Red Mansion and Crimson Pearl

During the whole day of the first day of the New Year, Daiyu did not go anywhere, did not chat with anyone privately, and just stayed by Lady Jia's side, talking softly, smiling sweetly, accompanying her to eat, take naps, wash up, joke, and even sat steadily beside her and watched her wipe the dominoes.

Seeing that it was almost 3 p.m., Daiyu winked at the others playing with her, stood up and walked slowly around. Sister Feng asked with a smile, "What's up? Are you here to spy on our cards for the old ancestor?"

"You think too much!" Daiyu didn't care about her appearance and stretched out lazily. "I've been sitting for half a day and my waist hurts. I'll take a walk and rest my waist."

"If Miss Lin hadn't told me, I wouldn't have noticed. My waist is so stiff." Mrs. Xing saw the opportunity and twisted her waist and rubbed it. "It's good that the old lady is so healthy that she doesn't feel tired at all!"

The old lady who was helping nearby also stopped.

Grandmother Jia looked at Madam Xing with a smile, revealing a rare trace of kindness: "Your seat is not as comfortable as mine. I remember I have a big pillow, which is very good for supporting the waist. I will ask the maid to find it for you later!"

Yuanyang gently advised Lady Jia to get up and take a walk.

Wang Xifeng took the opportunity to say, "Come to think of it, Sister Lin has never visited our garden carefully. Since the old ancestor is in good spirits, why don't we take Sister Lin with us to have a look? We can also see what the eldest sister-in-law and her sisters are doing!"

"Okay, this is a good idea!" Grandmother Jia agreed readily.

At that moment, Jia's mother, Mrs. Xing, Wang Xifeng and Daiyu each put on a large coat, wrapped themselves in a warm blanket, and took a sedan chair to the Grand View Garden.

As they were accompanied by Lady Xing and Wang Xifeng, Grandmother Jia did not let anyone know about Lady Wang and the others and just went shopping by herself.

But the old lady took Miss Lin to visit the garden, which meant there was a possibility that they would meet Baoyu. In Mrs. Wang's view, this matter was very serious!

He immediately put down what he was doing and ran after them, stopping everyone on the bridge in front of Yihong Courtyard: "The old lady went out without asking her daughter-in-law to serve her, which made it so difficult for me to find her."

"Your sister-in-law and her wife are here, so I'm just taking Lin girl for a stroll. Why bother letting you run around in such a cold weather? You have to worry about housework. Do Zhuge's daughter-in-law and the third girl have anything with you?"

Grandmother Jia asked with a smile.

Mrs. Wang smiled and replied:

"Now my place is full of invitations to New Year's banquets. Some of them are invited by others, while others are invited by us. They don't understand these things. There is nothing I can do. I have to tire myself out slowly."

"You have to teach them if they don't understand. There is only one chance a year to teach them thoroughly, and you still feel sorry for them! Will you still make yourself so tired next year?

"Baoyu is still young, and his master will not let him marry early. If you want to get rid of these jobs, it will take at least three or four years. Be careful not to break your waist by then!"

After talking in great detail, Jia's mother smiled and waved her hand, "Forget it, go ahead! Call the two sisters-in-law and go ahead. I have your sister-in-law here, don't worry!"

Mrs. Wang had no choice but to agree with a smile and leave.

Lin Daiyu didn't even look at Yihong Courtyard, but only looked at Xiaoxiang Pavilion across the way. She was filled with emotion and couldn't help pretending to be surprised: "This place is so elegant and quiet, who lives there now?"

"Originally... no one lived here. It had been empty for two years. Last year, Xiangyun's uncle was promoted to a post outside the capital and left. I couldn't bear to let her go, so I kept her here. That's why she lives here now."

Grandmother Jia said with a smile.

Wang Xifeng saw that Jia's mother looked a little gloomy, and hurriedly replied: "Actually, it is not right for Sister Yun to live in this place, it should be you.

"This place is quiet and peaceful, with lots of bamboos and a fairy-like atmosphere. Sister Yun is a lively person, and she wishes she could spend three hundred days a year chatting, laughing, eating and drinking with others.

“It is said that the bamboo shoots in this area are secretly dug up and cooked by her before they even grow up.

"Mother Zhu, who was holding the bamboo, was so angry that she ran to cry to the third sister. She was a guest and didn't take such a small matter seriously. The third sister was having a headache!"

Lin Daiyu smiled and said, "This is something Yun girl would do! I feel sorry for my third sister!"

Yin looked back at Zijuan and Qingwen looking around and said with a smile, "Look at these ignorant people. Are you itching to have fun? Go and have fun with your relatives and friends. Now that I am with the old lady, can I still be left alone?"

Grandmother Jia also smiled and waved her hand: "Go and have fun. You little sisters haven't seen each other for a long time. It would be nice to go and catch up."

The two people were overjoyed. They greeted each other, pushed each other, and ran away in two or three steps.

The masters watched from afar and laughed.

Only Yuanyang turned around and quietly called a maid to go back to Lady Jia's main room and call Feicui and Boli to tell Amber not to wander around and to watch over the yard well.

When they entered Xiaoxiang Pavilion, Shi Xiangyun was playing Go with a group of maids, clapping her hands and jumping her feet, shouting, "Yao! Yao!"

When Jia's mother and others went in and saw what was happening, they couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Xiangyun stuck out her tongue, saluted to Lady Jia, Lady Xing and the others, and rolled into Lady Jia's arms: "The old ancestor came here without telling me. If Sister Lin saw me being so unruly, she would definitely laugh at me!"

"Oh! You are not afraid of the rules of the ancestors and the first wife, but you are afraid of my laughter. How do you calculate this? You are obviously relying on the ancestors' love for you and the first wife's generosity to indulge yourself in crooked ways!"

Lin Daiyu replied with a smile, and then looked around the room, especially at the bookshelf. She saw a book called "Biographies of Virtuous Women" and couldn't help laughing, "I think your book is different from when we lived together last year. It seems to have some of Sister Bao's characteristics."

"That's right! Sister Bao is so nice! If I could have half of her elegance and intelligence, my life would not have been in vain!" When Shi Xiangyun heard Daiyu say that she looked like Baochai, she was actually very happy.

Mrs. Xing and Wang Xifeng looked at her with sympathy.

Grandmother Jia sighed slightly and asked with a smile: "We are going to take a walk in the garden, you can come with us!"

"Yes!" Shi Xiangyun happily asked Cuilu to change her clothes. "I love shopping the most! I have agreed with Sister Bao that when she moves back to the old house of the Xue family, I will live with her for a while. She agreed to take me out shopping!"

Grandmother Jia's expression was about to collapse. She turned around and walked out first, pointing to the opposite side and said to Daiyu: "It's winter now, there's nothing to see here. It's better in spring and summer, when there are flowers everywhere, as if on fire."

"I heard that Hengwu Garden also has a strange fragrance in winter, and the strange grass and fairy vines become greener as the weather gets colder, and the fruits they bear are as lovely as coral beans.

"The plum blossoms in Longcui Temple are the best, with the most complete varieties and exquisitely trimmed. Grandma, would you mind accompanying me to visit these two places?" Daiyu probed.

Grandmother Jia smiled and waved her hand: "It snowed heavily this winter, and the grass in Hengwu Garden has been buried. There is no need to go. Let's go to Longcui Temple to see the plum blossoms and drink good tea, and then go to your fourth sister's Nuanxiangwu to warm up. When we go back, it will be time for dinner!"

"The old lady is still good at making arrangements! Let's do it!" Wang Xifeng, who had been listening to their witty banter and had not dared to speak for a long time, was eager to hear this and quickly sent someone to make arrangements in advance.