Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 359 Ping'er
"Since the saint has given us sisters a taste of this new food, the two sisters should go back and try it first."

Lipin and Zhangpin were both pregnant. If they got sick from eating at Wu Guifei's place, they would be unable to defend themselves. Lipin and Zhangpin stood up and took their leave, each taking a can of food.

Dai Quan repeated the Saint's instructions, and Concubine Wu smiled and said, "That's great. I'll take a look at that lady of the baron's family. I heard she's only thirteen or fourteen years old. She's so pitiful. Even for the sake of the Lin Salt Bureau, I'll have to take care of her."

Dai Quan agreed and then left.

Because of the delay, Concubine Wu had not yet had breakfast. Immediately, the palace maids brought all kinds of food. Emperor Zhenghe was frugal, so Concubine Wu's breakfast was just two snacks, two side dishes, and a porridge. A female official had already steamed the canned food and opened it and brought it up.

Concubine Wu first ate some snacks as she did in the past. When she got close to the can, she suddenly smelled a strange fragrance. She couldn't help but scoop a spoonful with a spoon and put it into her mouth. Immediately, her eyes lit up.

good to eat!

So I couldn't stop eating one spoonful after another.

After a while, the spoon was put down, and the golden soup in the can was almost gone. Concubine Wu was very satisfied, and she laughed at her belly, as if she was a little full.

I don’t know if it was because Emperor Zhenghe was unlucky or what, but most of the remaining cans were Buddha Jumps Over the Wall that Li Weijian specially asked Xing Xiuyan to restore.

Although the aroma is restrained when it is canned, it tastes just as good as freshly brewed ones.

The female official at the side said with a smile: "Your Majesty has eaten two more pieces of dessert today, which shows that this can of food suits your taste."

Concubine Wu rinsed her mouth and smiled, "Marquis Jingling is thoughtful. You are young and don't know that this northern tour is a hard job. You can't eat or sleep well along the way. I once accompanied the imperial guards on a northern tour and I lost 15 pounds when I came back."

At this moment, a palace maid replied, "Your Majesty, the girl holding the zither beside Concubine Xian De came to thank you."

"Let her in."

After a moment, Baoqin came in with a smile on her face, bowed respectfully, and said with a smile: "Our queen just ate the canned food and found it quite appetizing, so she sent this servant to thank her."

Concubine Wu said, "You don't need to thank me for what the saint has given you. Oh, the Empress Dowager wants to invite ladies to visit the garden. If Concubine Xian De is free, you may come and show your support."

He took note of the poem while holding the zither, then bowed and took his leave.

The emperor's carriage was in Yuchun Garden, so it was naturally not easy for the ladies to wander around. However, there were several royal gardens around Yuchun Garden, including Chengze Garden, Caixia Garden, Shuchun Garden, and Hongya Garden, and there were also several temples to visit.

In Jingyuan, Li Weijian went to Yuchun Garden to sit in the office. Zijuan and Xueyan were busy for a while, and only came to Daiyu when they were free.

Zijuan did not shy away from Xueyan. She knelt down and kowtowed, then served tea in a proper manner.

Daiyu took a sip and couldn't help but jokingly asked, "Are you relieved now?"

Zijuan's pretty face flushed, and she said, "Madam is teasing me again. Madam promised me before, so why should I be worried?"

Daiyu laughed and said, "You say this, but you don't necessarily think this way in your heart."

Zijuan, who entered Rongguo Mansion with Yuanyang and Xiren, was about the same age as Xiren and was now over 18. Ordinary women of this age would have been married off long ago and become maids. In the past two years, they would have been taken in by the master's family or married off to a boy. How could she not be anxious?
Moreover, she was born in Rongguo Mansion and all her connections were in Rongguo Mansion. As soon as she arrived at Bo's Mansion, she felt a little uneasy because everything was dark.

But it was no longer the same now. After making love, she knew that at worst she would be a maidservant in the future, or maybe even promoted to a concubine. So what was there to be unsatisfied about?
Zijuan blushed and didn't answer. Instead, she swore, "Madam, you treat me like this, and I have no way to repay you. I will serve you well in the future."

Daiyu winked at Xueyan, who then helped Zijuan up. Daiyu then waved for her to come over, and pulled her to sit beside her, saying, "We have been together since I was seven years old. Although we are master and servant, I treat you as a sister in my heart. From now on, just keep these words in your heart, why say them out loud?"

Zijuan agreed and asked, "Madam, are you going to visit the Second Mistress today?"

Daiyu said, "Before Fourth Brother left, I told him that since Sister Feng is staying at our garden, I must go and see her. After all, Xiangshan is not far from here, so the sooner we go, the sooner we can return, and nothing will be delayed."

Xueyan said, "There is no time to lose. I will go and tell them to prepare the carriage. Otherwise, it will be difficult to travel when the weather gets hot."

Zijuan went to prepare some tonics, and when it was almost noon, Daiyu led her people to go out. As soon as she reached the gate of the garden, a palace lady came to convey the imperial decree, saying that Concubine Wu would invite the ladies of state to visit the garden the day after tomorrow, and invited Daiyu to go as well.

Daiyu remained calm, but she was a little frightened. The ladies were all in their twenties or thirties, and she might not be able to have a say at her age. She immediately made up her mind to be careful with her words and actions in the future, and not to get angry.

The carriages and horses rumbled all the way to Xiangshan, and we arrived at Yuyuan at noon. It was a hot summer, and Haidian was cooler than the capital because of the lakes around it, but Xiangshan was even cooler than Haidian.

The servants had already informed everyone, and when Daiyu got off the carriage, she saw Ping'er coming to greet her.

"Aunt Ping."

Ping Erh smiled and greeted, saying jokingly, "Hello, Madam Bo. Our grandmother is not in a good position to go out, so she had to send me to fetch Madam, saying that she would come to tell Madam about her troubles later."

Daiyu said angrily, "Sister Feng is making trouble again. How come you are not calm now that you are pregnant, but are becoming more and more mischievous?"

Ping Erh said, "What else can I do? I'm really angry. Madam, please try to persuade me later."

Daiyu smiled bitterly and said, "How can I advise you on this matter?"

Without further ado, they arrived at Zhichun Hall in a moment. At this moment, Sister Feng was fanning herself and drinking boiled peach juice.

After they had met, Feng Jieer invited Daiyu to sit down and pointed at the warm peach juice, saying, "When my eldest sister was born, she didn't move at all. But the imperial physician checked her once and told her not to eat anything cold from now on. Yesterday I wanted to eat some noodles with sauce, but the noodles were soaked in warm water and the sauce was freshly cooked. It tasted totally wrong when I ate it!"

Daiyu smiled and said, "Sister Feng, please bear with it for a while. It won't be long before it's gone for a few months."

Sister Feng sighed and said angrily, "I suffered a lot when my eldest sister was born. I just hope it's a boy this time. I don't want to suffer anymore in the future. It's summer and we can't even use ice cubes now!"

As they were talking, Sister Feng caught a glimpse of Zijuan's bright face. When Ping'er led Zijuan and Xueyan downstairs to play, Sister Feng frowned and whispered, "Is Zijuan smiling?"

Daiyu nodded.

Sister Feng frowned and said, "Sister Lin is really a generous person. Aren't you afraid that she will have other thoughts in the future?"

Daiyu shook her head and smiled, "Who doesn't have some little thoughts? As the saying goes, judging by deeds, not the heart, there is no good person. Besides, Fourth Brother is thinking about me, so even if she has some thoughts, it will be in vain."

Sister Feng thought of Li Weijian's eagerness in pursuing her at the beginning, and also remembered that ever since Daiyu got married, Li Weijian had been inseparable from her and, unless Daiyu had driven him away, he would have wanted to stay in Daiyu's room every night. She immediately understood the situation, but was also a little annoyed.

Then he said, "Yes, Brother Jian knows what's going on."

The so-called failure to distinguish between legitimate and illegitimate children, and favoring concubines over wives, all have their roots in the men themselves.

Daiyu took the opportunity to persuade her, "Sister Feng, you might as well think more open-mindedly. Although Second Brother married her secretly this time, he was worried about Sister Feng, so he didn't dare to bring her home, right?"

Sister Feng's face suddenly changed, and she snorted coldly, "He doesn't dare because he's afraid that I'll make a scene. Besides, the country is in mourning, and the family is in mourning, so how dare he openly take someone in?"

Daiyu advised again: "Maybe Second Brother is just looking for something new? As long as his mind is still on Sister Feng, he won't be afraid of anything."

Sister Feng shook her head and said, "Now that I think about it, it's my fault for being too strict in the first few years. Your second brother treats me with respect now. Firstly, the old lady and the master are still here, and secondly, he is afraid of the gossip outside. Otherwise, I'm afraid he would have forgotten me long ago."

Daiyu suddenly didn't know how to persuade her.

Sister Feng said again: "But how can you blame me for this? If I hadn't taken care of your second brother's flirtatious nature, I'm afraid no matter how big the mansion is, it wouldn't be able to accommodate so many women. If he was as capable as Brother Jian, it would be fine, but he only cares about having fun and has no ambition. If he really indulges himself, who knows what kind of trouble he will cause."

Daiyu could only say some words of comfort, but she couldn't help but feel lucky. All men in this world are lustful indeed.

For example, the second brother Lian, and the second brother Bao. The fourth brother has ambitions in his heart. Although he is greedy for flowers and women, he is restrained. After a rough calculation, most of the women around him are from Rongfu. The maids are the result of long-term friendship and cannot be separated; Fu Qiufang is a coincidence; Baoqin... Daiyu thought of Baoqin, and her heart suddenly stagnated.

Sister Qin’s appearance was too outstanding. It was the first time she saw Fourth Brother being distracted by a woman’s outstanding appearance.

Feng Jieer didn't care about the words of comfort after hearing them. She said, "Don't talk about me. No matter how angry I am, I still have to take care of the baby and give birth. The rest can be dealt with later. But my sister..." She looked at Daiyu and hesitated for a long time before saying, "Have you asked the imperial physician to treat you? When will your body recover?"

Daiyu said, "Fourth brother said yesterday that he had invited the imperial physician to treat the patient. The imperial physician Wang said last time that it would take another three to five years to see a turn for the better."

Sister Feng confided, "This should be done sooner rather than later. The old lady said that Yun is a blessed girl and there is no need to worry too much. But my sister is in poor health. The sooner she recovers, the sooner she can give birth to a child. Listen to my advice. No matter how much a man dotes on her, things will become dull one day. Everything else is fake. Only the birth of a legitimate eldest son is real." Daiyu knew that Sister Feng meant well, so she blushed and agreed obediently, but she didn't care in her heart.

Seeing this, Feng Jieer said no more, and then continued: "I have something else to trouble you, sister. If brother Jian is free, please ask him to come. I have saved some money, and I am asking brother Jian to help me find a way. Sister also knows that I need to take care of the pregnancy. Ping'er is quite good at managing the greenhouse, but I am afraid that I am not capable of running other businesses."

Daiyu immediately thought of the canned food, and said without revealing anything, "Okay, I'll ask Fourth Brother to come over later."

Feng Jieer smiled, but secretly felt guilty. She thought to herself that she had to make it happen this time, otherwise she would not be able to eat or sleep.

At first, Jia Lian was good at flattering people with sweet words, and he promised not to marry again. But what about now? Not only did he promise Ping Er to him, but he also got Qiu Tong. Even so, he still had an affair with Miss Duo from the Bao family, and now he has married You Erjie!
Feng Jieer was certain that no matter how nice the words were, it was not as good as having the handle in hand. She and Ping'er were both committed to others, so Ping'er would not use this as a threat.

............................................................

Sanyanjing Hutong, Beijing.

The servants carried the boxes and crates into the courtyard one by one. Tongxi and Tonggui dispatched the maids to carry them to the various rooms. Ying'er watched the maid put the dressing mirror in order, then returned to her room and said to Baochai, who was sitting quietly, "Miss, everything is almost in order."

Baochai stopped working on the abacus, nodded to Ying'er, and asked, "Where's Mom?"

Ying'er said, "Madam is talking to Master." After a pause, she added, "I think Master seems to be interested in moving in as well."

Knowing that Xue's mother and daughter were moving away, Xia Jingui was quiet for two days, but everyone knew that it was only temporary, and no one knew what kind of trouble they would cause afterwards.

Aunt Xue and Baochai moved in early this morning, with no more than a dozen boxes and crates. Xue Pan came with them, and seeing that the interior was very simple, he sent people to buy all kinds of household items and send them over.

The house here has three entrances, and there is a two-story building at the back, which is considered a boudoir. As the name of Sanyanjing Hutong suggests, there were three sweet water wells here, and the housing prices were not much even compared with the inner city. However, since the establishment of the Beijing Water Supply, tap water pipes have been laid everywhere, and the rich families can directly enter their homes, and the small families can also buy cheap sweet water at the entrance of the alley, so the housing prices in Sanyanjing Hutong have dropped sharply. Now it has dropped by more than 40%!

To the west of the alley is Yanshou Temple Street, where officials and officials live. The most rare thing about it is that it is extremely quiet.

But now Sister Bao didn't care about these things. She had just calculated that, including her own money, the mother and daughter had a total of 13,000 taels of silver on hand. Even if the recipe was not cheap, this money was enough to set up a factory.

Suddenly a maid came in and replied, "Miss, the master is coming back."

Baochai stood up upon hearing this and went to the second gate to see him off. Seeing her brother Xue Pan with his head down, Baochai looked calm on the surface, but her heart was filled with thoughts.

As the old saying goes: marrying an unvirtuous wife ruins three generations, and choosing a bad husband ruins your whole life.

Xia Jingui's behavior does not have anything to do with the word virtuous. She has never even been filial to her mother-in-law. How can we expect her to prosper the family business?
Xue Pan said with a frown, "Mom, sister, I'm going back now. I'll come back to see you later."

Aunt Xue reluctantly said goodbye to Xue Pan, and had just returned to the main room with Baochai. The mother and daughter were about to talk when Tongxi suddenly came back and said, "Madam, there is someone outside the door who sent a letter."

"An Shuren?" Aunt Xue thought for a moment and said happily, "It's her! Please come in!" She turned around and said to Baochai happily, "An Shuren was the second wife of the former Minister of Rites. She was awarded the title of Marquis for her good service to her husband and children. Minister Shi died in office, and the emperor took pity on An Shuren and granted her a house because it was difficult for her orphan and widow to live. I visited her when we first arrived in the capital."

Tongxi led a maid into the room. The maid bowed and said with a smile, "My mistress was very happy to hear that Mrs. Xue had moved in. She said that now she finally had someone to talk to. She knew that Mrs. Xue might not be able to come today, so she sent an old servant to tell her that if she had time, she might as well go to the next door."

Aunt Xue happily agreed, said a few words of greeting, and quickly sent Tongxi to reward the old woman with two taels of silver, and then sent her away.

After they left, Baochai said to Aunt Xue, "Mother, I just counted the money and it's more than 13,000 taels, enough to open a factory."

Aunt Xue hesitated and said, "My son, although you are smart, you have never managed a business. We are a small family and don't need much food, so it's better to keep it as your dowry."

Baochai said, "It's easy for me to say, but now the family property is in the hands of my sister-in-law. In the future, mother will have to live with my brother and sister-in-law. Now that I have no money, I am afraid I will have to live under the influence of my sister-in-law."

Aunt Xue's brows suddenly turned pale, and she just said, "As long as you are all well, it's fine with me."

Baochai shook her head and said, "How old are you, mother? Are you going to be angry for the next twenty or thirty years? Wouldn't that make you angry to death? In my opinion, it's better to give it a try. Besides, this is a new business, and it may flourish. I can leave some money for you when the time comes. If my sister-in-law treats you harshly, you can just move out and live somewhere else."

Aunt Xue thought about it and was at a loss for words, so she said, "You're right, but do you have a plan?"

Baochai's almond eyes sparkled as she said, "Now the people left in our shop are all experienced people, so we just need to find two people to run the factory properly. There are only three important things in the cannery: purchasing, supervision, and sales. The first two are easy to deal with, but sales are especially important." After a pause, she continued, "Now Fei Gong is the Grand Marshal of the Ministry of War, and his career in the government was largely due to my uncle's connections, so I plan to go to Rong Mansion first. If I get a letter from my uncle, I might be able to get the military supply job, so that I can have a guaranteed income."

Aunt Xue said, "I'm glad you have an idea... I haven't seen your aunt for some time, why don't you go and take a look in the next two days?"

Aunt Xue was totally unaware of it, but Baochai could hardly hide her shame, thinking that it was really despicable to swallow one's anger. But she was just a little girl, what else could she do? She changed her mind and made up her mind, so what if she swallowed one's anger? No matter how great her face was, it could not compare to her substance.

............................................................

It is said that Li Weijian returned to Jingyuan after leaving office before 3:00 p.m. that day, and did not see Daiyu return until 9:00 p.m.

Seeing Daiyu sitting down in the carriage with her hair sticking to her cheeks, Li Weijian quickly picked up a round fan and gently waved it, saying with concern: "It's so hot out there, what can you do if my sister returns a little later?"

Daiyu smiled and said, "Sister Feng is taking care of her pregnancy, how can she stay here forever?" Then she told him about the trivialities of the day, and then said, "Yes, Sister Feng also asked Fourth Brother to come over when he is free, saying that she has saved some money and wants Fourth Brother to give her some advice on how to make a living."

In the previous episode, Wang Ren, Jia Lian and others were so smart that they simply gave the bicycle factory to the Eastern Palace. It is not known what the prince would do, but he did send the banknotes later.

Feng Jieer made a lot of money and originally managed the Rong Mansion, so she wanted to give some money to the public. But at this time, Jia Lian secretly married You Erjie, and Feng Jieer was so angry that she lost the intention to give money. Not only that, she was also afraid that Jia Lian would take money from her, so she was so anxious.

Besides, I'm afraid it was because of Ping'er. Li Weijian had a headache, but he didn't show it on his face. Seeing that Daiyu was tired, he simply let her take a nap inside and went to find a hall to enjoy the cool air.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye. On this day, Daiyu was invited to visit Shuchun Garden. Li Weijian told her to go to Xiangshan after the court was dismissed.

It was just past noon that day. After Li Weijian had dealt with some miscellaneous affairs, he heard that the emperor had taken the crown prince and the prince of Jin to stroll around the horse farm in the back, so he simply set off for Xiangshan.

Fortunately, it was a cloudy day but it did not rain, so Li Weijian rode his horse and arrived at Xiangshan in less than half an hour.

Li Weijian was a man of great generosity. Yuyuan was originally guarded by the Ding family, but when Sister Feng moved in, he simply moved the Ding family to Jingyuan first. Now, all the people inside and outside the garden were Sister Feng's confidants.

Not far into the inner room, Ping'er came to meet them. The two chatted briefly, and Ping'er seemed to be aware of something, so she lowered her head and said nothing.

They arrived at Zhichun Hall, where they exchanged greetings. The maid served them warm tea and fruits, and Feng Jieer sent the maids and old women away.

Ping'er couldn't sit still any longer, so she made an excuse, "Madam was talking to the Fourth Master about some things over there that haven't been put away." She then went to the study room at the east end.

In the west room, Sister Feng was lying on her side on the bed, her belly bulging more and more. Seeing that no one was around, Li Weijian came over and touched her.

Snapped--

An Lushan's claws were opened, and Sister Feng said unhappily: "I didn't call you, and you didn't say you came to see me."

Li Weijian said: "To avoid suspicion, you think I don't want to come?"

"Hmph." Sister Feng turned her head away.

Li Weijian hurriedly pulled her increasingly plump hand. Feng Jieer struggled twice, then let him play with her. After a moment, Feng Jieer said again: "You can't hide this time."

Li Weijian frowned and said nothing, and Feng Jieer stared at him and asked, "Why, are you going to refuse again?"

Li Weijian lowered his voice and said, "I've told you before, I'm not the second brother of Lian, who wants everyone to be around him. Now that I have Feng'er, how can I have the energy to think about other things?"

Feng Jieer felt very relieved and said proudly, "You are good at talking." After a pause, she continued, "Then consider it as me forcing you, okay?"

Li Weijian said, "Does it have to be this way? Miss Ping'er has always been on the same page with you. I don't think it's necessary."

"No!" Sister Feng raised her voice, then lowered it again and said, "People's hearts are hidden, I can't rest easy if I don't drag her into this. Besides, it's clearly a matter of taking advantage, why do you have to refuse it? Ping'er is not bad looking, don't you want to kiss her?"

Li Weijian smiled, and suddenly lifted Fengjie'er's chin and said, "I would like to have a kiss with Fengjie." Without waiting for Fengjie to say anything, he lowered his head and covered her.

(End of this chapter)