Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 338 Brother Yue, you don’t want to…

Lin Mansion,

In the bedroom, Lin Ruhai sat on the edge of the bed, closed his eyes, and breathed softly.

Two concubines stood by his side, helping Lin Ruhai wash and change into a set of inner clothes that did not smell of alcohol, and then they supported Lin Ruhai and helped him to rest on the couch.

Lying on the bed, even though he was drunk, Lin Ruhai still had some concerns in his heart. He frowned and asked, "Where's Yu'er? Did she go back to her room to rest?"

Aunt Zhou replied, "The master stopped her just now, and she was taken back to her room by Nanny Wang. She should be resting now."

Lin Ruhai breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing Lin Daiyu's willful behavior in the hall, he was really afraid that Lin Daiyu would completely disobey him and really follow Yue Ling.

Fortunately, Lin Daiyu still remembered her mother's teachings deeply. When I mentioned her mother, Lin Daiyu no longer argued.

"This girl doesn't even give me, her father, face. How can I get along with her?"

Aunt Bai poured out the foot-washing water and returned to her room. Just then she heard this and offered advice: "According to what I and the maids know, the reason why the young lady and the Marquis have such a deep relationship is because of the Marquis's meticulous care."

"Over the years, the two of them naturally became close. The young lady has only lived with the old master in the Lin Mansion for a few years, so she must be closer to the Marquis now."

"If you want to turn this around, it won't be done in a day. The master must also take care of the girl and surpass the marquis in every aspect. After that, he can persuade the girl with reason and emotion."

"At this moment, if the master continues to quarrel with the girl, it may backfire and force her to get closer to the Marquis."

Lin Ruhai nodded slowly, "That's true. I wonder what Yue Ling did to make Yu'er, such a lonely child, open her heart to him."

"Tomorrow, the two of you should go ask the maids, especially Xueyan, who has been with Lin Daiyu the longest."

"She must have known everything that happened on the way south. Let her tell us what happened to Yue Ling."

The aunts nodded repeatedly and responded to the order.

Lin Ruhai took a few calm breaths, but his heart was still uneasy. He struggled to sit up, enduring the pain in his body.

The two concubines had lowered the curtains and were about to go back to their rooms to rest, but Lin Ruhai stood up again and asked them to go back the way they came, and asked with concern, "Master, do you have anything else to tell me?"

Lin Ruhai pressed his temples tightly with his thumbs several times, shook his head and said, "Bring me my dress. I am still worried about Yu'er. I need to see her resting in the room with my own eyes."

The two concubines were at a loss whether to laugh or cry. It was already dark, where else could Lin Daiyu be if not in her room? Moreover, Nanny Wang was guarding the room. Could Lin Daiyu really grow wings and fly away?
Aunt Bai and Aunt Zhou were naturally no match for Lin Ruhai, so they could only look down at him and watch him put on his clothes.

However, Lin Daiyu was almost coming of age and was no longer old enough for her father to visit her in her boudoir. The two of them seemed to be hesitant to speak, wanting to give Lin Ruhai a few more suggestions.

Lin Ruhai looked around and could see the embarrassment on their faces. "I just asked a question. Otherwise, I won't be able to sleep well tonight."

……

In an independent courtyard connected to the main courtyard's circular corridor, this is Lin Daiyu's secluded courtyard and also where she grew up.

The shadows of bamboos are scattered in the courtyard, the stone steps are colorful under the moonlight, and the surface of the lake is glowing with a faint silver light.

Lin Daiyu likes flowers and plants and quietness, and this place was decorated by the Lin Mansion to suit her taste.

Even though Lin Daiyu has not returned for many years, everything remains the same, except that the furniture in the room that was suitable for young children has been replaced with grand pear wood and sandalwood furniture.

In the inner room, inside the Xiang Fei-colored bed curtains, Lin Daiyu did not put on a thin nightgown and lie down on the bed. Instead, she sat in front of the dressing mirror and let Qin Keqing put on makeup on her face.

Moreover, she was not wearing the moon-white collar and horse-faced skirt that she had just worn, but was wearing the standard clothes of a maid in the Anjing Marquis's mansion.

The moonlight shone through the moonlit window, and they had to light a lantern before going out. Lin Daiyu couldn't help but urge him anxiously, "Sister Ke'er, are you almost there?"

Qin Keqing carefully drew Lin Daiyu's eyebrows, breathing deeply, "Don't worry, it will be done soon. If it doesn't look like her, all my efforts will be wasted."

Lin Daiyu was born with natural beauty and never wore makeup on her face. Today, she wears makeup not for beauty, but to disguise herself as someone else.

The one who needed to be disguised was Qingwen, who was now lying on her bed and resting in the room in her place.

Before this, Qin Keqing had accumulated sufficient experience in applying makeup on Xue Baochai, so she was even more adept at sculpting Lin Daiyu's face.

After a few breaths, Qin Keqing put the eyebrow pencil into her dressing box and said with a smile, "Sister Lin now looks at least 90% like Qingwen. You two have similar eyebrows and eyes, and your limbs are both slender. It's just that Qingwen is a few years older and a little taller."

"But she was lying on the bed pretending to be Sister Lin. Unless they were face to face, it would be difficult for anyone to notice her."

"It's just that Sister Lin has to get up early every day and come to the room to change her identity, otherwise it will be easy for others to know."

Staring at the slightly unfamiliar self in the dressing mirror, Lin Daiyu nodded calmly, "Don't worry, I know what I am doing."

"Now that we're all right, let's go."

Lin Daiyu stood up, fixed the hairpin she rarely used, came to the bedside, and said to Qingwen, "If someone asks you a question, just pretend to be asleep. With Zijuan protecting you outside, no one will knock on the door."

"However, tomorrow morning, Nanny Wang may come to urge you to get up. Don't worry, I will be back by then."

Qingwen looked embarrassed and said bitterly, "Miss, you must remember to come back early, otherwise I will... really have a hard time explaining it."

Lin Daiyu patted her belly and said with a smile: "Don't worry, nothing will go wrong."

After calling Zijuan and Xueyan in and giving them a few words of advice, Lin Daiyu and Qin Keqing picked up the glass lantern and went out of the yard.

The only person living with Lin Daiyu in this courtyard was a nanny, Nanny Wang, who was an outsider. Other than that, all the maids were her own family.

Lin Daiyu also felt for the first time that having more people does have its advantages, and they don't just make trouble every day.

If it weren't for their cooperation, it would have been really difficult to stage such a deceptive drama in the Lin Mansion.

When the two of them walked out of the main gate and picked up the palace lanterns, they happened to see Nanny Wang coming towards them.

Lin Daiyu's heart trembled, and she was about to dodge, but Qin Keqing immediately grabbed her wrist and shook her head at her.

Lin Daiyu understood, lowered her head calmly, and said nothing, leaving the matter to Qin Keqing to prevent Nanny Wang from noticing anything.

In addition to Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai, Qin Keqing is also a very experienced person. Putting aside her personal morality, she has been managing the family business over the years and is very capable of dealing with such small occasions.

Qin Keqing stepped forward very naturally and took the initiative to greet the visitor, saying, "Madame Wang, why haven't you gone to bed yet so late?"

The lights were dim, and Nanny Wang didn't notice anything wrong at first glance. She had spent a lot of time with Qin Keqing in Suzhou, so she responded warmly, "It's time to go to bed. I saw the light in the girl's room was still on, and I wondered if those two careless maids forgot to cut off the candles."

"You just came out, has the girl rested?"

Qin Keqing smiled and nodded, "She's resting. Miss Lin made quite a scene and hasn't rested since she got off the boat. Now she's snoring like thunder as she touches the pillow."

Hearing the joke, Nanny Wang couldn't help but laugh, "Okay, just go to sleep, then I can go back and rest with peace of mind."

Qin Keqing said goodbye with a smile, "Take care, Ma'am."

Nanny Wang kindly asked, "It's night now. Do you know the way back to your room? Otherwise, let me, an old woman, lead you for a while."

Qin Keqing and Lin Daiyu shook their heads like rattles. Qin Keqing said, "It's already night, Madam, you still need to rest and recuperate. We are new here, but we have walked back and forth several times during the day, so we know the way. Madam, don't worry."

Nanny Wang frowned slightly. She wanted to send Qin Keqing and her maidservants, who were not familiar with the Lin residence, to their residence. However, seeing how they refused, they would definitely not accept her kindness. Turning to another fork in the corridor, Nanny Wang was going back to her room to rest. Qin Keqing immediately took Lin Daiyu's hand and hurried outside.

After passing through the courtyard gate, the two men held their chests and breathed a sigh of relief.

Qin Keqing said happily, "Sister Lin, we are out now. You can go quietly to the master's place. There are not many people there anyway, so no one will notice us."

"An extra me would actually be a hindrance."

Lin Daiyu nodded, "Okay, thank you for your help, sister."

Qin Keqing was beaming with joy, and blinked her eyes as she said, "What kind of troubles are there between us? However, Sister Lin must not break her promise. She must ask the master to take me out to visit the garden."

Lin Daiyu readily agreed, "Of course, I never break my promise."

Qin Keqing left happily, and Lin Daiyu also looked for the way to Yue Ling's room and groped her way there.

At that moment, a figure emerged from behind the courtyard wall.

Nanny Wang, who was supposed to go back to rest, followed them all the way behind the wall and listened to the entire conversation between the two. She was horrified.

"What? The one who just walked out was a girl, and who is in that room?"

Nanny Wang clapped her hands and said, "Oh, that's right. It must be the girl whose eyebrows and eyes look a bit like yours. The girl is pretending to be her and going to look for the Marquis."

"This... What should I do? Should I report this to the master?"

Nanny Wang's heart began to beat fast, and she was in a dilemma.

To conceal the truth and not report it would be disloyal to the master, but if it was reported, it would offend the young couple and even offend the Marquis.

Now, the marriage between the Marquis and her daughter is a foregone conclusion. As a servant, if she were to meddle in other people's business and spread the news, she would cause a commotion.

Not only would it bring shame to the girl, it would also cause unrest in the Lin Mansion. There would be no place for her to stay in either the Lin Mansion or the Anjing Marquis Mansion.

After much deliberation, Nanny Wang decided to pretend she knew nothing.

"Go back to your room and rest. This is not something I can control."

Nanny Wang sighed secretly, but before she took two steps, she heard someone outside calling, "Hmm? Nanny Wang, it's so late and you haven't gone back to rest yet?"

Nanny Wang looked carefully, and while the light from the big red lanterns at the door was still bright, she argued that the man was Lin Ruhai.

Nanny Wang was shocked. She was really afraid of something that would happen. She bowed quickly and said, "I'm sorry to make a fool of myself, Master. I saw that the gate to the courtyard was not closed, so I came to close it."

After telling a skillful lie, Nanny Wang looked up at Lin Ruhai's expression and realized that the master did not delve into her intentions, so she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

But Lin Ruhai asked, "That's just in time. I was just about to ask you something."

After a pause, Lin Ruhai asked indirectly, "Yu'er should have gone to bed in the room, right? You saw her lying on the bed and didn't go out again?"

Nanny Wang had just gone through a fierce struggle in her mind, and now she answered immediately, "He didn't go out, he has already gone to bed."

Lin Ruhai looked at the lights in the room and saw that they had gone out. He breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good. It's too late. I won't disturb you. If there is any movement in Yu'er's room, please remember to come to her room and let me know."

"This girl is too lawless. I'm really worried that she will continue to act recklessly in the Lin Mansion."

Nanny Wang smiled bitterly and muttered to herself, "Master, you really understand the girl thoroughly. Not only is she reckless, she is so audacious that she even replaced the prince with a cat right in front of you. If she gets married in the future, what will she do? I, an old woman, don't even dare to think about it."

Nanny Wang responded respectfully, "Don't worry, sir. I will definitely take good care of the girl."

Lin Ruhai was satisfied after getting the answer he wanted. He rubbed his swollen head with one hand, held the corridor railing with the other, and turned away.

Seeing Master Lin's dejected back, Nanny Wang shook her head and sighed, "Master is not feeling well right now, but when he has a grandson, and three generations live together happily, he will be able to let it go..."

……

Yue Ling felt very uncomfortable while eating the dinner, with a chill down his spine. By the time he returned to his room, his lining was already soaked with sweat.

Yue Ling really had a lot of grievances to express, and he couldn't find a good opportunity to open up to people on both sides.

Often before he could say anything, the father and daughter were already at loggerheads, and he was the catalyst.

Yue Ling had a severe headache. After a quick wash, he lay down on the bed to rest.

Xiangling cleaned the room thoroughly, came to the bed, and asked tenderly, "My Lord, do you want me to sleep with you?"

Yue Ling hesitated for a moment, then looked at Xiang Ling's face, which had already opened, and nodded, "You have given yourself to me, how can I bear to drive you out? Come up, do you remember what your name was when it was just the two of us?"

"Husband... Sir."

Xiangling spoke in a stammering voice, her face as red as peach blossoms in March.

Yue Ling smiled slightly and said, "If you don't let me down, I won't let you down either."

At this moment, the door suddenly opened and someone rushed in from outside. Xiangling quickly stood up to check what was going on.

I saw a maid throwing the glass lamp on the table beside me, and then taking off her heavy clothes without any hesitation.

Xiangling asked in surprise: "Qingwen? No, you are... Miss Lin?"

Originally Yue Ling was so sleepy that he was about to fall asleep, but after hearing what Xiangling said, he suddenly sat up from the bed, without even having the time to put on his shoes, and dragged himself to the main hall.

Lin Daiyu used the warm water that Yue Ling had just used to wash her face to wipe her cheeks, revealing her original stunning appearance.

The strands of hair on her forehead were falling, sparkling in spots, and when the hairpin was pulled out, her black hair was like a waterfall. Yue Ling's heart trembled when he saw it, not only because of her beauty, but also because of fear.

Yue Ling asked in a trembling voice: "Sister Lin, why are you here?"

Lin Daiyu raised her head proudly, "Why, why can't I come? Am I disturbing you two?"

Xiangling lowered her head in embarrassment, clasped her fingers and even clasped her toes in front of her skirt.

She was really acting like a foxy woman just now, as if she had read too many articles by Qin Keqing and had mastered them all.

Yue Ling smiled bitterly and said, "Sister Lin is here, does Lord Lin know?"

"Of course not."

"Then Miss Lin should go back. Once Lord Lin finds out, this... this Lin Mansion will be in turmoil."

Lin Daiyu raised her eyebrows and said, "What are you afraid of, Brother Yue? I'm not afraid, and you still want to send me back."

Lin Daiyu pouted angrily and was about to rush out the door, "Then I'll go back. If I run into anyone on the road, I'll say that it was Brother Yue who sent me back and didn't want me anymore."

Yue Ling was really helpless under Lin Daiyu's training, so he hurried forward to pull her back.

Lin Daiyu smiled, turned around and asked, "Brother Yue, you don't want others to know that we were together at night, right? Then why don't you hide me?"

(End of this chapter)