The Red Mansion Big Liar

……

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 363: Jia Mu sets a trap

The Spring Festival is about welcoming and seeing off people.

Although the Xue family was staying in the Rong Mansion, they still had to move around.

On this day, Aunt Xue brought Baochai to Rongqing Hall to wish Grandmother Jia a happy new year.

Grandmother Jia asked them to sit down, and then said with a smile: "Bao girl has reached the age of marriage, right?"

Aunt Xue was startled when she heard this. She glanced at Madam Wang who was sitting upright and said, "That's right! After the New Year, you will be fifteen."

"Oh?" Jia's mother pretended to be surprised, "When was she born?"

"The twenty-first day of the first lunar month."

"Although it's not a full year, it's still the age of marriage, so we can't treat it lightly."

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "If you don't mind me being too nosy, why don't you let me celebrate her birthday?"

Aunt Xue was flattered and said, "Oh! That is truly her blessing, she can't even ask for it!"

"Now that Feng girl is pregnant, let's leave this matter to her sister-in-law!"

Grandmother Jia hesitated for a moment and said, "In previous years, no matter whose birthday it was, everyone gave their own gifts. This has become vulgar and seems a bit strange. Today I will come up with a new idea that is neither strange nor funny. I wonder what Auntie thinks of it?"

"Whatever the old lady wants is fine!" Aunt Xue replied quickly.

Grandmother Jia turned to Mrs. Wang and the others and said, "I was thinking, let's do the same as the small families do, and use the money to do it. Do you think it would be a good idea?"

Although it wouldn't cost much to hold a birthday party for Xue Baochai, they were short of money at the moment and every little bit counted, so they might as well raise funds.

Although Grandmother Jia lived an extravagant life and was not thrifty when it came to spending money, she was very strict with her own finances.

Otherwise, that batch of ginseng would not have lost its medicinal properties and not been taken out.

In the original novel, she only took the two taels of silver after Wang Xifeng had a miscarriage and Lady Wang begged her for help.

Although there are many parents in this world who are willing to sacrifice themselves for their children, there are also parents who refuse to give up until the very last moment.

The money from the government and one's own money are two completely different things. If she hadn't wanted to find a support for Jia Baoyu this time, she would not have been willing to use her own private money to supplement him.

But even so, she still took the bulk of the money from the official position.

Seeing that Lady Jia was in high spirits, Mrs. Wang smiled and said, "This is very good, but I don't know how to put it together?"

"There's no need to be so extravagant. Her brothers and sisters who haven't married yet don't have to join in the fun. We can just invite Brother Yi and each family to contribute and spend as much as they can."

At this point, Jia's mother hesitated for a moment and took the lead in expressing her opinion: "I will give twenty taels."

When hosting a birthday party for Baochai, Aunt Xue also took the lead and said, "Then I will follow the old lady!"

Mrs. Xing and Mrs. Wang said, "We dare not stand shoulder to shoulder with the old lady, so we are naturally a little lower, only sixteen taels each."

The only two people who have formed a family in Rongfu are Li Wan and Wang Xifeng. Although they are not very willing, since Grandmother Jia said so, they have no choice but to express their opinions.

Wang Xifeng and Jia's mother did not say anything, but waved their hands at Li Wan and said, "You are a widow and unemployed, and we need you to help us with the work, so you don't have to pay this money. Later, ask Yi'er to pay twenty taels, which should be enough."

Although more than a hundred taels of silver are not as much as the birthday banquet prepared for Wang Xifeng in the original novel, it is far more than the twenty taels she gave to Xue Baochai on her birthday.

Aunt Xue couldn't help herself with joy, and Grandmother Jia earned enough favor, and they had a very pleasant conversation for a while.

After lunch, seeing that it was almost time, everyone said goodbye.

Grandmother Jia waved her hand and said, "Don't leave in a hurry, Madam. I still have something to discuss with you."

This sudden enthusiasm had already made Aunt Xue dizzy. In addition, when Lady Jia mentioned that Baochao would be married soon, she could not help but be overjoyed.

Xue Baochai did the same and quickly took her leave.

After everyone had said goodbye and left, Grandmother Jia sent away the maids and then got straight to the point: "I know that my aunt's family has a shop selling ginseng. I originally stored quite a lot of it here in case of emergency. But you also know that Brother Yi is now working in the inner court. Last time, he gave a ginseng to Lin girl for use as medicine. If this thing is kept for a long time, its medicinal properties will be lost. It is better to give it to my aunt to save people. If one or two lives can be saved, it will be considered as accumulating some good karma for the family."

Naturally, she was too embarrassed to say that she was short of money and had to sell some silver, so she deliberately put on a high profile.

At the same time, he used the ginseng that Zhang Yunyi gave to Lin Daiyu as medicine to make Aunt Xue mistakenly believe that there was really too much of it to use.

In fact, no one can have too much ginseng, a life-saving substance.

The reason why Lady Jia was willing to sell it was because she considered that with Zhang Yunyi, the family would not be short of this thing in the future.

Uh……

Aunt Xue couldn't help feeling disappointed when she heard that they were not talking about marriage. However, Grandmother Jia had just arranged a birthday party for Xue Baochai, and it was not easy to refuse such a small matter.

He immediately flattered her: "The old lady is truly kind-hearted!"

"No, no! I'm just old and can't stand seeing all these things!"

Jia's mother pretended to be modest and said, "However, this ginseng is a few years old after all. Although it has not completely lost its medicinal properties, I am afraid it is not as good as new ginseng. If you are worried, ask someone to test it to avoid harming people instead of saving them. I am not greedy for the few taels of silver. The price can be lowered. It will not be too late to settle it after it is sold out."

After all, they lived under the same roof and saw each other every day, so Lady Jia felt embarrassed to openly cheat the Xue family.

However, she had her hands full with the Xue family, and was certain that even if Aunt Xue found that the ginseng had problems, she would not return it.

Therefore, they took a step back to advance, and even made the Xue family not rush to settle the bill.

Aunt Xue did not doubt it and said quickly: "Why don't you believe the old lady? I wonder if the ginseng..."

"Wait a moment, Madam!"

Grandmother Jia got up from the bed, walked to the counter, opened the box of ginseng that was as thick as seven or eight fingers, and said, "Madam, you are also an expert. These ginsengs are less than a hundred years old. If they are left outside, they will be worthless. I also want to accumulate good karma for my descendants, so I am too lazy to be fussy. I will just round it up to ten thousand taels of silver. Madam, go back and weigh them yourself and then estimate the price yourself. What do you think?"

Although she kept saying that she didn't value money, she kept talking about it. Aunt Xue was not one to hear the hidden meaning, so she quickly said, "Just do as the old lady says. Although there is no problem selling ginseng, not many people can afford it. I'll send the money to you later so that you don't forget it."

It's not Aunt Xue's fault for being fooled. As royal merchants, although the Xue family runs a ginseng business, Aunt Xue is not the shopkeeper after all. Although she is familiar with ginseng, her knowledge is more about distinguishing the authenticity and age.

As for the medicinal properties, it is a bit too much to ask.

Although the medicinal properties of Jia Mu's ginseng had been completely lost, it still looked good. Otherwise, she would not have kept it like a treasure.

What's more, Aunt Xue never imagined that Lady Jia would trick her like this.

Therefore, the decision was made immediately.

"That really puts my mind at ease!" Jia's mother said, "Madam, please take all the ginseng back now!"

……

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 364 Everyone gets what they need

Rongguo Mansion, the small courtyard in the northeast corner.

Xue Baochai, who was waiting for news, saw Tongxi and Tonggui following Aunt Xue into the room, holding a pile of boxes, and couldn't help but wonder, "Mother! What is this?"

"Hey!~ Stop talking about it!" Aunt Xue waved her hand and ordered Tongxi and Tonggui, "Put the ginseng on the table and go out first!"

"Ginseng?" A hint of suspicion flashed across Xue Baochai's face, but she did not rush to ask.

After Tongxi and Tonggui placed the ginseng box on the kang table, they said goodbye and left.

Aunt Xue shook off her big woolen coat, revealing her heavy, delicate body underneath. She walked tremblingly to the edge of the kang and sat down heavily.

She pointed at the ginseng on the table and complained, "I thought the old lady had changed her tune, but she asked us to clean up these unusable things for her."

"Why are there so many?" Xue Baochai opened the box and sighed, "Why don't you keep these things and sell them?"

"What do you think?" Aunt Xue sighed, "You have seen the ginseng that Yi-ge-er gave you last time. Now the old lady's intentions are obvious. Why would she care about these things in the future?"

People are bound to have preconceived ideas, and the Rongguo Mansion did not tighten its belt. Aunt Xue could never have imagined that Grandmother Jia was selling off everything she had.

Instead, they thought that Zhang Yun逸 had sent new ginseng of better quality, and that the excess ginseng could not be used up, so these old ginseng of poor quality were eliminated.

"That's true!" Xue Baochai lowered her head, fiddling with the box on the table, and pretended to be nonchalant, "How long will it take to sell so many?"

Although the price of ginseng in the Great Xia Dynasty was not as exaggerated as that in the Qing Dynasty, when it was often one or two thousand taels per catty, the lowest grade of the fifth grade ginseng cost five hundred taels of silver per catty.

Although Lady Jia's ginseng was not the best, it was of high quality.

Even if ordinary people sell all their belongings, they can’t afford ordinary ginseng, let alone this kind of good ginseng?

Even if a wealthy family has some financial resources, they would just buy a few coins or taels of silver when needed to get by, and that would be enough.

There are few people who can afford it and the usage is not large, so the delivery speed will naturally be much slower, which is why Xue Baochai made such an exclamation.

Aunt Xue was naturally very clear about this, and couldn't help shaking her head and sighing, "What else can we do? It's rare that the old lady has something to ask us, so are we going to refuse? Fortunately, there is no problem selling this thing. At worst, we can just not buy this kind of plants from the inner palace for the time being and sell these few first."

At this point, she suddenly remembered the advance payment and said hurriedly, "Oh, right! Pay the old lady the money first, and after the New Year, ask the shopkeeper to come over and take it to the store to sell slowly."

Xue Baochai frowned and said, "Since you are consigning it to your family, why do you need to pay the money first?"

"Since the old lady has taken the lead in organizing a birthday party for you, she has done everything she can to celebrate it. She also said that she will only sell it for 10,000 taels and asked me to take it back and sell it at my own price. What else can I do?"

She hugged Xue Baochai and sighed, "Although we don't have to do this in business, isn't this necessary? The old lady obviously intends to marry the eldest daughter to Yi'er. Although your aunt will help with our family affairs, the eldest daughter is closer to the old lady after all. It's better to coax her at this time to avoid unnecessary trouble!"

At this point, she looked at the ginseng on the table and said with a smile, "Besides, the price is quite suitable. It's not that we have no profit. We are just using cash to cushion the loss."

If it weren't for the fact that the price was fair and profitable, it would be hard to say whether Aunt Xue would be willing to advance the money.

Upon hearing this, Xue Baochai remained silent.

Aunt Xue was telling the truth. There is no reason not to stock up when doing business.

The Xue family claimed to have assets of millions, although this was a bit exaggerated as it included fixed assets. However, thanks to Zhang Yunyi, the imperial merchants in the inner court had two more specialties: sugar and glass.

With these two additional sources of income, Xue family's business is now more prosperous than in previous years.

Although he felt painful every time he thought about the caustic soda business, he did not lack the cash flow of 10,000 taels of silver, not to mention that there was profit to be made from it.

Thinking of this, Xue Baochai nodded and said, "Since mother said so, let's do as she says!"

Aunt Xue patted her on the back and said, "Give the money to her right away, and you'll be in luck."

"Yes! ~ I understand, daughter!" Xue Baochai agreed and went to the inner room to get the silver bill.

He brought the 10,000 taels of silver note and came to Rongqing Hall again. He handed the note to Jia's mother and said, "Mother is worried that she will be busy during the New Year and might forget it, so she specifically asked me to send it to the old lady first."

Grandmother Jia was grateful for the favor, so she was generous in praising Baochai. She also asked her what plays Baochai liked to listen to and what she liked to eat, so that Li Wan could prepare them for the birthday party.

Baochai knew very well that Lady Jia was old, loved lively occasions, and liked to eat sweet and soft food, so she followed Lady Jia's preferences, mixed up the facts, and said a lot of nonsense.

This made Lady Jia even happier.

But, this is just pretense after all.

When Baochai left, Grandmother Jia immediately frowned and ordered Yuanyang, "Go and call the master!"

She knew her son's character very well and was worried that if he didn't receive the money, he would interfere and cause some trouble.

It was the end of the year and he still had to interact with Zhang Yunyi. He was worried that he would interfere, so he was eager to finish his business as soon as he had gathered the money, before he even had time to warm it up.

It cannot be said that Lady Jia fell into the trap easily.

Although she did not believe Jia She, she had full faith in Zhang Yun逸's character.

In addition, seeing that the emperor intended to compensate her, she had no doubts and was fooled into handing over half of her family fortune to Jia She, her prodigal son.

"Since you have accepted the money, please don't hold on to it anymore. It's not that I don't trust you, but I have to keep some evidence to prevent you from accusing me of bias in the future."

Because she was worried that Jia She would be greedy and did not care about the mother-son relationship, she followed the principle of handing over money and handing over goods and asked Jia She to sign a receipt.

Jia She did not take it as an offense, but smiled happily and said, "Mother, you are really embarrassing me! Mother has always been fair, how could she be partial?"

He immediately took out the four treasures of the study and said, "Son will write a written agreement now, so that mother can rest assured."

Seeing that the money was about to be in his hands, why would Jia She create trouble?

Not to mention just signing a document privately, even if he found a few middlemen to testify, he would not refuse and would sign and seal it very readily.

Yingchun had already been sold out by him, and now with Zhang Yunyi's tacit approval, he could have the best of both worlds. He had earned such a huge sum of money that he would laugh in his dreams.

He was afraid that the night would be long and he was anxious to take the money and leave so that he could go out and have a good time, without wasting a moment.

"Brother Yi, go and tell her then!" Grandmother Jia pondered, "Remember, tell her about the seniority and the juniority. If you want the second girl to marry into your family, you can only make things difficult for her."

This was something that had been discussed long ago, so Jia She naturally wouldn't make it difficult.

"Don't worry, mother! I will leave the matter of the second girl being my concubine to my son."

The two of them each got what they needed, and it was a case of loving mother and filial son.