Chapter 363: Baoyu Stares in Awe!

In the clan academy, they practice martial arts daily; it is a good way to strengthen the body.

If you truly feel sorry for him, let him keep at it; when his physique becomes solid and he looks like a real man, you will naturally be at ease later.

Otherwise, if he returns to be served by others, his body will never become strong!

From Yuan Chun's view, although Jia Baoyu is a bit sallow now, his physique is undeniably stronger and has a hint of manliness!

Even the crying and wailing just now sound much fuller and more powerful than before!

Lady Wang did not expect Yuan Chun to be so unmoved about Jia Baoyu's studies, and she sighed inwardly:

This daughter has stayed in the palace too long and is no longer as close to her mother as before!

She also no longer dotes on her own younger brother as she once did, showing no regard for his situation or feelings.

Lady Wang clutched the Prayer Beads in one hand, wiped away nonexistent tears with the other, fell silent for a moment, and said with a hint of unwillingness:

"How about this: let Jia Baoyu return home to study, and we'll hire him a teacher who won't beat him."

"That way, the old lady and I can see him every day and won't worry, and he won't have to wash clothes or make beds or do the chores servants handle!"

Yuan Chun frowned at the words, her beautiful face bearing a serious expression, and said firmly:

"That's improper! The teachers in the clan academy are specially hired by the third brother, either renowned scholars from the civil service or experienced military instructors."

"Where would you find such a fine teacher? Moreover, the academy provides fellow students and friends; studying and training together sharpens each other and leads to progress. Once he returns, can you keep him in check?"

Yuan Chun glanced at Jia Baoyu, and he quickly lowered his head.

"If he comes back, he will surely be idle—three days fishing, two days sunning nets—falling back into old habits, lingering in the inner house, and what books or martial arts can he study? Haven't we seen this pattern for years?"

Lady Wang's lips moved slightly; there were words she could not state plainly—because all the teachers were hired by Jia Jing, she felt uneasy!

Yuan Chun again urged gently:

"Mother, I know you feel sorry for Jia Baoyu. But think about it: our martial‑honored family's ancestors relied on what?"

"They relied on real swords and guns, on genuine skills forged on the battlefield; the ancestors' achievements dwindle generation by generation."

"In Jia Baoyu's generation, what remains? If he does not stand up on his own, who will support him later? Even if you dote on him, you cannot protect him for a lifetime, can you?"

"I'm not asking you to be cruel, just to change the way you feel sorry for him. Let him endure some hardship now, so that later he can stand straight and hold his ground."

"Parental love must be far‑sighted; that is true protection! Otherwise… haven't we heard that drowning a child is like killing a child!"

Lady Wang listened to Yuan Chun's string of arguments, but her heart was not moved at all.

Since Jia Baoyu's birth, she has pampered him for over a decade and has never seen any fault; she cannot easily change her view because of Yuan Chun's few admonitions.

As for Jia Baoyu's future, in her eyes, with her and the old lady's protection and the Rong Guo Mansion's estate still standing, how could they afford to lose his prosperous days?

Moreover, she is already plotting a good marriage match for Jia Baoyu.

As long as he can marry a Nian family maid, the two Nian elders—one civil, one martial—will look after him, and his prospects will not be diminished.

For their martial‑honored clan, this is a lifelong, far‑reaching plan!

Studying and training, fighting to the death, are the paths of poor scholars without background or connections.

Even if one actually becomes a top scholar and attains a low‑rank official position of six or seven grades, earning only a few silver coins a year, Jia Baoyu was born into wealth and does not seek that.

Besides, she is also secretly arranging a good marriage for her own daughter, and some prospects have already emerged.

If that comes to fruition, then Jia Baoyu will truly have a life without worries!

Just as her sister‑in‑law said, marrying the daughter well and giving Jia Baoyu a fine brother‑in‑law is better than anything!

Recalling this, Lady Wang stopped arguing with Yuan Chun and said to Jia Baoyu:

"Go talk and play with your sisters first; don't just stand here! As for entering the academy, let me discuss it with your elder sister and the master, and we'll find a proper solution."

The clan academy definitely cannot send Jia Baoyu again, but this matter must first be discussed with the old lady; once she agrees, everything else will be easy.

Jia Baoyu felt a bit resentful, but faced Yuan Chun's stern look and dared not speak further; he sprang up and walked toward Daiyu and Baichai.

Yuan Chun let out a faint sigh, and for a moment felt a lingering sense of helplessness.

In the other end of the side room, Daiyu and Baichai were seated on a bedside couch by the window, leisurely playing chess.

They had heard the commotion from Lady Wang and Yuan Chun, but both remained indifferent and did not pay as much attention as before.

Sunlight filtered through the flowered lattice, falling on them like a meticulous brush painting.

Jia Baoyu darted over, stopped at the couch, his eyes sparkling, his face beaming with uncontainable joy.

"Lin sister, Baichai sister, how have you been lately? Yesterday I went to your courtyard, but your maid said you had already gone to sleep early, so I didn't disturb you!"

This was the first time Jia Baoyu had spoken with both Daiyu and Baichai since returning from the clan academy.

Yesterday, although he visited their courtyard in the evening, the maid in each courtyard refused to open the door, saying the ladies were already asleep and asked him to come back tomorrow.

He didn't understand why Lin sister and Baichai sister had changed their schedules and gone to bed so early!

And although they met briefly today, he spent the whole day under Yuan Chun's watch, doing lessons and admonitions, with no chance to talk to Daiyu and Baichai.

Thus, his voice now carried an unmistakable intimacy and happiness.

This time he had stayed in the clan academy for a full month before returning; the previous short break was cut short because he ranked near the bottom and was left by the teacher to copy and recite texts, without a holiday.

In the academy, day after day facing those foul‑smelling, oppressive men, he had not been near a girl for a long time; now looking at Daiyu and Baichai made him feel completely refreshed!

Especially seeing Daiyu after a month apart, he felt her ethereal, lingering aura grow ever more extraordinary, graceful as a moon‑palace fairy.

She wore a delicate white jade hairpin tucked among her cloud‑like hair, with a thin jade butterfly attached to its side, exquisite and lively!

Her crystal‑clear earrings held a pair of exquisite emerald‑green beads, brimming with spirit!

She was dressed in a long, moon‑white silk gown with subtle floral patterns; the dress was pure white, embroidered at the hem with a few sparse silver‑threaded orchid stems, layers upon layers, and a light‑green silk sash at the waist, its end adorned with a tiny white jade stopper—elegant without being gaudy…

Her two faint, smoky eyebrows slightly furrowed, a vague melancholy spreading from the tips; her eyes, clear and cold like dew, flickered as if stars rested at the bottom of a pool or mist floated on a lake—visible yet impenetrable.

A breeze slipped through the window crack, stirring the hem of her moon‑white robe; she seemed about to dissolve into light and shadow, drifting, ethereal, unlike any mortal.

For a moment, Jia Baoyu was utterly stunned!