Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 344 Where are you running!
But it is said that this afternoon, Baoyu led his servant back to Rongguo Mansion with a droopy head. That day, he was strolling with his classmates in the academy and happened to stroll into Fengjie's cloth shop. He saw that it was Jinchuan'er who was welcoming and seeing off people inside, and Baoyu immediately went over to chat with her with a smile.

Unexpectedly, Jin Chuan'er and the newcomer Yu Chuan didn't treat Master Bao well at all! Because of Master Bao, Jin Chuan'er almost jumped into the well. Fortunately, Sister Feng happened to see them!

Now that Jin Chuan'er has got a job, she is very happy every day. When she thinks back to the past, she feels relieved, but she can't help but feel a little resentful towards Baoyu. If Baoyu had argued with Mrs. Wang at that time, how could Jin Chuan'er be driven out of the house and have her reputation ruined?

Because it was the second time they saw Master Bao, Jin Chuan'er and Yu Chuan spoke in a cold and unfriendly manner and were quite unwilling to talk to him.

But Baoyu was not interested in the matter. After questioning for a long time, he saw that the two girls did not respond. He immediately said angrily, "Sister, you used to be very happy to talk to me. Why are you so distant now?"

Jin Chuan'er pursed her lips and said nothing, but Yu Chuan was a hard-mouthed person and she immediately said, "Second Master Bao, please forgive us sisters. If we say another word to you, who knows if Madam will slap us in the face!"

Baoyu was suddenly sad, thinking of his mother, Mrs. Wang, who lived in seclusion in a small courtyard and whom he could not see for ten days or half a month. He sighed and said, "Mother can't beat you now."

Yuchuan said, "Even though we lost our madam, we still have the old lady above us. If Second Master is really kind, just pretend that you don't know us sisters. We eat well and sleep well now, and we get monthly allowances. If we sell a lot of cloth, we get rewards at the end of the month. If I had said a few more words to Second Master, who knows if I would have ended up like Sister Bihen."

Baoyu blinked and asked quickly, "Bihen? You have seen her. Where is she now?"

Yuchuan rolled her eyes at him and said, "He got a dirty disease, and the madam wrapped him up in a mat and sent him to the charity cemetery. But my sister couldn't bear it, so she paid for a thin coffin and buried him."

Baoyu was stunned for a moment, and felt a great pain in his heart. He asked again and again, and finally found out the location of the tomb from Yuchuan.

The next day, he simply skipped school and led a few servants straight to the outer city. He bought a lot of incense and candles for the worship, and poured a bottle of Western wine that Bihen liked to drink in front of the grave.

When he returned in the afternoon, he arrived at the Jintai Academy just in time for the closing of classes. Seeing that Baoyu was in a daze, several classmates who usually went to Zhangtai Academy came over and coaxed Baoyu to go have a drink.

Then they went to Jinxiang Courtyard. Baoyu was in a very bad mood. He drank one cup of Chrysanthemum White Wine after another and soon he drank too much. He asked Cuijiao, the top singer, to play and sing and then composed a poem of boudoir resentment on the spot, which attracted everyone's praise. Baoyu didn't like vulgar women like Cuijiao. He also drank too much and said that his sisters' poems were a hundred times better than his.

Cuijiao was used to being flattered, and she was annoyed. She smiled and urged Baoyu to mention some good poems written by her sisters. There were also people watching the fun and adding fuel to the fire. Baoyu could not bear the provocation, so he immediately picked up his brush and wrote down more than a dozen poems he remembered.

The next day, Baoyu woke up from his hangover and thought about what happened last night. He went to the academy to find his classmates. They said to him that it would not be spread. Baoyu breathed a sigh of relief and did not take it seriously.

Unexpectedly, when he returned to Rong Mansion in the afternoon, he was stopped by the doorman Yu Liu as soon as he entered the house: "Second Master Bao is finally back. The old lady in the back has instructed that if Second Master comes back, he should go to Rongqing Hall immediately."

Baoyu was puzzled, but he just thought that the old ancestor missed him. Although Jia's grandmother doted on Jia Lan these days, she never forgot Baoyu, and he ate and dressed as usual. However, because of Mrs. Wang, there was an inevitable rift between the two of them.

Baoyu walked quickly into the ceremonial gate, and just as he passed through the south hall, he ran into Tanchun who was leading her maid.

Tanchun was fostered under Mrs. Wang's name. Although she was not truly adopted, she always remembered "a loving mother and a filial daughter". That was why she had frequent contacts with Baoyu in the early days.

Now that Mrs. Wang was imprisoned, and Baoyu had committed such a serious mistake, Tanchun, who was only 18 years old, could not help but feel angry when she saw him. She could not help but say something sarcastic: "Second Brother Bao is finally willing to come back."

Baoyu smiled and said, "It's Third Sister... I go to and from the academy every day, and I always come back at this time. What's the matter, Third Sister, do you want to see me for something?"

Tanchun suppressed her anger and said with a wooden face, "If there is something, let's go to Rongqing Hall to talk. Don't let the old ancestor wait anxiously."

Baoyu was not really stupid, so he could naturally see that Tanchun's expression was not right. He frowned and went to Rongqing Hall with her anxiously.

When they entered Rongqing Hall, they saw Jia Lan standing by with his hands behind his back, and Grandmother Jia was talking to him with a smile. Turning her head and seeing Baoyu, Grandmother Jia's smile disappeared immediately and she only said, "Baoyu is back?"

Baoyu glanced at Jia Lan, stepped forward and greeted him, then asked tentatively: "Is the old ancestor looking for me in a hurry?"

Grandmother Jia was silent. Li Wan, who was standing by, knew something was wrong and quickly stood up and said, "Madam, Lan Ge'er just came back. I'll take him back to rest first."

Grandmother Jia nodded and said, "The gift of apprenticeship should not be neglected. Later, let Feng'er carefully find some calligraphy and paintings from the storehouse, and let Jian'er bring Lan'er to visit you another day."

Li Wan agreed and bowed to Jia Lan before leaving.

Baoyu had just returned from the academy and was extremely thirsty. If it were last year, he would have snatched Jia Mu's teacup and drank it all. But now he had learned to wait and see, so he stood there, suppressing his thirst.

As soon as Li Wan and Jia Lan left, Madam Xing said, "Madam, we must have a good talk this time. We can't just let it go. If the girls' reputations are ruined in the future, I'm afraid it will be hard for them to find a husband."

Grandmother Jia looked at Baoyu's anxious look, and her heart was in turmoil. After all, he was once her most beloved grandson, but who would have thought that he was born to deceive her. Now that he has grown to this age, he will be fifteen in the second half of his life, but he is becoming more and more useless!
After a while, Jia's mother frowned and asked, "Baoyu, how could you spread the poems of your sisters?"

"Ah?" Baoyu was surprised and asked, "How did the ancestor know this?"

Madam Xing gritted her teeth and said, "My aunt and Miss Bao came to question me just this morning. How do you think they got out? Now the poems are all in Wenmo Bookstore. The Prince Zhongshun's Mansion behind them has said that they want to print them to help the girls become famous!"

Baoyu was immediately anxious: "How could this be? I just asked my classmates today, and they all said that it had not been spread out."

Tanchun couldn't help asking, "Second Brother Bao, tell me what happened at that time. Why did you want to show off our sisters' game?"

Baoyu felt embarrassed and his face turned red, but he had to tell him everything.

After saying this, the quail just stood there, with its head hung down and remained silent.

Tanchun was extremely annoyed when she saw this. She said angrily, "It's ok for Second Brother Bao to go to the brothel to drink, but why did he copy out the sisters' poems on the spot?"

Baoyu gritted his teeth, stamped his feet, turned around and walked away, saying: "I will go find them and get those poems back!"

Tanchun sneered, "Now that it's in the hands of Prince Zhongshun's mansion, Second Brother Bao, don't worry about who spread it. Why don't you go to Prince Zhongshun's mansion and talk about it!"

When Baoyu reached the door, he stopped immediately, frowned, and looked up in confusion.

Go to the Prince Zhongshun’s mansion to seek justice? Baoyu still remembers that it was because Jia Zheng beat the Chief Secretary of the Prince Zhongshun’s mansion half to death because he came to question him.

Grandmother Jia was also annoyed at this moment. After thinking for a while, she said, "I asked you to go to Jintai Academy to study, not to visit brothels and cause trouble! You are grown up now, and I thought you would make some progress, but you are still as muddleheaded as usual. I am old, and your mother is ill, so I can't take care of you.

Since you don't know how to make progress, it's better not to go to the academy, so as not to cause trouble outside. I will send someone to send you to Jiangnan in a few days, and let the master discipline you well! "

Baoyu was shocked when he heard this! Going to Jiangnan is good, of course, because it is a place of great talent and beauty. But if he gets close to Jia Zheng, he will be beaten to death in a few days!
Baoyu was so frightened that he trembled all over. He rushed over and knelt down in front of Grandmother Jia, crying like rain and begging, "Grandfather, I was wrong. Please don't send me to my father!"

Seeing this, Jia's mother softened her heart. However, Mrs. Xing, who was standing by, was a person who would add fuel to the fire. She said, "It is said that loving mothers often spoil their children. The daughter-in-law spoke rudely. Baoyu has been spoiled into his current state. Seven parts of the fault are the madam's, and three parts are the fault of the old lady."

Hearing Lady Xing's words, the pity that Lady Jia had just felt disappeared instantly, and she said coldly, "I can't control you, so let your father control you!"

Baoyu was stunned, and then he stood up woodenly as if his soul was wandering in space, and then he habitually grabbed his chest. However, the spiritual jade had been broken long ago, and now there was no place to hang the fake things thrown in by Li Weijian, so he reached out and grabbed nothing.

Mrs. Xing saw this and immediately laughed and said, "Is Baoyu going to throw the jade again?"

Baoyu looked up at Mrs. Xing, who was looking sarcastic, and suddenly tears welled up in his eyes. He turned around and ran out.

Tanchun, on the other hand, took a deep breath, fearing that Baoyu would get into trouble again, and quickly told someone to inform Xiren and others to look after him.

After being angry for a while, Jia Mu felt extremely tired. She also remembered that Mrs. Xing had just added fuel to the fire, so she immediately angrily told Mrs. Xing to leave. As soon as Mrs. Xing left, Tanchun hurriedly asked someone to make ginseng tea for Jia Mu.

Halfway through a cup of ginseng tea, the head maid Yuanyang came in and said, "Madam, the fourth master Jian is coming over from the garden."

Jia Mu and Tanchun glanced at each other and were immediately filled with melancholy. They thought that Li Weijian had come to blame Baoyu. Tanchun said, "I'll go and meet Fourth Brother Jian."

At that moment, Jia's mother leaned on the couch, thinking about how to say something nice later. But after waiting for a long time, Tanchun still didn't show up with anyone. After another cup of tea, Tanchun finally came back with a strange look on her face.

When Jia Mu saw that only Tanchun came, she hurriedly asked, "Where is Jian'er?"

Tanchun said, "Brother Jian borrowed a horse, saying that... saying that..."

"Say what?"

Tanchun bit her lower lip and said, "He said that Wenmo Bookstore was too weak and he wanted to destroy it!"

"what?"

Tanchun was still young, so she asked worriedly, "Grandfather, isn't this inappropriate for Fourth Brother Jian?" Grandmother Jia had seen the world, and when the old Duke was alive, the Jia family was at its peak. The old Duke was also a man of bad temper, and he either beat or scolded his two sons in private, and he was equally domineering outside.

After a brief thought, Grandmother Jia came up with a plan and said, "It's okay. Jian'er is a popular figure in front of the emperor now, so it's okay for him to make some small mistakes. It's a good opportunity to intimidate the villains in all directions."

Seeing that Tanchun was still worried, Grandmother Jia called her over and whispered, "When your grandfather was alive, he heard that a censor had impeached him for being domineering after leaving court. Your grandfather didn't even go home, but led the soldiers to smash the censor's house."

Tanchun blinked and asked, "Then the saint won't blame grandfather?"

Grandmother Jia smiled and said, "Why didn't you blame him? The next day, the emperor issued an edict, fining your grandfather one year's salary and confining him to reflect on his mistakes for a month. But there was a war at the border, and within ten days, the emperor lifted the ban."

Tanchun admired such heroes the most. Thinking back to her grandfather's time, she couldn't help but sigh, "Grandfather led the army and had many military achievements. This is the foundation of our family."

Grandmother Jia nodded and said softly, "It's a pity that each generation is inferior to the previous one... Now that the bandits have been eliminated, I'm afraid there won't be any wars for more than ten years. In the future, we have to hope that Brother Lang can win the first prize in the imperial examination and pass the imperial examination, so as to maintain the family business."

Tanchun nodded and smiled, "Nowadays, practical learning is flourishing. The second son of the Yan family has made great achievements in practical learning. With such a famous teacher to guide him, Brother Lang will have a promising future!"

Grandmother Jia said, "So don't blame me for favoring Brother Lan... If there are other children in the family who are studying hard and making progress, the family will support them even if it means selling all the things they have. Otherwise, the family business will be ruined without the pillar supporting it."

Tanchun nodded repeatedly: "Don't worry, Grandfather, my eldest sister-in-law has always had enough food and clothing, and Sister Feng often gives her some private money."

Without mentioning the conversation between the grandfather and grandson, Baoyu walked out of Rongqing Hall in a daze, stumbling all the way. Fortunately, Yuanyang sent someone to inform Xiren, and soon Xiren and Meiren came looking for him.

But Baoyu felt guilty, afraid, and bitter at the moment. The guilt and fear were self-evident, but the bitterness was because he had lost Grandmother Jia's favor.

In fact, Baoyu realized after the New Year that Grandmother Jia was becoming more perfunctory towards him, but was more concerned about her nephew Jia Lan. In Baoyu's mind, the old ancestor should love him unconditionally. Why did she ignore him just because he did a few stupid things?
Now his mother was imprisoned, the old lady had changed her mind, Sister Lin had married, Sister Bao had left the garden, and the sisters in the family no longer looked at him with the respect they used to. Baoyu felt that no one loved him anymore, and he cried bitterly, thinking that if this was the case, he might as well run away from home and become a monk, and travel around the world from now on, which would be a good thing... Anyway, he was free now.

He also knew that if he said this out loud, Xiren and Meiren would probably stop him, so he made up his mind and turned around and obediently returned to Qixianzhai.

After sitting there for an hour, Xiren, Meiren and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Baoyu no longer crying. It was late in the evening, and the maids were busy with their own things. Baoyu pretended to be fine, got up and strolled into the courtyard. Then he saw that there was no space, escaped from Qixianzhai, and went all the way to the corner gate.

Unexpectedly, when he arrived at the corner gate, he was stopped by the gatekeeper Yu Liu: "Where are you going, Master Bao, so late at night?"

Baoyu glared and said, "Do I need to tell you where I'm going?"

Yu Liu knew that Baoyu had fallen out of favor, so he said with a fake smile: "Master Bao, you really need to give me an explanation. The third lady has ordered that Master Bao is not allowed to leave the house from now on. Master Bao, why don't you ask the third lady for permission first and then tell me?"

Baoyu said, "Can Third Sister still control me?"

Yu Liu was too lazy to argue with him, he just watched with a smile and said nothing.

Baoyu knew that he could not argue with these villains, and he remembered that the Grand View Garden and Huifang Garden were connected, so he turned around and went back to the garden. But when he arrived at the gate, he was stopped by the gatekeeper: "Second Master Bao, the old lady has said that you are not allowed to enter the garden from now on."

As soon as he finished speaking, three or four big and strong women came out of the tea room, and it seemed that they were afraid that Baoyu would force his way in. Baoyu stamped his feet in anger, turned around and walked back, and suddenly saw the small courtyard in the northeast where Aunt Xue had lived.

The wall of the courtyard was not high, and it was connected to the Yihong Courtyard at the back. Baoyu took advantage of the fact that no one was around and slipped into the small courtyard in the northeast, climbed up the wall by the crabapple tree, and stumbled over it.

He avoided the maids and old women along the way, crossed the White Stone Bridge and the Moon Cave Gate, and arrived in front of the Longcui Temple. At this time, he remembered that he had a close friend Miaoyu in the Grand View Garden, so he walked around and knocked on the door. In a moment, he saw Miaoyu in the Zen room.

Baoyu hurried forward and pulled Miaoyu's sleeve and said, "Sister, I can't stay here any longer. I'm planning to leave home. Do you want to go with me?"

Miaoyu was slightly puzzled, and then asked, "You want to leave home? Have you decided where to go?"

Baoyu said: "The world is so big, where can't I go?"

It means I haven’t thought about it yet.

Miaoyu frowned slightly and asked again, "Have you prepared money and clothes?"

Baoyu was stunned, and then he took out a jade pendant from his waist and said: "It's too urgent to prepare, I will pawn the valuables on me tomorrow."

Miaoyu was too pure by nature, and her body was spotless. How could she endure the hardships of wandering and having no fixed place to live? Not to mention this, she couldn't even live the life of an ordinary citizen. So she couldn't help but look cold and said, "What do you want to do? It has nothing to do with me."

He then asked the nun to close the door and drove Baoyu out.

Miaoyu had a strange temper, and Baoyu thought he didn't know what he had done to offend her. He lingered in front of the Rongcui Temple for a while, but when he saw that it was getting dark, he left.

There was a long corridor and a winding cave on the east side of the Longcui Temple, which was close to a two-meter-high courtyard wall. Behind the wall was Huifang Garden. Baoyu climbed up the rockery to the top of the corridor, then climbed up the courtyard wall carefully, and landed in Huifang Garden from the courtyard wall in a very clumsy way. Just after crossing the wooden bridge and reaching Ningxi Pavilion, an old woman shouted in the dim light, "Where did the thief come from! Someone, there's a thief in the house!"

Baoyu's heart trembled, knowing that if he was caught by the maid, he would be taken back home, so he ran away. After passing through Ningxi Pavilion, he saw a corner door, which led to the back door. However, Baoyu had just run a few steps when he saw two sturdy maids rushing in from the corner door.

Baoyu turned around and hurriedly ran south again. It was dusk and the Bo's Mansion had just finished dinner. Baoyu ran as fast as he could, passing Yuechun Tower and arriving near Douqu Pavilion, where he was surrounded by seven or eight servants and maids.

When Baoyu saw that he could not escape, he hurriedly shouted, "I am here to find Sister Lin, Sister Lin, please save me!"

A maidservant who had seen Baoyu muttered in a low voice, "He looks like Master Bao next door."

The leading maid was a clever one. If Baoyu called out Lady Bo's name, it would be a scandal if it got out! If it got to the ears of outsiders, they would not know how to talk about it!
Yin said sternly, "Where did you come from, little thief? First catch him and gag him, then bring him to my wife!"

Immediately two old women came forward to catch him. In a panic, Baoyu kicked one of them, turned around and knocked down a maid. He was about to shout out Daiyu's maiden name when a stone came flying and hit Baoyu right on the cheek. Baoyu cried out and immediately covered his face. The maid behind him came up to catch him, but Baoyu struggled and ran away again.

There was chaos in Huifang Garden, and the maids went forward to report. At this time, the leading maid was sharp-eyed and saw that it was Xiuying who threw the stone just now. She immediately shouted: "Miss Xiuying, quickly catch this beast, so as not to tarnish the reputation of the lady!"

"Okay!" Xiuying agreed from a distance, bent down and picked up two pebbles from the stream, took a quick look, and reached out to throw the locust stone out.

The two stones hit Baoyu exactly, one on his waist and the other on his knee. Baoyu screamed and fell to the ground.

Before he could shout, the leading maid shouted, "Shut up his stinky mouth!"

A maid happened to have just cleaned the Yuechun Building. She reached out and stuffed the rag in her hand into Baoyu's mouth. Then four or five maids held Baoyu down, and another maid brought a rope to tie him up tightly.

Baoyu was sobbing and struggling, and when he saw Xiuying running towards him, he sobbed and shook his head at her. Xiuying came closer, blinked, and said, "Madam Xu, this seems to be Master Bao?"

The leading Nanny Xu frowned and said, "Young lady, please keep quiet. This concerns the reputation of the Bo's Mansion. Young lady, you shouldn't say too much right now."

Xiuying was startled and quickly covered her mouth without saying anything.

Madam Xu glanced at Baoyu, who was still struggling, and ordered, "Lock him up in the woodshed first. If anyone dares to leak a word of what happened today, he will be beaten with forty sticks and expelled from the mansion immediately!"

Everyone obeyed the order solemnly, and then four strong women simply lifted Baoyu and carried him to the firewood room at the back.

Daiyu frowned when she heard the maid's report. The maid said in a panic, "Madam, make a decision quickly, otherwise when Master Bao starts to make a fuss, the reputation of the Bo family will be ruined!"

Daiyu was so angry that she stamped her feet and walked back to Huifang Garden, saying angrily, "Hasn't he done enough evil? And now he comes to ruin our family's reputation again!"

Baoqin followed closely beside him and whispered, "The most urgent thing is to capture Baoyu quickly, otherwise he will start to make a scene."

As they were talking, they arrived at the corner gate and heard the faint sound of chaotic shouting. Daiyu and Baoqin led the maids and old women and turned around to Dengxian Pavilion. They saw several old women carrying Baoyu towards the woodshed.

When Aunt Xu and Xiuying saw Daiyu coming, they hurried forward to reply.

Daiyu was relieved when she heard what Aunt Xu had done. At least Baoyu didn't start making a scene, otherwise people's gossip would be scary, and it would be really unpleasant to hear about him in the future.

"Madam, what should we do now?"

Daiyu was extremely angry at this moment, and said in a cold voice: "He is the evil star of the Jia family, what does he have to do with our family? Send someone to inform Sister Feng, and ask Sister Feng to send someone to take him back!" After a pause, she ordered: "Add strong women to guard the night in Huifang Garden. No matter who breaks in over the wall, they will be beaten with sticks first!"

(End of this chapter)