Chapter 74 Jia Zhen Gets Beaten

"Brother Zhen, what brings you here?" Baoyu looked up and saw Jia Zhen staring blankly at him.

But look around Jia Zhen's eyes, it's as if it was measured precisely, two large, round, bluish-purple circles floating on his eye sockets.

Baoyu got up and asked curiously,

"Brother Zhen, what kind of makeup is this? Is it a new trendy look? It's really unique."

Jia Zhen stared at Baoyu for a while, making Baoyu feel uneasy.

"Brother Zhen, why are you looking at me like that? Is there something wrong with me? Is my face dirty?"

Jia Baoyu looked left and right, but didn't see a mirror.

Jia Zhen sighed, seeing that Baoyu didn't seem to be doing it on purpose, and then asked,

"Baoyu, what did you dream about just now?"

Baoyu frowned and thought for a while, then shook his head.

“I dreamt of a monster who wanted me to go with her. I punched her…” At this point, Baoyu glanced at Jia Zhen’s bruised eyes again.

Ouch, Brother Zhen, did you hit your eye yourself?

Thinking of this, Baoyu quickly got out of bed.

"Brother Zhen, did I hit your eye?" Baoyu said guiltily. "I didn't mean to, Brother Zhen, I'm so sorry."

Seeing Baoyu's behavior, Jia Zhen figured it wasn't intentional.

It's embarrassing to admit that I got punched twice by a kid.

Thinking of this, Jia Zhen hurriedly said,

"It wasn't you, I bumped into you while walking."

He had no choice but to swallow this bitter pill; after all, he had come out out of curiosity after hearing Baoyu shouting outside.

As soon as I got close, I got punched, and before I could even react, I got punched again.

This phoenix egg may be small, but it's surprisingly strong!

Jia Zhen knew that given the condition of his eyes, he would definitely be unable to go out for several days.

"Oh, then Brother Zhen, you'd better be more careful when you walk next time."

Jia Zhen gave a vague reply.

Baoyu stepped out. It turned out that he had slept for quite a while, and it was almost evening.

He then went to see Grandmother Jia and Wang Xifeng. After dinner, they watched a play and then took a carriage back to Rongguo Mansion. During this time, Jia Zhen did not appear again. You Shi explained that there was official business to attend to urgently.

Baoyu always felt that the two circles above Jia Zhen's eyes were caused by him, but since Jia Zhen himself said that he bumped into them while walking, he wouldn't be foolish enough to rush to admit guilt.

Maybe Brother Zhen did something he felt guilty about, and even if he was beaten by himself, he didn't dare to make a fuss!

But how can paper contain fire?

Although Jia Zhen claimed that he bumped into it by accident, he was perfectly fine before entering the study. When the servants went in, they found that Jia Zhen had been injured.

There were only Baoyu and Jia Zhen inside the room. If it wasn't Baoyu who did it, then who was it?

Therefore, the upper-level masters were unaware of the truth, while the lower-level people were spreading rumors that Master Zhen had never even beaten a ten-year-old child, but had been beaten and injured by the Second Master Bao of the Rongguo Mansion.

As for why Master Bao hit Master Zhen, there are many more speculations.

But in short, because Jia Zhen was not a good person, Bao Yu, by a twist of fate, gained a reputation for being "chivalrous" after hitting Jia Zhen.

Half a month later, Jia Zheng also heard about this and asked Baoyu to find out the truth.

Baoyu only said it was a dream, and it seemed that he had thrown two punches, but Brother Zhen said he hadn't, so he didn't take it to heart.

Jia Zheng was relieved. In addition, considering that Baoyu had been behaving well recently, he finally changed the task of copying books every day to copying three articles a month and submitting them all at the end of the month.

Jia Baoyu felt it must be related to his previous visit to the East Mansion, but he couldn't guess why his master had been so lenient with him.

The first thing Baoyu did after being released from his confinement was to go to Rongyue Courtyard. He wanted to tell Lin Daiyu about this great news and also check if his ginseng seedlings had changed.

However, their trip turned out to be fruitless. Daiyu had gone to the old lady's place to do needlework with the three sisters. The group was planning to make a snow coat for the old lady before it snowed, and they had been busy with this matter in the side hall of Rongqing Hall for the past few days.

Jia Baoyu had no choice but to go and see the ginseng seedlings first. Because of the freezing weather, the ginseng leaves had already fallen off, and now even the stems had become withered. Looking at them from the left and right, they looked like a withered tree branch stuck in the ground.

I don't know if I'll be alive by spring.

Baoyu was feeling a little unhappy, so he went to Rongqing Hall. In the side hall, the three sisters and Daiyu were doing needlework in a lively atmosphere.

Most of the snow-white jackets had already been made. They each finished the remaining small parts themselves, and then had the embroiderers sew them together to complete the garment.

Jia Baoyu watched for a while, then the others repeatedly told him to go play somewhere else for a while and come back when they were done with their work.

He wasn't annoyed by the others' disdain, but he did feel bored and dull.

He wandered around the courtyard for a while and unknowingly ended up at Pear Fragrance Courtyard.

Xue Pan was about to leave when he looked up and saw Bao Yu strolling towards him. He couldn't help but exclaim with delight,

"Brother Bao, it's just in time for you. My mother was just asking me to come and invite you!"

Baoyu asked in surprise, "What does Auntie want with me?"

He added,

"I've been busy at school these past few days, and this is the first time I've come here. I'm so sorry for neglecting you."

“How could I not know, brother? Auntie said you’ve been studying hard these days, and no one is allowed to disturb you. I’ve tried to ask you to go out and play a few times, but I was stopped at the front yard.” Xue Pan said somewhat awkwardly.

Jia Baoyu smiled and said, "Brother Xue, please don't say any more. People will laugh at us if word gets out. It's just that Master asked me to copy some books. It's hardly considered serious study."

“That’s still much better than us.” Xue Pan knew his own limitations; he wasn’t cut out for studying.

As a rich kid, all he needs to do is know how to spend money.

He had thought that living at the Jia family mansion, under the strict supervision of his uncle Jia Zheng, would not be as comfortable as living at home. However, he was surprised to find that Jia Zheng had no time to pay him any attention. In contrast, his own residence had a small door that led directly to the street, making it convenient for him to come and go.

Since Xue Pan moved here, he has gotten to know most of his peers in the Jia family, including many纨绔子弟 (sons of wealthy and powerful families) who share his temperament.

There are far more ways to have fun in the capital than Xue Pan did in Jinling. He only learned bad things and didn't learn the good ones. Over time, he became ten times worse than he was in his hometown!

He was eager to go out and play today, but his mother and sister persuaded him not to go out. He made up an excuse, saying that he was going to invite Baoyu over to play. He planned to invite Baoyu over and then take the opportunity to go out again.

Unexpectedly, just as he stepped out, he saw Baoyu walking over. Xue Pan was overjoyed, feeling that even the heavens were on his side and that it was his turn to go out and play today!

Therefore, he brought Baoyu into the courtyard, and upon seeing Aunt Xue come out, he said,

"Mother, I've invited Baoyu here. I have other matters to attend to outside, so I'll be leaving now."