Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 452 Qin Keqing's Class Starts
Prince Beijing's Mansion, bedroom,

Prince Shui Rong of Beijing was reading a book at night. He pondered over something at the desk before blowing out the lamp. Suddenly, there was an inopportune knock on the door outside.

"My Lord, has the Lord gone to bed yet?"

He could tell it was the housekeeper from the mansion who came to deliver a message. Even though it disturbed his peace in the middle of the night, Shui Rong still stretched his body patiently, walked to the door and opened it, "It's already this late, what can't we talk about tomorrow?"

Shui Rong raised his eyebrows slightly, and the butler bowed and clasped his fists, "I don't want to disturb your rest, but there are two important matters that I have to report to you as soon as possible."

"Then why don't you tell me quickly?"

The butler nodded repeatedly and said, "Your Highness, do you remember that the invitations we sent to Prime Minister Chai's residence several times before were all returned. Someone just came to deliver a message that Prime Minister Chai is willing to attend the meeting."

Shui Rong's eyes lit up, and he was slightly surprised, "Is this true?"

"It's the middle of the night, and I dare not seek pleasure from my master."

Shui Rong raised his chin and said thoughtfully: "This is a bit surprising. Maybe there is a reason that I haven't guessed."

The butler smiled awkwardly and said, "I think it has something to do with the second incident."

"Oh? What's the matter?"

"Just now, news came from West City that soldiers entered Ningrong Street and ransacked the Rongguo Mansion."

"what?!"

Shui Rong was so shocked that his eyes widened and he stood there in a daze, not saying a word for several breaths.

After a long while, he murmured again and again: "The Rongguo Mansion was confiscated. How could it be?"

"This is absolutely true. It is said that all the people in Rongguo Mansion have been arrested and taken to the Dali Temple."

Shui Rong looked very embarrassed. As the leader of the four kings and eight dukes, any trouble that a noble family got into would be closely related to him.

Moreover, His Majesty's attitude towards the nobles had improved recently, and he even invited them to the palace for a banquet at the end of the year. Shui Rong was surprised that he took such drastic measures against the nobles, especially the Jia family, which he thought was favored by the royal family.

I felt even more uneasy.

"My Lord, what do we need to do?"

After hesitating for a while, the butler raised his head slightly and asked.

Shui Rong just shook his head without responding, then walked back into the room, closed the door tightly, and leaned against it with a slightly weak back.

"There will be a court meeting tomorrow morning. The wind direction in the capital is going to change..."

……

The next day,

Lin Daiyu woke up from her sleep, and felt a tingling sensation in her arms, especially her wrists.

She rubbed herself gently and rubbed her eyes, only to realize that Yue Ling beside her was gone.

"Sister Zijuan?"

Remembering that Zijuan was arranged by her to go back to the mansion with Shi Xiangyun, Lin Daiyu had to call the others, "Xueyan? Xueyan, are you outside?"

"I'm here!"

Xueyan responded crisply, and then she pushed open the door and walked in quickly with two food boxes.

"Girl, are you hungry? This is the last pot of cakes that the Marquis steamed before he went to court. They are all here. I didn't eat them."

Lin Daiyu was not hungry yet. She just asked for some water to moisten her throat. "What time is it?"

"It's not too late. The Marquis just left the house not long ago. You should try this cake, my girl. It smells delicious."

Xueyan repeatedly urged her to eat a little, and Lin Daiyu knew why.

I just want her to take care of everything after I'm left.

Lin Daiyu smiled helplessly and raised her right hand to pinch a piece and put it in her mouth, but when she thought of the embarrassing things that happened last night, she immediately retracted her hand and her face turned red.

"Bring me some water, and I'll eat after I've washed myself."

"Ah? If you delay any longer, it will get cold. How can it taste good if it's cold? Eat first, girl. I'll go get some water."

Lin Daiyu supported her forehead with her left hand and held her right hand far away, as if it was something that did not belong to her. She said to Xueyan helplessly, "You'd better go get some water. I don't have much appetite at the moment. I'll give you some food when I bring you back."

Xueyan's eyes lit up immediately and she said happily, "Okay, young lady, I'll be back soon."

Xueyan ran out of the door, and Lin Daiyu leaned against the head of the bed, feeling extremely embarrassed.

Last night it seemed as if she had opened the door to a new world.

Lin Daiyu felt that her hands were dirty, and she didn't even want to touch anything else with her right hand, let alone put the pastries into her mouth.

Just as she was staring at her palm in a daze, Xueyan came running back, put the basin, face towel and other necessary items in place, and then helped Lin Daiyu down.

"What about the honey locust?"

"Here it is, girl."

Afterwards, Lin Daiyu was seen rubbing her hands very vigorously in the basin, and their hands turned faintly red.

This strange behavior really confused Xueyan. She walked over to Lin Daiyu and asked tentatively, "Miss, why are you rubbing your hands so hard?"

Lin Daiyu replied casually: "Something very dirty."

Xueyan chewed one cake at a time and asked, "Why did the dirty girl touch it?"

“I didn’t know it would be dirty.”

"That's not a smart thing to say, girl."

Lin Daiyu rolled her eyes, put her hand on Xueyan's face, and asked, "Is there any taste?"

Xueyan sniffed it carefully and shook her head, "It only smells like soapberry."

Lin Daiyu nodded comfortably, "That's good..."

Seeing Xueyan's intense gaze, Lin Daiyu quickly stopped talking and asked, "What about the others? Have they all finished their meals?"

Xueyan nodded, "Maybe they went to bed early last night? They all got up very early today, and after breakfast, they all went to the Buddhist hall to listen to Sister Miaoyu's lecture."

"The Scriptures..."

Lin Daiyu rolled her eyes and thought to herself, "I've had too many distracting thoughts lately. I was so reluctant that I let Brother Yue succeed in such a shameful thing. How can I still be innocent?"

"No, I have to listen to the scriptures and learn how to be pure-hearted and abstinent."

Lin Daiyu had this plan in mind, so she simply ate a few bites of food, left Xueyan behind, and went towards the Buddhist temple.

…In the Buddhist temple, the girls sat together.

The only difference from usual days was that it was not Miaoyu who was preaching in front of the hall, but the girls were watching Qin Keqing talking.

"What we did at Rongguo Mansion the day before was a complete success. I believe that when the master returns from court today, he will know what crime the Rongguo Mansion has been sentenced for. Moreover, with our help, the girls of the Jia family can stay again. Everyone has made an invaluable contribution."

The little girls looked at each other, always thinking that it was not as righteous as Qin Keqing said, but their faces were full of joy.

Qin Keqing stood up and continued, "Of course, apart from Qingwen's skill in lock picking, if we talk about the greatest contribution, then I am the one who deserves it."

Miaoyu and Xing Xiuyun were also listening with great interest, especially since their actions were not perfect, so it was not appropriate for them to interrupt in front of Qin Keqing.

And they also wanted to know what happened on the other side when they sneaked into the Buddhist temple.

Seeing that she was gradually becoming the center of attention, Qin Keqing became more relaxed, "If I hadn't been the only one outside, attracting the attention of all the servants in Lady Wang's room, would they have taken the opportunity to look for the account?"

"If I hadn't offered them a small benefit at the end to make them obsessed with it, how could Madam Wang have been so careless as to forget to check her private things?"

All the girls agreed, thinking that what Qin Keqing said made sense.

"Sister Keqing, why don't we finish what we didn't finish talking about that day?" The girl from the small opera troupe couldn't help but suggest.

Qin Keqing blinked and asked, "Where did I talk about that day?"

"In the "World's Greatest Way", the seventh of the ten practices is to move slightly, and to look at the balance of the moon. How to match the master's feathered clothes to make a more suitable posture."

Qin Keqing encouraged, "Good, good, good, you have a good memory, you are an excellent student. Then let's continue to talk about these ten cultivations, and the techniques of the "Thirty-six Forms of Dongxuanzi" that go with them, and then use the feathered clothes as a supplement."

"Don't think it's complicated. All of these are complete, so that you can have a small fight with the Marquis. If you don't work hard now, you will suffer in the future."

"Yes!"

The girls were in high spirits. Xing Xiuyan couldn't help but twitched her lips. She poked Miaoyu, who was sitting beside her, and said, "Weren't we talking about the Diamond Sutra today? Why did you change to sex techniques? Why don't you go up and take her down? Why are you letting her do this? If Miss Lin finds out, how will you explain it?"

The reminder was given, but there was no response from Miaoyu. When Xing Xiuyan turned her head, she realized that Miaoyu beside her had picked up paper and pen and started studying seriously.

Xing Xiuyan was speechless. She snatched Miaoyu's pen and pinched her arm, trying to wake her up.

"Sister, what are you doing? Have you fallen into the devil's way? You are a cultivator, you should teach them how to cultivate."

Miaoyu, however, had her own explanation.

"Teach them to practice, stop making trouble. Why would Miss Lin want them to become nuns? It's just to learn some writing. Besides, Miss Lin must have seen that I was too isolated in the mansion, so she gave me a chance to integrate into the group."

Then he spread his hands and said, "Now, I am enjoying myself with everyone. Learning something new is also a form of integration. Why do I need to lecture on those boring scriptures every day? Don't you see that they are all sleepy and drowsy?"

"If Miss Lin hadn't promised that if someone learned well, she could agree to a condition, I don't think these girls would be willing to take another look at the scriptures."

Xing Xiuyun couldn't help but smile bitterly, always thinking that Miaoyu was talking about some twisted logic.

"But my sister is a practitioner!"

"I have my hair."

"Practicing with hair is also practicing!"

"Then I will return to secular life..."

"what?!"

Xing Xiuyan's eyes widened as she asked, "You are kidding, right? If your master heard this, he would probably peel off your skin!"

Miaoyu twitched her lips and said from the bottom of her heart, "After I shaved the Concubine's head yesterday, I saw that her eyes were empty and lifeless, without any worldly expectations. She even looked dead before she gave up. That's why I could understand why she was determined to become a nun. I don't think I can do it."

Xing Xiuyan was speechless, "You, then you can't..."

Qin Keqing frowned slightly as she stood up to impart knowledge. She paused and knocked on the mat with a bamboo stick, saying, "Today I am teaching you the knowledge of 'unity of knowledge and action'. Why do some people always play around and take it lightly?"

Everyone looked at Miaoyu and Xing Xiuyun who were sitting nearby.

Miaoyu calmly snatched back her own paper and pen, pointed at Xing Xiuyan and said, "Sir, it is she who disturbed my concentration on cultivation."

Hearing the word "Sir", Qin Keqing couldn't help but be delighted.

It was just a pity for Xing Xiuyan. She had no choice but to stand up in front of everyone, feeling uneasy as if she had really done something wrong.

It was obvious that she just came here to learn the scriptures in her spare time. Lin Daiyu did not punish her to come here to learn how to be ascetic.

After secretly pinching Miaoyu, Xing Xiuyan whispered, "Just wait, when Miss Lin comes, you will be in trouble."

"Oh, stop talking nonsense. Miss Lin doesn't care about us."

Xing Xiuyan smiled awkwardly, then turned to Qin Keqing and said helplessly: "It is my fault that I disturbed the teacher's teaching."

Qin Keqing snorted coldly, walked slowly to Xing Xiuyan's side, and said, "Sister Yan'er, it's not that your master is intentionally being harsh on you. To put it bluntly, you were originally a marginal figure in the mansion, and you have never had the opportunity to be alone with the master. You should have studied hard to catch up. How can you be so lazy?"

"Could it be that everyone here likes the master, but you are the only exception who doesn't pay attention to him?"

Xing Xiuyan blushed and said, "No, no..."

Qin Keqing narrowed her eyes slightly and curled her lips.

She knew that no one living in this mansion would dislike their own master. Only Lin Daiyu naively thought that the seemingly pure Xing Xiuyun could help her supervise others.

In fact, in Qin Keqing's eyes, this kind of people are much more terrifying in bed than those who are coquettish and charming in public, such as Xiangling.

"But... Sister Keqing, what are you looking at me doing?"

Xiangling asked hesitantly.

Qin Keqing tapped Xiangling on the head with a bamboo stick and said, "You must call me Mr. in class!"

"Yes, sir."

Looking back at Xing Xiuyan, Qin Keqing snorted and said, "Since this is your first offense, just sit down first. Even if you don't want to learn, don't affect others."

Xing Xiuyan sat down with a bitter look on her face. This was Qin Keqing's first lecture. Where could she go to teach a habitual offender...

……

Outside the Dingguo Mansion,

This is not a busy area and there are few people around early in the morning.

It had just rained at night, so even if a carriage passed by on the street, no dust would be raised.

A sedan chair slowly landed in front of the mansion gate, and the driver said to the sedan chair: "There is an early court today, and we haven't sent the visiting card yet, so it's not appropriate for us to come to your house, but since you insist on doing so, I don't mind. You have to be careful not to offend the adults."

A crisp but impatient voice came from the carriage, "Ah, I know you're being so long-winded. A visiting card or not, that's how you meet the Marquis. Besides, my sister lives here, so what's wrong with me coming to see her?"

(End of this chapter)