Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 262 Lin Ruhai's Belated Realization
When Marquis Anjing came to the capital to report on his work, all the civil and military officials in the court knew that it would cause a sensation, but in the end, he was treated lightly by Emperor Longyou.

Apart from knowing that Marquis Anjing entered the palace alone and had a long conversation with Emperor Longyou, no one else knew what they talked about.

Afterwards, Marquis Anjing did not attend the morning court.

Within a few days, Emperor Longyou issued an edict to promote Marquis Anjing to the second-rank position of Governor of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, in charge of military affairs in the south of the Yangtze River, to sort out the administration of officials, and to investigate the case of the Suzhou prefect who committed suicide out of fear of punishment.

In less than five or six years, Yue Ling went from being an unknown man in the underworld to a top official of the current dynasty. His past experience was like a myth, and others could only admire him.

Even though the promotion was not in compliance with the ancestral system, few censors came out to impeach. After all, the achievements were there, and if he was not promoted, wouldn't it be a sign of Your Majesty's lack of favor?
Emperor Longyou was not a mean and ungrateful emperor.

After Marquis Anjing left the capital, Emperor Longyou discussed with officials based on Marquis Anjing's achievements in Cangzhou, and finally agreed on two other national policies to promote the capital area.

The first is to recreate the fish scale book and measure the land.

The second is to follow Cangzhou's example and change the tax system.

There was a lot of complaints in the court...

On the canal, in the official ship,

The girls observed Lin Daiyu's expression, but they were silent. Xue Baochai pushed aside Qin Keqing, who was standing beside her, and walked to Lin Daiyu, asking with a smile, "That's your father, the person closest to you. You can't avoid him, right? When the Marquis takes care of the affairs in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, he will return to the capital, but he will still have to pass by Yangzhou."

Lin Daiyu shook her head in distress. How could she not know that she couldn't avoid it?
Things had developed to this point, and Lin Daiyu didn't know how to face her father.

Lin Daiyu never thought that things would turn around in the past, but after entering the palace last time, another path opened up for her.

When she learned from the Queen that she and Yue Ling would be married, she was surprised, happy and shy. The Queen had chosen the couple and the marriage was settled.

But now, Daddy kept writing to her, asking about her situation, and even seemed to want to keep her by his side.

Are you trying to disobey the emperor's order?
Lin Daiyu also couldn't understand why her father, a man who respected the royal family the most, would do such a thing to hinder her.

The Queen Mother also said that she would write another letter to explain things to her father, so Lin Daiyu could only hope that her father would think it through and stop holding her back.

Lin Daiyu pursed her lips and replied, "It's still early. Brother Yue has been an official in Cangzhou for four years. Maybe he will stay in Jiangnan for four years as well."

In line with the spirit of delaying it for as long as possible, Lin Daiyu didn't want to think about it too much.

Moreover, she hasn't learned Yue Ling's feelings yet, which is an important reason why she is looking forward to going south for a reunion. If everything is just her wishful thinking, then there will be all these troubles later.

It was all her own fault.

She was only six years old when she left home, and she went out calling her uncle. This time when she returned home, she was already an adult, and she probably went back calling her husband.

Not to mention other people, even the little girls in the room seemed to be enjoying the fun.

I am looking forward to going to Yangzhou Prefecture to see Lin Daiyu and have fun.

Going to Yangzhou Prefecture is actually beneficial for them. Once Lin Daiyu's matter is finally settled, it will be their turn to line up.

It has long been a tacit knowledge among the girls in the room that they all like Yue Ling, but people seldom talk about it.

Seeing that all the girls were giggling, Lin Daiyu waved her hands in annoyance, "Okay, let's not talk about this trivial matter. We are heading south, and we should send a letter to Brother Yue to discuss the itinerary and where to meet."

"Zijuan, go get some paper and pen, we'll finish the discussion today."

"By the way, don't be so perfunctory when writing back to Dad. Let me write it..."

……

Yangzhou Prefecture,
Along with the imperial edict that Yue Ling was to take up the post in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, another one was also transmitted to Yangzhou.

At that moment, Lin Ruhai had just gone out to crack down on smuggled salt, and then he came home to rest and sit with his two concubines.

But a letter came in from outside.

The servant reported that it was written by His Majesty himself. The messenger just put it down and left. Lin Ruhai couldn't help but become nervous again.

"If it weren't for the palace maids coming to see me off, we would have a few words in the room. It would probably be that Your Majesty is not satisfied with my recent actions."

How could Lin Ruhai not be frightened with such a distant attitude?

But if Lin Ruhai asked himself, he had been an official for more than ten years and had always been conscientious.

Lianghuai Salt Industry was the largest salt field in Dachang, and its affairs were the most complicated, but he was able to manage them well, which must have taken a lot of effort.

The taxes have been paid on time, so what else could make the royal family unhappy?

Seeing Lin Ruhai's worried expression, the two aunts couldn't help but speak to comfort him.

"Perhaps there is something urgent that you want to tell the master, and it is inconvenient to let others reveal it?"

"That's right, sir. You should open the letter and read what it says first. Don't scare yourself."

Lin Ruhai frowned and unfolded the letter. It was exactly as he expected, a word of reproach.

"...A gentleman should be respectful at the beginning and cautious at the end, and be consistent from beginning to end. This is the way of a gentleman and the culture of etiquette and righteousness. This is the teaching of the saints. How can you, as a third place winner, not know it? You are fickle and inconsistent. I am very unhappy with your behavior!" "I accept your wishes and consider the friendship between our two families. I have signed a marriage contract, but you blocked it. This is not the attitude of a minister serving his country, and it is also against the integrity of a minister serving his king!"

"Daiyu, your nature is pure and kind, like an orchid. I also pity her talent and sentiment, so I thought of her as a perfect match. As her father, you should think of long-term plans for her and take care of her for the rest of her life. What you have done now, isn't it wasting her youth and making me appear unkind and unjust?"

"I now warn you to reflect on yourselves as soon as possible. You do not need to come to the capital to see me this year. You can come to the capital to see me when I have an imperial decree!"

Ministers sent abroad would come to Beijing once every three to five years to report on their work or take examinations. If they had outstanding political achievements, they would be promoted. If they had good political achievements, they could return to their original place to serve as officials. If they had poor political achievements, they would have to be transferred or demoted.

If you haven't been to the capital for a long time, unless you are an official whom Your Majesty trusts very much, or someone like Lin Ruhai who is disliked by Your Majesty, you will have no idea of ​​promotion this year.

Lin Ruhai's hand holding the letter was trembling slightly.

He was very familiar with each of these words, so why was it that when they were put together he had a hard time reading them?

What does it mean that he is fickle and inconsistent? What has he done?

Furthermore, why was Emperor Longyou so concerned about Lin Daiyu's marriage? Yet he did not issue an edict to specify who the marriage should be. Was it impolite for him to summon her back home to inquire about it?
The two aunts saw that Lin Ruhai looked quite unhappy and couldn't help but become worried.

Aunt Zhou said after careful consideration: "Excuse me, Master, is what is written in the letter really a bad thing?"

For the women in the family, the men in the family are the guarantee of a stable life. If Lin Ruhai was really disliked by the emperor and lost the lucrative position of the Salt Inspector, their lives would not be easy in the future.

Lin Ruhai couldn't figure out what was going on for a moment, so he passed the letter to his two concubines.

"Look, it's said that His Majesty was very dissatisfied with my handling of Daiyu's marriage, but I didn't do anything wrong."

The two aunts hurriedly took the letter, each holding one side, and began to read together.

After quickly browsing through it, the two aunts knew what was going on. They couldn't help but feel relieved and slowly exhaled.

Seeing this, Lin Ruhai asked, "Do you know what's going on?"

The two concubines looked at each other, covered their mouths and laughed, and said they didn't know.

Lin Ruhai frowned, thinking that even they could see through it, but he couldn't. Was it because he didn't give enough consideration to such things in his daily life?

After taking the letter again and reading it through, Lin Ruhai became even more confused.

Normally, Your Majesty would not interfere in the marriage of anyone other than a royal family member.

However, among the several clans that are on good terms with His Majesty, Prince Zhongshun and Prince Zhongyong, neither of them have eligible males in their mansions. It is impossible to choose a marriage for Lin Daiyu to be a concubine, right?

Apart from this, perhaps only the ministers close to Your Majesty can receive this treatment.

A close minister?

Yue Ling?

Lin Ruhai's eyes widened, as if he had figured everything out.

"Why? Yue Ling came to take Lin Daiyu to the capital. Isn't it because Your Majesty is worried about Jiangnan and wants Lin Daiyu to go to the capital as a hostage?"

The two concubines were making tea and fanning themselves, completely ignoring what Lin Ruhai was saying.

"Since this did not happen, then in your Majesty's eyes, it was me who decided to marry Lin Daiyu to Yue Ling to bring the two families together?"

After finding out the whole story, Lin Ruhai leaned back in his chair, unable to recover for a long time.

"This……"

Emperor Longyou had confirmed the marriage, and it seemed that no matter how much he tried to argue, it would be of no avail. Moreover, he didn't even have the chance to argue, as he was not allowed to enter the capital this year.

Lin Ruhai was holding his breath and wanted to find an outlet to express his anger, but he had no place to do so.

His face flushed, but at this moment another letter came from outside.

"My Lord, it is a letter from the canal."

Lin Ruhai took a sip of tea, suppressed his emotions, and opened the envelope. The handwriting on it was a little strange. The characters seemed to be written by Yue Ling, but there was a hint of gracefulness in the handwriting.

How could Lin Ruhai not be able to distinguish his own daughter's handwriting? It was clearly written by Lin Daiyu!

"I should have gladly accepted your invitation. However, I am now under the order of the Emperor to go south to Jiangsu and Zhejiang to take up the post of Governor. The roads I pass through are all related to people's livelihood and government affairs. Although Yangzhou is close to your residence, I dare not slack off for a moment."

"Now that I have been entrusted with an important task by His Majesty, I should put public affairs first and do my best to fulfill my duties, so as not to disappoint the trust of the emperor and the expectations of the people. At the moment, my schedule is tight and many matters need to be dealt with. If I stay for a while because of personal friendship, I may delay my schedule and cause a backlog of public affairs, which will disappoint the expectations of the court."

"I know that my uncle is very kind and has a deep friendship with the Lin family. When I settle all the important people and return to Beijing, I will definitely pay you a special visit to reminisce about our old friendship and listen to your teachings."

Lin Ruhai angrily slammed the letter on the table. If it weren't for his good upbringing, he would have wanted to tear the letter into pieces.

"You are trusted by His Majesty, so you treat me so lightly? It would be fine if you used official business as an excuse, but you even let Yu'er write letters for you. Are you trying to show off to me how deep your relationship is?"

(End of this chapter)