The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 478 New Year's Eve Poetry
After leaving Ningguo Mansion, Jia Huan returned to the Grand View Garden. He didn't know what happened afterwards. When he arrived outside the Yihong Courtyard, he saw that the walls and trees in the courtyard were hung with colorful flags and lanterns, and it was decorated with gold and splendor. There was a long string of lanterns on each side of the courtyard gate. Above the gate hung a plaque with the words "Yihong Kuailü" inscribed on it. On both sides there was a couplet that read "The spring scenery of the jade tower spreads across the nine floors, and the green curtain is filled with the fragrance of flowers for all seasons." Judging from the gorgeous and delicate handwriting, it should have been written by Jia Baoyu himself.

At this moment, the courtyard door was closed, and the sound of birdsong could be heard faintly from inside. Jia Huan went forward and knocked on the door, but no one answered. He knocked again, and someone inside asked impatiently, "Who is it?"

"Jia Huan, I came here as invited by my second brother Bao." Jia Huan replied.

The gate of the courtyard opened immediately, and a night maid stuck her head out to see. Seeing that it was indeed Jia Huan, she bowed and said, "This servant greets Master Huan."

Jia Huan is no longer the same person he was before. He is crowned as a juren and even the old lady values ​​him very much. She awards him a golden pheasant fur coat and equips him with a special carriage. Even the master takes him with him when entertaining guests. This treatment is no different from that of the legitimate son. Naturally, the servants in the mansion dare not neglect him.

Jia Huan asked politely, "Are Sister Bao and Sister Lin still in there?"

The old woman hurriedly said, "Yes, Master Huan San, please come in." While letting Jia Huan into the yard, she called out to the house, "Girls, Master Huan San is here."

Jia Huan stepped into the yard and saw many flowers, plants and trees such as banana and crabapple trees planted in the yard. There were also some small animals such as peacocks, mallards, and golden pheasants, all of which were quietly staying in cages.

At this time, a maid came out of the house. She was tall and slender, with thin shoulders and waist, and was very pretty. It was Qingwen. Probably because she saw Jia Huan was alone and had brought his own lantern, a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes.

Jia Huan bowed and said, "Thank you, Miss Qingwen."

"Thank you for being polite, Mr. Huan San. Please follow me." Qingwen took the lantern from Jia Huan's hand and led him into the house.

The Yihong Courtyard where Jia Baoyu lived should be the largest in area, and the layout was even more gorgeous and delicate. There was no obvious partition, and all four sides were carved with hollow exquisite wood boards, or "Three Friends of Winter", or "Hundreds of Flowing Clouds", or landscapes and figures, or feathers and flowers, or collections, or antiques, or longevity, all kinds of patterns, all carved in five colors by famous artists, inlaid with gold and jade. There were books, tripods, pens and inkstones, vases, or bonsai. The styles were round or square, or sunflowers and banana leaves, or linked half-walls. It was really a cluster of flowers, exquisite and breathtaking.

Suddenly, a colorful gauze was pasted on the wall, and it turned out to be a small window; suddenly, a colorful silk was lightly covered, and it turned out to be a secluded door. Moreover, the whole wall was filled with grooves carved out in the shape of antique toys, such as zithers, swords, hanging bottles, etc., all hanging inside the wall and all flush with the wall. There was a door on the left, and a window partition on the right. When I got to the front, I was blocked by a bookshelf, and when I turned back, there was a window gauze that showed the way to the door.

Tsk tsk, no wonder Granny Liu got lost when she entered the Grand View Garden and mistakenly entered the Yihong Courtyard. Even Jia Huan was a little dazzled at this moment. If it weren't for Qingwen leading the way in front, I'm afraid he would not have known how to go for a while.

At this time, Qingwen led Jia Huan to a place, where they saw a beautiful maid with bright eyes and white teeth, and a handsome young man with red lips and white teeth coming towards them. When they looked carefully, they found that it was actually a large glass mirror. The beautiful maid and the handsome young man in the mirror were Qingwen and Jia Huan themselves.

At that time, the Jin Dynasty did not have the technology to make glass, so this door-panel-sized glass mirror was an imported product and was definitely very expensive.

While Jia Huan was sighing, Qingwen had already led him around the mirror and into Jia Baoyu's living room. There was a stove burning in the room, the charcoal fire was red, and it was warm like spring. Baochai, Daiyu, Baoqin and the three sisters were all there, sitting around the table, drinking and chatting, it was very lively.

"Brother Huan is here." When Jia Tanchun saw Jia Huan, she quickly left her seat to greet him and asked happily, "You're back so soon, Master Zhen didn't want to keep you?"

Jia Huan said casually, "I did stay, but it was boring. I took two cups and then excused myself to leave."

Lin Daiyu had been listening attentively and nodded secretly when she heard what was said. It turned out that although she lived deep in the inner house, she had heard about the dirty deeds of Jia Zhen, Jia Lian and their ilk. Naturally, she was worried that Jia Huan would get into such bad habits if he hung out with them. Now that she saw that Jia Huan could not get along with Jia Zhen and his ilk at all, she was relieved.

"That's good. We are preparing to write poems together, and how can we leave out you, my brother Huan?" Jia Tanchun smiled as she took off the golden pheasant fur coat for Jia Huan and handed it to the secretary, who took it and hung it on the wall.

Xue Baoqin said with a smile: "Brother Huan is late, so you have to drink a glass first."

At this time, Lin Daiyu had already moved aside, making room for her. Jia Huan cleverly stepped forward and sat down, saying with a smile, "No need to punish me. I'll drink three cups by myself first."

As Jia Huan spoke, he drank three cups in a row with great generosity. Anyway, the wine that the women in the inner house drank was sweet and had a very low alcohol content, just like drinking honey water. Let alone three cups, even three bowls would be no problem.

Lin Daiyu held up her cheek, looked at Jia Huan with a smile and said, "Brother Huan, you are very generous, but if you drink from a bigger bowl, I'm sure Sister Qin will obey you."

Xue Baoqin clapped her hands and said with a smile: "That's not necessary. I have always been submissive to Brother Huan. If Sister Lin is not convinced, then you can use a bigger bowl to compete with Brother Huan. If you can get Brother Huan drunk, I will also be submissive to you in the future."

Jia Huan smiled and looked at Lin Daiyu without saying anything. The latter's face turned red and she turned her head away. Xue Baochai smiled and said, "Amitabha, it is true that salt water can make tofu, and one thing can conquer another. Finally, someone can control Pin'er's little mouth."

Everyone laughed.

Since he was born, Jia Baoyu has been treated with great care and attention by everyone. Everyone has been surrounding him, so he naturally feels very lost at this time. Jia Huan is like a magnet. As long as he appears, everyone's attention will be diverted to him.

Xiren had been paying attention to the changes in Jia Baoyu's expression. Seeing her master being ignored, she felt very uncomfortable. Alas, Jia Huan was obviously born out of wedlock, but now he has taken over the master's position. What will happen if he passes the imperial examination in the future? However, this child is really powerful, and the mistress has failed to suppress him. Where will the second master be placed in the future?

Xiren sighed secretly and said with a smile: "Aren't we going to write poems together? Why don't we get excited?"

Jia Tanchun nodded and said, "That's right. It's a pity that the old farmer Daoxiang is not here. Second sister, why don't you start it?" Jia Yingchun was still gentle and silent, taciturn, neither sad nor happy. She was a cowardly person and might have accepted her marriage. She pondered for a moment and then said, "I only thought of one sentence, but it's too ordinary."

Xue Baochai smiled gently and said, "The more ordinary the beginning is, the better, so that there will be more room for future generations. On the contrary, if the beginning is too good, future generations will not know how to continue. Second sister, just go ahead and tell it."

Jia Yingchun said, "I listened to the north wind howling all night long in the Zhuijin Pavilion last night, so I'll start with "The north wind howled all night long."

Jia Xichun, who was standing beside him, blushed and thought for a moment before continuing, "The snow is still falling when the door is opened. It is so white when it falls into the mud."

It was Tanchun's turn next, but Xiangling, who was standing next to her, blurted out, "Everyone cherishes the beauty of Qiongyao. They want to make the withered grass flourish."

Everyone was surprised. Xiangling blushed and lowered her head a little embarrassedly. Jia Baoyu praised: "Sister Xiangling, this couplet is very good. With time, you will become a poet."

Jia Tanchun smiled and said, "That's because Sister Lin taught her well. Of course, Xiangling herself is also a very intelligent person and is willing to work hard, so naturally she will make rapid progress."

Xue Baochai just smiled and said, "Stop talking, it's all Pin'er's fault. Pin'er gave her a poem topic earlier and promised that if she could write it, she would be allowed to join the poetry club. As a result, this girl seemed to be crazy in order to join the club. She even wrote poems in her dreams. She was stupid to begin with, and now she is even more stupid. Everyone calls her a poetry nerd."

Everyone laughed again, and then Tanchun added: "I didn't mean to decorate the withered seedlings. The wine in Jiagao Village is ripe."

Jia Huan answered: Liang Rao of Nian Ren Mansion. Jia moves the gray flying pipe,

Daiyu continued: The sun is back and the dipper is turning. The cold mountain has lost its green,

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Baochai continued: A frozen river does not produce tides.

Baoyu continued: It is difficult to pile up broken banana leaves. Musk coal melts the precious tripod,

Baoqin continued: The golden sable is enclosed in the brocade sleeves. The light shines brightly in the mirror in front of the window.

Daiyu continues: The fragrance sticks to the pepper on the wall. The slanting wind is still blowing.

Jia Huan continued: "Let's chat in a clear dream. Where is the plum blossom flute?

Baochai continued: Whose jade flute is this?

Everyone went back and forth. At first they took turns according to the order, but gradually they didn't follow the order anymore. Whoever had the ball would take it. Finally, everyone had tried their best, and only Daiyu and Baoqin were left fighting alone. Both girls were quick-witted and had high self-esteem, and it was obvious that neither of them would yield to the other.

At this time, Daiyu said: "There is no wind but the heart is still tender."

Baoqin immediately replied, "It's still raining even if it's not raining."

Baochai smiled and continued, "To express my happiness today,

Jia Huan ended the conversation in perfect agreement, "I wish to celebrate Shun and Yao with a poem." Then he and Baochai looked at each other and said with a smile, "That's enough. Sister Lin and Sister Qin are both very talented. If they continue to compete, I'm afraid it will be hard to tell who will win by dawn. How about giving Huan'er a little face and calling it a day?"

Xue Baoqin giggled, while Lin Daiyu gave Jia Huan a helpless look, obviously still not satisfied. However, Jia Huan had already finished his sentence, and if she continued it any further it would be like adding a poor imitation.

Just at this moment, the midnight drum sounded in the street. Jia Huan hurriedly took out his pocket watch and found that it was exactly twelve o'clock in the morning. The eighth year of Qiansheng in the Great Jin Dynasty officially arrived.

shhhhhh...

Outside the house came the sound of fireworks rising into the sky, followed by the sound of firecrackers one after another.

Everyone ran out of the yard at the same time, and saw the sky full of brilliant fireworks, lighting up the cold night as bright as day, and cheers and exclamations rang out one after another.

Lin Daiyu looked up at the starry sky, wearing a snow-feather cloak and a white fox hood. Under the shining lights and fireworks, her skin was as white as frost and snow, and her stunning face was breathtakingly beautiful.

Jia Huan looked at Lin Daiyu, then at Xue Baochai who was dignified and quiet beside her. He felt that both of them were stunningly beautiful, with their own unique temperament and appearance, and it was difficult to tell who was better.

(End of this chapter)