Red Mansion: Holding Space and Marrying Like the Sea

Meanwhile, Yu Shi also learned of the events of the previous night. Deeply concerned about Xichun's well-being, she hurried to her residence to visit and offer comfort. However, to Yu Shi's surprise, upon entering Xichun's room, she was greeted not with gratitude and comfort, but with a cold and resentful attitude. Yu Shi tried her best to persuade Xichun, but her words fell on deaf ears. Ultimately, Yu Shi failed to soothe Xichun's wounded heart and instead returned home frustrated and resentful.

After returning home, Youshi became increasingly angry, feeling that her kindness had been treated in such a way. But when she calmed down, she became worried about Xichun's future situation.

The next day, Youshi couldn't help but go back to Li Wan and tell her about the incident. Li Wan sighed softly and said, "Sister Xichun has always been aloof and aloof. Now that she's faced something like this, I'm afraid she won't be able to let it go for a while." Youshi nodded in agreement. Li Wan pondered for a moment and then said, "Why don't we find some of her favorite things and send them to her, along with a letter expressing our concern? Don't mention what happened yesterday; just treat it as a normal exchange." Youshi thought this was a good idea.

So the two of them carefully prepared gifts and letters and sent them to Xichun. Xichun's heart was moved when she saw the gifts. After reading the letter, her face remained expressionless, but the coldness in her eyes seemed to soften a little. She knew they cared about her, but she was still trapped in the shadow of that night. But after this incident, Xichun realized that she shouldn't keep keeping people at a distance. She just didn't know how to change the current impasse.

Li Wan and the other person were talking when suddenly someone came to report, "Miss Bao is here!" Hearing this, the two of them hurriedly said, "Please come in!" Before they finished speaking, they saw Xue Baochai walking in lightly.

Li Wan saw this and quickly stood up to greet her. She asked with a smile, "Sister Bao, why did you come here all of a sudden? Where are the other sisters now?"

Baochai smiled faintly and replied softly, "I haven't seen them either. It's just that my mother wasn't feeling well today, and I thought I'd go out and keep her company. I was planning to report this to the old lady and the mistress, but then I thought it wasn't a big deal, so there was no need to mention it for now. I'll come back in any case once my mother recovers, so I came to let my sister-in-law know first."

After hearing this, Li Wan's mouth curled up slightly, and she turned her eyes to Youshi beside her, her eyes full of smiles. Youshi also had the same expression at this time, and they looked at Li Wan, and they smiled tacitly. There seemed to be a deep meaning in that smile, but it was elusive. After hearing this, Li Wan couldn't help but smile slightly, and said softly: "In this case, then quickly send someone to pay her respects to the aunt, and ask what kind of illness she has. Alas, it's a pity that I am also ill now, and I really can't go to visit in person. My dear sister, you can go without worry, I will naturally arrange for someone to go to your place to help you look after the house. However, no matter what, you should try to stay for a day or two before coming back, so that others won't say anything bad about me."

Baochai smiled sweetly upon hearing this and replied, "Sister-in-law, that's quite amusing. What could possibly be missing? It's only natural for me to come home and stay for a few days. Could it be that you still suspect me of letting the thief go without your knowledge?"

As the two were chatting and laughing, they suddenly heard a servant's voice outside the door announce, "The Third Young Lady has arrived." Everyone stood up and offered their seats. After Tanchun entered and took her seat, Baochai immediately mentioned that she was going out. Tanchun nodded in agreement, saying, "Well, that's great. If Auntie's condition improves and she can come back, that would be great. Even if Auntie is well but doesn't want to come around, that's fine too."

Yu Shi, who was standing by, couldn't help but feel a little surprised when she heard this. She interrupted with a smile, "Oh, that sounds really bizarre. Why are you talking about driving relatives away?" Tanchun's face darkened after hearing this. She sneered and asked back, "Isn't it? Since someone wants to drive us away, why don't I be the first to speak up? Although we are all relatives, whether the relationship is good or not is another matter. Besides, even the closest relatives may not always treat each other sincerely. Instead, they all act like fighting cocks, with red eyes, as if they can't wait to eat each other alive!"

Yu Shi said with a smile on her face, "Oh my! I don't know what kind of deity I have offended today. I am so unlucky that I happened to come here when you sisters are so angry."

Tanchun raised the corners of her mouth slightly, revealing a disdainful smile, and responded, "Hmph, who told you to come and join in the fun at this time? To be honest with you, I beat up that old woman from Wang Shanbao's family yesterday, and I'm still carrying the accusation. She's just gossiping about me behind my back, and she really dares to come and beat me up openly?"

When Baochai heard this, she was immediately surprised and asked hurriedly, "What on earth was the reason that made you hit someone?" Tanchun then recounted in detail how the garden was searched last night and how she had taught Wang Shanbao a lesson.

Then, Tanchun continued to tell them, "I woke up early this morning and didn't see any movement. I felt uneasy, so I quickly sent my mother out to find out what was going on at Wang Shanbao's place. Just now, my mother came back and told me that Wang Shanbao had been severely beaten, and even the eldest wife blamed her for meddling in other people's business."

After hearing this, Youshi and Li Wan looked at each other and nodded in agreement, saying, "Well, this is reasonable." However, Tanchun sneered and said sarcastically, "Everyone can do this kind of superficial cover-up. Let's wait and see what tricks are next." After hearing this, Youshi and Li Wan were silent and didn't know how to respond for a moment.

After a while, Baochai guessed that the meal had already been set up, so she stood up, said goodbye to everyone, and hurried back to her room to pack her clothes.

After bidding farewell to Li Wan, Youshi and the others hurried to where Lady Jia was. When they arrived, they found everyone already seated. Lady Jia sat at the head of the table, looking composed and oblivious to the recent turmoil in the garden. Seeing this, Youshi couldn't help but ponder, but she maintained a dignified and polite smile. After greeting Lady Jia, she carefully found a seat.

At the banquet, Yuanyang and the other maids were chatting and laughing, doing their best to make the atmosphere light and cheerful. However, Tanchun just lowered her head and ate quietly, rarely joining in the conversation, only occasionally raising her eyes to quickly scan the people present. At this moment, the secretary and several other maids quietly walked up to Tanchun and leaned over to whisper a few words in her ear. After hearing these words, Tanchun's face changed slightly.

It turned out that Wang Shanbao, the housekeeper who had caused trouble in the garden earlier, was unwilling to accept such humiliation and was constantly instigating Mrs. Xing to seek revenge. Tanchun seemed to have sensed that things might get worse, so she gently put down her bowl and chopsticks, frowned, and said, "This meal today has been really unsettling. I'm afraid some people are still obsessed with how to get back at us!"

When Lady Jia heard what Tanchun said, she turned her gaze to her and said slowly, "Third girl, don't be so impatient and youthful. They are just some trivial matters. Don't make the whole mansion restless." After hearing what Lady Jia said, although Tanchun agreed with her mouth, when she lowered her head, her eyes still revealed a hint of obvious dissatisfaction.

After dinner, everyone dispersed. As Tanchun was returning to her room, she noticed a figure swaying in the corner. She approached and saw it was Wang Shanbao's maid. The maid turned and tried to flee, but Tanchun stopped her. Trembling, the maid handed Tanchun a letter, saying it had been given to her by her mistress. Tanchun opened the letter and sneered, her mind already grappling with the impending plot.

Tanchun crumpled up the letter into a ball, stuffed it into the maid's hand, and said sternly: "Go back and tell your mistress that I, Tanchun, am not a soft persimmon that can be bullied by anyone. If you really want to fight, I will fight you to the end." The maid ran away crawling.

After Tanchun returned to her room, she called Cui Mo and instructed her, "Go and find out who Mrs. Xing has met recently and what they have said. I want to know both myself and the enemy." Cui Mo took the order and left.

Not long after, Cui Mo returned to report that it was Aunt Zhao who had also been involved, attempting to use Lady Xing to suppress Tanchun. Upon hearing this, Tanchun, furious, turned to laughter: "What a dear mother! How could she be so intolerant of me?"

Then, Tanchun's bright eyes flickered slightly, and she had already made up her mind—to take the initiative! She walked gracefully towards Zhou Rui's wife with light lotus steps. After meeting Zhou Rui's wife, Tanchun calmly recounted the whole story in detail.

Zhou Ruijia had already harbored resentment towards Wang Shanbaojia, and upon hearing this, he was even more furious. He immediately patted his chest and pledged his full support to Tanchun. The two of them huddled together, whispering to each other for a long while before finally agreeing to start with the odious Wang Shanbaojia.

Afterwards, Tanchun and Zhou Ruijia tiptoed cautiously to the vicinity of Wang Shanbao's residence. They found a secluded corner and quietly hid there, their eyes fixed on Wang Shanbao's house. Before long, they spotted Wang Shanbao sitting inside, her face brimming with elation, boasting to the people around her. She swore, "Humph, this time I'm going to make that Tanchun suffer a bitter lesson. She's going to suffer a great loss!"

Hearing this, Zhou Ruijia frowned and whispered to Tanchun beside her in a low voice, "Young lady, in my opinion, if we rush in and question her, I'm afraid it will be difficult to get solid evidence. What if she refuses to admit it, we will be in trouble." Tanchun nodded slightly, agreeing with Zhou Ruijia's opinion. So how should they deal with it next? Why not find an excuse to get everyone away first? Tanchun nodded in agreement.

At this moment, Li Wan happened to be passing by. She saw Tanchun and Zhou Ruijia standing together from a distance, and she immediately understood what was going on. Li Wan was a smart person, and she had always disliked Wang Shanbao's arrogant and domineering attitude. So, she rolled her eyes, thought of a plan, and deliberately raised her voice and shouted, "Oh my! Why are there so many people gathered here? Could it be that something inappropriate has happened?"

Her voice was so powerful! Everyone present was startled and scattered in panic.

While everyone was in a mess, Tanchun seized the opportunity and quickly slipped into the house. Wang Shanbao, who was originally planning how to deal with Tanchun in the house, was suddenly panicked and at a loss when he saw Tanchun rushing in like a gust of wind.

Tanchun's face was as gloomy as water. She calmly took out the crucial letter and placed it steadily on the table. Then, she raised her head, smiled coldly, and said to Wang Shanbao, who was already pale with fear: "Humph! Do you think you can use a letter like this to plot against me? Let me tell you, the evidence is conclusive and right here. What else do you have to argue with?"

Wang Shanbao dared not say a word. She fell to her knees with a plop, kowtowed desperately, and begged bitterly, "Third Miss, please spare my life! It was all because of my confusion and the devil's will that I did such a heinous thing. Please have mercy on me and let me go this time..."

Tanchun looked at the disheveled Wang Shanbao, and although she felt very disgusted, she suppressed her anger and said seriously, "I'm going to let you go for now today, just as a small warning to you. But listen to me, if I find you daring to do similar tricks again in the future, don't blame me for being rude to you. I will settle all the old and new accounts together and will never let you off easily!" After saying these words, Tanchun turned around and left the room with Zhou Ruijia with her head held high.

At this point, the storm finally subsided temporarily. However, after this series of events, Tanchun's mind became clear as a mirror - from now on, no matter what she did, she must be more cautious and tread carefully, and absolutely not give those with ill intentions and ulterior motives even the slightest opportunity to take advantage of her!