Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

The secluded Duke's Mansion, the tranquil Tianxiang Tower.

The passionate yet elegant dance came to a halt, and Qin Keqing softly nestled against Jia Lian's chest, savoring the ultimate tenderness between a man and a woman at this moment.

Unlike Qin Keqing, Lady You was not fond of pleasure. She had quietly put on her clothes before the two had finished their business and she was about to take her leave.

Before she settled into her lodgings, Jia Lian grabbed her hand, saying, "There's something I need to discuss with my sister-in-law."

Mr. You bowed his head, indicating that he was listening.

"I'd like to borrow your sister-in-law's Tianxiang Restaurant to house a few people."

"Who?"

"The four gentlemen of the young actresses at Pear Fragrance Courtyard".

Upon hearing Jia Lian mention Gu Qingyi and the others, even Qin Keqing, who was nestled in Jia Lian's arms, quietly peeked out.

"Pear Fragrance Courtyard is ultimately too small. All four of them are beauties with both looks and talent, and it would be unfair to them to be crammed together with young actresses for so long. I think this Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion is spacious, has many rooms, and is located deep within the two mansions."

If we settle them here, their playing of instruments and music won't easily disturb others.

Upon hearing this, Madam You countered, "Just the four of them?"

"Yes, it's fine to leave the young actresses at Pear Fragrance Courtyard."

Although Tianxiang Tower is large enough to accommodate everyone in Lixiang Courtyard, the Twelve Maidens are at a mischievous age, and Jia Lian felt embarrassed to move them all in, causing You Shi too much trouble.

Upon hearing that it was only Gu Qingyi and three others, Madam You said, "In that case, we'll leave it to Second Uncle to arrange."

Although Gu Qingyi and the others came from humble backgrounds, they were all truly captivating in terms of beauty and talent. Moreover, having worked in the world of entertainment, most of them knew how to get along with people, so setting aside any feelings of jealousy, many people genuinely liked them.

At least Madam You didn't reject them at all, and would occasionally invite some of them over to relieve their loneliness. Because of her courteous treatment, Gu Qingyi and the others almost never refused.

"not good."

Just as Jia Lian and his companion were about to reach an agreement, Qin Keqing, who was in bed, voiced her objection.

She frowned and said, "If we bring them in, wouldn't that just create more eyes to watch us? Or has Second Uncle already grown tired of my mother-in-law and me, and that's why he deliberately sent people in?"

Qin Keqing's words startled You Shi, as she hadn't considered this point. Perhaps it was because she hadn't frequently had illicit affairs with Jia Lian here, and hadn't regarded this place as her main base.

Seeing Qin Keqing's tearful expression, Jia Lian reached out and patted her head, smiling, "First of all, this place is so spacious, a few more of them won't make a difference. Besides, I'm only temporarily placing them here; when I have time in the future, I'll find them another place."

"Are you so lustful that you can't even spare a little time?"

Qin Keqing, teased by Jia Lian, retorted coquettishly and then opened her small mouth to bite a spot on Jia Lian's chest as punishment.

Even though Jia Lian had long been familiar with Qin Keqing's charms, he was still startled by this sudden attack. A large hand hidden under the covers couldn't help but grab her smooth, upturned buttocks, intending to make her let go.

"Giggle giggle."

Seeing Jia Lian's nervousness, Qin Keqing let him go with satisfaction, and raised her head and smiled, "Why did Second Uncle suddenly move them here? Oh, I know, it must be because they are too beautiful. Second Uncle is going on a long trip and is afraid that they will be seduced by other handsome young men, so he has to hide them here."

It must be said that Qin Keqing was very clever; although she was making fun of her, she hit the nail on the head.

Jia Lian never liked to leave things to fate; he preferred the feeling of having a plan in mind. Since he had gone to great lengths to bring the four beauties from the south to the capital, it was impossible that he didn't genuinely care about them.

The reason why it hasn't been opened yet is twofold: firstly, we haven't had the time or energy to spare, and secondly, we're trying to consider the feelings of Sister Feng and Daiyu.

However, he had long considered the four beauties as his own and would not allow anyone else to touch them. Since Pear Fragrance Courtyard was located on the street, and given the four beauties' looks made them easy targets for thieves, it would naturally be safer to keep them in the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion deep within the two mansions.

Of course, there are many ways to protect them, but the main reason for choosing Tianxianglou is to provide them with a quieter and more comfortable environment.

Tianxiang Tower is one of the most luxurious buildings in Ningguo Mansion. You can tell just by looking at the fact that both the eldest mistress and the young mistress of the mansion have their dressing rooms there.

Seeing Jia Lian's tacit approval, Qin Keqing laughed and said, "I knew Second Uncle wouldn't let them off the hook. It's a pity that Second Aunt actually believed that Second Uncle invited them back to be teachers for the young actresses."

After merely expressing her sympathy for Sister Feng, Qin Keqing reverted to her alluring demeanor, leaning close to Jia Lian's ear and smiling sweetly, "But Second Uncle, with so many beauties by your side, can your body really handle it?"

Jia Lian was not offended by Qin Keqing's suspicions at all. There's a saying that goes, when you are truly excellent in a certain aspect, you won't care what others say.

Jia Lian was a prime example.

Therefore, he simply rolled over and pinned Qin Keqing beneath him, reached out and pinched her chin, and replied with a smile, "What's there to be afraid of if I can't handle it? Isn't it because you're here to help me solve my problems?"

The profound words startled Qin Keqing, whose cheeks suddenly flushed red. She then playfully punched the man's chest with her small fist.

Lady You, who was watching the scene from the sidelines, did not understand the meaning behind Jia Lian's words at first, but judging from Qin Keqing's reaction, she understood something. She thought to herself that she had thought it was absurd enough that the two of them served Jia Lian together, but now it seemed that the two of them probably had even more outrageous ways of playing that she had not yet known...

Feeling a pang of shyness at the thought, knowing that the two on the bed would be cuddling for a while longer, she shook her head with a smile and gracefully left.

A quarter of an hour later, Jia Lian, with great perseverance, broke free from the demon's entanglement, left Tianxiang Tower, and, as was customary, entered the Grand View Garden from Huifang Garden of Ningguo Mansion.

After passing Yihong Courtyard, before crossing Qinfang Bridge, they saw a group of maids coming out of Qiushuangzhai and heading north along the main road.

Jia Lian stood still for a moment, then walked towards Qiushuangzhai.

As soon as they entered Qiushuangzhai, they heard cheerful warbling and chirping coming from the main house. The most obvious voices belonged to Tanchun and Xiangyun.

Jia Lian shook his head inwardly. He knew that with Shi Xiangyun, the Grand View Garden would be the most lively Grand View Garden ever.

Following the sound, I walked over and saw a dozen graceful figures inside Tan Chun's room by the window.

"Look, Brother Lian is here."

It's unclear who had the sharpest eyes, but someone called out like that. Accompanied by the sound of footsteps, Shi Xiangyun rushed out from "Tongjian Qiufeng" and pounced to Jia Lian's side, laughing happily, "Second Brother Lian, we were just talking about you, and here you are!"

"Oh, what did you say about me?"

"Come in first."

Unlike the shy girl she was in the carriage that morning, Xiangyun grabbed Jia Lian's arm and pulled him into the house.

Once inside, everyone was indeed present.

With Li Wan, Xue Baochai, Lin Daiyu, the three sisters, and Zhen Yuhuan all present, if you ignore the silly Jia Baoyu in the corner, it would definitely be a beautiful winter gathering of beauties.

After exchanging brief greetings, Jia Lian's gaze fell upon Yingchun and Daiyu, and he couldn't help but chuckle, "Aren't you two feeling unwell? Why aren't you resting in your rooms?"

Yingchun smiled shyly, but Daiyu said bluntly, "Ask her. I was resting inside, but she insisted on dragging me over."

Without a doubt, Daiyu was referring to Shi Xiangyun.

Shi Xiangyun also readily admitted: "It's not normal to have a headache or fever in the dead of winter. It's not good to stay indoors at this time. You should go out for a walk. Maybe you'll get rid of the illness."

As they were talking, Shi Xiangyun was about to lead Jia Lian to a seat.

"Wait a minute."

Tan Chun walked over with a smile, "Today is our poetry club gathering, but when we held our first meeting last time, Brother Lian didn't attend."

Just now, Xiangyun and Sister Zhen both wrote poems to join the group. We all knew that Brother Lian was busy and didn't dare send anyone to disturb him, but now that you're here, you can't be an exception. You also need to write a poem before you can join the group.

"Third Sister's words make sense." Xiangyun readily agreed and immediately distanced herself from Jia Lian, siding with Tan Chun.

Jia Lian smiled, not intending to refuse their reasonable request, but simply asked what the topic was.

"Second Brother Lian, there's no need to rush to compose a poem yet. There's something more important to do before that."

Tan Chun helped Jia Lian sit down and said with a smile, "Sister Lin said before that since we've started a poetry club, we're all poets now. It wouldn't be proper to keep calling each other 'sister,' 'brother,' and 'sister-in-law,' so we've each chosen an elegant nickname."

Jia Lian glanced at Xiangyun and Zhen Yuhuan, and asked with a smile, "They're pregnant too?"

"Of course there are, they were all named by Sister Bao. Xiangyun is called 'Old Friend of Pillow Clouds'. It was when the old lady led everyone to stroll through the garden and talked about pavilions and towers. The old lady said that when she was a child, there was a pavilion in the Marquis's mansion called Pillow Clouds Pavilion."

None of us remembered it, but Sister Bao did. Although Xiangyun had never seen this pavilion before, since she was the eldest daughter of the Shi family and could be considered the mistress of Zhenxia Pavilion, we called her an old friend of Zhenxia Pavilion.

But Sister Zhen's nickname is quite remarkable. She said there's a lake behind her house called Zixia Lake, where she often goes boating. Therefore, Sister Bao gave her the nickname "Zixia Fairy," which perfectly corresponds to Sister Lin's "Xiaoxiang Concubine." And the two of them look so alike! We all said Sister Bao chose a wonderful nickname.

Hearing Tan Chun's introduction, Zhen Yuhuan felt a little embarrassed. She felt that this title was too grand for her, but since everyone said it was good, she couldn't go against the public's opinion.

Jia Lian also realized that the numbers they chose were basically derived from their respective residences.

Daoxiang Old Farmer, Hengwu Jun, Xiaoxiang Concubine, Banana Guest (bananas are planted in front of Qiushuangzhai where Tanchun lives), Lingzhou, Ouxie, Pillow Cloud Old Friend, Zixia Fairy?

Is it certain that Xue Baochai had never seen A Chinese Odyssey?

Without criticizing Zhen Yuhuan's name too much, Jia Lian wondered what name he should choose that would be both elegant and fitting, yet not vulgar.

Daiyu, who was sitting opposite him, saw through his thoughts and hummed before Tanchun could say, "You don't need to rack your brains, Sister Bao has already chosen one for you."

Seeing Jia Lian's surprised expression, Baochai explained softly, "When everyone was giving the two of them nicknames just now, they also mentioned Brother Lian. I remembered hearing my mother and aunt talk about the poem Brother Lian wrote in the palace the other day."

"Heavy snow presses down on the green pine, yet the green pine stands tall and straight; to know the pine's noble character, wait until the snow melts." Thinking that my second brother Lian has the ambition of a pine tree, I casually suggested using "Green Pine" as his pen name. If my second brother Lian finds it inappropriate, he need not worry about it; we can choose something better.

From Daiyu's tone alone, Baochai could tell that the young girl had some reservations about how Daiyu had given Jia Lian a nickname and received everyone's approval, and was also worried that Jia Lian would think she was being nosy.

"Hehehe, Sister Xue is indeed a learned person. I am ashamed to admit that I cannot match her ability to come up with a nickname so easily. In that case, I shall be 'Green Pine'."

Jia Lian seemed completely oblivious to Daiyu's thoughts, and he readily accepted the elegant nickname given to him by Baochai.

This reaction made Baochai unable to resist glancing at Jia Lian again, only to meet his smiling eyes. For some reason, she felt flustered and quickly looked away.

Seeing this, Jia Lian's smile grew even wider until he turned around and met Daiyu's gloomy gaze. Only then did he cough lightly and suppress his smile.

Because Baochai mentioned Jia Lian's poem about green pines, Tanchun and the others couldn't help but offer their own critique and praise. Except for Jia Baoyu, who thought the poem was terrible, utterly vulgar, both in its phrasing and its meaning.

He had expressed his opinion when everyone was discussing it before, but unfortunately, almost no one agreed with him. If this was the case even without Jia Lian present, he certainly wouldn't want to make a fool of himself now that Jia Lian was there.

On the other side, Xiangyun and the others set out their brushes and ink, and immediately asked Jia Lian to write, explaining, "The topic is 'White Begonia,' and the characters are limited to 'door,' 'pot,' 'mark,' and 'dusk.'"

Jia Lian pretended to ponder for a while, then picked up his pen and leisurely wrote out the homework he had already completed.

During this process, Baochai, Xiangyun, and others couldn't help but gather around him, and a subtle fragrance lingered in the air, making them feel refreshed and relaxed.