Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 70 Cover up
Mrs. Xing, who seemed to have lost her soul, suddenly woke up. She looked up and saw Chen Siyuan rustling his clothes. She said with a smile, "Madam, hurry up, otherwise no one will notice."

Mrs. Xing only hummed twice in response. Although it was only a cup of tea, it was like a raging storm, the feeling was so ecstatic, how could it be compared to usual?
There is a poem to prove it: Spring is always gentle and melting, I don’t know what my body is. Since I was shocked by the gods descending from the sky, I laughed at the unreality of the balcony dream.

At eighteen, she entered the Rongguo Mansion as Jia She's second wife. At that time, Jia She was in his early forties and in poor health. For the first few months, she just managed to get by. After two years, Jia She found a maid he liked and rarely visited Lady Xing's room.

As time went on, even though I had delicious food and drinks every day and no shortage of money, I couldn't help but feel lonely. I occasionally indulged myself, but after that, I felt bored.

How could they compare to Fang Cai? One is like a long drought finally ending in a downpour, the other is like a newborn calf fearless of a tiger. There is a fusion of water and fire within, and it is difficult to explain it to outsiders.

Because that feeling was so hard to let go, she couldn't help but look at Chen Siyuan with a look that was a bit more ambiguous. Suddenly, she thought, it might be a good idea to hide it.
Occasionally, I can enjoy something new and avoid the pain of staying alone in an empty room. In the future, I can find a way to fool Jia She and have a child by my side. Wouldn’t that mean I’ll have someone to rely on in the future?

Chen Siyuan II, a man of his generation, took only one glance and wondered: How come this Lady Xing has suddenly become so affectionate? No wonder the female writer said that a woman's heart is connected to her.

Chen Siyuan tied up his ribbon and handkerchief, stepped forward and said tenderly, "How about I help Auntie?"

Mrs. Xing suddenly remembered that she had been raped... although it was only at the beginning. She slapped Chen Siyuan's hand away and frowned, saying, "No need for you!"

After saying this, he hurriedly stood up, straightened his half-undone silk shirt, glanced at Chen Siyuan angrily, and said, "When will the money be returned?"

Without money, there is no way to get past Jia She no matter what.

Chen Siyuan knew that Madam Xing was indecisive, so he smiled and said, "Aunt, why are you so anxious? Since I said I can get it back, then I will definitely get it back."

Mrs. Xing snorted coldly and said nothing. However, the lingering charm on her face had not faded, and her pretty face was white with a rosy glow, looking as if she was only in her twenties.

This was the first time that Chen Siyuan had eaten meat in his life. He couldn't help but become obsessed with it and forced himself not to come up and pester her.

Mrs. Xing suddenly stopped listening and looked up at Chen Siyuan. Her heart melted at the sight. She bit her lip and said, half proudly, half angrily, "Why are you still staring? What...what's there to look at..."

Chen Siyuan just said "beautiful".

These words were filled with greed, and when Mrs. Xing heard them, the remaining half of her heart melted. She felt even more proud, thinking that she had not really grown old. Look at the look in this thief's eyes. Just now he wanted to get away, but now he wanted to eat her alive!
Remembering that there were still a group of maids and old women outside, Madam Xing coughed lightly and said, "Hurry, sit down. I'm going to call someone in."

"No hurry," Chen Siyuan sat down beside her, holding her hand and playing with it, saying, "We have to get the words right first. Later, Auntie will tell her that it was me who asked for permission earlier, but because the weather is getting colder and it's inconvenient to go back and forth to get hot water, I asked Auntie to help me build a small stove."

"Yeah." Mrs. Xing responded casually.

"Yes, that matter... is Xing Dequan the only one who knows about it?"

Madam Xing collected her thoughts and said, "Your third... your third sister also knew about it. She warned Dequan not to spread the news."

Chen Siyuan breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's easy. I'll go to the Xing family later and give them the money with interest. Then I'll find an excuse and the matter will be covered up." He paused and continued, "Yes, how many moles does your cousin have on her face?"

Madam Xing leaned halfway against Chen Siyuan and whispered, "Where's the scar on his face? There's only one under his left ear."

"So you were just trying to bluff me."

Mrs. Xing snorted twice, then suddenly looked startled. She said, "Yes, Lian'er will be back at the end of the year. What should we do then? Could your marriage certificate be fake too?"

Chen Siyuan said, "The marriage certificate couldn't be more authentic... but only a few words were slightly changed."

"You—" Madam Xing was furious, but she thought that at least she could hide it for two months. Thinking of the ecstasy she had just felt, she bit her lower lip and said, "Never mind, if we can delay it for a while, the better. If we can't hide it anymore, it's best for you to leave as soon as possible."

"Yeah, I saved it."

Their eyes met, and they inevitably engaged in another verbal argument, which lasted for a long while before they separated. Having now concluded their discussion, Chen Siyuan found a seat at the bottom.

Mrs. Xing calmed down after a long while, then called out, "Madame Wang, Miao'er, and Tiao'er, come in together."

There was a response from outside, and Wang Shanbao, Miao'er and Tiao'er came in to listen to instructions.

Madam Xing forced herself not to look at Chen Siyuan and instructed, "Brother, your place is remote, and the original stove can't be used. It's really inconvenient to go back and forth every day to get hot water. Madam will take a few maids over later to build a new stove for you."

Wang Shanbao agreed, looked up and smiled, "Madam really loves my brother."

Mrs. Xing almost rolled her eyes, thinking to herself that it was a little...at first, but it got better later...

Madam Xing said with a stern face, "Madam Wang, please go quickly and get this done today."

Wang Shanbao agreed and went out to lead his men to search the small courtyard at the back.

At this time, Chen Siyuan stood up and bowed, saying, "Thank you for your consideration, aunt. I will take my leave now..."

"Wait!" Hearing that he was about to leave, Mrs. Xing inexplicably stopped him and immediately ordered, "My brother hasn't had his lunch yet. Miao'er, go to the back and pick out a few things you like and order them."

Miao'er agreed and hurried down to deal with it.

Facing Chen Siyuan's puzzled gaze, Mrs. Xing couldn't help but glance at him with pride. She thought to herself, it's hard to say who listens to whom in secret, but doesn't everyone have to listen to themselves in public?

Chen Siyuan was at a loss for words, not knowing what Mrs. Xing was thinking. He could only bow and say, "Thank you very much, Auntie."

Miao'er ordered some delicious food from the East Courtyard kitchen and returned with the food box. Mrs. Xing indeed accompanied Chen Siyuan for lunch before sending him away.

Miao'er and Tiao'er came over to clean up. Miao'er suddenly smelled a strange smell on the couch, which was mixed with the sandalwood on the incense burner. For a moment, she couldn't tell what the smell was.

At this time, Madam Xing went to rest in the side room. Tiao'er suddenly whispered, "I don't know why, but Madam looks so well."

Miao'er thought about it briefly, and it was indeed true! The lady's face was rosy, as if she had just come out of the bath. But she did not think much about it, just smiled and said: "People are in high spirits when they are happy. Who knows, the lady may have made some money this time."

Tiao'er smiled and said, "That's right! Master Yuan is truly capable." After a pause, he added, "He's also very pretty, and he's going to school someday. It would be wonderful if I could go with him."

Miao'er's heart skipped a beat. She was sixteen, and in a few years, she'd have to marry a boy. Second Master Lian couldn't even dream of becoming the man of the mansion; he couldn't even get past the Second Mistress. Second Master Bao was even more ambitious. With the dozen or so maids in Qixianzhai, how could they possibly get a turn? With Lan'er still young and Cong'er not much older, wasn't the new Master Yuan the most suitable?
Miao'er smiled and said, "Since you are interested, why don't you go and ask the madam?"

Tiao'er curled his lips and said, "How can the madam be easy to talk to?"

Miao'er, however, had her own thoughts, thinking to herself that it was difficult for the Madam to say anything, but she couldn't pretend to love Master Yuan. If Master Yuan agreed, then maybe this matter would be done!

I heard that the maids in the second wife's room always invite Master Bao to eat rouge. If they dare to do so, why not me? Miao'er's heart beat fast and her face flushed, which made Tiao'er marvel at it.

In the eastern room, Madam Xing slumped on the bed. Though she spat at herself several times, she couldn't help but reflect on what had just happened. Her face flushed again as she thought of the embarrassing incident. She stood up and went to the dressing mirror. She saw the face reflected in the mirror was fair and rosy, like a lotus flower emerging from water. Her figure was slightly plump, not at all like Madam Wang's, who looked aged.

By comparison, You Shi from the East Palace lacked charm, Zhu Ge's daughter-in-law from the Second House lacked agility, and Feng Jie, the stepdaughter-in-law, was even less charming. Thinking of the happy part, Mrs. Xing couldn't help but secretly spit, muttering, "That little thief really got away with it!"

Suddenly, he was filled with anxiety. Lian'er would have to take Daiyu back sooner or later, and then even if the little thief didn't want to leave, he would have to leave. He sighed, thinking that there were probably less than two months left, so he had to hurry. He had to keep the child—first for self-protection, and secondly... as a reminder.

While she was thinking, she heard a noise outside, and Madam Xing quickly got on the bed. Miao'er came in and said, "Would you like some tea, Madam?"

Madam Xing waved her hand and said, "I'm tired now. Please leave."

Miao'er left immediately. The room suddenly became quiet, and Mrs. Xing couldn't help but feel amorous thoughts again. Her ten slender jade fingers couldn't help but grip the quilt even tighter.

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

But Chen Siyuan finally breathed a sigh of relief after he walked out of the black oil gate.

He thought to himself that it was fortunate that Mrs. Xing was easy to bluff and was afraid of being implicated and causing displeasure to the eldest master Jia She. Otherwise, how could he be alive this time?
It was October the following year, and it was less than two months until Jia Lian returned. He would make some money and take Xiangling away!

Qianxue will be married soon, and I have been doing good to her for a long time. Who knows, this time her escape will be caused by those three good brothers. With these three people protecting her, she can always be more confident.

The small courtyard where I live is adjacent to the back street, and Xiangling is not a servant in the Rongguo Mansion, so it is easy for her to go out. Hmm... thinking like this, I will look back and assess the situation. If something seems wrong, I will just take Xiangling and run away!

As for now, we must first cover up the Xing family.

After making up his mind, Chen Siyuan returned to the courtyard and saw Wang Shanbao, the housekeeper, instructing the maid to dismantle the old stove and build a new one.

Wang Shanbao's wife came to please again, and Chen Siyuan immediately ordered Hongyu to give Wang Shanbao's wife one or two taels of silver and asked her to treat a group of servants to a drink.

The maids all thanked him in unison, and Wang Shanbao, the housekeeper, was also beaming. "How much does a meal cost? This little tael of silver would be worth at least five hundred coins!"

Chen Siyuan instructed Hongyu and Xiangling again, changed his clothes, went to the front to get the horse, and then went straight to Xing's house.

Soon they arrived at Jinjing Hutong. Chen Siyuan jumped off his horse and went forward to knock on the door.

The old servant opened the door and saw that it was Chen Siyuan who came in, so he hurriedly asked someone to pass the message inside.

Chen Siyuan went inside and when he turned around the hanging flower gate, he saw Xing Dequan coming towards him with his eyes wide open and a look of shock on his face.

"uncle."

"Who is your uncle? How dare you, a thief—"

Before he could finish, Chen Siyuan stepped forward with a smile and handed over a stack of banknotes: "Uncle, you misunderstood. Look, your nephew has been waiting for you, but you didn't come. Today, I have no choice but to come and deliver the money myself."

The stack of banknotes stunned Xing Dequan.

"Uh...you..."

Chen Siyuan waved away the servants in front of the hanging flower gate and pulled Xing Dequan inside, whispering, "I don't know where my uncle got the rumor, but it caused my nephew to be frightened by my aunt. It took a lot of effort to explain it clearly."

"Huh?" Xing Dequan scratched his head. He hurriedly asked, "Rumors? No way. Shen Bozi had just returned from Yangzhou. How could it be false?"

Chen Siyuan curled his lips and said, "I don't know where I heard that. This matter has nothing to do with my nephew at all." He paused and said, "Uncle, think about it. If it was really me who wiped out our family, I'm afraid the arrest warrants would have been everywhere. As soon as the pass was shown, we might be arrested on the spot. How could we have come to the capital without any reason?"

That person disappeared two years ago, but since Sun Guangcheng got the token, he's probably dead. As for the family annihilation incident, it's been a huge uproar, with all sorts of rumors. But I don't think it has anything to do with the original body?
Moreover, Chen Siyuan's household registration card was genuine, just the same name and surname, so the soldiers along the way would not intercept him. Moreover, he had previously announced the separation of the family, and how could he check it clearly at such a distance?
"Yes, that doesn't make sense." Xing Dequan was simple-minded. Seeing that he had indeed won 1,100 taels, he immediately believed it a little more. He asked, "Then what happened?"

Chen Siyuan feigned helplessness and said, "Who knows who is spreading rumors? I'm too lazy to tell you three times. Uncle, please call Auntie over to listen so I don't have to tell you again."

"Okay, okay, Brother Yuan, please go to the hall and sit for a while. I'll go and invite my third sister over."

Xing Dequan left Chen Siyuan and walked to the back, shaking off the banknotes as he walked, and suddenly his back teeth were exposed with joy. Yaoyao shouted, "Third sister, third sister, come quickly, we are afraid we heard it wrong!"

Chen Siyuan went into the main room and sat down. After a while, he heard the jingling of bells and bracelets, and saw Xing Dequan and Xing Sanjie leading the maids and old women in.

Chen Siyuan stood up to greet him. Third Sister Xing nodded slightly with suspicion, then dismissed the servants and found a seat to sit down.

Then he looked at Chen Siyuan and said, "Brother Yuan, what's going on?"

Chen Siyuan extended his hand and said with a wry smile, "What else can I do? My nephew separated from the family two years ago and has always lived outside the city. In March, the old house in the city suffered a disaster. My nephew went home to inquire about it, but the elders of the clan used the excuse that my nephew had separated from the family long ago and coaxed him out.

After that, the nephew went to the government office several times, but the police always said that he had been attacked by thieves."

"So that's how it is—"

This made sense. Not all people in the same clan were good people. If the second wife and her children died out, it would be a good opportunity to pass the family property into the public purse. How could they allow Chen Siyuan, who had already separated from the family, to get involved?
Third Sister Xing was still skeptical, but Xing Dequan slapped his thigh and said, "So that's how it is! Damn Shen Bozi, he just listened to something and said something nonsense. I'll definitely teach him a lesson later!"

Chen Siyuan continued, "Third Aunt, my mother has a small mole under her left ear. I'm sure Third Aunt will remember it."

Third Sister Xing had only met her cousin a few times, so how could she remember all this? But since Brother Yuan hadn't been taken away by her eldest sister, she figured it must be true.

Yin Shi let out a long sigh, glared at Xing Dequan, and scolded him, "You didn't even hear the whole message. You almost misunderstood Brother Yuan!"

Xing Dequan said aggrievedly, "How could I know what Shen Bozi said was false?"

"How dare you say that!"

Xing Dequan immediately hung his head and remained silent. Thinking of the 1,100 taels he had obtained, he turned around and started to rejoice secretly.

Chen Siyuan continued, "My aunt just found out and immediately sent my nephew to explain the matter to my third aunt and uncle. Otherwise, if the news gets out, we'll be laughed at one day." He paused, "Besides, if I'm really a Westerner, how can I get away with it? Even if I delay for a while, my uncle has already sent a letter to Suzhou. When Second Brother Lian returns from Suzhou tomorrow, won't everything be exposed?"

After hearing this, Third Sister Xing's suspicions vanished, and she became much more enthusiastic than before. Chen Siyuan lingered briefly before leaving. Xing Dequan then pestered him to invite him out for a stroll, but Chen Siyuan gave a vague reply and left the Xing residence.

I had just untied the reins when I suddenly heard a "eh" sound. I looked up and saw a pretty face appearing from the top of the wall.

"Brother Chen?" Third Sister You smiled brightly, waving the kite in her hand and saying, "Luckily, this kite landed on the wall, otherwise I wouldn't have known Brother Chen was here."

(End of this chapter)