Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

"My lord, although after my late husband died, the Salt Transport Bureau and the Prefectural Government successively searched the files at the Censorate, I still have some account books and smuggling lists that my late husband gave me before.

After my late husband died, I was afraid something would happen, so I hid those things in advance. If you need them, I can offer them all to you, my lord. I only beg you to save my son, clear my late husband's name, and bring Wu Zhirong and all those corrupt officials to justice..."

Madam Xu had long suspected that An Siyuan was murdered by Wu Zhirong and others.

Moreover, her son was still in the enemy's hands. Although the enemy only wanted her to keep quiet and promised that her son would return safely after the imperial envoy left Jiangnan, she couldn't rest easy until she saw her son.

Now that she has decided to side with Jia Lian, she is quite straightforward and plans to hand over the things she had hidden away in case of emergency to him.

Jia Lian was slightly surprised, not expecting Madam Xu to have such a trump card up her sleeve. But that was fine; more concrete evidence would be beneficial to his future actions.

Therefore, he nodded and said, "As for Madam's son, since I have already made my promise, I will keep it and do my best to help Madam find him."

As for Lord An's matter, I will handle everything according to the law. If he is an honest official, the court will reward him; if he is guilty, the court will punish him accordingly. However, if he was truly murdered, I will severely punish the perpetrator according to the law, so you need not worry about that, Madam.”

Upon hearing this, Madam Xu gratefully kowtowed and then said she needed to go back to retrieve the evidence.

The Salt Commissioner's office was divided into front and back sections; the front section was the official residence, while the back section was the official residence of the chief official. Jia Lian occupied the official residence, while she, as a family member, naturally lived in the official residence at the back.

"There's no rush, you can give it to me tomorrow. I'm doing this for your sake, Madam."

Because I haven't made all the necessary preparations, I'll have to maintain a polite but evasive demeanor with those people for a few more days. For the safety of my wife and son, it's best not to let them suspect my wife.

Therefore, Madam and Miss, please stay in my courtyard tonight and leave early tomorrow morning.

"Well... alright, I'll do whatever you say, sir..."

Madam Xu suddenly felt a little nervous. Although she understood the meaning behind Jia Lian's words, as long as she stayed in Jia Lian's room for one night, everyone would only think that Jia Lian had taken advantage of her and defiled her, and would not suspect that she and Jia Lian had secretly exchanged some inside information.

After all, Wu Zhirong and his men just didn't want her to cause trouble; they didn't really believe she had any evidence that could threaten them. If she did, they would have already taken action against her.

Perhaps this young imperial envoy also wanted to use this to make those people think that he was a greedy, lustful, and easy-to-deal-with man...

Despite this, Madam Xu was still worried that Jia Lian was just using this as an excuse to keep her here.

She is quite confident in her and her daughter's appearance.

Just as she was pondering what countermeasures she should take in response to Jia Lian's various reactions, she saw Jia Lian call someone in and instruct them to arrange a side room for her and her daughter outside.

So they were supposed to live outside, not in the main house...

Madam Xu breathed a sigh of relief, immediately pulled her daughter along, and solemnly kowtowed twice to Jia Lian. Just as she was walking out with the others, she still felt a little strange and couldn't help but look back at Jia Lian a few times. Seeing that Jia Lian was also looking over, she quickened her pace and left.

Ah Qin brought in the foot-washing water, bending down to serve Jia Lian as she asked with a smile, "Master, are you really planning to let them leave like this?"

"Otherwise what?"

Jia Lian put his foot into the hot water. Being away from home is different from being at home, so the fewer things to do, the better. Therefore, he did not allow Zhao'er and others to make arrangements for his daily life.

For example, simply washing your feet before bed saves you a lot of trouble compared to doing it at home.

However, although he didn't have a single maidservant by his side, Ah Qin always managed to act as his considerate little maid when no other women were around. With this naturally charming and capable girl serving him, it would be difficult for Jia Lian to live a life like a monk.

"Of course we should keep them here and let them serve the master in bed! Anyway, the master already has a reputation for being a womanizer, and Lady Lin is not here, so why should the second master pretend to be innocent?"

As Aqin gently massaged Jia Lian's feet in the basin of water, she looked up and smiled charmingly.

"What does this have to do with her?"

"Of course it's related. Ever since the master took my sister in on the desert, he's been calling me or my sister to his bedchamber every few days. Not to mention after we returned to the capital, the master is busy with so many important things every day, yet he still finds time to steal kisses and lust after women everywhere. He's so busy."

But ever since we left the capital, the master seems like a completely different person. He no longer summons my sister and me to serve him in bed, and even the only maid he brought with him has been obediently placed aside. Can the master say that this isn't because of Lord Lin Xiangjun?

Ah Qin smiled, her expression a mixture of mockery and sourness.

During this trip south, even Xiangling could see that Jia Lian and Daiyu were not simply cousins, let alone this clever and shrewd girl.

Jia Lian couldn't really refute what Aqin said.

Because during the twenty or so days he spent on the ship, he was indeed very self-disciplined.

While Daiyu's involvement certainly played a part, the more important reason was Lin Ruhai. After all, he had promised to escort Lin Ruhai's coffin to Jiangnan, and there were certain taboos that should still be observed.

However, he wasn't a saint, and he often accompanied Daiyu's beautiful and pitiful maid as she wandered around, sometimes inevitably feeling a little tempted. Daiyu, of course, was only concerned with looking beautiful and didn't care about anything else, so Jia Lian felt embarrassed to be presumptuous.

At this point, Xiangling's importance becomes apparent. Moreover, Daiyu seems to understand some "principles" as well. Although Jia Lian said he was giving Xiangling to her, Daiyu still allowed Xiangling to serve him bathing and settling him in bed while they were on the boat.

Seeing that Jia Lian didn't speak, Aqin laughed.

She knew that her master could be quite forceful in certain ways. Yet, he had restrained himself for so long for Daiyu's sake, which made her both jealous and heartbroken.

So when I left Suzhou, I made up my mind to make up for my father's absence.

She had initially thought that the An family mother and daughter would snatch the prize away, but to her surprise, Jia Lian was only talking. This undoubtedly made her very happy.

"Could it be that Your Highness finds one of them too old and the other too young? Actually, I think they are both quite good, especially Madam An, who is gentle and virtuous, and very beautiful. Moreover, she looks to be about the same age as Madam You in the family. Why would Your Highness dislike her? Is it because she has already given birth?"

Ah Qin looked like she was deep in thought, with the curiosity of a child, which inevitably earned her a flick on the forehead from Jia Lian. She didn't care, just chuckled and said, "Master must be exhausted from running around these past few days."

Originally, I was thinking of letting them help me relax, but since they've let them go, I'll just have to soak my feet in hot water to soothe myself.

As he spoke, he got up and went to the side to get a kettle and pour hot water into the basin.

After adjusting the water temperature, seeing that Jia Lian was indeed comfortably closing his eyes, he got up and knelt down beside Jia Lian, close to the edge of the bed, and began to massage Jia Lian's thighs again.

She sculpted very carefully and thoughtfully, daring to pinch and touch every part of the body.

Noticing that Jia Lian had used family discipline and that she unconsciously sat up a little, she smiled smugly to herself, but pretended not to know and continued to massage Jia Lian, her movements becoming more disciplined.

This made Jia Lian somewhat unhappy.

Just by looking at her smug, fox-like smile, you could tell what she was thinking. The little girl's gotten bolder; she dared to manipulate him now.

So he lifted his foot and said calmly, "Alright, wipe yourself clean and get out."

Aqin was taken aback. She knew that Jia Lian liked to soak his feet, and he would usually soak them for a long time if he had nothing to do. It had only been a little while.

Glancing at Jia Lian's expression, as if realizing that she had made a fool of herself, she quickly became eager and said with a smile, "Brother Zhang and Brother Zhao said that for the sake of Master's safety, at least one of my sister and I should keep watch in Master's room at night, so that we can be summoned if anything happens."

So, I'll stay in this room tonight and won't have to go out... You can do whatever you want to me, Master, and I won't tell the Lord of the Township...

"Then let your sister come in to keep watch. It's not good for you to suffer every time."

Seeing Jia Lian's reaction, Aqin frowned and looked at him with a hint of annoyance. Seeing that Jia Lian remained unmoved, she immediately smiled, resting her head on his lap and pleading, "Master, please don't be angry with me. I was wrong, okay?"

Although she and her sister were so close that they were inseparable, it was still difficult to give in on this kind of thing.

Seeing Jia Lian give a soft hum, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, Aqin got up and added hot water for Jia Lian again. Then she squatted back down and went to untie Jia Lian's sash.

Jia Lian was slightly speechless and pressed down on the other person's hands. If he didn't know this girl well, he would have suspected that she had returned from learning her skills in a brothel.

Ah Qin had no idea what Jia Lian was thinking. She looked at Jia Lian, her rosy and pretty face slightly flushed, and teased, "Second Master has been riding a horse all day. How can you only wash your feet? You should wash the rest of your body properly too."

Even with Jia Lian's experience, it took him quite a while to realize that Ah Qin's suggestion to "wash" was so direct and simple, and so irresistible.

He could only marvel at how ridiculously talented this girl was at seducing and pleasing men. In this respect, even the naturally alluring Qin Keqing might not be able to compare.

To be honest, Qin Keqing is still in the exploratory stage in this regard, while this girl has already mastered it.

Perhaps, if Qin Keqing could learn from her, the beautiful Qin could avoid many detours.

Congratulations to Taoli for gaining another alliance leader! (Applause)

I would also like to thank all the brothers, sisters, and friends who have supported Taoli, voted, and tipped. Thank you, handsome men and beautiful women!

(End of this chapter)