Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

A short while later, Baochai returned after bathing and changing her clothes.

Xiangyun arrived before her.

Looking at the suddenly noisy room, Jia Lian suddenly suggested, "Yun'er, among all the pavilions and villas in the garden, do you have a favorite?"

"Yes, I really like Sister Lin's Xiaoxiang Pavilion..."

"Except for the places occupied by your sister Lin and Yingchun and others."

Xiangyun frowned and thought for a moment, then suddenly realized that Baochai and Baoqin were both looking at her, and she began to understand what the problem was.

"Brother Lian, you don't mean to think I'm in your and Sister Bao's way and want to kick me out, do you?"

Hey, that's pretty smart.

However, Jia Lian would not admit it, and instead laughed and said, "Not at all. I saw that your sister Bao and sister Lin each have their own places, and I thought I shouldn't treat you unfairly, so I wanted you to choose a place to live."

Who knew that not only would you fail to understand my deep affection, but you would also make such assumptions? It's truly heartbreaking.

Is that so?

Xiangyun looked at Jia Lian with some suspicion, but Jia Lian's expression was quite solemn.

She looked at Baochai again, but Baochai showed no change in expression. She even bent down to tidy up Baoqin's hair, and only then did she lower her guard.

After thinking for a moment, she shook her head and said, "I think it's better not to. I think I'm quite comfortable staying at Sister Bao's place."

"How can you not use it? If you can't choose, I'll choose for you."

Hmm, how about the Convex Jade Villa in the back? That's the highest point in the garden, a perfect spot for moon viewing.

If you moved in, the moon you see every day would be rounder than everyone else's. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Jia Lian tried to persuade her patiently, but Xiangyun was not convinced.

"Forget it, it's all bare up there. At night there's nothing but the moon, it's so desolate, I don't want it."

"How about the Aojing Creek Pavilion down here? It's located at the confluence of streams, so it's very cool in the summer, and it's also close to your sister Bao's place."

"By the way, when your sister Feng and I move to this garden someday, you'll be our closest neighbor."

Xiangyun was slightly tempted, but ultimately said, "The Aojingxi Pavilion is nice, but I've heard there are a lot of mosquitoes. Brother Ai, you know me, I hate mosquitoes the most..."

Jia Lian was in a dilemma. Neither of these two places would work. Where should he send this annoying third wheel?

"How about we go to the Peony Garden or the Luxue Hermitage? Although the houses there are smaller, the scenery is quite beautiful."

Needless to say, the peony garden is like being in a sea of ​​flowers in spring and summer. I remember that you seemed to like peonies the most.

Although there are no flowers at Luxue Hermitage, it is spacious and open in front and behind, so it will be convenient for you to plant flowers or grass nearby after you move there.

"How about it? Think about it?"

Jia Lian's repeated recommendations finally aroused Xiangyun's suspicions again.

"Brother Lian, you still say you don't dislike me? Why do you insist on making me move out of Sister Bao's place?"

Before Jia Lian could say anything, Xiangyun questioned, "That Baoqin girl also lives here, why don't you make her move out?"

"Well, your little sister Baoqin is still young and needs her older sister to take care of her..."

Xiangyun interrupted with a bitter expression, "Brother Ai! I'm only one year older than Baoqin!"

Jia Lian was speechless. Finally, he spread his hands and said, "Alright, I really do find you annoying. You're always so loud and boisterous. I'm afraid you'll disturb your sister Bao's peace here, so I'd like to ask you to move to another place..."

Everyone was surprised when Jia Lian said this.

Xiangyun was even more furious, glaring at Jia Lian and saying, "Second Brother Lian, you've gone too far! How could you say something like that?"

Jia Lian raised an eyebrow and sat in his chair with an attitude that said, "What can you do to me?"

Fortunately, everyone knew Jia Lian quite well and knew that he was deliberately teasing Xiangyun.

Moreover, even if Jia Lian really wanted to move Xiangyun out, this half-joking admission doesn't seem so unacceptable.

Even so, seeing Xiangyun's wide, staring eyes, Baochai still came over, smiled, patted her head, and then said to Jia Lian:

"If she likes it, let her live here. I don't find her noisy at all."

"Such a big place, it would be quite deserted if no one talked to me."

Xiangyun's anger instantly turned to joy, and she hugged Baochai's arm affectionately, saying, "Sister Bao is the best. Unlike some people, she actually said such hurtful things, which is a waste of how much people like her."

Realizing she might have said something inappropriate, Xiangyun stopped talking, feeling a little embarrassed.

When Jia Lian's plan failed, and seeing that Baochai had spoken, he knew he couldn't continue.

He didn't speak, and the girls standing in front of him seemed bored.

Baoqin glanced at her cousin, then quietly tugged at Xiangyun's sleeve.

Xiangyun is simply more open-minded and doesn't like to think about trivial matters; it doesn't mean she's oblivious to subtle cues.

She secretly pursed her lips, but obediently followed Baoqin out.

They took their maids with them when they left, and in the blink of an eye, only Jia Lian and Baochai, the mistress and servant, remained in the room.

Seeing Baochai standing there shyly with her head down, Jia Lian laughed and said, "What are you standing there for? Sit down."

"Mmm." Baochai hummed softly and sat down on the small kang (heated brick bed) next to her.

Seeing that Jia Lian's gaze followed her, she gently turned her head away.

After waiting for a long time and finding that Jia Lian still didn't speak, she finally couldn't hold back any longer and asked in a low voice, "What are you looking at...?"

"Of course, it's to see the beauties."

Jia Lian answered with a serious expression. This wasn't just him teasing the beautiful woman; it came from the bottom of his heart.

A beauty of Baochai's caliber is truly pleasing to the eye, and the more you look at her, the more delightful it becomes.

Daiyu was still a bit too young and hadn't fully matured yet.

Although she had only recently confirmed her relationship with Jia Lian, Baochai had already heard a lot of "sweet words" from him, which made her somewhat resistant.

Seeing that Jia Lian was humiliating her again, she stood up and said, "If you continue like this, I'm leaving."

"Okay, I won't say anything then."

Baochai hadn't really intended to leave, but seeing Jia Lian like this, she sat down again on the steps.

This time she had made up her mind that if Jia Lian didn't say anything, she would take the initiative to break the awkward silence.

But before she could speak, Jia Lian said, "Let me see."

"What?"

"That's it. I often see you wearing it, but I haven't really looked at it closely."

Seeing Jia Lian raise his chin to indicate his chest, Baochai realized he was referring to the gold lock she was wearing.

After hesitating for a moment, Baochai reached out, took it off, and handed it to Jia Lian.

Jia Lian took it and thought the small necklace was dazzling with pearls and gold. Upon closer inspection, he found that it was indeed engraved with small characters.

"Never to be separated from..."

Jia Lian unconsciously read the words aloud, then flipped the page to take a look.

May your youth last forever.

After Jia Lian finished reading, he nodded and said, "It's a good prophecy, and it's also fitting. My Chai'er is a fairy, and her youth will last forever. It's just a pity that I'm just a mortal. If Chai'er stays young forever, I'm afraid I'll be disliked when I get old."

Hearing Jia Lian's joke, Ying'er, who was making tea behind the latticed window, chimed in with a smile: "Second Master, you don't know, our young lady's eight characters were given to her by a bald-headed monk. The monk said that if they were engraved on gold, they would surely be matched with jade in the future."

Upon hearing Ying'er's words, Baochai couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

After all, there had been many gossipy people in the Rongguo Mansion who had previously spread rumors about a "perfect match".

Although Jia Lian had said he didn't care before, she was afraid that he wasn't being honest.

Ying'er seemed to realize she had said the wrong thing, and she came over with the tea looking somewhat uneasy.

Jia Lian seemed oblivious to the change in atmosphere. Only when Ying'er approached did he laugh and say, "It seems that monk is quite something. Doesn't he have jade to match?"

As he spoke, Jia Lian lifted his robe, revealing various jade pendants tied around his waist.

At a glance, there are at least five or six pieces, all carved from high-quality materials.

Baochai glanced at him, then noticed the slight smugness on Jia Lian's face, and felt somewhat moved.

She knew that Jia Lian was trying to comfort her again, meaning that there were so many jade stones in the world, and it wasn't only Jia Baoyu who possessed jade.

She thought about it and felt that she couldn't turn a blind eye just because Jia Lian was magnanimous; she had to eliminate this potential threat.

The idea of ​​a "golden and jade marriage" was clearly introduced by her mother and Lady Wang, but the auspicious omen on her golden lock and the words on Jia Baoyu's jade lock were a coincidence.

Despite the coincidence, she understood that no man would be happy if his woman had an object that matched another man.

So when Jia Lian handed the item back, she didn't take it back with her. Instead, she placed it on the small kang table and said to Ying'er, "My mother used to say that wearing this item would protect one's safety and bring good fortune, so I've always carried it with me."

Now, so many years have passed, and it still doesn't seem to have any effect. On the contrary, it's heavy and inconvenient to wear all day.

From now on, I will no longer wear this damn thing.

"Tomorrow, have someone take him out and melt him down at a blacksmith's."

Ying'er glanced at Baochai, then at Jia Lian, and silently put the gold lock away.

At this point, Jia Lian said, "There's no need for Rong. After all, I've followed you for so many years, and the words on it are auspicious. Keeping it as a memento wouldn't be bad."

Although Jia Lian spoke frankly, Baochai knew she had done the right thing.

Jia Lian only said that she didn't need to melt it, but didn't say that she could continue wearing it.

Ying'er became happy.

She was just thinking about how she would explain to Aunt Xue if she melted down the gold lock.

Just as Grandmother Jia and others valued Jia Baoyu's magical jade, Aunt Xue also cherished this golden lock.

After all, the auspicious words from above were bestowed by the "gods" and could not be disobeyed.

After discussing the gold lock, Baochai took the initiative to change the subject, saying, "I heard from Sister Feng's people that you're bringing people in to look at the garden today?"

"Hmm. After all, it was once the residence of a concubine. When your sister Feng and I move in, some things should be modified."

That makes sense.

Jia Lian felt somewhat pleased to see Baochai responding to every word.

You should know that Daiyu would still give him some face in front of others, but in Xiaoxiang Pavilion, she could ignore him if she wanted to.

If the person you're talking to is interested, they'll chat with you for a bit; if they're not, they'll just tilt their head to the side and talk to themselves.

Unlike Baochai, who would actively find topics to talk about to avoid awkward silences.

So he sat up and began to reveal the purpose of his visit.

"Come on, I'll take you somewhere."

……