Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

Chapter 348: Vicious as a Serpent

Jia Zheng beat him with dozens of boards. Only after Jia Mu and Mrs. Wang got the news did they rush to save him.

Fortunately, Jia Zheng was a weak scholar who was usually lazy and had no strength. After being beaten with more than a dozen boards, his hands were already numb and weak.

The next ten or so blows were less severe, but even so, Baoyu's silk trousers on his buttocks were covered in blood and he had fainted.

After all, Mrs. Wang was younger, and Rong Xi Tang was closer to Mengpo Zhai Study. When she arrived, Baoyu had been beaten unconscious.

However, Jia Zheng did not stop and continued to swing the stick weakly, as if he was really preparing to beat his son to death.

Mrs. Wang cried and went over to try to stop them.

He said, "Master, please stop beating me. I am almost fifty years old. I lost Zhu'er before me, and now I only have this evil creature. If you really beat me to death, how can I live?

Besides, it's hot in summer now. Killing Baoyu is a small matter, but if the old lady is frightened, it will be a big matter."

Mrs. Wang and Jia Zheng have been husband and wife for half their lives, and she knows her master's temper. Now that he is angry, she might really beat her son to death without caring about anything.

Moreover, along the way, she had heard that Jin Chuan had jumped into a well. Although she was rescued, it was still unclear whether she was alive or dead, so she felt a little scared.

I don’t know who was so evil-hearted as to tell the master what happened between Baoyu and Jinchuan today, which led to Baoyu getting beaten.

Now there was no time for Mrs. Wang to think about anything else. She only wanted to stop Jia Zheng from using the stick.

Otherwise, if Baoyu was beaten to death, if the old lady knew the cause of the incident, she would say it was all her fault, and Mrs. Wang couldn't even imagine the consequences...

Mrs. Wang knew Jia Zheng's temper very well, and now she could only use words of filial piety to control him and make him stop.

Sure enough, after hearing what Lady Wang said, Jia Zheng's temper softened and he loosened his grip on the household stick.

Baoyu is the old lady's treasure. If he beats her son to death and angers the old lady to death, it would be a terrible disaster.

The wife of a noble duke was made sick or even died by her son because of family affairs. As a son, he would be ruined before he could fulfill his filial duty, and the Rongguo Mansion would not have a good ending.

……

At this time, Jia's mother received the news in Rongqing Hall and hurried over, accompanied by Li Gongcai, Tanchun, Xichun and other sisters.

When Grandmother Jia saw the bloodstains on Baoyu's silk trousers, her heart was broken and she burst into tears. She was about to fall down. Fortunately, the maids such as Yuanyang around her held her tightly.

When Jia Zheng saw this, his face turned pale with fright. The old lady was an elderly person, but she could not withstand great sorrow or joy.

Jia Zheng knelt down quickly and said, "Madam, why did you come here in such hot weather? If you have anything to say, just let your son go and tell him."

Grandmother Jia cried angrily, "If I hadn't come here, you would have beaten my Baoyu to death."

Jia Zheng said, "Madam, Baoyu is not a good person. I teach him a lesson to make him realize his mistakes and to help him bring honor to our family in the future."

Grandmother Jia was so angry that she spat at Jia Zheng and said, "You are talking nonsense! You call this teaching your son a lesson? How can Baoyu bear such a heavy beating?
You want to kill him. How can he bring honor to his family? How can he have such a cruel father like you? Get out of here!"

Jia Zheng was about to argue, but his mother was so angry that she threw her cane and scolded him, "Why don't you get out? Are you so dissatisfied that you have to see him die before you get out? Get out!"

Jia Zheng’s face turned pale, he stamped his feet and sighed, then walked out of the study in a panic, and his back seemed to have aged a lot in an instant.

Feng Ji quickly asked the maid to bring a light rattan stool, and had Baoyu moved onto the stool with his stomach lying on the ground, and then carried him back to the room for treatment.

At this moment, both Jia Zheng and Mrs. Wang had completely forgotten that the whole incident was caused by a maid who jumped into a well, and they didn't know whether this maid was dead or alive now.

Wang Xifeng and Li Gongcai were arguing about how to accommodate Baoyu.

Tanchun was the only one in the crowd who was shrewd enough to think that there must be a good reason why the master would hit Baoyu so hard.

She was a lady living in the boudoir, so it was not easy for her to ask people everywhere. She just asked the maid to find out the reason. In less than half a cup of tea, the maid found out the whole story.

Tanchun's face changed when she heard this, and she asked quickly, "Is Jinchuan dead or alive now after she jumped into the well?"

The secretary replied, "Fortunately, Third Master Cong discovered Jin Chuan in time and had her fished out and saved in time."

Tanchun heaved a sigh of relief and said, "It's good that Jinchuan is fine, otherwise she would have committed a serious crime. Fortunately, there is my third brother, otherwise she would have lost her life in vain."

Then he asked, "Where are the third brother and Jin Chuanren?"

The secretary replied, "Madam wants to kick Jin Chuan out of the house, and there is no place to put her in the house, so the third master has no choice but to place Jin Chuan with Miss Bao. Wait until the doctor sees that she is fine, and then make plans."

……

Rongguo Mansion, Lixiangyuan.

Jia Cong rescued Jin Chuan, but perhaps because of the shock and fright from the life-and-death experience, she remained in a coma, so Jia Cong had no choice but to ask Qingwen to take good care of her.

Tanchun saw that Jia Cong looked unhappy and said, "Third brother, everyone has been rescued. Finally, nothing happened."

Jia Cong shook his head and said, "This maid has a very strong temper. She feels that being driven out of the house by the Madam will make her lose face as a human being. She will probably commit suicide if she is released in the future."

Tanchun frowned, thought for a moment and said, "It's not a big deal. I just made some inquiries and found out that it was my second brother who said something naughty to Jinchuan that angered the lady.

I will go and beg the Madam to not chase Jinchuan away, and the matter will be over."

Tanchun was a smart and capable person. She naturally knew that her brother had been hanging out with the maids since he was a child, and it was common for him to say and do excessive things. As a sister, it was naturally difficult for her to say anything.

From what she heard, most of the fault lies with the second brother, but as a younger sister, it is not convenient for her to say this.

Tanchun had a heroic spirit in her heart. Since she thought something was right, she decided to do it.

And she noticed that her third brother cared about Jin Chuan, probably because he saved Jin Chuan from the well...

Since this is the case, Tanchun wants to help her brother solve the problem and make him happy. Besides, her third brother saved a life and did a good deed.

As long as he begged his wife and gave her a way out, she would most likely not chase Jinchuan away.

When Jia Cong saw Tanchun leaving excitedly, he looked at her back and sighed.

Baochai asked, "Sister Tanchun is a capable woman. If she asks Auntie, it will definitely work. Don't you think it's reliable, Brother Cong?" Jia Cong said, "Third sister has a kind heart, but if she asks Madam, it will probably not work."

Although Jia Cong did not hear Baoyu's teasing words to Jin Chuan with his own ears, he was still clear about the general content...

Baoyu always loves to play around with the maids. It is impossible for Mrs. Wang not to know her son's habits, and such scenes must have been common in her daily life.

How could he drive out the personal maid who had served him for ten years just because he flirted with Jin Chuan? This was a bit unreasonable.

There must be a reason that I didn't expect.

……

Rongguo Mansion, east corridor of Rongxi Hall, Lady Wang’s room.

Just now, a group of people crowded in Baoyu's room, waiting until the doctor came to check the wound. The doctor explained that although the injury was serious, it was only a flesh wound and the tibia was not injured. He would be fine after resting for a month.

Mrs. Wang felt relieved after hearing this, and she left Baoyu's room with Lady Jia and others, leaving only Xiren and other maids to serve Baoyu until he had rest.

A series of things happened during this half day, making Mrs. Wang a little exhausted.

Fortunately, the master beat Baoyu in a rage, and the old lady felt sorry for her beloved grandson who suffered physical pain, so no one paid attention to the reason behind this incident, which made Mrs. Wang feel relieved.

What she didn't expect was that Tanchun suddenly came to plead for Jinchuan, begging her not to drive her out of the house.

This made Mrs. Wang feel a little strange. As far as she knew, Tanchun and Jinchuan had no relationship with each other.

Later, she heard from Tanchun that Jin Chuan jumped into a well and was rescued by Cong'er, which made Mrs. Wang feel relieved.

After all, if Jin Chuan really jumped into the well and died, it would be too unpleasant to hear and would greatly damage her reputation. It is just right that it happens now.

However, when Mrs. Wang thought about it again, she knew why Tanchun suddenly pleaded for Jin Chuan. In the end, it was all for that boy.

Mrs. Wang also knew that the third girl had always gotten along best with her cousin Jia Cong and they usually had a close relationship.

That boy saved Jin Chuan, so naturally he has to be a good person. The third girl is helping that boy.

Baoyu is her biological brother, so why has she never seen her care so much about him? After realizing this, Mrs. Wang felt a little uncomfortable.

……

But things had come to this point, and it was impossible for Mrs. Wang to keep Jin Chuan.

In fact, Baoyu and Jinchuan's flirting was not a big deal to her. As a mother, didn't she know what kind of temper her son had?

But today, when Baoyu was flirting with Jinchuan, Jinchuan said something that offended Mrs. Wang.

Jin Chuan and Baoyu said: I will tell you a trick. Go to the east courtyard and get Huan'er and Caiyun.

Caiyun is also Mrs. Wang's personal maid. She has always been aware that Caiyun and Jia Huan have some unclean relationship.

This kind of thing is not uncommon in a big mansion, but Mrs. Wang turned a blind eye to it, and she had her own deep meaning behind it.

Although Jia Huan was only a bastard's son, he was his master's bloodline after all. Mrs. Wang originally didn't care about such a person, so how could he be overshadowed by Baoyu?

However, since Jia Cong became successful in the mansion, Mrs. Wang's mind has completely changed.

Isn't Jia Cong just a bastard's son? His original position in the mansion was ten times lower than Jia Huan's.

But look at how successful he has become now. He is the number one son of the Jia family with the surname Yu. Although Mrs. Wang is unwilling to admit it, she knows in her heart that her Baoyu is far inferior to him...

Let’s look at Jia Cong’s brother Jia Lian. He is the eldest son and grandson of the first wife, but now he is just a foil in front of Jia Cong.

This couldn't help but make Mrs. Wang think of Baoyu and Jia Huan. Although Jia Huan was far inferior to Jia Cong, he was also raised by such a weird mother like Aunt Zhao.

However, who can predict what goes on in this mansion? Baoyu, her own child, does not like to study and go to school, and it seems unlikely that he will achieve anything great.

If Jia Huan were to become as lucky as Jia Cong one day and become a little successful, he would definitely overshadow Baoyu.

Mrs. Wang felt that as the mistress of the house, she must not let such a thing happen!
So when she found out about Caiyun and Jia Huan's affair, she pretended to be ignorant and let them do whatever they wanted.

Any man in a large mansion who indulges in women will become a waste sooner or later. Just look at the master of the East Courtyard.

Not to mention that Jia Huan is only twelve years old now, he can still control himself...

But she could only keep this thought to herself and not reveal it a word.

But Jin Chuan had already seen through Caiyun and Jia Huan's clues, and even instigated Baoyu to catch them in the act...

If this kind of scandal between a man and a woman were to be exposed, the consequences would be disastrous.

Caiyun was her personal maid. As long as the matter was exposed, Lady Wang would not be able to escape the accusation of not being strict with her subordinates and being indulgent by her stepmother.

And the most important point is that the old lady in the mansion is the top figure in the harem, and Mrs. Wang's tricks are nothing but a show of skill in front of the old lady.

As long as the matter is revealed, the old lady will be able to see through her intentions at a glance and will definitely dislike her daughter-in-law. How will she be able to live in the Jia family then?

Although the old lady did not value illegitimate sons, she was very protective of the Jia family's bloodline.

Apart from anything else, she had disliked the boy for ten years because of Cong'er's biological mother, but she knew that if he stayed in the East Courtyard, he would be beaten to death by his father sooner or later, so she took him to the West Mansion to raise him.

Otherwise, how could that kid be in this situation today.

From this point of view, if the old lady knew that he was so insidious to Jia Huan, how would she view herself, and even how would she treat herself...

Therefore, no matter what the reason was, she had to drive Jin Chuan out of the house to put an end to this topic and also to serve as a warning to other maids in the room to see who would dare to talk nonsense in the future.

Now that Jin Chuan didn't die in the mansion, it can be considered a clean death.

But Jin Chuan had served Lady Wang for ten years. Lady Wang knew Jin Chuan's fiery temper very well. If she drove her out of the house, she would most likely commit suicide because she could not save her face.

But at that time she didn't die in the mansion. Life or death was her own business and had nothing to do with others. This was another kind of cleanliness...!
(End of this chapter)