In [Dream Of The Red Chamber], Jia She Acquires A Plant-Based Superpower. - Chapter 4

At dinner, Jia She witnessed the extravagance and waste of the Jia Mansion. The household had begun to rot from its very roots, and Jia She did not even have the inclination to offer advice. No one paid attention to the fact that Jia She’s face was becoming increasingly youthful, as that paled in comparison to the news that Lai Da’s home had been raided. To avoid drawing too much attention to his drastic changes, Jia She frequently took Yingchun and Jia Cong for walks around the estate.

Jia She entrusted Yingchun and Jia Cong to Lady Xing’s care, and she did not disappoint him. She first replaced all the maids and nannies around them and arranged for the children to live in the quarters next to her own.

Yingchun picked a flower in the garden and trotted up to Jia She. “Father is handsome, I will pin this flower on you.”

Jia She crouched before her, smiling as he let her pin the flower. Seeing this, Jia Cong also went to the garden, plucked a red peony as large as a human face, and clamored to have it pinned on Jia She as well. The rose Yingchun had picked was small, and Jia She felt pinning it on was fine, but a peony the size of a face was simply too much. When Jia Cong saw that Jia She would not pin his flower, he assumed he was disliked, and his lips curled as tears welled in his eyes.

Jia She sighed softly, crouched down before Jia Cong, and said, “Fine, pin it on, pin it on.”

From afar, Lady Xing heard Jia Cong and Yingchun’s joyful voices. She whispered to Wang Shanbao’s wife, “The Eldest Master is truly wonderful now. I hope he continues to be mad like this forever!”

Wang Shanbao’s wife’s eyes darted around frantically. She whispered in advice, “First Madam, the Eldest Master is much easier to talk to now than before. Why do you not lower your guard and invite him to dinner? If you can take this opportunity to conceive, you will have someone to rely on for the rest of your life.”

Lady Xing knew Wang Shanbao’s wife was looking out for her, but she was unwilling. Before she was married, she had a sweetheart, and her heart had died with him. On the eve of her wedding, upon learning of his death, she had dressed in white and bowed to the moon in marriage to him. The only thing she could keep was her own virtue.

Lady Xing shook her head, telling Wang Shanbao’s wife to say no more. “Look at the Eldest Master now; what would it look like for me to throw myself at him? People who do not know the situation would think I was his elder.”

Wang Shanbao’s wife stopped speaking, secretly agreeing with Lady Xing. Jia She had been growing younger lately; many of the maids and older women in the East Courtyard would blush secretly when they saw him. Even though Lady Xing was over ten years younger than Jia She, standing next to him, she did not look like his wife at all; rather, she looked like his elder.

Wang Shanbao’s wife recalled something and leaned in close to whisper, “I heard the Eldest Master has been focusing on his health lately; he has not spent the night with any of those concubines for a long time.”

Lady Xing blinked. “Let us not concern ourselves with the Eldest Master’s affairs. Life is already good enough now; do not be too greedy, or you will lose more than you gain.”

Wang Shanbao’s wife nodded hurriedly. The East Courtyard had not been managed by Lady Xing before. When Lady Xing was ill, she had to pay extra money just to add an extra dish to her meal, and sometimes there was not even hot water at night. Ever since Lady Xing took charge of the East Courtyard’s household accounts, the dining table had whatever they wished to eat, hot water was always available at night, and even she, a servant, benefited from it.

Jia She played with Yingchun and Jia Cong until noon before having the servants carry them back. Since the incident with Lai Da, Lin Zhixiao had come specifically to kowtow and thank Jia She for saving his life. He had investigated: Lady Wang had approached him first, but because she found no silver in his courtyard, she had to find Lai Da to take the fall. It turned out the Eldest Master’s question about whether he wanted to live or die referred to Lady Wang. He was incredibly grateful he had chosen to pledge loyalty to the Eldest Master; he had not kept a single cent from his private storehouse, or he would be the one beaten to death right now.

Lin Zhixiao worked with increasing dedication. He spent a month auditing all the manors under Jia She’s name, returning with 170,000 taels of silver and reporting twenty-nine stewards to the authorities. Seeing Lin Zhixiao covered in weariness, his face lined with wrinkles and his body radiating a sense of killing intent, Jia She said quietly, “Rest well today; I have things for you to do tomorrow.”

Lin Zhixiao insisted he was not tired, but he had kept one-tenth of the illicit funds recovered. It was far more satisfying than embezzling, as this money was legitimate; he could spend it as he pleased without fear of discovery or blackmail.

Seeing that Lin Zhixiao was in high spirits, Jia She ordered, “The silver Lai Da embezzled is still in the manor’s storehouse. Take my personal identity token and summon people from the manors. Late tonight, surround the storehouse and wait for me.”

Lin Zhixiao received the token with both hands. “Master, rest assured, I will handle this. If there is a mistake, you may take my head to kick as a ball.”

Jia She looked at Lin Zhixiao with a smile. “Get out; I do not like playing ball.”

Lin Zhixiao left chuckling, and Jia She sighed softly. He still could not bring himself to ignore the entire Jia family. If the household were raided, how would Yingchun and Jia Cong survive? Could he take them with him to wander the martial arts world? Some people in the mansion deserved to die, but most were innocent. Jia She sighed, “Fine, one last effort. Whatever fate awaits the Jia family after this will depend on luck.”

In the dead of night, Jia She stopped his cultivation, rose, and dressed himself. He was not accustomed to being served by maids and did not allow anyone to get close. Eighty percent of the servants in the East Courtyard had been replaced; no one knew how much he had changed. Even if they noticed, they would assume it was a personality shift caused by his madness.

After finishing, he found Lin Zhixiao waiting outside. They arrived at the main storehouse and saw a row of servants already bound and gagged. Ignoring them, Jia She commanded, “Break the locks, clear out the contents, and pack up 800,000 taels. If there is not enough cash, use antiques and calligraphy.”

Lin Zhixiao did not know what Jia She intended, but he knew his orders. Even if Jia She had ordered him to set a fire, he would have done it. If he had not followed orders last time, his grave grass would already be sprouting. Lin Zhixiao and his men smashed the copper locks, and the courtyard was soon brilliantly lit. As Lin Zhixiao had his men count and pack the assets, Jia She walked through the storehouse like a king patrolling his domain.

Eighty percent of the contents of the Rong Mansion’s main storehouse had been moved from Lai Da’s home, showing how poor the treasury had been. Mother Jia must have been siphoning items into her own private treasury while she managed the household, which was why she could tolerate Lady Wang’s embezzlement of public funds.

Before dawn, Jia She led the convoy to the Ministry of Revenue, having already given orders: “Keep an eye on the people at the storehouse; do not let them leak any information. Lady Wang likes to embezzle? I will deliver the money to the Ministry of Revenue and see how she tries to embezzle it now.”

Jia She knew these people would report everything to Lady Wang and Mother Jia. He deliberately spoke his intentions to make them misunderstand his purpose. Every official in the imperial court owed money to the Ministry of Revenue. He needed a reasonable excuse to pay, or else the other three great families would see it as a betrayal. He still wanted to live a quiet life and could not give them a reason to cause him trouble.

The whole capital knew he had broken ties with Lady Wang and beaten Jia Zheng, with some claiming he had gone mad. Taking on the persona of a lunatic, he could claim he disliked Lady Wang managing the household and feared his recovered assets would be stolen again, so he simply returned the arrears to the Ministry. Even if someone suspected he was buttering up the new Emperor, they would have to get others to believe it first.

Jia She waited at the Ministry gates before dawn. Within half an hour, Minister of Revenue Liu Hongyun saw him and hurried over. “General Jia, may I ask why you have come in the middle of the night?” He did not know Jia She well. Liu Hongyun saw Jia She’s face clearly in the torchlight and gasped.

As a confidant of the new Emperor, he knew the Emperor’s secret preference: he was obsessed with beauty. Whether eunuchs or palace maids, everyone around the Emperor was top-tier. Once, in good spirits, the Emperor had mentioned that Jia She was the most beautiful person he had ever seen in his youth, though he had “withered” as he aged. Seeing Jia She now, Liu Hongyun could not help but think: With such ethereal beauty and temperament, he looks like an immortal. If this is considered “withered,” how high are the Emperor’s standards?

Jia She walked up to Liu Hongyun and pointed to the convoy behind him. “This is money I just confiscated from my servants. It is unsafe to keep in the storehouse. I recalled my grandfather saying we owed the Ministry of Revenue hundreds of thousands of taels, so I thought I would bring it to you while I was in a good mood.”

Liu Hongyun had guessed as much when he saw the convoy, but hearing it confirmed, he could only think one thing: Jia She is indeed as mad as the rumors say!

Liu Hongyun enthusiastically invited Jia She inside. “General Jia, your righteousness is truly noble! The harvests have been poor recently, and the national treasury is empty. If the court had more people as righteous as you, it would be a blessing for the people.”

Jia She curled his lips in feigned dissatisfaction, his tone lazy. “Do not praise me, Minister. I am no righteous man. A person should have self-awareness; I know exactly what kind of person I am.”

“This money was a windfall, and leaving it at home is just waiting for thieves to steal it. Better to pay the Ministry of Revenue; saving a few lives is better than letting it be stolen.”

Liu Hongyun understood Jia She was referring to Lady Wang, but he could not comment on his domestic affairs, so he chuckled and glossed over it. Although they were not close, the Jia She he knew and the man before him were like two different people. He had known Jia She as a classic playboy, but the man speaking to him now had clear eyes and a gentle temperament; it was hard to believe he was a wasteful fool. Liu Hongyun trusted his judgment: Jia She was not as bad as rumored; someone must be tarnishing his name. Regardless of his reasons, Liu Hongyun was grateful.

He invited Jia She to breakfast, but Jia She refused, standing up and stretching. “No need to eat. I have been busy all night and need to go back to sleep. Minister Liu, it is not a holiday today, so let us meet another time.”

Thinking he had to meet the Emperor shortly, Liu Hongyun did not press him and personally saw Jia She to his carriage. Once the carriage was out of sight, Liu Hongyun sighed to his confidant: “When I heard General Jia was arrogant and overbearing while studying in the palace, I did not believe it. Now that I have glimpsed his bearing, I finally understand why he was so arrogant back then.” The confidant nodded in agreement; even as a man, his heart rate had quickened just looking at Jia She. He suspected Jia She stayed secluded because he was tired of being surrounded whenever he went out.