The Black Chamber Dream: Daiyu's Revenge

"Even without the princess saying so, your aunts and I will naturally make sure that you, Yu'er, get married in style."

Daiyu looked at Grandmother Jia quietly, and after Grandmother Jia finished speaking, she said softly, "Grandmother, don't be sad, it's still Yu'er's fault."

As she spoke, Daiyu got up and took out a set of twelve pieces of Hetian jade carved sheep from the multi-treasure pavilion, and placed it in front of Grandmother Jia.

Grandmother Jia was stunned: this was also part of Daiyu's dowry that she had kept there. She had seen it all before and knew it very well.

How did this set of jade artifacts end up with Yu'er? Did Yu'er already know about it?

While Grandmother Jia was thinking, Daiyu took the initiative to bring it up: "That day, Aunt Xue came and gave me one of the gifts, which was this Hetian jade carving of a sheep holding a lingzhi mushroom. I could tell at a glance that it was something from home."

"I gradually found them all later. I kept hesitating whether to tell our ancestors, but I was afraid that they would be saddened if they saw them. These things are just material possessions. If we don't have them, it's fine. There's no need to worry about it."

"But I never expected that such a big thing would happen, and that even the eldest princess would find out about it."

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia immediately felt remorseful. It seemed that only her own granddaughter was considering her needs, while everyone else was full of scheming.

If I had known, I should have let Yu'er marry Bao Yu. Now look what happened, Bao Yu has ended up marrying the sister of a murderer.

Thinking of this, Grandmother Jia was overcome with grief and hugged Daiyu, crying, "Yu'er, my dear Yu'er. It's all your grandmother's fault for being unable to make the decision. Baoyu has parents and an older sister who is an empress. Your grandmother is so sorry for you."

"But at that time, the Empress spread the word that she was determined to find a good family for Yu'er. I also thought that although Bao Yu was good, he didn't like studying and didn't have any official rank. If I were to pass away in the future, who would take care of you two?"

“Your second aunt doesn’t like you. If I’m not around in the future, she will definitely mistreat you. That’s why I’m backing down.”

"It's all my grandmother's fault, my sensible Yu'er..."

Upon hearing these words, Daiyu knew they were only half true and half false. However, at this point, she didn't need to expose them. Instead, she cried along with her and then took the initiative to comfort Grandmother Jia.

"Grandmother, why be sad? Her Majesty did help Yu'er. Yu'er is now able to marry Prince Yi, which must be thanks to Her Majesty."

Daiyu knew, of course, that it was definitely not Yuanchun's doing.

"It's fortunate that the items have been found, so Grandmother doesn't need to blame herself. It's just that a servant like Yuanyang really can't be kept around."

Daiyu desperately wanted to know whose orders Yuanyang had taken to dare steal things from Grandmother Jia's storeroom. But she couldn't ask Grandmother Jia, and Grandmother Jia wouldn't tell the truth.

"Grandmother, don't worry. The Princess is very fond of me now, and the Empress is also taking care of me in the palace. Yu'er will have a good life in the future."

The eldest princess did indeed dote on Daiyu, and Daiyu recalled the words the eldest princess had said.

Upon hearing Daiyu's words, Grandmother Jia indeed stopped crying. She felt that she had essentially accomplished her purpose for coming today.

Grandmother Jia sighed and took Daiyu's hand: "Alas, it's all because your second aunt was confused. Back then, none of our family knew that the one who beat the man to death wasn't a servant of the Xue family, but Baochai's brother. If we had known, we wouldn't have let the Xue family live in the Rongguo Mansion for so many years."

"There's nothing we can do about how things have turned out. Yu'er has really grown up now, and she understands everything clearly. In the end, this mansion is your uncle's house. Although you married into the royal family, Yu'er, if you're unhappy, you can still come back to stay and talk to everyone."

Daiyu found it amusing. If even someone like Yingchun couldn't handle it, she doubted that the Rongguo Mansion would care if she were bullied.

But on the surface, Daiyu still obediently nodded.

Seeing this, Grandmother Jia was finally completely relieved. In truth, she was now truly old; otherwise, she would have been concerned about how Daiyu had managed to buy all the jade pieces and where she had gotten so much money.

However, Grandmother Jia was preoccupied with her own thoughts and overlooked this important information.

Daiyu had prepared an explanation, but since Grandmother Jia didn't ask, she naturally wouldn't say anything. After personally seeing Grandmother Jia out, Daiyu immediately summoned Zijuan and Xueyan upon her return.

“I think Grandmother will punish Yuanyang severely. Zijuan, keep an eye on things. If she’s really kicked out, have your brother think of a way to deal with it.” Daiyu thought that Yuanyang had known a lot over the years in the Jia family, and she wanted to get some information from her.

"Don't worry, Miss, I'll talk to my brother this afternoon." Ever since Daiyu was betrothed to the Third Prince, the servants of Rongguo Mansion have been extremely polite to Zijuan, making it very convenient for her to get things done.

"Xueyan, also pay attention to what the other maids and servants in the mansion are talking about lately. I think that Grandmother can't hide the fact that the Princess has come." Daiyu had a premonition that something was about to happen.

It must be said that Daiyu's premonition was quite accurate.

Two days later, Xueyan came to tell Daiyu: "I heard that Master Zhen from the East Mansion is making a fuss about splitting up the family line!"

A branch family?! This is a momentous matter, and Daiyu found it hard to believe.

"I heard it with my own ears at Fourth Miss's place. Fourth Miss's maids are all very distressed. If they really separate the clans, wouldn't Fourth Miss have to move out of the garden? She'll definitely have to move back to the East Mansion. But Fourth Miss doesn't like that place. She even had a big argument with the mistress there before." Xueyan, who studied with Daiyu, knew that separating the clans was no small matter.

Soon, Daiyu figured out what had happened.

The reason was that Jia Zhen learned that the Eldest Princess had visited the Rongguo Mansion and revealed that the Rongguo Mansion had not only spent the Lin family's money, but had also pawned Lin's daughter's dowry.

Jia Zhen felt that he had to take action, so early the next morning, Jia Zhen brought You Shi to the main room of Grandmother Jia.

Chapter 42 Jia Zhen's Hidden Thoughts Amidst the Separation of the Family Lines

After learning from Jia Lian that the Rongguo Mansion had spent the Lin family's money, Jia Zhen had already considered whether or not to separate from the main branch of the family. However, the Rongguo Mansion now had an empress, and Miss Lin was also raised by the Rongguo Mansion and would become a prince's consort in the future. If he separated from the main branch, he was afraid he would not be able to benefit from it.

But upon hearing that the Eldest Princess had come to the Rongguo Mansion and made those remarks, Jia Zhen felt that it was necessary to separate the families this time: The Rongguo Mansion had not only spent the Lin family's money, but had also pawned all the treasures from Lin Daiyu's dowry, and the Eldest Princess and Lin Daiyu knew about this.

Therefore, it's quite clear that Miss Lin and the Rongguo Mansion have become estranged, and she might even hate them to the core. Once Miss Lin becomes the Princess Consort, she might very well seek revenge against the Rongguo Mansion.

Even if Miss Lin doesn't pursue the matter out of consideration for her family, the Princess's words have already indicated that the Rongguo Mansion should prepare a generous dowry for Miss Lin.

Jia Zhen was quite familiar with the Rongguo Mansion's situation; in short, they were broke. Years ago, when the Empress visited her family, he had to spend a fortune on her; now, they might try to take advantage of him again.

So Jia Zhen decided to strike first, and early in the morning he took his wife, You Shi, to the main room of Grandmother Jia.

Upon hearing the maid announce that Jia Zhen and his wife had arrived, Grandmother Jia's heart skipped a beat: usually, even if someone came to pay their respects, it was only You Shi. Now that Jia Zhen had come, it seemed that he had heard something.

Regardless, we invited the person in first.

After Jia Zhen and You Shi first greeted each other, Jia Zhen decided to get straight to the point: "Grandmother, your grand-nephew has come today to report something to you."

So direct? Grandmother Jia remained silent, looking at Jia Zhen.

Jia Zhen immediately said, "Grandmother, your grand-nephew has made up his mind to split the clan."

Like a bolt from the blue, Grandmother Jia had thought that even if Jia Zhen found out, he would just make a scene and refuse to pay the money. But she never expected that Jia Zhen would actually propose to separate the clan.

For a long while, Grandmother Jia didn't utter a single word. She couldn't believe her ears and stared into Jia Zhen's eyes.

Jia Zhen, however, was not afraid of Jia Mu's gaze at all. On the contrary, he was very sincere: "Grandmother, please don't blame your grand-nephew for being timid and cowardly, or for being stingy and only thinking of his own family. Back then, when Her Majesty wanted to visit her family, she said that a piece of land in our mansion should be allocated to build a villa for her visit. I immediately agreed. Later, she said that she didn't have enough money. I didn't say a word and directly gave her 100,000 taels of silver. But I never expected that, even so, my family would dare to embezzle Lin Daiyu's money. This matter has truly frightened me."

"Now that Her Highness the Eldest Princess knows about this, and is so angry that she immediately took Lin Daiyu away, I'm afraid this matter will be difficult to resolve peacefully."

“As the head of the family, my nephew must consider the lives of hundreds of people in the Ningguo Mansion. If something really happens, I will not be able to face our ancestors.”

As he spoke, Jia Zhen suddenly fell to the ground and wept, and You Shi also began to cry.

Grandmother Jia's heart was cold and hard. Well, she was indeed a clever clan leader, talking about their ancestors at this time.

"If we really split up the clans, that would be a disservice to our ancestors. Who outside doesn't know that the Ning and Rong mansions are one family? This hasn't reached the point of confiscating property and beheading yet." Grandmother Jia gritted her teeth, extremely angry.

Jia Zhen, of course, would not back down and continued, "If we continue to act so recklessly, I'm afraid neither of the two mansions will get anything."

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia calmed down and analyzed the situation: Was Zhen'er afraid of being blamed by the Princess and the palace? At the same time, she probably didn't want to spend any money.

Then Grandmother Jia slowly said, "Are you afraid that your Lin sister will be dissatisfied? You can rest assured that your Lin sister is not one to hold grudges. As for what the Princess said, you can also rest assured that when your Lin sister gets married, I will naturally have good things for her, and your East Mansion will not have to contribute a single penny."

Does this mean that Grandmother Jia has a plan? But Jia Zhen still doesn't intend to give in, because he wants to separate the family line. Actually, he has some ulterior motives: Lin Daiyu married Prince Yi, does that mean that the Rongguo Mansion and Prince Yi are completely tied together?

However, among the princes, Prince Yi does not seem to be the one who can ascend the throne. A few days ago, the Wu family approached Jia Zhen, who also felt that the second prince, Prince Rui, was better. Firstly, he was the eldest son, and secondly, the Wu and Song families were powerful enough.

Since Jia Zhen is planning to side with the Second Prince, he will naturally have to sever ties with the Rongguo Mansion.

Of course, Jia Zhen wouldn't tell Grandmother Jia these things, but since Grandmother Jia had said so, Jia Zhen couldn't be completely oblivious.

Jia Zhen changed his tone, looking as if he had thought it through. Before speaking, he kowtowed several times: "Grandmother, this time, your grand-nephew has thought it through very clearly. Now that our household has countless ties with the royal family, and seeing the Zhen family and the Duke of Liguo's mansion being raided, your grand-nephew thinks it's better to separate the branches of the family. If one branch is preserved, it will be easier to lend a helping hand to the other branch in the future, won't it?"

These words did persuade Grandmother Jia somewhat: Now that Consort Xiande's child is gone, and the Rongguo Mansion has produced Yu'er, the prince's consort, the Ningguo Mansion has always been unruly. If we were to be implicated by the Ningguo Mansion, it would be bad.

It has to be said that like attracts like; Jia Mu and Jia Zhen both looked down on the people in each other's households.

Jia Zhen thought that his uncle Jia She was a good-for-nothing who spent his days drinking, having fun, and keeping concubines. His other uncle Jia Zheng was utterly pedantic and had made no progress in his years as an official. Only Jia Lian had some cleverness back then, Bao Yu was just a spoiled child, and Jia Huan was even worse.

Grandmother Jia felt that Jia Zhen was always lawless and might cause trouble, which could really implicate the Empress and the household.

But Grandmother Jia was not going to give in so easily. Since Jia Zhen wanted to separate from the main family, it was only right that he should contribute some funds. So Grandmother Jia said, "Zhen-ge'er, get up first, and let your wife get up too. What you said makes a lot of sense."

Hearing Grandmother Jia say this, Jia Zhen thought that Grandmother Jia had agreed, and was about to speak when he heard Grandmother Jia say something else.

"However, since your Lin sister is going to be the Princess Consort, the Ningguo Mansion should at least make some gesture, shouldn't it?"

Jia Zhen was displeased, but he quickly said, "Of course, Ancestor. The division of the clan was just for show, for the court. As for matters that are our Ningguo Mansion's business, we will naturally not shirk our responsibilities."

As long as Grandmother Jia agrees to separate the clans, everything else is negotiable. Besides, even if she has to pay, she certainly won't pay too much. At worst, she can just have Lady You come over to add to Lin Daiyu's dowry.

"However, this matter cannot be decided by me alone. We need to invite both gentlemen over to discuss it together." Thinking of her two sons, Grandmother Jia began to have a headache again.

I'm afraid neither of the two sons would agree to such a thing as dividing the family line.

However, Jia Zhen was quite confident: he had already invited Jia She to a banquet and given him many treasures. As for Jia Zheng, Jia Zhen also had ways to persuade him.

Chapter 43 Comforting Xichun and Daiyu's Schemes

The matter of dividing the family into branches was decided very quickly. Daiyu didn't care about the other people in the Jia family, but she was concerned about Xichun. She heard Xueyan say that although the old lady wanted the fourth young lady to stay in the Lotus Fragrance Pavilion in the garden, the fourth young lady was very sad.

After thinking for a while, Daiyu called Xueyan: "Let's go to Lotus Fragrance Pavilion and see Fourth Sister."

The winter was bleak, and the Lotus Fragrance Pavilion by the water felt even colder. Daiyu hadn't strolled around the garden in a long time, let alone visited the residences of her other sisters.

Upon closer reflection, the only people still living in the garden are my eldest sister-in-law, my third sister, and my fourth sister. Everyone else has moved out. My second sister got married, and even my sister Xing Xiuyan moved out.

Looking at the clear blue pool water, Daiyu couldn't help but tighten her cloak.

Xi Chun's maid Caiping saw Daiyu first and was immediately delighted. She quickly went inside to announce that Miss Lin had arrived, and led her maid to greet her.

Daiyu waved her hand and said there was no need, then casually asked Caiping what her young lady was doing at home. Caiping looked embarrassed and replied, "My young lady is copying scriptures."

The Fourth Sister was already somewhat eccentric, and now that such a thing had happened, she was initially saddened, but then she remained silent. She would eat whatever was brought to her, but she didn't care about anything else, only copying scriptures.

Daiyu sighed inwardly. Her fourth sister was usually quiet, but she was actually very sensitive.

Although disheartened, Xichun still maintained good manners; upon hearing that Daiyu had arrived, she had already gotten up.

"Sister Lin, please sit down." Xichun's voice was no different from usual.

But her face looked paler than usual. Daiyu realized that she hadn't properly looked at Xichun for more than half a year.

There was nothing that could be done; too many things had happened in the past six months, and Daiyu was often too busy taking care of herself.

"I feel that Fourth Sister has grown a bit taller." When Daiyu said this, Xichun was surprised: she thought that Daiyu, like everyone else, had come to advise her.

Caiping brought tea, which Daiyu accepted.

Xichun sat down to the side and said quite honestly, "It's because Sister Lin hasn't paid attention to me for a long time. I think Sister Lin looks much better than before. I heard that Sister Lin has been treated by the imperial physician, so it seems that Sister Lin's health is fine."

Caiping was serving by her side. Hearing Xichun say so much in one breath, she couldn't help but feel happy. She had been very worried that Xichun might do something rash these past two days.

"There shouldn't be any major problems now. I was very sad in the spring, and I almost lost the will to live. Later, I dreamed in the middle of the night about my deceased parents. They didn't say anything, but when I woke up, I felt that I was being very wrong. Our bodies and hair are given to us by our parents, and I can no longer be filial to them. If I continue to be willful, it would be very wrong of me." Daiyu spoke quite frankly, and she herself did not expect to say it so easily.