Rongguo Mansion.
Lai Da rushed frantically to the entrance of Jia Mu's Five-Courtyard Compound, dropped to his knees, and shouted hoarsely:
"Old Madam, an official from the Ministry of Works sent word-the master has been arrested!"
"Young Master Huan personally arrested him and took him to the Embroidered Uniform Guard's Imperial Prison!"
Inside Jia Mu's courtyard, everyone had been enjoying a cheerful gathering. At those words, the place instantly fell deathly silent.
"Say that again?" Jia Mu abruptly rose and, without waiting for Yuanyang or Amber to support her, tottered out of the courtyard.
His face taut with anxiety, Lai Da urged:
"Old Madam, this is terrible! Young Master Huan has taken the master to the Imperial Prison. Please think of something!"
Jia Mu felt her head spin. Gritting her teeth in fury, she roared:
"Go seize that vile grandson! Ask him if he means to murder his own father! He has stripped Rongguo Mansion of every scrap of dignity. A son arresting his own father-has such a thing ever been heard of? How hateful, how shameful!"
"Please calm yourself, Grandmother. There must be some misunderstanding." It was Lin Daiyu who spoke. She approached Jia Mu, her willow-like brows knitted, and said softly:
"Young Master Huan knows what matters. He would never do such a thing."
"Yu'er, say no more!" Jia Mu was still in the grip of her fury.
Having heard the news, Wang Xifeng hurried over. Her radiant, beautiful face was covered in frost as she declared firmly:
"Lai Da, Brother Huan injured Lai Er of the Eastern Mansion last time. Surely you aren't holding a grudge and spewing bloody slander?"
"However impulsive Brother Huan might be, he would never arrest Uncle Zheng."
Lai Da did resent Jia Huan, but he would never dare joke about such a matter. With a miserable expression, he said loudly:
"Second Mistress Lian, an official from the Ministry of Works told this servant himself. If you don't believe me, you can ask him."
Jia Mu's face darkened.
In this vast household, there were only two people she doted on most: Jia Zheng and Baoyu.
Her son had been thrown into the Embroidered Uniform Guard's prison by her concubine-born grandson. What a humiliation! What would she do if Zheng suffered physical torment?
Madam Wang's face flushed with panic as she snapped:
"Why aren't you going to the Imperial Prison? Hurry and rescue the master! If anything happens to him, I'll beat that concubine-born brat to death!"
Lai Da's throat went dry. He pleaded:
"Madam, what good would it do for this servant to go to the Imperial Prison? We must find Young Master Huan at once."
"Call him a beast! If he hurts the master, beat him to death!" Madam Wang erupted in thunderous rage.
Jia Mu was the most frantic of all. She cursed:
"A whole family of good-for-nothing men!"
"When trouble strikes, where is Jia She off carousing? Lian has used his official duties as an excuse to stay away from home for two months, and Zheng has actually been arrested by his own son! That vile grandson has defied every moral law. Only Baoyu gives me any peace of mind."
"Quickly, go to the Eastern Mansion and fetch that father and son! Have them get him out of the Embroidered Uniform Guard's Imperial Prison."
"Yes!" Lai Da hurried out.
Just then.
Jia Baoyu emerged from the inner room, shaking his head in anguish as he spoke in a pedantic tone:
"Alas! I behold the world's lack of virtue, where unfilial sons run rampant, like flies drawn to the reek of mutton, corrupting our customs. Truly, they are a great scourge upon the world!"
"Sister Lin, I told you long ago that Jia Huan wormed his way into office through connections. Sooner or later, he was bound to become a traitor to the realm, a worm feeding on its stipends. And now look-he has even arrested our honored father! One of these days, we should throw that wretch out of our family. I'll certainly give him a couple of kicks myself."
Lin Daiyu ignored him. A trace of worry flickered in her autumn-water eyes.
Young Master Huan wasn't that sort of person!
When he composed poetry last time, he had been gentle, restrained, and courteous. How could he disregard his filial duties?
Both furious and worried, Jia Baoyu said loudly:
"Grandmother, surely that wretch won't torture Father? Father is a scholar, not some thick-skinned brute. I'll go rescue him."
As he spoke, he stepped forward to leave.
"What trouble would you stir up there? That beast might arrest you too!" Madam Wang hastily stopped her precious darling and said in a tone that brooked no argument:
"A mere General Banner of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, yet he's already so arrogant and tyrannical that he disregards even the sacred bond between father and son! First report him to the Shenjing Prefectural Court, then contact the powerful families friendly with our Jia family. Have that beast beaten to death!"
"If the Jia family can't bear to do it, my Wang Family will! And throw Concubine Zhao out of Rongguo Mansion as well!"
Wang Xifeng kept her head lowered, her phoenix eyes filled with worry.
This had become far too serious!
Without a valid reason, Brother Huan's future would be utterly ruined. There would be nowhere under heaven for him to stand.
A son humiliating his father-if this reached the Golden Throne Hall, no one could protect Brother Huan, much less the Embroidered Uniform Guard Office.
How could Brother Huan disregard the consequences like this? He really made her worry!
"Oh dear, how could such a disgraceful thing happen!"
Jia Zhen and Jia Rong arrived from Ningguo Mansion. Both wore angry expressions, but there was no urgency in their steps. They strolled along leisurely.
Wonderful!
They had known all along that the little beast recognized neither law nor heaven. Now he had arrested his own father and disgraced the family name. Everyone would know that he had violated his filial duties, and he would come to a miserable end.
With desolation filling his eyes, Jia Zhen stroked his beard and sighed deeply:
"When our Eastern Mansion suffered humiliation last time, the devoted Lai Er was beaten into a cripple. Old Madam, you should have listened to me then and dealt harshly with that little beast. How else could today's disaster have happened?"
"As for the Embroidered Uniform Guard's Imperial Prison, I don't dare go there to seek redress either. He has lost all affection for his family and every shred of conscience. He might arrest me too and give me a savage beating. I couldn't endure that."
"Rong, you go."
"Father, I don't dare." Jia Rong shrank back.
Beside herself with anger, Jia Mu shouted:
"Must the women of the household step forward? Or must these old bones go there in person?"
"Someone prepare a sedan chair! We're going to the Shenjing Prefectural Court!"
Even as she spoke.
"The master has returned!"
A page's clear voice rang out.
Jia Zheng walked in with his hands behind his back, calm and composed. Upon seeing Jia Mu, he knelt to pay his respects:
"Your son has caused you worry, Mother."
"Are you all right?" Jia Mu let out a long sigh of relief. Only after seeing that her son was unharmed and had lost none of his dignity did the worry leave her eyes.
The weight lifted from the hearts of Wang Xifeng, Lin Daiyu, and the others. It must have been a misunderstanding.
"Master, where is that beast?" Madam Wang asked in bewilderment.
Jia Zheng flew into a rage at her words. Pointing at her, he rebuked her:
"Silence! You are his legal mother, a woman of this household. What propriety is there in letting such filthy words leave your mouth?"
Only after thoroughly scolding her did he turn to Jia Mu and say gently:
"Mother, Huan was carrying out official duties and questioning me as a matter of routine. It has done no harm to my reputation."
He had thought a great deal on the way home. Indeed, he had no grounds for complaint. His concubine-born son had intended to plead for the people and secure justice for the citizens of Xinchang Prefecture, while rooting out the worms in the Ministry of Works. Though he was the boy's father, he was also an assistant director of the ministry. Cooperating with the investigation was only reasonable.
Moreover, once Yuan Yong was brought to justice, the position of Right Vice Minister of Works would become vacant. That was a tangible advantage he could pursue.
Both publicly and privately, he ought to thank his concubine-born son.
"Father, that wretch Jia Huan didn't beat you, did he?" Jia Baoyu approached and asked with concern.
Jia Zheng's face hardened. Anger surged through him, and he thundered:
"Servants! Bring a heavy cudgel and ropes to bind him! I'll beat you to death this instant, you worthless beast!"
The legitimate son he had painstakingly nurtured spent his days idling about, making excuse after excuse whenever he was told to sit the imperial examinations.
The concubine-born son he had ignored could shoulder responsibilities on his own, even daring to investigate a senior court official of the junior third rank directly.
The contrast filled him with both shame and fury.
What a worthless legitimate son!
He had to be beaten!
"Honored Father..." Jia Baoyu looked ready to cry.
"Get over here!" Jia Zheng urgently needed to vent his anger. As he walked, he looked toward Jia Mu:
"Mother, please don't interfere. He wanders about all day and neglects his studies. He must be taught a lesson."
"Also, there's an unused plot on the northern side of the estate. Give it to Huan. His courtyard is too small, and he has three maids serving him there. Build him a new residence."
With that, he dragged Jia Baoyu away.
Madam Wang gripped the Buddhist Prayer Beads tightly, her expression as ugly as it could possibly be.
"You are the head of the household. The decision is yours."
Jia Mu could hardly contradict him in public, so she agreed to her son's wishes, then quietly told Yuanyang:
"Go and keep an eye on them. If he hurts Baoyu, I'll go and stop him."
"Yes." Yuanyang followed behind.
Before long, Jia Baoyu's heart-rending wails rang out.
Meanwhile, Qiao Ping'er's dark brows were tightly knitted.
The turn of events had been so swift that it caught her completely off guard.
Most importantly, wasn't that unused plot right beside Second Master Lian's residence?
In other words, once the new residence was built, would Young Master Huan and the Second Mistress be separated by only a single wall?
She could not help growing worried again.
Before you continue