Dream of the Red Chamber: Daiyu and I swapped clothes

Chapter 16 No escape
Xue Pan, nicknamed "Dumb Tyrant," was the number one playboy in Jinling City. He spent his days doing nothing but indulging in sensual pleasures. His widowed mother, Aunt Xue, doted on him, which contributed to his current temperament.

Despite his many flaws, he had only one redeeming quality: he was loyal and devoted to his friends.

After listening to Li Chen's eloquent speech, Xue Pan felt his blood boil and thought he had met a kindred spirit. Reeking of alcohol, he exclaimed, "Brother, I may not have much ability or knowledge, but you have very sharp eyes! I can tell at a glance who is a true hero and who is just a hypocrite!"

"Baoyu? Hmph... The things he did behind the scenes weren't necessarily any cleaner than mine! He was just lucky to be born into such a luxurious family!"

“Brother Ke Chen, you are different! I see that you are a person who can do great things. If you encounter difficulties in the future, be sure to come to your brother. Your brother may not have any other skills, but he is still better off financially.”

After saying that, he withdrew his hand from Li Chen's shoulder and they drank a cup of wine in respect.

Li Chen then raised his glass as well.

"Brother Xue, you're too kind. We've had a wonderful time today, and it's getting late, so it's time to head home."

Seeing Li Chen get up to leave, Xue Pan quickly reached out to stop him, saying, "Hey, it's almost nightfall, what's the point of going back? You noticed those two who sang earlier, they're quite pretty. To keep them from gossiping, we'll have to give them a 'good talking-to' tonight."

"How about we each take one?"

Li Chen suddenly felt a headache.

Sure enough, Xue Pan couldn't stay serious for more than three seconds.

"I appreciate Brother Xue's kindness. However, my family rules are very strict, and I don't even have a maidservant to serve me personally. I really dare not linger outside."

Li Chen spoke cryptically.

He really couldn't stay here and enjoy himself. Tomorrow, the ten-day period would be up, and Lin Daiyu would wake up in this brothel in the morning. She would probably tear him apart alive.

"Such a thing is true?"

Xue Pan was taken aback, then couldn't help but chuckle mischievously, "Tsk tsk, look at that scoundrel Baoyu, he always has the word 'innocence' on his lips, yet he's already tasted quite a bit of the maids' rouge. It turns out you're the truly 'innocent' one, brother."

"Very well, you are virtuous and upright, and your brother cannot force you to stay. Let us return to the manor together."

Xue Pan summoned his servant to the counter to settle the bill, and then he and Li Chen rode out of the restaurant's main entrance on horseback.

When the servant came to report, Li Chen realized that the meal had cost a full two hundred taels of silver, and he couldn't help but gasp in astonishment.

The two men mounted their horses in front of the shop, and Xue Pan reassured him, "Brother Chen, don't worry about Baoyu. With his temperament, if he gets angry, he'll just go back and sulk for a few days. He would never use the Rongguo Mansion's name to stir up trouble. Right now, he's probably already gone to one of his sisters' rooms for comfort."

"Hahaha."

……

Inside Baoyu's room, his head maid, Xiren, was awakened from her sleep by Bihen.

"Good sister, go and see! As soon as Second Master came back, he collapsed on the bed and sulked, refusing to answer any questions. It's driving me crazy!"

Knowing that Baoyu's old habit had flared up again, Xiren quickly put on her clothes, got up, and hurried to the main room.

As soon as I entered, I saw Qingwen leaning against the window, her pretty face frosty, saying coldly, "She drank outside and came back to use us as bait. She must be drunk and confused, only recognizing your sister Xiren, waiting for you to coax her! We are not worthy of being served in public."

Xiren's face flushed, but she didn't want to argue with her. She only pleaded softly, "Good sister, let me stay with the Second Master today. If he drinks and vomits tonight, it will be difficult to clean him up."

Qingwen snorted coldly, flung the curtain aside, and left.

Xi Ren finally had a chance to sit down by the bed and asked softly, "My lord, what's wrong now? Did you suffer some injustice outside? Tell me about it, so I can share your worries."

Jia Baoyu faced the inner wall, remaining motionless.

Fearing that he had fallen into a daze, Xiren had no choice but to lean over and turn his face towards her. She saw that his eyes were red, as if he had been crying.

"Master!" Xi Ren's heart tightened. "Weren't you going out with Master Xue? Could it be him..."

"Sister Xiren." Baoyu suddenly sat up, grabbed her shoulders tightly, and looked at her intently. "Tell me, is fame and fortune really that important? Why do people in the world chase after them so relentlessly, yet can't they find someone as indifferent as me?"

Xiren was taken aback by the question. She knew that Lady Wang hoped Baoyu would make progress, but if she spoke frankly now, it would be like adding fuel to the fire. Her mind raced, and she suddenly came up with a way to shift the blame.

“My lord, how could I possibly answer such a profound question? Why don’t you ask Miss Lin? She will surely understand you.”

Upon hearing this, Baoyu's eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands, saying, "That's it! How could I forget Lin Daiyu! Lin Daiyu would never say such 'nonsense'!"

He immediately jumped out of bed, grabbed his coat, and rushed out the door.

Baoyu and Lin Daiyu still lived in the same courtyard, and only needed to pass through a connecting corridor to go back and forth.

When he stood under the eaves of Lin Daiyu's room, the lights inside were still on.

The beaded curtain by the window vaguely outlined a figure, seemingly Lin Daiyu who was still awake, hunched over her desk writing furiously, completely absorbed.

Jia Baoyu felt a surge of satisfaction, took a deep breath, and knocked on the door.

"Sister Lin, are you asleep? I...I have something I want to tell you."

Inside the room, Zijuan and Xueyan, who were making the bed, turned around and then looked at Lin Daiyu, who had been busy at the table all day.

"Miss, it seems that Master Bao is looking for us outside." Lin Daiyu rubbed her fingers, which were a little sore from being pressed against the pen.

She was writing a manual to guide Li Chen in learning calligraphy, interpreting the model texts, and teaching him where to start. Ten days had passed, but she still hadn't finished the final part of copying the brushstrokes.

"It's so late, let's talk about it tomorrow."

Lin Daiyu made a casual remark and then continued to focus on her own affairs.

Xueyan then opened the door and relayed the message to Baoyu.

"Master Bao, my young lady should be going to bed soon. Let's talk about it tomorrow."

“Alright.” Baoyu suddenly remembered that he had disturbed Lin Daiyu’s rest last time, which displeased her and made her angry at Zhou Rui’s wife. He couldn’t help but have second thoughts.

"In that case, I won't disturb Sister Lin's rest any longer. I'll come again tomorrow."

Baoyu glanced longingly at the window shadow, but ultimately suppressed his temper and returned the way he came.

Inside the room, Zijuan came to Lin Daiyu's desk to trim the lamp wick and took the opportunity to advise, "Miss, it's night, you should rest."

Lin Daiyu rubbed her temples, her gaze still fixed on the desk. "You all go to sleep first, I'll be fine in a bit."

Zijuan glanced at the densely written booklet and asked curiously, "What are you writing, Miss?"

Lin Daiyu said, "I have recently gained some insights into calligraphy, so I would like to write them down first."

Ever since the incident of switching bodies occurred, Lin Daiyu felt that she was becoming more and more able to speak without thinking.

Zijuan had no doubts; her young lady was quite the bookworm, so she wasn't surprised at all by such behavior.

"Alright, young lady, you can't stay up too late, your body can't take it."

After a soft "hmm," Xueyan and Zijuan retreated to the warm pavilion.

By candlelight, Daiyu gazed at the instruction manual she had painstakingly written and sighed softly.

"I wonder if that playboy can understand it. If he can't, wouldn't it be a waste of effort, like casting pearls before swine?"

"Hopefully this will only happen once, and that there won't be any further complications."

Suddenly remembering something, Lin Daiyu called out again, "Xueyan, remember to remind me to look at this book in the drawer tomorrow."

"Okay, I understand, girl, I'll remember."

Through the screen, Xueyan responded loudly.

With everything arranged, Daiyu felt no sense of relief whatsoever.

"If I could, I really wouldn't want to move there again."

The thought of a grown man wanting to use her body made Lin Daiyu feel extremely uncomfortable.

“I toil and struggle for him all day long, and he takes all the benefits. Even if the Lady of Zhenyuan Marquis is truly kind, I would rather not be involved and live a carefree life like before.”

"And if this continues, won't I never be able to sever ties with him again?"

Gazing at the flickering candlelight, a thought suddenly popped into Lin Daiyu's mind: "The last time I was transformed, it seemed to have happened while I was asleep... If I force myself to stay awake tonight, could I avoid it?"

After thinking it over, Lin Daiyu thought it was quite reasonable, and her spirits lifted. She propped herself up and continued to finish the booklet, making two preparations.

……

The Zhenyuan Marquis's Residence

Having eaten and drunk his fill, Li Chen lay contentedly on the bed.

Slightly tipsy from drinking, he was too lazy to take a shower and went to sleep fully clothed, still smelling of alcohol.

Anyway, someone will come to clean up tomorrow.

As long as I keep my eyes closed like this, when I open them again, it will be a good day.

Lying on his back, gazing at the curtains, Li Chen felt quite at ease.

"I've thoroughly offended Jia Baoyu and also dealt with my teacher. These ten days have been incredibly fulfilling. It's time to return to the Rongguo Mansion and reward myself."

"Lin Daiyu, all the good things here are yours."

Silently chanting in his heart, it was only the beginning of night, and faint snoring could already be heard from the bed. Even though Li Chen was asleep, a smile still lingered on his lips.

The next morning,

Her body awoke before her consciousness. The first thing she saw was the dark bed curtains. Lin Daiyu's heart sank; she felt like crying, "So it really is changed every ten days. Is there no escaping it?"

(End of this chapter)