Chapter 711: Affectionate Matters in the Inner Chambers

Count's Mansion, Jia Cong's courtyard.

Jia Cong was somewhat reluctant to leave Lin Daiyu's soft and fragrant bed and said, "I was pinched painfully by Sister just now, and now I can't get up."

Lin Daiyu's small face was pink, and she said dissatisfiedly, "Third Brother, why are you so shameless? I didn't use much strength, yet you are so delicate."

"Then I'll help you rub it, and Third Brother, get up quickly. If Xuanyan sends tea in later and sees this, what will it look like?"

Lin Daiyu said, reaching out her hand to rub Jia Cong's mouth corners gently. Her fingertips were cool, her skin soft, and a drunken fragrance permeated her thin gauze sleeves.

She lowered her head slightly, her bright eyes flowing with waves, and her green hair brushed against Jia Cong's cheeks, causing a tingling sensation that made Jia Cong smile.

Lin Daiyu saw his bright smile and felt a wave of heat on her face.

Her pink face turned to the side, and she snorted softly, muttering, "Shameless." But her hand didn't stop, seeming to become even gentler.

Until she heard footsteps in the corridor outside the door, Lin Daiyu retracted her hand, and Jia Cong didn't dare to mess around too much and hurriedly sat up.

Lin Daiyu breathed a sigh of relief, seeing Xuanyan lift the door curtain and bring in hot tea, smiling, "Cong Sanye, please have some tea."

Jia Cong drank two sips of hot tea, and the flush on Lin Daiyu's face faded slightly.

Jia Cong asked, "Sister, I heard Zhi Shao say that this gift was brought by an old friend of Father-in-law's hometown, and this person is coming to the capital to serve as an official?"

Lin Lin Daiyu replied, "Yes, this uncle and Father were from the same hometown and same examination year. They have known each other since they were young, and his name is Luo Luo Shoulun."

"This Uncle Luo served as the magistrate of Xiang Yunyan County in Dezhou after passing the examination, and later was transferred to the Ministry of Justice in Jinling."

"More than ten years ago, the archives of the Ministry of Justice in Jinling caught fire, burning many important documents. He was on duty at the time and could not shirk the responsibility."

"I heard Father say that the Retired Emperor was on the throne at the time and was furious, wanting to punish Luo Luo Shoulun by exile."

"Later, someone in the capital pleaded for him before the Emperor, so he was exempted from exile and demoted to be the county assistant of Wuxian in Gusu."

Jia Cong also felt a bit of sighing when he heard this. The Ministry of Justice official was Grade 6B, and the county assistant was Grade 8A. This was a demotion of four grades due to crime.

Moreover, county assistants were usually held by filial piety candidates or scholars, and the official path was very narrow, making it extremely difficult to be promoted to a regular position.

A two-degree scholar being demoted to an eighth-grade county assistant was not only a great humiliation but also a devastating disaster for his official career.

Lin Daiyu continued, "After this uncle took office in Wuxian, his official career was quite bumpy."

"Every three-year examination by the Ministry of Personnel, he was of middle-lower grade and could never be promoted."

"The county magistrate of Wuxian had been changed several times, but he had always been a county assistant. Counting it, it has been more than ten years."

"Because he was an official in his hometown, he had many dealings with the Lin family. Every time Father returned to his hometown to visit his relatives, they would have family banquets and pay respects to each other. I have seen him many times when I was young."

Jia Cong knew that Lin Lin Ruhai was a proud scholar of the examination field, a talent of the third rank, and a person with deep city and vision.

Entertaining with a family banquet among scholar-officials was a manifestation of a very close relationship.

This Luo Luo Shoulun had a low official position and was sinking in the lower ranks, yet he could be valued and befriended by Lin Lin Ruhai. It was definitely not just because they were from the same hometown and same year.

It was likely that his talent and character were not ordinary.

The two chatted about many idle things, and time passed quickly. When it was time for dinner, Lin Daiyu asked Xuanyan to prepare an extra portion in the kitchen.

The two used the evening meal together, and Lin Daiyu saw that the sky outside the window had darkened.

She said, "Third Brother, it's already late, and I have to rest. Come and talk to me after you come back from work tomorrow."

She sent Jia Cong to the courtyard gate and watched him leave alone before returning to the room.

Lady Rongguo Mansion, Jia Baoyu's courtyard.

The sunset glow disappeared, night fell, and the lanterns in the courtyard were lit one by one.

Because the monthly allowance was delayed in the past few days, the maids in the courtyard were somewhat unstable.

Musk was transparent in her heart. Because she saw the root of the matter, she didn't take this matter to heart.

Sister Xi Ren and Seeing Caiyun had already entered Jia Baoyu's room. The delay of the monthly allowance, apart from feeling aggrieved, didn't have much hindrance for them.

Among them, the one who was restless because of this was Autumn Pattern and Bihen.

Among them, Bihen was the most restless. Lady Wang gave her personal maid Seeing Caiyun to Jia Baoyu to serve in the room, but didn't choose her.

This made Bihen extremely disappointed, filled with worry and fear, and somewhat resentful of Jia Baoyu for not speaking up for her in front of the Mistress.

Since last summer, she was instigated by Jia Baoyu to take a bath together. Not only was she deflowered by Jia Baoyu, but she was also messed with by him for several hours.

After that, the two of them secretly messed around in a remote place in the courtyard several times behind Sister Xi Ren's back.

Bihen had given her body away and had no way back, naturally hoping to enter Jia Baoyu's room sooner.

Even if she couldn't get the status of a concubine for a while, as long as she became a concubine in the room, it would be considered a proper ending.

But she didn't expect that after Seeing Caiyun entered the room, Sister Xi Ren didn't know what the reason was, and watched Jia Baoyu very closely day and night.

Bihen spent a lot of effort to get close to Jia Baoyu, but she couldn't even grasp a gap.

Not to mention that a few days ago, the Mistress came over, not only scolded Musk severely, but also set rules that only Sister Xi Ren and Seeing Caiyun were allowed to serve at night, while she and Autumn Pattern could only serve outside.

This almost cut off Bihen's thought of getting involved with Jia Baoyu.

Her past messing around with Jia Baoyu was only private and sneaky. Even if Sister Xi Ren and the others knew, they didn't catch any solid evidence.

Even that time when they took a bath, the doors were closed, and no one saw the dirty business with their own eyes.

As the days passed, Bihen watched Sister Xi Ren and Seeing Caiyun take turns spending the night in Jia Baoyu's room, her heart burning like fire.

She had given her body to the Bao Er Ye, but he didn't take her seriously at all, having fun with others every day and leaving her aside.

Bihen was no longer young, and in another year, she would reach the age of being released. By then, she would mostly be matched with a boy in the outer courtyard.

She hated those dirty little servants in the outer courtyard, but what terrified her even more was not just that.

By then, she would no longer be able to hide that she had been deflowered, not only ruining her reputation but also living a miserable life for the rest of her life.

If the Mistress investigated her seduction of Jia Baoyu, she wouldn't even be able to save her life, and by then, the Bao Er Ye would no longer remember who she was...

She was also born into the Jia family and had seen too much of the world in the mansion.

The monthly allowance of each branch was not a small matter, and she had never heard of it being withheld. Now that the Second Grandmother dared to take action against the Bao Er Ye, everyone knew something was going to happen.

Last time Musk came back to pass the message, the Second Grandmother said that the public funds were struggling to maneuver and there were not enough surplus funds, so the monthly allowance was delayed.

When Bihen heard about the public funds struggling to maneuver, she thought of the last time Jia Baoyu's room was reduced in population.

She guessed that Wang Wang Xifeng wanted to reduce expenses, so she released the news in advance. The delay of the monthly allowance was also a pretext. Was she going to reduce the Bao Er Ye's population again?

Last time Jia Baoyu's room was reduced in population, even senior maids like Mount Qixia and Tanyun were ruthlessly dismissed.

Tanyun was the oldest and had been matched with a servant in the outer courtyard, and Mount Qixia was now working in the kitchen, living a very miserable life.

When they were in the room, the Bao Er Ye was sweet-mouthed, but once they were driven out, the Bao Er Ye forgot about them. Tanyun was probably already a dead fish eye in the Bao Er Ye's heart...

Last time, because she had an affair with Jia Baoyu, he finally remembered some of the bed intimacy and kept her once.

If the population in the room was reduced again, Bihen had no confidence that she could escape again.

Because Sister Xi Ren and Seeing Caiyun had already entered the Bao Er Ye's room, they naturally couldn't be dismissed.

Autumn Pattern often spoke in front of the Mistress and was the Mistress's eyes and ears in the Bao Er Ye's room, so the Mistress would mostly keep her.

Musk was the most clever and capable, with a sharp mouth, and was useful everywhere. Moreover, she was close to Sister Xi Ren, so Sister Xi Ren would definitely help her.

Although Musk was scolded by the Mistress a few days ago, it didn't sound like a big deal, and it mostly didn't involve any important places.

Bihen had no chance to enter the room, her mind was unsettled, and she was thinking wildly, discovering that she was the most precarious person in Jia Baoyu's room.

Now, every time the sky darkened, Bihen would feel anxious for no reason, almost every day, which was unbearable.

She pushed open the window of the side room and saw the candlelight flickering in Jia Baoyu's room, with people walking back and forth from time to time. She even knew that Seeing Caiyun was on duty tonight.

Bihen felt jealous like a fire, cursing in a low voice, hoping that Seeing Caiyun, this little hoof, would be tossed to death by the Bao Er Ye...

She got angrier the more she thought about it, closed the window, returned to her bed, and covered her head to sleep, out of sight, out of mind.

Not long after she closed the window, Autumn Pattern carried a tea tray, walked along the corridor in the courtyard, and the lanterns under the eaves stretched and distorted her shadow.

She walked to the door of Jia Baoyu's room and pushed it slightly, finding that the door was locked from the inside.

She tried to make her voice as gentle as possible and stood at the door, saying, "Bao Er Ye, it's cold at night now. I'm here to change your night tea."

A voice of impatience came from the room: "The night tea has already been changed. We are going to sleep. You go down and rest."

Autumn Pattern felt depressed when she heard this. It wasn't even dark yet, and the Bao Er Ye wanted to sleep with Seeing Caiyun. Was he really that useful, and he didn't feel tired?

Autumn Pattern had also been unsettled recently. In order to climb onto Jia Baoyu's bed, she loved to pass small words in front of Lady Wang, thus causing a lot of trouble.

She originally thought that by pleasing the Mistress, the Mistress would feel she was intimate and would reward her to sleep with Jia Baoyu when she was happy.

Unfortunately, Autumn Pattern's wishful thinking didn't work. Lady Wang saw that her tongue was loose, but she just used her as eyes and ears.

She wanted to choose a woman for Jia Baoyu, so she naturally chose a close maid. In fact, she didn't take Autumn Pattern seriously at all.

A few days ago, Lady Wang gave orders again that only Sister Xi Ren and Seeing Caiyun were allowed to serve at night, leaving Autumn Pattern with no opportunity, and she panicked for a while.

She was the same age as Bihen and a few months older than Bihen. If she didn't get things done quickly, she would also be matched with a boy.

She didn't dare to provoke Sister Xi Ren, and because Seeing Caiyun was a newcomer, she was naturally unconvinced.

Every time it was Seeing Caiyun's turn to be on duty, she always found excuses to interrupt, and she couldn't get onto Jia Baoyu's bed, nor would she let Seeing Caiyun be comfortable.

After doing this several times, Seeing Caiyun naturally knew what was going on and didn't care about Autumn Pattern's interference. Anyway, she was just idle.

Even Jia Baoyu noticed Autumn Pattern's intention. Every time it was Seeing Caiyun's turn to be on duty, Jia Baoyu would lock the door early to prevent her from making noise.

Autumn Pattern left with the tea tray in anger. Not long after she left, the candles in the room went out. She couldn't help but stop and lean close to the window to listen.

She vaguely saw figures moving in the room and the sound of messy footsteps.

She heard Seeing Caiyun say, "Bao Er Ye, why are you pulling my clothes again? Better not mess around. Let's rest early."

Outside the window, Autumn Pattern heard this and felt a bit strange. Seeing Caiyun was still quite proud. The Bao Er Ye was messing with her, yet she was unwilling. This was truly stupid...

She heard Jia Baoyu laugh, "It's been so many days, Sister, why are you still shy? The rites of Zhou Gong are recorded in the classics and passed down by the sages. It is an elegant matter."

Autumn Pattern listened to this outside the window and felt muddled. The Bao Er Ye had been reading books by the bed recently, and he really had learned something, speaking in a literary way even when sleeping.

She heard Seeing Caiyun speak again, her voice muttering and a bit confused: "Do sages also need to take medicine when doing this kind of thing?"

Autumn Pattern became even more muddled. Sleeping is sleeping, why is it related to taking medicine?

She didn't know that Seeing Caiyun and Jia Baoyu had been in the same room for several months, and she was actually the same as her, muddled about many things.

She wanted to continue listening, but heard the sound of pulling clothes and undressing in the room, as well as Jia Baoyu's laughter and Seeing Caiyun's shy complaints.

"Bao Er Ye, what's the hurry? What's yours is yours, it won't run away. Look, you've torn my bodice again..."

Autumn Pattern was also inexperienced in human affairs. Hearing such fragrant and fierce words, her whole body felt hot, her legs felt weak, and she couldn't stand straight, squatting under the window.

She wanted to escape, but couldn't help but be curious and jealous, squatting under the window, reluctant to leave, her eyes hot and her heart beating, her legs tight and uncomfortable.

She heard Jia Baoyu's excited panting in the room, the movement was quite loud, and Seeing Caiyun also made sounds of panting and pushing.

Autumn Pattern had understood human affairs since she grew up, and occasionally heard old women tell dirty jokes. This scene was like eight or nine out of ten.

Seeing Caiyun just called out a few times perfunctorily, then became silent, only Jia Baoyu's blind effort sounded quite like it.

Autumn Pattern felt a bit strange in her heart. Although she hadn't experienced human affairs, she had seen a lot in the mansion.

The scenes those old women talked about seemed a bit different from what was in front of her. How could Seeing Caiyun, this little hoof, be a bit idle...

I don't know how long it had been, Autumn Pattern's legs were numb from squatting under the window, and she was even a bit bored, feeling cold from the night wind.

Suddenly, she heard Seeing Caiyun's soft voice, as if she was about to fall asleep, saying, "Bao Er Ye, don't toss anymore. You don't feel tired? Let's sleep early."

Autumn Pattern heard this and felt suspicious. Seeing Caiyun, this promiscuous hoof, must be crazy. She could even feel sleepy at this moment. This was too strange.

She heard Jia Baoyu muttering something she didn't know, and Autumn Pattern couldn't hear it clearly hiding outside the window, and the room became silent.

Not long after, a burst of snoring was heard, and it seemed both of them had fallen asleep.

Autumn Pattern couldn't stay any longer, propped up her numb legs, and left in a hurry, but her heart was full of doubts, always feeling that things were very wrong...

Count's Mansion, Jia Cong's courtyard.

Outside the window, the night was deep blue, the cool wind was blowing, and a row of lanterns hung on the corridor, scattering soft yellow light.

The study was brightly lit, and Jia Cong was busy in front of the desk.

Ying Lady Lian held an idle book and sat beside Jia Cong. As the night deepened, she flipped through half a book and began to doze off.

Jia Cong was writing vigorously on paper from time to time, and drawing pictures on rice paper from time to time.

He was proficient in calligraphy and had a foundation in painting, not only writing characters with vigor but also making every picture vivid.

A few days ago, he received an imperial decree from Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao to supervise the construction of rear-loading guns, and at the same time, he drew elites from the Divine Machine Camp to conduct rear-loading gun training.

Because the rear-loading gun's shooting mode, lethality, range, and rate of fire were all completely different from the improved Lumichong.

He wanted the soldiers of the Divine Machine Camp, who were familiar with the improved Lumichong, to quickly adapt to the shooting method of the rear-loading gun and quickly form combat effectiveness.

The previous training method for front-loading firearms naturally could no longer fit.

Therefore, Jia Cong prepared to write a rear-loading gun drill manual for the training of the Divine Machine Camp's rear-loading gunners.

He had been busy with this for several days. The overall framework of the manual was already available, and eight or nine out of ten of the chapter contents were completed. It would be ready in two days.

He finished the last stroke of a rear-loading gun formation diagram, just put down the brush, and saw Ying Lady Lian dozing off beside him.

He smiled and pinched her soft earlobe, laughing, "Look at how sleepy you are, yet you still insist on staying up like this."

Ying Lady Lian rubbed her eyes and laughed, "Cong Sanye, are you done?"

Jia Cong laughed, "That's it for today. I'll continue tomorrow. You go to sleep quickly. If you get dark circles tomorrow, it won't look good."

The two blew out the candles in the study and returned to their rooms to rest.

Jia Cong returned to the main room and saw candles lit on the dressing table, reflected by the bronze mirror, looking exceptionally bright.

Qingwen was sewing an emerald soft silk inner garment by the candlelight, looking very focused. When Jia Cong entered the room, she didn't notice it for a while.

Jia Cong saw Qingwen wearing red pajamas, red silk pants, and a pair of red sleeping shoes.

Under the flickering candlelight, she was bright red and charming, her skin was like snow, her nose was straight, her beautiful eyes were flowing, and she had a stunning beauty.

Qingwen was outstanding among the maids in the two mansions. She was the same age as Jia Cong and had already turned fifteen.

In the past two years, she had grown taller and became even more bright and moving.

When Jia Cong walked up to her, Qingwen noticed it. Her hand trembled slightly, and she cried out "Ouch," her soft white fingertip pricked by a needle.

Jia Cong saw a drop of blood oozing from her fingertip and frowned, "Why are you so careless? Let me take a look."

Qingwen laughed, sucked her finger into her pink lips, and laughed, "It's a common thing to do needlework. I'm not that delicate."

Qingwen blinked her bright eyes and looked at Jia Cong, seemingly wanting to see something from his face.

She said, "Today is the fourteenth. Usually, it's Wu'er's turn to be on duty. Cong Sanye, seeing it's me, you must be uncomfortable."

Jia Cong laughed, "You fast-mouthed girl, where are you talking nonsense again? When was I uncomfortable?"

Qingwen pouted her small mouth and said, "Everyone knows. You are so good with Wu'er now, naturally you are happier to see her than me."

Qingwen's words were not without reason. On the day Zhi Shao and Wu'er offered tea to Jia Mu in the Rongqing Hall, it was not just a simple cup of tea.

The managing old woman beside Jia Mu also called them into the inner room and whispered to them about the maintenance of the inner chambers. This was also the rule of a big mansion.

Since then, both of them entered Jia Cong's room, and the number of days on duty was much less than before. Because Jia Cong had just turned fifteen, there was a long way to go, and the inner chambers needed to be restrained.

Jia Cong was somewhat disdainful of many corrupt rules of the big mansion, but he had no objection to this one.

Now, not only were the number of days on duty for Qingwen and Ying Lady Lian more than before, but even Lingguan, who was occasionally on duty, shared a lot of days.

The managing matron by the Old Mistress's side even called them into the inner chamber to whisper instructions, speaking of matters of inner-chamber maintenance, which was also the rule of a great household.

Because Qingwen was older and understood human affairs, she was somewhat unconvinced by Zhi Shao and Wu'er.

Jia Cong heard her competitiveness and a bit of jealousy, but didn't take it to heart.

Qingwen was the same age as him, just turned fifteen. Whether it was the rules of the mansion or Jia Cong's original cognition, some things had a bit too much guilt...

Qingwen helped Jia Cong take off his outer clothes, change into pajamas for sleeping, carefully combed his hair, and braided it for sleeping.

Jia Cong saw Qingwen standing behind him through the dressing mirror, bright red and charming, slender and standing, quite pleasing to the eye.

A pair of small hands were busy on his head, occasionally stirring up a tingling sensation... (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 712 =====

Qingwen was the same age as him, just turned fifteen; whether it was the rules of the mansion or Jia Cong's original understanding, the sense of guilt for some things was a bit heavy...

Qingwen helped Jia Cong take off his outer robe, change into his sleeping pajamas, helped him undo his hair bun, combed it carefully, and then braided it with her hands into a sleeping braid.

Jia Cong saw Qingwen standing behind him through the dressing mirror; she was fiery red, charming, and standing gracefully, which was quite pleasing to the eye.

A pair of small hands working on his head often stirred up a feeling of shivering numbness... (End of chapter)