Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 407 Collusion Between Upper and Lower Levels
Before long, it was noon. Cao had already prepared a feast and came to the front to see Chen Siyuan.

Chen Siyuan took a quick look and noticed that Cao Shi looked a little plumper than before. He thought to himself that Cao Shi was originally a barren woman, and now that she no longer had a troublesome husband or a meddlesome mother-in-law, and her sister-in-law Baochai had no major conflicts with her, she was naturally living a smooth life and it was no wonder that she was content and had gained weight.

After eating a little, Cao Shi went back to the back. Chen Siyuan and Baochai exchanged glances and ate their meal. Afterwards, they were reluctant to leave. As they talked, they couldn't help but feel affection for each other and ended up snuggling together.

At first, Baochai was enjoying herself, but as Chen Siyuan became increasingly presumptuous, she could no longer bear it. She was by nature cold on the outside but warm on the inside, and now Chen Siyuan's teasing had set her ablaze. Fortunately, she still had a sliver of clarity in her mind, which allowed her to push Chen Siyuan away.

She glanced down again and saw Chen Siyuan's embarrassed state, and immediately covered her mouth and laughed. Looking up, she saw the maid Ying'er eavesdropping in the study, and Baochai said, "If you can't resist, why don't you go and pester Ying'er? That little vixen is probably more than willing."

Chen Siyuan dared not respond to such words, so he simply lay down on the bed, groaning and muttering that he had no interest in life. However, this was the Xue family's old residence, and Baochai was known for her refined reputation, so Chen Siyuan had to suppress his reluctance.

When they arrived at around 3 PM, Chen Siyuan could not linger any longer. He reluctantly bid farewell to Sister Bao and returned to his residence at Nengren Temple.

Upon entering the house, Sister You San hurriedly came to greet him and, after taking Chen Siyuan's hand, asked with concern, "How is Miss Bao?"

Chen Siyuan shook his head and said, "It's nothing. I went back to the Xue family's old house early this morning."

Before Sister You could ask any more questions, she saw Chen Siyuan's brows furrowed and immediately sensed something was amiss. A short while later, Sister You Er, Qingwen, Xiangling, and others came to greet them. Chen Siyuan smiled as before, chuckling as he greeted the women, and then instructed them, "There's nothing to do during the New Year, so you can all just have fun."

Qingwen, Wu'er, and the others were overjoyed and chattered excitedly for a while before going to play dominoes in the second room.

After the women had dispersed, Chen Siyuan told You Sanjie about Baochai's matter. You Sanjie was shocked upon hearing this and said, "The Wang family is truly despicable. Knowing that Baochai's marriage was already arranged, they still tried to ruin her reputation!"

Chen Siyuan sneered, "If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked too. The Wang family has always been scheming people. They were single-mindedly trying to curry favor with the Jia family, and married three women to them in order to get the Jia family's position as the military governor of the capital."

Third Sister You said, "I've heard about this from Eldest Sister, so I've heard something about it. But... the Jia family is now in decline, and they have ties with the Xue family through marriage, so how could they have such a vicious thought?"

Chen Siyuan shook his head and remained silent. There is no hatred without a cause in this world. Lady Wang harmed Daiyu, probably because of her mother Jia Min; and her scheme against Baochai was entirely for money. The Jia family was getting worse and worse, and they were increasingly unable to make ends meet.

As for Wang Ziteng, it's understandable that he hates the Jia family. He has been clinging to the Jia family for so many years, and now that he has gained power, he has no choice but to take back the grievances he suffered in the past.
Why does this person hate the Xue family so much? Could it be that he failed to seize the Xue family's eldest son's property and is now enraged?
Chen Siyuan was too lazy to delve into the reasons; he was now focused on welcoming Bao and Dai out together.

He then asked Sister You, "Have you gone to find Zhang Gaogong?"

Sister You frowned and said, "Master Zhang has gone on a journey and said he would be back around the fifteenth. I have already spoken with Master Qian, and he will send someone to inform us as soon as Master Zhang returns."

Chen Siyuan nodded in agreement, thinking that he would personally go to find Zhang Gaogong after the fifteenth.

Then he said to Sister You San, "After the eighth day, I will move back to Qingtang Thatched Cottage. I will need you to take care of things outside."

Sister You replied matter-of-factly, "Brother, just focus on your studies. I'll take care of things outside."

The two settled down, and Chen Siyuan continued his foolish ways for a few more days. Before long, it was the eighth day of the first lunar month. Around noon, Chen Siyuan led Qingwen, Xiangling, and others back to the Rongguo Mansion by carriage.

As soon as everything was settled, Chen Siyuan was about to head to the east courtyard when Miao'er came to invite him. This suited Chen Siyuan perfectly, so he quickly followed Miao'er to the east courtyard.

After passing through the black lacquered gate and the three-tiered ceremonial gate, we entered the main room and saw Madam Xing holding Fourth Prince in her arms, while Fourth Prince was eating a pear.

Upon seeing Chen Siyuan, Madam Xing hurriedly urged, "Fourth Brother, quickly greet him."

Fourth Brother held up half a pear and called out "Cousin" in a crisp voice. Chen Siyuan immediately felt strange. He forced a smile, rubbed Fourth Brother's head, and handed him a red envelope.

Madam Xing was overjoyed at this sight. After instructing the wet nurse to take the fourth son away, she nudged Chen Siyuan with her elbow and asked, "What's wrong? Feeling unwell?"

It would be strange for anyone to think that their own son is calling his cousin.

Chen Siyuan was unwilling to say more, and hurriedly asked, "You came looking for me as soon as I got back, is there something important?"

Madam Xing immediately stopped teasing and said seriously, "When I returned to my parents' home last time, I mentioned it to the matchmaker Fang in the neighborhood. I didn't expect that she would come today and introduce me to a few girls. There is indeed one I like."

"Oh?"

Madam Xing recounted the story in detail: the woman's family owned a rice shop, making them quite wealthy. She was only 19 years old and possessed a notoriously fiery temper. It was because of her renowned fiery nature that her marriage had been delayed until now.

Madam Xing said, "It's better for him to be a bit more assertive. Dequan is a troublemaker by nature. If we find someone who is obedient, wouldn't he turn the world upside down? It's much easier for me to have someone keep him in check."

Chen Siyuan smiled and nodded, thinking to himself that his previous persuasion had not been in vain, and now Madam Xing had come to her senses.

Just as he was about to bring up Daiyu's matter, Madam Xing said, "There's only one thing: settling down and starting a family. That matchmaker said she'd give me some news in a few days. If this really works out, Dequan can get married in March. Once you have a family, you still need to support them."

Is this to get Chen Siyuan to find a job for Xing Dequan?

Chen Siyuan scratched his head and said, "You know Dequan's temperament. If I find him a job, I'm afraid I'll only be harming him."

Madam Xing was displeased and pouted, saying, "We can't just let him sit around and squander our savings."

Chen Siyuan said, "At worst, you can just make up for it later. Besides, the Xing family has two shops, and the daughter-in-law will have a dowry when she marries in. How can they just sit around and eat their savings?"

Unable to win an argument with Chen Siyuan, Madam Xing turned her head away and remained silent.

Chen Siyuan quickly moved him onto his shoulder to comfort him, saying, "You just need to help Dequan. I will take care of Fourth Brother in the future."

Madam Xing then turned her anger into joy and obediently leaned on Chen Siyuan's shoulder.

After a brief moment of tenderness, Chen Siyuan recounted the story of Daiyu and Baochai, which greatly surprised Madam Xing.

"The second wife wants to harm Yu'er? What kind of talk is that?" Chen Siyuan was also very troubled and said with a bitter face, "Who knows what's wrong with Madam? Anyway, if Daiyu can't stay in the Jia family any longer, I'm thinking of a way to let Daiyu leave the mansion this year."

Madam Xing was now able to distinguish right from wrong. Knowing that Daiyu was Chen Siyuan's helper in officialdom, she naturally obeyed whatever Chen Siyuan ordered.

After the two discussed it for a while, Madam Xing agreed to everything. Then Miao'er knocked on the door and entered, saying, "Madam, Master is back." She paused, then added, "He seems to have been drinking."

Madam Xing couldn't be bothered with Jia She at all. If it weren't for Yingchun's marriage, Madam Xing would have preferred Jia She to die immediately.

After bidding farewell to Madam Xing, Chen Siyuan hurried to the outer study at the front.

The servant announced his arrival, and Chen Siyuan entered leisurely, where he saw Jia She sitting upright behind his desk, seemingly intoxicated. Chen Siyuan stepped forward to greet him, and after a brief exchange of pleasantries, he asked, "Uncle, what are your thoughts on Lin Daiyu's matter?"

"Hmm?" Jia She thought to himself, what does Daiyu have to do with me? Preparing a dowry is the old lady's business; as for marriage, she's marrying Chen Siyuan.

Seeing that she didn't respond immediately, Chen Siyuan said, "Last time, Madam almost... We must be careful about this."

Jia She frowned and said, "I have spoken with the old lady, and she has already reprimanded the second branch of the family. I expect this will not happen again."

Jia She wanted to brush it off lightly, but Chen Siyuan was not about to let it go. He immediately cupped his hands and said, "Uncle, you are mistaken. Now that Madam is in charge of the household, she has the support of the Empress in the palace and the assistance of the Wang family outside. Even the old lady can't say anything too deep about it."

My uncle also knew that Lin, the salt commissioner, had entrusted Daiyu to the Grand Marshal. If anything were to happen to Daiyu, the Grand Marshal, for the sake of his official reputation, would likely pursue a bitter legal battle against the Jia family.

Jia She took a sip of strong tea, and his mind gradually became clearer. After careful consideration, he realized that what Chen Siyuan said made sense.

Seeing that she had taken his words to heart, Chen Siyuan quickly added, "Nowadays, Madam is acting more and more arbitrarily. She has agreed now, but there is no guarantee that she won't change her mind in the future. If she harbors malicious intentions again, things could get very bad... and the Jia family will have another formidable enemy."

“Indeed,” Jia She frowned and said, “It seems I still have a few more words to say to the old lady.”

"Uncle is right, but further advice would only be a temporary fix." He cupped his hands again and lowered his voice, saying, "I have a way to prevent this from happening again."

"Oh? Shu Liang, what's your plan? Please explain in detail."

Chen Siyuan smiled and said, "In a month or so, Daiyu will be fourteen. According to the laws of the Great Shun Dynasty, she is ready to get married."

Jia She was taken aback. He stroked his beard and pondered for a moment, then suddenly remembered Jia Yucun mentioning the family property list that day. Master Jia She wasn't stupid; he knew Jia Yucun had come to question him, not to truly demand the Lin family's property. If Daiyu were married off this year, perhaps this matter wouldn't be a problem?

After thinking it over, Jia She said with difficulty, "I have no objection, but it will be difficult to get past the old lady."

Chen Siyuan smiled and said, "I will take care of this matter. I only ask that my uncle speak well of me in the future."

Jia She had also misappropriated the Lin family's property, and was naturally eager to settle the matter as soon as possible, so he readily agreed. As for how Chen Siyuan would manipulate things, the master didn't care at all; he only thought about playing the peacemaker and saying a few good words for him in the future.

After having two cups of tea, Chen Siyuan rose to take his leave. He breathed a sigh of relief as he stepped outside; with the eldest son's family speaking on his behalf, the matter was mostly settled.

As he pondered his journey back to the thatched cottage, he rested briefly before Feng'er came to invite him. She said that Sister Feng had prepared a small banquet and invited Chen Siyuan to come and chat.

Chen Siyuan was thinking about having a word with Wang Xifeng, so he readily agreed and got up to follow Feng'er to Feng's courtyard.

Perhaps they had arrived early, for Jia Lian was summoned to the east wing, where Feng Jie accompanied him. A short while later, Ping'er, heavily pregnant, arrived, and the two maids tacitly dismissed the other maids from the room.

Wang Xifeng glanced at Chen Siyuan and snorted coldly, "You're heartless too. Now that Ping'er and I are pregnant, you don't care anymore."

Chen Siyuan had a terrible headache and complained, "Heaven and earth bear witness, I've been sending cordyceps every month as much as I can. I know you're not good at managing the business, so I'm the one looking after the workshop. I can't come here all the time, so what more do you want from me?"

Ping'er quickly tried to smooth things over, saying, "Grandma is just a little irritable because she's pregnant."

Sister Feng thought about it and realized it made sense. Seeing that Chen Siyuan was indeed angry, she was about to say a few soft words when Chen Siyuan said seriously, "Even if you hadn't come to me today, I would still have come to talk to you about something."

He then explained his plan. To everyone's surprise, Sister Feng gradually grew dissatisfied. She had always thought Chen Siyuan was a man of many ideas, and since Madam Wang had such malicious intentions, Chen Siyuan should fight against her.

It would be best to send Lady Wang to the Buddhist hall, so that Fengjie could take charge of the Jia family. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds? But Chen Siyuan had no intention of scheming at all. He was only thinking about marrying Daiyu and didn't care about anything else!
Sister Feng said, "You're also spineless. She's already in this state, and all you can think about is hiding!"

Chen Siyuan wasn't annoyed by this. Even if he wanted to scheme against Lady Wang, he first needed to get Daiyu out of the mansion. Now that Yuanchun and Wang Ziteng were still alive, even if Lady Wang caused a huge disaster, the Jia family wouldn't dare to do anything about it. As the saying goes, "If you don't kill a snake, it will follow you to its side." Without any scruples, Chen Siyuan could act more easily.

Chen Siyuan pondered for a moment and then smiled and said, "We'll talk about this later. Even a day as husband and wife is worth a hundred days of kindness. I only ask one thing of you: say a few good words for me to the old lady in the future. When Daiyu gets married, if you want to compete with the madam, I'll help you do so."

"Really?" Sister Feng was overjoyed.

Previously, when Fengjie was pregnant, she would often beg Chen Siyuan to help her out against Lady Wang, but Chen Siyuan would always casually brush it off and never give a shred of an agreement. Now, for Daiyu's sake, he actually agreed without hesitation.

Sister Feng felt a pang of jealousy, but she also knew that although Chen Siyuan was the kind of guy who would turn his back on someone after he had done his bidding, he would do his best to keep his promises.

Seeing Chen Siyuan nod solemnly, Feng Jie finally smiled, picked up the wine pot and poured a cup for Chen Siyuan herself, then held up her teacup and said, "In that case, it's a deal."

The two reached an agreement, and soon Jia Lian returned. They ate and drank, chatted for a while, and then, feeling slightly tipsy, went their separate ways. Jia Lian asked a few words of concern, and then went to find Zhang Jingge.

After seeing Jia Lian off, Ping'er turned back and asked, "Grandma, do you think Master Yuan has any way to persuade the old lady?"

Sister Feng sneered and said, "He's quite capable. Just you wait and see. In the future, I'm afraid the whole household will be speaking up for him."

Needless to say, Madam Xing had always relied heavily on Chen Siyuan, as had her sister-in-law Li Wan. It was likely that Li Wan was also involved with him. In short, apart from the Madam, everyone in the household was Chen Siyuan's man. As the old lady grew older, she became increasingly indecisive, and everyone advised her that Daiyu's marriage was very likely to happen soon.

(End of this chapter)