Chapter 376: Did the Communicative Spirit Treasure Jade

Seeing Lady Wang remain silent, Yuan Chun felt a bit weary and sighed:

"Could mother still be indulging Baoyu, refusing to let him attend the clan school?"

As she spoke, her eyes reddened, her heart grew sorrowful, clearly unable to comprehend Lady Wang's stubborn attitude.

Lady Wang's expression was blank as she said:

"Let alone the future, right now Baoyu is still kneeling in the ancestral hall! I have no idea how Jing will punish him tomorrow…"

"If a major conflict erupts and the scandal spreads, ruining our reputation, how can we even talk about marriage or schooling!"

Lady Wang's words silenced the hall for a moment.

Yuan Chun thought for a moment, then gently comforted:

"Although Jing cannot tolerate any sand in his eyes, his household governance has always balanced leniency and strictness, being upright and fair!"

"Baoyu's smashing of the jade this time was indeed outrageous, but it wasn't a heinous crime against heaven and humanity, so the punishment shouldn't be too severe!"

"Just now General Lu also said the focus should be on minor punishments and moral education, right? I guess he might give a few strikes on the wooden board; the reputation may be slightly affected, but not greatly!"

"Only… this jade must never be smashed again…"

If it happens once, then again, then a third time, repeatedly unheeded, even the smallest fault becomes a grave mistake!

Hearing this, Jia Mu hurriedly nodded and said:

"The senior maid is right; Jing knows what's in his heart, and he probably just intends to discipline Baoyu a bit, not to start a major conflict!"

"It's common for our Wu Xun clan's youngsters to be beaten on the board; Baoyu is still young and ordinarily courteous and filial."

"As long as the jade isn't smashed again, this trivial matter shouldn't damage our reputation much."

Jia Mu could only look on the bright side, trying to downplay Baoyu's fault and the reputational impact of the clan's punishment.

In fact, Jia Mu wasn't very worried about Baoyu's marriage, since Lin Daiyu was already the granddaughter‑in‑law she had chosen.

As for schooling… it's still too early to speak of!

Beside them, Aunt Xue's eyes flashed, and she chuckled:

"Baoyu is young; boys understand things later, so a bit of mischief is common."

"I've heard many ancient famous ministers and generals were also mischievous in their youth!"

"Isn't there a saying 'a prodigal son's return is priceless'? It shows that a youthful reputation can't affect the future!"

Aunt Xue's words weren't only about Jia Baoyu, but also about her own Xue Pan.

Although Pan is currently immature, if he reforms later, his future may still be bright!

Jia Mu listened with some pleasure and said:

"It's good that his aunt is sensible; our Baoyu is already fine. I heard the heir of the Prince of Nan'an's family is truly a bad seed, even abducted a common girl!"

"And the young master of the Duke of Shan's household fights and brawls all day, runs with ruffians, his reputation is ruined! And the Marquis of Pingyuan's family…"

"Compared with them, our Baoyu is already extremely obedient and well‑disciplined!"

Jia Mu kept citing examples, racking her brain with the notorious troublemakers from various distinguished Wu Xun families she'd heard of, to prove Baoyu's virtue.

It must be said, this sense of superiority comes from comparison! And the desire to win academically has been in people's hearts since ancient times!

Listening to Jia Mu, even Lady Wang thought that Baoyu kneeling in the ancestral hall seemed not a big deal.

Perhaps she was over‑concerned, making a mountain out of a molehill!

Even… maybe this kneeling in the hall is a good thing!

If it spreads that our son must kneel in the hall just for smashing a jade, doesn't that prove our family's uprightness and strict discipline?

With this in mind, Lady Wang felt a few breaths of relief, already scheming how to embellish her son's experience for publicity!

Just as Lady Wang was daydreaming, the maid Xireng suddenly rushed out of the side room, exclaiming with delight:

"Grandma, Madam, great news! The jade is found! The jade is found!"

With those words, the hall's atmosphere brightened again; Jia Mu and Lady Wang rose quickly, faces alight with joy, and hurriedly said:

"At last we've found this lifeline! Where's the jade? Bring it to me quickly!"

It can be said that since Baoyu was born with the jade in his mouth, this Communicative Spirit Treasure Jade has been extraordinary in Jia Mu's heart, becoming a lucky symbol of the Jia family's prosperity!

Just as the 'auspicious imperial grandson' born of a dream, Baoyu is also the Jia family's 'auspicious legitimate grandson' born with good omens.

This is why each time Baoyu smashes the jade causes such a stir in the Jia mansion.

While Jia Mu and Lady Wang's expressions were delighted, Xireng also held a cloth, ready to wipe dust off the jade and hand it to them.

But before the cloth could reach the Communicative Spirit Treasure Jade, Xireng's expression suddenly froze.

Her face showed a hint of shock and panic, pupils slowly dilating, her tone full of frantic panic, she uttered in broken sobs:

"This… this jade… the jade… it… cracked…"

Jia Mu and Lady Wang's faces were full of disbelief:

"What??"

Xireng looked closely, still trembling, and confirmed:

"The jade really did crack…"

Lady Wang's complexion turned pale, and she exclaimed:

"How could it? How could it crack…"

This jade has been dropped from childhood to adulthood without ever having a problem; how could it crack…

The others in the hall also turned to Xireng; Yuan Chun's beautiful, graceful face showed astonishment, her delicate eyebrows framing watery eyes full of disbelief!

Isn't this jade Baoyu's lifeline? How could it crack?

Feng Jie frowned, her vermilion phoenix eyes filled with doubt and amazement!

The jade shattered? So there will truly be no jade left to smash?

Tan Chun's charming brows and eyes were clouded with worry; the jade had actually cracked.

Now, Madam probably will never forgive herself and Huan brother... Hmm, and also Elder Sister Lin.

And Daiyu's starry eyes flashed, she glanced at Baichai beside her, and a thought suddenly arose in her mind:

The so-called gold-and-jade match—now the jade has cracked; from now on, where will Baichai's gold lock go to find jade to match it…

And at this moment, a hint of strange color flashed across Xue Auntie's fair face, and she secretly thought:

This jade of our elder sister is probably also specially made by artisans, just like our Baichai's gold lock!

After all, a jade pendant isn't as sturdy as a gold lock, and it's constantly being thrown about violently—so it's only natural that it would crack!

Elder sister was still careless; she should have learned from me and made a gold one…

Lady Wang hurried over in a panic, snatched the Spiritual Jade from Xueyan's hands, and looked out.

Only to see the Spiritual Jade covered in dense cracks.

The eight characters originally engraved on it—"Never lose, never forget; eternal longevity and prosperity"—now only the characters "lost" and "forgotten" remain intact.

The other characters have been obscured by a spiderweb-like crack, making some of them illegible!

Jia Mu leaned in beside her, her aged face close to the Spiritual Jade, her expression grim as tears streamed down her cheeks, she said:

"This jade has been fine since childhood; how did it end up like this? The eight characters fell to become just 'lost' and 'forgotten'... This is an ill omen!"

These cracks are just too perfectly placed—eight characters reduced to two—casting a heavy shadow over Jia Mu's heart!

And Lady Wang stared straight at the Spiritual Jade, her face turning from white to green, then green with a hint of black, a strange flush rising on her cheeks, and a metallic taste welling up in her throat:

"My child! —ugh…"

Bright blood gushed from her mouth, Lady Wang's vision went black, and she collapsed to the ground.

And the Spiritual Jade slipped from her hand once more, falling to the ground with a crisp 'crack,' shattering into pieces all over…