Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 824 The girl can celebrate her birth
The small courtyard to the west of Rongguo Mansion,
Court Langzhong,
The sun was shining brightly at noon, and the golden light shone in the courtyard. Rows of green bamboos swayed gently, and the shadows of leaves were dotted.
In the flower bed not far away, peonies and herbaceous peonies are in full bloom. The bright red, yellow, purple and colorful flowers are particularly eye-catching against the green leaves.

The north attic,
In the eastern warm room where Daiyu lived, the windows of the wing rooms were half open, casting several beautiful shadows on the curtains.

"Girl, I made braised pork for you later today. It was stewed in the morning and it smells delicious. Girl, let's have dinner."

Zijuan carried two food boxes and walked to the inner room. She called Daiyu softly, put the food boxes away, and went into the inner room to look for Lin Daiyu. As soon as she entered the room, she saw her own young lady, embroidering something with her head down in front of the window. She hurried over and whispered:

"Oh, young lady, please stop sewing. You're hurting your eyes. You were reading and writing before, but now you're embroidering something like this. The servants are here to serve you. Just embroider as you like."

Behind him, Xueyan, Chunxian, Qingwen, together with several maids brought in food boxes from the outer room. They opened the food boxes and took out the food. They stood in front of the small table and took out the bowls, plates and spoons from the food boxes one by one and carefully placed them on the seats in the inner room.

Lin Daiyu was wearing a navy blue thin jacket with a stand-up collar and a side-opening, and a hairpin made of sunken wood. She sat quietly on the bed, looking quite like a Taoist woman. She put down the half-embroidered scent bag in her hand and said:

"I haven't embroidered for a long time, so my hands are a little stiff. I haven't been able to embroider an outline for several days."

Having said that, he stood up and went to wash his hands. His movements were agile and his body was swaying. At ordinary glance, he didn't look like a sick person at all. It was obvious that Gu Zixiang's secret medicine was really powerful.

Zijuan carefully handed over the hot towel. Her naturally shaped cheeks were rosy and she spoke in a clear and beautiful voice:
"Miss, don't just stay in the courtyard. If you really have to, take the guards with you and go out for a walk. By the way, the Marquis hasn't come to visit for a while."

Daiyu wiped her hands with a towel, sat down in front of the small table, picked up the piece of cake, raised her fairy-like face, and said:

"Didn't he just come here the day before Enko?"

Of course, at that time everyone acted together without saying anything. Langjun left in a hurry and has not been seen for these days.

Zijuan took a spoon and scooped up some bird's nest and red date porridge, stirring it gently to disperse the steam so that Daiyu could eat it later. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, she said:
"I heard that Miss Bao had arranged for people to inquire about her brother's affairs in the past few days, but in the end, it was said that Master Xue received a military stick from the Marquis."

"Others just indulge others."

Daiyu was silent for a moment, lowered her eyes slightly, and thought:
"It's better to beat him, so as to save the trouble. He is involved in all the affairs of the mansion."

When Daiyu was in Rongguo Mansion, she would sometimes go for a stroll in the garden outside and sit in Lixiang Garden. She found Baochai was not there several times and asked Wenxing. She heard that she went to the East City Money House to work. After going there several times, she kept an eye on her and rarely went there again.

"Speaking of which, in April or so, the mansion was in a mess these few days. Something happened in the East Mansion, and now Rongguo Mansion is..."

Zijuan handed over the warm porridge and said with emotion, listening to the crying outside, the noise of the ritual, and the servants' discussions, what was more, the title of the East Palace had not been determined yet, but the young lady was rich and had a title to pass on to her descendants, which made others envious.

Lin Daiyu sat down first and said softly:

"You're right. These days, one thing after another has happened. It seems like bad luck has entangled me. No wonder my sister-in-law said before that we should just arrange the ancestor worship. But look, now, forget about ancestor worship, and focus on cultivating the Tao first. In the end, he didn't cultivate the Tao, and he was sent to the imperial prison. Now it's like this again."

As she spoke, she picked up the spoon with the handkerchief in her hand, scooped up the porridge and brought it to her lips. Her movements were very delicate. Maybe she still felt it was a little hot, so she pursed her cherry red lips slightly, blew a breath onto the spoon, then closed her pink lips and ate in small sips.

"Yesterday, the second sister-in-law sent someone to tell us that we don't need to get involved in the East Palace's affairs, and told the maids and daughters-in-law to go back, and the young lady just needs to rest in the room and not ask about it."

Zijuan thought for a moment, then smiled and continued:

"And the girl is going to give birth next month. It will be a great day after the girl gives birth, so we have to celebrate it properly."

Zijuan didn't have any ulterior motives towards the Rongguo Mansion. She just wanted to give Daiyu someone more support. The Rongguo Mansion has been rich and prosperous for so many years. Although it has declined, it is now on the rise. It is good for the young lady to have someone more to rely on.

Daiyu picked up the snack and was about to eat. Her delicate eyebrows frowned. In the past, when she lived in the old house in Jiangnan, there was no custom of celebrating birthdays. Now that she was doing this in Rongguo Mansion, she was a little unhappy and said softly:

"It's good like this now, quiet and comfortable, I don't care about these things. As for my birthday, it's better if no one remembers it, so it can save trouble."

Zijuan paused and wanted to speak, but didn't know how to persuade her.

In fact, he could roughly guess what his daughter was thinking. In several meetings of the Rongguo Mansion, his daughter dared to say anything. Although others did not care, who knew what she was thinking in her heart? In the following few times, no one came to call the daughter, and everyone knew what it meant.

In fact, in the original novel, Baoyu had no time to study. Not only did he often visit neighbors, but he also stayed with Daiyu almost every day, regardless of gender. Even in the chapter "The Jade Is Fragrant on a Quiet Day", they were lying on the same bed and telling jokes about "Little Mouse and Sweet Taro".

But now, Baoyu is studying and taking the special examination, and is being watched by his second sister-in-law Wang Xifeng. Daiyu has already established strict separation between men and women and is not allowed to enter the yard.

As for Zhang Jinyu, with so many beautiful women around him, why did he ever revolve around Daiyu?
Zijuan thought about it and could only explain;
"The last time was when the Second Madam gave birth to a child. The family celebrated it with great fanfare. The old lady even celebrated for three days before it was over."

This is about the day when Jia Lian was fooling around in a brothel outside and Feng Ji made a fuss about it.

Daiyu said "hmm" softly, obviously not caring much about "other people's" affairs. It was nothing more than a fuss. She couldn't help but say something unpleasant. How could she tolerate Baoyu's trick again? Thinking of this, Lin Daiyu was actually a little angry.

"Miss, it's fine if others don't know about this, but you still need to tell the Marquis. Didn't the Marquis say last time that he was remembering your birth and the Flower Festival? I wonder what he will give you that day? I'm afraid the Marquis will forget, so should I ask Qingwen to go over and tell him?"

Zijuan chuckled and said to herself, when thinking of Qingwen, which servant in the mansion would not envy her? She had earned her current situation with her own ability. Which servant would dare to live like this in those days?
When Daiyu heard this, her subordinate paused, her starry eyes flashed. For some reason, she suddenly remembered what her second sister-in-law said the day before. Which man is not lustful? He just wants to try something new, but he should also be careful about what he eats. We, as wives, should still keep a check on him. But as for Second Brother Lian, her second sister-in-law couldn't keep a check on him.

This thought flashed by in an instant, and he frowned, lowered his starry eyes, looked at the bird's nest porridge again, and said softly:
"Give whatever you want, or maybe not, that's okay."

Zijuan was stunned. She was fine just now, what happened?

Alas, my girl's sudden little emotion.

"You are not right, young lady. The Marquis is like this. He is busy with official duties. If you don't tell him, he might be so busy that he forgets about it. So, I will go to the Marquis' Mansion sometime and tell him about it."

Qingwen saw nothing of this and wanted to go to the mansion to talk to the Marquis, but Lin Daiyu really didn't want to have a baby, so she shook her head.
"If you don't want to go, you don't have to go. When the time comes, everything will be as usual."

Somehow, he just started eating and stopped talking, so Xueyan didn't know how to comfort him.

The garden of the Hall of Mental Cultivation,

Just walked in,
As soon as Zhang Jinyu entered the courtyard, he smelled a faint smell of medicine. He stopped and sniffed. It came from the Yangxin Palace. Who is sick? He was still muttering in his heart when he suddenly woke up. Could it be that the emperor was not feeling well?
That's not right. We just met a few days ago.

He straightened his collar, straightened his face, and walked in first. At the palace gate, inside, Eunuch Yun was still guarding there. He was shocked when he saw the Marquis coming.

Speak up quickly;

"My Lord, you are here. His Majesty is waiting in the warm room." Then, he looked behind Marquis Luo Yun, but did not see Marquis Baoning. He told the eunuch beside him to wait there and let Marquis Luo Yun go in first.
Zhang Jinyu saw Eunuch Yun's actions and guessed that there must be someone who had not arrived yet. Thinking of the last time he questioned him at night, it was him and Marquis Baoning. This time, it might be him again. If that was the case, it must be a military matter.

This thought made me feel a little relieved, but I wondered if the troops in southern Beijing had already met with the troops there.

"Please lead the way, Eunuch Yun,"

Zhang Jinyu said a polite word and followed behind, going directly into the East Warm Pavilion.

Passing by the corridor, I saw it was in front of me, but why were there so many palace maids in front of the door? Before I could see clearly, I heard a voice coming from the inner room;
"Marquis Xuanluo Yun comes in for an audience."

Zhang Jinyu heard the voice and hurriedly pulled aside the curtain and walked in. What he saw was a large screen with a picture of the country. He turned a corner and went in.
I saw Emperor Wu half-lying on the dragon couch, with the Empress sitting beside him. Dai Quan was sitting behind him. At the east window, there was an old man boiling medicine. I was shocked. His Majesty was "quite seriously ill."

"Your Majesty, please forgive me for coming late because I didn't know you were unwell."

Zhang Jinyu's eyes turned red, and she seemed to be crying. Thinking back to the various actions taken by Emperor Wu and reviewing memorials, he was exhausted.
When Empress Jiang saw Marquis Luo Yun's expression, she was already very sad and could no longer hold back her tears.

Emperor Wu Zhou Shihong turned over and looked over. He saw Luo Yunhou kneeling there, his face full of guilt. Tears were clearly visible in the corners of his eyes. He felt a little emotional in his heart. He did not choose the wrong person.
"Stand up and take a seat."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Zhang Jinyu deliberately took his time getting up, and even rubbed his face hard with his sleeve, rubbing it red and looking particularly eye-catching.

Emperor Wu looked at the young man in the python costume opposite him, his expression was gentle, and he said:

"I called you here today because something went wrong in the south. I think it's inappropriate, so I asked Dai Quan to send a pigeon to Wang Ziteng's troops in Daliang City, asking him to hold off on his march south and defend the city. Do you think it's feasible?"

at this time,

Queen Jiang had already wiped away her tears and sat there with red eyes, looking extremely charming, but no one appreciated her.
Zhang Jinyu sat on the stool, thinking about what the emperor said. Something went wrong in the south, that is, south of Beijing. A pigeon was sent to Wang Ziteng, asking him to defend Daliang City. In this way, Linshan County City was gone, and the number of the bandit army was off the charts, so Wang Ziteng would definitely not hesitate to move forward. However, the Taiping Sect's people were afraid of not knowing how to fight in the field, so there was no way to fight.
"Your Majesty, I don't know the situation on the front line, and I don't understand what your Majesty is talking about. Is it that Linshan County City was lost, or the enemy troops are too elite and difficult to deal with, or something else happened?"

Zhang Jinyu thought that to be able to ask these questions, it must be the people behind the scenes who took action, perhaps some vassal kings, and the former crown prince Zhou Yongxiao. However, these conspiracies and tricks can only be staged in the capital. On the battlefield, it is a real competition of strength. There is no such thing as empty talk. Zhang Jinyu still believes that it is necessary to fight and test the enemy's intentions before attacking with all your strength. The main reason is that Wang Ziteng has so many cavalrymen. On the plains, they have an obvious advantage. If they can lose in such a field battle, they are too useless.

Emperor Wu smiled. There were only three people in the court who could be trusted in matters of military operations: Kang Guichen, Marquis of Baoning, Wang Ziteng, the governor of the Beijing Camp, and Marquis Luo Yun in front of him. If he had known earlier, he would have let Marquis Luo Yun lead the troops south. However, when he thought of the many nobles in the capital, he really couldn't let Marquis Luo Yun go first.
"Linshan County has not been lost. Wang Ziteng's troops should go to Daliang City to rest today. They are expected to go south to the county city after one day."

Zhang Jinyu really didn't understand this time. The people had just arrived and the city had not been lost, so they were about to set off, but suddenly they were stopped. How could this be possible? A general is not bound by the orders of the king when he is away from the battlefield, and seizing the opportunity to fight is the most important thing.

"Your Majesty, since it is not a matter of Linshan County, it must be somewhere else, but the Hu people at the northern border are not honest anymore."

Zhang Jinyu was a little puzzled. Today, His Majesty seemed a little different.

"Ahahaha, everyone says that Marquis Luo Yun is a master at using troops, but there are some things you can't even guess."

Emperor Wu laughed out loud and continued;
"It's Runan City. County Magistrate Wei Xiangping reported that Huaizhou City to the west has fallen, and more than 100,000 soldiers have gathered. Runan City is now under martial law. The garrison commander Duan Kaiping has 30,000 soldiers guarding the city, and has recruited young and strong men. What worries me most is that Wei Xiangping said that the Huaizhou troops are not from the Taiping Sect, which is really suspicious."

"He is not from the Taiping Sect."

Zhang Jinyu was unwilling to believe it. One hundred thousand troops was not a small number. They were just one hundred thousand refugees gathered together. They were as hungry as wild beasts. Moreover, Runan City was located in the northeast of south Beijing, at the intersection of important transportation routes. To the north was the mess of Xihe County. To the east was the canal. After crossing the canal was the fertile land of Jiangnan. This was terrible. Could Jiangnan be their target?

I calmed down and was about to reply when I heard some noise outside.
"Your Majesty, the Marquis of Baoning has arrived,"

"Hurry up and make noise."

There was a sound of footsteps.

Baoning Hou came in breathlessly, and before he entered, he knelt down at the entrance of the screen and shouted;
"Your Majesty, your Majesty, your Majesty."

"Sit down and give me a seat."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness!"

Emperor Wu followed the instructions, and Marquis Baoning actually crawled to Zhang Jinyu's seat on his knees and kowtowed three times before getting up and sitting down. Zhang Jinyu's eyes twitched when he saw this. They were both masters of the high-end bureau, and this scene was equally matched.

When Emperor Wu saw the two of them had arrived, he suddenly felt much more relieved. With them around, the capital's important location would be safe.

"Since both of you are here, let's discuss this together. Wei Xiangping of Runan City has urgently reported that Huaizhou has gathered more than 100,000 soldiers, and they are not all members of the Taiping Cult. How should we resolve this?"

Baoning Hou had just arrived and had not yet understood the situation. When he heard the letter, his face was full of disbelief and he asked in a lost voice:
"Your Majesty, is the news accurate? What is the current situation in Linshan County? Where are Wang Ziteng's troops?"

He asked three questions in a row, seeming a little anxious.

At this time, Dai Quan hurriedly replied beside him;
"Your Majesty, do not worry. Linshan County is safe and sound. Wang Ziteng's troops have already arrived in Daliang City to rest and will head south in a day. Your Majesty received an urgent report from the Wei City Guard and felt something was wrong, so he sent a pigeon to order Wang Ziteng to temporarily postpone his southward march and hold Daliang City. The vanguard army will head south to the county city and wait for an opportunity to move."

Dai Quan then conveyed the emperor's previous intention. This made Baoning Hou stunned. Changing military orders every day is a big taboo in the army, and missing the opportunity to fight is a mistake made by the generals. It is possible that Huaizhou will gather troops.

But say,
Suddenly, a hundred thousand troops appeared from nowhere. They were not from the Taiping Sect. How could Baoning Hou believe them? They might be refugees gathering to provide cover. Now the enemy situation is unclear, and the plan to march south has been changed every day. It is obvious that it has dealt a heavy blow to morale. How could this happen?

Just as he was about to open his mouth to persuade him, he noticed that Luo Yunhou, who was sitting next to him, was sitting very still. Could there be some hidden reason?
"Your Majesty's plan is sound, but it is not a good idea to have an army of more than 100,000 people standing still. I don't believe that Huaizhou has gathered more than 100,000 soldiers. How can there be so many soldiers? Refugees are enough. Since Lord Wei has reported this, we will defend it."

That's true.
Emperor Wu nodded and thought about it in his mind. The walls of Runan City were strong and high, so it was not easy to attack. However, he glanced at Luo Yunhou and didn't say anything. What was he thinking?
"Lord Luo Yun, why don't you speak? I just asked you how you should deploy your troops."

Seeing that the conversation between the monarch and his ministers was over, Zhang Jinyu thought of himself, as if he had just woken up from a dream, because just now, he took a closer look at the queen and the surroundings, but did not see Chunhe here, and he did not know where she had gone.

He clasped his fists and replied;

"Well, Your Majesty, I think Your Majesty is using the troops prudently, and with the cautiousness of General Wang Jie, the troops heading south will not make any big mistakes. Even if they encounter some setbacks, it should be no big deal."

Zhang Jinyu didn't care and flattered him first. The hundreds of thousands of troops became cowards. Even if they had to go to war, they wouldn't suffer any damage. As for Runan City, it was really strange.
"Also, Lord Wei in Runan City, I think we should defend the city!"

"Why?"

(End of this chapter)