Chapter 453 The Old Lady’s Confidence
"Grandson, aren't you afraid that if you don't come all the time, you'll lose favor with the old lady? So, today, when I have some free time, I hurried over to pay my respects to the old lady."
"You monkey, you've been making trouble all day, and you still remember me, an old lady?" Grandmother Jia patted Jia Cong's palm. "A few days ago, you offended the Third Prince because of the maids from the You family. Do you think that if those maids didn't tell me, I wouldn't know about it? What is the relationship between the You family and ours? Is it worth taking the risk? If you dare to do that again, I will beat you with my cane."
In the old lady's opinion, the life and death of the You sisters had nothing to do with the Jia family. It would be fine to help them with small matters, but it was not worth it to make a fuss with the third prince for them.
"You must remember that you are not alone now. The prosperity and decline of our family depends on you. Besides, you are engaged to Yu'er and Bao'er, so it's time to be more stable. When you give me a few more great-grandchildren, I will let you go out and have fun. I will see who will care about you."
For these wealthy families, inheritance to future generations is always the most important!
Why do elders never care how many women their descendants have? One reason is, of course, the status of women in that era. Another is that more women naturally mean more offspring. With more offspring, the next generation can choose the best successors. Look at this old woman. Even though she knew Jia Zhen, Jia She, Jia Lian, and others were constantly robbing concubines, how could she care?
It’s a pity that these guys are not very ambitious. They have a bunch of women around them, but they have never added a new member to their family.
Therefore, all of Jia's hopes now rest on Jia Cong and Baoyu. Even though the Jia family's power is gradually recovering, she cannot rest easy without descendants. Once Jia Cong encounters an accident, all the glory will be lost in an instant, and the Jia family will be reduced to its original state.
But if there is a successor, even if something unspeakable happens, there will be someone to inherit the favor and the title, and the family line will not be cut off all at once.
The old lady was quite old, but few in the family could match her shrewdness. Wang Shi seemed shrewd, but her methods and heart were worlds apart from the old lady's. If Wang Shi had even a fraction of the old lady's abilities, she wouldn't still be imprisoned in the ancestral temple.
How much did this old lady not know about the affairs of the East and West Mansions? She was neither deaf nor dumb, and she was not a patriarch. To be a good steward of the family, she often had to turn a blind eye. Especially among these wealthy families, there were so many things that could not be spoken of. In her life, what kind of sinister tactics and melodramatic plots had she not witnessed?
But sometimes it is hard to be confused!
"Grandson will remember the teachings of our grandfather!" Jia Cong nodded seriously. As long as he didn't encounter Baoyu, Grandmother Jia would always be an admirable wise man and elder.
"You came here because of the matter of the old Concubine Annan!"
"I was a little suspicious about her arrival, but we chatted for half the night at our house, and didn't really mention anything. It was mostly just gossip about the past. As for her accepting Tan'er as her granddaughter, given her status, since she proposed it, it was difficult for us to refuse, so I agreed."
"Since there's nothing else going on, there's no need for us to speculate." Jia Cong responded, "He's just a godparent, nothing special. Besides, even if , they're far away in Shu, so it won't have anything to do with us. I'll also send someone to Shu to see if there's anything wrong. After all, the old Annan Concubine Dowager, at her age, traveled all the way to the Divine Capital, so she couldn't have no purpose."
"I'm at ease with you doing the job! With a monkey like you around, I, an old woman, am not afraid that their family will come and plot against us." Looking at her grandson in front of her, Grandmother Jia was indeed very confident in her heart. This is the importance of power.
Before, the masters of the Jia family were incompetent and their power had fallen to the bottom. Any disturbance could cause the Jia family to collapse.
But now, his grandson not only held respect in the eyes of the royal family, but also controlled the Beijing Army and the Military Commission. The entire founding lineage, including Lin Ruhai, Fang Yao and other high-ranking officials in the court, were closely connected to this grandson. If anyone wanted to plot against the Jia family, the Jia family would have enough confidence to fight back.
Jia Cong also nodded with a smile. With the power he currently controlled, there were indeed not many people he needed to be wary of.
After chatting with the old lady for a while, Jia Cong went to the flower hall at the back.
This flower hall is right behind the old lady's courtyard. It was built in the palace two years ago. There is also a back building behind the flower hall. In the middle of the back building, a stage is built. The purpose is to provide the old lady with a suitable place to watch plays. Therefore, the area of this flower hall is very large.
And the girls learned the etiquette here every day from the maids in the palace.
After passing the corridor, you will see the courtyard in front of the flower hall. A group of girls' personal maids are also learning manners and etiquette under the guidance of a nanny.
As personal maids, they also have a lot of rules to learn.
When the leading nanny saw Jia Cong approaching, she hurried forward and saluted, saying, "This servant greets the Marquis!"
"Madame Zhang, there's no need to be so polite. I'm deeply grateful for your hard work and that of Madame Sun!" Both Madame Zhang and Madame Sun were the Empress's wet nurses, and their close relationship with her surpassed even that of Zhou Gui and the others. Therefore, they were fully aware of the identity of this young master, Jia Cong.
It is precisely for this reason that when teaching a group of girls, he not only pays attention but also does not scold them too harshly.
After all, which of these girls is not close to the young master? Not to mention Daiyu and Baochai who have made their way through the world, the others are also likely to become their masters in the future.
"Your Excellency is very polite. It is a blessing for us that Her Majesty has invited us here. All the young ladies in the palace are of noble character, virtuous, wise, and intelligent, and they are also naturally intelligent and well-read. To be able to hold a position here is a blessing we cannot even ask for."
Jia Cong nodded in agreement. Indeed, each of his sisters was the best.
"I wonder if I could bother you for a moment?"
While etiquette was important, this nanny was clearly not one to be tactless. Therefore, she immediately said with a smile, "Today's teaching is almost complete. Furthermore, learning etiquette requires a proper balance of strictness and flexibility, otherwise it can be counterproductive. Therefore, I had originally intended to give the girls a day off today, so the Marquis's arrival is just in time."
Jia Cong praised her, look, she is worthy of being a nanny in the palace, her words make people feel comfortable.
"In that case, thank you very much, Ma'am."
