The head of the Red Mansion

On the eighteenth day of the first lunar month, the weather was bad from early morning, gloomy and overcast, and by noon it had started to snow.

Fortunately, the roads Jia Zhen chose were all official roads that had been renovated in the last two years, with many villages and towns along the way. When Shen Ning was awakened by the howling wind outside the car, the convoy had already left the main road and turned onto a nearby country road.

"Grandmother, there's a village ahead. Let's find a place to stay temporarily."

Rong-ge rode his horse past Shen Ning's window, saying, "Don't worry, Father and I will take care of everything."

The Jia family has twenty branches, eight of which are located in the capital. Over the years, the family has multiplied and grown, and the Iron Threshold Temple has been almost always occupied.

It's standard practice to keep the body at Tiekan Temple for three years; normally, people return to their hometowns every six years.

As the eldest grandson of the eldest son, Jia Rong accompanied his father to the Iron Threshold Temple last March to see off the family members from both families who were escorting the coffins back to their hometown.

At that time, they traveled by water.

now……

If it weren't for the grandfather's different status and the emperor's decree, the Iron Threshold Temple would normally have been closed for three years.

But traveling by land, given how many times the Jia family had traveled south, Jia Rong already knew that if the weather wasn't cooperating, it could take up to a month to get to a certain place.

"Okay, I made masks for you, right? Put them on quickly."

Her car had a fixed charcoal stove, and the outside was covered with two layers of tarpaulin for waterproofing. In addition, there were thick mattresses and thick blankets, so Shen Ning was not cold at all.

But as soon as the curtain was lifted, a blast of cold air rushed in.

The heat inside the car vanished instantly.

Shen Ning quickly lowered the carriage curtain. "It's cold, don't try to tough it out. Go back to your car."

"Yes, I know."

Jia Rong nodded vigorously.

But in fact, he felt sorry for his father, who was also injured when his grandfather passed away last year, so he was actually the one in charge outside this time.

As for face masks...

Grandpa Jiao said that when he and his grandfather fought their way to Tainingwei in the previous dynasty, they encountered a month of heavy snow, and those days were extremely difficult.

Now he doesn't have to fight a war; he can just ride a horse and walk around. What's so difficult about that?
Although he knew he would most likely become a civil servant, Rong-ge still intentionally worked on strengthening his body.

It's too cold to ride a horse, so I slipped to the back, dismounted and ran for a while, and then rode back on to rest when I got tired.

Rong-ge felt that he was doing quite well.

The convoy quickly entered the village.

The manager who had been in contact with them earlier had already used money to pave the way and rented the village chief's house. The whole family had moved to their relatives' place.

When Shen Ning got out of the car, Xiao Dong had already carried her bedding and made the bed.

That's the advantage of being wealthy; even when they go out, their quality of life doesn't decrease much.

"Madam, please have a bowl of the ginger tea that Aunt Li brewed."

"Are they all there?"

“We have both.”

It was cold, so they brought a lot of ginger. While they were still on the road, Aunt Li cooked a lot for the guards and bodyguards who were riding horses.

"This one doesn't have sugar added."

Xiao Nan didn't understand why his wife didn't drink ginger tea with sugar.

It tastes so much better with sugar!
"Ok!"

Shen Ning nodded.

Ginger tea without sugar doesn't taste very good, but it's too cold, what if I get sick if I don't drink it?
When you're healthy, you can't imagine the pain of being sick.

In this era, even a minor illness can mean the difference between life and death.

Shen Ning is afraid of dying and is also worried about preventing diabetes at her age, so she can only drink unsweetened drinks.

She gulped down the ginger tea in a few mouthfuls. "Everyone has worked hard today. Tell the manager to buy more eggs from the village, and give each person one as an extra meal later."

"Yes!"

Eggs are always readily available in the mansion.

Xiao Nan didn't think much of it, but the ten bodyguards from the Mighty Escort Agency thought it was quite remarkable.

They used to work as镖师 (bodyguards/couriers), and they were self-sufficient.

If you're unlucky, it's common to go hungry for a whole day.

But now, the host family is eating vegetarian food, and these people are eating better than the host family.

"Madam, would you like a massage?"

Xiaoxi washed her hands and came over. "I learned a little more from Doctor Wu today."

"is it?"

Shen Ning encouraged the ambitious child, "Then come on!"

Riding in a horse-drawn carriage is indeed quite tiring.

Xiaoxi was stronger than the average person and had also practiced martial arts. As soon as Shen Ning pressed on her shoulder, she hurriedly said, "Gently, very gently."

Both the original owner of this body and she herself were ordinary people, but they couldn't withstand her great strength.

"Will this, this way, work?"

Xiaoxi kept pulling back her strength, and finally, Shen Ning felt it was enough. "Okay, that's enough now."

After a while, Shen Ning lay on the kang (a heated brick bed), her whole body having been touched.

These days... I must say, they're really good.

While she was enjoying the ultimate massage, back at the Rongguo Mansion, Grandmother Jia's face was extremely gloomy.

At this moment, all the maids in her room had left, but Jia She, Jia Min, Jia Wen, Jia Lian, and Jia Zhu were still there.

"Third Sister, you went to see that person. Are you sure it's your Second Sister, Jia Wen?"

"……Yes!"

This was something Jia Wen hadn't expected.

She always thought her second sister was dead, but who would have thought she was kidnapped by that prince and had three children with him.

This is simply...

"However, I received news of her death at home, and I..."

Jia Wen knew full well what this older sister would bring to the Jia family. "I have never acknowledged her. If there is anything, just say that we look alike!"

Because they were daughters of concubines, they did not travel around as much as their fourth sister, Jia Min, and knew many people.

"Those golden men... have ill intentions."

Jia Wen had mixed feelings.

Second sister shouldn't actually be alive.

Kidnapped by an enemy, incapable during the day, and even when sound asleep at night, incapable of killing?

"...She'er, what do you say?"

Grandmother Jia was satisfied with Jia Wen's answer and turned to ask her eldest son.

This house now belongs to the eldest son.

"This is probably not something we can say just because we want to."

Jia She twirled the ring on his finger. "Since they brought her here, they must want to get something to eat on their way back."

Who could have imagined that one day he would face such a difficult choice?
They are all his sisters, and he hopes that each of them is doing well.

But the princes of the Jin dynasty... are another matter entirely.

My grandfather, my great-uncle from the East Mansion, my father, and my uncles all fought against the Jurchens, and the wounds on their bodies were all inflicted by the Jurchens.

Jia She still remembers the two years before his grandfather passed away. He cried out in pain all day long, often unable to sleep due to the pain, and eventually became skin and bones.

He was such a tall man, but when his father held him and put him in the coffin, he shrank so much.

“Mother, I have already sent Lin Zhixiao on horseback to catch up with Zhen’er and my sister-in-law.”

One person's wisdom is limited, but two people's wisdom is greater.

"They shouldn't be far from the capital right now, so let's stall them for a while."

"That's good...that's good!"

Grandmother Jia sighed, "Those Jurchens weren't coming for our family."

They're after the entire Jia family. This is bad...

The Jia family had finally managed to turn their fortunes around with the emperor, but now they were about to be turned around again.

"Lian'er, you must be careful in everything you do now."

"...Grandson knows."

Jia Lian nodded, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Grandmother, Father, Third Aunt, Fourth Aunt, since we know that they brought Second Aunt here and are determined to drag our Jia family into this mess, then... we might as well take the initiative to confess to the Emperor first."

what?
Jia Min, who had been keeping her eyes down and silent, suddenly looked up. "How do you intend to confess?"

"The news of my second aunt's death was brought to us by the Shenyang garrison."

Jia Lian said, "She's not dead now, and she even gave birth to three children with the Jurchens. Our family really knew nothing about it. Those Jurchens want to use her to force our Jia family to do something, and our Jia family will never agree to that."

Conversely, the Emperor might need to use our Jia family to win over a few people on that side.

Jia Mu: "..."

Jia She: "..."

Both of them looked very surprised.

Is this still the same Lian Er from their family, who's all smiles and laughter but not good at anything?
"Pearl, what do you say?"

After giving Jia Lian a smile, Jia Min turned to her eldest nephew, who had remained silent.

“My nephew thinks my second brother is absolutely right.”

Jia Zhu gave his younger brother a particularly good smile, "My aunt from the East Mansion knows about this, and most likely she'll want our Jia family to take the initiative to confess to the Emperor."

This is something my aunt often does.

“When the Russians attack, the Jurchens can’t hold them off. If we don’t help them, they will most likely surrender in order to survive.”

Jia Zhu said, "The Emperor and the officials certainly don't want them to surrender too soon."

Da Zhao was not ready.

"Assistance is certain, but how to assist... that's up to the Emperor and the officials to decide. Since our Jia family has been passively dragged into this, we should confess to the Emperor as soon as possible, so as to avoid the Jurchens holding a grudge against my grandfather and great-grandfather from back then and trying to drag our Jia family down with them."

The merits of Dukes Ning and Rong were genuine military achievements.

They drove the Jurchens out of the Central Plains and even invaded their homeland...

Just as they harbored resentment towards the Jurchens, Jia Zhu believed that the Jurchens also resented them.

Otherwise, why would my second aunt, who has three children, be brought over at this time?

Those people wanted to use the Jia family, but they might also have wanted to crush the entire Jia family clan.

Anyway, if he has the chance, he will definitely kill his enemy.

This is what Uncle Jing said: when he enters officialdom, if he doesn't take action, fine; but if he does, he absolutely cannot hold back.

Bang bang~~
Snap snap snap~~~~
Jia Min applauded her two nephews, her eyes full of admiration, "Just do it your way!"

If my father were here, he would be very pleased.

"It's still a while before dark, so you brothers should go to the palace together!"

Now?

Jia Lian and Jia Zhu exchanged a glance, then stood up and bowed in unison, "Yes!"

The two brothers glanced at their grandmother and father (their uncle) again, and after confirming that their minds might not have caught up yet, they hesitated for a moment.

"My sister is right."

Jia Wen also said, "The sooner this matter is brought to the palace, the more advantageous it will be for us."

This?
Jia She's heart raced, and he hurriedly waved his hand, saying, "Go quickly, go quickly."

"Go!"

Grandmother Jia also became nervous.

"Big brother, come along too!"

As if remembering something, Jia Min added, "You don't have to say anything, but you must be together."

So, braving the heavy snow, the two brothers followed Jia She into the palace.

The emperor was both tired and excited these past two days.

Hearing that Jia She had come to see him with his son and nephew, he was very puzzled.

"emperor!"

Liu An revealed what he knew: "Someone from the Jurchen delegation that sought help contacted the Jia family."

what?
The emperor frowned, rose, and headed towards the imperial study, asking, "The enmity between the Jia family and the Jurchens is immense. Do you know what they intend to do by contacting the Jia family?"

The two dukes, Ning and Rong, made contributions to the country.

Their sons, Jia Daihua and Jia Daishan, were the same.

On this point, the emperor believed that the Jia family would not do anything to betray the country or defect to the enemy.

"She was the only woman in the delegation."

The Jurchen delegation has entered the capital, and the emperor has ordered him to keep an eye on them.

Liu An kept a close eye on them. "That person sent a letter to the Jia family, and then Jia Wen, the third aunt of the Jia family, met with them for a while at the back door. Our people couldn't get too close at the time, so we don't know what they talked about, but both of their eyes were a little red at the end, and Jia Wen seemed to be very angry."

"Hmm, well done!"

The emperor was quite satisfied. "Let's go and hear what they have to say!"

Although it might just be a personal matter, he was still willing to see this family of three who had come at this time.

A short while later, in the imperial study, the emperor looked at the letters and tokens that Jia Wen had sent to the Jia family, and remained silent for a long time.

Jia She's forehead was covered in sweat.

Jia Lian and Jia Zhu knelt obediently behind them.

"Jia She, are you sure she's the Jia Wen who reported the death all those years ago?"

"Yes!"

Jia She dared not wipe his sweat, and could only say, "My third sister went out to see for herself, and came back very heartbroken. My second sister..."

He regretted mentioning his second sister as soon as he did.

Jia Wen has already sided with the Jurchens and had children with them; her ancestors will no longer recognize her.

"Jia Wen was kidnapped and, being afraid of death, had a child with the other party. Even if it was out of necessity, the fact that she returned and went home immediately suggests that the Jurchens had ulterior motives."

This is what my nephew Jia Zhu repeatedly told me on the way here.

As the patriarch, the Emperor will likely have to ask him questions.

"So my third sister is very angry. For her own life, for those three... three children, she disregards the Great Zhao, disregards her ancestors and family, and is no longer worthy of being a daughter of the Jia family."

"...So, you reported this because you thought the Jurchens would use her to your advantage, which would be detrimental to your Jia family?"

The emperor's eyes flickered, and he asked a question that he was concerned about.

"no no!"

A bead of sweat fell onto the floor. "After discussing it together, we siblings and nephews thought that perhaps we could use her to turn the tables on the Jin people."

"Oh?"

A hint of a smile appeared in the emperor's eyes. "Do you brothers and nephews often get together to discuss matters?"

The unity within the Jia family is rare among the noble families of the capital today.

As the tree grows, it branches out, and people scheme against each other for a little power or money.

The emperor remembered that a year ago, this General She had been forced by his mother to live next to the stables.

Rongxi Hall was occupied by her favorite second son.

Unexpectedly, in just one year, Madam Shen managed to turn things up like this.

"Yes!"

Jia She dared not lie. “In the past, the main decision-makers were my sister-in-law and nephew from the East Mansion. Now that they are not at home, although I sent someone to deliver the message as quickly as possible, it is not enough to solve the immediate problem. My nephew Zhen’er once said that if he doesn’t understand something, he will ask Your Majesty for advice. So, I… I came.”

"Hmm~"

The emperor nodded, "Very good!" Then, as if remembering something, he asked, "When you came, did many people know about it?"

"Your Majesty..."

Jia She glanced furtively at his nephew and son. "We came out through the back gate, and we were riding in the steward's carriage." (End of Chapter)