The cannon fodder character in the Dream of the Red Chamber's substitute marriage story tries to rewrite her life (5 parts). (Seeking...)
Mingrui had no elders, and under the guidance of the Shennong System, he used his spiritual power to give hints to all the servants in the mansion.
These servants, born into the household, were trained by him to be both loyal and capable. After Jia Hui married into the family, she could sleep until she naturally woke up every day. The advantage of not having elders in the family was that she didn't have to pay her respects to her parents-in-law every day, and her life was incredibly comfortable.
In ancient times, the country was governed by filial piety. If there were elders in the family, it was absolutely essential to pay respects to them morning and evening every day.
When you're someone's daughter-in-law, you not only have to watch your elders eat, but you also have to serve them by putting food on their plates and serving them soup.
Otherwise, how could there be the saying "a daughter-in-law who has endured many years of hardship finally becomes a mother-in-law"? In the Dream of the Red Chamber, even though Xing and Wang had grandsons and granddaughters, they still had to pay their respects to Shi every day and observe the proper etiquette.
Lin Daiyu and the others ate at Grandmother Jia's place. Grandmother Jia exempted Madam Xing from serving them. Li Wan served the rice, Wang Xifeng set out the chopsticks, and Madam Wang served the soup.
As daughters-in-law, they were not allowed to eat at the table; they could only stand and serve. Only after Grandmother Jia and the other guests had finished their meal could they return to their own courtyards to eat.
What's most disgusting is the Su family, a small and humble household, who not only spend their daughter-in-law's dowry to pretend to be rich, but also impose rules on their daughter-in-law.
In her previous life, the original owner had to fan her mother when it was hot and add charcoal when it was cold. During meals, she led the maids to serve her mother and her cousin. In her mother's words, her cousin was a pampered guest.
In other words, the original owner had a good temper. If it were Jia Wei now, would you try setting some rules? Aunt Tang is not easy to deal with. Jia Wei's dowry maids were all carefully selected by her. They were of average appearance but strong and powerful, just in case Jia Wei was mistreated by her husband's family after marriage.
This is one of the advantages of having a mother. Su Jingxing wasn't as carefree as he was in his previous life, where he could focus solely on studying the classics. In this life, he often had to comfort his cousin when she suffered injustice.
Jia Wei has a bad temper, and he has to coax her all the time. It's like burning the candle at both ends. He has no time to study. In addition, Jia Hui had the little system send him a pill that can trigger headaches. If he wants to pass the imperial examination, Jia Daishan will have to help him cheat.
Prince Ping and his wife did a lot of work in arranging Mingrui's marriage. As cousins who weren't particularly close, it was truly remarkable that they went to such lengths.
After Mingrui recovered somewhat, the couple prepared generous gifts and went to the Prince of Ping's residence to express their gratitude. Nersu excitedly patted Mingrui on the shoulder: "Good, good, good. Getting married really makes a difference. Good lad, your uncle and aunt would be so gratified if they knew in the afterlife."
Our branch of the family is small, so it's only right that we brothers support each other. Besides, we're not just cousins, we're practically brothers, so why be so polite with your cousin?
Jia Hui then understood why Nersu had taken such good care of Mingrui, a cousin from a collateral branch of the family. It turned out that Nersu's birth mother and Mingrui's mother were sisters.
Although Jia Hui possesses healing abilities, she couldn't directly cure Mingrui's body. This is because her ability level is low, preventing her from curing him completely in one go. But even if she could cure him directly, Mingrui wouldn't let him take that risk.
A sickly man who had been ill for over a decade and was on the verge of death suddenly became lively and healthy again after a wedding celebration. It all seemed suspicious.
It wasn't just a casual remark that Jia Huicheng had no further connection with the Jia family after his marriage to Jia Daishan.
On the third day after the wedding, the day of Mingrui's return visit to his parents' home, the General Feng'en's mansion invited the imperial physician early in the morning, making it known throughout half the street that Mingrui was "ill."
Jia Hui sent a servant to the Jia family with a few inexpensive gifts for the return visit, telling them that her husband was ill and she had to take care of him, so she would not be returning home. She thought that her parents would understand her husband's condition.
Shi was so angry that she smashed the teacup in her hand: "The concubine's daughter is so short-sighted. She thinks she has become a phoenix after marrying into the general's mansion."
He's just a fallen member of the imperial clan; what good is it if he has the backing of the Prince of Ping's mansion?
That's what she said, but Shi Shi also knew that she probably had no control over Jia Hui, that illegitimate daughter.
She was now filled with deep regret. How could she have agreed to Jia Daishan's suggestion to substitute Jia Hui for Jia Hui in the marriage to the general's mansion?
The thought of Jia Hui becoming a noblewoman with an official rank only fueled her hatred for that wretched girl Jia Wei. If it weren't for Jia Wei's shamelessness in having an affair with that man surnamed Su before marriage, she wouldn't be in such a passive position.
What surprised her even more was that the General Feng'en's Mansion was so close to the Pingjun Prince's Mansion. Yesterday, the Princess Consort of Nan'an even sent someone to deliver a letter to her, saying that the Pingjun Prince's wife was now going around crying to those old wives of the imperial clan, complaining that the Rongguo Mansion was bullying their poor, honest child who had no parents to protect him.
She sent Granny Lai with lavish gifts to the Prince Ping's residence to apologize to Madam Zhen, but she wasn't even allowed to enter the gates. She and her belongings were thrown out.
Zhen Jia even went so far as to declare that any family that ever invited the Jia or Shi families should not send an invitation to the Prince of Ping's residence. That damned Zhen Jia showed her absolutely no respect.
As Jia Mu's dowry maid, Granny Lai naturally knew what she was angry about, and gently advised, "Madam, you don't need to worry too much. It's true that the Third Miss now has the Prince of Ping's mansion backing her up, but the Third Son-in-law's health doesn't seem to be that of a long-lived person."
"If anything unexpected happens in the future, the Third Miss will still need to return to the Master and Madam to ask for their help."
Shi's eyes lit up. That's right, she was really out of her mind. Mingrui, that sickly man, even the imperial physician said he wouldn't live past twenty.
He's nineteen now, he only has another year or two left to live. Once he dies, Third Sister will be a widow at such a young age, tsk tsk tsk, how pitiful!
Jia Daishan wasn't as angry as Shi Shi. He felt that Jia Hui was just being petty and that she would eventually understand that having her own family's support was very important for her to have a good life in her husband's family.
Especially with a sickly person like Mingrui who clearly wouldn't live long, once Mingrui dies, even if Sanya is stubborn, she'll have to obediently go back to her parents' home for help.
Jia Wei also hoped that Mingrui would die soon. After marrying into the Su family, Jia Wei realized how treacherous the Su family was.
First of all, they were poor. The courtyard they lived in was rented. The main source of income for the family was embroidery done by Su's mother and Su Jingxing's cousin.
The courtyard was so small that it couldn't even fit Jia Wei's dowry. Unaccustomed to living in such a small courtyard, Jia Wei had no choice but to move to her own dowry courtyard.
Su Jingxing naturally moved in with her. As for Su's mother and Su Jingxing's spoiled little cousin, she was annoyed just looking at them, so of course she couldn't move in with them.
However, Su Jingxing was a very filial son. After getting married, he and Jia Wei would take a carriage to visit Su's mother every morning and evening.
After two days of back-and-forth, Jia Wei had no choice but to reluctantly agree to let them move into her dowry house.
But Jia Wei is not the original owner of this body. She is genuinely filial, and she did not marry Su Jingxing to suffer.
Su's mother was the mother-in-law, so she had to be filial to her. But her younger cousin, as a guest, could only stay in a remote guest house and received the worst treatment.
On the surface, Su Jingxing was extremely grateful to Jia Wei, but in reality, he hated her with a vengeance. His cousin was his true love; if it weren't for her painstaking embroidery work all these years to support his studies, how could he have gotten to where he is today?
Su's mother's embroidery was only half good and couldn't fetch a price. The real value lay in her cousin's embroidery.
The Jia family is powerful, and the fact that he cannot marry his cousin as his legal wife already betrays her deep affection.
Now, he can only watch helplessly as his cousin is repeatedly bullied by Jia Wei, feeling deeply aggrieved.
The gossip-loving Shennong System dragged 996 to Jia Wei's house to watch a play. After returning, they didn't forget to complain to Jia Hui about Su Jingxing's shamelessness.
"He wanted both, but when he told his mother and cousin that the Jia family was forcing their daughter into marriage, he portrayed himself as a victim."
That's shameless! His cousin is quite cunning; your cheap second sister is likely to suffer a great loss at her hands.
She was also very patient; in fact, she knew that Su Jingxing's words couldn't stand up to scrutiny.
But as an orphan, having left the Su family, she had nowhere to hide. She could only cling tightly to Su Jingxing, transferring all her hatred onto Jia Wei.
Jia Hui ate the strawberries she had grown using her wood-type superpower: "There's always a reason why someone is pitiful. Jia Wei bullied her in this life, so she'll take revenge."
In her past life, the original owner treated her like a younger sister. She never hesitated to harm the original owner after receiving benefits from her.
She's lucky to have met Jia Wei; let them fight like dogs. You two must have too much free time, traveling so far to see a play!
The Shennong System sighed: "This is the only hobby I have left. Host sister, when are we going to start farming?"
"Don't you have a farm in Xiaotangshan? Why don't you build the glass first and set up a greenhouse? That way you can start farming even in winter. It's much better than using your superpowers to force these few strawberries to grow, right?"
Jia Hui tapped its head: "What are you thinking about? With our current status, even if we make glass, can we protect it?"
However, building a greenhouse doesn't necessarily require glass. What to use is up to you, Tongzi; figure something out.
Shennong System checked and came back to tell Jia Hui: "Improved window paper can replace glass. It is made of multi-layered tough paper soaked in tung oil, with an outer layer of hemp cloth for reinforcement. It is both waterproof and light-transmitting."
In addition, there is another type of tile that is relatively more expensive, made from boiled ram's horn, which has better light transmission.
Upon hearing this, Jia Hui immediately made a decision: "Use both. First, give me a plan and have the craftsmen renovate the manor in Xiaotangshan. When Mingrui is feeling better next spring, we'll head to the manor to live."
Since she married into the family, Mingrui's health has visibly improved. From previously being bedridden and taking more medicine than porridge, she can now eat half a bowl of rice per meal and will proactively say she is hungry and what she wants to eat.
The servants of General Feng'en's mansion were all born into the household, having served there since their ancestors' generation, and were utterly loyal to their masters. After Jia Hui arrived, she had the system affix loyalty talismans to everyone in the mansion.
This is ancient times; she dares not entrust her life and fortune to the loyalty of these servants. Although Mingrui's powerful mental strength has an influence, nothing is absolute. What if someone offers a higher price?
The servants who wore the loyalty badge were absolutely loyal to Jia Hui. They might betray Mingrui, but even if they died, they would never betray Jia Hui.
This is why Jia Hui dared to urge people to eat strawberries in the mansion; they were all her people, and all her actions were considered reasonable in their eyes.
Of course, she wasn't blatantly open about eating in front of others; instead, she quietly ate with Mingrui and Yun Que in their own yard.
Mingrui also likes to eat sweet and sour strawberries, but he has great self-control and only eats a few every day to enjoy them. Even though Jia Hui said that strawberries can boost immunity and that he can eat more, he did not indulge himself.
He said he wanted to live, to live a long, long life, to stay with Jia Hui, to have many children and grandchildren with her, and not to let momentary indulgence affect his recovery.
These words made Jia Hui feel a pang of sadness. She recalled how, before she transmigrated, she relied on her youth to stay up late and eat junk food. She knew these things were bad for her health, but she just couldn't control herself.
She only realized how precious life was after losing it, which is also an important reason why she was willing to bind with the system and travel to various small worlds. Who would want to be a ghost if they could live in a different way?
Because Mingrui had experienced the despair of waiting to die, he desperately wanted to seize any chance of survival that presented itself. His feelings for himself might not have been pure; after all, love at first sight is a rare occurrence.
It was the result of careful consideration beforehand, all for the sake of her own life, and of course, her feelings for him weren't entirely pure. To put it bluntly, if it weren't for the mission, even if he died in front of Jia Hui, she probably wouldn't have bothered to interfere.
To test the method suggested by the Shennong system, Jia Hui found an uninhabited courtyard and converted it into a greenhouse. The underfloor heating system in General Feng'en's mansion had been modified with guidance from the Shennong system, making it very warm in winter. After the renovation, the courtyard was not only planted with strawberries and tomatoes, but also some green vegetables.
After the strawberries and tomatoes in the greenhouse ripened, Jia Hui found several craftsmen who knew how to weave baskets and had them weave many exquisite and beautiful small bamboo baskets according to the designs she provided.
The baskets were lined with soft satin, and the picked strawberries and tomatoes were placed inside, along with two baskets of leafy greens, and delivered to the Prince Ping's residence.
After tasting it, Prince Ping praised it repeatedly and had his wife send most of it to the palace to show respect to the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager loved the sweet and sour strawberries and rewarded him with many fine things.
When Lady Zhenjia came with gifts, Jia Hui picked all the ripe strawberries and tomatoes and had Lady Zhenjia send them to the palace.
The Empress Dowager was overjoyed to have sweet and sour fruit to eat in winter. It was said that Mingrui's new wife had set up a greenhouse at home to grow the fruit so that Mingrui could enjoy fresh fruit in winter.
The old lady was delighted and praised Jia Hui several times. She also gave her a reward and asked Zhen Jia to deliver it to Jia Hui.
Over the course of winter, all the fruits produced in Jia Hui's greenhouse benefited the Empress Dowager and Emperor Kangxi. Of course, Emperor Kangxi did not eat her fruits for nothing; he gave her many rewards and even bestowed upon her an imperial title.
It is true that Mingrui was a Feng'en General, but Jia Hui's title of Lady of the Imperial Decree required him to apply for it.
Given Mingrui's health, it was unrealistic for her to request a title from the palace. After Kangxi bestowed a title upon her, she would be a Lady of Imperial Decree with a rank, and when she went out to attend banquets, she would no longer have to bow to everyone.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
