Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 679 Baoyu's Nonsense
In Rongqing Hall,

There was something strange mixed in with the laughter. It was unknown when the girls' minds were no longer so pure. They were not scheming against each other, but the thoughts in their hearts could no longer be hidden.

Xue Baochai blinked her beautiful eyes and saw that Lin Daiyu was no longer as frail as before. She was obviously in good health, which showed that the Marquis's Mansion had taken good care of her. Moreover, Sister Lin had long been granted the title of Earl by the palace. Even if she lived alone, she was still rich. As long as she had a son, her future life would be guaranteed.

In comparison, I felt much bleaker. I was born into a merchant family, my father died early, my brother was a troublesome person, and I had no future. I was actually a little worried. I was not afraid of being wronged in the future, but what about my offspring? Someone would need to take care of them.
After all, her brother was causing trouble and doing nothing, so he might as well earn more money. After all, even those Jianghu guests had their prices. After making up her mind, Xue Baochai also had her own ideas in mind.

Lin Daiyu turned her head and smiled charmingly at Xue Baochai. Under her charming face, there seemed to be a trace of sadness. She smiled and whispered;
"Sister Bao is the one who sees things clearly. She did see them. Let's not talk about these things for now. I haven't seen Sister Bao for a long time. But Sister Bao is too busy and doesn't have time."

"I'm not busy, but I'm spending time on the account books at the bank. Today I saw Sister Yu'er, she looks refreshed and in good health. I'm sure you'll be happy too."

Xue Baochai knew that Lin Daiyu had a kind heart, so she wanted to make friends with her. It was better to meet her early than to meet her by chance. When she went to the mansion in the future, she didn't know whether the wives and concubines in the mansion could get along well. She had to stick together with Lin Daiyu, so that she would have someone to rely on.

Qingwen returned to Miss Lin and poured Daiyu a cup of hot tea. She also fetched a jar of honey from somewhere, scooped two spoonfuls of honey with a spoon, put it in the tea and stirred it, then whispered to her:
"Miss Bao, drink this cup of water first. I will prepare another bowl for Miss Lin. Miss Lin has been taking medicine every day these days. She has just gotten better and the prescription has been changed. The dosage is a bit large, so I can only use some honey water to get rid of the bitterness."

He does not mean that,
Xue Baochai and Tanchun were both worried. They knew that Lin Daiyu's yard was filled with the smell of medicine and she had to drink it every day. They just didn't know how bitter it would be for her to drink so much.

Xue Baochai, on the other hand, had no other thoughts. Miss Lin might not be without distress. After all, both her parents had passed away, and she still had her mother and brother who cared about her. She was much better off than herself. She was not as good as the best, but better than the worst. That was all.

Said softly:
"I'm sorry, sister. You've suffered a lot these days."

Tanchun's eyes were red too. If she had known earlier, she would have gone to see Sister Lin.
"Sister Lin, please be careful on weekdays. When you are well, let's have a good talk together."

In Tanchun's opinion, given Daiyu's personality, she was unwilling to make it public. Firstly, she was strong-willed, and secondly, she was worried about Lady Jia, who was sad because of her affairs, so she stayed at home and rarely left the yard.

Lin Daiyu shook her head and said softly:
"It's not worth anything in the first place. If it causes a big stir, it will be bad. Let's all help her out today. It seems that Miss Meng is well-educated and virtuous. If she enters Rongguo Mansion, we will have someone to talk to."

As she spoke, Daiyu could not help but look up. She saw Baoyu, who was staring at Meng Yueyun. She felt as if she had seen this expression somewhere before. Somehow, she suddenly remembered Qingwen's words. Her eyes sparkled and she fell into thought.

"Sister Lin is right. I don't know what Second Brother means. It seems he is also interested."

As he spoke, his eyes could not help but look at Baoyu, who was staring at Miss Meng without blinking. Wasn't this the same scene as the joyful expression on his second brother's face when Sister Lin came to visit for the first time? This meant that he had chosen her and was happy in his heart. It would be good to have someone to look after his second brother and help him concentrate.

At this moment, a voice came from outside the hall, saying:
"Madam, Madam, the Luo Yunhou Mansion replied that Luo Yunhou had gone to the palace for official business, and Princess Qin had to serve Madam Wang, so they will not come."

original,

While Jia's grandmother was dozing off in the morning, she sent someone to Marquis Luo Yun's mansion early in the morning to invite Marquis Luo Yun and his wife to come and have a seat. One reason was to show her friendship, and the other was because of the exchange of gifts between them as they had accompanied her to Jing'an Temple to burn incense a few days ago. She also wanted to take advantage of the power of the marquis' mansion, which was somewhat selfish.

However, in the past few days, Luo Yunhou's appointment as the chief examiner of Hanyuan Palace has caused an uproar in the entire capital. There are all kinds of rumors, but strangely enough, the civil servants did not add fuel to the flames. Instead, everything was quiet. The old lady couldn't understand it.
Let's give it a try today. If you invite him, he will come. If he doesn't, we'll just give it a try. It's normal for him to be busy.

"If you didn't come, then you didn't come. After all, the Marquis is still busy with Enke's affairs. Let's get together again when there is a chance."

The tone was a little lost.

But the words are not finished yet,

The old woman outside the screen shouted again;
"Madam, Madam, although the Marquis's Mansion has not come, the Marquis' Mansion has sent a lot of things. They are outside. Should we bring them in?"

This sound obviously startled the people in the room, and Grandmother Jia was even more shocked. She immediately thought of Madam Wang, who was a very thoughtful person.
Then he smiled happily. It seemed that the Marquis' Mansion did not fail to respond, but gave him enough face.

"What are you waiting for? Hurry and bring him in. We are relatives, why are you being so polite?"

That color,
By the way, he also glanced at the girl from the Meng family next to him, only to see Meng Yueyun slightly open her mouth, obviously a little surprised. Mrs. Meng behind him instantly glanced around the room, taking in everyone's expressions, most of them were surprised and surprised. It can be seen that the Marquis's Mansion is not as often visited as the old lady said.

Outside the screen,
There was a noise.
A few maids came in and directed the servants to move the screen away. Then six servants came in carrying three large red boxes. They looked quite heavy and it took a lot of effort to put them down. The ground shook, making the people in the room even more curious.

at this time,

Wang Xifeng stood up. She loved these things the most. She went to the hall and asked someone to open the box.

The first box was opened first, and inside it was a layer of yellow cloth. When the cloth was lifted, a golden tree with silver branches was seen, shining brightly inside.
Wang Xifeng was so surprised that she couldn't close her mouth.
"Oh, it's actually a golden osmanthus tree, old lady, this is a rare thing."

The so-called golden osmanthus tree is a tree with a trunk made of gold and branches made of silver, which symbolizes auspicious events. Golden osmanthus, golden osmanthus, there will be endless gold and silver in the house.
The people around were astonished, and the visitor from the Meng family was even more shocked. Mrs. Meng was extremely surprised that the Marquis Luo Yun's Mansion was so wealthy. Her previous idea was immediately overturned. These were not gifts that could be given through ordinary relationships. It seemed that the Marquis' Mansion and the Duke's Mansion had a close relationship.

When he looked at the second box, he found nothing amazing when he opened it. It was just batches of top-quality Shu brocade in different colors. It just so happened that the Rongguo Mansion was in short supply of these, so the girls' clothes were now available.

Wang Xifeng secretly praised it and opened the third box. It was a little vulgar, as it was full of silver, which was actually 10,000 taels of silver as a gift.

"Old lady, how did you tell the Marquis's Mansion that such a big gift has come?"

Grandmother Jia had not expected that so many people would come to the Marquis of Luo Yun's mansion. She had just sent a letter to Lady Wang to tell her about Baoyu's blind date, but she had never expected this to happen. Needless to say, she was grateful from the bottom of her heart.

"What can I say? Your niece doesn't know. Madam Wang from the Marquis's Mansion is too polite. Keep the things and write them down."

The servants who came in, under the direction of the old woman, carried the box out again. While they were laughing, Wang Xifeng saw Ping'er winking at her from behind the screen, and realized that the kitchen was ready.
Then he followed the crowd and said;

"That's great. Sister Xiangyun is here today, and Sister Yueyun is here too. This is a double blessing. Let's not get into this, old lady. Let's stop eating."

"Okay, let's stop talking nonsense and let the two girls have a taste of our cooking skills. What do you think, girl Meng?"

"I've listened to the old lady, but I don't know the relationship between the Marquis of Luo Yun's Mansion and the mansion. Please forgive me for saying too much."

Meng Yueyun was a little confused at this time. The Marquis's Mansion was so polite. What was the relationship like?

With this remark,
All eyes were directed towards Meng Yueyun. Even Shi Xiangyun, who was sitting dignified beside her, cast a pair of calm eyes in this direction.

The question was asked suddenly, but Grandmother Jia did not complain and replied with a smile;

"There is nothing that cannot be said. Marquis Luo Yun is also an outsider. My granddaughter is also from the Marquis' Mansion. We are related, that's all."

Some things cannot be said too bluntly, it depends on how you understand them, depending on the words.

As we speak,
The maids and servants had already begun to set up the tables and chairs and served tea and snacks. The Second Wife had not taken her eyes off Baoyu since he came in. Seeing that Baoyu was silent, many maids surrounded the young man like stars surrounding the moon, and did not even serve him anything to eat.
Madam Wang frowned and said softly:
"Yuchuan, make Baoyu a bowl of yogurt tea. Don't be hungry now."

"Yes, ma'am."

Yuchuan responded and turned around to make tea.

When Jia's mother heard what the second wife said, she looked at Baoyu. It was indeed too quiet today. She smiled and said:
"It's time to eat. My Baoyu is so hungry. Look, he's not talking at all."

Yuchuan came back with some butter tea and brought it to Baoyu, saying:
"Second Master, drink some tea, be careful of the heat."

Jia Baoyu responded. He had no food left in his stomach and felt a little uncomfortable. He reached out to take the tea, but his mind was absent-minded. He looked around at the many women. Then he lost balance and the porcelain bowl fell to the ground with a click. Yuchuan was startled and quickly dodged, but the warm tea fell into Baoyu's hand.

The rosary in Mrs. Wang's hand fell down at once. She stood up suddenly, her face anxious, and shouted:

"Baoyu, Baoyu..."

Grandmother Jia's smile froze on her face, and she said anxiously:

"Baoyu, my son, how could you be so careless?"

"Hey, my Second Master, be careful not to get burned." Yuchuan's face turned pale. Xiren, who was beside her, took the cold tea and washed Second Master Bao's face.

Yuchuan was at a loss what to do at this moment and dropped the soup bowl, scalding Baoyu. Now, in front of everyone, in front of Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang, she was terrified.

Jia Baoyu was different. He waved his hand and looked at Yuchuan's fair and beautiful face. Her figure became even more charming. He smiled.
"Sister Yuchuan, where did you get burned? Does it hurt?"

Yuchuan, Mrs. Wang, and Lady Jia were all stunned for a moment. What was going on?

Xiren became even more anxious, wondering if Master Bao was suffering from hysteria.

This scene,
Meng Yueyun found something strange, so she raised her eyes and glanced at Baoyu, and then exchanged a look with Mrs. Meng behind her, and they looked at each other in surprise.

It seems to be saying, this gentleman, why does he look so unintelligent, is he not a scumbag inside out?

Jia's mother could no longer sit still, so she stood up and asked Wang Xifeng and Li Wan to support her. She walked forward, grabbed Baoyu's hand, looked at the red mark on it, frowned and said:
"My son, look where you've been burned. Yuanyang, quickly bring a cold towel and apply it to Baoyu. There's a small red mark on the back of his hand. Be careful not to get blisters."

"Yes, old lady."

As soon as the people left, Mrs. Wang also came forward to check. Seeing Baoyu's behavior, she looked at Yuchuan coldly and couldn't help scolding:

"What can a clumsy, stupid thing do?"

Yuchuan's face paused, she lowered her head, stepped aside and dared not say a word.

A group of maids and old women immediately surrounded them, saying nice things to them, leaving Meng Yueyun, Shi Xiangyun and the others aside.

This is obviously not the way to entertain guests, Qingwen grumbled beside Lin Daiyu.

"Miss, I didn't see what happened either."

The voice was still loud. Tanchun, Yingchun, Xichun, and Xue Baochai all looked over here. Lin Daiyu also looked at Baoyu, her eyes fell on the yogurt tea that was not very hot on the ground. She was silent for a moment and said:

"That's true. Sister Yuanyang, why are you so slow? Hurry up and apply a cold towel. If you're any later, the red marks will have gone away."

Noisy room,
The clear voice spread throughout the hall, making the people around him look a little embarrassed. Xue Baochai was even more stunned.

This time, it was Xiangyun who couldn't hold back first. She laughed out loud, holding her stomach.

"Sister Yu, how can you be so delicate when loving your brother?"

A burst of laughter also rang out in Rongqing Hall. Sanchun girl certainly couldn't help laughing, and even Grandmother Jia couldn't help feeling a little bit of a dilemma. As for Sister Feng, her face was strange, her pink lips moved, and she didn't know what to say.

But Mrs. Wang's face was gloomy and she was filled with anger. How could the girl from the Lin family do this?

When did her Baoyu become the object of ridicule in Rongqing Hall? And in front of Miss Meng,

"They are all from Luo Yunhou Mansion!"

As Mrs. Wang thought about this, she even glanced at Xiangyun, and she even felt a little hatred for Xiangyun.

Shi Xiangyun was totally unaware of this, and walked up to Baoyu and said:

"Ai bro, are you okay?"

Jia Baoyu was fine and felt no pain, so he also laughed and said:
"It wasn't hot originally, it was like the old man was in a hurry to give it to me. The red mark has gone away, it's nothing."

"Ancestor, you are about to take the Enke exam, so why would you be so squeamish about a minor injury or illness?"

Since Lin Daiyu's health improved, she is no longer as weak as before, and speaks with a lot more confidence. With her temperament as a scholar, her words are quite authoritative.

When Jia Baoyu heard that it was Lin Daiyu's voice, he threw his hands and rolled up his sleeves.
"Grandfather, it's just a small matter, why make a fuss about it?"

He was quite manly, which made people around him feel a little unnatural. Master Bao had grown up. Even Mrs. Wang standing beside him frowned, and the anger in her heart... seemed to have dissipated a little.

"My dear ancestors, everyone has bumps and bruises. When I was a kid, I climbed trees every day and fell from them sometimes. At that time, I would just brush off the dirt on my body and go out to play."

Fengjie hurriedly tried to comfort her, but finding the atmosphere not right, she made fun of her own embarrassing moments and glanced at Daiyu from time to time, wondering if Daiyu learned her temperament from the maid Qingwen.

Seeing that Baoyu was fine, Jia's mother changed her expression. It was Yu'er who said that. No matter what, she couldn't complain. She smiled and said:

"Monkey, you were noisy when you were little, and you often made a lot of noise. Our Baoyu is a quiet and beautiful girl, even more beautiful and beautiful than that girl."

Everyone in Rongqing Hall laughed when they heard this, and the atmosphere became noisy, light and joyful again.

I don't know if it was the atmosphere or Jia Baoyu was suddenly drifting away, but Baoyu smiled along with everyone else and said in a clear voice:
"Well said. If there is an afterlife, I would rather be born a girl than a man."

A word came out,
The laughter in Rongqing Hall stopped, and everyone turned their eyes to Baoyu, with expressions of shock, surprise, and confusion.

Mrs. Wang frowned and scolded:
"What nonsense! Who taught you that?!"

Xiren, who was standing by, quickly stepped forward and grabbed Baoyu, who was already pale, and signaled Bao Erye not to say anything more.

Grandmother Jia's smile froze for a moment, but she knew she couldn't say anything nonsense today, so she said softly:
"The kids are just joking, why do you take it so seriously?"

There are outsiders here at this moment, especially the girl from the Meng family, why did she get so angry?

Mrs. Wang had just felt humiliated and was upset. She had now guessed that this was a blind date for Baoyu. Upon hearing this, she said to Lady Jia:

"I don't know what has happened to this good man. He actually said something like this. I don't know who taught him to do that."

I didn't think much of it before, but it was really chilling for my son to say such stupid things in front of many people.

But when Mrs. Wang said this, Mrs. Xing's eyes in the crowd lit up. She thought it was a good opportunity, so she stood up and was about to speak.

I had already been glared at by Lady Jia;
"What a child says doesn't count. It's just a coincidence."

Sister Feng hurriedly accompanied him and said with a smile:
"Grandfather, there is no need to worry. We are just talking to each other. Baoyu has been studying hard these days and is really bored. I heard that the Hanyuan Hall in the palace is being renovated. It may be a long time before the renovation. I understand."

Grandmother Jia called out,
"What Feng girl said makes sense. Come on, prepare for the banquet. We are all hungry. We don't have so many rules in Rongguo Mansion. We should learn from Luo Yunhou Mansion. Too many rules are not a good thing."

After he finished speaking, he glanced at Madam Wang and Madam Xing, as if with a warning in mind. When the two saw him, they remained silent and said nothing.

The others had obviously received Lady Jia's hint and returned to their seats on their own accord.

Meng Yueyun watched several people talking from the side. Her beautiful face paused, her eyes flashed, and she sighed softly in her heart.

How could she not know what her parents meant, but Baoyu didn't mention the age difference, just the personality, whether it was suitable or not.

Mrs. Meng behind him also had a somewhat strange look on her face when she looked at Baoyu. It was said that the legitimate sons of noble families were mostly modest gentlemen, or people of temperament and unrestrained. However, there were some weak ones like this, but they were not many. After all, it was normal for men in wealthy families to like women, but there were very few who wanted to be women!
(End of this chapter)