[Red Mansions] The big maid struggles daily

When the day entered the first month, even Jia Mu breathed a sigh of relief.

Last year, the Spring Festival was not going well. First, Baoyu was frightened on the night of Lantern Festival, and then he was bumped into, and even Lingyu was polluted; It's used in the middle, and there are so many ugly gossips.Mother Jia has been holding back, she is neither deaf nor dumb, nor a family member. She is old, and she just enjoys the honor.

"I beg the Buddha to keep the house safe and protect Baoyu..." Mrs. Wang knelt on the scriptures and got up at the second watch, and told Caiyun: "I will eat fast tomorrow."

Caiyun was taken aback, and hurriedly asked: "Tomorrow, do you want to invite relatives and friends to the house for New Year's wine?"

Mrs. Wang said: "They are all relatives and friends of my own family. It's fine to have Feng'er to accompany you. Go and get Baoyu's jade in person tomorrow morning. I will worship it for a day. "

Caiyun thought about it secretly, and then realized: Tomorrow is the sixth day of the lunar new year, and the sixth day is the Christmas day of Dingguang Buddha.Caiyun thought in his heart: "The piece of jade in Baoyu has some origins. My wife wants to arouse the spirituality of this jade. Please let it protect the second master."

After Caiyun answered, she hurriedly called Jin Chuaner: "How many glazed lanterns do we have here? I vaguely remember breaking one last year?"

Jin Chuan'er curled her lips, it was broken there, but it was Aunt Zhao's group who were jealous and made Heixin break two lamps.He smiled and said: "There are six lamps in total. During the festival last year, Aunt Zhao's grandma was breaking the curtain and Mr. Huan was making a fool of herself. Somehow, the two of them came across the hall. Good guy, they broke two lamps at once. My wife doesn't care too much about it." Aunt Zhao took the two lamps into the house and said they would send them after they were mended, but there was no news of them.”

Caiyun said seriously: "Whoever broke it doesn't matter now, I just ask you, there are only four lamps left?"

Seeing Jin Chuaner nodding, Caiyun immediately ordered Qingjin to say: "Go quickly to Second Mistress's place, and before they fall asleep, ask Pinger to open the lamphouse behind and take out four octagonal glazed lamps, hurry up!"

Jin Chuan'er wondered: "Now, even if the key is on the door late during the New Year's Day, Second Mistress Lian should have gone to bed at that time. I have to go at this time because I'm in a hurry? Besides, we didn't hang up that time this year. The lamps, the newly-arrived palace lanterns with gold and jade inlaid with flowers and birds, have been lit in the hall day and night, and they can’t be turned off until the second day of February, so there is no reason to change the lamps on a major festival.”

Without further ado, Qing Jin quickly put on the half-worn fur cloak that Mrs. Wang gave her, and went outside.

Watching her go out, Caiyun said: "Mrs. Ming'er eats fast and prays. Naturally, the hall should be brighter in front of the Buddha. The other lights are too fancy and gorgeous. This glazed lamp is just right." The Buddhist hall is naturally brightly decorated.

Jin Chuan'er was still muttering something about "the idea is too big" and "eight lamps can be used anywhere", but Caiyun ignored it and went to make arrangements on his own.

Caixia is serving Mrs. Wang to straighten her hair in the inner room. Although the curtain has been lowered, she can still hear the conversation outside.Seeing Mrs. Wang nodding, Caixia glanced at herself in the mirror, and said, "After all, Caiyun is more thoughtful and prudent."

Unexpectedly, just after the third drum that night, Mrs. Wang fell asleep when she heard the cloud board outside, knocking it four times in a row, it was the sound of mourning, which woke up everyone in the main room, panicked and panicked.

Mrs. Wang was a little confused, and her first reaction when she first heard it was "Is the old lady bad?" Fortunately, she didn't say it out loud.After she woke up a little, Caixia brought her a hot handkerchief to refresh her mind, and Madam Wang sighed and asked: "Ronger's wife is the only one in the two houses who is not doing well, but has she gone?"

Caixia cried, "It's Grandma Xiaorong from Dongfu who is gone."

Mrs. Wang sighed again, her eye circles turned red, and she said after a while, "See if your sister-in-law Zhou has come in?"

Caixia hurriedly hung up the curtains, went out and said to Zhou Rui's family who was waiting behind the screen in the ear room: "Sister-in-law Zhou, come quickly, my wife is calling you."

When there was no one in front of her, Mrs. Wang said: "Today is Dingguang Buddha's birthday. Baoyu was unlucky last year. Finally a monk showed him that it was the reason why his jade was dirty. I wanted to give it to him." Congratulations and congratulations to that jade... who knows that it is such a misfortune that he was born and died today, and it is the first lunar month, so it is not unlucky!"

Sister Wang Feng didn't have time to think about these unlucky or unlucky things, she just sat on the kang with her quilt in a daze.Jia Lian stayed in the outer courtyard that night, and Ping'er slept with her. Seeing her in a trance, Ping'er couldn't help worrying. stunned.

Ping'er reached out and touched Sister Feng's back, she was sweating profusely, and her coat was soaked, so Ping'er hurriedly poured tea for her to eat, "Why are you sweating so much, what's wrong with grandma?"

Fearing that she would be haunted, she heard Sister Feng muttering repeatedly: "...After Sanchun is gone, all the fragrances will be exhausted, and each of them must find his own door."

"What? Grandma, grandma? Don't scare me." Ping'er got off the kang and was about to order Caiming to invite the doctor, but was suddenly stopped by Sister Feng, who turned pale and forced a smile: "I had a dream, and I don't remember it at all. It's because Rong's daughter-in-law went away suddenly, and I dreamed about her just now, so I was a little frightened."

"Hurry up and help me change my clothes, I have to hurry to my wife's side. You stay at home and if your second master has any orders, send someone to tell me."

In Rongfu, lamps were lit everywhere, and after a while, everything was brightly lit.

Jia Baoyu was sleeping in the bed, and Bihen was with him outside. Jia Baoyu woke up in a dream and heard that Mrs. Qin had died. He didn't feel like he had lost all his strength, and collapsed on the bed with a bang, tears were like running water The soaked sideburn mattress was wet.Bihen has always been a deep sleeper, but at this moment he wakes up in a daze, and can't help complaining: "Ancestor Tian, ​​it's making a fuss again in the middle of the night! If Sister Xiren doesn't want me to accompany you, just say it. Every now and then, there will be some commotion. My sister should also be concerned about Grandpa, Grandpa can't sleep well, and I won't be refreshed at dinner tomorrow!"

An angry Jia Baoyu gritted his teeth and kicked Bihen off the bed.

Xiren came up in a hurry, turning a blind eye to Bihen's bewildered and frightened look, and just put a set of modest clothes on the short table, and wiped Baoyu's face with his own handkerchief: "Grandma Xiaorong is gone, we all Sad, but even though you are sad, considering that you are too old to bear these things, you should keep some of them. Otherwise, what would you call an old lady?"

Jia Baoyu's face was full of tears, and he held Xiren's hand and asked: "Do you still remember the dream I told you about when I rested in her room that year?"

Xiren's hand tightened, why didn't she remember, it was this dream that made her make up her mind.To this day, Xiren has not regretted it, because she knows that as long as Baoyu opens her eyes, it is not only herself but also others.

Thinking about it this way, he felt that his life was bitter, and the teardrops of Xiren also fell down. Baoyu was even more sentimental: "In the dream, a fairy girl promised me, and she taught me... The fairy girl has a cute character, and her baby name is also beautiful. The most tender and loving person I have ever seen in my life." As he spoke, he wept more and more sobbing and painful, "I thought about it a few times later, and I only felt that Xiangu's description was similar to her, now that I'm gone, why don't you tell me to gouge it out?" Heartache!"

Xiren turned pale with shock, could this "she" be Grandma Xiaorong?The words between Grandma Xiaorong and Uncle Zhen have long been famous and rumored, and it is extremely embarrassing. Baoyu must not be involved, and hurriedly said: "Grandma Xiaorong is filial and kind, and is the most popular. Come over there to report that Uncle Zhen is sad. After passing by several times, the old lady was also alarmed, Er Ye dressed up, go and see the old lady."

But Luo Cuiwu has to get up here too.It's just that the servants of the families in the courtyard are orderly and never noisy.

While poking open the tea stove, Zhu Xiu said to Jiuqiu: "Go back and wear thicker clothes. It's cold and windy. It's not a joke when it blows."

Just as she was talking, Taoyue bumped in and said anxiously: "For some reason, the girl heard that Grandma Xiaorong in Dongfu is gone, she suddenly clutched her chest and complained of distress, and now she even vomited up the calming soup and porridge that she ate at night. Come out. Xiuer, you know some medical principles, come with me to see the girl."

Zhu Xiu hurriedly went to the main room with her, Daiyu was leaning on the soft pillow, her complexion was not bad, when she saw them coming in, she smiled and said: "Don't be busy, it's okay. Maybe it's just a moment of nausea, I still feel relieved when I spit it out some."

Zhu Xiu went up to check her pulse, and seeing that Daiyu's eyes were clear and energetic, she was indeed fine, so she didn't feel like smiling: "In the tea room, there is some calming tea, and the girl will eat half a cup later, and I will sleep with the girl for a while." .”

Mother Chen also said: "I have already sent people there, it has nothing to do with us. It's still early, and the girl will go to bed later. I have already checked the fourth girl's place, and I didn't disturb her. I have already told her Nanny, wake up in the morning and tell Miss Four slowly, even if you start making trouble with her now, it's just sitting and waiting."

Outside the door, the lady-in-law opened the curtain of the orangutan felt, and Mammy Zhu came in and said with a smile: "Ask the embroidered girl to sleep with the girl for a while. She is very angry and warm. I would like to be with her as soon as winter comes." Sleeping in bed is much better than Mrs. Tang, and I can always sleep more soundly."

Nowadays, most girls who are not as good as Ji have a nurse to sleep with them.It's just that Daiyu's two nannies didn't do what they wanted, and they were taken back to Yangzhou long ago to be punished. She is often accompanied by a few big girls.At this moment, I asked Zhu Xiu to accompany her, because she was afraid that Daiyu would feel uncomfortable and Zhu Xiu could take care of her.

Daiyu pursed her lips and smiled: "The heated kang is too dry, I can still sit during the day, but I can't bear it at night, so I have to use Mrs. Tang. My sister is better than Mrs. Tang? If this is the case, I can also use it for a while?"

The next morning, Daiyu hugged Zhu Xiu's arm and said with a smile, "Sure enough, she slept soundly. The scent of grass and trees on sister Xiu's body is more refreshing and beneficial than soothing soup."

Mammy Zhu combed her hair herself, with a simple hanging bun, a pair of small jade hairpins on the hairpin, and a pink velvet flower from Jinling Tribute. That velvet flower is exactly the meaning of this new year.

Nanny Chen also said: "That's good. On the one hand, we don't have a lot of friendship with them. I went out to see it. The whole house hasn't changed their clothes yet, so we can't do it; on the other hand, it's about seniority. The girl is an aunt. When it arrives, it will be done.”

Daiyu and Xichun walked up to the upper room, and Jia's mother was complaining: "People who are only smoke are not clean. Baoyu, a little villain, doesn't listen to what I say. Last night passed, and I haven't come back at this hour. "

Xiangyun smiled and said: "The old lady sent so many servants to follow, and they will come back in half an hour to report a letter. Besides, we will go there in a while. The second brother is fine, so don't worry about the old lady."

But Baochai sighed: "Being sincere is exactly the benefit of Brother Bao."

When Jia Mu saw Daiyu come in, her face looked better.Mammy Zhu asked how to arrange the funeral ceremony over there.

Jia Mu frowned and sighed: "It happened in the first lunar month. Zhen'er wanted to do everything in his power, but the day was really unlucky. Qin Tianjian's Onmyoji Division chose a date and decided to stop for seven days. Forget it, the funeral will be held today and the obituary will be delivered. Fifty eminent monks and fifty Quanzhen Taoist priests will be invited to perform rituals for seven days. Afterwards, I will be sent to Tiekan Temple to send the spirit there for now, and I will help the spirit back to the south later. .”

When Zhu Xiu heard about it, she breathed a sigh of relief for Qin Keqing, it was good to be so quiet.Fu thought about it again, at the end of last year, I heard that the Ning Mansion had invited a famous doctor, and Qin's family had improved, but now she suddenly disappeared, maybe she herself died on purpose.It's also pitiful, even if you want to die, you have to think carefully, and choose this season.

What can't be done?If Jia Zhen is allowed to be extravagant, all the county kings with different surnames in Beijing and Nan’an will set up road sacrifices, and all the princes’ mansions will come to worship, not to mention Jia Zhen crying in person and donating officials to her son. And I can't hide it from others, this is not mourning after death, it is clearly publicizing the scandal so that no one knows.Even if Qin Keqing dies, he will be treated as a laughing stock, and when Du Zhong mentions the funeral, he will be poked back in the spine.The excitement is for the living to see, and the dead are dead, so why bother to be disturbed.

Because Jia Lian was at home, with Jia Lian's help, relatives and friends communicated with each other, and they never lost their etiquette.And it's only seven days, and it's New Year's Eve. Although You Shi was too sick to get up to take care of the funeral, there were sisters-in-law from various ethnic groups in the house, and they could barely take care of the big and small affairs. Sister Feng is in charge of internal affairs.

What's more, no matter how reckless Jia Zhen wanted to be, she couldn't resist Jia Jing's message from the mountain, saying that the day of Qin's death would not be a good day, so it was called quick cooking.Jia Zhen cried like a tearful person, and leaning on a crutch, she said to her relatives and friends: "It's nothing else, but this child has stretched his legs, and he needs to find a good board to match it. I have seen the ones sent everywhere. They are fir boards, which are not to my liking."

Lin Anfang asked on behalf of the Lin family and delivered the sacrificial ceremony, when he heard Xue Pan say in a loud voice: "...to make a coffin, it will last for ten thousand years. It was originally what the Yizhong old prince wanted, who knows..."

Looking intently at the moment, I saw that Jia Zhen couldn't help being overjoyed, she didn't want the crutches, clapped her hands and immediately ordered someone to carry it.Can't help but laugh, and then shudder again, this Ning Mansion is more unruly than Rong Mansion, a junior daughter-in-law who has no achievements and no awards, dares to use the coffin of the deposed prince and prince, it is not only arrogance, it is lawless.What's more, there are so many officials coming and going in the funeral ceremony in the first month, and there is a tendency to form a party. Do you think it's not eye-catching enough for your own family?

When Lin An returned to Lin's house, he urgently ordered someone to write to the master of Yangzhou. The situation in the south of the Yangtze River became clearer day by day, and the master had already stepped out of the vortex.The vortex in the capital city is only a hundred times more dangerous than that in the south of the Yangtze River. This is a battle for succession. Now that the master has acted like a pure minister, it is time to slowly tear apart these old in-laws who are like leeches. Helped the master to check the old accounts of the mansion for the past 30 years, and found that there was a deficit of 28 taels, and the treasures in the inner treasury were even less.Fortunately, the things and property passed down by the ancestors have always been in the hands of the master. Although the future has been removed, the foundation is still there.

Thinking of this, Lin An felt a little resentful.It's true that the wife subsidizes her natal family, but the Jia family is really shameless. After taking so many benefits from the Lin family, how dare they pretend to be superior? Logically, it's not an exaggeration to hold their own girls!

Lin An's family came back very angry, and said angrily: "I just hope that the master will return to Beijing soon and bring the girl back from his house. This Jia family really doesn't know what it is, it is extremely shameless!"

"What's the matter? The prince's coffin boards are already used, what else can we do?"

Lin An's family gave him a blank look, this man would only look at those scheming places, but he didn't know that he would bring trouble to Xiao Qiang and destroy ant nests, "Isn't that grandma surnamed You so sad that her old illness relapsed and she couldn't even get up?" , I had to ask my natal mother and sister to help take care of it. Pooh, it’s even better than the singing on the stage, do you know what I saw inside today?”

Lin An raised his eyebrows, "What? What's the matter?"

"The two girls from You's family are dressed in plain clothes. Although the older one is a bit shy and fearful of others, it's quite a rule. But the younger one, hmph, under the plain robe is a pair of bright red. The embroidered shoes of the green mandarin ducks! She asked the girl to beat her legs in a big way. Not only I saw it, but everyone from other families who paid condolences saw it. I am really not ashamed. That’s not enough. At most, this girl is frivolous and ignorant. But who would have thought that Brother Rong ran over, separated by a thin veil, and the "third aunt, second aunt" was entangled inside, and his first wife was still lying in the coffin! Only this time, It's over after all the etiquette, no wonder Zhu and Chen are so reluctant to let our girl into his house, it really doesn't make people disgusting!"

"You haven't seen her frivolous look. Brother Rong is also extremely hateful. His wife just went away. She has such a good character, not to mention mourning. Before the bones are cold, he will be with a foreign aunt." Looking back and forth, it can be seen that I misjudged him in the past, and Brother Zhen is really the same." Sister Feng's eyes were slightly swollen, her face was full of sarcasm, and she sneered with Ping'er: "That's why I don't like You Shi, you I always persuaded me to know who she is just by looking at this scene. Qin Shi died, although she didn't want to live, but it may not be without the "credit" of our Grandma You, who only passed on those words to her. If she knows it, she can kill her. You talk sweetly and borrow swords to kill people. Your grandma and I are far worse than others. You Shi was afraid that Brother Zhen would blame him and attack him. Come on, what's the point of this peace!"

No matter how many gossips gossip behind the scenes, Qin's funeral was over safely.Sister Wang Feng felt gloomy, and she felt cold after the funeral, and she was not safe until the first month came out.

By the end of February, the members of the Ningrong Second Mansion seemed to have forgotten that they lost a grandmother they praised so much just a month ago.Jia's mother is kind and kind, either talking to Aunt Xue for fun, or watching plays and playing cards with grandchildren and grandchildren to pass the time.

Zhu Xiu went back to Jia's mother, and went to Uncle Cheng's for tea with Zhu Mama. On the way, she said to her mother: "I thought it was Mrs. Lin who married far away. The relationship will fade if you stay far away. That's why I didn't wear mourning for her. Who would have thought that Grandma Xiaorong was so valued in the past, and she also looked like this. This kind of behavior is really chilling."

"What's so cold? Our little aunt and grandma, at such a young age, why worry so much, there's your mother and uncle." Uncle Cheng lifted the curtain of the car himself and said with a smile.

Only then did Zhu Xiu realize that she had arrived at her uncle's house, and the carriage drove directly to the backyard.

Zhu Xiu chuckled, and said: "Seeing Uncle, my heart is burning hot. When I smell it, it smells like silver." After saying that, she jumped out of the car, and turned back to help Nanny Zhu.

Uncle Cheng also came to help her. Mammy Zhu pointed at the two uncles and nephews angrily, and said to Uncle Cheng, "What letter did you deliver to her? This girl is so happy that she can even laugh out loud in her dreams. It's scary."

Uncle Cheng helped Nanny Zhu to fall into the small hall, and everyone returned to their seats before he said with a smile: "Our embroidery is clever, if she hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have thought of asking Dad. If it doesn’t open again for ten years, all the expenses will be saved.”

Zhu Xiu didn't show off, because he said: "Didn't you hear the bragging of the servants of the Rong family, saying that their eldest girl has made it through the ages, and she is now in the picture? Mother knows that the people there dare to go outside after drinking Said, there is something about Wu Guiren and Zhou Changzai. This week, Zhou Changzai's father is an official of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The people of Rongfu said that this Master Zhou bought a large piece of land outside the city. What do you want to build? Yuanzi. I guessed whether it was going to seal the Sixth Palace. My mother told me that every time the seal was sealed, the price of goods would rise, especially the soaring price of silk, satin, and antiques, so I mentioned it to my uncle. One mouth."

Uncle Cheng touched the two fake beards on his lips, very proud, "Not only do we have to seal the Sixth Palace, but maybe the concubine is also allowed to go home to visit relatives. This concubine's visit is different from the daughter's visit, and there must be a matching private number." Courtyard. In this way, it’s not like the money is pouring out, and how much money can be received will naturally depend on the ability of each family.”

Zhu Nai listened, but shook her head and asked: "Best relatives? It's not a trivial matter for this concubine to leave the palace. Can she be allowed to stay outside for a few days? It's impossible! Even if she is allowed to leave the palace, she will return on the same day she comes out. , With such a little effort, will someone with a brain start to build some other courtyard? I think your nephew and uncle are fascinated by money, so don't bother."

Uncle Cheng rubbed his nose, and said in a low voice: "Father, the old man said that the relatives are seven or eight points accurate. The situation in the south is mostly flat, and today I intend to flatter and appease the Supreme Emperor, so I have promoted many daughters of Xungui's family today. Besides, my sister also said that there are people with brains, and those who can settle down will naturally not be able to do so. Isn’t there still a lot of upstarts? Get busy and get ready."

As he spoke, he said, "Master Zhou is very well-informed, and the news is still kept in the inner court, so he started to prepare...Xiu'er, if I knew about it one day earlier, I would have a hand in hand. Uncle not only took down the southern few It’s a product from the Brocade Weaving Bureau, and has recruited dozens of experienced embroiderers... But it’s a great help for uncle, and uncle will give you a single layer to thank you!"

Uncle Cheng beamed with joy.