Red Mansion: Holding Space and Marrying Like the Sea

Madam Xing raised her head slightly, her eyes sweeping across the crowd before landing on the elder who had asked the question. She replied in a neither humble nor arrogant manner, "In my opinion, this matter is somewhat inappropriate."

Upon hearing this, another elder, known as the Third Old Master, frowned and said, "Hmph! We old folks think you and your wife should go and apologize to the old lady, then ask His Majesty to revoke the order regarding the relinquishment of the title. That way, we can pretend this matter never happened." He waved his hand vigorously as he spoke, as if the matter had been finalized. However, although he claimed to be asking for Madam Xing's opinion, his tone didn't contain the slightest hint of room for negotiation.

Madam Xing's eyes narrowed slightly. She turned to look at Lady Jia, who sat above, clad in her imperial robes. She spoke softly, "Third Uncle, you're wrong. My wife and I are devoted and filial to the old lady. What's wrong with that?" She paused, then continued, "Besides, everyone on Rongning Street knows that the old lady's favorite is our Second Master! She even claimed the title shouldn't belong to our First Master. Rumors of this are rife on Rongning Street, and even the youngest children know it." "Third Uncle, if you want to intervene, start with this." Madam Xing's face darkened. Her well-kept hand slowly and heavily descended upon the table. With a resounding thud, the tea bowl on the table fell, shattering instantly and spilling tea everywhere. Madam Xing, however, seemed oblivious. She stared straight ahead and shouted with a resolute attitude, "If you want to sue, go ahead! I want to see for myself whether the people of this world will think that our master is unfilial, or that you, old lady, are unkind!"

Mrs. Xing's words resonated like a thunderclap in the room, and for a moment no one dared to respond. After all, it was no secret that Lady Jia was partial to her. Not only did the neighbors on Rongning Street know about it, but even people as far away as Kyoto had heard of it.

At this time, someone in the crowd spoke cautiously: "Who wouldn't like their youngest son? The old lady already has two sons, and now the eldest master has successfully inherited the family business, so it's natural for the second master to receive more love." Although these words were said euphemistically, the mother-son affection mentioned in them was obvious.

However, at this moment, Mrs. Xing was full of confidence because she had Jia She's support behind her, and her fighting spirit was off the charts. Another loud "clang" sound was heard, and it turned out that Mrs. Xing was furious and threw another teacup to the ground, expressing her anger and dissatisfaction. With a "bang", Mrs. Xing was furious and threw the teacup in her hand! The teacup drew an arc in the air, with a sharp sound of wind, and almost hit the man.

Madam Xing's face was filled with rage. She pointed a trembling finger at the man and began to curse. "Uncle, although I've never met you, you can't lie with your eyes open! How could a parent let their own son live with those beasts? Have you never heard of the great reputation of our master, 'General of the Stable'?"

She paused, took a deep breath, and continued, "Thinking back, when the old lady was so wantonly mistreating our master, was there ever anyone who stood up to uphold justice for our master? How come today she's so well-reasoned and has so much free time? Do they really think my master is weak and can be bullied?"

At this moment, there was a sudden sound of clapping of the table from the crowd, and someone shouted indignantly: "If the master had been more motivated, why would we have ended up in this situation!" His words were full of resentment and dissatisfaction with Jia She's mediocrity.

Upon hearing this, Madam Xing suddenly turned her head to look at the speaker, a trace of disdain flashing in her eyes. Then, she turned her gaze to the direction where Jia Zheng was, sneered, and counted on her fingers, saying: "Humph! Let's not talk about how my master is, just look at this Second Master. Since the old master passed away, so many years have passed, and his official position has not made any progress at all!" Everyone looked at each other in surprise. For a moment, no one dared to say a word. Only to hear Madam Xing continue to speak without thinking: "Don't blame me for telling the truth. If it weren't for our ancestors' protection, with Second Master's ability, he would have lost his official position long ago! I'm sure you have all heard how promising Second Master is!"

Before she had finished speaking, a roar of anger rose from the crowd: "Vicious woman!" Then another: "You vicious woman!" The Jia family members, seeing how their family had been degraded by Madam Xing, especially their proudest son, had been spoken of as worthless by her. Naturally, they were filled with resentment. As the head of the family, Grandmother Jia was trembling with rage. She pointed a trembling finger at Jia She and cursed, "You evil creature! Are you going to watch this evil woman you married shame our ancestors and your second brother?"

The more she spoke, the more excited Jia Mu became. She continued to roar while panting, "If you are really dissatisfied with our second brother and don't want to see him, then fine, I, an old woman, will just take him back to Jinling, so that he won't have to suffer the humiliation from you people here! Why do you have to go to such great lengths to scheme?" At the end, Jia Mu raised the crutch in her hand and stomped on the ground hard, making a deafening sound.

However, despite Grandmother Jia's fury, no one present dared to echo her. After all, Madam Xing was always like a mad dog, biting whoever she caught. If she was really pushed to the limit, who knew what kind of unbearable words she would utter. Therefore, everyone remained silent, fearing that they would accidentally bring trouble upon themselves.

"Okay, give me the divorce letter!" Madam Xing's eyebrows arched, her beautiful eyes wide open. Without hesitation, she stretched out her right hand, reaching it directly towards Jia She, as if asking for something very ordinary. At the same time, her face was filled with undisguised disdain, and she said indignantly, "Hmph, do you really think I want to enter the Jia family?"

Back then, who would have willingly committed themselves to the Jia family and become Jia She's wife if they hadn't been desperate and helpless? She had imagined countless times in the dead of night that if she had the chance to escape this place, she would have packed up and fled without hesitation. Why would she stay here and fight these scheming people?

"You..." Jia Mu was stunned, having never expected Mrs. Xing to agree so readily. Jia She was equally dumbfounded, his face filled with astonishment. However, knowing Mrs. Xing well, he knew she hadn't said all. Sure enough, Mrs. Xing's next words were like a bolt from the blue, leaving the Jia family speechless. Each of them looked sullen, wishing they could just disappear and pretend they had never set foot there.

Madam Xing raised her head slightly, her eyes sharp as a knife, and said coldly, "Just give me the divorce letter, and also give me a portion of your property, sir. After all, I have no children, so I need to have some money to live comfortably in my later years."

Hearing this, Jia She was so angry that his face turned blue and his whole body was shaking. He cursed in his heart: This Xing Shi is really thinking about taking some money from his hands all the time, and is always coveting his pitiful private money!

"You..." Jia She was furious, but for a moment he didn't know how to deal with this fierce and difficult woman in front of him.

Mrs. Xing's stubborn and unreasonable behavior was truly helpless. Grandmother Jia was so angry that she was shaking all over. She thought to herself: If it weren't for my dignity and the family's reputation, I would have had her thrown out like garbage! However, Grandmother Jia had experienced many ups and downs, and she had extraordinary self-control and determination. She suppressed her anger, turned around and glared at Jia She, who was standing beside her, and scolded her: "You disobedient and unfilial evildoer! You watched Xing act so rebelliously, and did nothing?"

Before Jia She could open his mouth to defend himself against Jia Mu's scolding, Madam Xing, with her fearless arrogance, spoke first, "Humph! Unfilial? If I were unfilial, how could I have so earnestly persuaded the master to fulfill your wish and give the title to the second master? I was the one who pushed for it!" At this point, Madam Xing paused deliberately, looking at Jia Mu provocatively, and continued, "And yet, now that your wish is about to be fulfilled, you suddenly change your mind. Why is that? Could it be that you, mother, have never truly loved my second brother, or are you manipulating your two sons to maintain your position atop the supreme pagoda?"

Hearing Lady Xing's outrageous words, Grandmother Jia was furious and could no longer tolerate it. She slammed the table, stood up, and shouted, "Come here! Quickly prepare the carriage! I want to go to the palace to see the emperor in person and demand an explanation! I want to see if there is any place in this world where justice can be upheld!"

For a moment, the entire Jia family was plunged into chaos. Everyone knew that since ancient times, it was extremely rare for a mother to sue her son for being unfilial. If Grandmother Jia really rushed into the palace to file a complaint today, the Jia family would become the talk of the town and the butt of ridicule. Their reputation and prestige would likely plummet, and it would be difficult to regain their former glory.

At this time, the atmosphere in the room became increasingly tense. A crowd of people gathered around and tried to persuade Lady Jia earnestly. At the same time, they also continued to put pressure on Jia She and Lady Xing, hoping that they would admit their mistakes. However, in the face of everyone's persuasion, Lady Xing only raised the corners of her mouth slightly, revealing a disdainful sneer.

Mrs. Xing was filled with contempt for the usual tactics of the inner-house women, such as crying, making a scene, and even threatening to hang herself. If she hadn't wanted to escape the precarious ship of the Jia family, why would she be willing to be so hypocritical and so hard-pressed with Lady Jia?

At this moment, Jia Mu was so angry that she was shaking all over and turned to walk towards the door. But Mrs. Xing was still sitting firmly in her chair, her face unchanged, not even raising her eyelids, as if everything happening before her had nothing to do with her.

Seeing this, some people in the crowd hurried forward to dissuade Mrs. Xing. Even Jia Zheng couldn't help but beg, "Xing, please bow your head and admit your mistake, but don't make a big deal out of it!" However, no matter how others persuaded her, Mrs. Xing remained unmoved.

Suddenly, a crisp sound of "clang!!!" broke the silence in the room. It turned out to be a teacup being smashed to the ground. Hearing this sound, Jia Mu's heart trembled, secretly happy that her trick finally worked. Just as she was about to take advantage of the situation to say a few harsh words, she heard Mrs. Xing shouting loudly: "Come! Quickly prepare a carriage for the old lady and escort her to the palace!"

Everyone present was stunned by these words, staring at Madam Xing in amazement, unable to believe their ears. Everyone wondered, "Has Madam Xing lost her mind?" Didn't she know the dire consequences of the old lady accusing her of unfilial piety in the palace?

Even Lady Jia herself had never expected that Lady Xing would be so bold and unafraid of her threats. For a moment, Lady Jia froze in her tracks, and it took her a while to come to her senses. She turned her head sharply, staring at Lady Xing with an extremely sinister gaze, and asked through gritted teeth, "Xing, what exactly do you want to do?"

Facing Lady Jia's questioning, Mrs. Xing stood up calmly, made an elegant gesture of invitation, and slowly said, "Since the old lady has calmed down, why don't we sit down and talk calmly."

Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment for a moment, pondering the current situation. It wasn't until this moment that everyone suddenly realized that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had been secretly competing and exchanging blows for a while! Now was the time for them to officially begin negotiating terms.

All that was heard was Jia Mu saying slowly: "My Jia family has gone through several generations of inheritance, and it is not easy to create this foundation. If Jia She is not willing to take over, then naturally there will be someone else willing to take over. After all, he is not without successors! No matter what, it is not Zheng'er's turn to inherit this title." Her words clearly revealed her opposition to Jia Zheng taking over the title.

Mrs. Xing smiled lightly, "What you said, old lady, is not right. The Second Master is very much in your favor, and you have expressed your intention to let the Second Master inherit the title many times before. Now the First Master has submitted the memorial to give up the title to His Majesty, but you have changed your mind. It will not look good if it gets out." Jia Mu snorted coldly, "So what? His Majesty will not ignore the thoughts of an old woman like me." Mrs. Xing took a few steps closer and lowered her voice but loud enough for those around her to hear, "Old lady, don't forget that although the First Master seems to be mediocre, he also has some connections of his own. If you really want to argue with him and reveal those things, it will probably be even more detrimental to the reputation of the Jia family." Jia Mu's body stiffened. She knew what Mrs. Xing was referring to.

Seeing this, Jia Zheng hurriedly said, "Sister-in-law, please stop talking. We need to think about this matter carefully." Mrs. Xing glanced at Jia Zheng and said, "Second Master, this is a matter between you two brothers. Don't let it end up hurting both of you." After a moment's silence, Jia's mother said, "What do you want?"