The Splendor of the Red Chamber

I don't know what Sheng Shulan said when she got back.

The next morning, Li said that it was inconvenient for the whole family to live in the Lin residence, and she planned to rent a small courtyard nearby and move out.

This time, Sheng Minglan did not listen to her and insisted on staying to accompany Lin Daiyu.

Li didn't insist. She went out for a stroll with Shengwei and quickly found a three-courtyard house that she liked.

The courtyard was rather cramped for the dozens of servants and masters of the Sheng family, and the furniture and belongings were not very complete, but the good thing was that there was a back door leading to a quiet alley.

Li only glanced around the back door before turning back and paying six months' rent.

Seeing her so impatient, disregarding all propriety and decorum, Sheng Wei, though not inwardly opposed, couldn't help but advise, "As the saying goes, haste makes waste. The young master will only leave after the coffin is sent back to Suzhou, so why are you in such a rush?"

"Didn't you see, sir?"

Li, waving her handkerchief with a radiant smile, exclaimed, "How many high-ranking officials and dignitaries have come in the last few days?! The prefect of Jinling, the prefect of Yangzhou, even Master Zhen from the Zhen family of Jinling came in person!"

To be allowed to sit in the side hall, one must at least be a fifth-rank official!

The Lin family now only has one orphan girl left. Aren't these people only here because of the Rongguo Mansion and because of Second Master Lian?

If our Shulan can give birth to a son as soon as possible and be included in the Rongguo Mansion's family genealogy, and then return to her parents' home, who would dare to treat us as ordinary merchants?!

Sheng Wei found this statement to be very reasonable.

He didn't say anything on the surface, but secretly sent people to bring all the fertility remedies, techniques, and images of Guanyin statues that he had prepared for Shulan to Yangzhou Prefecture.

The couple worked together and cleaned their new home in just half a day, then bid farewell to Jia Lian and Lin Daiyu before nightfall.

It's just a temporary move, not a real departure.

So Lin Daiyu said a few words to Li Shi and then ignored the mother and daughter.

Sheng Minglan was seen off by her aunt and cousin to the second gate. Then, while Li Shi and Sheng Wei were meeting up, she quietly pulled Shulan aside and said, "Sister, Second Master Lian's family has a shrewish wife. You must think carefully before you speak."

"How...how did you know?!"

Shulan was taken aback and looked at Minglan in disbelief.

"It's so obvious, only Sister Pinlan can't see it." Minglan said helplessly, "Anyway, Sister, you must think it through carefully, lest you escape one danger only to fall into another."

If Minglan had spoken up earlier, Shulan might have hesitated.

But the day before yesterday, in the inner study, she had already been thoroughly investigated by the patrolmen, and with the patient guidance of her mother, Li, she had long since come to regard herself as Jia Lian's woman.

He immediately replied seriously, "I believe the young master will make the arrangements."

Seeing her cousin's resolute attitude, Minglan didn't dare to persuade her any further. After seeing off the eldest son's family, she returned to the mourning hall dejectedly.

Zijuan was serving rice to Lin Daiyu when she saw Minglan return. She quickly brought her a bowl of chicken and millet porridge, saying, "It's fortunate that Miss Sheng and Second Master have been taking turns keeping her company. Otherwise, our young lady probably wouldn't have been able to eat these past few days."

"Thank you, Sister Zijuan."

Minglan dared not presume, and thanked Zijuan before accepting the bowl of porridge.

"Miss Sheng, you're too kind."

Zijuan then placed several small dishes in the middle, all of which were Minglan's favorite dishes. She explained, "Second Master understands that Miss Sheng is working hard, so he specially asked someone to inquire about Miss Sheng's tastes."

"Second Master Lian is very kind."

Minglan quickly put down the porridge and respectfully gave a curtsy.

After sitting down again, she held the chicken and millet porridge but seemed somewhat absent-minded.

Upon seeing this, Lin Daiyu waved her hand, signaling the maids to leave for the time being, and whispered, "As the saying goes, 'Good words cannot persuade a person destined for misfortune, and a devoted heart cannot win the heart of its beloved'—since they have already set their sights on Lian Erge, you don't need to worry about it anymore."

Seeing the Sheng family hurriedly moving out, how could Lin Daiyu not know that the two sides had already colluded?

Minglan's appearance clearly showed that her attempts to persuade her had failed.

Minglan said helplessly, "It's because your brother is too considerate. Even my father and brother might not know what I like to eat. If he's like this to me, he must be even more so to Sister Shulan..."

As he spoke, he couldn't help but shake his head and sigh.

Lin Daiyu stirred the porridge with a spoon and said, "Brother wasn't like this before. He only became enlightened after experiencing life-and-death ordeals and receiving blessings from our ancestors."

Now, they treat us girls as equals, and they even deal with servants and peddlers with patience.

As he spoke, he sighed and said, "But she still hasn't changed her lecherous ways. I don't know how many women she'll attract in the future. I can't help but feel sorry for Sister Feng."

As an outsider, Minglan naturally had a more open-minded view: "In this world, it is common for noble families to have three wives and four concubines. As long as they don't do foolish things like favoring concubines over their wives, it's fine."

Upon hearing this, Lin Daiyu hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped.

"Say whatever you want to say."

Minglan reached out and grasped Lin Daiyu's fair wrist, teasingly saying, "If you kept your thoughts to yourself, you'd probably get sick from bottling them up."

"I didn't!"

Lin Daiyu rolled her eyes coquettishly before saying, "Then I'll be blunt. Your birth mother was also a concubine, yet you always say we shouldn't favor concubines over wives. What kind of logic is that?"

"That's what my grandmother said."

Minglan didn't shy away from the topic and revealed that the previous generation of the Sheng family had neglected their wives because of favoring concubines, which ultimately led to the early death of their eldest son and the untimely death of their grandfather, who had achieved the third rank in the imperial examinations.

After hearing this, Lin Daiyu turned around and held Minglan's hand, saying, "Now we have another similarity. Your grandfather was a third-ranked scholar, and so was my father."

The two girls couldn't help but look at each other and smile.

Just then, Xueyan peeked in from outside. When Lin Daiyu saw her, she called out, "What is it?"

Xueyan then brought in a small clay pot and placed it on the low table, saying, "Second Master instructed that since the young lady sits on the ground all day, she is bound to be a bit damp. If she eats something cold, it may harm her stomach and lungs."

So he specially asked the kitchen to leave half a portion on the stove to simmer, so that if the girl didn't finish it in a short time, it could be quickly replaced with a hot one, or mixed together.

"My brother is really something."

Feeling Jia Lian's meticulous care, Lin Daiyu's eyes reddened slightly, but she said against her true feelings, "There are thick mats laid out here, how could I be cold?"

Minglan sighed inwardly, thinking that if Master Lian had shown even a fraction of the care he showed to Sister Shulan as he did to Lin Daiyu, it would have been enough to make Sister Shulan devoted to him.

She gave up on trying to dissuade the first wife from then on.

However, Sheng Wei and Li Shi waited anxiously at their new residence, but Jia Lian did not come to their door for several days.

It wasn't that Jia Lian had changed his lecherous nature, but rather because Wang Xifeng's older brother, Wang Ren, had arrived.

Wang Ren was on his parents' orders to return to his hometown of Jinling to take care of some matters and to visit his second uncle, Wang Ziteng.

Upon arriving in Jinling, he heard that Lin Ruhai had passed away and that his brother-in-law, Jia Lian, was in Yangzhou overseeing the funeral arrangements. So he rushed over to see if there was anything he could do to help.

Another thing is...

"Second son [imitating the title of Jia Zhen in Chapter 65]".

Wang Ren said with a face full of envy, "You must have made a lot of money this time, right? When we get back to the capital, you have to treat me to a nice meal at Fanlou."

Wang Ren was also lustful and greedy, and judging others by his own standards, he naturally thought that Jia Lian had taken advantage of him.

"What are you saying?"

Jia Lian retorted unhappily, "I have hands and feet, how could I possibly eat my own cousin's childless heir? If you don't believe me, I can swear on my oath!"

Wang Ren refused to believe it, glancing sideways and pursing his lips, "Fine, fine, you think you're so high and mighty! Just wait until my sister asks, then let's see if you dare to keep it a secret!"

Jia Lian ignored Wang Ren's words and changed the subject, asking about the situation in the capital.

Although Jia Zheng frequently wrote letters, given his political acumen and rigid, cautious nature, many things were never written down.

As expected, Wang Ren's account differed from Jia Zheng's.

"If we're talking about the most powerful and arrogant person in the capital lately, it has to be Prince Zhongshun. He doesn't dare to provoke the Grand Secretary who led the commotion over establishing an heir, but he's found excuses to deal with quite a few others who have jumped too high."

Prince Zhongshun was a distant relative of the imperial family. Later, when the current emperor was vying for the throne with Prince Yizhong, he, like Prince Teng, made meritorious contributions to the succession, and that's why he was granted the title of Prince Zhongshun.

Incidentally, Prince Yizhong was also given a posthumous title eight years ago; during the struggle for the throne, he was called Prince Jing.

Since the Song Dynasty, direct descendants of princes have always been given the title of "Prince of the First Rank." Changing Prince Jing's posthumous title to "Prince of Righteous Loyalty" was also a deliberate attempt to erase his status as an heir.

"Was this authorized by His Majesty?"

"It's hard to say."

Wang Ren shook his head and said, "But after His Majesty received the memorial impeaching Prince Zhongshun, he only punished him with three months' salary."

This means that regardless of whether it was the emperor's doing or not, the emperor was willing to endorse Prince Chungshun.

Clearly, the emperor was not in a hurry to establish an heir.

Moreover, judging from the way the emperor played polo with his young concubines, he might still be hoping for a late-blooming romance—it's not that a 46-year-old woman is completely infertile, it's just that the probability is relatively small.