Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Chapter 717 Daiyu's Coquettishness

Xiaoxiang Pavilion.

Jia Lian rarely comes in the morning.

The scenery at Xiaoxiang Pavilion was even more secluded and tranquil in the morning. The faint sound of a zither drifted from the cool air, making Jia Lian feel as if he could see that delicate figure from afar.

As I walked along the familiar bamboo corridor, I deliberately lowered my footsteps so as not to disturb the person playing the zither under the west window.

The intermittent playing of the zither indicates that the person playing it was not taking it seriously.

With a soft sigh, Jia Lian, who had been standing at the door for a long time, couldn't help but laugh.

His laughter broke through the faint sadness in the room and made the small, beautiful figure sitting alone by the west window look up.

Upon seeing it was him, a hint of embarrassment immediately appeared on her beautiful face.

He shifted slightly, as if trying to escape something, but ultimately didn't move. He then scolded Jia Lian, "What are you doing standing there? Sneaking around like that, you're just trying to scare people."

"I stand here, naturally to appreciate Lin Daiyu's beautiful zither music."

Daiyu blushed slightly; she had been lost in thought and didn't even know what she had played.

When Jia Lian said "beautiful," she felt he was mocking her.

Lin Daiyu always took revenge promptly when faced with ridicule.

"Hmph. What's so great about my music? I'm not very talented. You should use your time to find your 'beauties' and listen to them play some elegant pieces for you. Wouldn't that be more interesting?"

"That's different."

Jia Lian walked to Daiyu's zither table, sat down cross-legged, and looked at her with a smile.

Ever since he tricked her that day, the girl has been deliberately avoiding him.

Today is much better.

While secretly lamenting how shy the girl was, Jia Lian couldn't help but imagine what it would be like after he married her.

Daiyu was naturally very shy in front of Jia Lian, but she also thought that she couldn't just keep hiding from him forever, could she?

Therefore, he forced himself to sit still and did not dare to look Jia Lian in the eye.

Jia Lian's smile widened. "Other places I hear the sound of a zither, but here with Lin Daiyu..."

Upon hearing Jia Lian's tone, Daiyu, who was very familiar with him, immediately realized that he might say something that would make her blush and her heart race.

But the curiosity and excitement in her heart still compelled her to weakly cooperate, while fidgeting with the hem of her clothes: "How about it here with me...?"

"With Lin Daiyu, I hear her heart's voice."

Although she knew this was Jia Lian's usual sweet talk to make her happy, Daiyu still felt her heart skip a beat when she heard the words "heartfelt words," making it difficult for her, who was already delicate and weak, to breathe, and her panting became much more obvious.

She sat still for two seconds, then suddenly stood up, glared at Jia Lian, and said, "Pah, sweet talk..."

After saying that, she turned around, covered her chest with one hand, and ran away, determined not to let Jia Lian see her embarrassing state.

But it was clearly futile.

Even as she stood up, Jia Lian clearly saw the blush on the back of her ears and her neck.

Jia Lian guessed that Lin Daiyu's body temperature was definitely several degrees higher at this time.

He shook his head and sighed, thinking that this girl was really too easily amused.

Daiyu hid behind her dressing table, covering her face and trying to calm herself down.

After a while, she noticed that Jia Lian hadn't followed. She peeked at him and saw that he was sitting in the spot where she had been sitting, raising his hands to pluck the strings of her zither.

She was just about to mock Jia Lian for not being able to play the piano, and to warn him not to break it.

After thinking for a moment, he held back and instead got up and went to the outer room to pour Jia Lian a cup of tea.

"Here you are." Daiyu held the teacup in both hands and presented it to Jia Lian.

Jia Lian looked up at Daiyu, who was trying to maintain a haughty expression, and then glanced at her forearms that were sticking out of her sleeves.

Admittedly, Jia Lian only felt that Daiyu's arms were too white and too thin, as if he could break them with a light flick.

But Daiyu thought he was looking at her hands, and Jia Lian's pitying expression seemed to Daiyu, who was then troubled by her own thoughts, to her that he had ulterior motives!

Unable to bear such stares, Daiyu instinctively wanted to pull her hands back and hide them.

The teacup tipped over, spilling tea onto Jia Lian's expensive robes, startling Daiyu.

Ignoring the spilled teacup, she wanted to take out her handkerchief to wipe Jia Lian's mouth.

Her hand was suddenly grabbed by a strong force. Looking up, she saw Jia Lian looking panicked. She sat up and hurriedly asked, "How are you? Are you burned?"

Daiyu was too lazy to brew tea for Jia Lian; she only poured warm tea from the teapot, so she naturally wouldn't burn herself.

But the concern Jia Lian showed her at that moment deeply moved her.

Lian Ergege's first concern wasn't whether he had burned himself or blamed himself for spilling the liquid all over him; instead, he was worried about whether he had hurt himself.

Daiyu was a very sentimental person. Jia Lian's genuine concern, shown in his flustered state, made her feel loved and happy again.

Jia Lian was indeed a little anxious at first.

Daiyu was an ethereal fairy who didn't concern herself with worldly affairs. Even when looking in the mirror, she could admire herself more than the peach blossoms, which shows how much she cared about her appearance.

Jia Lian had no idea how heartbroken she would be if her delicate, fair hands, untouched by the elements, were burned.

Even Jia Lian couldn't accept it, which is why he was so nervous.

As the tea soaked through his robes, Jia Lian naturally felt the temperature of the tea and then put his worries at ease.

Looking up at Daiyu, who remained silent and stared blankly at him, Jia Lian felt a surge of excitement. He realized that he might have unintentionally won Daiyu's favor again, and couldn't help but feel a little smug.

He didn't show it on his face, but instead continued to act concerned, touching Daiyu's small hand as he scolded, "How could you be so careless? What if you got burned?"

Sure enough, Daiyu didn't care at all about him holding her hand and stroking her. Instead, her eyes were filled with tears, and then with a "thump," she flew into his arms like a swallow.

Holding Daiyu's petite and soft body, Jia Lian finally revealed a wicked smile.

He gently patted Daiyu's back, but his tone was extremely serious: "Alright, alright, just be more careful next time. I'm not really blaming you, so why are you crying?"

Little did Daiyu know that she was completely under Jia Lian's control. Listening to Jia Lian's increasingly doting words, she felt incredibly warm inside.

She wiped away her tears while nestled in Jia Lian's arms before managing to free herself. She took out her small embroidered handkerchief and knelt down to wipe Jia Lian's robes.

But the tea had long since soaked through, so she couldn't possibly wipe it clean anymore.

She felt a little guilty: "I'm sorry, Second Brother, I got your robe wet..."

Jia Lian patted her head and comforted her, "It's alright, anyway, the weather is hot now... I must say, it actually feels quite cool."

Daiyu blushed slightly, realizing that Jia Lian's joke wasn't very funny.

She didn't say anything more, but instead lowered her head and carefully used an embroidered handkerchief to iron out the damp spots on her robe, hoping to absorb some of the tea.

But after a few moments, her movements slowed down.

The current scene...

Who is Jia Lian?

Upon seeing Daiyu's movements, one could guess that she was probably recalling the scene in her boudoir that day.

To prevent Daiyu from running away in embarrassment, Jia Lian preemptively pressed down on Daiyu's small shoulders, looking at her with eager eyes: "Sister Lin..."

Daiyu trembled, meeting Jia Lian's gaze; she seemed genuinely trying to escape.

But with her meager strength, she naturally couldn't stand up.

Suddenly, all her strength left her, and she collapsed to the ground, glaring at Jia Lian with watery eyes: "You, all you know how to do is bully me..."

Jia Lian naturally couldn't bear to bully Daiyu.

If Daiyu is truly shy, or insists that he can only do inappropriate things after marriage, he naturally will not force her.

However, Daiyu's current appearance, with her slightly panting breath and eyes filled with spring-like desire, clearly indicates that her refusal is not firm.

This naturally stirred Jia Lian's mind.

After staring at Daiyu for three seconds, he immediately bent down, picked her up, and turned to head towards her boudoir.

He knew that Daiyu would never allow him to cross the line in the outside world; only in her boudoir would she feel a sense of safety.

Daiyu had been bullied by Jia Lian countless times, so how could she not understand Jia Lian's intentions?

Seeing this, she cried out in alarm, "No! Yu Huan, Yu Huan is coming back..."

Jia Lian paused.

He almost forgot.

Last time, Zhen Yuhuan was sensible and knew that he was coming to find Daiyu, so she deliberately lingered outside, which gave him the opportunity to deceive Daiyu.

Daiyu, being so intelligent, saw that Jia Lian was truly concerned, so she immediately added, "The Zhen family sent someone to take her back. She went to say goodbye to the old lady and her aunt, and may come back at any time to pack her clothes."

If she catches me, I... I won't live anymore...

Zhen Yuhuan sent her to the Jia family as a guest because the Zhen family matriarch was also going to accompany the emperor to the imperial tombs and she was afraid that she would be lonely.

Now that Mrs. Zhen has returned to Beijing, it is only natural that she would send someone to pick her up.

This was also the main reason for Daiyu's previous sorrow.

Although Daiyu was not used to getting along with others. For example, when she lived with Xiangyun, the two sisters often quarreled.

However, Zhen Yuhuan has a very good personality and is very fond of Daiyu, her older sister who looks exactly like her.

In addition, thanks to Jia Lian's guidance over the years, Daiyu's mind has become less sensitive.

In short, she got along quite well with the Zhen Yuhuan sisters.

She is also someone who is prone to melancholy and sentimentality.

With spring drawing to a close and parting looming, she was naturally saddened.

Although Jia Lian really wanted to tease Daiyu, he didn't want to be caught by others and put pressure on Daiyu.

However, he felt it would be a pity to let such a great opportunity slip by.

So he looked down at Daiyu with deep affection and whispered, "But my Lin sister is so beautiful and charming, I really want to get closer to her..."

"You pervert..."

Despite appearing annoyed by Jia Lian's blatant praise, Daiyu was secretly pleased.

And because she was thinking about how to make Jia Lian stop, she inexplicably wrapped her arms around Jia Lian's neck and coaxed him affectionately, "Good brother, you love me the most. If she really sees us, how can I face anyone after this? Please forgive me, good brother~"

Eek!

Jia Lian gasped, realizing that this was contributing to the premature warming of the Earth.

Indeed, a rare beauty like Daiyu, when she does act coquettishly, is truly captivating!

For a moment, Jia Lian wanted to disregard everything and devour the beautiful woman in his arms completely.

Ultimately, he wasn't completely controlled by his lower body. With a powerful will, Jia Lian looked at Daiyu with a complex expression, and after a long while, he said softly, "Then, after she leaves, you can't refuse me anymore!"

Daiyu, of course, had no idea that her actions in trying to dissuade Jia Lian from his idea almost unleashed a monstrous beast.

But she was clever; from Jia Lian's brief yet ever-changing expression, she sensed a hint of danger.

She didn't dare to bargain with Jia Lian anymore, and nodded shyly.

In her view, even if Jia Lian wanted to do something to her again, it would be nothing more than that.

Although she was incredibly embarrassed the first time, after so many days of processing it, if Jia Lian really liked that kind of thing, it didn't seem entirely unacceptable...

Daiyu's character is generally reliable; she won't go back on her promises unless absolutely necessary.

Jia Lian had a plan in mind and was pondering how to make things easier for him to take things further next time when he heard the panting of a maid outside:

"Second Master, the old woman from the east wing came in to say that a young master surnamed Xiao is requesting an audience."

Jia Lian frowned.

The surname was Xiao, and he even knew to look for him in the east courtyard. Jia Lian easily figured out who it was.

He subconsciously put Daiyu down.

As soon as Daiyu was free, she immediately took several steps back and looked at Jia Lian warily.

Seeing Jia Lian looking over, she quickly said, "Someone is looking for you; it might be something extremely important. Why don't you go and see?"

Daiyu was so clever and witty; her clever demeanor made Jia Lian's eyes squint.

He pretended to take two steps forward to scare her, then laughed and said, "I have things to do today, so I'll let you off the hook for now. But if you dare to make excuses again next time, see how I deal with you."

Daiyu pouted, but wisely refrained from arguing back at that moment.