Red Mansion: Holding Space and Marrying Like the Sea

Jia Rui lost both his parents at a young age and had been raised by his grandfather, Jia Dairu. Jia Dairu was extremely strict with his grandson, never allowing him to leave the house, fearing he would indulge in drinking and gambling, thereby neglecting his studies. Last night, Jia Dairu suddenly discovered that his grandson had not returned home. He concluded that he must have been out doing something unpleasant, drinking, gambling, or even visiting prostitutes. He could never have imagined such a hidden secret. Furious, Jia Dairu could not sleep all night. Frightened and sweating, Jia Rui returned home trembling with fear. Faced with Jia Dairu's stern questioning, he lied, "Grandson, I went to visit my uncle yesterday. As it was getting dark, my uncle insisted I stay the night, so I was unable to return home."

Upon hearing this, Jia Dairu's face darkened, and he angrily scolded him, "From the beginning, you have always had to report to me before leaving the house, and only after obtaining my permission could you dare to go out without permission. Yet, yesterday, you dared to leave home without saying goodbye! For this alone, you deserve to be beaten and punished, let alone now you have the audacity to lie to me!" With that, Jia Dairu fiercely grabbed the ruler and lashed Jia Rui with thirty or forty strokes, leaving Jia Rui's skin torn and screaming in pain. Afterward, Jia Dairu not only forbade him from eating, but also ordered him to kneel in the yard and recite an essay, and stipulated that he must make up ten days' homework before he could be punished.

Poor Jia Rui knelt straight in the freezing night for a whole night. His wounds had not yet healed, and he was beaten so cruelly today. Now he was starving and had to kneel on the cold ground in the biting cold wind to recite the article with difficulty. It was really miserable.

Yet, even through such torture and suffering, Jia Rui's lust for Wang Xifeng's beauty remained unwavering. He never considered that all his suffering was a trap and prank set by Wang Xifeng. Two days later, finally finding some free time, the lust-stricken Jia Rui showed no remorse and returned to look for Wang Xifeng with his unrepentant ulterior motives.

Seeing Jia Rui reappear, Wang Xifeng pretended to be angry, blaming him for not keeping his word and failing to show up as promised. Seeing this, Jia Rui was immediately anxious and hurriedly swore an oath to prove his loyalty. Seeing Jia Rui so foolish and ignorant, walking into a trap like a moth to a flame, Wang Xifeng sneered inwardly, thinking that she had to come up with another trick to make this ignorant guy suffer so that he would completely wake up and change his ways. So she rolled her eyes and said to Jia Rui in a feigned gentleness, "Don't go to the place we agreed to meet tonight. You can wait for me in the empty room in the small corridor behind my yard. But remember not to act rashly or you will offend others."

Jia Rui's eyes widened, his face filled with anticipation as he asked, "Is that really the case?" Wang Xifeng raised her eyebrows, her lips curled slightly, and she replied coquettishly, "Hmph, who would lie to you? But if you don't believe me, then forget it. You don't have to come." Jia Rui, upon hearing this, waved his hands anxiously, saying, "Come, come, come! Even if it means death, I will come!" Wang Xifeng chuckled and said, "In that case, you can go back now." Jia Rui, secretly certain that good things would happen tonight, nodded happily and left. Meanwhile, Wang Xifeng began to methodically deploy her troops and generals, meticulously planning how to set a tight net for Jia Rui.

Jia Rui eagerly awaited the arrival of nightfall, but the weather was unfavorable, and a relative arrived to visit. He was terrified, yet helpless, and could only patiently accompany his relative. Finally, after dinner was over, the relative finally left. It was already late, well past the lighting hour, but Jia Rui didn't care. He seized the opportunity, took advantage of his grandfather's rest, and tiptoed out of the house, heading straight for the Rongguo Mansion.

As Jia Rui trotted to the house in the alley, his heart leaping into his throat. Like an ant on a hot pan, he paced back and forth at the doorway, sometimes craning his neck to peer, sometimes straining his ears to listen, muttering to himself, "Why hasn't she come yet? Has she changed her mind again? Are you going to leave me here starving and freezing all night?" Just as his thoughts were wandering, he suddenly saw a dark figure approaching in the distance. Jia Rui was overjoyed, and he immediately assumed it was the long-awaited Feng Jie. Like a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey, he rushed forward. As the figure neared the door, Jia Rui, with the agility of a cat catching a mouse, flung open his arms and embraced her tightly, crying, "My dear sister-in-law, you've been waiting for me!" Jia Rui, so audacious that he carried her to the kang inside the house, began to make advances, kissing her and even tearing off her pants. He was babbling nonsense, constantly calling out words like "mother" and "father" that were unbearable to the ear. But the person on the kang remained silent, seemingly letting him do as he pleased.

At that moment, a flash of light suddenly flashed across the room like lightning. It turned out to be Jia Qiang holding a burning firewood stick high in the air. The bright flame instantly dispelled the surrounding darkness and illuminated the previously dim place. He shouted angrily, "Who is hiding in this room?"

When the person on the kang heard the sound, he was not afraid at all. Instead, he burst into laughter. The sound was tender and pleasant, like the singing of a nightingale. Then he said in a coquettish voice, "Uncle Rui, you have always wanted to get me." Jia Rui hurriedly looked over, and when he saw it, he was stunned. It turned out that the person lying on the kang was not a woman at all, but Jia Rong!

Instantly, Jia Rui felt a surge of hot blood rushing to his head, his face flushing crimson as if it were on fire. Shame washed over him like a tide, making him wish he could find a crack in the ground and crawl into it, never to face this embarrassing situation again. At this moment, he was completely mortified. He froze in place, not knowing what to do with his hands and feet. His mind went blank, completely losing the ability to think or react. After a long moment, he regained consciousness, as if waking from a dream. He turned and tried to run out, fleeing this utterly embarrassing place.

But who could have predicted that Jia Qiang was truly a man of sharp eyes and quick hands? In that instant, he flickered slightly, like a ghost, his speed astonishing. In the blink of an eye, he had reached out with incredible swiftness, and grasped Jia Rui's collar tightly like an iron clamp.

Looking at Jia Qiang's face now, it was as gloomy as the bottom of a pot, and his eyes flashed with a sharp cold light. He shouted harshly: "Hmph! Don't even think about getting away! To tell you the truth, Lian's second sister-in-law has already told the lady everything about how you molested her for no reason. When the lady heard about it, she was so angry that she fainted. That's why the lady sent me here to arrest you and bring you back for questioning. I didn't expect you to dare to block Lian's second sister-in-law's way just now. Such a wanton act is truly a heinous crime and cannot be forgiven by heaven! Come with me to see the lady and accept the punishment you deserve!"

When Jia Rui heard these words, he felt as if struck by a thunderbolt from the blue sky, completely stunned. His soul seemed to fly out of his body, and his body suddenly became limp like a puddle of mud, unable to support its own weight. Then, he began to plead incoherently: "Oh, my dear nephew! Please have mercy on me, and don't tell me that you have ever seen me! If you can only spare me this time, I will definitely thank you profusely tomorrow!"

Jia Qiang's lips curled up slightly, revealing a cold smile as he said sarcastically, "Hmph, if you're truly grateful and want to thank me, then letting you go safely wouldn't be particularly difficult for me. But... hey, I'd really like to know how you plan to express your gratitude. After all, just a few nice words from you are far from enough! How about this, in order to ensure the security of our transaction and avoid unnecessary disputes and troubles in the future, I think you might as well sign a formal contract as proof. That way, everyone can feel at ease, right?"

Hearing this, Jia Rui's already unpleasant expression instantly darkened even further. He grumbled with a worried look on his face, "Oh, how can I put this on paper? I'm not very good at reading or writing, and now I'm suddenly asked to sign a contract. It's really difficult for me!"

Seeing this, Jia Qiang's eyes darted around, and a plan immediately occurred to him. A sly smile reappeared on his face, and he replied calmly, "Haha, what's so difficult about this? Actually, all you have to do is write down the accounts you owe to outsiders due to gambling losses, and then specify the specific amount of money you borrowed from the boss, and you're done! Isn't that simple?"

After listening to this, Jia Rui pondered it carefully and felt that this idea seemed quite reliable. So he slowly nodded in agreement and said, "Hmm... This method does sound good and shouldn't be too difficult to implement. However, the problem now is that I don't have any paper or pen to use. What should I do? I can't just conjure these things out of thin air, can I?"

At this moment, Jia Qiang patted his chest confidently, and said loudly and nonchalantly: "Hey! What's this little thing? Leave it to me!" After that, he flashed, like an agile monkey, and after a beautiful somersault, he quickly got out of the room in the blink of an eye. Time passed by minute by minute, and just when Jia Rui was getting a little impatient, he suddenly heard a hurried sound of footsteps outside the door. Then, the door was pushed open, and Jia Qiang rushed in in a hurry, holding a pen and paper in his hand. He walked to the table in two steps, put the pen and paper in his hand heavily on the table, then raised his chin at Jia Rui, and said proudly: "Look, isn't it done? Hurry and start writing!"

Jia Rong and Jia Qiang played the villain, one the good cop. Jia Rong, with a stern face, rebuked Jia Rui harshly, while Jia Qiang, beaming, offered gentle soothing words. In this way, the two men alternated between persuasion and coaxing, using every possible means to get Jia Rui to comply.

After a long period of persuasion, threats, and inducements, Jia Rui finally succumbed to the overwhelming pressure. He tremblingly picked up his pen and reluctantly wrote an IOU for fifty taels of silver. After he finished, he hesitated again and again, but finally pressed his fingerprint on the IOU. Seeing that Jia Rui had completed these actions as they wished, Jia Qiang triumphantly put the IOU in his arms, as if he had already won the battle.

However, the situation did not end there. Immediately afterwards, Jia Rong and Jia Qiang started to tear each other apart right in front of Jia Rui. Jia Rong clutched Jia Qiang's collar tightly, his eyes wide with anger, and he kept shouting curses. Jia Qiang, unwilling to be outdone, struggled desperately, trying to break free from Jia Rong's restraints. This sudden farce made Jia Rui, who was already in a state of panic, even more terrified and at a loss.

At this moment, Jia Rong, who had been acting so tough, suddenly stopped. He gritted his teeth, glared at Jia Rui fiercely, and shouted, "Tomorrow I will tell everyone in the clan about this and let everyone judge this matter! Then we'll see if you still have the face to stay in the Jia Mansion!" Hearing this, Jia Rui was immediately frightened and his face turned pale, and his whole body trembled like a sieve. His legs gave way, and he fell to his knees with a plop. He kowtowed repeatedly and begged bitterly, "Please forgive me, I won't dare to do this again, and please don't tell the clan about this..."

Seeing Jia Rui in such a state of disgrace, Jia Qiang secretly laughed in his heart. However, on the surface, he pretended to be a kind person. He hurried to Jia Rong's side, took his arm and said to him: "Hey, Rong'er, calm down. We are all family, why make things so awkward? Besides, if this matter gets out, it will not be good for anyone, right? In my opinion, it is better to let him write us another IOU for fifty taels. That way, we can have an explanation and you can stop arguing with him." As he said this, Jia Qiang turned around and winked at Jia Rui, who was kneeling on the ground.

Jia Rui dared not disobey at this moment, and he quickly nodded his head in agreement. So, under Jia Rong's mediation, Jia Rong finally agreed to not pursue the matter further, but on the condition that Jia Rui must immediately write him another IOU for fifty taels. With no other choice, Jia Rui had to force himself to pick up the paper and pen again, and write a new IOU according to Jia Rong's request.