Red Mansion Daiyu, the Rise of the Lin Family

"This is my mother. She's the Jia member you're looking for." Lin Daiyu pointed at Jia Min and said to Liu Laolao with a smile.

Granny Liu was shocked. She had never expected that

This woman, who was dressed like a landlord's wife in the town, was actually the lady of the Jia family.

Has the Jia family also fallen on hard times?

It looks like I'll be returning empty-handed this time.

The landlord has no surplus food?

Jia Min was even more surprised than her. How could Daiyu, such a child, casually reveal her identity in the street without considering the occasion?

It’s too late to cover up!

Jia Min looked around a few times and fortunately no one was curious enough to stop and watch.

She glared at Lin Daiyu in feigned anger, but her glare had no killing power.

Granny Liu was an experienced woman. When she saw Jia Min glaring at the child again, she understood that she was displeased with the child for talking too much.

"Oh! You see, I was saying that as soon as I went out today, I heard the magpies chirping. It seems that I will run into my aunt as soon as I enter the city."

"This is really my good fortune. Ban'er bows to my aunt."

A child nearby poked his head out from behind Granny Liu and saw that this family did not put on airs like the officials.

She wasn't wearing the silk and satin that grandma had been nagging about along the way, nor was she speaking in a pretentious, tender voice.

After being slapped a few more times by Granny Liu, he made a hasty gesture of greeting and then retreated back.

When Jia Min saw the child curled up because of the cold, she felt a little sorry for him.

When Liu Laolao saw that she had met the host by chance on the street, she no longer concealed her feelings and stated bluntly the purpose of her visit.

"Aunt, I came to the city to pay my respects to Aunt Wang." She sighed and continued,

"My son-in-law Wang Cheng's family was once wealthy, and he became a relative of the Wang family."

"But now we are getting poorer and poorer, while in previous years we could still have enough to eat."

"This year is really a bad year. The land tax has doubled. After paying the tax, the family will have very little rice left after working for a year."

"It's almost the New Year, I'm afraid we won't be able to celebrate even the New Year this year."

"So I, an old woman, would like to see if I can pay my respects to my aunt."

"that……"

At this point, Aunt Liu was indeed a little speechless, as her daughter and son-in-law were both stubborn people.

I can't even make ends meet, and I'm not willing to ask for help from others.

How could I not be one? But how many years can I live when I am old?

The dough is not worth much money.

Jia Min has always been soft-hearted and a little sympathetic to the elderly and the poor. When she saw Liu Laolao like this, she felt very uncomfortable.

She ordered the maidservant who followed her to take out dozens of taels of silver to give to Aunt Liu.

"Grandma, since we are relatives, you don't have to go to the Jia family."

"I came out to buy birds today, and I don't have much loose change with me. Here are thirty taels of silver. Go buy some cotton clothes for the winter, and some food for the New Year."

When Granny Liu heard this, she waved her hands and said, "No, you have to give us all the money you have."

"You are not well off, so it is enough for you to show me the way and listen to my nagging."

When Jia Min heard what Granny Liu said, she realized that she was not well off either.

It was still a little puzzling. I looked down at the clothes on my body and felt a little amused.

"Grandma, you take it. We can still get by."

Jia Min explained. At this time, Lin Ruhai, who had been thinking about something, suddenly asked,

"Old man, you just said that the land tax has doubled?"

Granny Liu slapped her thighs twice, "Isn't it true, old man?"

Lin Ruhai asked in confusion, "The imperial court only allowed a 10% increase in taxes, so how did it double?"

Granny Liu was also stunned by the question, "I don't know? If the court adds 10%, shouldn't the prefecture and county also add 10%? Wouldn't 10% be 10%?"

Lin Ruhai's face darkened. He felt that maybe this country woman was right.

A once well-to-do family can no longer make ends meet.

This is still the outskirts of Beijing, what about in the distance?

Jia Min insisted on giving money to Granny Liu. Although Granny Liu knew that she was begging for money, she also knew that she was not a beggar.

Seeing that the whole family was walking, I even hired a donkey before going into the city.

It is really unjustifiable to squander the money saved by others.

Lin Daiyu saw that there was no point in giving way to each other as passers-by kept looking at her.

She suddenly had an idea and interrupted, "Grandma Liu, do you know anything about birds?"

"My family is going to buy a bird today. If you can help us choose a bird with good spirits, we can earn some brokerage money."

"We were originally going to pay the brokerage fee to others, so whoever makes the money doesn't care."

"Meeting you today is our destiny, what do you think?"

Granny Liu hadn't been paying much attention just now. When Jia Min asked what the family was going to do, she was very surprised to hear that they were going to buy a bird.

Buying a bird in the middle of winter is really a waste of time.

It seems that this family does not have as difficult a life as they seem to be wearing.

"You've got the point. You don't need to buy a bird. Just sprinkle some bran on the ground and use a basket or sieve to catch it."

"We can deduct a few every day, but there are indeed fewer of them recently."

Speaking of this, Liu Laolao thought that there seemed to be not many sparrows left in the countryside, and they had all been captured and eaten.

Now even the remaining ones have become much more alert.

I can't get anything for a few days.

Lin Daiyu smiled and said, "Grandma Liu, let's go buy a bird that can talk."

Granny Liu slapped her forehead and said, "Isn't that a mynah bird?"

"That thing doesn't have much meat, less than a sparrow."

Jia Min said angrily, "Daiyu, stop teasing Granny Liu."

"Old man, you should go to the Jia family as soon as possible. I have wasted a lot of your time."

"I'll have someone take you there right away. It's a bit of a detour to get to the Jia family from here."

After saying this, Jia Min ordered the guards to bring Granny Liu over.

At this moment, Aunt Liu's eyes turned, she felt that she could make some money as a broker for this family buying birds.

It's always more respectable to make money than to ask for money.

Anyway, it won’t take much time to get to the Jia family.

"Auntie, you are being too polite. You haven't seen many insects and birds. We have been rolling around in the countryside all our lives."

"There are many opinions on this. I'll help you with some advice so you don't get cheated by the traffickers."

"I'm going to the Jia Mansion to pay my respects. It doesn't matter if I go earlier or later."

"There are also some things to pay attention to when it comes to birds. You have to look at their eyes. The more cunning the bird's eyes are, the stronger its vitality is."

"You can starve like this for many days without dying."

Granny Liu spontaneously followed the Lin family's team and introduced bird species as they walked.

Every family member was filled with emotion.

I feel sad for the hardships of the people. I see that Granny Liu is very agile and has no illness. The family can barely make ends meet except for a little boy, who are all laborers.

What about other families?

What about those families who have no relatives to turn to for help?

Lin Daiyu lamented the fickleness of fate. Will the Lin family's interception of Aunt Liu affect the later story of Qiaojie?

Jia Min was still worried that her second sister-in-law would blame her again, thinking that her helping Granny Liu was an slap in her face.

After all, my second sister-in-law has been in a bad mood recently.