The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 397 The boat has passed the Ten Thousand Mountains

Lin Daiyu is usually weak and timid, and she cries easily. Jia Lian thinks that she is easy to manipulate. As long as he talks to her in person, with his eloquence, her status as cousin, and Jia's grandmother's "imperial sword", he will be able to easily get the Lin family's house deeds and land deeds. Unexpectedly, Lin Daiyu uses the excuse of being unwell and refuses to see him, leaving him no chance to even speak.

It was obvious that Lin Daiyu had guessed her purpose and simply avoided her. She also asked her to talk to Jia Huan, which saved her trouble and avoided offending her. She even gave her a house to calm her down. Such a smooth and thoughtful way of doing things would not be surprising if it was done by Xue Baochai, but it was surprising coming from Lin Daiyu.

From this it can be seen that Lin Daiyu, who seems weak on the surface, is actually not so easy to manipulate. I have underestimated her.

"Maybe Sister Lin was not like this before, but now, she has been led astray by the cunning Third Brother Huan!" Jia Lian thought indignantly.

In fact, in terms of intelligence and talent, Lin Daiyu in the original novel is not inferior to anyone, and she is also good in dealing with people. It's just that she is aloof, independent and disdainful of socializing with others. She does her own thing, and does not hide her emotions. She never compromises and never gives in. Naturally, in the eyes of others, she is not easy to get along with, and becomes a rich lady who is "arrogant and independent, and looks down on others."

There is a description in the original version of A Dream of Red Mansions that Baochai went to visit the sick Daiyu. Daiyu was grateful for Baochai's sincere care, so she opened her heart and told her about the hardships of living in the Jia Mansion. Baochai sympathized with Daiyu's situation, so she sent a maid to bring her bird's nest for her to make porridge. Daiyu handled it very well at the time. She chatted politely with the maid, and seeing that she was in a hurry to play cards, she rewarded her with a few hundred coins and said that she would not stop her from getting rich.

Therefore, Lin Daiyu can also do very well in dealing with people, provided that she is willing to do so. It is because she was moved by Baochai's sincerity that she treats the old woman sent by Baochai with extra courtesy. At other times, she is generally too lazy to socialize.

Let's get back to the topic. Jia Lian walked forward angrily while putting away the house deed. He felt quite unwilling because he had roughly estimated that the Lin family's wealth was worth at least 300,000 taels. A mere house, even if it was worth 1,000 taels, was only a small part of it, not even enough to fill the gaps in his teeth. Could the rest have all been given to Huan Lao San?

Of course, Jia Lian didn't believe that Jia Huan would dare to embezzle it all, but making a few hundred thousand taels from it would be enough. This was a huge fortune. Just thinking about it made him jealous. How could this be possible!
As luck would have it, Jia Huan had just finished chatting with housekeeper Xiao and was about to go to see how Lin Daiyu was packing, but he ran into Jia Lian head-on.

Jia Lian was holding his breath, and when he saw Jia Huan coming towards him, he immediately went up to him and asked, "Huan'er, how do you plan to deal with Master Lin's inheritance?"

Jia Huan bowed and asked, "Where did Second Brother Lian come from?"

Jia Lian said angrily, "Where we came from doesn't matter, Huan'er, let's be frank and don't beat around the bush. The old lady asked me to take Miss Lin back home. Now that Master Lin is gone, I have to take the Lin family's property back with me. Otherwise, I won't be able to explain myself if the old lady and Master ask about it."

Jia Huan said calmly, "Did it come from the eldest master or from Second Sister-in-law Lian who asked?"

Jia Lian's face flashed with embarrassment, and he angrily said, "What do you mean, Third Brother Huan? Are you hinting that the eldest master and your sister-in-law are coveting the Lin family's inheritance?"

Jia Huan shook his head and said, "You said that yourself. I just asked casually."

Jia Lian's face turned pale and he shouted, "How dare you! I am your elder brother after all. Don't think that you can be disrespectful to me just because you have passed the imperial examination. If you make me unhappy, I can still teach you a lesson."

The Jia family has strict rules and clear hierarchies, and is a typical representative of the feudal patriarchy. People like Jia She and Jia Zhen, although they are not upright and are licentious and shameless, they put on airs in front of their sons, acting like strict fathers and not even allowing their sons to wipe their saliva off their faces.

As a result, naturally the elder brother will like to show off in front of the younger brother, and the younger brother will be afraid of the elder brother. Unfortunately, Jia Lian chose the wrong target today. The current Jia Huan is not the same Jia Huan as before, and he is not afraid of him at all.

Jia Huan said indifferently: "If you are decent, I will call you Second Brother Lian. If you are not decent, don't blame me for not giving you face. Frankly speaking, you, Jia Lian, have no right to whine in front of me." After that, he walked straight away.

Jia Lian was so angry that his face turned pale. He wanted to explode, but he was worried about the fierce soldiers under Jia Huan, such as Tiehu and Shitou.

At this time, Jia Huan stopped walking again, turned around and said, "By the way, next year in the spring examination, I will definitely pass the exam and become a Jinshi. Then you will be even less qualified."

"you……"

"Also, don't even think about the Lin family's property. I will use most of it to buy farms. Don't worry, these farms are still registered under Sister Lin's name. The annual rent is enough for her to use, and she doesn't have to spend a penny from the Jia family. So Sister Lin's monthly salary can be waived from now on, and it will also save her from being entangled in unclear accounts." After saying this, Jia Huan continued to walk away.

Jia Lian was so angry that his face changed color. He gritted his teeth and said secretly: "You can be so arrogant, Huan Lao San. I don't believe that you have the ability to be so tough in front of the master unless you have bad luck." Jia Lian flicked his sleeves and left angrily.

As the saying goes, the monkeys on both sides of the river are crying incessantly, and the boat has already passed through thousands of mountains. In the past, Jia Huan might have been a little afraid of Jia Lian, but now he has achieved the title of a juren, let alone Jia Lian, even Mrs. Wang can't easily control him.

Even if he fails to pass the imperial examination next year, Jia Huan can still register as a candidate for a vacancy in the Ministry of Personnel, or even use the excuse of going out to study. Mrs. Wang can never trap him like before. He can leave the Jia Mansion as he pleases, or stay as he pleases. Anyway, he has no shortage of money and is completely financially independent.

When Jia Huan arrived at Lin Daiyu's residence, he saw the latter and her servant still sorting books, so he laughed and said, "They say that when a scholar moves, all he finds is books (lose), but I didn't expect that when a young lady moves, all she finds is books."

Lin Daiyu was delighted, and she squinted at Jia Huan and said, "Brother Huan, it's fine if you don't want to help me, but you're also saying sarcastic things. Come here, I'll beat you up."

"I'll be right there!" Jia Huan came forward with a polite look.

Lin Daiyu raised a scroll and tapped his forehead, unable to help but burst out laughing. Jia Huan smiled and said, "Yes, Sister Lin should smile more often."

Lin Daiyu had been crying every day these days because she missed her deceased father. She looked much thinner. Now her mood has improved a little. Upon hearing this, her eyes became red again.

Seeing this, Jia Huan smiled bitterly and said, "It's my fault for talking too much. I'll punish myself with a stick." After saying that, he rolled up a book and hit himself on the forehead.

Lin Daiyu burst into laughter and said, "You can continue to behave strangely. I will punish you when I recover."

Xueyan smiled and said, "I am willing to work hard, but I am afraid that I might hurt the Third Master, and the young lady will not agree."

Lin Daiyu's face flushed, and she scolded, "What does this have to do with you, you idiot? Why don't you bring the box over here?"

Jia Huan smiled and silently helped to put away the books. Lin Daiyu felt sweet in her heart and said angrily, "Go away, you clumsy guy, don't make things worse. I have a number of categories here, they can't be put randomly."

Hey, Lin Duidui is indeed Lin Duidui, with a sharp tongue but a soft heart. It is obvious that he is afraid that he is tired.

"Okay, then I'll just lie there and watch!" Jia Huan smiled and lay down on the small couch next to him, crossing his legs comfortably.

Xueyan smiled and said, "That's for the maid to sleep on. If you want to lie down, you can lie on the young lady's bed. It's comfortable."

Lin Daiyu hit Xueyan and changed the subject, saying, "Second Brother Lian was here just now."

"Oh, what did he say?" Jia Huan couldn't help but sit up and ask.

Lin Daiyu shook her head and said softly, "I said I was not feeling well and it was inconvenient for us to meet, so I sent him away and gave him the three-story villa by the Si River."

Jia Huan gave a thumbs up and said with a smile: "Great!"

Lin Daiyu asked curiously, "Brother Huan, don't you blame me for acting on my own?"

Jia Huan lay back on the couch and said with a smile, "How could that be? The Lin family's property originally belonged to Sister Lin. You can do whatever you want with it. Besides, Jia Lian did make two trips to escort you all the way to Yangzhou. Even if he didn't have any merit, he still worked hard. We can't let him run in vain. Giving him the house is just a way of repaying his favor."

(End of this chapter)