故回到本任来便打发家人进京打听，顺便将总制求亲之事回明贾母，如若愿意，即将三姑娘接到任所。
Being so far away, cut off from news and in no position to cope with emergencies, on his return to his office he lost no time in sending a servant to the capital to find out the situation and tell the Lady Dowager about the garrison commander's proposal.
If she agreed to it, Tanchun could be sent to him.
家人奉命，赶到京中回明了王夫人，便在吏部打听得贾政并无处分，惟将署太平县的这位老爷革职。
The servant set off with all speed for the capital.
He reported first to Lady Wang, and then went to the Board of Civil Office, where his enquiries revealed that the only person to have suffered in the Xue Pan affair was the acting magistrate of Tai-ping, who had lost his job, and that Jia Zheng was not in any way implicated.
即写了禀帖，安慰了贾政，然后住着等信。
He sent word of this to Jia Zheng to relieve his mind, then stayed on to await further developments.
且说薛姨妈为着薛蟠这件人命官司，各衙门内不知花了多少银钱，才定了误杀具题。
Now Aunt Xue had spent huge sums bribing the yamens dealing with Xue Pan's case to bring in a verdict of manslaughter, not murder.
原打量将当铺折变给人，备银赎罪，不想刑部驳审。
She had planned to sell a pawnshop to raise the ransom for him; but now that the Board of Punishments had unexpectedly reversed the verdict,
又托人花了好些钱，总不中用，依旧定了个死罪，监着守候秋天大审。
she sent still more bribes, but to no avail.
The sentence was confirmed--death by strangulation after the Autumn Assizes.
宝钗虽时常过来劝解，说是：“哥哥本来没造化，承受了祖父这些家业，就该安安顿顿的守着过日子。
"Brother was born ill-fated," Baochai kept telling her to comfort her. "Inheriting so much property, he should have lived quietly, minding his own business.
在南边已经闹的不象样，便是香菱那件事情就了不得，因为仗着亲戚们的势力，花了些银钱，这算白打死了一个公子。
Instead he carried on scandalously down south, behaving so disgracefully over Xiangling.
It was only because of his powerful connections and money that he got away with killing that young gentleman.
哥哥就该改过，做起正经人来，也该奉养母亲才是，不想进了京仍是这样。
You'd have thought he might have taken life a bit more seriously after that and devoted more time to looking after his own mother.
But no, as soon as we arrived here, it was the same story all over again.
妈妈为他不知受了多少气，哭掉了多少眼泪。
Goodness knows how often he's provoked you, mother, how many tears he's made you shed.
给他娶了亲，原想大家安安逸逸的过日子，不想命该如此，偏偏娶的嫂子又是一个不安静的，所以哥哥躲出门去。
"Then you got him a wife, and we thought we could all live in peace; but it was his fate to marry such a shrew that he left home to avoid her.
真正俗语说的，‘冤家路儿狭’，不多几天就闹出人命来了。
As the saying goes: “Fate moves in a narrow lane, and collisions are hard to avoid! ” It was only a few days before he was mixed up in this new murder case!
妈妈和二哥哥也算不得不尽心的了，花了银钱不算，自己还求三拜四的谋干。
"You and Cousin Ke have done all you could for him: spending money and begging this one and that one to help.
无奈命里应该，也算自作自受。
You can't go on struggling with fate.
He'll have to pay the price for his own misdeeds.
大凡养儿女是为着老来有靠，便是小户人家，还要挣一碗饭养活母亲，那里有将现成的闹光了，反害的老人家哭的死去活来的？
People bring up children as props for their old age, and even the son of a poor family will work to support his mother.
What good is one who squanders his whole inheritance and breaks his old mother's heart?”
不是我说，哥哥的这样行为，不是儿子，竟是个冤家对头。
I know I shouldn't say this, but the truth is, he's the bane of your life, an affliction sent to test you, not a real son to you.
妈妈再不明白，明哭到夜，夜哭到明，又受嫂子的气。
If you don't wake up to this, you'll keep crying from dawn till dusk, from dusk till dawn, and have more to put up with from sister-in-law as well.
我看见妈妈这样，那里放得下心！
I only wish I could be here with you all the time, and help keep the peace.
前儿老爷打发人回来说，看见京报，唬的了不得，所以才叫人来打点的。
‘The other day Sir Zheng sent a message home to say how shocked he was to read the report in the Gazette.
He has already sent one of his men to try to intervene on Pan's behalf.
我想哥哥闹了事，担心的人也不少。
I'm sure lots of people are anxious over this trouble brother's made.
我求妈妈暂且养养神，趁哥哥的活口现在，问问各处的账目。
So do calm down, mother, and while brother's still alive check up on the various accounts.
话说贾政去见节度，进去了半日，不见出来，外头议论不一。
Jia Zheng was with the Viceroy for a long time, and outside the yamen speculation mounted as to the reason for the summons.
李十儿在外也打听不出什么事来，便想到报上的饥荒，实在也着急。
and when Li Shier could get hold of no information, he remembered the ominous report in the Court Gazette and began to be really worried.
好不容易听见贾政出来了，便迎上来跟着，等不得回去，在无人处便问：“老爷进去这半天，有什么要紧的事？”
At last Jia Zheng emerged, and Li escorted him back.
On the way, when no one else was near, he asked: "Was it urgent business that kept you there so long, sir?”