Dream of the Red Chamber: Start by gaining Zhao Yun's martial prowess, and be ennobled in a sin

Baochai listened quietly to Jia Jing's words, casting her clear and bright gaze upon his face.

While pondering what to say next, he observed Jia Jing's expression.

After Jia Jing finished speaking, she continued:

"Third, the way to manage a household is to be frugal, for extravagance breeds arrogance."

The Yan family treatise states: "Extravagance leads to disrespect, while frugality leads to steadfastness. Rather than being disrespectful, it is better to be steadfast."

He also said: "If one can give generously without being extravagant, and be frugal without being stingy, that is sufficient."

"Luxury easily breeds arrogance, while frugality fosters a sense of contentment and conservatism."

"But frugality is not stinginess. Give when you should give and save when you should save. Taking the middle way is the right way to manage a household."

Jia Jing's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, his clear eyes filled with a deep meaning, and he asked, "Anything else?"

Baochai hesitated for a moment before saying:

"Finally, the way to manage a household requires that men and women have different roles and responsibilities."

The Yan family's philosophy states: "Women should be in charge of domestic affairs, and women should engage in weaving and sewing, while men should handle external matters; each should have their proper role."

"If household affairs are clearly assigned, each person stays in their place, and does not interfere with each other, then everything will be in good order."

"Without distinguishing between internal and external affairs, and without clarifying responsibilities, no amount of rules will make a difference."

After Baochai finished speaking, she looked at Jia Jing beside her with slightly nervous eyes, waiting for his reply.

Although this statement about the distinction between inside and outside was from the book, she didn't know whether Jia Jing agreed with it!

After all, Grandmother Jia had said that men should be in charge of external affairs and women should be in charge of internal affairs, but Jia Jing responded to her by saying that she was "senile"!

Jia Jing remained silent for a moment. The moonlight outside the corridor grew brighter, casting the shadows of the two men on the ground, one long and one short.

Another drumbeat sounded in the distance, boom...

It was long and deep, as if it came from a very, very deep place.

Jia Jing finally spoke:

"You've read this book very well! You've put your heart into it! If you can follow this advice, you'll never have to worry about your family's prosperity."

The points Baochai mentioned are basically the core concepts of "Yan Family Instructions," and they are combined with Jia Jing's own daily management practices and ideas, which shows that she has put a lot of thought into them.

Including the traditional division of labor where the man is in charge of external affairs and the woman is in charge of internal affairs, Jia Jing didn't think there was anything wrong with it. The problem was always with people, not with the theories and rules.

Of course, Jia Jing was praising Baochai's insights from reading; her actual ability to handle specific matters still depended on the actual situation.

However, Baochai's ability to manage a household is undoubtedly outstanding among all the sisters in the Jia family!

In Chapter 56 of the original novel, the ability of Baochai and Tanchun to manage household affairs is clearly described.

When Sister Feng suffered a miscarriage and fell ill, Lady Wang entrusted the household affairs to Li Wan and Tan Chun, and also specially asked Baochai to "be careful everywhere".

Tan Chun proposed implementing a "contracting system" in the Grand View Garden, subcontracting the garden's flowers, trees, and fields to skilled women in order to increase revenue and reduce expenditure.

However, Tan Chun's ideas focused on efficiency, while Bao Chai filled the gaps in Tan Chun's experience by addressing her shortcomings in terms of interpersonal relationships and practical operations.

For example, Tan Chun's reforms only took care of the contractors, which inevitably caused dissatisfaction among the women who had not taken on contracts.

Baochai proposed that the contractor should set aside a sum of money each year and distribute it to all the elderly women in the garden, regardless of whether they were in charge of any affairs.

And he said something very insightful:

"Although they do not manage these things, they still look after the servants in the garden day and night, keeping the doors and windows closed, getting up early and going to bed late, through heavy rain and snow."

"The girls carried sedan chairs, rowed boats, and pulled ice sleds; all sorts of rough work were their tasks."

"After a year of hard work in the garden, it's only right that I share in the rewards of my efforts here."

It was precisely by grasping this mentality of "not worrying about scarcity but about inequality" that the reforms were able to proceed smoothly without any complaints from superiors or subordinates.

It is evident that, in terms of housekeeping and management, Tan Chun is more like a "designer," while Bao Chai is more like a "practicer and risk balancing agent."

Of course, the reason for this is that Baochai has always taken on some of the responsibilities of managing the household in the Xue family, while Tanchun is experiencing practical matters for the first time in the Jia family.

It must be said that Daiyu was also capable of managing a household.

In Chapter 55 of the original novel, when Ping'er relayed Feng Jie's comments, she mentioned that...

Of all the sisters in the mansion, Fengjie believed that only three were capable of managing the household: Daiyu, Tanchun, and Baochai.

It's just that Daiyu's personality dictated that she disliked getting involved in worldly affairs!

At this moment, Baochai, standing by the pond, felt a little embarrassed by Jia Jing's compliment. She lowered her almond-shaped eyes slightly and whispered:

"Third brother, you flatter me. It's just reciting from the book; it doesn't deserve any praise!"

However, amidst her shyness, she couldn't help but think, "My third brother said there's no need to worry about the family business not prospering, but where do I have a family to manage? Where do I have a business to prosper?"

Could this be an implication that he will be in charge of household affairs in the future?

Jia Jing looked thoughtful and said in a deep voice:

"Upholding integrity, balancing leniency and strictness, advocating frugality and suppressing extravagance, and clearly distinguishing between internal and external affairs—these sixteen characters encapsulate the essence of managing a household."

"And the key to governing these sixteen characters lies in employing the right people. Only when people can implement them can the law be established; if people cannot implement them, even the best law is in vain."

"Since ancient times, rules have been rigid, but people have been flexible. No matter how good a set of rules is, it is just a piece of waste paper when it comes to a group of people who are scheming and opportunistic."

"Just like the laws of my Great Han Dynasty, the intentions were good in the early days of the dynasty, but why did they gradually become ineffective?"

"Now we want reform and change again? There is really no law that is immutable for all time. In the end, we still have to adapt to the times, the place, and the people."

Baochai gazed intently at Jia Jing, meeting his warm eyes. Her gaze momentarily lost in thought, her eyes seemingly reflecting the young man's image, and she softly said:

"Besides military affairs, I'm sure Third Brother's return to the capital this time will also involve contributing to the court's implementation of new policies!"

Jia Jing was slightly taken aback upon hearing this. Looking at Baochai's gentle and beautiful face, he chuckled softly:

"Sister Xue, you are so perceptive! I only mentioned reform and change, and you were already thinking of new policies. Your mind is truly sharp!"

Baochai's almond-shaped eyes shimmered, and she said softly:

"I've been reading the imperial gazette all along. The new policies have been consistently hampered and have had limited success. Isn't the problem simply that they lack a strong and capable minister to implement them?"

"Third Brother just said that without people, laws cannot be enforced. How can the implementation of the new laws of the court be possible without the support of meritorious military officials like Third Brother!"

"Even Third Brother seems to be considering delaying the marriage, perhaps because of the current instability in the court?"

As Baochai spoke, two blushes quietly appeared on her fair and delicate cheeks, and her hand, hidden in her sleeve, clenched her handkerchief tightly.

This was her first time having a private conversation with Jia Jing, an opportunity that was extremely hard to come by.

All she wanted was to showcase her talents as much as possible, leave a good impression on Jia Jing, and earn herself more opportunities.

Aside from Lin Daiyu being a taboo subject that she dared not discuss anymore, she was willing to talk in depth about everything else, whether it was economics, career prospects, or household management.

For the past few months, she has been reading books and newspapers at home every day and keeping up with current affairs. Isn't this all for this moment?