The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 439 Watching a Show (Part )

Yuanyang brought Ping'er and Mandalin to the two princesses. Two cushions had already been prepared. Ping'er took the lead in kneeling and bowing to the two princesses.

"Stand up and come here to let me see. Wow, your skin is so white. What's your name?" Princess Beijing took Mandarin's hand and stroked it while asking with a smile.

In fact, the Princess of Beijing was not too old, only about twenty years old, and had a relatively lively personality. The Princess of Nan'an was of a certain age, about forty or fifty years old, and looked dignified and steady. At this moment, she was also looking at Mandalin carefully.

As for the maids standing around, they were also full of curiosity and were whispering to each other about what was going on. After all, a Western woman like Mandarin with blonde hair, a high nose, blue eyes and white skin was extremely rare in Dajin, and most people had never seen one.

Although Mandalin was a little resistant to this, she also understood that the two people in front of her were of special status, and she didn't want to cause trouble for Jia Huan, so she kept a polite smile, bowed slightly and said: "My name is Mandalin, your Majesty."

"Wow, you speak Chinese so well!" Princess Beijing smiled happily, and there were exclamations from all around.

The Princess of Nan'an County nodded secretly. This Western maid not only spoke Chinese well, but was also quite polite. She asked kindly, "How old are you this year? Where are you from?"

"My lady, I am almost nineteen years old. I come from the distant Kingdom of Portugal. Oh, that is what you call Portugal in Great Jin."

The Princess of Nan'an County smiled and said, "I see. I forgot which year it was. The Portuguese sent envoys to the capital to pay tribute and presented four beauties to the emperor. I was lucky enough to see those four beauties. They were blonde, blue-eyed, and white-skinned like you, but none of them were as pretty as you."

Princess Beijing said appreciatively, "Indeed, she has a bit of the charm of an oriental woman. She is very pleasing to the eye. When she smiles, her eyebrows and eyes are curved, which is very beautiful."

Wang Xifeng was standing beside Lady Jia at the moment, and when she heard this, her eyes rolled. She said jokingly, "If the two princesses like it, how about letting Mandarin go back with you to serve you? But unfortunately, there is only one beauty, so why don't the two princesses draw lots to decide."

Everyone couldn't help but laugh, but Ping'er's expression changed slightly. As Wang Xifeng's former right-hand man, how could she not know how vicious this person was? This was clearly an opportunity to retaliate. She couldn't help but feel anxious!
Princess Beijing chuckled and said, "That's not necessary. I don't lack people around me."

The Princess of Nan'an County said with a smile, "No wonder everyone calls you Feng Lazi. What a stupid idea you gave me. I am an old woman in my forties. Why would I want to take a beauty back home? I can't waste her time. I might as well take you back home. I will have someone to entertain me every day. I am just afraid that the old lady will be reluctant to let you go!"

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "Take her back quickly. I am tired of her. It would be a good opportunity for me to spend a few days in peace and quiet."

Wang Xifeng hugged Jia's mother's shoulders and pretended to be pitiful and said coquettishly, "Does the old ancestor dislike me so much?"

Everyone burst into laughter again.
Then, the Princess of Nan'an County rewarded Mandarin with a handful of silver beans and a plate of grapes, and gave Ping'er a plate of tangerines. She smiled kindly and said, "Good children, go and play. You don't need to wait on me here."

Mandalin and Ping'er thanked him for the reward and carefully left the hall. Mandalin patted her chest and said, "I'm so scared. I finally know that Second Madam Lian is so sinister. No wonder she bullied you back then."

"Stop talking. My heart is still pounding. If the princess had really taken you away at that time, I don't know how I would explain to the Third Master." Ping'er whispered with lingering fear.

Mandalin felt warm in her heart, and she took Ping'er's arm and smiled sweetly, "Don't worry, dear sister. Even if she wants me, I don't want to go with her."

"Now that the princess has spoken, it's not your turn to agree or not." Ping'er pulled Mandarin away. This hoof was too conspicuous. There were so many distinguished guests at the scene, some from the Prince's Mansion and some from the Duke's Mansion. It would be terrible if any of them took a fancy to her. In addition, people like Wang Xifeng were secretly doing bad things. It would be better for them to go back to the garden quickly to avoid any more trouble.

Just as Yuanyang said, the two princesses only saw Mandaline's fresh appearance and heard that Jia Huan brought her back from Yangzhou, so they curiously called her over and asked a few questions. Then they sent her away and continued watching the play and chatting about family matters.

"By the way, why didn't we see Bao Ge'er who was born with a jade in his mouth today?" Princess Nan'an suddenly asked. She obviously knew that Jia Baoyu was different from others and liked to hang out in the inner court. And Old Lady Jia doted on him especially and tacitly allowed this precious grandson to do so.

When Grandmother Jia heard this, she realized that Jia Baoyu had not come, and hurriedly asked Mrs. Wang at the next table: "Daughter-in-law Zheng, did Baoyu go to school today?"

Mrs. Wang replied, "I heard from Xiren this morning that Baoyu felt a little unwell today, so he did not go to school and is now recuperating in his room."

Grandmother Jia suddenly realized, "No wonder, my Baoyu loves to be lively. Now that all the sisters are here, he doesn't come. Maybe he is sick. Have you called a doctor yet?"

"Yes, he said he just caught a slight cold and that two doses of medicine would be enough to relieve the cold. I think it should be fine." Mrs. Wang replied.

Grandmother Jia felt relieved after hearing this, and ordered the servants to take some fruits and snacks to Yihong Courtyard, and then continued to watch the play and chat with the guests. However, Lin Daiyu felt a little uncomfortable, and after watching two more plays, she found that the level was just average, so she lost interest even more, and got up and left quietly with Zijuan, using the excuse of changing clothes.

"Miss, don't you want to watch the show?" Zijuan asked in a low voice as they walked.

Lin Daiyu shook her head and said, "There's nothing to see. It's better to stay at home and read some books."

Zijuan was intelligent and considerate, and she vaguely guessed the reason why Lin Daiyu was uncomfortable. She estimated that it was related to Master Bao, who loved to join in the fun. However, he did not come to watch the show today. She didn't know whether he was really sick or because he had eaten the girl's food yesterday, so he was simply angry and didn't come. If the lady knew about it, she might not blame the girl, but she would definitely feel uncomfortable, and might even vent her anger on Master Huan.

Zijuan thought about this and her steps slowed down unconsciously. Lin Daiyu thought she wanted to stay and watch the show, so she said, "This is a rare opportunity. If you want to watch it, go ahead. I can go back by myself."

Zijuan smiled and said, "It's not like I haven't seen opera before, so why am I so addicted to it? I was just thinking that if we walk back to the garden from the east, we can save a lot of distance."

Lin Daiyu thought that walking from the east would indeed save half the distance, and since everyone was watching the play here, there must be no one at her uncle's place, so she nodded and said, "Then let's take the east route."

So the master and servant went out of the second gate, walked through the ceremonial gate on the east side and entered the Jia She Courtyard on the east road. At this time, there were indeed not many people in the Jia She Courtyard, and it was quiet. It was estimated that the master and servants had gone to the big flower hall in the middle road to watch the play.

As mentioned earlier, Rongguo Mansion is divided into three wings: west, middle and east. Jia Mu and Wang Xifeng live in the west wing, Jia Zheng and his wife live in the middle wing, and Jia She and his wife live in the east wing.

Lin Daiyu and Zijuan, the master and servant, entered Jia She's courtyard. As soon as they passed the third ceremonial gate, a man suddenly appeared from behind the gate. He was of burly build, but extremely ugly, with sweeping eyebrows, a flat nose, and a pair of green bean eyes that stared at Lin Daiyu fiercely, while bowing and saying, "Second Miss, I am Sun Shaozu, your father's disciple. I am honored to meet you!"

Lin Daiyu and Zijuan were so frightened that their faces turned pale. They hastily covered their faces with their sleeves and turned around and walked away quickly.

When Sun Shaozu saw Lin Daiyu's peerless beauty, his heart melted and his mouth was drooling. Seeing the beauty fleeing in panic, he quickly chased after her, stretched out his hand to block her way, and said with a smile: "Miss, don't panic. I am a good person and have no ill intentions. I have heard of your name for a long time. It is really a great honor for me to see your beautiful face today!"

Lin Daiyu and her servant retreated in fear. Zijuan bravely shouted, "You've got the wrong person. Get out of the way, or I'll call for help!"

Sun Shaozu was stunned for a moment and asked, "Isn't this Miss Yingchun from Master She's family?"

"This is our cousin Miss Lin, please get out of the way!" Zijuan said in a trembling voice.

Sun Shaozu was greatly disappointed upon hearing this and subconsciously stepped aside. Zijuan hurriedly supported Lin Daiyu and left in a hurry.

Sun Shaozu looked at Lin Daiyu's graceful and charming back and could not help swallowing his saliva. He thought to himself, "What a beautiful lady. It's a pity that she is not the second lady Jia Yingchun."

Lin Daiyu and Zijuan hurriedly returned the same way, and met the eldest wife, Mrs. Xing, and Jia Yingchun and her servant Siqi at the second gate.

When Mrs. Xing saw Lin Daiyu, she was stunned for a moment, then laughed and said, "Miss Lin, what's wrong with you two? You're both so nervous!"

Lin Daiyu's pretty face was slightly pale at this moment, and her heart was pounding, for she was afraid that the ugly man would catch up with her. But when she met Mrs. Xing and others, she felt a little relieved.

Zijuan immediately complained, "The eldest lady has arrived at the right time. My maid and I were planning to return to the garden from this side, but unexpectedly a strange man suddenly jumped out from behind the ceremonial gate. He was very ugly and stopped the girl and talked nonsense. He was very rude. Quickly send someone to take him to the authorities."

Mrs. Xing's heart skipped a beat, and she smiled and said, "Don't panic, Miss Lin. I think you must have misunderstood. That man is actually your uncle's student. Your uncle invited him to discuss business today. Although he is ugly, he is not a bad person. Auntie, I will go and take a look. There are many distinguished guests today. Don't alarm the old lady for such a small matter!"

Mrs. Xing gave a few more instructions before hurriedly leaving with Wang Shanbao's family.

Jia Yingchun held Lin Daiyu's hand and whispered a few words of comfort, then asked curiously, "Who did Sister Lin meet that frightened her like this?"

Zijuan said with lingering fear: "A very ugly guy, tall and with broom-like eyebrows and green bean eyes, suddenly jumped out from behind the door. It was really scary!"

(End of this chapter)