Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Earl's Mansion, Jia Cong Courtyard.

In the early morning, Jia Cong got up and opened the bed curtains. He saw Wu'er, wearing a small dress and a short jacket, getting off the couch and coming to help him get dressed.

After helping Jia Cong to dress and comb his hair, she put on her own dress, took a comb, and combed her waist-length hair in front of the dressing mirror.

Jia Cong laughed and said, "Why are you using a comb so early in the morning? Be careful not to pull your head and get a pain."

Wu Er smiled and said, "I just washed my hair yesterday. The weather has been dry these days, so my hair is a little itchy. I need to comb it with a comb."

Jia Cong saw Wu Er looking at herself in the mirror. Her eyes were like water, and she was pretty and delicate. Her hair was shiny and bright. He couldn't help but like her. He said, "It's inconvenient for you to comb your hair. Let me help you comb it."

Wu Er blushed and said, "How can I let a man do such a thing? People will laugh at me if they see me."

Jia Cong laughed and said, "What does it matter? You are in your own room now, why bother others about what you do?"

Wu'er had seen many strange things about Jia Cong since she was a child, and seeing that he didn't care, she naturally let him do what he wanted.

Jia Cong brought a stool and sat behind Wu'er, carefully combing her beautiful hair with a comb.

Wu'er felt Jia Cong's palm brushing across her head, and then he stroked her long hair. The comb gently passed over her head, causing a tingling sensation that made her heart tremble and her pretty face dizzy.

Jia Cong glanced at Wu'er in the mirror and said, "Wu'er, your eyes are a little red. I heard you tossing and turning last night. Did you not sleep well because of something on your mind?"

Last time you were in the study, you were only halfway through your conversation. Why can't you tell me now?"

Wu'er felt the comb moving through her hair, as if it had a magical power that could completely subdue her.

I couldn't help but say: "If Third Master wants to listen, I will tell you. Last time Ping'er came to tell me that Third Master had his fifteenth birthday, and the old lady wanted to arrange for someone capable to enter the room to serve Third Master.

This person should be Yuanyang..."

After Wu Er said this, her pretty face flushed, and even her body felt a little hot...

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Are you so upset about this that you can't sleep well?"

Wu Er blushed and said, "Third Master, I'm not jealous. I just think that the old lady is going to send someone over, and I... I'm worried that Third Master will suffer."

Jia Cong said: "The old lady is worrying too much. I have you guys in my room, which is enough. Why should I ask her to send anyone over? I can make the decision on this matter myself.

Although I have inherited the title of the West Mansion, you are the housekeeper of the West Mansion. You should know that the West Mansion is not as clean as the East Mansion. Why should I provoke the people around the old lady? "

He laughed again and said, "Also, you are not jealous of something like this. I am so unworthy that it is not enough for me to treat you like this on a daily basis."

Wu'er's heart started pounding when he heard this. He felt the comb on his head sliding, and he felt an indescribable intimacy and comfort. He felt a little dizzy.

"Third Master, what are you talking about? You have been so good to me over the years, how can I not be satisfied? No matter what happens in the future, I will feel that it is worth it. I am not that greedy."

Jia Cong couldn't help but put his arm around her waist, kissed her on the side of her face, and said, "I'll remember what you said. Don't hide anything from me in the future."

Wu Er's body trembled, and he was delighted, and said, "I know, I'll go get some water for Master San to wash up."

……

Rongguo Mansion, Baoyu Courtyard.

On the ebony double-handled small table in the room, there was a mutton-fat jade incense burner, in which was burning the finest lily palace incense.

On the desk stood a colorful official kiln tea bowl filled with top-quality Yunlu spring tea, the fragrance of the tea lingering and refreshing.

The inkstone was filled with dark and moist ancient ink from the pre-Song Dynasty, the ebony purple-hair brush was stained with ink, and the maid had already placed top-quality silver-patterned snow-wave paper on the desk.

These luxurious and exquisite four treasures of the study are the envy of ordinary scholars, but they are common items in Baoyu's study.

As long as Baoyu studies hard, people like Grandmother Jia, Mrs. Wang, and even Jia Zheng will not be stingy with these things.

However, Baoyu felt somewhat bored when faced with these excellent books. He held a copy of The Doctrine of the Mean in his hand, frowning and flipping through it patiently, scratching his head from time to time.

He could sit at the desk and study, not because he had really changed his personality, but because Jia Zheng had someone pass on a message, asking him to go to the East Road Courtyard the day after tomorrow to take an exam...

Xiren was sitting not far from the desk, embroidering a light red lotus and mandarin duck bellyband.

As the weather is getting warmer, Baoyu can no longer cover himself with a quilt at night. Xiren is worried that he might catch a cold, so she specially makes an exquisite bellyband to suit Baoyu's wishes so that he can wear it.

During this period, because Jia Cong was busy with the spring examination, he brought a lot of study atmosphere to the two mansions. Therefore, Jia Zheng once again paid attention to Baoyu's schoolwork.

In fact, this kind of situation had occurred several times during Jia Cong's college examinations and provincial examinations.

Although Jia Zheng had long been somewhat discouraged about Baoyu's study and advancement in education, the idea of ​​studying hard to become an official was deeply rooted in Jia Zheng's mind. Once inspired by external forces, he would intermittently hope that his son would become successful.

Every time Jia Cong was successful in the imperial examination, Baoyu was beaten to death by Jia Zheng...

Originally, Baoyu was studying in the study, and Xiren only assigned a little maid to serve him in the study.

But ever since the last time Bihen took advantage of Baoyu's reading to flirt with him in the study, Xiren has become more cautious.

Later, every time Baoyu went into the study to read, Xiren would personally serve him.

Although one of the reasons was to allow Baoyu to study with peace of mind, there was another more important reason.

The last time Mrs. Wang visited Baoyu's courtyard, she mentioned that Baoyu would soon be old enough to dance like an elephant, and according to the rules, she had to promote two more maids to serve in Baoyu's room.

Mrs. Wang also instructed Xiren to keep an eye on Baoyu during this period and not to let anything happen.

Xiren knew in her heart that right now was the time for her to act as a proper concubine and she must not allow any unnecessary troubles to arise.

If at this time, Bi Hen's affair were to get to the wife's ears, he would be blamed and would end up in a bad situation.

Besides, even if there was a vacancy for a concubine in Baoyu's room, she didn't want to let the slut Bihen take it, lest she lead Baoyu astray in the future.

Therefore, for small matters like assisting Baoyu in his studies, she would send others away and do it herself, which could be considered as strict precaution.

As for keeping watch at night, Bihen Qiuwen had nothing to do with it. It was done by Xiren and Sheyue in turn.

……

Baoyu was not that thoughtful and did not know what was in Xiren's mind, but he felt quite unwilling that Xiren had to do the study service herself.

Because Xiren was guarding the study, Bihen, who loved to play the most, could not come in, which made him lose a lot of the exciting fun when reading in the study.

However, Xiren had always been close to him, and they had been intimate in bed, so naturally she was different from other maids, and he naturally couldn't chase her out of the study.

Because he had lost the joy of reading, the imperial examination scriptures in his hands, which already felt extremely sour and smelly, now made him feel even more nauseous when he flipped through them.

But he was really afraid of his father Jia Zheng's harshness, so he had to endure the discomfort and read those parasitic books.

Xiren, who was standing aside, watched Baoyu reading and felt slightly comforted. However, she did not know that although Baoyu was holding the book, he was probably in a daze, and his mind had already wandered around the world, and no one knew where it was going.

At this time, the door of the study was pushed open. Xiren frowned slightly and saw Zheng Qiuwen coming in. She looked excited, as if she had found a treasure from somewhere.

Qiu Wen seemed not to notice Xiren's blaming look. She just smiled and said to Baoyu, "Second Master, I was walking outside this morning and heard some good news. Second Master will definitely be happy to hear it."

Baoyu was feeling a little sleepy while reading a book, but when he heard Qiu Wen tell him some good news and say that she was happy to hear it, he couldn't help but perk up.

He said, "What good news did you hear? Don't keep us in suspense. Tell us quickly."

Qiu Wen smiled proudly and said, "This is serious good news. If I tell it to you, how will the Second Master reward me?"

Baoyu always liked to hang out and have fun with the maids. When he was bored, Qiu Wen's words aroused his interest.

He actually forgot that Xiren was beside him, and smiled at Qiu Wen with a drooling face, "As long as what you said is really good news and makes me really happy, I can reward you in any way you want."

Xiren frowned after hearing what Baoyu said, thinking that the Second Master had really grown up and was becoming more and more presumptuous when talking to the maids...

After hearing Baoyu's teasing which seemed to have some hidden meaning, Qiu Wen recalled the time when he and the slutty bitch Bi Hen took a bath, and her heart couldn't help but be moved.

……

Yesterday, Mrs. Wang and Lady Jia mentioned Baoyu's marriage, and they seemed to favor Daiyu.

Every servant in the West Mansion knew that although the second branch of the Rong family had moved into the East Courtyard, Master Bao was still the old lady's phoenix, and was still loved as before.

Rongqingtang has always been a place where news could not be kept secret, so the news about Baoyu's marriage naturally could not be kept secret.

Qiu Wen is the most active girl in Baoyu's room. She always likes to pass on news, listen to rare things, and try her best to show her face in front of Baoyu to win his favor. But she is not as scheming as Xiren, who seduced Baoyu into bed early, nor is she as pretty and seductive as Bihen, who has the ability to attract Baoyu to hang out with her.

Although Qiu Wen was somewhat pretty, she was not outstanding among Baoyu's maids, so Baoyu was never very close to her.

But Qiu Wen was an ambitious person and always tried her best to get Baoyu.

Therefore, she had no other ability in the room and could only pay attention to everything on a daily basis. Whenever she walked around the mansion, she would take everything related to Baoyu to heart.

She could try to find some opportunities from this, and also have an excuse to springboard, so that Baoyu would think more about her advantages, and she could be regarded as a particularly motivated maid in Baoyu's room...

Everyone around Baoyu knew that Baoyu had loved Miss Lin the most since he was a child. He would bow and knelt before her, try to please her and smile, always thinking about how to please her.

But ever since Master Bao broke the jade that year, Miss Lin has been very distant from Master Bao in the past few years. She usually ignores him, and Master Bao has always been troubled by this.

But even so, Master Bao was still infatuated with Miss Lin. Saying something nice about him and Miss Lin would make him happy, and this method almost always worked.

Now that she had heard the happy news about Master Bao and Miss Lin, as long as she told Master Bao, he would be overjoyed. From then on, he would remember her kindness and be more romantic in the future.

Qiu Wen saw that she had almost sold out her secret, so she smiled and said, "I went out to fetch water today, and it happened that the two maids in the old lady's room were also fetching water ladles and shoes and clothes in the west.

The two of them were chatting and talking about how the Madam had gone to Rongqing Hall yesterday and was talking to the old lady about how the Second Master was fifteen this year and should be old enough to get married, so they were planning a marriage for the Second Master.

When Baoyu heard about matchmaking, his brows furrowed, and he said with some dissatisfaction: "So you are trying to coax me too. What kind of happy event is this? Matchmaking is just for fools..."

Before Baoyu finished speaking, Xiren, who was standing beside him, had already changed color and quickly interrupted him: "Second Master, why are you talking nonsense again? You didn't dare to fight me last time. Be careful or I will beat you up."

Baoyu also reacted at once, his face turned pale, and he immediately swallowed the words he had just said.

She said in a noble manner, "It's up to others to say how they like to say that. I don't care anyway. Don't say such things in the future. You are tarnishing the mouth of a good girl in vain."

Qiu Wen found it funny to see her Second Master doing this again, and said with some pride, "The one my wife proposed to Second Master was Miss Lin, but Second Master didn't care. It was me who said too much."

When Qiu Wen said this, Baoyu opened his mouth wide. His face was dull, then turned into an ecstatic expression. His round face was distorted, looking a little scary...

Xiren, who was standing by, was also surprised when she heard Qiu Wen's words and could hardly believe her ears.

I couldn't help but say, "Qiu Wen, don't dare to say such things casually. I often hear Madam talk about the perfect match. People like Miss Bao have always been the most valued by Madam.

Why are you suddenly talking about Miss Lin again? You listened to the nonsense of the old woman outside and came back to tease the Third Master. If the wife knew about this, you would be in big trouble. "

Baoyu and Qiu Wen were both surprised to hear that Xiren, who was always gentle and kind, actually said such harsh words.

……

The reason why Xiren resisted Qiu Wen's words was because of her usual selfishness.

Over the years, Xiren naturally knew in her heart that the Second Master was most fascinated by Miss Lin.

But Miss Lin comes from a scholarly family. Not only is she of noble status, she is also shrewd and ruthless. She doesn't tolerate any injustice in her eyes. If anyone provokes her, she will be very harsh on them.

For the sake of her future career, Xiren secretly seduced Baoyu and had an affair with him when he was thirteen years old, which became a source of worry for her.

He was afraid that the Second Master and Miss Lin would have something going on that day. This young lady, who came from a world of officials, must have very strict etiquette and rules. If she knew that he had seduced the young master to do such a thing...

I am afraid that he will not let me go, and will take the opportunity to attack me, ruining my life and future.

But Miss Bao was different. She was much more tolerant and generous than Miss Lin. After living in the mansion for a few years, she had a very good relationship with people both inside and outside the mansion. It seemed that she would be someone who would be easy to get along with in the future.

So, in the past few years, Lady Wang has been trying to find a perfect match for a golden and jade couple, and Xiren is very happy about it, and she has also been doing a lot of things to help it happen privately...

Now, after hearing Qiu Wen say that Madam wanted to arrange a marriage for Baoyu and Miss Lin, he subconsciously felt extremely unwilling, which was why he blurted out such harsh words to Qiu Wen.

……

Qiu Wen felt a little dissatisfied when she heard Xiren's harsh words, but her thoughts were not as deep as Xiren's, and she didn't think about other things.

Xiren thought that she had asked for good fortune in front of the Second Master, so she became jealous and felt more and more aggrieved.

Xiren relied on the fact that she came from the old lady's room and was usually a head taller than her, but she didn't care about it.

Not to mention that over the years, she would sneak into the Second Master's bed in the middle of the night and do those romantic things with the Second Master, and she would look at others as if they were deaf and couldn't hear any sound.

If she hadn't been afraid of offending the Second Master, Qiu Wen wouldn't have needed to say anything. She would have reported it to the Madam long ago. Let's see whether she would still be alive then. Now she is still pretending to be so arrogant.

However, although Qiu Wen has an arrogant personality, she is not without vision. After all, Xiren is not Xiaohong, so she does not dare to offend her easily and make enemies for herself.

So he said unconvincedly: "I didn't spread the word nonsense, those two women are the laundrymen in the old lady's room, and they go in and out of the backyard of Rongqing Hall every day.

That day, Yuanyang and Amber were talking about this matter in the room, and they happened to hear it. Those two were the old lady's personal maids, so what they said could not be wrong.

Just wait and see, in a few days, the news will spread throughout the whole mansion."

When Baoyu heard that Yuanyang and Amber said the same thing, he believed it about 70% in his heart. In his excitement, he immediately grabbed Qiu Wen's hands.

He said in a hurry: "Good sister, what you said is true. There is such a good thing. Please tell me again, I won't hear it wrong!"

Baoyu usually has secret affairs with Xiren at night and flirts with Bihen during the day. He has never paid much attention to the slightly mediocre Qiu Wen, and has never done anything so intimate with her.

Qiu Wen saw that she had told Baoyu about that matter and it really pleased him. Not only did he hold her hands, but he also, contrary to his usual behavior, called her "good sister", which was really attentive to her in an unprecedented way.

She couldn't help but feel a surge of heat in her heart, but she said tenderly, "Second Master, if you have something to say, just say it. It's really embarrassing to be seen by others like this."

Xiren, who was standing by and watching Qiu Wen's expression and actions, felt her eyelids twitching and she was secretly so angry that she gritted her teeth. Every one of these people around the Second Master was so coquettish.

Qiu Wen and Bi Hen are both of the same character. Whenever they get the chance, they act like a spoiled brat in front of the Second Master. They are so shameless...

……

Qiu Wen saw Baoyu's crazy face and said with a smile: "I will say it again to make Second Master happy. The marriage between Second Master and Miss Lin was heard by the two maids from Yuanyang and Amber, and it must be correct.

When you accomplish something good in the future, don’t forget me as the person who brought you the good news.”

Baoyu laughed foolishly and said hurriedly: "I can't forget it, of course I can't forget my sister's kindness. I didn't expect that the lady would love me so much and do such a great thing.

As long as Lin Daiyu and I can achieve a love union, my life's work will be complete, and I will have nothing else to ask for. Even if I die immediately and turn into ashes, my heart will be filled with joy. "

Xiren, who was standing by, heard Baoyu talking nonsense again. She rubbed her brows with a headache and said, "It's a good day, and you are talking about death and life. It's too unlucky."

Baoyu smiled foolishly again and said, "Sister Xiren is right. I can't die now. I have to live well. I still have good things to do with Sister Lin. Living a long and long life is the right thing to do."

As soon as he finished speaking, Baoyu was about to go out, saying: "At this moment, Sister Lin may be in Rongqing Hall, talking with the lady. I will go and see her now.

We should call her out and tell her the good news quietly, so that Sister Lin can be happy too."

Xiren felt dizzy after hearing this. Why did the Second Master always think of good things? Miss Lin had never treated the Second Master well in the past few years. How could she be happy about this...

Before Baoyu even reached the door of the room, Qiu Wen stopped him and said, "Now when Second Master goes to Rongqing Hall, will he see Miss Lin?

When I arrived, I heard the two maids say that early in the morning, Zijuan and the old lady replied that Miss Lin was not feeling well and needed to recuperate in the East Palace. She would not be able to pay her respects to the old lady in the next few days.

After hearing this, Baoyu stamped his feet anxiously and sighed, "Sister Lin's body is still so fragile. We are about to get married. What should we do?
The threshold of the East Palace was raised so high by Jia Cong that I could never get in. It is such a sin that I cannot see Sister Lin at this moment. Heaven is playing such a trick on me.

At this moment, Baoyu began to complain to himself, muttering a few words about his sadness about the passing of spring and autumn. Xiren and Qiu Wen had seen this many times before, so she just let him fiddle with it and he would be fine after a while.

After a while, Baoyu finally came to his senses. Seeing Xiren, his eyes lit up and he said, "I can't go to the East Mansion, but Sister Xiren can. Please go visit Sister Lin for me."

Qiu Wen was very unhappy when she heard this, but she was the one who reported the good news. How could the Second Master be so stubborn and then destroy the bridge after crossing the river? He should have asked me to go to Miss Lin on his behalf, but why did he help Xiren...

Baoyu continued to instruct Xiren: "When you see Sister Lin, you should first ask her when she will be well again, and then tell her the good news.

When my sister heard about this happy news, she was so happy that she might get well immediately. I guessed it must be right. It will be like this, haha."

Xiren smiled bitterly after hearing this, but she could only agree. In her heart, Xiren was really unwilling to see her master and Miss Lin become a happy couple.

Why did the lady always talk about Miss Bao, but suddenly she started talking about Miss Lin? What was the reason?
But she was just a maid, and since things had turned out like this, what else could she do?

However, it would be a good idea to go to the East Palace to see Miss Lin and test the waters. Xiren thought of Daiyu's usual expression towards Baoyu and felt that this matter would definitely not go smoothly.

If the conversation could remind Miss Lin that she is unhappy about this matter, I wonder what will happen... (End of this chapter)