Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 395: Thinking every day and dreaming at night

"Third sister, what's wrong with you? You don't look very well, are you homesick?"

In order to comfort the newly arrived sisters of the Jia family, Lin Daiyu specially arranged their seats next to herself so that she could take care of them at all times.

When Xueyan brought Tanchun in, he found that she looked unwell and a little flustered, and he didn't know what had happened.

Hearing Lin Daiyu's greeting, the girls all raised their heads and looked over.

After taking a quick look, especially when she saw Qin Keqing, Xue Baochai and others whom Tanchun had just met, she felt more and more uneasy.

Suppressing her anxiety, Tanchun came to the empty seat next to Lin Daiyu and said with a forced smile, "Nothing happened. I just took a casual walk outside. Maybe I got caught in the wind."

Lin Daiyu nodded slightly, feeling relieved, and said, "That's good. This is your first time staying away from home, and I'm afraid I haven't treated you well enough. If you feel uncomfortable, just tell me and I'll help you solve it."

Without raising her head, she arched her eyes and furtively glanced at Qin Keqing and Xue Baochai opposite her. However, she saw that their expressions were very calm, as if nothing had happened just now. Tanchun felt even more embarrassed to speak.

Shaking her head repeatedly, Tanchun said firmly, "No, no, no, Sister Lin's hospitality is very thoughtful. She will stay with us at night. I am afraid of disturbing your rest. After all, you are tired from the long journey..."

The more Tanchun lied, the less confident she became, and her last words were as soft as the hum of a mosquito.

Lin Daiyu thought she was living in Yue Ling's house, so she was shy, so she gently stroked her back to comfort her, "Don't worry, we sisters will be with you at night, nothing will happen. Besides, it's only one day, we can get through it anyway."

Seeing Tanchun nodded, Lin Daiyu stopped talking, looked around, and said to everyone: "It was said that there should be three happy events today: the spring is warm and the flowers are blooming, and the tired birds are returning to their nests, this is the first happy event; Brother Yue has been promoted to a higher position and moved to a new house, this is the second happy event; the sisters of the Jia family have come for the first time, this is the third happy event..."

All the girls stared at Lin Daiyu intently, with curved eyebrows and smiles on their faces.

However, the newly arrived girls from the Jia family and Shi Xiangyun were a little surprised.

In the old days, the person who played such a role in the mansion was Mrs. Wang, not a girl of the same generation as them like Lin Daiyu.

Moreover, the Lin Daiyu who usually recounted stories and chatted had a completely different aura from the Lin Daiyu at this moment, which made the other girls admire her a little bit. It turned out that being the master of the house was such a refreshing thing.

Especially the restless Shi Xiangyun and Jia Tanchun, their eyes sparkling, staring at Lin Daiyu's face.

"…It should be a grand ceremony, but Brother Yue has not returned from the palace, and the seats in front of the mansion hall are very cramped. For now, the banquet will be simple and will be supplemented tomorrow."

"I know that you sisters have been tired from the journey and the commotion in Rongguo Mansion, and you are all a little sleepy. After dinner, each room will take a stick of osmanthus incense from the back hall, light it in your room and have a good rest."

"Tomorrow there will be a lot of things to do. Don't wait for Brother Yue to urge you. Get up early and get things done."

The girls all said yes, and Lin Daiyu nodded with a smile, "Okay, let's eat."

At Lin Daiyu's command, the girls immediately picked up their bowls and chopsticks and started scrambling for the food on the table.

They were indeed hungry during the journey, especially since they were all little girls who were still growing. After such a tiring time, they were even hungrier and no one was polite to each other in person.

The place was in chaos; there were always people asking for more rice, picking up dishes, or competing with each other. It was very noisy.

The girls in the Jia family had never seen such a scene before. In the Rongguo Mansion, they were told not to talk while eating or sleeping, and it was even more unacceptable for the master and the maid to eat at the same time and cause such a scene.

Seeing that Sanchun and Shi Xiangyun were staring at the battlefield below, Lin Daiyu also picked up a few pieces of food from their bowls with chopsticks.

"Sisters, let's eat quickly. We still need a lot of time to wash and dress. I am so tired today that I don't even have the strength to pick up chopsticks."

Lin Daiyu had been experiencing ups and downs these days. First, she confronted Mrs. Wang, and then confronted Lady Jia. She was exhausted.

The girls all understood and ate faster.

Shi Xiangyun chewed the roasted venison while saying, "This is the first time I've had a meal with so many people. Is the mansion usually this lively?"

Qin Keqing smiled and explained, "You forgot, didn't we all eat together during the few days you came to stay? This is the tradition of the mansion. We eat together at separate tables, and everyone has to eat and drink their fill together."

"We not only eat together, we do many things together. When we come back from the boat, we often take a bath together and play in the water in such a big bathhouse. It's so lively."

Speaking of this, Qin Keqing turned to Lin Daiyu and asked, "Sister Lin, when you go to the Qin Palace and have some vacant space, can you also build a bathhouse as big as that?"

Mentioning the bathhouse reminded Lin Daiyu of the incident of the foul smell, so she covered her face with the bowl and said casually, "Let's talk about it later, let's talk about it later, and wait and see what Brother Yue thinks."

"Playing in the water together? That would definitely be fun!" Shi Xiangyun's eyes sparkled and she was eager to try.

Jia Tanchun was more concerned about the first half of Qin Keqing's words, and asked weakly, "Sister Qin, do people in the mansion really do everything together? Are there no people who are not sociable?"

This question really caught Qin Keqing's attention. After poking her forehead and thinking for a long time, Qin Keqing finally replied, "Isn't it true that she is not unsociable? It's just that Master Miaoyu rarely plays with us. Look, she didn't even come for dinner. She ate vegetarian food in the Buddhist temple, right?"

Lin Daiyu said, "I asked someone to send her there. She has to look after her master."

Tanchun's remaining hopes were deflated by Qin Keqing's answer. She secretly thought, "Does the only way to be a loner is to become a nun? Do I have to tie my hair up and hold scriptures every day?"

Dinner time passed quickly. Except for Xueyan who was moving between the tables, most of the girls went out to get incense and returned to their rooms to rest.

While Lin Daiyu was washing and combing her hair, Sanchun girl and Shi Xiangyun had already done the same and were leisurely sitting in chairs, drinking tea and reading books.

Shi Xiangyun looked out the window boredly, then suddenly turned her head and asked, "Third sister, something is wrong with you today. What happened? Not only did you come back in a hurry, but you also asked some irrelevant questions during dinner."

"Why, do you still want to go back to Rongguo Mansion as soon as possible?"

Tanchun was writing and concentrating on her studies, but when Shi Xiangyun asked her about this, her heart was stirred again. However, as an unmarried girl, she was too embarrassed to say anything.

I had no choice but to grit my teeth and shake my head, "It's nothing, you're just worrying too much."

"Am I overthinking?"

Shi Xiangyun pouted, a little suspicious.

At that moment, there was a knock on the door, and Shi Xiangyun hurriedly put on her embroidered shoes to open the door.

"Come on, come on."

"Miss Yun, we are here to deliver mattresses. These beds were found in the treasury, they are all brand new and have never been used. Miss Lin said that they are for you to use."

Ying'er, Ruizhu and Baozhu arrived together and made the bed in the room.

Tanchun turned around and looked at these half-grown maids, who should be about the same age as herself. She couldn't help but put down her pen and went over to find out.

"Don't bother, I'll do it."

A polite remark brought them closer together, and in order to avoid being suspected again, she became more and more cautious.

Sure enough, seeing that Tanchun did not act like a young lady from the Jia family and was more willing to get close to others than others, Ying'er, Ruizhu and Baozhu all felt warmed in their hearts.

After the three of them pushed and scrambled to make the bed, Tanchun accompanied them out and walked them to the corridor.

"Girl, please go back to your room. It's late at night and it's getting windy. Just give us the changed bedding."

Tanchun smiled awkwardly and slowly pushed away the quilt she was holding. Even the three maids could see the hesitation on her face.

The three of them stood in a row in confusion. As Ying'er took it, she couldn't help but ask, "Third Miss, do you have anything to ask us?"

Tanchun nodded, then shook her head. After a while, she made up her mind and asked directly, "Have you ever had any relationship with the Marquis..."

"Yes?" the girls repeated in unison.

Tanchun blushed with embarrassment. She quickly looked around and saw that no one was around. She breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Speak softly, speak softly, don't let anyone hear."

The three girls looked at each other, and seeing her embarrassed look, they seemed to understand what she meant.

Ruizhu and Baozhu lowered their heads in shame, too embarrassed to answer, and just pretended not to understand.

Ying Er, on the other hand, cocked her head and replied, "If the young lady is asking about sexual intercourse, then isn't that natural? The Marquis is the only male in this room, and we are all here because of the Marquis, so of course there have been cases."

Ruizhu, Baozhu was surprised: "You have had it too?"

Ying'er puffed out her chest and said, "Of course. Are you two the only ones allowed to do it secretly, and others are not allowed to do it?"

"That's not it. That's not it."

Ruizhu shook her head repeatedly and ran away in shame.

Tanchun was in a completely bad condition, her eyes were dull and she seemed to have lost the ability to speak.

Ying'er waved her hand in front of her, then bent down to look at Tanchun and said seriously, "Does the young lady have the same idea? I see that the young lady is kind-hearted and gets along well with me, so I am telling you the truth."

"Before my daughter marries the Marquis, I, a maidservant, must serve the Marquis. This is called a trial marriage, and of course I am willing to do it. If the daughter also wants to fight for it, she must convince your maidservant to serve the Marquis willingly."

After saying this, Ying'er picked up the mattress and left proudly.

"No, that's not what I meant!"

Before Tanchun could explain, Ying'er had disappeared in the corridor.

She returned to the room in a daze, only to find that her sisters had already slept on the beds, and Lin Daiyu was sleeping in the innermost bed, leaving only the outermost seat for her.

"Sister Lin, Sister Lin, can you tell me about your experience with the Marquis going south? Tell me something interesting!"

"Okay." Lin Daiyu said in a doting tone: "Then let's talk about the poetry contest in Canglang Garden in Suzhou."

Hearing the noise of Tanchun coming in, Lin Daiyu stood up and called out, "Third sister, you can sleep outside. Be careful not to fall off the bed at night."

"Okay." Tanchun's tone was flat, as if she had just experienced a huge blow.

Lin Daiyu could sense something was wrong and couldn't help asking Shi Xiangyun, "What happened to her?"

Shi Xiangyun pulled Lin Daiyu to lie down again and said impatiently: "Maybe she has her period and is moody. Don't worry about her, Sister Lin, continue talking..."

……

It was already late at night, and a black horse that left no footprints on the snow stopped in front of the Anjing Marquis's mansion.

Yue Ling dismounted from his horse and knocked on the copper ring a few times in front of the door.

After a long while, someone responded, "Who is it? Why are you knocking on the door so late? If you have business, please hand in the paperwork first."

"It's me, open the door."

Yue Ling raised his eyebrows slightly, a little surprised.

He hadn't returned home yet, but there was no one waiting for him to open the door.

Recognizing Yue Ling's voice, the doorman hurriedly opened the gate and came out to apologize, "I deserve to die, I deserve to die, I actually locked the master outside to blow the wind."

Handing over the reins, Yue Ling shook his head and said, "It's okay. Go back and rest early."

Hearing the noise, Ni Er ran out in a panic, without even buttoning his shirt, "Master, why are you back? I thought you weren't coming back today."

Seeing Ni Er running over with his arms and belly exposed, Yue Ling couldn't help but laugh and said, "Where else can you go if you don't come back?"

Ni Er nodded repeatedly and said with a smile, "Master is right."

Yue Ling sighed: "I encountered some problems in the palace, but it's okay now."

The princes were indeed a bit clingy. They kept asking questions to Yue Ling as soon as they grabbed him. The second prince, in particular, insisted that Yue Ling teach him a set of boxing before he was willing to let him go.

Finally, because it was too late, he had to have dinner in the palace and had a family dinner with Emperor Longyou, the Empress, and several princes.

Ni Er accompanied Yue Ling to the inner curtains, and suddenly remembered that there were only young girls in the room, so he couldn't help but remind him, "Master, please be careful when you enter the room."

Yue Ling frowned and said, "What's wrong with you? You're still so nervous after not seeing you for so many years. Is there an ambush in my room? I think you've fallen asleep, go back to bed."

Seeing Yue Ling striding into the inner curtain, Ni Er certainly couldn't stop him. He felt bitter inside, "This... it's not good for the master to barge in. But since we will all be the master's people in the future, it shouldn't be a big deal. I'll just listen to the master and go back to rest."

When I entered the main hall, it was surprisingly quiet.

With the faint moonlight, Yue Ling could see clearly that five 8-person tables were set up in the main hall, and the chairs had not been put away yet.

Raising his eyebrows, Yue Ling couldn't help but ask, "Why is the banquet here? Did Sister Lin invite someone? There aren't that many people in this room."

With doubts in mind, Yue Ling pushed open the door of his room, but found that the furnishings inside had changed. There was a large floor-to-ceiling floral screen blocking the bedside.

"Huh? What's going on?"

The moon-shaped window in the room was not as bright as the large window in the hall. Yue Ling took off his clothes in the dark and threw them on the armchair beside the tea table.

Then, he walked around the screen and saw a scene that stunned him.

His bed had become a large bunk bed, and he could vaguely make out five heads sleeping on it, but he couldn't see their faces clearly.

To be honest, Yue Ling's mind was dazed for a moment, and he thought for a moment that he was dazzled, but when he rubbed his eye sockets, the scene remained unchanged.

Just as he was about to leave, he asked someone about the situation.

But I heard the girl closest to the outside murmur, "No, my lord, no, I'm not ready yet."

Yue Ling widened his eyes, stunned.

At that time, Yue Ling really wanted to figure out who was talking in his sleep, but the light in the room was too dim.

He tiptoed back a step and accidentally kicked over a small stool.

Tanchun was half asleep and half awake beside the bed. She opened her eyes slightly and seemed to see a human figure beside the bed.

Mumbling a few times, Tanchun said to herself, "I must be dreaming. How embarrassing! How could I have such a dream? It's as if the Marquis is really right beside me."

She rubbed her eyes and saw the black shadow sway. Tanchun woke up suddenly and pulled the quilt to cover herself.

"what!"

(End of this chapter)