Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 390 A good omen? A bad omen!
Blood splattered in front of the stone steps, colorful and miserable.

In an instant, Grandmother Jia lost all the energy she had just had. Her lips became dry, her cheeks turned pale, and she fell weakly into the armchair.

The older you get, the more you live your life to the fullest.

The reason why Grandmother Jia hated Yue Ling was that his behavior and style of doing things were beyond Grandmother Jia's understanding, repeatedly shattering the experience on which she relied for survival and destroying her three views.

At the beginning, as a guard of the Prince of Qin's Palace, he refuted her as a wife of a duke.

The same thing happened later when Jia Baoyu was almost beaten to death by his father because of the incident with Lin Daiyu.

And the fact that I am about to be conferred the title of Duke today is no different.

After a moment of confusion, Grandmother Jia had only one question: how on earth could he become the real powerful official of the dynasty?

The newly promoted Duke of a different surname, who is young and highly regarded by His Majesty, is almost certain to control real power in the court.

For the Rongguo Mansion, which has been demoted to a duke of a different surname and has no real power, this is simply a dimensionality reduction attack.

Even if there is a royal concubine who can support the situation, she cannot compare with others in politics.

Watching the Jia family decline further and further and being far surpassed by Yue Ling, the self-righteous pride she once had turned into sorrow and anger. In the end, she spat out a mouthful of blood, but she was still unwilling to resign herself to the fact.

Jia Baoyu tried to move aside in astonishment, but failed because his body was too heavy and inconvenient to move.

His heart was filled with fear of the foul blood, and he carefully supported Lady Jia's body. He was even more afraid that something might happen to Lady Jia and that the disaster would fall on him.

The people around were really frightened. Yuanyang knelt down beside her crying, wiped the corners of Jia Mu's bright red mouth with a handkerchief, and her eyes were filled with tears.

"Grandfather, how are you?"

If a person's breath dissipates, it will really dissipate soon.

Grandmother Jia took a few deep breaths, slammed the armchair hard with her almost withered hands, and opened her mouth, but swallowed all the words.

Sensing that something was wrong, Yuanyang immediately begged, "Eunuch, Eunuch, for the sake of my imperial concubine, please quickly ask the imperial physician to come and see her."

The eunuch from the palace turned a deaf ear to Yuanyang's request, and didn't even turn around to see what was happening in the hall.

Yuanyang knelt in the hall again and pleaded, "Eunuch, I am a humble servant and my words are not taken seriously. I hope you can save the old lady for the sake of the imperial concubine."

Only Yuanyang was kneeling in front of the hall begging for mercy, while Jia She and Jia Zheng on the side seemed indifferent.

Jia Zheng wanted to go forward to investigate the situation, but before he could stand up, Jia She grabbed his wrist and shook his head repeatedly.

Jia Zheng frowned and wanted to find out the reason, but there were outsiders present, so he couldn't explain in detail.

But seeing that Jia She was so determined, he was pedantic and had no opinion, so he would not stand up. After all, not everything could arouse Jia Zheng's interest like beating Baoyu.

From Jia She's point of view, there are good reasons for his indifference.

In the past, for the safety of the Jia family, the first wife made sacrifices and deliberately colluded with Prince Kang's Mansion to rebel. Even Jia Lian was arranged to pick up Jia Daihua. The first wife was deeply involved in these matters.

In the end, the first wife was blamed for most of it, while the second wife acted as if nothing had happened.

Now that the Jia family is in trouble again, why can't Grandmother Jia come out and take some responsibility?

It's just vomiting blood. It will stop after a period of rest.

Grandmother Jia glanced at her two heartless sons coldly, then looked at Yuanyang who was kowtowing repeatedly in the hall, and said with a held breath: "No need, Yuanyang, come back!"

After hearing what Lady Jia had said, Yuanyang had no choice but to cover her red and purple forehead, rub her red eyes, and return to the armchair.

"Ancestor, how do you feel? How about some saliva first?"

Grandmother Jia shook her head, always thinking that a royal residence, especially the Prince of Qin's Palace, would not be given to others, and this would be against etiquette.

To the eunuch in the hall, Jia's mother asked, "Did you really say what the eunuch just said?"

Although Grandmother Jia found the unreasonableness in it, she still dared to question it.

It's not that she is unreasonable and doesn't think about Yue Ling or that he has made great contributions and has no reward to give him the royal mansion. It's just that there is a one in ten thousand chance that it's fake, so Grandmother Jia has to give it a try.

Because this is her principle of doing things, her experience in dealing with things, and the foundation of her survival, she has to hold her breath.

The eunuch still said to Lin Daiyu first: "Miss Lin, don't listen to other people's gossip. You and the Marquis are a match made in heaven, and His Majesty will preside over your wedding. In the Qin Palace, there are also dowries given by the Queen."

Lin Daiyu's affectionate eyes widened in surprise.

She had thought that Yue Ling would be entrusted with an important task and rewarded handsomely after returning to Beijing, but she had never expected the reward to be to this extent.

Blinking her eyes, Lin Daiyu still confirmed: "Are you serious, eunuch? Is this really the Prince Qin's Mansion?"

The eunuch couldn't help but laugh and said, "It's not wrong for Miss Lin to be more cautious, but the Prince of Qin's Mansion is the old residence of His Majesty. No one dares to make up such a story. We also want to save our heads."

"Miss Lin could go back earlier to clean up the house in preparation for the happy occasion of moving into a new home."

Jia She, who had always been unusually indifferent, immediately stood up and said, "On behalf of Miss Lin's new home, the Rongguo Mansion should prepare congratulatory gifts. Would you mind sending the azure curtains and rosewood screen that Lian'er brought from the south the other day to Miss Lin's new home?"

Jia Zheng also reacted and stood up, saying, "There is also an enamel self-ringing clock in the storeroom that was awarded by the late emperor. It is the only one in Dachang and was sealed in the mansion by father. Now it should see the light of day again. It will be in line with the style of Miss Lin's Duke's Mansion."

Jia She was stunned. He didn't expect that Jia Zheng could actually compete with him over the gift-giving matter.

What he took out were things he had collected for his own use, which were certainly not more precious than the things once bestowed by the emperor.

Jia She was speechless for a moment. He didn't know when Jia Zheng became so smooth in dealing with people. He was able to use flowers to offer gifts to Buddha and play the game just right.

In fact, the scholars around Jia Zheng are also the best at flattering people, and he has been influenced by them.

At present, Jia Zheng lives in Rong Xi Tang and he is the only one who can control the treasury. Jia She certainly cannot compare with him.

Hearing that these two filial sons were vying with each other to present gifts, and that even the gifts bestowed by the late emperor were not willing to be given away for viewing, Jia's mother, who had been left aside, felt a little sweet and fishy in her throat.

"You two evil creatures, if the ancestors of the Jia family had a spirit of heaven, they would know that you are begging for mercy like this, and they should send down a thunderbolt to strike you to death!"

Even at this moment, Grandmother Jia did not want to think that she was wrong.

Lin Daiyu glanced at Grandmother Jia's frustrated expression, the helpless Jia Baoyu, and the sobbing Wang Furen, then looked at the two well-mannered uncles and responded politely: "Thank you for your kindness, uncles, but it seems that Rongguo Mansion is overwhelmed. I hope you two uncles can take care of the mansion first?"

The eunuch turned around and reminded Jia's mother, who was cursing secretly, "Old Madam Jia, I would like to kindly remind you. I have met the virtuous concubine several times. She is very cautious in the palace. She never treats servants harshly and rewards them with wine and food. Only then can she be called virtuous."

"If the Jia family is so rude and disrespectful to Miss Lin, and the mansion is in chaos, how can it be matched with the word 'virtue'?"

"Also, the Imperial Concubine is not as omnipotent as you think in the palace. Don't forget that His Majesty has a queen."

These words left Lady Jia dumbfounded. She opened her mouth but didn't know what to say in rebuttal.

Hearing the word "Queen" again made her body tremble slightly and she became even more suspicious.

Sure enough, the eunuch snorted again, bowed to Lin Daiyu, and said, "Don't worry, Miss Lin. No one dares to do anything to you here, even if you give them a few more courage. My surname is Zheng and my name is Zhi. I am working in Kunning Palace now. The queen also said that she is looking forward to seeing you in the palace."

Lin Daiyu returned the greeting and thanked him, then asked, "Eunuch, when will Brother Yue... Ling come back?" The eunuch smiled and said, "The Marquis had a very pleasant conversation with His Majesty, and His Majesty was very pleased. He kept the Marquis for a while longer. As for when he will leave the palace, it is not clear yet. I am sorry that I cannot give you an accurate answer."

Lin Daiyu shook her head and said politely, "It's okay, Master, please get busy first."

The eunuch nodded, said goodbye and left.

Along the way, everyone made way for her, and Zheng Zhi never looked at Grandmother Jia again from beginning to end.

Grandmother Jia's body trembled slightly. She felt the threat from the palace firsthand. She became more and more out of control and slid down. Yuanyang was unable to support her and she finally sat down on the ground.

"The Qin Palace, haha, the Qin Palace."

Grandmother Jia laughed strangely, and the gold and jade headband on her head fell crookedly because of the distortion of her face.

"After prosperity comes decline, and after excessive happiness comes sorrow! I want to watch them fall into poverty! Only my Jia family will enjoy eternal prosperity!"

Jia Baoyu was frightened by Grandmother Jia's abnormality. He raised his hand to support her, but Grandmother Jia grabbed his wrist and said, "Baoyu, where is your jade? Take it out and show it to me, an old woman, and to them too. Let's see what the auspicious sign is!"

"As long as we have the jade, the fortune of my Jia family will not fall!"

The pain in Baoyu's body had already spread throughout his body. He managed to hold back his wails, but his voice had just become hoarse from shouting. But when Lady Jia asked about the jade, he didn't know how to answer.

So what if there is jade?

Baoyu was deeply hurt by Lin Daiyu's words. Everything he had was given by others, even the jade. He had nothing in the first place.

"Ancestor, we were wrong. Stop arguing."

"No, I won't be wrong!"

Grandmother Jia said fiercely, "Quickly bring the jade!"

Mrs. Wang came forward sobbing and handed over the jade in her hand.

Grandmother Jia took it with a smile, stroking it carefully and treating it as a treasure.

"This is the lifeblood of my Jia family!"

As she spoke, Grandmother Jia turned to the other side and read the words on it.

"Tonglingbao...Yu? Why isn't it Yu? Why did the characters change?"

Grandmother Jia's eyes widened and she looked down at Madam Wang, "What's going on?"

Mrs. Wang was also shocked when she heard this. She quickly came forward and murmured, "What's going on? How can the characters change? This is impossible."

But when she took it and looked at it, she found that it was not the character "玉" (jade), but "玊" (玊).

Mrs. Wang was so shocked that she stepped back a few steps, knelt on the ground, and cried, "Grandfather, Baoyu was naughty just now and threw the jade out of the room. Maybe it was worn here, so the word jade changed."

Hearing this, Grandmother Jia almost fainted again.

The word "玉" is auspicious, but the word "玊" is inauspicious.

The word "玊" itself means a flawed jade. If this is reflected in the fact that Jia's grandmother has always believed that the magical jade is equivalent to the fate of the Jia family, doesn't it mean that even the fate has a flaw?
Seeing this, Qin Keqing wondered, "It's not auspicious to hold a jade in one's mouth, is it? Only the dead are buried with a jade in their mouth."

"If there is a flawed jade, it is more likely that the sinner of the family will..."

Xue Baochai beside him also nodded and said, "That's right. I don't know why the Jia family regarded this as a good omen and even regarded it as the Jia family's destiny."

Qin Keqing added: "In my opinion, this is true spiritual communication, knowing that the criminal of the Jia family is here."

Although the two of them were whispering to each other, their voices were as soft as the hum of a mosquito, but the silence in the hall was so deep that one could hear a pin drop, and their voices had already reached Grandmother Jia's ears.

After hearing these gossips, Lady Jia, who had managed to keep a straight face, could no longer hold back and coughed up blood into her hand, her head feeling dizzy.

"Is this a bad omen? A bad omen for the Jia family?"

Jia She and Jia Zheng were also shocked. They had always been indoctrinated by the ideas instilled by their grandmother, and they had never doubted that the spiritual jade was a good omen. They were complacent about it and talked about it with outsiders.

At this moment, Jia She became more determined to stand up and take charge of the situation.

"Come here, send the old man to the Buddhist temple in the backyard to rest, and Yuanyang and Amber will follow and serve him. As for Baoyu, leave him to Cunzhou to raise him, and I will no longer interfere in his duties."

Looking at the grandmother sitting on the ground, who had gone through multiple blows and finally became stupid and foolish, Yuanyang's tears fell like beads that had broken off the string. She glared at Jia She without hesitation, "The old ancestor is not in good health, do you want to confine her?"

Jia She didn't care about her words and said to the two strong women behind him: "Go, carry them away!"

No one in the hall dared to argue, and Jia Zheng was beating his chest and stamping his feet for having given birth to a sinner in the Jia family.

The Jia family has undergone a great change. The old forces have fallen, and the struggle between the new forces has just begun.

Sanchun, the little girl, was even more frightened and moved closer to Lin Daiyu unconsciously.

Jia She did not make things difficult for them, but said, "Since you are all willing to accompany Miss Lin as a guest, how can I, as an elder, spoil the fun of the younger generation?"

"Go back home first and prepare your luggage. Come back quickly so that Miss Lin won't have to wait too long."

The girls bowed and quickly left the depressing Rongqing Hall.

Lin Daiyu opened her mouth and wanted to say, "We are just visiting, why do we need to prepare luggage?"

But before she could say anything, Jia She smiled warmly and said, "Miss Lin, you two sisters haven't seen each other for many years. You must have a lot to say. I hope you won't despise them."

Don't hit a smiling person, so Lin Daiyu nodded and said, "Okay."

……

After the girls left, Jia She stared at Jia's grandmother's armchair. Even though there were bloodstains on it, it seemed to have a huge attraction, attracting Jia She to sit on it.

But after Jia She took a few steps forward, he stopped again.

She simply took the soul-less Baoyu down from the chair and handed him over to Lady Wang and several maids beside her.

"My dear brother, what we did today was something we had to do for the sake of the overall situation. Please do not regret it."

"From now on, the two of us will govern this mansion together."

Jia Zheng shook his head and said, "The eldest brother should be the head of the family."

Jia She still gave in and said, "You will be the father-in-law of the emperor, so this is what should happen."

Jia Zheng sighed and nodded in agreement.

"Why are you sighing, my dear brother?"

"It is my fault that I gave birth to a scourge for the Jia family. I cannot beat him to death, which is my greatest regret!"

(End of this chapter)