The Military Governor in Dream of the Red Chamber

Qin Ye looked at the letter in his hand and sighed.

He just couldn't understand it. Everything had been agreed upon, and everything seemed suitable, so why did things suddenly change?

This letter is from one of his friends.

His friend has a sixteen-year-old son. Qin Ye thought that the son was about the same age as his daughter. Although the son's official position was lower than his own, he was in a low-ranking government office and didn't have much power.

Thinking about it that way, the two families are actually quite a good match.

My friend was very optimistic about the relationship, and we were about to put the engagement on the agenda.

Just when Qin Ye thought the matter was settled, he unexpectedly received a letter of polite refusal.

In the past two years, Qin Ye has been politely rejected by several people.

Many of these deals went very well initially, and just when he thought they were going to be finalized, the other party would suddenly back out with various excuses.

What's wrong with my daughter?

Qin Ye considered him to be first-rate in both appearance and knowledge.

If there's any shortcoming, it's probably that he adopted the child from a nursing home, so the child isn't his biological child.

Is the other party looking down on their daughter's identity?

This doesn't make sense either. It's not a secret that their daughter was adopted; the other party couldn't possibly not have known beforehand.

Therefore, Qin Ye really couldn't understand it. Did his daughter really have no chance of getting married?

Just as Qin Ye was feeling somewhat angry and annoyed, a servant reported that Jia Zheng had come to visit.

This surprised Qin Ye greatly.

Although he and Jia Zheng were both officials in the Ministry of Works and both held the fifth rank, their social status was vastly different.

We don't usually have much contact; we just nod to each other when we meet at the office.

So when Jia Chen suddenly came to visit, he couldn't quite figure out the other party's purpose.

Even if something happened, he should have sent someone to inform him. He should have gone to visit Jia Chen.

……

Half an hour later, Qin Ye returned to his study.

His face was full of excitement as he sat down and then stood up again.

He had just met Jia Zheng, and he hadn't expected him to be there to arrange a marriage.

Over the years, he has encountered too many setbacks in his daughter's marriage.

He had never even considered the possibility of being a member of the Jia family.

Such a powerful and influential family, with two dukes in one family, was something he, a lowly fifth-rank official in a humble government office, could never even dream of.

Normally, even someone like him would look down on a centurion in the army.

Even if the rank of a centurion is a sixth-rank official.

Scholars are valued more than warriors.

But now that Jia Zheng has personally intervened, even if Jia Chen is just a collateral descendant of the Jia family, Qin Ye has to take him seriously.

Having been rejected many times before, what reason could he possibly have to refuse now that Jia Zheng had come in person?

Even though a centurion is an official in the army, the fact that Jia Zheng personally came to act as matchmaker shows that the Jia family thinks highly of Jia Chen.

There's no need to think too much about the future prospects.

So be it, he's a warrior. At least if my daughter marries him, life should be manageable.

After finally calming himself down, he couldn't help but walk towards his daughter.

After Jia Chen was brought home by his mother, Jia Shenshi, she had many questions for him.

Jia Chen could only explain to her one by one.

Especially the matter of being promoted to centurion.

"Father of the child, did you hear that?" Jia Shenshi's face was still flushed with excitement as she turned to look at Jia Gan's memorial tablet and said, "Chen'er is now a centurion."

This was something she never dared to dream of before.

Her only wish was for Jia Chen to be safe and sound; that was her greatest desire.

"Chen'er, you've returned to the capital garrison, haven't you? You're not leaving again, are you?" Madam Jia asked again.

"Mother, I have to go back to Datong Town in a few days..." Jia Chen hurriedly explained.

Upon hearing this explanation, his mother's tears welled up again.

Hearing that his son had to go back and would be working in Datong Town in the future, he thought, "That's so dangerous!"

Jia Chen comforted his mother again, which finally calmed her down.

"Thank goodness, sir. That's a very high-ranking official. It's a blessing that he appreciates you. You must work hard and try to be transferred back as soon as possible."

Ultimately, the capital is still the safest place.

Jia Chen nodded, indicating that he would find a way to come back.

Jia Shenshi quickly made Jia Chen a bowl of noodles with eggs and scallions, adding three eggs.

"Mother, aren't you going to eat?" Jia Chen asked.

"You eat, Mother has already eaten at the Jia residence," Jia Shenshi said with a smile.

Jia Chen didn't say anything more; he knew his mother was telling the truth.

Just as Jia Chen was eating, a servant from the Jia family came to deliver a message, saying that the madam wanted to see Jia Shenshi.

Jia Chen knew that the "Madam" the servant was referring to was Jia Zheng's wife, Lady Wang.

The second branch of the Rongguo Mansion was, after all, the actual power holder.

Without further hesitation, Madam Jia told Jia Chen to eat first and then hurried off to the Jia residence.

Jia Chen didn't think too much about it; it was unlikely to be a bad thing, and it was probably related to his promotion to centurion.

Jia Shenshi was preoccupied with worries the whole way, and she felt uneasy.

Although she didn't think it was a bad thing, the fact that her wife had summoned her still made her somewhat excited.

She usually only gets a glimpse of Madam Wang from afar, and rarely has the chance to speak with her.

Led by a servant, Jia Shenshi soon met Madam Wang, with Li Wan also in the room.

Madam Jia Shen hurriedly bowed.

"No need for formalities, please have a seat," Madam Wang said with a smile.

"You've given birth to a fine son," said Madam Wang after Jia Shenshi carefully sat down.

Jia Shenshi hurriedly stood up.

"Sit down, sit down. I've called you here today because I have some great news to tell you," Madam Wang said with a smile.

Originally, Jia Zheng wanted her to tell Li Wan about this, and then have Li Wan speak to Jia Shenshi.

However, Madam Wang realized that this matter was not simple, so she took charge of it herself.

"Yes, that's wonderful news," Li Wan said with a smile.

She still approves of Jia Shenshi's work, and is happy for Jia Shenshi when good things happen.

I never expected that Jia Shenshi's second son would be so successful.

Back then, it was she who put in a good word for me with Wang Xifeng that got me into the Beijing Garrison.

"Madam, what is the joyous occasion?" Madam Jia thought it was about her son's promotion to the rank of centurion, which was indeed a joyous occasion. However, since Madam Wang had not said, she did not want to make any wild guesses.

"Is Chen-ge'er sixteen this year?" Madam Wang asked.

"Yes, yes." Madam Jia nodded hurriedly.

It really was about his own son.

"He's not getting any younger, so we should start planning his marriage. I've heard that Chen-ge'er isn't engaged yet, but I have a family I like. I wonder if you'd be interested?" Madam Wang said.

Madam Jia was stunned; she hadn't expected it to be about her son's marriage.

I was just talking about this with Jia Chen.

"Yes, yes, whatever Madam chooses is definitely the most suitable," Madam Jia Shen immediately replied.

What's there to be unwilling about?

Among those working in the Jia household, how many could be matched with by Lady Wang herself?

This was an honor for their family, and Jia Shenshi was extremely excited.

I imagine that anything recommended by my wife must be of good quality.

She is naturally better than the daughter of the Hu family.

Madam Jia Shen still harbored resentment about this matter.

"Whether it's appropriate or not, I need to explain it to you in detail to see if you can accept it," Madam Wang said with a smile. "That's the daughter of Qin Ye, the Minister of Works, who is fifteen years old..."

Lady Wang's detailed introduction stunned Jia Shenshi.

When Madam Wang mentioned introducing a marriage proposal to Jia Chen, she already had many ideas in mind.

The most likely candidate is one of the maids in the household.

It was common for servants and maids to be paired up in the household.

Jia Shenshi would not have any complaints about this.

Both her future daughter-in-law and she herself worked in the Jia family, and they had a stable income every month, so there was still a lot to look forward to.

Moreover, the maids who could work in the Jia family were all top-notch in appearance and temperament when they were sent outside.

How could the daughter of the Hu family compare?

But she never expected that Madam Wang would introduce Jia Chen to the daughter of an official.