Chapter 167 Let Daiyu live in the Rongguo Mansion
"Since they're not thinking clearly, let them be kept at home. Why let them out?"
"Mr. Yuan, you probably don't know that the Duke of Li is extremely protective of his own and also incredibly unreasonable..."
"Behind every naughty child, there is a naughty parent. This saying is indeed true."
Jia Zheng thought for a moment before he understood what Yuan Hongqu meant. He thought to himself, "She really dares to say that. Does she have more confidence now that Daiyu has become a princess?"
“Mr. Yuan, now that the Liu family has said this, we should be on guard. We should avoid confronting a scoundrel like the Duke of Li if possible.”
"Lord Zheng, you are, after all, Daiyu's maternal uncle. Although the Duke of Liguo is a duke, don't forget that your family is also a duke's mansion. Does Lord Lin send a letter to your mansion every month for nothing?"
Yuan Hongqu couldn't understand why Jia Zheng was so cowardly, boosting the morale of others while diminishing his own.
Lin Ruhai had repeatedly asked him, as the maternal uncle, to take care of Daiyu. In order to get the Jia family to look after Daiyu, a considerable amount of goods were sent to the Rongguo Mansion, ship after ship.
Since the daughter of the Duke of Liguo dared to make such a statement, Jia Zheng, as Daiyu's uncle, although he did not inherit the title of Duke, would not go to the Duke of Liguo's mansion with Jia She for a cup of tea and casually mention this matter, so that they could restrain their daughter.
However, the reality is that after hearing about this, Jia Zheng didn't even have time to go home. He went to the Lin family first and told Yuan Hongqu to be careful and not to go against the Duke of Liguo.
What's the meaning?
He accepted the gifts from the Lin family and their gratitude, but then did nothing and just listened to Dai call him "Second Uncle".
Yuan Hongqu felt truly cheated by this behavior of taking money and not doing anything.
"That's true, but if it can keep Daiyu from being disturbed, that would be good." Jia Zheng didn't expect Yuan Hongqu to be so tough now, unlike the easy-going person she was when she was in the Rongguo Mansion.
"Don't worry, Master Zheng. If that girl from the Liu family comes looking for trouble, who knows who will suffer the consequences!" This wasn't just Yuan Hongqu being arrogant; Daiyu wasn't weak either. She had learned Wing Chun quite well, and these past two days she even dared to test her skills against Lan Su. With a master like Lan Su by her side, there were very few people in the entire capital who could defeat Lan Su.
“I’ve heard that Daiyu went out quite a few times during the first month of the lunar year. Daiyu is not an ordinary girl from a humble family, so Mr. Yuan should be careful.” Jia Zheng was very displeased with Yuan Hongqu’s stubbornness.
"That feudal old scholar!" Yuan Hongqu cursed inwardly.
"No need for you to trouble yourself, Your Excellency. I know what I'm doing." Yuan Hongqu didn't want to explain further to him. Should she tell him that Daiyu had been wandering around for days without even getting out of her carriage? Should she tell him that the Prince Xian's Mansion and the Prince Zhongshun's Mansion had cleared the streets for her?
He's probably going to say that Daiyu's trip out has disturbed the small vendors' business.
“Mr. Yuan, Daiyu is my niece, and she has no elders in her family now. If you still insist on this, I will have no choice but to take her back to my home.” Jia Zheng’s words carried a threat.
"Hehe," Yuan Hongqu laughed in anger. She thought that the first person to say this would be Grandmother Jia, but she did not expect it to be Jia Zheng.
Daiyu went shopping during the New Year period, which happened before the tenth day of the first lunar month. How could her family not know about that?
Now that the first month of the lunar calendar is almost over, Jia Zheng finally came to question her.
This happened after Daiyu was granted the title of Princess.
"Master Zheng, did you come to report this because the Liu family's daughter might harm Daiyu?" Yuan Hongqu looked at Jia Zheng with a half-smile.
Jia Zheng felt as if Yuan Hongqu had seen right through him; though embarrassed, he remained defiant.
“That’s right. Daiyu’s only close relatives in the capital are our family. The best solution now is for her to move to the Rongguo Mansion. As Mr. Yuan just said, the Duke of Liguo is a duke, but our family also lives in the Duke’s Mansion. If Daiyu moves into the Duke’s Mansion, the daughter of the Duke of Liguo will naturally be more considerate.”
“Master Zheng, don’t forget, Daiyu is now a proper princess, bestowed the title by imperial decree. If she is targeted by the Liu family’s daughter right after being granted the title, do you think the Emperor will forgive the Duke of Li?” Yuan Hongqu spoke so bluntly that she didn’t believe Jia Zheng would pretend to be confused.
How could she not guess Jia Zheng's thoughts? Now that Daiyu is a princess, her status is extraordinary.
If someone lived in their house, even their family's status would be elevated. They wouldn't need to do anything special; just letting outsiders know that a princess personally bestowed by the emperor lived in their home would be prestigious enough.
This is what Jia Zheng was thinking about on his way from the Prince of Beijing's residence.
The daughter of the Duke of Liguo did indeed say those words, and her personality was indeed as he described. However, now that I think about it, she probably wouldn't have had the guts to attack a county magistrate.
“Mr. Yuan, as Daiyu’s uncle, I rushed here to report the news when I heard that my niece might be in danger. It was my oversight. The reason I let Daiyu go back to my house is because there are only you women and children here, and no one to take charge of the household. If something happens to Daiyu, how can I explain it to Ruhai?” Jia Zheng said with a pained expression.
"Don't worry, Master Zheng. As Daiyu is my student, if I didn't even have the ability to protect her, Lord Lin wouldn't dare to let me bring Daiyu from Yangzhou." Yuan Hongqu knew that if she showed any difficulty, Jia Zheng would seize the opportunity to persuade Daiyu to live in the Rongguo Mansion.
"If Mr. Yuan has such ability, then I must have been meddling."
Seeing that Yuan Hongqu was unyielding and showed him no respect, Jia Zheng felt uneasy and wanted to get up and leave.
Just then, Jia Baoyu returned, carrying a box. Behind him, Zijuan was holding a vase of plum blossoms. These were not plum blossoms from the Longyou Plum Tree, but rather a vase of vermilion red plum blossoms, blooming like fire.
Baoyu, beaming with joy, seemed oblivious to the strange expression on Jia Zheng's face. He entered and immediately spoke…
"Granny Yuan, do you still remember those ginseng seedlings in Rongyue Courtyard?"
Yuan Hongqu nodded. "Of course I remember."
"I was afraid they would freeze after the heavy snow before the New Year, so I covered them all with my cotton-padded coat. These past few days, seeing that it's warm, I finally took off the coat, and to my surprise, there's already greenery inside. It seems they're about to sprout." Baoyu took a stroll in the yard, and the dazed, silly look he had when he first came in had completely disappeared. In such a short time, he had become the same spirited young man he always was. I wonder what he saw in the yard?
Yuan Hongqu glanced at Zijuan and wondered if this kind-hearted maid had once again enlightened Baoyu.
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