Chapter 49 Granny Lai went to pay her respects to Miss Lin! "I'll be fine..."

After leaving the Rongguo Mansion, Mu Chuan was in a bad mood.

When Lin Daiyu thought she was about to be introduced to Li Chengwu, this attitude, especially the hidden attitude towards Jia Baoyu, was quite unsatisfactory.

Jia Baoyu doesn't seem like a suitable person to entrust one's life to, does he? Although he hasn't expressed his feelings yet, and although the marriage was arranged by his father-in-law, his father-in-law was seriously ill at that time and might have been confused.

You can't say that about your father-in-law.

Mu Chuan said, "Go and beat up Jia Baoyu."

"Okay." Li Chengwu agreed and then asked, "Is it... the cousin of my fourth aunt that I mentioned last time?"

Mu Chuan nodded: "Don't use too much force, he's still a delicate playboy."

The main reason is that Li Chengwu is no longer a spoiled brat. He is skilled in military boxing and is proficient in horsemanship and archery. One punch from him would be too much for Jia Baoyu to bear.

Li Chengwu chuckled twice, then put on a particularly annoying expression: "What are you looking at!"

Mu Chuan patted him on the shoulder and said earnestly, "I didn't understand before. My godfather always looked down on you, saying you were a spoiled brat, a hopeless case. But I understand now. It takes twenty years to develop such an infuriating look."

"Fourth Uncle, I'm doing this for you. I have no connection with him, but during the New Year, I have to take some time to stroll around the Rongguo Mansion area."

Mu Chuan patted his shoulder harder: "Couldn't you find a middleman, invite him to dinner, ask him out, and then cause trouble halfway through?"

"Oh dear! It's been so long since I've been a playboy, I'd completely forgotten about that. Don't worry, Fourth Uncle, I'll definitely handle it perfectly."

Li Chengwu went out to find his old friends, to see which one could be connected to Jia Baoyu's circle.

Mu Chuan returned to the Marquis of Zhongyong's residence and saw his parents arranging for people to load luggage onto the oxcart.

“Let’s go back and stay for a couple of days. The city isn’t lively enough for the New Year,” Huang Guihua said. “Be careful, be careful. That’s the wine for Old Lin. Be careful not to spill it.”

Whenever he heard her call the village chief "Old Lin," Mu Dazhuang felt a chill run down his spine. He felt he could never adapt to the life of a third-rank official.

Mu Dazhuang, slightly embarrassed, said to Mu Chuan, "It's not that I don't want to spend the New Year with you, but you have to go to the palace during the New Year, and we two old folks also have—"

Huang Guihua slapped him on the back again and laughed, "Don't listen to your dad's nonsense. We're going back to show off. Besides, our family is going to be the first to burn incense during the New Year. If you don't go back, your brother has to. He's shy and can't hold his liquor. Although the villagers aren't malicious, I can't let him embarrass himself. Our family has a good reputation now, and I have to keep an eye on things."

Mu Chuan chuckled: "How many rooms were built? They just never get any sun, so they must be uncomfortable to live in."

“It’s the same as roasting it over a fire. I heard that a row of houses has already been renovated. If that doesn’t work, we can stay at the village chief’s house. As for your sister, we’re staying at the Earl’s Mansion in the capital. Her mother-in-law’s family doesn’t know the way and is too afraid to come over. If we go back, it will make them humble themselves in front of your sister and ease their resentment.”

It's quite important to let go of your inner knots. Mu Chuan always believed that you should vent your anger and not hold it in, otherwise your inner knots will eventually turn into nodules.

"Bring a few more thugs?"

Huang Guihua waved her hand dismissively: "There's no need. There are so many people in the village. Your thugs—their men are too powerful. If they fight, they'll all be killed and never come back. It's not satisfying. Don't worry, Old Lin is here."

Mu Chuan then asked his second uncle, "Did you bring the medicine? Don't catch a cold, and wear your leg warmers."

"I brought them! I brought three sets," Shan Liniang said with a smile. "One set is for him to change into, and the other two sets are for his father-in-law and the village chief."

"Alright, I don't have any special instructions. Just send someone to call me if you need anything."

The little niece who had just changed her surname gave birth again and gave Mu Chuan another set of straw-woven furniture: "This is based on the house where I sleep. It has a canopy bed, a screen, a flower cover, and two little maids. Please give it to Sister Lin for me. I love my name. It sounds nice and is easy to write."

After seeing his family off, Mu Chuan had someone bring out some snacks. Unlike when he sent them to Lin Daiyu, he couldn't send them all to the Emperor and the Emperor Emeritus.

Putting everything else aside, you can't just send the same thing to both of them, can you?

That would really be headed for a crash.

For example, cloud cake was definitely for the emperor, while yam and jujube paste cake, which are considered nourishing, were placed in the box for the retired emperor.

The emperor was still young, and men of that age generally don't like sweets, so the radish dumplings went to him.

Mu Chuan gave the instructions, and the maid quickly picked out two boxes of pastries and carefully wrapped them up.

Mu Chuan put the things aside, washed his hands, and then picked up the half-copied "Thousand Character Classic". Compared with the letter he received from Lin Daiyu, the handwriting was worlds apart.

But it's not a big problem, Mu Chuan thought to himself, how many people can write better than his Daiyu?

"Go ask them if they've packed up the things they brought back. Bring me a New Year's picture of harmony, along with couplets, window decorations, and a few pictures of the God of Wealth on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year."

When the maid brought the things, Mu Chuan divided them into three portions and then called to Granny Shen, "These are for Miss Lin."

Granny Shen took the things with a smile and left, while Mu Chuan took the remaining two portions into the palace.

Entering the Rongguo Mansion is much faster than entering the palace.

Granny Shen, familiar with the place, arrived at Xiaoxiang Pavilion, put down her things, bowed, and said with a smile, "Miss Lin, these are things our general asked me to bring. Especially this God of Wealth, the same one used in the palace, we will definitely put it up on the fifth day of the new year."

Lin Daiyu smiled and said, "Your general is quite capable. Did you bring the calligraphy I asked for?"

Granny Shen quickly replied, "I brought it, this is it."

Upon seeing this, Lin Daiyu's curiosity was piqued, and she laughed, "I won't keep Mama here."

Granny Shen bowed again and left.

Lin Daiyu reached out to look at the stack of characters, then smiled and said, "Zijuan, fetch some hot water so I can wash my hands. Xueyan, get some ginseng slices to make tea."

She needs to look at this with great attention.

Mu Chuan has already entered the palace, and the things for the Emperor Emeritus are temporarily stored at the North Gate.

To be honest, the Emperor is more important than the retired Emperor, and it's time to let the Emperor see some progress. Otherwise, after bestowing so many rewards upon him and making him the Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Camp, a position only a confidant could hold, it's time to give him some reward.

In addition, there is another advantage: his subordinates will no longer worry about him crashing or burning.

Although he had stopped writing, the emperor still met with his ministers in the imperial study. When Mu Chuan entered, besides the junior eunuchs, there was also a senior eunuch in a red python robe who looked quite familiar.

Mu Chuan's public image was that he could be a little rough around the edges in other matters, but when it came to matters related to the military camp, he was absolutely flawless, not even making a single mistake.

He bowed to the emperor, then greeted the eunuch with a smile: "Eunuch Zhong."

The emperor looked up and asked, "You know Zhong Jun?"

Mu Chuan smiled and said, "Of course I recognize him. I came to Pingnan Town with Lord Wang to supervise the inspection two years ago. At that time, we even said that it would be great if Eunuch Zhong came to be the military supervisor."

The emperor's expression relaxed: "He does indeed have some talent in these matters."

Zhong Gonggong breathed a sigh of relief. If this Marquis Zhongyong had said he didn't recognize him, then both of them would have been in trouble.

He bowed to Mu Chuan and then said to the emperor, "This servant will take her leave now."

After Eunuch Zhong left, the emperor asked, "What did you bring today?"

Mu Chuan smiled and said, "I found the pastry chef I brought back from Jiangnan to be quite good, so I specially presented it to Your Majesty to try."

The emperor responded with an "oh," his curiosity piqued: "Let me see it."

Mu Chuan watched from the side. When the emperor opened the box, the first thing he saw was indeed cloud cake.

"Oh dear," the emperor laughed, "it's still this cloud-shaped cake. Luckily, I had water on hand. Qiao Yue must have done it on purpose."

Even so, the emperor still took the cloud-shaped cake first, still holding it in one hand and a teacup in the other, only this time he put the cake in his mouth—

The emperor was suddenly stunned. Without saying a word, he frowned slightly and ate three pieces in a row.

"In earlier years... what did he feed me?"

Mu Chuan was satisfied. The emperor would never make things difficult for an orphan girl, but if he didn't resolve the grudge with his father-in-law, he couldn't ask for favors for Daiyu. He could at least help her back, but he was no match for the emperor.

"I was curious at the time. Miss Lin said that Yunpian cake was not good, and Your Majesty also said that it was not good, but I found it to be quite good." Mu Chuan breathed a sigh of relief. "It shows that I am not rude."

The emperor ignored him, caught in a dilemma: "Why did Lin Ruhai put such unpalatable food in the first place before giving it to me?"

Mu Chuan didn't disturb him. To be honest, what did it matter what happened back then? His father-in-law had been gone for so many years, it was hard to investigate. Anyway, he planned to steer the conversation in a direction that would benefit Lin Daiyu.

Before long, the emperor, still puzzled, came to his senses and asked Mu Chuan, "What's in that paper tube? Is it for the retired emperor?"

Mu Chuan smiled sheepishly: "It's a statue of the God of Wealth that I brought back from Jiangnan. Jiangnan is a prosperous place, and I thought that the statues of the God of Wealth there must be somewhat effective. But after it entered the palace, I thought it wouldn't be appropriate to present it to His Majesty, since there's the Imperial Observatory."

"What's appropriate or inappropriate?" The emperor was adept at showing concern for his courtiers in subtle ways, and Mu Chuan's response made him extremely happy.

"Leave it here, and I will have them put it up on the fifth day of the month."

Isn't this the same God of Wealth that the emperor used?

Mu Chuan sighed, "When I brought the food box in, I wondered if I had acted impulsively. Back in the countryside, when I watched plays, I thought the emperor would test food for poison before eating it."

The emperor laughed loudly: "Don't let Quan Furen hear you say that. When I was still a prince, I often went out for walks, and he was unhappy about it back then. But now that I'm the emperor, I go out less often."

Mu Chuan then asked with great interest, "Is the Zhishanlou restaurant outside Zhengyang Gate really run by the imperial chefs?"

"How would I know about this?" The emperor tilted his head and asked the young eunuch, "Do you know?"

The young eunuch had finally found a chance to speak with His Majesty and was so eager to kneel down and kowtow to the Earl of Zhongyong.

"The head chef was indeed an imperial chef, but he died of illness after only two years. I heard that later a Shandong cuisine chef was specially hired, and the recipe was modified according to the tastes of the capital. It is a different style from that of the imperial kitchen."

Mu Chuan sighed in disappointment, and the emperor laughed, "I didn't expect Qiao Yue to be so fond of food."

Mu Chuan keenly grasped the subtle nuance of the word "also": "The dishes at Wu Yue Guild Hall are quite good, with a Jiangnan flavor, especially the essence of adding more sugar, which they have mastered very well."

They chatted with the emperor about interesting things for a while. During this time, Eunuch Bai came in once to report that the errand had been completed. The young eunuch announced twice that members of the imperial family and the Imperial Observatory were requesting an audience.

Mu Chuan felt that it was about time and got up to take his leave.

The emperor was still somewhat reluctant to leave: "Come to the palace when you have some free time. By the way, the time for the New Year's Eve and New Year's Day court audiences will be announced an hour in advance. Qiao Yue is at the front, so he doesn't need to queue. Don't come too early; it's windy and cold outside."

After leaving the Imperial Study, Mu Chuan strode back to the North Gate to retrieve the food box prepared for the Emperor Emeritus, and then headed towards the Daming Palace.

The retired emperor's attitude was somewhat cold; he only gave a curt "hmm."

Mu Chuan didn't care. He had spent so long chatting with the emperor in the imperial study, why shouldn't the retired emperor express his dissatisfaction?

He then resorted to his usual rhetoric: "The pastry chef specially invited from Jiangnan, Deng Dechun, has Your Majesty heard of him? Your Majesty is perhaps too young and has never been to Jiangnan, so it seems you have never heard of this name."

The retired emperor immediately perked up.

"Deng Dechun? Their pastries are famous far and wide, dating back to the previous dynasty. My ancestral home is Nanjing, but my son... sigh, he has forgotten his roots."

Mu Chuan then asked, "When I first came in, I saw that Your Majesty seemed to have something on your mind. I am willing to share Your Majesty's worries."

The retired emperor chuckled twice: "I'm already the retired emperor..." But he did have something on his mind, and he couldn't say that you came too late and he was not satisfied.

"I'm wondering whether I should attend the court ceremony this year?" the Emperor Emeritus said hesitantly, "It's a bit cold outside."

Mu Chuan waited until the retired emperor fell silent before speaking. The coldness was definitely not the real reason; he was just trying to comfort the retired emperor. It was probably not a big problem for the imperial power to be declining and the imperial authority to be losing.

"Since it's cold, Your Majesty, let them rest for two days. When the weather gets better, we can find a reason to call them to pay homage in February. It's the same thing."

Although the words were a bit rough and seemed to disregard etiquette, and sounded like he didn't care much, the retired emperor thought it made a lot of sense. He was the retired emperor, so why should he still follow the rules? He should not care about anything.

"Then I won't go. Dai Quan, go and tell them." The Emperor Emeritus looked at the sky. "Perfect timing, the Grand General will dine with me."

The Emperor Emeritus's meals were quite suitable for the elderly; they were soft and tender, and because his sense of taste was not as sensitive, he would add a little more seasoning.

But the imperial chef's skills were excellent, and the food was still delicious.

After having dinner with the Emperor Emeritus, Mu Chuan took his leave.

The Rongguo Mansion had just finished eating, and Lin Daiyu was still thinking about Mu Chuan's calligraphy, so she took her leave after saying only a few words.

To be honest, she spent the whole afternoon focusing on selecting three pages of questions, a total of thirty-nine, but when she came to her senses, she felt that this was not a good idea.

She genuinely wanted to teach her third brother to write properly, but with so many problems at once, most people would probably just give up.

Third Brother shouldn't be that kind of person... I wonder what he's like when he gets agitated.

Would he get annoyed? Lin Daiyu couldn't help but think about it, as if he didn't seem to have any worries at all.

"Sigh... then I'll just write three." Lin Daiyu sighed, looking at the thirty-nine questions. "This is too difficult."

In Wang Xifeng's room, Ping'er had just returned from fetching ginseng from Madam Wang's place. She came in and said, "What a strange day! Granny Lai is here—"

“What’s so surprising about that? She hosted a banquet last year to invite the old lady, but in the end, it was the second mistress who brought the young ladies and Baoyu.”

"Who said that?" Ping'er glanced at her sideways, took out a slicing knife from the cabinet, and sliced ​​ginseng for Wang Xifeng.

“Granny Lai isn’t hosting a banquet this year. After she paid her respects to the old lady, she went into the courtyard. I glanced around and saw that she was either going to see the second young lady or Miss Lin.”

Wang Xifeng chuckled, then her expression changed. She leaned back and said, "It's all because of that trivial matter. Which servant in the Rongguo Mansion doesn't have private property? With Zhou Rui still not out, the Rongguo Mansion's reputation doesn't seem to be working so well anymore. It's like the old lady and the madam don't care. They're scared."

She sighed deeply: "There have been quite a few people testing me these past two days."

“No wonder.” Ping’er said thoughtfully, “These past few days, many of the stewardesses have come to ask me what gifts to prepare and when Madam is going to the Wang family. It’s really ridiculous. When I came back, I heard two old women on the roadside say that this year, they probably won’t dare to accept the master’s reward for the New Year.”

“They should be more careful!” Wang Xifeng said irritably. “Especially that Granny Lai. Her family’s garden is only half the size of the Grand View Garden. How much silver did she embezzle? The old lady only said that her family has served the Rongguo Mansion for generations, so it’s not good to be too harsh on her.”

In the past two years, Wang Xifeng also felt that the old women and maids were hard to manage. Although she hated that the Earl of Zhongyong was causing trouble and making the Wang family lose face, she thought it was good to use the Earl of Zhongyong's name to scare these arrogant and domineering servants.

“It’s not just about that.” Ping’er put the razor blade back on its side before daring to continue, “The other woman is a servant with private property, but Granny Lai’s grandson directly changed his status from a slave to an official. If this kind of crime is really investigated, he’ll probably lose his head.”

"She's probably lost face for nothing today," Wang Xifeng sighed. "My uncle is back now. He's a high-ranking official in charge of the inspection of nine provinces. He'll definitely be able to suppress this matter and it won't be traced back to her. But Zhou Rui... someone has to be pushed out, otherwise, where will the Marquis of Zhongyong's reputation be?"

Ping'er sighed as well: "Mother Zhou is so glamorous every day."

Granny Lai was already standing at the entrance of Xiaoxiang Pavilion.

She waited for several days, but she couldn't wait any longer.

Second Madam Lian is such a blockhead; how could she not handle such a small matter properly? All that talk about being decisive and stern is for naught; it turns out it was all just for show.

Granny Lai was a prominent figure in the Rongguo Mansion. In terms of prestige alone, she was of the same generation as the old lady. As Madam Wang said, even Wang Xifeng was a junior in front of her.

Don't be fooled by the fact that the young ladies and gentlemen of the Rongguo Mansion live in the Grand View Garden and enjoy good food and lodging; in reality, they are no match for Granny Lai.

Even if it were Jia Baoyu, the phoenix egg of the Rongguo Mansion, Granny Lai wouldn't need to fawn over him; on the contrary, he would come to pay his respects to her during festivals.

Standing in front of Xiaoxiang Pavilion today, Granny Lai's mind was filled with the image of a tiger fallen into the plains being bullied by dogs.

"Go knock on the door," Granny Lai instructed the maid who was following her.

The young maidservant stepped forward and knocked on the door, saying, "Granny Lai has come to pay her respects to Miss Lin."

The entire Xiaoxiang Pavilion was in a state of panic for a moment. Apart from Xueyan, who was brought by the Lin family, the remaining maids were all more nervous than the last.

Granny Lai was quickly ushered inside. She sat for a short while before Lin Daiyu came out.

Granny Lai sighed silently, thinking to herself that you can know a person's face but not their heart. Who would have thought that Miss Lin would find such a powerful backer without making a sound?

Lin Daiyu called out "Granny Lai" and sat down.

This was also something she didn't quite adapt to in the Rongguo Mansion. Her Lin family also had some older servants, who were basically no longer assigned tasks after the age of fifty-five. At most, they would sweep the floor as a formality to show that their masters cared for them. But no matter how old they were, they were still servants, even if the steward reached a certain age.

But the Rongguo Mansion was different. Granny Lai was treated like a mistress, and even the wet nurses had to show her respect. Meanwhile, Jiao Da from the neighboring mansion was also quite old; it was said he had once saved his master's life, yet at his age he not only had to work but was also humiliated. The Jia family seemed to have rules everywhere, yet they broke them in every way—who could get used to that?

"Miss Lin." Granny Lai rose and bowed, then thought that Miss Lin was indeed very upright, so cold to her. But the situation forced her to keep smiling.

"I heard that Miss Lin has recently taken an interest in embroidery. I just happened to get some excellent embroidery thread, which is said to be silk spun by ice silkworms. It is tough and does not burr. I have come here to give it to Miss Lin."

"Thank you, Granny Lai." Lin Daiyu smiled faintly. She seemed to ignore the affairs of the Rongguo Mansion, but in truth, she knew all kinds of news very well.

She knew that the Rongguo Mansion would definitely not be able to handle the situation, and she also knew that the Rongguo Mansion was doing things that were against the rules—even against the "Great Wei Law".

Compared to Granny Lai in front of him, her grandson was already a local official. He had someone change his household registration, breaking the restriction that three generations of slaves could not take the imperial examinations, and bought an official position, thus joining the ranks of the gentry.

Such crimes could result in exile for a distance of three thousand miles, or even execution.

Zijuan brought over tea and snacks: "Granny, please have some tea."

Granny Lai smiled and said, "When you first came, you were only this little—" She gestured with her hand, "Now you're a grown woman. You probably don't remember, but I went to greet you when you came back then."

That's utter nonsense. Lin Daiyu said with a half-smile, "I only remember Baoyu breaking the jade. Do you remember, Granny? That jade was quite sturdy."

Granny Lai's smile froze instantly: "Young Master Bao is somewhat foolish." She pondered for a moment, then added, "But he is extremely good to the young lady."

She struggled to steer the conversation back on track: "Miss, you've lived in the Rongguo Mansion for over ten years, and have spent most of your life there since birth. You're practically family now. Some of the servants in the Rongguo Mansion love to gossip, which is really inappropriate. But don't worry, my son is the steward of the Rongguo Mansion. If he encounters them, he won't let those servants off the hook!"

Lin Daiyu truly found this absurd, even more absurd than Zhou Rui's wife's attempt to curry favor a couple of days ago.

So everyone in the Rongguo Mansion knew they were not doing well.

“What Granny Lai said is true. If we manage things from top to bottom, it will naturally be much easier.”

Lin Daiyu was being polite, but Granny Lai had been living in fear for several days since Zhou Rui was arrested. Hearing this, she grasped at it as a lifeline.

Granny Lai smiled easily and said, "I heard that Qingwen has also come to serve in the young lady's room. Just tell her what you need her to do. Her family is small, with only an older brother and sister-in-law, who are not even blood relatives, so you can trust her to work with her."

Speaking of Qingwen, Lin Daiyu's smile became more genuine: "Qingwen is indeed good. She is diligent and her skills are even better."

Seeing this smile, Granny Lai was completely relieved. She stood up and said with a smile, "It's getting late, Miss. Please rest well. If I find a suitable maid in the future, I will send one to you. If you want anything, just tell someone to tell Lai Da. He's convenient to go out and he's good at handling things. Even though Master Bao is a master, he still has to ask Lai Da for things and he has to ask the old lady first."

This is really a bit hard to get used to.

Lin Daiyu instructed Zijuan: "Tell Qingwen to come too, to see Granny Lai off together, and bring two lanterns. It's dark outside, so be careful when you walk up the steps."

Granny Lai took her leave, and Xiaoxiang Pavilion fell silent.

For some reason, Lin Daiyu suddenly felt a little lonely. She slowly walked back to her study and looked at the things that Granny Shen had brought to her that morning.

Among them is a New Year's woodblock print from Taohuawu in Suzhou, depicting a harmonious and peaceful atmosphere.

After several years, the old man in this print has become even rounder.

Lin Daiyu picked up the three calligraphy practice suggestions she had just compiled for her third brother, and tore them all up with gritted teeth.

"I only know today what it means to have someone back you up, and what it means to push all the blame onto you."

She bit her lower lip: "I will definitely teach you to write well, like Wang Xizhi—even if you can't become like Wang Xizhi, I'll make you like Wang Xianzhi!"