Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Rongguo Mansion, Jia Lian's Courtyard, West Wing.

Today is Qingwen's birthday.

At fifteen, she will be considered an adult.

Originally, Jia Lian had arranged for Ping'er to prepare for her coming-of-age ceremony, but because the Dowager Empress in the palace had passed away, and the Jia family was a noble family that needed to observe mourning according to their rank, everything was simplified.

Qingwen was not discouraged.

From early morning, she sent her maid out to buy snacks, food, and entertainment for the guests.

The so-called guests were naturally some of the maids from the Rongguo Mansion.

Including the time she spent in Grandmother Jia's courtyard, she had been in the mansion for five years, and naturally had a group of her own girlfriends.

She did not invite her cousin and his wife.

Firstly, because the location was in the inner quarters, the master's residence; secondly, because she knew that Sister Feng disliked her cousin-in-law very much.

Actually, she didn't like her cousin-in-law either; her reputation was just too bad.

She had vaguely heard rumors that almost every decent man in the manor had been taken advantage of by her cousin-in-law, Miss Duo!

For this reason, she even gave her cousin a special tip about being a "muddle-headed worm".

Although Duo Hunchong readily agreed to deal with this shameless woman, judging from the subsequent events, he clearly had no way to handle her.

So Qingwen stopped caring.

In the evening, just as Qingwen and her group of close friends and mahjong partners were having a great time in the room, they suddenly heard a maid outside calling out, "Miss Bao, Miss Yun, and Miss Qin are here."

Qingwen quickly gave Xiangling a wink.

Now that Jia Lian and Feng Jie have gone to the palace to pay their respects, and Ping'er has gone with them, it's natural that she and Xiang Ling should be in charge of this courtyard.

She had the cards she needed and didn't want to get up.

Xiangling, however, was not fond of playing games. Seeing this, she dropped her cards and went out.

Qingwen immediately waved to the maid who had been eager to take the stage, signaling her to step in.

I originally thought the girls had come looking for Sister Feng and would leave once they realized she wasn't there.

Who knew that Xiangling would lead the person into the west wing, so Qingwen dared not slack off anymore and hurriedly went out to greet her with a smile.

"Why are Miss Bao and the two young ladies here?"

Baochai led her two younger sisters and several maids in, first glancing at the lively scene before looking at Qingwen.

Qingwen had clearly dressed up carefully today.

With her delicate features and peach-blossom face, adorned with gold and silver jewelry and a brand-new, brightly colored brocade dress, she could easily pass for a princess, let alone a maid.

She was absolutely stunning and charming.

Just from this color, Baochai understood why she had won Jia Lian's favor.

"I heard it's your birthday today, so I came here to celebrate."

These two jars of wine were brought back from the south by our servant; they're not worth much. If you don't mind, please accept them as a congratulatory gift from the three of us.

As Baochai spoke, she took two small, beautifully packaged jars of wine from the maid and handed them to Qingwen.

Qingwen was overjoyed, and her smile widened even further.

She had no idea that Baochai and the other young ladies had come to congratulate her.

Xiangyun is too active, and Baoqin is too young, so let's leave those two aside for now.

Who is Baochai?

She was the eldest daughter of Madam Xue, a leading figure among the young ladies of the Grand View Garden, and a model of a well-bred lady.

This person actually came to celebrate her birthday in person, and even brought a gift.

Although Qingwen usually bossed the maids around, how could she not know the proper order of things?

Let alone the fact that she's just a maidservant, merely holding the title of Jia Lian's concubine. Even if she were to actually become Jia Lian's concubine in the future, she wouldn't actually be entitled to have an equal relationship with the other young ladies in the household.

Have you not heard that when Jia Zhen's concubines celebrated their birthdays, were they qualified to have the three spring ladies come to offer their congratulations?

So Qingwen quickly smiled and said, "I'm already very happy that Miss Bao is here. There's no need to bring any congratulatory gifts. It would only make me feel embarrassed."

Even so, Qingwen still accepted the wine.

She didn't believe Baochai's claim that it was worthless.

Everyone in the Jia family knew that the Xue family was the wealthiest. And when Baochai (the young lady) made a move, it was never considered stingy!

Feeling very proud, Qingwen led Baochai and the others into the house while placing wine on the table next to her, intending to use it to entertain the guests later.

Shi Xiangyun was bored in the garden, and when she heard Baochai say that it was Qingwen's birthday, she thought it would be fun to watch, so she came over.

Seeing that the place was indeed bustling with activity, with two mahjong tables already set up, I was naturally in high spirits.

She laughed and said, "Well, Qingwen, you guys are playing cards here without even inviting me."

Qingwen replied with a smile, "Miss Yun is a refined person who can compose poems and write lyrics. We are just ordinary people, and this is the only pastime we know. We are already happy that Miss Yun doesn't laugh at us, so how could we dare to invite you?"

Shi Xiangyun didn't stand on ceremony and plopped down in the seat that Qingwen had originally occupied. While calling for the cards to be shuffled, she bantered with Qingwen: "I can hardly be considered a refined person, but I also love playing this game the most."

Also, you said that people who play this game are vulgar?

I see that the older women in my family also enjoy playing cards. Are they just ordinary people?

Qingwen was speechless, and gave Shi Xiangyun a disgruntled look, which made the others shake their heads and laugh.

Shi Xiangyun was always playful and active, and seeing that there was still an empty seat, she quickly called out to Baochai.

Baochai's purpose in coming here was to befriend Qingwen, so she didn't put on airs and sat down with a smile.

Xue Baoqin, however, examined it carefully for a long time before leaning close to Baochai and saying, "Sister, I've played dominoes with Aunt and the others at home before, but why is the one they play different from ours?"

"This is a game that the Marquis adapted from the old dominoes; he calls it 'Mahjong.' It's quite interesting. Watch and I'll teach you," Baochai said.

It turns out that Jia Lian had introduced entertainment and leisure activities such as mahjong and poker into this era long ago.

Culture and entertainment are inherently interconnected.

Mahjong, which came later, was originally evolved from the "dominoes" of this era. Jia Lian is simply evolving them ahead of time.

Even though playing cards are an imported product, in this era, there is a counterpart called "leaf cards".

Although the rules of the game are quite different, with Jia Lian's explanation, it was clear that the girls in the family wouldn't find it too difficult to accept.

Xue Baoqin naturally knew that the "Lord" Baochai mentioned referred to Jia Lian. She had initially found these "dominoes" strange, but upon hearing that they came from Jia Lian, she immediately became very interested.

Brother Lian Er already possessed extraordinary foresight and wisdom; anything he invented must be extraordinary!

So he stood obediently beside Baochai and diligently memorized and studied.

……

Xiaoxiang Pavilion.

After several young ladies came to visit, the women in the Grand View Garden were overjoyed for a few days.

However, due to the national mourning period, the elders went to the palace to pay their respects every morning and evening, so the younger generation could only chat and laugh together, write poems, and paint, and it was not appropriate to hold large-scale cultural and recreational activities.

After all this, the initial enthusiasm naturally subsided within a few days.

Today, Daiyu also felt a little annoyed. She remembered that when she was paying her respects to Grandmother Jia at noon, she had overheard that today was Qingwen's birthday.

After thinking for a moment, he asked Zijuan to carry a lantern, and the two of them, mistress and servant, gracefully arrived at Jia Lian's courtyard.

When Daiyu came over, she noticed that although the rest of the courtyard was dark and deserted, the west wing was brightly lit, and the sound of dominoes being played could be heard from inside from time to time.

Just by looking at the scattered figures on the window paper, Daiyu knew that there were quite a few people having fun inside.

The master and servant remained silent and went straight to the west corridor.

There was no one on the veranda, except for a birdcage in the corner containing two baby rabbits that I had never seen before.

It's grayish-white, probably only recently born, and very cute.

Daiyu glanced at it twice before stepping inside.

I felt a wave of heat, accompanied by a slight smell of alcohol, hit me.

Before Daiyu could even frown, she was surprised by the lively scene.

In the two rooms, which were neither too big nor too small, three square tables were arranged in a triangular shape, with two tables on the outside and one on the inside, and everyone was playing dominoes with great enthusiasm.

At a glance, there were at least twenty or thirty people.

The sudden arrival of Daiyu interrupted everyone's thoughts, and they all looked at her.

"Oh, it's quite lively here!" Daiyu brushed a strand of hair from her forehead and smiled like a lotus flower.

"Oh, Miss Lin has arrived too."

"Miss Lin, please have a seat."

Daiyu keenly heard the maids say "also," and she understood this when she walked to the door of the inner room and saw Baochai and the others sitting upright.

Compared to Baochai and others' casualness, Qingwen was much more serious about Daiyu's arrival.

This is her direct superior; she absolutely cannot afford to offend him.

Last time, she was scolded for not letting the other party's maid see the Second Master.

"Miss Lin, what brings you here? Please have a seat. Tan Yun, pour some tea."

While greeting her, Qingwen took the stool from the maid sitting next to her and made sure Daiyu sat down.

Daiyu, however, was not in a hurry to sit down. Instead, she asked Baochai with a smile, "Why is Sister Bao here too?"

Daiyu knew that she was visiting Qingwen out of consideration for their future relationship.

Why has Baochai come?

Although Baochai had Xiangyun and Baoqin by her side, for some reason, Daiyu subconsciously set her sights on Baochai.

Baochai, however, was quite composed. After playing a card, she said, "It's rather boring in the garden. I heard that Qingwen is having her birthday today, so I brought them here to take a look."

Why is Lin Daiyu here too?

Daiyu's brows furrowed deeply.

Qingwen was completely baffled. Why did these two girls suddenly start arguing?

As the birthday celebrant and host, he couldn't let the two distinguished guests start arguing as soon as they arrived. So he pulled Daiyu aside and said with a smile, "It's perfect that Miss Lin is here. You sit here, and the four of you can make a table. I'll go outside and play with them."

Daiyu laughed and said, "Never mind, I don't have the money to lose to them."

Qingwen was extremely shrewd when it came to money. She knew exactly who among the masters and servants in the entire mansion was rich and who was poor.

She knew very well that Daiyu was even wealthier than Baochai.

She rolled her eyes at Daiyu in her heart, but still smiled and said, "Miss Lin, don't worry, it's on me if you lose."

Only Daiyu could be so generous to others; Aunt Qingwen had never been so generous to anyone else.

Although her attitude made Daiyu smile even more, Daiyu still shook her head, "Never mind, you're the birthday girl today, I wouldn't dare take your place. Don't worry about me, you just do your thing, I'll take a quick look and then go back."

"this……"

Although Qingwen hesitated, seeing that Daiyu's expression did not seem like she was joking, she did not press the matter.

After serving the tea to Daiyu, he sat back down.

After taking a couple of sips of tea, Daiyu put down her teacup, grabbed a handful of melon seeds, and moved her stool behind Baochai, clearly preparing to watch Baochai's card playing skills up close.

Her actions caused Baochai, who had been sitting calmly on the fishing platform, to feel a little nervous.

……()