Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 215: Birthday Celebration

Chen Siyuan, however, was strolling along with his hands behind his back, intending to wander around, hoping to bump into Sister Lin and Sister Bao. However, after a complete circle, he saw neither of them. Just as he was considering heading to the east wing to see his cousin Xing Xiuyan, he suddenly heard a commotion outside the Grand View Garden.

Chen Siyuan paused to survey the area, figuring it must be Sister Feng's children's quarters, but the garden walls blocked his view. Reaching the main gate of the Grand View Garden, he happened upon Qin Xianjia entering. She was Siqi's aunt, now assigned to guard the garden's east corner gate.

When the two met, Qin Xianjia greeted them with a busy smile. Chen Siyuan then asked with a smile, "Sister-in-law Qin, what's the commotion over there?"

Qin Xianjia said, "Oh, Brother Yuan, you asked the right person. I just looked at it for quite a while."

Qin Xianjia's story was about Fengjie still taking medicine for recovery. Doctor Bao was cautious and worried that the medicine would interfere with her and harm Qiaojie again. So, she asked the wet nurse and Qiaojie to move into the side room. This way, Fengjie felt more at ease. (Note 1)

"I see. Thank you, Sister Qin, for telling me." Chen Siyuan was about to leave when Qin Xianjia said something else: "Uncle Yuan, maybe we'll end up living next to each other in the future."

Chen Siyuan was puzzled and asked, "What does this mean?"

Qin Xianjia laughed and said, "The eldest lady and the mistress have discussed it. I heard that they're going to renovate the thatched cottage in the next few days. Maybe they'll even add a few side rooms on both sides of the main house, just to prepare for Master Yuan. The eldest lady said that if a group of young actors moved into Lixiang Courtyard and hummed every day, it would probably distract Master Yuan from his studies."

That's true. A dozen little actors gathered together, chattering non-stop every day, getting up early to warm up their voices, and occasionally singing a few lines at night. Not to mention Chen Siyuan, even Hongyu was secretly dissatisfied.

At that moment, Chen Siyuan laughed out loud, said a few words to him and then left.

Qin Xian's family had just left, and Chen Siyuan was thinking about going to Qingtang thatched cottage to take a look. Who knew that just as he took a step, he heard someone calling: "Uncle Yuan!"

Chen Siyuan stopped and saw Zhuan'er jumping and waving, with Xing Xiuyan walking lightly behind him.

Chen Siyuan's heart was moved, and he hurried across Qinfang Bridge to meet him.

The two had just bumped into each other, and Zhuan'er was about to say something when he saw Chen Siyuan raise his hand and throw something shining silver towards him.

Zhuan'er took it in a hurry, and only when he saw it clearly in his hand did he realize that it was actually a piece of silver.

"I'll keep it for you to buy rouge. Go play some fun over there."

"Okay!" Zhuan'er grinned and agreed happily, jumping and playing aside.

Chen Siyuan smiled again and bowed to Xing Xiuyan, "Cousin."

Xing Xiuyan bowed in anger and said, "You've spoiled Zhuan'er."

Chen Siyuan laughed heartily and said, "She's been through a hard time for over ten years, so she deserves some good times. Besides, she has her cousin to look after her, so how bad can she get?"

Xing Xiuyan smiled lightly and said, "You are always right."

As she spoke, she extended her hand and the two of them headed towards Yihong Courtyard.

Chen Siyuan observed the girl's profile and said, "I was delayed by some chores yesterday. When I rushed to the East Palace, my cousin had already returned."

Xing Xiuyan laughed and said, "Don't mention it. The opera was really loud with all the gongs and drums. Sister Bao and I couldn't stand it, so we hurried back."

Chen Siyuan smiled and nodded. After passing Yihong Courtyard, Chen Siyuan saw Xing Xiuyan carrying a small bundle and asked curiously, "I forgot to ask, cousin, what is this--"

Xing Xiuyan said, "Since I know Miaoyu is at home, I have to go and see her no matter what. Here are some Su-style snacks I made yesterday. I'll bring them to her to try."

Chen Siyuan responded, and Xing Xiuyan, fearing he might be suspicious, whispered, "I'll keep your share too. I'll have Zhuan'er deliver it later this afternoon."

"it is good."

Seeing him agree with a smile, Xing Xiuyan also smiled and said, "Just cross the bridge. I'll go first."

Chen Siyuan responded again, and then he saw Xing Xiuyan calling Zhuan'er. The master and the servant crossed the Baishi Bridge, stopped on the other side and smiled at her, then went to the Longcui Temple.

From beginning to end, Xing Xiuyan never mentioned Sister Bao. She was a lazy person by nature. As long as the future head wife did not deliberately make things difficult for her, she would not care who became the head wife.

It was Xing Xiuyan's unworldly and carefree demeanor that dazzled Chen Siyuan, so much so that he paused for a long moment before averting his gaze. Turning back, he ran into Sister Bao, who had come alone, not far away—truly a pleasant surprise.

Chen Siyuan couldn't help but walk a few steps faster. Seeing that there was no one around, he bowed in a strange way: "Oh, it's Miss Bao in person. I am honored to meet you."

Sister Bao covered her mouth and laughed angrily, "Who are you trying to fool with your pretentious tone?"

Chen Siyuan did not hide it from her and said, "My cousin is going to see Master Miaoyu, and I talked to her for a while on the way."

When Sister Bao saw him wearing the square scarf she had made herself and told him the truth, she felt relieved. She didn't bother to blame Xing Xiuyan anymore and just asked, "Why were you late yesterday? I heard you came back drunk."

"Don't mention it," Chen Siyuan said with a wry smile. "Because of that business, I bought some indentured servants a few days ago. I went to settle them yesterday morning and arrived around noon, but unexpectedly, Sister Bao had already left. I couldn't get away, so I had to patiently drink three glasses of wine as punishment.

But the show got worse and worse, with everything from meat to vegetables. I was so impatient that I just drank a few more glasses of wine and was able to get away.

Sister Bao immediately covered her mouth and burst into laughter, then said with concern, "No matter what, I don't think they would want to drag you into this mess. Next time, just watch for a while longer, but don't drink too much."

Chen Siyuan smiled and said, "I'm sorry to bother you, Sister Bao, but I was just pretending to be drunk. I'll be fine after a rest." As he spoke, he raised his hand and the two of them headed south of Yihong Courtyard.

At this time, because of Aunt Xue, the two of them could not see each other in public, so they had to wander around where there was no one.

After a while, they stopped in front of the Yihong Courtyard. The weather in the capital was warming, and the two wintersweets in front of the courtyard were in full bloom. They stopped walking side by side, and Sister Bao said, "That livelihood must be extremely difficult. You don't have to force yourself. Studying for the next exam is more important."

Who was Chen Siyuan? He always spoke one thing to one person and another to another. Even a simple reason could be made into a perfect one in his mouth. So he said, "I'm so anxious because, firstly, this opportunity is rare, and secondly... Sister Bao, do you not know the reason?"

Sister Bao blinked, and suddenly she understood.

Yes, it was still for the sake of the two of them. If he didn't drain all the Xue family's money, how could he convince Aunt Xue to give up Xue Pan, to keep a low profile, and to place her hopes on the next generation?
Sister Bao's pretty face flushed immediately and she couldn't help but turn her head away.

That day, Baochai wore a honey-colored, half-new, gold-edged satin, cross-collared long coat, and a scarlet cloak with peony flowers. The wintersweet blossoms complemented the scene beautifully, and for a moment, she was more charming than the flowers, which caught Chen Siyuan's eye.

Baochai was surprised to see him speechless, and glanced over. Seeing that he was actually lost in thought, she was immediately delighted.

"What are you looking at?"

Chen Siyuan came back to his senses and said, "They say 'people are more beautiful than flowers'. I didn't believe it at first, but now I believe it completely."

Baochai shyly turned her head away again. After a long pause, she began to speak seriously, "You have something serious to do, and I can't help you much. At most, I can say a few more words to Mother. But you shouldn't keep Miss Lin hanging around like this."

Chen Siyuan looked puzzled. Why did they bring up Daiyu?

Baochai assumed he was puzzled and said, "Your marriage to Sister Lin is already signed and cannot be changed. You should try to get along. I asked Sister Lin last time, and although she didn't give a firm answer, she did have this intention. When you send her something tomorrow, why not bring a message and something special? She's still young and has a bit of a temper. As a man, you should just be more tolerant."

Chen Siyuan blinked, then suddenly understood. So, Baochai had taken advantage of herself to become the first wife, and after learning that the rites for inheriting the throne had changed and that Daiyu was no longer capable of serving as the principal wife, she had rushed over to win her over?
This is very likely. In the original novel, Baojie won over Xiren in this way, and then when she heard that Xing Xiuyan and Xue Ke were engaged, she took extra care of Xing Xiuyan. Apart from anything else, she also perfectly captured the demeanor of this eldest lady, and I'm afraid no one else can compare.

Chen Siyuan deliberately teased her, "How could you be so? If I were to get along with Sister Lin, and then turn around and ignore you, I'd like to see if you'd be offended."

Baochai said angrily, "I'm doing this for your own good, and you're making fun of me. Well, well, whatever you want. From now on, you and Sister Lin will continue to treat each other with respect."

She made a move to leave, but Chen Siyuan pulled her hand away. They had been together for a long time, but even when they were open about their intentions, they had never been this close. Sister Bao's face suddenly flushed.

He opened his mouth to say something, but felt the warmth of that broad hand, and couldn't bring himself to scold it. So he shook it slightly, and when he heard the old woman's voice in the distance, he quickly broke free.

She took two steps to the side and said shyly, "Maybe the maid will come to clean up soon... You, you should go back first."

Chen Siyuan nodded and made to leave. When he reached Sister Bao, he suddenly leaned over and whispered in her ear, "When you give birth to a child, I will give you a rare gift."

Sister Bao was so frightened that she covered her mouth and cried out in surprise. Seeing him walk away with a smile, her face immediately turned into a frown. When his figure disappeared into the garden, she finally smiled. Her heart was filled with comfort, and she couldn't help but look forward to it, wondering what he would give her one day.

After pausing for a long while before the wintersweet, Baochai finally gathered her thoughts and headed back. Unexpectedly, just as she reached the gate of the Grand View Garden, Ying'er came looking for her, announcing, "Miss Shi is here."

As the saying goes, "I cannot see the true face of Mount Lu because I am within it." Previously, Baochai was forced into a "golden marriage." Although Lengxiang Pills helped her control her mind, she was still confused by the situation. Now, having transcended it, she naturally sees the way.

Only three days had passed since the visit, and Shi Xiangyun had arrived early in the morning. She supposed it must have been Grandmother Jia's doing. She knew what she was after, without asking.

Baochai smiled to herself again, thinking that if it were last year, she would probably have to think about it for a long time.
Then he thought, he had just come out on the pretext of visiting Baoyu, and it would be difficult to explain if he went back like this. Since Shi Xiangyun had come, Baoyu must have gone to the old lady's room, so it was a good opportunity to go to Qixianzhai.

Because Sister Bao nodded slightly, she led Ying'er to Qixianzhai.

In the Qixianzhai, Xiren had just returned from Rongqing Hall. However, because Baoyu had heard that Xiangyun had arrived early in the morning, he had gone to Rongqing Hall without combing his hair or washing his face. When Xiren caught up with him at Rongqing Hall, she saw Yuanyang and Hupo helping Baoyu with his hair and washing, so she went back on her own.

At this time, Sister Bao came in and asked Xiren with a smile, "Where is Brother Bao?"

Xiren looked up at Baochai and said with a smile, "Brother Bao, how can you still have time to stay at home?"

Sister Bao was asking knowingly, but her face was full of confusion. Then Xiren said, "No matter how close sisters are, they still have to spend time together. It's not like they'd rush off to someone else's house without combing their hair or washing their face. They promised it yesterday, and now it's all gone to waste."

Seeing his worried look, which was very similar to her own that day, Sister Bao immediately covered her mouth and laughed, "Don't be angry, he's only a little boy, and he hasn't settled down yet."

He then sat down next to Xiren and said many words of comfort.

After a while, Baoyu came back and Baochai said goodbye and left.

Baoyu was puzzled and went to Xiren to ask, "Why was Sister Bao talking to you so animatedly, and then she ran away when she saw me come in?"

Xiren didn't want to pay attention to him, so he asked again.

Xiren could not help but quarrel with Baoyu for a few words, then simply closed her eyes and fell on the kang. Baoyu came to comfort her again, but although Xiren closed her eyes, her heart was in turmoil.

If it were just Baoyu, Xiren might even be angry with him. As the saying goes, "It's not a matter of not knowing the goods, it's a matter of comparing them." And Master Yuan is only three years older than Baoyu. Look at him! Last year, he won the imperial examination, founded Baicaotang, and earned a fortune. He spent hundreds of taels of silver without blinking an eye. How could Baoyu compare?

The more she compared herself with him, the more she looked down on him. After a while, she finally came to her senses. Baoyu was just like that. If he hadn't been wrong, how could he have been manipulated by her yesterday?

That's fine too, at least she can be Bao's concubine. As for Mom... Xiren bit her lip secretly. At most, she can just hang out with that Mr. Yuan a few more times. Yes, I must tell my brother about Doctor Ding of Heniantang later.

She had a clear idea in her mind, and seeing Baoyu's impatience, Xiren stood up and said, "Don't go out to greet her again in the future without caring about anything. The old lady didn't say anything this time, but next time if others see us, they will think that the maids in Qixianzhai can't serve anyone."

Musk Moon entered at this moment and immediately responded with a shared hatred, "That's right, Second Master has really gone too far this time."

Baoyu's frivolous behavior destroyed the jobs of all the maids in Qixianzhai!
Baoyu suddenly understood what was happening and quickly apologized with a smile, "I was too impatient. I won't do that again next time!" Turning around, he begged Xiren, "Good sister, please forgive me this time."

Xiren then gave her a look of disapproval, stood up and asked Musk Moon to help her wash up again, without saying anything more.

.................................................................................................................................... Chen Siyuan, along with a group of newly recruited servants, found a farmhouse and began experimenting with rubber by mixing carbon black with sulfur. The sulfur was so pungent that even Chen Siyuan could not stand it, even if he stayed away from it.

He thought to himself that when he could come up with a recipe in the future, he would have to make the gas mask first, otherwise who could last a day?
The next morning, Jia Yun was again summoned for supervision. Although Jia Yun had a supervisory position at the Rongguo Mansion, he didn't have to oversee it constantly, had plenty of free time, and only received a few taels of salary each month. Now that Chen Siyuan had assigned him this task, he naturally devoted himself to it.

Let’s not talk about the two of them speeding up the trial production for now.

But early in the morning on the 19th, because Qiaojie and the wet nurse were locked up in the side room, the main room was vacant, so Jia Lian moved back.

After attending to some chores in the small back room of the third room, Sister Feng went back to Lady Wang's courtyard. Ping'er was packing Jia Lian's clothes and bedding when she unexpectedly shook a lock of black hair out of her pillowcase.

Ping'er blinked and immediately understood. She quickly gathered up her black hair and turned around to ask Jia Lian again.

Second Master Lian had been hanging out with Miss Duo for the past few days, and he was reluctant to move back home. He was afraid of his wife, but not Ping'er. He had a little fun with her, and was about to take her hair back when he heard Sister Feng'er's voice from outside.

Jia Lian coughed and quickly stepped aside. Sister Feng spoke to Ping'er and ordered her to open the box and show Lady Wang the contents. Seeing Jia Lian's strange expression, she asked, "Have you put everything you took out back in?"

Ping'er said, "I've taken it in."

Sister Feng asked, "Is there anything missing?"

Ping'er said, "I was afraid I might have left one or two items behind, so I checked carefully and found nothing missing."

Sister Feng said, "It's good as long as there's not too much, but please don't overdo it."

Ping'er laughed and said, "It's a blessing that it's not lost. Who would want to add more?"

Fengjie sneered, "It's hard to guarantee a clean environment these days. Perhaps someone close to you has lost something: a ring, a handkerchief, a scented bag, or even hair or nails—they're all things."

These words made Jia Lian's face turn green! He quickly winked at Ping'er.

Ping'er pretended not to see it, and smiled to cover it up, saying, "How come my feelings are the same as yours! I was afraid of these things, so I searched carefully, but there's nothing to show for it. If you don't believe me, I haven't confiscated those things yet. Go and search through them yourself."

Sister Feng laughed and said, "Silly girl, even if he had these things, why would he let us rummage through them?"

Having said that, he went to look for a way.

As soon as she left, Ping'er threatened Jia Lian with her hair, but Jia Lian pretended not to care and snatched it away when she was not paying attention.

Ping'er was only a concubine, so what if she had black hair? Telling Sister Feng would ruin their relationship, and Master Lian would resent her. It would be better to keep it a secret.

So it would be more accurate to say that she was trying to curry favor with Jia Lian rather than threatening him.

The two of them had just finished playing when Sister Feng went back.

Having overheard a few words, Sister Feng asked a few more questions. Ping'er tried to cover it up, and Jia Lian would not say anything. Instead, the bickering between the three of them was quite amusing.

Jia Lian was in a hurry to burn his black hair, but Feng Jieer stopped him again: "I have something to tell you."

Sister Feng then explained that the following day was Baochai's birthday, and she and Jia Lian were discussing how to arrange it. Jia Lian had no interest in hearing about this, and simply said that they should follow Daiyu's usual practice.

However, this time it was Baochai's coming of age, and the last time Concubine Xian De saw her, although she did not explicitly say that she had chosen Baochai, when it came to rewards, Baochai was given more generous gifts than the other sisters.

Feng Jieer is very good at dealing with people, and it was because of this that she felt embarrassed.

But Jia Lian, who had always ignored such matters, passed the buck and left it entirely to Sister Feng to decide. Sister Feng was furious and could not help but exchange a few words with him.

Sister Feng, still undecided, stood up and headed for Rongqing Hall. Jia Lian, as if granted amnesty, bolted out like a wild dog, ran straight back to the outer study, and burned the lock of hair with his own hands, only then feeling somewhat relieved.

............................................................

But it is said that on this day, Jia's mother and Xiangyun were sitting idly in the room.

A little later, Aunt Xue and Sister Bao arrived. After a few words, they suddenly talked about Baochai's birthday. Xiangyun immediately held her forehead and said in annoyance, "Yes, I thought I must have forgotten something. I guess I left Sister Bao's gift behind."

She immediately hurried to find Cuilu and ordered him to send a servant to the Marquis of Baoling's mansion to fetch the two-color needlework she had made for Baochai's birthday. As soon as the Xue family mother and daughter left, Fengjie entered the inner room. Jia's mother told Fengjie that she had waived twenty taels of silver and gave it to her to buy wine and entertainment.

Feng Jieer's face almost turned green when she heard this!
The birthdays of young ladies in this mansion have always been held with public funds. It would have been fine if these twenty taels were just for the banquet, but they had to invite a troupe of actors... Is a mere twenty taels enough for the troupe, or for the banquet?
Feng Jieer knew that the east wind was getting stronger, and now she didn't know what Mrs. Wang meant. How could she treat her so blatantly?

With a roll of his eyes, he said angrily, "It's an old man celebrating his children's birthday, no matter what, who dares to argue, and why hold a feast? If you want to have a good time, you can't help but spend a few taels of your own money from the old treasury. Sooner or later, you will find these twenty taels of silver that are worthless to be the host. You are asking me to pay for it.

It would have been fine if we couldn't take it out, as the gold, silver, round, and flat objects had crushed the bottom of the box and were just strangling us.

Look around, who isn't your child? Is it possible that Brother Bao is the only one who will carry you up Mount Wutai in the future? Those close friends will be left to him. Although we are not worthy of him now, please don't make us suffer. Is this enough for wine? Is this enough for drama?

When Feng Jieer said this teasingly, the whole room suddenly became happy.

Grandmother Jia had always disliked the mother and daughter of the Xue family, and she was just about to take advantage of Baochai's coming-of-age celebration to make a big fuss so that she could drive them out openly or secretly.

How to get rid of people? The daughter of the Xue family held a coming-of-age ceremony in Rongguo Mansion. From then on, she was a grown-up girl. How could she have the nerve to stay in Rongguo Mansion and wait for marriage?

Thinking that twenty taels was indeed a bit excessive, Jia's mother laughed and said, "Listen to this mouth. I am also a good talker, but why can't I be defeated by this monkey? Your mother-in-law dare not argue with me. You and I are tied together."

Sister Feng said with a smile: "My mother-in-law also loves Baoyu the same way. I have no place to complain, but I am said to be strong-mouthed."

This remark amused Lady Jia for a while, and she finally agreed to Sister Feng's suggestion. The twenty taels were considered an additional payment, and the remaining money would be paid from the public treasury.

After leaving Rongqing Hall, Sister Feng breathed a sigh of relief and hurried to find Lady Wang to discuss the matter. Lady Wang didn't think much of it, thinking that even if she wasn't her daughter-in-law, she was still her niece, and a coming-of-age birthday should be decent. Lady Wang also brought ten taels of silver to add to the money, and simply told Sister Feng to make the occasion lively.

Feng Jieer took the order and left, then hurriedly looked for someone to take care of it.

In a blink of an eye, it was the 21st. Baochai got up early, bathed, changed her clothes, and after eating some longevity noodles, she went to the courtyard to light incense, offer tea, burn paper, and then pay her respects.

When they returned to their room, they received gifts from the maids, and Sister Bao smiled and gave them some money. Unexpectedly, someone outside called out to Ying'er, and Ying'er hurried to greet them, but it was a long while before she returned.

Sister Bao looked at Ying'er in surprise, and Ying'er winked at her. Baochai immediately understood, thinking that it must be someone sent by Brother Yuan, and naturally she couldn't say anything more in front of her mother.

As expected, as they were heading towards Rongqing Hall, Ying'er found a moment to whisper, "Yunxiang said that Master Yuan went out early this morning to prepare a gift for the young lady, and told her not to worry, as it might arrive a little later."

Sister Bao agreed, but she frowned inwardly, wondering, why would she care about a gift? Seeing Chen Siyuan leaving early and returning late these past few days, he must be worrying about the gift. If he had that much thought, even if it was just an ordinary item, how could she really complain?
Thinking this way, she arrived at Rongqing Hall and saw that there was indeed a small stage in front. Baochai went in to see Lady Jia and then spent the next half day playing with her sisters.

At the end of the afternoon, the banquet began. There were only two tables, and from Jia Mu down there were Aunt Xue, Lady Wang, Lady Xing, Li Wan, Sister Feng, Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, Daiyu, Xiangyun, Xing Xiuyan, Baochai, and even Jia Lan. Only Baoyu mingled calmly among them.

As for Chen Siyuan, he was naturally not among the guests.

When choosing an opera, Grandmother Jia always asked Baochai to choose first. Baochai refused several times, but finally chose an act from "Journey to the West". Grandmother Jia then asked Aunt Xue. Seeing that Baochai had already chosen, Aunt Xue refused to choose another one, so Grandmother Jia asked Fengjie to choose.

Seeing that Lady Jia had bypassed Lady Xing and Lady Wang and insisted on doing it herself, Sister Feng immediately became suspicious. After all the previous banter, Baochai's birth had been arranged, but she was afraid the old lady might still be dissatisfied with her. Was this a deliberate test?

Thinking that Mrs. Wang had never read, he secretly had an idea and decided to perform the play "Liu Er Dangyi".

Xue Baochai's expression changed instantly! Aunt Xue had never read a book and didn't know the ins and outs of opera, but Sister Bao knew it all!
The play "Liu Er Pawns Clothes" depicts Pei Du, who is about to travel to Beijing for the imperial examination. Short of money, he sends his servant, Pei Wang, to pawn his clothes at Liu Er's pawnshop. Liu Er, a wealthy but unkind man, withholds the clothes as payment for the interest on a gold hairpin previously pawned by his brother-in-law, Pei Du. Liu Er plays dumb, making jokes and disregarding his relatives, withholding the clothes to evade Pei Wang.

When Aunt Feng ordered "Liu Er Pawns His Clothes," she was practically insulting the Xue family to their faces. The Xue family owned a pawnshop, and Jia Zheng was Aunt Xue's brother-in-law, sharing the same relationship with Pei Du and Liu Er. How was Aunt Feng embarrassing Liu Er on stage any different from embarrassing the Xue family?
Looking at Grandmother Jia again, the old lady was indeed delighted. Baochai knew that Grandmother Jia was deliberately using Sister Feng to disgust people. Her intention was nothing more than to drive the Xue family away.

Sister Bao wasn't the kind of delicate girl she'd become. Ever since she'd interrupted the Lengxiang Pills, she'd been feeling a bit grouchy. If it weren't for the awkward moment of revealing her feelings for Chen Siyuan, why would she stay at the Jia residence?

After Jia Mu finished praising her, she asked Xiang Yun to order. Although Xiang Yun was young, she was sensible and quickly asked Aunt Xue, Lady Wang and others to order first. Jia Mu then said, "I brought you here to have fun today. Let's just focus on our own things and ignore them. Am I doing all this singing and wine for them? They are already doing a great job here, listening and eating for free, and I'm still asking them to order!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the whole room burst into laughter. Sister Bao smiled apologetically, but in reality, her nails were already digging into her palms.

Who is he talking about? He is afraid that his mother and he himself will not understand, so he is just making indirect accusations.

After Shi Xiangyun, Daiyu called for a scene, and then Baoyu, Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, Xing Xiuyan, Li Wan and others called for a scene and took over the performance.

After one act of the play was over, it was already past 3 p.m., and seeing that there were not many acts left, Grandmother Jia asked Baochai to choose another one.

Baochai had just drunk a few more cups, and now her face was flushed. She smiled and said, "Thank you, old lady, for your kindness and for being my daughter. I'll take the big one today and give you an extra 20% off each time."

Grandmother Jia naturally agreed with a smile, and Baochai ordered "Lu Zhishen's Drunkenness at Mount Wutai" and "A Bed Full of Tablets".

The literal meaning of the first act of the play is that after Lu Zhishen killed Zheng Tu, the "Zhen Guanxi", he took refuge in Mount Wutai - which is similar to the Xue family - and was driven out of the temple for not abiding by Buddhist rules. The lyrics talk about Lu Zhishen's free and easy feelings and self-respect of "coming and going naked without any worries" and "letting my straw sandals and broken bowl turn to fate".

The underlying meaning was that Xue Baochai had never intended to stay in the Jia family.

The next act, "A Bed Full of Hu," tells the story of Guo Ziyi's seven sons and eight sons-in-law, all of whom are ministers and prominent families. On the surface, they praise the emperor and the nobles, but in fact, they are hiding their true intentions - the Jia family seems to be full of nobles, but in fact, there is no one like Guo Ziyi who is capable of supporting the country, nor are there any sons and eight sons-in-law as virtuous as him.

To put it bluntly, it's nothing but donkey dung - shiny on the surface, but nothing but shit inside!

Baoyu didn't know the ins and outs of this, so he just curled his lips and said, "I have no choice but to order these plays."

Baochai smiled but said nothing, and he was quite bored. Daiyu, who was sitting opposite him, vaguely sensed something was wrong, glanced at Baoyu, who was in a daze, and simply kept silent.

After a while, the two plays began to be performed one after another. At first, Jia's mother watched with joy, but when the play "A Bed Full of Huts" was halfway through, the old lady suddenly realized that something was wrong.

At that moment, he glanced at Baochai with a feeling of annoyance, and saw that Baochai had a calm face and was looking at the stage with a faint smile.

Grandmother Jia felt her anger rising. She felt that after hunting geese all day, she was finally being pecked in the eye by a magpie! She had always thought Baochai was a woman who was always pretending to be demure, but who knew that she was actually such a cruel person!

It was already nightfall, and the stage was about to be dismantled. Even if Lady Jia wanted to curse, she couldn't. The old lady was feeling depressed, and her expression became increasingly unpleasant.

Xiangyun, who was standing by, noticed something was wrong and quickly asked, "What's wrong, great-aunt?"

Jia's mother forced a smile and said, "Perhaps she was just in high spirits and drank a few more cups." Then she turned to Aunt Xue and said, "My aunt has raised a good daughter."

Although Aunt Xue realized it later, she could tell something was wrong. She complained in her heart but tried to smooth it over with a smile.

Apart from the young ones, who among them was a fool? Mrs. Wang didn't know whether to be happy or sad, Li Wan's nose followed her mouth and her mouth followed her heart, and Sister Feng was even more frightened.

After all, she was the one who started the trouble. If something really went wrong, wouldn't she be the one to be blamed in the end?

(End of this chapter)