Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

That day, Jia Zheng finished his court session and prepared to return to his residence. He went to the east wing to take a look and found that there was nothing he could help with. He then performed a simple prayer and returned to Rongxi Hall to rest.

Before he could even eat, a group of guards from the Daming Palace came to summon him to the palace immediately to see the Emperor.

Jia Zheng dared not delay, so he hurriedly changed into his court robes and then followed the guards into the palace.

At that moment, Madam Wang was talking with her sister in the Pear Fragrance Courtyard. Upon hearing this news, she immediately turned pale.

Seeing this, Aunt Xue quickly said, "Brother-in-law is serving the Emperor in the court. Perhaps it is something urgent that the Emperor summoned him. Why should you worry so much, sister?"

Although the Xue and Jia families were old friends and even related by marriage, they didn't have any direct relationship with Jia She, so they didn't have to keep vigil every day like Daiyu.

Knowing that the Jia family was busy and chaotic, she only led her son and daughter to pay respects on the seventh day after Jia She's death. After that, she stayed in the Pear Fragrance Courtyard every day and rarely went to the Jia family, so as not to cause them any more trouble.

Lady Wang, however, was clearly uneasy. She didn't hide anything from her younger sister and said bluntly, "Sister, you don't know, but your brother-in-law has been an official for more than ten years and has been promoted several times, but he has never been summoned to the palace so urgently before."

Madam Wang only wanted to return as soon as possible, so she only said that one sentence. There were also a few concerns that she couldn't openly express to Aunt Xue, but she didn't say them out loud.

Aunt Xue understood Madam Wang's meaning and said, "Since that's the case, perhaps your old lady is more knowledgeable and knows more. I'll accompany my sister to the old lady's room to take a look."

"Um."

Without hesitation, Madam Wang got up and left.

Seeing this, Aunt Xue wanted to change her clothes but didn't want to delay. Just then, her daughter Baochai came in to check on the situation, so she led her to Rongqing Hall.

In Rongqing Hall, Grandmother Jia was also worried.

Grandmother Jia was more knowledgeable than Lady Wang and others, but after all, she hadn't dealt with the palace for over ten years. She hadn't even met the current Emperor, so she couldn't understand why Jia Zheng had been summoned so urgently.

Grandmother Jia knew that good news usually spread through the palace first. The fact that it was so quiet and unannounced, and that it wasn't delivered by eunuchs, made it easy for people to think that something bad was going on.

Seeing that even Grandmother Jia was at a loss, Lady Wang became increasingly worried.

At this time, there were several older women from the Rongqing Hall who had come to pay their respects to Jia She, and they agreed to come over to pay their respects to Grandmother Jia.

Therefore, after repeatedly ordering people to go out and find out the situation, Grandmother Jia, not wanting to lose face in front of her relatives, pretended to be calm and said to Lady Wang, "You don't need to worry, I have already sent someone to call Lian'er over. He has seen the Emperor's face and is now an official in the court. Perhaps he knows why the Emperor summoned their master."

Although Lady Wang didn't think Jia Lian had any reliable information, she had no other choice but to nod.

……

In the east wing, after the seventh day following the death of the deceased, fewer people from various mansions in the capital came to pay their respects.

However, the number of people here has not decreased at all.

Following the instructions of Grandmother Jia, Jia Lian hired a large number of monks, Taoist priests, nuns, and Taoist nuns. They each did their part, filling most of the front yard with noise and commotion every day.

In addition, members of the clan, including women and children, take turns to mourn and weep at the funeral hall every day, with at least one or two hundred people arriving at the same time each day.

Therefore, Jia Lian, Feng Jie, and You Shi, among others, still couldn't find a moment of peace every day.

Jia Lian was also the first to hear about Jia Zheng being urgently summoned to the palace by Emperor Ningkang. Because he had been thinking about whether Yuan Chun should be made a concubine, he immediately guessed that it might be because of this matter.

Upon hearing that Grandmother Jia had asked him to come over, Jia Lian did not hesitate, put down what he was doing, and went to Rongqing Hall.

Unlike before, when one would walk from the black lacquered gate of the East Wing to the west corner gate of the Rongguo Mansion, one would instead go west through the newly opened side gate deep within the inner courtyard of the East Wing.

After his family decided to build a door in the wall between the main courtyard and the east wing, Jia Lian led his men to complete the survey, measurement, demolition, and repair work in just three days.

He then ordered two osmanthus trees to be transplanted on the inside, and several pots of peonies and hibiscus to be placed on the outside. Thus, a brand-new, spacious and beautifully designed side gate reconnected the two mansions that had been separated for more than ten years, making them inseparable again.

Although the two sides were now connected, Jia Lian didn't want anyone to be able to pass through without any restrictions, so he arranged for four old women to guard the gate. The gate was locked after nightfall and reopened at dawn.

This greatly facilitated travel between the two sides, and Sister Feng no longer had to make do in the east wing every day; she could return to her beloved little nest to rest.

It became much more convenient for Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, and others to come and pay their respects to Jia She every day.

Exiting the side gate, one would find oneself in the main courtyard where Lady Wang sat. Jia Lian did not want to pass through Lady Wang's courtyard from the front, so he turned north, intending to go through the north-south alley behind Lady Wang's main house, past Feng Jie's courtyard, and then through the back gate of Rongqing Hall in front of Grandmother Jia's flower hall.

Just as they rounded the north side, they saw Li Wan leading her maid Suyun out of her own courtyard.

It turns out that the small courtyard where Li Wan and her son Jia Lan lived was behind Madam Wang's courtyard, on the same latitude as Feng Jie's courtyard, only a few dozen steps apart.

Jia Lian stepped forward, cupped his hands in a respectful bow to Li Wan, and said, "Greetings, sister-in-law. May I ask where you are headed?"

When Li Wan saw Jia Lian, she stopped and waited quietly.

When Jia Lian greeted him, he quickly returned the greeting and said, "I'm going to the old lady's room..."

"I was just about to go to the old lady's place anyway, why don't we go together? Please go first, sister-in-law."

Li Wan nodded, suppressing her embarrassment, and forced herself to walk forward.

After taking a few steps, Li Wan began to feel regret, wishing she had taken more maids with her. At that moment, she felt the same way Baochai had felt before; although she couldn't see, she could always sense a pair of eyes watching her from behind.

She was naturally inferior to Baochai. As a young widow, she was particularly sensitive in this regard. Moreover, she had a strong and capable younger brother-in-law following her. How could she easily suppress the restlessness in her heart?

She secretly quickened her pace a few steps, trying to increase the distance between herself and Jia Lian, but judging from the footsteps she heard, it was of no use; Jia Lian could easily keep up with her.

She wanted to stop and let Jia Lian go first, but felt embarrassed.

It's as if I secretly wanted him to walk in front, so I could see him...

Jia Lian had no idea that Li Wan was so sensitive; he thought he was being very polite. To avoid embarrassing Li Wan, he deliberately lagged several steps behind, and only occasionally glanced up to observe her beautiful figure and voluptuous body.

Jia Lian felt that liking beauty was human nature, and looking at it wouldn't hurt anything. Surely, he wouldn't be so shy and embarrassed as to turn red in front of someone who was beautiful.

If others saw that, they might think he had some wicked thoughts about his sister-in-law.