Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 450 Madam Xing's Clever Dispute Over New Year's Gifts Reveals Secrets, Baoyu Suffers the Consequences

Because of Grandmother Jia's dislike, Jia She had been relocated to the east wing earlier. That east wing was originally the side garden of the Rongguo Mansion. After Jia She moved in, it was fenced off on all sides, with only a large black-lacquered gate opened at the front. In a way, it was a separation of rooms but not a separation of the family property.

This practice of separating houses but not families was an old custom of the Ming Dynasty. There was a time when a large family in Jiangnan had nine generations living together under one roof. If the magistrate of a prefecture or county wanted to issue a decree, he had to inform the large family first, otherwise the decree would not be able to leave the government office.

Lady Wang was in charge of managing the household affairs and sending public funds to the palace. Lady Xing had long been dissatisfied with this, and now that she had the opportunity, she was not going to let it go.

Grandmother Jia originally disliked Madam Xing intensely, considering her someone who was not presentable. However, upon seeing the rotten ginseng, the old lady's anger flared up instantly.

No matter how much she disliked Jia She, he was still her own son. How could she bear to see an elderly woman outlive her young son?

Because of this, Grandmother Jia slammed her hand on the table and said angrily, "How dare you! Bring this person here and find out which good-for-nothing servant dares to fool the master!"

Madam Xing sneered, "What are you saying, old lady? If the master didn't give his approval, which servant would dare to be so bold?"

The old woman in charge left trembling with fear, and soon brought back a report from Zhou Rui's wife.

Li Wan glanced at her and said, "Grandma, since Madam fell ill, it's mostly Aunt Zhou who's been taking care of the household chores."

With a stern face, Grandmother Jia asked, "Zhou Rui's wife, let me ask you, what's the story with this ginseng?"

Zhou Rui's wife, with a face full of dejection, said, "Old Madam, this is not the storeroom's fault. The master needs a ginseng root every three days, and with the New Year approaching, the New Year's gifts from Liaodong haven't arrived yet, so the storeroom is empty. When the eldest madam sent someone to urge us to take it, I told her that the storeroom had no stock, but she wouldn't let it go and insisted on having the ginseng in the storeroom. I had no choice but to take the rotten ginseng, hoping to make the eldest madam give up."

Madam Xing was displeased and flung her handkerchief at him, saying, "The master's illness should be paid for with public funds. Where would I get the money to buy medicine?"

Zhou Rui's wife was both amused and exasperated, and said, "Why make things difficult for me, Madam?"

Madam Xing exclaimed, "How is this making things difficult for us? The second branch of the family is in charge of the household affairs, and they are still behind on last month's allowance. I couldn't stand it and had to pay it in advance. Now that we have no money, what can we do?"

This is sophistry, yet no one seems to have said anything bad about Madam Xing.

Madam Xing, not one to back down, continued, "Old Madam, why don't you look through the accounts? It's said that with you here, and the second branch of the family in charge, I don't ask for anything else, just that the expenses of the two branches are about the same. But if you really calculate it, the expenses of the east wing this year are probably more than 15%!"

"Yes, the eldest daughter needs to be taken care of in the palace. But we can't let our main branch get nothing and end up without even money to buy medicine for the master, can we?"

Upon hearing this, neither Li Wan nor Feng Jie knew how to respond. A rough calculation showed that the amount sent to the palace this year, extorted by Eunuch Xia, totaled at least eight thousand, if not ten thousand.

Jia Zheng, unaware of the details, said upon hearing this, "The Empress also gave a return gift. How much silver could this give and take cost?"

Upon hearing this, Madam Xing chuckled and pointed at Feng Jie, saying, "Second brother doesn't know the cost of firewood and rice because he's not in charge of the household. Feng Jie, tell me, how much is the difference between this inflow and outflow?"

How could Sister Feng possibly discuss this matter? She immediately deflected the question, saying, "This... I haven't managed the household affairs for a long time, how would I know about the current situation?"

Upon hearing the hidden meaning in Feng Jie's words, Jia Zheng quickly looked at his daughter-in-law Li Wan. Seeing her pursing her lips and nodding slightly, he knew that the family must have suffered a loss.

Yuan Chun did reciprocate with gifts, but the difference between giving and receiving was significant! The gifts were mostly items that were difficult to sell, so now it's unclear whether Yuan Chun is helping or hindering her.

Knowing that this matter was best not to be investigated further, Grandmother Jia quickly tapped her cane twice and said, "The palace needs to be taken care of. The Empress isn't doing this for herself. If she's promoted to Imperial Concubine one day, won't the whole family be honored? Madam, stop bringing up the Empress. Tell me what you really want?"

Madam Xing said aggrievedly, "My master was mistreated, how come it's my fault?" After a pause, seeing that Grandmother Jia was staring at her relentlessly, Madam Xing couldn't help but soften her tone and said, "Now that my master is ill, he can't stop taking his medicine. I don't ask for anything else, I only ask that when the New Year's gifts are delivered, 20% be allocated to the east wing first."

Grandmother Jia frowned deeply upon hearing this. According to the old lady's thinking, it would be best if the eldest and second branches of the family remained separate households. In this way, the eldest branch would have noble titles, and the second branch would have imperial concubines; the two could support each other and weather the storms together, and the Rongguo Mansion might enjoy decades more of wealth and prosperity.

It seems that the two families have long been estranged, and I fear that as soon as I die, they will divide the family property.

The advance distribution of New Year's gifts was merely a trial. If this succeeds, will the rent for the summer and autumn seasons follow the same procedure?

The more Grandmother Jia thought about it, the more troubled she became. Unfortunately, the old lady was too old to deal with the discord between the two branches of the family. Considering that her children and grandchildren had their own destinies, and given that the eldest branch had sent far too much silver to the palace this year, Grandmother Jia sighed and said, "Alright, the eldest master's illness can't be delayed. Once the New Year's gifts are delivered… allocate 15% to the east wing first."

Upon hearing this, Madam Xing pursed her lips. Although she was not very satisfied, she knew that it would not be easy to get Grandmother Jia to back down, so she immediately curtsied and thanked her.

Upon further reflection, Madam Xing became happy again. Previously, when Sister Feng was in charge of the household, the money was allocated to the respective masters, who then distributed monthly stipends to the servants. After Sister Feng ceased to manage the household, Madam Wang changed the rules, and the monthly stipends were now distributed directly to the servants, bypassing the masters.

The east wing was now a separate entity, and Madam Xing had lost the power to distribute monthly stipends, which inevitably made the servants there increasingly disrespectful. Now that she had regained her power, and even received several months' worth at once, Madam Xing could not only control those disobedient servants, but also take the opportunity to manipulate them.

How could she do it? She remembered Chen Siyuan's warning: she wouldn't lend the money out, but she'd find a silver shop to melt it down, add an extra ten percent of lead, and no one could say anything. Then she'd distribute her monthly allowance on time, and who knows, everyone in the east courtyard would be praising her!

Having been with Chen Siyuan for a long time, Madam Xing had learned her lesson and knew it was inappropriate to take advantage of him and then act innocent. She rubbed her eyes and said she had to go back to get ginseng for the master. After bidding farewell to everyone, she returned to the east wing.

Madam Xing had left, and Grandmother Jia had lost her patience with the commotion. She frowned and said, "Feng'er, Madam is getting old. As the eldest grandson's wife, you should take charge of the household. As for the two children, let Ping'er look after them for now. If she can't, then we'll hire two more wet nurses."

Feng Jie had been idle for over a year. She was by nature power-hungry, so when the old lady said this, she readily agreed, saying, "Since the old lady says so, then this granddaughter-in-law has no choice but to agree."

Grandmother Jia then relaxed her brows and smiled, saying, "That's how it should be. I'll have someone fetch the token and key from Madam's room later. Alright, I'm tired too, everyone can go home now."

As soon as she finished speaking, Li Wan and Feng Jie smiled and nodded slightly, then led their maids away. Jia Zheng stood up dejectedly, but was stopped by Grandmother Jia: "Master, please wait, I have something to say."

Upon seeing this, Sister Feng chased after Li Wan out of the main room.

Once only the mother and son remained inside, Jia Zheng couldn't help but ask, "Is the household truly running a deficit? Just now, I overheard Feng'er and Zhu'er's wife saying that they seem to be sending even more silver to the palace?"

Grandmother Jia sighed, and remembering Jia Zheng's carefree and irresponsible manner, she swallowed back the words that were on the tip of her tongue. Instead, she said, "You don't need to concern yourself with such trivial matters, sir. I've kept you here today to discuss Baoyu's marriage with you."

Jia Zheng frowned and said, "Baoyu will only be sixteen next year. He's still so impetuous and doesn't seem mature enough yet. Isn't that a bit too early?"

Grandmother Jia was speechless for a while. She had deliberately raised Baoyu to be this kind of person, and she was afraid that he would be difficult to change in his lifetime. So she said, "Madam is getting old and busy with household affairs, so she has no time to discipline Baoyu. I think it would be better for him to get married as soon as possible and find a suitable person to take care of him."

Jia Zheng nodded and said, "Mother is right."

Grandmother Jia then said, "Master also knows about the Xia family's daughter..."

Earlier, Lady Wang had been planning to have Jia Zheng request an imperial decree to grant her a concubine, but now that Jia Zheng had been stripped of his official position and was left idle, he naturally had no face to request such a decree.

Upon hearing this, Jia Zheng frowned and said, "The Xia family is a merchant family, which is quite different from the Rongguo Mansion. Moreover, I have heard that the women of the Xia family are arrogant and domineering... Mother, is this marriage not quite appropriate?"

There were some things that Grandmother Jia couldn't say outright, so she could only say indirectly, "Although their social standing is somewhat different, I think the two young ladies are quite compatible... Besides, the eldest master is seriously ill, and we don't know how long he can stay ill. If we don't finalize the marriage before then, it might be delayed for a year or two. By then, the Xia family's daughter will be all grown up, and I'm afraid it will be difficult to explain."

What does "difficult to explain" mean?
Grandmother Jia said, "That's enough. Master, you can argue with Madam. I was just mentioning it casually."

Jia Zheng hesitated for a moment, then, seeing that Grandmother Jia looked exhausted, he rose and bowed to take his leave.

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

After saying goodbye to Li Wan in front of the large, painted screen wall, Feng Jie watched Li Wan pass through the side gate and enter the garden before returning to her room with a smile.

Ping'er was looking after the two children with the wet nurse when she saw Feng Jie'er's smug smile. Since the two had argued before, Ping'er smiled and said, "Congratulations, Madam, on taking over the household again."

Sister Feng found a charcoal brazier to warm herself by, and said, "You're just a steward. It's not too late to congratulate me when I take over the household."

After a while, Sister Feng warmed her hands by the heat of the kang (heated brick bed) before going to the front of the kang to play with the two children.

Ping'er then said, "This time, when Grandma was in charge of the household, the old lady didn't mention anything about money or grain?"

Sister Feng glanced sideways and said coldly, "These past two years, we've been living beyond our means. It's fortunate that the old lady hasn't mentioned it. If she had, I wouldn't bother with this household at all. Sending money to the palace is the second branch's responsibility. Half of it should come from the public funds, and the other half from the second branch. But Madam is single-mindedly trying to squeeze money out of the public funds. At this rate, no amount of money will be enough to cover the shortfall."

Ping'er nodded and said, "Since the old lady didn't mention money and grain, I'm afraid that in the future, Grandma will be controlled by Madam again."

Sister Feng said, "I couldn't say certain things before because of our past relationship as aunt and niece. But now that we've completely broken off relations, if she doesn't pay the money, I'll have my servants go and make a scene with her!"

Suddenly, Sister Feng's nose twitched, and she hurriedly shouted, "Second Sister has diarrhea!"

There was no need for the master and servant to serve her; the wet nurse took the second daughter to the east wing, washed her, changed her diapers, and then brought her back.

At this moment, Ping'er changed the subject and said, "Just now, Master Bao came by and found a bird-shaped whistle from somewhere. He teased my eldest brother and second sister for a while before going to the garden."

Fengjie immediately remembered that Grandmother Jia had kept Jia Zheng to talk earlier, so she smiled and said, "Brother Bao probably won't be able to enjoy his freedom for much longer—" Seeing Ping'er's surprise, Fengjie lowered her voice and said, "Grandmother Jia kept Master Jia to talk earlier, I'm afraid she wanted to discuss Brother Bao's marriage."

Ping'er said, "Master Bao's temperament is not good. It would be good if he could settle down after getting married." Feng Jie did not agree or disagree, and started teasing the two children again.

Now, Baoyu had just displeased Xiangyun, and was pushed out by her. Cuilu hesitated several times before speaking. After seeing Baoyu off to the entrance of Hengwu Garden, she said, "Second Master Bao, you are not a child anymore. Our young lady is engaged... Second Master Bao, you should be more mindful of your behavior in the future."

Baoyu was startled, feeling resentful. He sighed and said nothing, then turned and went up the main mountain in a daze.

Before long, they arrived at Tubi Mountain Villa, intending to climb to a high place to look out and relieve their depressed mood. However, after only a short while, they suddenly heard the sound of singing coming from behind them.

Baoyu was puzzled and couldn't help but turn his head to look. He saw a woman dancing gracefully to music in the Pear Fragrance Courtyard. The woman was about twenty years old, with a beautiful figure and enchanting dance. Baoyu stared at her, unable to take his eyes off her, and for a moment he forgot who lived in the Pear Fragrance Courtyard.

He then said to Baochan, who was accompanying him, "The family troupe has long been disbanded. Could that dancing woman be one of the instructors?"

Baochan rolled her eyes inwardly and said, "Second Master, you are too forgetful. That is Pear Fragrance Courtyard. Second Master Lian had previously settled Concubine Yun here."

Aunt Yun? Baoyu recalled that she was Yun'er from Jinxiang Courtyard. He was by nature a womanizer, and upon hearing this, he immediately shook his head and sighed, "What a pity, what a pity."

Unfortunately, Yun'er became Lian Erge's concubine, so he couldn't approach her anymore.

Baochan suppressed her irritation and said with a smile, "Second Master must be feeling down. Why don't you take some time to visit the Xia family? My young lady and maid are waiting for you."

Baoyu immediately looked embarrassed and hurriedly said, "Let me tell you, we'll go during the New Year anyway."

Having said this, Baoyu no longer had the mind to secretly watch the clouds dance. He immediately went down the main mountain and returned to Qixianzhai, which is another story.

As soon as the two left, a maidservant came out from the vicinity of the Imperial Residence Villa at the foot of the Jade Mountain Villa. Watching the master and servant leave, the maidservant was quite surprised. After pursing her lips and thinking for a moment, she headed towards the Grand View Garden.

After a while, they returned to Yihong Courtyard and entered the main room, where they saw Fu Qiufang teaching Jia Zhang to recite the Three Character Classic. The little maid waited for a while, and after Jia Zhang was taken away by the wet nurse, she leaned forward and whispered, "Auntie, I just heard some news, but I don't know if it's true or not."

He then recounted everything he had heard and heard.

Fu Qiufang pursed her lips and pondered for a moment. She then found a silver box, took out more than a dozen taels of loose silver from it, and stuffed it into the little maid's hand. Her starry eyes lit up as she said, "Go and listen carefully. Make sure you get definite news!"

The maidservant agreed and turned to inquire.

By evening, Fu Qiufang had indeed received confirmation.

After thinking it over, he ordered someone to get a table of food from the small kitchen, along with a pot of fine chrysanthemum liquor.

When Jia Zheng arrived, the two ate and drank together. Fu Qiufang teased him slightly, and Jia Zheng indeed acted like a young man again.

After the wind and rain subsided, Fu Qiufang said to Jia Zheng, "Shouldn't Baoyu be getting married next year?"

Jia Zheng said vaguely, "Let's discuss this matter later, after I've discussed it with my wife."

Fu Qiufang laughed and said, "If you ask me, there's no need to worry about it. After all, the Xia family's daughter has already given birth to a daughter. It wouldn't be right for our family not to marry her, would it?"

Jia Zheng remained silent for a long while, then suddenly sat up straight and asked sternly, "Who told you that?"

Fu Qiufang feigned surprise and said, "Madam, did you not tell Master? That's strange. Now the whole household knows that Baoyu has given birth to a daughter. I heard about it this morning and assumed that Master already knew, which is why I didn't mention it to him."

Jia Zheng was an upright and pedantic man throughout his life; how could he tolerate Bao Yu's dissolute behavior?
Enraged, his blood boiled! He threw back the curtain, found a bolt, and strode out: "That wretched creature! I'd better beat him to death today, lest I disgrace the Jia family!"

Fu Qiufang was startled and hurriedly chased after him, saying, "Master, at least wear a coat!"

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

In a side room in Shajing Hutong, sweat soaked through the quilt, and his hair was disheveled.

The wind and rain had subsided, and the people inside whispered a few words. Soon the curtains parted, and Siqi came out holding her clothes, pouting.

After getting dressed, he mumbled a few curses and then swayed out of the room.

Xi Ren's starry eyes were languidly open, and at this moment she was only wearing a close-fitting bodice, leaning against Chen Siyuan's chest.

Chen Siyuan, resting his head on his arm and yawning incessantly, looked indifferent. He glanced sideways at the person in his arms and couldn't help but tease, "Have you regretted it? I heard that Brother Bao went to pay his respects to you afterwards. Staying here, you have no status; if you had stayed in the Rongguo Mansion, you might have gotten the title of concubine."

Xi Ren was cunning and scheming. Ever since she came to the You sisters' place, whenever Chen Siyuan came, she would fawn over him and flatter him in every way. She could come up with compliments without hesitation.

He said, "What you're saying, sir, is misleading. Compared to you, Second Master Bao is nothing more than a mischievous child."

Not to mention the vast difference in their physical relationship, Xiren simply couldn't understand Baoyu's thoughts.

She hid here, but Siqi was able to frequently visit the Rongguo Mansion. Baoyu, on the other hand, couldn't hide his thoughts, and the occasional glimpse he uttered was enough to make Xiren tremble with fear.

Baoyu actually thought of giving her to that damned Qi Guan! What deep-seated hatred or resentment could this be?
Jiang Yuhan was just an actress. In the Ming Dynasty, she would have been forced to wear a green turban. If I were to marry Jiang Yuhan, what would I look like?

Originally, Xi Ren was a little uneasy about following Chen Siyuan in this ambiguous way, but now she was only relieved—thankfully she ran fast, otherwise she might not even be as good as that girl who half-closed the door.

Chen Siyuan laughed heartily, completely disbelieving Xiren's flattery.

Xiren drew a circle on his chest with her hand while saying, "Master, Third Concubine's glass workshop is too busy. How about you let me go over and help out?"

Chen Siyuan laughed and said, "You dare to show your face in public?"

Xiren said, "I was originally a maid in the inner quarters. How many people outside have ever seen me? I'll wear a veil later, and I guarantee no one will recognize me."

Chen Siyuan knew that Xiren was restless, but You Sanjie was shrewd and he figured that keeping Xiren in check would be no problem. So he said, "Just talk to Sanjie about it. If she agrees, I have nothing to say."

Xi Ren was overjoyed and quickly offered a sweet kiss.

Chen Siyuan stretched and stood up, saying, "It's getting late. I'll go see Third Sister and then head back."

Xiren agreed and hurriedly got up to help Chen Siyuan get dressed. Chen Siyuan turned around and teased him a bit more before laughing and leaving the side room to go into the main room to find You Sanjie.

It just so happens that the third sister had her period that day, and was now listlessly nestled in bed.

Seeing Chen Siyuan arrive, she quickly moved to let him sit on the edge of the bed. After chatting for a while, Sister You said, "Huichuntang has sent over the account books. Although they lost many old customers after changing the name, they should be able to earn about three thousand taels of silver in profit sharing over the next two months. Brother, when you go back later, please take the profit sharing with you."

Chen Siyuan said, "That's not appropriate. My sister is managing the pharmacy now. How can we let her work for nothing? From now on, my sister will own 30% of the pharmacy, and I will take 2,000 taels."

Sister You said nonchalantly, "I have a glass workshop. My brother has a large family to support, and he can't do without money."

The more You Sanjie acted this way, the more Chen Siyuan felt indebted. He then embraced You Sanjie and said, "After the New Year, this house will be transferred to your name. I will also ask the Shuntian Prefecture to open a separate household for you, sister."

Sister You readily agreed, then playfully complained of a stomach ache. Chen Siyuan rubbed his hands together and gently massaged her abdomen for a long time before bidding her farewell at dusk and hurriedly returning home.

Upon entering the main room of the central courtyard, they found Baochai and Daiyu there as well. The three women were all solemnly talking amongst themselves, and they wondered what had happened.

Hongyu immediately helped Chen Siyuan wash his hands and change his clothes. When Chen Siyuan returned to the main hall, he glanced at the three women and asked with a smile, "Has something happened?"

The three women exchanged glances. Yingchun sighed, not wanting to speak. Daiyu pursed her lips, unwilling to speak. Baochai looked left and right, and had no choice but to say, "This afternoon, Doctor Ding came for his routine consultation."

Chen Siyuan immediately straightened his face and said, "But is Wu'er not well?"

Yingchun hurriedly said, "Wu'er has just suffered from a recurring illness. Doctor Ding said she will recover after a period of rest, so husband need not worry."

"That is--"

Baochai then said, "It was Baoyu. I don't know how he angered his uncle. I heard that last night, his uncle grabbed the door bolt and barged into Qixianzhai. Several maids couldn't stop him. When Baoyu ran away, he was hit on the back of the head."

"Huh?" Chen Siyuan stared in disbelief, then asked, "What happened next?"

Baochai said, "The imperial physicians of the Jia family were helpless and had to ask Doctor Ding to treat her. Now... now she is awake, but she is dull and stupid, and no matter how many times we call her, she will not respond."

(End of this chapter)