The Overlord of the Red Mansion

Chapter 239 Prince
After the two Western women left, Jia Rong returned to the room and saw that the rest of the people were still there.

Lin Daiyu came over quickly, her face full of curiosity.

"Brother Rong, let me ask you, why do apples fall from trees?"

Jia Rong laughed and said, "You still wouldn't understand even if I told you. You need to have the ability of Zu Chongzhi before you can answer this question."

Lin Daiyu smiled and said, "I dare not compare myself to the ancient sages. Please be patient and wait. I don't believe that Brother Rong can hold back."

Jia Rong could indeed hold back from saying it because it was too troublesome to explain.

After Jia Rong came in and sat down, Jia Tanchun came over and asked about her concerns.

"Brother-in-law, you just deliberately spoke to those two foreign women in such an arrogant tone. Did that damage the national prestige?"

Jia Rong laughed and said, "Most of the foreigners are arrogant and conceited. They always think that their small places are on an equal footing with us."

"If I don't teach them a lesson, they will think we are weak and can be bullied. These people are a bunch of barbarians who like to rob and occupy other people's things by force. Their ancestors were all pirates and robbers. So if I treat them with courtesy, they will just think we are inferior to them."

Lin Daiyu nodded, "No wonder Brother Rong looked like he was deliberately embarrassing them just now, so that's how it is."

Wang Xifeng laughed and said, "I was wondering why a woman would go out and show her face in public. She must be from a bad family. As expected, the moment the master said that, I understood. These descendants of bandits and barbarians have no manners at all."

Jia Rong just wanted to make fun of others, there is no need for understanding at all.

This group of people speaking up made Jia Rong feel unhappy, as if a free painting was being forced to have some kind of praise and interpretation.

Jia Rong thought about it carefully and realized that he was the first to explain...

No, it was Tanchun who insisted on thinking the best of herself, causing her free brush to add one more stroke and make her look inferior.

"Let's not talk about this anymore. I'm going to take Yingchun out shopping. Today we're going to go to the King of Shu and the King of Liao to see how the funeral preparations are going, and then we're going to go buy some things on the street. Do you want to buy anything?"

Jia Yuanchun said, "I don't want to buy anything. Let's buy some stationery for Jia Ben and Jia Shu."

"Oh, I almost forgot." Jia Rong remembered something, "I asked my carpenter to make some pencils, but he got busy and didn't ask about it. I'll go get some pencils later and let the children practice writing with pencils."

Jia Yuanchun saw Jia Rong's pencil writing and said directly: "Those are not suitable..."

Halfway through her words, Jia Yuanchun felt uncomfortable again, fearing that she had offended Jia Rong.

Jia Rong said directly: "Just don't bother me when I'm happy. It doesn't matter at other times. I know you're worried."

Jia Yuanchun breathed a sigh of relief and smiled gratefully.

The others also realized that Jia Rong was just a little willful and didn't want to be controlled when he was happy, not that he hated Jia Yuanchun, his original wife.

Jia Rong's kindness to Jia Yuanchun is seen as a virtue by Lin Daiyu and others.

"You are worried that in the future children will learn this kind of pencil writing which is useless and not as useful as brush writing."

"Don't worry about that. Brush calligraphy is for viewing, while pencil calligraphy is for practical use. It's much better to learn some practical skills than to spend more time practicing calligraphy."

"There is no distinction between high and low jobs." Jia Rong said seriously, "Having a father who is a prince, even if one is a carpenter or a bricklayer, it is dozens of times better than those poor children who are officials."

Seeing Jia Rong say this, Jia Yuanchun naturally had no way to force it.

In the future, Jia Ben and Jia Shu will only inherit the Rongguo Mansion. Being an official is so dangerous, so it would be better for him to be a small official like a carpenter.

With examples like Jia Zheng and a father like Jia Rong, and the fact that the Ministry of Works now belongs to the Jia family, the people in the Jia family are not so averse to the affairs of the craftsmen.

If a wealthy family had a child who was interested in carpentry, blacksmithing and arithmetic, it would be like the sky falling.

As for Jia Rong's family, although they were not so supportive, at least they would not oppose it.

Most inventors come from artisan families, and the social atmosphere is extremely important to the advancement of science and technology.

The Jia family, headed by Jia Rong, occupied the Ministry of Works among the six ministries, and their power was extremely large, so Jia Rong had the final say.

People who are not Jia Rong can also make a name for themselves in the Ministry of Works, but such people will 100% join Jia Rong.

Jia Rong was willing to fund those who were engaged in inventions, support those children from poor families and peasant craftsmen, and led the Ministry of Works to become bigger and stronger.

The richest people were naturally those who worked in construction, followed by those who smelted iron, made gunpowder and firearms, and then the stonemasons and carpenters.

On the contrary, gold, silver and coppersmiths as well as a group of people who make traditional furniture and jewelry have seen less business as there are not so many consumers.

Fortunately, Jia Rong also gave these people business, allowing them to imitate imported products such as watches and clocks.

The people in the Ministry of Works did not participate in court affairs, but they had flourished for five or six years under Jia Rong's intervention.

If we count the time when Qin Ye joined Jia Rong, it has been nearly ten years.

The relaxed social atmosphere, the court's demand for technological progress, and the workload brought about by building renovations led to the development of the blasting and construction industries, but there was no huge consumer market.

A few minutes after Jia Rong took Jia Yingchun out, they walked north from the quiet Wangfu Street and saw a deserted street.

After leaving the Forbidden City and the surrounding royal palaces, the ground beneath their feet was bumpy and Jia Rong hugged Jia Yingchun and endured the bumpy vibrations.

It was still winter, and many poor people in thin clothes were lying in the dry sun on the street.

The buildings on both sides were somewhat dilapidated, and many places were in ruins. At a glance, there were only weeds and snow.

Jia Yingchun and Jia Rong were sitting in a rickshaw. Jia Yingchun's face was wrapped in a scarf, but she was still a little cold.

"Master, why is it so empty here?"

Jia Rong lay on the cart and smiled, "It was demolished. In order to prevent assassins from getting close, some places near the palace were demolished and the people were arranged elsewhere."

"But we will continue to build various houses and shops starting next year. There will be many two- and three-story shops here, selling food and toys everywhere. I will bring you here to play then."

Jia Yingchun looked outside at the desolate place that looked like a rural wilderness and nodded happily, "Okay!"

Jia Rong added, "I have asked the Xia family to cultivate various common tree seedlings. Plant more trees near the capital in the future to avoid it looking desolate and ruining the scenery."

Jia Yingchun smiled and was busy listening to Jia Rong's words, not looking at those desolate places anymore.

Soon the car arrived at the street behind the Ning and Rong mansions.

The car quickly stopped at the intersection.

The driver, who had been driving for a long time, put down the carriage, bent down and said, "Sir, there are too many people ahead and we can't pass. Should we shout to them to make way?" "No need." Jia Rong smiled and took Jia Yingchun out of the carriage.

The two men did not bring any extra servants with them as Jia Rong did not need them.

There were quite a few people from the Jia family at the street corner. When they saw Jia Rong coming, they quickly came out to maintain order.

Soon there were fewer people on the street, and some stood far away looking at Jia Rong and Jia Yingchun.

Jia Rong smiled at the somewhat embarrassed Jia Yingchun and said, "Do you know where this is?"

Jia Yingchun shook her head.

Jia Rong smiled and said, "You don't come out often, so you may not know that this is the street behind the Ning and Rong mansions. In front of it are our two hospitals, the Ning and Rong courtyards in the west and the Furong courtyards in the east."

"All the people who come here for medical treatment are dignitaries, so it is much more lively here, and the houses have been built up to four or five floors."

"There are many people seeking medical treatment, and there are many shops. I will take you to see them and buy everything that Tanchun, Daiyu and the others want."

This was the first time that Jia Yingchun came here. Usually, apart from going to Rongfu and Ningfu through the front gate, or going to the Taoist temple to pray for blessings, she basically had no chance to go out.

If you don’t go out from the front door, you won’t take a step toward the second door.

This street is bustling with people coming and going.

Even after the Chinese New Year, the more than 200-meter-long street is still hung with big red lanterns, and even passers-by are wearing decent silk jackets.

There were also many people who looked like servants and maids going in and out of the shops to buy things, like they were servants buying things for young ladies from wealthy families.

Jia Yingchun followed Jia Rong in and out of various shops, and everyone here knew Jia Rong.

Jia Yingchun bought a lot of small things without realizing it and found that many things were very cheap.

Some things that you normally buy for two or three taels are often worth around two hundred to five hundred coins.

And some snacks are often reduced to one-fifth.

The more Yingchun watched, the more silent she became. She discovered that she and her sisters had been cheated a lot, and the ones who cheated them were the maids and good sisters who thought they were trusted.

Jia Rong had all the things he had bought returned, and he also bought many gifts for his wives, concubines and children.

Finally, when Jia Rong was strolling with Yingchun, he came to a stationery shop.

"Do you have a chess box?"

As soon as Jia Rong finished asking, the shopkeeper came out quickly and said with a smile, "Yes, we know that the prince likes to play chess, so we specially asked someone to find two boxes of chess pieces and a chess table."

Jia Rong said directly: "Forget about the chessboard, just show us the chess pieces."

"Okay! Your Highness, please take a look this way!" The shopkeeper went in quickly and took out two boxes soon.

Yingchun came over to take a look and found that they were two exquisitely crafted wooden boxes.

The shopkeeper opened the chess box and said, "Your Majesty, look at these two boxes of chess pieces. They are all made of jade. Look at the black jade and the white jade. It makes me happy just by looking at them!"

Jia Rong picked up a black chess piece and looked at it. "A box of it must be heavy, but a single piece doesn't feel heavy. Isn't it made of Hetian jade?"

The shopkeeper said awkwardly: "No, that kind of good stuff is out of stock."

A single piece is not rare, but the problem is that it is troublesome to make two sets of black and white chess pieces.

Jia Rong casually said, "Okay, how much is this box of chess pieces?"

The shopkeeper smiled cordially, "How dare I ask for your money? This is my gift to you as a filial piety~"

Jia Rong smiled and said, "Don't try to trick me. Just give me what I deserve. It's not easy for you to run a business. I'll let you make some money. The rent here is not cheap either. I understand."

After hearing this, the shopkeeper quickly and carefully said, "I spent a lot of money to buy these two boxes of chess pieces. I just wanted to honor the prince. How dare I make money from him?"

Jia Rong said with a smile: "How can business not make money? I have other things to do. I will take what I deserve. Otherwise, I won't take it."

As Jia Rong spoke, he reached out and picked up a box of chess pieces and handed it to Jia Yingchun.

In fact, it wasn’t that heavy, and Jia Yingchun caught it easily.

The shopkeeper saw that Jia Rong was giving it to a woman, so he smiled and said, "Since the prince said so, I will sell it to you at the lowest price. How about three thousand taels?"

The shopkeeper carefully said a number. The price was indeed much higher, but the proportion was correct.

Everyone knows that the Prince Zhongxiao's Mansion is not short of money and is very generous.

Jia Rong smiled and said, "No problem. You wait in the store. I bought a lot of things today. I will have someone send the money to you when I get back."

The shopkeeper said excitedly: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Jia Yingchun then asked cautiously, "Isn't it too expensive?"

Jia Rong smiled and said, "It's a birthday present for you. It's more expensive to show my appreciation. Besides, you spend more than 100,000 taels a year, so 3,000 taels is nothing."

When Jia Yingchun heard that it was a birthday present and saw Jia Rong picking up the things and walking out, she had no choice but to follow him.

After sending Jia Rong and Jia Yingchun away, the shopkeeper slapped himself decisively.

"Why didn't I say five thousand taels?! What a mouth! The prince's family is as rich as a country, he deserves to be beaten!"

When the shopkeeper thought about his loss of two thousand taels, he felt so painful that he almost cried.

Jia Rong quickly took Jia Yingchun home. After letting Yingchun enter the house by herself, Jia Rong gave the coachman one or two taels of silver as a reward.

Jia Rong said, "Go and call the brothers, take the black-hearted boss who sold me the chess pieces to jail. Be careful not to use violence and don't damage the things in the store. Remember to close the door when you leave and don't damage the property. I will go back to the barracks to settle the bill tomorrow, and the old rules will apply."

The driver happily ran to the military camp to call for help.

Jia Rong quickly turned around and went back into the mansion.

I went out and spent more than two hundred taels of silver to buy gifts for the women. Although it cost a lot of money, I felt better.

(End of this chapter)