The Splendor of the Red Chamber

[These two chapters are being released early today. From now on, updates will be at 12 PM. Adjustments will be made after the book is officially released.]

The Rong and Ning mansions are adjacent to each other on the east and west sides, and are connected by a side gate and alley in the middle, making it very convenient to travel between them.

Jia Lian was the head steward of the Rongguo Mansion. Seeing him strutting through the rooms and courtyards with such a fierce demeanor, who dared to ask him a single question?

He then arrived at the Ningguo Mansion, where the servants all knew that he and his master, Jia Zhen, were used to fooling around and never held back their formalities as cousins.

In addition, everyone had heard that he was terminally ill, and now he suddenly barged into Ningguo Mansion with great fanfare, which inevitably made people think of ghosts and gods. Who would dare to stop him?

Thus, Jia Lian found Jia Rong's residence without any hindrance and then, taking over the role of host, chased the maid out of the courtyard.

Then, as he barged inside, he sneered through gritted teeth, "Rong-ge, Rong-ge, my dear nephew, your second uncle has come to settle accounts with you!"

After Jia Rong fled back to Ningguo Mansion yesterday, he was filled with anxiety and unease, and it wasn't until the fourth watch of the night that he finally drifted off to sleep.

In his sleep, he vaguely heard Uncle Lian's voice, which startled him so much that he sat up abruptly.

After looking around blankly and confirming that he was alone in the room, Jia Rong breathed a sigh of relief and murmured, "It was just a dream, that scared me to death."

Thinking of the old saying that "dreams are always the opposite of reality," Jia Rong couldn't help but feel hopeful. Perhaps Uncle Lian's death yesterday was just a temporary respite, and he had already passed away.

If that's the case, then I and my second aunt...

bang~

Just as he was feeling smug, the bedroom door was suddenly kicked open, and Jia Lian stormed in menacingly.

The uncle and nephew locked eyes, and Jia Rong's legs went weak, causing him to tumble off the bed. He exclaimed in surprise, "Second Uncle, you...you're not dead? You're still alive?"

"Little beast!"

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian's anger flared up, and he kicked Jia Rong in the chest.

The intention was to kick Jia Rong to the ground, but the force was surprisingly great, sending Jia Rong tumbling three times before he crashed into the wardrobe, spitting out a mouthful of blood before finally stopping.

Seeing that his kick had such an effect, Jia Lian was also greatly surprised.

Although he wasn't completely powerless before, he wasn't much stronger than an ordinary person. So how did he suddenly become so much stronger after waking up?

Having personally experienced the power of that kick, Jia Rong had only one thought in his mind:

My second uncle is going to kill me!

He must be furious, otherwise where would he get such deadly strength?!

Jia Rong was immediately terrified, ignoring the tightness and pain in his chest, he hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed repeatedly, pleading, "Second Uncle, spare me! Second Uncle, spare me! I'll never dare to do it again! I'll never dare to do it again!"

His hair was disheveled, his clothes were rumpled, he was covered in mud, and there was blood on his lips and chest. His face showed both fear and fawning. Where was the debonair demeanor of the legitimate son of the Ningguo Mansion?

Jia Lian originally planned to beat him up first to vent his anger, and then negotiate with him. Unexpectedly, his strength increased greatly, and he took half of his life with just a casual kick.

To avoid a fatal incident that would spiral out of control, Jia Lian suppressed his anger and sat on the bed, asking in a sinister tone, "You took advantage of my illness to commit such an inhumane and despicable act; how can your uncle forgive you?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Rong seemed to have a chance to survive, so he quickly bent over and groveled to the bedside, kowtowing to Jia Lian again, saying, "It's all my fault for being blinded by greed. If you're willing to forgive me, Uncle, I'll do anything you ask!"

With such a cowardly attitude, how dare he even covet that fiery Feng!

Jia Lian grabbed Jia Rong by the hair and lifted him off the ground. Looking down at him, he sneered, "As your uncle, I won't take advantage of you. You wanted to take care of your aunt for me, so I'll return the favor and take care of Qin Shi for you too."

Judging others by his own standards, Jia Lian originally thought that Jia Rong would be furious upon hearing these words and might even resort to violence against him, so he took precautions in advance.

To everyone's surprise, Jia Rong's handsome yet disheveled face first showed astonishment, and then, as if he had thought of something, he readily nodded and said, "Uncle, why didn't you say so sooner? Since autumn, Ke Qing's health has been fluctuating. I suppose it's because I'm young and inexperienced and haven't taken good enough care of her. I would be more than happy to accept your offer to help take care of her!"

This completely baffled Jia Lian.

That celestial beauty, Qin Keqing, was just handed over to someone else by Jia Rong like that?!

Does he have some kind of peculiar fetish, or is he plotting something else entirely?!

Just as he was wondering, Jia Rong shamelessly said, "Uncle, please be lenient first, so that I can call Qin Shi here for you and have a frank discussion."

For reasons that are difficult to state openly, Jia Rong and Qin Keqing have been living separately since autumn—if Keqing lived in this courtyard, it wouldn't be so easy for Jia Lian to enter.

Jia Lian hesitated for a moment, thinking to himself that he had something on Jia Rong, so he wasn't afraid of Jia Rong playing any tricks.

So he loosened Jia Rong's hair, casually placed his hand on the edge of the bed to wipe off the hair oil, and warned, "You stay here and don't move around. Just have the maid deliver the message."

"Yes, yes, yes."

Jia Rong obediently agreed, got up, quickly tidied himself up, and put on an outer robe to cover the bloodstains before shouting loudly, "Where are they? Where have they all gone?!"

Before long, two maids entered timidly. Seeing Jia Rong's ashen face and furious expression, they dared not raise their heads like quails, and asked meekly, "What are your orders, Master Rong?"

The thought of them standing by and watching Uncle Lian barge in, nearly killing him with a single kick, filled Jia Rong with rage.

She went up and slapped him twice, scolding, "You insolent wench, go and fetch your grandmother right now! Tell her I have something extremely urgent to discuss with her!"

After the maids left, he changed his tune and fawned over Jia Lian, saying, "Second Uncle, don't worry. When Qin Shi arrives, I'll talk to her first and make sure she obediently follows your wishes."

As Jia Lian was pondering Jia Rong's intentions, upon hearing this shameless statement, he unconsciously tightened his grip on the edge of the bed, and with a snap, a palm-sized relief piece was broken off from under the bed.

"Hiss~"

Upon seeing this, Jia Rong couldn't help but gasp.

The furniture in Ningguo Mansion was all made of high-quality materials. Jia Rong used to kick it with his foot, but it was never damaged in the slightest. Yet now, it was broken off by Uncle Lian with a casual flick of his wrist.

If that kind of strength were applied to our Rong-ge'er, he'd probably smash his brains out!

Originally, Jia Rong had some ulterior motives, but now, after being frightened, he dared not hide anything any longer. Before Jia Lian could ask, he revealed the sordid details:

"Uncle, if you want to take care of the Qin family, I will have no objection. I'm just afraid that our master won't agree..."

It turned out that someone had already set their sights on Qin Keqing long before Jia Lian came to her door.

This person was none other than Jia Rong's biological father, Qin Keqing's father-in-law, and the current head of the Ningguo Mansion, Jia Zhen.

Jia Zhen was a lecherous man. He spent all his time with his beautiful daughter-in-law. After a while, how could he control his lustful desires?

Originally, it was just a subtle provocation, but after the Mid-Autumn Festival this year, he simply stopped acting altogether and focused on becoming the second Emperor Xuanzong of Tang.

Qin Keqing was also a young lady from a respectable family, and she was unwilling to accept such a shameful affair. She immediately told Jia Rong about it, hoping that her husband could stand up for her.

Unfortunately, Jia Rong was born with a handsome appearance, but inside he was a spineless coward. He would act like a mouse in front of a cat whenever he saw Jia Zhen, and he couldn't utter a single word of "no".

Upon hearing this, he not only dared not stop it, but wished he could hide his head in his crotch and pretend to be deaf and dumb.

With Jia Rong so spineless, what else could Qin Keqing do?

She could only feign illness and stay at home, trying her best to avoid her father-in-law's clutches.

However, over the past few months, Jia Zhen has become increasingly aggressive and domineering. He holds absolute power in the mansion and has no say in anything. How can a young wife like Qin Keqing resist him?

Furthermore, Qin Keqing was angered by Jia Rong's cowardice, and in her despair, her defenses crumbled, and she was not far from being taken advantage of by Jia Zhen.

Although Jia Rong dared not go against Jia Zhen, he was still full of resentment. Just then, he heard that his neighbor, Uncle Lian, had been unconscious for several days and no one could save him. So he had the idea of ​​losing one thing and gaining another.

That's how the incident of him seducing Feng Lazi at his sickbed came about.

For these reasons, when Jia Rong heard that Uncle Lian had also set his sights on Qin Shi, he was not angry at all. On the contrary, he was eager to get rid of this hot potato so that he could sit back and watch the tigers fight.

He shamelessly said, "It's better for Keqing to be with Uncle than to do such a shameful thing as incest. Of course I support Uncle—it's just that Uncle still needs to deal with Master."

Looking at Jia Lian again, he was already speechless with astonishment.

Jia Lian thought his father, Jia She, was already outrageous enough, but he never expected there to be someone even more outrageous. Now all he could say was: I have never seen such a shameless father and son!

Just then, they heard footsteps outside; it was Qin Keqing who had arrived.