Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 435 The Straw That Broke the Camel's Back

Miaoyu came to Mrs. Wang at the right time and bowed.

Mrs. Wang smiled brightly and politely said, "Yu'er, your visit to your parents is only tomorrow, why bother to travel back and forth? Your elder sister has mentioned you a lot, and she must want to see you. Why don't you just rest at home for a day?"

"My aunt has already had someone build a private house and yard for you, so no one will disturb your peace."

Of course, Lin Daiyu was not afraid to spend the night in Rongguo Mansion. She was no longer the naive little girl who would be frightened by Jia Baoyu. Of course, no one in the Jia Mansion dared to offend her now.

However, today she has settled all the girls and maids in her house in Rongguo Mansion. Going back will be just the two of her and Yue Ling, without the crowds of people. Lin Daiyu has been eager to return home.

Moreover, after keeping their distance for a few days, Lin Daiyu had long wanted to find Yue Ling again and snuggle up with him for a while.

At this moment, Lin Daiyu's mind was no longer on the things in front of her, but on how to hint to Yue Ling to get closer to her after returning home. She had to accept it reluctantly, and all this was not the result of her lack of self-control.

Maintaining a polite smile on her face, Lin Daiyu shook her head slightly and said, "I won't bother you any more. I just happen to have some things to do in the mansion. I'll come back tomorrow morning."

Lin Daiyu insisted on leaving, and Mrs. Wang couldn't force her to stay, so she and Mrs. Xing had to send Lin Daiyu back the same way.

Walking past Xue Baochai, Miaoyu and others, Lin Daiyu nodded secretly and winked in the direction where the three sisters left.

All the girls nodded in response, remembering Lin Daiyu's request before leaving.

"Ms. Bao, where did Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun and the others go?" Miaoyu, who had just arrived at the end of the team, couldn't help but ask Xue Baochai.

"She went to the Buddhist temple." Xue Baochai frowned slightly and replied softly, "It must be the old lady of the Jia Mansion looking for the sisters. I'm afraid she will make things difficult for them. When she comes back, Master Miaoyu should go in and take a look under the pretext of worshiping Buddha. If there is any change, remember to ask Sister Yan'er to call me."

"okay."

After Lin Daiyu left, the women who stayed in Rongguo Mansion gradually developed a tacit understanding and were just waiting for the next action plan.

……

As soon as she entered the Buddhist hall, Sanchun saw Lady Jia sitting in the center. She had a gloomy face, was serious and did not look sick at all.

In this way, everyone will understand.

Mrs. Wang's so-called recuperation and rest was also an excuse. She really wanted to test whether they still maintained their status as younger generations and whether they had the so-called filial piety.

The result is obvious and not what Grandmother Jia wanted.

Sitting next to Grandmother Jia on the stage was Jia Baoyu, who had a ruddy complexion and looked in good spirits.

There was an old maid sitting at the bottom, and Sanchun was no stranger to her. She was the maid who came with Lady Jia's dowry, Maid Lai.

Nanny Lai has a high status in the Jia family. Her two sons, Lai Da and Lai Er, are the housekeepers of Rongguo Mansion and Ningguo Mansion respectively. No one in the mansion treats her as a servant. Even Jia Baoyu has to call her "Mom" when he sees her.

Rumor has it that, with Rongguo Mansion behind them, even servants like the Lai family have built a courtyard in their private residence, the scale of which is comparable to a small villa for visiting relatives.

The source of this money must have been deducted from the Rongguo Mansion, but everyone knew it tacitly and did not investigate the matter further.

Just because Nanny Lai was the person in charge of Lady Jia's affairs and Lady Jia's position was unshakable, the Lai family could live freely in the Rongguo Mansion.

At the moment, even Nanny Lai no longer had the kind and benevolent look she used to have. There was a hint of aggressiveness in her weathered eyes, which made Miss Sanchun unconsciously become more cautious.

This meeting will definitely be difficult, and they have made mental preparations.

As expected, Jia's mother began to question them as soon as she opened her mouth, saying, "Haven't you forgotten your origins after living in the Duke Dingguo's mansion for so long? You came back today and didn't even know how to come to see an old woman like me. No wonder you didn't recognize Lian'er as your brother when you were outside!"

Facing Jia She, Xichun dared to stand up and refute, but facing the real leader of Rongguo Mansion, the young girl still lacked some courage.

Sanchun had no choice but to lower her head and remain silent.

Seeing how pitiful his sisters were, Baoyu opened his mouth and wanted to plead for them, but then he thought again that they were already Yue Ling's people, and a bit of disgust rose in his heart.

"Who told you to be so blind that you wanted to get involved in that filth and bring disaster upon yourself? You are clearly daughters of water, pure and innocent, yet you are willing to degenerate. You need to be taught a lesson by our ancestors."

"I have to meet my elder sister tomorrow. If I continue with this attitude, the ancestors and the ladies will not tolerate it."

I haven't seen my sisters for a long time. Looking at their faces and clothes, I feel that they are more beautiful than when I left Rongguo Mansion.

Perhaps it was because the Duke Dingguo's Mansion provided better support to the people, or perhaps it was because the clothes tailored by the Duke Dingguo's Mansion fit them better and looked better on them, which made Jia Baoyu feel a little unfair.

"Oh, it's okay. The old ancestor and mother said that the girl from the Xia family is also very beautiful, even more outstanding than her sisters. If she is there to play with me, I won't be bored anymore."

Sanchun's silence seemed to have angered Grandmother Jia even more, but as the head of the Jia family, she still had her self-cultivation and did not show too much anger on her face. She just narrowed her eyes slightly, thinking in her mind how to teach them a lesson and make them recognize their own identity.

But before the teaching could begin, someone knocked on the door again, as if to deliver a message.

Baoyu ran to open the door, and the person who came in was Jinchuan, Wang Fu-ren's maid.

Seeing her rush in, Baoyu, who was greedy for rouge and powder, hurriedly reminded her: "Sister Jinchuan, you can't come here. You'd better go back early. The ancestor is teaching the sisters a lesson. Don't let her anger be directed at you."

Jin Chuan shook her head and pushed Baoyu, trying to get him to make way. She came here because of what happened in the hall.

He looked up and saw the scuffle at the door, which made Lady Jia in the hall even more dissatisfied, so he ordered Yuanyang beside him, "Go and see who is coming."

Yuanyang bowed and accepted the order. She walked to the door and brought Jinchuan in smoothly.

Grandmother Jia had naturally met the maids from each room, and asked bluntly, "What's the matter, Madam?"

Seeing Sanchun kneeling in front of the hall, Jinchuan couldn't respond in person, so she went to Lai Ma and asked her to tell Lady Jia.

After whispering for a while, Lai Ma's face changed slightly. She immediately stood up and came behind Lady Jia, bowing her head and whispering: "Grandma, according to the Second Madam's wishes, the girls have been taken into the room by Duke Dingguo as concubines. You can no longer teach them like the girls of the Jia family. You have to give Duke Dingguo some face."

Jia's mother's anger did not dissipate, but her frown deepened. She sneered, "I take care of my own descendants, so what does it have to do with him?"

Yuanchun's imminent return home has invisibly boosted Lady Jia's morale, as she believes the Jia family's rise is unstoppable.

After all, the emperor's visit to his parents was a great favor to the family. Along with the visiting party, there would be great eunuchs from the palace, carrying gifts from the emperor, bestowing blessings on all the members of the Jia family.

This is an honor that foreign officials can only dream of.

In the eyes of Jia's mother, this is an opportunity to firmly bind the Jia family to the royal family. Before, even if he was a duke, no matter how powerful he was, he was still a foreign minister and was in danger of being overthrown. But as a royal relative, even if he made a mistake, it was easy to be forgiven, and his status was certainly different.

Lai Ma asked carefully, "What does the old ancestor mean?" Then she looked at Sanchun who was kneeling on the ground. There was no trace of pity in Jia Mu's eyes. Instead, she was furious at this incident and said coldly, "Who are you showing off to by acting so wronged? It seems like I have wronged you."

"You are willing to be lowly and sell yourself for fame to climb the high branches of the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion. In turn, you don't take your elders seriously. Do you still remember your surnames and names?"

"How can you face the imperial concubine tomorrow when she comes to visit you after such a disgraceful act? How could the Jia family produce three shameless descendants like you! You have forgotten your roots!"

The words were so insulting that Lady Jia couldn't help shaking her body.

It was not fake that Grandmother Jia was furious; everyone around her shrank their necks and dared not utter a word.

But these words were so heartbreaking that they made Miss Sanchun feel as if she were pierced by thousands of arrows. It was obvious that they had no choice but to be sent to Dingguo Mansion.

On the contrary, now it has become their fault.

Being favored by Duke Dingguo means they are useful to the family and make Jia She and Jia Zheng happy, but they are also subjected to humiliating insults from Lady Jia, which humiliates their dignity. How can they not feel aggrieved?

Unconsciously, my eyes turned red and tears began to flow.

No one here can help them, they can only rely on themselves to prove their innocence.

Tanchun no longer hesitated, stood up, faced Lady Jia, and retorted: "Grandma, we sisters are the younger generation, no matter how much you teach us, we should listen, but you should not use fabricated things to accuse us of our innocence. When did we forget our roots, when did we do something that disgraced our family tradition?"

"If what our ancestors said was true, we sisters would not be kneeling in front of this hall today!"

Grandmother Jia's eyes widened in shock. She had never expected that Tanchun would really say something rude. She couldn't help but gasp, "You, you are outrageous!"

Tanchun continued, "What do you mean by rebellion? If I were born a man, I would have left long ago! What does the prosperity and wealth of the Jia family have to do with me?"

As she spoke coldly, Tanchun glared at Baoyu naturally, causing him to shiver as he was used to being spoiled by Lady Jia and others.

She actually made a sarcastic remark about Baoyu in front of her. Grandmother Jia was even more furious. After protecting Baoyu in her arms, she looked at Tanchun with disgust. No one in the mansion had ever challenged her face to face like this, not even the previous one, Yue Ling.

And at this moment, Grandmother Jia actually saw some of Yue Ling's shadow in Tanchun.

As the saying goes, "Birds of a feather flock together." This really made Lady Jia very angry.

"You are such a rebellious girl. If you hadn't learned bad things from Yue Ling, how dare you be so disrespectful to your elders? I, an old woman, advise you to open your eyes. Your elder sister should come back to visit her parents soon. Don't abandon the light and do something that will make you regret for the rest of your life!"

"Do you think Yue Ling can do anything outside? How can he stop the undercurrents in the capital that have lasted for a hundred years?"

Tanchun didn't know what Grandmother Jia was referring to, but she understood clearly that in Grandmother Jia's mind, she had already had an affair with Yue Ling.

"Even if you don't care about the reputation of the younger generation, please don't slander the Duke without reason!"

Before Lady Jia could speak, Nanny Lai spoke first, expressing her loyalty to her master: "Duke Dingguo's reputation is well known throughout the capital. Does he still need to be slandered? How can the young lady say that she is still a virgin?"

Tanchun's eyes were filled with tears. She felt okay with being wronged, but she could not tolerate the man in front of her slandering Yue Ling, slandering the great hero in her mind.

"It's natural!"

Nanny Lai curled her lips in disdain, ordered the maid behind her to bring out a jar of incense ash from the Buddhist hall, and said coldly: "Since you want to prove your innocence, don't say that the old ancestor didn't give you this opportunity. Moreover, if you want to see the imperial concubine, you three girls in the boudoir, who have no name or status, have lost their virginity. Such an impure act dare not participate in the visit."

Looking at the incense ashes, Sanchun felt even more distressed and clutched their clothes tightly.

They had long heard from the governess that the method of verifying a woman's virginity was to take off all clothes, sit on an altar of incense, and use a feather to scratch her nose to induce sneezing. If air came out of her lower body and ashes were blown up by the airflow, it meant that she had lost her virginity and was unclean.

This move may not be very effective, but this method of verification alone is humiliating enough to treat them as whores.

Tanchun couldn't help but raise her head in anger, looked at Grandmother Jia, and asked, "Does the old ancestor really want to humiliate the younger generation like this?"

Nanny Lai sneered and said, "You are the one who wants to prove your innocence, so how can you say that you are being humiliated?"

Grandmother Jia did not express her opinion at all and tacitly allowed Nanny Lai to act lawlessly.

Tanchun was extremely angry. Over the past three days, her disappointment with the Jia family had accumulated to a critical point, and this moment was the last straw that broke the camel's back.

The elders of the Jia family could humiliate her like this, so why would she care about the family's reputation and bloodline?

She stood up slowly, and Yingchun and Xichun crawled over crying, grabbed Tanchun's legs, and shook their heads repeatedly, not allowing her to humiliate herself like this.

Tanchun placed her hand on the paper written by Lin Daiyu, and she had made up her mind.

What Lin Daiyu taught her these days was not to just accept things passively!

Having made up her mind to resist, Tanchun comforted her sisters, saying, "Second sister, fourth sister, you don't have to stop me. Since you have humiliated us today, if we continue to swallow our anger, they will definitely become more aggressive in the future. Why not break up with us today?"

Looking up at Baoyu who was being favored in Grandmother Jia's arms, Tanchun said coldly: "I will call you ancestor again, please drive Baoyu out first!"

Seeing Tanchun's confident look, Grandmother Jia couldn't help but have mixed thoughts, "Could it be that Yue Ling, the lecher, really didn't want them? Then why would the second wife spread such a message?"

Grandmother Jia was confused for the moment, but she absolutely could not fall behind in such a situation, so how could she be intimidated by a few juniors?

Gently stroking the back of Baoyu's neck, Jia's mother comforted him, "Okay, go back and recuperate first, and you will be able to see your elder sister tomorrow."

"Grandfather, please don't get angry. They are all sisters of our family. Even if they make a big mistake, they are still members of the Jia family."

"go Go."

After Baoyu went out, the doors and windows were closed tightly. It seemed that even the wind stopped at this moment, and the willow branches in the courtyard no longer swayed.

Miaoyu and Xing Xiuyun, as arranged by Xue Baochai, hurried to the Buddhist temple. When they saw Baoyu leaving the room with a bitter look on his face, they realized that something was wrong.

"Sister, go find the treasure girl now."

Xing Xiuyan stood up without hesitation and said, "Okay."

Not long after Xing Xiuyan left, she heard a muffled sound from inside, followed by the sound of metal colliding, which startled Miaoyu so much that she widened her eyes.

"What's going on?"

There was no time to wait for Xue Baochai to arrive, so Miaoyu had to go in first...

(End of this chapter)