Chapter 426: Jia Family Affairs
"Brother Ding? Why are you here too? This county town is really small!" Wan Laoer quickly stood up and bowed.
Old Ding laughed: "It's not that this county is small, it's that we are destined to meet. Since we have met, how about we have a couple of drinks?"
Wan Laoer immediately carried Fubao to his side, gave up the stool opposite him and gestured to him, "Please sit down, please sit down, this drink should be bought by me today."
Lao Ding was a casual and straightforward person. He put his jar of wine on Wan Laoer's table and sat down.
"Brother Ding, I ordered two dishes. What else do you want? I'll ask the store to add some more."
Old Ding waved his hand and said, "I never eat food when I drink. Wine is enough for me."
I don't know how much wine Lao Ding drank just now. His cheeks are flushed, his nose is also a little red, and he smells of alcohol. It is obvious that he has been drinking for quite some time, but he is not drunk at all. His eyes are clear, his speech is clear, and his steps are steady.
Wan Laoer knew that Lao Ding was probably the kind of person who could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk.
"Waiter, bring two more jars of wine." Wan Laoer leaned his head downstairs and shouted.
The waiter responded and quickly brought over two jars of wine. Wan Laoer took the opportunity to add two side dishes.
After the wine and food were served, Wan Laoer opened a new jar of wine and filled it for Lao Ding.
"Daddy, Fubao wants to eat meat."
Wan Laoer quickly served rice to Fubao and picked up a piece of braised pork with chopsticks and put it in the bowl.
Fubao picked up the chopsticks and started to eat with his head down. The corners of his mouth were sizzling with oil, and his little mouth was bright red, making him look extremely cute.
Old Ding laughed and said, "This girl has a really good appetite. No wonder she is so plump. She is really a rare sight to behold. Being able to eat is a blessing."
Fubao looked up at Lao Ding. His two little cheeks were puffed up and his big eyes were blinking. He looked especially like a little frog.
Wan Laoer gently patted Fubao's head and said with a smile: "This girl is not picky about food, but she especially likes meat."
Fubao nodded in cooperation, tried hard to swallow the braised pork in his mouth, and stuffed another big bite into his mouth.
Seeing that she was eating with relish, Wan Laoer ignored her and moved the braised pork closer to her so that she could reach the food herself, then started chatting with Lao Ding.
"Brother Ding, I want to thank you today. This horse is worth buying. The carpenter praised it when he saw it."
As Wan Laoer spoke, he bent down and stood up to fill Lao Ding's bowl with wine.
Lao Ding took a sip and said, "You are lucky. If you had come half a day later, it would have been sold out tomorrow morning."
"But, Brother Ding, let me be honest. I still don't understand why you are willing to sell me such a good horse for fifty taels."
After drinking, Lao Ding started to talk more, as if he hadn't met his soulmate for a long time. Once he started talking, he couldn't stop.
"This horse does belong to a friend of mine, but we haven't been in touch with this friend for many years. His family has been engaged in business for generations. They are well-known wealthy merchants in Jiangnan, and the Jia family is one of the four major families in Jiangnan."
"But yesterday he suddenly showed up at my doorstep, leading a horse and wearing only a single layer of clothing. He looked extremely shabby, and I didn't recognize him. Later, he introduced himself, and I realized that he was Jia Yanbing, the eldest son of my old friend Jia."
"I welcomed him into the house, fetched some wine, and quickly gave him a large bowl of it, and then he came to his senses."
"It turns out that the Jia family was confiscated. Overnight, the Jia family, one of the four great families in Jiangnan, collapsed like a century-old tree. No one expected it."
Old Ding was also sighing as he spoke.
Wan Laoer felt the same way, and his feelings were even more profound than Lao Ding's. It was just like the Wan family back then. When things were good, they were in full bloom and prosperous, but when things went bad, they were truly trampled upon by anyone.
"Then why were their homes raided?"
Wan Laoer was a little confused. This confiscation of property was definitely a crime. What crime could a mere businessman like them commit?
Old Ding shook his head and sighed, "You don't know, this Jia family has another daughter who entered the palace as an imperial concubine. She was the former imperial concubine. After the new emperor ascended the throne, all the imperial concubines were moved to the Wenjue Temple on the outskirts of the capital. But it is said that this daughter of the Jia family could not bear the loneliness, and had an affair with a monk in the temple. She was caught red-handed, but the imperial concubine insisted that she was framed and actually hit her head against the temple and died. Strangely enough, there was a sudden thunder and lightning in the sky. People said that this imperial concubine must have been wronged."
"This matter was reported to the emperor. If the emperor did not deal with it, it would damage the reputation of the royal family, so he sentenced the Jia family to have their property confiscated."
"Jia Yanbing was doing business at the border at the time. Before he could return to Jiangnan, he suddenly heard the bad news. He had been seriously ill for three months. The Jia family's caravan disappeared overnight. He was alone and penniless. He had no money to go home. It was really like this. When he came here, he was full of ambition and wealth. His journey was as bright as a dream, and the scenery was intoxicating. But when he turned around and left, the prosperity was over, and when he returned, he was penniless. The years passed by quickly, and I smiled at the ups and downs and let them float like clouds."
Wan Laoer was a little dazed as he listened to Lao Ding talking.
He felt that there was a deeper meaning to the last two sentences said by Old Ding, which seemed to be very similar to his own state of mind. It seemed that Old Ding's identity must not be simple, otherwise how could he be a good friend of the eldest son of the Jia family?
But he happened to be a horse dealer, which made it hard to figure out.
"Even though the Jia family has lost their money now, they can still save their lives. They can make a comeback in the future. As the saying goes, if you have green mountains, you will never have to worry about lack of firewood. The Jia family has connections and brains, so it shouldn't be difficult for them to make a comeback, right?"
Old Ding waved his hand, "Brother, you think too simply. When the tree falls, monkeys scatter; when the wall falls, everyone pushes it. When the Jia family was prosperous, they made a lot of enemies. Those opponents were suppressed by the Jia family for many years. Now that the Jia family has fallen, do you still expect them to help? It's good enough that they don't destroy the Jia family."
"The only one alive in the Jia family is Jia Yanbing, a businessman. His father died on the day his family was confiscated. His old lady is still bedridden. His second son had his legs broken the next day. His wife and daughter-in-law were sold by debt collectors and their whereabouts are still unknown. Jia Yanbing's daughter-in-law hid in her parents' home, so her child escaped the disaster, but her life at her parents' home must not be easy."
"Since Master Jia is so short of money, why is he selling this horse at such a low price?"
Wan Laoer was a little puzzled. He heard from the horse dealers that this horse could be sold for a high price of two hundred taels of silver, which was undoubtedly a life-saving money for the Jia family at that time.
"You don't know, this horse saved Jia Yanbing's life. It's no less than a family member to Jia Yanbing. Now he has to sell the horse in order to raise money to go home, but he also wants to find a good place for the horse, so he sells it to you for fifty taels."
Wan Lao Er nodded in understanding, "It seems that Master Jia is also a man of character, but I think the Jia family must have been framed. Didn't they think of investigating it?"
Old Ding looked around warily and saw that everyone was drinking and talking loudly. No one paid attention to their corner, so he whispered, "I heard from Master Jia that their family may have attracted the attention of the emperor. Otherwise, how could an ordinary person bring down the Jia family overnight? I heard that the treasury is empty and the emperor is in urgent need of money. Maybe the next one will be the other three families."
Wan Laoer broke out in a cold sweat. The imperial power was truly terrifying. No wonder people said that if the king wanted his subjects to die, they had to die. This emperor was just another living devil.
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