Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Daiyu lived in a side courtyard next to Jia Lian's courtyard.

There's always a lot to tidy up before and after a young woman goes out, and Daiyu was no exception.

After finally settling in, she calculated the time in her mind and realized that Jia Lian should be back in his room soon, so she led Zijuan over to Jia Lian's side.

When she reached the front corridor, she saw Xiangling's mother and the two maids who served Jia Lian's room waiting outside, which puzzled her.

He walked over, nodded to Xiangling's mother, and asked the maids, "Is Second Brother inside?"

"exist……"

Although the maids' expressions were even stranger, Daiyu merely frowned slightly, showing no intention of investigating further, and strode toward the main room.

"Miss Lin..."

The maids, with pained expressions, had no choice but to stop Daiyu. After Daiyu's expression turned sour, they quickly explained in a low voice, "Second Master is on important business and has instructed that we not disturb him. Miss Lin, please come back later."

Daiyu glanced at the maids, their faces full of displeasure. She thought to herself that this was the first time in so long that she had been stopped from going to see Jia Lian.

Even if her second brother had some private matters that she couldn't disturb, these maids should have invited her to wait in the hall with tea, not told her to come back later. Therefore, she thought that these maids might be deliberately making things difficult for her...

Despite this, Daiyu did not try to force her way in, nor did she intend to argue with them; she simply stood there.

Her silence does not mean that Zijuan is not speaking.

Zijuan stepped forward and glared at the two maids, saying, "It was the Second Master who personally ordered it, and our young lady won't even see him?"

The two maids were speechless. In fact, Jia Lian hadn't given any instructions. Having witnessed Jia Lian carrying Xiangling hurriedly from the bathhouse into the bedroom, anyone who wasn't a fool would know what Jia Lian was doing at that moment. How could they, who served him, dare to let anyone in and disturb Jia Lian's enjoyment?

Seeing that the two maids were speechless, Zijuan was about to get angry when Daiyu suddenly looked up and, before she could, asked Fengshi beside her, "Is Xiangling inside?"

Madam Feng looked embarrassed. Through her daughter, she learned of Daiyu's noble status and her relationship with Jia Lian. As a newcomer, she naturally didn't feel comfortable interrupting.

Seeing Daiyu looking at her like this, she realized that Daiyu must have realized something, so she stammered and replied, "Replying to Miss, Xiangling is indeed inside, serving the Marquis... If Miss Lin has something to discuss with the Marquis, you may wish to sit in the side hall for a while."

"No, that's not necessary..."

Daiyu glanced at Feng Shi, then at the room that was unusually quiet despite the door being wide open. Suddenly, her blood rushed to her head, and her face flushed red.

Not wanting to be laughed at by the maids, she immediately turned around and ran away quickly without looking back.

Seeing Daiyu's reaction, Zijuan gradually realized what was happening. She glanced at everyone and silently followed in Daiyu's footsteps.

Feng's expression finally relaxed. She turned around and looked at the quiet, oppressive room behind her, feeling a mix of emotions.

According to her daughter, she had been with Jia Lian for three or four years, and Jia Lian had never taken advantage of her... This was Feng Shi's understanding. Xiang Ling naturally wouldn't tell her all about the intimate things between her and Jia Lian. This was the conclusion she reached after confirming that her daughter was truly still a virgin.

Who would have thought that, just as she was reunited with her daughter, her daughter was about to transform from a virgin into a real woman right under her nose.

Unfortunately, she, as the mother, had absolutely no say in this matter.

But recalling the moments spent with his daughter over the past two days, and remembering the admiration and loyalty in her eyes when she spoke of Jia Lian, he sighed again.

Never mind what I think, it doesn't matter anymore. What matters is that my daughter must be filled with joy and happiness right now.

Thinking about it this way, the old man couldn't help but feel his face burning. He turned to the two maids and said, "Please keep an eye on things here, ladies. I'll go to the kitchen to get some hot water. Please take it in later."

After saying that, Feng quickened her pace and left.

Meanwhile, Daiyu ran out of Fengshi and the others' sight and slowed down, so Zijuan easily caught up with her.

Seeing Daiyu's rosy cheeks and limpid eyes, yet her expression was unusually complex, shifting between reproach and anger, Zijuan felt a little uneasy and tentatively began, "Miss..."

Hearing the sound, Daiyu turned around and glanced at her, but ignored her and continued walking forward.

Zijuan became even more worried.

She knew how aloof and proud Daiyu was, and how much she valued Jia Lian. Yet today, Daiyu had almost personally witnessed Jia Lian's affair. She worried that Daiyu might do something rash out of jealousy.

"Miss, please don't overthink it. Perhaps the Second Master really has something to attend to and is temporarily unable to see you..."

"Who's thinking nonsense!"

Hearing Daiyu's response, Zijuan perked up and quickly said with a smile, "It's good that you're not thinking anything of it, Miss..."

Zijuan originally wanted to make up some words to distract Daiyu, but then she thought that with Daiyu's intelligence, once she made up her mind, she probably couldn't be easily persuaded by a few words.

Seeing that no one was around, she thought that instead of hiding it, she should openly comfort Daiyu.

She felt that since Daiyu was destined to marry Jia Lian, if she couldn't get through this hurdle, she would inevitably cause herself a lot of unnecessary anger in the future, which would be detrimental to her physical and mental health.

So he leaned closer to Daiyu and lowered his voice, saying, "Does Miss suspect that Second Master and Xiangling are in the room...?"

Daiyu blushed slightly and quietly quickened her pace, moving a little further away from Zijuan.

Zijuan, however, clung to her like a leech, saying, "Miss, you should relax a bit. Which prince or nobleman in the world doesn't have three wives and five concubines? Such things are just common in our family."

What's more, he's a man of character like our Second Master.

As for Xiangling, the young lady already knows that back in the Rongguo Mansion, everyone knew she and that girl Qingwen were the designated concubines in the Second Master's household, and even the Old Madam tacitly approved of it.

Daiyu's lips were slightly pursed, and it was unclear what she was thinking.

Zijuan had been observing Daiyu's expression, and upon seeing this, she added, "Under these circumstances, it's perfectly normal for the Second Master to have Qingwen and Xiangling accompany him."

What's remarkable is that, after all these years, Qingwen has remained a virgin! This was something she admitted herself when the old lady asked her in her room last time. At the time, many people laughed at her for having such a beautiful face.

Then some people speculated that if Qingwen was like this, Xiangling was probably not much different.

Now that Xiangling has come with us to the south, you should be able to tell that she probably hasn't served the Second Master before!

This shows that the Second Master is definitely different from the First Master back then; he is a true man who cherishes and pities women. Otherwise, he wouldn't have kept two universally acknowledged beautiful maids, Qingwen and Xiangling, by his side without ever making a move on them.

In this case, if we guess wrong, so be it; even if it turns out to be as we guessed, it's really nothing, just a natural progression.

Perhaps, the Second Master originally planned to take Xiangling as his concubine after finding her mother.

For example, how attentive the Second Master was to the young lady. Not only did he promise to marry her in a grand ceremony after her mourning period was over, but since leaving the capital, the young lady and the Second Master had spent every day and night together. Had the Second Master ever been disrespectful to the young lady in the slightest?

So I say, young lady, you should relax and not quarrel with Second Master over such a trivial matter. Second Master has already done more than enough; he's better than most men in the world!

Zijuan originally intended to comfort Daiyu, but as she spoke, her thoughts began to wander, and she began to express her innermost feelings according to her own ideas.

She didn't even notice that Daiyu had turned around and was frowning at her. After she finally stopped, she spat out, "I think you've gone mad. Who said I was going to have a falling out with him?"

You're supposed to be a girl, yet you're saying things like this. You're becoming more and more unlike yourself.

Since you speak so highly of him, I'll send you to him later, so you can have your way. How about that?

Zijuan was speechless after Daiyu's words, her face turning red with embarrassment. Having finally grown accustomed to Daiyu's teasing, she quickly regained her composure and even laughed, "I'm not in a hurry. Anyway, I've already made up my mind to follow you for life, Miss."

When the girl marries the Second Master in the future, I will definitely be there to accompany her.

"When the time comes, whatever you decide to do with me, I'll do as you please, hehehe."

"Pah! Pah! Pah! Aren't you ashamed!"

Daiyu glared at Zijuan, who was being somewhat "unrestrained," then took a deep breath, looked back at the courtyard behind her, her eyes showing shyness and a hint of coquettishness, but not the jealousy and dissatisfaction that Zijuan had expected.

……