Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Chapter 62 Qingwen's Craftsmanship

In the afternoon, Jia Lian stayed in the room alone and took a rare long nap.

Suddenly, a heavy object fell on his chest, instantly waking him from his sweet dream.

"Second Master, Second Master, it's snowing! Get up and look!"

Jia Lian, somewhat annoyed, reached out and grabbed Qingwen's ear, saying angrily, "Looks like it's time to teach you some manners again. You even dare to disturb my sleep?"

"But it really snowed! It's a huge snowfall; if we miss it, we'll never see it again!"

Qingwen didn't try to hide it. When Jia Lian grabbed her, she leaned on him and shook his hand, trying to wake him up so he would accompany her to see the snow.

Jia Lian was sleeping with very few clothes on, and Qingwen's small, icy hands were incredibly refreshing on him.

In addition, those small, icy, and slippery hands scratching at him were undoubtedly a form of teasing.

Having already failed to accomplish anything good in his dream, how could he possibly tolerate it? Under the pretext of punishing Qingwen, he pulled her over and began to "tickle" her.

At first, Qingwen genuinely thought Jia Lian was just playing around with her, but gradually she realized his true intentions. Her heart softened, and she wanted to run away, but she didn't have the strength.

After being kissed deeply by Jia Lian for almost half a cup of tea's time, she obediently lay down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), looking at Jia Lian with a dazed expression.

A little shy, yet it seemed like encouragement.

She didn't quite understand why Jia Lian always liked to bully her, yet he was unwilling to truly accept her as his wife.

She was clearly prepared to become a concubine long ago!

Jia Lian looked at her, took several deep breaths to suppress his impulse, and kissed her cherry lips again before hugging her and saying, "In two years at most, once you've fully developed, you won't be able to run away even if you wanted to!"

Hearing Jia Lian say this again, Qingwen finally believed that Jia Lian's actions were truly for her sake. She didn't know whether she felt more regret or gratitude.

But since she couldn't upgrade her status, she thought of something happy. She propped herself up, reached over Jia Lian, and pushed open the window beside her. "Second Master, look! It's really snowing! Let's go out and see the snow!"

She had barely opened the window a little when the howling cold wind rushed in, scattering the warm air that the stove had managed to gather in the room.

Poor Jia Lian was only wearing a single layer of clothing, and naturally felt cold when the wind blew.

Moreover, Qingwen was already slender with a slender waist, and her eyebrows and eyes resembled Daiyu's. Lying horizontally on him, her small mouth slightly open, her lips pink and smooth, and her delicate tongue peeking out, the alluring scenery she unconsciously revealed was most captivating.

After being teased by Qingwen, Jia Lian was wondering whether to teach her another skill or an extra musical instrument, but now he no longer needed to worry. He pulled Qingwen close and whispered a few words in her ear.

As soon as Qingwen released her hand, the window beside her closed automatically, and the cold wind stopped abruptly. But Qingwen's heart burned even hotter. Her whole face became incredibly shy, and her large, watery eyes looked at Jia Lian with sorrow and pity.

Second Master is really strange; he just happens to like to ruin people.

That day, she was tricked into the house by Jia Lian's second wife, and Jia Lian grabbed her hand and half-coaxed and half-tricked her into doing something extremely shameful, so much so that she almost couldn't sleep that night.

Now that the Second Master has reverted to his old ways, should she give in to him or not?

She instinctively turned around, head down, and said, "No, what if someone comes in and sees us...?"

With this attitude, things become much easier.

Jia Lian smiled and said, "Today is the day to distribute monthly wages. Your second mistress is busy settling accounts and will definitely not be back for a while. Apart from Ping'er and Xiangling, who else dares to enter this room? If you are really worried, go out and bolt the outer door before coming back..."

Qingwen blushed and thought for a moment, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, but said, "Then you'll come with me to see the snow later; if the snow is heavy, you'll have to have a snowball fight with me?"

Jia Lian laughed. Was her obsession with seeing snow really that deep? She was even using it as a bargaining chip at a time like this.

It's a deal.

Qingwen then smiled, seemingly out of girlish instinct, and gave Jia Lian a flirtatious wink before getting up and leaving. However, she remained silent for quite some time.

Just as Jia Lian was relieved, thinking that Qingwen had taken the opportunity to run away, and was about to continue his sweet dream, he heard the sound of the curtain rustling again. He turned his head and saw that Qingwen had returned. She was holding her hands in front of her lower abdomen, her ten slender fingers intertwined, and she walked over shyly, kneeling on the footstool by the kang (a heated brick bed).

………………

Xiangling, wearing a thick, fluffy cloak, sat on a small wooden stool in front of the west wing, watching the snowflakes fluttering in the sky, feeling very happy.

This was the first time in so many years that she had seen such heavy snow, and it was also the first time that she had worn such warm clothes to see the snow.

This was bought for her by Jia Lian when he was in Nanjing.

Xiangling touched her clothes and then glanced at the empty, lonely little stool next to her.

Didn't Qingwen say she was going to call Second Master out to enjoy the snow? Why hasn't he come out yet?

She envied Qingwen. Although they both came from poor backgrounds, Qingwen was very bold. Even when the Second Master was sleeping, Qingwen dared to go into the room and disturb him, something she wouldn't dare to do.

She is a well-behaved and quiet person; if it were someone else, they would have gone to check on the situation long ago.

But Xiangling just sat there quietly waiting.

At first, she could faintly hear Jia Lian and Qingwen playing around, but then it suddenly stopped.

After sitting for quite a while, I couldn't resist sneaking along the corridor, only to find that all the doors were closed.

Even the naive Xiangling vaguely understood what was happening upon seeing this, and stood there dumbfounded at the doorway, not knowing what to do.

What are you doing standing here?

Ping'er, the kindest girl, is back. Xiangling immediately turned around and replied, "It's nothing, Ping'er is back..."

After saying this a little louder, Xiangling lowered her head and walked away.

Ping'er, holding the bag of silver, glanced at Xiangling's back with some confusion, walked to the door and pushed it, but it didn't move.

Ping'er was also stunned for a moment, after all, this door was usually not closed except when the mistress was sleeping at night.

Just as she was about to ask who was inside, there was a sudden noise from inside the room. The door opened quickly, and Qingwen ran out, covering her mouth. As she passed by, she caught a glimpse of Qingwen's face; her cheeks were flushed a deep, vibrant red, as if you could squeeze water out of them even in the dead of winter!

Ping'er is not like Xiangling. Upon seeing this, she immediately understood that Jia Lian must be bullying Qingwen in the room!

But seeing how fast the little girl ran, it didn't seem like she had just fallen ill, which was strange.

Ping'er stood at the door, a little mist rising on her face, followed by two small red clouds. In the end, she put aside her distracting thoughts and went inside.

She'd seen even more thrilling scenes before, so this one naturally wouldn't scare her.

Upon entering the west side room, they indeed saw Jia Lian lying on the kang (a heated brick bed), looking perfectly fine, and it was impossible to tell whether he was in good or bad condition at the moment.

Ping'er nodded in acknowledgment and then quietly went inside to put the silver away.

She had just come out of the bedroom when Jia Lian stopped her and ordered her to fetch some water.

Upon hearing this, Ping'er had no more doubts. After all, she often did this kind of cleanup work, so how could she not understand the reasoning behind it?

So he nodded and went to obey.