The Overlord of the Red Mansion

May 1st, the sixth year of the Holy Dynasty.

The entire capital city has been closed since last night, and only the army, envoys from various countries, and officials from all regions can enter.

Inside Nuanxiang Palace, the concubines, all dressed brightly and elegantly, had been sitting in the hall for more than ten minutes.

Shi Xiangyun looked at the ladies' watch on her hand.

Lin Daiyu came over and asked, "What time is it?"

"Four thirty-three." Shi Xiangyun casually reported the time, then put down her wrist and looked around, "They said dinner is at six and starts at eight. I'll go upstairs and sleep for a while."

Tanchun, who was sitting next to him, reminded him, "Don't get your clothes wrinkled. Today is the emperor's big day. The sisters got up at two or three o'clock and were busy. There might be other things to do later."

Shi Xiangyun curled her lips, looking speechless, and continued to doze off on the sofa.

Lin Daiyu also had nothing to do, so she comforted him, "Today is the day when His Majesty accepts tribute and compensation from various countries. It is also the day when His Majesty will lead tens of thousands of civil and military officials and meritorious nobles in the capital to offer sacrifices to the heaven after expanding the territory and bringing peace to the country. It's good enough for us to stand with him. Don't cause any trouble."

Of course, Shi Xiangyun also knew that this matter was very important. She started preparing for it a month ago, and it would definitely be a day that would be recorded in history.

Women are generally not allowed to participate in this kind of activity which is very important to the country.

Fortunately, their sisters’ husbands allowed them to be present and witness this sacred process together.

Shi Xiangyun had no opinion about Jia Rong, and she also knew the importance of the sacrificial ceremony. She was not as willful as Lin Daiyu said.

"I know the importance of it." Shi Xiangyun said casually, and then asked curiously: "Daiyu, why are you so idle? I see Baochai and Tanchun are in charge of a lot of things, and I am also busy with the poetry club's affairs. What are you doing?"

Lin Daiyu smiled and said, "I am tutoring a few children in their homework. I also have to play with you guys during normal times. When I have some free time, I will go for a walk around. Or, if His Majesty calls me over to talk, I am not idle at all."

Shi Xiangyun looked around and asked, "I haven't seen Baoqin much recently. What is Baoqin doing?"

Tanchun replied, "Baoqin is learning English with the princess from England and helping translate the emperor's works. Li Wan, Li Wen, Li Qi and Xiuyan are also busy. They say they want to build a library of all nations."

Zijuan, the maidservant beside her, smiled and said, "This name doesn't sound as scholarly as before. In the past, names were more elegant."

Shi Xiangyun rolled her eyes at her and said, "What do you know? Can this Wanguo Bookstore be used by ordinary people?"

"The name Wanguo Shuzhai is not something that an ordinary family would come up with."

Among the arts of calligraphy, chess, and painting, Jia Tanchun is good at books, including poetry and calligraphy.

At this time, Tanchun nodded and said, "Xiangyun is right. The fact that she was able to name the school Wanguo Shuzhai shows that she is confident and generous. This is a name that suits the royal family. If she used names like Yue, Wan, Fang, etc., it would seem petty."

Zijuan smiled and said, "Your Majesty is right. The royal family should have the royal style."

Wanguo Shuzhai does not sound as poetic as a name given to a girl, but it does not need those.

Shi Xiangyun said directly: "We didn't use this name before, not because the name of Wan Guo Shu Zhai was vulgar and unpleasant, but because it didn't match the name! Now that it matches the name, it's natural to use this name."

Lin Daiyu asked, "Since it is called the Book House of All Nations, the books in it must be from all over the world. Otherwise, it would be ridiculous to have books from only two or three countries."

What kind of family should use what kind of home appliances?

Since we named our school Wanguo Shuzhai, we must live up to the name.

Jia Tanchun explained: "I have been busy with other things these days, so I am not very clear about this, but the beauties from hundreds of countries in our palace can be called the beauties from all over the world when put together."

Shi Xiangyun became curious. She usually stayed in the inner courtyard of the Holy Palace and had not seen many foreign women.

“What countries are they?”

Jia Tanchun thought for a moment, "To the east there are Dongying and Goryeo, to the south there is a large archipelago, to the southwest there are also a bunch of countries in India, and there are also the southern countries that have already surrendered."

"There are countless countries on the overseas islands, including the 36 countries in the Western Regions, Central Asia, West Asia, Russia, and hundreds of small city-states in Europe."

"Although there are so many countries, the books of the big European countries are actually the ones that are of some value. Some small countries have only existed for a few years and have no foundation, so what they say is muddled and unclear."

While a few people were chatting here, Wang Xifeng walked in quickly with her palace maids.

"Sisters, are you all sitting here? We will be taking a bus around the city for inspection. The Ministry of Industry has built ten buses specifically for us. After dinner, take a rest for a while. You will get on the bus at 7:45 and leave the Holy Palace on time at 8 o'clock."

Lin Daiyu and others stood up and saluted.

"Don't worry, madam."

There is currently one emperor and two empresses in the Holy Dynasty. In addition to the two queens, the highest-ranking concubine in the harem is Imperial Noble Consort Wang Xifeng.

There was no further detailed division of the rest, as Jia Rong did not like to divide everyone so clearly, so everyone received similar treatment.

Yuanyang and Qingwen were born as maids, and were slightly lower in rank than Lin Daiyu and others.

But they themselves think these are appropriate.

Especially the maids of the Jia family, such as Yuanyang, Xiaohong, Ping'er and Qingwen, are all very satisfied with their current level.

The treatment of the princes and princesses was the same, but some of the princes' mothers received more rewards, and because of their good popularity, they were naturally more honorable than the other princes. Everyone quickly checked the time and checked their watches.

Watches are still a rare thing outside, but in the imperial palace, almost every concubine has one.

It was soon time for dinner. After a simple meal, everyone listened to Jia Yuanchun and Wang Xifeng taking turns giving lectures and telling them some things to pay attention to.

When it was almost done, everyone walked out of Nuanxiang Palace with their personal maids.

The bus was waiting outside the door, and the driver was the wet nurse taught by Jia Rong.

Some older women need jobs when they grow old and lose their looks, so a lot of jobs have gradually been created.

Not everyone can be taken care of by Jia Rong.

It is easy for wet nurses to find jobs because Jia Rong drank their milk, and that milk was not drunk in vain.

Ticket sellers at the zoo and botanical garden, as well as some other easy jobs that allow one to sit and make money, required a relationship with Jia Rong to get a chance.

Jia Rong has no shortage of talent, so he employs people based on personal connections. There is an obvious gap between those who have slept with him and those who have not.

Lin Daiyu and others, on the other hand, didn't mind Jia Rong's mess.

Women don’t have time to care about those things. If someone is really the most pampered person, then he will leave no chance for others to survive.

After getting on the bus, everyone sat down and everyone chose a suitable seat. Those who got on the bus later had no seats to choose from and the bus was also filled up one after another.

The car had thirty-six seats. The driver was sitting in the front passenger seat, and a female soldier with a gun was sitting by the window on the front passenger seat.

There is a vertical row of seats behind the driver's seat, where the palace maids sit. Further back are two side-by-side seats on the left and a single seat on the right.

Everyone had seen the tractors and harvesters made by Jia Rong, as well as airplanes and trains, but this kind of long box-like iron car was the first time they had ridden in it.

Soon a horn was heard from the front. After Jia Rong's car started, the cars behind followed steadily, maintaining a distance of three or four meters between them.

Lin Daiyu felt like she was on a boat, moving on this iron vehicle.

By opening the glass windows a little, you can feel the cool spring breeze coming in from outside.

The air suddenly became fresh. A large number of palace maids were kneeling on the ground on both sides. When you go from the inner palace to the outer palace of the Holy Palace, you can see the kneeling eunuchs, guards and palace maids.

The car's speed gradually increased, and after leaving the gate of the Holy Palace, the view became wider.

Cars are moving on the clean, flat and bright Saint Palace Street. You can see the sparkling surface of the moat. The water is clean and transparent, and there are wild birds playing in the water and pigeons flying in the sky.

It feels like it’s about to fly!
Soon the car began to slow down. Lin Daiyu and others looked forward and quickly picked up their fans to cover their mouths and noses.

The maids also reminded: "We are meeting outsiders!"

The concubines maintained royal etiquette and did not show their true faces to outsiders.

But still couldn't help looking outside out of curiosity.

Neat and orderly military columns stood on both sides of the Forbidden City Square. The 50,000 elite soldiers from the nine borders cast a large shadow on both sides.

As the car continued to move forward, we met princes from various places, civil and military ministers of the court, and officials from various places. As we continued to move forward, we could also see the welcoming team composed of ladies of noble titles from various places.

For Wang Xifeng and others, this is a glorious page.

For Jia Rong, it was just a boring day.

Jia Rong suddenly forgot why he was holding the ceremony.

I still remember the purpose and decision, but the mood I had at that time is no longer there.

Once you lose the mood and lack responsibility, you will seem to be coping and uncomfortable.

Fortunately, when he doesn't smile, it is more in line with everyone's beautiful expectations of the Holy Emperor.

When Jia Rong is not smiling or talking, he has a strong leadership temperament.

After offering simple sacrifices to the heaven and taking a photo, Jia Rong went home and lay down.

This is a good thing for everyone. After Jia Rong stopped caring about the matter, the people below continued to do their work as usual.

For example, paying wages, rewarding people who work, or commending people from all over the place.

The next day, Jia Rong looked at the expense report sent by the palace maid sent by the steward of the Imperial Household Department.

Jia Rong frowned.

"These people don't take my money seriously. They think that since I have so much money that I can't spend it all, they can spend it as they please?!"

Jia Rong has something to do again! (End of this chapter)