Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 497 Those who love to eat will eventually be eaten.
Compared to Yue Ling's physical strength, Lin Daiyu was far too weak.

Before long, he was drenched in sweat, limp as mud, and unable to move.

Lying on the bed, Lin Daiyu exhaled a long breath, her eyes glazed over.

Upon realizing that she was feeling a burning sensation on her body again, Lin Daiyu raised her hand to stop her, saying, "Husband, please call Xueyan in so I can rest."

Yue Ling was also worried that Lin Daiyu might be unwell, so he felt even more sorry for her.

Once Lin Daiyu spoke up, they wouldn't force her.

But Yue Ling was still quite surprised when she mentioned Xueyan's name.

"Going right now?"

Lin Daiyu smiled bitterly and said, "My husband is in such high spirits that I am suffering terribly. I should ask Xueyan to come quickly. I am not in a good mood and may fall asleep soon."

Looking down, Yue Ling gave an awkward smile, put on his outer garment without tightening his belt, and went outside to call out a few times.

Not long after, Xueyan walked over listlessly.

He rubbed his eyes and yawned, saying, "Master, is there still food? I just lay down."

Lin Daiyu lay on the bed, unable to stop laughing, "Yes, there is delicious food."

Xueyan's eyes lit up, and she walked past Yue Ling into the room.

The mess on the bed was still hidden by the bed curtains. Xueyan only saw the skirts, hairpins and outer garments on the floor, but she didn't think much of it. Her eyes scanned the table and tea table, but apart from the tea and snacks she had eaten, there was no other food in the room.

"Girl, you're lying again. There's no food left in this house."

Xueyan frowned slightly, unaware that Yue Ling was already standing behind her.

Lin Daiyu sighed again, "Of course there is food, but it's uncertain who will eat it."

"what?"

Xueyan was very puzzled and wanted to reach the bed to ask her mistress for clarification, but Yue Ling grabbed her from behind and held her around the waist, making it impossible for her to break free.

"Master, please don't stop me. I need to ask the young lady where she's hiding more food, boohoo..."

Suddenly, her mouth was covered, causing Xueyan's eyes to widen in surprise.

My hands were at a loss, I didn't know where to put them, so I just let them hang down naturally.

The foolish Xueyan finally understood that the person who came to find her on their wedding night was not there to bring her food, but rather that she was the food.

Their lips parted, Xueyan's cheeks flushed red, and she couldn't bear to lower her head. Instead, she turned her head to one side and secretly glanced at the direction of the bed curtains.

Needless to say, Lin Daiyu couldn't stand it anymore, so she brought her here. After all, she was a maid who accompanied her in her dowry.
One of her duties was to serve as a concubine in place of the wife.

Looking at the silly Xueyan in front of him, Yue Ling couldn't help but laugh and said, "You have a good habit; you know to brush your teeth before going to bed."

Xueyan blushed deeply with embarrassment and stammered, "Master, I haven't taken a bath yet..."

"It's alright, didn't you also complain about the smell of alcohol on me?"

Xueyan was filled with shame. "How could I possibly look down on you, sir? I was just joking."

From inside the bed came Lin Daiyu's clicking of her tongue, "Oh my, I thought you were naive and ignorant, but it turns out you're quite the flirt. When it comes to sweet talk, you're no less charming than Sister Ke'er."

Xueyan covered her face in embarrassment, letting Yue Ling do his inappropriate things without daring to utter a sound.

After her clothes were loosened, she suppressed her immense shame and whispered in Yue Ling's ear, "Master, could we go to the side room? There are other girls here; it's too embarrassing."

Yue Ling glanced to the side and saw that the curtains had already been parted slightly. Without even thinking, he knew that Lin Daiyu was probably watching from inside, gloating.

"That won't do. How can I leave the bridal chamber on our wedding night?"

Xueyan finally gave up resisting, supported herself on the table with both hands, slumped down and silently closed her eyes.

"Goodness, big things are amazing, my finger actually got stuck in it..."

For some reason, Yue Ling suddenly thought of a line of poetry.

"Enjoy life while you can, for life is short and we should not let our golden goblets stand empty before the moon."

……

In the concubine's room,

Lin Ruhai was taken care of by the servants of the Lin family. After washing and changing his clothes, he got off the bed. His two concubines accompanied him, their faces beaming with joy.

Aunt Zhou said softly, "Master has drunk so much wine that he is completely drunk and unconscious. It seems that he has finally accepted the Duke of Dingguo. I was worried that he would stubbornly refuse."

Aunt Bai laughed and said, "How could I disagree? Haven't you all heard that His Majesty and the Empress came to read out the decree today? The Empress has even increased the dowry to 108 taels, which would probably be worth hundreds of thousands of taels of silver."

"The young lady's marriage is no longer something that the master can decide."

Aunt Zhou nodded in agreement, "That's true, but it would be even better if Master could overcome this hurdle."

Suddenly, the sound of a child crying came from outside.

The two concubines then lowered the curtains and went to the outer room to check on the situation.

"Why is my sister crying? Has she had her milk yet?"

The wet nurse said apologetically, "He has already eaten. I don't know why the young master suddenly started crying again. Usually at this time, he would make a fuss about wanting to see the master of the mansion. I think it's about the same this time."

The older sister started crying, and the younger sister, who had been quietly nursing, also started to make a fuss, struggling to get out of the wet nurse's arms.

The two aunts quickly hugged their respective babies and whispered to comfort them, "Alright, alright, stop being so stubborn and crying. Today is the big day for your two little ones' older sister and brother-in-law, so of course we can't go looking for them now."

“You haven’t seen your father since you were born. Come, meet him first.”

The two little ones seemed to be listening attentively, blinking their big, watery eyes. They stopped crying and were carried into the house by their two aunts.

When the curtain was lifted and they saw their father, Lin Ruhai, the two little ones started crying again and struggled to leave.

Aunt Zhou said with a wry smile, "What's going on? Why aren't those two close to the master?"

Aunt Bai was also a bit dumbfounded, and could only try to make amends by saying, "Perhaps it's because the master still smells of alcohol, which makes them dislike him? He's still young, and his sense of smell is at its most sensitive."

Aunt Zhou sighed silently, "I hope so. If the master wakes up tomorrow morning and cries and fusses like anyone else when he holds them, I'm afraid he won't be happy."

Aunt Bai comforted her, "Don't worry, don't worry, after all, there is blood ties between us, things will naturally get better in time."

……

After a day of revelry, the other young ladies in the mansion naturally found it hard to fall asleep as night fell, and they all went to Xue Baochai's room without prior arrangement.

The women sat around, chatting and laughing, continuing the lively atmosphere of the banquet. Sometimes they marveled at the grand wedding, the ten-mile-long red bridal procession, and envied Lin Daiyu's prominence. Other times they marveled at the royal favor, having even bestowed upon Lin Daiyu the title of princess before the marriage, making her more suitable for Yue Ling's status in the outside world.

Qin Keqing smiled and said, "Sister Lin is finally married. This is truly a great thing for the manor. From now on, not only will Sister Lin no longer have to maintain that innocent appearance, but we will also be much more lenient in our behavior."

Seeing Qin Keqing's confident demeanor, one couldn't help but cast a skeptical glance.

Xue Baoqin blinked and asked, "Sister Keqing, how do you know that?"

Qin Keqing said frankly, "Just once, Lin Daiyu will know how difficult it is to deal with Master. It's not something she can endure. Even I would have to beg for mercy under Master within a few quarters of an hour."

He started using vulgar language again, and the girls around him blushed again, but they still listened with great interest.

"Therefore, after tonight, the ban on Sister Lin will come to an end, all the right and wrong will be put to rest, and peace will come to the manor!"

As they listened to Qin Keqing's emotional speech, the door was suddenly pushed open, and Tan Chun's maid, Shi Shu, secretly walked in with a smile.

Siqi was puzzled when she saw this. She grabbed her wrist to prevent her from escaping. "What are you laughing to yourself for? Today is a joyous day. Good news should be shared."

Shi Shu looked around and nodded, saying, "Just now I went back to my room to get my young lady's outer garment and saw the Duke drag Xueyan into the room."

"Snow Goose?"

Upon hearing this, all the women present were taken aback and looked at each other in surprise.

Shi Shu lowered her head shyly, and then hesitated to say what happened next.

Qin Keqing leaned lazily against the tea table, pursing her lips as she said, "Just as I expected. It's natural that Lin Daiyu is too weak, so Xueyan is suffering the consequences."

"Tonight, the master will definitely devour Xueyan completely. Her pair of white breasts are usually the envy of others, much fuller than mine, and now they will finally have a chance to be put to good use."

Qin Keqing's crude words sparked a fantasy in the young girl who hadn't yet come to her senses.

As the saying goes, those near the water get the moon first. Xueyan was a maid that Lin Daiyu brought from Yangzhou and had always been by her side. Naturally, she was the one to serve her on the day of her dowry.

This made the maids inside the room extremely envious, and they all looked at their young mistress with unease.

After all, only when their own daughters are ranked higher in the family order will they have the opportunity to eat. Who wouldn't want to take advantage of that chance to have children and produce offspring for the family?

Currently, no one in the manor has conceived Yue Ling's child, so in this respect, everyone is on the same starting line.

If she was lucky enough to give birth to a boy, even if he was an illegitimate son, he would still be the eldest illegitimate son, and the maid could become a concubine, rising in status several ranks.

Although they were maids, they lived a carefree life in the mansion, with no one to control them. But once they became concubines, their status naturally changed from that of others.

For example, Xiangling now sits on a chair whenever the girls talk, and Xue Baochai no longer allows her to stand behind her.

There are so many young ladies in the manor, and each one is a competitor. Moreover, who knows if, given the Duke of Dingguo's abilities, new sisters will be added to the manor in the future?

Thinking about it this way, it seems that the manor is not in a peaceful and prosperous era as Qin Keqing said, but rather a new war has begun.

It's not a war between Lin Daiyu and the vixen, but a bloodier and more brutal ranking battle between them!
Newlyweds Lin Daiyu and Yue Ling are currently in the honeymoon phase. After this period, the curtain will rise, and they will have their own stage.

As if they had all thought of this, the women's expressions became somewhat unnatural.

They all stood up, bid farewell to Xue Baochai, and went back to their rooms to discuss countermeasures with their maids.

In an instant, all the girls left, leaving only Xue Baoqin, her maid Xiaoluo, Ying'er, and Xiangling to clean up the mess.

Xue Baochai sighed and rubbed her forehead, "Qingke just talks nonsense. Now look what's happened, she's stirred up everyone's hearts."

Xue Baoqin smiled and comforted her, "What can we do? The problem is right in front of us. Even if we haven't thought of it now, we should have in a while."

"You know, anything scarce in this world will be fought over. Within the manor, the Marquis is the scarcest thing, so how could people not be tempted to fight over him?"

Xue Baochai nodded silently.

"So, sister, have you figured out how to fight them?"

Xue Baochai glanced at Xue Baoqin, turned her head away and said, "You're here to talk about such irrelevant things. Why don't you go back and get busy with some important matters?"

Xue Baoqin leaned close to Xue Baochai's ear and whispered, "Sister, do you think I don't know what you did for the Marquis in the hall? Still pretending to be a pure and innocent maiden? You were like that under the Marquis. What else are you lacking besides not giving your body to the Marquis?"

Xue Baochai's face froze as she recalled an old incident, and her heart began to race.

"Don't, don't talk nonsense!"

"Whether it's nonsense or not, you know best in your heart. Don't blame me for not reminding you, sister. If you keep hesitating, you'll have to call me sister sooner or later."

"you!"

Xue Baochai, her face contorted with rage, was about to teach Xue Baoqin a lesson when she discovered that Xue Baoqin had already stormed out the door and was making faces in the corridor.

This scene left Xiaoluo, who was sweeping the ground, at a loss. She had no choice but to put down her work and smile apologetically at Xue Baochai.

"Young lady, I'll go back with you now..."

Xue Baochai rolled her eyes and said, "You should really discipline her for her unreliable behavior. She says such shameful things and is becoming more and more degenerate!"

"Yes Yes Yes……"

……

"Lord Chai, watch your step."

With the help of others, Chai Pu stepped off the car using a small stool.

Bowing towards the carriage window, Chai Pu said, "My humble abode has not prepared any new tea, so I will not keep Your Highness any longer."

The eldest prince, Liu An, shook his head. "Elder Chai, you are too kind. This is my first time participating in such a grand event, and I would like to return to my residence to rest as soon as possible. I will not disturb Elder Chai any further."

With that, he told the driver to set off and bowed to Chai Pu in farewell.

Back in his own courtyard, Chai Pu finally breathed a sigh of relief, his figure appearing somewhat hunched over.

"Yue Ling is investigating an old case? What exactly did he find out? How did he get involved in the case of Tuji Khan's sudden death?"

"Why isn't he making any new legal reforms? Could it be that he's discovered some secret? But that's too far-fetched. Even if he's precocious and born with knowledge, he can't possibly have the ability of a god to see through everything, can he?"

"Could it be that something went wrong within their ranks, allowing Yue Ling to sense something amiss? Lately..."

After a long pause, the door turned slowly at the entrance, and Chai Pu's wife quickly helped him inside.

“Why didn’t you knock, sir? If it weren’t for the incessant barking of the dog, I wouldn’t have known to open the door.”

A glint of cunning flashed in Chai Pu's eyes, darker than the night itself. "Someone must have sent word!"

(End of this chapter)