AWB Chapter 14 Visiting the Sick
Chapter 14 Visiting the Sick
Jia Zheng angrily rebuked Baoyu, saying, "You little beast! At such a young age, you are already lustful and dare to act recklessly in your mother's room, bullying her maids. You are unfilial and unkind. When you grow up, you will probably be a debauched scoundrel, disgracing our ancestors' reputation. To avoid ruining our ancestors' name, I might as well beat you to death today and end it all!"
Having said that, he actually sent someone to fetch a large stick, intending to beat Baoyu.
Lady Wang thought that her husband, upon learning the whole story, would share her indignation and anger at Jin Chuan's shamelessness. However, to her surprise, Jia Zheng became even more enraged by Bao Yu and wanted to beat him to death.
That's pretty cool!
Lady Wang was frightened and immediately began to plead for Baoyu.
However, Jia Zheng was already furious and wouldn't listen to Lady Wang's advice. He ordered his men to take Baoyu to the study in Rongxi Hall, lock the door tightly, and carry out family discipline.
Seeing that things were going badly, Wang Xifeng quickly gave Ping'er a meaningful look, signaling her to go and get reinforcements.
Ping'er was always quick-witted. When she saw Wang Xifeng wink at her, she immediately understood the deeper meaning and silently left Rongxi Hall, running all the way to Rongqing Hall where Grandmother Jia was.
When Grandmother Jia heard the news, she was shocked and immediately led a large group of people to Rongxi Hall.
Upon receiving the news, the three sisters, Daiyu, Baochai, Aunt Xue, and others rushed to plead for mercy, and the commotion continued until midnight.
"You weren't here yesterday, and your father was so angry he turned green. Even Madam couldn't stop him, and he gave Baoyu a good beating. But this old lady arrived way too quickly; the master had only just given him a few lashes when she arrived," Aunt Zhao said with a regretful expression.
Jia Huan...
Jia Huan really didn't want to hear about all the messy things happening in the Jia family anymore.
There wasn't a single serious matter.
"Auntie, you should keep a low profile these next few days and stay quietly in your room, lest Madam take her bad mood out on you," Jia Huan said leisurely as he continued tending to the potted plants.
Aunt Zhao was still reminiscing about the embarrassing situation that Lady Wang and Jia Baoyu had caused the day before.
She was there yesterday and witnessed their miserable state firsthand. She felt extremely happy, and even after a night, her excitement hadn't subsided. She still wanted to say a few words to Jia Huan, but seeing his listless and disappointed look, she lost the will to continue. She snorted twice, flicked her handkerchief, and turned to leave.
Zizai brought out the tea at just the right moment: "Is Auntie leaving? It's all my fault for being so clumsy and not serving you promptly after just making the tea."
Having stepped down under the guise of serving tea, he naturally needs to smooth things over now.
Aunt Zhao glanced at her upon hearing the sound, and suddenly realized, "You are all so clever." With that, she left.
"Too ostentatious!" Jia Huan sighed.
Zizai remained silent, knowing that Jia Huan was referring to Aunt Zhao.
Jia Baoyu was pampered since childhood and was the focus of the Jia family. Now that he has gotten into trouble, everyone in the family is worried. However, Aunt Zhao is gloating. When the madam finds out, even if she doesn't punish him in a big way, she will inevitably nag him behind his back and set some rules.
"If I didn't know, that would be fine. But now that I know Brother Bao is injured, I have to go and visit him," Jia Huan said with a sigh.
Jia Huan looked at the flowerpot in his hand. The small, emerald-green moss covered the flowerpot, revealing its vibrant life.
This body is, after all, a member of the Jia family by blood. No matter how bad the relationship between the two sides is, they are still family members connected by blood. Even if he doesn't want to associate with them, he still has to save face.
And he still has other things to do.
"Feihua, go see if it's convenient for Brother Bao. You don't need to go into the courtyard to ask. Just take a look from a distance outside the courtyard to see if there are any outsiders. Go quietly and come back quietly," Jia Huan instructed.
Feihua was puzzled, but she still obediently accepted the order and left without asking any questions, because she knew that Third Master did not like talkative people, and she knew that it was enough to just listen to orders.
Jia Huan went inside to wash and change his clothes, and then instructed Zizai to find a few things to pack up, since he couldn't visit the sick empty-handed.
None of them are anything valuable. It's enough to show your sincerity and not be impolite. Jia Baoyu is the precious darling of the Jia family. What doesn't he have?
After waiting for a while, Fei Hua returned to report: "Third Master, there are no outsiders in Yi Hong Courtyard, and the maids inside have all disappeared. The courtyard is empty and quiet. I only took a look outside before coming back, and no one saw me there."
Feihua recounted what she had seen, without a trace of speculation or conjecture in her words.
It's understandable that there were no outsiders in Yihong Courtyard, since Jia Baoyu needed to rest after his injury. Grandmother Jia, Lady Wang, and others had already checked on his injuries yesterday and knew he was alright before returning home.
Moreover, Jia Baoyu is a junior, and his injuries are not serious. He will recover after a few days of rest. It is inappropriate for a junior to trouble his elders to stay by his side.
The fact that the maids from the Grand View Garden were not serving her and had all disappeared was very suspicious.
As the saying goes: When a child is quiet, he is sure to be up to something.
Jia Huan paused for a moment, and Fei Hua pursed her lips, as if she had something to say but hesitated.
"Feihua, is there anything else you want to say?" Jia Huan noticed her hesitation and asked immediately.
Feihua blushed slightly, seemingly finding it difficult to speak, but finally said, "When I came back from outside, I heard some nonsense circulating outside, saying that Master Bao's maid Xiren was being promoted by Madam and that she was being offered to Master Bao."
The original owner's memories of Xiren resurfaced in Jia Huan's mind.
Xiren's original surname was Hua. When she was young, her family was poor and she was sold into the Jia family as a slave. She was originally a second-class maidservant by Grandmother Jia's side. She often served Grandmother Jia's grandniece Shi Xiangyun when she came over. Later, Grandmother Jia saw that she was loyal, gentle and virtuous and served well, so she asked her to take care of Baoyu.
After Jia Baoyu moved into the Grand View Garden, Grandmother Jia assigned several people to serve him, and Xiren was one of them. She is now the head maid of Jia Baoyu's Yihong Courtyard and is the most favored by Jia Baoyu.
Moreover, she was very good at interpersonal relationships. Whether it was Grandmother Jia, Lady Wang, or the young ladies, they all had a very good impression of her. As a maid, she had quite a bit of face in front of the mistresses in the inner courtyard.
Jia Huan keenly sensed something amiss between Jia Baoyu and Xiren. The original owner of this body was young and had no one to guide her, so she wouldn't have thought anything of their intimate interaction. But Jia Huan understood what this close relationship meant.
"There's no one in Yihong Courtyard, is there?" Jia Huan muttered to himself. Suddenly, he thought of something, pondered for a moment, stood up, and his face returned to calm: "Let's go, let's go to Brother Bao. Let's bring more people with us, so you can also see the scenery in the Grand View Garden."
Jia Huan, accompanied by six head maids, two nannies, and six young maids, headed towards the Grand View Garden.
A young maidservant watched Jia Huan from afar and hurriedly went to Rongxi Hall to report the news.
Because Jia Huan kept reporting illness and rarely left the courtyard, his well-behaved demeanor had already made Madam Wang relax her surveillance of Qingfeng Courtyard. This little maid was not someone she had arranged; she was just trying to please her.