The Second Master of the Red Chamber

The back office of Yingtian Mansion is an inner hall.

Jia Yucun quickly flipped through and checked the files in his hand, checking for gaps and making up for omissions, his face was sometimes joyful and sometimes sad.

Suddenly, I heard a clear and beautiful voice, "Master won the examination last year, didn't it mean that he can enter Beijing early for his promotion? This is a happy event, why doesn't the master seem very happy?"

Jia Yucun turned his head to look and found that it was his wife, so he sighed: "Although he will leave the post in less than three years, he doesn't know whether his future will be good or bad.

Although there are many central yamen, there are more dignitaries with backgrounds and family backgrounds. People like me who have no roots go to Beijing, I am afraid it will be difficult to fill important positions.

It's better to be a parent official on this side and feel at ease. "

Jia Yucun shook his head as he said, if someone who is not familiar with him, listen to his words, I'm afraid they really think that he is not pure, uncontested, and indifferent to fame and fortune, a refined literati.

The woman next to him seemed to be only in her 20s, with a slender figure and a delicate appearance.Although she is not a very beautiful woman, coupled with the appearance of an official wife and her gentle and gentle temperament, she is quite amorous.

He saw what Jia Yucun was thinking, but he didn't say much. He just put down the soup in his hand, walked behind Jia Yucun, and gently carried his shoulders, and then said softly: "Master, you don't have to worry too much. Knowledge and talent, after arriving in the capital, will definitely be reused by the court. Maybe, from now on, the master will be able to set foot in the center and realize the ambition of the master in his life."

Jia Yucun's eyes flashed, and then it disappeared. After thinking for a while, he said: "At the beginning, I was able to make up for this place, but I relied on the power of the Jia's and Wang's houses in Beijing. It can't be said that I have to rely on them when I come to Beijing this time." It is."

When the woman heard the words, she immediately laughed and said: "I heard from the master that the Wang family and the Jia family in Beijing are becoming more and more powerful in Beijing. If they can help the master, the master will have a secure foothold in Beijing. In addition, Master's ability, since he will be on the top of the sky, he will gain a foothold in the court in the future, and assist the country and govern the people."

Jia Yucun also laughed, and patted his wife's hand backhand.

Speaking of which, the reason why he straightened her up right after the original wife died was because she was smart and could speak.

In fact, with this woman's background, she was not qualified to be his wife and receive the status of third-rank imperial order.

"Speaking of my two benefactors, it's really not easy. They were originally two of the four major families in the old capital. If it weren't for that, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to make it up here so easily.

According to the news from Beijing, they have indeed become more glorious in the past two years.

That Wang family master, when I came to Beijing as a candidate, I served as the military governor of the Beijing camp, and later I heard that I was promoted to be the governor of the nine provinces, from the official to the first rank, which is already the pinnacle of a military officer.And I heard that he quelled the Tatar rebellion, and he was one of the few ministers in the imperial court with great power.

The Jia family is even more unusual, the eldest lady is now a noble concubine in the harem, and a relative of the emperor.That's all, there is an even more remarkable person in his family, who has already been named a Marquis by virtue of his military exploits in only a weak year. He is one of the most reliable and trustworthy people around him today.

Speaking of which, I still have a relationship with this person.It's a pity that when I met him at the beginning of the year, although I thought he was a good person, after all, he was not well-known at the time, and I was dedicated to the cause of recovery. It is a pity that I will have time to make friends with him. "

In Jia Yucun's words, there was an obvious sense of regret.

"The master said, but that Lord Zhenyuan, who escorted the princess of the dynasty to go out of the Great Wall last year?"

"Oh, you know him too?"

"Hehehe, master forgot, you have mentioned this person to my concubine before. Besides, I have also heard discussions from other eunuchs in Jinling City. Speaking of which, the reputation of that person has spread all over the world. It's hard for a concubine not to know."

While the husband and wife were chatting, there was a servant outside the main gate who reported: "My lord, just now the Prime Minister of Caifu sent someone to say that Lord Zhenyuan of Jingzhong is visiting, please go out and meet him quickly!"

Jia Yucun and his wife were stunned for a while, after confirming, Jia Yucun stood up quickly and went out the door without saying a word.

When he arrived at the main hall, he saw that it was indeed Jia Lian. Jia Yucun hurriedly stepped forward to pay respects, but the other party was one step ahead of him and said with a smile: "Hehe, Master Jia, long time no see."

"In front of the Marquis, how dare a lower official call you big. When I was in Beijing, I was supported and taken care of by the old man of your government. Thanks to my gratitude, I once recognized the old man as the uncle and performed the ceremony of the younger generation.

If Hou Ye doesn't dislike it, then the current official is a family member, and he can just call the next official by his name. "

"Hehehe, since that's the case, I'll ask you to call you 'Brother Yucun'?"

Jia Yucun originally wanted to make friends with Jia Lian. Seeing Jia Lian accept it, his expression immediately became happy, and he said with a smile: "Brother Lian, please take a seat."

"Okay, Brother Yucun, please."

So the two sat together, and only divided the host and guest by left and right.

During the polite conversation, everyone was friendly and friendly, as if they were really brothers of the same family.

In fact, Jia Yucun is already forty years old, while Jia Lian is only in his early twenties, so the age difference is fully doubled.

When Jia Lian first entered this world, he still sneered at Jia Yucun, wishing he could get rid of him quickly.

Now that he has been in the officialdom for many years, he has gradually realized a lot. People like Jia Yucun are just the norm in the officialdom.

If it is necessary, let it go, if it is not necessary, it may be better to keep it.

With his fame as a second-class Jinshi, more than ten years of ups and downs in the officialdom, his own outstanding talents, and his connection with the Jia family... he is really the best candidate to be the outside minion of the Jia family!
Of course, it also depends on who will control it.

In the original book, after the Zhongjia Mansion operated Jia Yucun to the position of Shuntian Mansion, Jia She's pustule was very close to Jia Yucun, but it was only played by Jia Yucun on the applause and became a stepping stone for him to climb to the top. Backlash against the Jia family.

Of course Jia Lian would not let this happen.

Although Jia Yucun's current official position is good and has reached the third rank, its foundation is still very weak and can be exploited.If there is a threat in the future, it will not be too late to get rid of it.

Of course, this is something to be considered later, but today he has something to ask for.

After being polite, Jia Lian said to Jia Yucun: "Brother Yucun must also know that when I was in Nanjing, I rescued a girl from a kidnapper.

After my questioning, the girl recalled that her hometown was Suzhou, she lived in Shili Street, and her father's surname was Zhen.Asked about the specific address, I only know that there is a small temple next to my home.

Later, I accidentally learned from an old acquaintance of Brother Yucun that Brother Yucun lived in Shili Changjie in Suzhou before he failed in the gold list, and he was having an affair with a family named Zhen.

From that person's mouth, he only knew that because of a fire in the Zhen family, the people who burned it scattered away, and he didn't know the whereabouts of that family.

I came here this time just to ask Brother Yucun, if you have any news here, please let me know if there is any news, I will be very grateful. "

Jia Yucun was very surprised when he heard this.

First of all, he has never told anyone about his "living" in Suzhou before he became a Jinshi.After all, that was when he was at his worst. Jia Lian politely said that he was living here as a guest, but in fact he knew that it was wandering.

Jia Lian was able to meet his old acquaintance, and knew about it?
Second, there is a temple next to the house in Shili Street, Suzhou, and the surname is Zhen. It must be the Zhen Shiyin family back then.

Of course he also knew that the only daughter of the Zhen family was abducted by kidnappers back then.And the Zhen family was also involved in a fire in the Gourd Temple, and their family assets were burned, and they moved to another place from then on.

As for the fact that Jia Lian saved a girl from a kidnapper, he also knew.After all, he came to Beijing with a group of Jia's family who picked up Daiyu, so he had heard about it, but he had never seen the girl.

How could he have imagined that there would be such a coincidence in the world that that girl was actually the daughter of the benefactor Zhen Shiyin?

This could not but make Jia Yucun feel a kind of awe of God's will in the dark.

Not to mention Zhen Shiyin's kindness to him in the past, but to say that later when he was an official in Daruzhou, when he accepted his maid Jiao Xing from Zhen Shiyin's wife, Fengshi, he also promised to find her daughter.

Although he had long forgotten about it these years, who knew that Jia Lian would come to ask about the Zhen family today.

Taking a deep breath, Jia Yucun said: "Few people know about the fact that my foolish brother lives in Suzhou. Dare to ask Brother Shi, who is my old friend?"

Seeing the change in Jia Yucun's demeanor, Jia Lian smiled inwardly.

"His name is not worth mentioning. You may not know it. He only said that he used to be a young monk in the Gourd Temple in Suzhou. He was destined to serve Brother Yucun for a while."

When Jia Yucun heard the words, he guessed that it should be one of the young monks in the Gourd Temple that day, but he couldn't remember which one.

After all, it was more than ten years ago, and he never cared about a few young monks.

It's just that I feel a little uncomfortable in my heart. Presumably Jia Lian also knows that he was so downcast that he lived in a temple.

Knowing the origin of Jia Lian's news, Jia Yucun didn't hesitate any more, and said bluntly: "I dare not hide it, brother, when I was in Suzhou that day, Yu did meet a squire, surnamed Zhen, named Fei, named Shiyin.

The Zhen family did have a daughter who was abducted by a kidnapper when she was three or four years old.

It's just that I don't know why Shixiong inquired about the whereabouts of the Zhen family? "

"To be honest, the woman I saved back then is now a concubine by my side. I like it very much, so I want to find relatives for her and talk to comfort her. So, if Brother Yucun knows the whereabouts of Zhen's family, what do you do?" Please feel free to let me know.”

"Hahaha, Brother Shi is indeed a man of temperament, and he is willing to take the trouble to find a relative for a concubine. Brother Yu admires him very much."

Jia Yucun laughed, knowing that the opportunity to make friends had come.

"As it happens, I do know the whereabouts of Zhen's family.

After I was lucky enough to win the prize, I was released as an official by the imperial court and served in Daruzhou. Then I met the lady of the Zhen family. After inquiring, I found out that after I left Suzhou that year, the daughter of the Zhen family was abducted. The fire burned out, so I moved to my father-in-law's house.

I also met the daughter of the Zhen family that day, and I also thought of the kindness of the Zhen family that day, and mobilized people to help the Zhen family find their daughter, but I have been unable to find any clues.I was still secretly ashamed and regretful that such a well-behaved and lovely lady fell into the hands of a kidnapper, and the rest of my life would be miserable.

Who knew that Miss Zhen's family was able to be rescued by her elder brother, now that she has been promoted by her elder brother, it seems that all hardships have been rewarded, and the time has come. "

This is turning a corner and patting his horse. Jia Lian just smiled and didn't answer.

"As for the members of the Zhen family, I heard later that Zhen Shiyin traveled with a wild Taoist monk, while the lady of the Zhen family has always lived in her parents' home.

Now that so many years have passed, I don't know whether it is still in the same place.

However, if Shixiong needs it, I can immediately send someone to Daru Prefecture to invite the lady from the Zhen family.It's just that the journey back and forth is not short, and it may take some time to get results. "

"Brother Yucun just needs to tell the detailed address of the mother's home of the Zhen family, and I will send someone to find it. I don't dare to bother Brother Shi."

Jia Lian deliberately showed some joy on his face, and said so.

Although Jia Yucun wanted to serve Jia Lian very much, but when he heard Jia Lian like this, he was still not stubborn. He asked someone to fetch a pen and paper, wrote down the address carefully, and told Jia Lian what route to take and how to find people when he got there.

After Jia Lian thanked them one by one, he wanted to leave.

"Daddy~"

While the curtain was ringing, a seven or eight-year-old girl suddenly ran out from the back hall.

Originally, she was going straight to Jia Yucun, but when she suddenly saw a stranger sitting next to Jia Yucun, she was a little stunned and stopped.

When Jia Yucun saw the person coming, his face immediately showed knowing joy. He smiled and said to Jia Lian: "This is a little girl. I have been spoiled by me. I don't know how to be polite. Please don't blame me."

Then, he taught the girl to go up to Jia Lian.

It's not that Jia Yucun's tutor is incompetent, and his daughter interrupts him when he meets guests.One is that he wholeheartedly attached himself to Jia's family, so he knew that Jia Lian's visit was not received in the front hall or side hall, but in the main hall according to the etiquette of family friends.

Behind the main hall is the inner courtyard, and his youngest daughter has always been favored by him, so it is not surprising that she ran out.

In addition, if the daughter is older, there is still a taboo to speak out.It's just a young girl, so she can introduce it generously, and it can also enhance the friendship between the two families.

Sure enough, under the guidance of Jia Yucun, the little girl put away her stubborn form, stepped forward in small steps, and obediently greeted Jia Lian, saying: "Yuchai, I have met Uncle Shi."

Jia Lian didn't pay much attention at first. Although the little girl was very cute, Jia Yucun was already good-looking. If she took another beautiful wife and concubine and gave birth to such a lovely daughter, it would not be surprising at all.

Just hearing his name, he was taken aback for a moment: "Yuchai?"

Jia Yucun said with a smile: "Yuchai is just the baby name of the little girl. I think it made my elder brother laugh."

Jia Lian watched Jia Yucun talking and looked at his daughter with loving eyes, only then did he know that he was thinking too much and it was just a coincidence.

Jia Yucun is Daiyu's first teacher. He must have seen Daiyu, but he must have never met Baochai, right?
He even thought of something right away, and smiled at Jia Yucun: "But it comes from the sentence 'Jade is in the dowry to ask for a good price, and the hairpin is in the dowry to wait for time to fly'?"

When Jia Lian said this, Jia Yucun was stunned, "How does Brother Shi know? This is just a random sentence that Brother Yu made up in his early years..."

"Brother Yucun is too modest. My uncle at home admires brother Yucun's talent and learning, and even collected his masterpieces. My younger brother is not talented, but I have read it before, and I am also impressed by brother Yucun's talent."

When Jia Yucun heard the words, his eyes immediately became a little moved.

As a literati, what I care most about is to overwhelm others with literary talent, and to be recognized by people of insight, that is a bosom friend!
If Jia Lian's status is not as good as his, or if he is a layman, he doesn't care.

But who is Jia Lian?That is the person who is above him regardless of status and ability.

Wu Neng led the troops out of the fortress and defeated the enemy and the savior.Wen Neng wrote a masterpiece of tenderness and chill coexistence such as "the dream of the hometown is broken, and there is no such sound in the hometown".

When he first heard Jia Lian's poems, he was very impressed by Jia Lian's talent.And because Jia Lian mainly practiced martial arts, he felt that Jia Lian was the kind of person who was gifted with literary talent and originality.

To be able to get such a person to read my works, and to point out the source because of a daughter's nickname, it can be seen that they are not just polite and perfunctory, but have read his works seriously.

Thinking of this, Jia Yucun looked at Jia Lian with genuine affection for the first time.

After thinking for a while, he smiled and said, "So, there are really chances and coincidences in the world. Does Brother Shi know who is Yuchai's mother?"

"Oh?"

Jia Lian's expression changed, and he had some guesses.

"Hehehe, it's a long story, but it can be regarded as a romantic story of brother Yu when he was young..."

Jia Yucun originally didn't want to reveal too much about his past, he was afraid that Jia Lian would despise him.Now when it comes to compatibility with Jia Lian, he doesn't have so many worries.

Therefore, when he lived in Suzhou as a guest, he was appreciated by Zhen Shiyin, and he fell in love with a maid from the Zhen family, but he did not dare to ask for marriage because he was down and out.

When she became successful and famous, when she saw the maid of the Zhen family again in Daru Prefecture, she recalled her old friendship, and immediately prepared a large gift, proposed marriage to the lady of the Zhen family, and accepted her as a concubine.

Later, when the original wife died of illness, he set her right.Yuchai is the daughter of him and the maid of the Zhen family.

"In the past, I heard Zhuo Jing say that when she was in the Zhen family, she mainly took care of Miss Zhen's family. Later, the young lady was lost by the family servant, and she was also sad for a long time.

Now that Miss Zhen's family has been rescued by her elder brother, Zhuo Jing will meet her former lady again, if she knows the news, I don't know how happy she will be. " Jia Yucun said with a smile.

Jia Lian was also happy to hear what Jia Yucun said.Listening to his ungrateful past, Lan Se said later, it doesn't make any sense.

Of course, Jia Lian also knew that the reason why Jia Yucun said this to him was just to make him feel that there was indeed a fate between the two of them, so as to shorten the relationship with him.

How does Jia Yucun know that as long as he wants, he can have this kind of "destined fate" with many people in this world.

So he just smiled and responded to Jia Yucun's words, but turned his head to look again, this little girl named Yuchai.It seems that she is the daughter of Jia Yucun and Jiao Xing.

Since Jia Yucun and Jia Yucun are called family friends and brothers, and Jia Yucun brought up the topic again, Jia Lian, an elder, should naturally express his opinion.

So I touched my body, finally took out a jade pendant, smiled and said to the girl: "Since you call me Uncle Shi, I have nothing to show, just a piece of jade with me is not a rare thing, you take it go to play."

Ever since he knew that in this world, it is often necessary to give gifts when meeting, Jia Lian intentionally or unintentionally wears some lightweight things that can be disassembled at any time.

Although Jia Lian said that it was not a rare item, Jia Yucun also knew that the jade pendant that Jia Lian could carry at any time must be of great value, so he hurriedly said for his daughter that it was too expensive to accept.

Seeing Jia Lian waving his hands indifferently, he just smiled and asked his daughter to thank him.

The little girl named Yuchai saw that Jia Lian was approachable and had a good conversation with her father, so she had already taken Yujue over to observe.Hearing that his father also agreed, he held Yujue in his hand, smiled sweetly at Jia Lian, bowed and said, "Yuchai, thank you uncle for your generosity."

The voice was delicate and crisp, which made Jia Lian feel comfortable listening to it. Perhaps this was why Jia Yucun loved her so much.

Taking a look at the sky, Jia Lian didn't want to stay any longer, so he said goodbye and got up.

Jia Yucun failed to persuade Jia Yucun to stay, so he could only send Jia Lian out.

Taking advantage of this time, Jia Yucun said that he knew from the mansion newspaper that Jia Lian had come south this time to supervise the salt administration, and kindly reminded Jia Lian that the salt administration was complicated, and told him to be more careful, and if he needed help , send someone to look for him.

Jia Lian appreciated it, thanked him and went.

Going to the Governor's Mansion, Jia Lian went straight out of Jinling City when he learned that the manpower Liao Jihong had drawn for him had assembled outside the city.

"Jia Yu, chief executive of Xishan Daying, see the imperial envoy!"

As night fell, torches lit up the surrounding sky on the broad avenue.

Eight hundred well-armed officers and soldiers lined up in a queue with a strict military appearance.The leading officer came forward to see Jia Lian.

Jia Lian rode on the horse, glanced at him, and asked, "Are you the grandson of Grandfather Daisheng, the [-]th Fang of Nanjing?"

"Return to the imperial envoy, it is..."

The officer saw that Jia Lian took the initiative to talk about his personal relationship, so he looked up at Jia Lian.

Seeing Jia Lian's majestic and extraordinary appearance in a reckless robe with a noble robe, there is some complicated look in his eyes.

Although they are both descendants of the Jia family, they are still of the same generation, but Jia Lian is from the eighth family in Beijing, and he is still in the same line, so he has no way to compare with it.

Even with his own efforts, he can be regarded as one of the most promising people among the twelve house brothers from his hometown.Compared with Jia Lian, it is still very different.

If it is said that envy is definitely there, but jealousy is out of the question.

They are all children of big families, and most of them understand the truth that one is prosperous and the other is damaged.Moreover, Jia Lian also benefited from supporting the lintel of Rongguo Mansion in Beijing.

In the past two years, he could clearly feel that in the army, he was more valued and treated with courtesy by the superior.

It was only because the Jia family had a noble concubine, and the Jia family's influence in the capital was even greater, and others were afraid, so they did not dare to offend other Jia family children.

Jia Yu saw Jia Lian's complicated thoughts, and Jia Lian also felt a little emotional when he saw Jia Yu.

The capital and Nanjing are separated by thousands of miles, so the ancestor worship is separated every year.Therefore, Jia Lian didn't know many of his fellow clansmen in his original place, and those who did know him were not close.

However, he had known about this Jia Yu for a long time and paid attention to it.

There is no way, among a large number of children who are eating and waiting to die, occasionally there will be one or two who are doing things on their own, and it is difficult to keep him, the patriarch, from paying attention.

So he nodded to him and said: "This time, my younger brother has a heavy responsibility, so I don't have time to catch up with my elder brother. After this matter is over, my two brothers, let's have a good drink and chat.

Now, Commander Qian of Xishan Daying is ordering you to lead [-] soldiers under your command to go to Yangzhou within three days and wait for dispatch.

If there is an official inquiry along the way, it can be passed with the transfer order or the official seal, and no trouble is allowed. "

"Impossible to take orders."

……