Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

After handing the silver over to Zhao'er and the others, Jia Lian returned home, ate lunch, and sat by the kang (a heated brick bed), quietly watching his wife and daughters play.

The little girl is almost a year old, just at the age where she's learning to speak. She's also incredibly cute and adorable, and the scene of her playing with her wife and daughter is very heartwarming.

Seeing Jia Lian resting, Ping'er wanted to go over and massage his shoulders to relieve his fatigue, but she was worried that Feng Jie would suspect her of trying to curry favor with the emperor. So she went to the side and instructed Xiao Hong and Feng'er to go over and serve Jia Lian.

Feng Jie'er saw everything out of the corner of her eye and chuckled to herself.

After playing with her daughter for a while, she handed her over to the wet nurse to lull her to sleep. Turning to Jia Lian, she smiled and said, "This morning, Baoyu and Lin Yatou had a big fight. I heard Baoyu even smashed the jade. Did you know about that?"

As she spoke, Wang Xifeng sat down next to Jia Lian and waved her hand to shoo away Xiao Hong and Feng'er, who were massaging Jia Lian's legs.

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian's expression shifted slightly.

Did Erbao break the jade again?

Given how much importance that Grandmother Jia and others placed on that object, Daiyu must have been wronged and is probably heartbroken right now.

Without saying much, Jia Lian looked at Feng Jie and suddenly tugged at her pretty cheek, pinching it with his index finger and thumb to show his affection.

As expected, Sister Feng became more and more obedient. Just yesterday, she was instructed to pay close attention to the situation in Daiyu's room, and today she promptly reported back to him.

Unfortunately, Wang Xifeng didn't buy it and awkwardly slapped Jia Lian's hand away.

The maids in the room indeed looked surprised, and they even glared at Jia Lian fiercely.

She, Second Madam Feng, didn't care about being pampered like this; it would damage her dignity!

Jia Lian didn't seem to mind. He straightened his legs, got up, and walked out.

"Where are you going? It's still early, why not take a nap before going to the Iron Threshold Temple!"

"No need, I'll go check on the old lady."

He casually strolled over to Rongqing Hall and found that Grandmother Jia was taking a nap, so he didn't disturb her and went straight to Daiyu's room.

Daiyu's room remained unchanged.

Looking around, Jia Lian saw only a lotus boat made of folded and pieced-together white paper, quietly placed on the desk.

Upon closer inspection, a lifeless squirrel lay sprawled inside. Judging by its size and appearance, it was one of the squirrels that he had given to Daiyu to raise.

Hearing the commotion, Zijuan came out to investigate. After she bowed, Jia Lian pointed to the obviously dead squirrel and asked, "What happened?"

Hearing Jia Lian ask this question, Zijuan felt a little nervous, but she still didn't dare to lie, so she could only tell him in detail what had happened that morning.

Of course, Zijuan was not one to gossip, and she was worried that Jia Lian would blame Jia Baoyu for this, making Daiyu the target of public criticism again, so she tried to keep things simple.

It is only said that Anu was already seriously ill and on the verge of death, and that Jia Baoyu had only accidentally frightened her, so it cannot be blamed on Jia Baoyu.

Jia Lian was very dissatisfied upon hearing this.

I originally thought that Jia Baoyu was just a little timid and lacked responsibility, but was still a humble and kind person.

Unexpectedly, he actually dared to be mean to Daiyu!

Even he couldn't bear to let Daiyu shed a single tear, so you can imagine how much that rascal would make Daiyu cry if he unleashed his ultimate move in this room.

But after thinking about it, Jia Lian felt relieved.

If Jia Baoyu were sensible, he wouldn't be the eccentric Jia Erbao.

Take Daiyu's first arrival at the Jia family mansion, for example. Just because Daiyu didn't have a piece of jade like his, he went crazy and smashed his jade in public.

Let him smash it if he wants; after all, that mute thing is his own, so it doesn't matter if it's broken. But this brat, he just had to do it in front of Daiyu, and while he was talking to Daiyu.

Wouldn't this cause Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang, who cherished this jade as their lifeblood, to take their anger out on Daiyu? It can be said that from the day Daiyu entered the Jia family, she truly felt a favoritism and cold treatment created by Jia Baoyu.

Actually, isn't this precisely because he didn't want to allow Daiyu and Jia Baoyu to have a tragic relationship?

Therefore, Jia Lian really had no reason to be angry.

They should even be happy.

This further proves that what he did was right.

Moreover, the more Jia Baoyu acted this way, the more confident he was in preventing Daiyu from liking him.

So he calmed down and asked Zijuan, "Where did Lin Daiyu go?"

Seeing Jia Lian's calm expression, Zijuan breathed a sigh of relief and quickly replied, "After noon, after Miss folded this paper boat, she went out alone without saying where she was going or letting me follow her."

Second Master, please sit down and have some tea. I estimate the young lady should be back soon.

Zijuan had served Daiyu closely for two years and was familiar with Daiyu's temperament, so Jia Lian listened to her and sat down at Daiyu's desk.

After glancing at the paper boat, Jia Lian couldn't help but pick it up and examine it, secretly praising Daiyu for her skillful hands.

Although it was a ghost ship, it was folded with exceptional finesse and beauty.

After pouring a cup of tea, Zijuan stood there for a while. Seeing that Jia Lian was only studying the paper boat and ignoring her, she felt embarrassed to stay by Jia Lian's side any longer, so she went inside.

A short while later, a stunningly beautiful girl with a slender build slowly entered through the back door.

Her face, which had been full of sorrow, suddenly turned serious when she looked up and saw Jia Lian sitting in her seat. She quickly took two steps forward and called out, "Second Brother Lian!"

Jia Lian looked up at the sound, saw Daiyu, and smiled, "Sister Lin is back? Where did you go? I've been waiting for you here for a while."

Seeing Jia Lian's warm smile and hearing his gentle voice, Daiyu felt a lump in her throat as she recalled what had happened before.

Seeing that Jia Lian had just been examining Anu, whom she had placed in the paper boat, she couldn't help but shed tears, crying out, "Second Brother Lian, Anu, Anu is gone, boohoo~"

In Jia Lian's eyes, Daiyu's tears, which came out of nowhere, were quite a spectacle.

But he dared not laugh. Instead, he feigned empathy and sighed, "I understand. You don't need to be too sad. Squirrels' lifespans are different from ours."

It is fortunate that it was cared for by such a kind and generous owner as you while it was alive; it must have had no regrets in this life.

In other words, it's been with you for two years, bringing you a lot of joy. You can't expect it to stay with you forever; that would be selfish, you know?

So, things are just right now, don't you think?

Upon hearing this, Daiyu's sobs subsided slightly.

Lian Er Gege's words are always so rational and philosophical.

Although she always felt that Jia Lian was mocking her when he said she was "generous," because Jia Lian had previously said that she had fed the squirrels too much.

Unable to find any rebuttal and unwilling to argue with Jia Lian, she simply hummed in agreement and stood beside him.

"Okay, stop crying. Your eyes won't look pretty if they're red from crying."

Jia Lian took Daiyu's embroidered handkerchief from her hand, folded it, and gently wiped away the tears on Daiyu's face.

Daiyu instinctively stepped back.

Her face was flushed, partly from shyness, but mostly from embarrassment.

Despite her own high regard for her intelligence and beauty, she actually cried in front of her cousin.

Moreover, I think I lost my composure when I first saw Brother Lian visiting, and I don't know if Brother Lian noticed.

Given his intelligence, wouldn't he become suspicious if he saw it?