Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 418 No Longer Innocent
After Lin Daiyu set up the family rules, the inner house became much quieter after a few days.

Even Lin Daiyu herself did not expect that the academic atmosphere in the mansion would be so strong.

Even the little maids in each room, after finishing their chores in the morning, would go to the Buddhist temple early and sit at their seats waiting for Miaoyu to come and lecture, for fear of delaying the time.

Needless to say, the girls in each room practiced even harder because of the reward promised by Lin Daiyu. Even when they returned to their rooms after noon, they did not rest for long but immersed themselves in studying scriptures.

In fact, the little girls who had nothing to do all day were full of energy. Now that they had the opportunity to compete on stage, they all wanted to compete for the first place.

Moreover, the reward promised by Lin Daiyu was tempting enough.

After all, in the Duke Dingguo's Mansion, no one's words are more effective than Lin Daiyu's.

But in the eyes of outsiders, the Duke Dingguo's Mansion is even more unattainable.

If we say that we should fulfill our wishes to the best of our ability, then the wishes we can make are obviously very broad.

That day, on the courtyard path leading to the Buddhist temple, Qin Keqing walked out with her head down, feeling a little depressed, deeply regretting that she had to miss a class today.

I ran into a snow goose that was wandering around the courtyard boredly, chewing some fruit and eating it happily.

"Sister Keqing? Why didn't you go to the Buddhist temple to study the sutras?"

Following the sound, Qin Keqing saw Xueyan, the only maverick in the mansion. She let down her guard and sighed, "Sister Bao and I have an appointment today. I have to go out to do something, so I can't go to the Buddhist temple to study scriptures. I had some enlightenment last night, and Master Miaoyu also praised me for my good understanding."

Xueyan stuffed another fruit into her mouth and muttered, "I don't know what's so good about that scripture. You all are rushing to learn it. Isn't it good to just wander around the garden every day?"

"Besides, if Sister Keqing doesn't want to go out, then just find an excuse. Why does she have to go out?"

Xueyan was not forced by Lin Daiyu to learn scriptures, and she was too lazy to ask Lin Daiyu about her wishes. She just did her job every day, ate and slept, and lived a carefree life.

But Qin Keqing is ambitious, unlike Xueyan.

There was no competition with Xueyan, so Qin Keqing didn't hesitate to make her words more clearly.

"That's different. This time it's Master's business outside, and he needs someone to take care of it. Sister Bao asked me to help, and it was Master's approval, so how could I not go?"

Xueyan blinked and said, "If that's the case, then these two things don't conflict with Sister Keqing's goal."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Xueyan opened her pocket, grabbed another handful of fruit, and said calmly, "Sister Keqing, isn't it for the promise of the young lady that you studied the scriptures well? The promise that you can be close to the Marquis, right?"

"But if Sister Keqing can do a good job outside and make great contributions, won't the Marquis reward her?"

"Others only have one path, but Sister Keqing has two. Isn't this something to be thankful for? Why are you so sad? You are not as pretty as before."

"Eh?"

Qin Keqing thought about Xueyan's words and nodded, "That's true. I didn't expect you to have such insightful views."

Spitting a fruit core to the side of the road, Xueyan pouted and said, "Of course, I'm smart."

Qin Keqing couldn't help laughing. She covered her mouth and chuckled. Then she noticed the fruit in Xueyan's arms. The color was very strange. It seemed that she had never seen it in the fruit plate in her room.

"What are you eating? I saw you eating non-stop just now. Is it so delicious?"

Xueyan burped, spread out her hands and handed over the purple fruit. "It's delicious. I found this. Sister Keqing must have never seen it. Can I give it to you to try?"

Keqing took a handful, put one in her mouth and bit it. It was slightly sweet and sour, and tasted very good, which made her praise it highly.

"It's indeed your favorite fruit. It tastes really good. Do you have any more?"

Xueyan was surprisingly generous and turned out all her pockets, scooping out a handful for Qin Keqing.

Qin Keqing was also surprised that the snow goose would be so generous today, as it used to be very protective of its food.

"Maybe the snow geese are much cuter than I thought."

With a sweet smile on her face, Qin Keqing leaned over and rubbed Xueyan's head, saying lovingly, "It just so happens that I don't have much snacks to eat when I go out. I'll bring you rice cakes from the east alley when I come back."

"Really?"

Xueyan's eyes seemed to be shining with stars, and she put the last handful of gold in her hand that was reserved for herself into Qin Keqing's pocket.

"Sister Keqing, please take them all. Please come back soon."

Qin Keqing was so innocent that she felt embarrassed to snatch snacks from a glutton. "You gave me all the snacks. What are you going to eat? You should take some back. I can't eat too much anyway."

"No, no." Xueyan waved her hands repeatedly, "There are plenty on the back mountain."

"Huh? What?"

Xueyan covered her mouth and said, "It's okay, I'm full. I'll get it when I want to eat."

Thinking about how Xueyan could freely enter and leave the kitchen all day, Qin Keqing also felt that it made sense. However, she did not hear clearly what Xueyan said earlier, but she was a little concerned. She wanted to ask more, but then she heard Xueyan urging her, "Sister Keqing, you should go out. The carriage and horses should have been prepared a long time ago. Don't worry about them. It's not good to let Miss Bao wait for too long."

Qin Keqing couldn't help but smile and said, "I think you don't want to wait any longer. OK, then I'll go out first, see you later."

Xueyan waved goodbye and said, "Come on, sister Keqing."

When Qin Keqing's figure disappeared at the end of the corridor, Xueyan changed direction and planned to go to the back garden to pick some more fruits to eat.

After jumping a few steps happily, Xueyan thought to herself, "Sister Keqing is such a good person. Apart from the Marquis, no one else has ever brought me food outside. Why do you always think she is not good?"

While thinking, she suddenly felt a stomachache, causing Xueyan to squat down immediately, "Oh, no, I have to go to the toilet. It turns out that we can't just eat fruits outside, the girl is right..."

……

Fengxue Pavilion,
The Xue Family Restaurant was extremely bustling today, with a number of carriages and sedan chairs parked in front of the door, all of which were quite similar in style.

The corners of the eaves are decorated with various pearls and agates, so you can tell that this is the sedan chair that the ladies of wealthy families ride in.

Fengxue Pavilion usually has good business, but today it has refused outside guests. Only those with invitations from the Xue family can enter. Even so, the crowds in front of the door are so crowded that the street is blocked.

This is also the work of Xue Baochai.

The Feng family now serves a total of one hundred members. Xue Baochai is allowed to invite one female relative who is not qualified to participate in the gathering to join in the fun. This gathering is much more lively than the previous tea party.

Fengxue Pavilion has three floors in total and an attic.

The bottom floor was a place for the women of each family to get to know each other, chat, have fun, dine and listen to opera. Going up further was the venue that Xue Baochai had carefully arranged this time.

Of course, there is only one purpose, which is to sell these shameful things designed by Yue Ling to these women and create a publicity effect.

Xue Baochai was very unsure.

In her eyes, she still felt that those rags were Yue Ling's own preference. No decent girl would wear that kind of thing to seduce a man to have sex with her. It was really shameless.

So much so that when Xue Baochai stood in the lobby to welcome guests, her cheeks turned red unconsciously.

"Sister Keqing hasn't come yet? Didn't you send someone to Duke Dingguo's mansion to urge her?"

Tongxi whispered in a low voice: "Girl, we sent someone to ask, and they said he is on the way."

Xue Baochai secretly breathed a sigh of relief. After all, the real key link was Qin Keqing's sales promotion. Without her explanation, no one would understand what these scraps of cloth were used for, and all the effort spent on the early preparations would be wasted.

"That's good. When she comes, let her come to see me immediately."

"Yes."

"Miss Baochai? It's been a long time since we last met. I didn't recognize you when I first saw you."

Hearing the greetings from the person behind her, Xue Baochai quickly turned around, took a look at the person in question, and immediately matched the person in her mind with the person's image. She smiled and greeted him, "Are you the princess of the Prince of Xiping's mansion?"

Liu from the Xiping County Prince's Mansion covered her mouth and laughed, "You girl, you really have a good memory. I only saw you once at the Rongguo Mansion a few years ago. When we met again, you have grown into a grown-up girl. I didn't even dare to recognize you in person."

"No, no, Princess, you are still as beautiful as ever, so I recognized you at the first sight."

Liu smiled even more brilliantly, "You are so sweet, I love to hear you." Changing the subject, Liu asked again, "I thought this party was still organized by your mother. To be honest, I have participated in it a few times and it was quite boring. There was nothing unusual about the music and dancing in the mansion."

"But when I saw your name was signed on the invitation, I broke off an appointment with someone else and came straight here. This is your first time back in Beijing, so I have to give you some face no matter what."

"Also, I heard that you have been the Marquis of Tong'an Jing for many years. Oh no, you should be called the Duke of Dingguo now. You have traveled all over the country with the Duke of Dingguo, so you must have a very broad vision and more innovative ideas."

"To be honest, I have been looking forward to this day for a long time."

Xue Baochai smiled and replied, "You are too kind. Come sit in the front and have some tea."

Liu turned her head and saw that the wooden stairs leading to the building on one side were now blocked. The whole hall was filled with ordinary furnishings, an eight-immortal table and some cakes and candied fruits. There was nothing special about it. She could guess that the mystery today was on a higher level.

"Miss Baochai, I wonder why you invited so many people here today? Why are you so mysterious and even seal off the second floor?"

Xue Baochai suppressed her embarrassment and replied, "Today we have several new clothes, which are carefully designed by Feng brand. They have never been seen on the market before, and they are made of fabrics used by the royal family. They are very precious and will definitely please the ladies."

"Oh? It's the fabric used by the royal family? Won't the Ministry of Internal Affairs be held accountable for this?"

Xue Baochai said confidently: "What the princess said is very true, but this is woven by the Ministry of Internal Affairs."

The ladies around gathered around after hearing what Xue Baochai said. "It's so rare. Without the Queen's gift, can we just use our gold and silver to buy the clothes used by the palace?"

"That's right. It was Duke Ding who made this happen."

Everyone suddenly realized and was amazed. "Duke Dingguo is so capable that he can persuade the Ministry of Internal Affairs to get involved in business. However, since these are ready-made clothes made by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, they must not be ordinary products."

Princess Liu of Xinping County Prince's Mansion even took Xue Baochai's hand and said gently, "That makes sense. Miss Baochai, no matter what clothes you sell today or what size they are, please leave two pieces for me first. There are many people in my mansion."

"Me too."

"Me too!"

There were many people in front of the hall. When they heard that it was such a good thing, the women were afraid that the Xue family would make a rare treasure and whet people's appetite, so they all started to scramble for it.

The atmosphere in the venue was very high and it looked like the show would be sold out before it even started. Xue Baochai was both happy and worried.

Designed by Duke Dingguo, woven by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and sold under the Feng brand, the title is indeed intimidating, but when they actually saw the finished clothes, they might not be able to accept it.

"Don't worry, don't worry. It won't be too late to make a decision after everyone has seen the clothes."

Even if the deal fails, the friendship remains. Even if this deal fails, these people are valuable connections of the Feng family. If there is business to do next time, they can be used again. Xue Baochai has to be more cautious.

"Sister Bao, I'm late. I hope I didn't delay your important matter."

Qin Keqing squeezed through the crowd with great effort, came in front of Xue Baochai, and let out a long sigh.

Seeing Qin Keqing, Xue Baochai felt relieved. How could she say she was late? "It's okay. I came just in time. I'm happy to share your happiness. Tell the servants to close the door. The meeting has officially begun."

When the door of Fengxue Pavilion slowly closed, hundreds of glass lamps were lit in the red-carpeted lobby. Even though there was no light in the hall, it was as bright as day.

Xue Baochai nervously stepped onto the stage. The music was muted. She faced everyone and said loudly, "I am Xue Baochai from the Xue family. Thank you ladies for coming here today..."

On stage, Xue Baochai deepened her relationships with the ladies of each family and sincerely thanked them for their support.

Qin Keqing, who was drinking tea below, suddenly felt an unbearable stomach cramp and could not help but lie down on the table.

Tongxi was a little flustered when he saw this, and asked hurriedly: "Miss Qin, what's wrong with you? Do you want to call a doctor?"

Qin Keqing struggled to open her eyes. "It's not good. Tell Bao-mei to wait a little longer. I'll go to the toilet and be back soon..."

After saying this, Qin Keqing left the table without waiting for Tongxi and Tonggui to clarify the situation.

"Okay, let's stop talking nonsense. If you are interested, please follow me to the second floor. If you are not interested, you can still chat and listen to music here."

Xue Baochai led the crowd to the second floor. A floor-to-ceiling red curtain was extremely eye-catching and immediately attracted everyone's attention.

"Ms. Xue, please stop keeping us in suspense. We've already gone to the second floor, and you're still being secretive. You have to go to the third floor as well."

"Yes, Miss Xue, we are all old members of Fengzihao here, and there are no outsiders. Why hide it? We are not short of money, and we all want to buy your clothes sincerely."

Xue Baochai raised her hand to calm everyone's restless emotions, "Everyone, I'm not keeping you in suspense, but today someone who is more familiar with this thing is here to explain it to you. Now, please..."

At the right moment, Tongxi and Tonggui hurried forward and whispered, "Miss, Miss, Miss Qin is feeling unwell and has gone to the toilet."

"what?"

Xue Baochai was stunned where she was. "Why at this time? Can't she hold back?"

The two just shook their heads and had no idea what was going on.

Xue Baochai suddenly became at a loss, and the people on the scene did not hear the rest of the words, and instead became even more agitated than at the beginning.

"Okay, stop keeping us in suspense. Who else are you asking us to wait for? Didn't you invite us here?"

"Yes, aren't you a businessman? If we see a good product, we will buy it. Even if it's not good, we will support you. Why are you still hesitating? How can this be possible?"

There were complaints everywhere at once, and seeing that the situation was about to get out of hand, Xue Baochai was forced to take the initiative, closed her eyes and took down the curtain.

"Everyone, please look, this is the product of Feng brand today!"

Xue Baochai, with her cheeks like red lanterns, closed her eyes tightly, not wanting to know how others were looking at her.

Little did they know that at this moment the ladies’ eyes were completely attracted by the “rag”.

"Hey, why are there clothes like this?"

"This is smaller than a child's clothes, isn't it? Miss Xue, are you trying to make fun of us?"

"Yes, this one only has a string, how can it be called a dress?"

Xue Baochai knew that everyone here was normal and Yue Ling's hobby would definitely not work. Everyone had exactly the same impression as she did when she first saw this thing.

But in order to complete Yue Ling's mission and not ruin the great event that even His Majesty was optimistic about, Xue Baochai had no choice but to bite the bullet and introduce: "Everyone, please be patient and listen to me."

"These clothes are extraordinary. They are not dresses for going out. They are used for sex at night... at night, replacing the ordinary bellyband..."

Xue Baochai spoke haltingly, but seeing that everyone's eyes were gradually widening, she thought that her words had a miraculous effect, so she had to grit her teeth and move forward.

"Think carefully, have you ever been so unromantic that your husband dislikes you and refuses to share your bed with you, favoring only his concubines, or sleeping with other prostitutes, and refusing to return to his room?"

"But we women are delicate flowers. If we don't have nourishment, how can we not grow old and wither?"

"The more our husbands dislike it, the more they force us to not take it off, and this piece of clothing is the remedy for everyone."

As she spoke, Xue Baochai casually took one of the pieces and put it on herself for comparison. "Ladies, think about it. If you could wear this to add to the joy of your boudoir, would your husbands refuse?"

"If you don't believe in the charm of this clothing, you can try it first."

Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment. Even though Xue Baochai's words made sense, the clothes were too revealing after all, and it would be very embarrassing to wear them.

But when there are too many people, there will always be exceptions.

Liu, from the Prince of Xiping's mansion, Yingying came to Xue Baochai and said, "Well, I'll give it a try. The sisters sitting here are all of average age, and their family situations are pretty much the same. Since Miss Bao said it has miraculous effects, I believe it, and there's no harm in giving it a try."

As she spoke, she took the bellyband that Xue Baochai was trying to measure on her body and went into the inner room to try it on with a smile.

"Thank you, Princess..."

"Well, didn't I just tell you that I will definitely give you this face. But I didn't expect that Miss Baochai was doing this kind of business. It doesn't seem to be flesh and blood, but it is also similar to flesh and blood."

Liu couldn't help laughing and said, "That's true. I remember Miss Baochai was still an unmarried girl, right? She can talk about sex so clearly. It's really not easy."

Xue Baochai: “…”

I almost spurted out a mouthful of blood...

(End of this chapter)