, if Jia Zheng was the Deputy Director of the Ministry of Works, then he must be Qin Ye's deputy. No wonder Jia Zheng and Qin Ye were friends!

Madam Xing then said, "Brother, I'm afraid you've also learned that Qin is the Qin family's adopted daughter? Brother, don't you think about how an adopted daughter could become the young mistress of Ningguo Mansion?"

Chen Siyuan secretly thought that the main point of the drama had come. He raised his glass and drank with Madam Xing. After putting down the glass, he whispered, "Aunt, please tell me what's going on here."

Madam Xing said, "This Ministry of Construction has been one of the most lucrative positions in the land since the Ming Dynasty. A sage would allocate a million taels of silver, and those with a conscience would spend two or three hundred thousand, while those with a ruthless heart would be lucky to keep a hundred thousand for their work. Such lucrative positions have always been the preserve of the nobles."

Moreover, the profits are huge, and it is beyond the reach of one family or one clan."

Sun Guangcheng has said this before, so it is not new.

"This kind of deception of superiors and subordinates cannot be too blatant. Since it is inconvenient for the nobles to travel between different places, we must choose a female relative to communicate with them."

Unlike Chen Siyuan's previous life, this time, officials and nobles had taboos when interacting with each other. For example, it was not allowed for civil and military officials to interact with each other, and it was even more forbidden to hold small meetings behind closed doors from time to time.

The Ming dynasty had the Jinyiwei, the East Factory, and the West Factory. While the Dashun dynasty lost these offices, it did establish the Shenxingsi within the imperial court, which served a similar function to the Jinyiwei. If noble families were to collude and gather for a private meeting, the evidence would be brought before the emperor the next day. A sage would wonder what these nobles were planning. Are they forming a clique for rebellion? This is outrageous!

Because the nobles did not dare to gather casually, they needed someone to mediate. Qin was Qin Ye's adopted daughter and married into the Ningguo Mansion as the eldest grandmother. Her status was high enough but not too insignificant, so she could enter and exit the rear quarters of the nobles and discuss matters related to the Construction Department with them.

This is the back door! At this time, the back door is not open to everyone. The inner house is full of women, so how can men from outside come in and out as they please? Because only women can go through the back door.

Chen Siyuan thought to himself, it seems that the lady has already started diplomacy now.

With Qin's death, there was no one to run the show. Feng Jieer was the daughter-in-law of the eldest wife of the Rongguo Mansion and was from the Wang family. Her uncle Wang Ziteng was currently very popular and was a smart young man, so he was the perfect person to replace Qin.

Chen Siyuan suddenly understood this and realized that it was no wonder that Sister Feng was so enthusiastic. It turned out that there was a huge benefit involved!
Come to think of it, although Feng Jieer is bold and reckless, she is not stupid. Why would she do such a thankless job?
Chen Siyuan glanced at Madam Xing and, while she was still talking, whispered, "Aunt, that Qin-shi... isn't simple, is she? I've been hearing vaguely about 'climbing the wall' and 'raising a younger brother-in-law' these past few days."

Mrs. Xing's face froze immediately. She asked, "Where did you hear that?"

Chen Siyuan said vaguely, "I vaguely heard it from the subordinates when I was inspecting Ningguo Mansion that day."

Mrs. Xing scolded, "Don't say these things to anyone!"

"My nephew knows his limits. Didn't he say this in front of his aunt?"

Mrs. Xing felt a little relieved. She took a sip from her wine glass and said, "How is Qin Shi? I don't have much contact with her, so it's hard to say. But—"

"but?"

Madam Xing glanced at Chen Siyuan and said meaningfully, "Brother, do you know where to find a leisurely bookstore?"

Chen Siyuan didn't know what a leisurely bookstore was, but he did know what a bookstore was. These bookstores housed female teachers who were proficient in everything from music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Their visitors ranged from talented and romantic men to high-ranking officials. These female teachers didn't accept payment; they simply interacted based on personal chemistry.

If he really takes a fancy to someone, he might even pay her money to become his mistress.

It's not quite appropriate to call it a brothel. Chen Siyuan thought, this bookhouse is more like a film and television agency in his previous life?

Chen Siyuan was surprised and asked, "Why is Auntie talking about the bookstore?"

Mrs. Xing then asked, "That bookshop never takes money from its guests. Do you know where it makes its money?"

Chen Siyuan really didn't know, so he bowed and said, "I'll have to ask my aunt about this."

Mrs. Xing was not very literate and seldom showed off. Seeing Chen Siyuan's sincere request for advice, she immediately said proudly, "The female teachers in those bookstores all have godfathers and godmothers. If a female teacher takes a fancy to someone, the godfather and godmother will even offer a dowry.

It would be fine if that person never became successful in the future, but if he ever did become powerful, and this godmother came to him and asked for a favor, he wouldn't ignore her because he had benefited from her before, right?

I get it! Isn't this just a bribe of women? Wait... the bookshop owner has more than one female teacher under his wing. With these female teachers, the godfather and godmother can secretly form a huge network of money and power transactions.

Thinking this way, perhaps Qin Shihuang wasn't the promiscuous woman Sun Guangcheng claimed she was, but perhaps more like a brothel girl? Was it because of Qin Shihuang that Qin Ye was able to win over the Ningguo Mansion and later form alliances of interest with various nobles?
Then why did she die?
　Please pay attention to the title, guess, guess, guess, important things must be said three times.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)