Chapter 55

Qingwen hurriedly stepped forward to greet: "Aunt Zhou, how are you? Why are you here?"

This middle-aged woman was Lady Wang's personal maid, Zhou Rui's wife, who usually managed all the inner affairs of Lady Wang.

Her husband managed the rent silver and money for the Ningguo Mansion's farms, and both were considered respectable old servants in the mansion.

Qingwen hurriedly led Zhou Rui's wife and that maid into the room and diligently invited her to sit.

Jia Cong understood Qingwen's cleverness; knowing he had always been in the East Courtyard and didn't recognize this Zhou Rui's wife, she was specifically reminding him.

He said clearly: "Aunt Zhou, how are you? I have injuries on my body and am not convenient to get up to pay my respects, so please don't take offense, Aunt Zhou."

Zhou Rui's wife had long heard about Jia Cong's affairs, knowing he had grown up in the East Courtyard in poverty and had always been harshly scolded and beaten by the Eldest Master and Eldest Lady.

She had thought that a child raised in such a situation, having suffered so much injustice, would inevitably carry some hidden resentment.

But seeing him in person, she found his eyes gentle, his conversation calm, and his manner generous, without a trace of coldness or eccentricity.

A child raised in such a situation hadn't grown crooked at all, which she found amazing in her heart.

"Sending Liu's Wu'er to your room to be a maid, and there are two or three other rough-working maids, which you can take when you move to the new courtyard."

"The wife said there is only Qingwen in Brother Cong's room, and you will have to study and advance in the future, and there are many things inside and outside, fearing you won't have enough people to use."

"Wu'er, don't be stunned; come over and pay respects to your Cong Sanye, and serve him diligently in the future."

This person was Lady Wang's confidant; this big mansion was full of sieves everywhere, so even if one was acting, one had to do the whole set to avoid being picked on by others.

"Then I will thank Aunt Zhou first." Even though Jia Cong couldn't get off the bed now, he still gave Zhou Rui's wife a formal bow while sitting.

"Brother Cong, don't be so distant. Now that you have arrived at the West Prefecture, we are all one family. If you lack food or supplies in the future, just send a maid to find me."

Jia Cong saw a maid walk out from behind Zhou Rui's wife; she was a few years older than Qingwen, her figure was slender and graceful, her eyes contained autumn water, her face was beautiful, and she carried a delicate and weak elegance.

Zhou Rui's wife saw that he was neither humble nor arrogant, and was humble and polite, so she nodded secretly in her heart.

Although the words didn't reach the point, Zhou Rui's wife had followed Lady Wang for a lifetime; how could she not understand?

It was just that Jia Cong had been beaten half to death in the East Courtyard, yet he had some good fortune, not only being moved to the West Prefecture by the Old Lady to recuperate, but also having someone arrange for him to study at an academy outside.

No wonder the Second Master thought so highly of him; he was indeed an unusual child.

Thinking that he had been used to being treated harshly since childhood, he was grateful for any kindness shown to him, which was also reasonable, so she let go of the scrutinizing thoughts she had carried earlier.

"Wait until I am slightly better, and then I will go to kowtow to the wife."

Lady Wang also had some ideas in her heart, wanting to see what he would look like after suffering for a long time and then succeeding, so she could have a plan and preparation in her heart.

Liu Wu'er—Jia Cong was still familiar with this name; although in the original timeline, Liu Wu'er was only a fleeting character.

She bowed to Jia Cong: "Wu'er, pays respects to Cong Sanye."

Zhou Rui's wife was a worldly person who had seen many scenes, and seeing Jia Cong's sincere words, they seemed to come from his true heart.

Originally, bringing a maid over was just a small matter, and it didn't need someone like Zhou Rui's wife to come out; she was also sent by Lady Wang.

Jia Cong looked moved: "The wife is truly kind; Jia Cong is extremely grateful and really has nothing to repay her with. I beg Aunt to go back and help me thank the wife."

The book describes her as a kitchen servant's daughter, but she was born with a figure similar to Ping, Xi, Yuan, and Zi.

This was a very high descriptive evaluation in the flower-filled *Red Chamber*.

Later, Baoyu's maid Fangguan gave her the rose dew that Baoyu had left over, and because her mother, the Liu family, offended Siqi and others, the mother and daughter were accused of theft.

Liu Wu'er had a noble heart, so she became ill from anger; the descriptions in the book were chaotic, with some saying Liu Wu'er died of anger, and others saying she didn't, with various opinions.

Today, Jia Cong finally saw the real person, and she was indeed very outstanding, living up to the vivid description in the original text.

Qingwen had always been proud of her own good looks, but seeing Wu'er, she found her to be equally outstanding.

And the graceful and quiet charm she carried was even a few points better than her own, so she snorted with some dissatisfaction.

Jia Cong saw Qingwen's childish temper and couldn't help but laugh secretly.

Jia Cong hadn't seen Wu'er before today because Wu'er didn't serve in the garden, so she couldn't walk around the mansion at will, only helping out in her mother's kitchen.

But he was not unfamiliar with Wu'er, because Hearing Zhi Shao had been very close to Wu'er since childhood, and when Jia Cong was beaten by Jia She last time, he had no money to buy food in the kitchen, and it was Wu'er who kindly helped him secretly.

Although it was brought by Hearing Zhi Shao every time, he hadn't met Wu'er, but they already had a bond of incense.

Seeing Wu'er made Jia Cong think of his Hearing Zhi Shao, and he couldn't help but feel depressed again.

Over the next few days, Jia Cong had Qingwen apply medicine every day; Qu Hongxiu's medicine was very effective, and by the third day, the whip wounds on his back were mostly healed, and he could walk on the ground.

Qingwen had a straightforward temper and wore everything on her face; originally she was somewhat repulsive to the newly arrived Wu'er, although she had only arrived a day earlier than Wu'er.

Fortunately, although Wu'er had her own ideas, her temper was delicate and gentle, treating people with sincerity, and she also knew how to be humble, so she was quite popular.

The two of them did all kinds of things in Jia Cong's room together, bumping into each other for a day or two, and then Qingwen was convinced by her, and the two little maids became harmonious, chatting and laughing.

During this time, Xiao Jindong, He Jizhen, and Zhou Xizhe came together.

They had known earlier that Jia Cong had been robbed halfway, and later heard from Liu Bi that he had received family punishment and was injured, so the three of them picked a day to come and visit together.

These three were more experienced and worldly than Liu Bi and knew the principle that family ugliness should not be publicized, so they didn't mention a word about Jia Cong's injuries.

They only talked about some street gossip and daily interesting things, and the four of them chatted happily during the meal.

Xiao Jindong also said that since Jia Cong became famous at the Nanxi Literary Gathering, the few pieces of calligraphy he left in his shop had increased in value, with many people asking about them every day, and the price had already been called to two hundred taels a piece.

It looked like it would continue to rise, and he joked that Jia Cong should recover from his injuries as soon as possible and sell a few more pieces of calligraphy to him, so he could make another fortune.

Jia Cong had deliberately angered Jia She that day, and then had to deal with the calculations of the inner residence by Jia Mu and others; only then did he feel a bit more relaxed.

It was just that the two uninvited guests who came later made him feel vigilant in his heart.

They were Liu Binfang, a judge of the Zhenan Prefecture, and Zheng Yingquan, a director of the Court of Judicial Review.

Judge Liu Binfang was in his thirties, his clothes were impeccable, his attitude was amiable, and he wore a smile that offended no one; Jia Cong could see he was just a companion.

Zheng Yingquan, the director of the Court of Judicial Review, was the protagonist.

Jia Cong had long expected that he had been robbed by the murderer who killed Wu Jinrong and had returned to the mansion safely, so the Court of Judicial Review would never turn a deaf ear.

He had anticipated that the Court of Judicial Review would definitely send someone to inquire, and he had rehearsed countless times in his heart how the other party would ask and how he should answer.

Zhou Junxing of the Court of Judicial Review was a well-known cruel official, skilled in investigation and case solving, and even more keen on colluding and framing; facing such a person, a slight carelessness would lead to disaster.

Moreover, at the critical moment of life and death that day, he and Qu Hongxiu had joined hands to kill two of Zhou Junxing's subordinates, which already involved him, making him even more cautious in his words and actions on this matter.

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(End of chapter)