Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 401: The Silk Clothes Once Smelled Like This Flower

But Youshi came out of Rongguo Mansion crying and took a blue woolen carriage to look for You Sanjie's residence. When Ningguo Mansion was searched, Youshi's floating property was also searched and seized, so she had no remaining property. In the past few years, she had lived in Rongguo Mansion, and apart from the monthly allowance, she had no other income.

Because they were out this time, except for Yindie, all the other maids were dismissed. In a blink of an eye, they arrived at the residence of the third sister in the outer city. Youshi and Yindie got off the carriage, carrying only two small bags. However, they saw that the house that was crowded with people in the past was now closed to visitors, and they didn't know why.

Yindie went up and knocked on the door. After a while, the door opened. The maid inside took a few glances before letting the two in. Yu Shi collected her thoughts and went inside. She casually asked the maid, "Is your daughter not here? Why didn't anyone come?"

The old woman said, "The girl is sick and is lying in the house. I don't know how many days she can survive."

Yu-shi was startled and asked hurriedly, "What do you mean by that?"

The old woman curled her lips, sighed and said, "Don't ask, grandma. The girl will know when she sees her."

Yushi and Yindie hurried inside. The door was closed on a spring day, and there was a strong smell of urine. Looking over, they saw Third Sister Yu lying on the bed, barely breathing, covered with a thick quilt, her face pale, with only a pair of eyes still showing some spirit.

Youshi rushed over and said, "Third sister, what's wrong with you?"

Third Sister You whispered, "What's wrong? I'm poisoned."

It was Third Sister You who attracted many men. By chance, she met Qiu Yu, the youngest son of Marquis Jingtian, in the twelfth month of last year. Qiu Yu was in his early twenties. His wife died of dystocia in early childhood. He was mild-mannered and pedantic, but he was sincere. Third Sister You was grateful that she was getting old and would have to get married one day, so she followed the rules when getting along with him. She neither accepted the money given by Qiu Yu nor urged him to marry her as his principal wife.

Unexpectedly, in February, a benefactor from Jiangnan came to visit her. Since the third sister didn't have much money at the time, she pretended to be nice to him, but she didn't expect that Qiu Yu would see it.

This person was gentle, but he could not tolerate any grain of sand in his eyes. He suppressed his anger and pretended not to know. He went to find You Sanjie to drink again the next day. You Sanjie felt guilty and was kind and gentle. Unexpectedly, the wine was poisoned. Qiu Yu drank a few more cups and died on the spot with blood coming out of all seven orifices. You Sanjie scratched her throat and vomited out most of the poison, but the remaining poison remained in her body. Although she consulted doctors and took medicine every day, her body became weaker and weaker.

After saying this, Third Sister You sighed and said, "It's retribution... Ever since the Ning Mansion fell, I thought I had figured out the love barrier and would just play around in the world from now on. I didn't expect that after all the hard work I'd meet a true lover, I'd end up dying at his hands."

Yushi was heartbroken because she was driven out of the Rong Mansion, and when she saw her half sister dying, she burst into tears and clamored to invite a famous doctor to treat her.

Third Sister You reached out her hand and grabbed him, saying, "Don't bother, it's useless. I'm thinking now that it's better to die. Who knows, Yu Lang might be waiting for me at the gates of hell. It's not necessarily a bad thing that my eldest sister has left the Jia family. It's a pity that I never avenged my second sister until I died."

Yu Shi cried and shook her head, saying, "The Wang family was involved in a lawsuit, and even Wang Ziteng and Wang Zisheng were imprisoned. Feng Jieer was also divorced. We have avenged all our grudges."

Third Sister You let out a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "That's fine. Living is worse than death, isn't it more painful than death?"

Yu Shi cried for a long while, then she gathered her thoughts and began to take care of Yu Sanjie, regardless of the filth.

Jinglingbo Mansion.

Daiyu was filled with regret after hearing what Li Weijian said. She said, "It is obvious that justice is always in the cycle of fate. If Third Sister You had behaved properly, she would have found a good marriage partner, but she is so ignorant. So, what does the Marquis of Jingtian say?"

Li Weijian said, "What else can I say? The poisoned wine was prepared by Qiu Yu, and the Marquis of Jingtian is also embroiled in lawsuits right now, so how can they care about Qiu Yu drinking poison and committing suicide?"

Daiyu couldn't help but frown and said, "These are troubled times."

Li Weijian sighed, "Who says it's not true... The prince has been ill since the twelfth lunar month, and he hasn't gotten better. I went to see him today and saw that he was extremely thin. I don't know how long he can survive."

Daiyu knew that Li Weijian was trusted by the loyal and brave prince, so she said, "I just hope that the prince can get better. Otherwise, this saint's heart is not right, which is not a good thing."

Li Weijian added: "If we ignore this matter, the imperial court will send troops to the south again. I'm afraid this time it will be disastrous."

"what?"

Emperor Zhenghe felt that he had grown up and his achievements in civil and military affairs were comparable to those of Emperor Taizong Li Guo. He was so proud of himself that he began to purge the four kings and eight dukes. The nobles were unwilling to wait for death, and the tribute list had rebellious intentions and repeatedly violated the border. King Nan'an then advocated a war to conquer southern Xinjiang.

According to the court's plan, the Shun-Myanmar border is mountainous and it is difficult to deploy a large army. It would be better to dispatch a part of the army to serve as the main force and the main force to the south as the auxiliary force. In this way, the Gongbang can be pacified by attacking from both north and south. However, the King of Nan'an has his own thoughts. He is thinking that if Yue Zhongqi is the main force in this battle, how can he get much of the credit?

As soon as they arrived in southern Xinjiang, they could not wait to gather 30,000 local soldiers and join forces with the border troops of the two towns to attack. Now they have received reports that the progress is smooth. From the map, they know that this must be a plan by the Burmese to lure the enemy deep into their territory. Moreover, the man Li Weijian recommended to the teacher was not used by the King of Nan'an, and only got the job of transporting grain and grass.

In this case, this battle is dangerous.

Just as she was about to talk about something else, Qianxue came in and said that an official from the inner court was looking for her. Li Weijian gave her a few instructions and went to meet her. Daiyu had just had a cup of almond tea when Qingwen and Xiangling came to look for her.

The two girls entered, and Qingwen took a look and asked, "Why did the Fourth Master leave?"

Daiyu said angrily, "Fourth brother has his own official duties, and I am not like you, who would like to tie Fourth brother to your side all the time."

Qingwen looked embarrassed, but she said confidently, "Madam, you can just tease me. I won't change anyway. There are so many sisters in the family now, and it will only be a matter of time before it's your turn. Don't you have to keep a close eye on me?"

Xiangling reached out and poked Qingwen on the forehead: "How dare you say such shameless words!"

Qingwen squinted her eyes and said, "It's all done, why can't I say anything?"

Xiangling's face immediately turned red, and she pinched Qingwen before she stopped.

At this time, Qingwen came closer and thought, "Madam is old enough now. I think the marriage consummation should be done sooner rather than later."

Daiyu was annoyed: "I knew you were such a pusher. Now you dare to say anything!"

Qingwen said, "How can it be said that this is a serious matter between husband and wife?"

Daiyu was just flustered at first, but she calmed down after a while. Since she married into the Bo's mansion, she had been with Li Weijian day and night, doing everything except being serious, so she was not as flustered as before.

Daiyu knew Qingwen's personality, so it was not certain that someone else had instigated this. Daiyu also knew why Li Weijian respected her, so except for Fu Qiufang who had to give birth to Lian'er because of her old age, the rest of the sisters had never been pregnant.

Why? Of course, they had to wait for the head wife Daiyu to give birth to a legitimate son. But waiting like this was not a solution. Daiyu was already sixteen, and the second sister Yingchun was already twenty. How could they wait any longer?
Daiyu reached out her hand and poked Qingwen, scolding her, "You are always urged by others to say these nonsense." Qingwen said, "I know what they are thinking...but I also want to have a child."

Daiyu had no way to deal with her, so she said with a threatening face, "I know."

Qingwen was puzzled and was about to ask again, but was quickly stopped by Xiangling who said, "Since Madam said she knew, she must have a plan in mind. Qingwen, stop talking."

Qingwen stopped talking and lingered for a while. Qingwen and Xiangling left together, and Daiyu was left in the room thinking about it. Zijuan saw this and served another glass of snow yogurt. She couldn't help but whispered: "Miss, I think Qingwen is right. Your health has been getting better in the past few years. It's really not good to delay it any longer. You know, Miss Yun will get married in winter."

Daiyu said stubbornly, "It's up to Yun to marry into the family. What does it have to do with me?"

Xueyan on the side said quickly: "Miss, Miss Yun has always been strong and healthy. If Miss Yun has a legitimate son first, it will be hard to say who will inherit the title in the future."

Daiyu was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, and said, "I only wanted to be with my fourth brother forever, so I never thought about so many things."

But even so, Daiyu could not help but be tempted. Zijuan and Xueyan usually served Li Weijian in the East Branch Room. Although Daiyu could not peek, the obscene sounds were so enchanting that it made her feel like she was growing weeds in her heart.

After a long silence, Daiyu sighed and said, "It's not that I don't want to do it now. Even if I am willing, Fourth Brother should bring it up first. It's not reasonable for me to be the first one to do it."

Zijuan immediately smiled and said, "This isn't an easy matter. If you believe me, I'll go and tell the master about it later."

Daiyu hummed twice, neither saying yes nor no. Zijuan and Xueyan looked at each other and knew what was going on.

After Li Weijian met his subordinates and entered the ceremonial gate, he saw Zijuan coming towards him from afar.

Li Weijian immediately asked with concern: "But my sister sent you to look for me?"

Zijuan smiled and covered her mouth, leaning closer and whispering, "I'm here to congratulate the master."

"Where does joy come from?"

Zijuan said jokingly, "This matter must not be spread to anyone else. Master, please come closer and listen."

Li Weijian leaned over to Zijuan's ear and whispered a few words. Li Weijian smiled at first, then frowned and said, "My sister is still young, don't worry."

Zijuan said, "Master, the lady has grown an inch taller. The imperial physician examined her a few days ago and said that she is getting better."

This is true. Daiyu had some lung dysplasia at first, but it has gradually improved in the past two years. Even if she caught a cold in autumn and winter, it would only take a few days to recover, not as long as before.

Leaning closer, Zijuan whispered again, "Besides, the Madam has agreed, why is the Master still being so hypocritical? If it drags on, I'm afraid the other concubines in the family won't be able to stand it."

Li Weijian thought about it and agreed with a smile.

It happened that it was Daiyu's turn that day, and Li Weijian was very considerate and gentle, which I won't describe in detail. When the next morning came, Daiyu frowned as she stood up. Seeing Li Weijian's concern, Daiyu shook her head and said, "I'm afraid that Fourth Brother didn't have a good time yesterday."

Li Weijian smiled and said, "There is still a long way to go, don't worry, sister."

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

Rongguo Mansion.

However, Aunt Zhao became more and more arrogant, always acting like the second wife, causing the whole family to hate her. Jia Zheng, who was in mourning, became more and more annoyed with her, and one day, because she quarreled with the servants, he picked her up and gave her a good scolding.

Aunt Zhao felt very aggrieved and thought to herself, after all, Madam Wang died and Wang Xifeng left, but who would have thought that she would rather let Ping'er, who had no status and no position, take care of the household affairs than let her manage it, how could this be possible?
Moreover, Jia Zheng was idle at home, and he was more devoted to Baoyu, calling him over every day to ask about his homework. However, he ignored Jia Huan, and his behavior made Aunt Zhao more and more resentful.

That day, Aunt Zhao came back to the courtyard and was so annoyed by everything that she couldn't help but knock over the teacup. At this time, Jia Huan came in, took a quick look and said, "Who is so blind that he offended mother again? Tell me, I will avenge you!"

Aunt Zhao cried, "Master is so obsessed with Baoyu's studies that it looks like Baoyu will be the head of the family in the future. Where will we go?"

When Jia Zheng was mentioned, Jia Huan suddenly became silent.

Aunt Zhao continued, "Now Jia Lian still relies on the master to support the family, but sooner or later the first and second branches will have to separate. The second branch has not inherited the title, so I'm afraid we can't stay in this mansion. In recent years, the family has been increasingly unable to make ends meet, and the master has so little money and food. If he really moves out, how can we live a good life?"

Jia Huan rolled his eyes and said, "Mom, Brother Lian is not a big deal. I heard privately that Brother Lian has contracted a heart disease, and I'm afraid it will be bad for our offspring."

"Really?" Aunt Zhao suddenly perked up.

Jia Huan nodded continuously and recounted what he had overheard the servants say in private.

Aunt Zhao thought for a while after hearing this and said, "In that case, there is no need to divide the family for the time being. But there is still Baoyu above, so it will not be your turn anyway."

Jia Huan gritted his teeth and said, "Everyone in the family treats Baoyu like a treasure. Everyone is waiting for him to get married and start a family, and take charge of the family. If Baoyu died, I would be able to inherit the family title. Unfortunately, Baoyu didn't die."

Aunt Zhao said angrily, "I'm not afraid that he won't die, I'm just afraid that we are not hard-hearted enough. You are out there with those young rascals every day. Is there anyone useful among them? We might as well spend a lot of money, and Baoyu will be dead even if he has a hundred heads!"

The mother and daughter started to argue about it, but they were worried that Baoyu was now only studying at home and could not leave the house easily.

After thinking for a long while, Aunt Zhao suddenly said, "We have to go to the old lady's grave to kowtow on Qingming Festival. The journey is long and we may have to stay at Tiekan Temple. Why not take this opportunity to do it?"

Jia Huan clasped his hands together and praised, "Yes, that's right." He paused, then said with embarrassment, "It's just that my friends are not willing to help easily. I'm afraid that mother won't be able to help without paying a large sum of money this time."

Aunt Zhao gritted her teeth and said, "Just wait." She stood up and went into the inner room, rummaging through boxes and cabinets, and soon took out some gold and silver jewelry. She said, "I have only saved this much over the years. Don't be stingy this time. Just take Baoyu's life!"

(End of this chapter)