Chapter 13

Rongguo Prefecture, Mengpo Study.

Jia Zheng sipped the tea handed by a maid and looked up at the two young men in front of him.

Jia Cong stood straight and still, his breath stable and silent.

Baoyu, however, lowered his head, not daring to face his father, his back slightly hunched, lacking his usual elegant and handsome style.

Jia Zheng put the tea cup down heavily, making a "clack" sound, which startled Baoyu into a shiver.

He snorted coldly at Baoyu: "Look at you; it's one thing not to study well, but you don't even have a proper standing posture. Look at your brother—the same age as you, yet he can already reveal the family's reputation. I am ashamed for you."

These words made Jia Cong somewhat embarrassed; Baoyu is the apple of Jia Mu's eye, and Jia Mu dislikes him the most.

If Jia Mu knew that Jia Zheng was using him as a pretext to scold Baoyu for his incompetence, wouldn't she hate him too?

Actually, Baoyu's nature is still pure and kind; his usual style is simply a clear stream among the noble sons.

They say father and son are enemies from a past life; that is probably what Jia Zheng and Baoyu are like.

Jia Zheng's expression softened slightly upon hearing this, and he was surprised that Jia Cong could say such profound words as "the mountains and rivers are easy to change, but the nature is hard to move." He did not know that the world was missing a person named Feng Menglong.

It is just that Jia Zheng had a knot in his heart about fame and career his whole life; he didn't achieve it himself, so he hoped his children and grandchildren would make up for it. First, there was the promising Jia Zhu, but unfortunately, the eldest son was short-lived.

At this moment, Jia Cong suddenly heard footsteps fading away at the door, and his heart moved slightly; the water in this great noble mansion is still very deep.

Jia Mu's face turned angry when she heard this, and she was about to flare up; Lady Wang's face also tightened.

Baoyu looked at Jia Cong defending him, and a look of gratitude appeared on his face.

A maid lifted the curtain and walked in; Jia Mu asked hurriedly: "Was Baoyu scolded or beaten by the master?"

Jia Mu said wearily: "It counts that he still knows etiquette and knows how to be considerate of his brother."

In Jia Mu's room, the old lady was leaning on a couch, with Lady Wang sitting to one side, still holding a string of sandalwood prayer beads in her hand.

"The master stopped scolding Bao Er Ye Bao after hearing Cong Sanye Cong's words."

It is just that he was born with jade in his mouth, his status was strange and noble, and he had grown up in a wealthy and powerful family since childhood, doted on by his grandmother, which is why he developed a playful temperament that disliked studying.

The second son, Baoyu, originally had extraordinary talent; since childhood, whatever he put his heart into, he succeeded in. Jia Zheng originally had high hopes for him, but Baoyu happened to dislike official careers and economic affairs the most, trying every means to escape his studies.

The maid said: "The master first said Cong Sanye Cong was promising and scolded Bao Er Ye Bao for not studying and not having a standing posture."

For someone who stood at the peak of worldly wealth the moment he landed, what meaning did reading and studying have for him?

"Baoyu is just young and hasn't settled his heart yet. When he is a couple of years older, he will naturally study hard. With Baoyu's aptitude, what difficulty is there in entering school and becoming an official in the future?"

They say the mountains and rivers are easy to change, but the nature is hard to move; reading and knowledge can be accumulated later, but a good heart is born naturally and is hard to find even with ten thousand gold.

The maid said again: "Cong Sanye Cong said Bao Er Ye Bao has a pure and kind heart and is the best among the noble sons."

He also said Bao Er Ye Bao is young now, and when he is a few years older and his heart is calm, he will know how to study. He also said Bao Er Ye Bao is smart, and it will be easy to enter school and become an official in the future.

Jia Mu breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this, and Lady Wang on the side smiled: "That child is indeed sensible."

Jia Cong saw Jia Zheng was about to scold him again, fearing he would attract hatred for him, so he hurriedly said:

"Bao Er Ye, actually Baoyu has a pure and kind heart and is the best among the noble sons."

"I heard earlier that because he broke a jade ruyi, he was beaten by his eldest uncle until he was almost out of breath. It was just a broken object; why go to such lengths?"

Although the people in the East Courtyard did not dare to talk about Jia Cong being seriously injured, Jia Mu had been in charge of the mansion for half her life, and very few things in the mansion could be hidden from her.

"The past is the past. Now that he has been noticed by Prince Emperor Jia Zhao and is going to that literary society, I think he has some character. I'm afraid more people will be watching him from now on."

"If that kind of thing happens again, it will be embarrassing for the Jia family's face. In a great family like ours, there's no shortage of things that are unpleasant or unsightly; just be more open-minded. He's not young anymore, yet he still has this monkey temper."

Lady Wang knew that Jia Mu was complaining about her eldest son not being sensible, and she couldn't take that.

"He is the Old Lady's own grandson after all. I see he is promising, and the eldest uncle is just strict in teaching his son. He will be better when he grows up."

Jia Mu said: "Let's get through this period first. I don't know if your sister-in-law has listened to my words. Fewer things will make everyone's life easier."

She also ordered the maid in the room: "Go call Baoyu over and say I want to tour the garden, and let him come to support me, so he doesn't get scared out of his wits at his father's place."

Jia Cong was talking to Jia Zheng, while Baoyu was on pins and needles on the side.

The maid came in and said the Old Lady wanted Baoyu to go over. Jia Zheng knew his mother was afraid he would make things difficult for his son, so he sighed helplessly and waved his hand at Baoyu.

Baoyu felt relieved, his whole person seemed to come alive again; he bowed to Jia Zheng, stepped back a few steps, and flew out of the study.

Jia Cong knew that the footsteps leaving outside the door were mostly maids sent by Jia Mu to probe the truth, probably fearing Baoyu would suffer at his father's hands.

And those words of his just now must have been passed on to Jia Mu without a single error.

In such a great noble family, there are eyes and ears everywhere; one truly cannot make the slightest mistake, and he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

Jia Zheng watched Baoyu leave like a dragon and asked helplessly: "Where have the lessons in the school reached now?"

Jia Cong hesitated for a moment and said: "A few days ago, the master and Grandfather Dairu in the school talked, and they won't let me go to school anymore."

Jia Zheng's expression changed, and he asked: "Why is this?"

Jia Cong replied: "The master said I am lowly and vulgar, not worthy of reading, and wasting silver in vain."

Jia Zheng was so angry his face turned red, but that was his own eldest brother, so he couldn't scold him in front of Jia Cong.

Today, he saw Jia Cong's outstanding calligraphy, saw his modesty and politeness, his atmospheric and measured behavior, and his sincere and meticulous answers, and he also appreciated him very much.

He really couldn't understand what his eldest brother was thinking; clearly, he had such an outstanding son, yet he trampled on him for no reason.

Others force their sons to study, but he is the opposite—he actually doesn't let his son study. Is it because he thinks he is too promising? It is simply unreasonable.

Jia Zheng comforted him: "You can rest assured. The school is on holiday for the New Year. After the Lantern Festival, I will talk to my eldest brother, and I will surely be able to let you study again."

Actually, Jia Cong did not want to study with Jia Dairu, but knowing Jia Zheng's good intentions, he felt a wave of warmth in his heart.

He was not tolerated by Jia She and his wife, and Jia Mu had disliked this grandson since he was a child; other elders like Lady Wang also looked at Jia Mu's face. He truly had no good feelings for the elders of the Jia family.

Only Jia Zheng, although somewhat pedantic and not having much contact before, showed through today's events that he was treating him sincerely.

Before leaving, Jia Zheng gave him some high-quality brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, heard that he had started reading the Four Books, and praised him a few times.

He also gave him a few treasured annotated Four Books and urged him not to waste his time, saying he would talk about the school matters after the New Year.

Jia Cong returned to the Lincun Courtyard, read the Four Books for a while, and wrote a few large characters. Before it was dark, he saw Aunt Zhao enter the courtyard.

Only after asking did he know that Wang Shanbao's wife had just gone to the laundry room and let Aunt Zhao return to take care of Jia Cong.

Although Jia Cong knew it was only a matter of time, he did not expect that Jia Mu's words in the Rongqing Hall today would have an effect so quickly.

In the Jia mansion, that old lady is firmly at the top of the food chain.

(End of chapter)