Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Wang Xifeng glared at Jia Lian, and seeing that although he was smiling, there was still a hint of sternness in his eyes, she felt even more aggrieved: "Tell me, what have I done wrong that you have to come up here and bully me like this without saying a word?"

If you can't give me a straight answer, I won't let this go today!

Wang Xifeng had never suffered such a great injustice in her life.

She's always the one who hits people; no one has ever dared to hit her!

Even if it's Jia Lian, if she doesn't give her a reasonable explanation today, even if she can't beat him, she'll make a complete mess of things for him.

Jia Lian knew that Feng Jie was stubborn and wouldn't shed tears until she saw the coffin, so it would be difficult for her to figure things out on her own. Therefore, he didn't mince words, but just looked at her and said with a sneer, "I heard that Second Mistress Lian has a big project worth several thousand taels of silver. How about it? Are you interested in telling me about it?"

After all, this project can't be done without me. Surely Second Madam Lian isn't so ignorant of this basic rule that she's using my name without expecting me a share of the profits?

Upon hearing this, the imposing aura that had just risen on Sister Feng's face vanished instantly.

She frowned instinctively and looked at Ping'er. "Did you say that?"

"It wasn't me, I didn't! I've been in this room the whole time!" Ping'er shook her head like a rattle-drum, and Dou E couldn't describe her feelings either.

She happened to overhear Feng Jie'er's conversation with Lai Wang's family, and afterwards she even tried to persuade Feng Jie'er, but Feng Jie'er had already made up her mind, so she didn't dare to say anything more.

Upon seeing this, Jia Lian's expression darkened further, and he said, "What, isn't Second Mistress Lian going to explain this to me?"

Sister Feng is a person who dares to take responsibility. Now that she knows that this matter has been exposed, she no longer feels wronged and naturally no longer has the desire to cry.

However, she hadn't expected Jia Lian to find out so quickly, so she hadn't yet figured out a way to deal with it. At this moment, her mind was racing, and she decided to reason with him and appeal to his emotions to persuade him.

"Hmph, I thought it was because of something."

"Is such a small matter really worth getting so angry about?"

As she spoke, Sister Feng spontaneously recounted the story of Jingxu's previous request to her. In her words, she showed no remorse whatsoever. Instead, she emphasized that for them, this was nothing more than a matter of talking and having the servants make a trip, yet they could receive five thousand taels of silver for free. This was far easier than Jia Lian's hard work as an official outside earning his meager salary.

In short, in Wang Xifeng's view, this was the most worthwhile deal in the world. A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

Jia Lian sighed inwardly upon hearing this. It was clear why the imperial examination system was used to select officials throughout history.

Wang Xifeng was undeniably intelligent, yet ultimately, due to her lack of education, she remained trapped by the limitations of her own knowledge and thinking.

No matter how much effort they put into managing their household and governing their subordinates, they ultimately lack a sense of the big picture.

She didn't realize that by accepting five thousand taels of silver from the Zhang family, she had essentially opened the door for receiving money from others. In the future, if anyone else had similar power-for-money transactions, they would naturally come to her again.

Unbeknownst to her, what she considered a simple matter of speaking was actually a private exchange of interests between the Jia family and the general guarding the capital's strategic passes, a grave offense to the imperial court!

Moreover, how could someone like Yun Guang easily gain favors? If he encounters trouble in the future and goes to the Jia family, will the Jia family help him or not?

If they were to help, they would easily cultivate relationships with officials outside the capital and form cliques for personal gain.

Moreover, Feng Jie did it under a false name without the knowledge of the men in the family. Neither he nor Jia Zheng knew about it. If they don't repay the favor in the future, how can Yun Guang not hold a grudge?

She didn't realize that by taking on this dirty work, she was not only gaining benefits, but also handing over her secrets.

For the young mistress of the Duke's mansion, reputation is more important than anything else.

Sister Feng had no idea that by granting the Zhang family's unreasonable annulment of the engagement, she indirectly caused the tragic deaths of two childhood sweethearts, who had grown up together and were inseparable...

"Do you really think five thousand taels of silver is so easy to get?"

"Otherwise what?"

Wang Xifeng, on the contrary, asked Jia Lian in a serious tone, as if the higher Jia Lian's official rank was, the more timid he became.

Seeing this, Jia Lian really wished he could just give her another beating instead of trying to reason with her!

Ultimately, she's his wife; once you disregard her flaws, she's all good...

It's the kind that can still be used after washing.

"If I told you that accepting this five-thousand-year-old silver would ruin a good marriage and kill two young lives, would you still feel at ease spending this silver?"

"How is this possible? Who?"

Wang Xifeng instinctively felt she was being lied to, but after thinking about it carefully, she asked, "You mean Zhang Jinge and the garrison commander's son? That's unlikely, isn't it?"

As someone from that era, Sister Feng could understand how much some women valued chastity and reputation.

If we add to that the fact that Li Yanei is a despicable person, then Zhang Jinge, whose engagement was rejected by his parents, might actually have the idea of ​​sacrificing his life to preserve his reputation... As for the garrison commander's son, let's just forget about him.

What genuine feelings can a man have?

That's one thing, but even if there really is such a person, why would Jia Lian know about something that hasn't happened yet?

Moreover, it was as if he had eyes on himself; the moment she did something, Jia Lian found out!

Jia Lian immediately guessed who the two children Feng Jie was referring to was, and thus knew that Feng Jie actually understood these principles.

However, she might think that because of the Jia family's generations of wealth and because the eldest daughter of the family had become an imperial concubine, she could disregard those concerns.

Jia Lian stared intently at Wang Xifeng's beautiful face, which was so close to his own, and asked, "Never mind the possibility or impossibility. I'm just asking you, if you knew this would be the outcome, that taking this five thousand taels of silver would lead to the deaths of two innocent people, would you still continue to help that old nun Jingxu with this dirty business?"

Because Jia Lian asked such a serious question, Feng Jie, who was already suspicious, became even more uneasy.

Past experience has shown that Jia Lian's words in this way often come true in the end, so she had to think about it seriously.

Although she considered herself a ruthless person, she also asked herself if she had any intention of harming anyone, as she had only wanted money.

If it really came down to two lives for a few thousand taels of silver, I'm afraid she would hesitate...

Feng Jie was a clever woman; she knew Jia Lian was testing her character, because he often advised her to remain kind. Having already considered this, she naturally replied rather irritably:

"Don't make it sound so mysterious. If I knew that a mere few thousand taels of silver would lead to two murders, I would never do it. I'm afraid you're just trying to scare me."

Jia Lian smiled. As long as she didn't say something as absurd as "I only care about money, what does it matter to me whether others live or die," she was still reformable.

Jia Lian never asked Feng Jie to be as kind as Ying Chun. He himself was not kind at all; in the years since he transmigrated, he had taken many lives on his hands.

However, while he could get involved with these dirty things, he didn't want to, and wouldn't allow his woman to, easily get involved with them.

Therefore, rather than saying that Sister Feng did something wrong and that it would have some bad consequences, it would be more accurate to say that she crossed the line.

He made the decision for him without authorization.

Such important matters outside of the household are not for Sister Feng to decide, no matter what. Even if she wanted to earn those five thousand taels of silver, she should have discussed it with him first, and then he could take charge of the process.

Otherwise, if Wang Xifeng gets used to doing such things, her ambition and greed will only grow bigger and bigger in the future, and even he might not be able to control her.

"You don't need to worry about whether I'm bluffing you or not. In short, I'm clearly warning you that you are not allowed to get involved in this matter."

Not only can you not get involved, but I will also absolutely not allow that old nun Jingxu, who has no interest in spiritual cultivation and is only interested in scheming, to stay at Shuiyue Nunnery any longer.

If it weren't for your reputation, I could have had her thrown out of the capital tonight.

"Once things are settled here, find a pretext to kick her out of Shuiyue Nunnery. I don't want to see that old hag again."

In the original story, many lewd and absurd things happened at the Jia family temple and the Shuiyue Nunnery. Although they have not happened now, it is not difficult to guess from the character of the abbess of the Shuiyue Nunnery.

Therefore, it's best to get rid of such a malignant tumor as soon as possible.

Although Sister Feng was reluctant to part with the five thousand taels of silver, seeing that Jia Lian's expression was uncompromising and that her buttocks were still burning with pain, she dared not say anything more for the time being.

Seeing that he was about to take his anger out on Jingxu, he immediately said, "It's easy for you to chase her away, but she's someone who often appears in front of the old lady and madam. I'm afraid she'll go back and complain to the old lady and madam, which would be troublesome... Why don't we just let her off this time?"

Jia Lian laughed and said, "Keep her around, so I can introduce you to side jobs later?"

Women like Wang Xifeng, who live in the inner quarters, don't really have much opportunity to come into contact with the dirty and chaotic things outside. In this case, someone like Jingxu is needed to provide information so that things can work out.

Ignoring Feng Jie's embarrassed and annoyed expression, Jia Lian continued, "If it's inconvenient for you, leave her with me. Don't worry, I'll make sure she doesn't have a chance to complain to the old lady and the madam."

What could Wang Xifeng say? She could only mourn for Jingxu and hope that she would be sensible enough to find another place and not anger the heartless one, otherwise it would be like throwing an egg against a rock.

Seeing that the matter was over, Sister Feng wanted to get up from Jia Lian.

She was so busy arguing with Jia Lian that she didn't even realize she had been sitting in his lap for so long.

Because Jia Lian wouldn't let her go, she pretended to be angry and said, "What are you doing? Don't you feel satisfied yet? Do you want to hit me?"

Tonight was terrible. The five thousand taels of silver that were almost in my hands flew away, and I even got slapped more than ten or twenty times for nothing. My butt still hurts a bit.

Seeing her subconsciously rub her bottom, Jia Lian was quite pleased. He put his arm around her and laughed, "Did it really hurt?"

Feng Jie'er's face turned both ashamed and angry. Seeing that Ping'er had already left and there was no one else in the room, she also lowered her tone and scolded, "How dare you say that? You hit so hard..."

Jia Lian kissed her and told the truth: "I originally just wanted to give you a few symbolic slaps to teach you a lesson and see if you would dare to do this kind of thing behind my back again. It just felt so good that I couldn't help but slap you a few more times."

Upon hearing this, Sister Feng was not about to let it go.

Jia Lian was genuinely angry. He had been beaten for nothing, and he never expected there to be this reason.

Is it possible that her good touch is the reason she gets beaten up so often?

For a moment, she really wanted to punch Jia Lian's shameless face, but after giving him a few light punches on the chest, she buried herself in Jia Lian's arms and let him massage her to relieve the soreness.

Sigh, I wish the heartless man could stay here tonight.