Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

Jia Cong saw that Xiren had a slender figure and a long face. She was wearing a thin silver-red jacket, a blue satin vest, and a white silk pleated skirt. She behaved properly and spoke generously.

He smiled and nodded, saying: "You are the most important person around Baoyu, so you should persuade him to study more at home and go out less.

Besides, there are many girls in your courtyard, and there are always some who are ignorant, so you have to discipline them more."

Xiren hurriedly bowed and said, "This servant will obey the Duke's order."

"Well, it's a great achievement if you take good care of Baoyu. You will benefit from it in the future. Do you understand?" Jia Cong said.

Xiren was overjoyed and said hurriedly, "Please rest assured, Duke. I will do my best to serve Master Bao."

"Go." Jia Cong waved his hand and sent her away.

Ruyi glanced at him and said, "You are not attracted to this girl again, are you?"

All the women covered their mouths and laughed.

Jia Cong sneered, "Yan'er thinks I am so hungry that I will eat anything. Xiren, although she is somewhat charming and pretty, is just a firefly. You are the bright moon. How can Cong give up the bright moon for a firefly?"

The girls all laughed and said, "He just knows how to tell lies to bluff people."

After chatting for a while, everyone was about to go to the garden for a banquet when they suddenly heard a maid report that an angel had descended from the palace and the Queen asked the princess to come into the palace to talk.

Ruyi looked at Ping'er apologetically and said, "It's unfortunate that I'm going to miss Sister Ping's good day today."

Ping Erh hurriedly said, "Princess, I don't deserve your words. What's the point of lowering yourself to me? The Empress has summoned you, Princess, please go quickly and don't delay me."

Ruyi nodded, took off a purple gold bracelet with two dragons playing with pearls from her wrist, handed it to her and said with a smile: "This was given to me by my mother when I gave birth to a child last year. I am giving it to you today as a token of my respect."

"This... this is too precious. How can I deserve it? I dare not accept it. Please take it back, Princess." Ping'er hurriedly declined with a red face.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Since Yan'er gave it to you, Sister Ping'er, just accept it. Purple gold is fine, but the oriental pearl embedded in the bracelet is valuable. Don't give it to me."

Ruyi glared at him and spat, "Is this for you to use to please your mistress outside?" Then she put it on Ping'er herself.

Jia Cong laughed and said, "I only want to comfort you, the first wife. If I comfort you well, the concubines will naturally be at peace." All the women couldn't help laughing.

Ruyi laughed and scolded, "You bastard, where did you learn this rascally language?" After that, she ignored him and went straight to change clothes and enter the palace.

After seeing Ruyi off, everyone came out together, only to see many prominent maids and wives in the mansion coming to pay their respects and give gifts to Ping'er.

When Ping'er saw Baoyu, Daiyu and many other sisters were there, she hurriedly sent away the people who came to pay their respects, and at the same time ordered the maid to collect the gifts and give them as rewards.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "It can be seen that Sister Ping'er is quite popular. We should not disappoint the people below. Ling'er and Cang'er ask the kitchen to add a few more hard dishes today and say that they are a reward from Miss Ping'er."

"Yes."

Ping Er looked at Jia Cong shyly and sweetly, and said politely, "Thank you for the reward, sir."

Daiyu helped her up and said with a smile, "Don't thank him now. You have worked hard every day and made great contributions, but he just gave you two dishes to send you away. You got a great bargain. He should thank you."

All the girls smiled and said yes.

Everyone came to the Hongxiang Garden chatting and laughing, and saw a tortoise-shell banquet and lotus bedding.

Everyone laughed, "The birthday boy is here." Then they greeted each other and wished each other a happy birthday.

Baoyu greeted Jia Cong and was so happy to see so many sisters and girls coming to celebrate his birthday that he didn't know what to do. He wandered around like a headless fly, serving tea and arranging seats for everyone.

Jia Cong, Baochai, Daiyu and others found a table and sat down. Seeing the lively and bustling hall full of beautiful women, they also laughed and chatted, watching Baoyu busy with nothing.

Baochai whispered, "Cong'er, today is a happy day, why don't you invite Sister Xichun to join us?"

Daiyu also said: "It's Baoyu's birthday, so it's reasonable for Fourth Sister to come."

They had originally agreed to release Xichun after returning from the spring outing, but Jia Cong had been in a bad mood due to the defeat in the Western Regions, so they did not provoke him. Only today, when they saw that he was in a good mood, did they bring up the matter.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Well, let's call her over. I'll see if she still wants to 'purify the six senses and make the four elements empty'"

After a moment's hesitation, he asked tentatively, "How about inviting Miaoyu to join in the fun?"

Baochai smiled at him and said, "Miaoyu likes quietness, so I'm afraid she won't come to join in the fun and watch us feast on fish and meat."

Chu Chan covered her mouth and smiled, "If it were someone else, they wouldn't be able to come. But if Cong'er invites them, maybe they can come."

Jia Cong thought of the hot spring incident and glared at her unhappily. It's all your fault, and you're still blaming me.

Daiyu said sarcastically, "So that's how it is. It's like a mountain stream has found a soulmate. Then go and invite him."

Jia Cong hurriedly said, "Thank you, Sister Chan, for going there in person."

Chu Chan stood up gracefully and said with a smile: "I will definitely fulfill my mission."

After a while, Miaoyu and Xichun followed Chu Chan over and changed out of their black robes.

Everyone greeted them with smiles. Baoyu was overjoyed to see Miaoyu coming. He ignored Xichun and said with a smile, "Master Miaoyu has come. I'm sorry for not welcoming you in person. Please sit here." At the same time, he turned around and ordered the vegetarian food to be prepared.

Miaoyu glanced at him indifferently and said, "Happy birthday, Master Bao. You go and do your own thing. Don't bother with me. Miss Chan and I will sit at the same table." After that, she followed Chu Chan to sit at Jia Cong's table.

"Um... okay." Baoyu was a little embarrassed, smiled and walked away.

Seeing this, Sister Feng said with a smile, "Baoyu, your sisters-in-law and I don't even have a seat yet, and you don't even say hello, and you're acting like the host."

"I'm coming right now. I'm sorry for not welcoming you well, sister." Baoyu laughed and went over to make arrangements.

Xichun walked up to Jia Cong and bowed weakly, "Third brother."

"Yeah." Jia Cong nodded. Seeing that she had lost weight and looked haggard, he took her little hand and took a look. As Baochai said, she had frostbite and it was red, swollen, and cracked. Although it had gotten better with the warmer weather, it was not fully healed after all.

Yin asked, "Do you still want to become a nun and practice Zen?"

Xichun hurriedly shook her head. These days she deeply understood that life is not poetry, Buddhism is not a panacea, and Buddhism is not a pure land of freedom and bliss.

I get up at the crowing of the cock every day, and it is already the middle of the night when I finish my chores. I am so exhausted that I just want to fall asleep. I haven't even turned a page of the scriptures in the past few months, let alone meditate.

Moreover, the daily meals in the nunnery consisted of vegetables, tofu, radishes and cabbages, without any meat or fine pastries or fruits. She felt so miserable that she could only swallow the bitter pill with tears.

Miaoyu said, "The fourth girl has been practicing Buddhism these days and has understood the Buddhist principles. They are not in the temple but in your heart. Your Buddhist practice has also reached a higher level. It can be considered that you have completed your merits."

Xichun's eyes turned red, and she no longer dared to pretend to be tough in front of Jia Cong. She cried, "Third brother, I was wrong. I won't do it again."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Why are you crying? No one is perfect. It doesn't matter if you make a mistake. You can still be a good girl if you correct it. Go and play with your sisters." After saying that, he glanced at Tanchun.

"Fourth sister, come and sit at our table." Tanchun hurried over and pulled Xichun away with a smile. After all, they were children at heart, and the sisters' laughter could be heard again.

"Thank you very much." Jia Cong smiled at Miaoyu and said, "I will toast you a glass later."

Miaoyu said, "I don't drink."

Seeing the women looking at him with a half-smile, Jia Cong felt a little embarrassed and said, "I drink wine, you can drink tea instead. By the way, what kind of water do you use to make tea? I don't have any of your messy water here."

All the girls laughed.

Miaoyu rolled her eyes at him fiercely and said, "Just be like everyone else." Jia Cong smiled and said, "Very good, very good. Fairies from the mountains should come down to earth occasionally."

Miaoyu blushed, and seeing that many of Jia Cong's wives and concubines were present, it was inconvenient to say more, so she just ignored him.

Daiyu smiled and said, "Don't be surprised, young lady. Brother Cong has always admired you very much and he didn't mean to tease you."

Miaoyu and Daiyu were on good terms. She had invited Daiyu to drink tea several times before, so she said, "Madam, you worry too much. How could Miaoyu take vulgar people's words to heart?"

All the girls laughed secretly when they heard her mocking Jia Cong's vulgarity.

Jia Cong chuckled, his teeth itching with hatred. What a little fairy! She had taken a bath with a layman the other day, but now she was dressing so ruthlessly. Seeing that no one was paying attention, he quietly stretched out his leg to hook her calf.

Miaoyu suddenly felt something rubbing against her calf. She was startled and looked up. She saw Jia Cong looking at her with a wicked smile. She trembled all over and almost knocked over the teacup.

This scoundrel is so shameless that he teases me without even looking in public. Does he want to kill me?

"Miss, be careful." Chu Chan said with a smile, reaching out to hold the teacup for her.

Miaoyu forced a smile and said, "Thank you, Miss Chan, for preventing my hand from slipping." As she spoke, she stood up to sort out the teacups and sat further away without leaving a trace, thinking that Jia Cong was out of reach.

None of the girls noticed. Jia Cong smiled and retracted his long legs. He raised his eyebrows and said, "It's normal to make mistakes occasionally. I don't think the master will mind."

Miaoyu was both embarrassed and angry, but she couldn't confront him in person, so she just pretended not to hear.

Baochai and Daiyu noticed that the two men were acting a little strange, and looked at each other with a confused look on their faces.

"This place is empty, let's come and sit down." Suddenly a laugh was heard, and Xiangyun pulled Baoqin to sit at Jia Cong's table.

"They said there should be a birthday person at each table, so I pulled Xiaobao over." Xiangyun said with a carefree smile.

Baoqin covered her mouth and chuckled, greeting all the sisters.

Baochai smiled and said, "That's just right, there are not many people at our table."

The girls seemed not to notice, but they actually knew who should sit where.

Without an invitation, no one would dare to go up and drink with Jia Cong, Baoyu and Daiyu. Only Xiangyun was generous and didn't care about these details. She pulled Baoqin over.

Therefore, besides Jia Cong, there were only six people at the table: Bao, Dai, Chan, Miaoyu, Xiangyun, and Baoqin.

Soon everyone was together, wine, food and fruits came in like flowing water, and two female prostitutes came up to tell stories.

Everyone said, "None of us want to listen to those wild words. Go outside and tell them to the mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law."

Xiren hurriedly sent the two maids away.

Daiyu smiled and said, "When it comes to telling stories, even ten prostitutes tied together cannot compare to him." She pointed her spring-scallion-like jade finger at Jia Cong.

The girls had long heard that Jia Cong was an excellent storyteller, but many of them had never heard him before, so they all looked over expectantly.

Miaoyu was very surprised and asked Chu Chan in a low voice: "He...can also tell stories?"

"The best in the world." Chu Chan laughed softly.

Jia Cong had heard the two whispering and said with a smile, "If Master Miaoyu wants to listen, I can tell you a story, but I'll charge you for the tea."

Miaoyu blushed and spat, "Who would listen to your country talk?"

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Okay, next time I'll tell you a story about a fight between goblins and scare you to death."

Miaoyu said calmly: "The Buddha's light shines everywhere, and all demons and monsters are subdued."

Chu Chan couldn't help laughing, and seeing Miaoyu looking at her with some anger, she waved her hands and said, "I'm not laughing at you. I'm laughing at Cong'er for not knowing how high the heavens are and how deep the earth is. He dared to show off the fairy story in front of the Bodhisattva. Isn't he afraid of offending the Bodhisattva?"

As she spoke, her eyes were watery as she glanced at Jia Cong, "You dirty bastard! I knew you had no good intentions towards her."

Baochai and Daiyu knew Jia Cong very well. Although they did not quite understand the story of the fight between the goblins, they could guess that it was not a good thing, so they spat, "You are so outspoken. I punish you by telling you a story."

Jia Cong stood up, smiled and bowed, saying: "All right, Madam has given an order, how dare I disobey?
Let me tell you a little story. Do you think that all demons are ugly with green faces and fangs? That is totally wrong. In fact, some demons are not only beautiful, but also quite talented. "

Baoyu's eyes lit up, and he instantly grasped the two key words of beauty and literary talent, and said hurriedly: "It must be a good story."

All the girls rolled their eyes at him and couldn't stand hearing the word "beauty".

Baoqin said in a silly and cute way: "Brother Cong, fairies also read books? Are they more talented than Sister Bao and Sister Lin?"

The two girls were very embarrassed and said angrily, "Qin girl, you are talking nonsense again. How can you compare me to a demon?"

Baoqin stuck out her tongue and apologized quickly.

Jia Cong laughed and said, “Although he cannot compare with Sister Bao and Pin’er, I think he is not inferior to Baoyu.

It is said that there was a scholar, who was tall and strong, who was reading at night. Suddenly, he saw two beauties coming towards him together, one was seventeen or eighteen years old, and the other was fourteen or fifteen years old. They looked at him with sweet smiles, and their complexions were very beautiful.

The scholar had some knowledge and knew that it was not a human, but a demon in disguise, so he chased it away with a serious look.

Everyone was listening intently when suddenly Baoyu stamped his feet and said, "You deserve to die for rudeness, beautiful lady! This fool has no eyes, how can he recognize a demon?
Besides, even if they are monsters, there are good and bad monsters, so how can we generalize them? "

The girls laughed and said, "Baoyu is being silly again."

Jia Cong laughed and said, "Baoyu died under the peony flowers, and even as a ghost he was still a romantic man. How can a scholar compare to him?"

Baoyu said shyly, "Don't talk about me, tell me the story first."

"The older girl said: Your beard is like a spear, how can you not be a man? The scholar said: I have never dared to be two-faced in my life."

"Good! He is a gentleman." The girls praised.

Jia Cong sneered, "What kind of gentleman is this? He is just afraid that the demon will suck his yang energy. If it were a mortal girl, he would probably dare to do it."

Daiyu said angrily, "Bah, you think everyone else is the same as you."

"Hehe, sorry to make you laugh. But the girl said with a smile: "What a pedantic scholar, even ghosts and gods want to confuse right and wrong, why do you care about such a trivial matter between men and women?"

The women were all embarrassed and their faces turned red. Only Chu Chan, Feng Jieer, Youshi, Keqing and other experienced people listened with great interest.

"The scholar was unmoved and kept scolding. The girl knew that seduction could not move his heart, so she smiled and said: 'You are a famous scholar. I have a couplet. Please match it with me. If you can match it with me, you can leave.'" Jia Cong said.

Baoyu asked hurriedly, "What's the first line of the couplet?"

Jia Cong chuckled and said, "This couplet has a profound meaning. Please think about it and see if you can match it. Listen: Wuxu is of the same body, but there is only a little lack in the belly."

"Bah! What an obscene couplet." Baochai, Daiyu and other married talented women understood what was going on instantly, and hurriedly covered their faces with handkerchiefs, spat in shame.

Baoqin was still young, and asked curiously, "Sister, I think this couplet is quite clever, what's wrong with it?"

Xiangyun didn't understand either, so she kept asking.

Baochai glared at Jia Cong and said angrily, "You two are such talkative people, stop talking. What good words are you trying to learn? You will be laughed at if you don't do that."

The two girls were most impressed by her, and quickly shut up and thought, but they were at a loss. (End of this chapter)