The destiny of all heavens begins in the Red Chamber

However, Jia Huan did not expect that the imperial decree allowing imperial concubines to visit their families would have such a great impact on the people of the capital.

When I went outside, almost all the discussions I heard were related to this matter!

Chapter 215: What is the Purpose? (Please Subscribe)

Jia Huan didn't understand. What did it have to do with the current emperor allowing his concubines to leave the palace to visit their families? Why were they all discussing it so seriously?

Later we found out that the people of Beijing just wanted to gossip.

As for what kind of gossip it is, it's naturally about analyzing which concubine will leave the palace to visit her family, which concubine's family's villa for the visit is the most luxurious, and which concubine's entourage is the most extravagant.

Jia Huan instantly realized that the current emperor was definitely behind this.

Isn't this just launching a propaganda offensive in advance, forcing the concubines who plan to leave the palace to visit their families to have their families build all sorts of magnificent and grand villas for their visits? How incredibly cunning!

He knew what was going on but didn't say much. The emperor wanted to make a big profit, and if he revealed the inside story in advance, the Embroidered Uniform Guard would probably come knocking on his door every day to cause trouble. Why invite trouble for himself?

First, Jia Cong, who was also interested in the concubines' visit to their families, was sent to the martial arts school, while Jia Huan wandered off to the clan school.

Unexpectedly, the students at the clan school were also discussing the imperial concubine's visit to her family before class.

"Ahem, everyone, let's get back to normal, class is about to start!"

Upon seeing this, Jia Huan walked directly to the front of the podium and said irritably, "This matter has little to do with us. What's there to discuss? Do you think any family would give money to idle people like you for nothing?"

After saying that, he left the main classroom. The clan school had expanded, and he needed to check on the situation of the other classrooms.

Xue Pan, that shameful fellow, was also in the middle class, accompanying Jia Baoyu and Jia Lan. When he saw Jia Huan, he greeted him cheerfully: "Brother Huan, why do you look a little unhappy!"

"It's nothing, things happening outside have affected the students' mood, so naturally they're not very happy!"

Jia Huan chuckled and said, "Damn it, the current emperor's concubines leaving the palace to visit their families are being treated like a major national celebration. It's really speechless!"

"Isn't it?"

Xue Pan clapped his hands and said helplessly, "My mother and sister have been talking about this since yesterday!"

"But today, things haven't calmed down at all; in fact, they've gotten even more lively outside. I don't know what's going on or what it has to do with ordinary people."

This guy has honed some skills through experience; at least he's quite clear-headed.

"It has little to do with us, so let's not bother with it!"

Jia Huan chuckled and changed the subject, asking, "By the way, how are you doing at the clan school?"

"Not bad!"

Xue Pan chuckled and said, "I read miscellaneous books in the morning, and then spent the afternoon playing football. It felt quite relaxing and leisurely, much more relaxing than running around outside!"

"Those guys from Nanjing, have they stopped causing trouble?"

Jia Huan reminded, "You can't relax your vigilance during school hours, and you can't let your guard down after school either!"

"Isn't it a bit too harsh?"

Xue Pan was somewhat surprised and shook his head, saying, "I think as long as they follow the rules at school, there's no need to worry too much about other things. After all, they're not children anymore!"

"I don't want to get involved!"

Jia Huan spread his hands, saying helplessly, "But Master won't allow it!"

"Besides, the Jinling clan specifically made arrangements for them. Regardless of whether they can become successful, they shouldn't turn into scoundrels who are good at eating, drinking, gambling, and whoring while studying at the clan school, right?"

"As you know, there are some guys in the capital who specialize in targeting wealthy playboys. Their methods are so underhanded, you could even call them despicable. We still need to be wary!"

"Alright, don't say anything more. I'll arrange for someone to keep a close eye on things. I'll let you know immediately if anything goes wrong. I won't make things difficult for you, after all, we're brothers."

What could Xue Pan say upon hearing this? He simply patted his chest and made a guarantee.

"I trust you to handle things!"

Jia Huan laughed and said, "Pay close attention to the prices of building materials and the wages of craftsmen in the field. You're sure to be pleasantly surprised!"

As he spoke, he turned and walked toward the rest of the clan school's classrooms, humming a little tune.

During his patrol, he noticed that the Jinling clan members he had previously interacted with seemed hesitant to come over and greet him, and he didn't take the initiative to approach them.

Since you've come all the way from Jinling to study, you should honestly study hard at the clan school and not have any ulterior motives. He certainly wouldn't allow that.

Those clan members who came from Jinling were also quite frustrated at the moment.

They were used to a carefree and happy life in Nanjing, so how could they bear the thought of studying hard with all their might?

Originally, I thought Xue Pan was the head of the clan school, so even though I was taught a lesson, I didn't think much of it.

After all, Xue Pan's reputation as a tyrant was still quite prestigious. They couldn't compare to him in Jinling, so it's understandable that they were suppressed in the capital.

But who knew that after spending some time in the clan school, he would slowly come to his senses.

It turns out that Xue Pan was not the head of the clan school; the real head was Jia Huan, an inconspicuous illegitimate son of the Rong family.

They were naturally quite unhappy. They were all legitimate sons of the Jinling clan, how could they possibly look down on a concubine's son like Jia Huan, and be suppressed by him?

As a result, their attempt to cause trouble was suppressed by Xue Pan and Jia Qiang of the Ning Mansion.

They wanted to cause trouble for Jia Huan directly, but they couldn't get past the group of henchmen around Jia Huan.

Gradually, they realized that Jia Huan was not as simple as they had imagined.

Otherwise, Xue Pan, that foolish bully, wouldn't be so obedient. Even Jia Qiang, the legitimate great-grandson of the Ning Mansion, wouldn't have the leisure to care about trivial matters in the clan school. Obviously, he only did it to give face to Jia Huan.

Once he got to know his classmates better, they were surprised to learn that Jia Huan was indeed quite extraordinary.

Putting everything else aside, the mere fact that Ningrong Street's leader was the head of the gang was enough to frighten them into not daring to act recklessly in the slightest.

They had witnessed the power and prestige of a powerful figure in the martial arts world in Jinling. Even the local government had to give him face, let alone a few spoiled young masters like them.

In Nanjing, there were important branches of the Grand Canal Gang, the Salt Gang, and other gangs operating along the Yangtze River.

They would often have dozens or even hundreds of henchmen rushing around, their power and domineering presence were indescribable.

Because of the remoteness and distance from the central government, the Jianghu (江湖, a term referring to the martial arts world) gangs wielded immense power in the south, and their behavior was far more domineering and tyrannical than in the north.

Even spoiled brats like them won't have a good ending if they offend a powerful figure in the underworld.

Now that they knew Jia Huan was also a big shot in the martial arts world, they were both shocked and excited. They were eager to get to know him better, hoping that they might one day have a moment of glory in the martial arts world.

Unfortunately, Jia Huan didn't give them the slightest chance to take advantage of the situation.

Jia Huan was unaware of what these clansmen were thinking. If he had known, he would have sent them to the manor outside the city for a good training exercise, to let them know that navigating the martial world was not such a simple matter.

I thought these fellow clansmen were still up to no good and were eager to see the glitz and glamour of the capital.

For these restless youngsters, a ruthless crackdown is necessary; they should at least get through a year or two before considering anything else. Judging by their performance and progress, Jia Huan would rather send them all back than waste his time on them.

Time flew by in Jia Huan's fulfilling life, and a month passed in the blink of an eye.

During this period, the topic of imperial concubines visiting their families not only did not stop but showed signs of intensifying in the capital. Any noble with a clear head would probably have realized that something was amiss.

However, it was rumored that the families of some of the concubines who had applied to leave the palace were smugly preparing to build separate residences for their visits home.

He also boasted that he would make his concubines the most glamorous among all the concubines visiting their families.

This incident, like adding fuel to the fire, immediately sparked a fierce arms race.

Putting aside everything else, the prices of building materials that Jia Huan had been quietly monitoring, especially the prices of high-quality materials such as good timber, had more than doubled.

Goodness, this gives Jia Huan the feeling that it's like they're just robbing him outright!

It should be understood that even if the residence for visiting relatives was built in a very simple manner, it was still a considerable project for the construction workers. It needed to be inspected by the royal family, and anything that was not up to standard or did not meet the requirements would simply not pass the inspection.

The amount of high-quality materials required for this is truly enormous.

Putting everything else aside, even the simplest provincial residence would cost at least 100,000 taels of silver to build.

The cost of craftsmen is not high; the biggest expense is the cost of materials.

For some reason, Rongfu, which has always been quite enthusiastic about building a separate residence for visiting relatives, has recently seen very little related information, as if it has lost interest in the project.

How can it be?

Putting aside everything else, every day when Jia Huan returned to the mansion, Aunt Zhao would ramble on about it, and at least three or four out of ten sentences would be related to the Imperial Visit Residence.

It's not hard to guess from their words that the old lady and Madam Wang definitely intend to build a separate residence for visiting relatives.

However, they couldn't make up their minds about where to build it for the time being.

According to Aunt Zhao, there were quite a few places to choose from, but both of the eldest sons of the Rong family felt there were some issues. They wanted to achieve perfection, so naturally, the process couldn't be rushed.

Jia Huan could only chuckle. Since the Second Master Zheng hadn't taken the initiative to ask for his opinion, he naturally wouldn't be too proactive, lest he appear to have ulterior motives.

What intrigued him most was not this, but rather his bewilderment at the current emperor's thoughts.

In the past year, regardless of other places, the northern region near Beijing has enjoyed favorable weather and abundant harvests, without the natural disasters and man-made calamities that occurred in previous years.

Although the imperial treasury's revenue was always tight, it was still able to barely keep the system running.

In other words, the current emperor's private treasury no longer needs to be emptied of silver, nor is it lacking in silver.

After all, even the Ning and Rong manors have such large estates, so the number of imperial estates and the area of ​​land owned by the emperor must be quite staggering, without even a thought.

If the annual income handed over was not several hundred thousand taels, Jia Huan would twist his head off and use it as a ball to kick around.

Not to mention, the emperor had other sources of income, so his private treasury was never short of silver.

It's not just tens of millions of taels, it's definitely several million, and that's the kind of money that can be drawn from at any time.