binnovel Chapter 155 The Concubine of the Lin Family in Dream of the Red Chamber
Chapter 155 The Concubine of the Lin Family in Dream of the Red Chamber
When Jin Yu was promoted to the third rank, Liu Yuxi brought out the high-yield grain seeds again.
Over the years, when she was dealing with her private property, she arranged for people to search for potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn in coastal areas every year. The seeds were found a few years ago and have been planted in her remote estate.
Now that her second son has been promoted to a third-rank official, she sent him a batch of seeds so he could plant them on his estate for a season and then report to the emperor when the harvest was ready.
Since ancient times, "food is the first necessity of the people." At this time, the grain yield was low, and every emperor would worry about the grain. If there were enough grain, the taxes would not be so high. Upon hearing that there were three high-yield grain varieties, the emperor personally led people to the estate to verify the yield.
Upon witnessing the yield with his own eyes, the Emperor was overjoyed, repeatedly chanting, "Heaven bless my Great Qing! Heaven bless my Great Qing!" First, they had overcome smallpox, and now they had high-yield grain seeds. His life would surely be remembered in history!
Looking at the kneeling ministers congratulating him and the fields of crops waiting to be harvested, the emperor grew increasingly excited, his emotions finding no outlet: "Reward! A generous reward! Minister Lin has rendered meritorious service to the nation! Proclamation: Lin Jinyu is hereby granted the title of Marquis of Qingping! He is granted a marquisate! He is also rewarded with three thousand taels of gold and thirty thousand taels of silver!"
Lin Jinyu kowtowed in gratitude! The other accompanying ministers looked at Lin Jinyu with reddened eyes. This was a family with two marquises! Apart from the early days of the founding of the country, what other family could have such an honor!
Outsiders envied them, but lamented that their own families didn't have such promising offspring. The atmosphere in the Lin family was rather complicated.
The fact that two illegitimate sons rose to the rank of third grade and were granted titles and honors for their merits was too coincidental; no one would believe it wasn't premeditated.
The smallpox outbreak when Lin Junyu was ennobled could be attributed to his accidental discovery. But Jin Yu's high-yield grain seeds—which official's son would pay attention to these seeds unless he specifically sought them out?
Judging from the scale of planting on that estate, it couldn't have been achieved in just one or two years.
But who orchestrated these two events? Lin Ruhai also asked his two sons. The eldest son said that the smallpox outbreak was accidentally discovered by a servant on his estate.
The second son said that he had always known that the grain yield in the south was higher than that in the north, so he had been sending people to explore the south. If they encountered any seeds they had never seen before, they would bring them back and plant them. It took many years of experimentation to find these three seeds.
As for why he didn't tell his family? Is that even a question? Who isn't selfish? Some things can't be said so explicitly. As Lin Ruhai's son, he would be happy no matter which one of them was successful.
However, this wouldn't be the case for Jia Min. Although Junyu and Jinyu had taken good care of Lin Congyu after he entered officialdom through the imperial examination, promotion was a slow process, and Congyu's health was not suitable for particularly strenuous positions, which further reduced the room for maneuver.
Jia Min knew that wanting Junyu and Jinyu to give these two great achievements to Congyu was too selfish, but she still thought to herself, Junyu and Jinyu are healthy and have such high official positions, why can't they give way to their younger brother? After all, they didn't come from the same mother's womb.
But she never considered that when Lin Junyu was first ennobled, Lin Jinyu had nothing. He couldn't even take care of his own brother back then, so how could he possibly think about these things?
Thinking like that will only lead you into a dead end. You have to rely on yourself. If you always think about relying on others, then whether or not others give you anything is not up to you.
Both sons have moved to their respective mansions, but Liu Yuxi is still living in the Lin mansion. Their father isn't even dead yet! It's really not good to bring their mother out to live with them.
When her eldest son was granted a title, he wanted to request an imperial decree for Liu Yuxi, but Liu Yuxi refused. When her second son brought it up, she refused again. She didn't care much about it, and no matter how things were handled, her background couldn't be changed.
It would be better to let the sons live their own lives. It would be better for the sons to manage the household and socialize with their daughters-in-law. At least the daughters-in-law are all from official families and are more suitable to interact with those officials' wives.
If she moved to her son's house, and there was a banquet or something, as the matriarch of the family, people would have to come and pay their respects. Who wouldn't have some thoughts about paying respects to a servant who had signed a contract of servitude?
So, let's not put the child in a difficult position. She's not uncomfortable living in the Lin family mansion, and no one dares to make her uncomfortable now. Back when Lin Junyu was ennobled, Jia Min forbade Liu Yuxi from paying her respects, and Liu Yuxi didn't hesitate and accepted the greeting directly, saving everyone from embarrassment.
Now she can live in the Lin family mansion whenever she wants, and visit her two sons' homes whenever she misses her grandchildren. The two marquisate mansions bestowed by the emperor are both near the Lin family mansion. Originally, the Lin family mansion in the capital was the residence of her ancestors when they held titles.
Later, the title was lost, and the Lin family mansion was downsized, but the location was not changed. This area was surrounded by the residences of old noble families. The Emperor probably bestowed the mansion here for their convenience.
If she didn't want to stay in the manor anymore, she would take her grandchildren to stay on the estate. These days, the masters of the Lin family rarely see each other, just to avoid awkwardness when they do.
However, Congyu had a pure heart. Because he was close to Liu Yuxi and had always had a good relationship with his elder brother, he often brought his two sons to Liu Yuxi's courtyard and also often took them to his two elder brothers' residences.
The relationship between the children was not affected, including the grandchildren. Congyu was the youngest of their generation, and Congyu's child was the youngest of the next generation. To put it bluntly, the three of them were all raised by their respective older brothers.
Neither Lin Ruhai nor Jia Min would stop their children and grandchildren from interacting. After all, the children had a good relationship, and only after the older generation passed away could the younger generation support each other.
Of all the people in the Lin family, only Zheng Xueting had a lingering resentment. Fortunately, after her child turned six, he lived in the front yard, so she didn't dare to say anything too openly, since she still needed to rely on her two older brothers-in-law!
Liu Yuxi wasn't unwilling to secure a title for Congyu as well, but she had to wait. She couldn't let one family get all the good things, right? She had already made arrangements for her grandsons in advance. The imperial examinations still had to continue, since there was only one title. Whether they pursued literary or military careers, or even if they wanted to go into business, they had to think things through and find a way out for themselves.
She had already told her two sons in advance that Congyu would receive credit, but there would be no credit for the grandchildren. The continuation of a family depends on the efforts of future generations; relying solely on the blessings of ancestors is unsustainable. Both sons agreed. However, it's best to keep a low profile for now; they're already quite conspicuous!
There's no difference between the Lin family now and before they've divided the family. So, to prevent his brothers from getting upset over the division after his death, Lin Ruhai opened an ancestral hall to divide the family property among his brothers, but he didn't announce it to the public.