Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 660: Strange Changes in Rongqing Hall

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

Baoyu knelt at the door of Rongqing Hall and saw the women from various families who came to visit him, all looking at him with surprise.

Several of the young ladies who followed their elders had outstanding looks and graceful manners. They looked at him with fear and disgust, as if he were a monster.

In fact, it is not strange at all that he has such an expression. Obviously, there are guests coming to the house, but he is kneeling in front of them. It is normal for him to be looked down upon and despised.

Making a fool of himself in front of these beauties made Baoyu suffer even more. He wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into so that he could never see the world again to avoid being defiled and tortured.

But because of his father's power, he did not dare to act crazy and escape punishment.

If he really did so, his father Jia Zheng would not have the sentimentality of glory and brightness, and would never understand his own innocence and excellence. He would not be like the old lady and the wife, who would love and indulge him with full of pity on their faces.

Most likely, if I make a scene, he will have the servants pin me down, take off my pants and punish me with family punishment. Then, all my outstanding qualities will be trampled upon in an instant. How sad that would be.

Therefore, Baoyu could only kneel obediently at the door of Rongqing Hall, filled with grief and indignation and enduring humiliation.

To avoid the shame in his heart, he lowered his head, turned a blind eye to the passing guests, and felt a sense of narcissism in his heart. He knelt in an extremely outstanding and extraordinary manner, and was extremely detached from the world...

When Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang saw Baoyu kneeling at the entrance of the hall, they felt extremely anxious and heartbroken.

But no matter how much they doted on Baoyu, they didn't dare to ask him to stand up, because Jia Zheng's words "there is a god above your head" were really too scary.

Last time, Baoyu only said a few gossips in the inner house, but the next day he offended the clan house and was beaten by Jia Zheng so badly that he could not get out of bed for two months.

If such a thing happened again, Grandmother Jia and Mrs. Wang could not imagine that Baoyu's reputation would become even more discredited, and a beating would be inevitable.

They were all very worried, wondering if what Baoyu had just said had been leaked to the outside by that bastard in the mansion, just like last time...

Rather than let things get out of hand, it would be better to just let him kneel like this now...

Under the watchful eyes of the public, even if rumors were spread, Baoyu could be said to be wrong, but his family had already punished and disciplined him, and the clan office would not have much of an excuse to come to his house, so the matter might be able to be covered up.

This is also the reason why Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang, even though it was embarrassing, still followed Jia Zheng's wishes and made Baoyu kneel in the hall.

When guests came to congratulate them, Grandmother Jia and Mrs. Wang were still embarrassed. They were worried that the guests would ask about Baoyu's kneeling, and they didn't know how to start the conversation.

But when the nobles and their wives entered Rongqing Hall, as if they had discussed it beforehand, no one asked Baoyu why he knelt at the entrance of the hall.

It was as if these women had problems with their eyesight. When they entered the hall, they didn't even notice Baoyu, this living treasure. This made Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang feel very strange.

But since no one asked about this embarrassing thing, it made sense that Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang did not take the initiative to talk about it...

……

In fact, these nobles and their wives who came to congratulate them were certainly not all blind. It was just that they did not mention Baoyu's matter out of some unanimous calculation.

These female relatives who were able to accompany the male guests to express congratulations were all important ladies in various noble and wealthy families. They were either the mistress of the house or the wife of the eldest son. All of these women were smart people.

They interacted with the Jia family on a daily basis, so naturally they knew everything about the Rongguo Mansion.

If it were the Jia family before Jia Cong inherited the title, Baoyu would be the phoenix of the Rongguo Mansion, the most beloved grandson of Mrs. Rongguo, and the auspicious sign of being born with a jade in his mouth. He was truly the epitome of all love and favor.

At that time, when these noble ladies came to visit, they all liked to praise Baoyu in every way in front of Lady Jia, making her happy. The old relatives of the aristocratic families also became more harmonious, and everyone praised the playboy. It was just the way of the world.

But now the Jia family has changed. The eldest son, Jia Cong, is glorious and talented, has two titles and has inherited the country's glorious family business. Baoyu has become a concubine and has long lost his original status.

In addition, Hui Baoyu was demoted by the clan office after he said in the inner courtyard that the emperor was a fool. His reputation had already become ruined.

It is said that Baoyu was born with many quirks. Not to mention that his mother gave birth to a piece of jade when he was born, it is said that he himself cannot even read the Four Books. He often boasts of his lofty sentiments and looks down on all the scholars in the world.

In short, outsiders now know that when the Jia family reached the Yu generation, they really had a strange son, but Baoyu was so strange that he went completely off the track...

A notorious sideline child of the Jia family, who is a good-for-nothing even when studying, is destined to be a useless piece of mud that cannot be helped and an old turtle that can never turn over a new leaf.

Now these old relatives and noble ladies no longer have the interest, and they think the disgusting things are interesting, and they even flatter Baoyu in front of Lady Jia.

Besides, who in the officialdom didn’t know about the clan house’s visit last time? In fact, the clan house’s move was instigated by the palace. No one would let it go if their father was scolded...

These noble ladies are all smart people. Now no one would say anything nice about Baoyu just to please Lady Jia, otherwise they would be challenging the current emperor. Next time, the clan house will have to visit your house.

So, when these noble ladies came to congratulate him today and saw Baoyu kneeling at the door of Rongqing Hall, they knew that Baoyu must have gotten into trouble again, otherwise it would not be such a big show of courtesy since it was not a festival.

Besides, there are so many places to kneel. Just kneeling at the entrance of Rongqing Hall is clearly kneeling for outsiders to see.

As for what misfortune he had committed that frightened the Jia family so much that they were willing to punish the former Young Master Fenghuang in this way.

Baoyu doesn't have the ability to kill or set fire, so he must have violated the taboo by talking too much.

But last time he called the emperor and the old concubine fools, so this time he called that noble lady again? The prince or the princess? Could it be the current emperor in the palace...

These clever ladies, with their quick minds, felt that it was indeed unlucky once they thought about it a little more deeply.

Today, they followed the men of their family to the Jia family to congratulate Jia Cong on his success in the imperial examination and becoming a Hanlin, and to show their support to this young master.

Besides, Rongguo Mansion was originally the property of the second wife, but now it has been turned into the property of the first wife by an imperial decree from the emperor. Can the first and second wives of the Jia family get along with each other?
If they were to talk too much and ask too many questions, and by chance they brought up Baoyu and caused him to do something bad, thus ruining the Jia family's joyous celebration today, then that wouldn't be the same as coming to congratulate Marquis Weiyuan, but would be embarrassing and ruining the family's celebration.

Therefore, when these noble ladies first saw this scene, they just glanced at Baoyu twice, and then pretended to be blind and turned a blind eye, and entered Rongqing Hall with various manners.

As for whether they would be too cold to Baoyu, they didn't care at all. The noble families were tracing their inheritance, and the side doors and concubines were ignored. The words were rude but the logic was not. This was the way the world was now.

For these noble ladies, one is an incompetent and ridiculous son of a sideline family, and the other is a direct descendant of a noble Hanlin scholar. How to choose between them is too reasonable...

……

Grandmother Jia felt sorry for Baoyu's suffering, but she was old after all and had a cheerful temperament.

After those noble ladies entered the hall, in order to whitewash the situation, they talked about Jia Cong all the time, praising him to the point of being the best in the world. They also said that it was all because of Grandmother Jia's good management of the household and her good education that the Jia family could enjoy its current prosperity.

Although even Lady Jia herself felt that the words about good upbringing were nonsense, she still looked proud after hearing them. After hearing them so many times, she even began to believe them. She was so happy that she even forgot about Baoyu's matter a little.

But after all, Mrs. Wang is the mother of her son. Besides, no matter how many good words those noble ladies said, they were all praising Jia Cong and had nothing to do with her Baoyu. It was too harsh to hear.

On the one hand, she was worried about her son Baoyu, feeling sorry for him having to suffer such humiliation because of a casual remark. On the other hand, she was listening to those noble ladies talking nonsense and enthusiastically praising how great Jia Cong was.

The inner struggle made Mrs. Wang feel so depressed that she felt suffocated. She felt like there was a breath stuck in her chest, and she couldn't go up or down. She felt like she was being fried in oil and on fire, and she wanted to bang her head against the wall to vent.

At this time, Chengyang Marquis Xu walked into Rongqing Hall with a smile, followed by her third unmarried daughter.

Miss Liu San had visited the Jia Mansion several times and received calligraphy from Jia Cong, and gave Jia Cong gifts in return.

She was born with good looks, beautiful appearance and slim figure. Today, as her mother came to congratulate her, she had exquisite makeup, dressed in gorgeous and elegant clothes, and looked radiant.

Baoyu was originally kneeling there with his head down, unable to see anyone, but after all, he had already shown his talent during the one-year-old ceremony, and he was naturally sensitive to girls' affairs.

He seemed to be able to sense the fragrance from afar. He looked up suddenly and saw the beautiful Miss Liu San. His eyes lit up slightly and he even forgot that he was still kneeling on the ground.

The third young lady felt strange when she saw him kneeling on the ground, and then she saw Baoyu's burning eyes, and felt a little scared, so she subconsciously took two steps back.

She felt aggrieved when Baoyu looked at her, thinking that this was the inner courtyard of Marquis Weiyuan, so why was Jia Baoyu from the second wife standing here, kneeling in a strange way.

She originally thought that Madam Jia lived in Rongqing Hall, and Jia Cong must come in and out frequently. If she met him, she would be willing to let this Hanlin Lang look at her in any way...

It’s a pity that I didn’t meet the person I wanted to meet, and instead met people who were inappropriate and irrelevant to me. I felt a little disappointed.

Chengyang Marquis Xu was indeed the leader of the harem. In a moment, she made the same decision as the other noble ladies. She reached out and pulled her dazed daughter, then flashed into Rongqing Hall with extremely light movements...

As soon as Xu entered the hall, she smiled and said to Grandmother Jia, "Please forgive me, Madam. I should have come earlier to congratulate the Duke of Weiyuan on his success in the imperial examination and the honor of being a Hanlin.

I didn't expect that after I left, I was delayed by something. This delay had something to do with Earl Weiyuan."

Grandmother Jia was surprised and asked, "How could Congge come to the palace to announce the names of the candidates today and delay the Marquis's schedule?"

Chengyang Marquis Xu smiled and said, "Madam Tai doesn't know yet. After the imperial palace's imperial examination ceremony was over today, the emperor awarded the first-class imperial examination candidate an official post in the imperial street to show his honor. It just so happened that our carriage had just left the palace, and we wanted to come early to congratulate Madam Tai. Unexpectedly, when the carriage passed by Hanzheng Street, several streets were crowded with people, and it was impossible to move.

Later I asked around and found out that when the Duke of Weiyuan was passing by Hanzheng Street, he was boasting about his official duties. It was a big scene and people from all over Shenjing City came to see him.

Xiu'er, what did you ask the servant to find out about? "

The third young lady smiled and said, "They say that when the Duke of Weiyuan was on the imperial street, he was boasting about his official duties and passing by Hanzheng Street. He was so handsome and outstanding that he was unparalleled at the time and was the best among his peers.

The people threw colorful handkerchiefs at him and sang Jia's poems for him. The scene was noisy and shocked the whole city. Many people followed him all the way and were reluctant to leave even when they reached the Ministry of Rites.

Unfortunately, there were too many people on the street and our carriage could not move forward, so I didn’t get to see the grand spectacle with my own eyes. I was not lucky enough to see it.”

……

After hearing what the mother and daughter of Chengyang Marquis said, Jia Mu and others were all surprised.

Mrs. Wang felt more and more depressed. That kid from the East Palace was acting weird and doing all these nonsense things, but others thought it was strange and kept flattering him. It was really ridiculous.

Marquis Zhongjing Li came to the Jia Mansion early in the morning, so she didn't know about the things about praising officials in the Imperial Street.

He laughed and said, “I left home too early and didn’t see this magnificent scene, with colorful handkerchiefs being thrown and Jia’s poems being sung, and the whole city paying attention. I have never heard of such a wonderful thing in operas.

Congge is really amazing. No matter what he does or where he is, he can always bring honor and glory to my lady."

Grandmother Jia was flattered by Li and laughed, "Brother Cong has always been like this since he was young. No matter what he does, he can always stand out.

Although we cannot say that he has achieved great success now, he is still slightly better than ordinary people. I hope that from now on, he can spend more time at home.

I will be satisfied when I am through with the mourning period, get married and have children.”

Lady Jia's remarks were quite dignified and the other noble ladies joined in replying to her remarks, and the atmosphere in the hall became more festive and harmonious.

Mrs. Wang, who was listening to all these words, felt a tinnitus and dizziness in her ears. Thinking of her son Baoyu kneeling in the hall as punishment, and Jia Cong, who was in the eyes of everyone, her heart felt like it was being stabbed by a knife. She was ashamed and hated to death.

Baoyu saw the pretty Miss Liu San walking past him, her charming fragrance and graceful figure, and he felt his soul wandering.

I sighed in my heart that my daughter was like water, and I couldn't help but indulge in her. For a moment, I even forgot that I was kneeling as punishment...

Just as he was enjoying himself, he suddenly heard the charming voice of Miss Liu San.

They were just talking about Jia Cong praising the official in the imperial street, praising him for his outstanding heroism, unique among his time, and the best among his peers.

It was also said that the people of the city threw colorful handkerchiefs at him and sang Jia's poems for him, which caused a sensation in the city and was known to all women and children.

Baoyu has always put a lot of effort into his daughter, and he can clearly hear that Miss Liu San is happy and her voice is trembling, as if she is quite in love with Jia Cong...

Baoyu's face turned pale, and he felt ashamed and angry, and also heartbroken. He lamented that the world was so corrupt and why all the good girls were admiring the careers of officials and the pursuit of wealth.

What's so good about Jia Cong that this elegant and outstanding girl would speak of him in such a loving way. It's totally nonsense!
The world's people have all been deceived and bewildered by hypocritical parasites like Jia Cong, and no one recognizes my innocent feelings. It's really fate's trick on me.

Baoyu seemed to be somewhat confused by Miss Liu's words, and he couldn't help muttering to himself.

"It's really vulgar, vulgar, I have to find a quiet place one day to get away from the filth of this world..."

At this time, the ladies in the hall were chatting about Jinshi and Hanlin, and they were talking very lively and happily. No one paid attention to Baoyu's nonsense.

Only Miss Liu was a junior, so she was not allowed to talk too much or interrupt. She was feeling a little bored, and when she heard Baoyu's words, she felt goose bumps all over her body and hurriedly moved away from the hall.

……

Earl's Mansion, Jia Cong Courtyard.

Ever since Jia Cong inherited the title of Rong, the guests coming to congratulate him from the eastern and western mansions have been clearly divided.

Most of the guests who came to pay a visit to the West Mansion were old noble relatives who had been on good terms with the Rongguo Mansion for generations.

Most of the guests who came to the East Palace to pay a visit were Jia Cong's classmates, teachers, colleagues in the government, tutors in the imperial examinations, and friends in the market.

Today, Jia Cong went to the palace to pay respects, so he was not at home. However, he went to the West Mansion to pay respects to his old relative Shixun, and many people still came.

They would come to congratulate Jia Cong because of their old friendship with the Rong Kingdom. Now that Lady Jia is still alive in the West Mansion, out of seniority and etiquette, they would come to pay their respects earlier even if Jia Cong was not there.

However, most of the guests at the East Palace were Jia Cong, who had made many connections after entering the society. They came to congratulate him for simple reasons, which were entirely out of personal friendship with Jia Cong.

Therefore, when Jia Cong entered the palace today, there were not many guests from the East Palace who came to congratulate him. Many people would wait until Jia Cong returned home before coming to congratulate and talk.

In the morning, after being busy entertaining guests and preparing several rounds of banquets in the outer courtyard of the East Palace, they took a break for a while.

Yingchun carefully instructed the stewardess about all the affairs of the outer courtyard, asking them to take care of them together with the housekeeper of the outer courtyard. She then took Daiyu, Tanchun and other sisters back to Jia Cong's courtyard.

In the morning, Jiang Liu sent someone back to the mansion to deliver a message that Jia Cong had left the palace more than an hour ago and would return to the mansion after praising the officials in the Imperial Street.

After Yingchun and others finished their work, they went to his yard to sit and chat, waiting for Jia Cong to return home.

In the main room, Shi Xiangyun was talking incessantly, telling about what she had seen and heard in Rongqing Hall. Her crisp and pleasant voice echoed in the yard.

"I really didn't expect that Third Brother's praise of officials in the Imperial Street would be so dazzling. This is such a rare and precious thing. If I had known, I would have gone out to see it."

"You didn't see it. When the third young lady of the Chengyang Marquis family talked about her third brother being hit by a colorful handkerchief and the people singing Jia's poems, she looked quite strange. Her face turned red and her eyes sparkled, hehe."

Daiyu teased, "Look at what you said. It's better to keep it to yourself. It's like your eyes don't light up when you mention your third brother."

Xiangyun felt embarrassed by what she said, and the two of them walked around the table laughing and joking.

Yingchun did not have much impression of the daughter of the Marquis of Chengyang, so she asked, "I don't quite remember the third daughter of the Marquis of Chengyang. How many times has she come to our house?"

Tanchun smiled and said, "Anyway, Second Sister will forget people who are not closely related to Third Brother as soon as they turn their heads, and she is unwilling to spend the time to remember them.

This Third Miss received a piece of calligraphy from Third Brother, and gave him a gift in return, so even we got some benefit from it."

Yingchun smiled and said, "Now that you mention it, I remember that this girl seems to be somewhat fond of Brother Cong."

At this time, footsteps were heard at the gate, and Jia Cong's laughter was heard: "Second sister, which girl likes me? I don't know."

When Daiyu heard Jia Cong's voice, she stopped playing with Xiangyun, tied a knot on the silk handkerchief in her hand, and threw it at Jia Cong mischievously.

She said with a smile, "The No. 2 scholar is so dashing today, riding a horse in Hanzheng Street to show off his wealth. How many handkerchiefs have you received from beautiful ladies? Tell me quickly so that my sister can hear it."

Jia Cong laughed and said, "There were too many handkerchiefs in the sky at that time, how could we catch them all?"

He shook Daiyu's silk handkerchief in his hand and said with a smile, "It's my sister's handkerchief that I caught right away."

Daiyu pursed her lips and smiled slightly, without saying anything, nor did she go forward to take back the handkerchief.

Yingchun smiled and said, "There are so many rumors about this year's Spring Examination. It sounds very dangerous and I have been worried.

Fortunately, everything went smoothly for Brother Cong, and he had no worries. He was selected as the second place in the imperial examination and was appointed as a Hanlin. After years of hard study, he finally achieved his goal. "

Jia Cong smiled slightly. He had indeed accomplished his mission in the imperial examination, but how many people were involved in this strange storm...

Of the eleven current imperial examination candidates, ten had their titles revoked and were never allowed to enter officialdom again, and one died in prison.

Dozens of officials who had taken part in the imperial examinations were implicated and either demoted or imprisoned.

A high-ranking official of the third rank, a vice minister, was demoted to the eighth rank and retired because of leaking questions and dereliction of duty.

What made Jia Cong feel most sad was Lin Zhaohe, who ranked third in the imperial examination. He was born in Jiangnan, a place with prosperous imperial examinations. He was the top scorer in a state and had the potential to be in the first class.

However, due to his involvement in a fraud case, he was forgotten by the crowd and ranked last in the second class.

This morning, Jia Cong did not see Lin Zhaohe during the palace's grand ceremony. He did not know whether it was because his injury had not yet healed and he could not go, or because of some other reason...

(End of this chapter)