The destiny of all heavens begins in the Red Chamber

Master Zheng Er hopes for the prosperity of the family, and it would be even better if the Rong family's children could excel.

Even if that's not possible, the Rong family's resources should be more than enough to secure a central position.

The key is that the Rong family's children cannot fall behind the other members of the clan, otherwise, serious problems may arise.

Therefore, Master Zheng Er was willing to provide the greatest convenience to the clan's youths, hoping that they would strive to be the first to go further through the imperial examinations.

The old lady and Lady Wang didn't think that way. In order to keep Jia Baoyu the core of the entire Rong Mansion and even the entire clan, they did not hesitate to suppress or even destroy outstanding members of the clan.

They have both the determination and the ability!

Fortunately, Jia Huan was a son of the second wife and was valued by the second master.

If it were a member of a collateral branch of the family acting this way, he would probably have already faced a severe crackdown.

Unless they don't rely on the clan's power at all, and even stay far away from the Rong family's sphere of influence, any little trickery they pull will be something that the collateral descendants can't afford to suffer.

Leaving aside other matters, Jia Huan was unaware of the old lady and Madam Wang's thoughts, but he was already mentally prepared.

He listened attentively in class when he was in school, and was completely focused when he was learning medicine from the doctor at the small martial arts school.

By the time they returned to the manor, the sky was ablaze with the colors of sunset, and the heat in the air had dissipated considerably.

As is customary, I first come to the main study to pay my respects to Master Zheng Er. However, today Master Zheng Er's demeanor seems to have some unusual hidden meaning.

He didn't think much of it, but when he entered the second gate, he was stopped by Liuli, the head maid from Rongqing Hall.

"Third Master Huan, the Old Madam and Madam request your presence!"

The head maid of Rongqing Hall was very arrogant and didn't take Jia Huan seriously at all.

He spoke in a flat tone, and after finishing his sentence, he turned and left without even asking Jia Huan whether he agreed or not.

Tsk!

This time it doesn't seem to be a good thing. These head maids of Rongqing Hall, while not exactly masters of opportunism, easily revealed Rongqing Hall's attitude.

When they arrived, Jia Huan saw that the old lady and Madam Wang had cold and stern faces, and the atmosphere in the hall was very oppressive, with a hint of an impending accusation.

After the greetings, the old lady had him stand in the center of the hall, but did not ask him to kneel to reply.

She spoke directly, questioning, "Huan-ge'er, what did you and your master talk about yesterday?"

"Your master beat Baoyu up in a fierce manner, what are you really thinking?"

Madam Wang did not speak, but her eyes were quite cold, like those of a venomous snake, which was terrifying.

"Grandma, what your grandson and grandfather mainly wanted to talk about was Lan'er's studies!"

Jia Huan remained calm and answered directly, "My sister-in-law was overjoyed to see that the clan school had produced two students who passed the preliminary examinations. She wanted to give Lan-ge'er a better education!"

Ok?

The old lady and Mrs. Wang were stunned. How could this be different from what they had imagined?

"Could it be that Lan-ge'er is not doing well in the clan school?"

Madam Wang spoke up, her voice deep and serious: "I've never heard your sister-in-law mention that either!"

"Hey, my sister-in-law has seen a lot in life, so naturally she looks down on the level of the clan school teacher!"

Jia Huan answered in a relaxed tone, and said enviously, "Your family is a scholarly family, sister-in-law!"

Chapter 171 Turning the Tide (Please Subscribe)

Lady Wang looked unconvinced by Jia Huan's explanation.

Clearly, she looked down on so-called scholarly families, and she also looked down on her daughter-in-law, Li Wan.

They disliked the Li family for being poor and shabby, and even more so for the several trunks full of books and paintings that Li Wan had brought with her when she married into the family.

They believe that the Li family has abandoned all sense of shame in order to save face, and has even tried to cheat their daughter's dowry!

What else could Jia Huan say? He could only curse inwardly: "Ignorance is truly terrifying!"

Li Wan's few boxes of books and paintings are more than enough to be family heirlooms, or even the foundation of a newly emerging scholarly family.

If it were outside, it would be a precious resource that most scholars would fight tooth and nail to get their hands on!

Similarly, Madam Wang also had a significant misunderstanding about what constitutes a scholarly family!

Ordinary scholarly families are called gentry, while the most prestigious scholarly families are called aristocratic families!

Although powerful clans no longer existed after the Tang Dynasty, top-tier aristocratic families were still not to be underestimated; even the imperial family had to give them some respect and dignity.

Regardless of the dynasty, almost every generation of prominent families produced high-ranking officials and noble titles.

The Li family, to which Li Wan belonged, was certainly not at the level of a prestigious family, but it was still considered a relatively powerful aristocratic clan.

His father, Li Shouzhong, had already risen to the position of Chancellor of the Imperial Academy. That was a highly respected position among scholars throughout the land, a prestigious post that only a prominent figure in the academic world could attain.

It would be impossible to say that Li Shouzhong's marriage to the Rong family was without any intention of using the Rong family's influence to advance his career, but in reality, he didn't actually get any help from them.

Li Shouzhong never rose to the rank of high-ranking official in the imperial court, even after retiring to his hometown.

I don't know why Madam Wang looks down on the Li family.

In terms of sheer wealth, how many powerful families could rival the Yangzhou salt merchants?

The old lady was much more cunning. She clearly didn't understand the ins and outs either, but she put on an air of profound mystery to fool people.

If Jia Huan hadn't known her background, he probably would have been intimidated by her.

It's said that both the old lady and Madam Wang had lived in Jinling, yet they had little concept of the power of the Jiangnan literati, which was quite peculiar.

Jia Huan chuckled and said, "The Li family, where my sister-in-law comes from, is a large family. Many of its members have achieved academic success, and there is no shortage of scholars who have passed the imperial examinations or even become Jinshi!"

"With the Li family's strength and prestige in the academic world, they could easily establish a renowned academy centered around Li family members!"

Now you should know how formidable they are!

Sure enough, the old lady was moved. Even if she was ignorant, she had heard of the Donglin Academy and the Donglin Party of the Ming Dynasty, which were one of the factors that led to the downfall of the Ming Dynasty.

In other words, anyone who could be associated with the academy was no ordinary scholar.

As for Madam Wang, she still looked disdainful!

Jia Huan didn't bother with this person and said directly, "When my sister-in-law was still at her parents' home, she witnessed the demeanor of top scholars, so naturally she hopes that the teacher of Lan-ge'er will be a famous teacher!"

Madam Wang scoffed, saying irritably, "A famous teacher, indeed..."

"Wang, don't speak!"

The old lady felt her face flush red and glared at Madam Wang with annoyance, thinking how ignorant she was.

As for whether Madam Wang's expression was unpleasant or not, the old lady wouldn't care that much.

"Huan-ge'er, continue!"

The atmosphere was rather awkward. The old lady sensed something was wrong. Clearly, things weren't as she and Madam Wang had imagined. Li Wan had invited Jia Huan to dinner for a serious reason.

She couldn't help but feel resentful: "You, Li Wan, why didn't you say so earlier that you had something important to discuss with Huan-ge'er at dinner?"

She's in a really awkward situation now, thankfully Sanchun and the others aren't here, otherwise it would be truly embarrassing.

"After all, the mansion belongs to a family of military merit, and it holds almost no appeal for top scholars!"

Jia Huan said helplessly, "It's simply impossible to invite someone like that to teach at the clan school!"

Madam Wang curled her lip, originally wanting to say something sarcastic: "As long as you give enough money, are you afraid you can't hire those poor, pedantic scholars?"

Unfortunately, he was glared at by the old lady and felt frustrated, not understanding why the old lady had suddenly 'betrayed' him.

The old lady had experienced so much, she naturally understood the ins and outs.

When she was teaching Master She and Master Zheng their first lessons, she hired renowned tutors. She knew exactly how difficult it was to find such tutors; even the old Duke personally intervened.

When Jia Zhu and Jia Lian later began their education, the level of the renowned teachers they could hire was a notch lower; they were still personally invited by the Duke.

Lady Wang was unaware of what was going on inside, so she naturally thought that scholars were easy to invite.

Don't they realize how much effort and energy the second son put into finding a famous teacher for Baoyu, only to end up with nothing and Baoyu having to go to the clan school?

Seeing that Madam Wang looked displeased, Jia Huan naturally had to "kindly" explain to her why it was so difficult to find a good tutor.

As the numbers one through four were listed, Madam Wang's displeasure vanished, replaced by surprise.

She was genuinely surprised that there were so many ways to hire a tutor for the clan school. It was clear that scholars were indeed different, which made her feel quite uncomfortable.

The old lady finally understood why both generations of dukes had to personally invite renowned teachers.

And so, what was originally a righteous indignation was swayed into a ditch by Jia Huan's few words.

Of course, Jia Huan wasn't just playing games; he was genuinely offering advice for the clan school, something the two matriarchs of the Rong Mansion were well aware of.

"So my grandson came up with an idea: to have my sister-in-law invite the Li family's future candidates for the imperial examination to come to the capital early and give lectures at the clan school to improve the teaching quality of the clan school!"

At this point, Jia Huan chuckled and said, "Perfect timing, I'll also give Lan-ge'er some careful guidance on his studies!"

The old lady and Madam Wang both showed expressions of sudden realization, but their thoughts were different.

This is indeed a great opportunity!

The old lady naturally wanted Jia Baoyu to benefit as well, and for him to receive the same meticulous guidance from the Li family scholar.

As for Madam Wang, she was inwardly complaining about Li Wan: "Why didn't you bring out such good resources sooner, so that Baoyu wouldn't have all sorts of problems with his studies?"