Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Zhen Yuhuan was listening intently to the music when she suddenly felt someone tugging at her clothes. She turned around, and her eyes lit up.

Behind her, a little girl in a pink dress, with two braids in her hair, looked at her with her head tilted slightly.

"What an adorable little guy!"

Zhen Yuhuan was still quite young, and upon seeing such a child, she was overcome with affection and reached out to hug her.

Who knew that she was very wary? She immediately took a step back, glanced at Daiyu who had turned around after hearing the noise, and then ran away on her short legs.

Seeing that Daiyu had run to Fengjie's side and then jumped into Jia Lian's arms to snuggle up to him, Zhen Yuhuan couldn't help but ask Daiyu, "Is she the daughter of my sworn brother and second sister-in-law?"

Daiyu nodded.

"No wonder she's so beautiful, like a porcelain doll. Tell me, why was she staring at me like that just now?"

"How should I know? It must be your appearance that frightened her."

Zhen Yuhuan blinked her beautiful eyes at her speechlessly.

On the other side, Qiao Jie'er, held in Jia Lian's arms, didn't even have time to act cute before immediately saying to Jia Lian and Feng Jie'er, "Father, Mother, there are two Aunt Lins over there!"

Qiao Jie'er was afraid that Jia Lian and the other two wouldn't know, so she deliberately stretched out her fair little hand and pointed to Daiyu and Zhen Yuhuan next to Feng Jie'er.

Qiao Jie'er's childish and clear voice attracted the attention of many people. Feng Jie'er, not wanting her daughter to become the object of everyone's scorn, quickly explained that one of them was "Aunt Zhen".

"So, one is the real aunt, and the other is the fake aunt?"

Young Qiaojie counted on her fingers, a look of understanding on her face. This innocent misunderstanding drew knowing smiles from everyone who noticed her.

Sister Feng was also charmed by her own daughter, and she chuckled, "That's right, one is indeed the real aunt, and the other is the fake aunt."

As she spoke, she stepped aside, took Qiao'er's finger, and said, "That's the real aunt, this is the fake one. You should call this one 'mother' too."

Regardless of whether Qiao Jie'er could understand Feng Jie'er's meaning, the people around couldn't help but laugh.

Daiyu, who had just killed Zhen Yuhuan's conversation, saw her now covering her mouth and laughing with unbridled delight, and stood up in a fit of embarrassment and anger. Just as everyone was worried that she would storm off in a huff, Daiyu grabbed the wine cup in front of Fengjie and poured it into her mouth, cursing as she did so: "You glib-tongued brat..."

Feng Jie had only meant to tease Daiyu a little, but she was afraid that Daiyu would take it to heart and think she was being sarcastic, thus causing an unpleasant incident on such a fine day. So when Daiyu forced her to drink, she pretended to struggle, but actually drank it down quite readily.

Seeing this, Tan Chun and the others nearby clapped and cheered, watching with smiles.

Daiyu, who rarely acted out of line in public, was somewhat agitated and nervous about being watched. Seeing that Fengjie, after finishing her wine, was not angry but instead looked at her with a pleading expression, she felt a surge of admiration.

Releasing her grip, she was somewhat unsure of what to do next when she noticed Qiao'er clapping happily beside her, showing no intention of supporting her mother. Feigning resentment, she said, "Since you want her to call me 'Mother,' and I happen to like her too, why not just give her to me? I'm just afraid you won't be able to let her go!"

"Of course I'd love to! If you really like her, you can take her back to Xiaoxiang Pavilion later. But she's quite a handful, and I'm worried she might disturb your peace and quiet..."

Although Sister Feng said this, her words were clearly hesitant, and her demeanor was not as arrogant as before. It was obvious that she was reluctant to give her daughter to anyone, even if that person was Daiyu.

The crowd laughed even harder. It had been a long time since they'd seen Sister Feng lose a verbal battle to someone else, let alone her rival in love, Lin Daiyu. This juicy gossip was thoroughly entertaining for everyone who heard it.

Daiyu gave a soft snort, glanced at Jia Lian who was holding his daughter with one arm, smiling and silent, and turned to sit back down. However, from her straight back and tightly pursed lips, one could still tell that her inner strength was perhaps not as great as she appeared.

What could Jia Lian say? As long as Daiyu and Fengjie could get along well, his household would be mostly stable, and he certainly wouldn't be foolish enough to take sides.

Just then, Gu Qingyi had already gracefully left with her guqin, and the twelve musicians took their place to perform "Sun Wukong Thrice Beats the White Bone Demon." Tan Chun, without any reservations, leaned in and whispered in Jia Lian's ear about establishing a poetry club.

"Poetry club, great!"

"However, I should say this first: I may not be able to participate in every club, so please bear with me."

Jia Lian smiled. With the completion of the Grand View Garden, the girls would emulate the literati by forming a poetry club for fun, which was exactly what he had expected.

He has been a nobleman in this world for so many years, and he has never put down his books. He has also studied rhyme and meter seriously. Therefore, in terms of the ability to compose sentences, he may not be as talented as Baochai and Daiyu, but he is not necessarily inferior to Li Wan, Yingchun and others.

It's fine for hanging out and playing with them.

Seeing that Jia Lian agreed, everyone, including the three sisters, Baochai, Daiyu, and Zhen Yuhuan, was quite happy. Originally, it was just a game between the young ladies, but with Jia Lian's involvement, it became a little different.

Children also have a competitive spirit. If they can make something good and Jia Lian knows about it or even praise it, they will be very proud!

So they immediately nominated Jia Lian as "vice president," and Jia Lian did not refuse.

With the organizational framework and members determined, the next step was naturally to discuss the name and rules of the poetry society. Tan Chun and the others offered their opinions, quickly coming up with seven or eight suggestions, such as "Da Guan" (Grand View), "Banana Tree in the New Rain," and "Ink Bamboo."

Jia Lian recalled the white crabapple blossoms that Jia Yun had brought in before, and then he remembered the Crabapple Club in the original novel. The name seemed to have originated from the two pots of crabapple blossoms that Jia Yun had given to Jia Baoyu. Such a coincidence seemed to be the will of heaven.

Then Jia Lian changed the subject, saying, "I am deeply honored that you poets have nominated me as the vice president. I happen to have acquired some rare crabapple varieties; how about I share them with you all to commemorate this grand occasion?"

Upon hearing this, the women were overjoyed. It wasn't the season for crabapple blossoms to bloom, but the crabapple trees Jia Lian had brought back were not only in bloom, but also incredibly vibrant. They found it strange, but were too shy to ask for any.

Sister Feng jokingly mocked, "Well, just now you said you were sending these back to me because my garden was empty, but now you've given them away to someone else. It's clear I'm an unlucky person, unworthy of those beautiful flowers and powders. Even if I did get them, I'd have to give them away immediately."

Tan Chun laughed and said, "Why can't you? You are the supervising censor of the poetry club. In our poetry club, besides Sister-in-law and Brother Lian, you are the highest-ranking official. Since Brother Lian said he would give the crabapple blossoms to everyone, it's impossible for you to be left out. Don't you think so, Brother Lian?"

Jia Lian nodded in agreement, "That's right, we'll each take one basin, and the rest will all go to the Censor. After all, she got the dirtiest, most tiring, and most offensive job."

"Hahaha……"

Everyone laughed in response, except for the club president, Lady Li Wan. She was now quite nervous because she noticed that Jia Lian's leg was getting closer and closer to her, almost leaving her with no way to avoid it.

After giving Jia Lian a disdainful look, Sister Feng smiled. With her current status and confidence, she naturally wouldn't care about those few pots of crabapple blossoms, much less cause any trouble with Jia Lian over them and become a laughingstock.

After exchanging a few words of laughter and conversation with everyone, and as the young actors finished their performance, Sister Feng seized the opportunity to say, "It's getting late, the old lady should be setting the table for dinner soon."

The implication was that it was time to disperse.

Jia Lian said, "It's rare to have so many people here today. I'm also at home, so we should invite the old lady and the others to our courtyard for a visit."

So, while sending someone to the kitchen to prepare the banquet, Fengjie was instructed to send someone to invite Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang.

A servant returned and said, "The old lady and the madam said that they won't be coming over, so that the master and mistresses can have a good time. The old lady also said that the second master and second mistress should rest a bit, as Miss Zhen and the others are still young and weak, and they shouldn't drink too much alcohol to avoid harming their health."

Tan Chun and the others outwardly listened attentively, but inwardly they were overjoyed. With Grandmother Jia and the others not coming, and Li Wan, Jia Lian, and Feng Jie all being easygoing peers, they could finally relax and have a good time.

So the extra tables and chairs that had been set up were removed, and the original state was roughly restored.

Jia Lian then said that the young actresses and female teachers had worked hard all afternoon, and ordered that seats be set up for them on the west corridor, with wine and food served as a reward.

Sister Feng said, "Since we're bestowing favors, why not go all the way?" So she ordered a banquet to be set up on the east corridor, and had the head maids of Yingchun and Daiyu sit down to accompany them...

Under such circumstances, the banquet at Sister Feng's courtyard was naturally extremely lively and joyous. Even after nightfall, under the deliberate or unintentional onslaught from Tan Chun and others, Sister Feng was the first to succumb and collapsed.

Seeing that Sister Feng had been speaking loudly just moments before, but now lay motionless on the table, everyone laughed at her in good-nature.

Jia Lian glanced at her, gestured to the others, and then picked her up and carried her into the house.

Baochai said, "Let's call it a day."

Li Wan, who had long harbored this idea, immediately agreed.

Although the others were somewhat unwilling, they knew that they had already gone too far by making a scene with Jia Lian and Feng Jie all afternoon and evening. If they continued, Grandmother Jia would really send someone to reprimand them. So they all composed themselves and prepared to get up.

When Jia Lian came out again, he didn't say much after seeing the situation. After saying goodbye to everyone, he asked Qingwen, Xiangling, and Xiaohong to escort Li Wan and the others back to the Grand View Garden.

Seeing Daiyu and the others leave, the once bustling courtyard became deserted. Jia Lian stood on the veranda for a while before turning back into the house.

But he found that Feng Jie, who had been properly settled in bed and was fast asleep, was now leaning against the headboard, letting Ping'er drink hangover soup for her.

"They've all left?"

"Um."

Jia Lian walked to the bedside and sat down, raising an eyebrow at her: "You're really good at pretending. I thought you were drunk."

"What do you mean I thought I was drunk? I'm not like you, where they can force me to drink. If I don't find a way to get out of here, I might as well stay in bed all day tomorrow."

In Sister Feng's beautiful eyes, there glints of cunning and smugness that were unique to her.

Jia Lian smiled and declined the hangover soup Ping'er offered. He looked at Feng Jie and said, "Tomorrow is the Emperor Emeritus's birthday. A banquet will be held at Chonghua Palace. Are you going?"

"Can I go too?"

"You are my wife, the wife of a first-rank marquis, how can you not go?"

Sister Feng's smile vanished, replaced by a deep look. "I'd better not go..."

Sister Feng lowered her head for a long while, then said in a low voice, "The old lady and the others have been preparing to go to the palace for the past few days, but they haven't told me. I know it's because I embarrassed you..."

As Feng Jie spoke, she suddenly broke down, buried her head in Jia Lian's arms, and began to sob.

Ever since she was reprimanded by the Empress Dowager, news of her unchaste behavior spread. Despite her inner strength and Jia Lian's protection, which allowed her to remain in the Jia family as the wife of a marquis, and even in other households, no one dared to look down on or ridicule her.

But the palace is an exception. Few people in the palace would give Jia Lian face, and everyone knows that she is not favored by the Empress Dowager, so who would like her?

Therefore, even after she received the title of Marquis's wife, she never went to the palace a second time.

Now that so much time has passed, and with the Emperor Emeritus's birthday approaching, she wondered if she could try entering the palace. Even if she were ridiculed or harassed, she could endure it. After all, with her status as a first-rank imperial consort, she couldn't possibly hide from the palace forever, could she?

However, the tacit actions of Grandmother Jia and others made her see reality clearly. It was obvious that on such an important day as the Emperor Emeritus's birthday, Grandmother Jia and the others did not intend for her to enter the palace and "make a fool of herself."

This inevitably made her, who had been proud and arrogant since childhood, feel extremely wronged. However, she could not confide in anyone until now, when she was drunk, she finally poured out to Jia Lian the pain that was suppressing her and that she might never be able to shake off, a pain buried deep in her heart.

Seeing Feng Jie crying her heart out, her slender body trembling in his arms, Jia Lian could clearly feel her grievance, regret, and self-blame.

He gently stroked her body, and after she calmed down a bit, he said softly, "Silly woman, no one is perfect. Although you made a mistake, you've already corrected it, and no one else holds it against you anymore. Why keep holding onto it and torturing yourself?"

"Oh, who says they didn't remember? Even the old lady remembers it... Ugh..."

"The old ladies don't want you to go to the palace just because they're worried about you and want to protect you. They're afraid you'll suffer if you go. Don't doubt it. As long as you're willing to go to the palace and dare to go, the old ladies won't say a word against you."

"real?"

One good thing about Sister Feng now is that she has started to rely on and trust Jia Lian for things she is unsure about or unclear about, instead of acting as she used to, doing whatever she wanted without regard for right or wrong or the consequences.

"How about we give it a try?"

Upon hearing this, Sister Feng's crying subsided considerably, but she still didn't fully believe Jia Lian's words.

Jia Lian then coaxed, "Alright, what you did back then wasn't entirely shameful; you also gained some face."

Sister Feng wrinkled her nose: "What?"

"Think about it, the Empress Dowager and the princess both tried to steal your man, and you weren't scared at all. In the end, you not only successfully protected your man, but also gracefully withdrew from the scene. Isn't that skill? Isn't that dignity?"

Sister Feng blushed, "What kind of face is this? If it weren't for you..."

Sister Feng couldn't continue speaking, but she glanced up at Jia Lian, her eyes overflowing with admiration and gratitude.

Jia Lian seized the opportunity and laughed, "That's right, and there's also your man, me. Think about it, which of the ladies of high society and noblewomen in the capital doesn't admire and envy you for marrying such a loving and righteous man? Even when faced with a princess, such a windfall, you remain unmoved and protect your wife who has shared so much hardship. You can't find another man like that in the world."

"Pah! You have the nerve to say that? In the end, you still ended up with that princess, you said it yourself!"

Fengjie couldn't stand Jia Lian's smug and self-praising manner, so she subconsciously pinched him. Then she fell silent and looked at Jia Lian, saying, "Tomorrow you and the old lady should go. I won't go. But, I'm really, really happy that you said these things to me..."

Sister Feng is usually eloquent and has a high EQ, but when she's truly moved and wants to say something from the heart, it feels harder than anything else. After holding it in for a long time, tears welled up in her eyes again.

Jia Lian couldn't help but tease, "Look at you, you're just talking, why are you imitating Lin Daiyu, shedding tears like they're free?"

At this moment, Jia Lian's gentleness made Feng Jie burst into tears even more.

Seeing that she couldn't stop, Jia Lian quickly coaxed her, "Alright, alright, if you don't want to go, you don't have to. Celebrating the Emperor Emeritus's birthday is already very stressful and complicated, it's bound to be boring. If I could, I wouldn't want to go either. The palace doesn't require all the ladies of the court to go, so not going will save me the trouble."

The retired emperor had long since ceased to concern himself with state affairs, content to retire peacefully in Chonghua Palace. Although Chonghua Palace was large, it was ultimately just a corner of the palace complex, and could not accommodate too many events. Therefore, the Ministry of Rites had issued a notice that only officials of the fifth rank and above from the capital were permitted to enter the palace to celebrate the retired emperor's birthday.

As for the noble ladies of the various households, the palace didn't say anything, but according to past practice, it's probably best to avoid going if possible, since no one will provide proper hospitality. After all, the Empress Dowager is young and doesn't enjoy nagging the old ladies of the various households.

Sister Feng nodded, wiped her tears and snot with her sleeve, and suddenly said, "Why don't you take Lin girl into the palace tomorrow?"

Seeing Jia Lian's surprised expression, she explained, "It is inconvenient for me to enter the palace. As a marquis, it is impossible for our family to be without a woman to report to the Empress forever. Lin girl is just right to take my place."

She is the "Lady Lin," personally bestowed upon her by the Emperor. Her status is noble, and her character and appearance surpass mine. If she were to enter the palace, she would surely bring you honor!

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian suddenly laughed, pulled Feng Jie into his arms, and said with a smile, "I admit that you are mostly right. Bringing her into the palace would certainly bring me honor. However, I will not let her go."

"Why?" Sister Feng asked, her eyes wide with curiosity. In her memory, Jia Lian had always been exceptionally loving and tolerant of Daiyu, and it was impossible for him to refuse to bring her into the palace for reasons such as improper conduct.

As expected, Jia Lian replied, "That girl is not like you. She is very lazy and hates trouble. Of course, I can't just let her come to the palace to suffer just to save face for myself."

Upon hearing this, Sister Feng feigned a sheepish smile. Little did she know how unwilling and heartbroken she was to make such a suggestion; she had no choice but to go against her conscience for the sake of the greater good.

Who knew that Jia Lian would say such things, showing no concern for her whatsoever, which made her heart ache.

"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"No, I'm dizzy from drinking too much and I want to sleep."

"Go to sleep if you want. I've already asked Sister-in-law Wan to take care of things outside. Just sleep soundly until tomorrow morning."

As Jia Lian spoke, he wrapped Feng Jie'er's body in the quilt and kissed her forehead. This action made it impossible for Feng Jie'er to vent her anger on Jia Lian; she could only let out a soft "hmm" and drift off to sleep under the covers.