Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Chapter 3 Wang Xifeng!

Standing at the entrance of the east courtyard, Jia Lian gazed at the spacious street before him.

Unlike the hustle and bustle of later cities, there were only a few busy figures moving about in the streets and alleys.

In the distance, wisps of smoke, some thick and some thin, rose from the rows of houses, eventually dissipating slowly into the clear sky.

Occasionally, I could hear the barking of dogs from several alleyways away.

All of this seemed to be clearly telling Jia Lian that this was not a dream, and that he had indeed come to a different world.

Turning back, ignoring the strange looks from the gatekeepers at the black-painted gate, he called his personal servant and headed towards the main courtyard of the Rongguo Mansion.

Rongguo Mansion was a Duke's mansion built by imperial decree.

After the second Duke of Rongguo passed away, since the Duchess was still alive, and perhaps because she favored her youngest son, she allowed him to live with her, while setting aside the garden area on the east side of the mansion for her eldest son to live in.

This is the origin of the East Courtyard.

However, in Jia Lian's opinion, although they came from the same mansion and the houses and scenery of the east wing were quite beautiful, they were far inferior to the main courtyard in terms of both spaciousness and grandeur.

They did not linger in the front yard, but followed the familiar path and soon entered a narrow alleyway that ran north to south.

On the north side of the alley, behind a large pink-painted screen wall, lies the legendary "Sister Feng's Courtyard," which was also his home at that time.

"Second Master."

Upon seeing Jia Lian approach, four or five young servants behind the screen wall, barely out of their teens, hurriedly bowed and greeted him.

Jia Lian nodded and asked, "Is your second mistress at home?"

"exist……"

The servants didn't dare to raise their heads and answered in low voices.

From their reactions, Jia Lian seemed to realize something.

Sure enough, as soon as they stepped into the courtyard, they saw a dozen or so maids and servants lined up on either side of the main door of the house along the long corridor in front of them.

They all stood respectfully with their hands at their sides, appearing quite obedient. However, Jia Lian still sensed schadenfreude and wishful thinking in the eyes of a few of them.

Jia Lian's heart skipped a beat. Judging from the situation, the "Yaksha Star" test would probably be difficult to pass.

With the sound of light footsteps, the bright red floral curtain was opened, and a woman in gorgeous attire rushed out.

She was slender and graceful, with almond-shaped eyes, arched eyebrows, a rosy complexion, and bright red lips. Her entire body was adorned with colorful embroidery, making her resemble a fairy princess.

Even though he already had an impression of Wang Xifeng in his mind, Jia Lian was still amazed when he saw her in person.

She was an absolutely stunning woman, far surpassing any other woman he had ever seen before!

It would be even better if she didn't look at him with those beautiful eyes.

"Oh, isn't this our Second Master Lian? What brings you home?"

The sinister voice made Jia Lian instinctively feel uncomfortable.

He cleared his throat and said, "Something came up over there, so I'm back a little late..."

Jia Lian gave a feigned laugh and tried to go up the steps to enter the room.

Being stared at by more than a dozen women always gave him the feeling of being interrogated by a triad.

He thought that no matter how strong Wang Xifeng was, in this world, the husband was always the most important person. If there was anything to say, it would be easier to talk it out once they were inside the house. Why let the servants and maids laugh at them? It wouldn't do anyone any good.

But then he saw Wang Xifeng take a step forward, blocking his way.

"Ha, were you held up by something, or have you been bewitched by some prostitute and lost your way home?"

Jia Lian took another step to the other side, but was stopped again. He then stopped and laughed, "What are you saying? With a beauty like you at home, how could any ordinary woman outside catch my eye? How could she be bewitched or lose her mind?"

When Jia Lian said this, not only were the maids around him surprised, but even Wang Xifeng was stunned.

When did this forgetful, short-tempered person learn to say such cheesy love words?

But she reacted quickly, blushing slightly, and realized that these were definitely words Jia Lian had prepared to flatter her, knowing he had committed a crime.

But is she someone who can be easily fooled?

"Stop trying to fool me. Do you think nobody knows about all the dirty deeds you've done? Pah! It's disgusting!!"

Wang Xifeng frowned and cursed angrily.

She was by nature a strong-willed person and a prominent figure in both households. However, Jia Lian's actions today had made her a laughingstock as well, which infuriated her.

She couldn't swallow this anger, so how could she let Jia Lian get away with it?

Jia Lian frowned.

Although he also felt that what his predecessor had done was a bad thing, when Wang Xifeng actually pointed her finger at him and insulted him, and saw her glaring at him, he felt very bad, and his impression of Wang Xifeng plummeted.

He knew he couldn't let her continue her tirade, or she would expose all his secrets.

"Let me go inside and we can talk. What are you doing blocking my way here...?"

Jia Lian tried to force his way in, but Wang Xifeng became even angrier upon seeing this. She looked down at him and blocked and pushed him, almost shoving him to the ground.

"you?"

After swaying for a moment before regaining his balance, Jia Lian finally realized how difficult it was to get along with Wang Xifeng.

In this era, to dare to lay a hand on one's own man, one can imagine that if this were in later generations, this woman would surely rebel against heaven.

Wang Xifeng was also secretly surprised after making her move, but seeing Jia Lian's gloomy face as he walked step by step in front of her, clearly enraged and ready to strike her at any moment, she stubbornly stuck out her neck and became even more defiant.

She thought that if Jia Lian dared to hit her, she would risk her dignity and settle the score with him.

Anyway, even if this matter is brought up to the old lady, she will still be in the right.

If he dares to lay a hand on me, I'll make him pay!

He certainly wouldn't dare let the old lady know what good deeds he'd done...

"Second Master..."

The maids, fearing that the two masters might actually fight, tried to intervene.

With a wave of his hand, Jia Lian then, in full view of everyone, picked up Wang Xifeng and carried her directly into the house.

"Second Master, Grandma..."

The maids were surprised and rushed forward, as if afraid that Jia Lian would throw Wang Xifeng over his shoulder.

"Don't block this place, go do what you're supposed to be doing!"

As they watched Jia Lian and Wang Xifeng disappear behind the curtain, and heard Jia Lian's instructions, the maids looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Second Master wouldn't actually hit Second Madam Lian, would he?"

In response to the maids' questions, the experienced female servants laughed and said, "It's just a couple's squabbles; they make up before they get out of bed. It's nothing serious. Go away, everyone."

Although the maids were skeptical, they dared not disobey and withdrew.

……

Inside the room, Jia Lian walked to the soft kang (heated brick bed), put down Wang Xifeng who was still struggling and cursing, and then found a stool to sit down himself.

Seeing that Jia Lian neither intended to attack nor speak, Wang Xifeng gradually stopped scolding him. Then, she pretended to wipe away tears and cried out, "I know I'm not good enough. I don't please you. Even if I'm not good for a thousand days, there's still one good day."

In the two years since I married into your family, I have served and taken care of the elders on the two or three floors above you every single day. And how many things have the men, women and grandmas in the whole family done without my help?

"And you, you never care about anything at home, all you do is go out drinking and carousing! And now, you've even set your sights on the people in your own father's household. If others find out, where will the face of your Jia family and our Wang family be? And what do you take me for...?"

The more she talked, the more aggrieved she felt, and in the end, she actually managed to shed two tears.

Jia Lian felt embarrassed, thinking to himself, "Since you know it's not good to spread this around, why were you blocking the door just now, trying to make this public?"

"You have no idea, around noon, when Sister-in-law You came over, I noticed that the way she looked at me was strange, but I didn't really know what was going on. It wasn't until later that Ping'er told me that you had been beaten again at the mansion over there, and I still..."

With her sobbing and trembling, Wang Xifeng finally showed some signs of a woman's pitiful state.

Jia Lian tried to argue: "You've misunderstood. I accidentally broke one of Master's beloved possessions, which is why I was beaten. I feel so wronged, and you, on the other hand, come back and start finding fault with me."

"Your words only fool outsiders; you think you can fool me? Let me ask you, in what way am I inferior to that prostitute that you'd be willing to be beaten to death by the magistrate just to get involved with her?"

This was also the question in Jia Lian's mind, but how could he possibly answer Wang Xifeng's question?

"I've already told you it's a misunderstanding, but you just won't believe me, there's nothing I can do."

Jia Lian shrugged, then noticed some pastries on a high plate on the kang table. He sat down, grabbed a piece, and put it in his mouth.

I was beaten before noon and then unconscious for half a day. I didn't even eat lunch, so I was really hungry.

Little did he know that his actions would immediately anger Wang Xifeng.

Still seething with anger, she reached out and knocked the pastries over, yelling, "Since you like prostitutes outside, why don't you go out and have them make you pastries? Why are you eating mine?!"

Ping'er, the maid who had been watching from the side, hurriedly stepped forward to tidy up the snacks that had spilled all over the kang (heated brick bed), and used her body as a boundary to separate the two to prevent them from fighting.

Seeing that only Ping'er was in the room, Jia Lian asked her, "Where is He Xiang?"

Upon hearing this question, not only did Ping'er pause in her actions, but even Wang Xifeng fell silent for a moment.

Ping'er glanced at Wang Xifeng's expression before replying, "Second Master, He Xiang stole Madam's Phoenix Hairpin. Madam interrogated her but she wouldn't admit it. In the end, we found it in her room."

Because she had served the Second Master for so many years, and out of consideration for him, the Madam didn't allow anything to be made public. She only quietly informed the Madam, and that afternoon, her mother took her back.

As Ping'er spoke, she looked at Jia Lian with some unease.

Jia Lian laughed.

Wang Xifeng is quite the schemer; she's adept at using the opportunity to eliminate "dissidents."

According to the rules of the Jia family, before a man gets married, he would have two maids by his side to help him understand the important matter of continuing the family line.

Jia Lian was no exception.

Before Wang Xifeng entered the household, he also had two maids in his room, one of whom later underwent facial surgery and became a concubine.

However, Wang Xifeng was driven out of the household in less than a year.

The remaining one, He Xiang, would probably not have survived this long if she hadn't been clever enough, and if Jia Lian hadn't been willing to protect her.

Unexpectedly, I still encountered trouble today.

He could understand Wang Xifeng's calculations; even though he had made such a big mistake today, he doubted she would dare to cause trouble for her over such a matter.

He even admired Wang Xifeng somewhat.

Not being blinded by anger, and even thinking about how to maximize one's own interests in the face of an unexpected event, is a quality that a person destined for greatness should possess.

"What, are you heartbroken and can't bear to part with it?"

Unlike Ping'er, Wang Xifeng was completely at ease; she seemed perfectly at ease.

"Stealing valuable property from the master's household is punishable by death by beating, even if the crime is handed over to the authorities. I have neither beaten nor punished her, and I have even returned her indenture. From now on, she will no longer have to do servants' work. This can be considered as fulfilling your friendship. What, are you still not satisfied? Otherwise, send someone to bring her back, and we can go to the old lady together and talk to her. Perhaps the old lady will take pity on her and let her stay, considering the good things you have done."

The last sentence was a blatant threat and sarcasm.

She knew that Jia Lian would definitely not dare to see the old lady at this time.

"No, Madam Feng is always meticulous in her actions, taking all aspects into consideration. How could I possibly be lacking?"

Jia Lian stood up and walked towards the inner room door.

His reaction made Wang Xifeng suspicious.

Based on her understanding of Jia Lian, she knew that even if he didn't dare to argue with her after she chased away his little beauty, he would definitely be extremely ashamed and angry.

How could she be so calm now, and even say something that made her feel vaguely uneasy?

But she was convinced she had already figured out Jia Lian's personality, so she didn't care why he was acting this way. Seeing him walk into the house, she jumped off the kang (a heated brick bed), put her hands on the doorway, and said, "You smell like a vixen, you're not allowed in my room!"

"grandmother……"

Ping'er spoke up from the side, trying to persuade her grandmother to stop and not to really anger the Second Master.

Wang Xifeng naturally ignored it.

Jia Lian didn't say anything more, turned around and lifted the curtain to go out.

Wang Xifeng shouted, "If you go out, never come back!!"

There was no response. Wang Xifeng ran to the door, but Jia Lian was nowhere to be seen. After thinking for a moment, she instructed Ping'er, "Go and check the side room."

Ping'er accepted the order and left. She returned a while later and shook her head at Wang Xifeng.

"Grandma, should we send someone to find Second Master?"

"No need, where could he have gone? He just went to the outer study in a huff."

Wang Xifeng sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) sullenly, feeling extremely displeased.

It was clearly Jia Lian who did something dirty and evil, but in the end it was as if he had been wronged, and she was expected to back down, admit defeat, and beg him to come back?

Ping'er said worriedly, "But, as you know, Second Master has a temper. If we just let him go out in a huff, what if..."

What if some vixen tries to seduce Second Master? Grandma, isn't that what you care about most?

A single sentence reminded Wang Xifeng: "Send someone to the front and tell me that if any sly foxes in the manor dare to fawn over him, they should all report back to me. Also, inform Wang'er that if their second master goes out, he must accompany him."

……

P.S.: Returning to Dream of the Red Chamber, welcome new and old friends to read and support.