Dream of the Red Chamber: Daiyu and I swapped clothes

Chapter 66 The Lin Family Woman Captures the Thief

Inside Rongqing Hall,

Grandmother Jia, who had already gone to bed, was still unable to stay in bed when she heard from Xiren that Baoyu had been attacked.
She hurriedly called Yuanyang and Hupo to help her change her clothes, and together with Madam Wang and Wang Xifeng who had rushed over upon hearing the news, she hurriedly greeted them at the hanging flower gate.

As soon as the carriage came to a stop, Grandmother Jia, without waiting for the maids to help her, hurried forward, her steps unsteady.

Upon seeing this, all the guards and servants in the courtyard knelt down in unison.

"Baoyu! Where is my Baoyu?"

With a trembling voice, Grandmother Jia grabbed Jia Baoyu, who had just gotten off the carriage, and examined him closely by the light of the palace lantern in Yuanyang's hand.

Seeing that Baoyu's eyes were red, as if he had been crying, Grandmother Jia's heart ached, and she said repeatedly, "Are you hurt anywhere? Let me see!"

Even with the palace lanterns lit up, Grandmother Jia still felt she couldn't see clearly, so she pulled Baoyu along, wanting to go to the hall.

Li Wan, along with her many sisters, followed closely behind, stepping off the carriage onto footstools.

He apologized to Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang in person.

With a deep bow, Li Wan said in a low voice, "It was my negligence that caused Baoyu to be frightened and in danger. I beg the old lady and madam to punish me."

Before she could finish speaking, Shi Xiangyun had already stormed forward.

He came to Li Wan's side, but did not kneel down. He said repeatedly, "Grandmother, you are wise! Today's events are not your fault at all! If he hadn't insisted on provoking that villain, how could such a disaster have happened?"

Shi Xiangyun's attack was aimed directly at Jia Baoyu, but Li Wan quickly stopped her.

"Grandma, Yun'er was frightened just now, and her dress was torn. She is a little resentful towards Baoyu, but that's just her childish temperament."

Li Wan forced a smile and tried to smooth things over.

Jia Baoyu was so afraid that he hid on his grandmother.

Slowly turning around, Grandmother Jia glared at Shi Xiangyun and said coldly, "I understand. If it weren't for all of you clamoring to go out, Baoyu wouldn't have suffered this undeserved calamity."

Gently patting Jia Baoyu's hand, Grandmother Jia's gaze suddenly turned icy as she scanned everyone present. "Our family seeks only peace and tranquility. Why give up a peaceful life to go out and cause trouble! From this day forward, no one is allowed to leave the manor without my permission!"

The gaze finally fell on Li Wan, "The second wife is not strict in managing the household, so deduct half a year's salary as a warning to others."

Having said that, she didn't look at anyone else, and helped Baoyu away.

With Grandmother Jia's protectiveness and affection for Baoyu, Lady Wang felt somewhat relieved, but there was still an outlet for her remaining anger.

Since she was outwardly respectful and couldn't punish the girls, she turned her anger towards her entourage.

Twisting her prayer beads, Madam Wang spoke calmly, yet each word was like a knife: "Send away all the guards who accompanied us today. They can't even protect their master; the Jia family won't keep such useless people!"

Wang Xifeng quickly bowed and replied, "Yes."

After Madam Wang left, Fengjie and Ping'er went forward to help Li Wan up.

Li Wan's face was deathly pale, and she forced a bitter smile.

Today was an unexpected disaster for her. She knew that when she returned to the mansion, Grandmother Jia would be very protective of her and would punish her, but she never expected that her monthly allowance would be cut off for half a year.

Half a year's monthly salary, including the dividends from the spring rent, is no different from cutting off her livelihood for a widow like her.
Thinking back to the favors she had made with her family to find a tutor for Baoyu some time ago, she felt even more disheartened.

"Hey……"

Wang Xifeng was aware of her difficulties, but she couldn't say what she could do to help, so they could only discuss it privately.

Only then did Shi Xiangyun realize that she had implicated Li Wan. She grabbed Li Wan's arm and choked out, "Good sister-in-law, it's all my fault. If my monthly allowance hadn't been withheld, I would have given you my share."

Li Wan forced a smile and shook her head, saying, "What are you saying, silly girl? No matter how difficult things are for me, I can't accept your money."

Turning around, she spoke gently to her sisters, saying, "You've all made a scene today, so go back and rest. Behave yourselves for the next few days and don't provoke the old lady."

After giving her sisters a final reminder, Li Wan and the other three sisters headed towards their lodgings. Li Chen and Xue Baochai, along with Shi Xiangyun, also walked towards the hanging flower gate.

When they passed by Lin Daiyu's residence, Shi Xiangyun also stopped.

"Sister Bao, I want to talk to Sister Lin tonight, so I won't go over there."

Xue Baochai nodded in understanding, "That's how it should be. Today, Lin Daiyu is your savior, so you naturally have so much to say to her."

She smiled slightly at Li Chen and said, "You two speak politely. I'll have someone deliver Yun's luggage tomorrow."

Without further delaying their good time, Xue Baochai and Ying'er went deeper into the area.

As soon as she entered the room, Shi Xiangyun tore off her tattered crane cloak and threw it angrily to the ground, saying, "Grandmother is too biased! It was clearly Jia Baoyu who caused the trouble, but we are the ones who have to take the blame!"

Li Chen slowly poured the tea, "Isn't this always been the case?"

"I knew our ancestor was biased, but I never imagined that her bias would extend to the point of being unable to distinguish right from wrong!" Shi Xiangyun rolled around on the bed in anger, pounding the pillow several times, still not satisfied.

Li Chen smiled and said, "Why don't we call Baoyu 'Brother Ai' anymore? 'One, three, four, five'."

"I bother!"

Shi Xiangyun waved her little fist, "Even if I'm confused, I can see it clearly. He actually pushed me to take the knife! From now on, I will never acknowledge this brother again!"

"If I continue to treat him as a good person, I might be sold out next time without even knowing it!"

Li Chen nodded with satisfaction and poured her a cup of tea as well.

……

The next day,

As usual, Lin Daiyu got up early, and after reading in the morning, she practiced strengthening her body in her room by lifting stone weights.

Xiangling brought in breakfast and saw Lin Daiyu dancing with the stone lock with great enthusiasm. She couldn't help but advise, "Young Master, aren't you feeling unwell? You should use your energy on these things, or you might hurt yourself."

Lin Daiyu suddenly realized that she still needed to pretend to be sickly in front of Xiangling.

Who would have thought that Lin Daiyu would one day have to feign illness and weakness?
After clearing her throat a few times, Lin Daiyu slowly put down the stone lock and said with an embarrassed smile, "Sister Xiangling is right."

Xiangling set down the bowls and chopsticks, and then said, "I heard from the kitchen maid Qu Niang that the master returned last night and is in the mansion now."

Lin Daiyu blinked. "You've actually returned? Then I should go and pay my respects."

After all, she had made the decision herself, and Lin Daiyu wanted to know the outcome.

This is one of the few things she's been thinking about lately.

After having breakfast, Lin Daiyu went up to the main hall.

Upon entering, one could see the undisguised joy on the face of Marquis Zhenyuan, Li Chong, and the answer became self-evident.

"Your son greets his father."

"Chen'er, you've come at the perfect time!"

Li Chong waved eagerly, "The thief was brought to justice last night, and I am truly delighted!"

"Your mother is not here, and there is no one to tell you about this joyous occasion. Can you guess who helped your father?"

Lin Daiyu frowned. How was she supposed to guess?
Before she could speak, Li Chong said smugly, "No matter how clever your little brain is, you would never guess that the one who helped your father catch this thief was the daughter of Salt Inspector Lin, Miss Lin."

Lin Daiyu stared wide-eyed, frozen in place.

"?"

(End of this chapter)