Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Grandmother Jia, Jia Zheng, and Lady Wang returned to the city. For Jia Baoyu, it was as if the three mountains that had been pressing down on his head had been lifted away in an instant, giving him a feeling of freedom and boundless freedom.

Then he remembered that there was a wonderful woman in Shuiyue Nunnery, a charming and lovely woman with a unique flavor, so he immediately went to find his good brother Qin Zhong.

"I have good news for you, do you want to hear it?"

"What good news?"

"Hey, how about we stay at Shuiyue Nunnery together tonight?"

"really?"

Qin Zhong, preoccupied with thoughts of his beloved, was contemplating sneaking to the Water Moon Nunnery before nightfall to meet her in secret. Upon hearing Jia Baoyu's words, how could he not be overjoyed?

Asked for specific reasons.

Upon hearing Jia Baoyu recount the arrangements inside, Qin Zhong said worriedly, "I'm afraid it's not appropriate. My aunts and other female relatives are all going to stay at the Shuiyue Nunnery. I'm afraid it wouldn't be good for me to go with them..."

"Let's forget it. My brother-in-law has already arranged a place for me to stay here, so let's not trouble Aunt Lian and the others."

"Don't worry about that, it's no trouble at all. I'll put in a good word for you, it won't be a problem!"

Jia Baoyu patted his chest and assured Qin Zhong, but seeing that Qin Zhong was still somewhat worried, he took his hand and teased, "Besides, don't you want to see your Neng'er?"

Qin Zhong blushed deeply and hurriedly denied it, "Nonsense, what do you mean by 'yours' and 'mine'? What have I ever done with her..."

Jia Baoyu immediately laughed, "You still won't admit it? Last time she and her master went to the old lady's room, in the tea room in the backyard, why did you hug her again?"

Upon hearing Jia Baoyu's words, Qin Zhong was greatly alarmed and quickly covered Jia Baoyu's mouth, pleading, "Good person, good person, don't shout, don't shout."

Jia Baoyu nodded in satisfaction, a smug look on his face, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, I haven't told anyone else. But since I've kept your secret and now I've done you a favor by helping you see her, how will you thank me?"

Qin Zhong saw that Jia Baoyu indeed knew about his affair, and fearing that he would tell others, he had no choice but to let him be punished. "Good man, as long as you don't tell anyone, I will grant you whatever you want to do."

Jia Baoyu looked at Qin Zhong meaningfully, and Qin Zhong raised his thin, slightly charming face to look back at Jia Baoyu, as if everything was understood without words...

Having agreed to Qin Zhong's request, Jia Baoyu hurriedly went back to find Li Wan, Feng Jie, and the others.

Upon entering a simple Buddhist hall, Jia Baoyu found Li Wan and Daiyu, among others, having tea and resting there. He then slipped inside.

Seeing that Daiyu was still angry with him, he immediately put aside the matter of Qin Zhong and stepped forward with a smile, calling out, "Sister Lin..."

Unfortunately, Daiyu didn't want to pay him any attention. Whenever he turned to face her, she would turn to the other side and refuse to look at him.

Li Wan, Tan Chun, and Xi Chun, who were standing nearby, laughed, but didn't seem to care much.

In the past two years, there have been quite a few cases like this between the cousins, and they all treat it as a joke.

Seeing everyone laughing, Daiyu felt embarrassed and simply stood up to talk to Tanchun.

Jia Baoyu followed along like a dazed goose, opening his mouth several times, but not knowing what to say. Apologize? It seemed he hadn't done anything wrong; he had no idea how he had offended Daiyu.

Soon, Sister Feng arrived in a flurry with several wives. Upon meeting, she first gulped down a bowl of tea, and then said to Li Wan, "It's getting late. Jingxu from Shuiyue Nunnery has sent someone to say that the rooms have been prepared for the young ladies and mistresses. If you have nothing else to do, you should prepare to head over there."

Upon hearing Feng Jie's words, Tan Chun and the others couldn't help but show some happy expressions.

For young ladies from prominent families like theirs, the only place they could go for fun from childhood to adulthood was probably the temple fair.

Iron Threshold Temple was full of monks, and they were performing rituals, which was really inconvenient. But Water Moon Nunnery was different, because it was a nunnery, which was perfect for them to visit.

Li Wan laughed and said that it was still early, so why not wait until later to go over and pick up Yingchun together.

Because there was an important religious ceremony after dusk that required the presence of Jia Lian and his two siblings, Yingchun was studying by Jia Lian's side.

"No need to wait for her. Master Lian said that there's nothing going on here right now, so why keep you waiting here? You might as well go and rest."

As for Yingya, she can come with me tonight.

Li Wan was not a very opinionated person to begin with, and she knew the importance of being punctual and respectful of one's lot. Seeing that Feng Jie and her husband had made proper arrangements, she did not argue with them, nodded, and called Daiyu and the other two to prepare to set off.

Seeing that everyone was about to leave, Jia Baoyu realized that he had forgotten something. He rushed outside and stopped Feng Jie and Li Wan, saying that he wanted to take Qin Zhong to the Shuiyue Nunnery.

Li Wan couldn't say anything, because Jia Baoyu was unruly and precious, and taking care of him was more tiring than taking care of the three sisters of the Spring Festival plus Daiyu.

Feng Jie was still quite tolerant and friendly towards Jia Baoyu, only saying perfunctorily, "Let's forget about it today, but I'm afraid there aren't enough rooms over there. Think about it, there are already so many of you, and then there's the First Madam. I'm afraid even your sister-in-law Zhen and the others won't have enough room over there, so why bother..."

Jia Baoyu wouldn't listen to reason, and pleaded, "I'll let Jingqing (Qin Zhongbiao's courtesy name) sleep with me. We can share a bed, it won't be a problem at all, okay?"

Seeing this, Sister Feng had no choice but to exchange a glance with Li Wan before they both nodded in agreement.

Qin Zhong was only slightly younger than Jia Baoyu, and in their eyes, he was still considered a child, which is why they agreed to Jia Baoyu's request so easily.

……

Because the ancestral temple was a mixed bag, with members of the Jia family, servants from both mansions, and two or three hundred monks and Taoists, Jia Lian ordered Zhang Yong, Zhao Sheng, and others to lead dozens of servants and guards to take turns guarding different areas to prevent any trouble.

Arriving at the area where the young masters of the Jia family gathered, it was surprisingly quiet.

Jia Lian saw Jia Yun leading a group of people mending and hanging lanterns, so he went over and asked, "Where are Master Zhen and the others?"

Jia Yun was somewhat embarrassed, but ultimately dared not deceive Jia Lian and gestured towards the house on the other side.

Jia Lian glanced over and saw a detached house with bright lights inside. If he calmed down, he could indeed hear some noise and commotion.

Jia Lian had already figured it out and walked in that direction.

"Hahaha, Uncle Xing lost again! Drink, drink!!"

"Haha, you two, why don't you go up and feed him the wine... If he won't eat, just put it in your mouths, and he'll definitely eat it..."

"Uncle Xue, please keep your voice down..."

"..."

Xue Pan's gruff voice, with its unique chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur) vibe, was easily recognizable even in the empty, late night.

At this point, there's no need to guess anything. It's just that things at the family temple have become less busy, so these people can't stay idle and have gathered together for a night of drinking and gambling.

Gambling and playing cards were one thing, but Jia Lian was just wondering where the wine came from in this temple.

Even worse, judging from their vulgar language, it seems there are even prostitutes among them who are there for their amusement...

Raising his hand to stop the people behind him, Jia Lian came up into the corridor and peered through the translucent window paper.

Sure enough, the small room was packed with more than a dozen people, gambling, drinking, pushing and joking around, having a great time.

Upon closer inspection, the two being pushed and shoved around, some sitting in someone's lap, others kissing someone else, were not young girls at all, but rather two handsome young men feigning shyness. Jia Lian glanced at them and couldn't remember which family they belonged to, only that they were definitely relatives of the Jia family.