The Red Mansions

Chapter 161 The Unparalleled Beauty He Shuangqing
The wind is sunny and the sun is shining.

Beside the official road, thousands of people waited quietly.

At the very front stood a group of officials in official uniforms.

Jia Yun was rubbing hands with Lin Daiyu in the carriage when suddenly Jia Wenlin came to the carriage and reminded:

"My lord, Kong Yanju, the prefect of Suzhou, brought a group of officials to welcome you..."

"Understood." Jia Yun replied, took her palm from Lin Daiyu, and smiled:

"It seems that I have underestimated my reputation. When I arrived here, not only officials greeted me, but even people from the magistrate's yamen came."

Lin Daiyu hummed, her face was flushed, she lowered her head to adjust her clothes, and said in a low voice, "You have made such great military exploits in Zhejiang, and you are probably well-known in Jiangnan."

Jia Yun smiled and said, "Then I'll go down first."

"Go, don't patronize me." Lin Daiyu stretched out her hand to straighten Jia Yun's collar, pursing her lips.

Jia Yun nodded, lifted the curtain to get out of the car, walked a few steps, and greeted the prefect Kong Yanju, Wu County magistrate Zeng Xingguan and other officials.

Thousands of people nearby knelt down to pay their respects. After hearing Kong Yanju's introduction, Jia Yun knew that this was a tenant on his farm.

"Get up!" Jia Yun said loudly, stepping forward to help the old people up.

After everyone got up, someone set off firecrackers, lions, gongs, drums, suona and music danced, as lively as the New Year.

Looking back, Jia Yun and a group of officials walked towards the farm hand in hand.

Among the crowd, a tenant looked at Jia Yun, who was young but quite majestic, talking and laughing with an awe-inspiring aura, and couldn't help sighing: "Our new owner seems to be very good!"

"Of course, our boss is a young scholar, but he is a hero who cut off the heads of Japanese pirates without blinking an eye! It is rumored that almost every household in Cixi has given him longevity cards!"

"What kind of scholar, although he is wearing ordinary clothes, he is also a high official. I heard that he will return to Beijing to become a high official!"

"Hey, look at those guards, their eyes are so sharp, isn't that murderous like the drama said?"

"..."

Along the way, Jia Yun chatted with all his colleagues in a modest, polite, gentle and refined way.

Kong Yanju, Zeng Xingguan and others came to welcome him and gave him face, he couldn't take it for granted.

After arriving at the farm, Jia Yun ordered Ni Er to hold a big banquet.

On the one hand, entertaining many colleagues, on the other hand, it can be regarded as a welfare for the tenants on the farm.

There was a lot of noise until the evening, when the officials had enough to eat and drink, they took their leave one after another.

After seeing off the officials, Jia Yun went back to the other courtyard of the farm to take a bath and change clothes. As for inspecting the farm, she had to wait until tomorrow.

The other courtyard was built by the Zhen family, covering an area of ​​more than 30 mu.

Pavilions, terraces and pavilions in the courtyard, rockery and flowing water, eaves and ridges, bricks and stones, empty windows and arches, trails around the lake, winding corridors, the heights are scattered and the scenery is easy to see, full of the charm of the south of the Yangtze River.

On the attic, Jia Yun hugged Lin Daiyu, looked at the scenery outside the window, and sighed, "It's too extravagant!"

"You got it for nothing, don't take advantage of it and act like a good boy." Lin Daiyu rolled her eyes and said.

Jia Yun chuckled and asked, "How about it, if you go outside for a walk, do you want to be more open-minded?"

"Well, I feel that my mind is empty." Lin Daiyu nodded and said, "Now when I think about the past, I was locked in a small courtyard all day, and I feel depressed and panic."

Jia Yun asked curiously, "Is the yard where you live in Jia's house big?"

"It's not big, it's small and exquisite. You can't even bring more servants, or you won't be able to live there." Lin Daiyu shook her head.

Jia Yun asked suspiciously, "That's not right, there are hundreds of houses in Jia's mansion, right? Are you still using them?"

Lin Daiyu sighed, and said leisurely: "It's not that I don't have a house to live in, but that my grandmother wants me to be closer to her and not let me live too far away."

"To be honest, if I hadn't insisted on it before, I would still be living in the Bisha cabinet!"

"I don't know what my grandma thinks. When I was a child, it was fine to live in the Bisha cabinet, but now that I've grown up, she still wants me to accompany her..."

Jia Yun was silent, Lin Daiyu turned around, glanced at him, and muttered:
"Leaving Beijing to go home this time, let me know so many secrets, and my impression of my grandmother has changed a lot."

"It is certain that she cares and loves me, but some practices are very inappropriate!"

"It's true that she wants to match me with Brother Bao, but she can't ignore my reputation. Tell me, how can there be a daughter who spends all day hanging out with boys?"

Lin Daiyu leaned gently in Jia Yun's arms, and continued: "The thing that chills me the most is that she doesn't teach me about the many things that men and women need to avoid. .”

"Thanks to my awakening in time, if it goes on for a long time, maybe I will really become the child bride-in-law of the Jia family!"

Jia Yun sighed, patted her on the back lightly, and comforted her: "Don't think too much, won't I accompany you in the future? Besides, after Mr. Lin returns to Beijing, you can move out of Jia's residence."

The fact that Lin Daiyu can tell him these things shows that she really trusts him.

Of course, she was right.

According to Lin Daiyu's experience in the original book, she seems to be no different from a child bride.

It's just that I don't have to work and live a better life, but in the end I couldn't marry Jia Baoyu and died of hemoptysis.

To be honest, Jia Yun doesn't know how to evaluate Jia's house.

Say they don't follow the rules, the rules are bigger than anyone else.

Let’s just say they said that from top to bottom in Jia’s mansion, there are not many normal ones.

On the side of Ningguo Mansion, Jia Jing is a good Jinshi instead of being an official, but wants to practice Taoism and make alchemy. Jia Zhenjia Rong is extravagant, lustful and shameless.

In Rongguo Mansion, Jia She, as the eldest son, was assigned by Jia Mu to live in a courtyard separated by a small garden. On the contrary, it was Jia Zheng, the second child, who lived in the main hall grandly.

In short, the whole Jia Mansion looked awkward.

the next morning.

Jia Yun met with the steward, chief Jia, village chief, village chief, old man, etc. on the farm, and together with them inspected the granary, weaving room, silkworm house, free school and other infrastructure.

The style of writing in the south of the Yangtze River is at its peak, and free schools are spread all over the countryside.

It is not an exaggeration to say that the free school on the farm is a private school, all expenses are provided by the farm, and the children of the tenant households come to school, and there is no need for them to attend school.

After all, the Zhen family used to pay for it, but now it falls to Jia Yun.

The free school is relatively large, and it has hired six masters with a reputation as a scholar and more than a dozen children to teach, plus the repair and maintenance of the school, tables, chairs and benches, it costs several hundred taels of silver every year.

Naturally, this money cannot be saved. Jia Yun said that everything was business as usual, and while everyone was relieved, they were all overjoyed.

These days, studying is very costly. Although most of the tenants on the farm can barely make ends meet, not every household can afford to send their children to study.

Jia Yun had been a county magistrate and knew the real situation at the grassroots level, so it was natural to start a volunteer school to win people's hearts.

In the next few days, Jia Yun went to the village again to learn about the living conditions of the tenant households and the flood and drought prevention facilities such as ditches, ponds, wells, and dams.

I gradually gained a clearer understanding of all aspects of my farm.

this day.

Jia Yun took Ni Er and several personal guards and passed by a village.

Under a big tree, several scholars surrounded a [-]-year-old girl with unsurpassed beauty and elegance, and one of the scholars was shaking his head and reciting poems.

"I don't see you in spring, I went to the west of Yeqiao."

"Dyeing dreams with light red deceives white butterflies, locks with dark green deceives orioles, don't bring up your grudges again."

"When people don't see each other, is it true or not?"

"Worshiping the moon has fragrance and empty sleeves, cherishes flowers but has no tears to stain clothes, mountains are far away and the setting sun is low."

Jia Yun stopped and watched from a distance, thinking to herself that this poem is delicate and tactful, sad and moving, not embellished, but based on her own feelings, it seems to flow from the bottom of her heart, which shows the profound skills of the poet.

At this time, the scholar who had just read the words sighed: "It's really a good word, Qiubi, this word you wrote to Master Duan is really a sound of nature, which is really rare in ancient and modern ci circles!"

Hearing what he said, Jia Yun was astonished, thinking to herself that the poem was written by that girl?

Curious in his heart, he stood there for a while longer, and soon heard the whole story.

It turned out that the words the scholar read just now were really written by that girl, but they were written in the tone of Zhang Qiongniang, the wife of Duan Yuhan.

Duan Yuhan is fifty years old, but he claims to be "love infatuated". Whenever he meets a beautiful, passionate and talented woman, he always bluntly expresses his admiration.

His wife, Zhang Qiongniang, is a talented woman who can sing with Duan Yuhan. She supports the impoverished family by herself, but supports her husband to make friends outside, and doesn't even mind her husband making friends with talented women.

The girl under the big tree is called He Shuangqing, and her name is Qiubi. She is a girl from the tenant family on Jia Yun's farm.

When Duan Yuhan heard that there was such a talented woman, he became crazy, and came to pester He Shuangqing every day, so that he idled around and neglected his wife every day.

After He Shuangqing learned about Duan Yuhan's situation, he wrote the poem just now on the jade hairpin leaf.

After knowing the truth, Jia Yun also admired He Shuangqing's talent and learning.

In this era when women are virtuous without talent, it is really rare for a girl to write such good words.

He took care of He Shuangqing from a distance. She was about 1.6 meters tall, with a plump figure.

She has an oval face, and her fair and flawless skin is slightly pink.

Curved willow eyebrows, long eyelashes trembling slightly, eyes are clear and clear, shining like stars, nose is exquisite and small, and thin lips are as delicate as rose petals.

He Shuangqing, who was talking to the scholar, was smiling, her eyes were bent like crescent moons, as if the aura was also overflowing, with every frown and smile, she was generous, free and easy, elegant and beautiful.

At this time, He Shuangqing looked up and saw Jia Yun and his party, with a look of surprise on his face, he quickly said a few words to those scholars, and walked over slowly.

"Little girl pays respects to your lord." He Shuangqing bowed and saluted.

The scholars who came with her also bowed their hands.

"You don't need to be too polite." Jia Yun nodded and asked, "Have you ever read?"

He Shuangqing pondered for a moment, then nodded and replied: "Back to the adults, the little girl got permission from her husband when she was a child. She attended the free school for three years, learned to read and write, and even entered the school of poetry and composition."

(End of this chapter)