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Jia Yuan had many capable subordinates. Even though she was older and had stepped down from important positions, whenever she took action, her efficiency was remarkable. Before long, Jia Yuan obtained evidence of the activities conducted by the Jia Shi Clan. Having been the matriarch for several years, they had grown bolder and engaged in numerous unscrupulous acts. Taking public property for personal gain and passing off inferior goods as quality ones were not exclusive to Madam Wang; the Jia Shi Clan had been doing this for decades.
Jia Yuan showed the evidence to Madam Xu, who sighed, "Our family is unfortunate. Let’s show this to Dai Shan and see how he chooses to respond."
Jia Yuan sent someone to summon Jia Daishan to Li Xiang Courtyard and directly presented the evidence to him. Initially, Jia Daishan did not believe it, but soon he was furious and stormed off to confront the Jia Shi Clan. After that, there was no further news! Jia Daishan was swayed by the sweet words of the Jia Shi Clan; not only did he fail to take action against them, but he also tacitly approved of their increasingly brazen behavior.
Jia Yuan learned from her subordinates how the Jia Shi Clan had managed to placate Jia Daishan. Their actions were all for Jia Zheng; in the future, the Duke's residence would surely belong to Jia She, while Jia Zheng would be sidelined with only a thirty percent share of the family estate. Wouldn't he end up living as poorly as other branches of the Jia family? As a mother, how could she bear that? Thus, she plotted to accumulate more wealth for her second son from public funds. Jia Daishan was also biased; he couldn't bear to see his son fall under the influence of the Jia Shi Clan, so he tacitly accepted their actions and chose not to pursue their wrongdoing.
After learning about these events, both Jia Yuan and Madam Xu felt disappointed in Jia Daishan, especially Jia Yuan. After reading analyses on Pirated Books, she discovered that Jia Daishan had even become involved in the Prince's Struggle for Succession and was playing both sides. Had it not been for his later sacrifice to save the emperor, thereby preserving Rongguo Mansion, it might have been confiscated back then and fallen into decline.
"I can no longer rely on this son," Jia Yuan sighed to Madam Xu.
Madam Xu's eyes turned red. "Can't we make allowances? We can teach him and help him change."
Jia Yuan sighed again. "He’s already grown up and has his own ideas; how can he listen to us? Just look at how he chose during that incident with the Jia Shi Clan—he chose his wife over us. Moreover, my time is limited; I have no time to teach him."
Upon hearing this, Madam Xu's tears flowed freely. After weathering decades with Jia Yan, how could she bear to see Jia Yuan die?
"Don't cry," Jia Yuan said as she wiped away the tears from her face. "After I'm gone, Sha'er will still need you. You must take good care of yourself."
Madam Xu cried out, "Don't worry; I will raise Sha'er well. Once he is capable of taking charge, I will come find you. You must go slowly and wait for me."
"Rest assured; I will be waiting for you at the Bridge of Helplessness."
Jia Yuan's time was indeed running short, so after confirming that his son could no longer act according to his wishes, he decisively began to arrange his affairs. The first thing he did shocked the entire capital: he actually adopted Jia Daishan out!
Jia Daishan was Jia Yuan's eldest son and his only legitimate heir. He was exceptionally capable and had already attained a high position at a young age. How could Jia Yuan possibly adopt him out? Had he lost his mind? If Jia Daishan was adopted out, who would inherit the title of Duke Rongguo? Would it be passed on to an illegitimate son? The emperor would never agree to that! It had never been heard before that Jia Yuan valued an illegitimate son over his legitimate one. Moreover, Jia Daishan's biological mother, Madam Xu, surprisingly did not stop her husband from this action and accepted it calmly. Did she no longer want her son?
The emperor was also very curious about this and sent someone to inquire. Jia Yuan didn't say much; he simply submitted a memorial requesting that his title be inherited by his grandson, Jia She. The emperor was not one to be trifled with, but would Jia Yuan not investigate himself? Thus, the series of events involving the Jia Shi Clan at Rongguo Mansion came to the emperor's attention.
"The Jia Shi Clan has no sense of propriety. Just because the eldest son grew up around his grandparents, she dislikes him—it's truly laughable. And that Jia Daishan is foolish enough to go against his parents for a woman; no wonder Old Jia is disappointed in this son. I originally thought to use Jia Daishan because of Old Jia's connections, but forget it. I wouldn't want someone who confuses public and private matters," the emperor thought. He had considered taking a daughter from the Shi family as a concubine during the court lady selection, but decided against it. If she turned out like her sister, his harem would be in chaos, making it impossible to raise outstanding sons.
The Shi family was very dissatisfied with Jia Yuan's actions. Their daughter was supposed to become the wife of a duke; now that Jia Daishan had been adopted out, their daughter could no longer aspire to be the wife of a duke! How could this be allowed? The Shi family confronted Jia Yuan angrily. In response, Jia Yuan threw documentation detailing the actions of the Jia Shi Clan in their faces and gave them two choices: either allow Jia Daishan to be adopted out or he would publicly expose everything the Jia Shi Clan had done and divorce his son.
The Shi family could not allow the Jia Shi Clan to be divorced; they still had several unmarried daughters. They couldn't let their reputation be tarnished because of the Jia Shi Clan, or those girls would never marry. Remembering how their daughter, who seemed destined to become a royal consort, had been sent back home, they realized that the emperor must have learned about the actions of the Jia Shi Clan and held a grudge against their daughters. Terrified, they left in defeat.
With the failure of their actions, the Jia Shi Clan was filled with disappointment. Her power and status as a noblewoman were all gone! Previously, she had hated Madam Xu and her husband; now she deeply loathed them and wished they would die immediately so that Rongguo Mansion could belong to her. Unfortunately for her, although Jia Yuan's health continued to decline, his willpower remained strong enough to expel Jia Daishan, the Jia Shi Clan, and Jia Zheng from Rongguo Mansion for good.
Jia Daishan regretted his decision; he regretted going against his parents for his wife. Reflecting on past events made him realize how disappointed his parents must have been in him. But no matter how disappointed they were, they should not have adopted him out! Therefore, besides regret, he felt even angrier and began to resent his parents' actions. If they did not treat him as their son, then why should he acknowledge them as parents? Rongguo Mansion? Titles? He didn't care; he believed he could earn back a title through his own abilities! Confidently thinking this way, he remained unaware that in the emperor's eyes, he had already become a black sheep and would never receive favor again like in the original story.
After adopting out Jia Daishan, Jia Yan finally laid down a heavy burden and felt relieved; however, his body could no longer hold on and he passed away within half a month. Young Jia She inherited the title; considering Jia Yuan's contributions and feeling pity for young Jia She's situation, the emperor merely downgraded the title by one rank, making him a Marquis instead of a Duke. Madam Xu was far more perceptive than the Jia Shi Clan; after three years of mourning, she had someone remove the plaque from Duke Rongguo's mansion and lived quietly with her grandson. During his youth, while still thinking about his parents, young Jia She became increasingly disappointed after being met with coldness from both the Jia Shi Clan and Jia Daishan. He grew more devoted to Madam Xu; only she and the late Jia Yan were truly his family.
Madam Xu arranged for young Jia She to marry Madam Zhang as originally intended in the book. After Madam Zhang gave birth to their eldest grandson, Jia Hu, Madam Xu smiled as she departed from this world. Before leaving, she handed over some pirated books to young Jia She. Upon reading the final chapter of those books, young Jia She finally understood why his grandparents were so determined to adopt out his father, Jia Daishan—it was for him and for the entire Jia family. His last remnants of affection for the Jia Shi Clan vanished completely upon seeing their actions in writing. In this life without schemes from the Jia Shi Clan or Madam Wang behind the scenes, both Madam Zhang and young Jia Hu lived well and healthily; unlike in the original story where he ended up as an unaccomplished errand boy due to poor maternal guidance.
Conversely, things did not go well for Jia Daishan's family. Believing himself capable enough to attain high positions due to his talents, he found himself marginalized by the emperor instead—only earning a third-rank general title while losing military power bit by bit until he became an insignificant figure in high society throughout the capital. However, since he did not command troops himself, there were no princes trying to win him over; thus he wouldn't find himself straddling two boats or offending the emperor—he also wouldn’t choose familial loyalty over survival when faced with danger. Yet living like this felt suffocating for him; despite being regarded as an heir with great expectations by others—he turned out to be nothing but a fool!
After failing several times at official examinations without success, Jia Daishan finally recognized that Jia Zheng lacked any scholarly talent; what was deemed "studious" was merely superficial—misguided by the actions of the Jia Shi Clan. After being driven out by his parents initially led him to harbor grievances against them; however at that time they shared mutual understanding due to their shared plight which fostered goodwill between them. But as time went on and dissatisfaction grew gradually clearer in life’s hardships—Jia Daishan began doubting everything about the Jia Shi Clan’s influence over him.
Jia Zheng was clearly useless yet praised by them as talented—what else had they distorted? Was it true that their eldest son had become useless due solely to being spoiled by grandparents? If so why did father protect him so fiercely? And what about those three illegitimate daughters—did they really marry into such good families? Why then did one perish shortly after marriage while another two never returned home? Doubts began creeping into his mind regarding everything associated with them—their past misdeeds came flooding back into focus: when they were at Rongguo Mansion they embezzled public funds supposedly on behalf of Ji Zheng—but now having been adopted out from there—they continued embezzling public funds again! For whom exactly? Knowing full well these finances would eventually fall under Ji Zheng’s inheritance—it became clear this woman’s motives were entirely self-serving rather than altruistic towards her children!
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