allonlinenovel Chapter 27 Sister Feng's Birthday
Chapter 27 Sister Feng's Birthday
Jia Huan's men have been completely subdued and suppressed by him. No one dares to reveal that he went out. The servants who have been guarding the gate for so long have also been subdued by him. His going out is never reported.
He's practically invisible in the Jia family now.
The secluded Qingfeng Courtyard was practically its own little world. Jia Huan bought all his own food, lodging, and clothing. His monthly allowance and seasonal clothing were collected by Aunt Zhao on his behalf. Since Aunt Zhao didn't give them to him, he didn't ask for them.
His relationship with the Jia family is now practically nonexistent.
Later, it was heard that a relative named Granny Liu came to visit and stayed at the mansion for two days. Grandmother Jia even led everyone in the mansion to take her on a tour of the Grand View Garden. It is said that the group of people had a very lively time.
It wasn't until September that Grandmother Jia sent someone to say that the second day of the lunar month was Wang Xifeng's birthday, and she planned to hold a birthday banquet for Wang Xifeng, following the example of small families pooling their resources to hold the banquet according to the amount raised. She asked Jia Huan if he wanted to attend.
Jia Huan was wondering why Grandmother Jia suddenly thought of him when Zizai Feihua also received the news and came to tell him.
It's not like I suddenly remembered him.
Rather, everyone in the mansion has a share!
For example, letters were sent to Grandmother Jia, Madam Xing, Madam Wang, Aunt Xue who was visiting, Li Wan, all the young ladies, Baoyu, the head wife of the You family in Ningguo Mansion, the favored maids by the master's side, and even the old women who had retired. Even Jia Zheng's two concubines were not left out.
Grandmother Jia specially asked Lady You to take care of everything, so that Sister Feng wouldn't have to worry about anything and could have a good birthday and enjoy herself.
No wonder!
There's no escaping it now.
Jia Huan took a sip of tea and chuckled, "Just send them the money they paid according to how they paid. I've been diligently inquiring about it these past few days, and I'll go there on the second day of the new year."
Now, Zizai and Feihua, one in charge of personnel and the other in charge of finances, heard Jia Huan say this and Zizai announced everyone's share of money: "The old lady is twenty taels, Aunt Xue is twenty taels, the two ladies are sixteen taels, Madam Zhen is twelve taels, Madam Zhu is twelve taels... and the three young ladies in the mansion are two taels each..."
She rambled on and on, but Jia Huan, drinking his tea, didn't stop her. Only after she finished did he directly order, "Send two taels as usual to Third Sister."
The two agreed, and Feihua opened the money box, took out two taels of silver and gave it to Zizai. Zizai turned around and went out with two maids to deliver the money.
Before we knew it, it was the second day of the ninth lunar month, Wang Xifeng's birthday. The banquet was held in the newly built Grand Hall.
Jia Huan walked in at the perfect time, and as soon as he reached the passageway, he could hear the sounds of string and wind instruments playing, which sounded very lively.
Jia Huan walked straight to the flower hall, where he saw a plainly dressed maid weeping in the corridor.
Logically speaking, today is Sister Feng's birthday, and the servants would not cry on such a good day. If Sister Feng found out, they would probably get a good beating.
Zizai quickly stepped forward and whispered in his ear, "Third Master, this is Yuchuan from Madam's room. She is Jinchuan's younger sister. Jinchuan jumped into the well and died. Otherwise, she and Second Madam Lian would share the same birthday."
Upon hearing this, Jia Huan understood why Yu Chuan was sad, but he didn't hesitate to go forward and comfort her.
Lady Wang looked down on Jia Huan, and all the maids in her room except Caixia felt the same way. Jin Chuan and Yu Chuan looked pitiful now, but they had given the original owner a lot of attitude before.
Now that they've gotten into trouble, Jia Huan feels sorry for the loss of a life, but he won't stoop to pity for them. If he did, Yu Chuan would probably think he had ulterior motives and might even secretly curse him: "A weasel offering New Year's greetings to a chicken—he's up to no good!"
However, Jia Huan couldn't understand Lady Wang. She had driven the other woman to her death, and then she still kept the other woman's younger sister by her side as her personal maid. Did she mean that she was certain that Yu Chuan would be loyal and wouldn't betray her?
Even if he doesn't say it, he must hate her to death in his heart.
Jia Huan pretended not to see Yu Chuan, walked past her without glancing at her, and went straight to the flower hall.
At this moment, everyone except Jia Baoyu had arrived in the flower hall.
Jia Huan stepped forward to greet Grandmother Jia and the others. Grandmother Jia gave a faint "hmm" and didn't say anything more before telling him to get up.
When Madam Wang saw him, she couldn't help but recall her outburst that day. She immediately nodded stiffly without saying a word.
Sitting opposite her, Madam Xing took in her embarrassing behavior and chuckled to herself, but on the surface she appeared even more kind and amiable. She said to Jia Huan, "Go and play with your sisters."
"Yes!"
Jia Huan showed no embarrassment at being slighted. He remained calm and composed, congratulating Feng Jie, exchanging greetings with You Shi and Li Wan, and finally addressing Bao Yu and the young ladies.
The younger generation were all grouped together: Jia Yingchun, Jia Tanchun, Jia Xichun, Lin Daiyu, Xue Baochai, Shi Xiangyun, and now Jia Huan.
Jia Huan raised his hand to perform a greeting of equality, the movement fluid and natural, possessing a unique beauty.
The group had been chatting and laughing, but now that they saw him coming and greeting him so formally, they all stood up to return the greeting.
After exchanging greetings, everyone took their seats in turn, but the atmosphere was not as lively as before.
Jia Huan subtly observed everyone.
He had met Sanchun before, so this time he mainly observed the other three.
The three young ladies of the Jia family were already good-looking, but these three were even more outstanding.
Lin Daiyu is the only daughter of Jia Min, the youngest daughter of Grandmother Jia, and Lin Ruhai, the salt commissioner of Yangzhou. She lost her mother at a young age, and her father passed away last year. She now lives in the Rongguo Mansion.
She was extremely intelligent and quick-witted, proficient in all the arts, especially poetry and prose. Her only flaw was her frail health; she was on medication year-round, her brows were slightly furrowed, and a faint sorrow lingered in her eyes. Even her smile seemed to carry a hint of melancholy. She was like a delicate flower reflected in water, or a willow swaying in the breeze, possessing a fragile yet sickly beauty.
Grandmother Jia doted on her, and it was obvious to everyone in the mansion that Grandmother Jia preferred the two 'Yu'ers' to be together. At some point, rumors of a preordained bond between the wood and the stone began to circulate in the mansion.
Looking at Xue Baochai over there, her appearance was even more beautiful. Her skin was radiant, her bones were delicate, her face was full and round, her eyes were like water apricots, bright and spirited, and her overall appearance gave people a gentle and healthy feeling.
Another beauty!
I also heard that she was good at dealing with people and was well-liked by everyone in the mansion.
However, her background wasn't much better than Lin Daiyu's. She came from the Xue family, one of the four great families and a royal merchant family. Her father died early, and she lived with her mother, Lady Wang's younger sister, Aunt Xue, and her brother, Xue Pan. She had come to the capital to be selected for the imperial concubine selection, but her brother Xue Pan got into a fight with someone over a maid and beat the person to death. The Rongguo Mansion had to intervene, which ruined her chances of being selected. It was a pity that someone as beautiful as her didn't get to do it.