Against the Current

Lin Dongxiu said, "What's the rush? It's been so long since we siblings have sat together like this."

Yet a surge of irritation rose in Lin Jinting's heart. He sneered, "She's truly cunning. Although Yifei passed the imperial examinations and became a Successful Candidate, his family fortune has mostly declined—how could he compare to Eldest Brother's flourishing official career and bright future? Tsk, such scheming, what a pity she has such a pretty face." As he spoke, he glanced at Lin Jinlou. "How dare you keep such a woman by your side?"

Lin Dongling snorted and said, "Third Brother is right. Why would Eldest Brother keep someone like her by his side? Her looks are just ordinary—I think she's not even as good as Luan'er." After saying this, she glanced at Shuran and asked, "Don't you agree?"

Shuran wished she could cover Lin Dongling's mouth. She looked at Lin Jinlou and forced a smile, saying, "She's just an ignorant little maid, hardly a beauty." Seizing an excuse to serve tea, she retreated.

Xianglan's face was expressionless, her head bowed, like a vase placed in the corner of the room.

Lin Jinlou acted as if he hadn't heard anything. He beckoned to Xianglan and said, "Little Xianglan, come here."

Xianglan walked over with her head down. Lin Jinlou picked up a piece of osmanthus cake and offered it to her, saying, "This is delicious. It's quite rare to have osmanthus cake in summer."

Xianglan whispered, "I'd like to go inside."

Lin Dongqi immediately stood up and said, "What a coincidence, I'm tired now and would like to find a place to rest. Let Xianglan take me to borrow a bed here to lie down." She stepped forward, took Xianglan's hand, and pushed her toward the eastern side room.

Lin Dongqi knew Xianglan's name. Back when she had been framed by Cao Lihuan, it was entirely thanks to Xianglan's exposure that she was saved. Thus, she felt deeply grateful. Today, seeing Xianglan being bullied, she couldn't bear it. Lowering her voice, she said to Xianglan, "They've always been outspoken; don't take whatever they say to heart."

Xianglan looked up at Lin Dongqi, then gently shook her head. The tears that had been welling in her large eyes for so long finally fell. She quickly wiped them away and forced a smile at Lin Dongqi, saying, "I'll make the bed for Second Young Lady."

Lin Dongqi was taken aback. Seeing Xianglan's pitiful appearance, she realized there must be something else going on between her and Lin Jinlou. She moved her lips but didn't know what to say.

In the main hall, Lin Jinlou slammed his teacup onto the heated brick bed table with a loud clatter. His face darkened as he said, "What's going on? Have you all taken the wrong medicine and come here to act delirious?"

Everyone was startled. They saw Lin Jinlou's face as black as a pot bottom, filled with a fierce aura. Lin Dongling quickly put down her tea bowl, Lin Dongxiu straightened her neck and swallowed the preserved fruit in her mouth, and Lin Jinting unconsciously sat up straight. One by one, they held their breath, not daring to make a sound.

Lin Jinlou sneered, "Speak! Weren't you all chattering away happily just now? Why are you mute now?"

Ting, Ling, and Xiu hung their heads, glancing at each other, but none of them uttered a word.

Lin Jinting cleared his throat and said, "Eldest Brother, that Xianglan..."

Lin Jinlou looked at him coldly. Lin Jinting felt a chill in his heart and slowly closed his mouth. Lin Jinlou's formidable reputation was well-known; no one in the family dared to provoke him. Since childhood, his siblings had been extremely afraid of him. It was only as they grew older and Lin Jinlou became busy with official duties, rarely at home, that when they met, he often smiled like a spring breeze and showed much affection toward his younger siblings, making them forget his fearsome side and become loose with their words again.

Lin Jinlou's face was as still as water. He asked, "Which maids are attending to Third Young Lady and Fourth Young Lady?"Everyone in the room was as silent as cicadas in cold weather, not daring to respond.

Lin Jinlou slammed the table and said, "Speak! Who was it?"

Nan Ge and Han Zhi, the personal maids of Ling and Xiu, were in the small parlor. Hearing Lin Jinlou's question, they knew things had taken a bad turn, but there was no way out. They had no choice but to step forward, kneel, and kowtow, saying, "It was us, Female Servants."

Lin Jinlou sneered coldly, "Very good. My sisters are supposed to be noble young ladies, yet they've learned the shameless slander of market-place shrews. I knew it must have been you despicable slaves whispering poison in their ears. Guards, drag them out and beat them!"

Nan Ge and Han Zhi instantly turned pale with fright, kowtowing repeatedly and pleading, "Have mercy, Master! Have mercy, Master! We won't dare do it again! We'll never dare again!"

Lin Dongling and Lin Dongxiu also changed expressions. Lin Dongling sprang to her feet and said, "I was the one who said those words! What does it have to do with them?"

Meanwhile, Lin Dongxiu began to weep, crying, "Brother, are you going to let a woman come between us siblings?"

Lin Jinlou stared at Lin Dongling and Lin Dongxiu for a moment. Half of Lin Dongling's defiance drained away, and she slowly sat back down. Lin Dongxiu didn't dare continue crying, only sniffling intermittently.

Immediately, two servant women entered and dragged Nan Ge and Han Zhi away. The beating commenced in the courtyard, and as the two maids' screams echoed, Ling and Xiu couldn't help but turn pale and tremble all over.

Previously, with Zhao Yuechan in Knowing Spring Pavilion, beating young maids as punishment had been commonplace, so the maids there remained composed. Although Qin Shi was fair in rewards and punishments, she governed the household with benevolence and rarely resorted to physical discipline. Wang Shi was even softer-hearted and mild-tempered. Thus, the two young ladies had never witnessed such ruthless beatings before, nor had they expected Lin Jinlou to turn on them so abruptly, directly seizing and beating their most trusted maids. Not only did he show no regard for their dignity, but it was clearly a warning meant to intimidate them.

Lin Jinlou said coldly, "My sisters have grown up, and there are more troublemakers around them. It's no wonder their conduct has been led astray. As your elder brother, I'm helping you manage the people by your side. If anyone disagrees, speak up now."

At this, Lin Dongxiu didn't dare cry anymore, sitting with her head bowed, while Lin Dongling sat as if on pins and needles. Lin Jinting seemed to want to say something but hesitated.

Lin Jinlou sneered, "So you've all grown bold, haven't you? You claim you came to see your new sister-in-law, but in reality, you came to slap me in the face, to cause trouble in Knowing Spring Pavilion. If I don't rein you in now, you'll all rebel completely!"Lin Dongqi heard everything clearly in the eastern chamber. When elders in the family administered punishment, they still reasoned with people, but if one provoked Lin Jinlou, he couldn't be bothered with reasoning—his palm would directly swing at you, beating you until you submitted and begged for mercy. In earlier years, Lin Changzheng's favored concubine, Concubine Yin, had tried to sow discord against Qin Shi, infuriating Qin Shi so much that she had a big argument with Lin Changzheng. At that time, Lin Jinlou was only nine years old. Upon hearing of this, he barged into Concubine Yin's room and started throwing punches at her face. Though still a child, he was tall and sturdy, and had been practicing martial arts since the age of three, resembling a young bull. Before anyone could stop him, Concubine Yin's nose was bleeding profusely, her face bruised black and blue, looking as colorful as a fabric shop. The maids and old women were no match for him. Lin Jinlou grabbed the exorcism sword hanging on the wall and shouted about killing Concubine Yin. When Concubine Yin's maid stepped forward to block him, she instantly had a finger sliced off by the sword, wailing in agony with blood streaming down. Concubine Yin had a chunk of her hair cut off by Lin Jinlou before she realized he truly intended to take her life. Terrified, she turned and fled, with Lin Jinlou chasing after her, sword in hand, cursing, "You lowly woman, come here and accept your death! Today, anyone who dares to stop me will be killed, every last one of them!" He chased Concubine Yin halfway across the garden before Qin Shi, who had heard the commotion, arrived and stopped him.

Lin Changzheng was furious. He ordered Lin Jinlou to kneel on the ground and picked up a ruler to beat him. Lin Jinlou stiffened his neck and declared, "She's nothing but a lowly servant, yet she had the audacity to bully my mother! It's her good fortune I didn't stab her to death today. If she ever spews filth from her mouth again, I'll chop her into pieces and throw her into the pond to feed the fish! Let that serve as a warning to all those gossipy troublemakers!"

Lin Changzheng trembled with rage, pointing at him and exclaiming, "This is rebellion, rebellion! She is your concubine mother!"

Lin Jinlou rolled his eyes and retorted, "Her children are my siblings, but she's just a lowly servant. When she sees me, she must bow properly and address me as 'Master.' How does that make her my concubine mother? Is she worthy? A servant with such airs dares to ride over me and my mother—who else should I kill if not her? If Father blames me because of such a lowly servant and disregards our father-son bond, then he doesn't deserve to be my father either!"

Lin Changzheng, always stern and dignified, never expected to have such an unruly son. He was so enraged he nearly fainted and raised the ruler to strike again. Just then, Lin Zhaoxiang arrived. Lin Jinlou immediately scrambled up from the ground, dashed over to Lin Zhaoxiang, hugged his waist, and wailed, "Grandfather, Grandfather, save me! My father wants to divorce my mother because of that lowly woman and even wants to beat me to death!"

Hearing Lin Jinlou twist the truth, Lin Changzheng was so angry he almost passed out. Lin Zhaoxiang sternly reprimanded him about "the distinction between wife and concubine" and other matters, but upon seeing the blood marks from the ruler on Lin Jinlou's body, his heart softened with pity. He scolded, "How old is Lou Ge'er? How can you strike him so viciously? The Lin Family has always had few descendants, and he is the eldest grandson of the household. What if you injure him? Because of a lowly woman's provocations, you and your wife are at odds. If you can't even manage your own household, how can you serve as an official outside?"

Lin Changzheng stood with his hands at his sides, listening to the reprimand. In the blink of an eye, he caught sight of Lin Jinlou standing behind Lin Zhaoxiang, making faces and winking at him mockingly, nearly giving him a heart attack.The next day, Lin Jinlou obediently went to apologize to Concubine Yin. But just before leaving, when no one was watching, he hissed viciously at her: "You wretch! If you dare try that again, I'll truly kill you!" This frightened Concubine Yin so severely that she fell gravely ill and would go out of her way to avoid Lin Jinlou whenever she saw him. When it came to the subtle schemes women played among themselves, Concubine Yin naturally had no fear, but Lin Jinlou came straight for the kill. As the favored eldest grandson of the Lin Family, even if he really did kill her, the Lin Family wouldn't be able to do much about it, while she would only end up losing her own life—what would be the point in that! Afterwards, after experiencing several thunderous measures from Qin Shi, Concubine Yin completely settled down, without a single thought of resistance left.

Because of this incident, Lin Zhaoxiang held Lin Jinlou in even higher regard and specifically took him under his wing to personally guide him.

Lin Dongqi had heard Qin Shi recount this story several times, each time adding: "Your eldest brother was born with this temperament. How old was he at nine? Already possessing the audacity to kill someone. Fortunately, your grandfather later disciplined him, tempering his nature so he didn't go astray. I'm not boasting, but Lou Ge'er is bound to achieve great things sooner or later. As his younger sister, you'll have to rely on him quite a bit."

Now that those troublesome ones outside had grown reckless enough to provoke this Overlord, Lin Dongqi rubbed her temples and inevitably stepped in to smooth things over. She walked out and said, "The younger siblings all know they were wrong and are willing to accept punishment. They won't dare do it again." Then she turned to the younger ones and asked, "Isn't that right?"

Lin Dongxiu quickly took the lead, saying, "Yes, yes, we know we were wrong, we know we were wrong..." As she spoke, she tugged at Lin Dongling, who reluctantly admitted her fault as well. Lin Jinting hung his head without saying a word.

Thank you to yu21yu21 for two Peace Talismans, and to the annals of five thousand years for the Peace Talisman. Also, thank you to everyone for the pink votes ^_^