The Red Mansion

Chapter 117 Qingwen's Explosive Temper
The next day, February 14th.

Jiang Nian and Yuanchun return to the Rongguo Mansion.

This "return home" is actually a public declaration of the connection between the two forces.

At the hour of Chen, Jiang Nian and Yuanchun set out from the Jiang family's new house.

Yuanchun wore a dark blue jacket with a phoenix pattern and a silver-gilt headdress. She rode in a blue wool sedan carried by four people. The curtain of the sedan was embroidered with a picture of a hundred children. Two green flags fluttered in the wind in front of the sedan, and a blue umbrella was held high.

Jiang Nian was wearing a crimson satin robe with dark patterns and riding a horse.

The return gift included: a pair of live geese (with red silk tied around their necks), four rolls of silk (in green, blue, and crimson), and a set of four treasures of the study.

At the time of Si, Jiang Nian and Yuanchun arrived at Rongguo Mansion.

Gifts were presented upon entering the door and carried into the Xiangnan Hall. Lai Da, the chief steward of Rongguo Mansion, read out the gift list and the guests witnessed it.

Jiang Nian personally handed a pair of live geese with red silk tied around their necks to his father-in-law Jia Zheng. When Jia Zheng took them, he patted the geese's backs three times according to etiquette, symbolizing "accepting the gift of being a son-in-law."

Yuanchun bowed four times to Jia Zheng and Lady Wang, while Jiang Nian only bowed once, because he and Jia Zheng were both fifth-rank officials.

Jia Zheng gave Jiang Nian the classic books "Book of Songs" and "Book of Documents".

Mrs. Wang gave Yuanchun a jade bracelet, which symbolized "restraining women's virtues." The jade bracelet was plain, in line with the teachings of the fifth-rank women to "respect simplicity and avoid extravagance."

The next ritual was a bit awkward.

That is: to offer sacrifices to the ancestors of the Jia family.

The Jia clan ancestral hall was originally located in Ningguo Mansion. Because Jia Zhen was deposed from his title, Ningguo Mansion was taken back by the court, so the Jia clan ancestral hall had to be moved. It was not moved to the new residence of Youshi and Jia Rong, but to Rongguo Mansion.

This matter is related to Jiang Nian. It was Jiang Nian who dragged Peng Jizhong to sue Jia Zhen...

How could the Jia family have expected that one day Jiang Nian would marry Yuanchun, and on the day of his return, he would go to the Jia ancestral temple to pay homage to the Jia family's ancestors.

At this time, in the Jia clan ancestral hall of Rongguo Mansion, many people looked strange.

Even Jia Zheng could not hide his embarrassment.

Jiang Nian looked calm, and seeing him like this, Yuanchun also calmed down.

Under the leadership of Jia Zheng, Jiang Nian and Yuanchun performed a solemn ceremony to pay homage to the ancestors of the Jia family.

Because Yuanchun was of a different surname and no longer a member of the Jia family, she only performed a solemn bow when offering sacrifices to the Jia family's ancestors.

At noon, a banquet was held at Rongguo Mansion.

Jiang Nian sat in the first seat of the teacher, and Yuanchun's uncles and brothers sat with him.

Yuanchun sat at the table in the inner quarters with Lady Jia, Lady Wang and other female members of the Rongguo Mansion.

The dishes are limited to 16, four cold dishes, eight hot dishes and four dim sum dishes, including "Lotus Seed and Lily Soup", "Four Joy Meatballs" and "Eight Treasure Duck".

There are also restrictions on drinking. Jiang Nian must not raise the glass above his eyebrows and must stop drinking after three rounds to avoid impoliteness.

At noon, Jiang Nian and Yuanchun said goodbye and left.

Yuanchun bowed solemnly to Jia Zheng and Mrs. Wang, and Mrs. Wang gave her twelve raw dumplings, which sounds like "giving birth to a child" in Chinese, implying "good luck".

Jia Zheng warned Jiang Nian: "Be a good family man, be neither lazy nor indulgent."

……

……

It was the 19th day of the second month of spring.

It has been eight days since Jiang Nian and Yuanchun’s wedding.

That morning, in the kitchen of the Jiang family's new residence, Feng, Wang, and Yao were busy preparing lunch. Steam rose from the stove, and the aroma filled the air as the spatula stirred the food.

Wu Gui, drunk, stumbled in, pointing here and there, mumbling, not at all sober. Just then, he saw Cook Wang dishing out a pot of roasted pheasant, glistening red with oil and fragrant. Wu Gui immediately leaned in with a drooling look and said, "My dear sister-in-law, your pheasant is cooked beautifully. How about giving me a few pieces to go with the wine?"

Cook Wang looked embarrassed and whispered, "The master hasn't eaten yet. How can we servants eat first?"

Wu Gui disagreed and waved his hand, saying, "I'll just take a few pieces quietly. How would the master know?"

Cook Wang was a cautious woman, and having just arrived, she didn't want to argue with Wu Gui, so she looked eagerly at Feng. Feng was always virtuous, but even so, she was quite dissatisfied with Wu Gui. Seeing Wu Gui's impertinence, she felt unhappy and tried to persuade him gently, "Wu Gui, you've been here for several days now, eating our chef's food. Although we don't ask you to cook, you should at least help. But instead of doing anything, you come to our house drunk and disturb us all day long. How disgraceful!"

Wu Gui, drunken after hearing this, shouted, "With my skills, I should be the head chef! Since you don't want me to be the head chef, I'll just sit back and watch! You want me to help you? Isn't that an insult to me?"

Upon hearing this, Yao sneered, "I've been following our master for a long time. I was the one who cooked in this household. Now even I've been relegated to a kitchen assistant, and you're dreaming of becoming the head chef?"

Since Chef Wang was bought into the Jiang family, she became the head chef of the Jiang family. The original head chef, Yao, retired to the position of assistant chef, which made Yao depressed.

Fortunately, Yuanchun personally talked to Cook Wang and Yao, and increased Yao's monthly salary. In addition, Cook Wang was cautious in nature, so Yao and Wang were able to get along well.

But Yao couldn't stand the drunkard Wu Gui.

Wu Gui glanced at Yao with drunken eyes and sneered, "Who do you think you are? Are you worthy enough to compete with me?"

Yao was furious and turned to Feng, saying, "Look at him! If this drunkard stays in our house, there will be no peace."

Feng Shi hesitated. She also believed that Wu Gui shouldn't be tolerated, but Wu Gui was Yuanchun's concubine, and Yuanchun had just married into the family. How could she discipline Wu Gui? Moreover, even if she wanted to complain, she should go to Yuanchun, not Jiang Nian. Wouldn't complaining to Yuanchun be embarrassing and awkward?

Wu Gui yelled at Yao, "You want to kick me out? What right do you have to kick me out? I'm Grandma's concubine! My sister used to serve the old lady in Rongguo Mansion, and now she's Grandma's confidant!"

Feng sighed and said to Wu Gui, "Your behavior is truly inappropriate. If we leave it alone, it will be disgraceful. I will not argue with you. I will report this to my master."

Seeing that Feng was really going to complain, Wu Gui sobered up a little and felt panicked, but he didn't want to show his weakness, so he just glared at Yao and left in anger.

……

……

Feng was not going to report directly to Jiang Nian or Yuanchun, but went to the east wing where Meng lived and told them in detail about Wu Gui's alcoholism and disturbance.

After hearing this, Mrs. Meng frowned slightly and said, "This matter concerns family rules and cannot be taken lightly. Let's go and tell Grandma Ming what she has to say."

The two of them then went to the east ear room together.

In the east side room, Yuanchun was casually browsing a volume of zither music, while her qin was also sitting nearby, flipping through a book. The room was quiet, with only the sound of pages turning.

Suddenly, seeing Madam Meng leading Madam Feng in, Yuanchun knew something was up, so she closed the zither music and asked with a smile, "What's going on?"

Meng took a half step forward and said, "Grandma, there was a dispute in the kitchen, and I came to ask for your instructions." Then she reported in detail how Wu Gui was addicted to alcohol and had caused chaos, and how he had used inappropriate language, and her words were extremely respectful.

Yuanchun did not doubt it after hearing this. She was familiar with the people in her dowry and knew that Wu Gui was just such a drunkard.

After a moment of deep thought, Yuanchun said gently, "Although this matter is minor, it would be best if you could let me know. But you're currently studying in your study, so I wouldn't disturb you. I'll explain it to you in detail after lunch."

Meng and Feng withdrew respectfully.

……

……

After lunch, Yuanchun walked lightly into Jiang Nian's study and told him the story of Wu Gui in detail.

Jiang Nian smiled and asked, "Madam, how do you think this matter should be handled?"

Yuanchun had an idea and responded, "Keeping a drunk like this at home won't do any good in the long run. Why not have him and his wife move out and rent a house? I'll give them a monthly stipend, but they won't have to work. It'll be like having two idle people out there. And I won't have to pay this stipend out of the household account office. I'll pay it from my own pocket. What do you think, sir?"

Jiang Nian showed an expression of approval. "Wu Gui and his wife are Madam's companions, and Xi Que is Wu Gui's cousin. Yet Madam is fair and impartial, truly a good steward of the household. However, this monthly allowance should be paid from the household accounting office. How could she possibly touch Madam's own pocket?"

Yuanchun smiled and said, "In that case, I will do as you say."

He immediately called Mrs. Meng and ordered her to move Wu Gui and his wife out.

Meng accepted the order and went to pass on the message.

However, when Wu Gui and his wife heard the news, they were immediately panicked.

The girl, who had always harbored the desire to cling to him, thought to herself, "I'm just looking for an opportunity to get close to you, Master. If I move out, how will I ever get another chance?"

Thinking of this, Duo Girl hurried to Xi Que and cried, "My dear sister, those gossipy women in the Jiang family are spreading rumors in front of Grandpa and Grandma, and they are even trying to kick me and your cousin out..."

Xi Que was a fiery-tempered girl. Upon hearing this, her eyebrows immediately arched, her eyes widened, and she angrily went to find Yuanchun, disregarding any etiquette or rules...

(End of this chapter)