Red Mansion, Ningfu Scholarly Family

Chapter 89 Who is perfect?
……

The next morning.

Qingwen didn't sleep well last night for some reason, so she came to help Jia Rong wash and dress this morning. While combing Jia Rong's hair, she smiled and said, "What good things did you do last night? Why did you make the little girl so tired?"

"you guess."

"I guess it must be me who bullied others!"

At this time, Jia Rong had already washed and dressed in a light-colored silk shirt and a simple, fresh bun. With his handsome face, Jia Rong did not dare to look in the mirror too often, for fear of admiring himself.

"You think too much."

Jia Rong tapped Xiao Xiao's head gently with his fan and said, "I will go to pay my respects to the master first. You call Qingwen and order some side dishes. I will come back for breakfast later."

"it is good!"

Xiao Xiao agreed while holding her hair bun, and when she entered the room, she lifted the quilt for Qingwen and shouted, "Qingwen, get up quickly!"

Qingwen was only wearing a small lilac-colored dress at this time. She opened her eyes slightly and looked at Xiaoxiao hazily, murmuring, "What time is it?"

Xiao Xiao poked Qing Wen's forehead with her finger and said with a smile, "It's almost noon. The master has already gotten up to write two articles. Isn't it time for you lazy girl to wake up too?"

"I, ha, I'll get up right away."

Qingwen stood up yawning. Xiaoxiao took a quick look at her. Well, there was indeed no sign of bullying. She wondered how the two of them got along last night.
"Qingwen, please tell me the truth. What did you do with me last night?"

Qingwen asked in confusion: "What did you do?"

Xiao Xiao chuckled and said, "When taking a bath?"

Qingwen blushed and spat, "Bathing is just taking a bath, what else can you do?"

Xiao Xiao giggled and whispered in Qingwen's ear: "Did that damn girl secretly take advantage of me?"

"what!"

Qingwen felt like someone's tail was stepped on. Even though she knew she couldn't beat Xiaoxiao, she still pounced on her and started fighting with Xiaoxiao.

"You're talking nonsense!"

"Cuckoo..."

The two were arguing when they suddenly heard someone at the door laughing.

"The two sisters started quarrelling so early in the morning?"

"Who is jealous? Who is the one who is jealous?"

Qingwen hurriedly pulled the quilt to cover herself.

Xiao Xiao adjusted her temples, turned around and chuckled, "Ping'er came here so early in the morning, could it be that you want to see our master?"

Ping Er's face flushed slightly, because she felt a little "guilty" because of what Feng Jie said yesterday. She pretended to be calm and said, "Don't talk nonsense. Today our grandmother is going to take a concubine for the Second Master. She asked me to come and talk to Master Xiao Rong. Let's go over and have a drink."

"Oh?"

Xiao Xiao smiled and said, "Who is so lucky?"

Ping Er smiled and said, "It's Miss Feng Er."

When Xiao Xiao heard that it was Feng'er who took a concubine, and thought of what Fengjie said yesterday, she already understood 89% of it.

The shrewd Second Lady of the West Mansion really took a fancy to this precious land next to the eldest son of the East Mansion.

Of course, this is not surprising.

Who among the people in the two governments didn't envy this precious land? Who didn't look at it eagerly?

This is the future head of the Jia family!

Only that silly girl Yuanyang was so stubborn that she was devoted to an old lady whose body was half buried in the ground.

Actually, Amber was smart. She stayed close to Miss Lin and refused to go back.

Qingwen had already put on her clothes and came out with her hair tied up. She chuckled and said, "Your grandmother is really calculating. When will Ping'er come over to serve us?"

Ping Er stamped her feet and said angrily, "I won't mess around with you guys anymore. I have things to do when I get back."

"Hey, come back."

Xiao Xiao grabbed Ping Er and said with a smile, "You're already here, but you haven't even had a sip of tea yet. Qing Wen, please arrange for someone to serve breakfast. After seeing the master, I will come back to eat."

When Ping Er heard that Jia Rong was coming back for dinner, she panicked and quickly declined, saying, "I have to go back. There are things going on over there."

Qingwen smiled and said, "What are you doing here?"

Ping Erh said, "Of course I'm here to invite your master."

Xiao Xiao smiled and said, "Oh? Then you went back after seeing the person? You are so insincere!"

Ping'er: "..."

……

But when Jia Rong arrived at the east wing, Jia Zhen was still sleeping soundly.

Jia Rong did not dare to disturb her, so he cautiously came to the outer room and asked Pei Feng, "How has the master been these past two days?"

"It's good, it's just..."

"how?"

Jia Rong frowned suddenly.

Is Jia Zhen going to do something naughty again?

Pei Feng frowned and said, "I don't know what happened to the master these past two days. He suddenly became obsessed with practicing Taoism and even ordered housekeeper Lai to invite a Taoist priest from the mountain outside to stay in the guest room."

"Oh."

Jia Rong was immediately relieved, clapped his hands and said with a smile: "You don't have to worry about this at all, I think this is a good thing!"

Pei Feng said: "How can it be a good thing? I heard that Taoist priests and monks are the best at bewitching people..."

Jia Rong waved his hands and said, "It's all just rumors. There's a poem that says: 'I've trained myself to look like a crane, and under a thousand pine trees I have two boxes of scriptures. I came to ask Dao Wuyu, and he said, 'The clouds are in the sky, and the water is in the bottle.'"

“It can be seen that people who practice Taoism can cultivate their character, strengthen their bodies, and prolong their lives.”

"Really?"

"Of course!"

Jia Rong said seriously, "At least after Master became a Taoist, he now has something to do. He doesn't have to be beaten every day. Isn't this a good thing? If he continues to be beaten, how many years can Master's body last?"

Peifeng suddenly understood.

"It's a good thing when you say that, sir."

"I won't advise you from now on."

Jia Rong smiled and nodded.

"That's it."

"Practice Taoism, if one person achieves enlightenment, the whole family will benefit. Who knows, one day the master might achieve enlightenment and ascend to the immortal world, and we can all benefit from it together."

Pei Feng: “…”

Why does this sound awkward?
Jia Rong waved his fan and said with a smile, "You go and serve the master. I'll go visit the old Taoist priest. By the way, you just said that it was someone that Steward Lai invited from outside?"

Peifeng raised her hand and opened Jia Rong's fan, saying, "It was Lai the housekeeper who invited us here. I heard he can make elixirs."

Can you also make elixirs?
Jia Rong was even more satisfied!

Lai Er, who was outside, had heard that the eldest son was coming and had been waiting at the door for a long time. When he saw Jia Rong coming out, he hurriedly bent forward and smiled apologetically: "Master, the Taoist priest's matter was arranged by the master..."

Jia Rong said, "I already know about this matter. I will follow the master's arrangement."

Lai Er heaved a sigh of relief, and then he quietly looked at Jia Rong's face and said cautiously, "Master Wang has been wanting to pay his respects to you. I wonder if you are free today?"

"Alright."

Jia Rong also wanted to see whether this Taoist priest was trustworthy.

Seeing that he had pleased Jia Rong, Lai Er immediately led the way happily, and soon they arrived at a small courtyard on the south side of the east span.

There was actually a stove set up in the yard!
There is a square tripod on the stove!

Smoke curls up...

The elixir has actually been refined!
An old Taoist with an immortal look, a white beard reaching down to his chest, a full forehead, a square chin, a ruddy face, and a whisk in his hand.

Seeing Jia Rong coming, he shook his whisk and smiled mysteriously.

"Infinite Heavenly Lord!"

"Wu Shoushan Bu Lingzi, nice to meet you, young friend Rong."

Jia Rong nodded secretly.

This should be able to fool Jia Zhen, who has become addicted to elixirs. It would be best if he could trick Jia Zhen into going to Xuanzhen Temple outside the city and quietly make elixirs.

"The Taoist priest is indeed a hermit and an expert!" Jia Rong said politely.

Bu Lingzi smiled and said in a calm voice, "I am not really an expert. I have lived for more than 180 years in vain, but it is still far from my reach to ascend to heaven!"

As he spoke, Bu Lingzi gently shook the whisk in his hand.

"Wow."

A large area of ​​golden light flashed across the sky. Under the morning sun, it was even dazzling.

Lai Er, who was standing behind him, immediately bowed down in worship, almost kneeling down, muttering, "Immortal magic, immortal magic!"

Not to mention Lai Er, even Jia Rong was stunned for a moment.

It turns out that Taoist alchemists all have some tricks up their sleeves.

What's the reaction?
Physical reaction or chemical reaction?

Seeing that he had subdued the two men, Bu Lingzi retracted his whisk, stood where he was, smiling without saying a word.

Sudden.

"Good job!"

Jia Rong patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile, "How about twenty taels of silver per month?"

Bu Lingzi: “…”

"I am a person from outside the Taoist world..."

Jia Rong: "You're already fasting? You don't need to eat?"

Bu Lingzi: “Not yet…”

Jia Rong said with a smile: "Then accept it. I will teach you some Taoist methods to cultivate your character and prolong your life. If anything goes wrong, you will be held responsible!"

"By the way, there is a Taoist temple outside our city. If you feel that the market here hinders your practice, you can move there to practice alchemy."

Bu Lingzi: "..."

……

After leaving the East Courtyard, Jia Rong prepared to go home to have breakfast and then study hard.

The Imperial College is about to start school.

It’s time to focus and start the next journey in life - becoming a juren.

To put it bluntly, the title of scholar is of no use, especially to Jia Rong, the eldest son of the Ningguo Mansion, it is just a nice name.

Of course, it is still of great use to ordinary people’s homes. They can be exempted from corvée and taxes, can go to the county school to receive stipends every month, and can meet officials without bowing.

While I was thinking about something, I just reached the door of my house and a girl ran towards me with quick steps.

Jia Rong couldn't dodge...

"what!"

Ping'er screamed in surprise, looked up, and found herself in Jia Rong's arms.

"Uncle, I..."

Ping'er's face turned red as blood, her mind felt empty, and she couldn't utter a word.

Jia Rong let the man go, fanning himself and said with a smile, "What's wrong with you? Is there a tiger chasing you?"

"Pfft."

Ping Er suddenly laughed, her nervousness gone, and she said with a smile, "Yes, two tigers are chasing me, sir, stop them quickly."

Sure enough, two people were chasing after them. They were Xiaoxiao and Qingwen.

Xiao Xiao clapped her hands and laughed, "I saw it just now. I was wondering why you ran so fast. Turns out you came out to throw yourself into my arms!"

Ping'er was very embarrassed and started to quarrel with Xiaoxiao. Qingwen naturally supported Xiaoxiao. The two of them quickly subdued Ping'er and pulled her into the house.

At this time, the food has been served.

There were six meat and vegetable dishes, four of which were Jia Rong's favorites, one ordered by Xiaoxiao, and one ordered by Qingwen.

The two of them first served Jia Rong a meal. After Jia Rong finished washing up and went to the study to read, they forced Ping'er to the table and had breakfast together before releasing her.

……

Fengjie's yard.

In order to show her virtue, Feng Ji started busying herself in her yard early in the morning, setting up more than a dozen tables for banquets, and personally invited Lady Jia, Lady Xing, and Lady Wang to come over.

Because she was not feeling well, Li Wan, Yingchun and other sisters asked their maids to invite them, and also sent someone to the East Palace to invite Xichun and Daiyu over.

Ping Erh just came back at this time, and Sister Feng asked with a smile: "How is it, have you invited the guests?"

Ping Er smiled and said, "Yes, Master Xiao Rong is reading now and will be here soon."

"That's good." Sister Feng smiled and asked, "Why did you come back so late? Is there any reason?"

Ping Erh said helplessly, "Xiao Xiao Qing Wen insisted that I eat."

Sister Feng smiled and said, "That's great! You sisters should go ahead and arrange everything."

"Grandma, say it again!"

Ping'er was embarrassed and angry, and turned around to leave.

"Okay, okay." Sister Feng said with a smile, "I won't say any more. I can't leave you today. Go and help me with the arrangements."

at that time.

Grandmother Jia, Lady Xing, Lady Wang, Li Wan, the Yingchun sisters, Xiangyun, Xichun, Daiyu, Xue Baoqin and others had all arrived. The room was full of laughter and noise, and it was very lively.

Fengjie wanted to wait on the side, but Li Wan and Tanchun stopped her and said with a smile, "My grandma, you should take a rest. It's been several months, and you still don't know how to take care of yourself!"

Grandmother Jia also laughed and said, "Feng girl, don't move today, and don't drink. Just sit there and watch us eat."

Fengjie was pressed on the chair, and said pitifully: "It's pitiful that I spent money to invite you to the hospitality today, but I can only watch you guys having fun and drinking. Where is the reason? Is there any justice for me?"

Tanchun laughed and said, "Isn't the great Lord Qingtian up there?"

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "That's right! I am now the great Lord of Heaven, and we just want to tempt you. We must all drink today, and later we must play a drinking game to finish her wine."

Everyone laughed and said "yes".

Sister Feng covered her chest, feeling distressed and about to cry: "Grandfather, please leave some for me, I will drink it later."

Lin Daiyu pointed at Fengjie and chuckled, "Look at her, she's taking advantage of me and acting cute. I don't know how happy she will be to have another sister in the future."

good good!
Sister Feng gritted her teeth and smiled, "Lin girl, I wish you to have a group of sisters in the future, at least a perfect one."

"Hahaha……"

Xiangyun was the first to laugh.

Everyone laughed.

Lin Daiyu gritted her teeth and said, "You are so mean and mean, people hate you. You should try to be perfect first!"

"Haha." Sister Feng laughed, "Lian'er? He doesn't deserve to be perfect at all. We two burnt papers should just follow him."

Xiangyun smiled and said, "According to you, who is perfect?"

Sister Feng smiled and said, "Of course there is someone who can match me."

Xichun said: "I feel that in our family, only Rong Ge'er is perfect, no one else is worthy!"

Mrs. Wang frowned unconsciously.

What do you mean Rong Ge'er is the only one who can talk? Where is her Da Baoyu? There are more than a dozen servants in the house now, and how many are there around Rong Ge?

"Hahaha……"

"Giggle."

"Whee!"

Everyone laughed, except Lin Daiyu, because several people were looking at her. Lin Daiyu stared at Xiangyun, who was closest to her, and asked, "Why are you looking at me?"

Xiangyun smiled and said, "I see what's wrong with you?"

Sister Feng laughed and said, "Let's see who can match the perfect sister!"

Grandmother Jia said from above: "Well, the sisters are still young, Feng girl, please don't joke too much."

Sister Feng laughed and said, "The old ancestor is right. We will talk about it when Sister Lin is older."

"You!"

Grandmother Jia pointed at Fengjie and smiled, then suddenly looked at a girl next to Daiyu and said with a smile: "Whose family is this girl from? I have forgotten what we said just now."

Daiyu hurriedly pushed Baoqin beside her and said with a smile: "Go quickly, you are perfect!"

Sister Feng also laughed and said, "In terms of appearance, she is one of the best!"

Fortunately, Xue Baoqin had traveled a lot and had a broad mind. She didn't care about the jokes of the others at all. She stepped forward and bowed to Lady Jia: "Baoqin greets the old lady."

"Oh, good boy, good boy."

Grandmother Jia liked pretty and smart girls the most. Xue Baoqin was the most outstanding among the many daughters in the Jia family. Naturally, Grandmother Jia liked her very much and even pulled her to sit next to her. She asked about her age and preferences, and doted on her even more than her own granddaughter.

At this moment, a few maids suddenly came running over and shouted outside: "Master Bao is here!"

Grandmother Jia laughed immediately.

"I asked him to come. He got sick from being bored at home all day. I brought him here on a soft couch so that we can have some fun together."

……

(End of this chapter)