Dream of the Red Chamber: Eating, Sleeping, and Angering Baoyu

Every word Jia Heng said was like a knife, stabbing into his heart.

He was burning with rage, a fire that consumed him completely.

He could not bear this humiliation.

"I did nothing wrong!"

Jia Baoyu shouted loudly, glaring at Jia Zheng.

These words enraged Jia Zheng, who suddenly broke free from Jia Heng, who was thrown aside.

"Fine! You're not wrong! Today I'll show you what wrong really is!"

Jia Zheng was so angry that he laughed instead of laughing; he was trembling with rage.

He raised his hand and struck Jia Baoyu on the back; his palm was large.

"Snapped!"

A crisp sound echoed through the room.

Jia Baoyu staggered forward after being hit, and he gasped in pain.

He felt a burning sensation on his back, as if he had been branded with a hot iron.

Jia Zheng slapped him repeatedly, striking him quickly and hard.

He showed no mercy whatsoever.

"That'll teach you to talk back! That'll teach you to be unfilial! That'll teach you to be ungrateful!"

Jia Zheng cursed under his breath, but his men kept moving.

Jia Baoyu was beaten until he curled up.

He was protecting his head.

He felt like a punching bag, being beaten by everyone.

Xi Ren and the others were so frightened that they knelt on the ground.

They cried and begged for mercy, their voices trembling, tears streaming down their faces.

"Master, please forgive Master Bao! Master Bao knows he was wrong!"

They shouted loudly.

Jia Heng stood beside him, his face filled with worry.

He didn't go forward again; he just stood there, quietly watching everything.

[Ding! Negative emotion value from Jia Baoyu +150!]

[Ding! Negative emotion value from Jia Baoyu +150!]

……

He watched Jia Baoyu being beaten, mentally counting the negative values; these values ​​were increasing incredibly fast, faster than he had imagined.

[Ding! Negative emotion value from Jia Baoyu +80!]

[Ding! Negative emotion value from Jia Baoyu +80!]

……

This kid is really tough.

Jia Heng thought to himself, "But this is good too. The worse the beating, the higher the negative value."

He was making plans in his mind; he was even somewhat looking forward to it.

"stop!"

A deep, dignified voice suddenly rang out.

The voice carried an undeniable authority, like a thunderclap.

Jia Zheng's hand froze in mid-air.

His movements were stiff; he turned his head to look at the source of the sound.

Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang stood at the door.

Grandmother Jia was leaning on a cane.

Her face turned ashen.

She radiated anger, an anger that was almost tangible.

Lady Wang looked anxious. She rushed in and pounced on Jia Baoyu.

"Baoyu! My son!"

Lady Wang ran to Jia Baoyu's side.

She held him in her arms, her voice trembling with tears, her body shaking.

Jia Baoyu was trembling all over from the beating. When he saw Lady Wang, he burst into tears and buried his head in her arms.

He felt he was finally saved.

"Ancestor! Mother!"

Jia Baoyu's voice was trembling with tears.

He pointed at Jia Zheng, his fingers trembling.

"My father hit me! He's going to beat me to death!"

Jia Baoyu cried out, his voice filled with grievance and fear.

Grandmother Jia walked up to Jia Zheng.

She struck the ground heavily with her cane, making a dull thud, one strike after another.

"You wretched child! What are you doing! You've laid a hand on my precious grandson first thing in the morning!"

Grandmother Jia's voice was filled with anger; it was loud and clear, like a great bell.

She pulled Jia Baoyu away from Lady Wang's arms.

She carefully examined Jia Baoyu's injuries. She gently stroked them with tenderness.

"My darling! Does it hurt?"

Grandmother Jia stroked Jia Baoyu's back tenderly, her voice filled with affection and worry.

Jia Baoyu leaned against Grandmother Jia's chest and cried even harder. He felt that he had found a support and a safe haven.

"Grandma! It hurts!"

He cried out loud, venting all his grievances; he cried his heart out.

Madam Wang also felt sorry for him.

She looked at Jia Zheng, her eyes filled with reproach and dissatisfaction.

"Master, what terrible mistake has Baoyu made? How could you be so cruel!"

Madam Wang's voice was filled with resentment; her tone was harsh, almost questioning.

Jia Zheng was besieged by Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang, and he felt a splitting headache.

He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.

"Mother, Baoyu... he spoke rudely, he..."

Jia Zheng tried to explain, attempting to defend himself, his voice somewhat hoarse.

Grandmother Jia didn't give him a chance; she interrupted Jia Zheng, she simply didn't want to listen.

"Insolent words? No matter how insolent you are, you can't lay a hand on him! He's my lifeline!"

Grandmother Jia glared angrily at Jia Zheng.

Jia Heng stood to the side, head down, looking completely innocent, but inside he was overjoyed and almost burst out laughing.

Jia Zheng is in for a tough time now; this play is getting more and more exciting, and he is secretly pleased.

Grandmother Jia protected Jia Baoyu, her voice questioning, and she looked directly at Jia Zheng.

"Zheng'er! Tell me, why did you attack Baoyu first thing in the morning?"

Jia Zheng's chest heaved violently.

He felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him from head to toe.

He wanted to lash out, but the person opposite him was his mother.

He could only suppress his anger.

"Mother, please let me explain."

"Today is Baoyu's first day of school, and he is openly late."

"When I asked him why, he actually dared to talk back, saying that studying was useless!"

"If such outrageous remarks are not disciplined, won't they turn the world upside down in the future!"

Jia Zheng quickly recounted the whole story.

He felt he was in the right, that he was doing it for the good of the Jia family and for the good of Baoyu.

After listening, Grandmother Jia...

She held Baoyu tightly, looking down at him in her arms, and gently wiped away the tears on his face with a handkerchief: "Baoyu, it's wrong of you to be late on your first day of school."

Jia Baoyu nodded, sobbing.

He hid in Grandmother Jia's arms, not daring to look at Jia Zheng.

After Grandmother Jia comforted Baoyu,

She looked up at Jia Zheng: "Just because of this? Just because he said a few childish things? You're going to be so cruel?"

"Zheng'er! Look at him! How old is he! Look what you've done to him!"

Grandmother Jia pointed to the red marks on Baoyu's back, which looked shocking against his fair skin.

"If I had arrived even a second later today, would you have beaten my darling to death?!"

Jia Zheng was speechless when asked the question. He felt he was right, but in front of his mother, his reasoning was seen as being unreasonable.

"Mother! A doting mother spoils her son! If you keep indulging him like this, you'll ruin him sooner or later!"

He couldn't help but speak his mind.

"Harmed him?" Grandmother Jia sneered. "My Jia family has built up its fortune over many years; surely we can support one idle person?"

"I don't want him to bring glory to our ancestors! I don't want him to be a high-ranking official! I just want him to live a peaceful and happy life! Is that wrong?"

Grandmother Jia tapped her cane on the ground, making a heavy sound.

Madam Wang immediately chimed in, "Yes, sir! Baoyu is my son, the apple of the old lady's eye. Even if he never studies, our family can still support him. Why ruin our relationship for the sake of these empty titles?"

As Lady Wang spoke, she wiped away her tears. She looked at Jia Baoyu with deep heartache.

"You! You women's narrow-mindedness!" Jia Zheng trembled with rage. "Without education, how can he understand principles? How can he establish himself? How will he inherit the family business? Are we going to let him become an ignorant and incompetent spoiled brat?"

"That's still better than being beaten to death by you!"

Grandmother Jia retorted directly, refusing to budge an inch.