However, Jia Cong bluntly said that the jade mountain gifted by the old saint cannot be regarded as a birthday gift. Gao Ying hurriedly said: "Such an important thing should not be used as a birthday gift, and the gift given by Kuang Yu cannot be sold or transferred. Read at midnight."
Jia Cong smiled bitterly and said: "As the saying goes, family scandals should not be made public. Now it is even more inconvenient to keep some things unsaid."
Gao Ying said: "If cousin Cong has any difficulties, you don't need to tell me."
Jia Cong said: "If I don't tell you, you will have to guess, and you won't know what the guess will be. It's better to tell you." Then he and Jia Huan looked at each other, drank a cup of tea, and sighed,
"Cousin Gao, does he know that a few years ago, our family bothered Uncle Ge Liu to come to Chang'an to retrieve the 70,000 taels of silver that he had deposited with the Gao family in the early years?"
Gao Ying nodded: "I have heard about it."
Jia Cong said: "At that time, our family took inventory of the warehouse and found that it had been robbed. We were afraid that we would not have enough money for a while, so we remembered this incident." He smiled bitterly again, "Later, when the Five Cities Military and Horse Division investigated the case,
We found a lot of account books from the outhouse of one of the second wife’s confidants. It turned out that the second wife’s stewardship was extremely corrupt during those years. My father was angry and immediately forced her to pay back the money! I don’t know where her money went.
I couldn’t get it out, so I borrowed money from her sister’s family.”
Gao Ying thought: "So, your house was not attacked by outsiders that day, but by internal thieves?"
Jia Cong nodded slowly and handed the title of traitor to Mrs. Wang easily. Then he mentioned that the second house never paid back the money, the Xue family used psychic gems to pay off the debt, and Mrs. Wang and Jia Mu secretly sold it.
Gong Kun managed to trap those things in the private room.
After saying this, he stopped to drink tea. Gao Ying and Ou Cheng looked at each other for a while and said in surprise: "I just didn't come back to my senses. If I heard correctly, the private room of the second wife of your old lady is
, you actually bought it with your own private house?
Jia Cong nodded: "Although I am young, I can also do some business and save some private money. Because they are eager to wait for the money to redeem the jade, they naturally take a lot of advantage."
Gao Ying took a breath, and his eyes changed when he looked at Jia Cong. He had such a big idea and had the ability to save money to buy Mrs. Jia Muwang's private house! Even though he had known for a long time that this son was unusual, he was actually a
Each time it becomes more unusual than the last.
Jia Cong smiled again and said: "Last year, my second sister-in-law had a happy event. Several sisters were in danger and received fortune tellers. Only then did they find out from the old accounts that they had lost contact with the Gao family. To be honest, how old were they? They were all originally.
The boudoir lady, who only recited poems, painted, picked and guessed Chinese characters every day, suddenly had to take care of a large family of hundreds of people, as well as many businesses and properties next to the shops, and even my own horse-trading agency, both inside and out.
I really have no experience in dealing with all kinds of people... Birthday gifts are something I, too lazy and temperamental, would not care about. It wasn't until a few days before we left Beijing that Mr. Gong had time to look at the gift list and exclaimed that it was too thin.
It's easy. But first of all, I didn't have time to prepare the etiquette again, and secondly, I was afraid that the sisters would be disgraced. So I invited an expert to select this from the private rooms that the old lady and the second wife hurriedly sold.
Seven things to make up for."
Ou Cheng couldn't help but attack the case: "How generous!"
Gao Ying also praised: "What a considerate boy."
Gong Kun glanced at Jia Huan, and Jia Huan glanced at Gong Kun, with words written in his eyes: It's so easy to break it off, it looks like it's real...
Jia Cong forced a smile and continued: "This jasper mountain was probably given to brother Baoyu privately by our ancestors. She would not have done it unless she was in urgent need of money. I really didn't know that this thing was given by the old saint for the victory of Shanhaiguan.
It’s not that I can’t bear to part with this thing, it’s really that I can’t bear to part with my grandfather’s glory.”
Gao Ying nodded and said: "If you are reluctant to part with something, it will not reach Chang'an."
Ou Cheng also said: "This thing is the greedy old lady Shi's, so it's up to you and me to get the reasoning. If he knew about it, he would never give it away."
Jia Cong smiled bitterly and said: "My father has spoken to me about the great victory of Shanhaiguan no matter how many times. If he knew that I gave this to someone, no matter who it was given to, he would have the audacity to take it back. Do you believe it?"
?”
Ou Cheng clapped his hands and said with a smile: "I believe it! How long have I stayed in your house? He only said it five or six times."
Jia Cong frowned again and said: "Originally, I picked seven items specifically for my great-aunt's seventieth birthday. The number seems inappropriate if one item is missing. Where can I get another one at the moment?"
Gao Ying smiled and said: "Isn't six better? Six or six is a great success. In fact, why do you care about one more thing and one less thing? My grandmother doesn't lack this. It's just a wish."
Yao'er coughed and said, "I held back and didn't say anything all the way. It's better to have an even number of things to celebrate the old man's birthday."
Jia Cong was startled: "Huh? Is there such a thing? I've never heard of it! You didn't tell me earlier."
Yao'er glanced at him and said, "Everything was on its way when you told me." Everyone couldn't help smiling after hearing this, and the room felt relieved for a while.
Jia Cong touched the back of his head and said with a smile: "That's all, it's a mistake."
Then he pried open another six boxes.
There is a three-foot-high red coral tree with dazzling splendor; there is also an agarwood statue of Guanyin, compassionate and solemn; Gu Hutou has a long scroll called "Three Dragons Traveling"; a Xuande furnace; a gold-inlaid jade Ruyi handle; and the last one
Inside the box was a Western music box! This was the first time Jia Cong saw these things, and he couldn't help but secretly admire Qin Keqing's vision and courage - not only could this woman recognize top-notch things, she actually dared to pick them and deliver them to him!
Everyone was more or less knowledgeable and gathered around to admire her. Gao Ying laughed and said, "I, my grandson, have been looking at it for a long time, but I actually favored my grandmother."
Jia Congyin asked Shopkeeper Liu: "Is there any place nearby that can immediately prepare a suitable gift box?"
Shopkeeper Liu smiled and said: "Jingli has already given me the sizes and shapes of the various boxes. I have already ordered them. I just have to wait for Mr. Cong to come over and reinstall them."
Jia Cong secretly praised Qin Keqing for his meticulousness and thoughtfulness, nodded with a smile and said, "Thank you for your hard work."
All of a sudden, they packed up these things and carried them into the car, and everyone rushed out. Gong Kun took advantage of the chaos and whispered something casually into Yao'er's ear: "It seems that I have never heard that birthday gifts need to be given in even numbers. I'm afraid you are making it up."
"
Yao'er said calmly: "There have been many fabricators throughout the ages, but one more is not much."
Gong Kun stared at him, shook his head and said, "Others say you are honest." He withdrew and walked away.
Everyone in Rongguo Mansion then followed Gao Ying Oucheng to Gao Mansion.
Compared with the extravagance and splendor of the wealthy families in Beijing, the gate of Gao Mansion had a chilling air. Jia Cong sat on his horse and stared at it for a long time. When he heard Gao Ying calling him, he jumped down in a hurry. Only then did he reach the door.
A daughter-in-law with soft eyebrows came forward to greet her and said, "Sir, the old lady is inside the Yimen."
Gao Ying smiled and said, "Grandma, are you worried?" Then he led Jia Cong and Jia Huan inside.
From a distance, he saw a white-haired old woman surrounded by many people in front of Yimen. She was wearing a purple cloak and standing upright with a cane. Jia Cong couldn't help but exclaimed: "It seems like...
Taijun She is going to war!"
Pian Oucheng heard this and said with a smile: "Old Taijun actually went to the battlefield back then, and let Duke Rong scold him for several years."
Jia Huan hurriedly asked: "Did you win the battle?"
Ou Cheng nodded: "We won."
Jia Huan and Jia Cong said "ouch" at the same time.
When they came closer, the two of them knelt down and saluted. Jia Taijun smiled and helped them up, holding one in each hand, holding their heads and necks and saying "Okay". Tears had already flowed down the wrinkles in the corners of his eyes.
Jia Huan and Jia Cong also shed tears for a while, and then a woman came forward to persuade them: "The children are here safely. The old lady doesn't have to worry about them day and night. Please be happy."
Jia Taijun then held back her tears and pointed out to them one by one: "This is the eldest cousin, this is the second cousin...this is the third cousin, this is the fourth cousin..." He introduced a lot in one breath, and he
Both of them saluted, but in fact many faces were not remembered.
Ding, Gao Li's wife, said: "The old lady has been looking forward to these days. Our house has already tidied up a courtyard for our two brothers."
Jia Cong smiled and said, "Thank you, cousin." Gong Kun was naturally in charge of the affairs at the moment and led the people down to settle things down. Everyone accompanied Jia Taijun and slowly turned around and went in.
When we arrived at the main hall, Jia Taijun was sitting in the middle, and a servant came to serve tea.
Jia Congfang said: "My aunt's body and bones are so healthy, we feel relieved to see her."
Jia Taijun smiled and said: "It's just an old bone."
Jia Cong said: "Having an old man in the family is a treasure. Even if my cousin is thousands of miles away and can't send you a letter to greet me, as long as he knows in his heart that you are always good, it will be his reassurance."
Gao Ying hurriedly said: "Very well, my father's heart is at peace when my grandmother is well."
Hearing this, Jia Taijun smiled and said: "You kid, you are quite sensible at your young age."
Suddenly, a daughter-in-law came in from outside and quietly said something to Mrs. Ding. Mrs. Ding then smiled and said, "There are some rare items in the gift list of Rongguo Mansion. I am jealous when I hear it. Why don't you, old lady, bring it for us to enjoy?"
Open your eyes?"
Gao Ying knew that his mother wanted to make his grandmother look good, so he smiled and said, "To be honest, I've already seen it first."
Jia Taijun said hurriedly: "Bring it up quickly! I haven't looked at it yet, but this little monkey has looked at it first."
Gao Ying looked embarrassed. He had been in the army for many years. How could anyone dare to call him little monkey? Everyone laughed quietly.
Not long after, the six things were carried in, and everyone stared at them with wide eyes. Because these things were so valuable, Jia Taijun was also quite surprised, and was a little dazed for a moment.
Jia Cong then pointed to the music box and said, "Don't look at this, it doesn't look like much, but it is a Western antique, and it is extremely rare in the West."
Gao Ying followed him all the way and knew that he knew a lot about Western things, so he quickly asked what it was.
Jia Cong said: "This is called a music box. To be more precise, it should be called a Swiss cylindrical music box. In recent years, most of the homes of Western nobles have used French-style puppet music boxes. This is like -" He pointed to the Xuande furnace
, "Well, it's like this one from my dynasty. Nowadays, the wealthy families in Beijing use gold and jade furnaces to burn incense. Who still uses copper?"
Gao Ying understood immediately, was amazed, and asked him what this was for.
Jia Cong smiled softly and shook the handle. After a while, the music box jingled. Everyone in the room widened their eyes and opened their mouths, staring at it like a child. After half a day, the music box finished playing, and Jia Cong
He glanced around happily and found that none of them were there. He tried his best to pretend to be indifferent and smiled: "Although it is an antique, it is extremely exquisite and exquisite. It is much simpler and more solemn than those gorgeous doll music boxes on the Western market today.
Just let my aunt relieve her boredom."
Over the years, the two families have almost never stopped contacting each other. How could Jia Taijun’s mother-in-law have ever given her such great respect? The old face smiled so much that her folds spread out, and she even said: "Okay, okay, just put it on the small table at the end of my kang.
Just listen to it hum a little tune."
An eldest maid agreed. Gao Ying said with a smile, "Well, if I want to hear it, don't I have to go to my grandmother's house day and night to say hello?"
Jia Taijun said: "Don't come, I'm bothering you." Everyone laughed again and chatted a few words. Because they were young and had a rough time, they were sent down to rest.
Jia Huan and Jia Cong went to the courtyard to meet the brothers. This courtyard has no name. People in the high house call it Dongke courtyard. I heard that it is used to entertain very important guests. The courtyard is more than twice as big as Lixiang courtyard.
There were many houses, and everyone settled down comfortably. Because many things happened on the road, and now that we didn't have to be on guard against thieves when we got there, we all felt tired and went to have a rest.
In the evening, Jia Taijun sent someone over to invite Jia Huan and Jia Cong to have dinner together. Jia Cong looked at Gong Kun with a smile and said, "My cousin has probably been bragging for us all afternoon."
Gong Kun said: "Please be more modest. It's not the serious day yet, so important things don't have time to talk about today. Let's talk about a few strange things to relieve Jia Taijun's boredom."
Jia Cong nodded, and the two brothers followed the visitor.
Now we went straight to Jia Taijun's yard. Gao Ying and his three younger cousins were there, and a group of children had dinner with Jia Taijun.
After the meal, Mrs. Jia said to the two of them: "I heard about Yushanzi. Fortunately, you intercepted it. I'm afraid that Mr. Shi also secretly concealed the gift given by the emperor. You can check it carefully when you go back.
Ichiban. Although the imperial court will probably not care about these matters, if it falls into the hands of some villain, it may cause trouble."
Jia Cong and Jia Huan responded hurriedly, and then said: "We have never thought of this. Thanks to my aunt for reminding me, it turns out that you are always thoughtful."
Jia Taijun sighed: "No one is born well-behaved. We old fairies just learn to be good after a lifetime of suffering."
Gao Ying looked at Jia Cong and said: "First of all, you said that you asked Ma Xing to deliver important things because of a story. I have been thinking about it for a day. Now it is easier to speak. Please tell me quickly!"
Jia Cong said: "It's also a Western story. In the West, there is a country called England. With the power of its soldiers and horses, it seized a huge diamond mine in South Africa and found a diamond as big as a fist there. Westerners love diamonds very much.
, so it was particularly expensive and worth countless millions. They thought of transporting it back to pay tribute to the king. Because of the long distance, they were afraid of being robbed by thieves, so they hired one of the most prestigious escort agencies in the West with a huge sum of money.
Escorted from the sea to the country. The escort agency tried their best to protect the diamond, but still provoked countless green forest experts to use all kinds of tricks, but they couldn't find where the diamond was hidden. Of course they couldn't find it, there was no diamond on the ship at all.
" He laughed, "That thing was put into an ordinary package, and it was sent from the British post office in South Africa to London, the capital of England, with only one stamp affixed."
After he finished speaking, although most of the people in the Gao family understood, they were still a little confused. One child asked: "I understand everything except the last sentence, what are stamps? There is also a post office."
Jia Cong said: "The post office is a business store that delivers letters and small items for ordinary people. My horse store will be designed to look like this in the future. Stamps are somewhat similar to banknotes, but the denomination is quite low.
"Then he explained to them the stamp mailbox of Huizi Post Office. "For ordinary people, delivering letters this way is faster and cheaper than sending letters. The cost of transportation to send a letter is not much different from sending a thousand letters.
, if you send more letters to the post office, the share of the transportation cost divided into each letter will be less. You can still make money."
Gao Ying sighed: "No wonder you are already a rich man at such a young age, and you really know how to think of ways." He then turned his head and glanced at Jia Taijun.
Jia Taijun said: "How can ordinary people have so many letters to write?"
Jia Cong said: "Because it is not easy to send letters these days, letters from home are worth tens of thousands of dollars, so there are fewer people writing letters. In addition, most people can't write. If the post office is really set up, everyone will see how easy it is to send letters, and gradually
Everyone will love to write letters. The post office will also hire a few gentlemen to ghostwrite letters there. Although they earn the money themselves, the post office only provides the plates, which is a win-win situation. Many times, consumers are
It can be guided.”
Gao Ying was confused again and glared at him: "What does the last sentence mean?"
Jia Cong smiled and said: "It's hard to describe in words. It can only be understood but not expressed in words."
Jia Huan said from the side: "He often says things that no one can understand. We all pretend we didn't hear it and ignore him."
Jia Taijun thought: "Although I don't quite understand, I can somewhat guess what it means."
Jia Cong spread his hands and said, "Did you hear me? My aunt is the smart one."
Jia Taijun glanced at him: "I'm not as smart as you."
Jia Cong heard something in her old man's words, but he didn't understand it for a moment. Gao Ying didn't understand either and secretly glanced at Jia Taijun several times.
When the two of them returned to Dongke Courtyard and told Gong Kun about the matter, Gong Kun slapped his thigh hard: "What a good idea!"
Jia Cong pouted and said, "I have a hunch that the good method you mentioned is different from the one I mentioned."
Gong Kun smiled and said: "This post office does it! It's really done."
On the other side, Jia Taijun said to Gao Ying: "Do you think he can't make much money from this post office?"
Gao Ying nodded: "It's just a small fight, the profit is too thin, even if it can make money, it won't be much."
Jia Taijun sighed: "The important thing is not money. If he really sets up such post offices everywhere, he will give countless poor scholars in the world a way to make a living, and it is not charity! The most important thing is to get scholars.
My heart is not eye-catching. My ambitions are not small."