Chapter 576: Love and Fate

Rongguo Prefecture, East Courtyard, Back Garden.

Jia Cong and his younger sister Tan Chun were talking when an uninvited guest appeared, interrupting them and leaving them both feeling somewhat displeased.

However, today was Lady Wang's birthday banquet, and the Xia mother and daughter were guests invited by Lady Wang; the basic courtesies of hospitality still had to be observed.

Tan Chun was magnanimous and shrewd by nature. The slightly awkward situation before her only made her hesitate for a moment before she reacted.

She said, "Miss Xia, this is my third brother. Third Brother, Miss Xia is the daughter of the Osmanthus Xia family and a distinguished guest invited by the Mistress."

Upon hearing Tan Chun's words, Miss Xia steadied herself slightly, bowed gracefully to Jia Cong, and said with dignified poise, "Greetings, Count Lord Weiyuan."

Jia Cong reached out a hand in a gesture of support and said, "Miss Xia is too polite. Today is the Second Mistress's birthday banquet; my sister and I have been out here talking for too long, which would be discourteous.

We are about to return to the banquet; please, Miss Xia, go ahead."

The East Courtyard garden was elegant, with sparse flowers and trees, tranquil and refined. Originally, having a handsome man by her side would have been an incredibly romantic scene for the bold Miss Xia.

Yet, in that warm scene just now, with Jia Cong sitting leisurely under a tree, preparing gifts and showing such deep affection, it was this Third Young Lady, Tan Chun, who was the true protagonist, while she herself was merely an intruder.

Miss Xia glanced at Tan Chun. Although this Third Young Lady was also charming and beautiful, she was nothing more than a yellow-haired girl; how could she possibly deserve such doting love from Jia Cong?

She was standing right in front of him, yet he didn't even look at her directly, remaining fixated on that little girl, which caused the flames of jealousy to burn secretly in Miss Xia's heart...

She had intended to take the opportunity to speak a few more words with Jia Cong, but since he had proposed returning to the banquet and even let her go first, although his manners were very respectful, they were permeated with cold distance.

Miss Xia felt disappointed in her heart and could only start walking ahead. Feeling Jia Cong and Tan Chun following behind her, occasionally laughing and talking with intimate closeness, she felt a surge of envy in her heart...

Tan Chun was Jia Cong's cousin, and she did not have the same reservations as Lin Daiyu. She did not put away the jade bracelets Jia Cong had personally placed on her wrists, and wearing them, she returned to the main hall.

When Ying Chun, Lin Daiyu, and the other sisters saw her return, her wrists adorned with green jade and her spirits high, their gazes all converged on the pair of bracelets. After confirming they were a birthday gift from Jia Cong, they each giggled and praised them.

Xue Yima, sitting at the head table, smiled and said, "It is rare to see Cong Ge'er treasure his sisters like this. It is a blessing for Old Lady's granddaughters to be doted on by such a brother."

Lady Wang thought of her own birthday, for which Jia Cong had sent a pair of aged wild ginseng roots from Liaodong, which she estimated were just common goods from his Liaodong estate.

That this concubine-born daughter of hers was nothing but a yellow-haired girl, yet deserved such precious bracelets to coax her—it was truly a lack of distinction between high and low, and a lack of propriety...

Hearing Xue Yima's words, Jia Cong smiled and said, "Cong Ge'er just has this one good trait. The way he treats his sisters at home is also rare; he is much more attentive to them than to an old woman like me.

Baoyu is also good to his sisters daily, but he has more sense than him and doesn't dote on them like this."

Beside her, Wang Xifeng sneered in her heart: Baoyu's treatment of his sisters is also called 'good'? He wishes these sisters would never marry and would play with him for a lifetime. Old Lady really has the face to say that...

Sitting at the same table, Mother Xia smiled and said, "It is still Old Lady's family education that is effective; the grandsons and granddaughters raised are all excellent.

Not to mention Count Lord Weiyuan's brilliance, the eldest granddaughter who serves as an official in the palace is also an extremely outstanding figure.

I often hear relatives in my family mention that the eldest young lady is highly esteemed by the Empress in the palace, and in the future, she will surely have a great future."

Among the grandchildren Old Lady loved most in her life, besides Baoyu, was Jia Jia Yuanchun. Although Jia Cong was the most brilliant among the grandchildren, in Old Lady's heart, he was not as close as those two.

Hearing Mother Xia praise her eldest granddaughter, she naturally felt very pleased, but then she thought that Mother Xia's words had a hidden meaning.

She asked curiously, "Could it be that Mother Xia's relatives in the family are actually serving in noble positions in the palace?"

Mother Xia smiled and said, "I have let Old Lady laugh at me. I have a relative who, because he lost contact with the family, drifted outside from a young age, lonely and helpless, and entered the palace to serve.

In recent years, he has taken up a post in the Inner Palace Supervision, walking daily among the Liugong, so he is clear about the affairs of your eldest young lady. According to him, the eldest young lady is excellent, and no matter how you look at it, she is a person with great fortune."

Jia Mu had been a Duke's Lady for half her life and was a person of wide experience. Once she heard Mother Xia's words, she knew that her relative was a eunuch serving in the palace.

And to be able to walk in the Inner Liugong and hold a high position in the Inner Palace Supervision, he was likely a high-ranking eunuch with a title.

Thinking of this, Jia Mu looked at Mother Xia with a different perspective; she had not expected the Xia family to have such a foundation.

Mother Xia was also quite shrewd, only saying words that skirted the edge, mentioning that her relative served in the Inner Palace Supervision, but not saying the relative's name or specific post, leaving people unable to grasp the truth.

Jia Mu would never have imagined Mother Xia to be so deep in her schemes. According to etiquette and common sense, Jia Cong naturally would not pursue the name of Mother Xia's relative, as that would be too improper.

Perhaps this was Mother Xia's brilliance, grasping the etiquette and thoughts of inner-chamber women like Jia Mu and Lady Wang, full of clever words and flattering expressions, yet still moving with ease...

Jia Mu heard Mother Xia speak again of her granddaughter Jia Jia Yuanchun and was quite familiar with her situation in the palace, which stirred her heart.

Because of this, she thought a layer deeper, seemingly understanding a bit why her daughter-in-law would suddenly become so friendly and esteem a wife of an imperial merchant.

Could it be for the sake of Jia Jia Yuanchun's future in the palace?

However, that day at Rongqing Hall when discussing Jia Jia Yuanchun's affairs, Jia Mu had already agreed to Jia Cong's intention that the Rongguo Prefecture would no longer plan for Jia Jia Yuanchun's future in the inner palace, only waiting for the ten-year term to expire to bring Jia Jia Yuanchun out of the palace.

Jia Mu was old, and her wild ambitions had long since faded. As long as she could continue to enjoy wealth and honor, she would be content with her lot; one more thing is worse than one less thing.

Even if Jia Jia Yuanchun really became an Imperial Consort, not to mention whether it would bring other risks to the family.

Just considering her own advanced age, how many years could she enjoy the face and nobility of her granddaughter being a consort? It would be better to be stable in the present.

This was also the fundamental reason why Jia Mu agreed to Jia Jia Yuanchun's affairs after Jia Cong's reputation grew daily and he bore two titles.

At this moment, Jia Mu guessed some things; her second daughter-in-law befriending the Xia family was likely wanting to use the Xia family's connections to plot for her daughter Jia Jia Yuanchun's selection in the inner palace...

However, even if Jia Mu had such a suspicion, she couldn't be certain, so she didn't take it too seriously.

Jia Mu's background and marriage were both into noble and wealthy families; she had seen too many methods of great families seeking wealth. Matters of imperial favor in the palace had always been arduous and difficult to manage.

Jia Mu knew better than anyone what kind of material her second daughter-in-law was.

If her second daughter-in-law were truly capable, why would her granddaughter Jia Jia Yuanchun have wasted nine years in the palace?

How much silver had the family spent over these years, and Jia Jia Yuanchun's affairs had achieved nothing. Just relying on her second daughter-in-law, dragging a merchant to stir things up, and having it succeed—that would be ghost talk.

However, Jia Mu looked at Mother Xia's behavior and speech, which were much shrewder than her second daughter-in-law's. Whether the matter could succeed was still unknown?

In short, with her second daughter-in-law's ability and depth, not to mention the skill to achieve merit, she didn't even have the qualifications to cause trouble. Why should she worry about this?

She might as well treat it as 'hitting a pole to see if there are dates'; it would be good for the Rongguo Prefecture to stay out of it. If it didn't succeed, it wouldn't be strange; if it really succeeded, it would be an unexpected joy.

Jia Mu thought through these thoughts and became a bit more enthusiastic toward Mother Xia, exchanging many intimate words and praising Miss Xia for her outstanding appearance and refreshing temperament, calling her a choice for a great family.

Actually, Jia Mu's words were not flattering against her conscience; Miss Xia's outward appearance was indeed worthy of such praise from Jia Mu.

Mother Xia heard Jia Mu's words and was secretly happy, though her mouth remained quite humble.

She said, "Old Lady is overpraising. My husband passed away early, leaving only this one daughter, so I have been a bit strict in my discipline of this girl.

But even so, this girl is still forgetful and careless, and can never be thorough in everything. After all, she is still young and unreliable.

The Xia family's bloodline has been weak these years, the elders of the previous generation have all passed away, and I manage the family business daily. She doesn't have any high-ranking, fortunate people to help me point things out.

My girl doesn't have the fortune of the young ladies in your mansion, to have an Old Lady of such high age and virtue to teach and nurture her daily. Seeing your granddaughters being so excellent, I envy you from the bottom of my heart."

Mother Xia's words were beautiful, and Jia Mu felt quite honored hearing them.

Lady Wang also felt she had the wisdom to recognize people; the guests she invited, even before an Old Lady of such high rank, were so dignified in their behavior and responses. She truly hadn't misjudged the person...

Beside her, the heavily pregnant Wang Xifeng, her bright eyes turning back and forth, always felt something was wrong, looking at Mother Xia for a while, then at the beautiful Miss Xia.

Jia Mu smiled and said, "Mother Xia is too modest. I dote on those granddaughters of mine, but young girls always have shortcomings daily; these are all common things.

When I was a young lady, didn't I go through the same? But you are right about one thing: girls are not like boys; having an elder watching over them is always better.

I naturally like refined and refreshing girls the most. My Third Girl is like that, so I dote on her more daily, which is no wonder Cong Ge'er loves to be close to her.

I see your girl is also excellent. Since you are close friends with the Second Mistress, we are one family and shouldn't speak as two. If you don't mind, let your girl come over to visit more often in the future. I have many granddaughters in my mansion, and they can keep each other company. If you don't mind this old woman being long-winded, it would also be good to talk more with me, so we can all be close and lively."

Mother Xia heard these words and was delighted, smiling, "It is truly my daughter's fortune that Old Lady can be so compassionate."

She called her daughter over and said, "Jingui, hurry over and pay your respects to Old Lady. In the future, any guidance and teaching from Old Lady will be your great fortune."

Miss Xia was quick-witted and knew that her mother's behavior was intended to draw the two families closer and create an opportunity for her to enter the inner circle.

She was even clearer in her heart that her mother's painstaking efforts were for nothing other than that Baoyu.

Miss Xia suddenly remembered that just now in the back garden, Jia Cong's peerless elegance, his lingering affection, his face full of doting as he placed the pair of jade bracelets on Tan Chun's wrists...

That scene was like a spell, churning repeatedly in her heart, unable to extricate herself. One day, she would make him treat her the same way! There was more than just that Baoyu in the Rongguo Prefecture...

Miss Xia revealed a mesmerizing and moving smile, appearing even more graceful, and bowed respectfully to Jia Mu, though it was unknown who she was thinking of in her heart...

Sitting beside the main table, Ying Chun and the other sisters saw this very friendly and lively scene.

Ying Chun's complexion was like jade, watching Miss Xia bow with a slight smile, not taking it to heart.

Lin Daiyu observed Miss Xia from time to time, already having the air of a cold bystander.

Just now, when Jia Cong went in to pay respects to Old Lady, Lin Daiyu, with her delicate mind, saw clearly that Miss Xia's eyes seemed to light up when she saw Third Brother.

Now, hearing Old Lady invite her to visit the West Prefecture more often, looking at how happy she was...

Baochai saw this scene of the Xia mother and daughter and only smiled faintly. She also came from a family of imperial merchants, and the thoughts of these two mother and daughter, others might not notice, but Baochai could see some of it.

Added to the fact that the Xia and Xue families had failed to see each other that day, and only so much time had passed, yet Mother Xia had become a close friend of her aunt as if by magic. If one said it was all a coincidence, Baochai would not believe it.

Now that she had removed the topic of the 'Gold and Jade Affinity', she felt light and lazy to investigate matters that did not concern her.

Xiangyun saw that this Miss Xia was beautiful and refreshing, seemingly matching her own temperament. If she could come to the mansion often in the future, having one more person to talk and play with would be a good thing.

Xichun was young and didn't understand what was happening at all, sitting on the armchair, her feet not reaching the ground, just holding a fruit and gnawing on it...

Xing Xiuyan's mind was leisurely, and besides Jia Cong, she probably didn't take anything to heart. If this Miss Xia came to visit the West Prefecture in the future, let her visit.

She only lived in the East Prefecture, and it seemed they had nothing to do with each other...

Beside her, Wang Xifeng picked a sour plum from the fruit box in Ping'er's hand and put it in her mouth, watching the behavior and speech of the Xia mother and daughter, her exquisite lips curling into a cold sneer...

Among the crowd, Tan Chun knew the most about Miss Xia, compared to Baochai.

Regardless of the slightly strange expression Miss Xia had every time she mentioned Third Brother.

And the dull, strange expression Miss Xia had just now in the back garden when she saw Third Brother put the bracelets on her.

Not to mention the fiery look she had when looking at Third Brother; she couldn't even speak clearly in front of Third Brother.

Now seeing Mother Xia's clever speech, actually leading Old Lady to open her mouth and invite Miss Xia to visit the West Prefecture more often, a very bad premonition rose in Tan Chun's heart...

But in the current situation, Mother Xia and Miss Xia were guests invited by the Mistress, and she was only a junior of the second branch; could she speak out to stop it? Tan Chun suddenly remembered that at the beginning, the Xia family only went to the Xue family to see about a marriage, and she was only going as a companion.

At that time, her Third Brother had warned her with words, saying that this Miss Xia was difficult to get along with. Later, because of her legal mother's intention, she went to the Xia family as a guest, and Third Brother reminded her again with the same words.

Now it seemed that her Third Brother truly had foresight, but he had never known the Xia family before; how could he be so sharp? It was truly a strange matter?

When the birthday banquet concluded, Jia Cong and Ying Chun said goodbye to Jia Zheng and his wife. Lin Daiyu, Xiangyun, and the other sisters naturally followed back to the East Prefecture, only Tan Chun remained to manage the cleanup and other miscellaneous matters of the banquet.

Seeing Jia Cong leave and the sisters disperse like wind and clouds, leaving the desolate East Courtyard, Baoyu couldn't help but feel sorrow rise from within...

At this moment, seeing the Mistress exchanging greetings and saying goodbye to Mother Xia, and that beautiful and bright Miss Xia standing quietly to one side, Baoyu's eyes couldn't help but light up.

In his eyes, this Miss Xia's appearance and demeanor were not a bit inferior to the sisters in the mansion; she was also a beautiful woman made of water.

Baoyu was just about to go up and strike up a conversation, but saw Miss Xia acting as if she didn't see him, just staring blankly at the gate of the inner courtyard.

Baoyu also turned his head to look, seeing a crowd of people leaving, the tallest being Jia Cong, surrounded naturally by a group of sisters...

Seeing Miss Xia's expression, Baoyu felt a bit happy, thinking that Miss Xia must be like him, also liking these sisters in the mansion, and mostly thinking about coming to keep them company in the future.

Just now Old Lady even invited Miss Xia to visit the mansion more often, so he could see this beautiful woman more often in the future; wasn't that a good thing?

Thinking of this, Baoyu felt very comforted. Although Lin Meimei was distant from him, Heaven mostly understood that he cherished the 'Zhong Lingyuxiu' (spiritual and beautiful) made of water in this world.

Therefore, 'sunshine in the east and rain in the west', distant from Lin Meimei, and another Miss Xia came; it was truly romantic and hard to abandon...

Baoyu looked at Miss Xia's slender and moving figure, suddenly full of hope and vitality, just like Lady Wang, full of ambition...

Jia Cong and the sisters returned to the East Prefecture, and most of them didn't take the events at the birthday banquet to heart.

Although Lin Daiyu had some suspicions, she thought about it again: even if Old Lady invited Miss Xia to visit more often, it was to visit the West Prefecture, and it had nothing to do with the East Prefecture.

Even after Third Brother passed the Spring Examination, he still had a pile of major matters to do. Daily, besides paying respects to Old Lady, he didn't go to the West Prefecture much. Both were unrelated matters, so naturally, she didn't take them to heart.

When it reached the second day of the third month, it was Tan Chun's birthday. Early in the morning, she went to the East Courtyard to pay respects to Jia Zheng, Lady Wang, Zhao Yiniang, and others.

She went with the sisters to Rongqing Hall to keep Old Lady company and received Old Lady's small banquet.

When the sisters returned to the East Prefecture, as the lanterns were lit, they closed the East Prefecture gates early. Added to the trusted maids of each person, a large group of people gathered in Tan Chun's courtyard to hold a night banquet.

Because there were no elders present, there were fewer empty rituals and constraints, and they didn't care about age or status, each sitting around the table at will, drinking, guessing, and linking verses, which was very lively.

Because it was night, they weren't afraid of disturbing others or committing taboos. Xiangyun, having long heard of Lingguan's intoxicating voice but never having the fortune to listen, insisted on having her sing two songs, drawing applause from the whole hall.

That night, Jia Cong and the sisters enjoyed themselves for half the night, and he was coaxed into drinking quite a bit by Tan Chun and the others, not dispersing until after the third watch.

After the excitement of the first two days of the third month, Jia Cong tidied up his mood and focused on his daily studies for the imperial examination.

A few days later, his classmates from Qingshan Academy, Cai Xiaoyu, Cui Anzhi, Liu Xiaoping, and others came to visit.

For this Spring Examination, Cai Xiaoyu and Liu Xiaoping were both going to take the exam, while Cui Anzhi had failed the previous Enke Provincial Examination and had to wait for the Spring Examination three years later.

The topic of conversation naturally didn't leave the upcoming Spring Examination. It was said that after the court announced the chief examiner and subordinate officials for the Spring Examination, it was quite chaotic outside for a while.

The residences of the chief examiners Wang Shilun, Chen Mo, Huang Hongcang, and others were visited by students every day these days.

However, these three were all old hands in the officialdom and naturally knew the taboos and dangers of the current juncture, so they all closed their doors to guests.

After a few days of this, no more candidates came to show off, and with the Spring Examination approaching, they needed to review their books at the last minute.

The wind of candidates visiting and paying respects in the past finally died down, which actually made people's ears much quieter.

However, the ups and downs of the candidates outside didn't touch Jia Cong at all. He didn't have the heat and madness for fame in the Spring Examination that most candidates had.

For Jia Cong, he only sought to pass the Spring Examination and didn't care about glory or ranking at all.

Even if he only ranked in the third tier, it would be enough to repay Liu Jing'an's years of teaching and enough to open his path to an official career.

When he was focusing on his studies with a peaceful mind, waiting for the Spring Examination, Guo Zhigui, who was serving in the Liaodong army, sent a family letter.

In the letter, besides greeting Jia Cong and asking about the recent situation of his mother, Zhao Mama, he also mentioned Jia Lian's recent situation in Liaodong, and the rest of the content mentioned the fluctuations in the northern territory in recent months.

This letter made Jia Cong understand that beyond the noise and stability of the Divine Capital, the Jiubian (Nine Frontiers) thousands of miles away had become increasingly restless... (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 577 =====