Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Seeing the expressions on Grandmother Jia's and Lady Wang's faces, Shan Daliang's wife felt utterly hopeless.

If even these two abandon them, she really doesn't know who else can save the Shan family.

Therefore, he crawled and cried to Grandmother Jia and the other woman, begging for mercy in various ways, which was quite touching.

Jia Lian didn't care at all. He even raised his eyebrows to greet Tan Chun and the others who were peeking out from the inner hall, causing Tan Chun and Xi Chun to quickly hide behind the nanmu wood partition.

In her haste, she seemed to have stepped on the foot of a beautiful guest, eliciting a sweet and adorable "Ouch!" followed by the faint sound of Tan Chun pleading for mercy...

Clearly, the Sanchun sisters and the others were listening to what was happening in the back!

Inside the main hall, just as Jia Mu and the others were filled with pity, Xiao Hong, Wang Xifeng's newly appointed trusted maid, ran over.

She first greeted Jia Lian and the other two in a proper manner, and then said to Jia Lian, "Second Master, Second Madam said that the Shan family has too many dirty certificates, and it is really impossible to count them all at once."

However, according to Second Grandma's rough estimate, the gold and silver notes, gold, silver and copper coins were worth at least eight thousand taels of silver. Other jewelry, ornaments, gold and silver utensils, antiques and paintings, and even several land deeds and house deeds, all of which, when converted, were worth at least ten or twenty thousand taels of silver...

Wang Xifeng knew that Jia Lian urgently needed to extract the amount to silence Grandmother Jia and the others, so she sent Xiao Hong to report in advance.

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian said, "Old Madam, listen to this. I just had someone search me casually, and they found such an astonishing amount. Who knows how much they spent or hid elsewhere."

And that doesn't even include their house.

"It's really better to be a servant in our household than an official. Even the prime ministers and ministers only earn a few hundred taels of silver a year. It's pitiful that after working hard for twenty years, their earnings are less than those of a servant in our household."

Upon hearing this, both Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang tightened their grip.

The servants who had served the family for generations, especially the stewards and old managers, were wealthy men, a fact they were all aware of.

However, Shan Daliang had not been a steward for long and had not experienced many major events, but his family fortune was excessively large!

If he is like this, then how wealthy must those who have been in charge for longer and have higher positions be?

For a moment, even Grandmother Jia couldn't help but wonder if, as the Duchess of the State, she had truly shown enough selflessness and fraternal love throughout her life...

Seeing this, Shan Daliang's wife quickly stood up and kowtowed, saying, "Most of those valuables were gifts from the old lady and the other ladies over the years..."

Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang remained indifferent; they must be crazy to bestow so much gold and silver upon a servant!

Even Lai Da's mother, Granny Lai, only gave him some clothes and some goods as a reward each year, which totaled no more than a few dozen or a hundred taels of silver.

What kind of person is this Da Liang that he deserves so many rewards?

So they already knew without even asking where all that money came from.

"Grandma, Madam, please understand! This money doesn't all belong to us servants... It's... it's money from some relatives who, seeing that we still have some standing in the household, transported it to the capital and entrusted it to us for safekeeping. Who knew that Second Master Lian would use it as evidence and find it during a search? How are we going to explain this to our relatives now...?"

Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang's faces darkened. Were they being treated like fools?

You're someone who's been a slave for generations, what wealthy and powerful relatives could you possibly have? And to entrust your belongings to someone else? That's just getting more and more absurd.

A stern look silenced Shan Daliang's wife. Then, Grandmother Jia took a deep breath and said to Jia Lian, "Our family is large and prosperous, with many people and a lot of things to do. It's inevitable that the stewards and stewards sometimes make some money from it."

Fish cannot be raised in clear water. As an official in the imperial court, you should be well aware of this principle.

Considering they are elders in their families, having served generations of masters, they have at least put in a lot of hard work, even if they haven't done anything particularly meritorious. You should show them leniency.

Clearly, even so, Grandmother Jia did not want to do anything to Shan Daliang.

As someone who had managed the household for decades, Grandmother Jia had a strong sense of "territoriality" and knew that the servants who had risen from her ranks were an extension of her power.

Once these people are gone, I'm afraid her children and grandchildren might not be as filial to her as they are now.

Therefore, in the past, neither Madam Wang nor Wang Xifeng dared to easily touch her people.

She didn't want Jia Lian to set this precedent.

However, Jia Lian was neither Lady Wang nor Wang Xifeng; he insisted on setting this precedent!

"According to the law of the land, those who steal or defraud their master's property should be sentenced to hanging..."

"Ah~!"

A sudden, sharp cry of surprise came from behind the huge wooden screen; it was clear and crisp, with a hint of coquettishness.

Grandmother Jia frowned and glanced back, then looked at Jia Lian with displeasure.

The old woman on the ground was terrified, clutching Grandmother Jia's trouser leg as if grasping at a straw.

"Of course, if our ancestor is too kind, your grandson can make an exception."

How about this: all the ill-gotten gains will be confiscated by the government, and then the person will be sent to the estate...

This is already the lightest punishment. Their acts of disloyalty and injustice, violating both national and family laws, should be severely punished according to both moral principles and the law. Otherwise, not only will it fail to serve as a warning to others, but it will also discourage those diligent, self-disciplined, and loyal servants!

Since Jia Lian said that, Grandmother Jia couldn't say anything more.

After glancing at Shan Daliang's wife, who still wanted to plead for mercy, Grandmother Jia said impatiently, "Alright, that's enough."

He has already shown you leniency beyond the law. If it were according to the old Duke's methods back then, you would have all been beheaded for your actions. Would you still be allowed to cry and whine here?

Once you get to the village, make sure you repent and start anew.

After saying these words, Grandmother Jia had exhausted all her pretenses. She gave the old women beside her a look, and they grabbed Shan Daliang's wife and dragged her out.

After the weeping person was carried away, the hall fell silent. Grandmother Jia glanced at Lady Wang almost imperceptibly.

Madam Wang remained almost completely silent throughout. Strictly speaking, the Shan couple should actually be considered her people...

Without much thought, Grandmother Jia turned to look at Jia Lian, who remained composed, and sighed, "Aren't you afraid that by ransacking the servants' homes like this, you'll be criticized by the servants for being greedy, cruel, and unruly, and that you'll lose their hearts?"

"If we're going to lose anyone, it'll be the hearts of those disloyal and treacherous lackeys. Sooner or later, we'll have to get rid of them one by one."

Our Jia family has no need for disloyal servants.

Jia Lian's answer left Grandmother Jia feeling quite uneasy, as if all the servants left over from her time managing the household were disloyal and restless.

However, Jia Lian's words made perfect sense, so she couldn't very well object.

"Alright, I know you're right, but I still have to remind you that everything in excess is bad. One day you'll understand the saying, 'It's good to be a little confused sometimes.'"

Jia Lian smiled, cupped his hands and said, "Thank you for reminding me, Ancestor. I will remember it. I hope I can understand this principle soon and learn some of Ancestor's philosophy of life."

Grandmother Jia felt a lump in her throat, feeling extremely aggrieved, and said angrily, "Anyway, you won't listen to what I'm saying, so I'm too lazy to talk to you anymore. You may leave."

"Grandfather, please calm your anger. Your grandson will take his leave now..."

After Jia Lian left, seeing that Grandmother Jia was somewhat angry, Lady Wang actually advised, "Grandmother, don't take it to heart. He had no selfish motives."

He must have seen that our family's income was always insufficient to cover our expenses, and that the money in the government treasury was decreasing year by year, so he couldn't stand the servants embezzling even more.

If we consider this perspective, then he was truly doing what was best for our family, and we feel sorry for him.

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia sighed softly, got up, took Yuanyang's arm, and went to the inner hall.

"Mrs……"

When no one was around, Zhou Rui's wife came up and called out.

In terms of social status, Shan Daliang and his wife were higher than her and Zhou Rui and his wife.

Therefore, Shan Daliang was punished by Jia Lian, which made these powerful servants feel insecure.

The key issue is that it seems the wife has absolutely no interest in the insurance policy... which makes her very uncertain.

Madam Wang saw through her thoughts and said calmly, "This time, the Shan family went too far, which is why Lian'er and the others decided to punish them."

"Neither Lian'er nor the other one are stupid. After punishing the Shan family, they certainly won't make any further big moves. As long as you two are more careful in your actions and don't give them any leverage, they probably won't do anything to you."

After hearing this, Zhou Rui's wife felt somewhat more at ease.

But then Madam Wang whispered, "Go out and see if Lian'er and the other two have sent all the confiscated items to the authorities for registration..."

Zhou Rui's wife was slightly taken aback, and suddenly understood why Madam Wang did not save the Shan family.

Madam, you've set your sights on that enormous sum of money.

That's true. If those things were put into the government, it would be a considerable fortune for the government!

But why do I always feel a chill in my heart...?