The destiny of all heavens begins in the Red Chamber

Now that he knew the Rong family was in such a state, he completely gave up on the idea.

Unless he can completely control the Rong Mansion, taking action against the heads of the eight major estates would be tantamount to going to war with Grandmother Jia and Second Madam Wang, leaving no room for maneuver.

To be honest, this is quite difficult!

The one who should really be worried is Jia Lian, who is qualified to inherit the Rong Mansion!

He was overthinking things as an unimportant illegitimate son, showing a bit of the "the emperor isn't worried, but the eunuch is" attitude.

At this moment, he actually discovered that the Ning family was quite easy to manage!

You Shi and Qin Keqing from the Ning Mansion could only participate in internal affairs management. They were at least completely clueless about what was happening outside.

At this time, Jia Zhen was paralyzed and unable to manage external affairs, while Jia Rong, with his gentle and mild-mannered nature, was easy to control.

The key point is that the Ning family doesn't have that many mothers-in-law who interfere in everything!

Of course, he can think about it, but he has no immediate plans and will have to wait and see.

Jia Huan guessed correctly; Jia Lian was indeed quite anxious this time, returning to his residence looking completely dejected.

He hadn't felt anything before, but now, after Jia Huan's reminder, he realized that the Rong Mansion wasn't as glamorous as it seemed on the surface, and had even reached a rather dangerous point.

"Oh, what's wrong with Second Master?"

Soon, Wang Xifeng finished her chores in the mansion and served the old lady her dinner before returning to her residence in the afterglow of the setting sun.

Unexpectedly, upon entering, he saw Jia Lian looking completely lost and dejected.

Wang Xifeng was quite puzzled. Today seemed to be the day to collect her share of the profits at the Sihai Gambling House. Why did it feel like she had been hit on the head? Could it be that her money had been robbed?

"Second Grandma has something to ask you!"

Upon seeing Wang Xifeng return, Jia Lian, disregarding his conversation with his wife, earnestly asked, "Is the public treasury almost depleted?"

"Second Master, why are you suddenly asking this?"

Wang Xifeng's expression stiffened, and she said awkwardly, "Today is the day Second Master goes to the gambling den to collect his share of the winnings. Do you intend to try and skim off public funds?"

The more he spoke, the louder his voice became, and towards the end, his eyebrows were slightly raised and his tone was sharp.

"All the dividends are here!"

Without saying a word, Jia Lian threw a stack of silver notes on the table and said irritably, "Second Madam, I really have something to ask about the public funds!"

In the past, he would definitely have argued with Wang Xifeng, but he wasn't in the mood for it at all right now.

Wang Xifeng was taken aback. She picked up the silver notes on the table and counted them; there were a full one hundred and twenty taels. That was twenty taels more than usual. She immediately understood what had happened: Jia Lian had been hiding some money from his family.

She was angry and wanted to vent her anger, but seeing Jia Lian's serious face, she couldn't help but ask suspiciously, "Second Master, what's wrong with you? Alright, alright, I'll tell you, okay? There are already several thousand taels of silver in the public treasury!"

Speaking of this, she couldn't help but say with a headache, "Life is really tough!"

"After that, there's the Ghost Festival, the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Emperor's Birthday, and New Year's Day. Which of these festivals doesn't require spending thousands of taels of silver? And that doesn't even include the monthly allowances for the many servants in the household!"

He added grumbling, "I don't know what's going on, but the public funds are dwindling, while the household expenses aren't decreasing at all, and there are even signs of them increasing!"

"What's even more infuriating is that the government's income is declining year by year!"

boom!

Wang Xifeng started complaining, but was interrupted by a muffled thud.

Looking towards the source of the sound with a displeased expression, he saw Jia Lian slumped into a chair, looking as if he had no bones, his face full of dejection and even a hint of despair.

"Second Master, what's wrong with you? Don't scare me!"

Wang Xifeng was startled. Forgetting about causing trouble for Jia Lian, she anxiously asked him repeatedly.

Jia Lian ignored his wife and kept muttering, "It's all over, it's all over now, the Rong family can't be saved either!"

Chapter 108 Greed for Power and Influence (Please Subscribe)

Snapped!

Jia Lian felt a sharp pain in his arm, which jolted him out of his dejected mood.

"Second Grandma, what are you doing?"

He rubbed his arm where he had been hit, his tone somewhat annoyed, and his eyes quite dangerous.

"I should be asking you that too! What nonsense were you spouting, Second Master?"

Jia Lian's reaction infuriated Wang Xifeng even more, and she said irritably, "What do you mean 'it's all over'? If the old lady hears this, you'll be in big trouble!"

Hey!

Normally, upon hearing the words "old lady," Jia Lian would certainly restrain his emotions and show respect.

But now, ignoring Wang Xifeng's threat, he suddenly asked, "If the public funds run out of money, has Second Madam thought about what to do?"

"What else can we do but try to make money?"

Wang Xifeng chuckled lightly, saying dismissively, "If we're willing, the manor can still make some money!"

"how to do?"

Jia Lian pressed further, "Did you secretly sell the antique ornaments in the mansion?"

"Second Master, what are you saying?"

Wang Xifeng's face changed drastically, and she said angrily, "I'll use my own dowry to make up for it, how could I do something so disgraceful?"

"What's wrong? Why did this commotion start all of a sudden?"

Hearing the commotion, Ping'er hurriedly went into the house to check the situation and scolded, "Even though we're at home, you two should still control your tempers. Can't you talk things out properly?"

"Ask my good second master what nonsense he just said?"

Wang Xifeng was still furious; Jia Lian's words had hurt her pride.

Of course, the rebuttal that came out of her mouth was also a temporary solution she had been thinking about frequently lately.

"Second Master, what's wrong with you? Why are you taking your anger out on Grandma as soon as you get back?"

Ping'er questioned Jia Lian with some dissatisfaction: "Grandma is busy all day long, she's working so hard!"

"I admit I was wrong, okay?"

Jia Lian realized that he had spoken without thinking, and quickly patted his cheeks lightly.

The next moment, however, his tone changed, and he said repeatedly, "My dear Second Grandmother, you must not make a mistake!"

Seeing Wang Xifeng's expression change drastically, he hurriedly waved his hand, signaling that he should finish speaking first: "Never use your dowry to supplement the public funds, that's a bottomless pit, no amount of money can fill it!"

At this point, he deliberately lowered his voice and said, "If it's really a last resort, then take the decorations in the mansion out to exchange for silver first. Don't try to put on a show of wealth when you're not, or you'll end up getting yourself into trouble!"

Now it was Wang Xifeng and Ping'er's turn to be surprised, and their gazes towards Jia Lian changed.

After a moment, seeing that Jia Lian looked serious and not joking, Wang Xifeng frowned slightly and waved for Ping'er to go out and guard the door, so that no irrelevant people would get close and eavesdrop.

After Ping'er left, she said in a gentle voice, "Second Master, what exactly happened? How could you say such a thing? You must tell me the truth!"

Jia Lian smiled wryly. To avoid Wang Xifeng making a mistake and actually doing something foolish like using her own dowry to supplement the public funds, he could only honestly recount his conversation with Jia Huan in detail.

"Well, so those village heads secretly gave all the public funds to the old lady and the second wife. No wonder they acted so arrogantly in front of me!"

Wang Xifeng slammed her hand on the table, her phoenix eyes almost shooting up in anger.

His sharp eyes were filled with burning rage.

It's important to understand that the output of the Rong family's eight major estates is one of the most important and stable sources of income for the family. Whether the family's coffers have any surplus at the end of the year depends entirely on the normal output of the eight major estates.

Now she knows that the main income of the eight estates has been secretly taken by the old lady and the second wife.

The Rong family's public coffers will definitely run into a deficit, and no one can withstand that in the long run.

"Calm down, calm down. Second Grandma, now you know how I felt, right?"

Jia Lian remained remarkably calm at this moment and quickly reassured her, "That's why I reminded Second Madam not to waste her own dowry on the public funds; it's simply not worth it!"

"What if the public school runs out of money?"

"If the old lady isn't worried about it, why are you?"

"But Second Master, you are the heir to this mansion. The entire Rong Mansion will be yours in the future!"

"Does Second Madam even believe what she's saying? What was my original state of affairs? Did I look like an heir?"

"We can't just give up and ruin everything. We have to maintain the dignity of the manor!"

"Like I said, if the old lady doesn't care, why should we, the younger generation, care?"

"Don't talk nonsense. What good would it do for Second Master if the Rong family fell apart?"

"Second Madam, that sounds nice, but the hole in the public treasury will only get bigger and bigger. What are you going to use to fill it?"

"There's always a way!"

"Second Grandma, I told you not to do anything shady. The old lady and the others haven't said anything, so don't rush to get involved!"

Jia Lian warned, "Those estate managers are not to be touched, and the monthly allowances for the manor must not be compromised!"

"The monthly expenses are hundreds or even thousands of taels of silver. When will this ever end?"

"But we can't just do nothing. I'm not going to give up my control of the household management so easily!"