Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

"I originally thought that Qin's son was good-looking and was the same age as Baoyu, so I let him study and play with Baoyu."

It seems I was the one who misjudged people.

Coming from a humble background and lacking proper education, it's understandable that she might have poor self-control. However, it's unexpected that she would be so undisciplined, committing such absurd and rebellious acts, almost implicating Baoyu.

In order to completely dispel the doubts of everyone in the room, Grandmother Jia did not hesitate to take the blame upon herself.

Aunt Xue understood what Grandmother Jia meant and chimed in, "Grandmother, there's no need to say that. Of all the people in the world, there are good ones and bad ones."

I think Baoyu is a rare and excellent child. He was raised by the old lady from a young age, and he is well-educated, polite, and sensible. No child in the world can compare to Baoyu.

"Hehehe, Auntie, you flatter him too much. How could he possibly deserve such praise..."

Jia Lian was too lazy to listen to Grandmother Jia's whitewashing speech, so he took a break from their conversation and left.

"Lian'er, wait a moment."

Jia Lian turned around and saw that it was Madam Wang who had chased after him and called out to him in the corridor.

"What are your orders, Madam?"

"Come here, I have a few words to say to you."

As Madam Wang spoke, she walked down the corridor to her side.

Jia Lian didn't suspect anything and went back up into the corridor.

Madam Wang was quite tall, a head taller than Aunt Xue, but even at her age, she walked with a steady, dignified gait, perfectly embodying the demeanor of a noblewoman.

Judging from the faint curves that still remain, she was probably a rare beauty in her youth.

She has a big butt, no wonder she's so fertile.

In this day and age, it's not easy to successfully give birth to three healthy children.

Whether people really have a third eye or not, although she didn't turn around, Lady Wang still realized that Jia Lian might be spying on her.

This made her walk a little distorted, but fortunately her lower body wasn't far away. After a few steps, she turned into the house and felt much more at ease.

He asked Jia Lian to sit down and even personally instructed a maid to pour him tea.

Lady Wang rarely treated him with such courtesy, but Jia Lian simply smiled and said, "If Madam has any instructions, please just say so. I will do my best to handle it."

Lady Wang scrutinized Jia Lian, a sense of melancholy creeping into her heart. Could it be that Lian'er's previous foolishness and stupidity were all an act, designed to deceive everyone until he realized the master's days were numbered, at which point he stopped hiding and seized the title in one fell swoop?

If that's the case, then his cunning is far too deep.

"Thank you for speaking up and clarifying things for your brother Bao."

Madam Wang said this with a hint of sincerity.

She cared more about Jia Baoyu's reputation than Grandmother Jia, so she had already questioned him about the events of that night in detail.

Although the old women's accounts were not much different from those of Jia Lian and his wife, under her earnest questioning, she could still guess that Baoyu had indeed been instigated by that wicked boy from the Qin family to do something outrageous!

To her surprise, judging from the old women's words, Jia Lian not only didn't take advantage of Jia Baoyu's misfortune that night, but actually defended him quite a bit...

She had initially suspected that Jia Lian might have some wicked intentions, but after he acted the same way in front of Grandmother Jia, Madam Wang realized that perhaps she had been overthinking things all along.

After all, if Jia Lian really wanted to harm them, with so many people around, all he had to do was splash some dirty water on Jia Baoyu, and his son's reputation would be ruined!

For this reason alone, she felt she should thank Jia Lian.

"Madam, you flatter me. We're all family, there's no need for thanks. As his elder brother, if I don't help him, would I harm him?"

While Jia Lian said this, he was also somewhat suspicious.

Compared to Grandmother Jia's aloofness and Jia Zheng's ignorance and pedantry, in fact, he and Lady Wang were the two who understood the competitive relationship between each other the most.

And last time, they almost had a falling out over the matter of the sacrificial ceremony.

So when Madam Wang took the initiative to speak to him alone, he was quite surprised and became more wary.

Madam Wang nodded, smiled at Jia Lian, and then, not dwelling on the matter, asked instead, "By the way, I heard that you and Feng'er locked up Jingxu at Shuiyue Nunnery?"

Jia Lian thought this was the main point of Madam Wang's conversation and was about to respond with the "confession" that he had already prepared with Wang Xifeng when Madam Wang continued, "I have already heard the details from Feng'er. Alas, I never expected that she would do such a heinous thing behind my back. I knew nothing about it. This is my sin."

You did the right thing; such a menace cannot be allowed to live.

Jia Lian opened his mouth, thinking to himself that this shouldn't be Lady Wang's line.

"As for the ill-gotten gains she left behind..."

Lady Wang glanced at Jia Lian and interrupted him again just as he was about to speak: "Feng'er also said that you should keep half of it for the Shuiyue Nunnery for its operation, and the rest should be transported back to the city to buy grain, hire people, and build soup kitchens to relieve the poor."

This is good, because in this way, the sins committed by Jingxu can be eliminated to the greatest extent possible, and my heart can be at peace.

Jia Lian clicked his tongue and couldn't help but blurt out, "I thought Madam wanted me to move the things back to the mansion to settle accounts!"

Madam Wang paused for a moment, then said, "Firstly, all her money was ill-gotten gains, so it's best to distribute it back in the same way it was acquired."

On the other hand, if the money were transported to the manor for accounting purposes, not only would it be difficult to justify the transaction, but the servants might also suspect that the manor's punishment of Jingxu was an attempt to seize her money, which would be counterproductive.

What could Jia Lian say? Wasn't this the very thing he had prepared to say to Madam Wang? Yet Madam Wang had said it to him. How was he supposed to respond?

I might as well just shut up and not say anything.

"Therefore, you two can keep that money for now, and distribute as much as you can to the poor, as it would be a good deed."

"By the way, Jingxu is someone who often visits the old lady. She doesn't know about this yet, but I'll talk to her about it later, so you don't need to worry."

Madam Wang spoke slowly.

Jia Lian looked at her. Was this his response to protecting Jia Baoyu? Not only did she not mind at all that they had removed Jingxu and replaced the abbess of Shuiyue Nunnery, but she also directly gave them such a huge sum of money.

Unable to fathom Madam Wang's intentions, and too lazy to guess, Jia Lian simply said, "In that case, thank you very much, Madam."

The wealth that Jingxu had plundered was worth at least ten thousand taels of silver, undoubtedly a piece of fat meat. There was no reason for Jia Lian not to take it when it was offered to him.

Perhaps Lady Wang was unaware of the upcoming visit home; otherwise, she might not have been so virtuous, and would probably have wanted to hold onto all the money...

There was really nothing to talk about alone with Madam Wang. After getting to the point, Jia Lian took his leave after only a few words.

"Okay, go ahead."

As Lady Wang watched Jia Lian stride away, her smile faded, but she simply stopped smiling; she was no longer as gloomy as before.

Jia Lian guessed correctly; Madam Wang's sudden generosity was indeed a gesture of reciprocation.

Jia Lian's attitude towards Jia Baoyu today has somewhat relieved and made Lady Wang more clear-headed. Given the current situation, being at odds with Jia Lian would not benefit her.

Firstly, it was for the sake of family harmony; secondly, his daughter had just been made a concubine, and her position was unstable, so she still needed the support of Prince Teng, Jia Zheng, and others. Jia Lian could also be considered part of this effort.

Therefore, allowing Jia Lian and his wife to smoothly seize Jingxu's private property was her way of showing goodwill.

Actually, Wang Xifeng also played a part in this. When the inventory was being taken that night, Wang Xifeng deliberately prevented the Jia family's servants from knowing the exact amount.

Last night, when Madam Wang asked her, she deliberately underreported the amount again. Madam Wang comes from a noble family and has managed the Jia household for twenty years, so she has high standards and ordinary wealth doesn't really tempt her.

Moreover, she still felt somewhat disgusted by such tainted money, which is why she decided to generously give it to Jia Lian and his wife.

As Lady Wang was pondering to herself how much Jia Lian could understand her painstaking efforts, she suddenly noticed the untouched teacup on the table, and Lady Wang felt utterly speechless.

Could it be that he's afraid I'll poison him?

Madam Wang's mood immediately soured. Did they think she was some ignorant fool like Madam Yang? With her status and position, how could she do something so despicable and lowly?

So he stood up with a flick of his sleeve, told the maids to pack their things, and went to Grandmother Jia's place.

In fact, Lady Wang had misunderstood Jia Lian again.

Not drinking tea or alcohol casually was just a habit Jia Lian had developed, not because he was afraid she would poison him.

Jia Lian knew very well that Lady Wang was not stupid. As the birth mother of an imperial concubine, she held a noble position and there was hardly anything worth risking her life for.

Such people are actually safe.

Unless one day he himself falls from grace and is surrounded by enemies, Lady Wang might not be able to take action to snatch something back for her precious jade.

As for Madam Wang now, she can probably only tacitly approve of Wang Xifeng's lending practices, which might be a childish game that could lead them to self-destruct...