The Overlord of the Red Mansion

Chapter 81 Prodigal
On New Year's Eve, everyone in the Rongguo Mansion began to pack up and prepare to go home.

I returned to my hometown in Jinling.

Everyone knows that they will no longer be able to live a good life here in the future.

People from each courtyard began to gather. Those who had homes contacted their families to go out, and those who had no families took the money and found their own way out.

Jia Rong didn't have time to go home for the New Year, so he took Wang Xifeng and Li Wan to look for the target in the mansion.

The first place they went to was the accounting office. There was no money left in the office as all the money had been taken away by the soldiers.

But there were still many valuable things that were not taken away. Many of the maids' valuables such as jewelry and clothes belonged to the Jia family.

There were quite a few valuable things in the accounting office. As soon as the three of them arrived there, they saw an elderly couple and a girl of about sixteen or seventeen quickly kneeling down.

"Uncle Rong!"

The fate of Lai Dajia has quickly spread throughout the Rongguo Mansion. Now everyone in the Rongguo Mansion is in danger. Few people are clean, and no one is absolutely clean.

When Jia Rong saw that it was Lin Zhixiao and his wife, he said, "You two should get up. Is that your daughter behind you? I remember her name is Xiaohong?"

Little Red Lin Hongyu quickly said: "In reply to the master's words, the master remembered it very accurately. My name is Lin Hongyu, and my nickname is Xiaohong."

Jia Rong smiled and said, "Okay, you three don't have to go back. Xiaohong and your parents can help with the house first and deal with the matter. Then come to my place when everything is settled."

Lin Hongyu said quickly: "Thank you, Master!"

Lin Zhixiao and his wife also hurried to express their gratitude. Now they not only had no worries, but also had a good place to go.

Xiaohong is smart, clever, and loyal, making her a perfect helper in managing the household.

Wang Xifeng was puzzled by Jia Rong's arrangement and asked, "Is Lin Zhixiao's family clean?"

Jia Rong said, "He's not clean, but he's not that dark either. He's a man who's willing to work. You can use him with confidence."

No one is born to be a slave, and no one really owes anyone a great favor.

Jia Rong quickly inspected the surroundings and came to the kitchen when it was dark. He saw that the cook, Mrs. Liu, was pretty and still had some charm. How could he bear to see her living in prostitution with her daughter?

"Sister Liu, what do you do in the kitchen?"

When Sister Liu saw that it was Uncle Rong and the Great and Second Grandmothers coming together, she hurriedly said, "She is a handyman who cooks for the opera troupe. She used to cook for the opera troupe alone, and she came back after the troupe dispersed."

Jia Rong nodded, "Do you have any family?"

Sister Liu of the Liu family said carefully: "There is a daughter, fifteen years old, who is an ordinary maid in the mansion."

Jia Rong smiled and said, "It's not easy for you to be an orphan and a widow. I also like the food in the Jia Mansion. It would be nice to have a cook. Are you willing to work in my house with your daughter?"

Sister Liu wiped her hands excitedly on her apron, "Yes! Yes! Thank you, Master!"

Jia Rong nodded, "Okay, let's go there tomorrow morning. We can also get some New Year's money."

Sister Liu was overjoyed, "Thank you, Master!"

Jia Rong also took the eldest and second grandmothers back to have dinner.

Now there was no need for men and women to be on guard, and Jia Zheng and Jia Lian were both packing up their things.

Jia Zheng couldn't run away, he could only stay at home with his grandmother. Now he was unemployed and couldn't run away at all.

Jia Lian couldn't escape either.

Court officials and nobles had to obtain approval before returning to their hometowns.

Jia Rong can deal with it by taking the imperial examination and studying, but he really cannot go back to his hometown casually.

The only ones who could run away were the maids and unimportant characters like Jia Huan and Aunt Zhao.

The rest of the people had to wait until the emperor took over Rongguo Mansion before they could go back.

As long as the Rongguo Mansion exists, the men in charge will never be able to escape.

At this time, there were still many people in the originally bustling dining room, but it gave people a deserted feeling.

When Jia Rong arrived, he found that the maids from each room were standing there.

There were Jinchuan, Yinchuan, Caixia and others in Lady Wang's room, the four maids in Lady Xing's room, Li Wan's maids Suyun and Biyue, Jia Zheng's maid, and a large group of maids around Jia Baoyu and the old lady.

Seeing Jia Rong coming over, the old lady said calmly, "Whoever you like, let him go with you."

The maid behind the old lady straightened her chest and looked at Jia Rong, expectantly watching Master Rong choose someone.

Yuanyang has become an aunt and is living a good life. Now everyone is going to live a hard life. Whoever follows Uncle Rong at this time will be able to escape from the sea of suffering.

Jia Rong glanced at the group of maids and finally stopped at Qingwen, who was keeping her head down and keeping silent.

Xiren quickly pushed Qingwen and said, "Qingwen, Master Rong likes you."

Qingwen doesn't like Jia Rong, "I won't go, I want to follow Master Bao!"

Jia Rong smiled and said, "I don't mind, but Xiren is Baoyu's roommate. I plan to let Xiren and Sheyue follow Baoyu back to Jinling. Baoyu has too many young maids around him. I have no objection if you want to follow. It's good to have a loyal one."

The old lady looked at Qingwen and said, "She was originally a maid of the Lai family. After I took her away, I gave her to Baoyu. She has been living the life of a rich lady with Baoyu. How can she serve Baoyu after she returns? It is better for Baoyu to have one more servant than one more maid!"

Qingwen is a servant of a servant, a servant of a servant, and a servant of the Lai family. Grandmother Jia is worried about her and now refuses to let her follow Jia Baoyu.

Jia Rong asked, "Do you want to be Master Bao's aunt?"

Qingwen quickly said, "No!"

Jia Rong looked at Xiren again, "What about you? Do you want to be Master Bao's aunt?"

Xiren and Yuanyang Ping'er both have a good relationship. When they heard Jia Rong's question, they nodded quickly and said, "Please help me, Master Rong!"

Jia Rong said readily, "Well, just follow Baoyu."

Jia Rong looked at Qingwen again and said, "Since you don't want to, just follow Ping'er. Ping'er doesn't have many people to help her, and she treats people well."

Qingwen had just said that she wanted to be Jia Baoyu's concubine, and then she also said that she didn't want to follow Jia Rong. Now she had blocked her own way.

Xiren pushed Qingwen again, "Why don't you thank the master quickly! Ping'er is my sister, she won't treat you unfairly!"

Qingwen realized that this was indeed the best choice, so she could only say, "Thank you, Master Rong."

Although she didn't want to leave Jia Baoyu, there was no room for change under the current circumstances.

Xiren got Jia Rong's consent and would definitely become Jia Baoyu's concubine in the future.

Qingwen found that she had no status with Jia Baoyu, and everyone knew Ping'er's character, so she would not be bullied or abused if she followed her.

The maids who were not chosen by Jia Rong were unlucky and would have a hard time in the future.

Although they didn't starve to death, compared with the luxurious life the Jia family had lived before, it was really a life worse than death.

Jia Rong said, "The rest of the people who are close to us should continue to serve in this mansion and cannot leave for a moment. Those who are distantly related should return to their hometowns, and the bought servants should be kind enough to let them go."

"Other families would sell their slaves because they couldn't survive, but the Jia family would never do that. We give some money to those who leave, and at the end, a hundred loyal servants are enough."

Jia Rong looked at Qingwen and said, "You have been slaves for decades. Now you can be your own masters after you leave. Or you can find an ordinary man or a simple man in the countryside to marry and become a good wife."

"We were master and servant, so we should part ways amicably. It's not that the Jia family is heartless, but the world is bad now. The Jia family can't even protect their own family members. If you continue to follow us, you will die together."

Jia Rong did not drive anyone away, nor did he force anyone; everything was voluntary.

Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang were silent. This was the situation. The Jia family had already done a good job of abiding by the bottom line and sending the people away. They really couldn't afford to support so many servants. Wang Xifeng said, "Let's do this. The servants can leave, but how can we leave? What about my son?"

Wang Xifeng didn't care about other people's lives or deaths, she just wanted to solve the problems of her own children.

Jia Lian said angrily: "Isn't it all because of you? If you hadn't caused trouble and forced Bao Erjia to death, how could the family be destroyed?"

Although Wang Xifeng was also afraid, she said aggrievedly at this time: "My family is broken up? Who died? I gave birth to your children and put all my dowry into your family. Now I have nothing, and you say it's all my fault? I'd rather die!"

After Wang Xifeng finished speaking, she was about to ram her head against the table near Jia Rong, and it looked like she was crying and wanting to commit suicide.

Jia Rong could only reach out and hug her, "I am here during the New Year to accompany you to deal with these troubles. It's already this late, can't you have some peace and quiet?"

Jia Lian looked at the two people hugging each other, looked at Wang Xifeng whose face was covered with pear blossoms due to the rain, and thought of his own children. Suddenly, something moved in his heart.

"Humph! It's better to divorce such a jealous woman and let her take the children back to her parents' home, so that I don't have to worry about her!"

Jia Lian turned his head and looked at the ground, speaking angrily.

Jia Zheng and Jia Mu both thought of something.

Mrs. Wang also frowned. Some of the things now were indeed caused by Wang Xifeng, and Wang Xifeng's attitude towards her as an aunt was not very good, and now she had no money.

Wang Xifeng stared at Jia Lian blankly, shocked and frightened.

Jia Rong helped Wang Xifeng sit down, and he stood aside and said, "You have seen the attitude of the Wang family towards the Xue family. A daughter who is married off is like water spilled, and it is no good for nephews and nieces."

"In the past, Brother Feng had money to give to his brother Wang Ren. I know Wang Ren better than you do. People in Jinling also know what kind of bastard he is. When he ran out of money, he sold his maids to brothels. If Qiao'er went to him and he had no money to spend, I dare say he would sell Qiao'er to a brothel!"

Wang Xifeng was startled and became even more at a loss.

Jia Zheng said quickly: "Is it really so?"

Jia Rong affirmed, "It is absolutely true! Just believe me. I have such a good relationship with Brother Feng, and I treat Qiao'er as my own daughter, but I ignore Brother Feng's biological brother. There must be a reason."

Jia Lian didn't realize that his elder brother-in-law was this kind of person. He just thought that the other party was a piece of shit, but he didn't expect him to be such a piece of shit.

Jia Lian pointed at Wang Xifeng and cursed, "How could such a beast exist in your family?"

Grandmother Jia pondered for a moment, then said to Jia Rong, "It's probably difficult for Lan'er and Ying'er to go out. Can you take Qiaojie with you?"

Jia Rong sat down and said, "The emperor's intention is to show his benevolence, so of course it is possible."

Jia Lian said directly: "I will divorce her, leave my son behind, and I don't care where my daughter goes!"

Wang Xifeng wanted to take her son away, but the son belonged to Jia Rong and the daughter belonged to Jia Lian.

"No! You bastard! The son is mine, not yours!" After saying this, Wang Xifeng looked at Jia Rong, hoping that Jia Rong would come out to uphold justice.

Jia Rong sighed, "How long are you going to make such a fuss? It's said that family disgrace should not be made public, but you guys have no scruples at all. If you continue like this, even Jia Lan, Jia Ying, Jia Huan, and Jia Baoyu who are still alive will be dragged down and have their heads cut off by you two!"

Li Wan couldn't help but get angry when she heard Jia Rong say that. "I don't dare to say anything harsh about family matters. Forget about money. I know it's hard to be the head of a family, but the reputation of the Rong Mansion has been splashed with dirty water by you over the past few years. It's not enough that the title and property have been lost. How long will this fuss continue? If you just listen to Master Rong, how could you have come to this point?!"

The old lady said earnestly: "If you continue to make trouble, do you want others to laugh at you and chop our whole family up immediately?"

"If Jia Lian can't manage you, then let Jia Rong manage you. You can leave with your daughter. The Rong Mansion won't burden you, and you shouldn't burden the Rong Mansion either!"

Madam Xing had been patient with this daughter-in-law for a long time. "No wonder Master Rong married Yuanchun instead of you. It turns out he knew you were a spendthrift woman!"

When Wang Xifeng heard what her mother-in-law said, she burst into tears and grabbed Jia Rong's arm and started crying.

Jia Rong cursed coldly, "It's endless! It's so foul! I'm taking Miss Lin back to celebrate the New Year. Take care of yourselves!"

Jia Rong pulled his hand away and scolded the aggrieved Wang Xifeng, "Why are you crying? It's because you two have contributed to this. Take Qiao'er to my place to celebrate the New Year, and leave Ying'er here with the old lady for now."

"Madam, I'll go back first. Now that the emperor has forgiven us, it will be fine if we just stay quiet and be quiet for a while. Even if we lose this mansion, we are still relatives. There is also the Rong Mansion in Jinling. I have managed my business well in my hometown over the years. It will be much worse if I go back, but I can still make a living."

The old lady sighed again, "That's all. Thank you for your help, Master."

Mrs. Xing glanced at Wang Xifeng, who looked as aggrieved as a young wife, and quickly said to Jia Rong:
"Uncle Rong, what should I do?"

"You?" Jia Rong said calmly, "Just go back to your mother's home."

"You have no children, and you are mean and stingy, causing unrest in your family. Now, is there any money in the Jia Mansion for you to deduct? Go back to your family and get married again!"

Jia Rong left after he finished speaking, and Wang Xifeng quickly followed him, leaving Mrs. Xing looking back and feeling confused.

Jia Lian stood up and wrote a letter of divorce to save his daughter and also to break off all ties with Wang Xifeng, with whom he no longer had any feelings for her.

Jia Zheng and Mrs. Wang could only sigh and send their maids and servants away.

The dozen or so maids in Jia Baoyu's room also burst into tears.

Because those who were driven out were those who did not work, were disloyal and unfilial, and had bad relationships, these people naturally would not seek death for the Jia family.

As for why she cried so miserably, it’s because women just love to cry.

Yuanyang, Ping'er, Baoqin and the three springs' maids are all in Ning Mansion. Even if Qingwen is not interested in that place, she will not commit suicide by jumping into a well just to go there.

The surrounding environment did not allow her to make such an inexplicable decision.

For the maids in Rong Mansion, Ning Mansion is the place they long for, and Qingwen is lucky enough to be able to continue to enjoy life there.

She had always relied on the people the old lady sent to be with Jia Baoyu. Now the old lady gave his indenture to Jia Rong, and his previous owner, the Lai family, was another corrupt official.

When one loses all dignity and identity, how can one still be arrogant?

What’s even worse is that a group of maids were crying in the room, and Jia Baoyu had no idea what to do.

"How is Second Master?"

Seeing Xiren coming out of the house, the maids once again became concerned about their master.

Xiren sighed and said, "She is still lying on her bed, absent-mindedly calling Miss Lin's name. Qingwen, ask Master Rong if you can ask Miss Lin to write a letter to persuade the Second Master."

How could Qingwen not know that Jia Baoyu liked Miss Lin, but they were really not a match.

Even if she was my aunt, she had a maid like Xiren who served as her concubine.

Qingwen nodded and agreed.

Even if she died to prove her integrity, she still seemed unqualified and it was not her turn.

Jia Rong returned to Wang Xifeng's house. For the past three years, Wang Xifeng had lived here with her children, while Jia Lian lived with Jia She.

As soon as I returned to the room, I saw Jia Qiaoer rubbing her eyes.

"Mom, isn't today Chinese New Year? Why is there no one here? No one is pouring me some water."

Wang Xifeng smiled and said, "We are discussing things during the New Year. I will take you to the east to celebrate the New Year. Who will come to pick us up~"

Jia Rong looked at Qiao'er, who had grown into a little girl.

"Qiao'er, come to my place to celebrate the New Year. This year everyone is going to my place to celebrate the New Year. Come, let's go over and set off firecrackers together."

Jia Qiaoer grew up in Ning Mansion. After she had her younger brother, she didn't go there often. However, she was still taken there secretly by Ping'er a few times. After Ping'er left a few months ago, she could only play in the deserted courtyard.

Now that I heard that I was going to Ning Mansion to celebrate the New Year, I was naturally happy.

Jia Rong and Wang Xifeng smiled and hugged her as they reunited with Lin Daiyu and others and went home together to celebrate the New Year.

Fortunately, the Jinyi Guards took the money and left, but most of the food and New Year's goods were still left, so everyone in the Rongguo Mansion managed to have a New Year's Eve dinner.

(End of this chapter)