After the rebellion was successful, I realized that this place was the Red Mansion

Chapter 54: Chu, the thief king, come out

Looking at these names, Chu Yan couldn't help but laugh.

Last time there were only Yingchun and Xiangyun, but this time there are more than twenty people.

In addition to Tanchun, Xichun, Baochai, Baoqin, Miaoyu and Xiuyan, there are also more than ten unmarried girls from the Shi and Wang families.

Lin Daiyu's name, mixed in with the names of many other girls, seems inconspicuous, and the text introducing her is also very brief:
"Daiyu, the daughter of Lin Ruhai, who won the imperial examination in the year of Shunyihai, and whose mother was Jia Min, was a delicate and intelligent woman with a noble character, but she was born with a weak constitution and suffered from deficiencies."

Look at what others have introduced:
"So, the descendant of the Imperial Merchant Xue, Baochai, whose mother was a daughter of the Wang family, was a descendant of the Imperial Merchant Ziwei. She was well educated at home and was well versed in the "Rules for Women" and the "Book of Filial Piety." She was skilled in needlework and household chores, and was well versed in poetry and calligraphy. She was virtuous and well-mannered, with a beautiful figure and both virtue and beauty, and was the best among the women."

"Baoqin, daughter of the Xue family, was Baochai's cousin. She was of unrivalled beauty, graceful and elegant, intelligent, and well-versed in literature. She had travelled with her father to famous mountains and historical sites, and was fluent in French and Siamese."

"Tanchun, the daughter of the Jia family, is the younger sister of Consort Shunxiande. Her mother is Aunt Zhao. She has narrow shoulders and a slim waist, a tall and slender figure, a sensitive nature, high aspirations, and a dignified manner."

"The daughter of Zhao, a junior official at the Imperial Household Department, was a nun who practiced Buddhism with her hair untied. Her secular name was Qi Bu Yu, and her Buddhist name was Miao Yu. She excelled in the tea ceremony and often recited Buddhist scriptures. She was aloof and proud, and her company was the ancient Buddha and the green lamp. Her monk's robes were graceful and elegant, and she possessed a unique charm."

Chu Yan smiled. Others didn't dare to say it, but Miaoyu's report booklet must have been written by Jia Lian!

It was really not easy for him to write such nonsense as "monk's robe is graceful" under Jia Zheng's nose - the writings of Baochai, Baoqin and others before were all very serious, but the style changed when it came to Miaoyu.

After traveling through time for more than ten years, Chu Yan has also seen what ancient Buddhist temples and monasteries are like. Many temples earn their incense money by welcoming men to burn incense in the temples.

Jia Lian was the son of a Duke, and he might not have been to these nunneries, but he had certainly heard of them. And because he had never seen Miaoyu, he relied on conjecture and hearsay to infer that Miaoyu was "slim and graceful in monk's robes."

These four words are enough to describe the benefits of nuns.

Come to think of it, since the Jia family reported Miaoyu, a nun who practiced Buddhism with her hair uncut, to the palace, they naturally had to explain the reason clearly.

Chu Yan had indeed never tried to get a nun. After the battle and the city was captured, he got girls from good families who had done good deeds.

"Although Miaoyu is also one of the Twelve Beauties, she has a strange personality, so it's better to put her in the back."

Suppressing his thoughts, Chu Yan quickly read through the names and introductions of the girls from the Shi and Wang families who did not appear in Dream of the Red Chamber.

Lin Daiyu is hidden among this group of girls, and the author also emphasizes that she has been in poor health since childhood, which is simply a hint that she should not be allowed to enter the palace!
Further speculating on the Jia family's intention, it is obvious that they want to promote Baochai. Although other girls are also described in a lot of words, Baochai is directly evaluated as "the best among all girls."

This definitely did not come from Jia Lian, but should have been written by someone who was familiar with Xue Baochai, such as Lady Wang and Wang Xifeng, or even Lady Jia, because in the book "Dream of Red Mansions", the excellence of Xue Baochai and Lin Daiyu was recognized by them.

"It seems that the Jia family is still dissatisfied with me."

Chu Yan put down the list and smiled at Dai Wei.

Dai Wei pondered the matter but couldn't understand why the king said this. He explained, "Your Majesty, the Jia family just set up an incense table and thanked you for forgiving them and not confiscating their property. The Shi, Wang, Xue, and Xing families also thanked you."

Chu Yan casually said, "If they were really convinced, they should have written Sister Lin first, and not add something unnecessary about her being deficient... They didn't even mention the young and beautiful women in the family, and they didn't treat the Jia family as being raided."

Dai Wei was furious when he heard this and volunteered, "Your Majesty, I believe you have spared them for now, allowing them to become arrogant because of your favor. I will go back and bring people to drag Jia Zheng and the others out and give them a beating. Only then will they respect Your Majesty!"

"No need."

Chu Yan shook his head. "Leave them alone for now. I don't have time to deal with them right now. Go back and come back to the palace when you have news."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Dai Wei said goodbye and left.

He kept thinking about this on the way back on horseback.

The fact that the king could take time out of his busy schedule to meet him showed that he was interested in marrying girls from the Jia family—not just those who were still in the boudoir, but also those who were married.

The king is busy with government affairs and has no time to deal with the Jia family, but it is not known when the Jia family will understand the king's intentions.

After returning to the Jia family, Dai Wei asked the Jia family's servants to call Jia Lian.

"grown ups!"

Jia Lian stepped forward, bowed, and looked at him expectantly.

Dai Wei sat on a chair behind the main gate of Rongguo Mansion. He first looked him over before asking slowly, "The king mentioned a girl named Lin, calling her Sister Lin. Do you know who she is?"

Jia Lian was stunned, and his heart was suddenly filled with turmoil!
He and the master and others deliberately hid Sister Lin in the palace in order to keep her from being noticed by Prince Qian and to keep her in the palace with Baoyu. But in the end, the truth could not be hidden. Prince Qian not only knew about Sister Lin, but also cared about her very much!

"Is there?" Dai Wei asked.

"Yes, yes, there is Lin Daiyu!"

Jia Lian hurried back.

"She has a deficiency?"

"Yes, Sister Lin has been taking medicine since she was a child and is weak and sickly!"

Dai Wei looked at Jia Lian with a stern look for a while before waving his hand to send him away.

The Jia family should have understood this hint.

Even if they don't understand, it will be too late for them to regret when the king finishes his work and starts to deal with the Jia family.

……

When Jia Lian returned home, Wang Xifeng followed him back. As soon as they entered the house, she asked him how things were.

Jia Lian calmed himself down and told the story first, then said helplessly: "Just now I went to the old lady's place and saw her hugging Baoyu and talking to him. What do you want me to say? Baoyu is the old lady's lifeblood. If anything goes wrong..."

Wang Xifeng lowered her head and thought for a moment before she said, "If you don't dare say it to my face, I'll go to Madam privately and discuss a solution."

"It can only be this way."

Wang Xifeng went to Lady Wang's room, and soon after, the two of them went to the Xiaoxiang Pavilion to visit Lin Daiyu.

After they left, Zijuan went into the room and saw the girl lying on the bed with a dead look on her face, her eyes open, lost in thought.

If it were in the past, Zijuan would have advised her to cry less, but now, there was not a single tear in the girl's eyes.

"Miss, I'll go call the second master!" Zijuan knew that only Baoyu could coax her.

"You don't have to call him, ahem."

Daiyu coughed dryly a few times, clutching her thin chest as she sat up, panting, her face pale. "If you go, just say the word 'enter the palace' and he'll go crazy. Sending him here will only embarrass Madam and cause unnecessary trouble."

Zijuan was in a dilemma, neither leaving nor staying. Seeing the girl getting more and more upset, she felt bad too, and cried, "Miss, are you going to enter the palace?"

Daiyu didn't answer, but tears finally came out of her eyes and she cried with tears in her eyes.

Zijuan couldn't help but complain, "Second Master Bao always goes crazy and hides when faced with a big problem. Now, Miss is suffering alone. The huge Duke's Mansion seems to be crushing Miss. How can this be allowed? Miss is too heartbroken and can't bear it."

Daiyu said, "I would be dead, but I can't die any time soon. The thief king is eyeing my body. It's a pity that I don't have thousands of soldiers and horses. Even if I curse him a thousand times in my heart, it will be of no use."

Zijuan didn't know what to say.

Daiyu cursed again, "I just don't know why he calls me Sister Lin? It's such an insult coming from his mouth! How can he be my brother? And how can I be his sister?"

Zijuan couldn't help but wonder why King Qian called the girl "Lin Daiyu"?
At this time, Xueyan came in and said that Master Bao had come with this lantern.

Zijuan wanted to ask the girl if she wanted to let him in, but she saw that she had turned around.

At four o'clock in the morning, Lin Daiyu, who had been crying for half the night, finally fell into a deep sleep.

Inside the palace.

After favoring Concubine Wu and several others, Chu Yan fell asleep in the warm room.

In a trance, he had a dream.

In his dream, a faint female voice called out to him from far away in the sky: "Thief King Chu, come out!"

Who is so bold as to call him the King of Thieves?

(End of this chapter)