Jia Lian and Liu Xianglian went south with Jia Zhu. They would also take the imperial examinations this time, just to test the waters.
No one had much hope that they would pass the county-level exam and become licentiates.
Still, with their abilities, they should be able to pass the entry-level exam.
When Liu Zhong returned to the mansion, he found the whole family in high spirits.
Jia Yuanchun's brows were alight with joy and shyness.
Liu Zhong raised an eyebrow, guessing what had happened.
Sure enough, Mother Liu smiled and said, "Zhong'er, you're going to be a father."
Liu Zhong put on a delighted expression. "Really? That's wonderful."
He went over to Jia Yuanchun, took her hand, and said gently, "You've been through so much."
"It's no trouble." Jia Yuanchun was even happier. "I'm very glad."
When Wang heard that her daughter was pregnant, she went to Liu Mansion the next day to visit her.
Seeing that only Baoqin, a familiar maid, was at Jia Yuanchun's side, she asked, "What happened to Cuiyan and the others? Why aren't they here to serve you?"
Jia Yuanchun replied, "I found husbands for them and let them get married."
Lady Wang said, "Foolish girl! I chose them specifically as candidates to serve your husband in the bedchamber. Their families are all at Rongguo Mansion, so they're easy to control. You sent them away—who will serve your husband while you're pregnant? Are you going to promote one of the Liu family's maids?"
Jia Yuanchun shook her head. "My husband said he doesn't want any other women serving him. While I'm pregnant, he'll sleep in his study."
Lady Wang was exasperated. "What man doesn't fool around? For all you know, he's keeping a mistress in his study. Wasn't that how Zhao Yiniang started? Your father had her in his study to keep him company while he read."
Jia Yuanchun defended him. "My husband promised he wouldn't take concubines or bedchamber women, and he won't. The only servants attending him in his study are young men and older women. There are no young women."
Lady Wang still didn't believe Liu Zhong would stay faithful. But Jia Yuanchun trusted him, and she couldn't argue her daughter out of it. Fuming, Lady Wang had no choice but to leave.
She thought that Jia Yuanchun would have to suffer a loss before she learned to listen to her own mother.
But, to her dismay, even after Jia Yuanchun gave birth, Lady Wang never saw Liu Zhong take a concubine or a bedchamber woman.
She was happy for her daughter, but couldn't help feeling a little jealous.
How had her daughter been so lucky as to find such a good husband, while she herself had married a hypocrite who was good for nothing?
Bottling up her frustration, Lady Wang fell ill.
Fortunately, news arrived in the capital that Jia Zhu had passed the licentiate exam. Lady Wang's spirits lifted, and she recovered without medicine.
Before long, Jia Zhu returned to the capital with the Lin family.
In the original story, Lin Ruhai had worked himself to death in the post of Salt Commissioner.
That was because he had served the Retired Emperor. Though the emperor knew Lin Ruhai was in a difficult position, he wouldn't help him. He would only wring every last bit of value from him.
But in this world, the emperor helped Lin Ruhai through his connections in Jiangnan, both because Lin Ruhai was Jia Hu's uncle by marriage and because he was genuinely talented and capable.
Lin Ruhai understood the situation and immediately pledged his loyalty to the emperor, becoming one of his men.
As a result, he didn't have to keep wearing himself down in the dangerous post of Salt Commissioner. The emperor issued an edict recalling him to the capital.
Of course, Lin Ruhai wouldn't return to the capital empty-handed.
He had obtained most of the records concerning the salt trade in Jiangnan, along with evidence that salt merchants had colluded with local officials.
With these records and evidence, the emperor could take action against the Jiangnan officials and the salt trade.
Jia Daishan and Lady Jia Shi were overjoyed that Jia Min and Lin Ruhai had returned to the capital. They immediately invited the Lin family to stay at Rongguo Mansion.
Lin Ruhai thought that Lin Mansion still needed repairs and upkeep. His wife had been away from her parents for a long time, and he wanted her to fulfill her filial duties, so he agreed to stay at Rongguo Mansion.
Rongguo Mansion held a grand banquet, and Liu Zhong, their grandson-in-law, brought his wife back to attend.
When Lin Ruhai saw Liu Zhong again, he nodded approvingly and praised him.
His daughter and son-in-law had returned, and his second grandson had passed the licentiate exam.
Jia Daishan was in high spirits and had several drinks with his son-in-law and son.
Jia Baoyu hovered around Lin Daiyu and her younger brother, though mostly around Lin Daiyu.
Lin Daiyu didn't dislike her third cousin. She found him somewhat familiar, as if they had met somewhere before.
Jia Baoyu felt the same way, but unlike in the original story, he didn't recklessly point at Lin Meimei and say, "I've seen this younger sister before."
Without the evil influence of the Tongling Baoyu, Jia Baoyu still liked beautiful things, but he knew how to behave and wouldn't act rudely toward girls.
After years of instruction from his tutors, he also knew better than to say "girls are made of water" or "scholars are bookworms."
Watching Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu together, Jia Min's eyes flickered. She looked toward her mother.
Lady Jia Shi understood what she meant and smiled. "What do you think? The two of them are a good match, aren't they?"
Jia Min nodded, then furrowed her brow slightly and said in a low voice, "I'm afraid second sister-in-law won't like Daiyu."
Lady Jia Shi snorted. "I'm still here. She can forget about bullying that girl."
Jia Min was even more tempted, but her daughter was only seven, still very young, so she said, "Let's talk about it when they're older. They're too young right now."
Lady Jia Shi agreed, and changed the subject.
Lady Wang hadn't heard the conversation between Lady Jia Shi and Jia Min. All her attention was on her son, Jia Zhu.
Now that her son was back, she could start looking for a wife for him.
Since Jia Hu had brought distinction to Rongguo Mansion, his younger siblings had become more desirable marriage prospects too.
But Jia Lian and Wang Xifeng were in love, and Rongguo Mansion and the Wang Family had a tacit understanding. Jia Baoyu, Jia Huan, and Jia Cong were still young, so Jia Zhu was naturally the one receiving the most attention.
These days, Lady Wang had met many noblewomen who wanted to ask her about Jia Zhu's marriage.
Lady Wang was immensely pleased and set her heart on finding Jia Zhu a wife from a prestigious family, with a generous dowry.
After the banquet, Liu Zhong and Jia Yuanchun returned home.
The first thing Jia Yuanchun did was go see their chubby baby boy.
Liu Zhong followed his wife and watched as she held their son and played with him.
A faint smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.
Two days later, while Liu Zhong was at the Hanlin Academy, a servant brought him the news: Jia Daishan had died.
He had passed away in his sleep, a smile still on his lips.
Jia Daishan must have been content.
He had lived more than ten years longer than in the original story. He had seen Rongguo Mansion's third generation grow up and become capable of shouldering its responsibilities.
He had seen his grandchildren turn out more capable than their fathers and make something of themselves.
This time, not only had Jia Zhu passed the licentiate exam, but Jia Lian and Liu Xianglian had also managed to scrape through and become licentiates.
He had seen the fourth generation of Rongguo Mansion come into the world: Jia Hu's son had been born a month before Liu Zhong's son.
He had seen his daughter return to her maiden home for a happy visit.
Jia Daishan must have felt that his life in this world had been complete.
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