Dream of the Red Chamber: My Daiyu Has Been Reborn

Wang Xifeng had never felt so helpless. She was filled with remorse for bringing this troublesome woman along; now that things had come to this, how was she going to clean up the mess?

Daiyu watched this scene coldly from the sidelines, without saying a word. Xueyan was still young and had never seen such a brutal scene before. She was so frightened that she hid behind Daiyu.

Wang Xifeng naturally saw Daiyu, and her overall demeanor immediately revealed her identity. But this was not the time to strike up a conversation or claim kinship.

Seeing that she couldn't reason with Gu Jinhong, Wang Xifeng turned and knelt before Li Shulan: "Your Highness, I beg you to have mercy. My brother is frail and can't withstand this kind of torment..."

Li Shulan coldly looked at Wang Xifeng kneeling on the ground, then glanced at Jia Baoyu, who was being trampled underfoot by her son, and the corners of her lips slightly turned up.

"I've long heard that there's a boy in the Rongguo Mansion who was born with a jade in his mouth, and the old lady of the mansion dotes on him like the apple of her eye. He's destined for wealth and nobility. Seeing him today, I can confirm that his reputation is well-deserved."

Wang Xifeng could easily hear the sarcasm in Princess Anning's words: "Your Highness, please calm down. It is all my fault. I shouldn't have brought him here. Please forgive him this time for the sake of the old lady."

"The old lady's face?" Li Shulan scoffed. "Fine. Hong'er, release them."

When Gu Jinhong heard his mother speak, he glanced down at Jia Baoyu, then withdrew his foot with a look of disgust and stepped back to Daiyu's side.

"Get out of here. Don't dirty my land."

Jia Baoyu finally got a chance to catch his breath; the wound on his mouth from being stepped on stung terribly.

Wang Xifeng quickly stepped forward to help him up.

"Ah!" Jia Baoyu cried out in pain. The pain wasn't so intense when he was lying on the ground, but as he got up, the spot on his back that had been hit pulled, and a piercing pain shot through him.

With teary eyes, Jia Baoyu looked at Lin Daiyu and said, "Sister Lin, come back to our mansion with us."

Li Shulan frowned immediately.

Gu Jinhong looked at him coldly: "Looks like you don't want your mouth anymore."

Startled by his gaze, Jia Baoyu shrank back, no longer daring to shout, and looked at Wang Xifeng with teary eyes.

Wang Xifeng was both angry and anxious, cursing Jia Baoyu eight hundred times in her heart: "Now you know fear? Where were you before? What use am I? Can I stand up for you?"

All she wanted to do now was to leave with Jia Baoyu as soon as possible, fearing that she might cause any more trouble.

"Your Highness, we..."

Li Shulan said calmly, "Take the person back with you. I only hope that the Rongguo Mansion can properly educate him. Don't let the illustrious reputation of the Duke of Rongguo be ruined by his unworthy descendants."

Gu Jinhong sneered, "As the saying goes, 'If a son is not taught, it is the father's fault; if the upper beam is not straight, the lower beam will be crooked.' If Lord Jia can't even manage his own household, how can he possibly do his job in the imperial court? Madam Wang, you should take your men back. Remember to tell Lord Jia to be prepared to listen to the imperial edict."

Hearing Gu Jinhong's words, Wang Xifeng felt a chill in her heart; this man truly possessed such abilities. She dared not linger any longer and quickly pulled Jia Baoyu aside to take her leave.

After everyone had gone some distance, Gu Jinhong looked at Daiyu, his voice much gentler: "Did you get frightened, little sister?"

"What's there to be afraid of? Such a lecherous fellow, why not give him a good beating?" Daiyu said with a hint of a smile in her eyes. "But Young Master Gu, you're quite swift in your actions."

"That's good. I was worried that Lin Daiyu was too soft-hearted and would think I went too far."

"Young Master Gu must have some misunderstanding about me."

Gu Jinhong wanted to say something more, but Li Shulan stepped forward and took Daiyu's hand: "Yu'er, don't pay attention to him. Come on, let's talk for a while."

Daiyu obediently let Li Shulan pull her away.

Gu Jinhong looked at the maid: "I'm sorry you had to suffer today. Your monthly pay will be doubled as compensation."

"Thank you, Second Master!"

Then Gu Jinhong looked at the other servants in the courtyard, his face instantly darkening: "After such a thing happened, are you all dead? Go and accept your punishment. I'll let it go this time, but if there's a next time, you'll all be kicked out of the manor."

……

The Rongguo Mansion's carriage swayed back slowly, Jia Baoyu still had tears on his face, muttering something incoherently.

Wang Xifeng sat opposite him, her face ashen, too exhausted to even utter a curse. She closed her eyes and sighed, knowing that once she returned, the manor would be thrown into chaos.

As soon as the carriage came to a stop in front of the mansion gate, the servant rushed out and said, "Madam is finally back! The old lady has already sent people to inquire three or four times."

Wang Xifeng felt a terrible panic. She glanced at Jia Baoyu, whose face was covered in tears, and said to the servant in a deep voice, "Help the second master down."

Jia Baoyu finally came to his senses and belatedly realized the danger. The old lady wouldn't harm him, but judging from Gu Jinhong's words, she might also target his father. Jia Zheng, however, would show him no mercy.

"Feng... Sister Feng..."

Wang Xifeng sneered inwardly, but ultimately refrained from saying anything harsh: "Let's go inside first and talk things out. At least we can make things clear."

As the group entered Rongqing Hall, all eyes turned to them. Upon seeing Jia Baoyu's pitiful state, Madam Wang's hand trembled, and her teacup fell to the ground.

Grandmother Jia's expression changed drastically: "Baoyu! What's wrong? What's with your mouth?"

When Jia Baoyu saw Grandmother Jia, he could no longer suppress his grievances and rushed straight into her arms, bursting into tears: "Grandmother, I was beaten! Gu Er hit me, kicked me, and even stepped on my face."

Grandmother Jia touched Jia Baoyu's face with heartache, her expression turning ashen. She suddenly turned to Wang Xifeng and said, "Weren't you supposed to be picking him up? What happened? Feng'er, is this how you take care of him?"

Wang Xifeng gritted her teeth and knelt down, recounting the events in a few words.

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia embraced Baoyu with tears streaming down her face, repeatedly calling him her "my darling," and trembling with anger: "This is outrageous! This is outrageous! She's just a maidservant, how precious can she be? For the sake of a servant, they've humiliated my Baoyu like this."

Madam Wang also wept uncontrollably, wishing she could have suffered in her son's place.

Her gaze pierced sharply at Wang Xifeng: "Feng'er, you know perfectly well that Baoyu is young and inexperienced, yet you didn't stop him, letting him cause such trouble. What exactly are you up to?"

Wang Xifeng looked at Madam Wang in shock. How could this be blamed on her?

"Madam, I'm innocent! I was in front of the Princess at the time, and Brother Bao was placed in a side hall. Even if I wanted to stop him, I was powerless to do so!"

Grandmother Jia slammed her hand on the table: "Then why didn't you tell Baoyu beforehand? Baoyu has always been well-behaved. If you had explained the consequences beforehand, Baoyu would never have done such a thing."

Wang Xifeng lowered her head, gritted her teeth, and kowtowed: "It's all my fault. I will accept whatever punishment is given." She understood that Princess Anning was someone she couldn't afford to offend, and was determined to pin the blame on her.

She's been busy all these years since she married into the family. Even if she hasn't achieved anything remarkable, she's certainly worked hard. Yet, this is how the Jia family treats her; everyone only has eyes for this precious little darling.

What a fine family the Jia family is!