The Red Mansion Big Liar

People saw that he was cowardly and incompetent and called him a fool.

Although he is useless, his parents found him a wife when he was young. She is in her twenties this year and is very beautiful. Everyone who sees her is envious of her. She is the girl Duo in front of him.

Miss Duo is frivolous by nature and loves to attract men. However, Duo Hunchong doesn't care. As long as she has wine, meat and money, she doesn't care about anything else. Therefore, all the people from the Rong and Ning mansions have to be taken in.

Miss Duo was a famous charity-giving Bodhisattva in the two mansions. She had also been interested in Jia Lian, but she hated that Wang Xifeng restricted her and she had no chance.

Seeing Jia Lian hunched over, as if he had something to hide, she glanced at the wound on his face, then bent over and snuggled into his arms, put her hand on his chest, and said with a charming smile, "Second Master, could it be that you didn't take good care of Second Madam yesterday, and were kicked out so early in the morning?"

In the past, Jia Lian had seen Miss Duo and had lost his soul, but he was afraid of his wife and never had the chance to make a move.

Now he was in great torment and was wondering how to vent his anger, when Miss Duo happened to bump into him, and at that moment, they were attracted by each other.

Fortunately, he was still clear-headed and knew that this was not only the only way for the Xue family to enter and exit the front yard, but also the gate of Mengpo Zhai was here.

He grabbed Miss Duo's hand that was on her chest and said with a smile, "This is a long story. Why don't you follow the Second Master to the study and have a long talk with me?"

He tried to cover it up, but unexpectedly, Miss Duo was used to being frivolous.

She leaned against Jia Lian, twisted twice in his arms, and said with a sweet laugh: "Oh! What kind of knee-to-knee kiss do you mean? Is it the kind where you press one knee up and one knee down, or like this, against the knees..."

Jia Lian was already under the influence of the medicine and could not stand such teasing. He immediately dragged Miss Duo to the outer study.

The situation is already very tense, how can one control himself?

After a while, a 'grunting' sound was heard from the study.

Coincidentally, Ping'er came to deliver bedding as ordered by Wang Xifeng. Before she reached the door, she heard such an unbearable noise. How could she not know what was going on inside?

If they were put together, she might have helped to cover it up, but now she only wanted to avoid suspicion, so she immediately turned back with the quilt.

She knew very well that Wang Xifeng sent her here because she was worried that others would talk to Jia Lian. If she stayed here for too long, she would not be able to explain herself clearly.

It would be fine if Wang Xifeng misunderstood, but if Master Yi heard any gossip, he would really regret it.

Unexpectedly, before he reached the Neiyi Gate, he saw Wang Xifeng.

"Why is grandma here?" Ping'er looked a little gloomy.

Wang Xifeng saw this and realized that if Zhang Yunyi wanted to expand and sustain his business in the future, he would have to rely on Ping'er to maintain it.

He smiled and explained, "How can I not trust you? I'm just worried that the heartless person would do something to me, and it would be hard to explain to Brother Yi!"

She really didn't lie. Ping'er followed Zhang Yunyi, and naturally looked down on Jia Lian's superficial harassment. She also ate a lot of food last night, and judging from the lingering aftertaste this morning, she was afraid that she would have to take care of him for at least ten days or half a month.

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but feel a little more resentful. She looked at the quilt Ping'er was holding and wondered, "Could it be that this heartless guy ran out to fool around again?"

Wang Xifeng knew that Ping'er understood her feelings best, and since she asked her to deliver the bedding, if Jia Lian had not been there in person, he would have thought that it was delivered by a servant in the mansion.

Ping'er felt a little conflicted when she heard this. Although she didn't know why the two had broken up again, Wang Xifeng's personality was such that she would still maintain some respect even when she was being unreasonable, not to mention that Jia Lian had not returned all night?

Zhang Yun逸’s reminder is still ringing in my ears. If I tell the truth, Wang Xifeng may not be so unreasonable.

Wang Xifeng's heart skipped a beat when she saw her hesitation. She didn't bother to wait for her response and rushed straight to the outer study.

If it were in the past, even if Jia Lian had taken the medicine, he would have been fine by now.

But the effect of the medicine today is too strong, and it takes a long time to work.

Miss Duo was a woman of loose nature and had no idea how to conceal herself. As soon as Wang Xifeng entered the courtyard, she heard the obscene words and noises that were unbearable to the ears.

The anger in her heart suddenly rose up, and she rolled up her sleeves and was about to rush in.

"Grandma, calm down!"

Ping'er immediately dropped the quilt in her arms and stepped forward to grab it tightly.

"Although he didn't come home last night, he got the old lady's order after all. Not only was he beaten this morning, but he was kicked out of the house when he returned. If grandma makes a scene again now, I'm afraid he will bite back in front of the old lady, accusing grandma of being unreasonable and ignorant!"

"He dares!" Wang Xifeng shouted, but her movements slowed down.

"Grandma, listen to me. He may not have dared to do so before, but I'm afraid he may not do so now."

Seeing Wang Xifeng slow down a bit, Ping Erh hurriedly said, "When a man has not been away for three days, he should be looked at with new eyes. Moreover, it has been a year. Madam, please do not look at him with the same eyes as before..."

"Do you know something?" Wang Xifeng asked with narrowed eyes.

"This……"

Ping'er hesitated for a moment, but thought that if she had reminded me last night, what happened today might not have happened, so she told me the truth: "My master reminded me yesterday, but I was afraid of upsetting you, so I didn't dare to tell you the truth..."

She briefly repeated what Zhang Yunyi had said last night, and at the end she added, "The master said yesterday that the second master had become wild in Jiangnan, and asked me to remind you not to get into a conflict with him, lest you lose face."

"Bah!" Wang Xifeng spat, "Would he be so kind? I'm afraid he's still hoping..."

Speaking of this, she couldn't help feeling guilty.

Jia Lian was having affairs with other women outside, and she was also controlled by Zhang Yunyi and was tortured.

Although it was forced, it is understandable.

But the family knew their own affairs. They always found it difficult to fall asleep. The burning feeling would surge into their hearts. They could not help but imagine the situation in the empty house on the back corridor.

There was even a thought of letting him invest in the company.

Thinking of this, for some reason, her desire to catch the adulterer faded a lot.

Firstly, compared with Ping'er's experience that night, Jia Lian seemed tasteless and a pity to abandon.

Secondly, these days, men and women have different moral standards, and she felt somewhat guilty about the thoughts she had.

After a long while, she finally let out a sigh and said, "Forget it! Let him live here well!"

……

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 168 Giving Gifts

"Didn't I tell you to wait in front of the government office?"

In the Ning Mansion's hall, Zhang Yunyi sat in the main seat and spoke to Lai Shangrong below him.

Lai Shangrong bowed and stepped forward, handed over a stack of banknotes with both hands, and said respectfully: "Master, you have been very kind to the Lai family. This is a little gift from my father. Please don't despise it!"

Because Xier had a mission to complete, she came back late, and Zhang Yun逸 did not arrive at the front yard on time, so Lai Sheng and Lai Shangrong, uncle and nephew, had to wait for a long time.

Looking at the respectful uncle and nephew Lai Sheng, Zhang Yunyi nodded, pointed at the table and said, "If I don't accept this money, I'm afraid you won't feel at ease. Well, just leave it there!"

"Yes!" Lai Shangrong agreed and respectfully placed the banknote on the table.

I have to say, the head follows the butt. As long as you don't stand on the Jia family's side, the Lai family is still quite pleasing to the eye.

Although he is a bit opportunistic, he also knows how to judge the situation.

Zhang Yun逸 knew it very well. Judging from Lai Da's performance yesterday, if he had this intention earlier, he would not have delayed it until today. It is likely that this stack of banknotes was thanks to Zhou Xiangui's episode.

However, he did not regard the Lai family as his own. It was enough for them to understand his manners.

He turned to the little girl outside and ordered, "Ask the sister-in-law to come over."

Then he turned to Lai Sheng and said, "You know the location of the manor, so go find Zhang Cheng to make the deal. You should keep an eye on the caustic soda business with the Xue family."

At this point, he paused and said in a deep voice: "Don't say I didn't warn you. I'm also reminding you not to bring the bad habits of the mansion to my business!"

He took a quick glance at the stack of banknotes. It was at least eight thousand taels, if not ten thousand. Not to mention that the Lai family also had a garden half the size of the Grand View Garden.

The Lai family had been slaves in the two governments for several lifetimes, so needless to say, they knew it was impossible to earn this much money just by relying on monthly wages.

"Don't worry, sir! I will never cheat or lie when I work for you!"

Lai Sheng didn't even try to explain and just said he didn't dare.

This was completely different from his performance the last time he took over his job.

Zhang Yun逸 couldn't help but look at Lai Da with a higher opinion. Needless to say, this was probably his suggestion.

The reason why he mentioned this was not because he was worried that the Lai family would take advantage of the situation and do something to his business.

On the contrary, if they really did this, they could take the opportunity to investigate the Lai family. Not only could they make them spit out the money, but they could also justify not giving Jia Zhen a share of the profits.

However, now is not the time to attack the Lai family, so I plan to give them a warning first so that they will be quiet for a while.

This will make it convenient for him to enter and exit Rong Mansion.

In fact, he was worrying too much.

Firstly, the Lai family had been slaves for several lifetimes and now they had no shortage of money, so what they wanted most was to get rid of their slave status and bring honor to the family.

Now that Lai Shangrong has a background and Zhang Yun逸 is willing to support him, they naturally dare not create trouble.

Secondly, ducks are the first to know when the river water warms in spring. The people in the Jia family may not have a thorough understanding of the situation in the two mansions as well as these servants.

Needless to say, the Ning Mansion only has a nominal title of Dragon Guard, which cannot even be inherited.

As for the Rong Mansion, although Yuanchun was about to marry into a royal palace, the construction of the Grand View Garden had emptied all of her savings.

The more times like this happened, the more embarrassed the situation became for these slaves.

While they were talking, Youshi heard the news and came running with a brocade box.

She thought Zhang Yunyi reminded her to go to Rong Mansion to deliver a round fan, and when she saw Lai Sheng and Lai Shangrong, she couldn't help feeling a little confused.

Zhang Yunyi explained a few words, pointed at the table and said, "Sister-in-law, please put this away."

Then he stood up and left with the two of them.

The Lai family was quite wealthy, so Lai Shangrong did not dare to ride with him and brought his own carriage.

Zhang Yun逸 only ordered Yu Lu to prepare a car for Lai Sheng and rush to the farm outside the city.

As for Youshi, she counted the silver bills on the table, thought about it, and did not take them back to keep them. Instead, she put them in her arms and rushed to Rongfu with the brocade box containing the round fan.

When he arrived at Rongqing Hall, he told Lady Jia his purpose.

Grandmother Jia immediately sent someone to the green gauze cabinet to call Daiyu.

" Youshi handed over the brocade box like presenting a treasure, and said with a smile: "Yesterday, when your elder brother Yi came back, he told me to bring this round fan given by the emperor to the young lady as a return gift today!"

Lin Daiyu curled her lips and declined, "No gift without merit. Yesterday I thanked Brother Yi for the gift, but today I cannot accept it. Please forgive me, sister-in-law!"

Yu Shi hit a snag and felt a little unhappy.

His little sister had used many tricks to get these four round fans bestowed by the emperor, but Zhang Yunyi still refused to give them to her. And when he met Lin Daiyu yesterday, she asked him to send one to him.

How could she not see the difference?

Jia She and his wife were eager to arrange things for Yingchun, and Jia Zhen even broke up with them for this. Now she only had Zhang Yunyi in her eyes, and she couldn't help feeling sorry for him.

Grandmother Jia was a shrewd person and could see that Youshi looked suspicious, but she was just embarrassed because she was in front of her.

Because the two governments were not on good terms with each other, Zhang Yunyi was worried that Youshi would take the opportunity to deceive him and make him feel resentful.

He smiled at Daiyu and said, "Take it! Brother Yi is not an outsider. When your mother was still married, he had a deep relationship with her. I'm afraid he specially asked your sister-in-law Zhen to come here because of their friendship."

She just said it casually to give Lin Daiyu an excuse to accept the gift.

Anyway, the two of them are of similar age, so even if they can't find out about this old story, they will just think they are ignorant.

Lin Daiyu still felt confused because she had never heard Jia Min mention it.

However, on second thought, her mother was the legitimate daughter of the Rong family, while Zhang Yunyi's mother was a concubine's daughter. The deep sisterly love that Lady Jia mentioned might have helped him.

However, in order to save face in front of Mrs. You, it was not easy to say it out loud.

She pondered in her heart that her mother had never mentioned it, so it might be just a trivial matter, but Zhang Yunyi and his mother had been thinking about it all the time.

Yesterday, Baochai and others praised his character a lot in their conversation, and they were full of praise whenever they mentioned his support for the Ning Mansion.

At that time I thought it was an exaggeration, but now it seems to be true.

She stopped being pretentious and bowed to You Shi, saying, "Brother Yi is so thoughtful. I'd like to trouble you to thank him for me!"

Lin Daiyu can still be confirmed, but whether Youshi knew about the Ning and Rong mansions at that time is unclear.

She had some doubts in her heart. Lin Daiyu was so delicate and didn't look like the type Zhang Yunyi preferred.

After hearing what Grandmother Jia said, he suddenly felt enlightened and believed it to be true.

He immediately smiled and said, "Brother Yi is a person who cherishes the past and cares about the old lady. If there is anything inconvenient for the old lady in the future, just let her know. He is now working in the inner court, so he is close to her. Apart from other things, he will never lack the best ginseng."

Although she was not clear about the old events, she had never heard of this kind of person in Ning Mansion before Zhang Yunyi became successful.

The two families almost cut off contact, which shows the situation his mother was in in the Ning Mansion before she got married.

He actually had the same idea as Lin Daiyu.