The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 95 Terrified
As dusk fell, a thin layer of gold appeared on the surface of the lake.

The weeping willows, which have lost their greenness, are now bare and shade the four corners of the pavilion. Gauze curtains are hung, blowing and expanding in the evening breeze. The windows on all four sides are closed, and only a few slender waists can be vaguely seen inside.

The house is brightly lit.

Several pretty women were holding mother-of-pearl sandalwood pipa under the screen, and the silver lotus flowers on their gauze clothes flickered in the colorful light.

Two other women, with dignified figures and an air of inviolability, sang softly, "Beautiful palace and fragrant forests face the high pavilion, new makeup and beauty are so stunning, but flowers bloom and fall, but they are not long-lasting."

The song is beautiful, and the person is even more beautiful.

There was a cold wind outside, but the house was filled with fragrance.

Various fruits, snacks and foods are neatly arranged on the mahogany table.

The porcelain box held candied longans; the compartmented storage box contained Li Ji pickled melons, pickled black vegetables, sugared garlic, and pickled mustard peels; the lacquerware fruit box contained sesame rolls, as well as candied eight varieties, Kung Pao wild rabbit, eight-treasure wild duck, and Buddha's hand golden rolls.
It may be something that is not available at the given time of year, or it may be a rare delicacy.

A middle-aged Confucian scholar was sitting at the table, his eyes closed, immersed in the singing.

The singing woman's voice is like jade beads dancing on a plate, or like the first cracking of ice in a stream in spring. Her every move is soft and restrained. When she lowers her neck, a piece of snow-white neck is exposed. The jasmine scent in her hair adds to the temptation.

Confucians are like gentlemen.

Downstairs, by the river, in the huge garden, there was complete silence, with only the faint presence of soldiers.

"Master Jia, please."

The butler politely led the way. The master had a bad habit of not liking to greet guests, so generally speaking, the butler would take the guests directly to the master.

Hearing the singing from inside, the butler did not wait, not afraid of disturbing the master's leisure, and reminded at the door: "Master, Master Jia has arrived."

Although the host likes elegance, he prioritizes official duties.

"Please come in, Yucun."

The singing inside stopped and the voice of a middle-aged man was heard.

The housekeeper extended a gesture of invitation. Jia Yucun straightened his appearance before stepping in. He took a look around and then smiled, saying, "Mr. Minister."

"Yucun, please take a seat."

The middle-aged man was very polite.

Jia Yucun did not dare to be negligent and sat down respectfully.

"Tea, please."

"Thank you, Ministry."

Several women sat quietly on the side. Although they didn't say anything, they were very pleasing to the eye. Jia Yucun couldn't help but take a few more glances at them.

Seeing these women, Jia Yucun seemed to recall the old days.

At that time, I was still a poor scholar, relying on Master Zhen for support. When I saw the maid of the Zhen family in Master Zhen's inner courtyard, I thought to myself, if I could marry such a beautiful woman, my life would be worth it.

later.

With the help of Mr. Zhen's money, he went to Beijing to take the imperial examination, and then passed and became an official.

Master Zhen's family suffered a disaster. Because of the Japanese invasion, bandits, and war, they lost their property and land. Master Zhen disappeared, but he found the maid.

She was first taken as a concubine and later became his wife.

That was probably the happiest moment in my life, but I could never get that feeling back.

I was so naive back then.

Because he was unwilling to go along with the corrupt crowd and treated his official duties impartially, he offended his superiors. He also treated the officials below who were lazy in their duties strictly, which annoyed his subordinates.

I wanted to do things that benefit the country, become a good official, work diligently, and be responsible to the end.

In the end, he was accused of being "cunning by nature, good at compiling etiquette, and pretending to be upright, but secretly making friends with evil people, causing trouble in the local area and making the people's lives miserable." He didn't even give him a chance to explain himself and directly removed him from his position.

That was probably when I felt most discouraged.

It felt like the sky was falling.

I feel so wronged that I don't know how to express it.

Until I met Lin Ruhai.

"Although he possesses exceptional talent, he is somewhat greedy and cruel, and he also relies on his talent to insult his superiors."

After Lin Ruhai's explanation, I explained it to myself word by word. It turned out that the word "greed" did not mean corruption, but that I should seek more rather than being corrupt and greedy.

For example, the "greed" in "sleeping and playing" refers to the excessive pursuit of something, not corruption and bribery.

So Jia Yucun understood.

Wanting to do practical things is greed.

It turns out that the corruption in officialdom and the corruption that the people talk about are not the same thing.

If you want to be a good official, you can no longer treat yourself as an ordinary person and use the rules of ordinary people. How can you be a good official? If you want to be a good official, you must use the rules of officialdom.

If one thing is clear, all things will be clear.

Out of silt but not stained?
nonexistent.

Because this is not a world of its own, the moment you enter the world you are already attached to it, unless you don't enter the world. If you don't enter the world, you don't even have the qualifications to be a human being. You don't want to be a fish on the chopping board, you want to be a human being.

If you want to be a human being, you must understand the rules of being a human being, otherwise what kind of human being are you?

Jia Yucun was lost in thought.

The middle-aged scholar glanced at Jia Yucun, then smiled and said, "Brother Yucun, are you dissatisfied with me?"

Jia Yucun woke up immediately.

He quickly laughed and said, "Why do you say that, Mr. Ministry?"

The Confucian scholar said, "It was my idea to recruit Wang Zhi. Brother Yucun didn't object at the time. Why did you change your mind?"

Jia Yucun smiled bitterly.

Know what the Minister of War Zhang Jifu is referring to.

"Wang Xin is not my man." "If he is not your man, then whose man is he? Lin Ruhai's man?"

Zhang Jifu asked gently.

Jia Yucun quickly explained, "His surname is Wang, and he belongs to the Wang family. The minister should know my origins. Although my benefactor is from the Jia family, he is actually a nobleman. Therefore, he is not one of my men, nor is he one of Lin Ruhai's men."

"Then he is Wang Ziteng's man?"

Zhang Jifu asked patiently, without any impatience.

Jia Yucun answered truthfully, "I don't know what the prince is thinking, but I can probably guess."

"please say."

"This man, Lord Wang, values ​​his family the most. This boy's surname is Wang, and you can't write two surnames with one stroke. Lin Ruhai said that this boy is quite talented. Given Lord Wang's character, he will definitely pave the way for him."

"If that's the case, why not summon him to the northwest?"

"Maybe it's out of concern. After all, it's not good to go too far in favor of one's relatives."

After hearing Jia Yucun's explanation, Zhang Jifu remained silent.

What's the big deal about nepotism?

Who doesn’t use his own people?
If you don't use your own talents, you're out of your mind.

However, I have heard about Wang Ziteng's style of doing things. Not only is he nepotism, he even wants to give an official position to even the dog in his family. No one from the Wang family who goes to him for help will return disappointed.

Originally.

This is how aristocratic families behave, just seeking rent for power. The Jia family is not like that, but Wang Ziteng has gone too far, so it is not easy to summon this boy over, and he is also five generations away from the family.

Zhang Jifu was confused about this, so he asked, "Why don't you win them over, but secretly pave the way for them?"

"You can't write two Wang characters with one stroke. This is always the case with nobles." Jia Yucun didn't want to say anything bad about his benefactor, but he still felt a little depressed. What should those of them who didn't have the surname Wang do?
Just because they have the surname Wang, they can squeeze into the side of the princes without any merit, while these outsiders work hard to build up merits, but are not as good as others with the surname Wang.

In fact, the prince is good in every way, except for this matter, which is really speechless and alienating.

"Oh!"

Zhang Jifu suddenly realized and sighed, "So he is a feudal patriarch."

Jia Yucun admired him immensely.

This one sentence tells the whole story of Wang Ziteng.

But it is also more frightening.

As a disciple of Prime Minister Zhou Daofeng, Jia Yucun was wary.

"This kind of personality is good and can easily win people's hearts, but it also has its drawbacks. After all, human nature cannot satisfy its desires. If you ignore the true feelings of those below you and blindly force yourself, small things will accumulate into big things. Over time, there will be more and more dissatisfaction. This is not a long-term solution."

Zhang Jifu glanced at Jia Yucun as he spoke.

Jia Yucun was restless, as if he had been seen through. This feeling was really not good. He said quickly, "So, the Minister, please understand clearly that this boy is not my man, nor is he Lin Ruhai's man. Many things are his own ideas."

Zhang Jifu nodded.

Seeing this, Jia Yucun breathed a sigh of relief. Being targeted by Zhang Jifu, he asked himself if he had seen through the world, but he still broke out in a cold sweat.

Zhang Jifu laughed and said, "No matter who he is, he is from your faction. I cannot cause trouble for him. It is difficult to convince others by bullying the weak. Whether I conquer or pacify the Japanese pirates, it is all under my control. However, you have ruined one thing for me, and I will ruin two of yours someday."

Jia Yucun panicked, stood up in shock and opened his mouth to explain.

Zhang Jifu raised his hand and stopped Jia Yucun.

"sit down."

Jia Yucun sat back down.

Zhang Jifu stared at Jia Yucun, his calm eyes like a bottomless pit, and said word by word: "I am a person who values ​​fairness. If anyone helps me once, I will help them twice. If anyone hurts me once, I will hurt them twice. If you feel dissatisfied, you can retaliate."

Jia Yucun lowered his head and said with a wry smile, "I dare not."

Seeing Jia Yucun yield, Zhang Jifu said, "He is a nobody after all. I won't do anything to him. The pirate incident is not a big deal. Let's just leave it at that."

Jia Yucun breathed a sigh of relief again.

The sight of Zhang Jifu in front of him really made him uneasy. He did not dare to stay any longer and hurriedly said goodbye and left.

Silence returned to the house.

The beauties are like clouds, seemingly still.

Zhang Jifu's eyes seemed to come alive.

Noble.

It's a hassle after all.

Liu Ru was not wrong, but the emperor was also a trouble. Why couldn't he just deal with these troubles honestly and let the people of the world take care of themselves so that the world could be peaceful?

Zhang Jifu's eyes returned to their empty state, and no one knew what he was thinking.

Nothing is more important than rules.

No rules no standards.

Lin Ruhai is a smart man, but his roots are still in the nobility, so he can't be trusted. It's a pity for Jia Yucun. He was too naive when he was innocent, and too obsessed after entering the world. It's rare to find a pure person in this world.

soon.

The beautiful tune rang out again in the house.

Jia Yucun left the quiet garden and took a carriage back home. After returning, he did not delay and immediately wrote down what happened today and ordered someone to send it to Yangzhou overnight.

Where is Jinling?
This is not a place where people below can do whatever they want.

Whether Wang Xin should be intervened or not, Lin Ruhai must give a definite answer. If he doesn't obey, he should be thrown out to fend for himself as soon as possible. Zhang Jifu said that he would ruin both of their plans, but fortunately he pointed out that it would not be a big deal, otherwise he would not even be able to sleep.

After a few years of peace and comfort, Jia Yucun didn't want to get into trouble.

(End of this chapter)