Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 348: Jin Gui's Frame-up
Wang Ren was filled with resentment, and only left when a maid came forward to see him off, muttering "women's opinions".

He wasted half his life in the imperial examinations, and had never benefited from Wang Zizhen's help. After Wang Zizhen retired and returned to his hometown, this branch of the family fell into silence. But a few years later, his second uncle Wang Ziteng took advantage of the situation and rose to prominence. Wang Ren had always been trying to please his second uncle, wasn't it just to get a job?

No matter how capable Wang Xifeng is, she is now the daughter-in-law of the Jia family. What's wrong with a little loss? When her brother becomes successful, will he still be able to deprive Sister Feng of her benefits in the future?
After coming out of Yimen, Wang Ren felt ashamed to see Jia Mu and others, so he came out of Jiaomen with a sullen face, stopped on the street, turned his head to look towards the east wing, and was immediately terrified.

The man surnamed Li was not a good-tempered person. He was previously imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice, but now Wang Ren could not walk properly after being beaten with a stick. He was resentful, but he did not dare to show his true colors. When the servant hired a carriage, Wang Ren was about to get on it when he saw a carriage coming up Ningrong Street.

The curtain of the carriage was opened, and an acquaintance came out.

"Hey, isn't this Brother Wang?"

Wang Ren looked at him and was in no hurry to get in the car. He bowed and said perfunctorily, "It turns out to be Wenlong."

Xue Pan limped forward cheerfully and started a conversation: "Brother Wang, are you leaving?"

Seeing Xue Pan's legs, Wang Ren's face suddenly turned cold - what does that mean? He knows he is lame, but he is pretending to be lame to piss himself off?
Yin said coldly, "I will be returning to Jinling soon. Is Wenlong here to give me a gift?"

Xue Pan pointed to a cart behind him and said, "It was just a coincidence. I ran into someone selling peaches and melons when I went out. They are not worth much money, so I just sent a cart to Rongguo Mansion... We are all relatives."

Wang Ren snorted coldly: "Then Wenlong can go. I have other important matters to attend to, so I won't accompany you any longer!"

After saying this, he sloppily bowed, turned around and limped onto the carriage. Xue Pan frowned as he watched him, and asked the servant, "Is the man surnamed Wang imitating me?"

The servant didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so he lowered his voice to explain, "Master, Master Wang was beaten with a stick a while ago, and I heard that he recovered after a month of rest, but he was left with a problem of poor leg function. He really didn't mean to imitate you."

Xue Pan blinked and laughed immediately, saying, "So he's lame too." Dai Ba Wang laughed for a long time and suddenly blurted out, "What's that saying? Happiness is better shared than happiness alone, hahahaha."

After making fun of Wang Ren for a while, Xue Pan sent the servant to the corner gate and then led the cart back inside. This cart of fruits was not worth much money, but it was a precious thought.

Aunt Xue and Baochai's calculations were clear. Baoyu and the Jia family had a bad reputation, so it was not good for them to continue staying in Rongguo Mansion. But the superficial affection between the relatives had to be maintained, and it was not good to alienate them... Who knew if it would be useful in the future?
Moreover, the boudoir poems leaked out last time, and Sister Bao was worried all night. The next day, she heard that the bookstore was smashed by Li Weijian. Baochai thought that although the Rongguo Mansion was in decline, Li Weijian was there to help from time to time, so maybe the Rongguo Mansion could be maintained for another two generations.

After some discussion, the mother and daughter felt that Grandmother Jia did not like them, so they sent Xue Pan to visit relatives.

But Xue Pan got a new prescription these days, which replenished his body for about ten days, and he was full of energy and vitality again. Finally, he and Baochan had sex in the afternoon.

Not only that, even Xia Jingui was satisfied. Xue Pan was in a very good mood and happily went to Rongguo Mansion after getting the job.

When they entered the inner palace, they found that Sister Feng was already advanced in age and Tanchun was not in a position to meet a man other than her husband, so Lai Wang's wife took Xue Pan to Rongqing Hall.

Xue Pan was a very ignorant person and had no idea that the Xue family had already displeased Lady Jia. When he saw Lady Jia smiling and responding, he left in a hurry as it was getting late.

As soon as Xue Pan left, Jia's mother said she was tired and went to rest, sending Tanchun to distribute fruits. Tanchun did not dare to take charge of the matter, and went to the Yihong Courtyard in the back to look for Sister Feng.

After hearing this, Sister Feng made the decision: "The existing quota is here, just distribute it according to the rules. If there is any extra, give some to the daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law who are in charge of various places."

Tanchun agreed, and Sister Feng said with a smile: "What does the Xue family mean by this? Why are they coming here to cook for no reason?"

Tanchun was disdainful in her heart, but smiled and said, "Sister Feng, why do you have to ask even though you already know the answer? Sister Bao has always been a considerate person."

Feng Jieer didn't agree with it and sneered, "Zhou Quan? A journey of a thousand miles tests a horse's strength, and a person's heart is revealed over time."

Tanchun laughed when she heard this. Sister Bao had offended almost everyone in Rongguo Mansion, and now Baoyu and Xing Xiuyan were the only ones who remembered Sister Bao's kindness, right? When Mrs. Wang heard that the Xue family mother and daughter had moved away in a hurry, she smashed a lot of things.

I won't mention the tacit understanding between the two sisters-in-law, but I will say that Xue Pan sent some melons and fruits, and I will go out to play with my friends when I have nothing to do. However, the previous case of Wang and Wang Ren implicated me too much, and now, not to mention Jinxiangyuan, even ordinary restaurants dare not provide drinks, and only provide meals.

Xue Pan felt bored and thought of Baochan, so he went home again.

Just as he arrived at his own door, he could smell a faint pungent smell from afar. Xue Pan covered his mouth and nose, cursing. When he entered the house, he happened to run into Baochai, and couldn't help criticizing, "The Li family must be sincere. As soon as our family moved in, he started to mess around in the old house, making it so pungent. It's really not a place for human beings to live!"

Baochai frowned and said, "I went to the military academy to find out yesterday and heard from the clerk that the useless equipment will be taken down tomorrow. Brother, just be patient, it will be all right tomorrow."

Xue Pan snorted and said nothing more, then asked, "Sister, are you going out?"

Baochai pondered and said, "My sister-in-law is ill. I am just going to ask the servant in front to ask for a doctor."

"Is your sister-in-law not well yet?" Xue Pan only remembered Xia Jingui's kindness at this moment, and hurriedly walked back with big strides: "There is no time to delay, I will go and check on her."

After walking a few steps, he quickly turned around and told the servant to call the doctor, and then he re-entered the inner courtyard.

When he entered the room, he saw Xia Jingui, who looked haggard, sitting on the bed and groaning. Baochan and Bilian were serving her, but Xia Jingui said the medicine was bitter and refused to take it.

After the previous incident, Xia Jingui persuaded Bilian to move into her room. Bilian knew that Baochai could not take care of her, so she had been very careful these days.

Xue Pan walked up to her and asked a few questions before he lost his patience and made eyes at Baochan. Baochan was also a woman of understanding, so she at least helped Xia Jingui with the medicine before she found an excuse to leave.

Before leaving, she glanced at Xue Pan quietly. Xue Pan was aroused by this glance. After lingering for a while, he said he was going to meet the doctor. Then he turned around and pulled Baochan to the side room to fool around.

Xia Jingui saw this and was filled with resentment. She glanced at Bilian who had a stern face and thought to herself that she must get rid of Bilian first and then go back to deal with Baochan.

After a while, Baochai brought a doctor to see her. The doctor carefully examined her pulse, but his diagnosis was the same as the previous doctor's. He only wrote a prescription that was similar to the previous one, and could not find out anything else.

Baochai thought to herself, wondering what her sister-in-law was going to do next. She sent the doctor away and gave him a consultation fee.

Before I even entered the yard, I heard shouting from far away.

Baochai hurriedly led Ying'er inside, only to see a pillow thrown on the ground. Xia Jingui was sitting cross-legged on the bed. There was a paper figure under the pillow with Jingui's age and eight characters written on it. There were five needles nailed into the heart and limbs.

Baochai turned pale instantly. How could she not understand Xia Jingui’s plan?
Xia Jingui cried out, "I can't survive this! They are really trying to kill me!"

The shouting could be heard everywhere. Baochai tried to persuade her, but Xia Jingui refused to listen. In a moment, Xue Pan rushed in with his trousers in his hand. When he saw the paper mannequin, he was stunned and asked, "Where did it come from?"

Xia Jingui just kept crying, so Xiao Sheer said, "Just now I was helping grandma change the mat, and I didn't expect to shake this thing out of the pillow."

The inner house was in a mess, and Aunt Xue was naturally alarmed. When she went in and took a look, she was speechless.

Xue Pan was a reckless person to begin with, and he was so furious that he shouted and ordered the maids and old women in the inner house to be tortured.

Xia Jingui sneered and said, "Why accuse everyone? This must be Baochan's way of warding off evil spirits."

Xue Pan had just been with Baochan, and upon hearing this, he said, "She hasn't been in your room these days, why do you want to accuse a good person?"

Xia Jingui said, "Who else could it be except her? It could be me alone! Who dares to enter my room?"

Xue Pan saw Bilian's expressionless face and gritted his teeth and said, "Bilian follows you every day now, so she must know. You can find out by interrogating her first."

Xia Jingui sneered and said, "Who would confess if tortured? I think it's better to pretend that you don't know and let go of it. It doesn't matter if I'm tortured to death, and you can be happy to marry a better one. If I'm honest, it's just that you three dislike me."

After saying this, he immediately covered his face and cried bitterly.

Xue Pan recalled what happened that day and was immediately furious. He picked up the door bolt and started beating Bilian. After Bilian was hit, she cried out in injustice. Aunt Xue was so angry at her own bastard son that she was dizzy. She immediately stopped Xue Pan and shouted, "You want to hit someone without asking clearly. Bilian has been in the family for several years. Has she ever done anything wrong? Who told you to be so indiscriminate?"

Xia Jingui thought to herself that if Xue Pan listened to Aunt Xue's words, not only would he be soft-hearted for a moment, but he would also be in trouble if he found out the truth. She cried and shouted, "You have occupied my Baochan these days and don't allow her to enter my room. Only Bilian sleeps with me. I wanted to torture Baochan, but you protected her. Now you are beating her out of anger. You can just kill me and marry someone rich and beautiful. Why do you have to do all these tricks!"

Aunt Xue saw Xia Jingui holding Xue Pan hostage in every way, but Xue Pan was not willing to stand up to her, and she could not tell who was good and who was bad. She was helpless and could only scold him angrily: "You are such a bad boy! A bitch is more decent than you! Who knew that you even groped the maid in the room, and told your wife that you took the maid away. How dare you go out and see people! I don't know who did it, but you beat someone without asking any questions. I know you are a person who discards the old for the new, and you have failed me in vain. Since she is not good, you are not allowed to beat her. I will ask someone to send her home immediately, and you will feel relieved."

He immediately asked Bilian to pack up her things and go with Aunt Xue, while shouting, "Go! Hurry up and call a carriage to take her home. From now on, we can get rid of this thorn in our flesh and this thorn in our eyes, and live in peace."

Seeing that Aunt Xue was angry, Xue Pan immediately lowered his head and remained silent, and threw the door bolt in his hand aside.

After hearing this, Xia Jingui went out crying, "You old lady, just send the people away, don't say anything or provoke any one. Am I jealous and intolerant? How can you 'pull out the thorn in your flesh and the thorn in your eye'? Whose thorn and whose thorn is it? If you dislike her more, you would not have accepted my maid into your room."

Aunt Xue was so angry that she trembled and choked when she heard this. She said, "Whose family rules are these? The mother-in-law talks here, and the daughter-in-law quarrels from a distance. You are the daughter of an old family! What are you talking about with all your mouth full of shouting and yelling!"

Xue Pan stamped his feet anxiously and said, "Forget it, forget it! People will laugh at us."

Xia Jingui was determined to go all the way, so she just threw a tantrum and yelled, "I'm not afraid of being laughed at! Your concubine is controlling and harming me, but I am afraid of being laughed at? Otherwise, keep her and sell me out! You think I'm not good enough, but you are blind. Why did you come to our house after begging for mercy? Now people have come, and the gold and silver have been paid, and anyone with a little eye or nose has been taken away. It's time to squeeze me out!"

Xia Jingui cried, rolled over, and slapped herself. Xue Pan was so anxious that he could not talk to her, persuade her, beat her, or beg her. He could only sigh and complain about his bad luck.

Baochai really couldn't stand it anymore, so she quickly took Aunt Xue and Bilian back to the back room with Ying'er.

Baochai wanted to persuade him, but she thought Xue Pan was a reckless man and might change his mind in a few days. Unexpectedly, Bilian sobbed and made up her mind: "Miss, please don't persuade me anymore. Fortunately, the lady and the young lady are here, otherwise I might have lost my life today. To put it bluntly, the lady and the young lady can't protect me forever, but only for a short while. When the young lady gets married in the future, what can I do? I might be tortured to death by grandma."

As he spoke, he knelt down and kowtowed repeatedly: "Madam, please have mercy on me and allow me to go home."

Seeing Bilian like this, Baochai didn't say much. She looked at Aunt Xue and finally agreed to Bilian's request. Bilian found a confidant to return the betrothal money, but Aunt Xue and Baochai had to save face, so how could they accept it? Not only did she not accept the confidant, she also privately gave Bilian 200 taels of silver, and hired a carriage in the afternoon to send Bilian back to her home outside the city.

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Jinglingbo Mansion.

It is said that Daiyu and Xing Xiuyan sent each other invitations the day before, and that afternoon Xing Xiuyan brought her two maids Zhuan'er and Liang'er to Huifang Garden.

It was early summer. Xing Xiuyan had just passed the East Corner Gate when she caught a glimpse of Daiyu and Baoqin stopping at Ningxi Pavilion to feed the fish.

Xing Xiuyan hurried forward to greet them, then stood up and said with a smile, "Why are you two waiting here? It's very hot now, I should go look for you two sisters."

Daiyu smiled and said, "It's not so bad now. When the dog days come, it's really hot. I'm weak and can't use ice cubes to cool down. Tomorrow, my fourth brother has invited new scholars to come home to discuss practical studies. Now that the country is in mourning, it's not easy to prepare a banquet, but the food must be prepared. I invited my sister here today to think about drawing up a menu."

Xing Xiuyan understood and said with a smile: "Thanks to my sister's thought, I have become good at eating."

Baoqin and Xing Xiuyan were just nodding acquaintances. Seeing Daiyu being so affectionate with her, she smiled and said, "The two sisters are chatting. I will go back to my room to rest first."

As soon as Baoqin left, Xing Xiuyan immediately relaxed.

Xing Xiuyan asked the guests and learned that one was from Shandong and the other from the southwest, so she immediately prepared eight dishes, four cold dishes and four hot dishes. When she was asked to prepare more, Daiyu said, "That's enough."

It's just an ordinary family dinner, not a formal banquet, and these dishes are enough.

Zijuan, Xueyan, Zhuan'er, and Liang'er followed far behind, and the two girls walked slowly along the corridor. Xing Xiuyan thought for a moment and said, "Speaking of which, Master Bao will leave tomorrow."

Daiyu immediately looked unhappy, but thinking of their childhood friendship, she relaxed her brows and said, "I just hope that when I get to live with my uncle, Brother Bao will at least make some progress."

Xing Xiuyan smiled but said nothing. Baoyu's character had been formed a long time ago, how could it be changed in a short time?
Daiyu is related to the Rongguo Mansion, so she should be concerned about her cousin's departure. Unfortunately, the incident of Baoyu climbing over the wall to enter the garden just a few days ago made Daiyu angry. If she was still living in the Rongguo Mansion, it would be fine, but she would have to live under the eyes of others. Now that she has married into the Jingling Earl's Mansion, the concubines under her are not outstanding, and the fourth brother loves her in every way. Why should Daiyu still have to look at other people's faces?

So I decided to send Xixue to check on it later, and there was really no need to do anything else. Who doesn't have a temper?

It had been more than a month since the wedding. Daiyu glanced at Xing Xiuyan and thought that Xing Xiuyan had come a few times during this period, but she either went to the kitchen to give instructions or went to Zhijue Zhai. She had never run into Li Weijian once in these days.

She was puzzled and couldn't help asking, "Since you have made up your mind, why don't you take any action?"

Xing Xiuyan smiled and said, "Sister, how do you think I should act?"

They were newlyweds at that time, and the way she had expressed her feelings last time was already very extraordinary. If she took advantage of this opportunity to flirt with Li Weijian, I'm afraid Daiyu would bear a grudge against her.

Daiyu, however, was a person who pitied the poor and the weak, and whispered, "I heard that the eldest lady is here to urge you again?"

Xing Xiuyan still smiled and shook her head, saying, "Don't worry, sister. Auntie just asked me to come over to ask some questions, and didn't say anything else."

Mrs. Xing was worried that Li Weijian would seek revenge, and she also hoped that Xing Xiuyan would climb up to Li Weijian's high position. Therefore, every time she called her in for questioning, she only gave some instructions secretly, but never really urged her.

On the contrary, Xing Zhong and his wife, thinking about Xing Xiuyan's age, became a little impatient.

"That's good." Daiyu asked and let it go. She couldn't act as a matchmaker for the two of them... That would be really frustrating.

But she admired Xing Xiuyan's contented nature, so she thought: "My dowry includes two shops and two farms. The farms are fine, Zhili has been relatively prosperous in recent years, and the farms are a little promising. The two shops are next to each other, so I thought, instead of renting them out, I might as well keep them and run them myself."

Xing Xiuyan was also smart. She immediately understood what was going on and asked in surprise, "Sister, are you planning to open a restaurant or a wine shop?"

Daiyu smiled and covered her mouth with her round fan, "That's exactly what I was thinking. The two shops are not big. One sells groceries and the other sells noodles. The location is just right, very close to the inner government office. There are quite a few southern officials in the court and the government office now, but there are only two Huaiyang restaurants in the capital. So I thought, I will sell the shop and my sister will sell the cooking skills. We won't run a restaurant, but just sell food boxes to the government office. We can change the style every day, and I think we can make more money."

Xing Xiuyan clapped her hands and praised, "Sister, you really have a good idea. I heard from Dad a few days ago that the capital is becoming more and more prosperous, and there are many merchants traveling to the south, but they can't eat delicious meals. Going to restaurants every now and then is too expensive. If sister takes up this business of running food boxes, she will definitely make a fortune...but I'm afraid my skills are not worthy of being served in a refined restaurant."

Daiyu smiled and advised, "Sister, why do you have to belittle yourself? Thanks to your recipes these past few days, the cold noodles, mixed noodles, and rice noodles are all very tasty. When Fourth Brother left home this morning, he even told me to have beef rice noodle rolls when he came back in the afternoon."

Xing Xiuyan also smiled and said, "Sister already got the recipe. I am at my wit's end now. I am afraid I won't be able to come up with a new dish even if I am stuck for a while."

Daiyu refused and said, "How can I take advantage of you for nothing? Just do as I say, I will give you 20% of the shares in the restaurant, and you can go and look after it when you are free." Seeing that Xing Xiuyan wanted to refuse, Daiyu said, "You also know my situation. I only have a few maids as a dowry, and my wet nurse was homesick and returned to Suzhou early. I really have no one to help me. This time I am not just looking after you, I may even ask for your help."

Seeing Daiyu say this, Xing Xiuyan finally agreed and said, "I have never done business before, I am afraid I can't do it well."

"Just try it, sister."

After the matter was settled, the two of them headed towards the Yue Chun Building in front, and saw Qianxue coming towards them holding two scrolls.

When he came closer and greeted her, he smiled and said, "Madam, Ding Rusong came back from Haidian and found two farms for sale. One is the garden of a dismissed minister, and the other is the garden of a general who assists the country. Madam, take a look first, and then we can discuss it with the master."

Xing Xiuyan looked over in surprise. Daiyu took the scroll and said with a smile, "Fourth brother has been promoted to assistant minister of the inner court. He will have to accompany the king in the future, so I thought of buying a garden in Haidian."

The scroll was unrolled, and inside were sketches of two gardens. One was over a hundred acres, and the other was nearly three hundred acres. Qianxue said, "Both are about five or six miles away from Yuchun Garden, and it only takes two minutes to get there by car. There is also a prince's garden for sale, but it is too excessive, so Ding Rusong did not ask about it."

Xing Xiuyun looked at the two gardens but was not very excited. She just thought that Li Weijian would go to Haidian in a few days, and heard that he would go on a northern tour afterwards... So, even if she wanted to take the initiative, how could she do it?

(End of this chapter)