The head of the Red Mansion

Chapter 218 Confiscating the house
Tianxiang Tower!
Looking into the distance, Shen Ning had a feeling that something was wrong again.

The people on the street seemed somewhat restless.

"Madam, the master has arrived."

Sure enough, Jia Zhen was striding upstairs.

"Mother!" He waved to the maids and watched them leave before saying, "The Prince Jing's residence found a dragon robe, and the Prince Kang's residence and others also have secret rooms."

Jia Zhen was speechless. These gentlemen were not only audacious, but also showed no restraint. "Not only that, the Imperial Guards just now raided the home of Censor Zheng, who impeached our family."

"Zheng Liang? The one who got promoted, made a fortune, and lost his wife?"

Shen Ning looked at Jia Zhen.

"Yes!"

Jia Zhen didn't expect that his mother wouldn't care about the dragon robe that was found, but would instead focus on Zheng Liang. "Son, do you remember that it was you who had Xing'er spread the word about getting promoted, getting rich, and losing one's wife?"

Shen Ning: "..."

She asked Xing'er to spread it, but it was only after an investigation that it was allowed to spread.

Zheng Liang was truly disgusting to her.

In her modern days, she had read many farming novels, which featured many favored scholars, Zheng Liang being one of them.

He had a talent for studying, so he was pampered by his grandparents, parents, uncles and aunts. The Zheng family sold their fields and even a daughter for him. Finally, he succeeded in his studies and passed the imperial examination.

He probably knew that going to the capital for the imperial examination was not easy, so on the third day after passing the exam, he married the daughter of a wealthy merchant in the county.

It's perfectly acceptable to receive someone else's dowry and change social status, since both families have their own needs.

However, after he passed the imperial examination and his wife died in childbirth, he married the daughter of a wealthy merchant in the provincial capital, taking advantage of the fact that there was no one to take care of the child.

After serving as an official in the Hanlin Academy for only two years, his second wife died in childbirth. Thanks to the daughter she left behind, the Zheng family received a large dowry from her.

Then he married the daughter of a scholar.

He smoothly transitioned from a Hanlin scholar to an imperial censor, and from then on, he spouted nonsense as if he were a saint reincarnated. He advocated that a woman's virtue lay in her lack of talent and that a woman should not serve two husbands. He spoke up for the Cheng family after Princess Baofeng's tragic death. When Jia Wen divorced and returned home, he impeached Jia She and Jia Lian, acting as if he wanted to take care of all the injustices in the world.

hum~
If Jia Jing's name hadn't been somewhat sensitive in the court, and if she hadn't been without an official title at the time, he probably would have impeached her in court when she accepted his private money.

That title, "The Most Fierce Woman in the World," seems to have originated from Zheng Liangxian.

He's so enthusiastic about other people's family affairs, spouting sage's words, but why doesn't he look at himself?
He took care of his parents, uncles, and brothers, but that was by profiting from their misfortunes.

Perhaps fearing criticism, he allowed his nephew to travel to Beijing, while the children born to his two previous wives, who risked their lives to give birth to them, remained in their hometown, tending the family's meager fields.

"Did Xing'er spread the wrong message?"

Shen Ning stood in the sunlight, "Tell me, what is his crime?"

"Kill your wife!"

what?
Shen Ning was shocked.

Although she had long suspected that the man had used the difficult childbirth as an excuse to kill his two wives, she never expected...

"Has it been found out?"

“Yes!” Jia Zhen said, “His two previous wives were killed by the Zheng family through midwives.”

"Your Majesty did a good job."

According to her investigation, very few of the brothers, nephews, and nieces that Zheng Liang brought from his hometown to Beijing were actually capable of doing anything productive.

The former peasant sons are now all arrogant and successful, each with one or more concubines.

Where did they get their money?
"You just said that a dragon robe was found in the Prince Jing's residence?"

"Yes!"

King Jing is finished.

Jia Zhen said, "The grand court assembly is still going on; they're probably discussing how to punish those princes."

Fortunately, their family had no connection with any royal family.

Uncle Xifu was so powerful back then, yet none of his four aunts married into the royal family.

"In addition, the Shi family of the Duke of Shanguo's mansion was also raided."

Shi family?

Shen Ning vaguely remembered that in the later part of Dream of the Red Chamber, there was a boy named Shi Daizi who had a few family heirloom fans that Jia Yucun took away by currying favor with Jia She. In the end, the Jia family also had an additional crime because of those fans.

"The Shi family and Prince Jin are brothers-in-law, and the Shi family's wife and Prince Jin's wife are cousins. It is said that yesterday, the Shi family was also mobilized by a small note from Prince Jin."

Jia Zhen sighed, "Mother, there are rumors that Prince Jin has gone missing and hasn't been found yet. What do you think of him...?"

"Stop, you don't need to think about this or worry about it."

Shen Ning said, "This is something that the Emperor and the officials in the court need to worry about."

"...I just wanted to tell you something."

"Alright, then let me ask you this: if one day you were among a group of beggars and you recognized the Prince of Jin, what would you do?"

Mr. Liu played a very big game.

He must have some grudge against the royal family.

This hatred and resentment cannot be resolved simply by killing someone.

Sometimes, living is harder than dying.

It's hard to guarantee that he won't turn the high and mighty Prince of Jin into a beggar who can't speak or write and has to beg for a living.

"...I'll pretend I didn't see it!"

Jia Zhen felt that his mother was daydreaming. "She might buy some food for the beggar next to him, but she just wouldn't give it to him."

While the mother and son were talking, Dong Xiaoquan left the court.

At this moment, he was even a little unsteady on his feet.

I'm so tired these past two days.

Now things are much better; everyone who needed to be arrested except for the Prince of Jin has been arrested.

He climbed into the car, closed his eyes, and immediately went into a daze.

Mr. Liu and Prince Jin are missing and difficult to find.

But in Dong Xiaoquan's eyes, this was no longer a particularly important matter.

In the coming month, countless people, from the imperial court to the local level, will suffer misfortune.

He doesn't have time to think about anything else right now; he needs to rest well to prepare for the upcoming series of tough battles.

The journey from the capital to Shuntian Prefecture wasn't far; as soon as the carriage stopped, he groggily woke up.

"grown ups!"

Chief Constable Lu rushed over, "I have already found out Mr. Liu's real name."

oh?
Dong Xiaoquan suddenly snapped out of his daze. "What's your name?"

"Liu Yuan!"

Chief Constable Lu said, "Ten years ago, he went to the capital to take the imperial examination, but he disappeared before even entering the examination hall. Later..."

"Is this the person the Crown Prince asked us to investigate back then?"

"Yes!"

Chief Constable Lu nodded solemnly.

Dong Xiaoquan suddenly understood, "So it was him? No wonder."

He still remembers that family of three.

The Shuntian Prefecture has the case files of their report.

After he became the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, he unearthed some old cases while investigating them. Later, the Crown Prince specially sent someone to make an appointment, and he investigated again, but found no clues. However, the family of three who had entered the Crown Prince's residence would come to inquire every three months.

Dong Xiaoquan was particularly impressed.

Even after Consort Liu gave birth to twins, she still hadn't forgotten about this place.

pity……

"Have someone investigate the Crown Prince's tomb and see who has visited it in recent years!"

The Liu family had been searching for Liu Yuan, but Liu Yuan was under the control of the Prince of Jin and probably didn't know what was going on in his family. By the time he found out, his parents, sister, and two young nephews had all been burned to death along with the Crown Prince.

If he were Liu Yuan...

Dong Xiaoquan, with mixed feelings, said, "Let me ask everyone again, besides the family of three who died with the Crown Prince, has anyone else inquired about Liu Yuan's disappearance?"

Liu Yuan was freed and when he searched his home, he found that all his family members were gone. Perhaps he would follow in their footsteps.

Since they came to the capital to find him, reporting the case to the Shuntian Prefecture was their first priority.

Dong Xiaoquan wanted to take this opportunity to learn more about Liu Yuan.

If we're lucky, it would be even better if we could find some clues about him.

……

At the same time, Grandmother Jia also learned about everything that was happening outside from Lin Zhixiao.

"Grandma, this is a letter from the Zhen family in Jinling." Wang Xifeng handed over the letter she had just received.

"..."

Grandmother Jia was heartbroken.

When Yuan-chun entered the palace, the Jia family consistently provided the Zhen family with generous New Year's gifts.

The letters exchanged between the two families appeared amicable, but how did Consort Zhen treat Yuan Chun?
Now you're writing...

"I'm not going to watch anymore. From now on, I don't need to have any dealings with the Zhen family anymore."

The emperor used to seem to have a good temperament, but today he has almost wiped out all the princely residences.

Even the Shi family, the Duke of Shan, couldn't escape it, and the Jia family... they barely managed to avoid it, so we can't let more people fall into their laps.

"Tell the gatekeeper that if anyone from the Zhen family comes, they should not be seen."

This whole family can't be ruined because of the Zhen family.

Fortunately, it was Consort Zhen who apologized to them first.

"There's no need to report to me anymore."

"Yes!"

How could Wang Xifeng not agree?

Everyone in the household was studying the Great Zhao Code. Occasionally, when she didn't understand something, she would call her second younger sister, Yingchun, to the house so that she could explain it to her.

The Zhen family is definitely in trouble.

Not only with the Prince of Jin, but the Zhen family itself also had very serious problems.

Back then, the Zhen family received the emperor the most times, but to this day, they have not repaid the debt.

If the retired emperor were healthy, the emperor wouldn't hold it against him. But now that the retired emperor is in this state... it's no wonder the emperor would be so quick to forgive the Zhen family.

She'd feel more at ease if she severed ties sooner.

“Mother!” Jia Min offered her mother a cup of tea. “I’m afraid even Consort Zhen won’t escape this, and the Prince of Nan’an’s mansion… will probably be implicated as well.”

The Princess Consort of Nan'an also had the surname Zhen.

"Sigh, we should just focus on living our own lives."

When the Jia family fell on hard times, no one offered a helping hand.

Everyone is concerned about saving face.

Grandmother Jia waved her hand, refusing to drink the tea, and leaned back on the couch. "These past few days have been so busy and chaotic. Feng'er, how are your second uncle and aunt doing?"

“I had Long’er go and check, and he said it was fine.”

"That cow..."

“There are also kind-hearted people in the village who care about the cows. In particular, there are two kind-hearted people who teach my second aunt how to clean the cows’ urination and defecation.”

"..."

"..."

Jia Wen covered the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief.

At this point, everyone understood that the villagers were just worried about the cow.

Yes, it's true, it's a cow.

For farming families, cattle are like the pillars of the family.

They probably couldn't bear to see the cow being ruined.

"...Then what does your second aunt do?"

"Dry!"

"..."

The old lady expressed her doubts, but with so many maids and servants in front of her, she couldn't ask too many questions. So she asked, "What about your second uncle? Does he still write couplets? Has he ever sold a single one?"

"Second Uncle... is writing, but isn't the capital in chaos these days? That stuff isn't selling well in the village."

Wang Xifeng hesitated and said, "I heard from Long'er that the village chief took two catties of millet and exchanged it for a few 'Fu' characters and 'Five Grains Abundant Harvest'."

Long'er meant that the Second Master had given too much.

But she couldn't say this to the old lady.

After all, the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone were borrowed from the clan's silver.

That money must be returned.

If those people exchange couplets for millet or corn, it would be embarrassing if they couldn't repay the money after three months.

"Sigh, it's good that I can exchange it for something else."

The old lady never imagined that after raising her second son like a precious jewel for so many years, he would have to worry about paying off a debt over a mere tael of silver.

"Write more, and when spring comes and food is scarce, sell some more, and we should be able to raise enough money to repay the clan."

Two taels of silver. On many occasions, a single dish of hers cost more than two taels of silver.

"By the way, how are their injuries? Have they been arguing again?"

At this moment, Jia Zheng and Lady Wang were arguing fiercely.

Wang was cooking porridge, but she accidentally burned it.

In addition, when he went to get some porridge, he saw that the old ox had left a large pile of excrement, and Jia Zheng immediately vomited.

He couldn't take it anymore; he felt that this woman was abusing him.

"If you don't return the cow, you'll sleep with it from now on."

Jia Zheng had long since stopped wanting to sleep with this woman. "Wang Wanyun, how come I never noticed before how disgusting and useless you are?"

"...It's too late to find out now."

Wang was not afraid of this seemingly strong but actually weak person at all. "This house is not only for you, but also for me. Old Niu is not easy to deal with now, but when spring comes, we can use him to exchange for labor, and we can easily plant that acre of land. Otherwise, do you know how to farm, or do I know how to farm?"

The Jia family could no longer provide them with food.

She couldn't count on the Wang family.

Wang is now determined to rely on herself.

Instead of thinking about my ox, you should be thinking about how to sell your couplets!

There are only ten days left until Chinese New Year.

Actually, it's a bit late to start making couplets now.

"If it can't be sold, that one or two taels of silver was borrowed by you personally, it has nothing to do with me."

After she was flogged, the clan called a doctor for her, but it only cost her one tael of silver, along with Jia Zheng. Moreover, Jia Zheng's old injury was more serious than hers. To be honest, she was the one who suffered a loss in sharing the debt of one tael of silver.

"If you think I didn't do a good job, then you can do it yourself from now on. We'll divide the grain and each of us can cook our own food."

"you you……"

Jia Zheng was going crazy with anger because of her.

He had barely uttered a word when the woman returned this much to him.

Indeed, women and petty men are the most difficult to deal with.

“The cattle in the tribe aren’t just for you.”

If it weren't for the fact that there were already people watching the commotion outside, and if it weren't for the fact that he had to take care of Yuan Chun and Zhu'er, he would have already started fighting. "If you want to touch my half of the cow, you have to cook for me."

A wise man keeps away from the kitchen.

He would never cook for himself under any circumstances.

"Ugh~"

Madam Wang handed him a bowl of dark porridge, saying, "This is the only thing I can make for now. If you want to eat it, then eat it. I didn't say you couldn't eat it."

Jia Zheng: "..."

He stormed off in a huff.

It's almost Chinese New Year, and the city gates shouldn't be closed, but they were closed yesterday.

Jia Zheng suspected that something had happened in the capital.

When something happens in the capital, it's usually a big deal, so he didn't dare to inquire. Today, he specially brought two catties of millet and asked the village chief to go and take a look, but unfortunately, the village chief hasn't returned yet.

Jia Zheng was very worried, fearing that the village chief had been detained in the capital, or rather, that he had already...

"Mr. Jia~"

He heard the voice he wanted to hear outside the door, and Jia Zheng rushed out.

"Oh dear, I'm back! Didn't you know!"

The village chief, panting heavily and looking disheveled, exclaimed, "The Emperor has confiscated the property of many princes today!"

In fact, he really had his eyes opened today, and he was lucky enough to find a golden melon seed. Because of that golden melon seed, he followed the army of ransacking houses, leaving no one out. Now he's exhausted...