Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 263: Lin Ruhai is furious
Lin Ruhai's breath was churning up and down and he couldn't calm down at all.

"I asked you to take care of Yu'er, and you really did it. Even the imperial decree granting her marriage is about to come down!"

Recalling the past, he had recommended Yue Ling to do something, so that Emperor Longyou would not let Yue Ling's talent go to waste.

Thinking about it now, Lin Ruhai just wanted to slap himself twice.

Isn't he cheap? He gave away his daughter and an official position. What on earth is he doing?

Lin Ruhai regretted deeply that he should not have let Yue Ling take Lin Daiyu away.

Why are you playing around with guesswork for no reason? Wouldn't it be better to just say it directly?
Seeing that Lin Ruhai was very angry, the two concubines hurriedly tried to smooth things over.

Aunt Zhou explained, "The young lady has been with him for six years, which is no less than the master. Of course, they are close. Even if we ignore this friendship, the love of raising her is deep enough."

"Now that His Majesty has helped them, and given them a title, it will not tarnish the girl's reputation."

"Otherwise, what kind of marriage can a girl find if she grew up in a man's family?"

Hearing this, Lin Ruhai was not comforted at all and shouted angrily again: "Yue Ling! You really have a good plan!"

Aunt Bai hurriedly pulled Aunt Zhou away and tried to smooth things over, saying, "Even if she was sent to the Jia family, I'm afraid the old lady would still arrange a marriage for her. Now that we have the marriage certificate from His Majesty, it is a blessing to our family."

"It is quite rare for His Majesty to grant a marriage to someone who is not a relative of the clan."

"Besides, with Yue Ling's abilities, I'm afraid there won't be anyone else who can rival him, right?"

Lin Ruhai admired Yue Ling's ability. As his junior, he was able to make a name for himself at such a young age and made immortal contributions one after another, which was beneficial to both the country and the people. He really deserved to be looked up to.

Just the governance in Cangzhou really surprised Lin Ruhai.

But this does not conflict with his dissatisfaction with Yue Ling. Yue Ling is of no benefit to him and even kidnapped his only precious daughter.

Even when returning invitations, he used his beloved daughter to act as a clerk.

There is only one word in Lin Ruhai's heart now, and that is "hate".

"He has the ability, so what? The matchmaker's order, my parents' words, he and Yu'er bypassed me, where did they put me as their father? If it weren't for your Majesty's letter, I would still be in the dark!"

"No wonder Yu'er refused to come back despite repeated calls. So this is the problem!"

Seeing that they couldn't persuade Lin Ruhai, the two concubines stopped trying.

Aunt Bai pulled Aunt Zhou to leave, but Aunt Zhou turned back and said, "Your Majesty is the one who endorses us, and we have a deep friendship. Now we are still living together. When Yu'er is older and comes back, the master may be a grandfather."

Lin Ruhai felt dizzy after hearing this.

Aunt Bai was quite speechless and hurriedly pulled Aunt Zhou out to avoid the limelight.

"Is what I said wrong? No one can change it."

Aunt Bai wanted to cry but had no tears. "Because you are right, you'd better not say anything."

When she went out, she was still a weak little girl, less than waist-high. When she came back, she was already mature and even had a big belly.

When Lin Ruhai thought about that scene, he felt like the sky was falling.

After drinking a few sips of tea painfully, Lin Ruhai still couldn't get rid of the anger in his heart. He couldn't calm down at all and shouted angrily: "Yue Ling, you are so bold! I don't believe that you will not come to see me before you return to Beijing!"

"I must discuss this with you!"

……

Suzhou Prefecture,
Caoyun Guild Hall,

Yue Ling was sitting at his desk, sorting out the news he had recently received, when he suddenly sneezed a few times, which made him feel confused.

Given his physique and the fact that he had not had any illness for many years, how could he sneeze so violently?

"Is someone talking bad about me behind my back? It must be those corrupt officials in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. I curse them to give birth to children without buttholes."

Yue Ling cursed inwardly and continued writing.

After spending several days with the two sisters Miaoyu and Xing Xiuyan, he probably knew everything that was going on in Suzhou.

There was no other reason why Prefect Zhu opposed the change from rice to mulberry. It was because when Hangzhou made the change, it experienced a large food shortage that year. Several surrounding counties and even Suzhou came to help, and Hangzhou was able to overcome the difficulties.

This was also reflected when Yue Ling looked at the Shen family's accounts.

As the two major grain production bases in the south of the Yangtze River, if Hangzhou and Suzhou both changed from rice to mulberry, wouldn't it lead to the scene of "A Thousand Miles of Starving Corpses"?

It is not impossible to change rice crops to mulberry crops, but it must be done gradually.

But in Hangzhou, as soon as the change happened, a large number of wealthy families moved in and used silver to buy the people's land to convert rice into mulberry trees and produce silk.

Land annexation is not a good thing, but it is not new that businessmen and government officials can disregard the lives of the people for the sake of profit.

In the eyes of officials, political achievements come first. No matter how great the sacrifices are or how many people die, if he successfully implements the national policy of replacing rice with mulberry trees, he will be promoted. As for people's livelihood, that is something the next official needs to worry about.

In the eyes of businessmen, as long as there is enough profit, there is nothing that cannot be done.

In this way, the two sides can often form a solid alliance. The Xu family in Suzhou is the richest family in the area and can be regarded as an aristocratic family. They once received the emperor in Suzhou like the Zhen family and also had a certain influence in the court.

Seeing that Hangzhou was making a lot of money by switching from rice to mulberry, there was no reason for him, as the first beneficiary in Suzhou, not to want to make the switch.

Judging from Yue Ling's speculation, it is very likely that the Xu family and the government falsified accounts to frame Prefect Zhu who was obstructing the conversion from rice to mulberry.

In fact, the cash deducted from Prefect Zhu's account might have been the start-up capital provided by the government to the Xu family.

Put that way, it all makes sense.

After stopping writing, Yue Ling wrote down all his thoughts on paper and passed them to Miaoyu and Xing Xiuyan.

"Let's see if there are any loopholes."

Miaoyu and the other girl took it carefully and sat together to read it through.

Yue Ling's writing depicts a series of cases that are closely linked.

With the instigation of the entire Jiangsu and Zhejiang officialdom, Governor Zhu was gradually pushed into a deep pit from which there was no escape.

Miaoyu's eyes were red again. "In my opinion, it should be not much different from what the Marquis inferred. But now we have no evidence to prove who is wrong. It doesn't matter if it's the Xu family or which high-ranking official is behind it."

"Even if the Marquis finds out the whole story, he won't be able to convict them. This is their most cunning aspect."

Yue Ling nodded slightly.

"To solve a case, all you need is evidence. Physical evidence is the forged accounts and the documents that prove that Governor Zhu did not embezzle public funds. Human evidence is someone who can be found to support the case."

"Now that we have an idea, we can put it into action. Tomorrow we will go and look for canals to see if they are really not repaired, or if there are omissions in the repaired areas."

Xing Xiuyan couldn't help but ask, "Suzhou's canals stretch for dozens of miles. If the three of us go to see them one section at a time, how long will it take us to finish them?"

Yue Ling shook his head and smiled, "Of course not. We are just checking the canals near the city, and I will arrange people to check the rest."

Miaoyu and Xing Xiuyun looked at each other and nodded.

Yue Ling added: "Okay, let's leave it at that for today. Their goal is nothing more than to turn rice into mulberry trees. They will definitely make more moves next time. We just need to respond accordingly."

"As for the conviction, that is another matter. You should rest here today. It will be convenient for you to go out tomorrow. I will go back to the city first."

After saying that, Yue Ling strode out of the room.

After the two women watched Yue Ling go away, they both sighed.

Xing Xiuyan said, "The Marquis is really a good man. It would be great if there were more people like him in the court."

Miaoyu curled her lips and replied: "Perhaps everyone, even the emperor, thinks so."

Xing Xiuyan shook her head, "That's not the case. Corrupt officials definitely don't think that way."

Miaoyu had no intention of bickering with Xing Xiuyan. She lay back in the armchair and sighed, "You are a sharp-tongued person right next to me, but you dare not say a word in front of the Marquis."

Xing Xiuyan pouted, not convinced by Miaoyu's words, but did not explain much.

After all, she had never met a high-ranking official before, let alone a figure as famous as Marquis Anjing. How could a woman not be restrained?

"You're still talking about me. How much better are you than me? Those who obey the Marquis's orders are more pleasing to the ear than your master's words."

Xing Xiuyan glanced at him lightly, then changed the subject and said, "Speaking of which, you said in the past that if someone could clear your father's name, you would be willing to marry him. Do you still mean what you said?"

Hearing this, Miaoyu blushed slightly, and hurriedly sat up straight, picked up the rosary beads, and raised one hand, "Amitabha, monks do not covet the worldly world, what does love have to do with me? Donor, be careful with your words."

Xing Xiuyan retorted, "Monks don't tell lies."

Miaoyu turned a deaf ear to him, her lips moving as if she had already recited the Qingxin Jue.

Xing Xiuyun also didn't know what was going on with Miaoyu. She was clearly practicing Buddhism, but she preferred Laozi and Zhuangzi, and also dabbled in Taoist matters. She really didn't know why there was such a contradictory person like her.

"It is good to recite the Qingxin Jue, and Taoists can get married when they enter the world."

Miaoyu opened her eyes, gave Xing Xiuyun a fierce look, and without saying anything more, went back to her room.

Without Miaoyu around, Xing Xiuyun's liveliness disappeared, her eyes gradually dimmed, as calm as water, and her mood became restrained again.

She thought that all this had nothing to do with her, but she was helping Miaoyu and got involved in it by accident.

She has lacked attention since she was young and has even become accustomed to the feeling that others don't see her.

But in front of Yue Ling, he treated everyone equally. It couldn't be called intimate, but it made Xing Xiuyan feel very comfortable.

Recently, her parents brought up the old matter again. Mrs. Xing, the eldest wife of Rongguo Mansion, her aunt, wanted to take her to Beijing, and her words seemed to be about proposing marriage.

Xing Xiuyan was really like the clouds and mist floating between the mountains, unable to control her own stay or go.

"Your prayers really worked. You have brought me such a good marriage. But don't forget me, your sister, don't you?"

Xing Xiuyan pursed her lips and ran back to the room to find Miaoyu lying down...

(End of this chapter)