The Second Master of the Red Chamber

In Ningguo Mansion, Third Sister You, who was dressed in a smart outfit, came to the door of Mrs. You's room and heard her old mother lecturing her sister again.

"Your eldest sister has put so much thought into your affairs, you should be more upbeat. When you see the Marquis, don't be so dull that you can't say a good word for a long time. You should be sweeter, so that you can be flattered. Men like it.”

"We, Lao You, are the only ones in our family now. I am getting old, and your sister is so out of touch. In the future, we will all count on you."

With words like these, Third Sister You felt like her ears were ringing, so she quietly stuck out her tongue, then walked into the house and said a few irrelevant words to Mrs. You, before dragging Second Sister You out.

"What are you going to do with her? She knows how to wield a sword all the time. You don't look like a girl at all. I'll see who wants you in the future!"

Sanjie You is bold and ambitious, and often makes Mrs. You angry. Now that she has become good with Jia Lian, she is no longer as obedient and obedient as her younger daughter, so Mrs. You always gets very unhappy when she sees her.

However, Madam You's scolding, not only did Third Sister You not take it to heart at all, but even Second Sister You looked at her sister speechlessly. If she hadn't promised Third Sister You to keep it a secret for her, she really couldn't help but want to tell her mother the truth and let her younger sister bear most of the firepower that should have been hers in front of her mother.

In order to get rid of her nagging mother as soon as possible, Sanjie You replied in an impatient tone: "Oh, don't you want to marry your sister to that house as soon as possible so that you can enjoy happiness in the future? I heard that my future brother-in-law is today My son didn't go out, but was in their garden to celebrate the birthday of a young lady in their house. He was about to call his sister to join in the fun. By the way, he wanted her to have more contact with her future brother-in-law. If you don't allow it, then we won't go. ”

Mrs. You's eyes suddenly brightened and she almost stood up from the kang. She kept saying: "Go, go, why don't you go. Good boy, take your sister over quickly. She is thin-skinned. Please help her more and give more to the house over there." The lady here said a few good wishes, and also said one for me, so go quickly."

So the two sisters successfully came down from the attic where Mrs. You lived. However, Second Sister You seemed hesitant, "Are we really going to find him?"

"What, you don't want to go?"

"No, it's just... wouldn't it be good... After all, we haven't, no..." Second Sister You hesitated in her words.

Third Sister You smiled and said: "What's wrong? You are too thin-skinned. Sooner or later you will become his concubine in the house. If you keep acting like this and don't dare to face it, you may not know how humble you will be in the future. , how to be bullied.

I made up my mind to go anyway. I always heard them say that many girls from relatives came to their house, and they were all praised so highly by the people in their house that they were rare in the sky and nothing on the earth. I wanted to go and see if they were true or not!

If you don't go, I will go by myself. "

Hearing what Third Sister You said, Second Sister You was really moved. Since I have done those intimate things with Jia Lian, I have no way out. Sooner or later I will be in contact with those people, so I should adapt as soon as possible.

"Then... just wait, I'll go back to the house and change clothes."

Returning to the boudoir, she opened the cabinets and boxes and looked at the dazzling array of clothes and dresses. Second Sister You had some difficulty in making a choice.

For a long time, her mother and eldest sister Youshi bought her many clothes. Youshi often gave her silk cloth and asked her to make her own clothes.

Therefore, she has a lot of clothes, all kinds of clothes, and many of them are brand new.

Carefully choose a set that is as bright and colorful as Miss You San's, with less material and full of beauty. But when I think about it, I may not have the courage like my younger sister. In public, she dares to wear clothes with the collar open and closed like that, revealing a hint of snow chest, and the wide sleeves swinging, revealing half of the arms.

So, I finally picked out a short and appropriate dress to wear.

The two sisters did not need anyone to guide them. They went directly from Huifang Garden of Ningguo Mansion to the Grand View Garden, and then followed the trail to Qinfang Gate.

But on the other side of the Qinfang River, there are flowers blooming on the grassy slopes.

Girls with red flowers and green willows are in groups, and the bright red peach blossoms are secretly fragrant under the scorching spring sun.

A few curls of smoke rose in the wind, and laughter and laughter floated incessantly through the gurgling water.

Sanjie You and the other two were immediately attracted by this beautiful and vivid painting. Even the thoughts they had in mind when they came here were not dispersed, and they walked into the painting unknowingly.

Although Second Sister You and Third Sister You had lived in Ningguo Mansion for a long time, they had little contact with the girls of the Jia family, so their arrival did not cause much disturbance.

But after Li Wan saw them, he took the initiative to come over and said with a smile: "Why do you two have time to come to the garden today?"

Third Sister You smiled and said, "I heard that today is Miss Third's birthday, so my sister and I came here specially to have a look."

As soon as Li Wan, the elder sister-in-law, moved, the nearby sisters, maids and daughters-in-law all turned their attention.

Not to mention those who have seen the You sisters, those who have never seen them suddenly saw such two fair-skinned and charming girls coming hand in hand. They were secretly surprised and couldn't help but quietly inquire around.

As the eldest mistress of the Rongguo Mansion, Li Wan knew a lot about the situations in both mansions, although she was not in charge of much.

She also knew from some rumors that You probably intended to give her girl to Jia Lian as a concubine.

She wasn't quite sure which one it was, but some said it was Second Sister You's, because Second Sister You was well-behaved and quiet, and had long teeth. Some said it was Third Sister You, because some people saw Jia Lian taking Third Sister You out of the city to play. They also heard that Third Sister You trained female soldiers for Jia Lian in Xiyuan of Ningguo Mansion every day...

At this time, seeing the two You sisters looking so rare, Li Wan felt that it was possible no matter who it was. At the same time, a hint of worry arose in my heart.

It is true that she is confident that she also has the talent to impress people, but her years are getting farther and farther away, and it is difficult to compare with young and beautiful girls like the You sisters.

If Jia Lian was only interested in her temporarily, he would forget her once and turn his attention back to these young girls. Although this way she no longer had to worry, it was still painful to think about.

Therefore, he gave the You sisters an inexplicable and complicated look and led them forward.

Arriving in front of Jia Lian, Li Wan smiled deliberately and said, "They are sister-in-law You's two sisters. I think you have known them for a long time."

Li Wanda's profound words made many sharp-minded people around him immediately think of something that was not there. Naturally, this also made the You sisters, who were already a little nervous and shy, feel even more uncomfortable when standing in the crowd.

Third Sister You was better than her elder sister. She quickly glanced at Jia Lian first, and saw that he was just sitting and grilling fish with a smile on his face. He didn't seem to blame them for coming over without permission. Her mind suddenly became active and her eyes followed. Looking towards the Jiaojiao crowd near Jia Lian.

She had long discovered that most of the people who looked like young ladies were surrounding Jia Lian within a radius of about ten meters. At this time, as they arrived, they all gathered around, so that Sanjie You could see at a glance, more than a dozen girls who were either cute or beautiful.

These girls are not far different in age from them, but without exception, they are not weaker than themselves and their sisters in appearance. Even seeing two or three of them, even Third Sister You felt ashamed of herself!

This shocked Third Sister You.

Gu Qingyi, after all, is the most beautiful woman in Jiangnan, so it's understandable that she can't compare to her. As for the young ladies of the Jia family, they have seen most of them. Although they are indeed extraordinary in appearance and manners, after all, they are not inferior to them in terms of beauty.

Unexpectedly, when she met today, she discovered that there were so many women with extraordinary beauty hidden in the Jia Mansion, and there was more than one among them who was so dazzling that she was ashamed of herself!

They don't know which of these women are girls, which are servants, and which one is the Lin family Daiyu who is known as the fairy daughter and is important to them.

Suddenly I felt a little discouraged. Before meeting Daiyu, she was somewhat confident and dissatisfied just from hearing the rumors.

Now she is very sure that the Lin family Daiyu must be one of the two or three people who are stunning at first sight and feel inferior!

This is the case for Third Sister You, and the same is true for Second Sister You.

Second Sister You was also surprised by the overall appearance of the woman here.

Right.

Needless to say, sisters Xue Jiabaochai and Baoqin. The three sisters of the Jia family, Zhen Yuhuan, Shi Xiangyun, and the Li sisters, are also outstanding in their beauty.

Even the maids such as Ping'er, Qingwen Xiangling, Xiren Zijuan and Ying'er are all more delicate and cute than the others.

With so many girls gathered together, it is naturally easy to be dazzled.

Jia Lian did not expect that the two sisters of the You family would come. Hearing Li Wan's laughter, Jia Lian smiled indifferently, picked up the two fish that had just been grilled on the wire fence, and faced the second sister You and the third sister. He gestured.

Sanjie You was stunned for a moment, but she reacted faster after all. She took the fish one step ahead of her sister, and then gave one to her sister.

Suddenly I felt a little happy. Although Jia Lian once jokingly admitted that he treated their sisters as fans for fun, he could always inadvertently make them feel respected and valued.

This is undoubtedly reassuring deep down.

Just like my sister had concerns before coming here, she was actually worried that Jia Lian would be displeased. After all, their relationship with Jia Lian has not been made public, and their identities have not been recognized by the Jia family.

Although the grilled fish is small, looking at so many people here and the way other people looked at their sisters when they received the "reward", one can know that this honor is definitely not available to everyone here.

"Miss Lin."

"Miss Lin is coming up." A thin, slender girl walked over gently waving a round fan, and everyone unconsciously moved out of the way.

Jia Baoyu, who had originally stood up to show hospitality when the You sisters arrived, looked back, sighed quietly, and walked away lonely.

In this way, it is also convenient for the You sisters to see people.

Daiyu heard that a new sister had arrived, and she was bored fishing alone, so she came up to take a look.

When he saw that Jia Lian was indeed sitting there, frying and killing fish, and many people around him were tasting the finished product with relish. What's more, they drank freely, so that even the air was filled with the aroma of burnt fish and the sweetness of wine.

Dai Yuqiong's nose wrinkled slightly: "What kind of bunch of flowers are coming! This is such a pure place, but you are violating it all the time."

Xiangyun, who was pouring wine from a wine flask, was unhappy when he heard this.

"We are 'real celebrities from the romantic world'. I hate it when you pretend to be noble. Humph, we are eating so much now, but when we look back, we will have a beautiful heart!"

Xiangyun never cared about Daiyu's "identity" and was used to quarreling with her. At this time, he was quite drunk, and he was shaking his head when he spoke, and his expression was a bit cute.

Daiyu glanced at her and was about to reply when she suddenly saw Jia Lian standing up and personally delivering a bunch of grilled fish to her hand.

If it were normal, Daiyu would probably accept Jia Lian's kindness. It is true that she doesn't like to eat greasy food. But at this moment, she had just laughed at everyone, how could she be bribed by Jia Lian?

So he sneered: "I don't want it, so I'll serve someone a bar. If she doesn't do well, I'll take out the contents of her stomach to honor this occasion."

After saying that, Daiyu finally decided to ignore Xiangyun and focus on the two You sisters.

Daiyu and Youshi are not familiar with each other yet, let alone her two younger sisters.

I was only vaguely aware of the existence of these two people. However, she had not heard the rumors that Li Wan knew.

In fact, it is difficult for such rumors to reach Daiyu's ears.

But for some reason, Daiyu couldn't help but frown when she caught a glimpse of the two grilled fishes they were holding in their hands and had not yet moved their mouths.

Upon seeing this, the You family's twins, who were still surprised that the "two Lin girls here" didn't have time to ask, suddenly became a little uneasy. Second Sister You even lowered her head unconsciously.

Fortunately, Jia Lian came to their rescue: "They are the two sisters of Sister-in-law You of Dongfu. They are slightly older than you."

Daiyu glanced at Jia Lian, nodded, and bowed Yingying: "I have met two sisters."

Second Sister You and Third Sister You quickly knelt down and returned the salute, but could not say a word.

Sanjie You secretly cursed herself for being useless. She couldn't even remember the lines she had thought about before coming here when she saw Daiyu.

Daiyu no longer paid attention to them. After nodding, she went to talk to Tanchun.

The You sisters, under the guidance of the maid, found a place to sit for a while and then found their own entertainment.

Tanchun, one of today's protagonists, was moved by a bowl of longevity noodles made by his cousin Jia Lian, causing him to disappear for a while.

In fact, I just immersed myself in making noodles.

Even though she tried very hard, she still couldn't eat the several-foot-long noodle. In the end, she had to help her personal maids Shu and Cuimo.

It also counts as allowing them to enjoy the blessing of their master.

After tidying up and straightening his appearance, Tanchun, who was glowing with glory, saw that everyone had eaten and drank enough and seemed a little idle, so he gathered the members of Haitang Club with a drum of his little hand.

The talented women, who had been waiting for this serious matter for a long time, immediately cheered up.

Under the urging of Tan Chun and others, President Li Wansu pointed out the Xiangling in the corner.

"Girl Xiangling, come here."

Xiangling came to the crowd shyly.

Li Wan smiled, and then said seriously: "After the recommendation of Heng Wujun and others, and the approval of all the members of Haitang Club, as the president, I formally invite you to join Haitang Club. I wonder if you are willing?"

"I do!" Xiang Ling looked nervous but solemn.

Li Wan became more and more satisfied: "Well, from now on you will be the twelfth member of the Haitang Society. You must abide by the rules of the society and you must not miss the activities of the society without any reason."

"Uh-huh"

"By the way, everyone in our club has a nickname. Have you thought about it?"

"Well, I've thought about it, I'll call it 'Xiang Ling'..."

As if afraid of being misunderstood, Xiangling hurriedly added: "I saw that the nicknames of the master, grandma, and the girls were either related to their residences, or to flowers and trees, so I thought that the 'Xiangling' that the second master named me was also a kind of flower. I asked the second master if I could use it as my company name, and the second master said yes.

If grandma and the girls think it's inappropriate, I'll change it again..."

Xiangling's real name is naturally not Xiangling, her name is "Zhen Yinglian". Xiangling can only be regarded as her code name in the Jia family.

So when she asked Jia Lian if she could use "Xiang Ling" as her nickname, Jia Lian naturally said yes.

"No need to change, you will be 'Xiang Ling' from now on."

As he spoke, Li Wan said slightly seriously: "One more thing, since you have joined the club, everything must be done in accordance with the rules of the club. Calls such as master, grandma, girl, and young lady should not be mentioned in the club from now on."

"Yes, grandma..."

The sudden silence around made Xiang Ling look up. Seeing a large group of girls looking at her with smiles and jests, they immediately reacted, their faces turned red, and they hurriedly said: "No, yes, Mr. President, Xiangling has remembered it."

Only then did Li Wan smile.

Seeing this, Jia Lian was confused and asked Li Wan: "The girls from Xiangling have joined the club, how many of them are there?"

Jia Lian motioned to Baoqin, the Li sisters, and Xiuyan.

Li Wan smiled and said: "Since we are following the ancients in setting up a poetry club, everything should have reasonable regulations.

Our family has many relatives, and there are also many sisters and brothers who can read and write. If children from other relatives come to visit next time, why not let them join the society and have fun?

They don’t live in our house all the time. If they only participate in one or two societies and then go back, won’t the members of our society have to increase and decrease from time to time?

That's too uncertain.

Therefore, Heng Wujun and the others discussed with me that, in addition to the eleven people at the beginning, all future members should be able to live in our home permanently, at least not too far away and able to come over at any time.

For example, if there is an unexpected meeting at a relative's house, the name should be given as an 'away friend', so that both sides can get the best of each other without any delay. "

Jia Lian understood it as soon as he heard it, which meant formal members and informal members.

Baoqin and Xiuyan might move away one day. It would be meaningless for them to join the poetry club and occupy a position so that they could not come back later. It would be better to occupy the name of "friend", which is both elegant and cheap. There will be similar opportunities in the future. There are examples to follow.

So he nodded and said no more. (End of chapter)