Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 14 New Year’s Eve
Not to mention that Madam Zhao returned to the granary happily.

Mrs. Xing had just returned from Rongqing Hall when Jia She happened to be returning from the East Mansion. She angrily told him what had happened in Rongqing Hall that day.

When Jia She heard that the evil creature had been favored by Prince Jiashun because of a couplet he had written and was invited to participate in some literary gathering, he became quite famous.

As a father, he has not been able to curry favor with a figure like Prince Jiashun, and now it is the turn of this useless beast to make friends with him. It is really outrageous.

His nerdy brother even said that the beast was the scholarly offspring of the Jia family, and that his dignity was bestowed upon him by the blessing of their ancestors.

Then what has happened to him for teaching this evil creature the same lesson every day? Hasn't he become the evildoer of the Jia family? A father is the leader of his sons, so what has he done wrong?

Thinking of all this resentment, Jia She was so angry that he smashed everything in the room to pieces, then rolled up his sleeves and went to deal with the evil creature.

It was Mrs. Xing who stopped her husband because Jia Cong was going to attend Prince Jiashun's literary gathering on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. If she dealt with Jia Cong at that time.

The old lady was unwilling to let him go to see people with a bruised face that day, otherwise it would spread out and bring shame to the Jia family. She advised Jia She to calm down and settle the score with the beast after the 15th.

Jia Cong didn't know this yet, but he escaped a disaster because of what Lady Jia said in Rongqing Hall.

……

After Jia Cong and Baoyu followed Jia Zheng out of Rongning Hall, Daiyu recalled Tanchun's strange expression in the hall just now, and now the case was solved.

"Tan girl, I just heard you say that you asked for the calligraphy of that Third Brother Cong. Is his calligraphy really that good?"

Tanchun laughed and said, "It's really that good. Third Brother Cong is only so young, and I don't know how he trained himself to be so good. Even Prince Jiashun is praised by everyone."

Daiyu and Tanchun both love poetry and books. Although they are still in the boudoir, they have heard of the Nanxi Literary Society in the capital city of Shenjing, and they also know that Prince Jiashun is the most talented among the princes.

With someone like this endorsing him now, Jia Cong’s calligraphy is naturally correct.

Daiyu was educated by her father since she was young, and was deeply influenced by poetry, books, and literature. She was undoubtedly a talented girl in the boudoir.

The young man with a distinguished demeanor in the classroom today had left a deep impression on her, and naturally she wanted to see his highly praised calligraphy.

A few people chatted and laughed and ran into Tanchun's room.

Tanchun's house was made by connecting three side rooms. It looked spacious and clean, which was in line with her personality.

As soon as you enter the door, you will see a large rosewood marble desk, on which are piled various famous calligraphy works, dozens of precious inkstones, and pen holders of various colors. The pens inserted in the pen holders are like a forest.

Next to the large desk stood a huge Ru kiln flower vase filled with white chrysanthemums in the shape of crystal balls, which looked very bright and clean.

On the west wall hangs the Xizhou Ci written by Jia Cong, which is framed very delicately and exquisitely.

There is a large tripod on the small table in the middle below the calligraphy. On the left side, on the rosewood stand, there is a large plate from the Daguan kiln. On the plate, there are dozens of large, delicate and yellow Buddha's hands. On the right side, on the lacquer stand, there is a white jade bimu chime with a small hammer hanging next to it.

The structure on both sides perfectly sets off the poem of Xizhou.

When Daiyu looked at the decoration, she knew that Tanchun treasured the calligraphy very much.

Tanchun chose the west-facing wall to hang the calligraphy because it could reflect sunlight and prevent the calligraphy from being damaged by moisture and insects.

As soon as Daiyu saw the ancient, elegant and unique running script, her eyes seemed to be glued to it. She stood in front of the Xizhou poem, immersed in admiring it carefully.

She had been in the Jia Mansion for two years and had never heard of this Third Brother Cong before. It was the first time she saw him in Rongning Hall that day. She had never expected that there was such a person in this mansion.

He looks like he is only one or two years older than me. How did he develop such good handwriting? It’s so beautiful. No wonder Prince Jiashun likes it so much.

After Baoyu came out from Jia Zheng's place, he went to talk to his sister Lin. He asked the maid outside Rongning Hall and learned that she had gone to Tanchun's room, so he hurried over excitedly.

When I entered the room, I saw my two sisters gathered under a calligraphy piece, pointing and talking, with surprise and joy on their faces.

When he found out that this calligraphy was the one Jia Cong had given to Tanchun earlier, he felt a little disgusted, even though Jia Cong had helped him in Jia Zheng's study just now.

But he always felt that something was wrong. Ever since Jia Cong appeared, some changes seemed to have occurred among the sisters, but he couldn't tell what exactly they were.

……

The sound of firecrackers heralded the passing of the old year, and the New Year's Eve of the tenth year of Jiazhao in the Great Zhou Dynasty finally arrived.

Zhishao cut out window paper-cuts early, and she and Jia Cong pasted them on every window in the room, bringing out the joy of the New Year.

Now that Jia Cong has some extra money, he naturally wants to spend his New Year holiday with some festive atmosphere.

That day, after he left Xiao Jindong's shop, he bought a pair of silver flower twisted wire bracelets on the road to give to Zhishao as a New Year gift. As far as he could remember, he had never bought anything for Zhishao before.

He also bought a pair of purple copper hand and foot warmers for Zhao Ma. In the past two years, Zhao Ma has grown older and has developed rheumatism, which will occur when the weather is cold and damp.

When it began to darken, there was a commotion outside and the sound of many people walking around.

Jia Cong was reading in the room when Nanny Zhao came into the yard and Zhi Shao was talking to her.

"Mom, what's going on outside? So many people coming and going."

"The old lady is holding a New Year's Eve banquet in Rongning Hall. She has invited the master and his wife, and has also called the respectable maids and servants in the East Courtyard. Is there no one to invite Cong brother?"

Zhishao's face froze, and she felt sorry for Jia Cong. Even the respectable maids and servants in the East Courtyard were called, but only a serious young master was left there. Zhao Ma Ma pulled her face and was filled with indignation: "No one came to invite Cong."

Zhishao frowned slightly, waved at Madam Zhao, and pointed in the direction of the room.

She wanted Zhao Ma to stop talking so that the Third Master wouldn't feel uncomfortable after hearing it.

But Madam Zhao stared blankly behind him and said with a forced smile, "Brother Cong, it's cold outside and you're not wearing a coat. Be careful not to catch a cold."

Zhishao turned around and saw Jia Cong standing at the door of the room. She didn't know how long he had been standing there. He must have heard most of what had just been said. Zhishao felt a little sad.

Jia Cong smiled faintly: "It's better not to go. Wouldn't it be more peaceful for us to celebrate the New Year by ourselves? I went out today and bought New Year gifts for you."

Zhishao took the blue cloth bag handed to her by Jia Cong and took out a pair of shiny silver twisted wire bracelets. She smiled with joy, turned them over and over in her hands, and couldn't let go.

When Nanny Zhao got her set of copper hand and foot warmers, she hurriedly thanked Jia Cong.

Jia Cong knew that she was going to stay up with her son Guo Zhigui today, so he asked her to go home early.

……

There were two fully occupied tables in Rongqing Hall. Sitting at the middle table was Lady Jia, and on either side of her were Lady Xing and Lady Wang.

Next in line were Li Wan, Wang Xifeng, Baoyu, Daiyu, Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, and finally Jia Huan, who sat at the tail end.

There was another table in the hall, where Aunt Zhao, Aunt Zhou, and other trusted and respected maids such as Yuanyang sat.

A table was also set up in the porch outside Rongqing Hall, where Jia She, Jia Zheng, Jia Lian, as well as the men of the East Palace, such as Jia Zhen and Jia Rong, sat.

Although it was still early, the sound of firecrackers could be heard continuously outside.

In Rongqing Hall, Jia's grandmother was laughing and talking happily, the younger generations were saying auspicious words for the New Year, and Wang Xifeng asked the maids to serve the dishes and change the plates.

What a wonderful scene of a prosperous and joyful New Year.

Tanchun looked at her brother Jia Huan, who was sitting at the end of the table and looked listless, frowned, and then thought of something.

Yes, there was one person missing. All of the ancestor’s children and grandchildren were present, except for the third brother Cong.

During the Chinese New Year in the past few years, Brother Cong San never showed up, so the sisters didn’t even know that this person existed.

But yesterday the old lady asked questions in Rongqing Hall, and it was revealed that Third Brother Cong was appreciated by Prince Jiashun and was invited to participate in the Nanxi Literary Meeting. This matter has been known to the whole family.

Even if this person was concealed before, he is now out in the open. After all, he is the grandson of the ancestor. Why is he not the only one invited to the New Year's Eve banquet?

Although Yingchun is a little dull, she and Jia Cong are siblings from the same father and are closer to her than other sisters.

Having seen Jia Cong's capable behavior these past few days, I feel even more pity for my younger brother.

She also noticed that he was the only one missing from the table, while her stepmother seemed fine.

It was probably intentional not to invite Jia Cong, and Yingchun felt a little uncomfortable.

Tanchun also guessed that the eldest master and the eldest mistress had always disliked Jia Cong and might have intentionally omitted him.

The old lady didn't like Jia Cong in the first place, so naturally she didn't want to bring up the issue. She pretended not to know to avoid embarrassing everyone.

After thinking about this, Tanchun felt unfair for Jia Cong, but there was nothing she could do.

Daiyu is very smart. She knows that Tanchun and Jia Cong get along well because of their calligraphy, and Yingchun is Jia Cong's sister.

Looking at their expressions, it was impossible to guess what they were thinking.

Everyone at the banquet was lost in their own thoughts when they heard a maid outside come in to report that Prince Jiashun had sent a eunuch to bring New Year gifts to Master Cong to thank him for the Buddhist scriptures.

Everyone at the table was stunned once again. Grandmother Jia sighed inwardly, this evil creature was really restless.

In previous years, her grandson was not around during the Chinese New Year, and she felt annoyed when he was not around.

Although he had made a lucky move yesterday, Grandmother Jia had seen many big scenes before, so she didn't take it seriously.

It is even more impossible that years of resentment and disgust in one's heart can be resolved because of such an incident.

She was used to seeing Jia Cong not being around today, and she knew it very well. Besides, she knew very well that the eldest daughter-in-law disliked that man and would never give him a chance to show up.

She just went along with it and pretended she knew nothing.

Now that Prince Jiashun had actually sent someone to deliver a New Year's Eve gift to Jia Cong, Grandmother Jia could no longer pretend to be ignorant.

I asked Mrs. Xing, "Why didn't I see him today? Is he still in the East Courtyard?"

Mrs. Xing was almost going crazy. This bastard had really become a ghost. Why was he everywhere? She must have owed him in her previous life, and now he was hanging himself everywhere to collect the debt.

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(End of this chapter)