sovbooks Chapter 49 Grandmother Jia: A Foolish Daughter-in-Law, a Scheming In-Laws, and a Weary Heart
Chapter 49 Grandmother Jia: A Foolish Daughter-in-Law, a Scheming In-Laws, and a Weary Heart
While Liu Feng was fast asleep, things were in an uproar at the Jia family's place.
Jia Baoyu was pampered and spoiled from a young age. He was never slapped, and he was never even scolded loudly.
He was slapped three times hard this time, and his face hurt all night. When he saw Grandmother Jia, he couldn't hold back anymore. He threw himself into Grandmother Jia's arms and burst into tears.
Grandmother Jia looked at the two symmetrical handprints on her beloved grandson's face, her heart aching as if it were being ripped out. She called him her "heart and liver" repeatedly, tears streaming down her face.
The women in the room also joined in, wiping away tears.
Lady Wang Ziteng wiped her eyes, which were dry of tears, with a handkerchief. Her eyes were full of contempt and disdain. She thought to herself that the Jia family had no successor and deserved to be manipulated and exploited by the Wang family.
It was hot, and although there was ice in the room to cool it down, holding Jia Baoyu, a boy who was only half a child, in her arms felt like holding a burning coal. Before she could cry for long, a layer of sweat appeared on her forehead.
Grandmother Jia had lost all interest in crying. She tried to push Jia Baoyu away from her arms, but her precious grandson clung to her like glue, refusing to budge. Helpless, she could only give Wang Xifeng a meaningful look.
Wang Xifeng immediately wiped her eyes, smiled and stepped forward, half-carrying and half-pulling Jia Baoyu out of Grandmother Jia's arms: "Brother Bao, Grandmother is tired, and it's so hot and humid today. Don't bother her anymore, let Grandmother rest."
Jia Baoyu refused to comply, and it took Grandmother Jia a long time to coax him gently before she finally calmed him down.
Grandmother Jia wiped the sweat from her face, drank half a bowl of chilled plum juice to calm herself down, and then remembered to ask about the reason for the matter.
Madam Wang embellished her story and recounted what happened yesterday.
Wang Ziteng's wife came with ulterior motives and joined in criticizing Liu Feng.
The sisters-in-law, working in unison, quickly portrayed Liu Feng as utterly wicked.
Grandmother Jia looked very unhappy. The young ladies of the Jia family surrounded Jia Baoyu, gently comforting him while scolding and cursing Liu Feng.
However, the three sisters didn't know how to swear; they would only repeat a couple of phrases over and over: "What a bad person!" and "That despicable villain!"
Madam Xing, from the first wife's household, slowly sipped her tea, her face full of schadenfreude.
Just then, an old woman hurried in and whispered a few words in her ear.
Madam Xing's eyes flashed. She put down her teacup, stood up, gave a slight curtsy to Grandmother Jia, and said with a smile, "Congratulations, Grandmother. Lian'er just returned from outside and said that Master Lin's disciple has performed a great service and, by the Emperor's grace, has been promoted three ranks to the position of Vice Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, a fourth-rank official..."
The room immediately fell silent.
Madam Wang's face was extremely pale, as if she had swallowed a fly; her complexion alternated between green and yellow, making her look incredibly awkward.
Aunt Zhao behind him almost couldn't help but laugh. She glanced at the handprint on Jia Baoyu's face and thought, "He got those two slaps for nothing, serves him right!"
Madam Xing continued, "There is another piece of great joy: the marriage of the second daughter of the Zhen family has been arranged. The palace will issue an imperial decree first thing tomorrow morning, bestowing the marriage upon both families."
Only then did a smile appear on Grandmother Jia's face; this was indeed a wonderful thing.
Arranging a marriage between the Zhen family of Jiangnan and the Prince of Beijing's mansion would, firstly, make both families owe the Jia family a favor, and secondly, fulfill the task assigned by the Emperor—truly killing three birds with one stone.
But then she thought of the Prince of Nan'an's mansion, and Grandmother Jia couldn't help but sigh softly.
After holding back her anger for a long time, Madam Wang finally couldn't suppress it any longer and said, "Grandma, this matter absolutely cannot be left like this! Baoyu cannot have suffered those two slaps for nothing!"
Grandmother Jia was very shrewd. Although she felt sorry for Jia Baoyu, she knew that he must have gotten into trouble, and she didn't believe what Lady Wang and her sister-in-law said at all.
Seeing that Grandmother Jia did not respond, Lady Wang clenched her prayer beads tightly, her knuckles turning slightly white, suppressing her anger and remaining silent for a long time.
Lady Wang Ziteng's eyes darted around, and she smiled as she tried to smooth things over: "Grandma, please consider the Buddha's sake, even if you don't care about the monk. For the sake of Aunt Baoyu's reputation, let's not pursue this matter any further."
Upon hearing her mention Jia Min, Madam Wang's suppressed anger flared up instantly again. "She's just a lowly vagrant, how dare she..."
"Shut up!"
Grandmother Jia slammed her hand on the tea table, startling everyone. She gave Prince Teng's wife a cold glance, which made her quickly lower her head in fright.
With a snort, Grandmother Jia said, "This matter is settled here. No one is allowed to mention a single word about it again, understand?"
"Yes..." The responses were sparse.
Grandmother Jia turned to Wang Xifeng and said, "Go to the kitchen and keep an eye on things. Be careful in every place, and make sure there are no mistakes."
Wang Xifeng quickly bowed and agreed.
Grandmother Jia then looked at Madam You: "Zhen's daughter-in-law, go and help Feng'er keep an eye on things, so that nothing goes wrong and people outside say that our Jia family has no manners."
Lady You curtsied slightly and replied "Yes," then pulled Wang Xifeng outside.
Qin hurriedly followed.
Before leaving, Wang Xifeng glanced at Madam Wang without showing any emotion, her heart filled with resentment: "She had to make trouble for no reason. Now look what's happened, the old lady has also scolded me. She's really incredibly foolish!"
Grandmother Jia glanced at Madam Xing, who was gloating, and was so frightened that she quickly suppressed the smile that was about to come out.
Then she took Jia Baoyu's hand and said gently, "Go back and take a nap to recharge. In the afternoon, change into neat clothes and go with your second brother Lian to entertain the guests."
"Grandmother..." Jia Baoyu said with a reluctant expression.
The smile on Grandmother Jia's face faded slightly: "Good boy, listen to me. These aren't outsiders, they're your uncle's retainers, they're family."
Jia Baoyu understood Grandmother Jia's temper, so even though he was extremely unwilling, he could only obediently nod in agreement.
Madam Wang Ziteng's eyes darted around again, then she stood up and said with a smile, "Grandma is so thoughtful. If Baoyu goes over and has a few drinks with her, this matter will be completely over. It'll be easier for her to see her aunt in the future..."
Grandmother Jia remained silent, observing her quietly. Sure enough, she changed the subject, "But Baoyu is still just a child; how can he withstand too much drinking? Since Li-ge'er is here, why not let him drink a few cups for Baoyu and help him socialize? Wouldn't that be perfect?"
The abacus beads were practically hitting Grandmother Jia in the face, and she nearly lost her temper and told her to get out.
Grandmother Jia took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled before smiling and saying, "Thank you for your concern, Aunt. Although my elder brother Baoyu passed away early, he still has Zhen'er and Lian'er to take care of him, so he will never suffer the slightest grievance."
Lady Wang Ziteng's face turned pale and then flushed, looking extremely unpleasant. She understood perfectly the unspoken message: Baoyu has an elder brother, so what are you all?!
The Wang family still needed the Jia family's financial support, so even though Madam Wang Ziteng was full of resentment, she could only swallow her anger.
She forced a smile: "I have things to take care of at home, so I'll take my leave now."
Grandmother Jia nodded with a smile: "Please give my regards to your old lady when you get back."
"Yes." Lady Wang Ziteng curtsied and left dejectedly.
Grandmother Jia snorted inwardly, then glanced at her foolish eldest and second daughters-in-law, feeling utterly exhausted. She waved her hand and said, "Disperse, all of you."
......................
The news of the marriage agreement quickly spread throughout the capital, but there was no festive atmosphere at all in the inner quarters of the Prince of Beijing's residence.
The servants would tiptoe around the study when they passed by, barely daring to breathe.
In the study, Shui Rong was no longer the gentle and refined person she usually was; her eyes were gloomy and even revealed a fierce glint.
He picked up his pen and wrote the two characters "Liu Feng" in large letters on the paper. He stared at the name for a long time, and then drew a big "X" on the name.
Just then, the curtain was lifted, and the steward entered, bowing and reporting, "Your Highness, we have just received news that the Emperor has granted Liu Feng the two thousand-household garrisons in the outer city and has also permitted him to recruit his own men."
After listening, Shui Rong threw down his pen and looked at the butler: "Find out where he plans to recruit people from."
"Yes." The butler bowed and withdrew.
Shui Rong's gaze fell on the paper again, staring at the name marked with an "X," and she suddenly smiled: "It's quite interesting that a lowly person from a vagrant family can cause such a stir..."