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

Seeing that someone dared to stop him, Jia Zheng was even more enraged and pointed at Jia Cong, shouting sternly.

"You wretched child! How dare you stop me? This rebellious son has committed heinous crimes and deserves to be beaten to death. Cong-ge'er, don't act recklessly!"

Baoyu, still shaken and shielded by Jia Cong, looked up at Jia Cong's reddened shoulder, his eyes instantly welling up with tears. He choked out, "Good brother, get up quickly, don't worry about me. It was all my fault, don't let it implicate you!"

Jia Cong pressed down on Baoyu, slowly straightened up, and, enduring the pain in his shoulder, bowed to Jia Zheng.

"Second Uncle, please calm down. I did not mean to talk back. It's just that my second brother did not intend to do anything wrong. Besides, he has been working hard to make something recently, which he wanted to give to our ancestors, wives, and elders like you. He is currently asking me to go to the workshop in the south of the city to make it. If I were to hurt him now, wouldn't that be betraying his filial piety?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Zheng sneered, his eyes filled with disdain and suspicion.

"Filial piety? This unfilial son spends all day fooling around with maids and actors, cockfighting and dog racing, doing nothing. How could he possibly have the time to study and research something? Don't try to defend him. No one can plead for him today!" Saying this, she ordered the servant to pull Jia Cong away.

"Master, wait a moment!" Jia Cong hurriedly stepped forward and handed over the blueprints he was carrying.

"Second Uncle, look, this is the blueprint for the object that Brother Bao has developed. It is already early summer, and the weather is getting hotter and hotter. Our ancestor is getting old, and the master and mistress are also suffering from the heat while managing their affairs. Brother Bao is concerned about the elders, so he thought of making a human-powered hand-cranked fan. It can generate a cool breeze to dispel the heat by simply turning the handle or stepping on the pedal. It is less strenuous than the maids fanning the fans, and the wind is also stronger."

Jia Zheng glanced at Jia Cong suspiciously, then took the drawing and unfolded it. He saw that the paper was covered with dense lines and labeled with words such as "foot pedal", "crank connecting rod", "gear set" and "fan blade". Although some parts looked unfamiliar, the general outline was clear and it could be seen that it was a mechanical object.

Although he was not skilled in engineering, he had long served in the Ministry of Works and could tell that the blueprints were drawn in great detail, not like they were made up on the spot.

"Is this really some kind of fan?" Jia Zheng's tone softened slightly, but it still carried anger.

"In my opinion, you must have hastily drawn this draft to deceive me in order to protect this unfilial son! When has this unfilial son ever had such thoughts?"

"I wouldn't dare deceive my uncle!" Jia Cong quickly explained.

"This drawing was indeed made by my second brother over the past few days. However, he is not good at details, so he asked his nephew to help him improve it. He was also afraid that he would delay the research and development by going back and forth to the workshop in the south of the city, so he asked me to go in his place. Just as I finished improving the drawing and was about to leave, the maid from my second brother's room hurriedly came to find me. I saw that my second uncle was about to punish my second brother, so I rashly stopped him in my haste."

He paused, then brought up Grandmother Jia, "Grandmother is getting old and can't stand the sweltering heat. She gets very uncomfortable in the summer. If we had this fan, it would be much more comfortable to cool off in the summer. Even when Second Uncle is working in his study and the heat is unbearable, the fan can help him concentrate on his work. Second Brother's actions are entirely out of filial piety!"

Jia Zheng's expression was uncertain. He tightened his grip on the blueprints. Although his anger had not been completely extinguished, he hesitated to order the servant to raise the sledgehammer again.

He knew that Jia Cong was always calm and pragmatic, unlike Bao Yu who was unruly and impetuous. Although he didn't talk much, he never lied.

But the thought of the humiliation suffered at the Prince Zhongshun's mansion and Jin Chuan's suicide by drowning reignited his anger, and he shouted and cursed at Bao Yu.

"Even so, this rebellious son's crime of frequenting actors and driving a maid to her death cannot be lightly forgiven!"

Just then, hurried footsteps came from afar, accompanied by the maids' shouts: "The matriarch is here! The matriarch is here!"

Upon hearing this, Jia Zheng was startled, his face turning from pale to ashen, and he turned to greet him.

Grandmother Jia was seen walking quickly, surrounded by a group of maids including Yuanyang and Amber. Her face was full of anxiety. She had just rested in Rongqing Hall when a maid came to report that Jia Zheng was going to beat Baoyu to death in his study. She was so frightened that she rushed over without even changing her shoes.

Before he could finish speaking, a trembling voice came from outside the window: "Kill me first, then kill him, wouldn't that be cleaner!" Jia Zheng, seeing his mother arrive, was both anxious and pained. He hurriedly went to greet her, only to see his mother, supported by a maid, panting as she walked in. Jia Zheng stepped forward, bowed, and said with a forced smile, "In this sweltering heat, Mother, what angered you that you came all this way? If you have something to say, you should have called me in to give your instructions."

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia stopped, caught her breath, and said sternly, "So you're talking to me! I do have something to say, but alas, I've never raised a good son in my life, so who can I talk to!"

Hearing this, Jia Zheng quickly knelt down, tears welling in his eyes, and said, "My reprimands are for the sake of bringing honor to our ancestors. How can I, as your son, bear such words, Mother?"

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia spat and said, "You can't even bear the slightest word I say? How could Baoyu have withstood such brutal beatings? You say that disciplining your son is bringing honor to the family, but how did your father discipline you back then!" As she spoke, tears streamed down her face.

After Grandmother Jia took a closer look, and the maids spoke to her respectfully, her anxiety subsided somewhat.

"Alright, that's enough!" Grandmother Jia interrupted Jia Zheng, her gaze falling on Jia Cong, her tone softening slightly, "Cong'er, is your shoulder alright? Someone, fetch a doctor."

Jia Cong quickly bowed, "Thank you for your concern, Grandmother. I'm fine, I just took a hit, it's nothing serious."

Seeing this, Jia Zheng had no choice but to go along with it.

"Mother, just now Cong'er said that Baoyu has been working hard to make a human-powered hand-cranked fan, saying that he wants to give it to you, your wife, and your son. The blueprints are all finished, and he was just about to send Cong'er to the workshop in the south of the city to make it. I was so angry just now that I didn't investigate it carefully." As he spoke, he handed the blueprints in his hand to Grandmother Jia.

Grandmother Jia took the drawing. Although she couldn't see the fine lines clearly, she could roughly make out the outline. She looked up at Baoyu, her eyes full of affection.

"My son, how could you have such thoughts? Thinking of making things to cool us down in the summer?"

Baoyu was already in tears. He kowtowed to Grandmother Jia, and could only force himself to continue his boastful tale, choking back sobs.

"Reporting to Grandmother, it was my idea. Recently, the weather has been getting hotter, and I saw that you, the ladies, and the master are all working hard every day. I was worried that the elders would suffer from the heat, so I thought of making a fan. However, I am not good at making things, so I asked my brother Cong to help me improve the blueprints. I originally wanted my brother Cong to build it, but I did not expect it to cause such a trouble and make Grandmother worry."

As he spoke, he glanced gratefully at Jia Cong. If the other party hadn't arrived in time and if it weren't for the blueprints that saved him, he probably would have been beaten to death on the spot by Jia Zheng today.