Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

The commotion in the outer courtyard naturally did not escape the notice of those in the inner courtyard.

Lady Wang couldn't understand what Jia Lian and his wife were up to. Just a moment ago, they were bestowing great favors, making everyone grateful and giving off a feeling of universal celebration.

Why did his expression change so suddenly, and he started to fly into a rage?

Moreover, the person who was beaten was one of the stewards of the mansion!

This made Lady Wang suspicious.

It should be noted that apart from Lai Da and Lin Zhixiao, who were promoted by Grandmother Jia, Shan Daliang and Wu Xindeng were both considered her people.

Jia Lian had just received his title when he made a move against Wu Xindeng, which made her begin to suspect that Jia Lian was targeting her.

Despite her suspicions, Madam Wang didn't do much. Firstly, Jia Lian and his wife had the authority to manage the household, and if they hadn't done anything wrong, she couldn't interfere.

Secondly, Jia Lian beat a servant from the outer courtyard. Even if it was wrong, Jia Zheng should have intervened. At this time, Jia Zheng was probably studying at Mengpo Studio, so she naturally wouldn't bother him with such a trivial matter. Besides, Jia Zheng might already know about it.

"Mrs……!!"

Suddenly, Shan Daliang's ghost rushed in like it was being chased by a ghost. As soon as it saw her, it cried out for help.

Madam Wang hurriedly asked what was wrong.

"I had just gone home and tidied up before coming back to serve my mistresses when Liu Chun's wife from the east wing, along with a group of old women and servants, barged into my house, saying they were on orders from Master Lian to search for evidence."

Then, ignoring the servants' attempts to stop them, they forced their way into the house and began searching...

They weren't looking for any evidence; they just grabbed anything of value they saw and put it on the carriage outside, just like robbers.

My son went to stop him, and one of Master Lian's personal guards gave him a good beating. He's lying on the ground and can't get up...

"What...?"

Upon hearing this, Madam Wang was also alarmed and hurriedly asked, "What exactly have you done that he would treat you like this?"

"Madam, please understand, we servants did nothing wrong."

Over the years, we have worked diligently in the mansion and never dared to make a single mistake. We don't know how we offended Master Lian.

I heard from the housekeepers' wives that my husband is still being flogged in front of the steward's room, and he might even be dead by now...

"Madam, we are all your people! Second Master Lian is treating us like this, he doesn't respect you at all! Please have mercy and save our lives, otherwise we will all die..."

Madam Wang sighed deeply, unsure of what to do in this situation.

I originally thought that Shan Daliang and the others had indeed been caught by Jia Lian for embezzlement, so they should be taught a lesson.

Although it doesn't align with the Jia family's current philosophy of managing the household, it can't be considered wrong.

However, sending people to ransack the servant's home is really going too far...!

The Jia family has been in business for decades and has never done anything so undignified.

Frustrated by the nagging from Shan Daliang's family, Madam Wang sighed, "He now inherits the family's title and is favored by the Emperor; I can't control him anymore. Go find the Old Madam; perhaps she'll listen to him more. Go..."

A look of despair appeared on Shan Daliang's face. Seeing that Madam Wang was truly powerless to handle the matter, he dared not delay. He got up from the ground and immediately ran towards Rongqing Hall.

If she delayed any longer, she was afraid her husband would really be beaten to death.

Good heavens, eighty strokes of the cane, who could endure that?

……

When Liu Chun's family led people to carry boxes of things into the courtyard where the steward's office was located, even Lai Da and Lin Zhixiao couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts.

They dared not show any unusual behavior, but simply stayed obediently to the side, waiting for the situation to change.

Wang Xifeng was also stunned, thinking to herself, "Could it be that this heartless person got a taste of the benefits of raiding Jingxu's lair and thus fell in love with this?"

But this is too exciting. Without saying a word, they directly ransacked their own servant's house.

Isn't he afraid of being criticized by others, and that the old lady will blame him later?

However, Wang Xifeng only thought about it for a moment before she became excited.

Having managed the Rongguo Mansion for several years, Wang Xifeng knew exactly how wealthy the stewards and managers were; some of them might even be richer than she had been!

Take the four stewards, Lai Da and Lin Zhixiao, for example. They all lived in separate houses outside the mansion. In the past, during festivals, they would invite Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang to eat wine and watch plays... although Grandmother Jia and the others might not necessarily grace them with their presence.

This is heartless! They raided the Shan family's place. How many valuable things did they find there?

Liu Chun's wife walked over shakily and reported, "Second Master, as you instructed, I went to the Shan family to search for stolen goods. Except for some things that I couldn't move, I brought almost everything else over."

"I didn't have time to count them all; they're all here. Please take a look, Second Master."

Just as Jia Lian was about to speak, he suddenly saw Zhou Rui's wife leading an old woman, hurrying over from the corridor.

"Second Master Lian, Second Madam Lian, the Old Madam wants you to come in and give her some feedback..."

When Wang Xifeng heard that Grandmother Jia had indeed come to call, she felt a little uneasy and couldn't help but glance at Jia Lian.

See? The old lady is here to confront you. You'd better think about how to answer her. I can't control you. It's your own fault for not discussing it with me beforehand.

Jia Lian's expression remained unchanged, as if everything was within his expectations.

He only said to Wang Xifeng, "I'll go and report back to the old lady. You stay here and have them count the items clearly in front of everyone, then have someone report the exact number."

Wang Xifeng immediately understood Jia Lian's meaning and was happy not to see her great-grandmother, so she nodded in agreement.

……

When Jia Lian arrived at Rongqing Hall, sure enough, Grandmother Jia had already set up her defenses.

She wasn't in the inner hall; she was sitting in the main hall outside, with only Madam Wang to her side and Shan Daliang's wife sitting on the ground, sobbing.

"I've met the old lady and the madam."

Just as Jia Lian finished his greetings, Grandmother Jia frowned and asked, "Where is Feng'er?"

"There are still some things outside that haven't been taken care of, so I asked her to take care of them for the time being."

"If the old lady has anything to say, just ask me. I know everything."

Upon seeing Jia Lian's nonchalant attitude, Grandmother Jia became angry and said irritably, "You're becoming more and more capable these days, even going so far as to raid your own servants' homes!"

You're a general of the second rank, aren't you afraid of losing face?

Jia Lian glanced at Shan Daliang's wife on the ground. The woman immediately backed away guiltily when their eyes met.

Jia Lian gave a light snort, cupped his hands, and replied, "So that's what the old lady was thinking. If that's the case, I'm afraid the old lady has been deceived by these cunning servants."

"If they themselves hadn't broken the law or done anything that would severely damage the interests of my Jia family, why would my grandson have acted this way?"

Grandmother Jia was a shrewd woman; she knew what Jia Lian meant without even asking.

"Even if they make mistakes or do things they shouldn't, you can discipline and admonish them. Why do you just confiscate their documents?"

The saying goes, "Even if you don't respect the monk, you should respect the Buddha." Any large family knows how to maintain its dignity.

They've been servants in this household for generations, and they're the ones who have been in charge of things under my care. They should at least have some dignity.

"Are you acting so willfully and recklessly, bullying your servants, just to show me?"

Grandmother Jia was indeed a little angry.

After all, the Jia family's long-standing philosophy of managing the household was that those who served and were employed by their elders were more respectable than their masters.

This is actually what is known as filial piety in managing a family, or as the saying goes, "Even when beating a dog, you have to consider its owner."

Now that Jia Lian is going to deal with Shan Daliang's family so ruthlessly without saying a word, it's clear that he's making her and Madam Wang lose face!

"Grandma, please calm down. Your grandson has no such intention."

Actually, I didn't want to do this either. Am I really someone who doesn't care about appearances?

They really went too far, otherwise why would the grandson have to do this?

The old lady thought to herself, "Why didn't my grandson punish Lai Da, or Lin Zhixiao and Wu Xindeng, but specifically the Shan family?"

Jia Lian had prepared his response to Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang, so he spoke slowly.

Upon hearing this, Shan Daliang's eyes turned even redder.

Yes, the couple hadn't offended Master Lian and Madam Lian, so why were they singled out and targeted for such a vicious attack?

If Grandmother Jia and others had been exposed to the internet of later generations, they might have known that the question of "why only you are hit and not others" is an unreasonable proposition.

But they didn't, so they actually thought Jia Lian's words made some sense. Therefore, they glared fiercely at Shan Daliang's wife before sighing, "What exactly did they do to make you so furious?"

"It was thanks to the kindness of the old lady and the madam that they raised more than 10,000 taels of silver for us, which allowed my father's funeral to be completed satisfactorily. I would like to thank the old lady and the madam again."

For the past month, Feng'er and I have been working tirelessly to ensure that this money is used effectively for the steel blades, fearing that wasting even a single ounce or fraction of it might delay the master's funeral arrangements. And if we run out of money, where will we find more?

Should we ask the old lady and her wife for it again? We don't have the face to do that.

However, this couple, Shan Daliang and his wife, taking advantage of their position in charge, showed no regard for their superiors. During the preparation of my father's funeral, they played both sides, falsifying and concealing information, and taking kickbacks. The amount of money they embezzled increased each time.

My grandson and Feng'er had already discovered it, but they kept quiet for the sake of my father's memorial tablet.

"Does the old lady know how much they embezzled at my father's funeral alone?"

Grandmother Jia and the others fell silent. If Jia Lian's words were true, it was no wonder that he would settle accounts with the Shan family later.

"My father's funeral expenses totaled less than 20,000 taels of silver, but the Shan family alone embezzled several thousand taels, accounting for one-fifth or one-sixth of all my father's expenses."

"Old lady, madam, tell me, can we still tolerate such audacious and greedy lackey?"

"No, we didn't. Master Lian is making baseless accusations."

"Grandma, madam, you have to believe us, we didn't, we really didn't..."

Dan Daliang felt like he was about to vomit blood; Jia Lian's words were far too exaggerated.

They made false reports and concealed information, and took some kickbacks... but they didn't rob the treasury, so how could they have embezzled several thousand taels of silver?

Even if you calculate it all the way up, it couldn't possibly exceed a thousand taels of silver.

It's such a misunderstanding...

"Hmph, of course you won't admit it. If you really admitted it, I wouldn't have done it."

Anyway, now that all the dirty laundry has been dug up, we just need to wait for Feng's side to compile the statistics, and then we'll know whether you're human or ghosts!

Seeing Jia Lian's expression, Grandmother Jia and the others were actually more inclined to believe him.

They knew that their servants were well-off. However, they had a mentality that the more glamorous their servants were, the more respectable they felt, so they didn't pay much attention to their minor acts of embezzlement.

Who knew that they would be allowed to become so arrogant!

They embezzled several thousand taels of silver from a single funeral. This is outrageous! Won't they empty the entire government treasury in just a few years?

Both Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang understood why Jia Lian was so angry and determined to punish them severely.