The Good Grandson of the Red Chamber

Chapter 82: Everything is ready except for the east wind.

Xia Chengzong then inquired about Jia Zhu's age and learned that he was sixteen years old and had passed the imperial examination at the age of fourteen two years ago.

Upon hearing this, Xia Chengzong clicked his tongue in amazement.

He laughed and said, "Young Master Zhu passed the imperial examination at the age of fourteen, which is probably unique in our Great Qian Dynasty. He can be called the number one child prodigy in our Great Qian Dynasty!"

Jia Zhu quickly replied, "Your Highness is too kind. I am unworthy of such praise. Before Your Highness, who would dare to call themselves a child prodigy?"

"The prince's poems and lyrics are something a student could never write in a lifetime."

"Your Highness's talent and learning are something I admire and aspire to emulate. Though I may not reach your level, my heart yearns for it."

Xia Chengzong chatted with Jia Zhu for a while about poetry, mathematics, and the study of things, and found that they got along quite well.

Xia Chengzong suddenly remembered that in the novel *Dream of the Red Chamber*, Jia Zhu died young from illness, leaving Li Wan to raise her only son, Jia Lan, as a widow.

It is unknown what disease he contracted, but he died from it.

He had a good impression of Jia Zhu, and it would be a pity if he died there.

If we can save him, we might as well do so.

Xia Chengzong subtly inquired whether Jia Zhu had any pre-existing ailments.

After some questioning, it was learned that Jia Zhu had no pre-existing illness and that he was still unmarried this year.

After asking a few more questions, it was learned that Jia Lian was also unmarried.

It's not a big deal yet since we're not married.

After all, Jia Zhu died of illness after getting married and having a son.

Furthermore, we only just met today, and saying too much might seem like we're too familiar with each other.

So Xia Chengzong subtly changed the subject, saying that such matters could be discussed later.

The banquet was a great success, with both hosts and guests thoroughly enjoying themselves.

When Xia Chengzong left, Jia She and Jia Zheng, along with their sons and brothers, personally saw him off at the mansion.

After Xia Chengzong left, they returned to Rongxi Hall.

Jia She asked Jia Lian and Jia Zhu, "What do you two think of this Prince Ping'an?"

Jia Lian said, "This Prince Ping'an, though young, is extremely shrewd and cannot be treated like a child."

Jia Zhu said, "This prince is erudite and has exceptional literary talent; he truly possesses the talent of Cao Zhi!"

Jia She nodded and said, "Alright, don't say anything more about what happened today. You may all leave."

"Yes, sir!"

"Yes, sir!"

After the two men left, Jia Zheng asked, "What does my elder brother think?"

Jia She pondered, "Even a tiger or leopard's foal, though not yet fully developed, possesses the ferocity to devour an ox. This imperial grandson, though young, is no ordinary being!"

Jia Zheng asked, "And what about my Jia family?"

Jia She shook his head and said, "Let's wait and see. There's no rush. My Jia family has already made a mistake once; we cannot afford to make the same mistake again."

"It's a pity Brother Jing isn't here. If he were, he would have seen more. For now, let's leave it at that."

Jia Jing listened and nodded slightly.

After leaving the Rongguo Mansion, Xia Chengzong did not immediately return to his own Prince's Mansion, but went directly to the Prince Zhongshun's Mansion.

He remembered seeing a piece of jade in his fifth uncle's mansion, the material of which looked exactly the same as the Spirit Jade.

He rushed to Prince Chungshun's residence, and upon meeting Prince Chungshun, he immediately asked for the jade.

Such behavior seems rude, but Prince Zhongshun happens to like it.

He immediately ordered the steward to fetch the jade, and then pulled Xia Chengzong aside with a smile, saying, "You haven't been to Fifth Uncle's residence for quite some time."

"What a coincidence, Uncle Wu has acquired some new delicacies from overseas today, and the opera troupe has put together a new play."

"I was just saying I was going to invite you, but you came by yourself. You're perfect for keeping your Uncle Wu company while he drinks and listens to the opera."

Listening to opera is a rare form of entertainment, and Xia Chengzong does not reject it.

Furthermore, there's no reason to just go to someone's house, take something, and leave. That would be utterly disrespectful!

So Xia Chengzong spent another afternoon with him at the Prince Zhongshun's residence, listening to operas.

The lead actor in this play is none other than Qi Guan, Jiang Yuhan. After not seeing him for several months, Jiang Yuhan has become even more outstanding.

Her singing became increasingly clear and ethereal, which Xia Chengzong also praised highly.

Xia Chengzong soon noticed that Prince Zhongshun's gaze toward Jiang Yuhan was somewhat strange.

The way he looked at her didn't seem like he was looking at an actor; it was more like he was looking at a lover.

He also thought about how homosexuality was prevalent in this era.

Those nobles and scholars were not ashamed of this, but rather proud of it.

Thinking of this, Xia Chengzong guessed that his fifth uncle and Jiang Yuhan probably had the same kind of relationship.

No wonder he was so angry when Jiang Yuhan ran away from home in the novel Dream of the Red Chamber.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but quietly distance himself from Prince Chungshun.

He hadn't thought about it before, but now that he thought about it, he felt that Prince Zhongshun was not clean.

He stayed at Prince Zhongshun's residence for dinner before taking his leave.

After returning to the palace, he dismissed everyone and went to his study alone to carve jade.

In his previous life, he was a retro-style craftsmanship content creator, and carving was one of his livelihood skills.

The Spirit Jade is the original form of the Sky-Mending Stone, and he absolutely must get his hands on it.

Not wanting to rob him outright, he decided to use a switcheroo.

This is a task that shouldn't be delegated to others, and since he happens to have the skill, he can do it himself.

Now he is stronger than in his previous life, his eyesight is sharper, his fingers are more steady, and his observation is more meticulous.

His speed was naturally extremely fast; his carving knife flew through the air, and a piece of jade took shape little by little.

Originally, carving a piece of jade like this would take at least three to five days.

However, Xia Chengzong carved it in just half a night.

His efficiency far surpasses that of ordinary craftsmen.

The next day, Xia Chengzong began to age the jade and started weaving five-colored silk ribbons.

On Jia Baoyu's magical jade pendant, there is a five-colored silk ribbon.

To achieve a level of realism that was indistinguishable from the real thing, he had to personally select the threads and weave the fabric by hand.

He spent most of the day weaving a five-colored silk ribbon that was so realistic it was hard to tell the difference.

He then threaded the five-colored silk ribbons onto the jade, making it look almost identical.

There are still some subtle differences, not because of the technique, but because this piece of jade was just carved by him and is a bit too new.

However, it's not a big problem; we just need to make it look a bit old.

Next, Xia Chengzong began to age the jade.

Since Da Lianbao is not yet three years old, the clothes don't need to be too old.

Therefore, he successfully aged the product in just one day.

The forgeries he carved were exactly the same as the jade pendant Jia Baoyu wore, making it impossible to tell the difference.

Even if you put the two pieces of jade side by side for comparison, it would be difficult to tell the real from the fake.

Xia Chengzong observed carefully but found no flaws.

He happily carried the jade on his person, waiting for the right opportunity to pull off a switcheroo and replace the real jade with the real one.

It's a pity I just visited the Jia family mansion a couple of days ago.

It's not a good idea to go now.

We need to find a suitable opportunity.

Besides, Baoyu is too young. Otherwise, we could invite him to our residence to play.

On that day, Xia Bei reported to him that the new product had been produced and brought several samples to show him.

This new product is precisely the business that Xia Chengzong and Prince Zhongshun are preparing to do together.

Now that the new product has been developed, Xia Chengzong is overjoyed.

He experimented with it and found it to be slightly worse than what he had seen in his previous life, but not by much, and perfectly adequate.

Xia Chengzong took the new products and instructed Xia Bei to arrange a carriage, heading straight for the palace.

He presented these new items to the Empress and other concubines, which pleased the Empress greatly, and she rewarded him with many things.