Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 300: Lord Marquis, how far have you and the girl come?

There seemed to be no disturbance in Suzhou's officialdom, and all government affairs were being conducted according to the rules without any delay. However, secretly, there were already raging waves, with huge waves rolling up.

No one knows to what extent Yue Ling will punish the case, how many people will be implicated, and whether he will confiscate the property of the guilty officials and impose a formal punishment, or let them go lightly to calm the disturbance.

The arrival of several imperial envoys from the capital made Emperor Longyou's attitude even more confusing.

Yue Ling was a minister whom Emperor Longyou highly valued. Since he was appointed as the Governor of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, he had full authority to handle the matter. However, three more people were sent now, which might lead to supervision and obstruction. Everyone started to make unwarranted associations.

It was not just the general public who thought this way, but also the provincial government officials in Hangzhou.

The provincial government office, which had been silent for a long time, still had many people coming and going, but Zhao Deyong never met any of them.

Zhao Deyong, who had originally taken sick leave, was now sitting peacefully in the main hall drinking tea, but his heart was already in turmoil.

In fact, he was already in a desperate situation when Yue Ling captured everyone.

The officialdom in Jiangsu and Zhejiang is a group bound together by interests.

This kind of group is very united when it comes to grabbing profits, but if they can no longer make profits, or even sell out their boss to make more profits, they will not hesitate to abandon their former loyalty.

Zhao Deyong knew all of this very well. These people would definitely come after him and do whatever it takes to atone for their sins in order to get a chance to survive, just like they were constantly eating away at his body.

But at this time, a new official was appointed to the capital.

According to common sense, Emperor Longyou wanted a joint trial by three judges to ensure the fairness of the matter, or he did not completely believe the interrogation statement submitted by Marquis Anjing.

This shows that the emperor did not seem to want to make a big deal out of the matter, and at least believed that they still had a role to play in Jiangnan.

While this group is making profits, it is also operating stably and delivering benefits to Your Majesty.

As long as this link is not broken, no matter who becomes the emperor, he will not be willing to break this balance and shake his own country.

Now, Zhao Deyong has started to plan his life again.

"Master, the Zhen family is here again. Can you call them in?"

"Zhen family?"

Zhao Deyong frowned slightly and began to think.

Although the Zhen family is powerful in Jiangnan, the case has now reached the emperor's ears, and they can't do much in the court.

Although the daughter of the Zhen family married into the Beijing County Prince's Mansion, Beijing County Prince Shui Rong was very young and seemed like a nobody in the court and hardly made any comments.

If the Zhen family has anything of some use, it is their huge fortune. If they could donate more money, it would be good to make up for the current predicament in the officialdom of Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

But I'm afraid his family can't come up with the money required.

"Forget it, let's avoid them first. The situation is unclear now, who can agree to their request?"

The housekeeper asked again, "There is a wanderer who has been asking to see you many times outside the office. He knocks on the door every day and says he has business to discuss with you. Should we let him in?"

In fact, it was not so easy for a small ronin to ask for an audience with the prime minister of Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, and it would not be mentioned rashly by the housekeeper.

But the current situation must have been caused by money.

"Business? What business can we talk about nowadays?"

The butler considered and said, "I don't know much, but I heard that the ronin opened a silver mine and had a lot of silver to spend. He wanted to buy some expensive items from us to bring back to the country."

"Master, you know that these uncivilized barbarians think everything is good. They can sell them at a high price without having to give them anything really rare."

"Is it the group from Shuangyu Island?"

"It seems not. Haven't they moved to Fujian now? Otherwise, Master, please call him in to ask him?"

At this sensitive time, the identity of Ronin is particularly sensitive.

But if he could really make a deal, pay this year's taxes, and even make up for the deficit in the national treasury, it would naturally reflect his importance in guarding Jiangnan and his position that even Yue Ling could not shake.

Officials are not afraid of making mistakes, but when it comes to investigation, how many of them are honest and incorruptible? The most feared thing is that they cannot do anything for the royal family.

As a disciple of the current Left Prime Minister, Zhao Deyong does not have much room for maneuver.

"Let me pass on a message to the prison first. A new officer has arrived. They should know that they have a chance to ask for leniency."

……

Maple Bridge Inn,
Early in the morning, Nanny Wang sat in the main hall and expressed her purpose to Yue Ling.

"Greetings, Marquis Anjing. I am here on the orders of my master to report some official business. The old lady of Rongguo Mansion in the capital wrote a letter to my master, asking for mercy for the second master of the Zhen family, Marquis Anjing, to show some leniency."

Yue Ling frowned slightly, but did not interrupt. He continued to sip water, waiting for the nanny to finish her words.

He knew Lin Ruhai and knew that he was not such an unreasonable person.

Seeing the calmness on Yue Ling's face, Nanny Wang nodded secretly, thinking that there is no false reputation under a great name, and Marquis An Jing had his considerations.

"For a case as serious as this, we must not bend the law for personal gain. My master knows this, but for the sake of face, he still wrote a letter and asked Jia Jialian to bring it here."

"In fact, the master did not write anything. You will know when you see it. As for how to deal with the Jia family, you can do whatever you want."

Yue Ling put down the teacup, nodded slightly and said, "Okay, I understand. Please help me, Madam."

Nanny Wang shook her head and said, "Last night, something urgent happened and I hadn't reported it to the Marquis. The young lady allowed me to stay in the room, but this inn is the Marquis's residence. It's not in accordance with the rules to let the young lady make the decision. However, the anniversary of Madam's death will be in a few months. I will take the young lady to pay respects then. I hope the Marquis can understand."

Yue Ling had no reason not to agree, so he smiled and said, "Sister Lin is the boss of this room, so Madam will stay wherever she arranges. As for her mother's death anniversary, I have also made an appointment with Sister Lin. I will take her to pay respects, and Madam can be brought along, it won't be a bother."

Nanny Wang was startled when she heard this. What she meant just now was that Yue Ling was an outsider and she shouldn't mind it. But what Yue Ling meant was that she was an outsider. Yue Ling had already made arrangements with Lin Daiyu and she could just take her along.

This made Wang Ma a little uncomfortable. Could it be that Lin Daiyu and Yue Ling were so close? She was willing to worship the tombstone of the deceased. In the eyes of officials, this was a very unlucky thing. It was too late to retreat.

Nanny Wang had a changed opinion of Marquis Anjing. In the past, when she heard him singing in the streets, she thought he was a rough and fierce general, but now she saw that he was really a considerate and considerate man. No wonder Lin Daiyu followed him so wholeheartedly.

Nanny Wang nodded woodenly, and then saw two little maids walking out from the inner room behind Yue Ling.

Ruizhu carefully made the bed and took out all her old clothes to wash.

Qin Keqing had her period today, and it was finally their turn to do the wet work.

There was an old maid sitting in the hall. They didn't recognize her at all, but since she was led into the inner hall and had a pleasant conversation with their master, she must be someone close to them, so they simply ignored her.

Two people walked into the hall, each holding a ball of clothes.

What Ruizhu was holding was obviously Yue Ling's robe, which was dark blue and very large.

Baozhu, however, was holding a set of women's clothes, a moon-white skirt and hairpins.

After stopping, Baozhu asked, "Master, should we send Miss Lin's changed clothes back to her room and give them to Sister Xueyan, or should we take them out to wash? It's not right to just leave them to the little maid, right?"

The corner of Yue Ling's mouth twitched, and he looked at Nanny Wang again. Her eyes were also dull, staring straight at the clothes that Baozhu was holding, and it seemed as if a string was broken in her mind.

Yue Ling held his forehead helplessly and said, "Just take it down and wash it, and then give it to Xueyan after washing."

"Okay, oh."

"Take it down first, and wash it after dinner."

Baozhu nodded repeatedly, "Then I'll go call Sister Xueyan to come for dinner."

After the two women left, Nanny Wang came to her senses and after much hesitation, she asked, "My Lord, please tell me the truth. You..."

Yue Ling hurriedly laughed and interrupted, "Yes, we eat together every day. It has been like this for six years. We are used to it."

Nanny Wang frowned slightly, but didn't know what to say. She knew that Yue Ling understood what she said, but Yue Ling still pretended not to know, and there was nothing she could do.

Thinking that Lin Daiyu probably hasn't had her period yet and her husband's condition isn't as serious as he should be worried about, Nanny Wang felt much more at ease.

"Mammy, if you haven't eaten this morning, why don't you leave some for me?"

Nanny Wang nodded and said, "It would be disrespectful for this old servant to refuse."

Seeing two tables set up in the room, Nanny Wang was a little surprised that there were so many people in the room.

After a while, a group of little maids gathered under the eaves of the door, chattering and making a lot of noise.

"It's time to eat, it's time to eat, what delicious food should we have today?"

Xueyan was the first to come in. When she looked into the hall, her smiling face disappeared and turned into a crying face. She even took a step back towards the wall.

"Mother Wang..."

Seeing Xueyan being so rude, and in front of Yue Ling, Nanny Wang's brows twitched wildly, as if she was disappointed with her son. She also explained to Yue Ling: "My Lord, the family tradition of the Lin Mansion is not like this. Please don't mind Xueyan's lack of etiquette."

Yue Ling smiled and said, "It's okay. Xueyan is very lively. It's just the nature of a little girl. There's nothing wrong with it."

Yue Ling really didn't care, and Nanny Wang had nothing to say.

Hearing that Xueyan had stopped talking, Lin Daiyu walked in in confusion, and then she found Nanny Wang was there, so she stopped smiling and became a little shy. She walked straight to Yue Ling, and her steps were very stiff, her eyes looking at her nose and her nose looking at her heart, as if she was still feeling guilty about what happened last night.

Yue Ling sat with the girls to dine as usual, and habitually took Lin Daiyu to sit next to him. There was nothing to be taboo about.

The more unnatural she behaves like Lin Daiyu, the more it seems like something fishy is going on. It is obvious that the two of them are still innocent and have never done anything dirty.

Today it happened that Qin Keqing did not come, so the upper seat was vacant. Lin Daiyu called on Nanny Wang to sit next to her. Nanny Wang, thinking of her status as a servant, refused to take the seat and just sat next to Xueyan, facing Yue Ling and Lin Daiyu, and let Xiangling take her place.

"Mother Wang..."

Xueyan smiled awkwardly and moved the small stool aside.

Nanny Wang rolled her eyes and said, "If you dared to act like that in the Lin residence, I would have asked someone to kick you out long ago. Which servant is as ignorant of etiquette as you? Do you want to save the master's face if others see you?"

Xueyan muttered, "This is not the Lin residence, and there are no outsiders here."

"Well, what did you say?"

"No, it's nothing..."

The dishes were served. The breakfast was light, including green rice porridge, red rice porridge, several flavors of porridge, some pickled vegetables, fried spring rolls and other snacks.

On Yue Ling's table, there was also a plate of chopped meat, mixed with minced meat from chicken, duck, pork and beef.

Presumably, it was because they were military commanders and had been busy training troops recently, so they needed to eat more nutritious food. Except for Yue Ling himself, the other girls could not eat greasy food in the morning.

However, Yue Ling usually has some left, after all, there is an exception among the little girls.

"This lotus root powder and cinnamon sugar cake is steamed to perfection. It seems that the chef of this inn has really good skills. Sister Lin, would you like to try it?"

Yue Ling picked up a piece for Lin Daiyu. Lin Daiyu habitually lifted her hair and ate it. She chewed it gently for a few times, nodded slightly, and said, "Well, it tastes good, light and refreshing, with just the right sweetness. Sister Bao, would you like to try it too?"

The little girls around them were used to it, so when the two of them fed each other and picked up food for each other during meals, there was no reaction.

But Nanny Wang, who had just arrived, had never seen this.

"No, this is inappropriate!" Nanny Wang secretly cried out in her heart, "How could the girl be brought up like this? They haven't even gotten married yet, how can they be so close? The master's worry is really not without reason. If the master saw this scene with his own eyes, wouldn't he be so angry that he would die?"

When he looked away, he saw that the bowl of porridge that Xueyan had finished drinking just now was now full again.

Nanny Wang was stunned for a moment, thinking that maybe she remembered it wrongly because she was old, and then she focused on her bowl and chopsticks again.

"Brother Yue, I can't eat anymore."

"OK then."

Hearing the two talking, Nanny Wang looked up again and saw Yue Ling turning Lin Daiyu's bowl upside down in his own bowl. His movements were so skillful that it was obvious that he did this often.

Nanny Wang was even more stunned. "What is this? Young lady, aren't you ashamed? My Lord, he is a stranger after all. Where is your dignity as a lady from a noble family?"

Nanny Wang held back and did not utter a word. After all, they were at the dinner table, and even if she had any opinions she should not have raised them. Especially since Marquis Anjing had kindly invited her to dinner. How could she lose her temper and embarrass the host?

Nanny Wang took a deep breath and didn't know how to reply to the master.

If I were to tell the master exactly what I have seen and heard in the past two days, I would probably be unable to eat or sleep.

But some of them were just her groundless guesses, so she still had to understand them in detail and give her master a definitive conclusion.

Looking down, I saw that Xueyan's bowl was full again.

Nanny Wang found a place to vent her anger. She pressed down Xueyan's bowl with her chopsticks and asked, "How many bowls have you eaten?"

Xueyan counted on her fingers and said, "I, I didn't count either."

Nanny Wang frowned, "This is the last bowl. Why eat so much in the morning? Do you want to go back and rest when you feel sleepy?"

You know what, Xueyan ate too much and really wanted to go back to her room to take a nap.

Xueyan had no choice but to say "oh" reluctantly, and then took a few more pieces of cake to fill her stomach.

"That's enough. Why are you eating so much? Look at your figure now. How can you look like a little maid?"

……

This breakfast was the most depressing one I had ever had.

Because Nanny Wang was present, the girls could not chat and finished their meal in silence.

After Yue Ling finished his breakfast, he put on his official uniform and went to the Suzhou government office to report for duty.

The maids in the room were tidying up everything, and Nanny Wang couldn't help. She found Lin Daiyu and asked her about what she was most concerned about with a frown.

"Miss, I have something to ask you."

Lin Daiyu, who was drinking fragrant tea, felt her heart skip a beat when she heard this. She was stunned for a moment before she forced herself to ask cheerfully, "Mom, what do you want to ask? Just tell me."

Nanny Wang nodded and asked, "Has the young lady had her period?"

Lin Daiyu blushed slightly. How could she speak so bluntly about such a private matter? She stammered, "Mom... why are you asking about this?"

Nanny Wang had already found an excuse: "Considering the girl's age, she should be here within a year. I see that there are only young girls in this room, and no one is older. If there is no one to educate them, it will be difficult to handle such a matter."

"The girl is weak, so she has to prepare early."

Lin Daiyu blushed and nodded, "Thank you for your concern, Mom. I have been here, not long ago."

Nanny Wang was startled and asked, "So early?"

Lin Daiyu nodded without answering.

Nanny Wang regretted it deeply, thinking that the two had really crossed the line last night. She silently lamented in her heart, "Sure enough, as expected, I am still too late. Now I can only hope that Marquis Anjing can be a sensible person."

She tilted her head to look at Nanny Wang who was standing beside her. She looked extremely distressed. She didn't know why her menstruation was causing Nanny Wang so much pain. Lin Daiyu asked in confusion, "Mom, is this a big deal?"

Nanny Wang pounded her thigh in regret. "It's serious, of course it's serious. Alas, it's really the right time, right place, and right people, but I don't have any of them. Why did the master send me here to do anything?"

Lin Daiyu had no idea what Nanny Wang was talking about for no reason, so she kept silent.

Now that Nanny Wang knows that the young lady and Marquis Anjing have crossed the line, she really becomes a troublesome old thing here.

Now that the matter has been settled, there is nothing to be prepared for. Nanny Wang's way of thinking also needs to start changing.

After looking around, Nanny Wang asked, "The girls in this room must all be interested in Marquis Anjing, otherwise they wouldn't be around him. How many of them have spent the night with him?"

Lin Daiyu's face immediately flushed, and she spat softly, "Mom! Why are you asking about such shameless things? People like us should be more self-disciplined, and not gossip about such things behind our backs."

Nanny Wang looked at Lin Daiyu with the same expression as she had just given Xueyan. She was really disappointed with Lin Daiyu. "It's already this time, and you're still holding back. There are so many maids in your room. If a few seductresses come out and disturb your relationship, you won't have anywhere to cry."

Nanny Wang secretly complained in her heart, but she still held back her anger and said earnestly, "Young lady, a man as good as Marquis Anjing is indeed hard to find even with a lantern. The maids in this room all understand this. Now is not the time to be pretentious. You should at least get close to Marquis Anjing."

"But the girl is too young and weak, and the Marquis is a military commander, so his physical strength must be excellent, so we still have to use both light and heavy weapons."

"From now on, girl, just go to the room and chat with me. Don't do anything too intimate. Don't give others an opportunity to take advantage of you."

"With a family background like yours, it's possible that you can get a Duke in the future, or even be granted the title of a king of a different surname, such as the hereditary succession of the Prince of Beijing. If you had a concubine's eldest son earlier, it would not be a good thing."

The rapid fire of words coming out of Nanny Wang's mouth made Lin Daiyu open her mouth in shock.

She had been worried the night before that with Nanny Wang's arrival she would no longer be able to get close to Brother Yue, but she had not expected Nanny Wang to give her so much advice and even support her to walk around Yue Ling's room more often, which made Lin Daiyu a little confused for a moment.

Lin Daiyu suppressed her joy and said hesitantly, "Mom, this is not good. We haven't come to an agreement yet. If the news of a single man and a single woman staying in the same room gets out, the family tradition of our Lin family..."

Nanny Wang clapped her hands anxiously, "Oh my, my little ancestor, it's already this time and you're still acting like this. You've already spent the night with Marquis Anjing, how can you still be so self-controlled? How can you still be innocent? You'd better protect yourself as soon as possible."

Lin Daiyu automatically ignored Nanny Wang's words that were not innocent, raised her eyebrows slightly, and asked, "Then what about Daddy? How do you explain it?"

Nanny Wang calmed down, drank a sip of tea, and waved her hand, saying, "Forget it, Master, I will keep it a secret for the young lady. After all, the marriage will be granted sooner or later, and Master will understand my painstaking efforts."

Lin Daiyu could hardly hold back a smile.

Who could have thought that the governess, who had only been there for one day, would immediately turn against their side on the battlefield? This was something Lin Daiyu had never thought of.

I don't know what she has misunderstood, and Lin Daiyu doesn't want to delve into it. The result is pretty good now. If she really had to keep a distance from Brother Yue, it would be unbearable for her.

At the right moment, Xue Baochai came over the threshold and asked, "Sister Lin, Sister Keqing is ill. Shall we go see her?"

Lin Daiyu quickly stood up, avoiding Wang Ma's gaze, and then said with a smile: "Okay, okay, let's go and take a look."

Xue Baochai gently touched Lin Daiyu's forehead, frowned and asked, "Sister Keqing is sick, why are you still smiling so happily?"

Lin Daiyu's face turned stern. She took Xue Baochai's arm and pulled her, saying, "No, Sister Bao, you are wrong. Come on, let's go quickly."

Xue Baochai bowed to Nanny Wang with apology, and then left with Lin Daiyu...

(End of this chapter)