Chapter 173 Childhood Sweethearts
Baoyu had intended to come to the old lady's place early in the morning to keep watch, but he hadn't finished his studies for the day, and the new teacher wouldn't let him leave the study.
Last night, he thought that Granny Yuan was probably just giving him a perfunctory answer and that his sister most likely wouldn't come, so he became depressed.
Unexpectedly, at dinner time, seeing the house in a flurry of activity with preparations underway everywhere, he asked Mingyan to inquire whether any important guests were coming the next day. He learned from Mingyan's inquiry that what Granny Yuan had said was true: Lin Daiyu was indeed coming the next day.
Upon hearing these words, Jia Baoyu felt as if he were hearing celestial music. Instantly, the chaos in his mind was swept away, and he felt full of energy!
He wasn't stupid to begin with; it's just that without the magic jade, he'd lost his spiritual energy and appeared somewhat dull. But he was still a young master from a wealthy family, pampered every day, so he still had his share of vitality.
Therefore, he was confined to the study to read all morning. Although he was anxious, he wasn't too annoyed. With his intelligence, he could master the material in just five minutes. The teacher noticed that he wasn't as drowsy as usual, with his eyes on the book but his mind completely elsewhere, and he couldn't remember more than a few sentences in half a day. Today, his questions and answers were very fluent, so the teacher let him out early.
Baoyu rushed to Rongqing Hall without anyone stopping him. If someone had tried to stop him, he would have had to argue with them or send someone to inform the old lady so that someone could come and take him in.
Baoyu stepped forward, bowed to Grandmother Jia, and then greeted his mother and aunt. He then heard Wang Xifeng laughing.
"Brother Bao, there's one more person. Aren't you going to pay your respects?"
"Second sister-in-law, we've never had these formalities between us. Since you're so insistent, I'll gladly bow to you." Baoyu was overjoyed to see Lin Daiyu, and upon hearing Wang Xifeng's words, he casually replied, bowing to greet her.
“Brother Bao, do you think I’m such a petty person? Don’t you even look up to her? Lin Daiyu is now a princess, can’t she even accept a bow from you?” Wang Xifeng said sarcastically.
"I accept it, I accept it. It was my oversight." Baoyu smiled, stepped forward, bowed to Daiyu, and gave a proper salute.
“Cousin, please let it go,” Daiyu said hurriedly, then scolded Wang Xifeng, “Sister Feng, why are you bringing this up again? If you keep talking about it, I’ll really get angry. If you ever come to my house again, see if I’ll let you in.”
"Alright, alright, let's not talk about it anymore. No one needs to bring it up. Let's just do what we always do. Outsiders should naturally follow the rules, but family members should remain the same as always." Grandmother Jia smiled and beckoned Baoyu to come and sit beside her.
After all, they are children you've spoiled since childhood. Even if there's a distance between you and them, it's not so easy to just let go.
"You look much better today than you have a few days ago. Are the people outside taking good care of you?"
"Everything is fine. Yesterday, I went to Lin Daiyu's house with my father. I strolled around the courtyard for a while and found the scenery extremely beautiful. The fragrance of the plum blossoms made me feel relaxed all over, as if all my senses were cleared." Baoyu said this in an exaggerated way, but he was a bit of a dazed person and was the kind of person who could say such things.
Grandmother Jia had heard similar words countless times before, so she didn't take them seriously.
“I think it’s because Baoyu can concentrate on his studies now and has benefited from reading. He’s become more sensible than before,” Wang Xifeng said with a smile. “After the first month of the lunar year, the separate study room you mentioned will be prepared for you. You should study properly and not be like your second brother Lian, who has no perseverance in his studies.”
"Now that you've started reading books, you're even gossiping about Lian'er. Do you think my Lian'er is unworthy of a scholar like you?" Grandmother Jia said, pointing at Wang Xifeng with a smile.
"Grandmother, you've misunderstood me. I've only had a few days of schooling, how could I look down on others? But we all know the embarrassing things Second Master Lian did when he was young, it's just that no one mentions it anymore now that he's older. We've all seen Master chase him into the school with a stick back then." Wang Xifeng covered her mouth and laughed.
"Sigh, this is the helplessness of childhood sweethearts. If you bring up the embarrassing things Lian'er did when he was little, it'll be enough to make him laugh for a lifetime." Grandmother Jia wanted to save face for Jia Lian, but unexpectedly, Wang Xifeng brought up Jia Lian's embarrassing history again. "So if childhood sweethearts really end up as a couple, and if they were naughty when they were young, they'll have to talk about each other for a lifetime. It's really not a good thing."
Because Grandmother Jia had already given up on the idea of the two Yu'er's becoming a couple, she spoke these words without any burden, but unexpectedly, she touched on the secret thoughts of a mother and daughter next to her.
“Grandma, there are advantages to childhood sweethearts,” Aunt Xue quickly chimed in. “The bond between those who know each other inside and out, who have grown up together, is naturally extraordinary.”
"That's true, we've seen Fengjie and Lian'er bickering before. Those two rivals fought like antagonists, forgetting all about marital affection, even the little affection we had growing up together. It was only after the birth of our eldest daughter that we saw them improve a bit, which saved us a lot of tea." Grandmother Jia said jokingly, looking at Wang Xifeng.
“It’s only a matter of time, but the old lady still remembers it and brings it up every now and then.” Wang Xifeng protested, “You treat my quarrel with Jia Lian as a show, drinking tea and eating snacks while watching it. Now that we know, we certainly can’t let you treat us like actors anymore.”
"Thinking about it, it's really quite interesting. These two sworn enemies arguing is no less interesting than watching a play." Grandmother Jia was still reminiscing with a sense of unfinished business.
"Alright, alright, it seems the New Year isn't even over yet, and I'll have to put on a show for the old lady with Second Master Lian. Otherwise, if we just let her enjoy the opera, it would be unfilial of us..."
The two quickly changed the subject from their childhood friendship to which opera troupe had been invited that day and what songs they would listen to after dinner, so Aunt Xue didn't press the matter further.
The children found the banter between the group boring, so apart from Baochai, the others gathered together to admire their jade ornaments. After looking at theirs, Baoyu took out his own jade ornament, which he always carried with him, with great care. It was bare, without even a knot.
"Second Brother, give me this first. I'll make you a matching knot when I get back." Tan Chun reached out and took it, looking at it again and again, clearly quite pleased.
"So you kept the best ones for yourself. I was wondering what kind you took yesterday, but you wouldn't tell me!"
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