The Heavens Begin with Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 211 Selling Wife for Glory
When one person attains the Tao, the chicken and the dog ascend to heaven.

After Madam Lin was adopted as the daughter of the Imperial Eunuch Li Yan, all the people related to her benefited from it.

Lin Chong's parents had passed away long ago, and he had no relatives, but he had many distant relatives living in the mountains, and many aunts and uncles flocked to him, hoping to take advantage of his status to get some benefits.

But the truly powerful families all knew who was the key in the Lin family, and they ignored the Lin family members and instead showed great care and concern for the relatives of the Zhang family.

Mrs. Lin's father and sister are the most popular targets for making friends.

Ever since Zhang Zeduan passed away, Zhang Shang has been looked down upon, and most of the Zhang family's previous connections have basically disappeared.

If Zhang Shang had been a Jinshi, perhaps the situation would not have been so bad, but he was tricked by Cai Jing and ended up in the military. No one was willing to offend the extremely powerful Grand Tutor Cai for the sake of a spear and stick instructor.

But the situation is different now. Zhang Shang has a good daughter who has been favored by an immortal. Maybe she will be a fairy in the fairy palace in the future. Then Zhang Shang can be said to have a connection with an immortal. If he doesn't curry favor with an immortal now, when will he?

So overnight, this house was crowded with guests.

But Zhang Shang knew nothing and was kept in the dark. He just thought that these people came for Li Yan, and that Li Yan adopted his daughter as his adopted daughter because he liked his son-in-law Lin Chong.

He had suffered at the hands of the powerful in his early years, and was now more cautious. He did not dare to make friends with those who came to his door casually. He just closed the door and refused to see anyone.

Zhang Shang is already old now, and most of his life has passed. His life is not that hard, so there is no need to cause trouble for himself.

Each family had no choice but to seek other ways.

So Mrs. Lin's sister Zhang Ruoyun came into the attention of everyone.

But upon investigation, it was discovered that Zhang Ruoyun's husband, Lu Yuhou, was a subordinate of Gao Qiu and also had a master.

The truth cannot be hidden. Gao Qiu had suffered a loss at the hands of Madam Lin before, and Li Yan got the advantage. After he came back, he conducted a thorough investigation and discovered Zhang Ruoyun and Lu Yuhou.

However, Madam Lin had not yet been employed by Master Zhan at that time, and no one knew what the effect would be. Therefore, Gao Qiu only transferred Lu Yuhou to serve outside the White Tiger Hall, but did not really use him.

But the situation is different now. According to the latest intelligence, Madam Lin has already stayed overnight in the Fairy Palace. Although she is nominally a "painter", everyone naturally has their own judgment on the internal situation.

Didn’t you see that Madam Lin had already given godfather Li Yan a bottle of longevity elixir? Is that something that an ordinary “painter” can get?
When Madam Lin was upgraded to Fairy Lin, her sister and brother-in-law naturally became extraordinary people.

So after Gao Qiu returned home, he asked someone to invite Lu Yuhou over.

"I have met the commander."

After Lu Yuhou entered the study, he bowed respectfully in the hall, as honest as he could be.

"Haha... Yu Hou, there's no need to be so polite. Stand up and sit down to talk."

Gao Qiu's friendly attitude immediately made Lu Qian a little nervous.

When has General Gao ever been so approachable to his generals?
Although Gao Qiu was not born into a proper scholar family, he was the servant of Mr. Dongpo and was influenced by poetry, calligraphy and painting. He had a good family background. A group of murderers would not be worth the attention of General Gao!

"There is no place for me to sit in front of the general." Lu Qian declined with fear and trepidation.

"Hey, Yu Hou, you don't have to be so reserved. Just sit down."

The two of them hesitated for a long time. Finally, seeing the displeasure in General Gao's eyes, Lu Qian did not dare to refuse, so he had to sit on the embroidered cushion with half of his buttocks tilted.

"I have seen everything Yu Hou has done these days, and it is no exaggeration to say that you have performed your duties faithfully. Besides, you are also the disciple of Master Lin, and you are from a military family. You have great kung fu skills, and I am planning to make great use of you."

Lu Qian was very ambitious for fame and fortune, and when he heard the word "great use", his blood boiled and his rationality mostly disappeared. He hurriedly stood up from the embroidered cushion again, crossed his arms and thanked:

"Everything is cultivated by you, my lord. I will definitely follow your lead in the future. If you give me an order, I will definitely obey it."

"Yes!" Gao Qiu nodded with satisfaction, accepted his words of loyalty, and instructed: "You should also know that Jian'er is now valued by the immortals and is about to embark on the path of cultivating immortals. However, this path to immortality is long and there are many thorns and obstacles on the road."

"I want you to go to Jian'er's side and be his protector. Are you willing?"

Lu Qian was overjoyed when he heard this, and he swore an oath:
"Don't worry, Prime Minister. As long as I am still alive, I will never let Yanei suffer any harm."

"Hmm..." Gao Qiu touched his nose and coughed dryly, "This... This depends on the specific situation. If necessary, we must cause harm. The immortal path is the most important thing."

Before Lu Qian could understand, Gao Qiu waved his hand and made arrangements:
"Go find Fu'an and obey his orders. As for your official position...just get promoted to a higher rank, and become a military officer. When you have made meritorious contributions in the future, you will certainly be rewarded."

Lu Qian kowtowed to express his gratitude and came out, happily going to report to Fu An.

The two of them have similar personalities, so now that they meet, they naturally get along quite well.

Lu Qian wanted to curry favor with his boss, and Fu An was thinking about his relationship with Lu Qian's wife and also wanted to make friends with him. The two of them were in love and hit it off immediately. After drinking a few times, they started calling each other brother and younger brother, and they were very affectionate.

Fu An struck while the iron was hot. One time when he was drunk, he grabbed Lu Qian, cut off a chicken head and burned yellow paper, and became brothers with different surnames.

Only after the relationship was confirmed did Fuan reveal many truths.

Only at this point did Lu Qian finally understand why he was promoted and reused.

It turned out that it had nothing to do with his abilities, nor with Lin Chong's rapid rise to prominence. It was purely because of the relationship with his wife's sister.

At first he didn't believe it, but after careful investigation, he saw with his own eyes that Madam Lin did not return home at night and lived in the Fairy Palace. Only then did he really believe it.

However, Lu Qian was also a man obsessed with power, and he didn't care how he got this official position.

The person selling meat is his wife's sister, not his wife, so what does it have to do with him!

Although he and Lin Chong are fellow disciples, he would never be a snitch!

Instead of spending that time on it, it would be better to let your wife spend more time with her sister and deepen their relationship. Maybe they can even go further in the future!

But there was a villain around him who had bad intentions and wanted to use his wife as a stepping stone to advance his career, always whispering in his ear.

That day, after the two returned from the Immortal Palace, Fu An first gave the bottle of spiritual spring to General Gao, and then took Lu Qian to the brothel to drink.

After three rounds of drinking, Fu An sighed again, as if he meant something:
"My dear brother, you see I am neither good at literature nor martial arts. When I was following the yamen as a hanger-on, I never dreamed that I could become an official one day. But since the coming of the Heavenly Lord, I have benefited from the yamen and now I have become an official."

"It turns out that the ability is not important. The key is to follow the right person!"

Lu Qian smiled and toasted:

"Brother, you are right. I was awarded this position because the Grand Commandant saw that he was favored by me."

"But my brother can speak so clearly, he is no ordinary person, otherwise the protector is so important that the commander would not have entrusted it to my brother."

Fu An raised his cup and drank it all, then looked at Lu Qian with a squinting eye and sighed:

"Your brother-in-law Lin Chong is really amazing. He easily got a fifth-rank official position. He is totally different from us who are small officials of the eighth or ninth rank."

After hearing this, Lu Qian fell silent. He was not jealous of Lin Chong, but Fu An always mentioned Lin Chong intentionally or unintentionally, especially Lin Chong's rank. After so many times, he couldn't help but feel resentful.

People are afraid that their brothers will suffer, and they are even more afraid that their brothers will drive a Land Rover. This has been the case since ancient times.

It is easy for brothers to share hardships, but difficult to share wealth. It is okay if the gap is not big. Once the gap widens, even the best friendship will gradually become sour.

There is some truth to the old saying that when you are rich you change your friends, when you are rich you change your wife.

If Lin Chong had earned his wealth by fighting on the battlefield, Lu Qian wouldn't have felt so bad, after all, he couldn't do such a thing, but...

Seeing Lu Qian drinking alone, Fu An secretly smiled in his heart, thinking that the time was right, so he tentatively said:
"My dear brother, I have something to say, but I don't know whether I should say it or not."

Lu Qian said hurriedly:
"Brother, you can say whatever you want. We are sworn brothers, and we are as close as brothers. What can't we say?"

Fuan shook his head and sighed.

"In this world, only the powerful and wealthy can be considered human beings. If you can't be an official, or a high-ranking official, you are just someone else's dog in the end!"

"Although we brothers are now considered officials, we are not even at the seventh rank and are not qualified to attend court. Appointments and dismissals are just a matter of words from an important figure. There is no need to disturb the level of the imperial edict."

"Now the Grand Commandant needs us to protect the lord, so he gives us a small official position. But what about when the lord becomes successful? Will we still be appreciated by the Grand Commandant?"

"Will I just be idle and go back to doing odd jobs for others?"

"My dear brother, you are better off. After all, you have connections with Madam Lin. But I am miserable. I am neither good at literature nor martial arts, and I have no backing. I will most likely be in trouble in the future!"

Seeing Fu An looking lost, Lu Qian hurriedly comforted him:
"Brother, don't be so pessimistic. The Grand Marshal will surely reward you according to your merits. Who knows, you might even be promoted to a higher rank. Who knows, you might even be sent out to be a general. It would be great to be so powerful and domineering!"

"Haha..." Fu An sneered, glanced at Lu Qian with disdain, and whispered: "Your official position fell from the sky, so you naturally don't cherish it, but I, your brother, got this position through hard work, so how can I pin all my hopes on others?"

"My dear brother, I won't hide it from you. I have recently found a beautiful woman. I want to follow the path of Master Lin and become a fifth-rank official."

Lu Qian didn't know that Fu An was secretly doing something bad. Hearing this, his heart skipped a beat and he laughed dryly:
"That's a good thing. Brother goes to the Fairy Palace often. When the time comes, just send sister-in-law to the Heavenly Lord, and maybe your wish will come true."

Unexpectedly, Fu An sighed, shook his head, and said with a wry smile:

"You have been to the Fairy Palace several times. Have you ever seen a fairy?"

"Even if I send my wife in, how can I see the immortal?"

"Outside the Immortal Palace, each family has sent people to keep an eye on each other, fearing that someone will sneak out. Anyone who wants to send someone in must make unified arrangements."

"So many daughters of powerful families are queuing up, why can I cut in line?"

"Believe it or not, if I send my wife to jail today, my official hat will be taken off tomorrow!"

"Uh..." Lu Qian had only been here for a few days and didn't know much about the "draft" in the Immortal Palace, so he hesitated and asked, "So what does my brother mean by saying this to me...?"

Fu An then perked up, moved closer to Lu Qian, and whispered:
"Now that Madam Lin is also a member of the Immortal Palace, if Madam Lin brings some friends to visit the Immortal Palace, I think the Immortal will definitely not blame her. Then the chances of meeting the Immortal will increase greatly."

"Besides, this is Madam Lin's doing. All her actions are reasonable and logical, and outsiders cannot blame us."

"My dear brother, I just want my sister-in-law to help me put in a plea with Madam Lin, and ask her to help bring your sister-in-law in. If the immortal is not satisfied, then I can only blame my brother for not having this blessing."

"My sister-in-law is Madam Lin's biological sister. If she is willing to ask for mercy, I'm sure Madam Lin will not refuse."

"This..." After hearing this, Lu Qian immediately hesitated.

This matter seems simple enough to say, but this plot itself is an act of great disrespect. If you offend the powerful, you can still explain it with sweet words, but if the immortal is unhappy, he will not listen to reason with you.

Although he and Fuan were sworn brothers in name, they actually had their own ulterior motives and had no feelings for each other at all. There was no need for him to get involved in such matters.

After Fu An finished speaking, he kept staring at the expression on Lu Qian's face. When he saw him hesitate, he knew what he was thinking, so he hinted:

"My dear brother, my sister-in-law is also a beautiful lady, not necessarily inferior to her sister. Don't you want to take this opportunity to test the immortal's feelings?" "What!" Lu Qian raised his eyebrows, and was suddenly shocked and angry. He couldn't help but slam the table and shouted, "What do you mean by this?"

Now that the matter has been made clear, Fu An no longer pretends to be serious. He sneers and says disdainfully:

"Hey, brother, we are all brothers. There are no outsiders here. You don't have to pretend to be a hero!"

"You and I are the same kind of people. We will do anything to get promoted and make money!"

"But I also understand that you want to save face!"

"It's just like Lin Chong, who clearly offered his wife to him, but pretended to be fine and ran off to the capital to have fun!"

"Nowadays, all the powerful people in the capital don't know the truth. Only those ignorant fools in the market think that Lin Chong is favored by the nobles and has risen to prominence."

"What I said just now was also to give you this face!"

"If you ask your wife to send it off, she probably won't be happy about it, and it won't look good on you either. Then I, your brother, will be the bad guy!"

"You can tell your wife that I am greedy and want to sell my wife for fame and fortune, and ask her to help make some connections."

"As long as you beg me well, my sister-in-law will definitely not refuse. Then you can use the excuse that my wife and Madam Lin are not familiar with each other and ask her to go with you and take care of you."

"Once she catches the eye of the immortal, whether she will devote herself to him or not will no longer be up to her!"

"And you, my dear brother, knew nothing from the beginning to the end. You are simply a poor person who was kept in the dark. Even if the news leaks out in the future, it has nothing to do with you."

"I don't need you to do anything, my dear brother. I just need you to go with the flow. Then you can be like Lin Chong, with a high position, a fine horse to ride, and live as happily as you want!"

"My dear brother, what do you think of my plan?"

"You..." Lu Qian pointed at Fu An, who had a calm expression, with anger rising in his heart. He was furious at first, then it weakened, and finally he was exhausted. It was obvious that he was moved.

Fuan stood up, stood tall, bowed, and walked him to the right place on the stairs with earnest words.

"Brother, I drank a little too much today. If I said anything nonsense, please forgive me."

"Brother, you have no other options now, so I have to resort to this last resort. I would be grateful if you could help me with this."

"...Alas!" Lu Qian was stunned for a long while, sighed, sat down and drank, and after a while he mumbled and agreed: "Since my brother has made up his mind, I will go back and discuss it with my wife, and there will be news soon."

Fu An stopped talking and just kept urging Lu Qian to drink. He got Lu Qian drunk and then helped him go inside to rest. He also called a beautiful courtesan into the room to serve him in order to wear away the marital feelings in his heart.

The next day, after Lu Qian woke up, he made love with the courtesan for a long time before leaving the brothel and going home to discuss things with Zhang Ruoyun.

After hearing what her husband said, Zhang Ruoyun was frightened at first, and then showed contempt.

After she was born, her mother left the Zhang family. The family was impoverished and she could not afford to learn the four arts of music, chess, calligraphy and painting. Therefore, she was quite jealous of her sister Zhang Ruozhen, who was good at everything.

Now that she knew Zhang Ruozhen's secret, it was like pulling her sister down from the altar. She was actually quite happy in her heart.

She snorted coldly and said disdainfully:

"Before, when I was at home, my father always treated my sister like his own precious treasure, and asked me to learn from her in everything. I also just thought she was a virtuous person."

"Who would have thought that time would reveal a person's true character. She has only been married for a few years, but her true colors have been revealed. She is a slut!"

Lu Qian had something to hide, so he couldn't say those contemptuous words, and just laughed dryly:

"In today's world, people laugh at the poor but not at prostitutes. My sister-in-law's behavior is understandable. Otherwise, with Senior Brother Lin's personality, is he going to be poor all his life?"

"Even if he and his wife are content with poverty, will they let their descendants be as servile and servile as them in the future?"

"She was willing to sacrifice her life in exchange for wealth and success for her descendants, which can be considered a good deal."

"Besides, if the immortal takes a fancy to her, can she still refuse?"

Zhang Ruoyun wanted to hear her husband agree with her and let her vent her anger, but she was rebuked and felt uncomfortable. However, she was a husband who was responsible for his wife, so she did not dare to get angry with her husband. She just said angrily:
"Your brother-in-law, for the sake of his own family's glory and wealth, was willing to give away even his first wife. It is obvious that he is a man who forgets his principles when he sees profit. You should try to have as little contact with him as possible in the future."

Zhang Ruoyun was talking about Madam Lin and Fu An, but to Lu Qian, every word sounded like a slap in his face. He immediately became angry and shouted coldly:

"How many people in the officialdom are good? If you follow your calculations, you won't be able to make friends with anyone. How can you make progress?"

"I know you've always been jealous of your sister, but our family's current wealth is all thanks to your sister. Please stop talking nonsense."

"If we offend her and make her angry, we will all end up in jail."

After being scolded by her husband, Zhang Ruoyun dared not make any more noise. She had to agree reluctantly and went to the Lin Mansion to visit her sister.

Naturally, Madam Lin was not at home.

All the people in the Lin Mansion were arranged by Li Yan. They were all very obedient. He just used the excuse that Madam Lin went out for fun to keep Zhang Ruoyun, and then sent someone to rush to the Immortal Palace to deliver a letter.

After hearing the news, Mrs. Lin hurriedly said goodbye to Mr. Zhan and returned to see her sister.

Zhang Ruoyun knew where her sister had gone, but she pretended not to know. She came over and held her sister's hand affectionately, smiling and jokingly saying:
"Now that my brother-in-law has left Beijing for business, my sister is free now. She doesn't have to take care of so many household chores and can go out and have fun. I really envy her."

Mrs. Lin blushed and explained awkwardly:

"Sister, this time, I went to the temple to burn incense and pray that the master would be safe, not to go out and have fun."

"Hehe..." Zhang Ruoyun covered her mouth and smiled softly, saying meaningfully: "I was just saying this casually. Everyone in our family knows that you have always been pure and virtuous. Since my brother-in-law is not in Beijing, I will naturally go to pray to the gods and Buddhas. But I don't know if the gods and Buddhas are accurate and can really bless my brother-in-law."

"My sister heard that my sister is now a painter in the fairy palace. Why bother to seek help from far away places? Instead of praying to the wooden and clay statues of Bodhisattvas, why not pray to the earthly immortals? Wouldn't that be more effective?"

"Uh..." Madam Lin's face froze, and she became even more panicked. She could only evade the question by covering up:
"If the immortals were so easy to talk to, then all the civil and military officials would have lined up to burn incense and kowtow to them. How could we, the little people, have a turn?"

"The painter position was only obtained with the help of my godfather. It's rare to see an immortal in normal times, so how can I just ask for it?"

"Really?" Zhang Ruoyun curled her lips and said disapprovingly, "It may be difficult for others, but I heard that my sister has a good relationship with many fairies in the fairy palace, and they are like sisters. It shouldn't be difficult to go through the back door!"

Hearing that her sister's tone was a little strange, Madam Li hurriedly changed the subject and asked with a dry laugh:
"Where did you hear all these rumors, sister? Are there any gossips in the market?"

Zhang Ruoyun looked at her sister intently for a few times, which made Mrs. Lin feel uneasy. Then she burst out laughing and her body trembled.

"Sister, you don't know. Because of you, your brother-in-law is now being used by the Grand Marshal. He is waiting outside the palace to serve as an errand boy. I guess you have been walking around the palace, so you haven't seen him."

"He had personally seen his sister strolling around with many fairies in the Fairy Palace, riding in the same carriage when leaving, and sleeping in the same bed when entering!"

At the word "sleeping together", Zhang Ruoyun deliberately paused, put emphasis on it, and then laughed at her flustered and embarrassed sister.

After making Madam Lin laugh so hard, Zhang Ruoyun stopped talking, pretending that she hadn't said anything just now, and lightly passed over the topic, saying to her sister with a smile:

"My younger sister came here today mainly to thank her."

"If it weren't for my sister, I'm afraid your brother-in-law would still be a useless guard with no future at all."

"It's all right now. As long as sister continues to be a 'painter' in the Fairy Palace, your brother-in-law will have a chance to make a name for himself in the future."

By now, how could Mrs. Lin not know that her family's situation had been exposed and that her sister knew everything? She immediately blushed with shame and sat there on pins and needles, hesitating and not knowing what to say.

Zhang Ruoyun didn't dare to tease her any further, for fear of angering her sister and bringing disaster to her family.

She held her sister's hand affectionately, smiled and comforted her:
"Sister, you don't know how much I envy you. Being able to serve the immortals, maybe I can go to heaven and become a fairy in the future."

"It's just that I don't have much talent and I don't know how to play the piano, chess, calligraphy or painting. Otherwise, I would like to ask for a favor from you so that I can enter the fairy palace and get some blessings, even if it means being a little maid!"

Faced with her sister's thoughtfulness, what could Mrs. Lin say? She could only smile dryly and remain silent.

But Zhang Ruoyun continued:
"Although my sister doesn't have this blessing, your brother-in-law's immediate superior is called Fu An. His wife is both talented and beautiful. He is willing to seek an opportunity to see if he can meet a fairy."

"Sister, you also know that there are countless powerful women who want to enter the Fairy Palace. If we were to arrange them in order, it would take who knows how long it would take."

"Then Fu An found your brother-in-law, hoping to use the back door to allow his wife to jump the queue and go in with her sister, so that she can show herself in front of the immortal."

"If I don't have that kind of fate, then it's fine. But if I'm lucky enough to be noticed by an immortal, then I'll be able to ascend to heaven in one step. Maybe I can even get a fifth-rank official!"

"No matter whether it succeeds or not, Fu An will definitely reward you and your brother-in-law handsomely. Even if it's for your brother-in-law's career, you should not refuse."

Zhang Ruoyun couldn't help herself and made a small remark to her sister at the end.

Even after what had happened, Madam Lin could not blame her sister for mocking her in person. She felt ashamed and said in a low voice:

"Sister, you don't know that this immortal doesn't want just any woman. He will only accept a woman who is destined to marry him in the previous life, a fairy from the upper world, who will come to earth to be accepted."

"So, among all the powerful families who sent so many people, the only one who was finally accepted was Jiaoxiu, the granddaughter of Tong Shumi."

"Hehe..." Zhang Ruoyun smiled lightly, how could she believe it.

Isn't this clearly an attempt to flatter yourself?
No one else wanted to accept you, but they did. Does that mean you are a fairy from the upper realm who has come to earth?
Whose fairy would be a slutty who cheats on her husband?
"Sister, we are all mortals, how do we know that Fu An's wife is not a fairy from the upper realm?"

"Sister, instead of rejecting the immortal, why not take her over and give it a try? If it really works, it will be the return of the immortal from the upper realm, and it will be considered a credit to you!"

"Or can I actually make the decision for that immortal?"

"No, no, no, that's not the case!" Madam Lin hurriedly waved her hands to deny it, but now that things have come to this point, if she refuses again, it will damage the relationship between the sisters.

"Forget it. Since that lady Fu An has such intention, I will take her to the Fairy Palace for a look. Whether it will succeed or not is not guaranteed."

Zhang Ruoyun then changed her anger into joy, and shook her sister's arm affectionately, saying coquettishly:
"I know my sister loves me and will definitely agree."

"Oh, by the way, my sister has never seen the Fairy Palace before, and I want to take this opportunity to go in and see the world. I'd better take my sister with me when I go."

"Uh..." When Madam Lin saw her sister who looked 90% like her, she was afraid that she would be targeted by Master Zhan and wanted to refuse. But then she remembered that Master Zhan did not choose people based on appearance or figure, but on their previous life. She thought that her sister could not even read many words and should not be a fairy, so she felt relieved and agreed to it.

"Thank you sister."

Zhang Ruoyun thanked him with a smile, and then asked about some things to pay attention to after entering the Immortal Palace. The two sisters talked and laughed, dispelling the awkwardness that had just occurred.

The two sisters talked many secret words in the boudoir and had dinner together before letting Zhang Ruoyun go home.

That night, Fu An got the message from Lu Qian, asking him to send his wife to Lin Chong's home, where Mrs. Lin would make all the arrangements.

(End of this chapter)