The head of the Red Mansion

The good wind uses its power to send me to the blue clouds!
Baochai in Dream of the Red Chamber has the ambition to rise to prominence.

After being barred from entering the palace, she spared no effort and disregarded all rules to get close to Baoyu.

Knowing that Bao and Dai were in love, she used her family and Lady Wang's connections to finally become Bao Er's wife. Soon after, because of Lady Wang, she seized the power to manage the household from her cousin Wang Xifeng.

If the Jia family hadn't been raided, she would have achieved the highest possible status that the Xue family and she herself could attain.

However, this is not the world of Dream of the Red Chamber.

Xue Pan was forced to study at the clan school by her. Although he might not learn anything, at least he wouldn't mispronounce Tang Yin as Geng Huang.

Moreover, the clan school teaches the Great Law and can recite the Great Proclamation. Once they have a sense of awe for life, they are unlikely to repeat the old path of killing in their previous life.

With her brother able to support the family business, what ambitions does Baochai have now?
Shen Ning was eager to see Baochai's choice.

Xue Pan wanted to find her a young scholar who had already passed the imperial examinations, but the young man who had already passed the examinations had no pride whatsoever.
With such a bright future ahead, there are many families with better conditions than the Xue family.

As for Scholar Qian…

This man, who started school at nine and earned money by copying books at eleven, and occasionally supported the family's eighteen-year-old scholar, was the husband personally chosen by Madam You for her younger sister, You Erjie.

She was optimistic about his future, and so was Shen Ning.

The original owner's father was someone similar to Qian Xiucai.

Of course, the original owner's maternal family was similar to the Xue family, but far less wealthy.

How many people did the retired emperor resent because of the crown prince?
He killed so many people and exiled so many, yet Old Man Shen and his family escaped unscathed.

Although it was forbidden for three generations of a family to hold official positions, it did not say that three generations of a family were forbidden from studying.

The Shen family has always had a chance to make a comeback.

After sorting through the original owner's memories, Shen Ning felt that her father was the true sage with a powerful core.

Unfortunately, Sister You was first captivated by the fact that Scholar Ma had a higher academic achievement than Scholar Qian, and then she dared not have any ambition at all, agreeing to the choice of Zheng Xiaoqi, the official chosen by Old Lady You.

She gave up the real gem.

now……

Shen Ning knew that Aunt Xue definitely looked down on Qian Xiucai, but what about the exceptionally intelligent Bao Miss?
In the Dream of the Red Chamber, she longed to enter the palace, but was unable to.

She could only focus her attention on Baoyu, who had repeatedly embarrassed her.

Because this is the only and best person who can help her transcend social class.

But things are different here now.

Wang Ziteng has a very big heart.

He also had his own lofty ambitions.

In the Dream of the Red Chamber, the emperor was wary of him. Even killing him wasn't enough to appease him, so he also confiscated the Jia family, which had once supported him but had long since fallen into decline.

Here, the Jia family and he had long since fallen out, but he relied on himself to regain his high position.

But can this high position really curb his ambition?
Human desires are endless.

If he dared not become a direct relative of the emperor, then Xue Baochai, his niece, was still the only choice for him to send into the palace.

His and Aunt Xue's plan was wonderful: to use the Jia family to raise a 'future' imperial concubine.

They don't care to what extent the Jia family will be implicated.

Relying on their so-called kinship, Aunt Xue never imagined that Wang Xifeng could drive them away.

But she never thought of it, nor did the exceptionally intelligent Miss Bao.

Yuan Chun came out of the palace.

How could Baochai not want to know what kind of life she was living in the palace?

Recently, the official gazette has been widely publicizing the departure of female officials and palace maids from the palace to take over the affairs of orphanages in various places.

Shen Ning didn't believe she hadn't seen it.

To prevent those girls from being raised only to be interested in love and affection, the Great Zhao Law and the Great Edict were not only their subjects, but the Imperial Gazette also ordered a copy for them.

So, after weighing the pros and cons and choosing to rebel and no longer enter the palace, what kind of life will Baochai choose for herself?
Is it possible that Xue Pan was showing his choice of brother-in-law to Min Jianbai?
Having studied together at Ningcui Pavilion, Minmei's impression of Baochai would not be bad.

But everyone probably overlooked Jia Wen.

She had a good relationship with Jia Lan, and just because Aunt Xue came from the Wang family, she would never agree to it.

Shen Ning introduced Qian Xiucai for two reasons: first, she didn't want to cause trouble, and second, she felt that the ambitious Qian Xiucai could support Xue Baochai and walk a path to success together, just like the original owner's parents.

Now it's up to her to choose.

Even if she didn't choose, Shen Ning would still find a way to get Madam You to send Qian Xiucai to study at the Jia family school.

Good schools also need good students to succeed.

Qian Xiucai is someone the entire Jia family should learn from.

If he could focus on his studies without distractions and still win a high scholarship, Shen Ning felt that three years from now, he would be no less capable than Liu Tang.

But three years later, if the Xue family wants to choose someone else, it might not be so easy.

The story of high-ranking officials vying for sons-in-law from among the successful candidates in the imperial examinations is a true one.

Moreover, with the emperor's brothers deposed and his nephews imprisoned, it seems the empress intends to select good husbands for the nieces who pose no threat to the emperor's power during the imperial examinations.

In Liu Tang's cohort, two unmarried scholars were selected.

Although former princesses and county princesses can now only marry as daughters of the imperial clan, these daughters have greater freedom. They also receive a dowry of three thousand taels from the royal family and can accompany their husbands out of the capital to become their wives.

If Baochai doesn't choose now, she'll have no chance in three years.

A few days later, Xue Baochai indeed saw the information about Qian Ruochuan that Xue Pan had found for her.

Besides Qian Ruochuan, Liu Xiangmo from the second branch of the Liguo Duke's mansion was also among them.

Xue Pan also found a 24-year-old scholar named Wu, whose wife had died in childbirth and who had a daughter.

Of course, there were also several low-ranking military officers like Zheng Xiaoqi.

The Jia family has a lot of manpower in this regard.

"None of them will work!"

Aunt Xue watched it with her daughter, and it only made her angrier.

Who here is worthy of her daughter?
The Duke of Liguo's mansion was extremely poor; many of their belongings were in the Xue family's pawnshop.

Their intentions in targeting her daughter are self-evident.

Besides, Liu Xiangmo wasn't the eldest son of the second wife; he was neither good at literature nor martial arts, and he wasn't even as good as Wu Juren.

But is this Wu Juren a good person?

A widower.

He's a jinx to his wife.

She glanced at everyone else and felt that her daughter had been wronged.

"Pan'er, you are the older brother. You are not even married yet. Instead of worrying about your sister, you should worry about yourself first."

My daughter is still young; we can wait until her brother returns from his meritorious service in Japan.

When the time comes, we'll think of a way. Even if we can't get into the palace, we can still find a meritorious young general to be our son-in-law.

That's one aspect, but the main reason is that the family business requires them to stay with their daughter for the time being.

She and Feng Yatou had a falling out.

As for the shops in the capital, I'll have to discuss it with my daughter and Feng'er, and ask Wang'er and the others to visit them often.

That girl is the mistress of the Rongguo Mansion.

Aunt Xue sometimes felt sorry for Jia Zhu.

This kid was much better than Jia Lian back then.

As a result, Jia Lian is now an official, a very powerful one, and the heir to the Rongguo Mansion.

Pearl... was deliberately delayed.

In this respect, she particularly understood her deceased sister.

If it were her, she would also have to compete with Jia She and his family.

It's infuriating that Jia Rong from the East Mansion was already engaged long ago. Even a family like the Qin family was willing to marry into the family, Madam Shen. If they had come to the capital earlier, their daughter's marriage probably wouldn't have been so difficult.

"Bao'er, you absolutely must not listen to your brother, that scoundrel."

Aunt Xue was afraid that her daughter would make the wrong choice in life just to escape her, so she said, "You're still young."

"Mom~"

Xue Pan was quite helpless. "Am I not studying now?" "Your sister is studying too."

"Can we be the same?"

He was indeed of marriageable age, but his mother had not found him a wife.

He devoted himself entirely to his younger sister.

Xue Pan was sometimes speechless. "I'm a man, I can get married whenever I want. My sister is a girl, can we delay that?"

If things are settled sooner, it will put an end to his mother's and uncle's hopes.

“I’ve seen all of these people.”

He looked at Xue Baochai, who seemed somewhat bewildered after reading the documents, and said, "Liu Xiangmo has no family background. Although the Duke of Liguo's mansion is poor, our family is not short of money. That Wu Juren is too old, so I just randomly put him in. On the other hand, Qian Xiucai is very talented in his studies. I specially asked Rong-ge'er and Min Jianbai to test him out."

We orchestrated a chance encounter together. After Rong-ge and Min Jianbai talked to the other party, they even discussed getting him into the Jia family's clan school as well.

They were counting on him to help the clan school obtain the title of Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) in three years.

Poverty is nothing to fear, his family has money.

"No way, becoming an official isn't that easy."

Despite the hype surrounding Jia Rong and Min Jianbai, they haven't yet passed the exams to become officials.

"Back then, your second uncle wholeheartedly sponsored that guy named Mei Zeyan. He was a young scholar who had passed the provincial examination, but how many years did it take him to pass the imperial examination? A full twelve years."

Aunt Xue said, "Now that he's a Hanlin scholar, does he even recognize your second uncle?"

The second son originally wanted to use Mei Zeyan to support his wife's family.

How much money did you spend on them?
If they were so eager to arrange a marriage with someone, and that family really wanted to acknowledge the Xue family as relatives, how come they haven't sent a single message since they arrived in the capital?

"You ignorant brat, get out of my sight right now."

"Mom~"

"Stop arguing, let me think about it first."

Knowing that her marriage would be difficult, Xue Baochai never imagined it would be this difficult.

She knew about Baoqin's marriage.

She was actually a little envious.

At least her second uncle had planned for her long ago.

But what about her?

"Mom, brother, I'm going back to my room now."

She felt unwell and went back to her room to lie down.

But while she was lying down, Qian Ruochuan's enrollment in the Jia family academy was put on the agenda.

Jia Rong had previously taken You Erjie to see him from afar, but they had not spoken to each other.

Now, because of Xue Pan, after a chance encounter and conversation with him, I greatly admire his talent.

As the future head of the Jia family, it is also one of his responsibilities to attract good students to the clan school and inspire the clan members.

Furthermore, those who graduated from the Jia family academy and later became officials would always remember the family's ancestral roots.

So, while Shen Ning was waiting for the Xue family's choice, Rong Ge'er, after speaking with the school's teacher, was trying his best to persuade Qian Ruochuan to enter the Jia family school.

"...Grandmother, why is he so stubborn?"

Rong-ge wanted to get Qian Ruochuan into his family school, but the man, mindful of his teacher's kindness, made it clear that it wouldn't be possible at least this year.

"What could his teacher teach him? He was nothing more than a country scholar who had repeatedly failed the imperial examinations."

slap~
Shen Ning immediately smacked him.

"Who do you look down on? Your maternal grandfather also studied in the countryside when he was young, and his teacher was only a student."

Success and fame sometimes depend on luck.

You were lucky; the question was exactly one you had predicted correctly. Your writing style is similar to the examiner's. Or perhaps you weren't drawn in a bad spot during the exam, your thoughts flowed freely, and you were in good health enough to last a few days in that confinement area...

“They may not be as well-educated as you, but most of them are very knowledgeable. Qian Ruochuan is grateful, which shows that he is a good person and his teacher is good. What right do you have to look down on him?”

This kid's gotten too cocky.

"Someone, take Rong-ge to the ancestral hall so he can reflect on his actions."

"Grandson is wrong."

But it's too late.

Rong-ge'er obediently entered the ancestral hall.

Upon hearing the news, Jia Zhen did not dare to come and plead for mercy.

The child does not teach, the father too.

If things go wrong, his mother might get angry and punish him by sending him to the ancestral hall.

He didn't even dare to hold his youngest son, and hurriedly ran to the outer study, pretending to be busy with official business.

Qin Keqing, however, felt sorry for her future husband and brought him a cloak and some pastries.

"What did you say that made your wife so angry?"

slap~
Rong-ge'er also regretted it, and scolded himself, "I was arrogant."

Maybe things have been going too well lately.

"Three people go together there must be my teacher!"

He lowered his head and said, "Grandmother should have given me a few lashes."

Qin Keqing: "..."

She took a prayer mat and knelt beside him, saying, "To know one's mistakes and correct them is the greatest virtue! Your wife is punishing you so that you can know your mistakes and correct them, not so that she has to beat you."

"Hmm~"

Rong-ge glanced at her and said, "It's chilly at night, and you're not well, so you don't need to stay with me. It's better to go home early."

"It's not cold yet."

Qin Keqing smiled at him, "I'll stay with you a little longer! By the way, you haven't finished your homework yet, have you? Do you want me to bring your books in?"

"Forget it, it's too much trouble. I only haven't finished the large characters yet."

At this point, Rong-ge sighed.

He had so many words to write; the book he promised his grandmother seemed like he would never finish copying it.

"Was Grandma still angry when she went back?"

"Anyway, you don't look well."

Qin Keqing said, "But you don't need to worry. As soon as I received the message from Sister Qingzhu through the maid, I immediately brought Aunt over. With Aunt there, she won't be angry for long."

My little aunt, Jia Yue, was at the age when she was very cute, and she spoke in a sweet, childlike voice.

The moment her grandmother saw her, her anger subsided considerably.

"That's good."

Rong-ge'er was pleased.

Fortunately, he has a little aunt.

"Where's my dad? Does he know I was punished?"

Qin Keqing: "..."

What can she say?

It is said that when his father-in-law heard that he was punished, he was so frightened that he almost ran away from home to the palace to do night duty.

"Forget it. I know it even if you don't tell me."

Rong-ge'er guessed something from her silence and didn't know whether to be angry or amused. "If you ever see me getting cocky, give me a heads-up."

"What if I can't tell?"

She thought her husband was quite nice.

"My knowledge is not as great as yours."

Although she was also studying, they didn't focus entirely on studying. "Otherwise, you should visit your great-uncle more often. I heard that Lord Lin is also coming to the capital. When you have time, you should go there with your cousin Lin more often."

My father-in-law is no good, but my maternal uncle and Lord Lin are both reliable scholars. (End of Chapter)