Poor Taoist Qiu Chuji

Chapter 371 I Was Born a Beauty
As she said these words, Grandmother Jia was trembling all over. How could she face the old Duke in the underworld after she passed away if she described the proper young master of the Jia family as a girl?
However, the Fourth Prince's methods were indeed ruthless, directly seizing the Jia family's weakness and forcing Grandmother Jia to make a choice.

Indeed, it was still some time before the Jia family was purged, but Grandmother Jia did not have God's perspective. At this time, Jia Yuanchun had not yet been made a concubine, and the entire Jia family, a huge household, had no pillars to support it. It relied entirely on old friends and relatives to maintain appearances.

However, there are many who kick someone when they're down, but few who offer help when someone is in trouble. Those so-called old friends and relatives, when the Jia family was powerful, could be his henchmen, but after they declined, how were they any different from tigers and wolves?
Because Grandmother Jia understood this clearly, she had no choice but to give in.

If Jia Baoyu is confirmed to be a 'woman', then given his background, he would certainly be qualified to be a prince's wife, even if not the principal wife, he would still be a concubine.

With a princess emerging from the Jia family, there's no need to worry about any major upheavals for at least the next decade or so.

After all, the current emperor is in his prime, and even the retired emperor is still monitoring the court from the Dragon Head Palace. Although the adult princes are already competing in secret, it is far from over.

With an extra decade or so of buffer time, if even one or two talented individuals emerge from the next generation of the Jia family, they might just be able to weather the storm.

"Mother...!" Master Zheng finally called out. Baoyu was his son, and even though he disliked this son, at this moment he still felt the rare fatherly love he had.

But as the words were about to come out, he met the Fourth Prince's ambiguous, mocking gaze and changed the subject, saying, "Baoyu's mother... I'm afraid she can't accept it!"

Having made her decision, Grandmother Jia's heart turned cold, and she said, "She's been mad long enough! If she still can't come to her senses, send her to the family temple and lock her up so she can pray to Buddha every day for peace of mind and calm her nerves."

Then she added, "I should let you know in advance that there are too many gossipy people in this yard. When it's time to clean them up, this old woman won't hold back."

This was a serious effort, and while these words seemed to be addressed to Lord Zheng, they were actually a guarantee to the Fourth Prince.

This identity of Jia Baoyu will definitely be confirmed.

How do we make sure it's secure?

The maids and servants who had the opportunity to get close to Jia Baoyu and know his true nature were all sold off or disposed of. There was no need to kill them directly. Jia Baoyu's head maids in the courtyard were all pampered and lived a life comparable to the daughters of officials from small families. If they were sold to brothels or remote areas, they would wither away on their own.

Similarly, some news would also spread out of the Jia family through those gossipy women, giving everyone a heads-up.

Fortunately, Jia Baoyu was not very old, and he had mostly stayed at home playing with his sisters before. This change of identity may sound absurd, but it was not too difficult to carry out in practice.

Hearing Grandmother Jia's words, the Fourth Prince nodded in satisfaction, then stood up and left with a remark before departing: "Three months from now, an imperial edict will arrive. Old Lord Feng, just wait!"

This was a promise; he would not let Jia Baoyu follow him in an unclear and ambiguous way.

Once it is confirmed, both in terms of identity and physical condition, that Jia Baoyu is a 'woman,' the Prince's Mansion will be happy to bring him in using a grand sedan chair carried by eight men.

This also shows that the fourth prince really liked her.

It's important to understand that he also took a considerable risk.

After all, if Jia Baoyu's true gender could be kept secret from the world, could it also be kept secret from the emperor?
If it were an ordinary nobleman's son, the emperor might not really care; the change from male to female would just be a joke.

But it's hard not to notice a prince born with a jade pendant.

The fact that the fourth prince married such a 'demon' who had transformed from a man into a woman was tantamount to the emperor stripping him of any chance of inheriting the throne.

But as the saying goes, time can heal all wounds.

The emperor is still young and in the prime of his life. There are still many years before the struggle for the throne, and many things can happen. Therefore, being temporarily 'neglected' may not necessarily be a bad thing for the fourth prince.

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The carved wooden window frame pressed against Jia Baoyu's increasingly thin shoulders, slightly embedding itself in his snow-white skin.

The slight stinging sensation did not wake him from one dream after another.

All that he had experienced in recent days was truly like a dream.

After meeting that person, he realized what true happiness was.

Therefore, he picked up the "Flower Heart Sutra" again after a long absence and began to practice it more diligently, wanting to master it as soon as possible and completely transform into a woman.

The warm spring breeze, carrying the lingering fragrance of roses, passed through the weeping crabapple trees, causing their emerald green veils to cling to the window.

The copper bells on the eaves suddenly rang softly, startling a few faded petals from the branches, which swirled and landed on his dark blue temples.

A beauty is like a painting, every frame of which seems to be able to amaze time, yet so natural and unpretentious.

Jia Baoyu let out a long breath, and the masculine spirit in his eyes had been somewhat tempered into a touch of feminine charm.

The long dress draped over his body accentuated his slender and perfect waist.

He designed the skirt himself and had someone else cut it.

Although he was sparsely versed in classical Chinese literature, he had a thorough understanding of women's literature and had his own thoughts and interpretations about it.

In a sense, this change in identity may be a perfect match for his talent.

A soft cracking sound came from behind the artificial rockery; it was sparrows pecking at wild berry seeds left over from last year. This subtle movement startled him, causing his eyelashes to flutter slightly, and the jade bracelet on his wrist tapped against the windowsill, producing a clear, chime-like sound.

As dusk turned the ebony window frame a caramel color, she finally withdrew her fingertips, which were slightly red from the spring sun, and unconsciously rubbed the dried rose petal stains on her cuffs.

Suddenly a gust of wind blew by, and a figure appeared inside the window.

"Brother Bao! Have you heard?" Lin Daiyu called out to Jia Baoyu with a hint of anxiety.

Looking at the increasingly tall and beautiful Lin Daiyu, Jia Baoyu, who used to harbor romantic thoughts, now only had pure admiration in his eyes.

Only a beauty of such exceptional talent could be considered comparable to him.

Then, a sense of jealousy arose in his heart.

Lin Daiyu was, after all, a real woman, while even if he cultivated his internal energy to the point of completely transforming from a man into a woman, he would only have no flaws in appearance. In reality, he could not have children, and organs that did not exist could not grow out of thin air.

That's a different level... We need to upgrade the 'Flower Heart Sutra' to the level of immortal techniques.

“Sister, please speak slowly. I’ll go pour you a bowl of tea.” Suppressing his jealousy, Jia Baoyu rose as if he were a willow swaying in the breeze and went to pour tea for Lin Daiyu.

Daiyu grabbed Jia Baoyu's sleeve and forcibly pulled him back to his chair, saying, "Tea? What kind of lousy tea are you drinking!"

"What?" Jia Baoyu's phoenix eyes widened, unable to believe that the fairy-like Lin Daiyu could speak so crudely.

Unbeknownst to him, while he and the prince were having their "golden encounter," Lin Daiyu, with her incredible speed and strength, disguised herself as a man and wandered the streets, originally only to find him, cripple his martial arts, and let him return to being a man.

However, the everyday life and vibrancy of the city held a unique attraction for Lin Daiyu.

As she went out more often, Lin Daiyu gradually forgot her original intention and instead mingled with some people from the streets and alleys, which led her to pick up some quirky speech patterns.

Nowadays, Lin Dalang, the handsome and charismatic leader, is quite a prominent figure in the martial arts world of the capital.

"Nothing, you misheard!" "Brother Bao! I know you. The person you are now is not the real you, but your mind has been hijacked by the cultivation technique."

"Once I've crippled your martial arts, you'll be back to normal!" Lin Daiyu said, and was about to make her move.

Before she could unleash her true energy, she was thrown back several steps by the seemingly delicate Jia Baoyu and fell onto another chair.

"Sister Lin! You are not me, how can you know my joy?" Jia Baoyu said calmly.

Although he was not diligent in practicing his skills, he secretly conformed to the idea of ​​"following the natural way". Now he was in the midst of the transformation between heaven and man, and his true energy was more profound than that of Lin Daiyu.

Although it doesn't possess the internal energy that Lin Daiyu cultivated, which is better suited for combat, it is more effective for self-defense and defensive maneuvers.

How could I not know?

"Brother Bao! Do you know how much I hate that I am not a man!" Lin Daiyu stepped out of the cage and came into contact with the vast world outside. She naturally understood why her father sent her to the capital and entrusted her to the Jia family. And she was in that dangerous place, facing all kinds of dangers.

After mastering her martial arts and learning about her father's situation, she constantly thought about returning to Suzhou to see him and help him alleviate his worries.

But she was, after all, a woman.

Although he could use his lightness skills and agility to sneak out of the Jia mansion and mingle among the common people, it was impossible for him to leave for several days and return to Suzhou alone to see his father.

If she did that, she would not only ruin her own reputation, but also give her father's political enemies a weapon to attack him.

“Then you can be like me,” Jia Baoyu said.

Then he laughed and said, "Oh! I forgot, this Flower Heart Technique can only transform a man into a woman, not a woman into a man!"

"Even if you find a man to entrust yourself to, Lin sister, it will only ruin your beautiful face, while your body will still be that of a woman."

These words are exceptionally petty, even inferior to Jia Baoyu when he was originally a man, showing that his temperament has completely changed.

Lin Daiyu, however, was not angry with him. She simply sighed and said, "So be it!"

"I was just being nosy!"

"Now, everyone in the manor is saying that you were originally a woman and were never a man."

Upon hearing this, Jia Baoyu was not surprised at all; instead, he smiled sweetly.

He knew that this must have been the work of the Fourth Prince.

"Then remember this, Lin Daiyu: there was never any Bao Er Ge!"

"You should call me Sister Bao!" Jia Baoyu said with a smile.

Lin Daiyu sneered: "That's good! Now there are two Bao sisters in the Jia family!"

"I wonder if you, Sister Bao, also want to enter the palace."

This statement had a double meaning, but Jia Baoyu didn't understand it.

Instead, she shook her head and smiled sweetly: "If I were to enter the palace, I would do so with him, as the empress of the world."

"Don't you despise those fools who chase after fame and fortune the most?" Lin Daiyu said sarcastically at the end, but she no longer wanted to continue the argument.

At this moment, she thought that her childhood sweetheart, Bao Erge, was dead.

"He is a man of great ambition, and being born into nobility, he is certainly different!" Jia Baoyu said with a proud expression.

Lin Daiyu was utterly speechless, then turned into a gust of wind and disappeared from the room.

Inside the room, Jia Baoyu continued to wait by the window, waiting for the person he longed for to come and marry him, riding a tall horse and accompanied by a grand sedan chair carried by eight men.

As for the maids serving in the courtyard, they had been replaced, and the one who served him personally had become an ordinary-looking mute girl, but he didn't care much about it.

He's a heartless man!
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The Third Prince is in a very bad mood at the Prince of Jin's residence!

He had been in a bad mood ever since he received that news.

All the servants in the Prince's mansion were afraid of incurring bad luck.

"A woman! She's actually a woman!"

Why is she a woman?

"Yes! Yes! So beautiful... how could she not be a woman?" The Third Prince was furious. He felt he had done something incredibly stupid, giving the woman he loved most to his younger brother.

Now that his plans have failed and he has lost his beloved, how can he not be heartbroken?

He wasn't without his suspicions that it might be fake.

However, firstly, he was more inclined to accept this outcome, and secondly, he did not believe that the Jia family and the Fourth Prince would dare to play tricks in this regard.

It's important to know that all women who marry into the royal family undergo a physical examination.

When the time comes, we'll know for sure whether it's true or false.

If a man were to impersonate a woman and be exposed during the inspection, both the Jia family and the Fourth Prince would be in deep trouble.

"Now that the fourth prince has seized the initiative, and he hasn't even been engaged yet, he has more leverage than me... How can I win her back?" The third prince thought to himself, his emotions gradually calming down.

Don't say that a prince would be so low-class, that all he thinks about is his crotch.

Holding high positions is often just talk; many people talk about how to realize their ambitions, but few actually do it.

More often than not, it's about power, money, and beauty.

This is the very reason why so many people work hard, even risking their lives.

There's not much nobility or so-called highbrow taste to speak of.

For the top elites, ordinary beauty is not a scarce commodity, but true beauty that can bring ruin to a country is always precious.

Putting aside other things, twenty years have passed and Fat Fairy still hasn't found a real meal replacement, and no one has been able to fill the void left by Sister Eight Hundred Million. This shows how rare true top-tier looks are.

If this is the case in the information age with its population explosion, then in ancient societies, the appearance of a stunningly beautiful woman could very well lead to conflicts, contradictions, bloodshed, and even war.

(End of this chapter)