Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

As the head of the Rongguo Mansion, Jia Zheng was involved in all major affairs.

Before long, Yingchun, Daiyu, and other sisters, along with Madam Xing, Madam You, and others, arrived to await the news.

The spacious hall was soon filled with people, yet it remained remarkably quiet. Apart from a few individuals, including Grandmother Jia, no one dared to utter a single word.

The several senior women of the clan behind the screen, though embarrassed to come out and meet Jia Lian because of his presence, were also unwilling to leave too soon.

The Rongguo Mansion is the "weathervane" of the entire Jia family, even surpassing the Ningguo Mansion of the eldest branch. Therefore, any disturbance here could affect the interests and even the life and death of the entire family. They did not want to leave until they were certain.

Having hidden behind the screen for a long time, and seeing that Jia Lian showed no sign of leaving, it seemed that Grandmother Jia had also forgotten about them. Fortunately, there were many people outside, so there was less need for secrecy, and thus, led by the more outgoing ones, they all came out.

As expected, the officials of both governments had no time to be polite with them. They were all thinking about their own things or talking in hushed tones. The women, being sensible, sat down in their inconspicuous spots.

Even some of them, who had flirted and exchanged glances with Jia Lian, felt a secret resentment and complaint when they saw that Jia Lian in the center of the crowd didn't even give them a proper look.

However, she dared not show it at all. So at this moment, Wang Xifeng also temporarily put aside what was going on there and rushed over wearing mourning clothes to see the situation.

Hearing that Jia Lian seemed to know something, Feng Jie didn't hold back. She walked over to Jia Lian, nudged him on the shoulder with her elbow, and when he turned around, she asked, "Hey, how do you know it's good news? Is your official appointment about to come through, or is Master about to be promoted?"

Recently, Sister Feng has been preoccupied with Jia Lian's request for a title. Since Jia Lian has obtained his title, she can now prepare to request an imperial decree.

Jia Lian glanced at her and thought to himself: What does my request for an official title have to do with Jia Zheng?

Just then, Yingchun, Tanchun, and the others, also restless, followed Fengjie, hoping to find some inside information. Jia Lian, also wanting to display some "extraordinary abilities" in front of Fengjie, didn't answer her. Instead, he turned to Erbao and casually asked:

"Brother Bao, do you still remember what your elder sister, our young lady, looks like?"

Jia Baoyu, who was sitting idly, was taken aback when he heard this.

He knew, of course, that he had an older sister, but she had entered the palace when he was four or five years old, and then disappeared without a trace for so many years…

Actually, some messages did come back, but Jia Baoyu didn't care at all.

In his heart, no matter how beautiful or outstanding everyone said his sister was, once she entered the palace, she would just be an ordinary person. Humph, what a waste of her innocent daughter to be defiled by that old emperor!

Therefore, Jia Baoyu didn't care much about his older sister's condition. When Jia Lian suddenly asked him, he couldn't answer for a moment.

Just because Jia Baoyu didn't care didn't mean that Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang didn't care. Although they were sitting, their attention was always on Jia Lian. After all, among so many people present, only Jia Lian seemed "confident and composed".

Upon hearing Jia Lian's words, Lady Wang and Grandmother Jia exchanged a glance, both noticing the shock in each other's eyes. However, they refrained from interrupting and waited attentively for Jia Lian and the others to continue.

As expected, Sister Feng did not disappoint Grandmother Jia and the others, immediately pressing for details: "What, do you mean this matter is related to our eldest young lady?"

There are many reasons why Jia Zheng and Lady Wang held such a prestigious position in the Jia family.

The reasons were Lady Wang's powerful family background, Jia Zheng's position as an official in the imperial court, and Jia Zheng and his wife's management of the Rongguo Mansion.

In addition, their eldest daughter served as a lady-in-waiting to a noblewoman in the palace, which was another reason!

Even if she was just a lady-in-waiting, a servant, she was still a servant by the side of a nobleman. In crucial moments, she could speak on behalf of the nobleman!

Not to mention, this noble lady was the emperor's birth mother, the Imperial Concubine Dowager. This alone was enough to deter others from bullying Jia Zheng and the others.

Therefore, even though Jia Yuanchun had been away from home for many years, her influence never completely disappeared.

However, she had been in the palace for far too many years, from a beautiful young girl to now, her youthful beauty fading. Even Grandmother Jia and others believed that Yuan-chun's contributions to the family had come to an end. Sometimes, Grandmother Jia would even secretly regret in the dead of night that she shouldn't have listened to Jia Zheng and others' advice and sent her precious granddaughter to the palace, a place where she could not be seen by others, to gamble on a slim hope.

Like the other three sisters, Jia Yuanchun was raised by Grandmother Jia from a young age.

So over the years, the family members have gradually stopped mentioning Yuan Chun, for fear of upsetting Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang.

At this moment, Jia Lian suddenly brought it up! They all knew that Jia Lian was not one to speak carelessly, and since he brought it up, there must be a reason. In an instant, the hearts of Grandmother Jia and the others were on edge.

Jia Lian also saw the expectant looks in the eyes of Grandmother Jia and the others, knowing that they must be feeling very anxious. A sense of shrewdness, like that of a prophet, filled Jia Lian's heart. He thought that Lady Wang would definitely be smug later, and that once she had something to rely on and was fully prepared, she might even dare to go against him... But at least for now, he was the one who was enjoying himself.

So he ignored Sister Feng directly, looked at Jia Baoyu, and said with a smile, "Brother Bao, would you be interested in changing to a more prestigious and distinguished status?"

Upon hearing this, Madam Wang couldn't help but stand up, inwardly cursing Jia Lian half to death: Why couldn't he just say it plainly? This is just making people's hearts itch...

Lady Wang is a smart woman. Excluding the possibility that Jia Lian is just talking nonsense, Jia Lian's meaning actually points directly to one thing!

But this was too important to her, so important that she didn't dare to hope for it for the time being.

Could it be that the eldest sister has caught the emperor's eye? Will he take her in for himself, or bestow her upon one of the princes? Will she be given a prestigious title?

Talented Lady? A Lady-in-Waiting? A Concubine?

Too much uncertainty made Madam Wang very upset. If Jia Lian were her son, she would definitely grab his ear and make him confess the truth!

There were many intelligent people in the room, and for a moment everyone looked at the Jia brothers, waiting for them to continue speaking.

Feeling somewhat uneasy under such a display, Jia Baoyu said awkwardly, "What are you saying, Brother Lian? What's with all this talk of being open and aboveboard, and of such noble status? I don't understand..."

"Hehehe, it's okay if you don't understand now, maybe you will in a while."

Jia Lian casually exchanged a few words with Jia Baoyu, then turned his head to look at Xiao Xichun standing in front of him, and reached out to re-tie the mourning scarf on her forehead.

Xichun was still very young, and even when Jia Lian was sitting, his forehead was level with hers.

His effortless retreat and graceful movements left the women in the hall feeling quite uncomfortable.

Xi Chun's face was flushed as she stood obediently in front of Jia Lian, feeling that she had never been the center of attention of so many people before.

Sister Feng was furious. How dare that heartless person ignore her!

Seeing that Jia Lian was ignoring even Feng Jie, the others naturally refrained from asking any questions...