The Black Chamber Dream: Daiyu's Revenge

“I advise you to calm down, Madam. Your daughter-in-law has come today and has something important to discuss with you.” With that, Baochai explained the current situation of Grandmother Jia. “Does Madam still remember that the imperial edict states that once the old lady is gone, the Rongguo Mansion will be taken back?”

"What?!" Madam Wang exclaimed in surprise, but she quickly calmed down. Yes, she remembered.

"So, do you have something in mind?" Madam Wang looked at Baochai. Now she understood her daughter-in-law and niece better than ever: if she didn't have something in mind, Baochai wouldn't have come at this time.

Baochai didn't beat around the bush and said directly, "Of course we need to find a house, but compared to finding a house, I'm afraid the real issue is dividing the family property."

The words "dividing the family property" immediately sparked an idea in Lady Wang's mind: although the title was gone, the family hadn't been confiscated, and all the treasures left by their ancestors were still there. Right, Grandmother Jia also had quite a bit of private property; she had to quickly find a way to get her hands on it. Now that Baoyu was gone, Grandmother Jia might not necessarily be biased.

Lady Wang thought for a while but still couldn't figure it out, so she continued to look at Baochai: "What are your thoughts on the matter of dividing the family property?"

Just as Baochai was about to speak, a message came from outside that Madam Xing had arrived.

With Madam Xing's arrival, Baochai naturally couldn't say what she was about to say.

Unexpectedly, Madam Xing went even further: "Her aunt and Bao'er, I heard that the old lady is very ill. My idea is that while the old lady is still alive, we should organize the things in the house so that we have a clear account, so that we won't have any trouble explaining things later, right?"

This means they're preparing for a family division.

Both Baochai and Lady Wang became alert at the same time.

Chapter 233 The Dispute Between the Two Families Causes Grandmother Jia's Death

Looking at the wary mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, Madam Xing couldn't help but think that the two of them might have just been discussing the family property. She was glad that she had barged in.

So, the smug Madam Xing immediately said directly, "These past years, you've been the ones managing things, so don't try to fool me."

Madam Wang looked down on Madam Xing's petty manner and immediately said, "Of course you don't need to worry about that, sister-in-law. You know perfectly well that the family's income has been far less than its expenses these past few years..."

Before she could finish speaking, Madam Xing interrupted her, saying with a half-smile, "That's right, the majority of it was spent by Your Highness, don't think I don't know anything. However, we can't hold you accountable for what you spent, but as for the estates, warehouses, and so on, even if I don't know the family's finances, our master certainly does."

Before Madam Wang could speak, Madam Xing added, "By the way, especially the things at the old lady's place. The old lady can't speak now, but she's still sensible. In my opinion, it would be better to tear them up in front of her. What do you say, Auntie?"

Not only Lady Wang, but Baochai was also taken aback. She hadn't expected Lady Xing to be so clever, immediately thinking of the treasure that belonged to the old lady.

Seeing that Madam Wang had no idea how to refute, Baochai quickly spoke up: "Aunt, it's not that I, your niece-in-law, wanted to bring this up, but the old lady is still here. If we bring up the matter of dividing the family property like this, wouldn't it make the old lady feel bad? If word gets out, people will say that our family is unfilial."

"Whether you're filial or not, it's all just empty talk. If you were truly filial all these years, how could you have done everything that made the old lady so sad? You even forced Baoyu to become a monk. If Baoyu hadn't become a monk, would the old lady be so heartbroken and fall into this state? It's all your fault. Now you think about being filial, but it's too late." Madam Xing was clearly prepared, so Baochai's words did not deter her in the slightest.

Baochai was struck on a sore spot by Madam Xing's words. She immediately raised her head and stared at Madam Xing. After a moment, she lowered her head and said, "Aunt, I wonder what Uncle and Brother Lian would say about these words? Brother Lian is now a prefect. If such an unfilial act were to happen in the prefect's family, I'm afraid the Censorate would find out, which would be detrimental to Brother Lian's career."

Madam Xing was completely clueless about official matters. Upon hearing Baochai's words, her heart skipped a beat: this was not something she had considered. It seemed unlikely that she would be able to get ahead of herself and would have to go back and ask her husband.

Thinking this, Madam Xing immediately said, "Don't try to scare me with this. No matter what, the old lady is gone, and the division of the family property is inevitable."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Baochai immediately said to Madam Wang, "Madam, I'm afraid that what the eldest madam said just now wasn't just her opinion. You must make it clear to the master. The master usually doesn't care about these things, but we can't let the eldest master have all the credit, otherwise everyone will have a hard time in the future."

"Do you need to tell me? You hurry up and find Amber. The important thing is to find a way to get the old lady's private vault key." Madam Wang gritted her teeth. Now that things had come to this, she couldn't care less about anything else.

When Madam Xing returned to the main courtyard, she immediately told Jia She what Xue Baochai had said. Upon hearing this, Jia She was furious and scolded Madam Xing: "You fool, you fool! Lian'er is an official outside, and the second son is also an official in the court. If the second son is not afraid, what are we afraid of?"

Madam Xing then realized, "Oh, right, Jia Zheng is also an official."

“I think you don’t need to go now. You’ll just get fooled anyway.” Jia She was speechless at Madam Xing’s stupidity. After thinking for a while, he decided to go there himself, depending on the time.

Judging that Jia Zheng had also returned from the yamen, Jia She went straight to Grandmother Jia's room: it was best to tear up Grandmother Jia's private treasury and the household account books in front of Grandmother Jia.

When Jia She arrived, he saw that Grandmother Jia was sleeping soundly. He called her name a few times but received no response, so he became even bolder.

"Amber, go, go and invite the Second Master here." Jia She spoke, and Amber was startled by Jia She's gaze, daring not to disobey.

But she quickly sent a message to Baochai through a maid. Amber thought to herself, "Grandmother Jia is almost gone, and the eldest master was the kind of person who wanted Yuanyang as a concubine. After all I can say, it's probably better for me to stay with the second master. At worst, I can just resign and leave."

Upon hearing this, Baochai quickly went to invite Lady Wang: her father-in-law was usually uninvolved in affairs, and he was afraid he wouldn't get the better of Jia She, who was so unreasonable and argumentative. Since she was a junior, after careful consideration, it seemed most appropriate to ask Lady Wang for help.

Baochai personally helped Lady Wang inside, and they overheard Jia She talking to Jia Zheng in a very detailed manner about how much money the family had spent on the Empress over the years.

“We dare not accept what you say, sir. The money that the Empress spends is also for the sake of this family. Otherwise, how could Lian’er have become an official? Lian’er’s promotion is also thanks to the Empress.” Madam Wang immediately spoke up.

Jia She rolled his eyes at her: "When men are talking, how can you women interrupt? Besides, Lian'er's official position is thanks to his uncle, and as for his promotion, it's because he did a good job as an official. How can it be attributed to the Empress? Don't try to embellish yourselves."

One sentence left Madam Wang speechless with anger.

“You don’t need to rush. I’m not the kind of person who’s unreasonable. Now that the old lady is sick, everyone is feeling bad, but things that need to be done still need to be done. I won’t interfere with personal treasuries anymore, but the fields and estates in this manor still need to be clearly divided. Also, we shouldn’t take too much of the old lady’s things. Half for each of the two households, that’s fine.” Jia She said, feeling thirsty, and asked Amber to bring him some tea.

Jia Zheng was stunned: "Brother, Mother is still alive, how can you do this? Won't this make Mother even more upset?"

They are currently in the main room of Grandmother Jia's house, and the old lady is lying in the room next door.

“Once Mother is gone, these things will be hard to sort out. Second brother, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but I can’t trust your wife. Over the years, she’s amassed a fortune through her role as the housekeeper. I won’t hold it against her.” Jia She certainly wouldn’t hold it against her, because he also had a lot of things in his private treasury. If he were to take them all out and divide them equally, he would probably be richer than Madam Wang. He couldn’t bear to part with them.

“What are you saying, sir? Didn’t your daughter-in-law manage the household before? What do you mean I made money?” Madam Wang immediately retorted loudly, “Sir, you spend even more on concubines and brothels.”

Without any reservations, Lady Wang no longer cared about what she was saying and exposed all of Jia She's secrets.

"Besides, if it weren't for your reckless behavior, sir, how come you couldn't even keep your title?" Madam Wang launched a full-scale attack.

Jia Zheng was stunned. What kind of faces did his family members have?

"Grandma...Grandma...What's wrong with you?" The maidservant who was watching over Grandmother Jia was frightened. She was horrified to see Grandmother Jia, who was clearly asleep, suddenly sit up, with two lines of tears on her pale face and her eyes wide open, as if she wanted to eat someone.

"Unfilial son!! Unfilial—" Grandmother Jia could no longer utter a sound, only a breathy sound came out of her throat, her hands stretched out in the air grabbing haphazardly.

Hearing the commotion, Jia She and the others rushed over and saw the old lady glaring at them before falling straight backward.

"old lady--"

Chapter 234 The Death of Grandmother Jia: Retribution is Justified

Although Grandmother Jia was delirious and not very lucid, in that brief moment of lucidity she heard what her eldest son and second daughter-in-law were saying, and she was so angry that she couldn't catch her breath, and she suddenly sat up.

What a terrible life she's lived! Instead of bringing prosperity to her family, they're constantly fighting and vying for things. What will become of them?

Grandmother Jia couldn't help but shed tears, and though she was about to lash out, she couldn't utter a word.

She reached out and grabbed at it, and then she lost consciousness.

Baochai mustered her courage and stepped forward to check the old lady's breathing. Suppressing her panic, she quickly sent someone to fetch a doctor.

"The old lady has passed away—" The doctor bowed to Jia She and Jia Zheng, "Please accept our condolences, gentlemen."

Amber was terrified: Could it be that the old lady was angered to death by them?

Baochai and Lady Wang rushed to the bedside and burst into tears.

Jia She and Jia Zheng were both stunned. Many thoughts flashed through Jia She's mind, but Jia Zheng said after calming down, "Now that Mother has passed away, elder brother, there is no need to fight for it. Let things be as they should be."

Jia Zheng lifted his foot to walk out, but Jia She quickly grabbed him, asking, "Second brother, what are you going to do?"

"My mother has passed away, so we should make the necessary arrangements. We can't just leave her lying here like this, can we?" Jia Zheng was extremely saddened, but he still had to step forward and take charge of everything.

"Don't just keep crying, you should hurry up and do what needs to be done," Jia Zheng instructed. "Be careful in all parts of the inner quarters."

Baochai immediately had an idea: Now that Grandmother Jia is gone, the house will definitely be taken back, but it's hard to say what the higher-ups' attitude will be towards the things inside. It would be better to take advantage of Grandmother Jia's funeral and take out as much as possible.

So Baochai quickly started to lead people to do things. Little did she know that the palace was so well-informed. The Jia family had just set up the mourning shed and hung the funeral banners on the outside of the shed when palace eunuchs arrived.

The one who came was not a familiar eunuch from the Jia family, but Li Zhong from the Empress's office. Baochai did have some impression of him; it was this same eunuch who came to confer the title of Crown Princess.

The gifts Li Zhong brought were offerings prepared by the Crown Princess. Jia She quickly invited Li Zhong to have tea, but Li Zhong shook his head and said, "This servant is here on orders. The Crown Princess mentioned to the Empress that now that the Old Madam has passed away, the household must be in a real mess, and there may not be enough manpower. So she sent this servant to bring twenty eunuchs to help the household run errands and do some work."

What does this mean? Jia She had a bad feeling, but he still had to be polite and thank the Crown Princess for her thoughtfulness.

Baochai was completely dumbfounded: This move completely blocked her original plan to secretly transport some valuables out of the country.

The Crown Princess is really ruthless.

Baochai told Wenxing to keep an eye out, and after discovering that there were two eunuchs sent by the palace at the main gate, she realized even more clearly that it would be harder than climbing to heaven to move the valuables out.

The Ningguo Mansion is long gone now. In the past, it occupied an entire street to make things convenient, but now the area is likely filled with the emperor's spies.

Despite feeling frustrated, helpless, and anxious, Baochai still had to be careful in her actions. Firstly, she couldn't give the eldest son's family any leverage, and secondly, she couldn't let the eunuchs from the palace laugh at her, otherwise, who knew what might happen?

Jia Lian and Wang Xifeng also traveled a long distance to return for the funeral.

But the family never expected that after the 49th day of the Taoist ritual for Grandmother Jia, when she was sent to the family temple, an imperial decree arrived.

The imperial decree had two parts. First, it ordered the repossession of the mansion, giving the Jia family a month to find new homes. This was expected, as the imperial decree had already addressed this issue when Jia She was stripped of his title.

But the second clause of the imperial edict left everyone dumbfounded.

The Rongguo Mansion originally owned several estates, all of which were bestowed by the imperial family. Now that the descendants of the Rongguo Mansion are unfilial and unable to inherit them, the Ministry of Revenue is to immediately reclaim them.

It's important to understand that the estates have been a significant source of income for the Jia family over the years. Although some of these estates were acquired by the Jia family over the years, it's still far less than the imperial rewards they received. It's also fair to say that the Jia family has been poor at managing their assets, only knowing how to squander their wealth without considering acquiring more property.

The Rongguo Mansion members were so stunned by the blow that they didn't dare utter a single word.

The officials sent by the emperor were clearly prepared. They took out a booklet that clearly recorded which of the Jia family's estates was bestowed by the emperor in which year and for what reason. Upon careful calculation, the number of estates recorded in the booklet accounted for more than half of the Rongguo Mansion's existing estates.

It must be said that the people sent by the emperor were efficient; everything was settled in less than half a day.

After seeing off the people sent by the emperor, Jia She immediately started clamoring for a quick division of the family property. He had done some calculations in his mind: now, in their eldest branch, Lian'er was working as a prefect outside, and they only had one child, Qiao'er, who didn't cost much money, while Lian'er's income was quite substantial.

The second branch of the family is quite different. Jia Huan is idle all day long, Jia Lan still has to study, and Bao Yu, that useless boy, ran away long ago. What's left are orphans and widows. The second son's meager income from his position in the Hanlin Academy is hardly enough.

So it's best to separate the family as soon as possible.

Jia Zheng was quite helpless, but the situation was what it was, and he couldn't say no to the division of the family. After sighing, he slowly said, "Since you want to divide the family, please invite your sister-in-law, Lian'er and his wife, and Baoyu's wife. Go and call Lan'er's mother over and bring all the family account books from these years. Huan'er is an adult now and should listen. Lan'er is studying at Yuntao Academy and is making great progress. Come and listen too."

Baochai quickly agreed, and on one hand, she asked Wenxing to invite Li Wan, and on the other hand, she brought over all the account books herself.

Jia She was stunned by his younger brother's imposing manner, and Jia Lian also realized that his uncle had become quite charismatic.

Seeing that Jia Zheng was indeed very fair, laying out all the remaining farms and shops in the family, Jia She didn't say anything more.

On the contrary, Madam Xing was dissatisfied and exclaimed, "How can this be? My sister-in-law and nephew's wife's things..."

Before she could finish speaking, Jia She interrupted her, saying, "Shut up! That's someone else's dowry. What business is it of yours?"

"Well, well, Lan'er's mother's place, a lot of it was given to her by the old lady because she was pitiful as an orphan and a widow. She received ten taels of silver a month." Madam Xing remembered again.

"You ignorant woman, that was given to you by the old lady. What's there to say?" It wasn't that Jia She didn't want it, but he felt that Jia Lan seemed to have some potential and might have a bright future. Why not make a good connection? Besides, he still had many things that his father had given him back then. It would be a waste to give them up as well.

Madam Xing had always been afraid of Jia She, and after being scolded twice, she obediently shut her mouth.

Actually, Jia Zheng was quite fair. Although the second branch of the family had many members, he didn't give them more than they deserved. Instead, he divided everything equally.

Lady Wang was very dissatisfied, but now that Jia Lian and Wang Xifeng were also present, there were many things she couldn't fool the couple about, so she had no choice but to give up.

After Jia She's family returned to the main courtyard, Jia Lian went up to his father to discuss future matters.