Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

Amber has been serving Lady Jia since she was a child, so she naturally knows Baoyu's character. She even knows that Baoyu wants to flirt with Yuanyang.

Now seeing his expression and asking such questions, how could I not know what he was thinking? He must have thought that the girl was pretty and had some unpleasant thoughts in his mind.

As the saying goes, comparing yourself to others will make you feel nauseous, and comparing goods will lead to you throwing them away.

If there were no people like Jia Cong in the two mansions, Baoyu would be considered a well-behaved young man in the Jia family. He was sweet and obedient to the maids and was quite popular.

But after everyone had seen Jia Cong's brilliance, they saw that Baoyu was full of flaws, his words were false, his actions were eccentric, and his behavior seemed to be conceited, but in fact he was secretly vulgar.

In addition, the incident with Jin Chuan happened earlier, in which she almost lost her life, and it caused a lot of uproar.

Now, except for the maids like Xiren in Baoyu's room, who were all branded and had no other way out, and who just kept flattering him, the other maids in the West Mansion kept their distance from Baoyu.

Amber, a senior maidservant around Lady Jia, sees more things than others every day. She has witnessed with her own eyes how Jia Cong treats the eldest sister well and how he pampers the second sister, who was originally ignored, and makes her the housekeeper of the East Palace.

This is what it means to truly care for and cherish a girl. It is much better than Baoyu saying sweet words and then running away afterwards. The two are really incomparable.

In order to save Lady Jia's reputation, Amber treats Baoyu with courtesy in her daily life, but she never has to think about who she is on the side of in her heart.

One is a legitimate lord, capable and sincere; the other is a playboy, unsuccessful and frivolous. There is no need to consider these two.

Now Baoyu's question was ambiguous, and Amber, who was clever and tactful, naturally stepped on the fire and poured cold water on it, doing what she wanted to do...

She smiled slightly and said, "Isn't it an important matter? Moreover, it is a happy event. The Third Master is turning 180 this year, and according to the rules of the mansion, he must go through the ceremony of marrying a wife.

The old lady chose an auspicious day, which happened to be today, so she invited Zhishao and Wu'er early in the morning.

Just now in Rongqing Hall, the two girls served tea to the old lady, and the old lady rewarded them with valuable head ornaments and jewelry. From now on, the two girls will be regarded as the official members of the Third Master's household.

The old lady also said that the Third Master is in mourning and cannot get married in the past few years. Now that he has someone in the house, maybe the Third Master will be able to have children sooner, which is a wonderful thing. "

When Baoyu heard this, his face turned pale immediately. The words "people in the room", "serving tea, paying respects", "having many children" etc., made him feel as if he was hit by a violent attack. He forgot to enter the hall for a moment, and looked up at the sky with a face full of grief and anger.

As for the source of his grief and anger, his mind was dirty and frivolous, so it was naturally difficult for him to tell others.

But if it is only you who have it, it is a naked and innocent thing. If others have it, it is a blasphemous act that desecrates your daughter and makes her dirty.

At this moment, Jia Zheng's voice came from the hall: "Where is Baoyu?"

Baoyu, who was just feeling full of sadness, had just gotten into the mood when Jia Zheng made a casual remark and he was so frightened that he trembled immediately and withdrew his magical powers and hurried into the hall.

……

At this time, Yuanyang came over from the Fengyu Corridor not far away and saw Amber had let down the door curtain and was standing at the door of Rongqing Hall with a strange look on her face.

She walked over and asked, "Why are you standing here alone? What were you whispering to Baoyu just now?"

When Amber saw that it was Yuanyang, she pulled her aside and whispered a few words in her ear, telling her what had just happened. She also said, "This Master Bao is getting more and more weird, as if all the beautiful girls in the world are his business.

The Third Master took in someone from the house, and it was none of his business, and he didn't have any calculations about who he was doing it for. Who was he showing that face to?"

Yuanyang snorted after hearing this and said, "Master Bao has not been like this all his life, this is not surprising, he is just upset for a while, who would take it seriously.

Now he is engaged, and after he gets married, he will move back to the East Courtyard, and everyone will have peace and quiet, and you won’t be able to see his expression even if you want to.”

Amber chuckled and said, "That's the truth. That Second Bao Madam is very powerful. With her in charge, Second Bao will not do anything weird."

Yuanyang looked surprised and asked, "Your words are strange. You have only met her a few times, how do you know that Miss Xia is so powerful? I think she is outstanding in appearance and behaves elegantly, but she is a real rich girl."

Amber smiled and said, "Sister Yuanyang is right, but you don't think about it. The Guihua Xia family is very famous. Mrs. Xia is a widow and unemployed. She can manage such a big family business. She must be a very powerful person.

Do you think the daughter she raised wouldn't be amazing?"

Yuanyang smiled and said, "That makes sense. In this way, Master Bao is lucky. It's okay for him, but if he marries a daughter-in-law like this, maybe he can support the family."

Amber asked again: "Where are you coming from so early in the morning?"

Yuanyang smiled and said, "Early this morning, the eldest wife of the Shi family came to congratulate us. She knows the rules in the officialdom and said that the third master is a first-class Jinshi. He will be given an official position according to the customary practice when he enters the palace to receive gifts today.

She said that this was the rule for successful Jinshi examination, and it would be a great joy at that time. After hearing this, the old lady asked me to go to the East Palace to see if there was any news from the palace.

I stayed in the East Palace for a long time, but didn't get any news. They were busy preparing for the reception, and the second young lady and the others were taking care of things. I couldn't help, and it was not good for me to just wait there, so I came back first.

Qingwen said that if she got any good news about the Third Master, she would have someone report it to Rongqing Hall."

Amber said: "Now the old lady is different from before. She cares more about the Third Master's affairs."

Yuanyang smiled and said, "This is common sense. Have you ever heard of a man who can be as glorious and respectable as our Third Master all year round? The old lady is very lucky."

The two chatted for a while, but didn't want to delay too long, so they both returned to Rongqing Hall.

……

The atmosphere in Rongqing Hall was harmonious and crowded. Not only Jia Zheng and Mrs. Wang were present, but Aunt Xue had come early today to chat and entertain the guests with Lady Jia.

Because the palace announcement ceremony was still going on, many of the Jia family's old hereditary relatives had not had time to come and offer congratulations.

Grandmother Jia and the others still had some free time, so they chatted in the hall.

Also present was Marquis Zhongjing Li, and sitting with her was Shi Xiangyun.

Baoyu originally thought that the sisters from the East Palace would also come to visit, but he didn't expect that only Shi Xiangyun came, and he felt a little disappointed.

Today, Marquis Zhongjing Li came to the palace early in the morning to congratulate her aunt. Since Shi Ding also had to go to the palace to watch the ceremony today, he did not come with her.

Fortunately, when Baoyu entered the hall, Li had just talked to Lady Jia about Jia Cong's official appointment, otherwise Baoyu would have been disgusted after hearing it.

At this moment, he was sitting there, thinking about what Amber had just said, and he still felt a little uncomfortable. Even when Xiangyun was talking to him, he was a little absent-minded.

But not long after he sat down, he heard Li say, "Madam, I originally wanted to take Xiangyun back to live with me for a while, but this girl just refused to do so. She just kept making trouble here, causing you a lot of trouble."

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "What's the trouble? She has been raised by me half of her life since she was a child. As long as she is still married, I will help you raise her. You don't have to worry about anything. What do you think?"

Li smiled and said, "That's a good thing, of course. It's a great blessing for Xiangyun to have an old lady to teach her. It will also be more respectable for her to marry in the future."

Xiangyun, who was standing by, was surprised when she heard this. Why were the old lady and aunt suddenly talking about getting married? I am just old. Do I need to talk about such things?
What's so good about getting married? Now I feel really happy and free...

……

Baoyu was just standing at the door, feeling uncomfortable after being stepped on and poured water on by Amber. When he heard about Xiangyun getting married, he felt even more depressed. He felt that the world was bitter and that all these beautiful women would eventually leave him...

Aunt Xue sighed in her heart, this Cong brother was really rising step by step, not only had he inherited the title of Rong state, but now he had also become a first-class Jinshi, which made him even more unattainable.

Mrs. Shi is playing charades. The old lady has even said that she will raise her grandson until he gets married. She probably wants to keep the wealth within the family and give her own grandson to her own niece's granddaughter.

Aunt Xue thought that her daughter was stubborn and was still in Fengjie's courtyard, helping Congge to manage the affairs of the West Palace. But if her daughter wanted to fulfill her wish, she was afraid that she would have to travel through mountains and rivers to catch up...

Aunt Xue could hear the hidden meaning behind the conversation, and naturally Mrs. Wang would hear it too.

She couldn't help but sneer in her heart. If Cong'er hadn't been married off by the palace, and if the eldest master hadn't died later, things would have been very convenient. I'm afraid the old lady would have promised Xiangyun to him long ago.

Now that the Shi family saw that the boy had become a Jinshi, they were more optimistic about his future. They hinted in their words that they wanted to bring up the old matter again, and the old lady seemed very happy about it.

They had calculated it clearly. After three years of mourning for Cong, Xiangyun had just reached the age of marriage. Wasn't she being raised until she was ready to get married?

They all thought that this boy was a good person and only valued his decent appearance, but they didn't know that he was lewd and evil in heart and had been secretly having an affair with Baochai for a long time. What a shameless fellow!

If I hadn't been concerned about my sister's reputation and didn't want the sisters to become enemies in the future and cut off my escape route, I would have shouted this out long ago to see how that kid would still be so proud in the future...

……

Marquis Zhongjing Li smiled and said, "Madam Gu's house has been full of happy events. Baoyu has just been engaged, and Congge has passed the imperial examination. His career is booming, and he has also brought children and grandchildren to the house.

Baoyu is now safe and sound, and the Guihua and Xia families are also a famous family in the capital.

It seems that Baoyu is about to get married and start a family, but unfortunately for Cong'er, he has not yet completed his filial duties, and in three years he will be eighteen years old. He is getting older every year.

Fortunately, the aunt thought it through and picked a good day to arrange someone for him to live in the house, so that Cong'er could have double happiness.

In my opinion, this year Cong will pass the imperial examination, and it is possible that he will give birth to a child for Auntie by this time next year. It is not unknown for Li to say such flattering words.

For wealthy families like the Jia and Shi families, the ceremony of marrying off their sons when they reach adulthood is performed to let them understand the matters between men and women earlier so as to avoid going out and fooling around. Another reason is to have more offspring.

Therefore, when Li said such lively words, no one in the hall took it seriously and they were used to it.

Only Baoyu had a pale face, dull eyes, and his abdomen was twitching, as if he was about to vomit.

He had already been disgusted by Amber just now, but he didn't expect that Aunt Shi was even more unstoppable. She even said the nonsense that Tian Ding had imported, which was really a blasphemy to her daughter...

……

Because Mrs. Wang came in later, she did not see Zhishao and Wu'er greeting each other. She looked a little confused when she heard this.

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "I had chosen today to hold the wedding ceremony for Cong'er and Baoyu, and it just so happens that it coincides with Cong'er's success in the imperial examination.

The eldest wife is now a widow and rarely comes out to see people. Congge is still single, so it is up to me, the grandmother, to take care of it. I have just asked Zhishao and Wuer to perform the formalities."

I have prepared two more gifts, you can bring them to Xiren and Caiyun, so that they can serve Baoyu well in the future."

After hearing what Lady Jia said, Mrs. Wang felt a little uncomfortable.

Although Lady Jia used the reasons that Lady Xing was a widow and it was inconvenient for her to show up and that Jia Cong had not yet appointed a principal wife, she said that only she, the grandmother, could handle it personally.

As for his own Baoyu, since his parents were present, the old lady's etiquette was waived.

What Lady Jia said seemed to make sense, but the actual reason was not like that, and Mrs. Wang knew it clearly.

If it were an ordinary day, Grandmother Jia would probably ask Xiren and Caiyun to come and serve tea.

It was nothing more than the fact that today happened to be the day when Jia Cong celebrated his success in the imperial examination. Not only was there an external guest like Marquis Zhongjing Li present, but there was no telling how many guests would come to congratulate him in the future.

In this situation where everything is in turmoil, Jia Cong is the real boss. At this time, Jia's mother is in the West Mansion to prepare for Baoyu's marriage. She is worried that she will leave room for criticism and ridicule by outsiders, so she tries to save as much as possible...

When Mrs. Wang saw Yuanyang bringing out two exquisite makeup boxes, she quickly asked her maid to take them, but she looked very uncomfortable.

Aunt Xue, who was standing by, saw Mrs. Wang's expression and sighed in her heart. She thought that even at this point, her sister still couldn't see through the family situation and was still being stubborn.

Cong'er inherited the title of Rongguo, and the second branch of the family moved to the East Courtyard. The primary and secondary branches of the Jia family had been divided, and this could not be reversed.

Externally, it was a matter of clan etiquette, and internally it involved the reputation of relatives and friends. Even if the old lady doted on Baoyu, she now began to be cautious in everything she did, so as not to lose her reputation in her later years and become a laughing stock among the nobles in the capital.

Besides, the old lady is now old and happy, and she has to rely on Cong'er to support her. Can she still rely on Baoyu?
Although the old lady is old, she is not completely confused and still has some sense of propriety.

But my sister is still stubborn and refuses to accept the result. What's the use of this?

……

When Baoyu saw the makeup box that Yuanyang took out, he did not have the same complicated feelings as Lady Wang. He really did not have such a brain.

At this moment, he thought of Xiren and Caiyun, and his heart was filled with inexplicable boredom and impatience.

Xiren had been with him for many years, and they had done everything together. When Baoyu thought of her gentleness and friendliness, it was like his right hand pulling his left hand, which was no longer interesting.

Although Caiyun was pretty, she had followed his wife all her life and had become old-fashioned and boring. Whenever he tried to tease her, she would be shy and unwilling to give in, which made him feel unable to get close to her.

Baoyu thought that he would only be surrounded by people like this for his entire life. It was really a joke of fate that he had such outstanding insights and did not follow the crowd. He was actually worse than Jia Cong, a parasite who pursued fame and fortune.

Baoyu was filled with a tragic and heroic feeling, and could not help thinking in his heart, "I came and went naked without any worries, so where can I go to find a place to go alone with my raincoat and rain hat?"

He kept repeating this to himself, and suddenly he felt that he was exceptional, and began to feel a little bit of self-pity.

Suddenly, Lin Zhixiao's family walked quickly into the hall, their faces full of joy.

He said to Lady Jia: "The old lady is very happy. There is news from the East Palace. The servant of the Third Master came back to report that the Third Master has won great honor in the palace and was appointed as a fifth-rank Hanlin lecturer by the Emperor.

The Emperor also granted the Third Master a title of Imperial Street Praise Officer, but I’m afraid he has already left the palace now!”

Baoyu was reciting wonderful Zen words in his mind, feeling intoxicated and proud. He thought that Jia Cong, a parasite in his official career, had no chance of understanding such a profound situation. He thought that he was, after all, an extraordinary person.

Lin Zhixiao's words not only frightened everyone in the room, but also frightened Baoyu, who was reciting the lyrics, so much that his face turned pale and his tongue hurt from being bitten by his teeth.

His feelings were exposed, and Baoyu could not help but forget where he was, and cried out in grief and anger: "What is this? It's so vulgar!"

……

Everyone in the hall was stunned by the news. For families with military honors, becoming a Hanlin scholar was a very distant thing and had always been out of reach.

Marquis Zhongjing Li knew a lot about officialdom because of her family background. She had just told Lady Jia that the second place in the imperial examination would be able to become a Hanlin editor, a seventh-rank official.

Grandmother Jia felt a little disgusted after hearing this. Her grandson was already a fifth-rank official, and now he was given a seventh-rank official title. Isn't this disgusting?
They could never have imagined that the result would be like this, and they were all a little dazed for a moment.

Jia Zheng was only slightly stunned, then he was overjoyed and was about to ask Lin Zhixiao's wife whether the news was true.

Suddenly, Baoyu let out a strange cry, like the roar of a crow, which scared him a lot.

When Jia Mu and others in the hall saw that Baoyu suddenly went crazy, they were at a loss for a moment.

When Jia Zheng heard Baoyu's words, he felt a chill run down his spine. He subconsciously glanced at the people in the hall, and his heart was beating like a drum.

He scolded Baoyu fiercely, "You rebellious son! You are a scholar, but you dare to speak nonsense today when Congge'er passes the imperial examination. You don't know your own limitations.

Go to the hall and kneel down. Don’t stand up until I say something!”

Baoyu was scolded by his father and suddenly came to his senses. Seeing Shi Xiangyun frowning and looking at him with strange eyes, he felt ashamed.

He thought of Shi Xiangyun, the quick-talking girl. She would definitely tell him about this when she returned to the East Mansion. Wouldn't it be embarrassing for him in front of his sisters...

……

Seeing that Baoyu was still dawdling, Jia Zheng became even more furious and shouted, "You evil creature, you still have the nerve to stay here? Get out!"

Baoyu's face flushed red as he stumbled out of Rongqing Hall and knelt down reluctantly at the entrance of the hall.

Seeing this, Grandmother Jia felt sorry for him and complained to Jia Zheng, "Why did you have to do this? If Baoyu's words were unpleasant to hear, you could have just scolded him. Why did you make him kneel outside? How could he behave in broad daylight?"

Jia Zheng looked distressed and said, "Madam, it's not that my son treated Baoyu harshly, it's just that he spoke too recklessly!
Today is the joyous day for Cong'er to pass the imperial examination. He got the second place in the first class and entered the palace to attend the ceremony of announcing the results of the imperial examination. This is not a trivial matter for a family, but a major event for the country to select talents.

It is really unreasonable that Baoyu made such blasphemous remarks. The old lady still remembers how big a commotion he caused last time when he spoke wildly and insulted a noble lady.

Now he still doesn't know how to wake up. There is a god above us. If I, as a father, turn a blind eye to his rebellious and absurd behavior, how can I go out and meet people in the future?"

Grandmother Jia was not completely confused. When she heard Jia Zheng say that there is a god above your head, she felt a chill in her heart.

He knew his son was speaking with a hidden agenda. The so-called looking up to the gods was just a worry that there were ears behind the walls, or even unclear ears and eyes in the house...

The last time Baoyu said a few idle words in the inner courtyard, the news spread to the palace and the clan house the next day. Both Jia's mother and Jia Zheng were born into wealthy and powerful families, and they were not ignorant people.

When they think back on it later, they won't feel wary...

Grandmother Jia knew that her son asked Baoyu to kneel down just to cover it up and show it to others. Although she felt a little distressed, she dared not say anything more.

Although Mrs. Wang was anxious, she dared not say anything more when she saw that the old lady had kept her mouth shut. She could only feel heartbroken inwardly.

As relatives by marriage, Aunt Xue and Mrs. Li should have given some advice out of courtesy.

But they were not stupid people, so they naturally heard the severity of Jia Zheng's words and would not say a word more to avoid getting themselves involved.

……

Jia Zheng calmed down and asked Lin Zhixiao's wife, "Is your news true?"

Lin Zhixiao's wife replied, "Don't worry, Second Master. This was said by the palace eunuch himself, and Third Master followed Jiang Liu and heard it with his own ears. It can't be wrong."

Jia Zheng's face was filled with ecstasy, and he said to his mother, "Madam, a family of military merit has produced a Hanlin scholar, which has never happened since the founding of the Great Zhou.

The head of the family is a Hanlin scholar. From now on, the Jia family is a legitimate scholarly family and a noble official family. This is a glory that cannot be exchanged for ten thousand ounces of gold!" (End of this chapter)