Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

The next morning, at Xiaoxiang Pavilion.

When Jia Cong woke up, he felt refreshed and easily freed his hands and feet from the peach blossom array of Youshi and Keqing.

The two woke up immediately and called the maid to serve them.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "That Burmese bell of yours truly is a favorite of yours, sister-in-law. Where did you get it?"

Yushi blushed and said, "It was your damned elder brother who shamelessly brought it from outside."

Jia Cong laughed and said, "I'll have the craftsmen make a few more someday and give one to each of you as a small New Year gift."

Yu Shi spat and said, "You men always find ways to torment others."

Jia Cong was surprised and said, "My dear sister-in-law, I just gave you something to give you. It's up to you whether you need it or not. Why do you blame me? You are confessing yourself."

Yu was speechless and could not respond. She just spat, "Vile."

Keqing hugged Jia Cong and laughed, "No matter how good that thing is, it's just a dead object. How can it compare to your uncle?"

"I agree with this."

You Shi cursed inwardly, calling the little whore shameless. She dressed quickly and ordered Ruizhu, Yindie'er and others to serve Jia Cong.

After a while, the three of them were dressed, and Youshi asked, "Do you want to eat here or go back home?"

Jia Cong thought for a moment and said, "Let's eat here. It's not a good idea to go back now."

Yu gave him a cold look, thinking that he was a man with lustful thoughts but no courage, and ordered the meal to be served.

The three were eating when they heard a maid come to report.

"Grandma, the fourth girl wants you to come over."

"What's the matter?" Youshi was slightly stunned. Xichun rarely interacted with them, so why did she suddenly invite them today?

"The fourth girl didn't say anything."

You Shi hesitated for a moment, put down her chopsticks, and said with a smile, "My sister-in-law invited me, I dare not neglect her. You guys eat, I'll go and take a look."

Jia Cong waved his hand and said, "Go. Xichun's personality is a little bit eccentric now, teach her more."

"Yes." Yushi agreed and left with the maid.

Xiaoxiang Pavilion is very close to Ouxiang Pavilion, and can be reached by crossing the Fengyao Bridge and a winding bamboo bridge. When Youshi came in, she did not greet Xichun when she saw her, but just sat at the table with a frosty face. Ruhua knelt at her feet with tears streaming down her face.

"Oh, who has offended the girl so early in the morning?" Yu was surprised and asked hurriedly.

Xichun glanced at the table and said, "It's all because of this package."

You Shi understood and looked at Ruhua with a hint of reproach, "You are also confused and blinded by greed. Although it was given to your brother by the masters and the chief steward of the East Palace, you should not have sent it privately. Now the official salt has become private salt. Isn't it unfair?"

Xichun glanced at Youshi and said, "Ruhua was originally given to me by my elder brother Shizhen when I came here. You didn't discipline her properly and instead scolded her. There are so many sisters in the garden. How can I face others if my maid is so shameless!
Yesterday I asked Sister Feng to take her there, but she refused. I think that since she is now living in Third Brother's house, she doesn't want to get involved in the mess here, which makes sense.

I was just about to send her back to my sister-in-law today. Now that she is here, take her away quickly. I don’t care whether you beat her, kill her, or sell her.”

When Ruhua heard this, she cried and begged, "I won't do it again. I just ask you to take our love into consideration and let us stay together for life and death!"

Youshi and Xichun's nurse could not bear to see this, and all of them advised: "She was just confused for a moment, she won't dare to do it again next time. She has served you since she was a child, so you should keep her."

Who would have thought that although Xichun was young, she was born with an unyielding, honest, and solitary character. No matter what others said, she just thought it was a loss of her dignity, and she gritted her teeth and refused to agree.

Caiping, who was serving at the door, was filled with grief and indignation. She had always heard that protecting one's relatives from each other was the teaching of the saints. Although the master and the servant were not relatives, they grew up together and were closer than relatives. She had only heard that the master would protect his servant and would not allow outsiders to bully him.

How could it be that when outsiders had given up, her own girl would instead wish to put her own eldest daughter to death?

There are so many girls in the garden, but which one is so cold and indifferent? Thinking of this, Cai Ping's heart of loyal service also became discouraged.

She and Ruhua have been sisters for many years and have always been very close. Seeing that she was in trouble now, she did not care about anything else. She thought to herself that the Duke had some sympathy for Ruhua last night and had some complaints about the Fourth Young Lady. Why not tell him about it? Perhaps there would be a chance of recovery.

He did not care about offending Xichun, and hurriedly slipped out. When he passed by Xiaoxiang Pavilion, he ran into Jia Cong who had just finished his meal and was out for a walk. He was overjoyed and kowtowed, begging, "Master, please have mercy and save my life."

In the Ouxiang Pavilion, Youshi urged: "Fourth Miss, now that you have driven Ruhua away, what should she do? It's not a big deal, why are you so heartless?"

Xichun was unmoved and said coldly, "Not only do you not want to be painted, but I am also too old now, so it is not convenient for me to go to your place. Besides, I have heard people gossiping about you behind your back recently! If I go again, I will be implicated as well."

Yu Shi felt guilty and angry, and said, "Who is talking about what? What is there to talk about? Who is the young lady? Who are we? Since the young lady heard people talking about us, she should ask him."

Xichun sneered, "You are asking me this question. I am a girl and I should avoid trouble. But I go looking for trouble. What kind of person am I?"
There is another saying: I am not afraid of your anger, God is watching what you do. It is also said that there is a god above your head, and if you do too many dirty and bad things, you will get retribution one day.

I only know that I can protect myself, and I don't care about you. From now on, don't burden me if you have any problems."

Yu-shi was furious when she heard this, and she said to the people below, "No wonder everyone says that this fourth girl is young and foolish, I just don't believe it.

Listen to what he just said. It was without reason, and it didn’t know what was good or bad, and it didn’t take the seriousness of the matter seriously. Even though it was just a child’s words, it was chilling.”

The maids were all a little embarrassed. They naturally understood that Xichun was alluding to the dirty things between Youshi, the mother-in-law and the daughter-in-law, and Jia Cong. They all laughed and said, "The girl is young, so it's natural that grandma will suffer some losses."

Xichun sneered, "Although I am young, I am not young when I say this. You don't read books and don't know a few words, so you are all fools. You look at me as a wise man and say that I am young and foolish."

You Shi was offended by her repeatedly and became angry. She sneered and said, "I know you are well-read and have read a lot of books. You are the most talented person in ancient and modern times. You know better than your brother, who is the most talented person in the world. What do you think?"

Xichun retorted, "Of course I dare not compare myself to my third brother. My sister-in-law and your daughter-in-law know that my third brother is not only a talented man, but also a talented and romantic man."

As soon as these words were spoken, the room suddenly fell silent. Normally, everyone was intimidated by Jia Cong's tyranny, and although they knew all these things, they dared not gossip about him. Now, they suddenly heard Xichun bring up the matter, and they all wished they were deaf so as not to be implicated.

Yu Shi was so angry that her face turned red. She could no longer keep a straight face and slammed the table and said angrily, "How dare you! Your maid did something wrong and I came to try to mediate, but now it's my fault.

"I tolerated you for a long time, but you took advantage of me, made sarcastic remarks, and made innuendos. It's bad enough that you ruined my reputation, but you don't even care about your third brother? You are a cold-hearted, cruel person!"

Seeing her angry, Xichun was not afraid and said, "The ancients once said, 'If you are not a cruel person, you will hardly be able to be a self-reliant man.' I am an innocent person, why did you let me get into trouble?
I only feel sorry for you poor people. You are so evil that you don't even realize it, and you use your third brother to put pressure on me.

Now he is naturally on your side... It's a pity that Third Brother is so talented, but he can't realize it after all, and he is deceived by the appearance of beauty. In the end, not only did he end up with nothing, but he also committed more sins and damaged his own well-being. Even Sister Bao and Sister Lin were wronged."

Yu Shi was extremely angry and pointed at her and said in a trembling voice: "You! You are talking nonsense. What are you saying? Don't forget your identity."

Seeing that she was furious, Xichun smiled and said, "I am familiar with Buddhist scriptures and never tell lies.

As for my status, although I am still the fourth young lady, I have long seen through the worldly affairs and will not stay here in the future. I will find a quiet place and not get mixed up with filthy people like you, which would tarnish the Buddha's heart."

"You! You..." Yu Shi gnashed her teeth in anger and was about to leave when she heard a cold voice coming from the door. "It seems that the fourth sister has really come to her senses."

Upon hearing the voice, the servants and maids were frightened like quails and hurriedly knelt on the ground to pay their respects.

Xichun felt a little nervous when she suddenly saw Jia Cong. She bowed quickly and said, "Hello, Third Brother."

"It is difficult for us, the filthy people, to understand, and we dare not accept the courtesy of a pure person like Fourth Sister." Jia Cong snorted coldly.

When Youshi heard this, she was very happy and just looked at Xichun with a sneer. "You ungrateful little girl, you are just a lowly creature that crawled out of the intestines of a slave for several generations, but you pretend to be more noble than the princess. Just wait and see how you die."

Xichun knew that Jia Cong had heard what she had just said, so she just pursed her lips, lowered her head and dared not say anything.

Jia Cong sat down, glanced at Ruhua lying on the ground, and said calmly, "Fourth sister, what do you want to do today? Just tell me."

Xichun gritted her teeth and said with her neck stiff, "Please ask Third Brother to take Ruhua away. I don't want a girl with such bad behavior here."

Jia Cong nodded and said, "Birds of a feather flock together. You are indeed not worthy of being served by Ruhua. Ruhua, pack your things and go to Xiaoxiang Pavilion to serve Grandmother."

"Yes." Ruhua kowtowed to Jia Cong, got up and left.

Xichun was stabbed by Jia Cong in front of everyone, and the young lady became angry and sneered, "What do you mean by that, Third Brother?"

Jia Cong looked at her coldly and said, "Just now you said that you are a cruel person. Coincidentally, I am also a kind-hearted brother. You and I are similar in nature.

Since you have seen through the mundane world and do not want to get involved with us, I will help you. Ruhua has already gone, so you can go too."

Xichun shuddered and asked, "Where are we going?"

"I'll find you a quiet place so that you can concentrate on studying Buddhist scriptures and serving the Buddha. Don't say that your brother doesn't take care of you." Jia Cong smiled coldly.

Xichun was also a tough guy, so she just gave it a try and bowed slightly, saying, "Thank you, Third Brother, for your help."

Jia Cong waved his hand and said, "Come here, take off all the gold and jade jewelry on the fourth young lady. Except for her Buddhist scriptures, you are not allowed to take anything away from this room."

"Yes."

Several maids hurriedly pulled Xichun in to clean up, and a few other servant girls packed up the Buddhist scriptures she often read.

Youshi let out a long sigh of relief and felt very happy. She thought Jia Cong wanted to drive Xichun out of the house. She felt as if she had eaten a ginseng fruit. All the pores on her body relaxed and she felt so happy that she just stood quietly aside without saying a word.

After a while, Xichun, after re-dressing herself, took off all her jewelry and wore only wooden hairpins, her expression still stubborn and arrogant.

"Come with me!" Jia Cong glanced at her, waved his hand, and turned to leave.

Youshi hurriedly chased after him and whispered, "Where do you want to send the fourth girl?"

"Longcui Temple."

"Hmm?" Yu Shi was a little disappointed: "Why go there? I mean... I'm afraid the fourth young lady won't be able to get used to it."

"Can't get used to it? Didn't she have a sudden realization? How can a monk live in a luxurious mansion?" Jia Cong sneered.

Yu Shi smiled and said, "That's right."

The group took Xichun through half of the Grand View Garden and arrived at the foot of a small hill. The maids and servants along the way were shocked when they saw what was happening and hurried around to report the news.

Jia Cong led everyone directly to the gate of Longcui Temple.

"Greetings to the Duke, the Grand Madam, and the Fourth Young Lady." The door opened and the two maids hurriedly put their hands together in greeting.

"Please ask Master Miaoyu to come out and tell her that I have something to do." Jia Cong walked in and sat in the yard.

"Yes."

After a while, Miaoyu, wearing a lavender Shu brocade gown with colorful cloud patterns, came in gracefully. She clasped her hands together and smiled, saying, "I am sorry for not welcoming you, Your Excellency."

I haven't seen Miaoyu for more than a year since I last picked plum blossoms. I found that she has become more beautiful. Although she was wearing a thick padded jacket, it could not hide her graceful figure.

"I dare not, I dare not, disturb the master's meditation." Jia Cong returned the greeting.

Miaoyu noticed that he looked strange, and also saw Xichun's "downcast" look, so she hurriedly asked, "What do you want, Duke?"

Jia Cong pointed at Xichun and said, "It's because of my sister's matter."

"Fourth Miss...what's the matter?"

"My sister has worshipped Buddhism since she was young and has been familiar with Buddhist scriptures. Now she claims that she has realized the Zen principle and is a self-enlightened person, who is incomparable to ordinary people.

Cong secretly thought that our family had no shortage of young ladies, and it would be a blessing for our ancestors if we could have one more female Bodhisattva. Therefore, he could not bear to see her practice ruined by worldly affairs, so he specially sent her to the master to practice.

If you are lucky enough to achieve the right result, it is also the blessing of your ancestors and the greatness of Buddhism. " Jia Cong said with a hint of sarcasm.

"This..." Miaoyu was stunned. How could she send her own sister to a nunnery?

Xichun glanced at Jia Cong coldly and said, "I am determined to devote myself to cultivation and spend the rest of my life with the green lamp and the ancient Buddha. Please help me, Master."

Jia Cong narrowed his eyes slightly. No one had dared to disobey him for a long time. Xichun's stubbornness made him even more angry. He pointed at a middle-aged nun and said, "Tell me, what kind of work do the new nuns do in ordinary nunneries outside?"

The nun said hurriedly, "Reporting to the Duke, I must start with odd jobs, getting up at four o'clock in the morning, lighting the fire, cooking, cleaning the table and washing dishes, fetching water and chopping wood, washing clothes, sweeping the floor, cleaning the toilet, etc. After finishing all these tasks, I can study Buddhism and do morning and evening classes."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "I think this is because Buddhism is a way to train one's mind and character. The Dharma is all there."

"Your Excellency the Duke has a keen eye, and that is exactly what you meant," the nun said hurriedly.

"Okay, if you want to practice, you have to look like a practitioner. From today on, my sister will be a practitioner in your nunnery with her hair uncut. She is no longer the fourth young lady of Rongguo Mansion. No one is allowed to treat her differently. If you are lenient with her in private, if you ruin my sister's practice, I will punish you severely!"

"Yes, we dare not." The nuns bowed and agreed.

"From now on, all the benefits of the Fourth Miss will be stopped. There will no longer be a Fourth Miss in the mansion. There is only one... Master Miaoyu, please give my sister a Buddhist name."

Miaoyu didn't know why Jia Cong was so angry, so she sighed and said, "Just call him Miaoxing."

"Thank you, Master, for the name." Xichun looked indifferent. She didn't even look at Jia Cong, but just clasped her hands together and said to Miaoyu.

Jia Cong smiled coldly and said, "Bring Miaoxing in, change her into black clothes, and let her learn the rules and regulations thoroughly. No one is allowed to visit her in the future. I cannot let the mundane people damage Miaoxing's Buddhist heart."

"Yes." The nun was about to take Xichun in when she heard someone at the door shout, "Wait a minute." (End of this chapter)