Dream of the Red Chamber: A Refined and Elegant Young Man in a Turbid World

Although Daiyu still frowned and refused to turn her head, her gaze unconsciously lingered on his fingers and the three white porcelain teacups.

With a flick of his wrist, Jia Cong spun three copper coins in his palm, placing one under the left teacup in the blink of an eye, and then placing the remaining two in the other two bowls. He then gestured to Daiyu.

"Look carefully, sister. Each of these three coins has its own place."

Daiyu glanced at her sideways and gave a soft snort, "Just watch, do you think you can grow legs and fly away?"

Jia Cong was not annoyed, but just smiled and said, "Sister, please take a look."

After saying that, he picked up a bamboo chopstick and gently tapped the teacup on the left, "Let this one rest for now." Then he tapped the one in the middle, "Let this one move over."

The chopsticks moved with fluid grace, without the slightest hesitation.

Daiyu watched with bated breath. When he lifted the middle teacup, the copper coin underneath had disappeared. When he lifted the right side, the copper coin was found stacked on top of the original one, making a tinkling sound.

"Huh?" Daiyu exclaimed softly involuntarily, then composed herself and pretended to be indifferent. "It's just that I was quicker, what's so strange about that?"

Despite this, she turned around, her almond-shaped eyes wide open, watching Jia Cong rearrange the copper coins and perform his technique once again.

This time, Jia Cong deliberately slowed down his movements, but still managed to make the three copper coins move around under the bowl, sometimes two at a time, sometimes all three together. The sound of the chopsticks tapping the bowl accompanied by the clinking of the copper coins gave him the air of a traveling performer.

Finally, Jia Cong lifted the three teacups at once, revealing three copper coins lying neatly and orderly under the middle bowl.

Daiyu watched, and the corners of her lips unconsciously lifted slightly. Then she glared at him reproachfully, "When did you learn these unorthodox tricks, Third Brother? If Master and Madam find out, you'll be punished by copying 'Sun Tzu' ten times."

Jia Cong laughed heartily, raised his hand to gather the copper coins in his palm, rubbed his fingertips together for a moment, then suddenly leaned in half a step closer, his voice ambiguously, "So what if it's unorthodox? If it can bring you a moment of joy, it's worth it."

Daiyu's cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly shrank back. "Who asked you to please me? Third Brother is getting more and more unruly!"

Jia Cong opened his palm and saw that one of the original three copper coins had been replaced with an emerald the size of a pigeon's egg, which was originally a birthday gift from Wang Xifeng.

He held the gemstone up to Daiyu, saying, "Sister, look at this, isn't it more interesting than a copper coin?"

Daiyu lowered her eyes to look at the gemstone, her brows furrowing instantly, and her tone turning even colder.

"What is Third Brother doing? This vulgar thing, who are you trying to fool? Although I live under someone else's roof, I am not lacking such things." After saying that, he turned his face away, his expression full of disdain, and he became more sarcastic.

Jia Cong did not withdraw his hand, but raised an eyebrow without making a sound. "Not so, not so. It's just that life is short and joy is fleeting, and people are willing to spend a thousand pieces of gold on a light smile."

Daiyu stiffened, slowly turning her head. Her previous harshness and coldness vanished almost instantly, as if she wanted to see him through to the core. After a long while, she spoke in a trembling voice, "This...this was written by Third Brother? How come there's only half a poem?"

Jia Cong gently placed the gemstone on the table and pushed it in front of her. "The other night, I felt that life was too fleeting and joy too rare, so I hastily composed a couplet. You are skilled in poetry, so you should understand. This gemstone is too common to compare with your smile."

Daiyu bit her lip, unconsciously stroking her handkerchief. Her tone softened considerably, yet still carried a hint of petulance. "Who asked you to go to such lengths? It's just two lines of poetry, yet you've made such a show of it. Putting everything else aside, just write the remaining half first!"

Seeing that she was being disingenuous, Jia Cong knew she was already moved. He smiled, took out his writing implements, soaked his lips in ink, and wrote the complete poem on the paper.

The scenery in the eastern part of the city is gradually becoming more beautiful. Ripples on the water welcome the boats. A light chill in the morning air lingers beyond the green willows, while the red apricot blossoms burst forth with the joy of spring.

Life is fleeting, joy is scarce. Who would value a thousand pieces of gold over a mere smile? I hold up my cup to the setting sun, urging it to linger a while longer among the flowers in its evening glow.

Daiyu was momentarily captivated by the sight. After carefully examining the Xuan paper, she glanced at the gemstone again, but did not touch it, nor did she reprimand him for taking it away.

She sighed, looking at the ink stains on the table, "You're better than that idiot..." Her tone still held a hint of arrogance, but it was already an expression of approval.

Upon hearing this, Jia Cong chuckled: "Sister, you're usually not one to praise others, which is quite rare. In the future, don't let those troublesome things let you down."

Upon hearing this, Daiyu's cheeks flushed slightly. She glared at him but did not argue further. Instead, she gently gathered her handkerchief on the table and secretly held the emerald in her palm. "I know, you're so nagging. You're more annoying than those maids and servants."

After saying this, he rolled up Jia Cong's letter, hesitated carefully for a moment, and then handed it to Zijuan, instructing her to keep it safe.

As the atmosphere grew increasingly ambiguous, Shi Xiangyun unexpectedly entered, carrying Baoyu in with her. Upon entering, she immediately began to shout…

"Third brother, sister Lin, you two play together every day, and I finally came here, but you don't even acknowledge me."

Daiyu was in a much better mood at this moment, and couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle.

"But that guy with the lisp loves to talk. He can't even say 'Third Brother,' he just keeps saying 'Kill Brother, Kill Brother.' He used to call Baoyu 'Love Brother,' and now he's added 'Kill Brother.' When we come back to play Go, you'll be making a fuss about 'One loves to kill four and five.'"

Seeing that Daiyu had calmed down, Baoyu couldn't help but give Jia Cong a "well done" look, and then quickly added some more flirtatious remarks.

"If you get used to her ways, you'll bite her too tomorrow."

Shi Xiangyun said, "She's never lenient with anyone, always picking on people's faults. Even if you're better than everyone else, you don't need to make fun of everyone you meet. I'll point out someone, and if you dare to criticize her, I'll admire you."

Daiyu hurriedly asked who it was.

Xiangyun said, "If you dare to point out Baochai's shortcomings, then you're good. Even if I'm not as good as you, how can she be inferior to you?" Daiyu sneered, "Who do we have here? It's her! How could I dare to point out her shortcomings?"

Before he could finish speaking, Baoyu quickly changed the subject.

Xiangyun laughed, "Of course I can't compare to you in this lifetime. I only pray that tomorrow I'll have a brother-in-law with a lisp, so you can hear 'love' and 'e' all the time. Amitabha, that's what I need now!"

Everyone laughed at her words, and Xiangyun quickly turned and ran away.

Jia Cong and Shi Xiangyun were not really familiar with each other, so he only sat with her for a while. Just then, Grandmother Jia ordered that a meal be served, and everyone then headed towards Rongqing Hall.

Just two days later, news came that Wang Xifeng's eldest daughter had contracted the plague, and Jia Lian had to move out of the outer study to fast.

When Jia Cong learned of this, he also ordered Jinping to send some medicine. He thought to himself that although smallpox was dangerous, Qiao Jie should be fine, otherwise there would be no subsequent plot.

What intrigued him was Jia Lian's affair with Duo Guniang. In the original text, it was during this period that this guy had an affair with Duo Hunchong's wife.