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But that fool also of a master of ours struck me!" While recounting her experiences, she felt a keener sense of injustice than before, and she found it hard to restrain her tears from trickling down her cheeks. "My dear sister," Pao-yue hastily advised her, "don't wound your heart! I'm quite ready to express my apologies on behalf of that pair!" "What business is that of yours?" P'ing Erh smiled.
Pao-yue too had then no other alternative but to smile. "I don't mind your playing your larks on me; but why," he inquired, "did you mention my father? Were I to go and tell my aunt, your mother, to see to the rights and the wrongs of the case, how would you like it?"
But, on his return under the tree, he found the ground again one mass of petals, and Pao-yue was just hesitating what to do, when he heard some one behind his back inquire, "What are you up to here?" and as soon as Pao-yue turned his head round, he discovered that it was Lin Tai-yue, who had come over carrying on her shoulder a hoe for raking flowers, that on this hoe was suspended a gauze-bag, and that in her hand she held a broom.
But as she spoke, she lost control over her temper, and, jumping on her bed, she lay with her face turned towards the inside, and set to work drying her eyes. Pao-yue could not refrain from approaching her. "My dear cousin, my own cousin," he added, "I confess my fault!"
"Our venerable senior," T'an Ch'un observed, "was at the very first sight of her so charmed with her that there's nothing she wouldn't do. She has already compelled our Madame Hsing to adopt her as a godchild. Our dear ancestor wishes to bring her up herself; this point was settled a little while back." Pao-yue went into ecstasies. "Is this a fact?" he eagerly inquired.
Why my brother was with me here last month; didn't you see him? he's, true enough, of the same age as uncle Pao, but were the two of them to stand side by side, I suspect that he would be much higher in stature." "How is it," asked Pao-yue, "that I didn't see him? Bring him along and let me have a look at him!"
Pao-yue interposed; "will you also behave in this fashion with servant-girls?" "In spite of what you say;" remarked Chia Yuen smiling, "they are young ladies attached to your rooms, uncle, and how could I presume to be disorderly in my conduct?" So saying, he took a seat and drank his tea.
"Why should he be fined?" demurred the party. "Because," retorted Hsueeh P'an, "what he says is entirely unintelligible to me. So how can he not be fined?" Yuen Erh gave him a pinch. "Just you quietly think of yours," she laughed; "for if by and bye you are not ready you'll also have to bear a fine." In due course Pao-yue took up the guitar.
As soon as they caught sight of Pao-yue, they puckered up their mouths and laughed at him; while Chin Ch'uan grasped Pao-yue with one hand, and remarked in a low tone of voice: "On these lips of mine has just been rubbed cosmetic, soaked with perfume, and are you now inclined to lick it or not?" whereupon Ts'ai Yuen pushed off Chin Ch'uan with one shove, as she interposed laughingly, "A person's heart is at this moment in low spirits and do you still go on cracking jokes at him?
"Isn't Hsueeh P'an at home?" Pao-yue having inquired: "He's like a horse without a halter," Mrs. Hsueeh remarked with a sigh; "he's daily running here and there and everywhere, and nothing can induce him to stay at home one single day." "Yes," replied Mrs. Hsueeh, "she's well again. It was very kind of you two days ago to again think of her, and send round to inquire after her.
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