Rongguo Mansion, Baoyu Courtyard.

Baoyu and Qiu Wen heard someone talking, and turned around to see Musk Moon entering the room with Baoyu’s washed clothes in her hand.

When Qiu Wen heard that it was Sheyue who was speaking, she was about to say something back, but she was glanced at by Sheyue’s pretty and sharp eyes. Her heart skipped a beat and she was speechless for a moment.

Although Qiu Wen was also Baoyu’s maid, she was far from the most prestigious one among Baoyu’s maids.

Xiren was originally Lady Jia’s maid, and was later assigned to Baoyu to serve. Therefore, she was superior to Baoyu’s own maid.

Now she has become Baoyu’s woman again. As Baoyu has not yet married, although Xiren is not considered a formal concubine, she has the highest status among Baoyu’s maids.

Apart from Xiren, the most prestigious maid in Baoyu’s room is not Caiyun who has just arrived, but Sheyue, who has a good relationship with Xiren.

Although Musk Moon has a close relationship with Xiren, she is not like Xiren, who rushes to get close to Baoyu in order to gain status for her family.

She was a maid born in the family, with both parents and sisters still alive. Compared with Xiren, who was sold into the Jia family halfway and whose family was poor, she had more foundation and more independent ideas.

Therefore, Musk Moon had been in Baoyu’s room for many years, and had always just done her duty as a maid, doing things neatly and efficiently.

Compared with Qiu Wen, Bi Hen and others who were trying to cling to him, he seemed to be strong without any desire.

In addition, she is eloquent and articulate, which is unmatched in Baoyu’s room. Even Xiren thinks highly of her, so she has quite a bit of weight among the maids.

Qiu Wen is narrow-minded. Because she and Baoyu have never slept together, she feels that she is not even as good as Bi Hen, let alone She Yue, who is as sharp as a knife in words.

She had been in Baoyu’s room for many years and had long since experienced Musk Moon’s sharp tongue. As the saying goes, a man’s reputation is like the shadow of a tree. When she thought about going against Musk Moon, she felt a little uneasy.

Just now, she was suddenly ridiculed by Musk Moon and was angry and wanted to retort, but the more anxious she became, the less she could find the words to fight back.

Musk Moon was an expert at quarrelling. When she saw Qiu Wen’s expression, she knew what she was thinking and she didn’t give her any chance to make a fuss.

She said in a sweet voice, “The situation in the West Mansion is not the same as before. The master, the mistress, the concubines in each room, and the eldest grandmother have all moved to the East Courtyard.

The old lady wants to stay with the Second Master because she loves him so much. Now the West Mansion belongs to the eldest wife’s family, and we have no control over how they manage the household.

Why bother talking about these meaningless gossips? If these words get to the ears of Second Mistress, she is a very powerful person and will probably get angry.

When the news reaches the ears of Master Cong Sanye, the rift between the two brothers will even grow.

Others will not think that these words were said by you, but will only think that our Second Master meant it. Wouldn’t that make people think that the Second Master is narrow-minded?

If the Second Master loses face at home because of this, he can stay at the West Mansion in the future, but we, as maids, will also lose face.

It’s just some small things like paper and pen. Second Master has saved up a lot of them before and they’re enough for me to use for a year or so. There’s no need to be anxious now.

Even if it is raw rice paper, can’t you write on it? Why do you have to talk nonsense with the Second Master and make him angry for nothing?”

……

Musk Moon talked on and on without pausing, and immediately confused Qiu Wen, who didn’t know how to respond and her face turned red.

After hearing Musk Moon’s half-coaxing, half-persuasive words, Baoyu found it difficult to refute for a moment and his face looked a little embarrassed.

As soon as Musk Moon finished speaking, she put down the clothes in her hands, walked to the bookshelf, and searched there.

He said, “Second Master used to get a few pieces of silver-patterned snow-wave paper every month. Although Second Master has used up a lot of it while studying in the East Road Courtyard in the past two months, there must be some left.”

Musk Moon searched the bookshelf and finally found a stack of snow-white rice paper at the bottom.

He said, “There are still some remaining snow wave papers here, enough for half a knife. How come Qiu Wen didn’t see it?”

When Qiu Wen heard this, her face turned slightly red. She walked around the room every day, so how could she not know whether there was any Xuelang paper on the bookshelf.

It was just her trouble-making nature that was at work. She was jealous of Wu’er’s glory, so she deliberately gave the rice paper to Baoyu to use in order to bring up a topic.

Qiu Wen didn’t know whether Sheyue saw through her thoughts or said such words unintentionally.

She said quickly, “It turns out there is still some snow wave paper left. I didn’t even notice it. But these are only enough for Second Master to write twice. It’s still not enough after all.”

Musk Moon smiled and said, “If it’s not enough, just ask the servant to buy some. Second Master has saved a lot of monthly allowances in his silver box, which he can’t spend. How much good paper do you need to buy?”

Qiu Wen was pushed into the corner by Sheyue. She felt ashamed and embarrassed and had the urge to throw a tantrum.

At this time, Xiren came into the room, and her face showed that she had heard the noise in the room.

He frowned and said to Qiu Wen, “You should stop saying these things. If the rumors get out, Second Master will lose face in the West Mansion. If Madam knows, we will all have a hard time.”

Qiu Wen was feeling aggrieved and wanted to find something to retort to She Yue, but Xiren’s few lukewarm words immediately put out the anger in her heart.

How could Qiu Wen not understand the meaning behind Xiren’s words?

She didn’t mean to say that if Madam Wang knew about this, everyone would have a hard time. She clearly meant that she and Sheyue teamed up to make her life miserable…

……

Baoyu saw the maids bickering, and he became impatient and said, “These are all boring things. What’s there to talk about? I’m going to write.”

When Musk Moon and Qiu Wen went out, Xiren was happy to see Baoyu wanted to write, and she went forward to help Baoyu grind ink.

He smiled and said, “Second Master, why are you in the mood today? You suddenly thought of writing. If you do this every day, the master will be happy if he knows.”

Baoyu smiled and said, “I wrote it when I thought of it. I will go to see Sister Bao later and ask her to appreciate it. I see that she has been copying calligraphy a lot recently.

Nowadays, people are talking about how good Jia Cong’s calligraphy is, and that he has become a master of his own school. All the bragging has disappeared.

I have also seen his handwriting, it is good, but to say that he has become a master is nonsense, I don’t agree with it. ”

When Xiren heard this, her expression froze and she smiled bitterly in her heart. The Second Master could just write it himself, why was he making up stories about the Third Master Cong?

Now we live in someone else’s land, and Second Master is too generous, can’t he find some good things to say…

Baoyu was unaware of Xiren’s strange expression and continued talking.

He said: “I used to say that nowadays, any doctor, regardless of their medical skills, claims to be a famous doctor, but in the end they become mediocre doctors who mislead people. How absurd.

In fact, the principle is the same. Anyone who can write a few words can become a master of his own.

You should know that all the great calligraphers in history have had to devote their entire lives and practice for years before they could reach the level of a master.

Jia Cong is only the same age as me. Even if he has some talent for calligraphy, he has only been practicing calligraphy for ten years at most. How could he be involved in the matter of a master calligrapher?

It is also because he has passed the imperial examination and has become a bachelor, and those people have become greedy and fawning on him. It is really ridiculous. “

Xiren listened to Baoyu’s chattering on and on with a somewhat smug look on his face, and her face changed. She turned around and looked at the door, fearing that someone might have heard her.

Just now she asked Qiu Wen to stop gossiping, but she didn’t expect that the Second Master could speak even more harshly than Qiu Wen.

The second master only wanted to make himself feel good. He looked at his family and saw that it was still the same as before, with everyone giving him face. If he continued like this, he would be embarrassed sooner or later…

Fortunately, Baoyu stopped nagging for a few words and went to look through the books on the bookshelf. Only then did Xiren breathe a sigh of relief.

……

Baoyu wanted to write a scroll, so it was naturally difficult to write in couplets or rhymed poems.
He rummaged through the bookshelf for a long time before he found a poem called Dian Jiang Chun from the early Song Dynasty. The poem had a very charming and gorgeous scene, which was very much to his liking.

However, he copied it twice on Xuelang paper, but was not satisfied either time. Perhaps it was because he had not written for a long time and his penmanship was a little rusty.

Xiren felt a little distressed when she saw Baoyu tearing up a piece of snow-white paper and throwing it away after writing only a few lines.

The Second Master was really used to being rich and luxurious. This kind of top-quality silver-patterned snow-wave paper cost ten cents per piece, which was enough to buy several eggs. The Second Master didn’t mind spending more.

When Baoyu wrote on the fifth piece of Xuelang paper, he finally felt that his pen was flowing smoothly, and he finally wrote a piece that he was satisfied with.

Xiren, who was standing by, couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Baoyu looked at the words he had just written and couldn’t help feeling a little proud.

When he thought of the new couplets he had written in the past, the master’s friends such as Zhan Guang, Shan Pinren, and Bu Guxiu all exclaimed in amazement and applauded.

They even asked me for it and framed it and hung it in my home for people to appreciate.

Baoyu knew that these guests of his master were all well-educated and knowledgeable people with insight and vision.

The fact that they can praise their own calligraphy so much shows that their handwriting is quite good and they are very talented in it, but they just don’t care about fame and fortune, so outsiders don’t know it.

He is nothing like Jia Cong, who, if he has any character, wants to make himself known to everyone, as if he is afraid that others don’t know about it.

Baoyu was satisfied and happy. He folded the new scroll he had written carefully, changed into new clothes, and excitedly left the yard and went to Lixiang Courtyard.

……

Rongguo Mansion, Lixiangyuan.

In the inner boudoir, the afternoon sun shines brightly, the air smells like orchid, and the subtle fragrance floats in the air.

Baochai was sitting on the edge of the bed, holding an embroidery frame in her hand. She was embroidering a crimson peony with red flowers and green leaves, which was delicate, beautiful and very eye-catching.

Because she was living in seclusion in her boudoir, she only wore simple makeup, with her raven black hair tied up in a bun and a gold hairpin with a ruby ​​and kingfisher feathers inserted in it.

Yingxue’s delicate earlobes were adorned with watery green pendants, and her red lips, green eyebrows, and flowing almond eyes were bright and attractive. Now that it was midsummer, her clothes were also bright and light.

She wore a pink double-breasted jacket with light purple embroidery and trim on the upper body, a light yellow tube top underneath, and a pink long skirt on the lower body, which made her figure more graceful and beautiful.

The maid Jin Chuan’er was sitting beside her, helping Baochai organize the embroidery threads.

The window frame of the west window in the room was half-propped, and the warm sunlight shone on the desk near the window. On the desk was a square scroll with fresh ink, which showed that it was written not long ago.

Although the handwriting is still delicate and graceful like a girl’s, the font structure is well-proportioned, the strokes are soft yet firm, and it shows a lot of skill. I guess it took a lot of effort to practice and study it.

Written on the couplet is Jia Cong’s old poem, “Red River, Nostalgia for the Past in Jinling”.

Ever since the story of Jia Cong’s success in the imperial examination and his boasting about his official position on the Imperial Street spread, Baochai knew that on the way to the imperial examination, this song “Man Jiang Hong” (Nostalgia for Jinling) was sung endlessly by passers-by.

She felt somewhat proud in her heart, because this poem was written by Jia Cong in Jinling two years ago. At that time, it was written in a square format and framed and given to her as a return gift.

Baochai was the first one to know this poem, and then it gradually spread.

She was very concerned about Jia Cong’s daily affairs. She knew that he had also written things to give to others over the years, including copied Buddhist scriptures, the Book of Songs, and the popular Xijiangyue.

The only thing is that I have never heard that he wrote this poem “Nostalgia for Jinling” as a gift to others. The calligraphy in his hand must be the only authentic copy of this poem “Man Jiang Hong”.

This made Baochai love the calligraphy even more than a treasure. When the weather was cloudy and humid, she would take it down and keep it herself, for fear that it would be damaged by moisture.

These days, he has become even more interested in it. Whenever he has free time, he would copy Jia Cong’s calligraphy to kill time and enjoy himself.

……

Jin Chuan’er, who was sorting silk threads, had a pretty face and a lively complexion. Since she followed Baochai, she had lived a stable life and was very content with herself.

She glanced at Baochai who was concentrating on embroidering, her bright eyes moving slightly.

He said, “Miss, I heard from Qingwen a few days ago that since the Third Master was appointed as a Hanlin scholar, he has received an imperial edict from the Ministry of Personnel and now has to attend court every morning to attend government affairs.

You see, Third Master is only so old, but he is getting better and better at his job, and he will be even more amazing in the future.”

Baochai kept sewing, smiled and said, “It’s not uncommon for Brother Cong to be successful as an official. In the past two years, the imperial court has come to your house to announce the imperial decree countless times.”

She suddenly stopped sewing, looked at Jinchuan meaningfully, and said with a smile: “What’s wrong with you these days? You always mention Brother Cong.

I know you love him in your heart, why don’t I help you and give you to him, so that you can serve him wholeheartedly, wouldn’t that be great?”

When Jin Chuan heard Baochai’s words, her heart started beating wildly and her pretty face felt hot.

After a while, he said, “The girl is making fun of me again. I am not destined to be like that, and I will never indulge in such wishful thinking. I will follow the girl wholeheartedly, and that is the right thing to do.”

Baochai listened to her seriously, and her heart was slightly moved. She reached out and touched her temples, saying, “Then follow me from now on, and we will be together.”

Jin Chuan said, “My life was saved by the Third Master. After following the girl for the past two years, I finally know what a good life is.

I don’t think about anything now. I just think that this girl is so good, and she will be rewarded in the future and have the most secure destination. “

Baochai saw Jinchuan’s last words, with a smile in her eyes, as if she was pointing to something.
She was thinking about her own worries, and Jin Chuan, who served her closely, naturally knew everything.

Baochai blushed and said angrily, “We were just chatting for no reason, but you started talking nonsense again.”

……

When Baochai wanted Jinchuan to be her maid, Aunt Xue was not very supportive.

Because there was a deep rift between Jin Chuan and her sister, and her daughter was going to be a maid, wouldn’t that be embarrassing for her sister?

Later, I don’t know what my daughter and sister said to each other, but the matter passed peacefully.

But even so, Aunt Xue did not treat Jin Chuan as her trusted maid. She just thought of her daughter as someone to keep her company and relieve her boredom.

But after a while, Aunt Xue discovered that Jin Chuan was smart, efficient, and hardworking, and was indeed a good maid.

What’s even more rare is that she is loyal to her daughter. Every move she makes is for her daughter’s benefit. She is even more considerate than Ying’er, who was raised by her since childhood.

Later, when her sister saw her daughter being intimate with Cong Ge’er, she falsely accused her daughter of having an affair with him and almost ruined her daughter’s reputation.

It was only because Aunt Xue bowed her head and surrendered to my sister that my sister gave up the idea of ​​making a big deal out of it.

After this incident, although the two sisters remained harmonious on the surface, there was actually a deep rift between them in their hearts.

From that time on, Jin Chuan, who originally had a grudge against her sister, was regarded as Aunt Xue’s trusted maid, and her daily treatment of her also changed greatly.

……

Baochai and Jinchuan were chatting, when Ying’er’s voice suddenly came from outside: “Why is Master Bao here?”

Baoyu asked, “Is Sister Bao at home?”

Ying’er replied, “The girl is in the inner room.”

When Baochai heard Baoyu’s voice, her face remained expressionless, except for a slight frown on her beautiful brows.

On that day, Jia Cong passed the imperial examination and the West Mansion was about to be filled with guests. However, Baoyu lost his composure in Rongqing Hall and openly slandered Jia Cong, for which the furious Jia Zheng punished him by making him kneel down.

This matter caused a lot of uproar. Many guests saw Baoyu kneeling at the entrance of the hall. Baochai naturally knew about it as well.

On the day of Jia Cong’s wedding, Baoyu happened to speak rudely to him. Baochai also became more and more annoyed with Baoyu. When she heard that he was coming to her house, she felt uncomfortable.

Jin Chuan, who was standing by, became even more distraught when she heard Baoyu coming. Ever since the incident that year, she had been so exhausted that she almost lost her life.

From that time on, Jin Chuan avoided Baoyu like the plague. Seeing him was like seeing a ghost and she had no time to hide from him.

Baochai knew what she was thinking and said, “Jinchuan, go and see the mistress and ask Ying’er to come in and serve her.”

Jin Chuan quickly agreed, packed up the silk thread in her hand, lifted the curtain and left the inner room.

Baoyu came excitedly with the written words in his hand, and suddenly met Jin Chuan from the past. She was still as beautiful and graceful as ever. He was delighted and was about to take the opportunity to talk to her.

Unexpectedly, Jin Chuan frowned and ignored him even though she came towards him, with a look of disgust in her eyes.

Baoyu felt a little depressed and looked embarrassed, a little unconvinced. Fortunately, he remembered that he came to Lixiangyuan not for Jinchuan, so he lifted the curtain and went into the inner room.

When he saw the bright and charming Baochai embroidering in the room, he couldn’t help feeling happy.

Baochai asked, “How come Brother Bao has time to come and visit?”

Baoyu smiled and said, “I haven’t seen you for a long time, so I came to see you today.”

When he saw a written couplet on the desk in the room, he naturally knew it was Baochai’s handwriting.

She smiled and said, “I heard that Sister Bao has become more interested in literature recently and often practices calligraphy. She has the same hobby as Third Sister.”

Baochai said, “It’s just that when I’m free, and I love Brother Cong’s calligraphy, I copy it to relieve my boredom.”

When Baoyu heard this, his face froze and he felt aggrieved. Jia Cong’s handwriting was so good that Baojie said she loved his handwriting. Are all people in the world just following the crowd?
In his heart he was not convinced, so he forced a smile and said, “I have always liked calligraphy, and I have put a lot of effort into it. Today I am writing a piece and I will show it to Sister Bao.”

As he spoke, he unfolded the scroll on the table and glanced at Baochai with anticipation in his eyes.

He felt that he was also a refined person, and that it shouldn’t be just the master’s retainers who had good taste, but that others would also be able to see that he was not vulgar…

When Baochai saw that he suddenly brought a piece of calligraphy and asked her to appreciate it, she felt it was a bit unreasonable.

With a pair of beautiful eyes, she glanced at the rice paper. The handwriting was quite pretty, but it had a bit of feminine flavor and didn’t look like it was written by a man. The strokes were soft and the structure was sticky, without a trace of strength and style.

Although Baochai is not as proficient in calligraphy as Tanchun, she has good eyesight.

Baoyu’s handwriting is acceptable at first glance, but if you ask her what’s good about it, Baochai can’t say it against her conscience.

He just said, “Brother Bao has worked hard now, and his handwriting has improved compared to before.”

After hearing what Baochai said, Baoyu felt that Baochai really had good vision and could see the good in me.

He laughed and said, “The calligraphy I wrote was praised by Mr. Zhan, the master’s guest, but I know they are exaggerating.

Calligraphy is profound, and at my age, I am not qualified to say a good word about it. “

He took another look at Jia Cong’s painting “River Red” hanging on the wall, and unconsciously felt dissatisfied.

He said: “Everyone praises Jia Cong’s handwriting. In fact, I also think his handwriting is good, a little better than mine.

But when I look at his handwriting, it is good, but it is a bit heavy and old-fashioned. The quality of calligraphers throughout the ages varies greatly, and I don’t know whose calligraphy he copied more.

He is the same age as me, but I feel that his writing style needs to have more of the youthful elegance and freedom…”

When Baochai heard what Baoyu said, her stomach churned and she felt strange in her heart. For a moment, she even forgot to be angry.

I just feel it’s a bit ridiculous. Baoyu hasn’t read many books or written many words in a year, but from what he said, it seems like he looks down on the calligraphy of the Cong brothers.

He said that his own handwriting was quite good, and was almost as good as that of the Cong brothers.

How did he figure this out… (End of this chapter)