Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 261: The Map of Love

There is a pen and ink on the desk under the window in the room, and the bookshelf in the room is filled with books.

Zijuan made a cup of hot tea and came over, and saw her daughter looking for books on the bookshelf.

Although it is early autumn, the weather is not too cold.

After the Cold Clothes Festival on the first day of October, the weather will start to get cooler, and the sisters in the garden will put away their summer clothes and change into autumn clothes.

But Daiyu was always afraid of cold and would cough when she got cold, so she changed into autumn clothes early. She wore a light yellow vest with dark patterns, a white round-necked jacket, and a moon-white long skirt with dark patterns.

The light yellow double-breasted vest is elegant in color and fits closely to the body, making Daiyu's slender figure look even more graceful.

Although Daiyu's room is a girl's boudoir, it does not have a strong scent of rouge, but is filled with a strong atmosphere of books.

The Lin family has been a family of marquises for five generations, so it goes without saying that the family is wealthy. Lin Ruhai is well-educated, a top scholar in the imperial examination, and a book lover.

It was because of the influence of her father since childhood that Daiyu became obsessed with books and became well-versed in reading.

When she first came to the Jia Mansion, she told Lady Jia that she would start taking medicine as soon as she was able to eat.

In fact, you can read while eating.

She was still young when she entered the Jia Mansion. The most she brought with her were a lot of rouge, skirts and hairpins, but she also brought with her a collection of boxes of books.

After arriving at the Jia Mansion, Lin Ruhai sent gifts to his daughter every year, most of which were various books.

It is only through years of accumulation that Daiyu's room is filled with piles of books.

In the Jia family, Jia Cong devoted himself to the imperial examinations and was a man who loved reading.

With plenty of money, it was common for her to buy books and hide them away, otherwise Yinglian wouldn't have to take care of the study so specially.

But his collection of books cannot compare with Daiyu's.

……

Daiyu searched the lower shelves for a long time, but couldn't seem to find what she was looking for.

Seeing her daughter holding a stool and standing on it, Zijuan reached for the books on the upper shelf.

Her graceful figure was like a willow, and she seemed quite agile, climbing high or stepping low without any scruples.

Zijuan exclaimed, "Oh, girl, stop doing that. Be careful not to hurt your waist. This is not fun. I'll help you find what you are looking for. Don't climb so high."

Daiyu laughed and said, "It's just a stool. How can you be so fragile? You don't understand the book I'm looking for. I have to do it myself."

Ever since that year when Daiyu had an argument with Baoyu and Baoyu was so angry that she vomited blood, the relationship between the cousins ​​has become distant and unfamiliar.

Daiyu, however, seemed to have gotten rid of the root of her problem and no longer cried as much as she did when she was a child.

In recent years, with Jia Cong always accompanying her, her mind is not as sensitive and melancholy as before.

My body and mind feel more open and my complexion is much better. I am no longer sickly as I was when I was a child.

But she was born with a deficiency after all. Even though she was less sad and self-torturing, her constitution was still much weaker than that of her sisters like Sanchun.

Following Lady Jia's instructions, Zijuan has always taken great care of Daiyu.

Normally, whether Daiyu read for too long or wasted her time doing needlework, Zijuan would always patiently dissuade her.

Now that I see her climbing up and down, I’m afraid that this lady of mine might fall or get hurt.

All that was heard was Daiyu's joyful cry: "Oh, it is here indeed, I found it."

Seeing her daughter find a strange book that was much larger than an ordinary book, Zijuan asked curiously, "Girl, why does this book look strange?"

Daiyu smiled and said, "This is not a book, it is a map. When I first came to the capital, my father was afraid that I would be bored on the way, so he gave me this map. I haven't read it for a long time.

It not only depicts the route from Yangzhou to Shenjing, but also depicts the territories of each state in the Great Zhou Dynasty. My father said that by looking at the map, one can understand the mountains and rivers of the world. "

Zijuan only understood half of what she heard and asked in confusion, "Young lady, why do you want to find this thing to look at it?" After hearing Zijuan's question, Daiyu frowned slightly, her eyes were full of worry, and the joy she had just felt when she found the map disappeared in an instant.

He said: "My third brother has received a new order, and he will follow the Ministry of War to inspect the nine borders at the end of the year. Those places are extremely remote and lonely, far away from the capital.

I looked for the map just to see how far the third brother would have to go and when he would be able to come back."

……

Zijuan saw that her girl's voice was full of reluctance and sadness when she finished speaking, which made people feel a little distressed.

Daiyu said quietly, "Since Third Brother won the first place in the imperial examination, I haven't seen him take a break.

He went to Nanjing for half a year on an imperial mission, and after returning he studied hard at home to prepare for the provincial examination.

Now that I have finally passed the provincial examination, I am busy with firearms every day and have to go to such a far place like the Nine Frontiers."

Zijuan comforted her, "I advise you to relax. Do you hope that the Third Master can do something good, or not?"

Daiyu raised her eyebrows slightly, and there was a hint of pride in her words: "Is there any man in this mansion more capable than my third brother?"

Zijuan chuckled and replied, "That's right, someone as capable as the Third Master can do a lot of things, and he doesn't have to run around to build a career.

If he is a guy who hangs out at home every day, how can he please girls? "

Daiyu blushed and spat, "You silly girl, what nonsense are you talking about? When did Third Brother ever please me?"

Zijuan smiled slightly, knowing that she was shy.

They were the closest master and servant and could talk about anything. They both understood the matter best, but whenever he mentioned it, the girl would always deny it, which was quite amusing.

Zijuan's words of consolation were quite clever, and Daiyu felt a little happier.

Zijuan changed the subject, looked at the map in Daiyu's hand, and asked curiously, "Miss, tell me, which places on this map are the places where the Third Master would go?"

……

At this time, a gentle laugh sounded at the door and echoed in the room: "Sister, you want to know where I will go, why don't you ask me."

Daiyu replied in a charming voice, "Third brother is busy every day, leaving early and returning late, and I can't see him even if I want to ask."

When she saw Jia Cong coming in, she turned around and smiled, like a rare flower just blooming, like raindrops carrying pearls. Her graceful figure was like a willow, with the hem of her skirt fluttering gently, making her indescribably beautiful and charming.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "I was a bit busy recently, but I can probably relax from now on."

The firearms workshop has already figured out the various regulations for making porcelain bombs, so all they need to do from now on is to follow the schedule, and he won't have to supervise and worry about it every day.

He took the map from Daiyu's hand, turned to one of the pages, and pointed to nine locations stretching from east to west on the map.

He said: "The nine border military towns of the Great Zhou are distributed from the Yalu River in the east to Jiayuguan in the west, with a distance of more than 10,000 miles from east to west."

Daiyu was surprised: "Such a long distance, wouldn't it take Third Brother several years to walk?"

Jia Cong smiled and said, "It won't take as long as my sister said. It will only take half a year for a fast horse to go back and forth.

The itinerary has not been determined yet, but the Jurchens are in chaos in Liaodong, and the three towns of Liaodong, Jizhou and Xuanfu are the first to be affected. I estimate that I will only inspect these three towns.

This way, the round trip time can be cut in half. If you leave at the end of the year, you can probably return when the spring comes next year.”

In fact, this is just Jia Cong's guess. The border patrol route is confidential and will not be revealed in advance until a few days before departure.

He knew that Daiyu was sensitive and sensible, and was always thinking about him, so he deliberately shortened the journey just to comfort her.

　We are back to work after the holidays, there is a lot to do and I am still working overtime.

　　I can't manage my time well. Sorry, I'll take a day off.

　　Updates will resume tomorrow.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)