Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Earl's Mansion, Jia Cong Courtyard.

Jia Cong saw that Daiyu's eyes were moist and graceful, with an expression of confusion.

He originally devoted himself to developing the breech-loading rifle, just because he wanted to accomplish something and he enjoyed it, because in his subconscious mind, the breech-loading rifle was not a big deal.

Therefore, he did not think carefully about how shocking and amazing the power demonstrated by the breech-loading musket drill would be to Emperor Jiazhao, Shi Ding and others.

They were delighted with the excellent performance and firepower of the breech-loading rifle, and naturally placed great hopes on it.

At the same time, it also makes them feel a certain fear. Once this powerful firearm is controlled by others, it will cause great harm to themselves.

Once those in power gain control of a certain power and realize the huge benefits it brings, the greater the benefits, the more they fear losing it or having it taken over by others.

In order to prevent things from happening, they will definitely do whatever it takes to prevent themselves from falling into a possible disadvantageous situation. This is the nature of all those in power...

He believed that Emperor Jia Zhao would take some action to prevent any disaster, but he just needed to worry about these complicated matters himself, and there was no need to make his sisters at home worry too much.

He smiled and said, "Don't worry about it, sister. It's all about the troubles in the officialdom. It's boring to talk about it, so it's better not to talk about it."

Daiyu nodded after listening to this, thinking that her third brother's career was going smoothly now, and after passing the imperial examination, he would surely make further progress.

I heard a lot about the intrigues in the officialdom from my father when I was a child. I thought that as my third brother became a higher and higher official, he must have had a lot of worries.

My sisters are all living in seclusion in their boudoirs and are unable to help him solve his problems, so why bother to bring up his worries? We should just talk and laugh together and let him feel more comfortable and happy.

Daiyu suddenly thought that perhaps only Miss Qu from Jinling could help her third brother with the big things outside, or help him with official matters...

When she thought of this, she felt a little discouraged, but she had been the daughter of a wealthy family since she was young, and she had never left her home. Perhaps it would be like this in the future.

At this moment, she suddenly felt a little envious of the famous Miss Qu who she had heard of for a long time but she had never had the chance to meet...

……

Seeing that Daiyu was suddenly dazed, Jia Cong knew that she was always delicate and thoughtful.

He touched the pile of brocade on the table, intentionally changed the subject, and said with a smile: "Sister likes plain and elegant clothes in her daily life, and I think these brocades are bright and luxurious, which is quite beautiful.

Why don't you pick some colors that you like and make some new clothes for me to wear? I'm sure they will look good on me at my prime."

Daiyu came back to her senses and saw Jia Cong praising the tribute satins for their brightness and luxury. She thought they were indeed beautiful.

Zhan Yan smiled and said, "Third brother, please choose a material for me. I also want to change the color of my clothes."

Jia Cong chose from among the tribute satins and picked up a piece of pale blue tribute satin embroidered with bamboo leaves and plum blossoms. He compared it with Daiyu's slender waist with great interest.

Daiyu's pretty face flushed slightly, and she subconsciously took a step back, but quickly stepped back without leaving a trace, allowing Jia Cong to compare and fiddle with the tribute satin.

She smiled slightly and said, "Third brother, do you think this satin is beautiful?"

Jia Cong smiled and said, "This satin is really good. If my sister makes clothes out of it, it will definitely look even better."

Daiyu smiled and said, "Brother San said it was beautiful, so it must be true. I want this one and I will make new clothes for you to see."

Xiangyun, who was fiddling with the imperial wine nearby, couldn't help but come forward and make some jokes when she saw the two of them talking happily.

He smiled and said, "Good Third Brother, don't just try to please Sister Lin. Don't be partial. Help me pick out a piece of fabric so I can make new clothes for you to see. I will definitely look good in them too."

Tanchun, who was standing next to him, couldn't help but chuckle when she heard this. She glanced at Jia Cong with her bright eyes, seeming to gloat over his misfortune.

Daiyu blushed after hearing Xiangyun's teasing. She pinched Xiangyun lightly and said, "You are the one who talks the most nonsense. From now on, you can wear new clothes every day for Third Brother to see. It's up to you."

Xiangyun laughed triumphantly upon hearing this, and fiddled with the tribute satin, urging Jia Cong to help her choose. Only when Jia Cong helped her choose a piece of red satin with a golden peony embroidery pattern did she feel satisfied.

The sisters chatted and laughed together, and Jia Cong helped Yingchun, Tanchun, and Xiuyan to choose the materials, even little Xichun was not left out.

……

Rongguo Mansion, with a hanging flower gate at the second entrance.

Baoyu paced back and forth at the door with a little anxiety.

Since the day of his birthday banquet, Baoyu has been causing trouble for himself. In order to conceal the truth, Jia Zheng and Mrs. Wang keep him in the east courtyard to avoid the spotlight.

After more than a month, Jia's mother, having not seen Baoyu for a long time, took him back to the West Mansion.

Because a lot of time had passed, Baochan, the maid of the Xia family who was toyed with by Baoyu, did not reveal any flaws or cause any accidents, so Jia Zheng and Mrs. Wang were relieved.

But according to Jia Zheng's opinion, it seems inappropriate for Baoyu to stay in the West Mansion any longer, after all, the West Mansion is now the property of the eldest wife.

Although Jia Cong would not say anything about this, it would be embarrassing if someone were to bring up these family etiquettes.

However, Mrs. Wang did not object to Baoyu staying in the West Mansion. It seemed that since Baoyu grew up in the West Mansion, it was natural for him to live there.

In addition, Jia's grandmother said that Jia Cong always lived in the East Palace, and the West Palace was usually quite deserted, so she insisted that Baoyu come to the palace to keep him company. Out of filial piety to his mother, Jia Zheng no longer insisted.

He thought that his wife had already arranged a marriage for Baoyu, and after Baoyu got married, it would be natural for the couple to move back to the East Courtyard, and it would not take much time.

At that time, even if the old lady doted on Baoyu, it would be difficult for her to stop him.

After Baoyu returned to the West Palace, although Jia Zheng gave him homework, he could not teach him in person at any time. Baoyu felt relieved and resumed his leisurely life as before.

Originally, Baoyu was looking forward to moving back to the West Mansion. Not only did he want to stay away from Jia Zheng, he also wanted to be able to interact with his sisters in the West Mansion.

But the sisters in the family all lived in the East Palace. Although they usually went to Rongqing Hall to pay their respects to the old lady, they only stayed for a few cups of tea before returning to the East Palace, as if there were treasures in the East Palace.

Even Shi Xiangyun, who was staying at the Jia family, was reluctant to leave the East Palace. She usually came to the West Palace to chat with him for a few words and then went back to the East Palace to play, which made Baoyu feel very bored.

Baochai was still living in the Lixiang Courtyard of the West Palace. Thinking of this beautiful and graceful sister Bao, Baoyu naturally would find opportunities to visit her often.

But since the beginning of spring, no one knew what had happened. Every time he went to Lixiangyuan, Baochai either said she was ill and could not meet him, or went to the East Palace to chat and laugh with her sisters, and they became very estranged from each other.

Every time Baoyu went to Lixiangyuan, Aunt Xue was still as warm as before, pulling him in for tea and chatting, leaving him no time to talk to Baochai about personal matters.

Baoyu found that since he went to live in the East Courtyard for a while and then returned to the West Mansion, his sisters became more and more distant from each other, and the West Mansion was no longer like the West Mansion.

He originally thought that everyone was like this, spring is fleeting, and there will be a day to go, but he didn't expect it to come so soon, which made Baoyu very sad, melancholy, melancholy...

Out of boredom, she wanted to play with the maidservants around her, but Xiren had obtained Mrs. Wang's approval and knew that she could enter the room this month, so she naturally did not dare to give rise to any gossip when the time came.

Recently, she has become particularly respectful to him. She usually does not stay alone in the same room with Baoyu, let alone have sex with him.
Xiren not only became serious herself, but also kept a close eye on Bihen Qiuwen, which made Baoyu quite bored, so he started to find things to do to pass the time.

A few years ago, I went to visit Prince Beijing's palace and heard a few of his retainers and scholars boasting about rare books like The West Chamber and Peony, which were elegant in language, good at depicting love, and not like the common ones. I found it very interesting.

He asked his servant Mingyan to go to the market to buy it. He received news early this morning that it would be delivered in the afternoon.

Baoyu waited for a long time at the hanging flower gate at the second gate, and then he saw Mingyan running over, sweating profusely, holding two blue bookcases in her hands, which contained two thick stacks of books. Baoyu hurriedly took them, opened the boxes and looked at them. Sure enough, they were the treasures he had found, so he quickly picked them up and ran to the second gate.

When he entered his own courtyard and the study, he began to read with great interest. Xiren, who could not read big characters, was happy to see Baoyu flipping through the book, and she also ordered the little maid not to go in and disturb him.

Baoyu read The West Chamber carefully and found the language to be pure and elegant. He savored it and thought it over carefully. It was truly a hundred times more interesting than those eight-part essays and classics.

The love story between Zhang Sheng and Cui Yingying in the book made Baoyu so excited that his hands and feet became weak and he longed for it in his heart.

What made him even more envious was that Zhang Sheng and Cui Yingying had a lovely maid like Hongniang, who would play matchmaker and run around for their love affairs, truly stunning others.

Baoyu thought that although he had many maids around him, none of them was as considerate as Hongniang. Otherwise, if someone had passed on the message, he and Lin Daiyu would not have become so estranged...

Just when he was going crazy again, because there was no matchmaker to help him pour out his heart, he was feeling sad and melancholy.

Suddenly, there was a shrill and loud sound of firecrackers outside, which frightened Baoyu so much that he trembled all over. He felt a little embarrassed. His self-absorbed and beautiful thoughts disappeared in an instant, and he could not help but feel furious.

An angry voice came from the study: "Xiren, Xiren, what's going on outside? It's so noisy, it disturbs my elegant study..."

Xiren saw that Baoyu was concentrating on his studies with great difficulty, but there was such a big commotion outside that it affected Baoyu's studies, so she quickly asked Sheyue to go out and check what happened.

……

Sheyue went out for half a cup of tea, then came back with a smile on her face and said, "Second Master, just now Second Madam asked the servant to set off firecrackers at the Second Gate. There are also firecrackers at the West Corner Gate. It's quite lively."

Xiren asked, "But is there any happy event at home?"

Musk Moon smiled and said, “I heard that in the afternoon, the eunuchs in the palace came to the East Palace to pass on the imperial decree that the emperor promoted the Third Master to the rank of Fourth Rank Xinwu General, and also rewarded him with a lot of gold, imperial wine, silk and other precious things.

I heard that the East Mansion is very lively now. When the news spread to the West Mansion, Second Madam said it was just a family wedding, and people also set off firecrackers inside and outside the Second Gate to celebrate. "

Xiren smiled bitterly: "This Third Master is really strange. He got promoted suddenly for no reason. He seems to be too frequent."

Baoyu despised him and said, "I knew it. It was Jia Cong who was making trouble for his official career and fame again. He disturbed the whole family and made them lose their peaceful and quiet spirit."

After hearing this, Xiren's face changed slightly, and she advised: "Second Master, I advise you to stop talking about these things. Now we are still living in the West Mansion, and if it gets to Third Master's ears, it will make him even more uncomfortable."

Baoyu's heart skipped a beat when he heard this, and he stopped talking. Although he was absurd, he was not really stupid and ignorant. Could it be that he really had no idea what the situation at home was?
Because he was hesitant about talking nonsense, Baoyu became more and more sad and angry. Jia Cong was the best at deceiving the sisters and making them all go to the East Palace to be close to him. This was already a great hatred.

Now even the Xifu, where he grew up, has a close relationship with him, making him feel uneasy in what he says and does.

I am an innocent person who has never provoked others. I just want to live a quiet life, but it is so difficult. God is really blind...

He frowned and asked, "Didn't they say that those examinees were shameless and that a fraud case had occurred in the imperial examination? Now all the examinees have been thrown into prison, and the court dares not even issue an imperial edict. It is really shameless.

I have always said that scholars are all parasites. There really aren't many good people. Isn't Jia Cong the top scorer in this year's imperial examination? Why doesn't he restrain himself? He was even promoted. It's strange."

Musk Moon said with a smile: "Second Master, I heard that some scholars cheated in the imperial examination, but not everyone did that. Those who cheated were sent to prison, and those who didn't are naturally fine.

The Emperor promoted the Third Master at this moment, which means that the Third Master had nothing to do with the fraud. Maybe when the imperial edict is reopened, the Third Master will be on the list soon. What a great thing that will happen."

Seeing that Sheyue was speaking without any reservations, Xiren's face changed slightly.

When Baoyu heard this, he became angry and shouted, "How can he be your Third Master? His promotion and success in the imperial examinations are all good things, yet you are so proud of it.

It was really in vain that she was born with the appearance of a girl. Just like that Xiaohong, she only talks about the mundane things of official career and economy.

You should find another place to say these nice words, and don’t pollute my innocent place…”

When Musk Moon saw that she was speaking in a nice way but was rebuked by Baoyu, she felt confused and angry. Her face turned pale, but she didn't dare to say anything back, and her eyes instantly turned red.

Xiren felt a headache and hurried out to smooth things over, saying, "Mushuyue, the Second Master was disturbed while studying just now and is in a bad mood. You should stop talking and go out for a walk first, which will save you some trouble."

Musk Moon was depressed. She stamped her feet, turned around and left the room.

Xiren advised: "Second Master has a bad temper. Musk Moon didn't say anything bad. Why did Second Master scold her for no reason? We are all good friends. Why make a fuss?"

Baoyu looked sad and said, "You all are so nice to each other, and only talk about the dirty things of getting promoted and getting rich, but no one understands my feelings. Who can I tell my suffering to?"

When Xiren saw Baoyu beating his chest and stamping his feet, she felt a little scared and quickly shut up and dared not say anything.

At this time, Bihen came in and said, "Second Master, I just saw the Second Miss, Miss Lin, the Third Miss, and the Fourth Miss. Many of them went to Rongqing Hall. It looked very lively. Second Master, why don't you go and take a look?"

Baoyu had a look of grief just now, but after hearing what Bihen said, his expression changed instantly, and he said happily: "The sisters have all come to Rongqing Hall, and Sister Lin is here too. I have something good to show her."

As he spoke, he packed up the set of Romance of the West Chamber on the table and went out in high spirits.

When Bihen saw Baoyu going out with a happy look on his face, she couldn't help feeling proud, thinking that she had made Baoyu happy, so he would naturally remember her kindness.

Xiren felt a little amused and helpless. The Second Master was getting older now, but he was becoming more childish. It was hard to predict when he would turn hostile.

……

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

Jia Cong received a reward from the palace, and the people in the East Palace were overjoyed. According to family etiquette, Jia Cong took Yingchun and other sisters to Rongqing Hall to report the good news to Lady Jia.

When Yingchun came, she picked out two pieces of tribute satin to present to Lady Jia as a filial gift, and asked Xiuju and Zijuan to bring a few more pieces of tribute satin to give to Wang Xifeng and Baochai.

Although Jia Cong came over, Yingchun knew in her heart that there was always some estrangement between her brother and the old lady. Although it was much better than before, they didn't have much to say to each other.

He only sat there for a short while, and Yingchun smiled and said, "Brother Cong, I see you brought the documents from the government office, and you have been studying in the study early this morning. If you have something to do, just go and do it. We sisters will just chat with the old lady."

Jia Cong and Yingchun have always been in sync with each other, so they naturally took the opportunity to say goodbye to Lady Jia, which saved them from sitting there doing nothing. The two of them had little to talk about.

Grandmother Jia was also well-versed in the ways of the inner court, so she naturally knew the reason.

I felt very sad in my heart that my second granddaughter was such an honest and taciturn girl.

Since entering the East Mansion, he has become like a different person, with a delicate mind, considerate and warm, polite and courteous, and flawless. This is also a miracle.

Congge'er is a blessed man after all. Although he has not married yet, he has such a caring elder sister who helps him with housework and plans everything carefully, so he doesn't have to worry about anything.

Now, Lady Jia likes Yingchun more and more. During the Chinese New Year this year, many wealthy and noble families who came to visit her wanted to marry into the Jia family because of their status as the second granddaughter.

When Yuanchun entered the palace in the early years, Grandmother Jia thought that among all these granddaughters, the eldest granddaughter would be the most honorable in the future. But now that the ten-year period has expired, all her efforts have been in vain.

Now that the second branch has lost its status, and the eldest granddaughter is already twenty years old, it will be difficult for her to find a good husband after leaving the palace.

Although the third girl is outstanding, she is the illegitimate daughter of the second wife after all. It is unlikely that she will be able to marry into a wealthy family.

Among all my granddaughters, the one who will be the most glorious and honorable when going out in the future must be the second granddaughter in front of me... (End of this chapter)