The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 295: The Traitors Are Captured in Succession

Jia Lian drank two cups of tea, pondering when it would be appropriate for him to leave.

He came here for two reasons: first, out of curiosity, he wanted to see Lin Daiyu; second, he wanted to take the opportunity to see Wang Xifeng first.

According to the plot I remember, Wang Xifeng will appear soon.

I'll meet her here first, then gradually get to know her, in preparation for moving back home.

Just as he was thinking about these things, a crisp laugh interrupted his thoughts.

Jia Lian was initially puzzled as to who was so bold as to act so presumptuously in Rongxi Hall.

But the next sentence made him realize who the person was.

"I'm late, I haven't had a chance to welcome my guests from afar!"

With just this one sentence, without a doubt, it was Wang Xifeng who had arrived.

Sure enough, as soon as the words were spoken, a bright and beautiful woman walked in through the back door, surrounded by a group of maids and wives.

Although he remembered the descriptions in the book, Jia Lian knew that Wang Xifeng was also a rare beauty.

But when he saw it with his own eyes, he was still amazed.

Putting aside his appearance, his temperament alone was unlike anything he had ever seen in his two lifetimes.

With such looks and demeanor, if Jia Lian hadn't been prepared, he might have already revealed his lecherous side.

Fortunately, he reacted quickly. After being amazed, he immediately regained his composure and pretended nothing had happened.

Although Wang Xifeng looked at Lin Daiyu as soon as she entered, she also paid attention to Jia Lian.

When he saw that Jia Lian only glanced at him twice before lowering his head to drink tea, he felt a surge of anger.

She thought to herself, "Didn't Ping'er say he wasn't angry anymore? Why is he still acting like this? Does he expect me to apologize to him here? If that's the case, I'll show you what I'm capable of, or I won't be able to control you anymore."

Jia Lian, of course, had no idea that his awkward behavior had once again displeased Wang Xifeng.

At that moment, he thought he would say a few words to Wang Xifeng and then leave.

Over there, after Wang Xifeng met Lin Daiyu, she put on another show of being incredibly shrewd and charming.

Then the maids brought out some snacks and fruits for Lin Daiyu to have something to eat.

Just then, Grandmother Jia saw Jia Lian hiding to the side drinking tea again, and asked in surprise:
"Lian-ge'er, what are you still doing here?"

Grandmother Jia asked casually, but Jia Lian felt a little awkward. He couldn't very well say that he wanted to wait for his wife to say a few words.

Fortunately, the quick-witted Wang Xifeng was there and immediately came to Jia Lian's rescue.

"Grandma, it was my son who asked him to stay. I have something to tell you later."

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia said no more and instructed a maid to serve Jia Lian some snacks and fruit.

Jia Lian had no suspicions and continued eating snacks and drinking tea.

After Lin Daiyu finally ate a couple of bites, Madam Xing took her away to see Jia She.

After dismissing the maids and servants, leaving only Lady Wang and Yingchun behind, she asked:
"Feng girl, you've kept Lian-ge'er here, is there something important you want to say?"

Upon hearing Grandmother Jia's words, Jia Lian, though unaware of Wang Xifeng's intentions, knew it was related to him, so he stood up and prepared to approach Grandmother Jia.

But before he could take two steps, he saw that Wang Xifeng, who had been talking cheerfully with everyone just moments before, had suddenly changed her demeanor.

The once sharp and assertive Feng Lazi suddenly transformed into a pitiful, tearful victim.

At the same time, she said, "Grandma, you must do me justice!"

Wang Xifeng's sudden change left everyone in the room bewildered, wondering what she was up to.

Jia Lian, in particular, had not fully figured out Wang Xifeng and had no idea what she was up to.

Of all the people, only Madam Wang remained relatively calm.

However, Grandmother Jia had seen many grand occasions, and she quickly regained her composure, taking Wang Xifeng's hand and asking:
“Oh dear, what has wronged our little Feng’er? Tell Grandma, and Grandma will stand up for you.”

Upon hearing what Grandmother Jia said, Jia Lian also came to his senses, and at the same time, a sense of vigilance arose in his heart.

Wang Xifeng said she had something to do, but now she's tearfully complaining, which is very likely aimed at me.

Moreover, it's most likely because he hasn't been back to the courtyard for the past three days.

But Ping'er clearly said that Wang Xifeng was afraid that the elders in the mansion would find out about this and wanted her to go back quickly. Why is she revealing it now?
However, before Wang Xifeng revealed her true intentions, Jia Lian could not act rashly and could only wait for Wang Xifeng's next move.

Upon hearing Grandmother Jia's question, Wang Xifeng replied:

“Grandmother, this is a shameful thing, and I originally did not intend to say it, but I feel so wronged that I thought I would ask you to make the decision.”

Seeing this, Grandmother Jia coaxed her, saying:

“If you have any grievances, just speak up. Who would laugh at you? Besides, with Grandma around, no one would dare to laugh at you.”

Just then, Madam Wang, who was standing nearby, also spoke up:

"We're all family here, no one would laugh at you. Don't worry, if you're really wronged, we'll all stand up for you."

When she said that, Yingchun and the others next to her naturally echoed her sentiments.

"Second Sister-in-law Lian, please speak freely!"

"Yeah, everyone's backing you up."

Everyone in the room chimed in, chattering and clamoring to support Wang Xifeng.

Only Jia Lian broke out in a cold sweat.

At this point, Wang Xifeng felt that the groundwork had been laid, and she spoke:
"Grandmother, what I want to talk about today is related to our second master."

"Lian-ge'er?" Grandmother Jia said, seemingly surprised. "Did he bully you? I'll teach him a lesson later."

As she spoke, it seemed as if Grandmother Jia was about to stand up and hit Jia Lian.

Wang Xifeng hadn't even revealed her true intentions yet, so how could she let Jia Lian just hit her a couple of times?

She quickly replied, "Grandmother, he didn't bully me."

"He didn't bully you?" Grandmother Jia asked, somewhat confused. "Then what did he do?"

Wang Xifeng said with tears in her eyes, "He's angry with me and moved to another courtyard. I've been asking him to come back for several days, but he won't."

Hearing this, Grandmother Jia's initial anger subsided, and she chuckled lightly, saying:
"I thought it was something serious, but it turns out the young couple had a fight. Don't worry, Feng'er, I'll have Lian'er move back now."

As she spoke, Grandmother Jia turned to look at Jia Lian and scolded him:

"You good-for-nothing! It's one thing to be unreliable all the time, but why do you always make your wife angry? You'd better apologize to her right now and move back home in a bit, or else I'll teach you a lesson."

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian was somewhat speechless with anger.

He underestimated Wang Xifeng, thinking she would let things go. He didn't expect her to be willing to lose face and use Grandmother Jia's influence to teach him a lesson. However, Jia Lian had only just arrived and hadn't fully grasped the affairs of the Rongguo Mansion yet. To avoid further complications, he could only suppress his anger.

So he said, “Grandma, don’t worry. It wasn’t a big deal. I just had some things to think about these past few days, so I stayed in another courtyard. I didn’t expect you to misunderstand. I’ll move back today.”

Jia Lian repeated the excuse he had prepared earlier, but he didn't mention the matter of apologizing at all.

However, he felt that since Wang Xifeng had brought this up on this occasion, she wouldn't let it go so easily.

Sure enough, before Grandmother Jia could speak, she started crying again.

And while crying, he said, "Grandmother, you know your grandson. How could I disturb your peace over such a small matter, nor would I get angry with my husband over such a small matter?"

Grandmother Jia asked in surprise, "Is there something else going on?"

Wang Xifeng said bitterly, "This matter concerns his reputation. I didn't intend to say it, but my grandson is worried that he will have nowhere to stay in the mansion from now on, so I have no choice but to say it."

Upon hearing Wang Xifeng mention that she would have nowhere to stay in the mansion, Jia Mu and the others took this matter very seriously.

She quickly asked, "What kind of thing has happened that has left you homeless? I'm still alive, how could I have come to this?"

"That's what I originally thought too," Wang Xifeng continued, playing the victim. "But since it has already happened, I can't help but worry."

At this moment, Madam Wang, who had been silent for a while, spoke up again at the opportune moment.

“If there’s anything wrong, just say it. The old lady will take care of it for you. What’s the use of crying?”

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia said, "Yes, don't cry yet. Tell me what Lian-ge'er has done this time. Explain it clearly and I will help you get justice."

With two heavyweights having spoken, Wang Xifeng no longer held back and said directly:
"Grandmother, our second master has found a lover outside and is planning to divorce his grandson."

Upon hearing this, the entire room fell silent.

All eyes turned to Jia Lian, wanting to see if this usually unreliable guy really had such thoughts.

At this moment, Jia Lian paid no attention to those gazes.

He was trying his best to suppress the anger in his heart.

He never expected that Wang Xifeng would fabricate such an outrageous story in order to control him.

This woman's mind is so vicious, she could bite right to the bone.

Why was Jia Lian so certain that Wang Xifeng had fabricated this story? It was because of both his inherited memories and the books he had read in his previous life.

He knew that Jia Lian was not as well-controlled as Wang Xifeng. Although he had the audacity to have affairs, he had no intention of breaking up with Wang Xifeng.

All of this is just Wang Xifeng's way of manipulating people.

However, only Jia Lian himself knew the truth about all of this; others might not believe it.

Because Jia Lian's reputation in the Jia family was really not good.

This is probably why Wang Xifeng dared to speak so carelessly.

However, Jia Lian didn't have time to think about it at this moment; he needed to explain things clearly as soon as possible.

Otherwise, if he arrives here with such a serious charge, it will be even more difficult for him to get along in the Rongguo Mansion.

However, before his lover could explain, they heard Grandmother Jia shout angrily.

“He wouldn’t dare. If he dares to divorce his wife, I’ll have his father break his legs.”

After shouting this, Grandmother Jia turned to Jia Lian and scolded him, asking:

“Lian-ge’er, what Feng-yatou said is true. You really want to divorce your wife.”

At this moment, in Jia Lian's heart, he really wanted to divorce Wang Xifeng, who had framed him.

However, Jia Lian knew that he, Jia Lian, really had no say in the Rongguo Mansion at present.

If he had dared to say he wanted to divorce his wife, breaking his leg might not have happened.

However, in order to appease the Wang family, the Jia family would certainly not let Jia Lian off easily.

Moreover, doing so would directly offend Grandmother Jia, the person in charge of the Jia family, to the point of no return.

In this way, Jia Lian would be like a rat crossing the street in the Jia family.

Therefore, Jia Lian tactfully said:

"Grandma, you know your grandson well. How could I do such a foolish thing?"

Upon hearing Jia Lian's direct statement, the anger on Grandmother Jia's face lessened somewhat.

She lowered her head and spoke softly to Wang Xifeng:

“Feng girl, did you hear that? Lian-ge’er has no intention of divorcing his wife, so you can rest assured.”

Upon hearing this, Wang Xifeng murmured an "Mmm," then slowly turned to look at Jia Lian.

Jia Lian knew this was not the time to act recklessly, so he forced an awkward smile.

Whether it was Jia Lian's forced smile that provoked her, or whether Wang Xifeng herself never intended to let Jia Lian off so easily.

She turned around and, sobbing, said:
"Grandma, it's not that I don't believe what he says, it's just that what he did is really hard for me to believe."

When Grandmother Jia saw that Wang Xifeng was still pressing the issue even after all that, she showed signs of impatience.

However, she still suppressed her temper and said softly:
"Feng girl, what exactly did Lian-ge do that makes you worry?"

As someone skilled at reading people's expressions, Wang Xifeng was naturally able to detect the changes in Grandmother Jia's emotions.

But since she had already pushed things to this point, she couldn't give up halfway.

So she continued, tears streaming down her face, "My daughter-in-law isn't someone who doesn't know her place or holds grudges over every little mistake, but he..."

She paused abruptly, seemingly unsure how to continue.

Once everyone's attention was focused back on her, she continued:

“A few days ago, he went to Lotus Wine House and took a fancy to a girl. He left a message for her, saying that he was going home to divorce his wife and marry that girl.”

When everyone heard this, they were shocked. Although everyone knew that Jia Lian would never marry a girl into the Jia family, they all glared at Jia Lian as if he had already married the girl.

Jia Lian, who was being watched by everyone, was also feeling a bit overwhelmed.

He had only been in Jia Lian's place for three days at most, and had no idea what outrageous things Jia Lian had done in the past.

To make matters worse, he's not fully accepting the original owner's memories, and he can't recall such a thing happening in his mind.

Therefore, Jia Lian didn't know how to respond to the accusations leveled against him by Wang Xifeng.

Fortunately, Jia Lian spoke up to smooth things over at this moment.

She took a breath and said, "Feng girl, you've been wronged. I'll have your father deal with him later. But Feng girl, don't be too upset. That's just how men are. It's nothing to drink with women occasionally. It's common for them to flatter those vixens and say a few words of praise. Feng girl, don't take it to heart."

(End of this chapter)