The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 40 Gentle Overbearing

Jia Baoyu got up early in the morning, and after Xiren washed him up, he came to Jia Tanchun's residence without breakfast, holding a flower basket made of rattan with cat ears, and said excitedly, "Third sister, do you think I brought you something new?"

Jia Tanchun was washing and washing, and said happily when he saw this, "Cat ear flower basket?"

Jia Baoyu said with a smile: "I know that the third sister likes this kind of gadgets, wait a minute, there is a mystery in it."

As Jia Baoyu said, he put the flower basket on the table next to him, held the cat ears and lifted it up, revealing a smaller cat ear flower basket underneath, then another small one, and another small one, there are five in total, the smallest one is only the size of a cup, but it is actually a matryoshka-style cat ear flower basket.

"It's really interesting." Cui Mo and Shi Shu both sighed, and Jia Tanchun was also full of surprises. She and Jia Baoyu had always had a good relationship, and the latter would remember to bring her some gadgets most of the time when he went to the street.

Jia Baoyu proudly said: "This is the little thing my godson gave me yesterday."

Jia Tanchun said in astonishment, "Where did the second elder brother come from as a godson?"

"It's the side branch Jia Yun who lives in the corridor. I met yesterday when I was watching a play in the East Mansion. She wanted to show filial piety to me, so I reluctantly accepted it."

Jia Tanchun scratched his face with his fingers and said in shame: "Second brother is not ashamed, he is much older than you, so you recognize him as your son?"

Jia Baoyu smiled and said: "So what, I am from the jade generation, and he is from the cursive generation. I am older than him, so I can only see that he is smart and looks not bad. If it is someone else, I still don't want to accept it."

After Jia Baoyu finished speaking, he reached out and dug a little rouge into Jia Tanchun's rouge box, and was about to put it in his mouth, when the servant book next to him was knocked out, and he said angrily, "Second Master Bao, how soon will his habit of eating rouge be corrected? Teach people to see it and don't respect it. Be careful and tell your wife."

Jia Baoyu's handsome face was flushed, and he said embarrassingly: "My good sister, please forgive me this time, I won't dare to do it again."

I believe those who have read "A Dream of Red Mansions" know that Jia Baoyu has a quirk of eating rouge, and he especially likes to eat the rouge that his daughter's family put on her lips.I remember one time, Jin Chuaner tried to tease Jia Baoyu by pointing at her small mouth, saying that the rouge on her lips had just been wiped off, and asked Jia Baoyu if she wanted to eat it.

At this moment, Jia Tanchun pushed the matryoshka and cat-ear flower basket aside, and said with a smile, "Since the second brother's godson honored this play, the second brother should keep it for himself."

Jia Baoyu said awkwardly: "If the third sister doesn't want it, she can throw it outside, and I don't want it either." After speaking, he went to the cubicle to find Lin Daiyu in a fit of anger.

The servant stuck out his tongue and said, "Second Master Bao seems to be angry, did the servant girl speak too harshly just now?"

Jia Tanchun sighed and said: "It's okay, it's better to be serious, everyone is getting older every day, and the second brother's habit of eating rouge must be changed, otherwise it will be inappropriate."

Let’s say that when Jia Baoyu arrived in the cubicle, he saw Lin Daiyu washing and washing, and Haitangchun’s lazy and charming look after sleeping was really pretty, so he turned his annoyance into joy, leaned forward and said courteously: “Zicuckoo, let me draw eyebrows for my sister, I draw them beautifully.”

Zijuan said with a smile: "Little ancestor, you should go on the sidelines, just don't make trouble."

Jia Baoyu soaked for a while, but Zicuckoo still refused to let him go, so he had to step aside dejectedly, where Lin Daiyu had already covered the rouge box casually, and teased: "My rouge doesn't taste good."

Jia Baoyu said embarrassingly: "Sister Lin, even you are teasing me, it's in vain that I went to the street yesterday and remembered to bring you a gift." After speaking, he took out a string of agate bracelets as if offering treasures.

Lin Daiyu glanced at it, and spat: "What kind of stinky man honors you again? I don't want it!"

Jia Baoyu hurriedly swore: "This is new, no one has ever worn it before. I picked it up at Zhibaozhai yesterday for a long time. My sister will definitely look good in it."

Lin Daiyu snorted coldly: "Then I don't want it either, you can keep it for Xiren, or you can keep it for Yun girl."

Jia Baoyu was in a hurry: "They have their share, but I chose it for you, Sister Lin. If you don't want it, wouldn't it be a disappointment to my heart?"

Seeing that this man was about to cry, Lin Daiyu couldn't help but feel soft, so she had no choice but to accept it.Only then did Jia Baoyu sit down satisfied, took a sip of the tea brought by the maidservant Xueyan, and saw a freshly opened sachet in the bamboo basket next to him.

After sitting for a while, Jia Baoyu couldn't help it anymore, stood up and walked to the desk, saw a stack of manuscripts, picked it up to read curiously, and said with a snort, "This is not sister Lin's handwriting, could it be the third sister's, and it doesn't look like it!"

Lin Daiyu exclaimed, "Don't rummage through other people's things."

It turned out that these manuscripts were the second and third drafts of "The Palace of Eternal Life" that Cuimo borrowed from Jia Huan last night. Lin Daiyu stayed up all night after reading it and put it on the desk and forgot to put it away.

Jia Baoyu became even more curious when he heard the words, and smiled while watching: "You still don't rummage around when you come to my place, and you don't see what I said, but I can't if I rummage through your things. Eh, is this a new drama? Why doesn't it have a beginning? Good sister, you can take it out, and let me see it too."

Lin Daiyu woke up and promised Jia Huan not to pass it on, so she ran over to get it back. Jia Baoyu circled around the book case with a smile on her face.

Seeing this, Jia Baoyu had no choice but to put down the manuscript paper and said: "Sister Lin, don't cry, I don't want to read it, it's nothing important, I'm just teasing you."

Lin Daiyu was obviously pretending to cry, but there were no tears. She raised her head and gave Jia Baoyu an annoyed look, then quickly folded the manuscript and locked it in the drawer.

Jia Baoyu had actually watched more than half of it, and smiled when he saw this: "You don't have to hide it anymore, I've already finished watching it, I haven't seen this new play, where did my sister come from?"

"It fell from the sky!" Lin Daiyu hummed slightly.

Jia Baoyu laughed and said, "I only know that Sister Lin, who is like a fairy, fell from the world, but I don't know that scripts will also fall from the sky."

Lin Daiyu couldn't help feeling hot, picked up the feather duster in embarrassment, and started chasing him. If Jia Huan saw him here, he would have to admire Jia Baoyu for his flirtatiousness. It's not surprising that the two of them got along with each other for a long time.

In the end, Lin Daiyu said that Jia Huan wrote the script, because in her opinion, Jia Baoyu is not an outsider, and everyone circulated it among brothers and sisters. I believe Huan'er will not blame him.

Jia Baoyu looked a little unnatural: "Huan'er wrote this script? Don't you copy it from other places? How old is Huaner, can he write such a script?"

Indeed, Hong Sheng, the author of "The Palace of Eternal Life", is a master figure. It took Shen Fu most of his life to write such a "popular" drama. Without rich experience and profound accumulation, he couldn't write it at all, let alone the seven-year-old Jia Huan, even Luo Wenhao before time travel.

At this time, Lin Daiyu asked back: "Copy it? Where did you copy it from?"

Jia Baoyu hesitated and said: "I don't know where I copied it from. Anyway, I don't think Huan'er can write such a thing. I doubted the poem about plums that won the first prize last time."

Lin Daiyu frowned and said: "Throughout the ages, child prodigies are not uncommon, and it is not unusual for Huan'er to be early-witted. Baoyu, you yourself were born with jade, don't you know that the world is so big, and there are all kinds of wonders? If you have evidence that Huan'er copied it, you can show it, and you can't just say that others have plagiarized."

Jia Bao's face was flushed, and he hesitated, "I didn't say that Huan'er plagiarized, I just found it strange. Sister Lin and I are good friends, we are stubborn together every day, that's all I'm telling you. Of course, I won't talk nonsense about others."

Lin Daiyu spat lightly: "Who is getting better with you, so I'm not ashamed!"

Jia Baoyu smiled and said: "Okay, let's not talk about this. By the way, I greeted Huan'er the other day and asked him to draw a sketch for me and Sister Lin. Today I won't go to the Dongfu to see a play. Why don't we find a portrait of Huan'er? Call the second sister and the fourth sister. It's just so lively."

Lin Daiyu had finished reading two scripts last night, and she was still not satisfied. She thought it was time to ask Jia Huan if she had written a new one, so she nodded and said, "Alright!"

Jia Baoyu said happily: "Then let's go to Huan'er after breakfast. I'll go back and find someone to inform the second and fourth sisters. It will be more lively."

After Jia Baoyu finished speaking, he left in a hurry.

……

Let's say that Jia Huan slept on the small couch in the outer room last night. When he woke up, he found that there was an extra quilt on his body, and there was a warm stove next to him, while Qiao Ping'er fell asleep lying on the side of the couch.

"The third master is awake, and the servant girl will bring you water to wash up." Jia Huan just moved a little, and Ping'er woke up, yawned and stretched, and his youthful and beautiful figure appeared instantly.

Jia Huan asked with concern: "Sister Ping'er fell asleep lying down here, why is she catching a cold?"

Ping'er gave Jia Huan a slightly reproachful look and said, "Then you have to ask the third master yourself, why didn't you wake up the servant girl last night, but ran here secretly by yourself, if you catch the cold, wouldn't it be the servant girl's fault?"

Jia Huan smiled and said: "I saw that sister Ping'er was sleeping soundly, but I can't bear to be woken up. Just stay here for one night."

Ping'er glanced at Jia Huan tenderly, turned around and called hot water for Jia Huan to wash up, but she refused to do it himself, Jia Huan couldn't help it, so she had to let her enjoy this gentle domineering.

Next, Jia Huan finished exercising and bathing as usual, and was eating breakfast when a large group of people came to the door together. It was Jia Baoyu, Lin Daiyu, and Sanchun sisters, as well as a dozen maids and women accompanying them. The small courtyard became lively in an instant.

"Huan'er, I happen to be free today, so draw a portrait of me and sister Lin." Jia Baoyu said as soon as he entered the door.

(End of this chapter)