nucmednet Chapter 30 Departure
Chapter 30 Departure
Jia Zheng has been away on his post for three years and has not returned since. Without his father's supervision and with the doting of Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang, Jia Baoyu has become even more unrestrained. He has hardly gone to the family school to study and has only been indulging in romance and pleasure in the Grand View Garden. Over the past three years, there have been constant rumors about him, Lin Daiyu, and Xue Baochai.
One moment the "preordained love between wood and stone" was in the lead, the next the "perfect match between gold and jade" was in the lead, and the two rumors grew more and more intense.
Jia Huan knew that these two rumors were not just rumors; behind them lay a secret power struggle between Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang.
Grandmother Jia valued Lin Daiyu highly and intentionally cultivated her relationship with Jia Baoyu from the moment Lin Daiyu entered the Jia family.
Lady Wang, however, disliked Lin Daiyu's temperament and sickly health, and disapproved of their relationship from the bottom of her heart. Instead, she valued Xue Baochai, who was gentle, virtuous, dignified and wise. Baochai was also her sister's daughter, so she was naturally closer to her.
Gradually, Grandmother Jia developed dissatisfaction with Lady Wang, secretly cursing her for being foolish, only caring about her own interests and disregarding the rise and fall of the Jia family.
Although she doted on her granddaughter, she was also the matriarch of the Jia family, and her heart naturally belonged to the Jia family. Daiyu was good, but not as important as Baoyu.
Although she had ulterior motives in wanting Baoyu to marry Daiyu, her primary motivation was the Jia family.
Back then, the late emperor was seriously ill and had not recovered for a long time. He thought he was dying, so he had no choice but to appoint the current emperor as the new ruler. Lin Ruhai was the new emperor's trusted minister.
Although Lin Ruhai was born into a noble family and was a hereditary marquis, he became a third-ranked scholar in the imperial examination, which transformed the Lin family from a noble family to a family of upright officials. Moreover, because he made the right bet, he became an important minister of the new emperor, first serving as the Grand Master of the Imperial Academy and later as the Salt Commissioner.
A bright future was right in front of him, but it was a pity that Lin Ruhai died, otherwise his future career would have been limitless.
Although Lin Ruhai is dead, the political resources he left behind remain. Putting aside everything else, the emperor, whether to avoid alienating other officials or for the sake of the deceased Lin Ruhai, could not possibly forget his descendants and orphans.
If Lin Daiyu were a boy, the emperor would probably have already sent her to the capital to bestow an official title upon her. It's just a pity that she was a girl and could not become an official. Instead, the emperor temporarily withheld the honor and it is highly likely that he will bestow it upon her future husband.
Not to mention Lin Ruhai's former classmates and friends, as well as those who passed the imperial examination in the same year—that's a huge network of connections!
It can be said that after marrying Lin Daiyu, Jia Baoyu not only married his beloved, but also gained a lot of political resources. Although his career in officialdom may not have been smooth sailing, he would at least have someone to take care of him.
Moreover, with so much of the Lin family's wealth falling into Lin Daiyu's hands, her marriage into the Jia family would greatly alleviate the Jia family's financial risks.
Lin Daiyu herself was extremely intelligent and capable of managing household affairs. Although she was physically weak, her wealthy family had plenty of good things to take care of her, so it wasn't a serious problem.
Lin Daiyu had money, resources, and beauty; she was so beautiful that she would be sought after as a wife, and even prominent families would be tempted by her.
And what does Xue Baochai have?
Money?
It's true that the Xue family were wealthy imperial merchants, but since Xue's father died, the Xue family, like the Jia family, began to decline. The Xue family's title of imperial merchant was now meaningless. Although there was Xue Pan who could inherit the family business, he had no talent for business and only knew how to squander the family fortune. Later, he killed someone, and in order to save him, the Xue family had his household registration revoked. Now, Xue Pan no longer exists in the Xue family on the surface.
Without powerful backing, the Xue family, no matter how wealthy, is like a three-year-old child holding a golden bowl on the street; sooner or later, they will be robbed of everything.
That's why Aunt Xue and her family of three gave up living in their house in the capital and shamelessly stayed at the Jia family mansion. They wanted to use the power of the Rongguo Mansion to save the already precarious Xue family.
Although Grandmother Jia valued Daiyu, she had to admit that Xue Baochai was dignified in appearance and manner, and very capable in dealing with people. She would definitely be a good daughter-in-law in the future.
It's a pity that she could offer Baoyu so little.
Grandmother Jia sighed silently.
Lady Wang simply didn't understand Grandmother Jia's thoughts, feeling that she only cared about her granddaughter and neglected her own grandson.
Baochai is good in every way, and her family is rich. Her dowry will definitely be substantial. The Jia family's treasury is empty, and they are already struggling to make ends meet. They have started to use their old savings. If the Jia family continues to squander money, how much will be left for Baoyu?
If we don't find Baoyu a wife from a wealthy family now, won't he have to worry about the family's livelihood all day long? How can he concentrate on his studies, take the imperial examination, and become an official?
Besides, how would Baoyu manage if he married such a sickly beauty like Xi Shi? Moreover, Daiyu is sharp-tongued and often throws tantrums at Baoyu, making him completely bewildered.
Previously, Zijuan jokingly said that Lin Daiyu wanted to go back to the Lin family in Yangzhou.
This caused Baoyu to become obsessed and fall seriously ill. This girl is so clever. Before the two are even engaged or married, she has already got Baoyu under her thumb. If they really get married in the future, how badly will Baoyu be bullied!
She's just an orphan girl, yet she dares to covet Baoyu?
Lady Wang snorted coldly; she would never allow Baoyu to marry that 'Lin Daiyu'.
With the two having different intentions, the Jia family was naturally thrown into turmoil, with the masters vying for power and the servants engaging in fierce infighting.
This situation continued until Jia Zheng's three-year term ended, and he returned to the Rongguo Mansion.
When Jia Zheng learned that during the three years he had been away, his two sons had been neglecting their studies, one spending his days indulging in pleasures in the Grand View Garden and the other recuperating from an illness in the courtyard, he was both angry and saddened. He felt that he could no longer let his sons do as they pleased.
With his sudden action, Jia Huan's peaceful days were over.
He didn't want to get involved in the messy affairs of the Jia family, and he had no feelings for the people here. He felt it was pointless to stay here, so he was kidnapped by abductors on his way to the East Mansion to pay respects to his ancestors during the New Year.
Yes!
He was abducted!
The Jia family was shocked.
After being shocked, Jia Zheng immediately reported the matter to the authorities and searched the entire city, but to no avail.
The news that the young master of the Rongguo Mansion had been abducted in broad daylight and in full view of everyone spread like wildfire throughout the capital.
The East and West Mansions are both on the same street, and it's not far from the gate. Not to mention they have so many servants following them. How could they possibly lose their lives?
How capable must this kidnapper be to abduct someone from so many people?
How blind must someone be to dare to lay a hand on the Rongguo Mansion?
Besides, aren't all human traffickers targeting women and children?
Jia Huan is thirteen years old, not three. He's that old. What use is it to kidnap him?
Even the Emperor and the Retired Emperor in the palace knew about this. The four major families were allied with the Retired Emperor. Upon hearing about this, the Retired Emperor was the first to attack, directly rebuking the Emperor for his incompetence in governing the country and for being completely unaware that there were human traffickers right under the Emperor's nose. After the reprimand, the Retired Emperor ordered the Emperor to do everything in his power to find Jia Huan's whereabouts.