The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 518 Still Retreating
Jia Huan looked at the furious Big-faced Bao in front of him, frowned slightly and asked, "What do you mean, Second Brother Bao?"

Jia Baoyu was originally handsome, and to use the words of the original novel to describe him, he was "as beautiful as a flower in the early spring morning." But at this moment, his face turned ashen, and the muscles on his face were twisted with anger. He said with a "Pah," "Huan Lao San, stop pretending here. You have always been the best at pretending to be a good person and winning people's hearts, but in fact you are treacherous. They have all been deceived by you, and only remember your kindness and revolve around you. Unfortunately, you can't deceive me. You, Jia Huan, are a sinister and cunning despicable villain.

Not only did you steal Ping'er from Lian Erge, but now you are trying to steal my Qingwen. You are so greedy and vicious. You, Jia Huan, are a treacherous hero like Cao Mengde and Wang Mang."

Jia Huan could not help but laugh. Ping'er was also so angry that her pretty face turned red. She stepped forward and said, "Second Master Bao is so unreasonable. Originally, I should not have said anything about the conflict between you two masters. But since Second Master Bao mentioned me, I have to clarify. Third Master never used any conspiracy to snatch me away. I volunteered to serve Third Master. As for Qingwen, Third Master never asked Madam for her. Second Master Bao, please don't put the blame on our Third Master."

Jia Baoyu shook his head and said, "The reason why a conspiracy is a conspiracy is because others cannot see it clearly. I will not share the evidence with you. Sister Ping'er is willing to follow Huan Lao San, and I can't control it, but Qingwen must be returned to me!"

It is said that Big Face Bao was forced to go to school early this morning, but his mind was not on studying. He finally waited until the school was over and immediately packed up to go home. On the way, he was still thinking about how to mix rouge. As a result, when he returned to Yihong Courtyard, he found that almost half of the maids had been driven away. He felt like the sky was falling, especially Qingwen, who was one of his favorite maids.

At that moment, Big-Lian Bao acted like a madman. He ignored the dissuasion of Xiren and others and went straight to Yueweiju to ask Jia Huan for the person.

At this time, Xiren and Sheyue finally arrived. While apologizing to Jia Huan and Ping'er, they pulled Jia Baoyu and begged, "Good ancestor, stop making trouble and come back with us."

Jia Baoyu shook off the hands of the two maids and said angrily, "I won't leave. Huan Lao San has evil intentions and has used tricks to bring Qingwen here. I will never let this despicable villain succeed, otherwise Qingwen will be like a lamb in the tiger's mouth and will never be able to recover."

Xiren glanced awkwardly at Jia Huan, who looked calm, and said softly, "Second Master, you misunderstood. It was Madam's idea to let Qingwen serve Third Master Huan. Now that more than half of the staff in the mansion has been reduced, we have to make new arrangements. It just so happens that there are too many maids serving Second Master, and Third Master Huan is short of staff, so Qingwen was transferred here."

"Why Qingwen? It's because Qingwen is prettier than others and was chosen by Huan Lao San. It's obvious that Madam has also been fooled by Huan Lao San." Jia Baoyu gritted his teeth and stared at Jia Huan, shouting angrily.

Probably because the noise was too loud, the maids passing by couldn't help but peek into the house and listen attentively.

Jia Huan had a sharp eye and clearly saw someone hiding outside the door curtain, peeking out and then shrinking back. It seemed to be Qingwen, so he said calmly, "Second Brother Bao, please don't make a fuss here. Just as Sister Ping'er said, I have never asked Madam for Qingwen, nor have I played any tricks. Frankly speaking, I don't even need any more staff here. If Qingwen is willing to go back with you, you can take her away anytime. She is in the wing room on the left."

Jia Baoyu was stunned for a moment, then asked happily, "Really?"

"You can take her away now!" Jia Huan waved his hand.

Jia Baoyu turned around and lifted the curtain to go out, but Xiren and Sheyue's faces changed slightly, and they hurriedly chased after him, holding Jia Baoyu and saying, "Second Master, don't do that!"

Jia Baoyu was surprised and asked, "Why? Huan Lao San has agreed. Don't you want Qingwen to go back?"

Xiren shook her head and said, "Of course we want Qingwen to go back, but this is arranged by Madam. You'd better ask Madam for permission first. If Madam agrees, it won't be too late to take Qingwen back."

Musk Moon echoed, "That's right, it will save Madam from being unhappy, and it won't be good for Qingwen either."

Jia Baoyu hesitated when he heard this. At this time, Jia Huan and Ping'er also came out of the house and stood on the steps, watching coldly.

Jia Baoyu's expression changed for a moment, and he said to Jia Huan, "Brother Huan, I misunderstood you just now. I'm sorry. I will go and ask the lady for instructions and come back to pick up Qingwen."

Jia Huan said calmly, "Brother Bao, please do as you please."

Jia Baoyu turned around and walked out of Yueweiju quickly. Xiren and Sheyue hurriedly followed him. Qingwen was hiding behind the door in the room, her face full of joy. She was full of expectations, but when she heard that Jia Baoyu and others were leaving, her heart suddenly sank.

Jia Huan glanced at the room where Qingwen was, shook his head, turned around and went back into the room.

To be honest, when watching "Dream of Red Mansions" in his previous life, Jia Huan admired the character of Qingwen very much and sympathized with her tragic ending. So just now he hoped that Big Face Bao could be brave enough to take Qingwen back directly. Unfortunately, Big Face Bao is still the same Big Face Bao. He is irresponsible and only cares about flirting with girls without protecting them. He becomes a coward when something happens. In the original novel, Qingwen was seriously ill when she was driven out of the house. As a result, Jia Baoyu was afraid of disobeying Mrs. Wang and did not dare to come forward to protect her, which eventually led to Qingwen's death in poverty, illness and humiliation.

If Jia Baoyu had a little bit of responsibility and showed half the ability he had when he threw the jade and threw a tantrum, he would probably be able to force Mrs. Wang to change her mind. At the very least, he could wait until Qingwen recovered from her illness before sending her away. This tragedy might have been avoided.

Now, if Da Lian Bao had taken Qingwen back directly, Jia Huan would have looked at him with new eyes. However, this boy was easily persuaded by Xiren with a few words, and he naively went to ask Mrs. Wang for permission. This was simply courting disaster. You should know that Mrs. Wang was worried that Qingwen was too beautiful and behaved "frivolously", which would affect her son's study. That's why she drove Qingwen away and sent Jia Huan to "harm" her. How could she agree to Jia Baoyu taking Qingwen back? So Jia Huan concluded that Jia Baoyu would definitely not come back to take Qingwen back. If this boy really came back to take Qingwen back, he would have to respect him as a man.

…………

In Jia's mother's room, Madam Wang stood quietly in front of the bed, and the haggard-looking Jia was still sleeping on the bed. Yuanyang usually stayed with her almost all the time, but at this moment, Madam Wang sent her out, so there was no one else in the room except Madam Wang.

Mrs. Wang stared at the dying old man in his seventies on the bed. Her expression was complicated, her eyes flickered, and her breathing gradually became rapid. The opportunity was not to be missed, because Yuanyang would be back soon.

Mrs. Wang gritted her teeth, reached into her sleeve, took out a handkerchief and covered the old lady's nose with it. However, at this moment, Grandmother Jia suddenly opened her eyes.

Mrs. Wang was so frightened that her face turned pale and she almost fell to the ground. She quickly held onto the edge of the bed and pretended to wipe the corners of Jia's mouth with a handkerchief, saying happily, "The old lady is awake?"

Jia's mother seemed to be still conscious, her eyes were a little out of focus, and it took her a while to recognize the person in front of her. She asked weakly, "Zheng'er's wife, what time is it now? Where is Yuanyang?"

"Yuanyang has just gone out to get medicine," Mrs. Wang said, taking out a pocket watch and looking at it. "It's the end of the afternoon now."

At this time, Yuanyang came in with a bowl of medicine. Seeing that Jia's mother had woken up, she smiled and said, "The old lady has woken up, and it's time to take the medicine."

Mrs. Wang helped to lift Lady Jia up, and then Yuanyang began to feed her medicine, while Mrs. Wang stood by. If someone looked carefully, they would see that there was still a thin layer of cold sweat on her forehead.

After taking the medicine, Jia Mu seemed to be in better spirits. She asked about the situation in the mansion, and Yuanyang answered one by one. After listening, Jia Mu nodded and said, "Huan'er did a good job. Logically, the number of servants in our mansion should have been reduced a long time ago, but they are all old people who have served the master for generations. It is really difficult to do it. Now that they have voluntarily left, it is irrelevant."

Yuanyang saw that Jia's mother's spirits were not as high as before, and it seemed that she was getting better. She couldn't help but feel happy secretly, and said with a smile: "It was the old lady who had a keen eye for talent and let Master Huan San be the manager. Master Huan San is really amazing. Now we have survived the disaster, and our mansion will gradually get better in the future."

Grandmother Jia nodded and said, "If Huan'er didn't have some skills, how could he have caused such a big commotion in the south? Oh, right, the Spring Examination is about to begin, right?"

"Come quickly, there are still ten days or so." Mrs. Wang said.

"Well, let Huan'er concentrate on preparing for the exam. He doesn't have to worry about all the trivial matters at home. The imperial examination is the top priority. Whether my Jia family can make a comeback depends on Huan'er. I hope that my old bones can still see the day when Huan'er passes the imperial examination."

Mrs. Wang smiled unnaturally and said, "The old lady has an unparalleled life and good fortune. She will definitely see it."

Yuanyang also smiled and said, "Madam is right. The old lady should wait for the good news from Master Huan San."

Before she had finished her words, Jia Baoyu came in in a hurry. When he saw Grandmother Jia sitting and talking, he was overjoyed and knelt down to greet her: "Greetings, old ancestor."

Grandmother Jia showed a doting look, called Jia Baoyu to her bedside, touched him tenderly, and asked a few questions about his schooling. She felt a little tired.

Mrs. Wang asked Grandmother Jia to have a good rest, and then took Jia Baoyu away. As soon as Jia Baoyu left Grandmother Jia's courtyard, he hugged Mrs. Wang's hand and said coquettishly: "Mother, let Qingwen come back to serve me. I will study hard."

Madam Wang said gloomily, "Shut up! I chased this devil away so that you can concentrate on your studies. Don't let your wishful thinking stop. If you don't listen to me, I'll just kill myself. That way you won't be alone in your old age and suffer from other people's bullying!"

After Mrs. Wang finished speaking, her eyes turned red and she actually covered her face and started crying. Jia Baoyu's face turned pale and his head was buzzing. He really didn't understand why his mother would target a maid so much and even threatened to kill herself!
"Son, you better fight for your life. If you don't study hard and get a good score in the exam, there will be no place for you and me in the Jia family in the future."

At first, Mrs. Wang was just pretending, using the mother-son affection to force Jia Baoyu to submit. However, her deep feelings were touched, and she finally started crying for real, hugging Jia Baoyu and sobbing.

Jia Baoyu couldn't help but panic. How could he dare to mention Qingwen again?
(End of this chapter)