Chapter 14: Jia Lian Describes the Grand View Garden
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Chu Yan and Jia Lian stepped out of the military tent. Chu Yan looked relaxed, while Jia Lian was visibly cautious. He was not a short man, yet standing beside the King of Qian, he seemed to shrink by a full head.
“Let’s just have a little chat.”
Seeing how tense he was, Chu Yan said, “Relax. I never punish people merely for what they say.”
“Yes, yes… May I ask what connection the King of Qian has with my Jia family?”
Jia Lian remained exceedingly careful.
Chu Yan smiled. “Who is in the Jia family these days?”
Jia Lian forced a smile. “There are quite a few of us… At present, the master of the household is Jia Zheng. The First Master, whose personal name is She, is my father. As for the Eastern Estate—that is, the Ningguo Estate—the head of the household is Jia Zhen. His father was Jia Jing…”
Chu Yan smiled. Jia Lian, the Second Master Lian of The Dream of the Red Chamber, was so nervous that he could scarcely speak coherently, though at least he remained understandable.
“I heard that the Rongguo Estate has a young master who was born with a jade in his mouth?” Chu Yan asked tentatively.
“The King of Qian knows of Baoyu?!”
A look of astonishment crossed Jia Lian’s face. He hurriedly continued, “Your Highness must mean my younger cousin, Jia Baoyu. From the moment he was born, he had a piece of multicolored, lustrous jade in his mouth. Many people in the capital know of it. Everyone says he must have an extraordinary origin and may accomplish great things in the future. Unfortunately, after Baoyu grew up, he became somewhat foolish and wayward, so people gradually stopped mentioning it.”
The tale of Jia Baoyu’s birth with a jade in his mouth had spread far and wide.
Chu Yan looked at him. “Is it true? You are several years older than he is. Do you remember what happened when he was born?”
Jia Lian hurriedly clasped his hands and bowed. “I would never dare deceive the King of Qian. I was very young then and do not remember much. I only know that when Madam gave birth to Baoyu, the midwife found that piece of jade in his mouth… As for whether the matter is true, we would have to ask Madam. It is also possible that the midwife secretly brought a piece of jade into the birthing room to seek good fortune and offer an auspicious sign.”
He had realized that the King of Qian was not interested in any connection with the Jia family. He was interested in that piece of jade!
A careless answer could bring down the crime of confiscation and extermination of the entire family!
“Oh.” Chu Yan nodded, then smiled. “I heard that the Jia family has a daughter in the imperial palace?”
“That is true. Her name is Yuanchun. She is the daughter of Master Zheng, and by Heaven’s grace was conferred the title of Worthy Consort.”
Jia Lian spoke with extraordinary caution. Naming his eldest cousin directly was unavoidable; before the King of Qian, who commanded hundreds of thousands of soldiers, he did not dare observe the customary avoidance of her name.
“I heard there is a Phoenix Brocade Palace in the imperial palace, and that Jia Yuanchun is its Chief Administrator?”
Chu Yan asked again.
Jia Lian quickly replied, “The Phoenix Brocade Palace is the residence of the Dowager Consort. The title of Chief Administrator of the Phoenix Brocade Palace was bestowed by the Former Sage out of filial devotion. He entrusted all matters concerning the palace to my eldest cousin. She entered the palace at the age of nine and served the Dowager Consort there, which was why she was later appointed Chief Administrator of the Phoenix Brocade Palace.”
Chu Yan smiled. “That is rather unusual. What relationship does the Jia family have with the Dowager Consort? And who is she?”
In The Dream of the Red Chamber, when the Dowager Consort died, Lady Wang, Wang Xifeng, and the others all entered the palace to keep vigil. A series of events then unfolded within the Grand Prospect Garden.
“Your Highness, the Dowager Consort’s surname is Zhen. She came from the Zhen family of Jiangnan and is a distant relative of our Jia family.”
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If he could help it, Jia Lian did not want to mention the Zhen family even once. The man who had destroyed the great clans of Jinling and confiscated the old residences of both the Zhen and Jia families was none other than the King of Qian standing before him!
“I see.” Chu Yan nodded.
He was not very familiar with the great clans of Yingtian Prefecture in Jinling. As luck would have it, he had fallen ill while attacking Jinling.
By the time he recovered, Chu Ming and the others had already sent men to confiscate the estates of the great clans in the city. After entering Jinling, Chu Yan had merely rewarded everyone and never bothered to investigate who had originally owned the wealth.
“When Jia Yuanchun returned home from the palace, your family built a garden called the Grand Prospect Garden?”
Chu Yan asked again. After Jia Lian confirmed it, he smiled and continued, “Who lives in the garden now? Have all the young ladies of your household moved in?”
The Grand Prospect Garden was where the young women of The Dream of the Red Chamber lived, and where most of the story took place.
If one found the Grand Prospect Garden, one would find Lin Daiyu, Xue Baochai, Li Wan, Miaoyu, Qingwen, Zijuan, and the others.
Over the past two days, Chu Yan had found time to “read” The Dream of the Red Chamber once again in his mind, reviewing what he had seen in his previous life. He was therefore especially interested in the Grand Prospect Garden.
“Well… the people living in the garden are—”
Cold sweat broke out on Jia Lian’s brow.
Was the King of Qian really so familiar with the Jia family?
Or had he taken an interest in the unmarried young ladies living in the garden?
But how had he learned that Lin Meimei, the Xue sisters, and the others were staying there?
Seeing that he had guessed his thoughts, Chu Yan said calmly, “I learned it from a merchant named Leng Zixing. He is very familiar with your family.”
“Leng Zixing?”
Jia Lian froze for a moment. He searched his memory carefully, yet could not recall who this Leng Zixing was.
Chu Yan smiled. “He told me that the Jia family has four girls. Beginning with Jia Yuanchun, their names are Yingchun, Tanchun, and Xichun—the Three Springs. He also said that Grandmother Jia had a clever and beautiful daughter named Jia Min, who married Lin Ruhai, the former Third-Rank Scholar. He once served in Yangzhou as the Salt Commissioner’s Inspector, and the couple had a daughter named Lin Daiyu.”
It was like a thunderbolt from a clear sky!
Cold sweat poured down Jia Lian’s back. The King of Qian was not merely interested in that piece of jade. He was interested in the Jia family’s daughters, in Lin Daiyu, and even in the Xue sisters, Baochai and Baoqin.
Did he intend to take every unmarried girl in the Grand Prospect Garden into his harem?
That wretched Leng Zixing—what exactly had he told the King of Qian? Before even attacking the capital, he had already decided to bring all the young ladies of the Jia family into his harem!
“Why have you stopped talking?” Chu Yan asked with a smile.
“Yes, yes… Everything the King of Qian has said is true!”
Jia Lian bowed again, not daring to conceal the slightest detail. Then, ashamed, he added, “It is truly humiliating. The servants of our household were not properly disciplined, and the young ladies’ names somehow spread beyond the family, allowing the King of Qian to make sport of us!”
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Chu Yan said nothing.
In ancient times, aside from those close to them, people did not casually reveal the names of women.
“There is a daughter of the Xue family named Baochai. Is she also living in the garden?”
Chu Yan asked again.
In The Dream of the Red Chamber, Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai stood at the head of the Twelve Beauties of Jinling. Although the ranking compiled by the Fairy Disillusion was not actually a list of beauties, it nevertheless showed that the two girls’ talents and appearances were regarded as the finest among the many women in the novel.
That was why Chu Yan had asked specifically about them.
“She is—she is. Miss Bao lives in the Hengwuyuan of the Grand Prospect Garden!” Jia Lian answered hurriedly, then added without thinking, “The Second Miss Bao also lives in Hengwuyuan.”
“Who is the Second Miss Bao?”
“She is Xue Baoqin, Baochai’s younger cousin.”
“She is already in the Grand Prospect Garden?”
Chu Yan felt a little regretful. Xue Baoqin’s appearance meant that the story of The Dream of the Red Chamber had already progressed halfway. Lin Daiyu and Jia Baoyu’s affection had become firmly established, while Shi Xiangyun and the others were preparing to become engaged.
Before long, Qingwen—one of the maids who received considerable attention in the novel—would be driven from the Jia family and die of illness.
Jia Lian said, “The Second Miss Bao came because of the bandit unrest in Jiangnan…”
At that instant, Jia Lian wished he could slap himself across the mouth.
He hurriedly prostrated himself. “Please forgive me, Your Highness! I deserve death!”
Chu Yan burst into laughter. He reached down, pulled him to his feet, and patted him on the shoulder. “I told you, I never punish people for their words. You are now an official of the court. Calling me a bandit king is only natural!”
“I would never dare… I would never dare,” Jia Lian said awkwardly.
Chu Yan smiled. “Xue Baoqin came to the capital because of me? In that case…”
He thought carefully, yet still could not find anything that would allow him to determine how far the story had progressed.
The events of The Dream of the Red Chamber all took place within the inner household and were rarely marked by anything distinctive. For instance, if Jia Baoyu had been beaten, Jia Lian might not know which beating it had been.
As for the changes in the feelings between Lin Daiyu and Jia Baoyu in the novel, Jia Lian would be even less likely to know anything about them.
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