The Overlord of the Red Mansion

Chapter 27: Jia Family Head
The next day, after finishing some things on the street and in the clan, Jia Rong got home at around five or six in the afternoon.

"Master, the old lady and the mistress are gone. Miss Lin, Sister Zhu, and the eldest daughter are all talking in the grandmother's room."

"understood."

Jia Rong went directly to Jia Yuanchun's place, and soon entered the room and saw Lin Daiyu, Li Wan, Jia Xichun and Jia Yuanchun.

Jia Xichun shouted happily, "Nephew Rong!"

Jia Rong smiled and said, "I've spoiled you. No matter how much you call me, I won't give you any sweets."

Li Wan smiled and patted Jia Xichun on the shoulder and said, "This is to make you sweeter."

Jia Xichun smiled and said, "Then I'll call you Rong'er!"

Jia Rong smiled and said, "Eat your food obediently. Miss Lin and I have something to say."

Lin Daiyu looked at Jia Rong, and finally had the chance to speak, calling out, "Master Rong."

"Miss Lin, you don't have to be polite. Let's sit down and talk." Jia Rong sat in Jia Yuanchun's seat. Jia Yuanchun stood up and stood with Li Wan.

Seeing that Lin Daiyu was a little uneasy, Jia Rong said, "This place is famous for being unruly. There are fewer formalities. Miss Lin is a guest, so just sit down."

Lin Daiyu said politely, "Thank you very much."

Jia Rong said directly: "I know some medical skills. I heard that you have been weak and sick since childhood. Can I help you take your pulse?"

Lin Daiyu knew about this, and she stretched out her hand and said, "My aunt told me that I am sorry to trouble Master Rong."

Jia Rong reached out and held Lin Daiyu's wrist. After carefully feeling it for a minute or two, he quickly said, "I have no solution for the time being, but your body is too weak to be nourished. You should take less tonic. Tell Xichun what you usually eat. There is a cook in Xichun's room who cooks for you."

"The cook at Xichun's place only cooks for the young lady. Apart from Xichun, she is the only one who takes care of your meals. The rules in my house are different from those in Rongguo Mansion. You don't have to give her tips. Just ask her to cook whatever you want. She takes the monthly salary I give her, and she only takes my money."

Lin Daiyu hurriedly thanked him: "Thank you, Master Rong."

Jia Rong said, "You're welcome. I'm going to Yangzhou the day after tomorrow. If you have any letters or messages to take with you, I'll pass them on to Lord Lin."

"You can go back and write it." Jia Rong smiled and said, "When the time comes, just ask Xichun to send someone to deliver it. I will also take the imperial examination next year, so it's a good opportunity for me to meet Lord Lin."

Lin Daiyu felt that this man was a considerate and kind person, so she quickly thanked him and left, going back to think about how to write the letter.

Li Wan and Jia Xichun also left together.

After these people left, Jia Yuanchun said, "Why not take Xichun over? This will not only save a lot of money, but I can also take care of her myself."

Jia Rong said, "It's more lively in Rongguo Mansion, and she's used to it. She can come back occasionally to visit. It's the same everywhere anyway. Besides, I don't know many ladies and old ladies. There are many dignitaries in Jia Mansion. It will be easier for Xichun to find a good family in the future."

Jia Yuanchun nodded. "That's fine. How long will it take for Master to go to Yangzhou this time?"

"We still have to go to Jinling." Jia Rong had many things to do. "Yangzhou and Jinling are only seven or eight hours away. I can get there in about two or three hours on horseback. Now that my hometown's business has reached Yangzhou, I have a lot to do."

"It will probably take two or three months."

Jia Rong has a lot of things to do, most of which are not suitable to be discussed openly with others.

Jia Yuanchun thought it was about studying. The learning atmosphere in the south was much better than that in the capital.

"Don't worry, Master. My sisters and I will take good care of things in the mansion."

Jia Yuanchun sat down to comfort her husband.

Jia Rong smiled and said, "When my sons grow up, I'll let them take care of this kind of long journey!"

Jia Yuanchun also smiled, "Master is good at ordering people around~"

Jia Rong actually has quite a few members of the Jia family under him, but they are scattered around the city to help with business and family affairs.

Another large number of people returned to their hometowns.

The Jia family was just a middle-class noble family with no ability in the capital. They had no high-ranking officials and no confidants of the emperor.

Without high-ranking officials, there is no right to make money.

Without the emperor's confidants, it is easy to become a fat sheep.

A tall tree attracts the wind. Currently, he is able to stand firm only by relying on his ancestors' titles and connections.

However, Jia Rong was willing to become the patriarch and develop step by step only after he tasted the sweetness.

Otherwise, relying on his own healthy mind and healthy body, he would have gone out and become the king of the mountain long ago!
These days, there are natural disasters every year and people rebel every year.

If Jia Rong ran away, the next time he came back he would not be admitted for an exam but for a fight.

If Jia Rong had not been greedy for comfort and unwilling to endure hardships, he would have become a serious threat to the court in eight years.

Even though he did not rebel because of his greed for enjoyment, Jia Rong had made preparations for the consequences, and was prepared for danger in times of peace, not counting on the emperor's mercy.

Before leaving, he spent a night with the three women and set off the next day in high spirits.

I don't usually bring Xiao Si with me because I don't need him. Most of the time, he does some bad things at night.

I had to bring some people with me on this long journey. It would be difficult to get through customs with too many people, so I called three trustworthy people, prepared the passes, and went.

As he was a scholar and a son of a wealthy family, he encountered no problems on the way and arrived in Jinling smoothly.

Jinling is the territory of the four major families, and the four major families are not grandchildren here. As soon as I arrived in Jinling City, my brothers from the same family opened the city gate.

The city gate officer Jia Cang brought a group of his men to move the city gate open.

"Master, why didn't you say hello in advance when you came? I just found out and almost didn't have time to greet you."

Jia Rong nodded and said, "I am going to Yangzhou to study this time. I will rest here for half a day. Is there anything going on in the city?"

Jia Cang followed Jia Rong into the city.

Jinling City is a big city. Although it is not as big as the capital, it is also a very prosperous place.

Second only to Beijing, Suzhou, Yangzhou and Guangzhou.

Jia Rong has arranged a lot of people in the past few years. Not only are some of the Jia family members serving as legal advisors and clerks, but also more than a hundred idle yamen runners have been sent in.

Although there are only a few officials in a nearby county town, there are actually more than hundreds of yamen runners and hangers-on. Otherwise, it would be impossible to catch people and manage the area well.

Without a few hundred people, will the local gentry listen to you?
Can a fellow villager from the same clan allow you to take money and leave the village?

Jia Cang said: "The prefect appointed by Master Zheng has taken office."

Jia Rong knew this. Wang Ziteng and Jia Zheng of the Wang family not only knew Lin Ruhai, but also supported Jia Yucun to become the prefect of Yingtian Prefecture in Jinling Province.

Jinling is the hometown of the four major families, so they need someone to protect the interests of the big families.

However, officials are all temporary officials. They will leave after a few years and have to retire when it is time. Their descendants will still be a small class and cannot compare with aristocrats like the Jia family.

The Jia family doesn't like being officials because they find it tiring and would rather spend their time in luxury.

Secondly, the people you get to know are all powerful and influential, and you can get a lot of things done without having to be an official.

The power has been extended over several generations, and although it is indeed slipping, it still has some power.

"That person was arranged by the West Mansion and the Wang Family. Don't pay attention to him. Just do what you should do. If he does the same as us, then listen to him. If he does the opposite, then ignore him."

Jia Rong directly demonstrated the authority of the Jia family's head, and also showed the accumulation of the past eight years.

"Yes! Master!"

After Jia Cang agreed, he followed and continued to introduce what had happened recently.

"According to your arrangement, Master, the fields of the Zhen family were returned to the Zhen family members, many kidnappers were killed, and something happened to the Xue family."

Jia Rong frowned, "What's going on?"

In the original novel, the Xue family should have beaten someone to death because of the incident of snatching Yinglian. Now Yinglian is gone, so why is there still trouble in the Xue family?

Jia Cang said, "Xue Pan, the eldest son of the eighth branch of the Xue family, got into a fight with someone and injured that person. After the incident, he lost his money and ran away. His whole family went to the capital. Now the family of the deceased reported the case to the authorities but couldn't find the Xue family. The other branches of the Xue family were unwilling to help him, so the matter has dragged on until today."

Jia Rong has so many things to do every day. He has not paid attention to this side since he found Yinglian last year. He usually focuses on money and new students in the family, and never cares about the affairs of the Wang, Shi, and Xue families.

"How was it judged?"

Jia Cang said: "The new prefect is from the Wang family and the West Mansion. Xue Pan's mother is the younger sister of Madam Wang of the West Mansion and the younger sister of Lord Wang of the Wang family. However, the Xue family of Jinling and the local gentry do not like the mother and son of the Xue family. The Xue family's own people want to seize the family property, so they used silver to sentence them to a sudden death."

After his sudden death, the Xue family of Jinling naturally ignored the legitimate son of the Xue family. At the same time, they could also take over the business of Jinling in the name of the Xue family clan.

When the victim's family saw that the bully had died and been removed from the list, and also received compensation, they naturally stopped making trouble.

Jia Cang continued, "Master, didn't you meet the Xue family? You should have arrived in the capital a long time ago."

Jia Rong said, "I have never met him. I do know the prodigal son of the Xue family, but we have been doing our own business over the years and have no dealings with that kind of person."

"Let's not talk about that person. This is Mr. Liu Xianglian. You must remember a handsome man like him. If you come here in the future, please treat him well."

"Brother Liu, this is my cousin Jia Cang."

Jia Rong introduced Liu Xianglian, and brought him out this time to help him get to know the people in the clan.

Jia Cang smiled and said, "What the elder master said is true. Although I have a bad memory, this handsome young man will definitely remember it!"

Liu Xianglian was about to speak politely, but Jia Rong said, "Brother Liu is the descendant of the Duke of Liguo, and is very skilled in martial arts. If you two are destined to meet in the future, let's have a drink together. Now, go back with me and tell me about the Xue family and the prefect."

Jia Cang quickly went back to the old house with Jia Rong and others to discuss things, along with the other eleven brothers from the same family.

The Xue family is not as united as the Jia family. Now the Jia family is expanding to the south in the form of a clan, taking advantage of floods and snow disasters in the south to quickly immigrate into local counties and towns.

Merchants and scholars went to the city to develop, while craftsmen and villagers obtained land and began to farm together.

At the same time, the family absorbed refugees from other places to work on the land. There were fewer people with the surname Jia, but the family's control became stronger.

The business made a lot of money, but all the accounts were calculated separately. The Jia family themselves didn’t know how much they had earned, they just felt that it was better than before.

The person who connects these people is Jia Rong, especially during the two years when Jia Rong was taking the exam in Jinling City, his development was the fastest.

On the contrary, the Xue family is not in Jia Rong's eyes. Jia Rong needs some people to share the firepower. There are not only four families in Jinling City, but also many large families of considerable size.

The Xue family is not a big family at all, and has long been in decline. However, the prodigal son Xue Pan is always looking for trouble, which makes him more conspicuous.

The Jia family is very low-key, it’s just that there are a lot of honest and decent young people in the family.

(End of this chapter)