Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Rongguo Mansion, Jia Cong's courtyard.

In the blink of an eye, it was the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month. The door gods of both the east and west palaces were replaced, couplets were posted, plaques were hung, and peach charms were painted with new oils, making everything inside and out look brand new.

She got up early in the morning. It was still half dark outside the glazed window. Zhishao got up, tidied her hair, and lit all the eight-foot-tall candlesticks in the room.

The warm yellow candlelight illuminated the dark room, casting her graceful figure on the milky white walls.

Jia Cong also drew aside the bed curtain and saw Zhishao wearing a snow-silk tight-fitting dress, walking around the room with a graceful figure, which was very pleasing to the eye.

He was not in a hurry to get out of bed. He just sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed, smiling and admiring the soft beauty in front of him.

Seeing his strange expression, Zhishao's pretty face turned slightly red, and the corners of her mouth seemed to be smiling, as if she was looking at him coquettishly.

Having lived in the same room and been close to each other countless times over the years, it was natural that she would not be shy about being with him.

Without paying any attention to Jia Cong's admiring and playful gaze, she put on a white cotton skirt embroidered with plum branches, a snow-blue satin embroidered cross-collared long jacket, fastened the buttons under her ribs, and put on a snow fox fur short jacket on the outside.

Facing the faint morning light, she combed her long black hair carefully, tied it into a black bun, and inserted a moist jade hairpin into it. Her lazy face was completely concealed, and she looked like a pretty and beautiful lady.

She came forward to help Jia Cong open the bed curtains, and hung them with the old copper curtain hooks. She said with a smile, "Third Master, it's not like you haven't seen it before. It's not worth staring at it like this."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Because it's so beautiful, I can't get enough of looking at it."

Zhi Shao smiled and said, "If Third Master likes to watch it, then watch it for a long time. I'm afraid you will get tired of it in the future."

She went to the rosewood Ruyi Chuiyun clothes rack and took out a round-necked satin robe with a moon-white background and a floral pattern. She helped Jia Cong put it on and then loosened his hair and combed it again.

He said, "I arranged the carriage yesterday. Today is the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month. I will go to the Muni Temple to celebrate New Year's Eve with my master and sister. Tomorrow I will return home to celebrate New Year's Eve with the third master."

Jia Cong nodded and said, "Master Xiushan is old and a foreigner in the capital. You should be more filial to her. After New Year's Eve, I will go with you to wish Master a happy new year."

He pointed to a wooden box on the bookshelf and said, "Last time when Master Miaoyu came to recite sutras to Sister Lin, I promised to give her a handwritten copy of the Heart Sutra.

I just had time to write it a few days ago. There is a hand-copied Heart Sutra and a hand-copied old poem in the box. Please help me take them to Master Miaoyu."

Zhi Shao smiled and said, "Sister will be very happy to receive Third Master's handwriting. When you gave Master the volume of 'Buddha's Sutra on the Emptiness of the Five Aggregates', Sister often recited it and couldn't put it down."

At this time, there were two knocks on the door, and then it was gently pushed open. Jia Cong saw Lingguan coming in with a large copper basin filled with hot water with white steam rising from it.

Jia Cong saw that her brows were furrowed like spring mountains, her eyes were as red as autumn water, and she was wearing a long coat with a light blue embroidered cross collar, a dark blue solid-color handkerchief tied around her waist, and a spring orchid-inlaid pearl-studded gold hairpin inserted in her jet-black hair.

Jia Cong remembered this elegant and exquisite gold hairpin. It was the gift that Zhen Fangqing gave to Lingguan when they first met in Jinling.

He asked curiously, "Lingguan, Wu'er used to come here, why is it you who came here today?"

Since Lingguan entered the East Palace, she lived in Jia Cong's courtyard, but Jia Cong's daily personal service and study were all taken care of by Zhishao, Wu'er, Qingwen, Yinglian and others.

Lingguan did not do any chores for Jia Cong. Apart from cooking for Jia Cong frequently, cleaning the courtyard with the little maid, learning calligraphy and reading books, or studying opera scripts, there was nothing else to do.

Lingguan smiled sweetly and said, "Today is the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, and the West Palace is the busiest, welcoming and seeing off guests, arranging New Year banquets, and arranging decorations for various places.

Sister Wu'er went to help the Second Mistress early in the morning. Sister Qingwen has been busy with the sewing work for the Third Master during the New Year these days. She often stays up late and doesn't sleep well, so Sister Wu'er asked me to take care of the Third Master for her."

The two of them helped Jia Cong to wash and dress, and Jia Cong helped Zhishao to organize the New Year gifts for Master Xiushan. He then personally escorted Zhishao out of the west corner gate of the east mansion, arranged for guards and maids, and waited until the carriage had gone far away before returning home.

……

When he returned to the inner courtyard and just approached his own yard, he saw maids and old women carrying a lot of boxes and going in and out of the yard. Yingchun and Xiu Ju were standing aside giving orders.

Yingchun saw Jia Cong coming back and said with a smile, "Brother Cong is back just in time. Miss Qu from Jinling Xinchunhao sent six boxes of New Year gifts, of which I have deposited two boxes of cash in the treasury.

Among the other four boxes of gifts, one box contained Brother Cong’s clothes, shoes, hats, various Western gadgets, and high-quality personal items.

The clothes are all handmade with great care and are not bought from shops. I have only heard that Miss Qu has traveled the world and is skilled in martial arts, but I didn't expect that she is so good at needlework. She is truly capable of doing anything.

The other three boxes of gifts were all bought by Miss Qu for the sisters in the family, as well as the eldest sister-in-law, the second sister-in-law, the two wives, the old lady... "

Yingchun had a few boxes opened and let Jia Cong take a look. Qingwen, Yinglian, Lingguan and others who came to watch the fun were all amazed when they saw them.

I saw that each box was filled with a wide variety of gifts, which were neatly classified and labeled with names to indicate who each item was for, making it easy to see at a glance.

Yingchun looked a little confused and asked, "Brother Cong, Miss Qu has never been to our house, how come she is so familiar with everyone in our family?

I just took a quick look at the gifts given to the ladies. They are all very thoughtful and considerate, as if they had been to our house before and knew the preferences of everyone in the family."

Jia Cong naturally knew the reason. Qu Hongxiu had also made clothes for him, but in terms of needlework skills, Qin Keqing was the most skilled.

I'm afraid that most of the clothes, shoes and socks in this box of my clothes are the work of Keqing and her maid Ruizhu. Although Baozhu has strong hands, she can't hold a needle and thread, but she is good at hitting people from behind with a club.

Moreover, Yingchun guessed correctly. Keqing had stayed in the Jia family before, so how could she not be familiar with the people in the family?

But he couldn't tell Yingchun that he was the one who stole Keqing to Jinling, so he had to cover it up by saying, "Maybe I often told her about my family affairs, so she kept an eye on me."

Yingchun smiled and said, "You are so lucky to have found a master like Miss Qu. Not only can she help you look after your business outside, but she can also take care of the delicate matters at home.

I've saved you so much worry that you're almost as worried as me, your older sister."

Yingchun took another box from a woman and said, "Brother Cong, here is another gift, also sent from Xinchunhao, but not from Jinling Xinchunhao, but from Gusu Xinchunhao.

This is strange, Miss Qu's festival gifts were sent to two places?"

Lingguan, who was watching the fun at the side, couldn't help but brighten her eyes. No one present knew the reason why Suzhou Xinchun brought the New Year gift, but Lingguan knew it...

Jia Cong opened the box, and inside was a neatly folded robe and a pair of thick cotton shoes.

Although the items are ordinary, whether it is a robe or cotton shoes, the stitching is very delicate.

Jia Cong could see that the craftsmanship of this robe was obviously much better than the previous one, and it seemed that she had put a lot of thought into it.

There was also a piece of light blue Xue Tao paper in the box, with two short sentences written on it in beautiful handwriting, which was thought-provoking: The smoke from the fireworks in the deep alley makes me think of the fleeting life, and the spring water in the river makes me complain about separation.

Since Lingguan could think of the origin of the box, Jia Cong could naturally think of it as well. He sighed slightly in his heart and subconsciously touched the tiger-patterned jade leather belt around his waist.

……

Jia Cong asked Qingwen, Yinglian, Lingguan and others to pick up gifts according to the lots and deliver them to Daiyu, Tanchun and other sisters in the garden.

Yingchun and I took other gifts and went to the West Mansion to give them away. We couldn't let Qu Hongxiu and Qin Keqing's efforts go to waste.

The two of them left the East Palace and entered the West Palace through a small door in the alley. When they passed by the Lixiang Garden, they saw maids and old women frequently coming in and out of the garden gate, which seemed quite busy.

Jin Chuan, who was in the crowd, saw Jia Cong and Yingchun and hurried over to pay her respects. Jia Cong asked, "Why is my aunt's house so lively today?"

Jin Chuan said, "Today, the second master of the Xue family set off to return to the Southern Province. When his carriage passed by our house, he stopped for a while and came to say goodbye to the lady and the daughter."

That day, Jia Cong and Xue Yuan had a conversation in Rongqing Hall. Xue Yuan's efficiency, quick thinking, and great ambitions left a deep impression on him.

Now that he was passing by his door and I knew he was about to set off back south, it would be rude not to see him off.

So she took the gift for Baochai and asked Jinchuan to take it. She asked Yingchun to go to Lady Jia to give the gift first, and she and Jinchuan went into Lixiang Courtyard.

After they walked through the hall and the room for a while, they heard a clear voice coming from the front. Jia Cong recognized it as Xue Yuan's voice.

Xue Yuan was followed by a young man with delicate features, who behaved quietly and shyly.

Xue Yuan was accompanied by Aunt Xue, Xue Pan and others.

Everyone was a little surprised to see Jia Cong suddenly appear.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "I brought some homely gifts from Jinling to give to Sister Bao. I just happened to hear that the second master of the Xue family was going back to the southern province, so I came here to see him off." Xue Yuan thanked him repeatedly, and the two of them said some words of take care of each other. Then Jia Cong, Aunt Xue and others sent Xue Yuan and his son out of the back street gate of Lixiang Garden.

Three carriages had been parked in a row on the back street. Xue Yuan and his son got on the first carriage. Jia Cong saw the curtain of the second carriage opened and Xue Baochai stepped down on a horse.

Baochai felt a little surprised to see Jia Cong. She wondered why he suddenly came to Lixiangyuan today. However, when she saw what Jinchuan was holding in her hand, she guessed that Jia Cong came to see her, and she was happy.

Her cousin had caught a cold since arriving in the capital. Since she was sick, she had been staying in the carriage to avoid the wind, so Baochai entered the carriage to say goodbye to her.

Jia Cong heard clear and moving voices coming from the carriage. They were all words of farewell. The words were elegant, soft, crisp and very pleasant to the ear.

Behind the opened curtain, a beautiful face was revealed, like a bright and beautiful light in the bleak winter day, which made people tremble slightly.

The person in the car also saw the young man next to her aunt. He was handsome, elegant, and had a noble demeanor. It seemed like a momentary illusion. She was so shocked that she subconsciously lowered the curtain of the car.

Under the clear winter sky, the crisp sound of the coachman's whip seemed to shake people's hearts. The wheels rumbled, and slowly drove out of the back street and went away into the distance...

……

Yingchun brought embroidered oranges, and several maids followed behind with boxes of gifts.

As they walked along, they could all clearly feel that the New Year atmosphere in Rongguo Mansion had reached its peak.

From the outer courtyard gate, ceremonial gate, and main roads to the inner courtyard corridors, side halls, and main halls.

The main entrances were wide open along the way, and on both sides of the steps were brightly lit vermilion and gold-painted lanterns. Even in the daytime, they looked like two golden dragons, and they were even more gorgeous and dazzling at night.

The maids and old women walking around everywhere had already put on new clothes and tidied up their appearance, and everyone looked energetic.

The entire mansion, inside and out, was filled with a vitality that had not been seen in previous years.

Although Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang and others had various regrets, reluctance and jealousy about Jia Cong's inheritance.

But to outsiders, Jia Cong's inheritance by imperial order and his dual titles were a rare and glorious event for the Rongguo Mansion.

Jia Cong also handed over all the housekeeping power of Rongguo Mansion to Wang Xifeng. Now this uncle and sister-in-law have common interests and prosper together.

Whether for the sake of others or herself, Wang Xifeng wanted to take advantage of the coming of the new year to raise the prestige of the Rong family. This was not only to show outsiders that the Rong family was in the right position, but also to show her family members.

Therefore, she took care of the New Year decorations in the mansion this year, striving to make them neat and magnificent.

All the money saved from tidying up household chores and cutting costs was spent on decorating for the New Year and entertaining guests.

Of course, for the purpose of all this, she had explained her intentions to Wu'er, Ping'er and Jia Cong in advance, and obtained Jia Cong's approval.

Moreover, Jia Cong promoted Xiaohong to be the maid in charge of Rong Xi Tang, which allowed Lin Zhixiao and his wife to regain the face that was torn away by Mrs. Wang. From then on, they were completely respectful and obedient to Jia Cong.

They carried out all the New Year arrangements planned by Wang Xifeng very well and appropriately, making the New Year atmosphere of the entire Rongguo Mansion extremely prosperous and wealthy.

……

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

There are two bronze and Thai blue hollow incense burners in the hall, with the best red peat and storax incense burning inside. The warm and fragrant aroma spreads everywhere, as warm as spring.

The brocade curtains, colorful screens, bright red cushions, colorful silk backrests, and red satin pillows in the hall were all replaced with new ones of the same color, making it look very rich and festive.

However, Rongqing Hall seemed a little deserted. Only Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang were sitting there chatting with each other, but there was no sign of Wang Xifeng.

By the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, the number of relatives and friends visiting the mansion increased instead of decreased.

Wang Xifeng set up several tables for buffet in the largest side hall of the inner courtyard, and brought Wu'er, Ping'er, and several clean and thoughtful maids from the inner courtyard to entertain and receive the visiting female relatives from various families.

Since Jia Cong had not yet married and the Rongguo Mansion did not have a proper mistress, such festival social events for the female family were naturally handled by the eldest sister-in-law, Wang Xifeng.

Originally, Mrs. Xing was Jia Cong's biological mother and had the highest status, but now she is a widow and naturally cannot show her face in public.

Mrs. Wang no longer has any official position, and she is even less allowed to take over other people’s business and show up in public.

Jia's mother was old and held a high position. When the ladies from other families came to visit her, they would only go to Rongqing Hall to greet them and talk. When they sat at the table for banquets, the younger generations would naturally go to entertain them. There was no reason for her to accompany the guests.

At this time of year in previous years, Mrs. Wang was the glamorous mistress of the house, but this year she was devastated and felt like a bereaved mother.

Therefore, she could only accompany Lady Jia in Rongqing Hall to talk, at least to show her face in front of the old lady often. After moving to the East Courtyard after the New Year, even such opportunities would be rare.

"Madam, Cong is still young after all, and he has never experienced many twists and turns in household affairs."

"Xiaohong, who was originally in Baoyu's room, took advantage of her parents' influence, behaved frivolously, and worked lazily. Those in Baoyu's room all hated her."

"I also felt that this girl was really outrageous, so I drove her out. I didn't expect that girl to be so cunning. I don't know what dishonorable means she used to involve Congge."

"Otherwise, how could Cong'er, who originally had no connection with her, suddenly promote a third-class maid who was driven out to become the head maid of Rong Xi Tang?"

"It's normal for a hot-blooded young man in a big house to like women, but if he was taken advantage of by someone with such dirty intentions, it would be bad for Cong's reputation..."

……

When Lady Jia heard what Lady Wang said, she couldn't help but frown. Lady Wang's words were so blunt, how could she not know the meaning?

The story goes that Lin Zhixiao's daughter used dirty means to seduce his grandson, which is why she became the maid in charge of Rong Xi Tang.

However, although Grandmother Jia was extremely partial to her children and grandchildren, she was not completely confused. She had been immersed in the inner palace for her entire life and had seen a lot about erotic matters between men and women, but she did not quite believe this in her heart.

He said: "Everyone has different views on people. You drove Lin Zhixiao's daughter out of Baoyu's room, so you had your reasons.

Brother Cong just fell in love with this girl. He must have his reasons. He has the ability to be granted a title and become an official. He is not a fool. How can a little girl fool him?

I have seen Xiaohong several times. Although she is pretty, she is just above average. She is several levels lower than Congge's personal maids.

This kid is a lustful person. I have seen many children like him from big families. He is used to eating delicacies every day. Why would he go and find a plate of green onion tofu to taste? This doesn't make sense.

Even if Congge'er really lost his mind and was seduced by Lin Zhixiao's daughter, as long as nothing happened and he was caught with stolen goods, what can others do? They can only gossip behind his back.

After all, Congge is now the head of the family. He just promoted a maid. It is not appropriate for me, his grandmother, to come out and offend him for no reason. "

After hearing what Lady Jia said, Mrs. Wang was very upset. The old lady now recognized the boy's status and even turned around to protect him.

A few days ago, Mrs. Wang heard that Jia Cong made Xiaohong the maid in charge of Rong Xi Tang, and she was naturally ashamed and angry.

But now she is powerless, what else can she do? The most she can do is to say something bad in front of Lady Jia.

But I didn't expect that the old lady would also change with the wind and was unwilling to deal with such matters easily.

Mrs. Wang was feeling annoyed and frustrated when suddenly the curtain at the door was lifted and Yingchun came in with a smile on her face, followed by a maid carrying two boxes.

"Madam, Miss Qu from Xinchun has prepared some New Year gifts for Brother Cong. Some of them are not only for the sisters at home, but also specially prepared some for you and your wife."

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "Brother Cong is lucky to have found such a girl who not only helps him run his business in Jinling and earn money for him, but also knows these etiquettes. She is quite a good girl.

I remember that last time Cong came back from Jinling, he also brought a few boxes of gifts to share with our family. How could a boy like him understand these things? It must have been arranged by Miss Naqu."

Yingchun pointed to some of the gifts in the box and said, "Madam, this is for you. Although the gifts are not expensive, they are very thoughtful. I will ask Caiyun to keep them for you later."

Grandmother Jia watched from the side and said with a smile: "This Miss Qu is quite good. She has also taught Cong a lesson in etiquette."

Mrs. Wang felt even more uncomfortable, thinking that the old lady was speaking only to her.

I was just setting a trap for this guy in front of the old lady, and now he turned around and gave me a gift, which made me look like a nobody. (End of this chapter)