A Crossover of Film and Television: Miao Miao's Life Transmigration

Chapter 172 Lin Daiyu's younger brother in Dream of the Red Chamber 5

A few days later, when Lin Jiyu went to pay her respects to Jia Zheng, she ran into Lady Wang. At first, Jia Zheng wanted to test whether Lin Jiyu had made any progress recently, since Lin Jiyu had come back to pay her respects to him every month.

A maidservant came in and reported, "Master, Madam, the Xue family from Jinling City is almost here; they've already arrived at Ningrong Street."

Out of the corner of her eye, Lin Jiyu saw a slightly shocked look in Madam Wang's eyes. It seemed that Madam Wang had not expected that Aunt Xue would bring her whole family to the capital.

Seeing that something was wrong, Lin Jiyu quickly bowed and said that his nephew had other matters to attend to, so he would take his leave first.

Jia Zheng waved his hand, muttering, "You wretched child, you wretched child."

Lin Jiyu shook his head with amusement. The Xue family has entered the Rongguo Mansion. It seems that the Rongguo Mansion is about to fall into chaos.

One day, when Lin Daiyu was paying her respects, she met Aunt Xue and Xue Baochai. She even told him about Xue Baochai, saying that she was dignified and elegant.

Lin Jiyu said, "Sister, why do you care if she's dignified or not? You're so beautiful, why would you need to envy others?"

Hearing her brother say this, Lin Daiyu felt a little better. After all, being suddenly compared to the servants of the Rongguo Mansion would make her feel uncomfortable, even if she was in a good mood.

A few days later, Aunt Xue and Madam Wang were talking in the east wing of Pear Blossom Courtyard. Madam Wang's face was indifferent, while Xue Baochai was busy with needlework in the west wing.

Zhou Rui's wife had just finished dealing with Granny Liu's affairs and returned to report to Madam Wang.

Seeing that Madam Wang was speaking, Zhou Rui's wife went to the west wing to talk to Xue Baochai. Xue Baochai suddenly said that she was sick and also mentioned the Cold Fragrance Pill, which left Madam Zhou completely bewildered.

"Who's speaking in the west wing?" came Madam Wang's voice.

Aunt Zhou didn't dare to delay and entered the east wing. Madam Wang asked, "Has Granny Liu left?"

Aunt Zhou quickly replied, "I'm leaving now; I came here specifically to report on this matter."

Madam Wang's expression was indifferent as she said, "Send them away, and that's it."

Aunt Zhou nodded and was about to walk outside when a sound suddenly came from outside.

"Stop right there."

Aunt Zhou's expression was not good. She was Lady Wang's maid, and everyone in the Rongguo Mansion gave her face. She didn't know what Aunt Xue meant, so she quickly adjusted her expression and turned around.

"I have something for you to take with you."

Aunt Zhou nodded.

Aunt Xue called to Xiangling to take the flowers out of the box.

“This is a new design from the palace, twelve pieces made of gauze. I remembered it yesterday, and it’s a pity to leave them unused. Why not give them to the young ladies to wear? I was going to give them to them yesterday, but I forgot. Your arrival is just in time, so take them with you. Each of your three young ladies can have a pair. Give two of the remaining six pieces to Miss Lin, and the other four to Feng’er,” said Aunt Xue.

Madam Wang said, "Keep it for Bao Ya to wear, why bother thinking about them?"

At this point, Aunt Xue got excited and said in a boastful tone, "Bao'er is so strange, she has never liked these flowers and pink things."

Zhou Rui's wife took the box from Aunt Xue's hand. This time, she went to the northwest corner first, since the northeast corner was closer to the northwest corner.

When she arrived, Lin Daiyu was looking at a collection of poems. After all, they were still in mourning. She and her younger brother had not yet finished their mourning period, but it would be almost over in a year and a half. Her brother would go to Suzhou to take the exam, and she would go back with him. She wondered how her father was doing.

Although my father writes to me every month, I'm always a little uneasy until I've actually met him.

The maidservant at the door lifted the curtain and called out, "Aunt Zhou is here."

Upon hearing the sound, Lin Daiyu put down the poetry collection in her hand and asked Bai Qing to lead the person over.

Lin Daiyu gestured to Yueya, who then handed a small stool to Zhou Rui's wife, saying, "Aunt Zhou is here. Is there something you need, Second Aunt?"

Lin Daiyu was polite to Zhou Rui's wife, but not because she was polite to her as a person. Rather, it was because of Lady Wang. After all, everyone in the Rongguo Mansion knew that Zhou Rui's wife was Lady Wang's maid.

"Miss Lin, your aunt asked me to give you flowers to wear," Aunt Zhou said with a smile.

Lin Daiyu sneered and said sarcastically, "That's thoughtful of you, but unfortunately Daiyu is in mourning and can't wear flowers. I appreciate your kindness, Aunt."

She emphasized the words "with good intentions" and "with good intentions" in her tone.

In this Rongguo Mansion, everyone knows that the Lin family is observing mourning and usually eats vegetarian food. This Aunt Xue has been in the Rongguo Mansion for almost a month, does she not know about this? It is clear that the Xue family does not care about the Lin family, or even looks down on the Lin family.

Upon hearing what Miss Lin said, Zhou Rui's heart skipped a beat. Oh no, she had meant well but made a mistake. But when Aunt Xue gave her the palace flowers, she didn't remember this. Now that Miss Lin had brought this matter to the forefront, she didn't know how to respond.

"It's all my fault. I only remembered Aunt Xue's instructions. I'm old and a little forgetful. Please don't take it to heart, Miss Lin. I will definitely apologize to you next time."

Zhou Rui's aunt said a few more flattering words, but Lin Daiyu didn't say anything. Then Zhou Rui's aunt took her leave.

After being mistreated at Changju Courtyard, Zhou Rui's aunt quickly gave the remaining palace flowers to Sanchun and Fengge. As for the two remaining flowers, Zhou Rui's aunt felt that the Xue family hadn't investigated properly and had made her lose face at the Lin family's place. She couldn't help the Xue family take the blame.

Back at Pear Blossom Courtyard, the maid at the door lifted the curtain, revealing that Madam Wang had returned to Rongxi Hall, and Aunt Xue and Xue Baochai were talking together. The maid at the door announced that Aunt Zhou had arrived.

Aunt Xue and Xue Baochai stopped talking and let Zhou Rui's wife in.

"Zhou Rui's wife, is there anything wrong?" Aunt Xue asked.

Zhou Rui's wife bowed respectfully to Aunt Xue and Xue Baochai and said, "Aunt Xue, our young lady and Second Mistress Lian have both delivered the flowers. I also went to Changju Courtyard earlier. Miss Lin is in mourning and cannot wear flowers, so I brought back the remaining two."

After saying that, he handed the box to Aunt Xue and Xue Baochai.

Upon hearing this, Aunt Xue realized that they had done something wrong. If the Rongguo Mansion found out, they would definitely ostracize the Xue family.

The Xue family has only recently entered the Rongguo Mansion and their foundation is not yet stable. Now that this has happened, doesn't it mean they look down on the Lin family? The young master and young lady of the Lin family are the grandchildren that Grandmother Jia values. Offending them is tantamount to offending Grandmother Jia.

Aunt Xue and Xue Baochai refused to accept the box, but Zhou Rui's wife didn't care. She simply placed it on the table, said that Madam had something to discuss with her, and then left.

After Zhou Rui's wife left, Xue Baochai quickly said, "Our Xue family has just moved into the mansion and is busy tidying up. It's understandable that we were a little careless. Tomorrow I will bring gifts to apologize to Miss Lin. Miss Lin is magnanimous and will certainly not hold it against us."

Aunt Xue couldn't think of a good solution, so she nodded and said dejectedly, "This is the only way. Bao'er, go to Changju Courtyard tomorrow."

The servants of the Rongguo Mansion knew all sorts of things and spread all the news. Before long, everyone knew that Aunt Xue had sent palace flowers to someone, but unexpectedly, she sent them to Miss Lin, who was in mourning. You could have sent something else, even a jade hairpin would have been better than palace flowers.

But the servants dared not let the news reach Grandmother Jia's ears, for everyone knew that Grandmother Jia doted on the two siblings from the Lin family the most.

Lin Jiyu returned to Changju Courtyard in the afternoon and learned about the Xue family's mess. She realized that the Xue family truly didn't care about the Lin family. She sneered and went to the backyard to comfort Lin Daiyu.

"Grandpa Lin is here!" Crescent Moon lifted the curtain.

Lin Jiyu walked in with his head held high. He had just gone to his teacher's house to study that morning. His teacher would assign him some tasks each time, and after he finished studying, he would go to visit his teacher and ask for his approval. This process was repeated over and over again.

"My brother is back?" Lin Daiyu put down the chess pieces and stood up to say.

"Sister, I just got back and heard from the maid that the Xue family sent you palace flowers."

"Hmph!" Lin Daiyu snorted coldly when the matter was mentioned. She was just feeling uncomfortable. After all, when the Xue family entered the mansion, the Lin family had sent a gift. Now that this had happened, it proved that the Xue family did not take the Lin family seriously at all.

"Sister, just pretend the Xue family farted, why get so angry?" Lin Jiyu joked.

“Don’t say such vulgar things. You’ll get scolded again if Father finds out,” Lin Daiyu said.

Seeing that her sister no longer cared, Lin Jiyu's smile deepened. Lin Daiyu had lived a very comfortable life, perhaps because of him, or perhaps because Jia Min had lived a few more years.

The next day, Xue Baochai paid her first visit to Changju Courtyard. Changju Courtyard was located in the northwest corner of Rongguo Mansion, opposite Lihua Courtyard where they lived, but Changju Courtyard was much larger than Lihua Courtyard.

Pear Blossom Courtyard was the residence of Jia Daishan, the late master of the Rongguo Mansion, before his death. It was originally a place for one person to live in. It was a bit crowded for the three members of the Xue family to live there, and they couldn't even use a few more maids.

Xue Baochai felt resentful about the differential treatment she received from the Rongguo Mansion, but then she remembered that the Lin family had come to the Rongguo Mansion first, which calmed her down.

Led by a young maid, she entered the backyard of Changju Courtyard. When she arrived at Lin Daiyu's room, the maid at the door lifted the curtain and called out, "Miss, Miss Xue from the Xue family has arrived."

As Xue Baochai entered the room, Lin Daiyu stood up with a smile and said, "Miss Xue, what brings you to Changju Courtyard?"

Xue Baochai, sitting on the left, said, "Yesterday, the servants made a mistake. I've come to apologize to you, Xiangling. Quickly bring the things up. This is my apology. Please don't take it to heart."

Lin Daiyu chuckled. "How come it's the servants who made a mistake again? Yesterday, Zhou Rui's wife also said that the Xue family made a mistake."

"This servant is really careless. Miss Xue, you'd better not spoil him. It would be bad if he caused any trouble. Don't you think so, Miss Xue?"

Xue Baochai, being a master of interpersonal relationships, quickly said, "If you're still angry, sister, you can do whatever you want with my servant. Please forgive me, sister."

Lin Daiyu would never interfere in punishing the Xue family's servants. Besides, if word got out that she was breaking the rules and meddling in other people's family affairs, wouldn't that make her look like she was breaking the rules?

"Since Miss Xue has said so, of course I won't blame her."

Xue Baochai spoke with Lin Daiyu for a while, and then the two played a game of chess. Xue Baochai insisted on staying for lunch before returning to Pear Blossom Courtyard.

The next day, news spread that Xue Baochai and Lin Daiyu had a good relationship, and the matter of the palace flowers was not mentioned again.

Upon hearing this, Lin Jiyu ran to the backyard and mocked, "Sister, you've been put on a show by someone."

"Do you think I don't know? But the Xue family's daughter came over to apologize to me, brought gifts, played chess with me, and had lunch with me. How could I possibly send her away? Wouldn't that make her seem petty? Besides, you don't know that I don't care about these things," Lin Daiyu said slowly.

Time flies, and another year and a half has passed. Lin Jiyu has been studying with his teacher and has begun to show results in policy essays. However, his poetry is lacking. He can only rigidly apply the formula of parallelism and cannot write any inspired verses.

Xue Baochai would often come to Changju Courtyard to play with Lin Daiyu, and the three sisters also came frequently. Jia Baoyu came a few times, but the rough maid guarding the gate wouldn't let him in. Jia Baoyu could force his way in, but he was afraid of his father, Jia Zheng. Jia Zheng was really watching Jia Baoyu's studies all the time, so Jia Baoyu learned to put on an act and pretend to work hard.

If he were to cause trouble, his father, Jia Zheng, would definitely punish him. He could only see Lin Daiyu when he paid his respects to Grandmother Jia.

Lin Jiyu has already written to his father, asking him to write to the Rongguo Mansion. His mourning period is over, and he needs to return to Suzhou to prepare for the imperial examinations. If he sets off earlier, he can stay in Yangzhou for a while longer.

Lin Ruhai understood Lin Jiyu's meaning; she was simply afraid of not having a reason to return to Suzhou.

Lin Jiyu had already told Lin Daiyu to pack her luggage; they would soon be heading back to Yangzhou, and her father's letter should be arriving in the capital soon.

After learning about this, Lin Daiyu was very happy for a while, and a smile often appeared on her lips.

Lin Ruhai's letter arrived at Rongguo Mansion a few days later. When Grandmother Jia learned of this, she specially summoned the siblings for questioning. However, many of the sisters of Rongguo Mansion were there, including Xue Baochai.

When Xue Baochai heard that the Lin siblings had arrived, she realized that she had been in the Rongguo Mansion for so long but had never met the eldest son of the Lin family. She had heard from the servants that he was a man who was no less than Baoyu. She turned her head to look at the curtain.

The young man was elegant and handsome. He walked in confidently, and every gesture he made exuded the air of a scholar.

"Oh, we've been waiting for you! You usually avoid meeting me with your sisters. We haven't seen you in so long!" Grandmother Jia said with a smile.

"Greetings to our ancestor." The two siblings stepped forward and bowed.

Grandmother Jia had them helped up and sat down beside her.

How long will you be staying in Yangzhou this time?

"Grandma, we're going back to see Father. My brother will return to the capital after he finishes the imperial examinations," Lin Daiyu replied calmly. The fact that her brother was going to take the imperial examinations was something that couldn't be kept secret anyway.

"Sigh, you're so young and you have to suffer like that. The imperial examinations are no joke," Grandmother Jia said, pulling Lin Jiyu along. After all, the environment for the imperial examinations was harsh. Jia Zhu failed the examinations, and Lin Jiyu, who was only twelve years old, was going to have to take them. Wouldn't that be a hardship for him?

Having lived in the Rongguo Mansion for so many years, Lin Jiyu understood Grandmother Jia's meaning. Grandmother Jia cared about him. Grandmother Jia was a very sensible old woman, but she was already over seventy years old, which is considered an average lifespan even in modern times, let alone in ancient times when the average lifespan was over thirty.

In many cases, Grandmother Jia simply didn't want to get involved and also doted on Jia Baoyu. This kind of favoritism is something every old person would do, and it's not a serious crime.