The head of the Red Mansion

Chapter 26 Unable to Stop It
The Lai family's case was handled quietly in Shuntian Prefecture.

After two days of scrutiny, the Censorate officials who wanted to submit a memorial to the throne had no choice but to back down.

But their inaction does not mean that the nobles and officials who owe the national treasury are not worried.

As a result, Ningrong Street became lively again, and all the exciting events that had happened in the Jia family these past few days were thoroughly investigated.

In short, when the Lai family falls, the Jia family feasts.

Otherwise, where would the money come from to repay the treasury?

I heard that both families took back more than ten horse-drawn carts of goods.

Some people who had no money at home, or who considered themselves wealthy, couldn't sleep soundly at night.

In the Rongguo Mansion, both Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang were bombarded by their maternal families for several days, and had no choice but to lend out some money. Shen Ning, on the other hand, was safe and sound.

"grandmother!"

Jia Rong, whose bottom was much better, was shocked to see his grandmother's belly moving.

"Hmm, your little aunt is being naughty."

On the recliner, Shen Ning, basking in the sun, cradled her belly in her hands and said gently, "She turns over twice every day around the same time."

Jia Rong: "..."

so amazing.

He has never seen it.

"Come over here and say hello to her."

"..."

Jia Rong swallowed hard, unsure how to greet her, and stammered, "Nephew...nephew greets aunt."

"Haha, sweetie, can you hear your nephew's voice? From now on, he can carry you around everywhere."

Jia Rong: "..."

Hugging is fine, but the problem is how does Grandma know that this is her aunt and not her uncle?
"Grandma, what if it's my uncle?"

"Hmm, I dreamt about it." Shen Ning smiled. "It was a girl, delicate and soft, extremely cute."

"..."

Jia Rong's eyes couldn't help but crinkle with laughter.

He's going to have his own aunt.

There are many people in the West Mansion, but he lives alone.

Although his aunt arrived late and he had to carry her, from that moment on, he was a person with a biological aunt.

"Grandmother..." He was about to say something more when Jia Zhen rushed over. "Mother!" His face was very anxious. "Father is back."

Jia Jing?

Shen Ningwei was a little stunned.

Although I know I'll have to face Jia Jing someday, it's not a holiday, and nobody's celebrating their birthday...

"He's staying with the old lady in the West Mansion."

what?
Shen Ning frowned slightly, "...Did the old lady call him back?"

"should be."

Jia Zhen was not only helpless, but also afraid!
The twelfth grandfather, Jia Dairu, was expelled from the Jia family by him, and his name was crossed out of the family genealogy.

The reform of the clan school, coupled with the confiscation of the Lai family's property and the mother's repayment of the treasury's silver...

These events, one after another, were quite thrilling. He hesitated to report them, originally planning to wait until the clan school was doing well and his mother's health was better before telling his father the good news. Who knew he would come back like this?
In particular, he was called back by the old lady of the West Mansion.

Jia Zhen was not only afraid of being beaten, but also particularly afraid that his father and mother would quarrel again.

His mother's pregnancy is getting late, what if she gets excited...

“Mother, I’m going to ask Father to come back. Please don’t worry about anything.”

"and many more!"

Shen Ning called out to her eldest son, who was trying to reassure her, "The West Mansion hasn't notified your father to return?"

"Yes!"

Jia Zhen lowered his head. "These days, there have been many people coming and going from the West Mansion. I was worried, so I had someone keep an eye on things."

Who knew we'd see his dad?

His father still didn't go home; he went to the West Mansion first.

“Mother, the Shi family also repaid the treasury yesterday. I heard that they sold a lot of things to repay the treasury and also borrowed some from the old lady of the West Mansion.”

The Shi family has the largest population.

Back in my hometown, there's a saying that even the Epang Palace, spanning three hundred li, couldn't house a single Shi family member from Jinling.

Not only was he extremely wealthy, but the old Marquis of Baoling also fathered twenty-four sons.

However, after his death, a considerable portion of his family fortune was distributed. Legend has it that the Marquis of Baoling, who was of the same generation as the old lady of the West Mansion, borrowed 150,000 taels of silver from the national treasury. Like his father, he also had many children, including three legitimate sons, eleven illegitimate sons, and seven illegitimate daughters.

The 150,000 taels borrowed from him were also spent in his hands.

They left the title and half of the property to their three legitimate sons, and the rest was divided among their daughters and illegitimate sons, leaving nothing to the family.

Unfortunately, the eldest son who inherited the title died of illness less than two years later, and the title was passed on to his second brother, who is now the Marquis of Baoling, Shi Nai. Because his brother only left behind a daughter, he and his third brother, Shi Ding, divided the family property again.

This time it's even more ugly.

So much so that Shi Ding left in a huff and went directly to the Nine Borders.

Jia Zhen actually admired that person quite a bit; he'd heard that the man had made several military achievements on the border.

Now that it's time to repay the treasury's silver, Shi Nai discovered that even the family fortune he received as the Marquis of Baoling wasn't enough to cover the debt. He wanted his brothers to share the burden, but none of them agreed, which led his wife to cry to the old lady of the West Mansion twice.

"The old lady will probably complain to Father. Father doesn't know the situation. If he argues with you, please bear with it for now."

"..."

Shen Ning nodded slowly, "Don't worry, I won't argue with your father."

However, hiding like this and waiting for Jia Zhen to step forward is not her style.

After all, based on some of the original owner's memories, Jia Jing had no patience for his son and would likely beat him up the moment Jia Zhen poked his head out.

“He’s a Taoist priest, and he can’t take care of my son and me.”

If Grandmother Jia wanted to use Jia Jing to suppress her, she had miscalculated.

Shen Ning stood up. "Bring a sedan chair. My son and I will go together."

"Mother!"

Jia Zhen was extremely anxious.

“My son did nothing wrong; I did everything.”

Shen Ning looked at Jia Zhen, who wasn't too crooked yet, and said, "No matter what your father does, he can't throw a punch at me."

Is she a timid person?
Go ahead and make a scene if you want.

If things go smoothly now, she can live a peaceful life for the next ten years or so.

"Let's go! If we don't leave now, your father might misunderstand us even more if he hears too much."

A single sentence can make someone jump, or it can make someone laugh.

The same event, when presented in different languages, can be interpreted as a tragedy in one context and as something to laugh off in another.

“Grandmother, Father, your child is with you.”

Although Jia Rong's eyes showed fear, he clung tightly to Shen Ning's clothes, saying, "I'm not afraid of being hit."

……

The Jia family compound in the West Mansion.

Dressed in an elegant Taoist robe, Jia Jing, with his upright yet somewhat thin figure, stroked his three long strands of beard and listened silently to the complaints of his mother and son-in-law, Jia Zheng.

The body is here, but the soul... seems to be wandering elsewhere.

"Jing'er... did you hear what your aunt said?"

Grandmother Jia finally couldn't hold back any longer and loudly questioned Jia Jing, who was out of sorts.

"...I heard you."

Jia Jing's voice was deep and resonant, quite magnetic. "Madam did some things that neither my aunt nor my second brother liked." He sighed softly. "But what's done is done, and even if I come back, it won't make a difference."

He has already seen through what he needed to see through.

But the lady clearly couldn't see through it.

"Although we are husband and wife, we are no longer husband and wife."

He should also give up this mundane world.

Jia Jing knew very well where his weakness lay.

During their last argument, he said that she wanted the child, and if she lost her life because of it, he would never see the child again in his life.

However, she still insisted on giving birth.

Jia Jing suspected that she wouldn't make it through childbirth.

This might be Heaven's way of severing his last worldly ties.

Jia Jing had already given up trying to stop it.

"Whatever she does, Jing... will not stop her, nor can she bear to stop her."

They're all going to die anyway, let her do whatever she wants!

Jia Jing sighed inwardly, "Aunt, Second Brother, Second Sister-in-law, you should know her current situation. These last few months... let her have some peace and quiet!"

(End of this chapter)