Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Rongguo Mansion, Rongqing Hall.

There was no rain or snow today, and the sun was shining brightly. The weather was still bitterly cold, but Rongqing Hall was warm and inviting.

The floor of the hall was covered with a foreign-style carpet with floral patterns, and the brocade cushions and embroidered screens everywhere were brand new.

In the center stands a large gilded enamel brazier with three legs made of rhinoceros, inside which burns pine and cypress incense and lily petals, spreading a gentle and sweet fragrance.

Early this morning, Yingchun took Musk Moon to handle miscellaneous tasks. Since the guests from outside the East Mansion had not yet arrived, she asked Daiyu, Tanchun, and others to go and pay their respects first, and she would come later.

Grandmother Jia sat on the Luohan couch in front, with a red cotton brocade felt underneath, a large red longevity and fortune pillow as a backrest, and a sable fur cover, which made her look very elegant and noble.

Daiyu, Tanchun, and Xichun were all dressed in brocade fur coats and thin cotton jackets, looking delicate and beautiful. Their phoenix hairpins shone brightly, making them all charming and captivating. They each sat on carved lacquer armchairs at the lower end of the room.
The chairs were covered with small gray squirrel fur rugs, and the footrests and large bronze foot warmers were placed under the chairs. The grandfather and grandson were chatting and laughing, creating a harmonious atmosphere.

The sisters chatted with Grandmother Jia for a few minutes when Lin Zhixiao came in to deliver a message: the eldest daughter of the palace had sent a maidservant with a zither to deliver New Year's gifts to the family.

Grandmother Jia was overjoyed to hear this. Her eldest granddaughter had been in the palace for ten years, separated from her family by the high walls of the palace. Only in the last two years, thanks to the favor of a noble person, had she been able to keep in touch with her family.

She hurriedly sent someone to the East Courtyard to deliver a message, asking Jia Zheng and Lady Wang to come and speak with her. Yuan Chun sent a maid back to the mansion, surely to deliver a message to her parents.

Then he sent maids such as Yuanyang and Feicui to call Jia Cong, Baoyu, and other young men into the hall.

……

Before everyone had arrived, Lin Zhixiao's wife brought a young lady into the hall, followed by a eunuch carrying a gift box.

All eyes were on Baoqin. Last time, when Grandmother Jia celebrated her birthday, she had left the palace and entered the mansion once, and more than half a year had passed since then.

She became even more graceful and elegant, dressed in an exquisite palace gown and a cloak with lotus and cloud patterns. Her face was beautiful, her posture graceful and elegant.

Grandmother Jia recalled that when Baoqin entered the palace with Yuanchun, she was just a young maid with her hair just grown up. As time passed, she had blossomed into a beautiful young woman, as radiant as the morning sun.

Thinking of his eldest granddaughter spending ten years in the palace, wasting her life, he couldn't help but feel a little sad. Fortunately, by the middle of the year, his eldest granddaughter would be able to come home, which would finally bring an end to the ordeal.

Baoqin bowed to Grandmother Jia and said, "Grandmother, the young lady asked me to pass on a message wishing you a happy new year, boundless blessings, and a long and healthy life."

Grandmother Jia saw that although she was a maid, she had been in the palace for many years and had cultivated a refined and elegant demeanor. Her speech and manners were graceful and generous, and even the most outstanding maids in the West Mansion could not compare to her.

He smiled and said, "It's all thanks to her thoughtfulness. Even while in the palace, she still thinks about home. You've served the head maid for ten years, which is quite an achievement."

Baoqin said, "Grandma, you flatter me too much. It is my blessing to serve the young lady."

Grandmother Jia then instructed Lin Zhixiao's wife to take the young eunuch to a side hall for tea, as it would be somewhat inconvenient for palace eunuchs to stand in the main hall and discuss intimate family matters.

Baoqin continued, "In January before the New Year, you prepared New Year's gifts for the old lady and her family. The gifts are meager, but they represent your heartfelt wishes."

He opened the gift box and took out a dark brown headband with a subtle floral pattern. It was embroidered with elegant designs and inlaid with jade and pearls, and its style was luxurious and grand.

She said, "This headband was made by the young lady herself. It was based on the style of noble ladies in the palace, but with fewer restrictions and taboos. It's perfect for the old lady."

Grandmother Jia took the headband, quite fond of it, and said with a smile, "Your eldest daughter is so clever and skillful; she has always understood my thoughts best since she was little."

……

As they were talking, the red brocade curtain at the entrance of the hall was lifted, and Jia Zheng, Lady Wang, and Baoyu entered the hall after receiving the message.

Baoqin glanced at him and then bowed according to custom, but she did not see Jia Cong and felt slightly disappointed.

When Baoyu saw Baoqin, he was delighted by her outstanding appearance and extraordinary demeanor, which was different from the female relatives and maids in the house. He stared at her intently.

Baoqin took out two sets of silk satin clothes from the gift box and said, "These are undergarments that the young lady made for the master and mistress using the finest tribute satin."

Both Jia Zheng and Lady Wang smiled broadly and repeatedly said "yes".

Baoqin then took out two more books from the gift box and said, "Before the New Year, the young lady received a letter from the master, which mentioned the quota for the Congyin Academy in the two prefectures."

Master Cong gave the spots to Master Bao and Master Huan, and the two gentlemen will enter the Imperial Academy to study in the spring.

The girl was delighted to hear this, saying that now that her family had produced a scholar like the Third Master, the Jia family had become a distinguished and noble family in Chengdu.

It is the duty of the family for its children to study. The young lady said that Master Bao and Master Huan must study hard when they enter the prison.

Do not tarnish the reputation of Master and Third Master. May they achieve great things in the future, bring honor to the family, and add further glory to the Jia family's academic career.

Jia Zheng stroked his beard and smiled, saying, "The eldest maid's idea is excellent; she truly understands the bigger picture."

Grandmother Jia felt helpless upon hearing this. Cong-ge'er's reputation for studying was too great, and people looked at him differently everywhere. Even the head maid, living deep in the palace, could not escape the common customs.

If this topic stirs up any thoughts in my son, I'm afraid my Baoyu will suffer again...

Grandmother Jia quickly changed the subject, smiling and saying, "The eldest son's family produced a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), and the eldest maid is envious, hoping that the second son's family can achieve the same, but this is not an easy thing to do."

However, her intention to encourage her brother to study hard is not wrong. If Baoyu remembers his sister's words and studies diligently while in prison, then the maid will be happy to see him return home.

……

Baoyu was initially delighted to see Baoqin, who was charming, elegant and beautiful.

Before he could finish speaking, she began to talk at length about the pursuit of officialdom and wealth, her eyes shining with longing. Baoyu felt as if he had been struck a heavy blow.

He feared he could never escape Jia Cong in his life. No matter when or where, people would always mention him, talking about him with relish, trying to suppress and discipline him.

With such an outstanding person as Sister Baoqin, I originally thought that the addition of another beautiful and talented person to the family in the middle of the year would be a joyous occasion.

Unexpectedly, despite her outward appearance of elegance, she was just as depraved as Xiao Hong inside, which is truly lamentable. This world is becoming increasingly boring, and there is no longer any room for innocence.

Baoqin said, "The young lady has accumulated some connections in the palace by serving as a lady-in-waiting in the Fengzao Palace. She asked someone to borrow historical books from the Imperial Study."

We selected the best and most fluent eight-legged essays from the provincial and prefectural examinations in Yongzhou over the past five years and transcribed them into two booklets. In fact, there was also the essay written by the Third Master when he passed the imperial examination.

This is a gift for Second Master Bao and Third Master Huan as a congratulatory present upon their entry into prison, a wish for good fortune, and an expression of hope that both gentlemen will be able to enter their studies soon.

Jia Zheng took the two booklets and said with a smile, "Your eldest daughter is truly meticulous. These two booklets are more valuable than any New Year's gift."

I also hope she can come home soon so she can help supervise my younger brothers' studies, and I can worry less about it.

Hearing his father's words, Baoyu felt truly depressed and wanted to die. The thought that crossed his mind subconsciously crossed his mind was, "If we really fall to such a state, I'd rather my elder sister never come home..."

……

Baoqin saw Baoyu in the hall but not Jia Huan, which she found strange. However, being from the Jia family, she knew some of the details and naturally did not ask why.

She then took out a belt from the gift box, a blush creeping onto her pretty face, and asked, "I wonder if Third Master is at home today?"

At this moment, the maid outside the hall lifted the curtain, and Jia Cong and Yingchun entered the hall. Just now, when Jia Cong came over, he happened to meet Yingchun.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "It's been a long time since I've seen Sister Baoqin. I'm the one who's late."

Baoqin saw Jia Cong enter the hall with a gentle smile on his face. He was tall and elegant, with a graceful demeanor, seemingly even more impressive than before.

Having spent ten years immersed in the palace, her conduct and speech have become refined and elegant. Today, as she returns to the palace on behalf of Yuan Chun to offer New Year's greetings, her demeanor and speech are even more graceful and courteous.

However, upon seeing Jia Cong arrive, she changed somewhat; her eyes shone with a clear and gentle light, radiating a pleasant and bright joy.

She smiled and curtsied to Jia Cong, saying, "Third Master, it's been a long time. You're doing very well and your demeanor is even more impressive than before."

Jia Cong smiled and asked, "How have you been doing in the palace, elder sister?"

Baoqin replied, "The young lady is doing well in the palace. Before the New Year, the Third Master passed the imperial examination with flying colors and was appointed as a Hanlin scholar. This is widely praised in the palace."

Because of the Third Master's prosperity, the young lady enjoyed greater prestige in the palace. The Empress has already decreed that after ten years, she will be politely escorted out of the palace and back home.

When Lady Wang heard the words "leave the palace and return home," she felt as if she had been struck by a heavy blow. Her daughter had been in the palace for ten years, and she had originally hoped that her daughter could curry favor with the emperor.

Lady Wang's greatest hope was that the second branch of the Jia family could also turn their fortunes around.

Relying solely on Baoyu's favor with the old lady is ultimately a temporary solution, merely giving the second branch of the family a little more face.

Before the New Year, he originally wanted to take advantage of the palace selection to make a desperate gamble and try one last time, but in the end it was all in vain, and he wasted ten thousand taels of silver.

Ten years of anticipation, all in vain. Was the second wife doomed to never rise again? Thinking of this, Madam Wang felt her ambitions unfulfilled and her heart filled with regret...

……

Just as Madam Wang was feeling down, she heard Baoqin say, "The palace affairs are quite complicated before the New Year. As a lady-in-waiting in Fengzao Palace, you have a lot of palace duties to attend to during the day. Because you received some rewards from the Empress, you have a piece of fine mutton-fat jade with gold trim. You can make a belt for the Third Master as a New Year's gift."

With only New Year's gifts to prepare for the family, the young woman had to do needlework and select and copy articles in the evenings, leaving her somewhat busy.

She made the design for the belt and then asked Baoqin to do the needlework.

Baoqin's handiwork is clumsy, and her needlework isn't very good; please don't mind, Third Master.

Although Baoqin said this, her heart couldn't help but pound. When the young lady was preparing New Year's gifts for her family, she asked her what kind of New Year's gifts she was preparing for Third Master.

It was she who blurted out that it would be inappropriate for the young lady to sew clothes for the third master after she had already made clothes for the master and mistress.

It would be best to make a real man's belt, something inconspicuous yet approachable, while also discussing what kind of material and embroidered patterns should be used, given Third Master's appearance and demeanor...

She was getting quite animated when she suddenly realized something was off. Although she immediately shut up, the girl still laughed at her...

The girl also took out her collection of fine white jade and asked her to make the belt with care.

Baoqin just said that making the belt was Yuanchun's idea, and that Yuanchun made the belt design, but because she was too busy, she asked Baoqin to do it for her.

These were all just excuses she made, simply to avoid being exposed in front of others...

……

Jia Cong took the belt from Baoqin's hand and saw that it was inlaid with a piece of mutton-fat jade with gold filigree, which was pure white, lustrous, and had a subtle luster, making it quite remarkable.

The surface is embroidered with intricate patterns of auspicious clouds and flying bats, outlined with gold and silver threads, and the stitches are delicate and the craftsmanship is exquisite.

Although the belt was not extravagant or luxurious, it exuded a refined and elegant charm, which suited Jia Cong's own taste perfectly.

She smiled and said, "This belt is so exquisitely made. Sister Baoqin is truly skilled. Thank you, elder sister and sister Baoqin."

Baoqin felt secretly pleased to hear his praise, but she didn't show it too much. She thought that she had spent a lot of time burning candles and lamps, so it was not all for nothing.

Upon hearing their conversation, Baoyu felt a surge of bitterness and extreme sorrow and grievance.

Has the older sister forgotten that he is her own brother, who gave him boring and tedious classical Chinese essays?

Yet she gifted Jia Cong this exquisite belt, which she and Baoqin had personally sewn by hand.

This is the kind of gift a young lady should give—so thoughtful and considerate, so elegant and gentle. It should have been given to her, so why is Jia Cong everywhere...?

Baoyu was filled with indignation, but his father Jia Zheng was in the hall, so even though he was full of grievances and dissatisfaction, he dared not speak out of turn and could only suppress his anger.

……

Baoqin opened the lower part of the gift box, which contained six gifts: two sandalwood folding fans, two strings of red musk beads, and a box of incense sticks.

He said, "These are gifts for the Second Miss, Miss Lin, the Third Miss, the Fourth Miss, Miss Shi, and Miss Xue. They are not expensive, but they are all everyday items."

She then took two bolts of silk, two bolts of gauze, and two medicine pills from the gift box, making three sets of each, and gave them to Wang Xifeng, Li Wan, and Aunt Xue.

Finally, a book was taken out of the gift box; it had a blue cover and yellow paper, exuding a simple and elegant air.

He said, "As a lady-in-waiting of the Phoenix Palace, you usually follow the Empress to manage palace affairs, and the concubines of various palaces often come and go."

Therefore, during the New Year festival, the palaces would give gifts as part of social obligations, and by chance, I received a collection of poems by Li Yishan, which was a genuine rubbing from the early Song Dynasty.

The young woman said that Miss Lin came from a scholarly family, was well-versed in literature, and that she had heard of Miss Lin's love for collecting books, so she offered these flowers as a token of appreciation to Miss Lin.

Baoqin presented the poetry collection to Daiyu and couldn't help but scrutinize her closely. She understood why Yuanchun valued Daiyu so much and even gifted her rubbings of ancient books.

Seeing Daiyu's ethereal beauty, her bright phoenix eyes, and her unparalleled charm, he secretly admired her, thinking that she was indeed a perfect match for Third Master...

Grandmother Jia doted on Daiyu even more than the three sisters of the Jia family. Seeing her eldest granddaughter being close to her other granddaughter, she was naturally delighted and her face was full of smiles.

Others, such as Jia Zheng and Yingchun, all knew that Yuanchun was intelligent, wise, and understanding, unlike her other sisters.

They assumed that Yuan Chun knew that Grandmother Jia doted on Daiyu, which was why she treated her so well, so they didn't think much of it, unaware that Yuan Chun had other intentions.

Lady Wang, however, was displeased, feeling that her eldest daughter had been in the palace for too long and was completely unaware of the situation at home.

Not to mention that he never liked Daiyu, he had wanted his master to propose marriage for Baoyu, but was rejected by the young master of Suzhou, which was a great loss of face.

Not to mention Daiyu's words last time, which triggered Baoyu's madness, causing him to make a scene about life and death, which still makes Lady Wang feel lingering fear.

All of this was caused by Lin Yatou. The eldest daughter didn't know the family's situation, and when the sisters gave gifts, they even gave Lin Yatou extra gifts.

She's been in the palace for ten years, and she's really gotten so muddled. She can't even handle things properly. She really needs some serious guidance when she goes home in the middle of the year...

……

Daiyu took the poetry collection and said with a smile, "Although I have never had the chance to meet my eldest sister, I have heard my sisters talk about her and they all say that she is very kind."

I never expected them to be so close and intimate. My favorite line of poetry is Li Yishan's: "Leaving behind the withered lotus to listen to the sound of rain."

My older sister happened to give me a rare Song Dynasty edition of Li Yishan's poetry collection. Although the two sisters have never met, they seem to have a deep connection. I love this collection of poems very much.

After Sister Baoqin returns to the palace, please be sure to thank Eldest Sister for me. I will also choose a thoughtful gift for Eldest Sister and ask Third Brother to send it to the palace for me.

Baoqin smiled and said, "Miss, you have truly given the right gift. It would be best if Miss Lin liked it."

Grandmother Jia was very impressed with Baoqin's meticulous and graceful manner in handling the gifts and her responsiveness to everyone.

I invited her to sit down and asked her a lot of casual questions, mostly about her eldest granddaughter's daily life in the palace, how she was doing, and so on.

Baoqin answered fluently, and Jia Cong, who was watching closely, noticed that she spoke with great tact. When it came to palace secrets, she would subtly gloss over them.

After chatting for a short while, Baoqin got up to take her leave, saying that the palace rules were strict and she dared not stay outside for long, and that she would return to the palace at the appointed time.

As a woman of the highest rank, Lady Jia was someone who frequently entered and exited the palace, so she naturally knew the importance of this matter.

Moreover, the eldest granddaughter will be leaving the palace to return home in the middle of the year, and it's not a good time to leave any ammunition for gossip, lest something unexpected happen.

When Baoqin got up to take her leave, Baoyu was quite disappointed, even though she had just spoken about studying and pursuing the imperial examinations.

Seeing her beautiful face and slender figure, she was truly a stunning young woman, and my heart couldn't help but flutter.

……

She said, "Grandma, Sister Baoqin has been busy delivering New Year's gifts for my elder sister, so let me see her off."

Baoyu felt a little proud after saying this, thinking that his actions were simply a matter of courtesy and that even his master couldn't find fault with them.

This also allows me to get closer to Baoqin and talk to her about the pure and innocent nature of women.

This was to let her know that the Jia family had more than just Jia Cong, and that she herself had advantages that he didn't.

Knowing that she herself possessed such refined manners and was willing to personally escort the maid out, Sister Baoqin would surely be deeply moved…

When Yingchun, Daiyu, and the other sisters heard Baoyu's words, their expressions turned strange. They all knew Baoyu's temperament well and understood what he was thinking.

Madam Wang smiled, thinking that her son was indeed well-mannered, even though Baoqin was a maid and her original rank was not high enough.

But after all, she was the eldest daughter's close confidante and came from the palace, so she had some dignity, and it was reasonable for Baoyu to see her off.

Baoqin had originally planned to leave in advance, but she didn't expect Baoyu to say such a thing. She certainly didn't want Baoyu to see her off.

She quickly said, "Baoqin thanks Second Master Bao for his kindness. However, before leaving the palace, I heard some things about officialdom that were related to Third Master Cong."

Besides delivering New Year's gifts, this trip back to the manor also included a message for the Third Master…

Upon hearing the words "officialdom," Baoyu felt as if a knife had been stabbed into his heart, and his face turned extremely pale and aggrieved.

He stammered, "Is there something I can't say here...?"

Daiyu, Tanchun, and the other sisters all understood the meaning: Baoqin wanted her third brother to send her off. But the meaning wasn't clear enough, and Baoyu was talking to himself like this.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "I'll take it to Sister Baoqin so she can tell me in detail what she told me..." (End of this chapter)