Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Before nightfall, Wang Xifeng took her best friend Qin Shi to the Shuiyue Nunnery.

For the past month, she has been busy almost every day; to put it bluntly, she has been working non-stop.

This is a moment of leisure amidst the busyness.

After inquiring and finding out that Jia Baoyu, Daiyu, and the others were all well and there was nothing wrong, she didn't care anymore. She went to the lodging that the old nun Jingxu had prepared for her, rested for a while, had some tea, and then went to the clean room to rest.

Taking advantage of the fact that all the other old women and wives had left, leaving only a few close maids to serve in the room, the old nun Jingxu from Shuiyue Nunnery approached Fengjie and said with a smile, "I have something I want to ask the madam for at the mansion. Please give me your instructions first."

"I'm exhausted. Just say what you want to say, don't hold back."

Sister Feng lay on a short wooden kang (heated brick bed) covered with a tiger skin and gilded with gold, resting with her eyes closed. Beside her legs, a young maidservant was massaging her legs with a beauty hammer.

"Amitabha Buddha, it's because when I became a monk at Shancai Temple in Chang'an County, there was a benefactor named Zhang, who was a very wealthy man. He had a daughter..."

Jingxu then slowly explained her request.

It turns out that this wealthy man surnamed Zhang had a daughter named Jin Ge, who was already betrothed to the son of the former garrison commander of Chang'an. However, Jin Ge also caught the eye of Li Yanei, the brother-in-law of the prefect of Chang'an, who insisted on marrying her.

One family was determined to marry, but the garrison commander's family refused to allow the engagement to be returned and even threatened to sue the Zhang family. The Zhang family was determined to break off the engagement but was afraid of losing the case, so they sent someone to the capital to seek help.

As it happened, Jingxu learned of this matter. She knew that Yun Guang, the military governor of Chang'an Prefecture, was a close friend of the Jia family, and that the military governor of Chang'an Prefecture was the superior of the garrison commander of Chang'an. If she could get Yun Guang to say a word, the garrison commander's family would certainly not dare to say anything more.

Therefore, Jingxu immediately took on the task, hoping to earn a generous reward from it!

She certainly didn't think that the general guarding the pass was someone a mere old nun like herself could command. She was determined to use the Jia family's connections to plead with Yun Guang on his behalf.

They also thought that the master and mistress of the Rongguo Mansion were both upright people and probably wouldn't want to get involved in such matters, so they decided to start with Wang Xifeng.

Upon hearing this, Sister Feng immediately understood Jingxu's scheme, but she did not expose it. In order to save face in front of Jingxu, she turned over and said nonchalantly, "It's nothing, it's just that Madam doesn't concern herself with such trivial matters."

Jingxu immediately seized the opportunity: "If Madam doesn't care, Grandma can..."

"I have plenty of money to spend now, and I don't care about such immoral things."

Sister Feng was very clever; she immediately realized that the wealthy Zhang family was ambitious and wanted to befriend the prefect, so they were willing to spend money to break off the engagement with the former garrison commander's family.

That being said, Sister Feng did not actually intend to condemn the Zhang family... There are too many injustices in the world!

She could only see that there were huge benefits to be made here, and she was just waiting for Jingxu to offer a price so she could weigh whether it was worth it for her, Madam Feng, to make a move.

Hmph, you old hag, do you think I'll do your bidding for nothing?

Jingxu, being so perceptive, immediately said, "Grandma, you don't know, but the garrison commander's family is also despicable. Just because that young master Li took a fancy to Brother Jin, he went to the Zhang family without asking any questions and insulted them, saying that they were a family with the same daughter. They are so shameless."

The Zhang family was driven to desperation by the garrison commander's family and vowed to vent their anger.

If Grandma could help with this, the Zhang family would probably be willing to give everything they have to support her.

As Jingxu spoke, she provoked him further: "Grandma only said that she didn't lack money, but the Zhang family already knows that I came to your mansion for help. Now that they're not taking it seriously, they don't say that your mansion doesn't have time to meddle in other people's business or care about their gifts. Instead, they act as if your mansion doesn't even have this much ability..."

"Bullshit!" Sister Feng sat up abruptly and shouted.

"Tell him to bring five thousand taels of silver, and I'll avenge his family!"

Sister Feng, who always loved to show off her power and domineering nature, couldn't stand such words and immediately offered a price.

When Jingxu heard Feng Jie'er ask for five thousand, her expression changed slightly. It was a bit beyond her budget... After all, the more Feng Jie'er asked for, the less profit she would make...

This was the first time Sister Feng had done something like this, so she made an outrageous demand. Furthermore, Jia Lian had been sending money home frequently lately, completely overshadowing her previous arrogance! Now that she finally had this opportunity, she naturally wanted to squeeze as much as possible out of it.

Therefore, he asked Jingxu falsely, "What, you can't even come up with this little bit of silver, yet you want me to help you get revenge? You might as well give up now..."

In the end, Jingxu didn't see through Fengjie's disguise. After thinking for a moment, she gritted her teeth and said, "Alright, I'll do as you say, Grandma. I know their family. Five thousand taels of silver isn't difficult..."

Although Sister Feng asked for the price offered by the Zhang family in one go, she, as the middleman, could have easily told the Zhang family that Sister Feng had asked for six or even seven thousand, since those country bumpkins would never have the face of a nobleman!

Judging from the Zhang family's eagerness, they would definitely be willing to give them ten thousand, let alone five thousand, as long as the matter can be accomplished.

Therefore, as long as the matter can be accomplished, there is ample room for manipulating profits...

When Sister Feng saw that Jingxu agreed in one go, she was secretly surprised: Sure enough, these wealthy people in the countryside should not be underestimated. They were actually willing to spend so much money to do things!

She didn't show it on her face, but said to herself, "I'm not like them who are after money. These few thousand taels of silver are just for the errand boys to cover their travel expenses and let them earn a little money for their hard work. I don't want any of their money."

"Hmph, let alone five thousand, even fifty thousand taels of silver, I could come up with it right now!"

The old nun Jingxu hurriedly smiled and said, "Grandma is right. In that case, please be merciful and do it as soon as possible. The sooner it is settled, the sooner the Zhang family can be at ease. It will also be a good deed for Grandma."

"What are you so busy with? Haven't you seen how busy I am? I'm always here. Where can I be left out?"

Since I promised you, I'll get it done in no time. It's nothing big.

Jingxu dared not urge her, and instead smiled and said a lot of nice things to Fengjie, from her sharp housekeeping skills to her upcoming conferment of the title of Second Rank Lady, which made Fengjie feel very comfortable.

……

Sister Feng thought to herself that what Jingxu said was not difficult, yet she could get five thousand taels of silver for nothing, which could be described as making a fortune out of nowhere.

Therefore, without delay, after the people dispersed, she called in her trusted maid, Laiwang, and gave her detailed instructions, telling her husband to rush back to the city that night to handle this matter.

However, after hearing his wife talk about this, Laiwang immediately saw the risks involved!

The laws of the Great Wei Dynasty strictly prohibit relatives of officials from interfering in local litigation!

Therefore, what Sister Feng ordered was clearly a violation of the law.

She also had to write a letter to Yun Guang in Lian Er Ye's name behind his back!

Once Master Lian finds out about this...

If Second Master Lian doesn't object, that's fine. But if Second Master Lian gets angry, his anger is something neither he nor Second Madam Lian could withstand.

At that time, Second Madam Lian will definitely be fine, but he will definitely be the one to take the blame!

Moreover, ever since that year when Sister Feng asked him to monitor Jia Lian and was warned by Jia Lian, he still harbors a lingering fear of Jia Lian.

Most importantly, the now-powerful Second Master Lian, when enraged, is willing to kill...

Laiwang was afraid, but dared not disobey Wang Xifeng's orders.

Their entire family were servants of Wang Xifeng, and their lives and fortunes depended entirely on her. Once they lost her trust, they would have no means of survival...

After lingering near Shuiyue Temple for a long time, I suddenly saw torches drifting in from afar.

Master Lian and the others have arrived.

In a flash, Laiwang devised a plan that would allow him to avoid the risk of being killed and also avoid offending Sister Feng...