Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Shi Ding was very drunk. As they helped him out the door, he kept talking to Jia Lian.

"Lian-ge, your uncle owes you a huge debt of gratitude. You saved my whole family's lives..."

"My uncle has said this many times: watch your step."

Shi Ding stumbled and fell, but he didn't care. He still clung to Jia Lian's arm and said in a hoarse voice, "I already said that... Anyway, thank you so much this time. His Majesty transferred me to the Capital Garrison, and I'm the deputy commander..."

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian's expression shifted slightly, and he said, "This should only be temporary. Uncle is a meritorious official in suppressing the rebellion. Perhaps His Majesty will transfer Uncle back to the Imperial Guard after some time."

Not to mention that the deputy commander of the Imperial Guards was already more prestigious than the deputy commander of the Beijing Garrison, the deputy commander of the Elite Cavalry Battalion was one rank higher than the ordinary deputy commander of the Imperial Guards.

Therefore, Shi Ding was demoted.

However, it wasn't entirely a demotion. As Shi Ding mentioned earlier, Emperor Ningkang promoted him by one rank to commend his "heroic rescue of the emperor," and he is now a first-class marquis.

"What kind of meritorious official am I? I know myself perfectly well. The old emperor treated me with the greatest kindness, yet I betrayed him at the most crucial moment. I deserve to die. This disgrace of selling out my master for personal gain is something I can never wash away in my lifetime..."

Perhaps Shi Ding was truly speaking his mind after drinking; as he cursed, his eyes welled up with tears.

Wang Ziteng, standing nearby, sighed deeply upon seeing him like this.

If we accept Shi Ding's explanation, then what's the difference between him and Shi Ding?

He was also a veteran minister of the retired emperor's reign, and he was ordered to enter the capital to defend the emperor, but in the end, he was easily subdued by Emperor Ningkang with the position of Grand Secretary.

Jia Lian found himself somewhat appreciative of Shi Ding's genuine emotions.

Having the courage to face one's own unbearable aspects is itself a form of greatness.

In that situation, if Shi Ding hadn't listened to his advice and had been determined to die for the Emperor Emeritus, what would have been the point besides risking the lives of his entire family?

If it were a war against foreign powers, one could perhaps say it was for the nation and the greater good, and that dying for a cause was worthwhile.

But this was clearly a meaningless civil war. The generals and soldiers fought to the death, leaving behind ten thousand corpses on and around Iron Net Mountain. But what was the end result? In the end, the two emperors were unharmed, but the retired emperor was imprisoned.

Did Qian Yi and Sun Jia not have a single regret before they died?

No, perhaps they also wanted to live, but they weren't as lucky as Shi Ding; fate didn't give them the chance to live.

So Jia Lian comforted him, saying, "Uncle, there's no need to worry so much. This wasn't your fault. You didn't do it for yourself, but for the sake of your family's lives, which is why you made the right choice."

Moreover, the retired emperor lived a long and healthy life, and nothing happened to him because of his uncle.

To be honest, my uncle's actions didn't really amount to betraying his master for personal gain; at most, it was about abandoning his faith for survival. He was simply trying to ensure his family's survival, and he didn't do anything wrong.

Shi Ding wiped away his tears, looked up at Jia Lian, and smiled, "Not bad, Brother Lian is indeed more cultured. What I did can't be considered betraying my master for personal gain, but rather betraying him to survive..."

Shi Ding chuckled for a moment, then suddenly said, "Lian-ge'er is truly handsome, no wonder he's called the most handsome man in the capital. It's a pity my daughter is only seven years old, otherwise I would definitely betroth her to you. I really want to be your father-in-law..."

Jia Lian glanced at the fellow, then beckoned to Shi Ding's personal guards, who tossed him aside.

Wang Ziteng, who wasn't drunk, smiled wryly. However, he couldn't help but ponder for a moment and realized that he didn't have a daughter of marriageable age to marry Jia Lian, so he gave up the idea of ​​arranging a marriage between relatives.

After seeing Wang Ziteng and Shi Ding off, Jia Lian glanced at the sky and asked those around him, "What time is it?"

"Reporting to Second Master, it is already past midnight."

Nodding, Jia Lian walked back to the courtyard. Just as he passed the ceremonial gate, he saw Feng Jie leading a large group of people, carrying all kinds of boxes out.

"Have your two uncles left?"

Sister Feng came forward, her slender waist swaying gracefully, her smile as radiant as a spring rosy cloud.

Jia Lian hummed in agreement, raised his hand to brush a strand of hair from her forehead, and gazed at his beautiful wife's radiant face with slightly drunken eyes.

Feng Jie knew Jia Lian was shameless, especially since he had been drinking. Fearing that he might do something intimate to her in public that would damage her dignity, she preemptively blocked his hand, giving him a playful glare before laughing:

"I have prepared the reward money and the list of names. Would Your Excellency like to sit down and distribute the rewards yourself?"

"No need, I trust you to handle things."

A simple sentence made Sister Feng overjoyed.

Although Jia Lian's ascension to the position of Duke was not due to national and family mourning, he should still give out reward money to let his servants share in the joy and have a lively celebration.

Therefore, she discussed with Jia Lian that the entire household would receive a monthly allowance for half a year, and that the allowance would be paid by themselves, but not by the Rongguo Mansion's official account.

Feng Jie did not object to Jia Lian's point.

Although she loves money, she is not stingy. She is happy to spend money on showing off and prestige.

Moreover, she is now the Duchess of the State. Although she has no intention of rivaling Grandmother Jia, she still needs to maintain a certain demeanor and presence.

Furthermore, since it's an official matter, there's no need to consult with Madam Wang about how much or how to reward someone.

She was quite happy to be superior to her aunt, whom she had once respected but who she later discovered had mostly taken advantage of her.

"Then you should go home first. You've had some wine, so take a good bath and rest. Would you like me to leave Ping'er here to take care of you?"

"No need, you'll need her here."

Jia Lian glanced at Ping'er beside him, then lifted his leg to leave. After taking two steps, he stopped and said, "Why don't we call the servants from the East Mansion as well?"

Seeing Feng Jie'er's surprise, Jia Lian said, "Whenever there's something to do, we use those servants quite often, and we've never seen them disobey orders."

Now that we've reaped the benefits, there's no reason to leave them out; how can they not harbor resentment?

The Rong and Ning mansions were as close as family, and their servants could be ordered around by each other in case of any major events.

Generally speaking, rewarding servants is a matter for each household.

It all started with Jia Lian, extending to both households and benefiting everyone equally.

This was also because Jia Lian became the acting clan head, and the East Mansion temporarily lacked a leader, so Jia Lian took over some of the leadership of the East Mansion.

Another, more important reason is that he didn't want to put his woman in a difficult position.

Just like this time, they usually obey both sides equally. Seeing that the people of Rongguo Mansion were all getting huge benefits, how could the people of Ningguo Mansion not be envious?

If Lady You pretends not to see this at this point, people below will resent her. If she follows suit and distributes rewards, she will be wasting a large sum of money.

The key point is that there are always happy events at the Rongguo Mansion.

Being a steward is not an easy job, let alone for a family like the You family with a relatively weak foundation.

Jia Lian admired You Shi's contentment and understanding, so he usually thought of her and tried his best not to make things difficult for her.

Therefore, Jia Lian thought it best to reward them all together, just like today.

Feng Jie knew that all the servants in the East Mansion listened to Jia Lian and understood his meaning, so she asked, "Then how should we calculate it? If it's the same on both sides, not only will the servants on this side feel unbalanced, but if you encounter a rotten-hearted person who doesn't understand your good intentions, they might even suspect that you're deliberately doing favors to interfere in the affairs on the other side."

Sister Feng smiled deliberately.

Jia Lian frowned. In earlier years, he might have had the idea of ​​winning over the hearts of the two mansions and using them for his own purposes, but now that things had come to this point, there was no need for that at all.

Given his current status and position, he doesn't need to use any means at all; no one in either government office dares to disobey him.

"They don't all have to be the same. Let's just leave them there for three months."

Absolute fairness is unfair. Jia Lian is, after all, from the Rongguo Mansion, so there should be some difference.

Feng Jie nodded and continued, "It's not that I'm reluctant to part with these few hundred taels of silver. It's just that the other side isn't under our jurisdiction. If we were to pay them according to their monthly wages, wouldn't we have to ask Sister-in-law You for the servants' roster?"

Aren't you afraid your sister-in-law will suspect something?

In my opinion, there's no need to go through all that trouble.

"After we've finished distributing the rewards here, I'll bring out a few more baskets of money. Within half an hour, anyone from the East Mansion who wants a reward can come over, and I'll just scatter it around this courtyard. How much they can grab depends entirely on their own ability. Wouldn't that be both 'fair' and exciting?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian glanced at Feng Jie with a rather sidelong look.

As expected of the Jia family's personal housekeeper, someone who has worked her way up in the public mansion has developed a mature and effective set of theories on housekeeping.

It's a simple change, but there are many implications behind it.

Firstly, this informal format ensures that the dignity of the East Mansion, or rather, the face of Madam You, is not harmed.

Secondly, since everyone's ability to grab as much or as little as they want depends entirely on their skill, there are naturally no complaints. Those who are reluctant to give up their respectable roles as housekeepers or housekeepers, or those who are wealthy, will not seriously compete, thus giving more opportunities to those who truly need the goods or services.

Finally, hundreds of servants scrambled for the reward money, creating a lively and festive atmosphere that achieved the original intention of distributing the reward.

"Let's do it your way."

After uttering a word of praise, Jia Lian left without looking back.

……

If Grandmother Jia was in a good mood, Rongqing Hall would usually be brightly lit.

After dinner, people would drink tea, admire flowers, play cards, and so on. By the time they finished, it was often past midnight.

Not to mention that Lady Shihou, an uninvited guest, arrived midway through the banquet tonight.

After seeing off Madam Zhen and Lady Xiaoshi, and seeing that Grandmother Jia was finally showing signs of fatigue, the granddaughters took their leave and marched out of Rongqing Hall in a grand procession, preparing to return to the garden.

Just as they reached Rongxi Hall, they saw Jia Lian walking out from the south-facing path.

The sisters were all taken aback for a moment, then immediately gathered around to greet them.

When Jia Lian saw Yingchun and the others, he smiled. His gaze swept over Baochai and Daiyu, but he didn't notice anything unusual, so he felt relieved. He waved to his front door and said, "Let's go in and have a cup of tea before we go back."

Yingchun and the others readily agreed, and so the eight or nine sisters, along with their respective maids, followed Jia Lian into the courtyard, chattering away.

Among them, Tan Chun and others, fearing that Baochai and Daiyu would feel embarrassed, practically escorted them inside.

Having drunk quite a bit of wine, Jia Lian reeked of it. He went into the inner room to change his clothes first. When he came out, Yingchun and the others were already sitting down in the side room.

Jia Lian glanced around and saw that all nine girls of different ages in the garden were there.

Baochai and Daiyu sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), while the other seven women—Sanchun, Xiuyan, Xiangyun, Baoqin, and Zhen Yuhuan—formed an irregular fan shape from the tea table to the corner of the wall, blocking Baochai and Daiyu's path to the door.

Judging from the hint of resentment still lingering on Daiyu's face, it was clear that she did not sit on the kang (heated brick bed) willingly, at least not willingly, to sit with Baochai.

He gestured for them not to get up, then walked to the other side of the kang table and sat down, asking, "Why are there only a few of you? Where's Baoyu? Doesn't he like playing with you the most?"

It was Xichun who spoke first: "Brother Bao is not feeling well. The old lady asked Sister Xiren to send him back to Yihong Courtyard earlier."

Xi Chun's childish voice caused the women's expressions to change even more.

Many of them believed that Jia Baoyu was in a bad mood today because of Baochai. He thought, "I didn't get Lin Daiyu, Baochai, or Baoyu; I must be heartbroken."

They were unaware that the real reason Jia Baoyu was allowed to return to Yihong Courtyard was that, apart from Baochai and Daiyu, the seven girls gathered together, and seven out of ten topics revolved around Jia Lian, making Jia Baoyu, who had been sitting on the sidelines for a long time, feel quite disheartened and bored, which is why he left early.

The girls who started it all didn't even know it, so Jia Lian certainly didn't know either.

However, he didn't seem too concerned. Instead, he glanced at Xiangyun and asked everyone, "What's wrong with her?"

This girl, who used to be the most talkative and the one who would strike up a conversation with him the most, now seemed unusually quiet.

Tan Chun glanced at Xiang Yun, and seeing Xiang Yun looking up blankly, she smiled and said, "It's probably because her third aunt just invited her to come home and stay with her. When the old lady asked her what she thought, she was confused and didn't think it through, so she refused. She regrets not being able to enjoy the good life."

"Nonsense, that's not true..."

Seeing Tan Chun making fun of her, Xiang Yun immediately stood up and tried to tear Tan Chun's mouth apart.

Madam Shi Ding wanted to take Xiangyun home to live.

Jia Lian pondered for a moment upon hearing this. Although he had done Shi Ding a favor this time and intended to recruit him for his own use, the two Shi brothers were at odds, and in the past, it was mostly Shi Nai's family that had dealings with the Jia family, while Shi Ding rarely interacted with the Jia family, which meant that he and Shi Ding were not familiar with each other at all.

At this moment, he also wanted to find out from Xiangyun what kind of people her third uncle and aunt were.

Often, the adults seen through the eyes of children are the most authentic.

Looking at the two laughing and joking maids, Jia Lian asked, "Oh, since your third aunt sincerely wants to take you back to live with her, why didn't you refuse?"

Xiangyun was surprised by Jia Lian's question. She withdrew her hand from her playful embrace with Tanchun and frowned, saying, "I don't want to go..."

"Is it that they treat you badly, or that their family is bad?"

"No, that's not it... I've lived with my second uncle since I was little, and I basically... rarely go to their house..."

Xiangyun offered an explanation, then became somewhat displeased, glaring at Jia Lian: "Why are you asking so many questions? Besides, why does it have to be their family that's bad? Can't I just like it here, like Sister Yingchun and the others, and not want to leave?"

Jia Lian smiled and continued, "If that's the case, then why aren't you happy?"

"I'm not unhappy at all..."

Xiangyun blushed as she spoke against her true feelings, facing Jia Lian's gaze that seemed to see right through her.

She was the only daughter of the eldest son's family. Her parents passed away when she was very young, so she was raised by her second uncle and aunt.

Her second aunt often spoke ill of her third uncle and aunt in front of her. Although she didn't completely believe it, she had never actually met her third uncle and aunt many times since she was a child, nor had she ever felt any care or concern from them.

Therefore, even if it's uncertain whether they are as bad as Second Aunt said, it's certain that they don't care about their eldest niece.

Originally, this was nothing unusual; she had long since become accustomed to it over the years.

She never expected that her third aunt would suddenly visit the Jia family tonight, and what surprised her even more was that her aunt's attitude towards her had changed drastically.

Her attentive manner during the meal made her wonder if the third aunt she remembered was someone else entirely.

So she wasn't unhappy tonight, but rather confused and distressed because she couldn't understand the reasoning behind it.

As for going to her house with her, that's nonsense.

As long as she still wants to go back to her second uncle's house, she will never go with her third aunt.

Moreover, although she is young, she knows very well who has been truly good to her since she was a child.

Of all her close relatives and elders, only Grandmother Jia truly cared for and loved her.

Otherwise, she wouldn't enjoy coming to the Jia family mansion so much!

"Just now at the banquet, her third aunt said that Yun'er's third uncle had been promoted to a first-class marquis, and she kept praising you."

"So, what does this have to do with you?"

Just as Xiangyun was wondering how to explain, Baochai suddenly spoke up.

The person she was asking the question to was Jia Lian.

Jia Lian sat back a little, not bothering to hide it: "There is some connection."

The power struggles in the imperial court were too bloody and cruel; Jia Lian didn't want to say too much to these beautiful flowers.

But Baochai seemed to have a natural keen sense for these things. She almost immediately made a connection and said to Xiangyun, "You told me before that your third uncle and your second uncle and aunt don't get along very well, so you don't see them even once a year."

Your third aunt is suddenly so concerned about you this time, and even wants to take you home to stay, probably because of him.

Baochai gestured to Jia Lian.

Of all those present, perhaps only Baochai truly understood Xiangyun's thoughts and confusion.

Because Xiangyun is naturally talkative, she might not mention family matters to others out of pride, but she holds almost nothing back from Baochai.

"Because of Brother Lian Er?"

Xiangyun was surprised, and the others were curious as well.

Seeing that everyone was looking at her, Baochai had no choice but to continue explaining: "Her third uncle came to the Jia family at night, probably to see Brother Lian."

Given the status of the Third Marquis Shi, even if Second Brother Lian were granted the title of Duke, he would still be a junior, and he probably wouldn't need to be so deferential.

He must have had a good reason for doing this. Either he had something extremely important to discuss with his second brother Lian, or he was simply showing respect for his second brother Lian and wanted to come in person today to congratulate him.

Based on what her third aunt said at the banquet, it's not hard to guess that Lian Er had done a great favor for Lord Shi San, and Lord Shi San was grateful for Lian Er's kindness.

As for why Lady Shi's attitude towards Yun'er changed, I think it's probably because they rarely visit each other. Lord Shi and Lady Shi were worried that the old lady wouldn't like them, and knowing that the old lady had always doted on Yun'er, they deliberately acted as if they cared for her to appease the old lady.

Baochai was actually being reserved.

The Xue family owned many businesses in the capital, with numerous managers and employees, and therefore knew a great deal about the city.

She knew that three of the four marquises of the Imperial Guard's Valiant Cavalry were dead and one survived.

Considering the behavior of Shi Ding and his wife today, it's not hard to guess that Shi Ding escaped this calamity probably because of Jia Lian's help!

However, these reasons were inconvenient to explain to Yingchun and the others, so he fabricated a logically consistent explanation.

After saying that, she said to Xiangyun, "Your third uncle and aunt haven't cared about you for so many years, so they don't really love you. If they say they want you to come live with them again, don't be too embarrassed to agree. Otherwise, your second aunt won't like you anymore."

Since Baochai had said that, Xiangyun knew that Baochai genuinely meant well and was only reminding her of this. So she went over and hugged Baochai's arm, laughing, "Alright, I know. Don't worry, I'm not that easy to fool..."

Seeing how close the two of them were, especially Xiangyun's almost dependent demeanor, everyone laughed.

Only Daiyu gave it a cold, distant glance, feeling quite uncomfortable inside.

Looking back, this silly girl used to cling to her just as much; now it's clear she's fallen for someone else.

That person is hateful; he always tries to take everything from her...