Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Chapter 91 Jia Zhen's Speculation

Now Jia She has suddenly fallen seriously ill and is not far from death. No one knows this, and among the happiest people is Lady Wang.

In fact, Lady Wang had always had a worry in her heart. It was fine when Grandmother Jia was alive, but once Grandmother Jia passed away, she was afraid that Jia She would find a way to drive her and her husband out of Rongguo Mansion.

Although the family property was divided up during the time of the old Duke, the world is sometimes unfair.

Jia She inherited the title, and once Grandmother Jia dies, he will be the highest-ranking person in the Jia family. If he becomes unreasonable at that time, the couple will really have a hard time dealing with him.

Now that Jia She will die before Grandmother Jia, this is truly a blessing from heaven.

Although the title will most likely remain in the hands of the eldest son's family, at least as elders, they have an advantage over both Jia Lian and Jia Cong.

However, seeing Jia Zheng's carefree attitude and lack of any plans for the future, she still offered a reminder:

"His uncle harbored resentment, but he was unable to express it because the old lady was still alive."

"If the old lady passes away in the future, I'm afraid her uncle won't let us off the hook."

Unlike Lady Wang, Jia Zheng was incapable of lying through his teeth, so upon hearing this, he glanced sideways at Lady Wang.

I suspect you're joking. Judging by this, by the time the old lady passes away, the older brother's bones will be cracking loudly enough to make a sound.

Lady Wang, unconcerned by Jia Zheng's gaze, continued, "Since his uncle has this idea, I'm afraid Lian'er might have it too. I've observed that Lian'er's mind has matured recently, and he's even willing to learn from his ancestors and go to the battlefield to earn fame and fortune."

"If he inherits the title in the future and is unwilling to live in the east wing, but wants to return to live here, what do you suggest we do, sir?"

Jia Zheng's eyes also turned sorrowful.

Although he was aloof and disliked discussing personal gain, he knew that what Madam Wang said might not be impossible.

Putting yourself in Jia Lian's shoes, you might not be so willing to live in the side courtyard forever.

"Sigh, we'll have to wait and see. As his uncle, I've never mistreated him over the years. I'm sure he'll remember my kindness and won't openly turn against me for this."

Even if the old lady passes away, in the most difficult times, we will have no choice but to return some of the family property to him, and we will buy another house.”

Hearing this, Jia Zheng felt bad.

After all, he didn't steal or rob this business; it was given to him by his parents based on his performance when he was young, and he has enjoyed it for so many years. Naturally, he is reluctant to hand it over in his old age.

However, he also knew that he could rightfully inherit the family property, such as houses, shops, and estates elsewhere, because these things were not related to the title of nobility and were inherited by Jia Zheng from his parents.

Only this vast and magnificent imperial-built Duke's mansion—if the eldest branch of the family wanted it, he couldn't refuse.

In fact, Jia Zheng had even considered simply packing up his family's property and moving out, leaving the empty Rongguo Mansion to Jia She, to see how he would maintain the enormous expenses of the Duke's Mansion.

Ultimately, he felt that this was too bad, and he couldn't bring himself to disregard the Jia family's reputation just to see his brother make a fool of himself.

He even thought to himself, "It's not that I don't want to move out, but my older brother is just too wasteful. If he were to take over the family business, I'm afraid he would squander it all in no time."

Look, isn't there almost nothing left of the portion of the family property that the old lady gave him?

Although Madam Wang knew that even if they moved out of the Duke's mansion, they could still live well. In fact, the old lady had said that the private quarters in her room, which were exclusively hers, would eventually belong to Baoyu...

No one knew better than Lady Wang how generous Grandmother Jia's generosity was; it was probably more than the current treasury of the Rongguo Mansion!

Therefore, no matter what, they will not live a miserable life.

However, people always look upwards. Having been the mistress of the Duke's mansion for over ten years, how could she be willing to leave and become an ordinary official's wife?

"I heard from the master that Lian'er now has a proper official position. He is still young, and he may be promoted again in the future, so his future is bright."

But what about Baoyu? His future is uncertain, and he doesn't study as diligently as his elder brother. Do you think it would be possible to let Baoyu inherit the family's title?

Madam Wang spoke lightly, making it seem as if she wasn't paying much attention.

Nobility and official positions are both forms of official status, and they are the foundation upon which families like theirs stand.

Take Jia Zheng for example. Although he had no noble title, he was a legitimate official and still held considerable power. He was in no way inferior to Jia She.

From what she said, it was like two brothers, one of whom was successful and could earn an official position on his own, while the other was weaker, so the parents were biased and gave the official position in the family to the weaker one.

However, Jia Zheng saw through his wife's improper intentions at a glance!

His face immediately darkened, and he rebuked, "Don't say it's impossible. Even if it were possible, I won't allow you to even think about it!"

If word gets out, I, Jia Cunzhou, will be utterly disgraced!

Jia Zheng valued his reputation highly. Even though his father did not pass on the title to him, he was only disappointed for a while before letting it go.

In his mind, studying, passing the imperial examinations, serving his father and emperor, and leaving a good name for posterity were the right paths.

Therefore, he forced his sons to study. Whether it was Jia Zhu, Jia Baoyu, or Jia Huan, his expectation for them was to study hard and make progress so that they could enter officialdom through the imperial examinations in the future.

As for titles, it's good to have them, but it's not a big deal if you don't.

Those are shortcuts taken by unambitious people.

For example, Jia Lian in the past only studied casually because he knew that there was a title to inherit. He didn't need to take the imperial examination to enter officialdom anyway, and he just waited to live a life of wealth and honor like his father and wait to die.

Jia Zheng looked down on such people.

Now, Lady Wang actually wanted to instigate him to seize the title of the eldest son's wife so that her son Baoyu could also take a shortcut. These words, which offended his pride, made him very angry.

"As for Baoyu, I have already decided his future. He can only enter officialdom through the imperial examination."

What kind of title? Can such a thing last forever?

The blessings of a virtuous person last only five generations. Only by passing down knowledge and literature can a family's legacy truly endure.

Throughout history, which sages and prime ministers who assisted the country and governed the people achieved their lasting achievements through inherited titles?

Even if Baoyu fails the imperial examination in the future, it can only be blamed on your excessive pampering. He himself is incompetent and will live a poor life, so he can't blame anyone else.

"You actually thought of telling Lian'er to give up her title to Baoyu?"

Jia Zheng reprimanded Lady Wang without holding back.

Lady Wang had already considered this outcome before speaking, so she didn't care too much. Seeing that Jia Zheng's attitude was really firm, she didn't say anything more, skipped the matter, and asked about Xue Pan's lawsuit.

Whether a son is good or not needs to be compared. If he is compared with Pan'er, Jia Zheng might be much more satisfied with Baoyu.

……

In Ningguo Mansion, Jia Zhen, because of a rumor that had circulated in the mansion a year ago, had to put aside his wicked thoughts and exempt Qin Shi from her regular visits to the palace in order to avoid suspicion.

However, he was not someone who could control his desires for long. Recently, seeing Qin Shi becoming more and more charming, he couldn't help but feel restless and gradually intensified his efforts to please her.

He believed that as long as Rong'er and Qin Shi were not allowed to have a marital relationship, women would all miss men if they were lonely for too long.

With his sweet talk and flattery, it's not impossible that he might win the heart of the beauty.

As for using force, he naturally wouldn't consider it before his seduction failed. Besides, he wouldn't dare to use force.

The marriage was arranged for Qin Shi to be his great-granddaughter-in-law, but this was done while his grandfather was still alive, when Qin Shi was just an infant.

He himself was unsure whether the people behind the Qin family were still paying attention to them.

Therefore, his threats to Jia Rong were only half true.

As his actions became increasingly blatant, he believed that anyone in the Qin family who wasn't stupid would see through his intentions. However, although the Qin family didn't cater to him, they also didn't seem to intend to reprimand him, which secretly excited him.

Just as he was preparing to take his daughter-in-law down in one fell swoop, some damned person, of all people, had to offend Jiao Da, who was drunk.

There were still guests that night when Jiao Da, oblivious to his own mortality, started cursing loudly in the South Garden. He asked Jia Rong to intimidate him, but Jiao Da turned around and cursed both of them.

The famous saying, "A bunch of worthless beasts, cheating on their lovers, keeping their husbands' mistresses," was spread, and his face turned green at the time.

Not too early, not too late, just at the crucial moment, they extinguished all his enthusiasm.

He felt as if there was a pair of eyes watching him from the shadows, seemingly able to read his mind!

Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence? In his anger, he sent Jiao Da to the village in the south a few days later.

In truth, he secretly wished he could kill that old bastard.

But he dared not, for a simple reason: Jiao Da was his ancestor's personal guard and had saved his ancestor's life!

When he held no official position and enjoyed wealth and status solely due to the legacy of his ancestors, he dared not bear the reputation of being ungrateful. Therefore, despite hating him to death, he simply sent him far away.

"By the way, who was he cursing about, the younger brother-in-law?"

Jia Zhen was quite perceptive; he knew that "pa hui" was an insult directed at him, and what did "keeping a younger brother-in-law" refer to?

Jia Zhen did not suspect You Shi, because in his mind You Shi was very timid and would never dare to betray him.

Could it be the Qin family...?

Jia Zhen thought it was very likely. After all, Qin Shi gave him the feeling that she was much more charming than You Shi. Such a woman, if she did not receive the nourishment of her husband after marriage, might not be able to bear the loneliness.

He was very unhappy. Had all his hard work been for nothing, only to benefit someone else? It seemed he needed to find an opportunity to give Qiang'er a good beating and ask her if she had indeed taken his fruits!

If Qin were to raise a younger brother-in-law, it would undoubtedly be Jia Qiang.