The Heavens Begin with Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 71 Reading comprehension is an important course

As soon as the veil fell, the light from the wedding candles was immediately blocked outside, and Aunt Xue's heart also calmed down. She was filled with anxiety, tension, shyness, and anticipation.

There was a sound of door opening and footsteps. Through the gap under the veil, Aunt Xue saw a pair of big feet appear in front of her.

Amid the sound of her violent heartbeat, a weighing rod gently lifted up her veil. Aunt Xue looked up shyly, only to see the candlelight from behind her casting a halo over her, making her dizzy and her mouth dry.

"Good Jiuer, I have finally waited for this day..."

(Delete first, then modify)
The magnetic voice rang in Aunt Xue's ears, making her feel numb all over, even to her heart, and she couldn't help but close her eyes.

A strong masculine scent hit her face, and then she felt the entanglement of lips and tongues. In a daze, she didn't know how long she had been floating in the clouds before Aunt Xue came to her senses. She shyly opened her eyes and looked carefully at the master who was holding her in his arms and bringing her happiness.

The handsome face, strong body and smiling expression were clearly...his son-in-law?
"what……"

Aunt Xue screamed, woke up from her dream, and sat on the bed gasping for breath.

"Madam, what's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"

Lvliu, who was lying on the small bed next to her, was awakened by the cry. She lit the light and came over to check.

"I...I just dreamed that Baochai's illness recurred."

Aunt Xue hesitated for a few words and sent Lvliu back to bed. She fumbled for the teapot in front of the bed, poured herself a bowl of cold tea, gulped it down, calmed her pounding heart, and then lay back on the bed.

But after that, Aunt Xue couldn't fall asleep at all.

This is bad!

This situation will not be hidden from Lvliu tomorrow.

Whenever Aunt Xue thought about the possible social disgrace that might occur tomorrow, she wished she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

It was late at night and everyone was asleep, and suddenly Green Willow on the small bed was startled again.

"Mrs?"

Luliu turned over and tried to get up again, but Aunt Xue hurriedly tried to stop her, saying:
"It's okay. I poured out the remaining tea."

She lay on the bed trembling with fear and listened carefully. When she saw Lvliu lying down and falling asleep again, she felt relaxed and lay flat in the quilt, her mind starting to wander again.

What a shameless thing!

How could I have such a erotic dream!
You are so old, yet still so shameless!
Could it be true as people say, that men are like wolves at thirty and tigers at forty?
What's worse is that the object of the dream is actually...

Aunt Xue pinched her thighs hard several times to sober herself up, but as soon as she thought of what she was going to do in the future, her heart began to waver again and her body temperature rose again.

It's not that she didn't think about retreating, but when she thought about the current family situation and the efforts her children had made to protect the family business, she felt that she had no way out and had to fulfill her responsibilities as a mother for the safety of the family.

It's all for this family, not that she is unfaithful to her husband!

While Aunt Xue was looking for excuses for her future behavior, her mind was in a mess. The scenes in the dream jumped into her mind uncontrollably, churning around in her mind.

Unconsciously, Aunt Xue's hand slid down. In a daze, half asleep and half awake, she didn't know what she did, but it was more exciting than in the dream.

"Madam, madam, it's time to get up."

After being awakened by Luliu, Aunt Xue opened her sleepy eyes, turned over, and then her body suddenly stiffened.

The events of last night suddenly came back to her memory, slamming her head hard.

Aunt Xue turned her head in panic and looked towards the head of the bed where the underwear was hanging, but saw that it was empty.

"hiss……"

Aunt Xue gasped and was at a loss when she suddenly saw Lvliu holding a set of soft cotton underwear and placing it in front of her.

"Madam, I have already sent the one I wore last night to be washed. You can wear this clean one today."

Aunt Xue's face turned red immediately and she couldn't utter a word. She curled up in the quilt for a long time and refused to move.

Seeing this, Lvliu smiled and said:

"Madam, what are you doing?"

"We are all women, I won't laugh at you!"

"The master doesn't come here often, and we sisters are quite lonely. Sometimes we get together and play some tricks."

"If you need anything, you can always call us. We are all happy to help you."

After hearing this, Aunt Xue's face turned even redder. She was frightened by Lvliu's blunt words and was not at all used to it.

After Lvliu had laughed enough, she pulled back the quilt, revealing her beautiful white flesh.

She was originally from the mountain village, and usually pretended to be a maid, but her nature was still that of a thief. She had no genuine respect for Aunt Xue, and now when she saw her "ugly appearance", she naturally laughed out loud on the spot.

"Ha ha……"

"No wonder Madam wanted to spill the remaining tea last night. It seems that one cup of tea is not enough to spill!"

Aunt Xue was immediately furious when she heard this. She pointed to the door and shouted:

"go out!"

"Prepare me some bath water!"

Lvliu went out laughing, holding her stomach. She thought that it would not be long before Hongye and the others would know what happened last night.

Aunt Xue was both ashamed and annoyed. After throwing her pillow around for a while, she had no choice but to cover her head with the quilt and pretend to be dead.

Anyway, Lvliu has discovered it, so let her do whatever she wants!
If she wants to devote herself to Master Zhan in the future, she will probably not be able to hide it from these personal "maids". She may even have to rely on them to help keep it secret. This is just a rehearsal.

After a while, Lvliu brought in a bathtub and took out a clean quilt to replace the dirty one.

Aunt Xue hurriedly jumped into the bathtub, and washed herself thoroughly amid the laughter and teasing of Green Willow. Then she came out and changed into clean underwear. After she had finished washing and dressing herself, she came out of the room.

After breakfast, Aunt Xue sat in the yard anxiously waiting for the arrival of her son-in-law, Master Zhan.

Although she had rehearsed it thousands of times in her mind, now that the time had come, she couldn't help but want to back out.

This kind of thing of actively seducing a man is really not something that an ordinary woman can do.

Although Hongye and others worked as maids in the Xue family, one of their tasks was to monitor several members of the Xue family. Aunt Xue's uneasy look was extremely suspicious and soon attracted the attention of several people.

Hongye waved her hand and called Lvliu, who had been following Aunt Xue, over and asked in a low voice:
"What's wrong with you, ma'am? Why do you look so upset?"

Lvliu covered her mouth with her handkerchief and said with a smile:
"Our wife is missing a man. Last night, the wife..."

As soon as she explained the situation in vivid detail, all the girls burst into laughter.

"I was thinking, this is the first time I've seen Madam so restless in all these days."

"Over the past few months, my wife has been so dignified and self-possessed that I really thought she was a bodhisattva in a temple, without any worldly desires. Now I know that she is also a mortal!"

"Who in this world is not a mortal? Master Xue has been dead for many years, who can keep him? I think the Madam and the two maids beside her must have had an affair, but they were all replaced by us, so the Madam has not had any mortal thoughts in the past few months."

"Then you better be careful, Luliu. Maybe the Madam has set her sights on you. If she asks you to serve her, you'd better use your tongue and let the Madam see what it means to be eloquent."

"What's the point of being a silver tongue? Isn't it better to have your fingers connected to your heart?"

"If you count it this way, then the master's Chuanchang Guadu is definitely the strongest!"

"Ha ha……"

After the girls laughed and made noises for a while, Zijing suddenly asked:

"Why did Madam suddenly become interested in love?"

"You see she keeps looking out the door, is she waiting for our master?"

"Nonsense, the master is her son-in-law!"

"So what about a son-in-law? Besides the master, has she seen other men these days?"

The girls chatted one after another, with more and more gossipy looks in their eyes. They all wanted to know who the man was who had teased Aunt Xue.

Not long after, Master Zhan came to visit Baochai again. Originally, the girls should have gone forward to greet him, but this time, in order to read gossip, the girls all hid in the next room. No one went out. They just wanted to see if the person Aunt Xue had been waiting for was their own master.

Master Zhan entered the courtyard. Although he did not see Hongye and the others coming to greet him, he heard them hiding in a wing room not far away. He did not think much of it and walked towards Baochai's room in the backyard. But he saw Aunt Xue standing by the roadside, looking at him with a red face, wanting to say something but stopping himself. So he walked up to her and asked with a smile:

"Aunt, do you have something to tell me?"

Originally, Aunt Xue had prepared herself mentally, but now, after being reminded by Master Zhan's "Aunt", she immediately lost her temper. She immediately lowered her head, not daring to look at him. She just tightly grasped the handkerchief in her hand and said hesitantly:

"I, I just want to thank Master Zhan for saving Baochai..."

"Haha, Baochai is my future wife, so it's only natural for me to save her. Why are you thanking me, aunt?"

Aunt Xue's heart was beating wildly. She turned her head away, not daring to look at Zhan 24. She only stared at the snow water dripping down from the door. For some reason, she felt a little wet between her legs.

What a loser, he always has wild thoughts about everything he sees!
Aunt Xue cursed herself inwardly, and looked around like a thief. Seeing that no one was around, her face flushed, and she whispered as softly as a mosquito:
"I, my concubine, agree to what Master Zhan had in mind before."

After saying this, Aunt Xue collapsed against the door frame as if she had lost her strength. Her legs were trembling as if they were soft noodles and she couldn't exert any strength at all.

The whole person looked like a cooked shrimp, with redness all the way down the face and neck, and a burning sensation all over the body.

"Ok?"

Although Aunt Xue's voice was very soft, Mr. Zhan had extremely sharp senses and heard every word clearly. He was stunned for a moment.

What was he thinking before?

He didn't seem to be thinking about anything!
Looking at Aunt Xue's expression, I wonder if there was a misunderstanding?
So what did she misunderstand?

Mr. Zhan was no longer a novice. When he saw Aunt Xue's expression, his face suddenly became strange.

Could it be that Aunt Xue is...

hiss……

This is... dangerous!
Seeing Aunt Xue's coy look of willingness to be tasted by him, a lecher like Mr. Zhan's eyes widened. But after hesitating for a long time, Mr. Zhan still decided to maintain his current image as a "good gentleman" and resolutely not let it collapse.

"cough!"

Mr. Zhan coughed dryly, took Aunt Xue's hand, stroked it and refused sanctimoniously:
"Aunt, you have misunderstood!"

"It is my duty to save Baochai. How can there be any conditions attached?"

"Besides, Aunt is Baochai's mother, my mother-in-law. My admiration for Aunt is like the surging river, which is endless, and like the flooding of the Yellow River, which is unstoppable..."

"I have so much respect for my aunt, how dare I have any improper thoughts?"

"I would never dare to force my aunt to sacrifice herself!"

Aunt Xue stared blankly at her son-in-law's tender little hand, which she had tried twice to pull back but failed, and was still tightly held in his hand. She didn't know how she should read and understand her son-in-law's words so that she could get a full score.

Why don't you let go of your hand before you say that!

Master Zhan felt around for a long time, and finally sighed:

"Alas, those who know me well say that I am worried, and those who do not know me well ask what I am looking for. There are too many misunderstandings in this world, which really makes a gentleman sigh with regret!"

After saying this, Mr. Zhan finally let go of her hand reluctantly and went into the house to help Baochai consolidate the effects of the medicine.

Aunt Xue was now very embarrassed. What exactly did the words "good son-in-law" mean?

If you listen to the literal meaning, it must be a flat rejection, but when she lowered her head and looked at her white and tender little hands that were all rubbed red, she always felt that it didn't seem to be the case.

But if you take it as a sarcastic remark, it doesn't seem quite right. She has already clearly agreed. If you accept, then just find an empty room nearby and carry her in. How can she refuse?
But why did he just let go and left?

Could it be that he was worried about being discovered by Baochai in the backyard?

But the front and back yards are far apart. Unless she screams loudly, how could Baochai know what is happening here?
Aunt Xue once again felt that her own intelligence was not enough. She could not understand the underlying meaning of Mr. Zhan's unfathomable words and actions. However, she could not ask her own daughter for advice on such matters. She could only think about it herself in a depressed mood.

In the side room of the yard, Hongye and several other girls hid inside and ate the whole melon, and they immediately became excited.

"What did I say? It must be our master! Apart from our master, who among all the useless people in this mansion can seduce the lady and make her fall in love?"

"I didn't know it before, but now I know that Madam is the truly courageous person! Look at her and Master, holding hands and looking into each other's eyes. They must be full of affection. I really want to call Miss Baochai over to see it!"

"Bah, bah, bah! You slut, you only think about shameless things! If you dare to ruin the master's business, I will show you how the master will deal with you!"

After the girls chatted and laughed for a while, they saw that Mr. Zhan had left, leaving Aunt Xue there in a daze, so they rushed out of the house in a swarm, surrounded Aunt Xue, and smiled as they surrounded her and went into the small house next door.

"Come on, come on, Madam, you have worked hard for a long time. Come in and sit down for a while and tell us the story between you and our master."

Aunt Xue was panicked at first, but when she thought of Mr. Zhan's incomprehensible words, she immediately changed her mind and decided to listen to the opinions of those around Mr. Zhan. If all else failed, she could ask them to help find out more.

After she figured it out, Aunt Xue stopped resisting and followed everyone into the next room. She had the door bolted, then she told them the situation hesitantly and asked:

"I have already agreed, why is Master Zhan still, why is he still..."

"This one……"

Hongye and the others looked at each other, and after carefully savoring Master Zhan’s words, they analyzed:

"Everyone knows our master's character. Although he won't be unable to walk when he sees a beautiful woman, he definitely won't refuse to eat the meat that is right in front of him."

"Since the master didn't eat any more, it must be that the meat is not seasoned well enough!"

"Or, we can help the Madam dress up, and then send her to the Master after she has been well-marinated."

"Not bad, not bad. Look at your makeup and clothes now. They are too plain and can't arouse any desire in men. After all, our family makes those exquisite clothes. How can you not have one?"

"I'll go find Aunt Xiangling and ask her to take my wife's measurements and make some clothes for her. She can also make some for my young lady. Who knows, it might be useful someday."

Aunt Xue, who was nearby, heard this and was startled. She waved her hands hastily and warned:

"Don't let Baochai know about this!"

"Eh?" Lvliu was immediately surprised and asked jokingly, "Could it be that Madam is still hiding her devotion from Miss?"

Aunt Xue blushed and said shyly:
"This, this is not a glorious thing, how dare I let Baochai know?"

"I just hope to give Master Zhan some benefits, so that he can take care of my family in the future and not abandon me. But I can't care about much else!"

Of course everyone knew that Mr. Zhan's identity as "Jinyi Tiqi" was fake, so they just laughed when they heard it and didn't say anything.

"Then just don't let the young lady know. We will keep it a secret for you. The young lady will never know the truth in her life."

Zijing reminded:

"Hearing what the lady said, it suddenly occurred to me that the master probably didn't want this to become a transaction."

"Madam said before that she was willing to sacrifice herself to thank the master for saving the young lady. That seems unorthodox, too distant, and without any emotion at all."

"Our master is a kind gentleman, and he knows how to have fun. He probably doesn't like things that are just physical pleasures and have no emotional basis!"

"If that's the case, if Madam asks Master to take care of the family before she devotes herself to him, I'm afraid Master will probably refuse."

"Madam, you have to treat the master as a family member, then the master will naturally return the favor and truly protect you."

"Otherwise, if the madam and the young lady treat this as a business, the master will probably treat your family members as business partners in the end."

After hearing this, Aunt Xue became confused and said hesitantly:
"Do I have to treat Master Zhan as my own master and serve him?"

Zijing smiled after hearing this and nodded:
"That's right. If you treat my master with sincerity, my master will naturally treat you with sincerity."

"But..." Aunt Xue hesitated for a long time and asked again: "If this is the case, what about Baochai?"

Zijing smiled and explained:
"If Madam can make Miss truly regard the Master as her own husband, instead of just treating him as a transaction, then Miss's position as the legitimate wife will naturally be as solid as a rock, and no one can shake it."

"Moreover, if the young lady can really do this, the mistress won't need to do anything like sacrificing herself. The master will naturally protect his own in-laws."

After hearing this, Aunt Xue sighed and frowned again.

What Zijing said made a lot of sense, and she understood it very well.

But the reason why she disregarded propriety, risked her reputation, and tried every means to devote herself to her own son-in-law was because she knew very well in her heart that this marriage was purely a transaction, and there were huge problems between Baochai and Zhan Niansi!

Precisely because they knew this, both she and Baochai were very uneasy, worrying that after Master Zhan had used them, he would abandon them in the future.

I'm afraid only a heartless guy like Xue Pan would truly believe in Mr. Zhan's promise.

Aunt Xue knows her daughter very well. Baochai is impeccable in everything she does and everyone in the house praises her.

But she knew very well in her heart that beneath the appearance of a perfect personality, Baochai was actually a person who was too calm and rational, so much so that she did not look like a girl at all. Instead, she was more like a man than her brother Xue Pan.

She believed that if Baochai became the legitimate wife of the Zhan family, she would be able to manage the household in an orderly manner, be filial to her parents-in-law, raise children, and be a good helper to her husband.

But the only problem is that Baochai can't truly fall in love with someone else.

Baochai can certainly pretend to be a perfect wife, but I'm afraid it's impossible for her to deceive Mr. Zhan, who has been fond of many beauties.

After realizing this, Aunt Xue stopped thinking about it and sighed:

"Alas, never mention this matter again!"

"I am a member of the Xue family in life and a ghost of the Xue family in death. Now that I want to lose my virginity to someone else, I am already extremely sorry to my late husband. I will definitely not change my ways."

"Even if I dedicate myself to Master Zhan, I will only let him play with my beautiful body, but I will never change my mind and recognize him as my master."

"He can get me, but he can never get my heart!"

Hongye and the others laughed so hard that their bodies shook with laughter, and said:

"That's because you haven't seen the good of my master. When you taste the sweetness in the future, I'm afraid you will want to swallow back what you said today."

"Hehe, we all remember what Madam said. We will definitely remind you to swallow a few more mouthfuls when the time comes..."

"Don't bother, you will definitely rush over and eat it first. How can you be willing to leave it for your wife?"

All the women had eaten meat before, and when they talked dirty, even a decent woman like Aunt Xue couldn't resist. She was teased to the point of blushing and unable to say a word.

Hongye and others had followed Master Zhan for many years, but when the mother and daughter of the Xue family came, they all became maids. Although their identities were fake, there would definitely be a position of concubine waiting for them in the future, but it was impossible to say that they were not jealous.

Why should we, as the women around the master, have to serve you?
Now that they have the opportunity to add insult to injury, they certainly don't mind doing some tricks in secret to bring down the Xue mother and daughter.

With this handle in hand, they don't have to worry about Baochai bullying them after she becomes a wife.

They surrounded Aunt Xue, chatting and laughing, and teasing her all the time, under the pretext of helping her learn how to please the master.

In this situation, even if Aunt Xue wanted to quit, it would be impossible. These jealous women would never agree. She had to suppress her shyness and start to learn with an open mind.

As for Master Zhan, after consolidating the effects of the medicine for Baochai, he came out from the backyard smiling, and as expected, he saw Sanchun coming again.

Now that the tasks have been assigned, everyone is responsible for Yingchun. He still maintains his attitude and takes Yingchun to find a place to play chess.

Yingchun had already fallen by this time and followed Master Zhan obediently.

Tanchun has also decided on a strategy to move up the social ladder. She no longer hangs around Master Zhan, but instead interacts with Baochai and Aunt Xue to prepare for their future godchildren.

The only exception was Xichun, who was called over by Jia Zhen yesterday and scolded. He ordered her to win the favor of Master Zhan, otherwise even if he wanted to arrange a marriage, Master Zhan would not agree.

Xichun had long been aware of the bad things going on in Ningguo Mansion, but as she was just a woman, she could not change anything at all, so she had to play deaf and dumb, doing nothing, and just protecting herself selfishly to avoid being implicated.

She didn't dare to refuse Jia Zhen's words, otherwise she was afraid of being taken advantage of and forced directly to Master Zhan's bed to be enjoyed by him. By then, she would cry to the sky and the earth and no one would answer.

There was no choice but Xichun to follow Yingchun and go to the front yard.

Although this Master Zhan is too lustful, just like his own brother, but if she could be a wife of the Zhan family with a title and status, it would be better than being a plaything without any title and status.

Xichun followed behind Master Zhan and the other man, walking slowly without saying a word. When the two men found a small pavilion, put down the mats and set out the chessboard, and started playing chess, Xichun came over with a dry smile.

"Haha, Brother Zhan is really a man of great taste. I think he is also an unparalleled chess player. Do you mind letting me learn from you?"

Seeing her take the initiative this time, Zhan Ershisi knew that Xue Pan had made an effort, so he certainly would not refuse, so he smiled and nodded:
"Why not? Fourth sister, just watch, but please don't make fun of me."

Xichun sat down at the table as if no one was around and ignored Siqi's angry look.

Siqi was standing behind Yingchun. Seeing this, she reached out and secretly poked Yingchun twice on the back, signaling her to speak up and chase the man away. But Ermutou lowered his head and didn't say a word no matter how she poked him.

It's true that the emperor is not in a hurry, but the eunuch is!
Siqi cursed inwardly, but she had no way to deal with her own master, so she had to change her target and stared at Ruhua who was standing behind Xichun, trying to see whose eyes were bigger.

The three sisters-in-law all lived in the Baoxia Hall and had always been on good terms with each other. Naturally, their maids were also on good terms with each other, but now, in order to compete for that man, they no longer cared about anything else.

Xichun originally thought that the two were playing Go, but after taking a few glances, she understood the rules of Gobang.

She had always known Yingchun was good at playing Go, and had been a little timid sitting there watching the game. But now that she saw how simple the two of them were playing, she burst out laughing and said with a pouty mouth:

"I wonder why Brother Zhan said that just now. It turns out that Brother Zhan doesn't know how to play Go!"

"What a coincidence! I don't know how to play Go either. Every time my sisters play, I can only watch from the sidelines. I feel itchy."

"This method is simple and quick, even I can do it. I wonder if Brother Zhan is willing to play a game with me."

As she spoke, she stood up, walked to Yingchun, motioned for her to get up, and gave up her seat to her.

Yingchun was reluctant to leave, but still stood up obediently.

Siqi behind her became angry when she saw this. When she saw Yingchun was about to leave, she put her hands on Yingchun's shoulders and pushed down hard, pushing her back to her original position.

Yingchun didn't want to leave in the first place, but since Siqi was holding her down, she just sat firmly in her seat, lowered her head and looked at the chessboard intently, without saying a word or moving.

It was all Siqi's fault, so you can't blame her!

When Xichun saw this, she curled her lips again and sneered:
"I've always heard that the maids in Second Brother Bao's courtyard are unruly and have been spoiled by Second Brother Bao. Today I learned that the maids in Second Sister's courtyard are even more lawless and have begun to make decisions for their own young lady."

"If she is so arrogant and domineering, she will definitely turn other people's backyards upside down if she is married off in the future."

"You..." Si Qi was provoked by her and became even angrier. She could not help but take a step forward and wanted to make things clear with her.

Siqi was tall and her presence gave off a strong sense of oppression, but Xichun was not afraid of her. She stood still and sneered:

"Why, do you still dare to hit me?"

"Yes, just look at the way my second sister obeys you. I guess she must have been beaten by you a lot and is now obedient."

The three sisters often visited each other on weekdays. Siqi knew that Xichun was cold-hearted, but she had never provoked her, so she had never been scolded by her. However, she didn't know that Xichun was so poisonous.

Now, Xichun had already irritated Siqi with just a few words. She wanted to tear her mouth to pieces, but fortunately, she still had her senses and knew that there was a difference between the upper and the lower, so she must not take action. So she stood still and shouted at Xichun at the top of her voice:
"Fourth Miss, don't take advantage of my young lady's honesty and try to take her place!"

"If you want to play chess, I will give you a set of Go later. Anyway, the rules are simple. You can play chess with anyone you want in your own yard. Don't disturb my young lady!"

Xichun was not angry at her sarcasm and sarcasm, but just sat down leisurely and said with a smile:
"It's just a position, what's there to fight for? If I sit here, can I not play chess?"

As she spoke, she gently stretched out her jade hand, picked up a chess piece from the chess pot in front of Xichun, and slowly placed it on the empty space next to the chessboard, smiling and saying to Zhan Ershisi:
"Brother Zhan, how about we play chess here?"

Master Zhan had been watching the quarrel for a long time with a smile on his face. At this moment, he laughed loudly, reached out and picked up two chess pieces, and placed one on each of the two people on the chessboard in front of them, and said meaningfully:

"What's the point of arguing about this? Master, I can divide my attention and play two games at the same time!"

(End of this chapter)