The Second Master of the Red Chamber

Jia Baoyu hasn't been feeling well lately.

The woman of one's dreams gets married, and to his brother no less, becomes his sister-in-law. This is a huge blow to any man.

There is nothing he can do.

Even if he wanted to see Daiyu and express his innermost feelings, he couldn't.

So for the past month, he has almost always locked himself in the brothel and rarely went out.

His family knew what he was thinking, so no one bothered him.

He was unaware that the house was full of distinguished guests last night.

He didn't care even if the emperor and empress came in person.

All he remembered was that he got drunk in the house with several maids, and spent the day in a daze, half-drunk and half-awake.

Today, I finally regained my senses and realized that everything was in the past, so I stepped out of the Yihong Courtyard and prepared to go to the garden to take a look.

But he regretted it not long after he left.

Everywhere was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, and even the red carpets that hadn't been taken down on the road were particularly eye-catching with their bright red color.

I originally thought of going back, but then I felt it would be too deliberate.

As if guided by some strange force, I found myself at Hengwu Garden.

As for why he didn't go to Xiaoxiang Pavilion, it's because he couldn't get in.

The Hengwu Garden at this time was completely different from when Jia Lian came. It was very quiet, with almost no one moving or talking, except for a few birds in cages on the corridor occasionally chirping.

Jia Baoyu emerged from behind the artificial hill and stepped onto the corridor.

Just as they were considering which room to go to first, they saw a little maid of about thirteen or fourteen years old standing in front of Baochai's room, her face pressed against the doorpost, behaving rather strangely.

I walked over quietly and found that the girl had her hands clasped together, her forehead pressed against the doorpost, her eyes closed, and her face flushed. I didn't know what she was doing, but she looked rather cute.

Jia Baoyu couldn't help but think of teasing her.

"what are you doing here?"

The sudden sound startled the little girl.

She quickly turned around and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw it was Jia Baoyu. She said sweetly, "Second Master Bao, why do you walk so quietly?"

Jia Baoyu laughed and said, "It's not my fault for walking so quietly. You were just lost in thought here by yourself. What were you thinking about?"

The little girl's face, which had just turned pale with fright, inexplicably turned red again.

"It's none of your business, I'm not telling you."

Jia Baoyu loved talking and joking with these pretty maids, so he didn't mind and instead asked, "Where is Sister Bao? Is she in the room?"

"Yes, Grandma and Second Grandpa are sleeping inside."

The maid's voice was still light and carefree, completely unaware of Jia Baoyu's suddenly stiffened expression.

When she looked around and saw no one answering, she asked with concern, "Second Master Bao, what's wrong?"

The maids actually quite enjoyed talking to Jia Baoyu, because this master was really easy to talk to, and even if they occasionally said something wrong and offended him, he wouldn't care.

However, this cannot change the fact that Jia Baoyu is of noble status.

If Jia Baoyu were to have that "hysteria" in front of her, causing a stir among Grandmother Jia and the others, she, a second-class maid, would still be quite afraid.

Fortunately, Jia Baoyu's hysteria has been cured quite a bit over the years for some unknown reason, and the frequency of its onset has become increasingly lower.

Although his face was pale, he still managed to squeeze out a few words: "Second Brother Lian is in there too."

"Yes, that's right. Our second uncle is very good to our grandma."

Grandma said she was very tired after a long day and was going to sleep for an hour.

Who knew our second master would come back too, so we all went to sleep together.

The maidservant spoke with a firm and resolute tone.

That matter-of-fact expression and that innocent, clear voice struck Jia Baoyu's heart like a series of iron hammer blows.

His mind conjured up many images he didn't want to imagine at all.

He turned around hastily, wanting to leave.

Unexpectedly, Jia Lian's authoritative voice suddenly came from inside: "Who's outside?"

Although Zhen'er found it strange that Jia Baoyu had suddenly become so anxious, she immediately called out loudly, "Reporting to Second Master, it's Second Master Bao who's here. He's here to see our grandmother."

"It's Baoyu. Let him in."

Jia Baoyu had only taken two steps away when he naturally heard Jia Lian's words.

Faced with Zhen'er's inexplicable gaze, he turned around and walked dejectedly into the house.

As he expected, the room was still that annoying bright red.

Turning past a screen embroidered with mandarin ducks, one sees Jia Lian, dressed in two thin layers of undergarments, sitting on what used to be Baochai's bed, bending down to put on his socks.

Behind him, Baochai, who was also dressed in thin clothes, helped him put on his clothes.

Witnessing this scene of warmth, fragrance, and harmony between husband and wife, Jia Baoyu felt his heart shatter once again.

Even though his true love was Daiyu, his heart was still bleeding when he saw his beautiful cousin, whom he had met several times in his dreams, serving another man so tenderly and meticulously.

What terrified him even more was that he could already imagine Daiyu serving Jia Lian in the same way.

Jia Lian put on his socks, stood up on the footstool to make it easier for Baochai to continue dressing him, and looked at Jia Baoyu, asking, "What brings you here to see your sister Bao so late?"

"No, it's nothing. I was just wandering around and accidentally ended up here."

Seeing Jia Baoyu's downcast and dejected appearance, Jia Lian could easily guess what was on his mind.

But he didn't care. Instead, he asked, "I heard you haven't been feeling well lately and haven't been leaving the garden much."

Unfortunately, I've been too busy and haven't had a chance to visit you yet.

"I dare not trouble you, elder brother. I just caught a cold, but I'm all better now."

"That's fine then. Today is Lin Daiyu's birthday, and the old lady said she's going to throw a banquet. Your sister Bao and I are just getting ready to go."

"Go wait outside, and we'll go over together later."

"Yes……"

……

At Rongqing Hall, Grandmother Jia not only invited You Shi and her daughter-in-law from the East Mansion, but also some of the daughters-in-law, granddaughters-in-law, and granddaughters from the Eighth Household that she found pleasing.

Although it wasn't a coming-of-age ceremony, it was still Daiyu's first birthday after entering the family.

Grandmother Jia wanted to make it a more grand and formal affair.

As her maternal grandmother, this was also an opportunity to support her granddaughter, so that no one would dare to offend or bully Daiyu in the future.

Fortunately, Jia Lian had just held a grand banquet yesterday, and all the items were readily available, so it was not troublesome at all.

Before the banquet began, Jia Zheng found Jia Lian, pulled him aside, and said, "Lian'er, I've already checked with the accounting department. Yesterday, they received over 40,000 taels of silver in cash gifts, not to mention countless other precious presents..."

Your second aunt and I discussed it, and we decided that it's best if you keep these things and make proper arrangements for them."

Jia Lian said unhappily, "Why do you say that again, sir? Weren't we already agreed on this..."

Jia Zheng gave a wry smile: "I didn't know it would be like this before. You even brought 30,000 taels of silver to the storeroom for future use. Now that silver hasn't even been used up, and so much more is being put into the storeroom. Your aunt and I feel uneasy, as we feel we're taking advantage of you too much."

After all, all those guests yesterday only gave gifts because of you.

Jia Zheng generally disdained discussing matters of money and profit.

But this time it was clearly different.

The scale of yesterday's event and the number of guests were unprecedented, even for Jia Zheng.

Often, just because you want to host a grand banquet doesn't mean others will automatically give you the courtesy to attend.

But yesterday, he truly witnessed what it meant to have a sea of ​​guests and a full house of distinguished guests.

Those nearly a thousand guests who came... Here, nearly a thousand naturally refers to the main guests.

If you include attendants and grooms, the number would be countless.

Of these thousands of guests, more than half were of noble rank.

Such a quantity and quality resulted in a large amount of cash and gifts received, and the accounting department only managed to reconcile the accounts today.

While a dowry of 40,000 taels is extravagant, it becomes quite ordinary when divided among so many high-ranking officials, wealthy families, and powerful merchants.

Moreover, this is because truly thoughtful people will not simply give money as a gift, but will try to give something rare and precious to show their uniqueness and respect for the host.

Therefore, the value of those gifts far exceeds that of the monetary gifts.

This shows just how extravagant yesterday's feast was.

Based on this, Jia Zheng and others became increasingly aware of Jia Lian's current status and influence.

Therefore, even Lady Wang dared not take advantage of Jia Lian any longer.

Jia Zheng made the sincere suggestion, but Jia Lian laughed and said, "Master, there's no need to say that. I haven't thanked you for your hard work in preparing for me before. It's not like I'm being too polite to say that now."

Putting aside the fact that this was agreed upon beforehand, how could we easily go back on our word?

As for welcoming and seeing off guests, there is always a coming and going.

We received a gift yesterday. Does that mean we shouldn't reciprocate next time someone else has an event?
If I follow the master's suggestion and bring all the money and gifts home today, will I personally pay for the return gifts in the future, or will the government pay for them?
So, sir, you don't need to stand on ceremony with me.

It's rare for the government to be so wealthy now, so let the old lady and her wives enjoy their good fortune.

As for the question of whether we're gaining an advantage or suffering a loss, why should we, uncle and nephew, care about that?
I trust the master's character, and my eldest sister-in-law and third sister-in-law are very reliable in managing the household. The money and valuables are kept in the government treasury, so they won't run away.

At worst, when you and I, uncle and nephew, truly separate and live separately in the future, if there is still extra silver in the official treasury, we can divide it equally between ourselves.
"At that time, I'm afraid the master will feel he's been taken advantage of, since the income from the land and houses in the manor should all belong to Second Uncle."

Jia Zheng quickly said, "How could that be? You're saying that."

As long as you are still in the Jia family, you are the mainstay of our Jia family and the acting patriarch of our Jia clan.

Those clan profits should rightfully be your share; why would I feel like I'm losing out?

Jia Zheng seemed a little nervous. Now that Jia Lian was increasingly making no attempt to conceal his imperial lineage, it meant that the day he would leave the Jia family was drawing ever closer.

Jia Lian glanced at Jia Zheng's expression and laughed, "That's settled then. If Master doesn't mind sharing the clan's income with me, how could I possibly insist on dividing even a small amount of money and gifts with Master?"

If that's the case, it's better to inform the old lady sooner rather than later, and we, uncle and nephew, can split the bills."

Jia Zheng sighed, realizing that Jia Lian wasn't just being polite, so he didn't try to persuade him any further, and simply said, "Then it's settled."

When the day comes that you absolutely have to separate the family, you mustn't pretend to be generous and refuse everything.

The contents of the official treasury will be divided equally between you and me, uncle and nephew, in a 50/50 split!

Jia Zheng could see perfectly well that Jia Lian had become wealthy and didn't mind giving him a little of his own money to help Jia Mu and the others with their expenses.

He wasn't entirely clear on the current situation of the officials in Ningguo Mansion, but Rongguo Mansion was indeed gradually becoming wealthier.

He figured that as long as it wasn't a major event like building another Grand View Garden or welcoming the Imperial Concubine back to her family, the family's annual income would be enough to cover their expenses.

Therefore, officials will only become richer and richer in the future.

If that's the case, then sharing the spoils equally with Jia Lian in the future wouldn't be considered taking advantage of him too much.

After the uncle and nephew had discussed the matter, they were about to return to their seats.

Jia Lian suddenly remembered something and said to Jia Zheng, "Oh, right, there's one more thing I want to tell you, sir."

Jia Zheng immediately turned around.

"Baoyu is now of marriageable age. What are your plans for his future, Master?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Zheng looked as if a wound had been reopened, his face filled with annoyance.

"What other plans could there be? You know how much the old lady dotes on you."

Even if I wanted to make plans for him, it would be as difficult as climbing to the sky.

Jia Zheng was truly exhausted thinking about his two sons.

As for Jia Huan, he was far inferior to Jia Baoyu in both appearance and temperament.

I originally thought he was just an ordinary guy, but I never expected him to be so wicked.

Ever since he deliberately sowed discord in front of him and framed Jia Baoyu, Jia Zheng had completely given up hope for his future.

He never gave up on Jia Baoyu, however.

Unfortunately, the Dowager Lady Jia was like an insurmountable barrier, and he was truly powerless to help her.

Jia Lian disagreed: "In the past, the old lady doted on him and didn't let the master discipline him, simply because she felt that Brother Bao was still too young."

The situation is different now.

As long as the master gives kind advice and explains the pros and cons, the old lady is a reasonable person and will no longer indulge him.

I thought that the master had always wanted Baoyu to take the proper path of the imperial examinations, but I had no experience in this area, so I had never dared to pay attention to it.

If, in the future, Master changes his mind and wants Baoyu to follow in my footsteps, I can help Master guide him.

I dare not say much, but there is still a good chance of achieving a high rank, perhaps even reaching the third rank.

Upon hearing Jia Lian say that he was willing to help him manage the affairs and that he was guaranteed a future as a third-rank official, Jia Zheng was instantly tempted.

Although he always wanted Jia Baoyu to study hard and make progress so that he could enter officialdom through the imperial examinations and thus have a smooth and successful future that would be even brighter than his own.

However, he himself had taken the exam many times and knew all too well the difficulty of taking the proper path of imperial examinations.

Looking at Jia Baoyu's carefree and irresponsible attitude, and his lack of effort and ambition, he had actually considered changing his approach.

To be honest, it would be impossible for him not to feel envious as he watched Jia Lian get to where he is today.

But he knew in his heart that even if Jia Baoyu were to follow Jia Lian's path, he would not be able to succeed.

He knew very well what his son was capable of.

Moreover, even if we disregard the fact that Grandmother Jia was distressed, he himself was also distressed.

Following Jia Lian's path carries the risk of many mishaps.

If something were to happen to him, how would he explain it to Grandmother Jia, and how would he explain it to his wife who had lost her eldest son?
So after much deliberation, he sighed and said, "I appreciate your kindness. But as for Baoyu, well, let's not talk about it."

But you're right, I really can't let him continue like this.

I've come to understand that no matter how skilled I am in hiring a tutor for him, as long as he stays at home, he can't truly concentrate on his studies.

I had originally planned to send him to the Imperial Academy for further studies at a suitable time.

Your words have reminded me that this matter can no longer be postponed.

I'll go see the old lady tomorrow and discuss this matter with her.

Seeing the determination in Jia Zheng's eyes, Jia Lian knew that his goal had been achieved.

Exactly! Why is it that I, as the older brother, am running around all year round, while that kid can stay in the Land of Women all day long?

We need to find him and give him a good talking-to.

Moreover, although this kid has a good character, he's grown up now, and staying by his women's side all the time is always a potential problem.

Most importantly, now that he has married, he can't stay in the capital forever.

It's almost time for him to go to Tianjin to take charge.

"Master, there's no need to worry too much. In my opinion, both Brother Bao and Lan'er are intelligent."

They all have a great chance of passing the exam with flying colors.

Especially Lan'er, that kid seems honest on the surface, but he's actually very shrewd, I like him a lot.

Even if he fails the exam, I can still get him into the army and give him a bright future.

"Lan'er is so lucky to have an uncle like you who loves him so much."

...(End of chapter)