A stew of the Red Chamber

Chapter 84 Undercurrents

"I……"

Lady You was hesitating whether to give Jia Zhen some more confidence.

But he said in a deep voice, "Firewood, rice, oil, and salt, firewood, rice, oil, and salt, do you know how much silver is spent on charcoal in the capital every year? Such a huge sum of money, even if you were to be devoured alive a hundred times, you probably wouldn't get a drop of it!"

"this……"

Upon hearing this, Madam You felt disheartened. Although the total cost of charcoal in the entire capital was impossible to estimate, the Ningguo Mansion's annual charcoal expenses must have been at least several thousand taels of silver.

This is just the Ning Mansion, which has very few proper masters. If it were the Rong Mansion, the number would probably double.

But the thought of being devoured a hundred times over made Madam You's heart burn with desire, and she said, "That...that's quite a lot, isn't it?"

Jia Zhen neither agreed nor disagreed as he got up from his chair, went to the wall, grabbed a long knife hanging on the wall, held the scabbard, went to You Shi, and shoved the hilt of the knife into You Shi's hand.

Madam You was greatly alarmed and hurriedly waved her hands, saying, "Master...Master! His martial arts are superb. Even if I had a knife, I'm afraid I couldn't threaten him. We should...we should reconsider!"

Jia Zhen extended his index finger and waved it back and forth in front of him twice, a wicked smile on his face. "Master is telling you that as long as we have something on him, even if it's a knife, we'll use it for our purposes!"

Ok?

Yu's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that I should attack her vitals at the crucial moment and then bargain?

But then I thought, if that were the case, why would Jia Zhen say that he had made a fool of himself?

Just as he was wondering about this, Jia Zhen smiled and said, "Hasn't Rong-ge's wife been looking rather melancholy lately?"

"This..." Madam You's face stiffened, and she hurriedly advised, "Master, this is absolutely unacceptable!"

"No way!" Jia Zhen puffed out his beard and glared. "Although she's the mistress Prince Bei Jing is keeping in our household, she still holds the title of Rong-ge's daughter-in-law. She should contribute to the family!"

"But what about the Prince...?"

"If she weren't the prince's mistress, how could she have intimidated that brat and made him hesitate to act against her?"

Jia Zhen shook his head and said, "When the time comes, as long as we tell him about our daughter-in-law's relationship with the prince, and allow him to visit often, we won't have to worry about him not obeying us!"

"But what if this gets to the prince's ears..."

Jia Zhen scoffed, "How long has it been since the Prince last visited? No matter how alluring Rong's wife may be, she can't compare to wealth and honor. Judging by the time, the Prince hasn't come since Vice Minister Zhou joined the Ministry of Works. I'm afraid it's not..."

At this point, Jia Zhen's expression became much more serious, and he said in a deep voice, "Back then, in order to secure his position in the Construction Department, Qin Ye secretly gave her to the Prince. Over the years, how much benefit has he secretly transferred to her?"

"A new emperor brings a new court; who knows what rumors the prince heard that led him to deliberately avoid suspicion, or even sacrifice a pawn to protect the king!"

Madam You panicked immediately, and said in a trembling voice, "Then...then what should we..."

Jia Zhen sighed and said helplessly, "Although Father gave up his title and family back then, he was still a staff member of Prince Yizhong."

If I hadn't been quick-witted and realized that the Prince intended to marry the second daughter of the Zhen family, but was worried that the Zhen family would find out that he had kept a mistress before the marriage and was reluctant to part with Qin Shi, so that Rong Ge'er could marry her and solve the Prince's urgent problem, I probably wouldn't have been able to get through that hurdle!

This was a last resort, and if it weren't for the income from the Construction and Repair Bureau, the family would have been living in poverty long ago. Even if it was like adding fuel to the fire or drinking poison to quench thirst, there was no other way to go!

When discussing Wang Qing's background with Madam You, he mocked the Rongguo Mansion but didn't mention his own family at all. It wasn't that the Ningguo Mansion had no connection to him, but rather that the matter was too important for him to bring up.

At this point, Jia Zhen sighed with regret: "I thought that since the Prince couldn't visit so often, he would inevitably neglect his wife. If that good-for-nothing was willing to put more effort into his wife and have her bear a son or daughter, then everything would be settled. But that scoundrel is useless and wastes such a beautiful wife..."

Jia Zhen was furious at her lack of ambition and became increasingly angry as he spoke. He inadvertently revealed his true feelings and quickly stopped talking. He then instructed, "I have already asked Yin Die. Xiang Ling was just sent there, and he took her into his room that very night."

In a couple of days, go find Brother Qing and tell him I've invited him over for a drink. Then, say you've been away on business and have Rong's daughter-in-law accompany you. Take my treasured tonic wine and have him drink a few more cups. When the time is right, find an excuse to leave.

Alone with a woman, and already intoxicated, could he possibly resist such a beauty as Rong's daughter-in-law?

"My lord, please reconsider! What if Rong's daughter-in-law refuses to submit even at the cost of her life? Wouldn't we end up losing more than we gain? I think..."

Yu wanted to make one last effort.

Jia Zhen, however, reached out and shook her hand dismissively, grinning wickedly, "Even if she wants to die, she can still break free from Brother Qing's grasp, can't she?"

Besides, she's just a concubine kept by the prince in his mansion, why should she pretend to be chaste and virtuous? The prince hasn't come for a long time, and she's in the prime of her youth, she's probably already restless, which is perfect for Brother Qing to take advantage of.

He is handsome and dashing, even more so than a prince, and exceptionally brave and valiant. With the aid of my all-around tonic wine, he has no doubt that his wife will be captivated by his charms. At that time, you and I will step in, inform her of her situation, clean up their mess, and allow him to see her often.

With Rong Ge's daughter-in-law as bait in front and Prince Bei Jing as a deterrent behind, why worry that he won't reciprocate and obey our every word?

At this point, Jia Zhen's lips curled into a smile, and he silently thought to himself that in the past, because of Shui Rong, he could only watch with envy and hunger.

Who knows, with this leverage, I might be able to get a share of the spoils too.

……

East Courtyard.

Madam Xing said cautiously, "Master, the Second Master has been promoted now, we can't just pretend we don't hear, can we?"

"Bullshit! Him?"

Jia She sneered, "So that's why the second son suddenly changed his tune and became so attentive to Qing-ge'er, that crude and uncouth warrior! So that's the problem!"

Even Jia Zhen could see something amiss, so of course Jia She could too.

Madam Xing, sensing the implication, quickly said, "Master, are you saying that the method was suggested by Qing-ge'er?"

"Is that even a question?" Jia She said irritably. "He spends all his time with those frivolous scholars and gentlemen, avoiding even the muddy ground where he walks. How could he possibly be involved in dealing with coal?"

"Wouldn't that just benefit the second wife again?"

"That's not necessarily true! I was wondering before where he got such a big mouth, but now I think that's probably his confidence."

Jia She stroked his beard, confidently saying, "That kid is a master at making money. He probably took advantage of the Second Prince's position in the Ministry of Works to push him out so he could hide behind the scenes and quietly amass a fortune!"

"But he did get promoted after all..."

"shallow!"

Jia She scoffed, "I told you long ago that the second son has gone astray. If he and Brother Jing hadn't been blinded by greed back then, how could the family be in such a state now?"

Our family doesn't need to fight over such empty things! Even if he were promoted three ranks, let alone just a mere doctor, would that surpass the merits of our ancestors and bring glory to our family? It's much more practical to make money!

Madam Xing thought about it and agreed. Not to mention the merits of their ancestors, even Jia She, a first-class general, was not comparable to a mere fifth-rank official.

He quickly flattered her, saying, "You're right, sir! Even if the old lady is biased, she can't defy the laws of the court. Since the title is hopeless, she has no choice but to focus all her efforts on making trouble."

These words pleased Jia She greatly, and he gave Madam Xing a rare smile, saying with a smile, "So, we need to look further ahead. If he marries Er Yatou and doesn't respect me, his father-in-law, then is it going to benefit an outsider like the second son?"

As long as we keep him under control, no matter how much trouble the second son causes, he's just doing us a favor!

At this point, Jia She paused slightly and pondered, "Since he released Wang Shanbao and Qin Fu and even rewarded them with two fur coats, it was probably out of consideration for Er Yatou. He must be quite satisfied with this marriage."

"Later, tell Er Ya about the marriage, give her some extra money, help her get ready, and tell her not to be shy, and to find opportunities to spend more time with Qing Ge'er!"

……