The Good Concubine of the Qing Dynasty [Red Mansion]

Yun Qingliang listened to what his wife saw and heard at the prefect’s house. He was silent for a long time and looked at the books she brought back.
There were many annotations on these books, which should have been used by the prefect before. He just flipped through them briefly, and he was inspired a lot.
Judging from the books he has borrowed, their value is getting higher and higher. If he previously thought that he could pass the exam in three years with a gamble, now looking at these books, his feeling that he can pass is getting stronger and stronger. Is the prefect intending to train him?

Will it continue to develop? Will the prefect be willing to give him personal guidance?
Yun Qingliang knew that he couldn’t return these books, which he really needed.
Their family background was too shallow, and he had no way to obtain such books before, so Yun Qingliang decided to accept them shamelessly.

As long as he passed the imperial examination, he would be able to repay this favor one day, but if he remained a scholar, he would not even have the hope of repaying the favor.
As for the three hundred taels of silver she brought back, Yun Qingliang nodded: “If she wants to buy land, then let her buy it.” Acquiring property is a good thing, no matter how you look at it.

No matter what she wants to do, she won’t lose out with their help.
Yun Heng and Yun Yan: “Mom, is there anything we can do? Can we go see my sister?”
Song: “You should study hard and pass the imperial examinations as soon as possible so that you can support your sister in the future.”
As for meeting, she hesitated: “There’s no rush for this; let’s wait for the post.”
This is what my daughter meant, but she can’t be sure.

Yun Heng and Yun Yan were delighted to hear this: “Mom, we are not being lazy! Don’t hide it from us when the post arrives.” Their teacher said that they have made great progress during this period.
Song nodded and looked at her two sons with relief in her eyes.
They are not young anymore, not children anymore, and are very sensible, so she doesn’t have to worry too much.
“Come, try this. Your sister asked the kitchen to make this especially.”
She opened the lunch box and saw that it was completely stuffed with food; no wonder it felt so heavy when she picked it up.
This amount can be used as a full meal for them.
Yun Heng: “These snacks look delicious.”

Yun Yan picked up a piece of plum blossom-shaped one: “Not only does it look good, it tastes good too.”
Song also tried a piece. Is this the snack from the prefect’s house? It tastes better than the snacks bought from the old shop.
Yun Heng: “Dad, my sister wants to buy land; can I help?”
Yun Qingliang: “I will ask your uncle for help with this matter.”
The eldest brother lives in the village and is more familiar with the situation there.
Yun Qingpeng knew about this and agreed immediately: “Second brother, leave this matter to me. As long as there is someone in our village who wants to sell land, I will go and negotiate.”
Yun Qingliang: “Then I’ll trouble you, big brother.”
Yun Qingpeng: “Shu Yao is my niece; why are you being so polite?”

When Lady Jia first received the letter from Nanny Qian, she felt sorry for her daughter.
Then she felt that things and people had changed.
After her husband passed away, neither of her two sons could support the family.
The eldest son is mediocre and lives a life of drunkenness and dreams in his own yard. The second son did get an official position for his husband before his husband died, but he is still in the mourning period. After the mourning period is over, he will have to slowly climb up. It is unknown how long it will take for him to climb to a high position.

If the old Duke were still alive, how could the Lin family dare to take a concubine and ignore the Jia family?
Thinking that Min’er was still unwilling to write a letter to tell her, Grandmother Jia felt heartbroken. She could only ask Madam Qian to act according to circumstances and find a chance to teach them a lesson so that they would behave themselves.

Not long after, she received a letter from her daughter and a letter from Nanny Qian.
This letter brought worse news than the previous one.
Someone in her daughter’s backyard is pregnant.
Her daughter has been married into the Lin family for ten years, but she is still not happy, and that concubine has only been married for a few months and is pregnant.
She was born into a wealthy family; her family was rich, and she had certain connections. Although Lady Jia did not care about these money and connections, it could be seen from Nanny Qian’s letter that she was still a restless person.

A restless person becomes pregnant, and her mother’s family has some influence. Such a person has limited knowledge and can easily become nervous when seeing the situation.
If her daughter is careless, she might even climb over her head.
This is something that Grandmother Jia cannot tolerate.
Besides, the eldest son of a concubine must naturally be eliminated, but such a thing should either not be done at all, or it should be done quickly and efficiently without leaving any trace.

After destroying a set of her beloved tea sets, Grandmother Jia finally calmed down.
Start thinking, what is going on?

Her daughter downplayed the issue in her letter, but fortunately, Nanny Qian’s letter was detailed. Grandmother Jia slowly unraveled the story with a frown on her face.
The problem is not with the aunt but with Lin’s mother!
She suddenly remembered what her daughter said when her son-in-law received the transfer order. It seemed that this transfer was also the intention of Lin’s mother.
Taking a concubine according to the horoscope was something that Lin’s mother strongly advocated.
The meaning here…

Grandmother Jia, who still required her daughter-in-law to set rules and serve her, had a bad feeling in her heart.
There are so many ways for a mother-in-law to make things difficult for her daughter-in-law.
Could it be that she wanted to promote the concubine and marginalize Min’er?
This is favoring the concubine and neglecting the wife. Does she want to give up her son’s career?
But it’s not quite right to say that; the household is still managed by the daughter, and the two concubines have no rights…

Grandmother Jia did not sleep the whole night.
Mrs. Wang Er returned to her own room from the old lady’s place, sat down, and then she could not help laughing out loud.
After seeing this, Zhou Ruijia hurriedly retreated and stood guard outside the door.
Mrs. Wang laughed for a long time before her laughter gradually stopped.
She never expected to hear such good news!
She felt very relieved.

Jia Min, the sister-in-law, is such a noble person. She just has the reputation of being a talented woman. Mrs. Wang Er thinks about how Jia Min looked down on her before she got married and then compares her life now. She feels very relieved.
When Jia Min got married, she was decked out in a gorgeous wedding gown. Her husband was a top scholar in a family of marquises for five generations. The couple treated each other with respect; the mother-in-law was kind and gentle, and she was in charge of the household as soon as she got married. Who wouldn’t be envious?
But temporary glory does not mean eternal glory.
She had Yuanchun and Zhuer one after another, but Jia Min, after being married for ten years, had no children at all!

Now she can only watch the concubine give birth to a child!
Mrs. Wang Er had laughed enough and suddenly felt regretful. It was a pity that Jia Min had left the capital, and she could not see her current wonderful expression.
But it’s good to be able to see the expression on the old lady’s face, Mrs. Wang thought, looking in the direction where Lady Jia was, and laughed again.
You set rules for me all day long, and then you took my child to be raised with you, separating me and my child. Now, your retribution has come.

The more Mrs. Wang thought about it, the happier she laughed. Zhou Ruijia, who was guarding the door outside, looked around with a bitter face. My dear wife, you are like this just after coming back from the old lady. If you are discovered, you will suffer again…
Grandmother Jia wrote the letter quickly and had someone send it over as fast as possible.
She was a little worried that Nanny Qian might do something impulsive and on her own.

However, the Lin family’s backyard, where many people thought there would be turmoil, had nothing happened so far, and it was as peaceful as before.
Since both concubines stayed in their own yards and never went out, what could happen?

Nanny Qian was not anxious either, because it was others who should be anxious.
She didn’t want to be too obvious, so after some time, Hong Tao, who was only ten years old, peeked outside Yun Shuyao’s house uneasily. When she saw someone, she went back. After a while, she stuck her head out again to see what was going on in the house. She saw something was wrong.
Yun Shuyao, who was following Nanny Wang to learn the differences between different fabrics, put down the fabric when she saw this and said, “Hong Tao, what’s wrong?”
Hong Tao looked at Nanny Wang hesitantly, then lowered her head in fear.

Nanny Wang raised her eyebrows when she saw this and bowed: “I remembered that I forgot to bring a piece of cloth. I will take my leave now.”
As soon as Nanny Wang left, Hong Tao breathed a sigh of relief.
What she feared most was Nanny Wang.
Then Hong Tao told her what she had heard, “Aunt, I heard something when I went out today. I don’t know if it’s true…” She also felt it was a little suspicious, but she had to tell her aunt.
If it is true, my aunt will probably be sad. While there is still time, maybe she can try to get the master and his wife to change their minds.
Yun Shuyao thought: “What did you hear?”

Hong Tao looked around and made sure that there was no one around before she said, “I heard someone say that the young master born to you and Aunt Mei is going to be taken to the Madam’s courtyard. It is said that the Madam’s courtyard is already decorating the young master’s room.”
Yun Shuyao was stunned, and her heart beat faster. Then she immediately thought of the delicate relationship between the old lady and Jia Min.
Will the child be taken to Bitaoyuan?
Yun Shuyao expressed doubt.
The old lady would not agree. If she agreed, what would it mean for Nanny Wu from Meixiangyuan and Nanny Wang from her courtyard?

She and her colleagues were complete newcomers and hadn’t even brought a maid with them. Apart from guarding against Jia Min and the Jia family, Yun Shuyao really couldn’t think of anyone else who could make the old lady so cautious.
Thinking of this, Yun Shuyao calmed down, “Hong Tao, where did you hear this?”
Hong Tao was a little uneasy: “I heard someone talking about it when I went out to get something. I didn’t see clearly who those two people were. They left when they heard my footsteps.”

Also, because this behavior was too similar to what her aunt had said before, she was skeptical after hearing it.
She originally thought of just pretending she heard nothing, but if it was true and my aunt didn’t know about it, that wouldn’t work.
After struggling for a long time, it finally came.
When Yun Shuyao heard this description, she smiled and felt more at ease.
They don’t even dare to show the front, but it’s still the familiar recipe and familiar taste.
“Hongtao, I have something to trouble you.”

Hong Tao was in high spirits: “Aunt, you said, Hong Tao will definitely do it well!”
Yun Shuyao smiled: “Tell Nanny Wang everything you heard today in detail. When you tell her, remember that the first person you should tell is Nanny Wang. You came to see me today but hesitated and didn’t tell me, understand?”
Nanny Wang is the old lady’s person. When she heard the news, she estimated that the rumor would disappear soon.
Hong Tao didn’t understand, but she knew who to listen to, so she nodded solemnly: “Aunt, I understand!”

She was afraid of Nanny Wang, but she took the initiative to go there.
After hearing what Hong Tao said, Nanny Wang remained expressionless and told her not to say anything. Soon she walked out of the gate of Lanxin Courtyard.
Seeing this, Hong Tao ran over excitedly: “Auntie, Nanny Wang is out!”
Yun Shuyao handed her a bag of snacks and said, “Thank you for your hard work.”
If she isn’t mistaken, Nanny Wang went to the old lady’s Songbaiyuan.
Yun Shuyao thought of Aunt Mei again. Logically, she should have heard such words as well. Would she take them seriously?

Yun Shuyao couldn’t help but frown when she thought of her colleague, Dr. Zhou, who still took her pulse every day. Her body… wouldn’t be affected by these words, right?
The person who spread these words is deliberately trying to hurt the heart.