The Red Mansion in its bustling glory

The water shimmered like crystal.

The reflected sunlight made Jia Jue squint.

"Brother Sima is absolutely right," he said. "But with a storm brewing, I'm afraid it will be difficult to extricate myself."

Sima He said, "It is precisely because a storm is brewing that we should disembark as soon as possible."

Jia Jue said, "The river flows endlessly, and the surface is vast. Before the bow of the boat reaches the shore, how should we disembark? If we were to leap into the water, I fear our souls would depart for the heavens, and our bodies would be lost forever."

Sima remained silent for a long time.

"Brother Jia, farewell." Suddenly, Sima He looked up and smiled.

Jia Jue paused for a moment, then said, "Goodbye."

Sima He's goal has been achieved, and Jia Jue is considering withdrawing; that is enough.

He was different from those other people—he was not the son of an official, but a distant relative of the current Minister of Revenue, who came to the capital to stay overnight.

In a way, she is somewhat similar to Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai, only more tragic.

That day, he went to a literary gathering with the son of the Minister of Revenue, where he was appreciated by Zhao Xing and introduced to the Third Prince.

At that time, he was flattered and thought that the patron had met the talented man, and he would do his best to assist the Third Prince for the rest of his life.

However, upon seeing it today, I discovered that this is not the case.

In retrospect, the Third Prince may not have been a wise ruler.

Based on his usual observations of his cousin Shen Yue—the son of the Minister of Revenue—he seemed to be on the side of the First Prince.

Based on his understanding of his cousin, if the eldest prince had not truly possessed exceptional qualities and was not the wise ruler in his heart, he would not have devoted himself so wholeheartedly.

He wants to leave, but it's unlikely he can do it alone.

So he wanted to bring Jia Jue along.

Firstly, Jia Jue is talented enough.

Secondly, Jia Jue's status was high enough.

-

After bidding him farewell, Jia Jue naturally had to return to the Rongguo Mansion.

He kept thinking about what to do next along the way.

The current situation is absolutely terrible for him.

One wrong step taken back then, and now it's hard to extricate oneself.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but sigh.

The horses' hooves pounded on the ground, and before they knew it, they had arrived at the gate of the Rongguo Mansion

He dismounted and said to the man with the sword and the man carrying the book, "You two wait here."

After saying that, he quickly went inside, went to his study, and came out carrying four items.

Three books, one sword.

"You two have followed me diligently, and you've suffered as a result," Jia Jue said. "You are quick-witted and resourceful, a promising student. I know you are literate; you were a student by my teacher's side when he taught me, so you have some knowledge. Take this book; it has Mr. Yin's annotations, which will greatly benefit you in the future. The other book contains some eight-legged essays, the top-ranked essays from previous years, or you could say these are model essays. Take these."

After saying that, he turned to the swordsman and said, "You are born with a good physique. I know that your father and grandfather were both soldiers who fought alongside the old Duke for many years. You have practiced martial arts since you were a child and have a simple personality. I also taught you to read and write and taught you to read a few books. Take this copy of 'Six Secret Teachings' and this sword is also a treasure. You can accept it as well."

The two men were completely bewildered by Jia Jue's actions, wondering why he had given them so many things. The way he spoke sounded like his last words, sending chills down their spines.

The two men quickly asked, "Why are you giving us these things, sir?"

Jia Jue laughed and said, "Because you are all promising talents."

After saying that, he patted the two of them on the shoulders. "Fu Shu is not a servant of the Rongguo Mansion, and as for Chi Jian, needless to say, they are from good families. Since my grandfather's generation, they have been our family's private soldiers and are not registered as slaves. It is only because your parents died early that you had no choice but to become servants in the mansion. With your talents and abilities, you two should not be confined to this small corner of the Rongguo Mansion, and you should not be trapped by the identity of 'servant' and suffer a lifetime of frustration."

He continued, "From tomorrow onwards, you two no longer need to take care of me. Focus on your studies. Don't worry about your sales contracts; I will naturally return them to you."

Upon hearing this, the two men were both moved and terrified. They knelt down and said, "Master doesn't want us anymore! We have served you since we were children, how can you just leave us?"

Jia Jue laughed and said, "Don't worry about it. You don't need to worry about the money. I've been saving your monthly allowance. I know you two don't have a place to stay, so I'll have someone give you an address later. Just go there. As for your daily expenses, don't worry about them; someone will bring them to you."

Upon hearing this, the two men kowtowed repeatedly, calling Jia Jue their second parents.

Jia Jue laughed and said, "Why are you two doing this? Even Granny Lai's grandson can pass the imperial examinations, so why can't you two? I've already thought it through. In the future, one of you will take the civil service exam and the other the military exam. Once you've made it big, don't forget about me."

The two quickly replied, "We will never forget your kindness, Second Master!"

Jia Jue laughed and said, "Alright, you two don't need to be like this. I'm just laying the groundwork early so that we can support each other in the officialdom in the future."

Having said that, he told the two of them to leave.

Jia Jue turned and walked towards the inner courtyard of the mansion, thinking to himself, "It seems I'll have to trouble my second sister-in-law again."

After thinking it over, he walked towards Wang Xifeng's courtyard.

Upon entering her courtyard, a pretty maidservant was seen coming in.

This maid was different from the other maids in the mansion; judging by her attire alone, she was no less elegant than the young ladies.

This is Ping'er, the maid who came with Wang Xifeng as part of her dowry.

Upon seeing her, Jia Jue smiled and said, "Sister Ping'er."

Ping'er looked at him upon hearing this and then smiled and said, "So it's Second Master Jue! What brings you here?" As she spoke, she beckoned him to come inside and lifted the curtain for him.

"Our second mistress is not home right now. Please wait here for a while, second master. She will be here shortly."

Jia Jue laughed and said, "It's alright, I can wait."

A moment later, Wang Xifeng entered.

Before I could even see her, I heard her laugh and say, "Oh! Jue-ge'er is here! I was just about to go thank you!"

After saying that, Wang Xifeng came in through the door, her face beaming, and sat down with a smile.

As soon as he sat down, he said to Jia Jue, "Jue-ge'er, I guessed you've come to ask me for help again?"

Jia Jue laughed and said, "Can't I come if there's nothing wrong?"

Wang Xifeng rolled her eyes at him and said, "It's only because you're still young that I won't allow it."

Jia Jue smiled and said, "Second sister-in-law guessed correctly, but there is something I need to trouble you with."

Wang Xifeng smiled and asked, "What is it?"

Jia Jue said, "I wonder if my sister-in-law could give me the indentures of the two servants who usually follow me?"

"Two servants?" Wang Xifeng thought for a moment. "One to carry books and the other to wield a sword? That's easy enough, but what do you need their indentures for?"