Red Mansion: Holding Space and Marrying Like the Sea

During this period, a devastating event struck the Jia family: a scandal engulfed the Ningguo Mansion. Shortly after Concubine Zhen's death, Jia Jing, a lord of the Ningguo Mansion, also passed away suddenly. Jia Jing was a prominent figure. He was the grandson of the Ningguo Duke, the second son of Jia Daihua, the heir to the hereditary second-class title of Ningguo Duke, and the third-generation head of the Ningguo Mansion. After the fall of the deposed Crown Prince, he abdicated the title to his son, Jia Zhen, to protect the Ningguo Mansion from sway. He then abandoned the family business and his infant daughter, Xichun, and fled to a Taoist temple, pretending to practice alchemy and seek immortality. The result? He died of poisoning from ingesting cinnabar.

At that time, the old concubine Dowager suddenly passed away, and everyone in the Jia family had to go out to attend the funeral. Yu Shi, the second wife, was left alone to manage the household. Knowing the urgency of the situation, Yu Shi immediately dispatched a servant to inform Jia Zhen and set about handling the funeral arrangements. However, even with all this effort, she couldn't leave such a large mansion unattended. So, Yu Shi decided to invite her stepmother to help look after the household.

It turned out that this old lady You had married her two daughters to You's father as his successor. Now, upon hearing You summon them to the Duke's Mansion, she naturally and joyfully took her two daughters with her. The underlying motives were probably best understood by the three of them, mother and daughter.

The two younger sisters of the You family—You Erjie and You Sanjie—were both born with exceptional beauty. Furthermore, they possessed rather uninhibited personalities and frivolous behavior. You Erjie, in particular, had already been engaged. Initially, You Lao Niang, coveting the Zhang family's wealth, had arbitrarily betrothed You Erjie to them.

Jia Zhen and Jia Rong were always lustful men. Seeing these two stunning beauties, how could they care about ethics? Furthermore, since You Erjie was already engaged, they didn't care at all. Therefore, during the period of double mourning for the country and family, the two men indulged in pleasure with the You sisters without restraint, completely disregarding etiquette and rules. This went on for a long time, and whether it was accidental or the result of the conspiracy of You Lao Niang and her daughter, You Erjie became pregnant. When You Shi heard the news, she almost fell to the ground. In today's society, filial piety is the rule of the country. Pursuing pleasure and becoming pregnant during the mourning period is a serious crime punishable by confiscation of property and exile.

The second and third sisters were simply the children of Mrs. You's remarriage, and had nothing to do with Mrs. You. However, Mrs. You saw that they were helpless and helpless, and their father had died young, so she often gave them some financial support and often invited them to stay at her house for a while.

In reality, Youshi was fully aware of the turmoil between You Erjie, You Sanjie, and Jia Zhen, but she chose to play dumb. After all, as a second wife, she had no biological children to rely on, and her family was already in ruins. Therefore, no one listened to her. As long as these people didn't endanger the lives of the whole family, she would turn a blind eye.

Yu Shi's heart was as clear as a mirror. Men like Jia Zhen were like butterflies drawn to flowers, their natures hard to change, and their fickleness was unbending. If he weren't the master of the Ningguo Mansion, the women in his household would have probably already scattered like frightened birds. Moreover, she had never considered Jia Zhen her husband, so she didn't bother to ask which women he slept with. Yet, their unbridled behavior was simply lawless!

When Youshi found Jia Zhen, her face was solemn and as cold as frost as she said, "Master, my second sister is now your woman. You can take her as a concubine. But she is already engaged. If you want to take her as a concubine, I'm afraid you will have to spend some effort to cancel the engagement with Zhang Hua first. Besides, we are still in the period of national mourning, so it is difficult to keep the child. But my second sister and you, master, are both young, and you will definitely have children in the future." Youshi's words were like the gurgling water, clear and organized, showing her understanding of the overall situation.

Unexpectedly, this bastard Jia Zhen, who knew what kind of magic potion You Erjie had poured into him, became like a wild bull who didn't know how to live or die, and spoke wildly: "Isn't it just an engagement! Second sister has never had any physical contact with Zhang Hua, how can it count? Are you saying these things because you are jealous of Second sister's pregnancy? You are too cruel! You actually want Second sister to abort the child! If you continue to be so jealous, don't blame me for divorcing you and marrying Second sister as my wife." After that, Jia Zhen waved his sleeves and left like a sullen child.