Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

The romantic atmosphere in the capital was suppressed by the national mourning. The powerful and wealthy throughout the city also longed for the days to pass in this oppressive atmosphere.

The day to send the funeral procession out of Beijing was fast approaching.

Inside the main courtyard of the Rongguo Mansion, Jia Lian strode up the steps leading to the south hall. Hearing the commotion, the people inside all came out to greet him.

"Second Uncle."

"Second Master."

He casually nodded to the people who bowed and greeted him, then walked into the hall and sat down at the head of the table.

"I am unable to attend the funeral procession at Xiling this time due to unforeseen circumstances, but the old lady and the madam both want to accompany me, so the task of escorting them will have to be entrusted to you."

Because of the remote location and the extended period of time, coupled with the fact that it is a time of national mourning, the matter is of great importance. You must all be cautious and thorough in your actions, and must not be negligent.

Jia Yun, Jia Qiang, and the others below responded in unison.

"The matters within this trip will be arranged by your Second Mistress. Just listen to her instructions and be ready to serve. As for matters outside, Jia Yun will be in charge, with Jia Qiang and Lin Zhixiao as his deputies, and the others assisting him."

In addition to the necessary servants and guards, I have also drawn ten extra men from my personal guards, to be temporarily led by Jia Yun.

Upon hearing Jia Lian's arrangement, although the others did not dare to express any objections, they could not hide their envy and jealousy of Jia Yun.

Especially Jia Qiang. In terms of bloodline, as the legitimate great-great-grandson of the Ningguo Mansion, his relationship with both mansions is much closer than that of Jia Yun.

Back when Jia Zhen was still alive, he was implicitly the second most important figure among the fifth generation of the Jia family, second only to Jia Rong in terms of activity.

Jia Yun, whose family was so poor at the time that they couldn't even afford to cook, didn't even deserve to be looked at.

But now, he can only be Jia Yun's assistant.

Despite this, he dared not show the slightest dissatisfaction. Having vaguely guessed the cause of death of Jia Zhen and Jia Rong, he feared for a long time that Jia Lian would eliminate him completely.

It was only after Jia Lian completely ignored him that he dared to re-emerge and try to make some moves...

"You should discuss and resolve all matters, big and small, on this trip together. If there are any issues you are unsure about, you can ask your second grandmother."

If it is an urgent matter, you may ride back to the capital to report to me.

"If you handle this matter well, I will reward you accordingly when you return."

After explaining the matters outside, Jia Lian went to Rongqing Hall.

Walking from the main hall leads to the Inner Ritual Gate, and beyond that gate lies the Inner Courtyard of Rongxi Hall.

Jia Lian glanced inside as he passed by:

This courtyard, which symbolized the authority and status of the Duke's mansion, became quiet and secluded after Jia Zheng's departure.

But its majesty remains.

The main building has five large rooms in the front, with side rooms and deer-roofed eaves on both sides, all connected to the mountainside, making it magnificent and imposing.

The main hall exudes an air of nobility. In addition to the three large characters "Rongxi Hall" inscribed on the main hall, the plaques and couplets on both sides, which have extraordinary origins such as "Treasure of Imperial Writings," also shine brightly under the spring sunshine.

For a moment, Jia Lian wanted to break the current situation in the family, kick Jia Zheng and Lady Wang out of Rongguo Mansion, or at least out of this mansion, and then move in here openly with Feng Jie and Qiao'er.

In the end, he simply suppressed such superficial thoughts.

Given his current prospects, why would he need to rely on a courtyard to demonstrate his prestige?

Putting aside everything else, Princess Zhaoyang's residence alone is far more magnificent than Rongguo Mansion.

The main hall she named, Zhaoyang Hall, was originally the residence of Prince Yizhong, and its wealth and splendor far surpassed that of Rongxi Hall.

Therefore, if we are to argue about it, we should wait until he personally changes the Rongguo Duke's Mansion into the "Rongwang Mansion" before we talk about it.

Of course, when that time really comes, I doubt anyone will dare to compete with him.

We arrived at Rongqing Hall.

Rongqing Hall was busier today than in the previous days because there were guests.

After paying his respects to Grandmother Jia and the others, Jia Lian explained the arrangements for the carriages and attendants accompanying the emperor on his westward journey to Grandmother Jia.

Grandmother Jia nodded, praised her, and then said, "This time, your wife and I will be accompanying the emperor to the funeral, and you also have your own important matters to attend to. Therefore, I have invited your concubine to come and stay in the garden for a month to help look after the household. In particular, Baoyu and the others, so that they won't be left unsupervised and run amok in the garden."

Grandmother Jia, Madam Xing, Madam Wang, Wang Xifeng, and even Lady You from the East Mansion all had to accompany the emperor to the funeral. It could be said that the elders of both the Ning and Rong Mansions were completely drained.

The Grand View Garden already had active grandchildren like Jia Baoyu. With the recent addition of Xue Baoqin, Xing Xiuyan, and the Li family mother and daughter, it's not surprising that Grandmother Jia and the others were not entirely at ease and invited Aunt Xue to come and oversee things.

Therefore, Jia Lian repeatedly said that Grandmother Jia's arrangement was very good, and also said to Aunt Xue that he had troubled her.

Aunt Xue simply replied with a smile.

Grandmother Jia added, "Also, Madam Zhen will be accompanying the emperor."

The journey to the funeral is long and will take quite a while, and your sister, Zhen, is frail and sickly, just like Yu'er. Therefore, Madam Zhen doesn't want her to suffer with us, but she's worried about leaving her at home without anyone to take care of her and being lonely.

So I suggested that we bring her to stay with us for a while.

Mrs. Zhen only agreed because of you, her sworn brother; you'd better take good care of her. If you don't, how will you explain yourself to her when she returns to the capital?"

Jia Lian smiled and subconsciously glanced at the little maid next to Madam Zhen.

Zhen Yuhuan was also looking at him. When she met his gaze, the little girl turned her face away shyly.

"Grandma's suggestion is excellent. In this way, the garden will be even more lively. I imagine how happy Lin Daiyu and the others would be if they knew that Huan'er would also be coming to keep them company."

Jia Lian's words naturally drew smiles from everyone present.

After a few words of joking, Grandmother Jia instructed Sister Feng to take Zhen Yuhuan to the garden and settle her in. She also specifically told her to stay wherever she liked and with whomever she preferred.

Regardless of the century-long friendship between the Jia and Zhen families, the fact that the Zhen family was willing to entrust their eldest daughter to the Jia family for care demonstrates their trust in them.

Not to mention that they all know now that Zhen Yuhuan is the designated concubine of the Crown Prince. When the Crown Prince ascends the throne, she will be a noble lady in the palace whose status is no less than that of Yuan Chun.

Therefore, it was no wonder that Grandmother Jia and others took it seriously.

Sister Feng readily agreed.

"old lady……"

Xue Baoqin, who had been standing beside Grandmother Jia and was extremely curious about Zhen Yuhuan, tugged at Grandmother Jia's clothes and called out in a coquettish tone.

Grandmother Jia, of course, understood her meaning. She affectionately patted Xue Baoqin's small hand and said with a smile, "Alright, you go with her too. We can come back for dinner together once everything is settled."

Grandmother Jia really liked Xue Baoqin very much. Even though she was busy going to the palace to pay respects to the deceased these days, she did not let Xue Baoqin move into the garden to live with her cousin.

On the contrary, when he came back every day, he would play with Xue Baoqin and then hold her in his arms to sleep at night, which made him feel completely refreshed and very comfortable.

For a time, even Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu were forgotten by Grandmother Jia.

Sister Feng led Zhen Yuhuan and the others away, and Jia Lian also took his leave.

As you walk out of Rongqing Hall and reach the north-south passageway between Rongxi Hall and Rongqing Hall, a maid comes running up to you and calls out, "Second Madam, Zhang Cai's wife sent me to fetch you. She says the birthday gifts for the Prince of Xining's Mansion and the Marquis of Jinxiang's Mansion have been prepared and are just waiting for your approval before they are sent over."

After listening for a moment, Sister Feng said to Jia Lian, "During the national mourning period, if any family or household happens to have a happy occasion, although they dare not hold a grand celebration, they still have to send gifts. Therefore, Madam instructed us early on to send the birthday gifts to the families whose birthdays fall on the due date before leaving the capital, without any delay."

"Therefore, Lord Marquis, please bring them to our home for a cup of tea. I'll be right back."

Sister Feng hurriedly gave a few instructions and then went with the old woman.

Jia Lian smiled and said to Zhen Yuhuan and the other woman opposite him, who looked at him differently, "Your second sister-in-law is destined to be a hard worker. Don't follow her example in the future."

One sentence not only made the two girls withdraw their strange gazes, but also made them both lower their heads.

They clearly understood that when Jia Lian spoke of the future, he meant after they got married...

"Let's go, let's have a cup of tea at my place first."

As Jia Lian spoke, he glanced at the maids following behind the two of them, focusing his attention on Emerald behind Baoqin.

Grandmother Jia really treats Baoqin very well.

There were eight maids around Grandmother Jia who received one tael of silver every month. They were commonly known as first-class maids and were the best of the best that Grandmother Jia had selected from among the many maids in the Rongguo Mansion.

Of the seven people who received jadeite from Jia Baoyu, Xiren was the most outstanding, second only to Yuanyang.

Back when he asked for Qingwen, among the three women that Grandmother Jia offered him to choose from, this jadeite was not among them.

Now it's been given to Baoqin. Even if it's just temporary service, it's still quite unpleasant to think about.

If even he felt this way, one can only imagine how the other women in the garden felt. It's likely that, though they dared not say it openly, they were all somewhat jealous of Grandmother Jia's favoritism towards Baoqin.

Upon arriving at Jia Lian's courtyard, Xue Baoqin, who had been somewhat shy along the way, could no longer contain herself. After Jia Lian's brief introduction, she took Zhen Yuhuan's hand and exclaimed in surprise, "I heard from Second Brother Lian and Sister Baochai that you and Sister Lin look so alike, but I didn't believe it."

Seeing it with my own eyes now is truly an eye-opener for me. Just now in the old lady's room, I almost thought it was Sister Lin pretending not to recognize me.

Zhen Yuhuan smiled politely. At this point, she was no longer greatly surprised by others' astonishment at her and Daiyu's appearance. Although she also thought that the young lady in front of her was too dazzling and lovely, she had more important things to care about.

"I heard from the old lady and the others that Second Brother Lian is not going to accompany the emperor to Xiling this time, is that right?" Zhen Yuhuan looked at Jia Lian and asked with concern.

"Yes. His Majesty has ordered me to be stationed in the capital to train the officers and soldiers of the newly established firearms battalion, so I don't need to go to Xiling."

Zhen Yuhuan's face lit up with joy. Noticing that Jia Lian, Baoqin, and the others were all looking at her, she quickly covered up her surprise, saying, "That's great. With Second Brother Lian at home, I think we won't be bored holding the poetry club together for the next month..."

Although Baoqin was unaware of Zhen Yuhuan's thoughts, she greatly agreed with Zhen Yuhuan's words:

"Yes. It's a pity that Brother Lian has important matters to attend to, so he probably won't have much time to play with us at home."

"I've been in the capital for so long, still living at their house, and haven't had many chances to see my second brother Lian."

Baoqin's words made Zhen Yuhuan's heart tighten again.

Looking at the two little girls, who seemed to be hoping he would stay home and play house with them every day, Jia Lian couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction.

There was nothing they could do; these two little girls were both incredibly cute and had incredibly slender and beautiful figures.

Putting everything else aside, the sight of them sitting so obediently in a row in front of me is incredibly pleasing to the eye and puts me in a good mood.

At the same time, he couldn't help but feel smug that he always maintained a "great, glorious, and righteous" image in front of them, which made them so close to him and even worship him.

Otherwise, no matter how beautiful they are, if they go to great lengths to guard against and avoid me like Li Wan, it will be boring.

Thinking of Li Wan, Jia Lian couldn't help but narrow his eyes again.

If you want to catch this prey that you've already swallowed whole but which has managed to escape, this state funeral might be a good opportunity.

Li Wan did not possess an imperial title, so naturally she did not need to accompany the emperor to Xiling.