Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Spring nights are short, and the morning breeze is gentle.

The coolness on his chest slowly roused Jia Lian from his deep sleep, and then he could hear the soft whispers in his ear.

"Your second master must have been exhausted yesterday. We've been talking for so long, but we still haven't woken him up."

"..."

"You brat, what are you thinking... I was talking about how he's busy with official duties during the day!"

"I know."

"..."

"It's getting late, but he's sleeping so soundly, it's not good to wake him... or...?"

"Second Grandma~~"

"You're still not happy? Bah, stop pretending in front of me. I know perfectly well what you did this morning, getting him to coax you into bed! If you're not happy, I'll call Xiangling over, and then you'll regret it."

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The wife's incessant chatter brought a smile to Jia Lian's lips. He raised his right arm and pressed her slender body against his chest, blocking the cold wind that had seeped into the quilt as she propped herself up. Through her silk panties, he gave her buttocks a heavy pinch.

"Eek..."

His beautiful wife seemed startled and let out a sweet, surprised cry. Jia Lian became even more smug, and with a flick of his left arm, he pulled the concubine into his embrace as well.

However, before his smile could fully bloom, one side of his face was grabbed by a pair of slender, strong, and delicate hands, which pulled him away with all their might.

Jia Lian had no choice but to open his eyes, glancing sideways at his wife, Wang Xifeng, and asked, "Are you trying to rebel?"

"Pah! You pretended to be asleep and eavesdropped on our conversation, and then you arrested them..."

Sister Feng spat and struggled to get up, forgetting that her golden bodice had been thrown away somewhere by someone the night before. As she propped herself up, the breathtaking snow-covered Jade Mountain, like a fairyland, swayed and floated before her eyes.

Suddenly feeling a warmth in her heart, Sister Feng couldn't help but let out a soft moan, instinctively hugging her husband's head tightly with both hands.

"Stop fooling around. Didn't you say you had things to do today? It's getting late..."

As she expected, her kind words had no effect, and she soon realized that she was being pressed down on the bed. This surprised and embarrassed her, and she couldn't help but turn her head to look at Ping'er, who was staring at her with bright eyes.

Ping'er seemed to understand her thoughts. When their eyes met, she withdrew her curious gaze and instead comforted her by taking her hand and holding it tightly to her chest, as if she were showing deep concern and sympathy for a revolutionary comrade who had sacrificed himself.

However, even Feng Jie was powerless to condemn her. Having already been favored by her man, she could only gently and subtly present the side of Jia Lian that he liked the most.

Outside, under Qingwen's arrangement, the maids stood in a straight row, carrying towels, hot water, and other washing supplies. Although there were five or six of them, it was very quiet, and not even a cough was heard.

In such a quiet environment, any sudden, subtle noises coming from the inner room would naturally be easily noticed.

The young maids suddenly opened their eyes wide, exchanged glances, and then most of them lowered their heads. If these naive virgins were like this, one can only imagine how Xiangling, who was more experienced, and Qingwen, who was half-experienced, reacted.

The two women glanced at each other subconsciously. Xiangling, being more shy, blushed and lowered her head, pretending not to hear. Qingwen's lips moved, her expression a mixture of mockery, jealousy, and a hint of admiration.

Although she was still a virgin, she often fooled around with the maids and servants in the mansion. Especially those vulgar and shallow old women, who would utter all sorts of dirty and lewd words after drinking. She was also very perceptive, and with Jia Lian's influence over the years, she could be considered a theorist when it came to matters between men and women.

Last night, Second Madam rewarded Second Master by giving Ping'er a bath and placing her on the bed. She and Xiangling were also ordered to serve her in the room, and afterwards, they both slept on the night watch bed in the adjacent room. Who would have thought that after all that fooling around with Second Master last night, this morning he still had the energy to bully Second Madam and the others…

She stuck out her tongue inwardly, then put on a stern face and glared at the curious little maid. After the maid obediently lowered her head, she whispered to Xiangling, "You stay here and watch over things. I'll go get food for Second Master and Second Mistress."

After saying that, he went out and called two free maids, then headed towards the main kitchen.

In fact, the kitchen would deliver meals and snacks to the masters and mistresses of the Rongguo Mansion on a regular basis, but Qingwen preferred to go and get them herself. Her reason was that only by going herself could she know what the Second Master and Second Mistress liked and disliked to eat. In reality, she often used this as an excuse to pick up some of her own favorite foods as well.

Not long after Qingwen left, Ping'er came out. Her loose clothing and half-disheveled hair revealed an elegance that made the young maids feel ashamed of themselves.

Ping'er herself was unaware of this. She glanced at the maids, first asked about Qingwen's whereabouts, then brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, took a basin of hot water from a maid, and beckoned Xiangling to come into the room with her.

After a short while, Xiangling came out and let the maids file in.

Feng Jie was already dressed neatly, with only a faint blush on her face and an infinite affection in her eyes when she occasionally looked at Jia Lian.

Sitting in front of the dressing table, while Jia Lian was washing up, she smiled and said, "We had distinguished guests yesterday, and there wasn't enough time. But you've been promoted, which is a great joy, and we should celebrate properly. Even if we don't invite relatives or old friends, we family should still have a good time together."

After saying that, seeing that Jia Lian had no reaction, she continued, "Our two households have always lived more comfortably than the other six households, especially our household. In recent years, under the leadership of the Marquis and with the grace of our Imperial Concubine, we have become increasingly wealthy and glorious."

It is said that when one person attains enlightenment, even their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven. In ordinary times, even if we want to take care of the other six branches of the family, we still struggle to find a reason.

Now that you've been promoted, you should properly host a feast and invite the other six branches of the family to come and celebrate. That's the proper etiquette for a family.

When Sister Feng wanted to do something, she could always come up with a whole set of reasons, and they were all perfectly reasonable. Although the Jia family was wealthy and held two noble titles, the other six sons of the Jia family, if they were diligent and intelligent, could manage to get by, but most of them were only slightly better off than ordinary people.

A small number of them even lived in extreme poverty.

When Jia Zhen was alive, he often found excuses to treat his six brothers and sisters to food and drink, claiming that it was his responsibility as the eldest brother in the clan to take care of all his brothers and sisters.

Although Jia Lian didn't think that treating someone to a meal was a form of care, she had no intention of objecting.

"If you don't mind the trouble, then prepare some food and wine and invite the old lady and the clansmen to have a good time. But I've made it clear that I may not have time to come back and entertain the guests, so you'll have to take care of everything yourself."

Jia Lian knew that Feng Jie probably felt that since her husband had been promoted to general, it would be like wearing fine clothes in the dark if she didn't make a fuss about it. If she wanted to show off something else, that would be one thing, but since she wanted to show off herself, Jia Lian was naturally happy to see it happen.

As expected, when Sister Feng saw that Jia Lian agreed, her face lit up with joy. "What's the trouble? The produce from the estates in various places is being delivered one after another. All kinds of chicken, duck, fish and meat are readily available and don't cost any money."

After saying this, Sister Feng stopped talking and went off to make her own plans.

Jia Lian brushed his teeth, glanced at her, and was about to leave when he suddenly came back.

"What are you doing?" Feng Jie, seeing Jia Lian in the mirror, was somewhat wary, thinking that Jia Lian was going to play a trick on her.

Jia Lian smiled and said, "There's something I need to tell Second Madam."

"Oh? The sun must have risen in the west! If there's anything you need, my lord, just give the order. Would I refuse? This formality makes me uncomfortable."

"Didn't you say you needed more maids? I've found you a good one."

"I thought it was something important, just this? Tell me, who is it, which room are you from?"

"They're not from our household."

"Um?"

Feng Jie turned to look at Jia Lian, her phoenix eyes habitually tilting upwards, and laughed, "My lord, don't try to fool me. Don't tell me you've gotten yourself into some romantic entanglements and are now telling me you've found me a maid to serve you, and I'm supposed to be grateful?"

Despite being married for many years, Jia Lian always felt an urge to beat Feng Jie whenever he heard her sarcastic voice.

Looking at her stunningly beautiful face and recalling her pitiful and charming appearance in front of him, he held back and only told her the general story of his cousin, Xiren.

Although Sister Feng didn't quite believe that Jia Lian would have the energy to simply recruit a maid for her, she heard Jia Lian's story sound convincing, and he clearly stated that the maid hadn't agreed to come to the mansion yet, so whether the matter would work out was still uncertain. Therefore, she didn't press the issue further.