Red Mansion: Holding Space and Marrying Like the Sea

Everyone's attention was focused on the child named Ban'er. A closer look revealed that the little fellow, now only a little over five years old, was vastly different from before. He wore a brand new, unpatched shirt, his hair carefully tied up with a clean, neat towel, giving him a fresh, sharp look. Even more remarkable, his mischievous, snotty demeanor had vanished, replaced by a sensible, well-behaved demeanor. He knelt steadily on the ground, kowtowed to Jiaojiao with aplomb, his every move radiating childlike innocence and endearment.

Jiaojiao wasn't the type to be sentimental. Kneeling before the heavens, the earth, and one's master was common sense, but how could she let a child who had no blood relationship with her kneel before her? She quickly stood up, dodging the kneeling figure with her body to the side, and then quickly winked at the maid beside her, signaling her to help the person up.

"Oh my, look at this little guy, he is getting more and more energetic! This is all thanks to your good fortune! Although we only extended a helping hand at the beginning, life always depends on you to live day by day!" Jiaojiao said with a smile on her face and a soft tone.

"Please don't let the child kneel anymore. He is diligent and hardworking, and he has extraordinary talent, which is why he can achieve such excellent results!" As she said this, Jiaojiao gently touched Ban'er's head to express her approval and encouragement.

"Just be at ease and wait a little longer. Maybe in a few years, this Ban'er will really bring you a wife who is honored as a royal consort! Then you can enjoy your life!" Jiaojiao's words were like a spring breeze that blew through the hearts of everyone present, making them feel very warm.

At this time, Ban'er stood up with the help of the maid. After hearing Jiaojiao's praise, his little face turned red instantly, like a ripe apple, and his shyness was beyond words.

Meanwhile, Granny Liu, beside her, was already beaming with joy at Jiaojiao's sweet words. She thought to herself, "This young lady is truly gifted with words. Every word she says touches the heart." Unlike the old wives and wives in our village, who only envy others' prosperity and spend their days gossiping about how other families became wealthy.

Look at that rich young lady. As soon as they met, she started to speak eloquently and kept praising her grandson for becoming a great man in the future!

"How old are you this year, dear father-in-law? I see that you are so agile and vigorous in your movements, and you are in very good health!" Old Mrs. Lin asked in a gentle voice with a smile on her face.

When Granny Liu heard Mrs. Lin asking her a question, she quickly turned around and replied, "Oh, thank you for your concern. I'm already 75 years old this year! Hahaha, don't look at my arms and legs, they still have some strength, that's all from the exercise I get from doing farm work every day!" As she spoke, she raised her arms to show off her "biceps".

Then she quickly waved her hand and said, "Please don't envy me. I was born to suffer hardships! How can I be compared with a rich man like you?"

Mrs. Lin continued to ask with great interest, "My dear, I heard that your family was in a very difficult situation before. How did your family survive these years?"

"I was not able to see you the last two times you came. This time, I finally got to see you, and you said that things are getting better at home."

When Granny Liu heard this, she felt a surge of warmth in her heart, and she was filled with gratitude towards Mrs. Lin. She excitedly opened her mouth and recounted her experiences over the years: "Old lady, you don't know! Now our family can finally be considered to have all the food, shelter, and clothing we need. Back then, life was so miserable. It was like we were in heaven and on earth!"

"Let's take the house we live in as an example. It's all made of yellow mud."

"Not to mention the thatched roof. There they are made of green bricks and black tiles like ours."

"If it rains or snows, the house will either leak or the roof will collapse."

"There's not even a decent quilt for the bed in the house, let alone cotton clothes for winter!"

"That's like stuffing straw into your clothes. It's best to hold on for as long as possible!"

"Well, it's because he can't survive anymore, so he decided to try his luck in our house."

"Who knew that this would bring relief and save my life?"

"I also want to thank our wife! If it weren't for our family's support and grandma's kindness, we might not have survived that winter!"

When talking about the hardships she had experienced in the past, Liu Laolao couldn't help but feel sad, and tears welled up in her eyes like a broken dam. With tear marks on her face and misty eyes, she knelt on her knees in front of Wang Xifeng.

The expression on his face was filled with sincere gratitude, without any trace of pretense.

Wang Xifeng was overwhelmed with emotion upon witnessing this scene, and could not help but silently chant the Buddha's name. At the same time, her thoughts drifted back to her past life, recalling how Granny Liu had sold her land and house to save her beloved daughter.

Wang Xifeng then hurriedly said, "Grandma Liu, please get up quickly! Our two families are already closely related. Your family is in such a difficult situation that you have come to us for help. How can we just sit back and watch?"

As soon as she finished speaking, several clever and well-behaved maids quickly gathered around and worked together to help Granny Liu up and carefully helped her sit on a chair nearby. Granny Liu sat on the chair, still wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes with her sleeves.

"Madam, you sound so light-hearted. Perhaps this silver is not a big sum for your family." Granny Liu said with a sob.

"But that's over twenty taels of silver! For ordinary people like us, that's enough to support a family for a whole year!" Granny Liu continued, tears streaming down her face. "This money is a lifesaver for our family! It's like a ray of light in the darkness, illuminating our path forward and giving us hope and courage to live. Perhaps to you, this little money seems insignificant, perhaps even unimportant. But for a family as poor as ours, it's a tremendous gift! This kindness is as heavy as Mount Tai, and we will engrave it deep in our hearts and never forget it."

As soon as Granny Liu finished her words, her earnest words resonated in the air, moving everyone present. The surrounding masters and servants felt as if something had struck them hard in the heart when they heard this. Their eyes instantly moistened, and tears flowed uncontrollably.

Especially Mrs. Lin, she has always been kind-hearted and compassionate to the poor and weak. Now, as she grows older, this compassion has become even deeper, and she can't bear to see others suffer. Seeing Granny Liu so grateful, her heart almost broke.

Old Mrs. Lin hurried forward, gently patted Granny Liu on the back, and said softly, "Don't cry anymore, dear. As long as your family can get through this difficult time and live a good life, that's a great thing. These hard times are finally over!"

After hearing this, Granny Liu wiped the tears from her face with her sleeve, then nodded repeatedly to Old Lady Lin, saying, "Yes, yes! This is all thanks to your great blessing! Ever since we brought back this generous aid from your family, our lives have been getting better and better!"

Then, Granny Liu said excitedly: "Before, none of our family's land was good land, and the harvest was not very good. But since I got the money from you, I immediately bought three acres of good farmland! Add to that the four acres of poor land we had in the past, and now we have a full seven acres of land!" "I also bought several thick clothes and new quilts, and we have a lot more household items in the house! Even our child can go to school happily now!"

"Oh my! In the past, we wouldn't even have dared to dream of such an extravagant dream! Look, every household in the village is jealous of us! People come to us all day long to ask if we have found some great way to make money!"

"Honestly, every morning when I open my eyes, I feel like I'm still dreaming. This all happened so suddenly and so beautifully, it's unbelievable!"

However, despite such significant changes in their family's life, the famous Rongguo Mansion remained unchanged. The people in the mansion continued to live a life of extravagance and extravagance, squandering money recklessly and never stopping to eat, drink and have fun.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, a year has passed. At the beginning of the new year, shocking news suddenly spread from the palace.

It turned out that the Empress Dowager had passed away, and her posthumous title had been decided. When this news reached the Jia residence, the ever-shrewd and capable Xifeng had already prepared a plan. She acted decisively, quickly directing her servants to replace the brightly colored furnishings throughout the house with more subdued tones as a token of mourning for the Empress Dowager.

At this moment, Jia Lian's wife hurried over to Xifeng, her face filled with worry. She lowered her red lips and said to Xifeng, "Sister, do you know that the old lady's health has been getting worse lately? She's so old now, she should be enjoying her retirement, but now she has to follow the two ladies around all day, running around to the funeral home. She's really going through so much hardship!"

As she spoke, Jia Lian's face was filled with sorrow and worry. Xifeng, standing nearby, raised her slender eyebrows slightly, her beautiful eyes slowly resting on Jia Lian's face, which still seemed completely clueless. She sighed inwardly, thinking that her younger sister was too naive to understand the true reason behind this.

In fact, Old Lady Shi had been meticulously cared for over the years, and her health had originally been quite strong. While the mourning was indeed tiring, it wouldn't have caused her to fall ill. However, this incident still frightened the old lady—after all, with the passing of the old empress dowager, even the last trace of incense and affection would likely be severed. Even worse, while Old Lady Shi was busy mourning, none of the Rongguo Mansion's masters had the ability to serve the country and enter the court! As a result, the future of the entire family seemed bleak.

By the time Old Lady Shi finally regained consciousness, the funeral was over. However, she was left with a heart full of exhaustion and worry. For days, she had been consumed by grief, tormented by the wailing scenes, drowsy and mentally depleted. Now, as time passed, she seemed to regain consciousness, her thoughts gradually becoming clearer.

In the middle of the night, Old Lady Shi was suddenly awakened by a nightmare. The scene in her dream was so eerie and terrifying that it made her hair stand on end. After struggling to wake up from the nightmare, she could not fall asleep again, and her uneasiness became more and more intense. So, at dawn, she could not wait to call out to Lady Wang, "Quick, hand over the sign! I have something important to ask the Queen!"

Seeing Old Lady Shi's panic-stricken and frightened appearance, Mrs. Wang initially dismissed her concern. Perhaps the Empress Dowager's passing had made the elderly woman realize the impermanence of life and its fragility. After all, no matter how high one's status, death is inevitable. And within the depths of the imperial court, the death of women and the fall of officials' families were commonplace.

Furthermore, Lady Wang's own daughter was a newly promoted Imperial Concubine. For her, the Empress Dowager's departure meant a huge weight had been lifted from her daughter's head, allowing her to better serve the family in the future. Therefore, she had no idea of the devastating impact the Emperor's impending blow would have on the Rongguo Mansion.

As for Wang Xifeng, she was also decisive and strict in disciplining her servants. She ordered them to make quick decisions when going out to buy things and return to the mansion as soon as possible. They must not wander around the streets and cause trouble.

Meanwhile, Lin Ruhai and his son Lin Jingyu, due to their frequent social interactions, had made quite a few well-informed friends. Whenever he returned from an outing, Lin Jingyu would tell Wang Xifeng all the news he had gathered.