The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 485: Encountering an Outsider

After Jia Huan refused to see Jia She, he went to Luxueguang to meet the poetry club. It is said that Luxueguang was built at the foot of a hillside in the garden, facing the river beach, with a few rooms in a row, thatched eaves, earthen walls, hibiscus fences, bamboo windows (doors), and you can fish by pushing open the window, and it is covered with reeds on all sides.

To put it simply, Luxueguang is just a few thatched houses, but the walls are made of mud bricks, the roofs are covered with thatch, and there is a fence outside the house to form a small courtyard. The door is also made of bamboo. The reason why it is built so simply is not because of lack of money, but it is deliberately made like this. To use a fashionable word to describe it, it is quite "cool", just like our current farmhouses deliberately use some old farm tools from the 1970s and 1980s as decorations.

Let's get back to the topic. When Jia Huan arrived at Luxueguang, he found that the maids and servants were sweeping the snow and clearing a path. No one else had come yet, but he was the first one to arrive. So he simply turned around and left, wandering around the garden admiring the snow scenery.

As Jia Yuanchun said: "With all the scenes in heaven and on earth, the fragrant garden should be named Daguan." This garden is indeed beautiful and ingenious, especially after a heavy snowfall, it is so beautiful that it is like a fairy tale. No wonder it cost more than 100,000 taels of silver to build it.

There was a small path outside Luxueguang, with reeds on both sides. The reed leaves were now covered with snow. Jia Huan walked along the path through the reeds for a while and came to a bamboo bridge. The bridge made a creaking sound as he walked on it. The ice and snow on the bridge fell off one after another, which was a bit scary. After crossing the bamboo bridge, he came to Ouxiangxie and Nuanxiangwu, where Jia Xichun lived, was right in front of him.

Although the little girl Jia Xichun has grown up now, she has become more and more cold-hearted and doesn't talk much when they meet. She is quite boring, so Jia Huan went around from the back of Nuanxiangwu, climbed up the steps along the hillside, and unknowingly arrived outside the Longcui Temple. He smelled the fragrance of flowers, and when he looked closely, he found that the red plum blossoms inside the courtyard wall were in full bloom. Some of them even grew out of the wall, defying the cold and snow, which was quite moving.

Seeing such a beautiful scene, Jia Huan subconsciously chanted: "The wine is not yet opened, the poem is not yet written, I have come to Penglai to seek spring and ask about the New Year. I do not ask for the dew in the bottle of the Bodhisattva, but only for the plums outside the railing of Chang'e. I enter the world and pick the red snow, and leave the dust and fragrance to come from the purple clouds. Who cares about the thin shoulders of the poem, and the moss of the Buddhist temple is still on my clothes."

As soon as he finished speaking, the door of the nunnery creaked open, and a stunning nun walked out gracefully. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, she discovered that the person standing outside the wall was a strange young man, not Jia Baoyu. Her expression froze instantly. Jia Huan was also slightly distracted, thinking to himself, "What a pretty nun! This should be Miaoyu, right?"

The nun had come back to her senses by now, with a flash of surprise in her eyes. She bowed her head and said, "This must be Master Huan San. I am Miaoyu, a stranger outside the gate. I am honored to meet you!"

Jia Huan hurriedly clasped his fists in return and said, "Hello, Lay Buddhist Miaoyu. I was just passing by the temple to enjoy the snow scene, and I didn't expect to disturb your tranquility. I am so sorry!"

Miaoyu said calmly: "It's okay, since Mr. Huan San is here, why don't you come in and have a cup of tea?"

Jia Huan was secretly sweating. Miaoyu was a solitary person with a high degree of mysophobia. Even Lin Daiyu had been mocked and laughed at by her. This was a good example of her character. This time she took the initiative to invite him, probably because the poem he had just recited caught her attention.

However, Jia Huan did not want to offend this stunning nun who was practicing with her hair uncut, so he smiled and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Ms. Miaoyu. I have something urgent to do, and I will visit you next time." After saying that, he turned around and left in a hurry.

Miaoyu was stunned for a moment, obviously quite surprised. She frowned and looked at Jia Huan's back and thought for a moment, then turned around and went back to the nunnery and closed the door.

Jia Huan climbed over the hillside and walked down the stone steps on the other side. After a walk, he was actually sweating a little. Suddenly, he saw smoke rising from a row of houses in front of him. It was the kitchen of the Grand View Garden, which supplied meals to the entire garden.

At this time, a woman led four servants towards them. The four servants were carrying two fat sheep that had been slaughtered, probably to be sent to the kitchen for cooking.

"Hey, isn't this Third Master Huan? I'm honored to meet you, Third Master!" The woman who led the way was the kitchen manager. Her husband's surname was Liu, so she was called Liu's family. When she met Jia Huan at this time, she bowed and saluted hurriedly.

Jia Huan nodded and asked casually, "Is the kitchen going to make mutton soup today?"

Liu Jia smiled and said, "This was sent by Master Xue. One is for the old lady and the mistress, and the other is for Miss Bao and her friends to eat at their poetry club. He also specifically asked them to prepare the grilled lamb skewers."

Jia Huan's heart moved. This must be Sister Bao's idea again. She probably paid for it. Shi Xiangyun has no say in the family, so how could she have the financial resources? Two sheep would cost at least seven or eight taels of silver. Sister Bao is so considerate and caring, no wonder she is so popular.

"Sister Liu, is there any donkey meat in the kitchen?" Jia Huan remembered that Shi Xiangyun liked to eat donkey meat, so he asked.

The Liu family laughed and said, "We have no more donkey meat, but we do have fresh venison."

"Well, just send two large pieces of venison to Luxueguang. Later you can ask Ping'er for five taels of silver and regard it as something I bought for you," Jia Huan ordered.

The Liu family member hurriedly said, "This venison was originally prepared for the New Year in the mansion. If Third Master Huan wants it, just take it directly. No need to pay for it."

Now everyone in the mansion has noticed that Jia Huan, the illegitimate son, is now treated differently than before, and is even catching up with Jia Baoyu, the legitimate son. Master Bao is a good-looking but useless guy who only hangs around in the inner house all day, so it is still uncertain who will be the head of the family in the future. Naturally, the Liu family is eager to get close to Jia Huan. Jia Huan shook his head and said, "What belongs to the mansion belongs to the mansion, and what I use to entertain guests is another matter. Besides, I didn't give you the five taels of silver, so it will naturally be put into the public account. In addition, I will give you five hundred coins to buy some wine, so that you don't work in vain."

Upon hearing this, the Liu family smiled and said, "As expected, Third Master Huan is fair and just. I will send the venison and the cooked mutton skewers over later."

"Thank you!" Jia Huan nodded and walked away.

Jia Huan walked around again and finally returned to Luxueguang. At this time, the maids and old women had already cleared the snow in the courtyard. Baochai and Baoqin were standing there watching two old women setting up the barbecue grill.

"Sister Bao, Sister Qin, you're here so early!" Jia Huan stepped forward and said.

Xue Baoqin was wearing the duck-faced fur coat that the old lady had given her today. It was resplendent in gold and green, and looked even more noble than a piece of jade. She smiled as brightly as a flower and said, "We didn't come as early as you, Brother Huan. They said you had come early in the morning, but when you saw that no one had come, you left."

Xue Baochai was dressed as plainly and elegantly as usual, except that she had on a crane cloak with a lotus-green pattern and foreign-made silk. She smiled at Jia Huan and said, "Where are you from, brother Huan? There's snow on your head."

As Xue Baochai spoke, she subconsciously reached out and gently brushed away the snow on Jia Huan's hair. Then she realized that this action seemed a little too intimate, and her cheeks flushed.

Jia Huan's mind was slightly moved, and he smiled and said, "I came early. I just walked around the hillside. I guess it was the snow that I rubbed off on the branches."

Xue Baoqin pointed to the Longcui Temple on the hillside and said, "The dozens of red plum trees there are as red as rouge, and are a very rare variety. Since Brother Huan has come up the mountain, why don't you ask for a branch to bring back for the vase? With this branch of red plum, our poetry club this time will be much more colorful."

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Xue Baochai shook her head and smiled, "Brother Huan may not be able to get it if he goes, but Brother Bao may be able to get it if he goes."

Xue Baoqin rolled her eyes and said unconvincedly, "Even if Miaoyu is very picky, she wouldn't be so picky as to not even consider Brother Lianhuan in her eyes, right? That can only mean that she is blind."

The little girl obviously regarded Jia Huan as an idol.

Jia Huan sweated secretly, coughed lightly and said, "Sister Qin is too flattering to me. Laywoman Miaoyu is an outsider. How can a common person like me be in her eyes?"

Xue Baochai exclaimed, "How did Brother Huan know that Miaoyu likes to call herself a stranger?"

"This... naturally it was Sister Lin who told me." Jia Huan lied without changing his expression.

Xue Baochai suddenly realized, "So that's how it is. I thought Brother Huan had just met Miaoyu."

Jia Huan thought to himself, not only did I meet her, she also invited me into the nunnery for tea, and maybe I could even drink the melted snow from the plum blossoms that she has treasured for several years.

There is a very interesting description in the original version of "Dream of Red Mansions". Miaoyu invites Baochai and Daiyu to drink tea. Daiyu thinks that the water used for making tea is rainwater collected from the previous year. As a result, Miaoyu laughs at her for being a vulgar person who cannot even taste water. This is the water she collected from the melted snow on the plum blossoms five years ago. She sealed it in a flower jar and buried it underground, and she has been reluctant to drink it.

In his previous life, Jia Huan read "Dream of the Red Chamber" and every time he read this passage, he couldn't help but complain. The stinky water had been buried underground for five years, and the microorganisms must have reproduced for countless generations. Can this stuff really be used to make tea?
At this moment, Jia Huan couldn't help but think, if he was really invited to the Zhencui Temple for tea, and Miaoyu used this "aged water" that had been treasured for many years to make tea for him, should he drink it or not?

Just as Jia Huan was secretly complaining, he saw Lin Daiyu and Zijuan, the master and servant, walking towards him from a distance, supporting each other. Daiyu was wearing red sheepskin boots with gold-embroidered clouds, a red feather gauze crane cloak with a white fox pattern, a blue and gold double-ring four-way Ruyi belt around her waist, and a snow hat on her head. She looked as pretty as if she had walked out of a painting.

"Pin'er is here!" Xue Baochai was the first to greet her with a smile.

(End of this chapter)