Chapter 678: Good Fate is Suitable for Nourishment

Rongguo mansion, Lixiang courtyard.

Baochai listened to Baoyu talking eloquently, although the words were not said clearly, but the words had the intention of criticizing Jia Cong's calligraphy.

This made Baochai feel a bit strange and ashamed, but she was really too lazy to retort.

This kind of absurd thing was worth her arguing with Baoyu, which was quite ridiculous, and there was a suspicion of tarnishing Jia Cong, so for a while, Baochai felt like sitting on pins and needles.

Baoyu saw that Baochai did not refute, and felt that his words were reasonable, and his interest became more intense, and his spirit was already a bit excited...

Ying'er, who served Baochai, really couldn't listen anymore, and she was a temperamental person who dared to speak.

Couldn't help but say: "Bao Bao Er Ye's words can't be compared with..."

Baochai was naturally familiar with the temper of this personal maid who had been together since childhood, and knew that the second half of the sentence would offend people.

Actually, even if Ying'er offended Baoyu, Baochai didn't care much in her heart.

Who made Baoyu's words absurd, slandering Jia Cong behind his back, although it didn't reach the point of character flaws, it was shallow and overestimating his own strength.

But Ying'er couldn't help but stab people, Baochai didn't wait for her to say it, and interrupted her words.

"Ying'er, don't stand there, go and make a cup of tea for Bao brother."

Ying'er had followed Baochai for so many years, naturally had a tacit understanding, and as soon as the Miss suddenly interrupted, she understood Baochai's meaning.

She hummed slightly, then lifted the door curtain and went out of the room.

Baochai was not worried that Ying'er would offend Baoyu, but she was wary of Wang Furen.

After all, the relationship between the family and this aunt, although it was normal on the surface, was actually not as good as before.

Moreover, her aunt still held her and Cong brother's "handle."

That day, she was about to slip, and Cong brother was afraid that she would fall, so he held her...

Baochai still felt hot all over when she thought of the charm of that day.

Although she had a clear conscience, if Ying'er collided with Baoyu, and her aunt knew that Baoyu was ridiculed by a maid.

With her aunt's extreme protection and doting on Baoyu, she would definitely be very angry, feeling that Baoyu had lost face.

If she used this to retaliate and shouted out her and Cong brother's "handle."

Even if she and Cong brother were innocent,

As a young lady, even if she jumped into the Yellow River, she wouldn't be able to wash herself clean. Once her reputation was ruined, how could she live in the future?

At that moment, a thought even flashed through Baochai's mind: if Xue Yima wanted to make a scene, let her make a scene; it would save her from always being on pins and needles.

Brother Cong is a man of responsibility; he won't ignore me...

But this extremely absurd thought only flashed through Baochai's mind before it left her flustered and panicked, and she dared not think of it a second time.

Seeing Ying'er leave in a huff and ultimately not say anything harsh to Baoyu, she felt a sense of relief, yet also a strange sense of loss.

……

In the side room next to the main room, Ying'er was angrily brewing tea. Seeing that her expression was not right, Jin Chuan couldn't help but walk over.

She asked, "Sister Ying'er, what's wrong with you? Who gave you such anger?"

Seeing it was Jin Chuan, Ying'er, who was already full of anger, found it a perfect opportunity to vent, so she whispered in her ear.

She said, "You tell me, this Baoyu, I don't know where he caught a cold wind, but he brought a piece of worthless calligraphy paper for no reason just to tease our young lady.

Right in front of our young lady, he picked faults and said that Brother Cong's calligraphy was not good, as if the calligraphy he wrote was actually better than Brother Cong's.

Who in the two mansions doesn't know that if Baoyu weren't beaten and scolded by his uncle, how many days a year could he study or write a few characters? Yet he has the face to look down on Brother Cong.

You didn't see the situation; the young lady's expression turned ugly, yet he kept talking and talking without any sense of propriety."

Upon hearing this, Jin Chuan bit her lip in anger and said, "The mansion is not what it used to be. Since he is still living in the West Mansion, he should just be quiet.

He always finds things to say to disparage Brother Cong every day, thinking everyone else is soft-hearted and still has to follow and coax him like before.

Last time, on the happy day of Brother Cong's success in the examinations, he also said these loose words, and he already made a fool of himself. He still hasn't woken up yet."

Jin Chuan took the tea Ying'er had brewed, placed it on a black lacquer tray, and said, "I'll go deliver this tea."

Ying'er saw that Jin Chuan's expression was not good and advised, "Anger is anger, but don't do anything reckless.

I can see that the young lady doesn't want to offend him, probably out of consideration for the Xue Yima's side. Don't go against the young lady's wishes."

Jin Chuan carried the tea tray and said, "Sister Ying'er, don't worry, I know my limits."

……

In the main room, Baoyu was talking enthusiastically: "Sister Bao, look at these characters I wrote. There is wrist strength in the brush strokes, and there are waves and turns in the horizontal strokes..."

Baochai's eyes occasionally looked at the "Man Jiang Hong" on the wall. Listening to Baoyu's boasting, her stomach churned, and her pretty face could barely hold its composure.

Just as she saw the door curtain lifted, it was Jin Chuan who entered with the tea tray. Baochai found it strange; why wasn't Ying'er delivering the tea?

Seeing Jin Chuan enter with the tea, Baoyu felt a surge of joy, and for a moment, he even forgot about Baochai.

Among Lady Wang's head maids, Jin Chuan had always been the most beautiful.

Because Baoyu saw that she was beautiful, he naturally loved to provoke her; otherwise, that incident wouldn't have happened.

Ever since Jin Chuan was asked for by Baochai, Baoyu felt quite regretful, and seeing her treat him like a flood or a wild beast every time they met made him feel even more heartbroken.

Now, seeing her enter with tea, he was overjoyed and somewhat forgot himself, smiling, "Why trouble yourself to bring the tea, Sister?"

Hearing Baoyu's somewhat frivolous words, Baochai couldn't help but frown again.

Hearing Baoyu's words, Jin Chuan's pretty face remained expressionless. She walked to the desk, picked up the teacup, and handed it to Baoyu.

She said, "Bao Er Ye Bao, please have some tea."

Just as the teacup was about to be handed to Baoyu, Jin Chuan seemed to lose her footing, stumbled, and let out an "Oh!"

She didn't hold the teacup steady, and with a "clatter," the entire teacup flew from her hand and smashed onto the desk.

The scalding tea instantly spilled all over the desk, soaking the calligraphy paper Baoyu had laid out.

……

Seeing his masterpiece soaked into a mess by the steaming tea,

Baoyu cried out in distress, "What is to be done? What is to be done? Such a perfectly good piece of calligraphy ruined like this!"

His tone was pained, as if he were about to cry, as if a peerless masterpiece had been destroyed by Jin Chuan, his heart filled with infinite regret and sorrow.

Baochai said urgently, "Jin Chuan, how could you be so clumsy..."

Hearing Baochai's words, Baoyu felt a slight sense of comfort, and his sorrow seemed to diminish a little. He sighed in his heart, "Sister Bao is the only one who understands my worth."

But suddenly, he heard Baochai say the next sentence: "Hurry over and let me see if you burned your hand!

Such scalding tea, if it burns your hand, it will leave a scar. That would be terrible!"

Baoyu: "..."

He had originally thought Baochai spoke urgently because she felt sorry for his calligraphy masterpiece and was blaming Jin Chuan for being clumsy and causing trouble.

He never expected the exact opposite: Baochai didn't care at all about his calligraphy being ruined, only feeling pained about whether the maid had been burned.

Baoyu's heart was filled with awkwardness and loss, along with a habitual sense of sorrow and indignation.

He really couldn't understand: could it be that the calligraphy he wrote with such effort was not as valuable as a maid like Jin Chuan? How could Sister Bao have become so muddled!

Seeing Baochai grab Jin Chuan's small hand, turning it over and over to check, her expression very nervous, and only feeling relieved after confirming there were no burns,

as for the calligraphy paper soaked into a mess on the desk, she didn't even glance at it. Baoyu felt even more heartbroken.

He said, "Jin Chuan, a perfectly good piece of calligraphy ruined by you, truly a waste of a treasure. In the future, when you are in charge of your own household, will you be this clumsy too!"

Jin Chuan's pretty face flushed red with anger, but remembering Ying'er's reminder just now, if she retorted to Baoyu, it would give others a handle against her young lady.

So she just bit her lip, didn't say a word, and didn't even look at Baoyu.

……

Hearing Baoyu reprimand Jin Chuan in front of her, Baochai felt some dissatisfaction.

She said, "Brother Bao, it's common for maids to drop cups and plates in their daily work. Fortunately, no one was hurt.

It's just a piece of calligraphy. Since Brother Bao can write, just write another one when you go back.

Brother Cong can also write, and many people value his calligraphy.

But the scrolls he writes daily are all thrown to Zhen Ying Lian and the others to practice their calligraphy, and he doesn't take them seriously, so these are all trivial matters. Brother Bao, it's not worth getting angry over this."

Upon hearing this, Baoyu's sorrow and indignation overflowed. Why is Jia Cong everywhere? Why is everything compared to Jia Cong? Where does he have such fragrance?

Just as their conversation was becoming stiff, the door curtain was suddenly lifted, and Xue Yima Xue entered with a smile on her face.

Xue Yima Xue seemed completely unaware of the atmosphere in the room and said with a warm smile, "Baoyu, how do you have time to come over today? It's been a few days since I last saw you.

Have your knee injuries healed properly? These things involving bones and muscles shouldn't be taken lightly at such a young age, lest they leave behind lingering ailments."

Hearing Xue Yima Xue's words, although they sounded affectionate, they were somewhat like touching a sore spot...

She started by talking about his embarrassing incident, which made him feel somewhat ashamed in front of Sister Bao.

He forced a smile and said, "Thank you, Xue Yima, for your concern. It's nothing major; they have healed properly, they are already healed..."

……

Xue Yima Xue had just heard from Ying'er that Baoyu had come and even entered her daughter's boudoir, so she hurriedly found an excuse to come over.

Originally, Xue Yima Xue had been quite fond of Baoyu, because her sister's second branch inherited the Rongguo Prefecture, and Baoyu was the apple of the Grandmother's eye, the "Phoenix Man" of the Rongguo Prefecture.

She had once worked with Lady Wang to promote the marriage between Baoyu and Baochai, and even created the talk of a "Gold and Jade Marriage" in the Rongguo Prefecture.

But now that times had changed, the Jia family's second branch had become a side branch, and the benefits Xue Yima Xue had originally seen in Baoyu were now gone.

More importantly, Lady Wang had accidentally seen the intimate actions between Jia Cong and Baochai and falsely accused them of having improper relations.

Lady Wang even used this to try to force her sister's family out of the Rongguo Prefecture. If it hadn't been for Jia Cong's intervention to keep them, the Xue family would have been forced to move out of the Jia mansion.

These events had caused a rift between the two sisters...

Moreover, Jia Cong was becoming increasingly brilliant, her daughter had always been devoted to him, and there was even a hint from her brother, Wang Ziteng.

With all these factors, Xue Yima Xue had long since changed her mind, and it was now impossible for her to treat Baoyu as she once did.

Furthermore, Baoyu had made a fool of himself one after another this year, and his reputation outside was somewhat tarnished.

It was only her sister who was there burying her head in the sand, still thinking her son was the best in the world, not knowing how people outside were ridiculing him behind his back.

Plus, Baoyu was now already engaged, equivalent to being a married man.

For him to still be casually entering and leaving her daughter's boudoir like this, wouldn't that cause gossip for her daughter?

Thinking of these things, Xue Yima Xue couldn't help but feel disgusted, so naturally, she had to come over early.

……

As soon as Xue Yima Xue entered the room, she saw tea spilled all over the desk, and her daughter and the maid Jin Chuan both had ugly expressions.

Seeing this situation, she felt even more uncomfortable, but she didn't show it on her face at all.

She felt somewhat resentful in her heart that Brother Cong only cared about being pure and carefree in the East Mansion and had taken all his sisters away, leaving him with no more worries.

He threw the West Mansion entirely to Phoenix to struggle with, and Phoenix, now heavily pregnant, had no heart to carefully manage the inner courtyard.

Why didn't they think about Bao-girl? She was still a maiden and was currently living in the Jia family's inner courtyard.

Letting Baoyu, an outside male, run around the inner courtyard like this was too improper.

Baoyu often came over to talk nonsense. Xue Yima Xue was an experienced woman; how could she not see that he wanted to provoke her daughter?

He was already a married man, yet he still didn't know how to be discreet. How come she hadn't seen it before...

It was just that Xue Yima Xue was wary of that formidable sister of hers, and her daughter had a handle in others' hands, so it wasn't easy to show her face and drive him away. It was truly agonizing.

……

Baoyu smiled, "I haven't seen Sister Bao for a long time, so I came over to visit. Xue Yima, how has your health been lately?"

Xue Yima Xue heard Baoyu's polite words and felt even more awkward. You are someone about to get married, and Bao-girl is still waiting in her boudoir.

You haven't seen my daughter for a long time, so you came to take a look? What kind of ghost talk is this? You don't feel ashamed saying it out loud...

Although Xue Yima Xue felt disgusted, she was, after all, an experienced woman in the inner chambers, so she wouldn't show a bit of her displeasure on her face.

She smiled, "Good child, it's hard for you to keep thinking of us. We've been here for a few years, and I've watched you grow up day by day.

Now that you have even set an engagement with the Xia family of Osmanthus, it is truly the best thing. Both Bao-girl and I are happy for you.

I have seen the Xia girl with my own eyes; she even attended a banquet here at my place. She is truly a top-tier beauty and character.

You and the Xia girl are truly a match made in heaven; there couldn't be anything more suitable."

Baoyu was most afraid of people talking about his engagement, feeling that he was naturally romantic and couldn't abandon it, and he immediately lost most of his color because of this.

Now, hearing Xue Yima Xue talk about this matter at length, not only describing the Xia girl as a celestial being but also saying she and he were a match made in heaven,

then what did his coming to find Sister Bao count as...

Baoyu saw that when Baochai heard Xue Yima Xue's words, her smile was calm, looking like she was happy to see it happen.

Jin Chuan, on the side, was biting her lip hard, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but twitch, as if she wanted to laugh.

Baoyu suddenly felt as if he had been poked through, his heart unable to suppress his shame, wishing he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

His heart was filled with infinite sorrow and indignation, almost forgetting himself and crying out to the sky, "Why did I have to get engaged? It wasn't my own wish."

Does this have anything to do with me? This is truly unreasonable...

……

Xue Yima Xue continued, "Last time I was chatting with the Grandmother, the Grandmother also mentioned that by the end of the year, she would hold the wedding for you and the Xia girl.

The Xia girl is not only outstanding in beauty, but her temperament is also gentle and generous, and she looks like she is easy to bear children.

I've calculated the days; by this time next year, you and the Xia girl will surely have blossomed and borne fruit, and my sister will be holding a grandson again."

Xue Yima Xue's words were filled with affection and envy; anyone could hear that she was genuinely happy for Baoyu.

Baochai saw her mother stepping on Baoyu's heart to speak, and wondered why she hadn't thought of it just now. Ginger is indeed spicier when it's old...

Baochai smiled and said, "I have also seen the Xia girl; she is indeed an extremely outstanding young lady. Brother Bao is truly blessed."

Baoyu's face was somewhat purple and swollen at this time, as if the words of his Xue Yima and Sister Bao made him somewhat shy.

Only he knew in his heart that these warm and festive words were like stabbing him with a knife; he wished he could die immediately.

At this moment, he regretted in his heart, "Why did I write calligraphy and come over? Hearing Sister Bao congratulate me on my beautiful marriage, things shouldn't be like this!"

Baoyu thought that in the future, when he came to Lixiang Courtyard, Xue Yima would likely love to talk about marriage and having children as soon as she saw him.

How could he still be a proper person in front of Sister Bao, how could he still be romantic, and how could he still pour out his water-like tenderness to young ladies?

"I, a perfectly innocent person, have fallen to this point. Truly, heaven has no eyes to trample me to this extent..."

……

Seeing Baoyu's face was already ugly, Xue Yima Xue knew her words had hit the mark, and she looked down on his thoughts even more.

But after all, out of consideration for her sister, she still stopped at the right point, letting Baoyu know his status and not letting his mind wander.

She smiled again and said, "Before you came just now, I was talking to your Sister Bao that Phoenix's good day is coming soon, and we were just thinking of going to see her.

Why don't you come with us to see your Sister Phoenix?"

Hearing this, Baoyu felt as if he had been granted an amnesty; he really didn't want to suffer any longer.

Although he also thought about visiting Phoenix's courtyard and seeing the beautiful Ping'er and Wu'er,

he cleverly thought that Phoenix was currently pregnant and heard she was about to give birth.

If Xue Yima went over now, the topic would surely not be able to leave the matter of having children.

By then, if he accompanied them, the topic of Xue Yima having children would surely turn to him and the Xia girl.

How could he conduct himself in front of Sister Bao? Moreover, there were also beautiful young ladies like Ping'er and Wu'er there.

Although Baoyu wanted to join the fun, he absolutely couldn't afford to lose this face.

He couldn't help but be moved by his own cleverness and hurriedly said, "Xue Yima, I still have things to do. I'll go see Sister Phoenix another day."

Saying this, he hurriedly said goodbye and left.

Seeing Baoyu leave, his figure somewhat stumbling, looking very disheveled,

Jin Chuan couldn't help but hum, but Baochai glared at her. Jin Chuan's face flushed slightly, and she couldn't help but stick out her tongue.

While cleaning up the spilled tea and stains on the desk, she picked up the soaked calligraphy paper, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it into the waste bin.

……

Rongguo Prefecture, Phoenix's Courtyard.

Wang Xifeng had Ping'er send away the physician, and the two were chatting when Wu'er also finished her work and returned.

At this moment, footsteps sounded in the courtyard, and as the door curtain was lifted, Xue Yima Xue and Baochai were seen entering with smiles.

Behind them followed maids like Tongxi, Ying'er, Jin Chuan, and others, a lively group of people.

Wang Xifeng smiled, "I said I heard a magpie chirping in the afternoon. Xue Yima, I haven't seen you for several days. How do you have time to come over today?"

Xue Yima Xue smiled, "You are currently pregnant and still taking the trouble to manage such a large mansion. This courtyard is like an official office on duty.

With daily affairs coming and going, it must be overwhelming, so I didn't want to come often to add to the chaos.

It's just that calculating the time, your good day is coming soon, so your sister and I naturally had to come and take a look.

We still have a medicinal herb shop in the city, which was moved from Jin Ling back then, and it can receive top-quality bird's nests from the south.

It's excellent for women to nourish themselves after giving birth. I have already instructed the shopkeeper to collect two catties of the freshest ones from the south, and they should be delivered in a few days."

Wang Xifeng smiled, "Then I will have to trouble you, Xue Yima."

The two chatted some more, and Xue Yima Xue reached out to touch Wang Xifeng's abdomen, smiling and saying it looked like she was going to have a boy.

This time Baoyu was quite wise. Xue Yima Xue met Wang Xifeng; one was an experienced person, and the other was about to give birth.

The topics they chatted about back and forth were all about having children.

The young ladies all had flushed faces, listening curiously on the side.

Baochai was still whispering to Wu'er and pointed at Wang Xifeng's belly, making Wu'er's pretty face even more flushed.

After chatting, Wang Xifeng remembered that earlier matter and was somewhat indecisive.

Thinking of what Xue Yima Xue had just said about the south, her heart couldn't help but stir.

She asked, "Xue Yima only came to the Divine Capital in the last two years and had always lived in Jin Ling. Many of the Xue family's businesses are still in Jin Ling.

I imagine you are familiar with the people in Jin Ling and have well-informed news. Are there any rare events in Jin Ling recently?

I heard that the Zhen family in Jin Ling seems to be uneasy recently. Xue Yima, have you heard..." (End of chapter)