Chapter 310: Feng Jie: Third Brother, Don't Be Angry, It Was the Old Lady Who Misspoke

Jia Jing's face showed a hint of sighing regret, as if she found Jia Mu's muddleheadedness and lack of enlightenment somewhat unbelievable!

At this moment, Jia Mu, seated on the high couch, already looked pale, dizzy, swaying as if about to collapse.

Her mind was filled with: It's coming! Again!

It's only the first day back at the mansion, and less than half a quarter hour after meeting, Jia Jing already began lecturing me again!

Old muddlehead who can't tell right from wrong! This wretched scoundrel hasn't even changed his words!

My earlier intimate gestures of straightening my clothes were simply done in vain for a dog to see!

This wretched grandson, this scoundrel, he even pretended to be disappointed—simply absurd!

What sin have I committed that, at this age, Heaven still sends this wretched grandson to torment me!

Jia Mu was speechless, eyes fixed on the hall's beams, her eye sockets reddening for a moment!

Meanwhile, Lady Wang broke out a cold sweat on her forehead, rolled the Prayer Beads in her hand repeatedly, feeling both panic and a hint of relief!

Thanks to my caution, I held my tongue just now; otherwise I would be the one being lectured now!

Thinking back to when Jia Jing publicly rebuked me as an ignorant foolish woman, the memory still makes my heart ache!

However, just now that illegitimate son seemed to have called my precious jade a "pampered aristocratic scion"; although he didn't name me, I think I understood correctly!

Hmm? … Forget it! At this moment the illegitimate son holds the upper hand, so I'll swallow this fleeting anger and deal with it later!

Mrs. Xing quietly slipped her body behind Lady Wang, watching nose, nose to mouth, mouth to heart, looking as if in deep meditation!

Jia Jing's mood is bad now; I should keep my distance to avoid being dragged into it!

Aunt Xue's white face now also bore a trace of worry; this son-in-law's status is indeed lofty, but his temperament is too hard to get close to!

At the slightest disagreement, she also scolds her own elderly matriarch without mercy.

If I later become his mother-in-law and am rebuked like this, I would truly have no place to hide!

Yuan Chun, Tan Chun and the others pretended not to hear Jia Jing's words, each looking at each other and smiling!

Although they also felt Jia Jing's lecture to Jia Mu lacked some respect for elders, the argument was coarse but not without merit; Third Brother was right!

The reasoning was presented openly, with sincere effort and far‑reaching consideration! From the standpoint of the family's decision‑maker, it pointed out Jia Mu's reckless words with justification!

Moreover, Third Brother's status is lofty; saying a few words to the old lady is also well‑meaning, and the old lady should be able to accept it, right?

It was Xing Xiuyan's first time seeing Jia Jing so aloof; for a moment her normally serene, gentle face showed surprise.

Just now she saw Jia Jing treating the mansion's sisters so affably and arranging her parents' livelihood properly, and thought he was a warm‑hearted person.

She didn't expect…

But on second thought it makes sense; after all, he is a famed great general on the battlefield, how could he have no temper!

Only that a common person's temper is directed downward, not upward; Third Brother's temper is upward, not downward—truly a strange man must have extraordinary deeds!

And the one who felt deeply beside her was actually Li Wan.

Jia Jing rebuked Jia Mu for being soft‑hearted, and stated that a man's conduct should prioritize clarity and strength, pointing out the different teachings for boys and girls!

It made her think of her own brother Lan's upbringing issues, reflecting whether she had made the same mistakes as Jia Mu in educating Jia Lan.

One must admit, perhaps when Jia Jing is severe he is like thunder and lightning; perhaps sometimes he is not easy to approach; perhaps he has various "flaws".

But without doubt, Jia Jing's words carry a weight of a thousand jin in the hearts of the women of Jia Mansion.

They actually also know Jia Jing is right, and even secretly admire his strong, masculine character!

After all, they all understand that for someone of Jia Jing's age to achieve such lasting fame, he must possess extraordinary talent!

He is a once‑in‑a‑generation talent of the entire Da Han Empire, a hundred‑year‑once‑in‑a‑lifetime Da Han jade; his achievements are undeniable and beyond question!

Thus, even though Li Wan never voiced it, she has always regarded Jia Jing as the teaching model for her own son Jia Lan.

Even in recent days, as Jia Jing's influence grows, she quietly ponders his ways of conduct, intending to use them as a standard to educate her own son!

She does not demand that Jia Lan also become a youthful duke like Jia Jing, holding high rank; she only wishes him to pass the imperial examinations, and then she would have no regrets in this life!

Therefore, regarding Jia Jing's criticism of Jia Mu, Li Wan's first reaction was not concern for Jia Mu's feelings.

Instead, she silently memorized Jia Jing's words, planning to study their deeper meaning and later accurately pass them on to her own son Jia Lan!

This "clarity and strength" probably means wise firmness!

While Li Wan was silently doing a "reading comprehension", Feng Jie, under her willow‑shaped eyebrows, her phoenix‑like eyes flickered, and in a flash of thought she quickly smiled and smoothed things over, saying:

"Third Brother, don't be angry! The old lady has always been most compassionate to the poor and weak, kind‑hearted and merciful, unable to bear the suffering of her children; sometimes she… says the wrong thing."

Feng Jie's words made Jia Mu's heart "thump"; she suddenly lowered her head, eyes widened, her face full of disbelief!

What is this?

One grandson scolds me, his grandmother, and now you tell him not to be angry?

Is this still my fault? Did I say the wrong thing?

Are your eyes blind or your ears deaf? Flattering him is one thing, but are you treating this old lady as a soft persimmon?

The people in the hall at that moment also felt a surge of absurdity, thinking the scene was unreal!

They never imagined that one day they would hear "bad talk" about Jia Mu from Feng Jie's own mouth.

Jia Jing lifted the tea cup, took a shallow sip, turned his gaze to the plaque of Rong Qing Tang, and his voice softened a bit as he said:

"Kindness is indeed good! But kindness must be applied according to people and circumstances; if one indiscriminately shows kindness to law‑breaking villains, one fails to discern right from wrong and indulges crime!"

"The Huainanzi says: 'Small mercy is the thief of great mercy.'"

"If today we do not dare to expel Jia Zhen and the other, tomorrow ten, a hundred people in the clan will follow suit; if today we indulge one evil, tomorrow a hundred evils will sprout."

"Thus it is not that I am harsh without benevolence, but that many times one must be ruthless, punishing the few to warn the many."

"Governing a family is like governing an army; showing no mercy to a petty person is being unkind to a gentleman. If we pity a few rogue horses, what about the thousands of obedient clan members?"

Saying this, Jia Jing sighed, turned to Tan Chun and the others, and said:

"Thunderous measures reveal a bodhisattva's heart! Punishment exists so that there is no need to punish."

"For those above, wield righteousness, not indulgence. When you later manage households, you must understand this principle!"

Tan Chun, Yuan Chun, and the others, facing Jia Jing's admonition, all slightly bowed their heads, and on their fair, snow‑white faces showed respect.

Jia Mu watched Jia Jing treat herself, the old ancestor, as a negative example to educate the sisters in the household, and she felt half‑dead with vexation.

After giving Feng Jie a fierce glance, she immediately spoke to Jia Jing in a stern voice:

"Good! Good! Good! As a foolish old woman, I can't out‑argue you on these big principles; I'm merely pleading for Jia Zhen's sake, yet you stand here bombarding me with all these 'good words'!"

"Jia Zhen, do whatever you want with him! Don't say you'll expel him from the clan—even if you turn the clan upside down, I won't bother to intervene anymore!"

Jia Jing looked at Jia Mu, gave a slight nod, and said calmly:

"Turning the clan upside down won't happen; as long as no one breaks the law or disrupts order, I also have no spare time to meddle in other people's affairs!"

"However, the clan's customs indeed need rectifying; now, as my influence grows daily, many clan members, relying on my name, commit various unlawful acts abroad."

"If we don't punish them now, their boldness will only grow, eventually causing great disaster! Jia Zhen's case is a warning!"

"What? Expelling Jia Zhen isn't enough—you really intend to use force against the clan members?" Jia Mu's face changed, and she exclaimed in disbelief.