Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

After Jia Lian left openly, Madam You sat alone in the room for a while before calling Yin Die in and instructing her, "Go find the Sheng family and have them arrange for a few people to ask my mother how things went and if there were any problems."

If everything is settled, then bring them over to keep me company.

Not long after Jia Lian left the capital, Lady You found a reason to send Old Lady You and her two daughters back to their hometown.

It's not that she's heartless; she just uses people and then kicks them out.

She knew that when her father was alive, he had arranged a marriage for her second younger sister.

Although for various reasons, Old Lady You had long regretted the engagement and intended to break it off, she had been dragging it out. Lady You, being so astute, naturally wouldn't let her leave with such a mess since she intended to marry Second Sister You to Jia Lian.

So he instructed Old Lady You and the others to go back and take care of this matter.

The reason why I didn't get involved for so long was simply a matter of controlling people.

Although they are her mother and sister, they are not blood relatives, and sometimes they may not be entirely on her side.

The third sister, in particular, is cunning and shrewish, and not easy to get along with.

Therefore, letting them witness the wealth of the Duke's mansion before letting them return to the countryside to experience the poverty of a humble family might make them cherish their time living in the Duke's mansion even more.

The drama continues at Rongguo Mansion.

One class was performed inside the school, and another class was performed outside the school.

The inner troupe was naturally there specifically for Grandmother Jia, while the outer troupe consisted of several respected elders and members of the clan, invited to join in the festivities.

Jia Baoyu usually disliked such lively plays, unless he was watching them with his sisters.

Therefore, according to common sense, although Jia Baoyu was a boy, he should have been sitting in the inner troupe at this time, accompanying Grandmother Jia to watch the play.

But today, he surprisingly went outside to watch a play with Jia Zheng.

Even though he was often reprimanded and lectured by Jia Zheng, he silently endured it.

After much difficulty, Jia Zheng went in to offer wine to Grandmother Jia, and Jia Baoyu immediately had Mingyan take two jugs of wine to his outer study. He himself went to the opera troupe's dressing room, found a young and handsome actor who was playing a guest role in the play that day, and invited him over for a chat.

Since he met Lai Shangrong, the son of Lai Da, with whom he had a mutual acquaintance, he also invited him.

"Haha, Brother Liu, I've tried several times to find you but couldn't get the chance. I never expected you to come to our residence today. I am truly overjoyed!"

Jia Baoyu took the actor's wrist and led him to his study, smiling broadly as he did so.

Although the actor was dressed in a theatrical costume and had exquisite theatrical makeup on his face, his demeanor was completely devoid of the affected and pretentious mannerisms typical of actors.

On the contrary, one can also see a dashing and heroic air about him.

This man was none other than Liu Xianglian, who had a minor reputation in the capital's pleasure quarters, and was known as "Cold-faced Gentleman" Liu Erlang.

Although Liu Xianglian had only known Jia Baoyu for a short time and had only met him a few times, he could tell from Jia Baoyu's words and actions that he was not an ordinary person. Moreover, Jia Baoyu was of extraordinary status, yet Liu Xianglian treated him with such kindness, which touched Liu Xianglian's heart, and he reciprocated with a friendly expression.

"There's no need to look for me. I've always been a wanderer, and sometimes I don't even know where I'm going. How could you possibly find me?"

As he spoke, he followed Jia Baoyu and Lai Shangrong into the house.

After sitting down, Lai Shangrong smiled and said, "He didn't lie to you. If he hadn't come looking for me once when he first arrived in the capital, I wouldn't have known he was there."

Just a few days ago, my father sent my master to invite an opera troupe. I remembered that Uncle Bao had asked about Erlang's whereabouts last time, so I went to invite him. Firstly, it would be a chance for us to get together, and secondly, it would help my father out. To my surprise, he actually agreed to come.

"Brother Lai has given the order, how could I dare disobey?"

As the son of Lai Da, the chief steward of the Rongguo Mansion, Lai Shangrong had been freed from slavery at a young age and had also passed the imperial examination, so his status was naturally not low. Therefore, he associated with the sons of powerful and wealthy families in the capital. Even Liu Erlang, who came from a prominent family and was known for his cold demeanor, treated him as an equal.

Regardless, Jia Baoyu, who had been thinking about Liu Xianglian ever since he met him twice last year, was overjoyed to see her again. So he drank and talked at length, having a very pleasant time.

Suddenly, Jia Baoyu remembered Qin Zhong again, so he took Liu Xianglian's hand and asked, "By the way, Brother Liu, did you see Qin Zhong on your trip to the capital?"

Liu Xianglian nodded. Actually, he met Qin Zhong first, and then he met Jia Baoyu.

After all, the reason he associated with the Jia family in the first place was because Jia Zhen and his son from Ningguo Mansion admired his reputation and spent a lot of money to invite him to their mansion to rehearse several plays. Because he saw that Jia Rong's brother-in-law, Qin Zhong, was of extraordinary character and appearance and was not an ordinary playboy, they had a certain degree of friendship.

"How is Xiao Zhong'er?"

Liu Xianglian was somewhat surprised to see Jia Baoyu so excited. Given the relationship between the Jia family and the Qin family, Jia Baoyu and Qin Zhong should have been able to meet very easily, so why did Jia Baoyu seem so concerned, as if they hadn't seen each other for a long time?

Seeing this, Lai Shangrong offered a cryptic explanation: "For some reason, the old lady in the family forbids Uncle Bao from associating with Qin Zhong, which is why Uncle Bao is acting this way."

Liu Xianglian sensed there must be something hidden, but decided not to delve into it, saying, "He doesn't seem to be acting strangely, except that he looks a bit thinner than before."

"Sigh, I knew it. His delicate body couldn't withstand the harm from others. Luckily, he recovered."

Jia Baoyu naturally knew that after the incident with Zhi Neng'er, Qin Zhong not only received a severe beating from Qin Bangye upon returning home, but also fell ill.

At first, he secretly went to see Qin Zhong without telling Grandmother Jia and the others, but Qin Zhong didn't pay much attention to him, and Qin Bangye didn't welcome him either. Disheartened, he stopped going.

"Hahaha, I knew you guys were hiding here behind my back, having a private drinking session!"

Just as Jia Baoyu was enjoying himself, he suddenly heard the door slam open. Jia Baoyu was startled and thought for a moment that Jia Zheng had come looking for him.

Upon hearing the voice, they realized it was Xue Pan.

"Brother Xue has arrived, please have a seat."

Xue Pan, his fat body darting into the room, his slightly small eyes darting around mischievously. His gaze fell on Liu Xianglian beside him, and a strange light immediately appeared on his face.

Although Liu Xianglian was not particularly pleased, he still politely cupped his hands in greeting.

"This must be Liu Erlang. I've long admired your name, but have never had the chance to meet you. It's truly my great honor to meet you here today!"

Xue Pan paid no attention to Lai Shangrong and Jia Baoyu, and stepped forward to take Liu Xianglian's hand to have a heart-to-heart talk.

Liu Xianglian subtly dodged him, but Xue Pan didn't care. Instead, he glanced at the table and, in a familiar manner, invited everyone to sit down.

Lai Shangrong naturally dared not offend Xue Pan, and Jia Baoyu, out of respect for Baochai, had always been accommodating to Xue Pan. Seeing the attitudes of Jia Baoyu and the other man, Liu Xianglian knew that Xue Pan must be of noble status, and it was not convenient for him to offend him either.

However, after resuming his seat, he noticed that Xue Pan was looking at him with a very evil gaze, and even repeatedly tried to take advantage of him, which made Liu Xianglian very unhappy.

Lai Shangrong saw this and quickly stopped Xue Pan just as he was about to get cocky, saying with a smile, "Uncle Xue is drunk."

"Nonsense, I only ate a little bit today, I'm not drunk... It's just that the alcohol doesn't make me drunk, I get drunk on my own, hahaha..."

Xue Pan struck what he considered his most charming and unrestrained pose, staring intently at Liu Xianglian.

But it's no wonder he did that.

It turned out that Xue Pan had heard of Liu Xianglian's name in the Jia family after arriving in the capital, but coincidentally, he had never met him.

I was bored today, and when I heard that the Rongguo Mansion was putting on a play, I came over to take a look. Unexpectedly, I saw Liu Xianglian, who was making a guest appearance on stage.

Because Liu Xianglian was "famous", and seeing that he was indeed making guest appearances in "romantic and romantic plays", he assumed that Liu Xianglian was a first-class actor like the ones he had seen before.

Actors of such high moral character and appearance are usually playthings of powerful and wealthy people, and are well-versed in the ways of love and pleasure.

Xue Pan's judgment was not arbitrary; otherwise, why would three perfectly healthy men be locked up in a room drinking in broad daylight?

No, it's not that. Jia Baoyu and Lai Shangrong are both eating alone behind his back!

Now that he has found me, I naturally won't let go.