Jia Zhen’s Comeback: From Profligate Son to First-Rank General

Jia Zhen was dead, but not entirely. A massive casino explosion sent him somewhere short of the underworld, and he woke up as the head of the Ningguo Mansion, a household on the verge of ruin. The moment he opened his eyes, casino thugs blocked the door with an IOU: “Five hundred thousand taels! Pay up, or we’ll chop off your son’s fingers!” That very day, Jia Zhen flipped over the tables at the crooked gambling den. The next day, he sent the steward who had skimmed the household’s money for ten years to prison, confiscating a hundred thousand taels in silver. Everyone in the household was dumbfounded. Had the master gone mad? No, the master had been replaced. Not enough money? He invented soap centuries ahead of its time and made a fortune from the private coffers of princes and nobles. Not enough power? He cleaned up security in the capital, and the emperor himself patted his shoulder and called him “Minister Jia.” The prominent families who once looked down on him now competed to send their daughters to his household. Even the haughty old matriarch of the Western Mansion now had to force a smile whenever she came to ask for help. The Red Chamber is full of deep waters and foul winds. But that’s all right. “In this game, I’m the one dealing the cards.”