In the flower hall, there were only two seats at the front. When Aunt Xue was invited to the banquet, Jia Mu invited her to take a seat on the west side.
Jia Mu herself set up a short couch with a Kuilong screen in the east, complete with backrests, pillows, leather mattresses and other items.
She half-tilted, letting the maid Hu Hu sit on the couch, and used a beauty hammer to beat her legs. Sometimes she took out her reading glasses from the box on the short table next to her, and looked at the stage outside, and then looked at them in the hall.
Everyone joked and laughed.
Below the low couch, there are also two square tables. On the first table, Daiyu, Xiangyun and Baochai sit, and on the next table, the Sanchun sisters sit.
In the west area, from Aunt Xue down to the front door of the flower hall, there are three tables scattered, in order, Mrs. Wang, Mrs. Xing, Mrs. You, Sister Feng, and Mrs. Qin. At the last table, Li Wan led his son Jia Lan
, guests from the Bing clan, Jia Jun’s mother, Lou, led Jia Jun, and the four orphans and widows sat at a table alone.
Mrs. Wang, Mrs. You, Sister Feng and others, seeing that Jia Mu was in a rare good mood, they all tried their best to make Jia Mu happy.
Especially Wang Xifeng, her strong point is to exaggerate the atmosphere. She made several gags and made people laugh, and she easily became the focus of the audience.
Because Sister Feng's voice was loud, it easily spread to the corridor outside and was heard by all the men.
Jia Zhen then smiled at Jia Rong and others and said, "Thanks to your Aunt Feng's upright behavior and thoughtful words, she is able to please the old lady. She alone is worth as many of our children and grandchildren as filial piety in front of her."
Now we can eat and drink in peace here, all thanks to her."
Jia Rong and others quickly agreed.
In the Jia Mansion, where the family is governed by filial piety, whoever can please Jia Mu and make Jia Mu happy will have status.
Even if she is a maid, as long as she cares about her, everyone in the Jia family will respect her from top to bottom.
At least that's the case on the surface.
Jia Zhen turned to Jia Lian and said: "Of course, there is also brother Lian. If you hadn't made a lot of money for our family, the old lady wouldn't be so happy today. You and your siblings are all heroes of our family. Come on, brother
Here’s a toast to you.”
Jia Lian said modestly, smiled and raised his glass in response.
For a while, the play on the stage became so humorous that everyone watching the play laughed. Jia Mu also waved her hand to "reward" and sent women to put money in bamboo baskets and scatter it on the stage.
Previously, Jia Zheng, Jia Zhen and others had prepared several baskets of copper coins at the foot of the stairs to prepare for such a situation.
At this time, under the instructions of Jia Zhen and others, the dozen or so boys standing by the side went down together, holding the brand-new copper coins, and scattered them on the table in waves, without feeling distressed.
All of a sudden I could hear the sound of a table full of copper coins hitting the ground!
The actors also kowtowed and thanked each other...
Jia Zhen realized that the time had come, so she invited Jia Lian: "Let's go in and give the old lady and concubine a glass of wine to show our filial piety."
"please."
Behind, Jia Rong hurriedly took a silver wine-warming pot from the boy's hand, and followed Jia Zhen and Jia Lian in.
As the head of the Jia family, Jia Zhen has received strict training in the etiquette of reciprocity. She knows what to do and how to do it on any occasion.
Because he first went to Aunt Xue's table, said a few words of good fortune, longevity and health, and then toasted with Jia Lian and others.
Aunt Xue quickly stood up and said with a smile: "Masters, please take a seat quickly. There is no need to be so polite."
All three of them stood up, so in the hall, except for Mrs. Jia Mu, Xing and Mrs. Wang, no one dared to sit down at the other tables and stood up one after another.
After paying homage to Aunt Xue, Jia Zhen led everyone to Jia Mu's bed.
Seeing that the couch where Jia's mother was sitting was very short, Jia Zhen knelt down and worshiped her without hesitation.
Jia Lian had no choice but to kneel down along with Jia Zhen.
Behind the three of them, Jia Huan, Jia Yun and others who followed in, lined up according to seniority, senior and young, also knelt down.
When Li Wan and Lou saw this, they also hurriedly asked their youngest son to attend, and knelt down in the end.
Next to him, Baochai saw that Jia Baoyu was still standing dumbfounded, as if he was distracted, and wanted to remind him, but after thinking about what he had done before, he ignored it.
Daiyu and Xiangyun, who were sitting at the same table, did not check the meaning, so they just avoided watching this filial piety ceremony.
After paying homage to Jia Mu, Jia Zhen and Jia Lian also paid a toast to Mrs. Xing and Mrs. Wang.
By this time, there was no one present who was senior or higher in rank than Jia Zhen.
It's just that there is a custom in a family like the Jia Mansion that an unmarried daughter is more noble than a daughter-in-law or even a brother, so she can also offer a toast at this time.
If it were just the Sanchun sisters, they were all brothers and sisters of the same race. After all, there were two cousins, Xue and Lin, at this time. It was inconvenient to face them directly, so they smiled and asked Jia Mu: "How are you doing here, sisters?"
Jia's mother was also satisfied with Jia Zhen's thoughtful behavior and etiquette. Knowing what she meant, she shook her head and said, "You go ahead and don't worry about them. Let them pour a glass of wine and eat by themselves. They will feel more comfortable."
By the way, Brother Lian, please stay here for a moment, I have a few more words to ask you."
Jia Lian stopped when he heard the words. Jia Zhen smiled and was about to go down. Jia Mu also told him: "It's very cold outside. If you are tired from sitting or have other arrangements, just go. You don't have to stay here with me all the time."
Stay with me. It's cheaper for us girls to talk and joke together."
Jia Zhen agreed, and then led the others out.
In the hall, all the ladies, either blatantly or implicitly, looked at Jia Lian, who was standing in the middle passage. Although his head was slightly bowed, he still stood out from the crowd.
There is no need to elaborate on the facial features of Mr. Lian. The most rare thing is his well-proportioned and straight figure, which neither looks bulky nor thin, and meets the standards of a peerless handsome man in the eyes of most women.
Jia Mu also glanced at Jia Lian and said to herself that indeed, only after becoming an official can one truly show his prestige.
Jia Lian's demeanor now is much more intimidating than before!
When he was about to speak, he suddenly realized that everyone was still standing, so he said to Jia Lian: "Sit down too. It's not easy for your sisters to sit if you stand. If we all stand with you, won't you be exhausted?"
.”
"Yes, thank you, old lady, for offering me a seat."
Jia Lian just smiled. In the past, when he came to see Jia Mu, he rarely sat down, and other people probably didn't have to deliberately "stand" with him.
In fact, in the previous two houses, apart from the old patriarch Jia Jing who became a monk, only the three men, Jia She, Jia Zheng, and Jia Zhen, entered the Rongqing Hall, and the sisters had to stand up to show their kindness.
respect.
From now on, he will be added to the list.
No one even specifically told me, everyone just naturally felt that this was the way it should be.
Jia Lian glanced casually and focused on the sisters' side... He was a man of seven feet, so he was not so shameless that he took the initiative to sit next to his sisters-in-law...
The maid who reacted quickly took the stool, but was in trouble for a moment.
If Jia Mu wants to leave Jia Lian to talk, it is natural to sit closer to Jia Mu. However, at the table in front of Jia Mu's low couch, Baochai, Jia Baoyu, Daiyu and Xiangyun are already sitting.
nice.
It's even worse to put the stool in the middle of the aisle, as it would be like being put on trial.
The table next to Sister Sanchun can be placed just right, but in that case, there is no distinction between superiority and inferiority. How can Second Master Lian be allowed to sit at the second table of Second Master Bao...
Just when the maid hesitated for a moment, Daiyu took a step back, leaned forward and said, "Brother Lian, please sit here..."
Daiyu's timely action not only relieved the maid's anxiety, but also almost surprised everyone.
Who here doesn’t know the temperament of little baby Daiyu, Jia Mu’s biological granddaughter? She is weak on the outside but unforgiving on the inside. Even the Second Master Bao can’t please her in front of her. How could he see her like this?
When you are proactive and sensible.
Among them, Xiangyun felt the most deeply. During the year when Jia Lian was away, she came to Jia's house several times, and she thought she understood Daiyu's character. She said in her heart that this was not in line with Sister Lin's character at all.
So he took a look at Jia Lian and nodded secretly: It turns out that Sister Lin respects Brother Lian so much!
Jia Lian also laughed from the bottom of his heart, but he had the nerve to snatch Sister Lin's seat because he laughed and said: "Thank you sister, but don't bother, it will be the same wherever I sit."
With that said, Jia Lian took the stool from the maid's hand, put it next to it, and sat down next to Yingchun.
Daiyu was not a pushy person. She had taken the initiative to give up her seat in front of everyone, which made her feel uncomfortable and shy, which was contrary to her own style, so she didn't say much and took her seat after everyone sat down.
At this time, everyone probably understood clearly in their hearts that Jia Lian must have had feelings for Daiyu and escorted her from thousands of miles away, so Daiyu respected Jia Lian extraordinarily. It became more and more clear that these two brothers, friends and sisters, both had rare qualities.
Several people also glanced at Jia Baoyu quietly. In fact, in the situation just now, the person who should take the initiative to give up his seat was not Daiyu, but Jia Baoyu.
Baochai thought so. In fact, she had just thought of giving up her seat to Jia Lian for the first time, but firstly, her position was not very convenient inside, and secondly, she and Jia Lian were not familiar with each other, so giving up her seat on her own initiative would inevitably feel abrupt.
.
She had thought that Jia Baoyu would let him, and Xiangyun would let him, but she never expected that Daiyu would let him, and so quickly and naturally.
This certainly made her realize that Jia Lian had a different status in Daiyu's heart, but more importantly, through such a small detail, she could see that Jia Baoyu was not as good as Jia Lian.
Jia Lian was superior to Jia Baoyu regardless of his status, age, and rank, but Jia Baoyu had no intention of giving in, and the situation became disharmonious. On the other hand, Jia Lian, who clearly should be in the upper position, did not show respect for himself.
Every word and action is admirable and impeccable.
Strange people say that what people fear most is comparison. Originally, she had heard her mother praise her aunt's cousin since she was a child. When she went to Beijing last year and saw him, she also felt that he was quite spiritual. He was not just a layman like his brother Xue Pan. He was even better than ordinary people.
The children of the aristocratic family are all better, but compared with the second brother Lian, they pale in comparison.
He also hides in the house to do shameless things!
Thinking of this, Baochai felt completely disappointed with Jia Baoyu, her little cousin.
Mother Jia and Mrs. Wang didn't think much about it. They just thought that Jia Lian and Daiyu performed well, but subconsciously ignored Jia Baoyu's existence. After all, Baoyu was still young.